Page 37 - My Father-Final Book

two weeks for a letter to reach its destination. On one occasion, I had reached Pune without prior notice to my family. As I reached the home, my mother opened the door and was delighted to see me. My father woke up from his nap and sat on the bed he usually occupied in those days. My mother was inside the kitchen gossiping with one Gujarathi lady. I did not know this lady then. When I washed my feet and sat in the kitchen to drink tea made by the mother, my mother introduced me to the lady. The lady looked very simple and not educated. Only in the future, I learnt that the lady was married, but that her husband had left her. The lady was very spiritual and had some spiritual powers as well. She considered my father as her big brother and she took some guidance or blessings from my father. Anyway, my mother asked the lady whether she would be willing to give her blessings to me. I did not know what that meant. At this, the lady washed her feet and stood in front of the small shrine in the kitchen. She closed her eyes and prayed something. Then she raised her palms towards the shrine. To my amazement, a ray of red colored powder (called Kumkum) travelled from the shrine onto her palms and a good amount of powder landed onto her palms. After a couple of minutes, she opened her mouth and my mother put a burning wick from the Niranjan (an oil lamp with burning wick) inside it. She closed the mouth and immediately she opened her eyes and came back to normal consciousness. I was amazed at this. I was an Engineering student and I have no doubt about what I saw. She gave the powder to me as a blessing. I have kept that powder with me to-date! This lady was coming to my father for some advice or blessings, but I never knew what her real problem was.[Illustration 11: Shrine in the kitchen]
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