“We concluded that she was never ever going to mate with any elephant and sent a message to Swami conveying Sai Geetha’s frame of mind. We were delighted when we received instructions that we could return to Puttaparthi.”But the story does not end there. In fact, the divine drama begins now. After Sai Geetha returned to Puttaparthi, again at the insistence of elders, a veterinary doctor was called. Upon testing the urine of Sai Geetha, he pronounced, “She is pregnant.” Sathyanarayana and Vasant were sure beyond doubt that no crossing took place in the forest, but nobody believed them. Even Swami, apparently, held to what the doctor said. The news that Sai Geetha is going to deliver a baby spread like wild fire in Puttaparthi. The doctor who had come from Kerala stayed with her in the shed to attend to any eventuality and after a few days even declared, “Sai Geetha is going to deliver in a few weeks.”

In no time, a fence rose around her living area to give her ‘needed privacy’ and everyone was now more than convinced that Sai Geetha was going to be a mother. Not only this, even Swami used to visit her often and enquire about her with the doctor. On one occasion, it is said He even pointed to Sai Geetha’s belly and said to Prof. Kasturi, “Kasturi, can you see the baby moving in her stomach?”

The d-day was approaching and the doctor finally announced that she would deliver in the next week. The much-awaited week arrived. The air was thick in anticipation, and everyone awaited the good news with bated breath and enthusiasm. One, two, three…slowly all the week days rolled by, but there was no activity in the Sai Geetha shed. People’s suspicions grew and the whole bubble brust when a month later, the doctor did a complete u-turn to say, “She is not pregnant.” What was Swami’s immediate reaction to this news we do not know, but we are sure He must have smiled heartily and mischievously. Now, the whole drama was an alluring mix of comedy and mystery, was it not? But one wonders, “What was the purpose of this divine play?”

Sai Geetha – The Epitome of Purity

It all became crystal clear when immediately after this episode Swami emphatically declared to the devotees around, “Sai Geetha is a Shuddha Brahmacharini (pristine and perfect celibate). She has come for me. She has never and will never mix with any elephant.”
At this point, one is reminded of the appalling tests that Mother Sita underwent (in the sacred epic Ramayana), even though the omniscient Lord Rama was fully aware of her purity and integrity. Every single twist in the Lord’s story is to teach mankind a lesson. And He teaches it in a way that its impact resonates in the sphere of man’s mind for centuries to come.

The bond between Swami and Geetha only strengthened after this whole drama, and her unwavering devotion to Swami was an inspiration which no one could easily ignore. Whenever Swami used to go to Brindavan for long periods in those years, He would also make arrangements for Sai Geetha’s stay near His residence in Bangalore. On most occasions, Sai Geetha would walk the way to Bangalore, escorted by her caretakers and Sai volunteers, with proper rest stations arranged for her at appropriate distances along the route. An indelible part of Bhagavan’s life story, Sai Geetha’s moments and movements on this earth were closely intertwined with her beloved’s

There is a hilarious incident, which Sri B. N. Narasimha Murthy, Warden of the Sri Sathya Sai Hostel in Brindavan (Bangalore) narrates, concerning Sai Geetha’s arrival to Brindavan:

“This happened in the early eighties, when Swami used to stay in the ‘old Brindavan bungalow’ and Mr. Rama Brahmam, the caretaker of the Bangalore ashram, also used to sleep inside this building. One day, it was late into the night, maybe past midnight, when Rama Brahmam’s sleep was disturbed by weird sounds outside the doors and windows. It was not very loud, but was a mystifying muffled clatter, some kind of ‘hissing noise’ in addition to other sounds. Perturbed, Rama Brahmam looked through the window as it was strict instruction from Swami that he should not open the door unless he knows the person. What he saw through the window in that dark hour was only a trunk and he got really panicky. Interestingly, at the same instant, Swami came there from inside and Rama Brahmam at once blurted out, ‘Swami, something has come.’ Swami only smiled and calmed him saying, ‘Do not worry, it is Sai Geetha.’ And then Swami opened the door, pacified Sai Geetha who was hungry for darshan, made arrangements for her stay and only then retired to His room.”

