WHEN BIHARIJI GAVE HIS OWN BLANKET TO HIS BHAKT

One never knows when suddenly a turning point comes in the life of a person. There are many instances of athiests who believe in non existence of god. But some incident happens in their life and they believe that there is god.A group of devotees were circubating the vrindavan marg with their guru whom they use to call Baba.While walking barefooted some devotees were taking out their thorn while some were nursing their wounds which they had got due to the stones that were scattered on the road. Baba went on walking without a slight whimper. They stopped under a shady tree to take some rest and sat down on the cool sand beneath it. After a short while Baba stood up and said let’s go but some of the devotees were still not willing to go as they were feeling very tierd.Baba had no choice so agreed to their request.One of the devotee asked baba,aren’t you having pain on your feet baba? Baba nodded and said, yes I do, but I don’t have timefor nursing them.The oo’s and aah’s are hidden due to Bihariji’s kripa.The devotees saw that his feet were bleeding and his heel and toes were badly injured due to hitting on the stones. The devotees were admiring baba’s patience and felt ashamed the way they were behaving with their sore feet.Then one of them asked Baba were you always so modest as you are now? Baba straightened up and said, no my dear no, I was a great athiest and use to make fun of bhakts. It was due to my sadaguruji Lalitdasji that I became a swan from a crow.He handed me over to Bihariji and since then he is my saviour, master, mother, father and everything. My guru gave up in reforming me because I was useless case. He told Bihariji, now it is your wish to set him right or not.Since my guru had abanded me, Ihad no place to stay. It was a cold shivering winter night of December.
I went to Bihariji’s temple for the rajbhog aarti and as I stood in front of himI saw two drops of compassionate love fall from Bihariji’s eyes and then I saw those drops falling on Bihariji’s cheek. I could then seeBihariji’s lips moving as though saying something to me and he had a lovely smile on his whole face. Iwas an idiot and thought that I was imagining it and came out of the temple.I was going to my place which I had found to spend the cold wintery night, when I heard somenoe calling my name ,Gopal!Gopal!.I looked back and saw a person wearing tattered and torn clothes who was lying on the floor behind the temple shivering due to the icy wind of the evening.Without thinking anything else I gave him my little shawl that I had tucked on my self tightly to get some relief from the cold. I too was like a beggar and slept on the open red stoneed floor of Bihariji’s temple and tried to go off to sleep. When I woke up it was night and I was shrinking my body due to the cold wave of winter. I was very hungry and felt like a starved urchin but ad no place togosince guruji had given me away to Bihariji.At that moment a gosain ji who knew my guruji saw me in this condition. He offered me to go his place but I declined the offer saying that I will now onwards stay only at the lotus feet of Bihariji as per my guruji’s wish and instructions.He served me nice hot meal and again offered me to stay at his place but I refused and came back to the temple for shyaan aarti.After that I came back to my chosen place among the beggars and came and sat on the stairs outside Biariji’s temple. Due to the icy cold wave I could hardly sleep so I thought I should chant Bihariji’s name again and again. That worked like magic and I found it very blissful. I don’t know when I fell off to sleep, but I could feel the touch of soft hands and felt very cosy. Someone had put a blanket on my body. In the morning I was awakened by the bells and chanting of padas of swami sriharidasji and saw the blanket which had given me such warmth. I took it off and was wonderig who gave me this lovely blanket when a bhandari came and tells me, how did you manage to steal Bihariji’s blanket? I was stunned at the thought that the soft hands that had touched me were Bihariji’s. How great of him to accept me as his bhakt. That was the turning point of my life.Since then I am living under the shelter of Bihariji only.

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