Human side of married man with family losing job in Prasanthi Nilayam, Puttaparthi ashram

Last updated on 20th Nov. 2018

The contents of my recent Facebook post, https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/1921305678086000, are given below:

This post is based on a recent comment of mine elsewhere. I apologize to readers for not mentioning the name of the person referred to in the post below. That's because the matter referred to has not been confirmed officially though I have received the news from multiple quarters.

--Name-snipped--, I appreciate the words of love and friendship you have expressed for the person who seems to have recently lost his job in Prasanthi Nilayam. That is so good of you bro. I don't know how many people will express such love and friendship for the person publicly on social media. Given what I experienced when I was forced out of the Sai university in period July 2011 to March 2012, I doubt many people in Prasanthi Nilayam system will dare to say anything publicly supporting him.

As I digest this situation now, I am compelled to look at the human side of the matter. The person concerned dedicated his youth to Bhagavan and Prasanthi Nilayam. Now he is middle-aged, married and with a child. Firstly, if he is not accommodated elsewhere in Prasanthi Nilayam system, he (and family) will have to endure the agony of separation from PN system and resettling elsewhere. Then he and family will have to deal with the reality of getting a new job somewhere which helps in raising his family. Just think about how challenging the situation would be now to the person.

I think that the person concerned is INNOCENT until judged GUILTY by the legal system in India, or by a TRANSPARENT administrative investigation into any mismanagement and power-abuse by him in the VV project, whose report is shared publicly.

I further think that if he is not being given another position in Prasanthi Nilayam, it is the responsibility of Prasanthi Nilayam system to see to it that he and family are suitably accommodated elsewhere. I urge the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust trustees, in particular I urge trustee Shri K. Chakravarthi, to help in this matter.

I am deeply grateful to this person for the services he rendered to Shiva-Shakti Swarupa, Kali Yuga Avatar, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, as my spiritual interactions/encounters with Bhagavan in physical form were mostly in the period Oct. 2002 to March 2011, during which period, this person was one of the main caretakers, if not the main caretaker of Bhagavan. I have PERSONALLY HEARD in Sai Kulwant Hall, Bhagavan PUBLICLY praising this person for the dedicated service that he had given to him (Bhagavan). So I know from the lips of Bhagavan himself, said publicly over a mike, what Bhagavan felt (very positive) about the dedicated services rendered by this person, who had to sacrifice his youth in the process.

Even in discussions that sometimes crop up with locals in Puttaparthi about this person, I take the stand I mentioned above to rebut some views of some Telugu local media in 2011 (after Mahasamadhi) that some locals seem to have been influenced by. At least in some cases, my words seem to have had some effect by at least slightly changing the view of some of these locals.

If this person is being forced to relocate, I wish this person and his family all the very best to get a new job and a new life. I pray to Bhagavan to take care of this person who is a dedicated devotee of his. Jai Sairam!