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Miracles

The first thing that needs to be understood is that performing miracles is never the way of the enlightened Masters. Siddha Mahayogis like Baba Lokenath should not be confused with those who perform miracles with a purpose. From the time Baba stepped into the quiet village of Baradi he was almost unknown, for he truly was hiding for a while, until his fragrance spread on its own accord. Baba, through his intense sadhana in the plains and in the Himalayas, divinized every cell of his body and mind, thereby having all the powers of having supremacy over all the natural elements. His 26 long years in the hamlet of Baradi were filled with hundreds of stories of his infinite compassion and love, and how he fulfilled the wishes, small and big, of every seeker who came to his refuge. His word was the ultimate miracle. As he was established in the Truth of Brahman consciousness, Brahma Shakti or the infinite powers of Brahman, the Pure Consciousness emanated from him like the rays of light from the sun or fragrance from a fresh bloomed flower. It was not humans alone who were the recipients of his divine love and healing, but every species of life was blessed and touched by his divine grace. Baradi ashram vibrated with not just devotees from all walks of life, but animals too had the same rights as the humans. Through the miracles that happened every day around him, Baba conveyed the message to the world that when man can realize his innate divine potential, then his very wish becomes the Wish of God. Hence, that which people talked about as the most incredible powers or siddhis, to Baba it was the most natural manifestation of his compassionate heart melting in love.

At times, Baba Lokenath could seem indifferent, even harsh or dismissive. In reality, he was deeply compassionate. He spoke of that paradox in this way:

“Do you think that I want you to suffer the pain of your diseases? You have accumulated bundles of sins for many births. How else can you be rid of them without physical ailments and mental agony? When I see the pain of your suffering becomes intolerable, I cannot bear your suffering any longer. I know very well that by curing your ailments I am indirectly encouraging you, but I cannot remain indifferent. I convince myself by saying, “They are My children. Who else but Me will cure their painful diseases? I abuse them, punish them and at the same time take them on My lap.”

A persistent devotee once beseeched Baba to attend a dinner that was part of the last ceremonial rites for his late father. Baba never left the ashram for social events and no one ever insisted that he attend them in person. This devotee, however, refused to accept that, so Baba promised to attend. On the day of the dinner, the devotee received all of his guests. His entire attention was preoccupied, however, anticipating his most important guest, Baba Lokenath. He longed to see Baba. He restlessly watched as all of his guests arrived, feasted, and then left one by one. There was no sign of Baba. That night he became very depressed. He could not believe that Baba would break His promise. He condemned himself thinking that he must be a sinner. Why else would his master fail him? The next morning, he visited Baba, prostrated himself, and asked Baba why he had not come, since he had expected Baba with all his heart. Baba replied that he had gone to the house, but instead of being welcomed, he had been driven out. The devotee was shocked. He could only remember being gracious to all of his guests. Baba then said, “A dog tried to take some sweets from your storage room. Not once but three times you beat the dog with a stick and drove it away.” Baba showed him the bruises and said, “I was the dog. I visited you in the form of a dog. If you cannot recognize me, what am I to do?” The devotee then fell at Baba’s feet and asked forgiveness. Baba was teaching a lesson in the importance of acknowledging the Divine manifestation of every creature and in the necessity of observing kindness and goodness to all in the spirit of worship.

Umaprasanna Nag had been blessed with a son, but lost his wife during childbirth. There was no one at home who could nurse the baby. Umaprasanna’s sister, Sindhuvasini was unable to help him. He had decided to find a paid woman to feed the baby and save the child. Learning of her brother’s intentions, Sindhuvasini went to Baba. Baba listened to her, then told her, “There is no need of any paid woman. You come sit before me. I will suck your milk.” Sindhuvasini was infertile. She had always wished to be a mother. She could not believe her ears. The infertile woman sat before the Divine Child. As Baba put his mouth to her breasts, they filled with milk. Her clothes were drenched. The motherless child had found a mother in Sindhuvasini. With the nourishment of that blessed milk, the boy grew into holy child and ardent devotee of Baba. In later life, Brahmaprasanna, settled in Calcutta and established a temple dedicated to Baba Lokenath at Garia.

