It is very difficult to explain how we connect with Guruji. The relationship is beyond life and death and has been continuing for lifetimes. The Guru chooses His disciples and guides the disciple through the earthly life journey.
Establishing a connection with Guruji
I would like to share how I began relating to Guruji in my current life. It was in the year 2008, when our family was going through an emotional upheaval. I had lost my dad in April 2008-too soon and too early. Around the same time my sister had the privilege of getting associated with Guruji and started attending
satsangs. She even went to Dugri (Guruji's birthplace) before visiting Bade Mandir. She used to tell me and my Mom about how Guruji had transformed so many lives. Her talk about Guruji possessed so much innocence, truth and belief that it strongly inspired me to visit Bade Mandir.
Our first visit to Bade Mandir was in June 2008. As soon as I entered the Mandir, I suddenly felt a strong feeling of serenity. I instantly felt that I had arrived at my destined place and my father, looking from above, was desirous of our presence there. We had our
darshan and
langar. What really appealed to me was to see the
sangat working on their assigned tasks as one big family. There was no one big or small there, the atmosphere was one of complete love and affection towards each other within the sangat.
We came back that day. The same night I dreamt of being in a big Mandir, standing in a long queue and crying relentlessly. Suddenly, I saw Guruji enter the
durbar and He looked at me. The next moment He was holding my hand and leading me to a room. He told me that I had a unique wish and God had granted it to me. The very next moment I saw my Dad standing in front of me. I hugged him and enquired where he had gone. The person just said that he was not my Dad even though he looked exactly like him. Guruji then told me that my Dad was where he was supposed to be and that he was under His
chhatri (umbrella of grace and protection).
I woke up and felt very strange since I could easily recall my dream, which is not usual for me. Infact I even remember it today after four years. It dawned on me that when I had gone to the Mandir, I only had the sorrow of losing my father in my heart and so could not speak to him. I realized that Guruji had fulfilled my first wish and helped me in coping with my Dad's sudden death. I was also assured that Guruji had taken care of my Dad.
After this, my connection with Guruji began growing stronger by the day and we began frequenting Bade Mandir. Guruji also blessed me with a second child. My son Devansh was born exactly eleven months after my Dad's death and exactly nine months after we first visited Guruji's Mandir. It gave me a strong feeling that may be my Dad had come back to us.
Job change heralds happy move to Bangalore
I could sense that Guruji had brought in lot of positive changes to my career. I got more responsibilities, received promotions and was made the all-India head for operations. However, in the midst of all this I always felt that I was getting lesser time to spend with my family and to go to Bade Mandir. Maybe, Guruji was preparing me for what was coming next. Though the job that I was working in was challenging and fulfilling, there was office politics and work pressure.
During this time I got a call from an old acquaintance from my previous organization, asking me whether I would like to join them back. I showed my interest, everything happened telephonically and I was soon given the job. The job was exactly what I always wanted to do and came with a lot of visibility and responsibility within the organization.
We moved to Bangalore and I was very happy with the job. It allowed me to work from home, with flexible hours that enabled me to spend quality time with my family and, more importantly, I was able to attend satsangs every week. In Bangalore, we had a chance to meet the lovely
sangat of Guruji. I do not exaggerate in describing them as our first family. My mother also loves to be in Bangalore, my wife enjoys the place and with Guruji's blessings we have moved into the house that we always wanted to stay in.
I had completed 11 months in my new job and with Guruji's blessings these months had given me tremendous success and visibility. I was given the right projects, the projects were extraordinarily successful and the results were beyond anybody's imagination. Once my boss (an American) asked me how we were able to achieve so much in so few months, especially when the organization had earlier spent millions and deployed more resources. I replied that it was due to the presence of some heavenly power or hand behind it all. She just smiled and said "Yes".
One day my boss called me and said that she had good news for me. The company had decided to promote me with a good salary increase. This was the first time in my career that I had got something so fast and when I was least expecting it. Such an achievement has a different charm. Guruji knows the best and takes care of His sangat every moment.
What I have learnt
- Treat all human beings equally. There is no room for ego and a just-me attitude.
- Never by thought, actions or words hurt another human being. All people are sons and daughters of God and are here to work out their karmas.
- Pray to God out of love and not due to fear (Bhagwan pyar karne ki cheez hai darne ki nahi)
- Always listen to your conscience, most of the time it is God who is talking from within. It will also help you do the right thing rather than just doing things right.
Om Namah Shivay Shivji Sada Sahay | Om Namah Shivay Guruji Sada Sahay
Kunal Bhalla, a devotee
September 2012