Sai Wave Sweeps Chennai

SAI WAVE SWEEPS CHENNAI

Bhagawan Sri Sathya saibaba visited Chennai in Jan 2007, 10 years after his last visit in 1997.

The occasion could not have been grander. A 11 day Athi Rudra maha yagnam was performed at Thiruvanmiyur suburb of Chennai and a felicitation was held to honour Him for funding a Rs 200 Cr. massive Water supply rehabilitation works of the erstwhile Telugu Ganga Project which were in a dilapidated state now rechristened as ‘Sai ganga’, from AP reservoirs of River Krishna to the Chennai’s Poondi reservoir.

This project which was completed successfully in a record 16 month duration by L&T ECC contracted by Sathya sai Trust providing with RCC-Lined canals and up-gradation of pumping and piping facilities across the two states. Chennai, they say, now can be rest assured of regular water supply which once had became the bugbear of this City.

The occasion marked a new departure for the atheist, Brahmin bashing CM, Karunanidhi who had to chair the occasion in the Stadium along with a galaxy of Ministers and Governors including those of Karnataka, AP and Maharashtra. Baba had just the other day visited Karunanidhi at his home although it is usually the other way round where Baba is concerned, once and for all putting aside any talk of ego- clash showing He is a selfless crusader of Social upliftment and spirituality. Karunanidhi in his speech equated Baba to God despite defending that although he himself ‘may not believe in God,’ we should work in a way so that ‘God likes us’…

Coming from a die-hard atheist, this public proclamation was a small miracle in itself.

The 11 day Athi Rudra maha yagnam was conducted in a magnificent way in a massive 10 acre grounds with a beautiful and spacious mandapam with all basic facilities for the visiting thousands. And Visit they did, crowding both Morning and afternoon sessions in numbers that on one day touched even 60,000.

The days were marked with 121 Purohits chosen and specially trained to recite Rudram and chamakam continuously for 11 rounds for 11 days doing the chanting which was both elevating and enthralling. They performed a grand Homam daily in 11 Homa kundams . The rhythmic and reverberating Vedic sounds rent the air and a wave of spirituality and contentment was evident on the faces of faithfuls who had thronged there for this occasion, said to be only the second one in the known Indian history after the Aug 2006’s Puttaparthi one.

Several Artistes performed at the venue in the daily evening Musical programmes viz., Mandolin U Shrinivas, Umayalapuram Sivaraman, Vani jayaram, Ustad Rashid Khan, Malaysia Vasudevan and students of Sathya sai Educational institutions.

Of Course the renowned Sundaram Bhajan group was there as well to sing some soulful and melodious Bhajan Numbers.

For pictures of the yagnam please visit the link below:

http://www.sssbpt.org/Pages/Prasanthi_Nilayam/chennai_Photo.html

The whole area looked just like Puttaparthi or Whitefield campus with several shops selling Books, calendars, Cassettes and CDs and other spiritual wares, sprung up all along the 1 Km long spacious tree lined South avenue leading up to the Entrance Gate.

Several banners have been put up by Banks and Industries all over the City welcoming Baba and wishing the function success. Nearly 4,000 volunteers from all over TN worked tirelessly for 11 days behind the scenes for making this occasion a memorable one. Devotees came not just from TN but also from neighboring states and even abroad.

There was one positive development as a gesture from the grateful Chennaiites, this time from the Medical fraternity which came forward to announce that 62 Hospitals in Chennai will be providing One Bed free of charge and picking up the bill for the patients throughout the year whether it is simple treatment or a complicated surgery free of charge. Baba blessed the Leader of this Fraternity and provided one medical Kit free which included a stethoscope and accessories to each of those doctors who had come forward for this service.

The one facility which made everyone raise their eyebrows in astonishment was what looked like a make shift Canteen put up separately for Gents and Ladies near the venue that served the hungry thousands daily with rates of just Rs 2 per coupon for fares that included sumptuous and tasty Kichadi, Pongals and hot beverages. Even those who had not come to attend the Yagnam (entrance to which of course was for free), also made a point to partake this affordable delicious food on their way to work daily.

It was a Sai wave in Chennai and verily in TN itself where Baba’s benevolence and magnanimity shined through like nothing else could.

I hope you all enjoyed reading this post as much as I did in attending to this spiritual mela with my family in attendance.