Other infertile women often came to Baba, begging to have children through His mercy and grace. Baba took pity on these unfortunate women who wholeheartedly longed to have a child. Baba always blessed them saying, “You will be blessed with a child, and I shall come to your home as your child.” Since Baba would say the same thing to all of these women, most devotees found His statements confusing. When they asked him to explain what he meant, he would say, “To you there is the second. But to Me, there is nobody else. I have become everything; so who else will be born other than Me?”

Sri Chandarkumar Dutta was the Deputy Magistrate of Dacca. After a prolonged ailment, his wife lost her ability to speak. She could not take food, pass urine or stool. She had the finest medical care, but continued to deteriorate. Only God could save her. Baba was her only refuge, so Chandrakumar brought her to Baba and begged for mercy. Baba responded, “In order to test whether I had attained the state of Brahman, I cured 94 dying patients, just by word. Now I do not have such wishes. But if anybody can make Me wish, even today, he can cure himself.” Chandrakumar asked how to make Baba wish. Baba replied, “Just as you feel the need for food to appease your appetite, just as you need to attend to the call of nature to maintain the health of your body, in the same way, if anybody feels the need for me, he can make Me wish and thereby fulfill his desires.” The pitiable condition of Chandrakumar’s wife touched Baba’s heart. The lady stayed for two months at the Baradi ashram. With the grace of Baba, she was able to speak again. Her other problems disappeared. Prior to her recovery, Chandrakumar promised to donate 500 rupees to the ashram if his wife recovered. Baba reminded him in a personal letter not to forget the promise he had made. Chandrakumar wrote back arrogantly, saying, “You are a sannyasin. What are you going to do with so much money?” A year later, Chandrakumar’s wife once again fell ill with all of the previous ailments. While Baba had no need of the money, the promise had been made freely by Chandrakumar. When he deliberately and arrogantly dismissed it, the blessings that had flowed out to him from Baba were necessarily taken away. Sadly, Chandrakumar’s wife suffered for his foolish actions.

A successful lawyer of the Dacca court, Sri Biharilal Mukherjee, was an ardent devotee of Baba. Once, he was traveling by boat through the middle of a river. A furious thunderstorm suddenly arose. Biharilal and the other passengers realized that the situation was beyond the control of the boatman. They began preparing for the end. Feeling helpless, Biharilal suddenly remembered Baba’s promise, “In forest or in ocean, whenever you are in danger, remember Me. I will save you.” The earnest prayers of the devotee reached Baba. At the time of this crisis, Anath Bandhu Mallik was sitting near Baba at the Baradi ashram. Baba told him, “Anath, Bihari’s life is at stake. He is praying to Me for My grace. I am going to save him.” As if by magic, the boat slowly balanced itself and reached its destination safely.

Manifestations of Baba’s grace were not confined to India. The following episode illustrates how Baba would bi-locate when he heard the call for help. Dr. Nishikanta Basu, an ardent devotee of Baba’s, was a practicing physician in a sanitarium in Chicago. One day, a patient came to him for treatment of a stomach tumor. The condition was serious. She was very worried and told the doctor she would do whatever he advised her. As Dr. Basu was about to reply, the lady cried out, “Stop, don’t talk. I see somebody behind you, towering above your head. Do you know who he is? He must be your spiritual guide.” As she described the appearance, the doctor realized that she was describing Baba. Dr. wrote in his diary, “I did not look behind me, but only kept looking at the lady and knew that Baba had come. He made it clear to me that he is the Divine Presence and he is always behind me protecting me.” Dr. Basu advised his patient to go to another hospital to have her tumor operation, knowing full well that if she went, from the business point of view, the sanitarium would lose. Dr. Basu knew that Baba had appeared because he was going to advise his patient to stay in the sanitarium for a few more days to satisfy hospital officials. Baba Lokenath had appeared to show him the path of truth and forthrightness.