Her Every Cell and Every Second…Sai Suffused

Come what may, Sai Geetha’s love for Swami was like an eternal flame, ever resplendent. Nothing could ever reduce her brilliance or vigor. Even though Swami spent lesser and lesser time with her as years passed - from spending four-five sessions a day in the early years to seeing her only during major festival days, which was once in 2-3 months - her love for Swami remained absolutely unchanged. In fact, she only longed more and more for His attention and grace. “Though initially, it was more of a mother-child relationship, later it blossomed into pure love and devotion. It was like the bond between God and a devotee,” says Sri Pedda Reddy. “She had always so much reverence in her eyes when she looked at Swami; she wouldn’t even blink if Swami was next to her. If Swami fed her, she would be thrilled. She knew the value of what she was getting.” And perhaps it is for this reason that she would always be moving her mouth and trunk when alone. While others thought, she was thirsty or looking for something, Pedda Reddy says, she would actually be chanting something all the time.

When a new mahout came to assist Sri Pedda Reddy in serving Sai Geetha a few years ago, Sai Geetha refused to accept his service, till Swami personally blessed the new person in Mandir. Though she was not a witness to Swami creating Vibhuti and giving the new assistant during darshan, she somehow ‘knew’ when Swami blessed him. Just like Hanuman who did not want even one pearl from the beautiful necklace that Mother Sita gifted him because none of them were vibrating with the name of Lord Rama, she too wanted only those things to touch her which were filled with the blessings of Sai.

She ‘Knew’ What Was Coming!

So attuned she was to the Lord at any moment of time that she could ‘sense’ Swami’s arrival much before anyone else. Once when Swami started His car from Bangalore, Sai Geetha immediately ‘knew’ Her beloved was coming, says Pedda Reddy. It is for this reason that Sai Geetha was no pet elephant or just an ordinary devotee of the Lord; she was in fact, an enlightened soul. Who would believe that Sai Geetha actually foretold her death to Sri Pedda Reddy the previous evening? She, in fact, did and Swami Himself confirmed this in a recent discourse. On 21st evening itself, she had communicated to Sri Pedda Reddy that she wants to ‘go’. It is because of many such ‘moments of revelations’ that Sri Pedda Reddy was personally party too that he asserts, “Sai Geetha was actually a gyani - a being of all-knowing wisdom.” “She knew what was coming most of the time,” he continues. “When Swami left for Kodaikanal on April 26, she stopped the car on the road. Swami blessed her profusely but her happiness was very short-lived. The moment Swami’s car moved away, she trumpeted loudly 3-4 times lamenting Swami’s departure. She ‘knew’ Swami was going to Kodaikanal and will not be available surely for few weeks. It took me several minutes to console her. She kept on saying, ‘Swami is gone’. It was extremely difficult to get her out of depression. Though Swami had nicely blessed her while leaving for Kodaikanal, on the day He returned to Puttaparthi on May 18, He was not smiling at all. He was just staring at her. It was a look of concern and she was very subdued too. It was very unusual. I never understood the reason then.

“Previously, during the inauguration of her new and beautiful concrete building complete with ornate cravings and magnificent colours, (which happened few days before Swami’s Birthday in 2006), she was actually disinclined to go inside even though Swami was sitting inside, which is extremely unusual. She went in only when I goaded her into it. Even after that, everyday she would be uninterested to go into the new house. One would think that it was because she did not like the cement and concrete and would rather stay in the sand and grass, but the reality was she was completely aware of all the happenings, now and future, and therefore, was never comfortable in that structure which would be in future the site of her Samadhi.

In fact, she could communicate all her feelings to me,” says Sri Pedda Reddy. And she did this only with Pedda Reddy and none else. With others she behaved just like an ordinary elephant, but when alone with her favourite caretaker whom she treated like her father, she would reveal her heart out. If a person assisting Pedda Reddy in taking care of Sai Geetha had harmed her, she would wait for a time when Pedda Reddy was alone and then would go near him and ‘tell’ him about the episode. “I would then enquire with the assistants and they would confess that they had beaten her. She was out-of-this-world, a very noble soul belonging to a higher plane,” Sri Pedda Reddy reveals.

Sai Geetha - Announcing Her ‘Freedom’

“For fifteen days before her death, she was as if on a vow. She didn’t care about food at all, and would want me by her side always,” says Sri Pedda Reddy. “And two days before her passing away, that is on May 20, she broke open the chain tied to her legs, and walked to the garden and started playing on the sands in the middle of the night. I welded the chain the next day and put around her legs again as was the usual practice in the nights, but she released herself out of it a second time on May 21. But this time, it was in the early morning at 5.30, perhaps she was trying to break open the whole night. When I came to see her around 8 o clock, she was on the sands again just like the previous day.

“It was surprising because she never did this before. She would go out and play only if I had forgotten to chain her in the evening. Moreover, she was weak as she had virtually stopped food for nearly two weeks except taking few ragi (finger millet) balls with lot of persuasion, and even prior to this for five months she was suffering from some kind of stomach disorder and would not eat well at all. Various expert vets tried many medications, including antibiotic injections. More than Rs. 50,000 was spent on her, still her problem remained and as days progressed she only ate less and less. In the last week, her intake was close to nothing.

