CHAPTER IV INTUITIVE PERCEPTION.

His intuitive perception of things and memory were quite phenomenal and at times seemed uncanny.

1. A gentleman saw His Holiness for the first time and prostrated before Him. His Holiness asked “Subrahmanya ?”. “Yes”, replied the gentleman. An onlooker would take it to mean that the name of the gentleman was Subrahmanya and that His Holiness knew him before. It was not so. Subrahmanya was his Upasya Devata, special deity. Is the reading of the deity attributable to any “learning” of His Holiness ?

2. A friend of mine turned up just when His Holiness was distributing Tirtha Prasadam to a large and expectant crowd and wanted me to introduce him to His Holiness. I told him “This is not the proper time. Mix with the crowd and get the Tirtham now. We shall meet His Holiness at leisure at four in the evening”. He was disappointed at my answer but took my advice, mixed with the crowd and in his turn extended his palm to receive the Tirtham.

His Holiness asked him “Andhra ?”. “Yes”, said my friend. “From the village of S — ?” pursued His Holiness. “Yes” said my friend again. “Lawyer?” was the further question of His Holiness “Yes” was again my friend’s reply. “We shall meet at four” was the parting word of His Holiness.

The friend returned to me immediately and with some trepidation asked me, “Is the fact that I am an Andhra and that an Andhra from the village of S—written on my forehead?” I replied, “It must be so as His Holiness has read it”. I may mention that at that time His Holiness had not visited S—village yet. Is such reading the result of any book-learning or any feat of intelligence?

3. One evening His Holiness came away to His quarters on the northern bank of the river Tunga at Sringeri directing me to stay on in a room given to me on the southern side. Next morning I took my bath in the river as usual, finished my ablutions, went round the Adhishthanam of the late Acharya and prostrated before it. Then I came away to the northern bank to pay my respects to His Holiness. As soon as I prostrated at His feet, He observed “The other bank will have been very quiet and peaceful as we also have come away to this side”. To assent to this observation would imply that His Holiness’ presence would have disturbed that peace and quiet. I did not therefore say anything but kept silent. His Holiness went on to say “No, I do not mean that way” [as if I had given an answer] and with a smile added “I only meant to say that, as there was nobody there to hear, you might have recited the Dakshinamurti Stotra aloud when you prostrated at the shrine of the Acharya”. I was naturally taken aback. How did His Holiness know that I prostrated before the Acharya ? It might be a guess as in the usual course I might be expected to do it. But how did His Holiness know that I recited Dakshinamurti Stotra while prostrating and that within myself ?

4. When I asked him once for initiation in the Bhagavad Gita Bhashya, He asked “You had your Siva Panchakshari from our previous Acharya ?”. With some surprise, I said “Yes”. “That was at Tiruchendur, was it not ?” was the further surprising question to which also I answered in the affirmative. “On the day of His Holiness bathing in the sea?” pursued His Holiness. Quite astounded, I said “Yes”. The upadesa by the previous Acharya was fourteen years before the date of this conversation and about three years before His Holiness was called to the Holy Seat —

5. A gentleman who was at Sringeri desired to go to Madras on some urgent business and sought His Holiness’ permission. “Why ?” asked His Holiness. “I have some urgent business at Madras” was the gentleman’s answer. His Holiness hesitated just for a second and then said “Yes, you may go. There is certainly some urgency but not at Madras”. The gentleman left for Madras but on the way when the train was stopping at the Arkonam Junction he got down and accidentally slipped between the train and the platform. Thanks to the prompt help of the people nearby, he was taken out immediately without any injury. He at once realised the significance of His Holiness’ words. He continued his journey to Madras in a reflective mood and returned to Sringeri immediately without attending to any business at Madras. When he paid his respects to His Holiness, he was met by these kind words of His Holiness “I hope you were not much inconvenienced on that morning”.

6. An orthodox Brahmana gentleman once brought with him his Puja casket with a view to give it to His Holiness and receive it back with His blessings. His Holiness took it and opened it, and scanned the several images therein. Then He picked out a Salagrama stone (where it is believed some aspect or other of Maha Vishnu is immanent) and exclaimed “Why, the Lord here has been starved for seven years !”

The disciple was taken aback at this accusation and said “So far as I remember, I have not been remiss in my worship to justify such a charge. If I have unconsciously erred, I am certainly prepared to abide by Your Holiness’ directions.”

