Lord Ganesha Appeared in Form and Hit Me With His Trunk !

A significant manifestation of Lord Ganesha happened during my stay in Puttaparthi in 2019 - during my posting in the Super Speciality Hospital for my electives.

Lord Ganesha is somehow the mascot for Puttaparthi.He is ubiquitous there ! 

Image : Lord Ganapati in Sai Gokulam.Cowboy here.

I was doing my electives under the cardiology and plastic surgery department for 5 weeks - working hours ranged 7am - 5pm daily for 6 days per week.So,most of my time was actually spent within the hospital itself.

My night routine ( post-hospital hours,post dinner in Prashanti Nilayam ) before retiring involved a typical walk around the Ashram,with stops at several Ganesha shrines within the ashram.

It would be a very personal moment with the minimal crowd,contrary to daytime.Hence,I would spend time reciting some portions from the Vedas - one being the Ganapati Atharva Shirsham from Atharva Veda.

This was a time when I had not commenced whatsapp teaching and I had a lot of identity with the mind.We shall look at what that means..

Everytime I recited,my mind would start its inner chatter in terms of the technicalities of the recitation - which I am very particular about ( the pronunciations and intonations ).

My mind :

''Hey,the previous verse, did you give enough force to the recitation.. was the svaram at this particular akshara correct.... ''

'' Hey, don't you think the verse at the start is supposed to have a high pitch instead of a middle one at this place.. ?? ''

See,my being was not involved in the recitation.My monkey mind led the recitation due to nothing else but EGO - The feeling that I am the body and mind which is reciting the Vedas ! The sense of the body as the doer was a grave mistake I was doing.

The worse part was when my mind dimension travelled to Malaysia to the kids I was teaching.This was during my final years in medical school when I was teaching to a group of children in a temple weekly.

Mind mind would intensify its voice :

'' Do you think your kids are reciting this particular verse properly ? Recall their recitations... don't you think they brought this particular aksharam in a high pitch instead of a low one ''

The conflict created was so intense that it would put me in a low mood and guilt.The guilt of a possibility of not being able to correct them ( no communication through whatsapp back then.. plus,I was away from Malaysia for 5 weeks )

Here,again - the EGO. The feeling that me,as a body and mind is imparting the knowledge.

There was a lot of braining in regard to the technicalities - which is the soul of the Vedas as I perceived,in parallel to the instructions set in Taittiriiya Upanishad of Krshna Yajur Veda.

shiikshaaM vyaakhyaasyaamaH
varNas-svaraH
maatraa balam
saama santaanaH

We shall explain ( vyaakhyaasyaamaH) the principles of correct way to learn the Vedas ( shiikshaaM).It deals with pronunciation ( varNa - syllables), intonation ( svaraH - sound or note) , duration ( maatraa) and emphasis ( balam) laid on syllables,linking of the varying intonations ( saama-uniformity) and continuity ( santaanaH) of recitation.Thus,these set guide for one to learn the Vedas.

Ganesha's Initiation

So this happened one day after my usual routine.I had recited in front of the majestic vigraha at entrance of of Kulwant Hall.He was initially inside the Kulwant hall.

I remember that the mental conflict was so huge during this particular recitation.

Image : Lord Ganesha at the entrance of Kulwant Hall

Anyways,I retired to sleep after this.My room was situated in North 1 block,near the Gayatri shrine.

I always slept with a mattress on the floor.I woke up the next morning by the echoes of a clear,high pitched Veda recitation in my room,not too far away for me.

My room

I opened my eyes,half-asleep to see Lord Ganesha sitting close to my other end of the mattress.He was in padmasana,in a yogic posture with eyes closed whilst reciting Shri Rudram ( it was the 10th Anuvaka ).His recitation was very high pitched and had a 'piercing' effect.

He gave a very important lesson through His gesture here which I grasped.

(1) Recitation is to be made with body in a yogic posture - Erect spine with padmasana.

(2) Strictly NO movement.Not even hand gestures to indicate svaras as commonly done in Vedic Schools.Strictly no swaying of head.

(3) Spine erect with eyes closed, and have yourself fully absorbed in the Vedas

(4) Recite with a very high pitch,loud and sharp voice.

The way He portrayed the guidelines for Veda recitation is exactly as How Bhagavan Shri Sathya Sai Baba had trained His students !

The moment I saw Him,He stopped His recitation.He opened His eyes and stood up.He was barely a few feets tall.Like a toddler,He made leaps towards me.He literally made few tiny jumps with his tiny feet towards me.He came beside me and hit my head with His tiny trunk !

It actually hurt and importantly - made it clear that this was reality and not a vision or dream.

With the hit and contact,He transmitted His initiation in a flash.I went beyond time and space.In a state of beyond body and mind,I inner being simply 'realised' all that He had to 'tell'.

The entire communication happened in the 4th dimension of vaak ( paraa ) which is wordless communication.It is the speech of absolute silence - through initiation.Interestingly, the 4 dimensions of vaak is actually part of the Ganapati Upanishad I recite

His Initiation :

He told me not to recite from the mind.The technicalities are important,but do not let them lead the chant.You lead from your being.Recite from the heart with a stressless flow.

These were not what He said. I'm just expressing the initiation He transmitted without any verbal cues - just as a flash in a jiffy.He transmitted simply with His touch.

His initiation was a life changing one for me.I realised that ego must be pulverised in regards to veda learning.Your body is only an instrument through which the eternal Vedas express as Vaak.

I returned to the physical dimension and the mild pain on my head was still present !

My night routine continued and I just surrendered any issues of technicality that ran in my mind to Him ( since He talked so much,now let Him take care of the students :P ) I started a somehow burden-less recitation.

The initiation He showed changed my attitude in learning ,teaching Vedas.The moment I dropped the burden of my mind and surrendered,the Vedas just effortlessly reached those who were learning from me.

Soon,I met the kitchen team of Western Canteen - Dr Akshay from Mumbai,Shveta from Ukraine and Chef Edo from Indonesia.I followed them for rounds and we disturbed the Ganesha-s as a group instead.My personal time with him lessened and we would just do a short GaNanaan tva,Yajur Veda.

Image : Lord Ganesha at the canteen of Super Speciality Hospital.Would see Him daily during breakfast and lunch

READ MORE :

(1) My Internship in Puttaparthi's Super Speciality Hospital

(2) Importance and Benefits of Ganapati Atharva Shirsham