June 20, 2022
by Linda Abrol, Netherlands
‘We booked tickets to Skanda Vale and got a room even though everything was said to be full!’ Sita is clearly touched when she shares the good news with me. For it was in Skanda Vale that she married Nico, during the time when Swami Subramanian was alive, more than 45 years ago. It was the most beautiful time of their lives. They preferred to live there permanently.
I had not made a decision to go to the UK until then because the excitement of Mohanji’s stay in the Netherlands (early June 2022) a week prior to this call was still tangible in my cells, and I was integrating all experiences. But there were only a few days left, and I really had to decide now before everything was full and sold out. Still, I was relaxed because if Mohanji wanted me to come, it would work out anyway.
Skanda Vale had a certain attraction for me. Why? I did not know. I had never even seen a picture of the ashram or Guru Subramanian, the inspirator and initiator. But the sound in Sita’s voice when she told of her desire to visit Skanda Vale again and the prospect of a week in divine and natural surroundings sounded very attractive to me. It felt special and familiar at the same time. And when I heard that they would most probably be on the same plane as Mohanji, who would also go to Skanda Vale, I was convinced.
For over thirty years, with countless blessings from my beloved Masters, it had never happened that I had been on a plane with my Guru. Only a few small problems to tackle:
- A plane that was full.
- No place to sleep.
- A ticket sale that could come to a close at any moment.
I decided to call Selma – who was very familiar with Skanda Vale – to ask if she would know of a place to sleep somewhere near the ashram since there were no more available rooms in the ashram. Selma liked the prospect of us coming so much that she immediately offered that she and Peter would sleep in the camper and I could sleep in Peter’s room. She had even spoken to him about the possibility beforehand!
‘And you should book the June 24 event soon because Vijay is about to close ticket sales as we speak this afternoon. He’s just waiting for you! I will then bring you a comforter, pillowcase, towels, thick woollen cardigan, and anything else you might need. It’s a very small wooden shack with no bathroom or toilet, though. Do you mind?’ No, of course not! I had no expectations, so everything was a bonus.
How could it be that she had already talked to Peter about the possibility of my coming, and how could it be that Vijay was waiting for my ticket request? And how could it be that Selma and Peter were willing to squeeze themselves into a camper with three children to grant me a room at the ashram and that she was also willing to arrange bedding, towels and clothing for me? If this wasn’t a higher plan?
The cold was a bit worrisome because just two weeks before, I had received the diagnosis ‘cold agglutination’ from the haematologist, a fairly rare condition that belongs to the autoimmune varieties. The blood attacks itself when it gets cold. It will then start to clot, and red blood cells get destroyed. But with all the help Selma so spontaneously offered, it could only work out well, right? It was too surprising for words.
Within the record time of half an hour, I had a room, a ticket for the event at the end of the week in London, about the last plane ticket to Manchester, and an extra night’s accommodation on the night before the event. And someone was showing so much care for even the smallest details of my comfort! Being able to book such a complicated trip so quickly and surprisingly felt like a warm welcome and divine grace.
My husband took us all to the airport on June 20. There were huge crowds at Schiphol Airport due to major staff shortages and long lines blocking the counters. Due to physical problems, Sita had booked airport assistance for Nico, so we sailed with the help of a friendly assistant along each row and were at the right gate in no time.
Loes, Sita’s girlfriend, apprised us every few minutes of the whereabouts of Mohanji’s plane from Belgrade, which she followed via a sky scanner app on her phone. But their plane turned out to be delayed, and with our simple calculation, it didn’t seem possible that they were going to catch the plane to Manchester. I prayed quickly, and then Loes reported that our plane was also delayed. That would solve the problem, I thought gratefully, because once in my life, taking off with my Guru, even if only in kilometres instead of energy frequency, felt like an unexpected blessing I had never had the chance to experience before.
One often reads in books on Sathya Sai Baba about people ending up in the skies with him, and somewhere deep inside, it must have settled in me as an unconscious wish. And my experience is that the Guru makes every wish come true even if you don’t know you have it. For years I have been trying to be without expectations towards the Guru. My way of dealing with desires was: I noticed them. If it was a good desire, I would picture the outcome, feel the happiness of it and let it go. And it has produced the most wonderful experiences.
I even thought that my Guru Swami Gopal Baba, who passed away in 2020, had already fulfilled all my unconscious and conscious desires that a devotee can have. He was masterful at that, with divine timing and precision.
At one point, we heard that we would probably leave at the scheduled time after all, to the relief of many and the sadness of us. Mohanji’s plane had yet to land, and to get out and arrive at the right terminal and gate on time would be a witch’s errand. Would he start running if he had to? Sita got antsy and started walking up and down the hall looking for Mohanji and the team.
When she came back, I burst out, “Look! Behind you!” I threw everything off – including my bag with all my important papers, passport and cards that I always guarded like a guard dog when travelling – and flew up to greet Mohanji. His arms were immediately wide open, and his smile radiant. What a welcome! And they had made it! Miraculous. When I commented on it, Mohanji said, “I ran.” With which he immediately answered my unspoken question.
He gave me a second warm hug. What had I done to deserve that? No idea. And why should I wonder? His love has no limits. Because I was so absorbed in his presence, I accidentally went through boarding with him while my section was still far from being called. On board, it felt like the entire plane was sparkling with Mohanji’s energy.
Even though, of course, I saw nothing of him during the trip. I didn’t even want to read my brought book. Just enjoying the energy because when do you experience something like this? ‘Live like it’s your last day’ became very tangible. At Manchester airport, I lost Sita and Nico. Since they were in front of me on the plane, I assumed they were already at the baggage claim and quickly walked over. No Sita and Nico but Mohanji, who was waiting for his bags.