Such is the Lord’s mercy. When the devotee’s love is pure, the Lord does not care whether it is midnight, mid-air, mid-forest or mid-ocean

Her Pure Love And Love Incarnate - Inseparable

Sai Geetha’s more than four decades of association with Swami is not only a love story, but also a tale which in its every facet demonstrates how inseparable the bond of pure love can be. Recalling a sweet experience from Sai Geetha’s days in Brindavan, Mrs. Geetha Mohan Ram says:

“This happened in February, 1972. Swami was preparing to leave the Brindavan ashram to come and stay in my parent’s (Dr. R. S. Padmanabhan and Kamala Padmanabhan) house in Bangalore city for two days. It was the time of the Akhanda Bhajan celebration and incidentally, it was my father and grandfather who actually initiated this concept of 24-hour non-stop bhajan singing those days. I was a young child of eight then. Four of us – my brother, aunt, father and I – had gone to Brindavan to bring Swami to our home in Jayanagar.

“As Swami was getting ready to leave, we could hear Sai Geetha trumpeting loudly from far behind Swami’s residence. She somehow knew that Swami was leaving and you could make out from her voice that she was desperate. Swami responded to her call and walked to the rear of the building. We followed Him as He marched towards Sai Geetha. Once there, He caressed her, gently stroked her cheeks, fed her with apples, and finally as He turned to leave, she put her trunk around His shoulders and pulled Him gently but firmly to her side. She held on to Him securely and would not let Him go. Swami could only sweetly plead and He kept telling her in Telugu, “ vidu Geetha, vidu Geetha, ne povala. Podaya bangaaru ne vegara vastanu! Vidu Geetha!” (Please leave me, Geetha; leave me, please; I have to go, it is late. Golden one, I will come back soon, leave me, please!”)

“It was after five minutes of gentle persuasion by Swami that Geetha let Him go reluctantly. And as He moved away, she lifted her trunk and still held on to His right arm and would not let go again for a few minutes. Swami tried offering her some fruits, but the apple was no consolation. She refused to accede. Finally, after a lot of cajoling, Swami extricated Himself from her, but by now His robe was covered by her saliva as she kept nuzzling Him all through. Unmindful of the dribble on His gown, Swami then turned to all of us and what He said then was very profound. He said, ‘Your devotion should be one-pointed like her. She is not even tempted by the fruit I offer. She only wants me and thinks of me at all times. When you are like her you then receive Darshanam, Sparshanam and Sambhashanam (the fortune of vision, touch and conversation with the Lord).’He then gave her one last loving pat and left. He had to go back to His room to change into a new robe and we were ready to leave.” How wonderful is her relationship with the Lord! How fortunate she is!

With Sai – No Pain, Only Gain

At the same time, it is not as if life has been always rosy-n-cozy for her, she has had her share of ailments and afflictions, and even now has difficulties mainly because of her advanced age; but these have least bothered her. “Somehow she does not feel the pain,” says Pedda Reddy, her current caretaker. Her mind is always fixed on the lord; and in turn, it is the same intensity with which Bhagavan looks after her welfare. When Sai Geetha suffered from a stomach disorder resulting in her tummy bulging inordinately, Swami immediately arranged expert vets from Kerala and Bangalore to attend on her; when the leather on the sole of her feet started peeling off due to Foot and Mouth disease, Swami encouraged the doctors to start treatment without any hesitation and assured them that she would be cured soon and that’s exactly what happened.

“On one occasion when it was reported to Swami that she was sick,” says Sri Chiranjeevi Rao, who was caretaker of the Prasanthi Nilayam ashram for many years, “Swami created vibhuti and asked me personally to deliver it to her. Whenever I went to Gokulam (which was frequent those days), He would invariably ask me to visit Sai Geetha on the way and check if she is comfortable and well cared for. “Is she getting sugarcane leaves to eat?” He would enquire. Sai Geetha relished the sweet sugarcane leaves very much and Swami knew this too well. He was also aware that these leaves were not easy to come by in Puttaparthi, and so, He would say, “You must take pains to bring for her things she likes. Being an animal, she cannot express herself so categorically, but when we know what she wants, we should make all attempts to provide for her wishes and keep her happy. That is real service.”