“One day before her final crossover, I noticed that her front left leg was giving her pain and she was limping. I thought maybe some stone or twig accidentally was stuck in there which was hurting her. She was restless and not steady in one place like other days.

Sai Geetha …An Enigma till the End

“On May 22, the final fateful day, I came at 8:30 in the morning and took her for a bath. Even during bathing she was normal and I forgot about the stone in the leg as she didn’t complain of any discomfort. But suddenly as I was pouring water on her, she raised her front left leg showing signs of pain. I asked her to lift her leg - generally she would be able to hold the leg for sometime when she lifts - but on that day she was unable to hold the leg at all; immediately she kept it down. Keen to remove the cause of her pain on the foot, I asked her again to lift and hold her leg but her leg gave away immediately. This happened one more time and finally when she lifted her leg for the fourth time, she just sat down with a jerk. Now I could see the lower part of her leg but there was nothing visibly wrong there; no stick, or stone or mark of any injury. It is probably only internal pain, I said to myself.

“For one and half years Sai Geetha had not sat down, she was always on her legs day and night. Even during the night, she used to sleep standing on her legs or sometimes leaning on the wall. In this scenario, when she sat suddenly after more than eighteen months, her limbs refused to cooperate with her; she was unable to get up.

“I sent word for a crane to help her to stand. Unfortunately, none were near by, and it took some time for the poclain to arrive. We tied a rope to the rear side of Sai Geetha and tried to pull, but the machine was unable to lift the elephant. Sai Geetha was six tonnes and the tonnage of the hydraulic motor was only two. The higher capacity crane was 100 kms away; we telephoned them and asked then to start. They could not start immediately due to technical problems, so we asked for a crane from Bangalore and as it was coming it developed some problems, and lost some time in repair. Later, the vehicle’s tyre burst and by the time the crane finally arrived, it was very late.”

Superficially, one may wonder, why did the Divine not intervene? How could there be so many obstacles for His dear devotee? But the wise know that everything actually happens according to divine design, though it is very difficult to accept and understand at that particular point in time. But it becomes clear later when one goes over the whole event in a peaceful state of mind. Same it was with Sai Geetha too. Sri Pedda Reddy continues:

“Up to 12.30 in the afternoon she was trying to get up and by that time she was exhausted. The legs, which had not bent for over one and half years, were giving her lot of pain. I could see that she was silently tolerating the hardship; she did not want to shout. There were tears in her eyes. We started giving her calcium injections and saline for strength; about 10-12 bottles of the sterile solution went into her, but nothing seemed to help. She, then, slowly started to drop her head; it had become too heavy for her, she was unable to move it either. And then her breathing slowed down. She lay in this condition for an hour or so and then at about six she bid a peaceful adieu and immediately, Swami was informed.”

How did the Lord react that evening when He physically received this message, we do not know. But what we do know is that at about 8 pm, Swami sent a ball of payasam (a sweet dish) specially prepared in His kitchen to Sri Pedda Reddy with instructions that it be fed to Sai Geetha. The over 65-year old caretaker had never disobeyed Swami in his life but now he was in a critical dilemma. How to feed a dead elephant? The doctors had confirmed that her pulse has stopped. With prayer on his lips, and no other solution in sight, Sri Pedda Reddy poured the prasadam into her mouth and gently covered her face again with the white cloth. To this day, it remains a mystery to Sri Reddy how the semi-solid offering went inside. There was no sign of it being dropped or slipped from her mouth onto the ground till the next morning.

On Swami’s instructions, the whole night was spent digging a huge pit in the centre of the new building that Swami had built for her six months ago. Cranes and earthmovers worked continuously, and by early morning the massive 20 by 16 feet hole was ready.

“When Swami arrived at 7:30 in the morning to the site, I could not contain myself. I was crying,” says an emotional Pedda Reddy. “And Swami lowered the window-glass and caught hold of my hand. He was very emotional too. It was like we both shared the same intensity of feeling. Then He told me to open the car door and His chair came down. He went as close as possible to Sai Geetha, took Vibhuti and smeared all over her head. For a couple of minutes, He was there, pressing her head with His fingers, stroking her trunk, applying vibhuti on her face and limbs. He lovingly then moved His fingers over her eyes. In fact, He asked me to open her eyes which I did. Though it was fifteen hours since she had passed away ‘clinically’, her body was still supple and flexible. It was like she was sleeping. Normally, two hours after life passes away, a dead body would become very stiff, but Sai Geetha that morning had no stiffness, the trunk was bending easily and her eye seemed to be looking at Swami.”

