Letters from India - Part 2

1. Subrahmanyam Idol & Christmas 1988

Request: Send Subrahmanyam!

December 17, 1988

Prasanthi Nilayam

Dear Mom etc.,

Sai Ram! I have a very urgent matter so I'm writing again.

You see, on December 14th it was Subrahmanyam’s special worship day. He made it extremely miserable for me and after thinking, I’ve discovered why. See, I left Him behind when I came to India (the Subrahmanyam silver idol in my bedroom). I told Him that once I settled, I’d bring Him. He wasn’t very happy at all with being left. But I had a cold heart and in the name of having less luggage, I left Him.

So now, I urgently better have Him sent here immediately, before His Birthday in mid-February. I don’t know what He’ll do if I leave Him on His B-day. So please, please try to find someone who would be willing to bring Him.

I know there’s two – one silver Subrahmanyam and one wooden. Better send them both or there may be disastrous consequences – who knows what the other one may do.

Just wrap them nicely in a piece of cloth, please - it won't be too much room. Explain to them that I’ve asked them to be sent to me, that they’ll be wrapped up for a few days to travel, then I’ll receive them properly here.

All is fine – I'm doing songs for Xmas play (about 20 of us, we’ll sit in front), many practices all day.

Sai gave orders that all are to stay for Xmas!

Love,

Divya

(Note in 2012: Rohani was immersed in doing pujas and when she heard I kept a Subrahmanyam idol back in USA - which was her favorite god - she convinced me that I'll only get really good luck if I get him back again!)

__________________

Doing Christmas Play Music

December 26, 1988

Prasanthi Nilayam

Sai Ram!

I got a strange, unexplainable urge to join in the Xmas program this year – why, I know not. From December 11th till 25th, days were filled with countless hours of practice. I was in the play-music (songs accompanying the play), so you can imagine how we all had to first compose the songs, then practice, then fit into the play, then change! Rama! Hectic days with much wasted time, it seemed to me! Words, words, words – all useless if it is without action; is this how people in the world are???!!!

Anyway, Grace came also. On Vaikunta Ekadasi (December 19th this year) they say the doors of heaven are open and whoever dies on this day, gets Heaven. Swami gave me front row and namaskar! I guess it was a consolation prize - not moksha yet! Also, I wasn’t ready for yet another front row with Him walking far (boo hoo!). I said, if He doesn’t come close then it means I'm doing something wrong. So, I planned that if He went far, I’d start urgent prayers to find out what I'm doing wrong, why He’s rejecting me thus. So He gave - I guess all is alright! :-)

Venkamma has been fine. One day, two foreigners (Italian mother & daughter) went to Venkamma, with me as translator. Venkamma took quite a liking to them, she told stories and sang for 1½ hour! She told baby Sai story – how He was thin and sickly because no milk was available. One day a lawyer-friend of their grandfather came and was worried for little Sathya. He gave one tin of condensed milk, and left them to discover how to use it! One day they mixed it too watery, next day too thick – but how Sathya drank it up! Venkamma also told a surprising thing – that mother Eashwaramma didn’t have breast milk for any of the children! Not even Sai. Venkamma reminisced how sometimes they’d get goat’s milk or buffalo’s milk, or they wouldn’t have anything at all. She told how Sathya would do many tricks when He was very small – like chewing and swallowing food, then making it appear whole again in His mouth! Venkamma said they didn’t think twice about it, they just thought it was a child’s trick.

She also remembered the times Sai dressed as a lady, in sari and ornaments, and tricked people into believing He was actually a girl!

Venkamma also sang songs, Telugu ones. You can imagine what an experience full of Bliss it was! I must thank the foreigners for prompting Venkamma like that! The whole time she was sitting on the floor with us, touching our hands, talking on excitedly in Telugu which I had to translate immediately into English. Due to Sai’s Grace alone, I could understand 95% of what she said, and could translate it all without delay.

Meanwhile, after a mere ten days in the room, again the shed was opened and we were placed there. Actually it was Sai’s Grace because my two roommates were fighting - they even stopped speaking to each other but both were too stubborn to leave the room! One thought the other was like a barn-house animal; the other thought the first was a stuck-up English lady! Imagine! So I settled in the shed again. Doesn’t matter.

The weather has been quite cold, cold – but I’m loaded with blankets and shawls thanks to Barb and SH, so I haven’t been cold in the mornings or at night.

Anyway, I became extremely overworked, not eating right, not getting enough sleep (afternoons and nights filled with practice!). I got very weak, dizzy and feeling sick sometimes. I was also in a special group to chant Vedas in a part with Eashwaramma doing puja (children acted and we were the voices, songs, sound effects). Venkamma helped me through it – and even Sai did! Yes, on Xmas eve when we sang carols in the compound (for evening bhajans), Sai gave me front row and a very, very long, nice namaskar! I was strengthened. :-) Afterwards, all Indians and even foreigner friends, came up to me, patting me and said how I was the only one He came close to, how He came straight to me and gave such a nice namaskar! He knew how much I’d been suffering.

Xmas morning was nice, with songs & bhajans. I also got front row then! In the evening, I was thrilled to sit in 2nd row in the Poornachandra!! Sai came nicely down – we had His Darshan from 4 -6 PM, while others spoke and He gave His Divine Discourse. Such precious Darshan!

Then the play. The first part (Jesus) was nicely polished and went off well. The second part was unfortunately not so polished – the bhajans were not sung right (some singing lines twice, some singing them once, etc.). But the subject matter was young Sai, so it went off well - all laughed hysterically at it! Even Parvatamma and Venkamma both laughed the whole time! Sai as baby, Sai as young boy, all loved it. The actors were also perfect for the parts.

Now I look forward to somehow recovering! I can sleep but how to overcome the overworked feeling??!

Holy Xmas – happy Joyful New Year!

Love,

Divya