Students Get a Role Model of Devotion

Incidentally, it was Sri Chiranjeevi Rao who was instrumental in building the new spacious shed for her with a high wall and lots of greenery around in the early eighties. Sai Geetha moving to this new location from the Gokulam in 1979-80 was the beginning of a new chapter in her life. Apart from having a comfortable place to stay, she was now the neighbor of Swami’s students, which brought along with it so many precious advantages. Her home now stood right opposite to the Senior Students’ Hostel.

“I remember this touching incident very vividly,” a former student tells H2H. “It was a bright festive morning – the exciting day of Christmas. After the captivating carol-singing and beautiful darshan in the Mandir, some of us just got up and prayed to Swami: ‘Swami, please come to the Hostel.’ We expected answers like ‘Why do you want me in the hostel? I am with you here all the time,’ or, ‘Wait….’, or, ‘Today I am very busy, see so many people have come from different countries,’ or simply a mischievous smile.

“But no, that day, Swami immediately asked, ‘Are you ready?’ And we loudly shouted, ‘Yes’ but within we were nervous to our bones. We had not made any arrangements, the dining hall was not decorated, the garden was not pruned, the entrance had not even rangoli and mango leaves, and then what about decorating Swami’s jhoola (swing)? What to offer to Swami? What programmes do we stage? Our minds were zapped. Even as we were lost in this avalanche of thoughts, Swami called for the car and said, ‘I am going now!’

“There was no time to even think. We ran like boys possessed. And by the time we reached the hostel, Swami was already there. Some boys, who would have undoubtedly broken national records in marathon running that day, reached the hostel well before Swami’s car and were fortunately there to welcome Him. And what a day it was! Everything was so informal. Swami was with us for half an hour and how He blessed each one of us: walking in the lawns, collecting letters, cracking jokes, blessing whatever we offered and obliging us in whatever we asked.

Sai Geetha Answers the Call

“But this is not what the highlight of this memorable visit was. The best part was yet to come and I remember those few moments so well: Swami standing at the entrance of the Hostel all smiles, looking so radiant with the rays of the morning Sun adding to His divine luster, and then calling out with a voice that was so sweet, ‘Geetha…’, ‘Geetha…’ as if singing a divine melodious tune. It was so soft; maybe I and a few others who were close enough to Swami alone could have heard it; but Sai Geetha, standing hundred meters away, felt it and immediately the ten-thousand-pound body of Sai Geetha galloped like a race horse! Excited and overwhelmed-with-joy, Sai Geetha presented herself before Swami in the next instant and the next ten minutes it was only Swami and Sai Geetha.

“The ‘purest devotee of an elephant’ went on caressing Swami, and how Swami, in turn, was so gentle and loving towards her, is a sight that remains etched in gold in my memory forever. Sai Geetha was least concerned about the fruits that Swami was offering, she only wanted Swami to touch her, look into her eyes, speak to her and be next to her. Even an inch of separation was intolerable. For me, it was the greatest demonstration of pure love.”

While Sai Geetha gets her precious opportunities whenever Swami visits the Students’ Hostel, everyday the boys have a living example and inspiration of true divine love. This is how Sai Geetha’s abode being right opposite to the Students’ dwelling has been such a wonderful win-win situation. Both love each other, but love Swami more than each other. Every time Swami has visited the Hostel, it has been a red-letter-day for her. Recalling another similar incident, Sri Y. Arvind, another former student says:

“Years ago in Prashanti Nilayam, on the beautiful eve of Krishnashtami, Swami was standing on the portico enquiring about the arrangements for the imminent festival. The elders who had been given responsibilities informed Him about the arrangements: about where the cow procession would come and where they would be positioned, the order of procession, down to the last details of what prasadam to be distributed and what quantities were available. He was in a jolly mood and most of us felt it was the ideal time to pray to Him to visit the hostel. So we gently, with the words ‘please Swami’ generously sprinkled in our supplications, pleaded, prayed and cajoled. Well, we did all we could to get Him to bless the hostel with His Physical Presence. Swami played hard to get but finally said the magic words, ‘I will come’.

