Letters from India

19. Ooty & Birthday Prep in Parthi - April 1985

Ooty & Birthday Prep in Parthi

April 19, 1985

Ooty

Boo –

Kodai Kanal is filled with sooo many stories and experiences I couldn’t begin. Even people who had come in years past said that this year Sai was the friendliest and sweetest. He was especially nice to some permanent residents, talking to them and giving really special attention, after ignoring them for years.

Ooty is wonderful – again, just come early and you get front row. Buuut, Sai doesn’t come as close and in fact is skipping over large sections of the ladies (ladies & gents are separated by the width of a road). But, buuut bhajans every night have been wonderful.

My foot, the swelling is down and it’s a lighter color red; but still looks awful. Still looks like a sick, sad red puffball. Easier to walk but there’s pain, especially when standing or walking. Hard to walk down steps. Unfortunately, a lot of steps to walk down.

Changing rooms a lot. Came to Anandagiri Hotel for two nights, roomed with 2 others in a bungalow. Third night, in a room with one (the other two roomies left to another hotel); 4th night couldn’t find roomie so slept in nook at end of hallway. (Boy did they chew me out when an employee tattletaled on me the next morning - !!) 5th, 6th & 7th nights, roomed in bungalow with two others, weird ones. One has her kundalini all messed up and talked of the energies going here or there in her brain & body, all messed up. Talking about weird, that one roomie I had for one night was a healer from Germany (Germany seems to breed spiritual healers), who got all one-pointed and crazy to heal my foot. Worked on it for 5 hours and I was thinking, ‘Can't I go to sleep now??!’ Didn’t notice improvement on foot next day. I'm not into this healing stuff. (All the roomies are Sai devotees, of course.)

Now they’re throwing everyone out because all these conferences & convocations are going on in Ooty, and they’ve booked all the rooms. So, sooo, they’ve opened the dormitory and 12 of us devotees have moved in (can fit 15). It’s nice & clean, the bathrooms are a separate row right outside the door.

The photographer Padmanaban took photos to sell in Puttaparthi village – I'm in 15 of them!

There are big changes at Prasanthi Nilayam. Changes? All the construction: they’re tearing up the road going into the ashram (past the canteen, back of Poornachandra - shops), and putting in a paved road. Plus, they’re finishing up the three new Round Houses, foreigner’s canteen and 25 sheds. Plus they’re going to expand the already huge Poornachandra hall, all in preparation for the mysterious 60th Birthday.

Because of all the construction, they’ve asking that no one come to the ashram until the end of July. The Public Relations office was busy throwing out everyone who had been there over 2 months, Swami’s orders. They do that every year when it gets hot. After most left, then Swami left to clear out the remaining. (They followed Him to Kodai & Ooty.) There’s a small crop of foreigners who came right before His Birthday and have stayed since, now their visas are almost up so they must return also.

Oh yes, also at the ashram they’re whitewashing and repainting all the Prasanthi buildings. Starting to look veeery nice. Sai’s doing a huge “spring cleaning” on His home, before the biggest, most spiritual birthday party ever, on November 23, 1985!

Guess that’s all for now. Today in Darshan Baba told someone, “I'm leaving here on the 25th,” probably means back to the Nilayam.

Om Sai Ram!

Eileen