His Holiness replied “I am sorry but you have not performed the worship properly. The deity immanent here requires daily Kshira Abhishekam (bathing in milk) and Payasa Nivedanam (offering of milk food) and I note that these have not been done for the past seven years.”

The disciple then said “I now recollect that when my father was alive he used to give the bathing and offering mentioned by Your Holiness. As I had begun my own Puja even during his life time, I added his Puja to mine soon after he died and worshipped all the deities together without making any distinction and they all had the same kind of bathing and offering.”

His Holiness said “Evidently it is now seven years since your father died ?”

“Yes” replied the disciple.

“ You did wrong in putting all the deities together and treating them all alike ” pointed out His Holiness. “This Murti requires special worship and Naivedyam. Please offer them hereafter as I have mentioned.”

This incident may seem strange if not fantastic or false to those who cannot understand the value of image worship but it is full of meaning and instruction to those who believe in the immanence of God in all things in the universe, the immanence being more apparent in some things than in others to the eyes of the Seer.

7. Once when His Holiness was dispensing holy water to the disciples assembled, a young woman who had brought her daughter with her suddenly missed a gold chain put on the neck of the latter and was creating some slight disturbance. Her friends hushed her up and asked her to coolly receive the holy water from His Holiness and then go home to give vent to her grief. She accordingly came before His Holiness and spread out her right palm to receive the holy water but His Holiness signed to her to step aside. This increased her grief and she did not know what to do. His Holiness continued to give holy water to several others and when an old woman spread out her hand to receive it, His Holiness said in a very low tone “ Give it up.”

“ What ?”, cried the woman.

“ What was taken” was the cool reply of His Holiness.

“ I have not taken anything ” she persisted.

“Don’t add to your sins” was the admonition of His Holiness. As soon as this was said, the ladies who were standing near her caught her up and recovered the chain from the folds of her sari and placed it before His Holiness. He then called the other woman before him, gave her the holy water and said “ Take the chain but don’t do hereafter what you are asked not to do.”

She replied in penitent tones “ I have learnt the lesson. I shall obey. I shall obey.”

Later it transpired that her husband was a clerk in some office and had wanted his wife to serve his breakfast before going to His Holiness’ camp for attending the Puja and that for fear of losing the Puja she hastened the preparation of the meals and asked her husband to serve his breakfast himself and came away to attend the Puja. His Holiness evidently pointed out by this incident that true piety was incompatible with a breach of duty.

8. On one occasion a gentleman, a stranger not only to the place but to His Holiness as well, prostrated before him and said “By some strange good fortune I had some business in this town and I have been enabled thereby to pay my respects to Your Holiness. I deem myself very fortunate.”

His Holiness was much impressed by his frankness and said “I am sure God will grant your wishes.”

The gentleman replied “May I take bold to request Your Holiness to favour me with some Upadesa (sacred teaching) which I can treasure ?”

His Holiness immediately looked up and a wave of displeasure passed over his face. He asked the gentleman in somewhat severe tones “Have you heard of the Vedic passage, Revere your mother as a God?”

He answered “Yes, certainly.”

His Holiness continued “Have you heard of the further Vedic passage, Revere your father as a God?”

“Yes, I have” replied the disciple.

His Holiness again went on “Have you heard of the still later passage, Revere your Guru as a God ?”

“I have” he said.

“If you have,” said His Holiness, “ obey the first two injunctions before you come to me. Go !”

This severity hurt the man very sharply and with a trembling frame he fell down before His Holiness and with streaming eyes cried out “I have been trying my best to serve my parents but they are not kind to me.”

His Holiness said “ The injunctions are for you and are not conditional on their being kind to you. You must do your duty whether they are kind or not. You will find in the end that you have won their love. Will you bear this in mind ?”

“ Certainly. And I shall so conduct myself as to justify my approaching you for further guidance.”

I leave the reader to surmise as best as he can and find out how His Holiness pitched upon this particular teaching as the one most fitted and necessary for this gentleman.

9. A gentleman who had retired from service and was leading a fairly pious life went to Sringeri with the idea of getting the gracious permission of His Holiness for taking Sannyasa so that he might spend the rest of his life solely in spiritual pursuits. He mentioned to His Holiness that he had educated all his sons and had all his daughters suitably married and could therefore take Sannyasa without any inconvenience to anybody. His Holiness looked up at him and said. “But you seem to have yet strong filial feeling. You must get over it in time and then think of Sannyasa.” The gentleman bowed his head and submitted to the verdict of His Holiness. It appears that even when he was seeking the permission of His Holiness an almost unconscious undercurrent of thought that his youngest son though educated was still unmarried and not yet provided with a job was running in his mind. His Holiness read it easily.

