ACT XX

SCENE 1

A hut is built on the land gifted by Subbamma, and that now becomes the residence of Young Swami. While many adore and worship Baba, some are jealous and have evil intentions towards Him.

A MAN: It seems that Karnam Subbamma gave a piece of her land to Young [Bala] Swami.

SECOND PERSON: Subbamma has tremendous devotion for Bala Swami.

THIRD PERSON: Apart from devotion, Subbamma is also a very generous lady. That is why she so readily offered help.

YET ANOTHER MAN: It is Easwaramma’s blessing to have given birth to Bala Swami, while it is our good fortune and blessing to be able to listen to His Divine Discourses.

FIRST PERSON: Swami taking birth in this village of Puttaparthi is the result of the good merit earned by its inhabitants in previous births.

SCENE 2

A plot is hatched to set fire to the hut of Baba.

RAMA: Hey, come on!…. Come quick!

RAJA: Look out and see if someone is coming.

RAMA: Sit down……sit down…..

GANGA: They call Him God, God. …. They hire bullock carts and come here…Deluded, they have become mad…..How can man be God? What is all this illusion and miracles!………

RAJA: Even if He is not God but has some power, let Him show it now! ….Is it miracle or magic, is He real or fraud?………We will soon know!

RAMA: Stop talking ……. Go and get the torches first; we will then light the torches and set fire to the hut.

The hut is torched, and is rapidly getting burnt. People see this and are shocked.

A MAN: Look! Bala Swami’s hut is burning.….. And Swami is inside!!

ANOTHER MAN: Hey! Get up!! ….. Bala Swami’s hut is burning!……Fire….Fire!…..

A THIRD PERSON: Come on! ………The hut is burning! ……..Bring some water!…

FOURTH PERSON: Hey, all of you come! Bala Swami’s hut is on fire!……Come! Someone has set fire to it……..

Meanwhile, it mysteriously starts raining. But wonder of wonders, the rain is pouring down only over the burning hut and nowhere else! People are astonished.

A MAN: Look! It is raining right over there! ….. Rain is pouring down on the burning hut!!……

ANOTHER MAN: Indeed!………. Really, it is raining!………

THIRD PERSON: But it is not raining over us! ……… Not even a drop on us!….How amazing!

FOURTH PERSON: This is most astonishing! …….. Rainwater is not falling on us but coming down only on the burning hut!!…….How strange!…..

YET ANOTHER PERSON: There is nothing strange about it…..Bala Swami is inside…..And Swami is no ordinary person.

A LADY: Swami is God!

ANOTHER SPECTATOR: That is why it is not a mere hut but a Divine Abode.

Meanwhile, the plotters are aghast; evidently, their plans have totally misfired. Slowly, the truth dawns on them.

GANGA: All along we mistakenly believed that everything was an illusion and a fraud…….But now, we know the truth….

RAJA: The rain is coming down only on the burning hut!…..How strange!!….

A MAN IN THE CROWD: Bala Swami is no ordinary person. He is God!….He is a God with extra-ordinary powers….Otherwise, how can it rain just on the burning hut and not on us?….. Astounding!……

SECOND PERSON: Look! The burning hut is now back to normal!

THIRD PERSON: That is not a hut but a temple. That is why such a miracle has happened!…..

FOURTH PERSON: That makes sense. After seeing this miracle, can anyone doubt the Divinity of Bala Swami?…..There! Looks like Bala Swami is coming!…

A LADY: It is all a Leela, a sport of God! Bala Swami is coming!

Swami appears on the scene and He is duly hailed. A cheer-leader shouts, “Bala Swami Ki” and the crowd responds by shouting “Jai” which means victory. The gang that set fire to the hut realise who Swami is, feel remorse, and decide to seek Swami’s pardon.

RAMANA: Bala Swami is truly God!……

RAMA: Let us go at once to Bala Swami, fall at His Feet, and beg for His forgiveness….

THE EVIL GANG: [chorus] Swami, please forgive us!

BABA: What for?

GANGA : Mistaking You to be a fraud and a magician, we set fire to Your abode…

RAJA: We wanted to test Your powers. Swami! Please forgive us!

