Thursday, June 7th., 2018
This article's author, Ms. Nooshin Mehrabani is a both spiritual and down to earth, brave, intelligent, beautiful lady that I am acquainted with and often keep good company together when I am in Puttaparthi, visiting my Swami's Ashram in Andhra Pradesh.
Nostalgically -since for the past few years I have not been able to travel to my beloved India- I remember how we, the devotees, would exchange our miraculous experiences in the unexpected, abundantly benevolent results that Swami's grace was bestowing upon us all, of the various nations and countries and life's stratas.
I remember to have met Nooshin's mother, an aristocratic, not very talkative and rather stern lady, in the Western Canteen during lunch time.
Nooshin's intrinsic, well-founded analysis of certain magnificent Suras in Koran, is also now surfacing my memory's indolence;when, in the eternal dialogue in search of Truth, the comparative analysis of cultures, beliefs and traditions used to come to the rescue, as the most effective, handy instrument to understand yourself and comprehend the other, in the ultimate hope to trully accept and love yourSelf and therefore, the Other!
There was a vast platform of Gaia's heritage wherefrom my own country's immense intellects, Soctrates, Plato and Orthodox Christian Heritage seemed to be never absent. Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba would never miss a chance to stress the importance and absolute necessity for the precious ''Know Thyself" daily life appliance...
Maria L Pelekanaki
- The Inexplicable Call By Ms. Nooshin Mehrabani
Ms. Nooshin Mehrabani was born in Iran and worked as a reporter for Iranian National Radio and Television. She continued her career with an Iranian TV station after moving to Los Angeles, USA. Since 1991, when she first heard about Sai Baba, she has made many trips to India and has been blessed with several chances of interaction with Bhagavan Baba. She now lives in Puttaparthi.
I was born in Iran,
worked in Canada and USA, and since January 2007 have been living in
Puttaparthi, basking in the bliss of being in the physical presence of
Bhagavan Baba, my Spiritual Father and Master. In July 2008 I received
many phone calls from my mother asking me to visit Iran and stay with
her for a couple of months. It had been over two years since I had seen
her and she was getting older, so I seriously considered making a trip
to Iran.
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Ms. Mehrabani's book
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During one
of those days I went to sleep with this heavily on my mind and Swami
appeared in my dream. I saw myself in typical western clothes, ready to
leave for Iran, when Swami walked into the room and stood right in
front of me. Before I even opened my mouth to ask for permission, He
shook His finger at me, and firmly said, “No! Don’t go to Iran to see
your mom.”
When I woke up, I
was both happy and a little sad. Happy that Swami had come in my dream
but sad for my mother. How could I give her this message? She is very
attached to me and has always worried about my life in India. Also she
was not a devotee of Sai Baba and there was no way I could explain to
her that I was following Baba’s directions. The idea that I have
surrendered my life to my guru and that I seek His permission before
making my decisions was completely unacceptable to my family. Now, I had
no other option, but to pray to Swami that my mother does not insist
on my visiting her.
Mutually Mysterious Calls
Mutually Mysterious Calls
A few months later,
one day as I was cooking in my apartment in Puttaparthi, the cell phone
rang. I washed my hands and went to the drawing room to answer the
call. No one was on the other end; instead, I heard the sounds of an
Iranian television program. After a few seconds, I did hear a voice. It
was my mother. She was asking who was calling her. When she found out
that I was on the other end she was extremely delighted, but wondered
why I had called her cell phone instead of the landline.
I was really
surprised – I told her that I did not even know that she had a cell
phone, let alone calling that number. I had to convince her that not
only had I not made a call, but also that I was busy in the kitchen when
my own cell phone rang. Then she told me that her cell phone too was
also in another room and the maid had pushed the answer button and
brought it to her.
In fact, it was a new phone and she had not yet given her number to anybody. That is why she persisted with her question “How did you know this number?” It was very difficult for her to accept these mysterious happenings as Swami’s miracle, even though I knew this to be the case firmly in my heart.
In fact, it was a new phone and she had not yet given her number to anybody. That is why she persisted with her question “How did you know this number?” It was very difficult for her to accept these mysterious happenings as Swami’s miracle, even though I knew this to be the case firmly in my heart.
I
did try to explain to her that there is nothing that Swami cannot do.
We talked that morning for 45 minutes and during the course of this
conversation, she revealed to me that just two days prior to that day
she had visited a holy shrine in Tehran and prayed to God saying how
much she missed me and sought His divine intervention to see me. And in
the next 48 hours God had connected us so amazingly!
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I did try to explain
to her that there is nothing that Swami cannot do. We talked that
morning for 45 minutes and during the course of this conversation, she
revealed to me that just two days prior to that day she had visited a
holy shrine in Tehran and prayed to God saying how much she missed me
and sought His divine intervention to see me. And in the next 48 hours
God had connected us so amazingly!
I had no
doubt that all this was the making of Sai Baba. This was more proof
that God is only One and there truly is no separation whatsoever
between Allah, Jesus or Sathya Sai Baba. And now it was up to
the Lord to make my mother believe this miracle. As we talked more that
day, she again asked if I could come to Iran to see her. I had to let
her know that this was not the right time for me to make a visit.
Then, without having
any real hope, I asked, “Mom, why don’t you come to India and see me?”
Immediately she said, “When should I come?” I was really amazed. In
fact, I had been requesting my family to come and see Baba for quite
some time but they had always been against my spiritual path. Now,
seeing her interest, I was pleasantly surprised. I let her know that
November and December would be busy months in Puttaparthi and she could
come in the January of the next year.
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Then I asked my mom
to remember the date of this conversation. I knew that if I was not
charged for this call, and if my mother too was not billed for this
long conversation, it was surely Baba’s grace. After a month I received
another phone call from my mother letting me know that she had
purchased a ticket to India. She also told me that when she received her telephone bill, there was no record of our conversation!
Sai Needs No Instruments
Sai Needs No Instruments
Many a times I have
thought of myself as being an instrument in the Divine Hands. But, this
incident was a revelation. I realised that Swami does not need any of
us as His instruments. It was His invisible hands that dialed the
phone. And it is His Grace that gives us the pleasure of imagining that
we are His instruments. In reality, He doesn’t need anyone.
My mother arrived on
January 2, 2009 and stayed in Puttaparthi with me for two weeks. I
don’t know if this turned her into a Sai devotee, but what I do know is
that she felt a lot of peace in India staying with me and it was Swami
who had answered her prayer quite inexplicably. When she finally left
for Iran, she was more confident than ever that God was indeed looking
after her dear daughter.
Dear Reader, did this article inspire you in any way? Would you like more such stories from devotees who have been touched by His Love? Please write to us at h2h@radiosai.org mentioning your name and country. Thank you for your time.