“Go happily, peacefully”

In fact, Swami confirmed this in His discourse to the students a few days later. He said, “The other day Sai Geetha discarded her body. But I pointed out to her, “Geetha, look here. I am constructing a Mandir for you. She opened her eyes and saw me, but she was very weak. What else she could do? She only shed tears. When the end came and she was going, I said, “So, you are going. Ok, go happily, peacefully.” One cannot but recollect at this point the final moments of Swami’s foster mother Mrs. Subbamma. Though medically she was declared ‘dead’, a peculiar glow on her face made everybody nervous to take her to the cremation ground and the wise men of Bukkapatnam said, “The bird has not flown yet!” Three full days had passed since the first announcement of her death by the time Swami came to her deathbed after attending a function in Tirupati. But the moment Swami called out, “Subbamma”, “Subbamma”, just twice, she opened her eyes! And her hand was next stroking Swami’s hand lovingly. Swami then put His fingers to her lips and she opened her mouth a little, and from the cupped palm of Swami next flowed holy water into her mouth and she joined the ranks of the Released! Sai Geetha’s merger was no different, though everything was not so apparent to the ordinary onlooker. After Sai Geetha was satisfied completely and Swami had bid her final farewell, He turned His attention to the huge pit dug inside her new building. Sri Pedda Reddy recalls,

“He saw the pit and then asked me to come to the Mandir to take Sai Geetha’s dress. He also instructed me how to drape the sequined body blanket on her body and also instructed all the materials that should be put in the pit before lowering Sai Geetha’s body into it.”

A Splendid Farewell by the Divine Himself

According to His directions, the bottom of the pit was first covered with sand. This was followed by coconut leaves, then Banana leaves, other small plants that Sai Geetha used to relish and finally fresh green grass that she loved the most. It was a multi-layered huge bed with all that Sai Geetha relished. But that was not all. On top of this was poured rice - many bags of them -, followed by flowers, turmeric powder and vermillion. Once everything was completed as per His divine direction, Sri Pedda Reddy returned to the Mandir and Swami then asked him to open the jewels of Sai Geetha that He always kept in His residence. Along with the dress, Swami also selected some of the jewels that she should be adorned with while putting her to rest at her Samadhi site. And then handing over a pair of silk clothes to Sri Pedda Reddy, He said, “You should do all these tasks. Shower and then wear this new silk dress and be ready, I will come there.”

Just as He had promised, Swami was at the site at 10.45 am. Efforts were on with the help of a crane to lift the 6000 kg body of Sai Geetha and move it to the other end of the compound where the pit was dug. Swami followed the progress of the job every second sitting in His car. The crane was big and could not enter the building. It was nearly one hour since Swami had arrived and the scorching summer heat was draining everyone’s energy. Sri Pedda Reddy went to Swami and said, “Swami, it is very hot here and moving her is taking lot of time too. You may please return to Mandir.” But Swami’s reply was an instantaneous, “No.” “I will wait till the end,” He said. After 90 minutes of tough maneuvering with the machine, Sai Geetha was finally placed on the bed specially created and Swami, whose eyes were overcome with emotion as He saw His most precious devotee for the last time, blessed her again. More turmeric and vermillion was offered. Lots of garlands were spread on her body including a big one which Swami asked senior members of the Trust to place on her, and finally she was covered with mud. Only then, did Swami return to His residence.

The beautiful building that was her home six months ago was now her Samadhi. When we asked Sri Pedda Reddy, “Did you think that the eye-catching elegant structure that Swami built for her would be her Samadhi one day?” He said, “Yes, even while this new building was being constructed, given the carvings and ornamentation that went into making it, I thought maybe one day this would be her Samadhi. I remember, after her old shed was demolished, Swami one day came to me with a plan, called me near and said, ‘See this, we will make a beautiful, big and permanent building for her.’ Still, I never realized at that point that ‘permanent’ actually meant ‘Samadhi’; I only thought of it as her final house from where she will never have to shift again in the future.”

Sai Geetha - Ever-fresh in Sai’s Heart

Swami had planned every little detail meticulously much in advance for His dearest devotee. And this year, the Lord suddenly changed his plans to return to Puttaparthi from Kodaikanal on May 18, instead of going to Brindavan as was his usual practice every year, and everyone wondered the reason behind the unexpected divine decision until it all became very clear in a matter of four days. For Swami, Sai Geetha was more important than all the hundreds of devotees that prayed to Him to extend His stay in Kodaikanal for few more days or the thousands of devotees from Bangalore who pleaded with Him repeatedly to visit Brindavan at least for a few weeks. In the 108 names of the Lord, one line exalts him as “Om Sri Sai Bhaktha Paradheenaya Namah” which means, “We salute the Lord who is actually under the control of His devotee.” Just like Hanuman was one, Meerabai was one, Sai Geetha was one - demonstrating to man the power and the pinnacle of pure love. And as Lord Rama laid the dedicated Jatayu to rest on His lap and Himself performed all the funeral rites, Swami too treated Sai Geetha just as His very own. He was there every second directing every act in her last moments. Not only that, on the 11th day after her burial, He visited the site again and asked Sri Pedda Reddy to place bananas, apples, ragi balls and sweets on the Samadhi and then directed for all these to be distributed to few poor people and also to feed all the cows in the Gokulam. It is a tradition in many houses in India to serve the poor in the name of the deceased on the 11th day after death and here Swami was Himself doing this for Sai Geetha.

Source: www.radiosai.org