09 Jul 2022
[By Dr. Nikhil. K]
July 9, 2022 was a Saturday and a working day for me. I had planned to take leave that day for some personal work. However, an online examination was scheduled at 11:00 am that day and I was supposed to set up, publish, and monitor the exam. It was not an issue since, being an online examination, I could easily publish and monitor it from home. I had already completed the settings for the examination the previous day. However, I had not published it. My plan was to publish it just before the 11:00 am on Saturday so as to minimize the chance of it getting hacked. The next day, I woke up with some thoughts about some concepts in spiritual knowledge. I was in deep thought the whole morning. I was making some notes with the intention of calling Swamiji and seeking His clarifications on the topic. Being engrossed in these thoughts, the examination that I was supposed to conduct completely slipped out of my mind. By around 10:45 am, I finally completed my notes and called Swamiji. Swamiji answered the call in His usual melodious voice that fills the heart with bliss. I stated that I would like to discuss about those points in His divine knowledge that I had noted down and asked Him if it was convenient to discuss at that time. Swamiji replied that He was dictating the divine knowledge to a devotee at that time and so, it would be better if I called later. I said that I would call later and Swamiji ended the call. Within seconds of ending that call, I received a call from a colleague of mine, asking me something about the examination that I was supposed to conduct. With a thump, I landed from the heavens of Swamiji’s divine spiritual science to the hard ground of materials science. Incidentally, during the day I am a professor of chemical engineering and materials science in the university. By evening, of course, I become a student of divine spiritual science and divine devotion chemistry under Swamiji.
When my colleague’s call brought me crashing down to reality, I sprang into action and quickly managed to publish the examination by 10:54 am—a good six minutes before the official start time of the examination! I was also able to monitor the examination properly. In fact, there were some system errors that cropped up that day and I had to troubleshoot them. Had Swamiji not asked me to call Him later that day and reminded me about the examination through my colleague, it would have been chaos. I would have had to face a barrage of calls from students, colleagues, and the examination office.
Thanks to Swamiji, nothing like that happened. Swamiji protected me from a lot of embarrassment and stress. Not only could I conduct the examination properly, but I also could discuss with Swamiji about the spiritual concepts later that day. This shows how Swamiji, our Sadguru, is constantly protecting all His devotees. From the minutest of problems to the most serious and terrifying ones, His protection is guaranteed. He is the Solidified Ocean of Divine Love for His devotees. I will end with a beautiful verse composed by Swamiji that comes to the mind. It is a verse from the Śrī Dattātreyam:
dattātreye sati sati pitaryasmadīye dayālau,
vātsalyāṃbhonidhighananidhau kā nu cintā kadā'pi?
asminloke parajagati ca proddharedeṣa devo,
brahmānande caratu satataṃ nūtanaṃ jīvanaṃ me॥14॥
When Datta, my kindest Father, who is the ultimate Truth and a solidified ocean of love is with me, why should I ever worry? He is the Lord who protects and uplifts me in this world and in all worlds. So, I should always spend each new life in Godly bliss.
At the Divine Lotus Feet of Shri Datta Swami
Nikhil
★ ★ ★ ★ ★