“The hostel’s look changed overnight. Different teams of boys worked on various areas of the hostel. Decorations sprang up everywhere with banners, festoons and plantain stalks at key positions. The little shrine for Lord Ganesha outside the hostel was elegantly decorated, all the corridors swept and mopped extra clean, the dormitories were tidied up, and by the early hours of the next morning the entire hostel was spick and span. In retrospect and with good humor, I feel that the response to Swami’s visit to the hostel galvanized all of us the way a drill sergeant’s inspection parade would! Of course, Swami is our loving mother and father, but the discipline He demands of His chosen ones…Well! You have to hand it to Him. Even the laziest of us would be on their toes.

“Coming back to the story, the opportunity taken to invite Him was because some students who had a green thumb, under the inspired leadership of their seniors, had made a beautiful garden in the hostel quadrangle. It was a combination of a Grecian rock garden, a Japanese water garden and a regular floral layout. It had smooth tiled paths that vended around deeply embedded boulders and there was a water feature that included a cascade that led to a fish pond. A bamboo bridge arched over the pond and was painted a pleasing light green that matched the lawn around it. Creepers covered bamboo arches at strategic corners on the paths. Flowering shrubs lined the paths and filled every crevice that the rocks offered. There was a flat rock that served as a pedestal and a chair was placed for Swami there. Firmly anchored and well cushioned, it had steps leading to it so that Swami could walk with ease. A lot o]f effort had gone into making and maintaining the garden and the crowning glory would be that Swami should bless it. That was what was going on in our minds.

The morning session in the Mandir went off without a hitch. Swami granted us all Darshan wearing a Pitambara (yellow robe), the robe of Lord Krishna apt for the occasion of Janmashtami. The procession went like clockwork with Sai Geetha in the vanguard with all her majesty, all dressed up for the Lord – richly caparisoned in gold and silver with five foot silver ear hangings, gold brocaded saddle cloth on her back, beaten gold ornaments on her forehead – she looked royal. Swami walked down to her with a haste that belied His ‘impatience’ and His interaction with her was the cynosure of all attention – I would not be exaggerating if I said the cows were feeling jealous of her! Their Gopala (Lord Krishna’s another name literally meaning “caretaker of cows.”) was going to Sai Geetha!

But they too had their chance when Swami came to feed them with bananas. Everything smoothly led to the point when Swami signaled for the bhajans to start. The procession was on its way back to the Gokulam, the prasadam distribution was complete and now expectant faces looked at every minute gesture of Swami – waiting for the signal. He knew it, and He tantalized us all… till the last moment and then the smile bloomed… “Go… I will come”. Immediately, their energy levels tripled and in a trice, they traversed the thousand metres to the hostel jet set like.

Swami came to the hostel and graciously blessed all of us standing along the path leading to the Hostel. Alighting from the car He walked slowly, taking in all the effort put in to beautify the place. The smile on His face was the greatest of blessings. He went towards the stage and sat on the decorated Jhula (swing) set for Him and for a while listened to the group songs sung by ebullient voices. He blessed the prasadam offered, and then indicated He wanted to leave.

When Swami reached the path that lay across the quadrangle, the boys brought His attention to the new garden. His eyes lit up at the new sight and He gently undulated towards the picturesque setting. Swami picked up the scissors offered on a velvet platter, and cut the saffron silk ribbon that lay across the primary arch leading into the garden.

Simultaneously, one of us started the cascade and the murmur of gently flowing water added to the sacred atmosphere. Swami walked along the paths laid out and touched the chair set for Him on the rock, blessing it. Then He stepped onto the bridge spanning the pond. One of the boys offered Him a silver bowl of fish food with a spoon and pointed to the water.

