79th Birthday
Celebrations of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba: November 18th -
23rd
The Avatar
descends for the ascent of man. In a myriad ways, by His
teachings, by His leelas
(miraculous acts) and by His example, He gives man a taste of
the bliss that is Divine Love, and a glimpse of his own glorious
Reality. As Bhagawan says, the Avatar behaves in a human way so
that mankind can feel kinship with Him, but rises to His
superhuman heights so that mankind too can aspire to reach those
heights. And Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba has been tirelessly
engaged in this very task for the past eight decades, applying
the soothing balm of His Love to alleviate human suffering and
leading man on the royal path to the Kingdom Of God. The 23rd of
November, when we celebrate the anniversary of the descent of
our Lord Sai amongst us, is an opportunity for mankind to pay
homage to this embodiment of selfless love. This year, the
birthday celebrations at Prasanthi Nilayam were held from
November 18th to November 23rd.
18th
November: Rathotsavam
The Rathotsavam
(Chariot Festival) at Prasanthi Nilayam is a tradition that goes
back five decades to the early 1950's. On this day, the students
of Bhagawan, chanting Vedic incantations and singing Bhajans,
lead a procession with the idol of Lord Krishna on a
rath (chariot) and the idols of
Lord Rama, Lakshmana and Mother Sita on a palanquin, to the Old
Mandir or what is now the Kalyana Mantapam, in the village of
Puttaparthi. After worship is offered to the deities, the idols
of Rama, Lakshmana and Sita return to the Mandir. Later, in the
evening, the idols are taken out in a procession in the village
of Puttaparthi, amidst joyous celebration by the villagers.
19th
November: Ladies Day
The 10th Ladies
Day celebrations commenced on the morning of 19th November with
Bhagawan lighting a lamp in front of the portrait of Mother
Eswaramma. A plaque was then unveiled by Bhagawan, inaugurating
the Eswaramma Women's Welfare Project.
Dr. (Mrs.) Geeta
Reddy, the Minister of Tourism & Sugar of the Government of
Andhra Pradesh, was then invited to speak to the gathering. She
began by expressing her gratitude on behalf of the State
Government, for the Chennai Water Supply Project undertaken by
Bhagawan, which has benefited the farmers of Nellore and
Chittoor districts of Andhra Pradesh, and hailed Bhagawan as the
champion of the poor. She also paid tribute to Bhagawan for
championing the cause of women and recalled that it was Bhagawan
who had first started a college for women in the economically
backward district of Anantapur way back in 1972. She exhorted
everyone to follow Bhagawan's teachings so that we can make His
Life, our message.
This was followed
by a talk by Dr. Helen, a cardiologist by profession, who
regularly heads relief teams to people in distress all over the
world. She related her astonishing experiences in Bosnia, Iraq
and Sudan, where she felt Bhagawan's hand protecting her and
aiding her. In Bosnia, Dr. Helen had been
distributing food and relief
material and also photos of Bhagawan to the war refugees. She
noticed that some of them were holding the photos and discussing
something among themselves. Through an interpreter she came to
know that they were saying that the man in the photo had been
coming to them to comfort them and had even been providing them
with food! She expressed her amazement that Bhagawan who stayed
thousands of miles away in India had appeared to those refugees
in Bosnia and spoken to them. She concluded her talk with the
message that it is the duty of the youth of India to stay on and
serve their motherland and resist the lures of the materialistic
West.
Morning of 19th November: Students
of the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School presenting a dance
programme
After the talks,
there was a dance programme by the students of the Sri Sathya
Sai School, Prasanthi Nilayam based on Bhagawan's life story.
This was followed by a violin recital by sisters Lalita &
Nandini who enthralled the audience with their rendition of the
compositions of Saint Thyagaraja and Saint Purandaradasa, as
well as Sai Bhajans. At the end of the morning programme,
Bhagawan presented the artistes and the participants of the
dance programme with sarees and posed for photographs with them.
Morning of 19th November: The
students with Bhagawan after the dance programme
The evening
programme at the Sai Kulwant Hall featured a music programme by
the members of the Sai Youth Organisation of United Kingdom.
This was followed by a concert by one of India's leading
singers, Smt. Anuradha Paudwal, accompanied by her son, Shri
Aditya. She sang many popular devotional songs and compositions
by Tulsidas and Mirabai, and Sai Bhajans too. The mellifluous
voice of Smt. Paudwal had the gathering spellbound for the good
part of an hour.
This was followed
by a dance ballet by students of the Shri Rama Nataka Niketan,
Secunderabad. The little children gave a wonderful display of
their immense talent by performing such difficult routines as
dancing with their feet wedged on plates and with lamps balanced
on their heads. The audience greeted this programme with
sustained ovation and Bhagawan too appreciated their performance
and presented the participants with mementos. After accepting
arati Bhagawan retired to His
residence.
Evening of 19th November: Students
of the Shri Rama Nataka Niketan, Secunderabad presenting a dance
programme
20th &
21st November
The evening of
20th November saw the students of the Sri Sathya Sai Loka Seva
educational institution, Alike present a Yakshagana, a form of
dance ballet popular in the state of Karnataka. The students
depicted various episodes from the Ramayana culminating in the
final vanquishment of the demon king Ravana.