Meanwhile, he was fumbling with the Wi-Fi connection, which wasn’t working, and he said it was probably because he didn’t like all that messaging but had to; otherwise others would complain that he wasn’t answering. I mentioned that I had lost Sita and Nico, and as the suitcases began to roll onto the conveyor belt, I wondered aloud which ones were theirs again. Without a moment’s thought, Mohanji looked up from his cell phone for a moment and, pointing to a burgundy suitcase, he said casually, “I think this one,” and continued searching for a Wi-Fi connection.
To my utter surprise, when I turned the suitcase, I saw that it was indeed the one. Sita had tied a red ribbon to the handle. I smiled warmly and said, “That’s what happens when one travels with divinity.” We both laughed. Sita, who had just arrived, asked why we were laughing, and I explained to her. Mohanji simply added, “I see those things,” – so ‘matter-of-factly’ that you would think it was nothing special.
Masters at airports have something very special. Years ago, when we waved goodbye to Swami Gopal Baba at Schiphol Airport, the clasp of my backpack was tangled in my hair, and my mother tried to undo it gently. It was a hassle. Swami suddenly watched the spectacle with a laser look, and the clasp came loose.
A seemingly useless miracle but with great meaning. It probably helped me detach from my identification with the personality, whose clues were all in the bag, such as ID, bank cards, etc. What would this suitcase miracle mean except the proof that Mohanji is hugely involved, even in the smallest details, despite knowing and leading thousands of people. A ‘superhero’, Ana Divac (Guru Leela volume 3) would say.
At the Luton Airport, Mohanji was lovingly welcomed by Vijay, Subhasree and others. Pictures could not be taken since Tea’s suitcase with her camera equipment was missing. In the parking lot, I heard Mohanji say that we should go somewhere for lunch. Because he felt the gnawing hunger of all the people, and he could not stand it. He doesn’t think about himself. He feels what others feel and reacts.
We stopped at a Mexican restaurant after a short drive along the way. Not only flying with my Guru but also driving together (not in the same car, as we were sitting with Rahul) and eating together on the road were unconscious wishes that I thought I had let go of for a long time. Seeing those wishes fulfilled made my heart sing.
At the restaurant, we were all seated at a table. And I realised that this was the second time I ate together with Mohanji at the table. Just like a few months ago in London after the BE YOU event in April. That was enough for me to consider the whole trip a loving sequence of unexpected, beautiful moments. Were they in my stars, or had they ended up there spontaneously by ‘fresh’ Mohanji’s grace?
Mohanji was seated opposite Vijay, the president of Mohanji Foundation UK, and showed him his hand with a beautiful ring with nine stones. An amazing story followed, which turned out to be really significant. For the world ánd for Mohanji. And a little bit for me, for it turned out to be the answer to my prayer, which I will describe later.
During an interview, Sathya Sai Baba materialized a diamond ring for Dirk van de Wijngaard (different from this ring). But Dirk was not interested in the ring. What was the value of a ring when the Divine Maker, who was infinitely more important to him, was sitting right in front of him? When he found out that the ring was incredibly valuable in terms of money, he cried all night. Not out of happiness but out of sheer pain. He didn’t want gold or diamonds. He wanted only God!
Please read the beautiful and authentic testimonial of Biljana and Dirk about the miraculous way the diamond ring turned into a nine-stone Protection Ring that ended up on Mohanji’s finger. Dirk, in his characteristic, childlike innocence and modesty, had expressed his sincere desire to remain anonymous as the giver of the ring to Mohanji. But he had not taken into account that Mohanji had different plans. I am getting the feeling that the anonymity thing didn’t work out very well after Mohanji himself told about the divine gift to different people. Then Dirk surrendered to Mohanji’s will and shared the amazing ‘Protection-Ring story’ with the world:
Click here to read the testimonial about the protection ring.
Let’s look at the amazing significance of this Protection-Ring-event! In Miraculous Days with Mohanji, the book of Rajesh Kamath that every devotee should read and that I am translating at the moment, I have just read: He (Tyagananda) took out a long rudraksha mala (a string of prayer beads) and put it around Mohanji’s neck. He then narrated the story of the mala and the reason for his advent. This mala was worn by his Guru’s Guru, Swami Poornananda. He said that Swami Poornananda had done hundreds of millions of chants on this very mala. Swami Poornananda attained mahasamadhi on April 6, 2000.
Before this event, he handed over the mala to Tyagananda and said, “One day, you will meet a powerful Master. Give this mala to him.” Tyagananda asked, “How will I recognise him?” Swami Poornananda replied, “His third eye will be like a blazing sun. You won’t fail to recognise him.” When he left Hyderabad, Tyagananda had doubts about Mohanji – whether Mohanji was a real Guru and whether Mohanji was the person to receive the mala. But now that he had met Mohanji, he was convinced that he had to come here to accomplish the task of handing over the mala entrusted to him by his Guru’s Guru fourteen years ago.
Let’s just look at the similarities! A great Master (Swami Poornananda) recognised Mohanji’s divine and omnipotent nature and stature through a gift through his disciple (Tyagananda), many years after his mahasamadhi.
And here we are; Sri Sathya Sai Baba, a Divine Master and avatar, left a gift for Mohanji to be given to him by a disciple who recognised him. And that too, many years after his mahasamadhi. And like Tyagananda, Dirk had strong doubts about Mohanji at first. Doubts that evaporated after meeting Mohanji in person.
Imagine this seemingly small event’s significance for many Sai devotees! As a Sai devotee, it might have felt like a valuable reassurance from Sai on the authenticity of Mohanji’s divine stature if I hadn’t already fallen in love with Mohanji completely and wholeheartedly!
|| JAI BRAHMARISHI MOHANJI ||
Edited & Published by – Testimonials Team, 4th August 2022
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