BABA: You did not do any wrong. It was your ignorance that made you act the way you did….. Ignorance is like darkness…. In the matchstick that you used, there is fire as well as light. The same match can be used to light either a fire or a lamp. With the fire you can reduce a hut to ashes whereas with the lamp you can dispel darkness. …Use first your intellect to remove your ignorance… Stop testing. The fault is not yours but that of your ignorance… You may go now…

THIEVES: Swami! You are truly God! You are truly God!

SCENE 3

Easwaramma is deeply upset by the incident of arson. She is very much worried about the safety of her dear Sathyam. The boy refuses to listen to her; she has no recourse but to pray to her favourite God, Lord Sathyanarayana, who gave her the boy as His gift.

EASWARAMMA: O Lord! You are constantly testing young Sathyam who is totally innocent about the ways of the world…..How long am I to bear all this? …Oh God! How long have I to suffer this anguish? ….Treating Sathyam to be Your very Gift, we have named Him after You!…

Sobs.

EASWARAMMA: When people worshipped Him as Bala Swami, I saw You in Him….. But……But…This jealousy and hatred have exceeded all limits! …Lord! Why are You subjecting Sathyam to all these difficult tests?…No!….No!…No more such tests!….. Please don’t agitate this mother’s heart….Don’t disturb it please! …I can’t bear it….I just can’t bear it!

Swami enters Easwaramma’s house at this juncture and calls out to her.

BABA: Lady of the house…..lady of the house….

EASWARAMMA: My boy……my dear Sathyam……my child!…

BABA: Is it not true that when a net is thrown into a pond, only fish will be caught and not water? In the same way, acts performed out of ignorance will not harm those who enjoy God’s Grace. Lady, don’t worry!..

EASWARAMMA: My child, ……my Sathyam!

SCENE 4

The hut being set on fire and its miraculous survival now becomes the talk of the village.

A LADY: Sister, did you see that extra-ordinary happening? There was no rain anywhere in the village but it just poured over the hut of Bala Swami!

ANOTHER LADY: Yes, the rain came down only on the burning hut!

THIRD LADY: The rains came to put out the fire because Sathyam is God!

FOURTH LADY: How remarkable! In this Kali Age, God is living right here in this very village of ours and right before our eyes!

THE FIRST LADY: Venkama’s son Raju is no ordinary person! He is a Great One with extra-ordinary powers. Otherwise, how can it rain non-stop just over the burning hut and nowhere else?

SECOND LADY: It seemed as if the Rain God had come down to have the Darshan of Bala Swami!

A LADY IN THE GROUP: We should all be proud that such a Noble Soul is residing in our village. Not everyone can have this Divine Spark; it is the cumulative merit of earlier births…..This miracle is like what Lord Krishna performed earlier in the Dwapara Age.

FIRST LADY: Fortunate indeed are we to be able to witness and be thrilled by the Leelas of Swami!

SCENE 5

The scene is Venkama Raju’s house. The subject of discussion is the recent hut-burning incident.

KONDAMA RAJU: Such stories are known from the days of the Mahabharatha. Did not the evil Kauravas try to burn the noble Pandavas, when the latter were occupying the palace built of lacquer? What happened then? ….. God’s power prevailed, and evil power took flight!…. A similar thing has happened in this Kali Age also. Once more, and in the very same manner, God’s might has triumphed over evil forces. No evil power can ever touch our dear Sathyam, anywhere and at any time……… Please believe me. Don’t worry!

VENKAMA RAJU: Father, how can you say that?! What if something terrible were to happen?…..

KONDAMA RAJU: Venkama, you have not understood Sathyam. That is why you are having such doubts. ……

VENKAMA RAJU: We have to punish those wicked people…..We have to make sure that such things do not happen again. ..

BABA: I have not incarnated in order to punish the wicked but to remove the evil in them, and to show them the sacred path. Even Dharmaraja, who never wavered from Dharma, had enemies. He was named Ajata Shatru [one who has no enemies] but all the Kauravas were his enemies! ……….In this Kali Age, evil overshadows good….. Devotion to God alone can invoke the Supreme Power that annihilates evil forces….. Constantly remembering God, promotes devotion.

SCENE 6

MAN: Seshama Raju, Seshama Raju! It seems some evil people set fire to Bala Swami’s abode in Puttaparthi!

SESHAMA RAJU: Is that so?

MAN: But don’t worry. Swami is safe. Thanks to the Divine Power in Him, He did not face any danger. I will take your leave now.

- END OF EPISODE 27 -