Draupadi's surrender to the Lord and how He saves her

When Draupadi is being disrobed by Dusshasana, she wailed that no one of her masters rose to save her, though she called upon them and reminded them of their prowess and valour. Just then, the thought of Krishna, the Saviour, flashed like lightning and filled her drooping heart with courage. 

"Oh Shyamsunder!" she cried out, "This is not an insult dealt to me. Nor is it an infamous injury dealt to the Pandavas. It is an insult, an injury, dealt on you. You are our all. We depend on you for everything. Is it then just that you should now tolerate this cruel injury being perpetrated on our honour? We have dedicated our hearts to you. Listen, I
have dedicated myself to you. Perhaps, you are not content with what we have so far offered at your feet. Let your Will prevail." Thus, she surrendered fully and unreservedly, to the Lord.

At this, the Guardian of the forlorn, the Saviour of those who surrender, the Lord, took upon Himself the burden of rescuing her from distress. He moved in silent and unseen, and blessed her, unnoticed. And wonder of wonders, the sari which the human ogres were attempting to remove in order to disgrace her was rendered endless. Everyone, including the tormentors, were stunned at the demonstration of Krishna's Grace and Draupadi's devotion. Good men and wise realised that Sathya and Dharma can never come to harm. The tears of joy that rolled from their eyes gave proof of the exaltation they experienced. The wicked Dussasana fell down, exhausted and humiliated. Draupadi did not suffer the least dishonour. All the dishonour fell to the lot of the Kauravas, and the Pandavas were unaffected.

Can God permit the just and moral Pandavas to suffer humiliation? The harm that the Kauravas planned to inflict on the Pandavas recoiled on them only. This was the direct
consequence of the Grace that Lord Krishna showered on your (Parikshit's) grandfathers and grandmother and of the devotion and faith they had reposed on Lord Krishna.

Intending to declare to the world the intense devotion of the Pandavas and its efficacy, and also to hold them up as examples for the Kali Age that was to come, the Lord contrived this thrilling drama. There is nothing more in this than that purpose of the Lord. You may be subjected to calumny, insult and dishonour; you may be plunged into poverty or pain; but the person who has surrendered to the Will of God will welcome each of these gladly and bear it with equanimity. The Lord will never give up His children.

Those devoted to God have to be patient and calm, under the most poignant provocation. The fact is, the pious and the God-fearing are those who are visited by travails and
troubles: in order to teach mankind these great truths, Krishna enacted this drama, with the Pandavas as the cast. Every incident in their lives is but a scene in His Play.

Source: Bhagawan Baba's Bhagavatha Vahini, http://sssbpt.info/vahinis/Bhagavatha/Bhagavatha19.pdf

Swami says 'I'm always watching over you'

"Your faith should give you total confidence in Me. You should have implicit confidence that I will look after you. You should have the confidence that My Grace is always with you and that I am always watching over you and protecting you. You should have the confidence that I will never let you down, that I am always beside you, comforting you and carrying you through troubles and hardships. 

Just as you lean against the wall knowing that it will not collapse, lean on Me and depend upon Me entirely. I will then look after you. If you depend upon Me with complete faith and confidence, I shall provide for your welfare and look after all your needs in this world and in the next."

An experience with a photo of Swami

Sometime last year (I don't rem'ber when), I came across an old Sanathana Sarathi magazine in which I saw a lovely picture of Bhagawan in the inside cover page. I took out the page and I stuck this picture on the front door of my cupboard. After this, I got a few more lovely pictures of Bhagawan and also stuck them. 

I used to keep wondering whether I will get a soft copy of this same photo so that I can have it on my computer as the desktop background. Somehow till date I hadn't been able to find it. 

But a few days ago, while navigating through some Sai-related web pages, I stumbled upon the very same photo. Boy! Was I pleasantly surprised! I immediately thanked Swami. The photo is given below. See how sweetly and beautifully like a child Bhagawan is smiling in this photo. I just love it! He is indeed Sai Sundara and Sundara Roopa!

Thank you Swami for this 'beautiful' experience and for showing me yet again your Omniscience!

When will the finish line come?

Swami is putting me through a lot of tests. There is no doubt about that. :)

I feel as though I am navigating through an obstacle course all the time. But somehow by His grace I have learned how to handle various trying situations. 

I really feel I am running some kinda race where the finish line is not yet in sight. Still, something tells me I'm almost there and this is the last lap or something like that. 

I wish Swami would tell me how much longer I need to wait before things start falling in place. But I have to keep the faith and hold on. And all will be well.

I read somewhere that we need to 'walk by faith and not by sight'. I will keep this in mind and hold on for now. :)

Sai inspires mesg for today

Develop faith in yourselves, so that you can stand like a rock braving the rushing waters of the flood of negation. That faith will make you overcome the changing circumstances of the outer world. 

Keep the flame of detachment (vairagya) burning with tiny sticks until it grows into a big bonfire; welcome all chances to develop discrimination (viveka). 

Take the Name of the Lord and repeat it always. Sing to the Lord with faith and enthusiasm. Let the whole environment reverberate with the devotion you put into every Name that you sing. 

The Lord's Name promotes comradeship and establishes concord; it stills all storms and grants peace. Become a blossom, exude the fragrance of seva (selfless service) and prema (love); then you will find a place in the garland that adorns the Lord.

An experience with Lord Muruga

About 10 days ago, I prayed to Lord Muruga and chanted the 'Kanda Sashti Kavasam' (a prayer in Tamil adoring Lord Muruga) in the morning. After lunch I logged onto my computer and somehow got prompted to search on Google with the keywords 'prayer', 'intuition', and 'signs'. In the course of search, I stumbled upon a site and I was simply stunned to see a picture of Lord Muruga there. In fact, it was the 'Vel' in His right hand that made me instantly recognize Him. Here is the link where I saw the picture. 

http://www.purposefairy.com/9081/what-is-the-meaning-of-prayer/

And here is the picture itself.

I felt really happy. But my happiness didn't stop there. I got another sign from Lord Muruga.

This time it was from this link

http://www.skandagurunatha.org/satsang/darshan-satguru-irukkip-piddi.asp



The author talks about some problem for her son and how Lord Muruga helped. I felt this too is a sign because the earlier picture I saw of Lord Muruga today caught my attention mainly because of His Vel. And I felt greatly encouraged on seeing the following words on this page.

"With a calm face Murugan put his right hand on his chest, materialized an object from within and planted it firmly on the ground in front of my son (i.e. in between my son and Murugan). Then Murugan said [in Tamil], "This is what you need. Not the tussels in your palm. You don't need anything else when you hold this Vel firmly." 

He further added [in Tamil],"This [Vel] will do everything. This [Vel] will take care of you. You don't need anything else."
 
 

Giving up is not the answer; nor is giving in

I believe God wants you to know...

...that giving up is not the answer. Neither is giving in.

Stand your ground.

There is a way of doing that without having to be combative.

There is a way of hanging on to your true self, and demonstrating it, without resorting to aggression.

But giving up and giving in is not the way.

Simply and quietly claiming your right to be You is the way.

You know exactly why you received this message today.