10. A boy who was serving as a volunteer during the visit of His Holiness the previous Acharya to a town on his way to the Kumbhabhishekam at Kaladi was then too young to approach Him for any initiation but had been imbued with great respect and devotion and ever looked up to Him as a Divine Ideal. About fifteen years after the passing away of His Holiness from mortal vision, he seems to have keenly felt that he had lost an opportunity of having an initiation from Him though he was in constant attendance upon Him. One night he had a glorious dream in which His Holiness appeared before him and graciously initiated him into a mantra. His joy and gratitude knew no bounds. But when he woke up and tried to recollect the dream, he could not in spite of his earnest efforts recall to his mind the exact Mantra that was given to him in the dream. This unfortunate forgetfulness grieved him a great deal. As I happened to be a friend of his, he told me about this. I suggested to him that as His Holiness Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati Swaminah was camping only a few miles off he might meet Him and obtain His blessings in person as an appropriate substitute for the blessings got from His Predecessor in the dream. He accordingly went to His Holiness and detailed to him His dream experience. His Holiness very sympathetically listened and then directed the young man to come again the next morning. When he so went the next morning, His Holiness called him inside His room and gave him an initiation. In the course of the initiation he realised with a pleasant shock that the Mantra that he was now receiving from His Holiness was identical with the one which he got in the dream and could not recollect. He was convinced that, though the embodiments of the two Acharyas were different, they were really identical in spirit. There have been many other instances where this identity was patently percivable. It will have been noted that His Holiness came to the seat only after His Predecessor had passed away and had no opportunities of knowing what all happened during the several tours of the latter to various parts of the country or even during His stay at Sringeri itself with reference to the innumerable persons who would have visited Him. His Holiness however would sometimes recount graphically very many incidents connected with the previous Acharyas as if He were an eye witness to them. Even if we are not prepared to grant the identity of spirit between them, we must certainly grant that He had the power of intuition to vividly look into the past and into the future and beyond the ordinary ken of others.

11. His Holiness was once requested by the disciples in a particular village in the Tirunelveli District to visit the Siva temple in their village and particularly requested Him to have the visit before sunset. His Holiness agreed and as the village was somewhat distant from His camp He went there have no fear”. It was then that the villagers said. “There had been a rumour that a Brahma-Rakshas spirit was in the temple from a long time past and that is why we requested Your Holiness to come before sunset so that there might not be any trouble by it. We now see that thanks to Your Holiness’ blessings it has left the temple and has run away down the street. It has struck down an unfortunate man who happened to come in its way.” His Holiness repeated the assurance that they need not fear any more, blessed the villagers and returned to His camp. It will be noted that His Holiness did not say that He had the mantrakshata brought only for that purpose nor that He drove away the spirit. Therein lay His genuine greatness.

12. In another small village there was a temple wherein Siva was facing the east and Ambika the south. Late one night His Holiness was taken there. After worshipping the Lord, He entered the enclosure in front of the Goddess and did not go into the Garbhagriha but remarked “There is some obstruction to vision.” The people there thought that the light there was not sufficient and went near the lamps. His Holiness said “Not to me. To the Goddess.” They could not grasp His meaning and blankly looked up at Him. He explained “It is usual to have a hole even in the external wall of the temple just in the path of the Goddess’ vision. Is there no such opening in this temple or has it been blocked ?” It transpired that there was such an opening but had been filled up by mud by children playing nearby. He had the obstruction immediately removed and then worshipped the Goddess.

13. A rich and ardent devotee of His Holiness once went to Sringeri with his wife and children in his own car and stayed there for a few days and then sought the permission of His Holiness to return home.

D: I think of starting from here to-morrow. May I ?

H. H.: To-morrow ? What is the urgency ?

D. I have received an urgent call from my place to attend to some important affairs there.

H H. (after a moment’s reflection). Your going from here seems to be imperative but not required by any business at home.

D.: My business is in my village itself.

H. H.: Anyhow you may start. Everything will end well. Don’t be anxious.

He started the next day with all the members of his family and when his car was nearing Mysore it dashed against a tree and crashed. All of them were injured except a baby which miraculously escaped any injury. They had to be in-patients in the Mysore Hospital for some weeks before they could return home. They felt keenly that but for the blessings of His Holiness the accident would have been more serious and fatal.

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