On the evening of
21st November, Dr. Phil Heaton, the National Chairman of the Sri
Sathya Sai Seva Organization (United Kingdom) spoke about the
five-day village service camp organized by 160 members of the
Sai Youth Organization (United Kingdom) in four villages near
Puttaparthi which benefited about 2300 villagers. Apart from
organizing a medical camp in these villages, they also undertook
community work such as renovation of temples, poor feeding and
health education progammes. The camp was wholly self-financed
with the money saved by the youth over the past nine months
through the 'Ceiling on Desires' programme. One of the youth
members, Mr. Alexander Gifford, then spoke about the
transformation that Bhagawan had wrought in Him ever since he
had first heard of Him. His words, spoken straight from the
heart, touched everyone gathered in the hall and were quite
inspiring.
This was followed
by two music concerts, first by a group from Brazil and then by
Pandit Sri Narasimha who played a number of devotional songs in
both Hindustani and Carnatic styles, on the clarinet. Bhagawan
blessed the musicians and accepted arati
before retiring to His Poornachandra residence.
22nd
November: XXIII Convocation of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of
Higher Learning
The programme
commenced at 2.45 p.m. with the ceremonial procession of the
Academic Council of the university, with Bhagawan, the
Chancellor of the
university at the head, led by the Institute Brass Band. After
Bhagawan inaugurated the convocation, gold medals and citations
were presented by Bhagawan to the students who had graduated
with distinction in their subjects. The Chief Guest Shri
Maharaja Krishna Rasagothra, former Foreign Secretary to the
Government of India and former Indian High Commissioner to
United Kingdom, addressed the graduates. He opened his talk by
declaring that Bhagawan's university is one of its kind, there
is none like it in India or anywhere in the world. Nor is there
any teacher, mentor and guide like Bhagawan. He congratulated
the graduates and gave them a short commentary on the political
and economic environment of the world into which they will be
stepping after they leave the portals of the university. He
exhorted them to be the catalysts of change to transform the
world and thus be worthy of their Master, Bhagawan Sri Sathya
Sai Baba.
Evening of 22nd November:
Ceremonial procession of the Academic Council of the University
The Revered
Chancellor, Bhagawan, in His benedictory address, said that God
can be realised only by the path of Love, for Love is God and
God is love. The transcendental Love that is not limited by name
or form, that is Divinity, Bhagawan said. He emphasised the
value of silence, both verbal and mental, for it is in the
depths of silence that the voice of God can be heard. This
discipline will confer on us the equanimity that will allow us
to see the all-pervading Divinity.
Later that
evening, in the Poornachandra Auditorium, the students of the
university presented a drama entitled, 'Chalo Re Man Apne Dham'
(Oh Mind! Return to your Source!), which conveyed the message
that a life of sacrifice that is spent in service of mankind is
the one that is truly worth living. Bhagawan presented the
participants with mementos and memories to cherish throughout
their lives.
Evening of 22nd November: Bhagawan
blessing the participants of the drama in the Poornachandra
Auditorium
On the morning of
23rd November, Bhagawan arrived in the Sai Kulwant Hall,
bedecked in a shining white robe, and after granting Darshan to
the tens of thousands who
had gathered there, ascended the beautifully decorated dais. He
blessed Dr. Michael Goldstein, Chairman of the Prasanthi
Council, to address the assembly. He was followed by Dr. G.
Venkataraman, former Vice-Chancellor of the Sri Sathya Sai
Institute of Higher Learning, who praised the system of
education adopted in Bhagawan's educational institutions which
stresses the all round development of the student's personality
and lays special emphasis on character building.
Morning of 23rd November: Bhagawan
delivering His Divine Discourse
Bhagawan, in His
Divine Discourse, declared that without imbibing human values,
one's learning, wealth and position are all rendered worthless,
for human values are the pillars on which the mansion of life is
built. He said that every man must know the answer to three
questions ? Where has he come from? Where is he now? Where is
headed to? We must realise the true purpose of our life and not
allow ourselves to be swayed by circumstances and swerve from
our chosen path. Bhagawan said that by His own example He is
demonstrating to the world that the body has been given in order
to serve society. He concluded His discourse with the Bhajan, "Hari
Bhajan Bina?"
The programme on
the evening of 23rd November featured a concert by the renowned
Hindustani classical singer, Begum Parveen Sultana. She began
with a Tarana in raag Hamsadhvani.
She then went on to sing a few devotional songs composed by the
musician saint Mirabai such as "Payo ji maine.." and "Mere to
Giridhar Gopal?" and concluded with a Sai bhajan composed by her
husband, Shri Dilshad Khan.
Thus culminated
the 79th birthday celebrations of our beloved Bhagawan. The many
thousands of devotees who had gathered in Prasanthi Nilayam for
the festivities imbibed of the Divine Nectar of His Presence and
Message and filled themselves with the joy and bliss that only
God can give. The memories of these cherished moments with the
Lord shall remain with us forever.
Jai Sai Ram!
Source:
http://srisathyasai.org.in/pages/79th_Birthday_report.htm
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