“What is this?” asked Swami.

“Swami, there are fish in the pond.”

Swami sweetly picked up the spoon and sprinkled a couple of spoonfuls and then He picked up the whole bowl and dumped it in at one go. Suddenly He seemed to be in a hurry! It was obvious, His gait quickened as He walked back to the main lobby. All of us were perplexed at the sudden change – then we understood, as we saw Swami make a beeline to Sai Geetha waiting outside the Hostel. He was speeding towards her.

All of us stepped aside and watched the show! Her heavy ornaments and other embellishments had been removed and she was oblivious to everything except her Swami. Baskets of fruits were offered, and Swami kept feeding her. His eyes were twinkling and His face beamed with a different joy as He patted her cheek, rubbed her trunk and murmured endearments to her.

She responded in kind, speaking to her Master in her language. No doubt they understood each other. Well! One should be there to see the sight. Three hundred and fifty boys and teachers, a large bunch of them around Swami and Geetha, two long lines extending on either side of the path leading out of the Hostel, lots of devotees outside…all of us enjoying Swami’s interaction with Geetha. If only we had an aerial photograph of the sight… for now, words will have to do. He spent more than ten minutes with her and then almost regretfully patted her good bye.

We offered Him aarti and hundreds of voices welled up in unison. She raised her trunk in salutation as Swami left the Hostel. Many of us took the opportunity to touch the one so much beloved by the Lord. After enduring the petting by all of us, she retired to her enclosure. But even as she crossed the road, she paused and turned towards the direction Swami’s car had left. She watched for a few seconds and then silently returned to her enclosure. At times, she seems more than just an animal. Her love for Swami is far greater than ours because of its simplicity. She exists only to Love and adore Him. That is the highest form of devotion: To exist only for the love of God.”

Yes, this is the lesson that she drives into the minds of everybody – be it student or devotee – that the whole purpose of life is to exist for the Lord and there is nothing holier or more purposeful. Swami has exalted her devotion often and asked students to learn from her. In a discourse to the boys in the Prasanthi Mandir on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi in 1992, Swami said,

“Those of you who are staying in the Hostel notice cars going up and down the road. On the other side of the Hostel is Sai Geetha. She takes no notice of the innumerable cars going on the road. But, without any notice, she ‘smells’, as it were, the passing of Swami’s car and immediately comes out with a roar to greet Swami. That is her devotion to her Lord… It is steadfast love.”

Ever Alert for Her Beloved

Come what may, Sai Geetha’s focus has always been compass-like, pointing constantly in one direction. “The moment she hears the siren of the police jeep (an indication that Swami is on His way),” says Sri Pedda Reddy, “she will come off immediately from wherever she is; be it in the shed or in the tank and run to the road. Standing beside the tarmac she will scan every car that passes by and the moment she spots Swami’s car, she will trumpet in glee and sometimes make peculiar sounds of joy.

When His car draws near, searchingly she will see where Swami is seated – in the front or rear, and if the car window is closed, she will embrace the front windshield with her trunk, and wait for the door glass to roll down. If it happens, she is ecstatic; she will slowly slide her snout in and start nuzzling Swami’s hair and face.

She loves Swami’s crown; the Vibhuti smell enlivens her. She is in bliss. But if, for some reason, Swami’s car does not stop, she is crestfallen, devastated. She will start crying and grumbling and ‘hmm…hmmm…’ would go on endlessly.

Some days if she is very disturbed, she would even start shouting and trumpeting as if calling out to Him with all the wind power at her disposal. Only after half an hour of pacifying phrases of, ‘He will come’, ‘Maybe He is busy today’, ‘He saw you. Didn’t He? Do not worry.

Tomorrow He will come specially for you’, etc. will she reconcile herself. And it will take another hour to persuade her to accept any food. That is the intensity of her love for Swami and it is this fervent yearning which has rewarded her with so many beautiful blessings from Swami.”

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