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I had a strange experience on the eighth day, Ashtami

   I had a strange experience on the eighth day, Ashtami. As usual, at 5 am, I went to do the pada namaskar to Swami. At that time, I found him to be highly restless and he seemed somewhat sick. When he saw me, he curtly told me to take away all the items I had brought to offer him and go to the temple and added that there was no need to do pada namaskar to him. He further asked all the other devotees also to leave for the temple. I was shocked and confused. Doing my best to conceal my emotions, I left for the temple along with others. When we went there, the water kept in the kamandalu near the Sadguru Gnananandar idol in the specially constructed rostrum had fallen down and a few devotees were busy cleaning the place. While discussing about Swami's unusual wrath, one devotee curiously asked me as to which song I had prepared to sing after pada namaskar on that day. I just told him that sometimes one happens to face such unforeseen events, the reason for which we are not aware of but only Swami knows. Swami came there and all prostrated before him and the usual morning pooja started at 7.30 am. At the end, Swami gestured a lady to come forward and sit on a mat and invoked Devi in her. The wonder was the colour of the sari and the blouse she was wearing was green, the same as the blouse piece which I had kept to be given to Swami. With Swami's permission, she sang a song which was the same one I had planned to sing in the morning. I felt very happy. The function came to an end and I had to rush to the college for my work. After returning, I went straight to meet Swami and asked him about the strange happenings of the morning. Swami replied that in the early morning at 4 am, one of his devotees was admitted in the maternity hospital and had a lot of complications during delivery. Her husband had called him over phone for help and blessings. Sadguru Gnananandar in his divine voice told Swami that she would deliver a baby girl but her life was in danger. So, Swami had to take up all her sufferings on himself till she delivered. Since he had to take up all the karmas, he was neither Devi nor Gurunathar at that time, but had to assume the form of a human doctor to save her life. That was the reason for his asking me to proceed to the temple since he did not want me to visualize him as Devi and do the pada pooja. Moreover, he said that Gurunathar would like to go on keeping tests for us to get more attuned to right thinking and action. After hearing his words, I was confused no more and never doubted his divine ways. By the grace of Swami, the lady and the child enjoy good health till date.

   Another miraculous and unbelievable event occurred during the function. Swami had been saying that he had acquired all the asthama siddhis. On the sixth day of navarathri, a devotee by name Saathappan called Swami informing him about his going to Sabarimalai and sought his blessings for a nice darshan of Lord Ayyappa and also for his safe return. Swami told him that he would be there in Sabarimalai. Meanwhile, a lady by name Kamala who had seen Swami about six months back in Madurai at her neighbour's house during Devi pooja, happened to go to Sabarimalai during Navarathri time. There she saw Swami standing near the sanctum of Kannimoola Ganapathi and He gave her vibuthi and some coins. She again met him in Devi's sannidhanam. On her return she went to her neighbour's house and told them about her meeting Swami in Sabarimalai and showed the vibuthi and the coins. The devotees of Swami were stunned since Swami had been in Bombay all the while at the navarathri function. Kamala went on asserting that it was Swami alone whom she saw without doubt. The devotees were puzzled and called up Swami. Swami replied that it was true that he had been to Sabarimalai in sookshma sareeram. He said that this was his very first act of ashtama siddhi, by which the siddhar can be present at more than one place at the same time. This proved beyond doubt that Swami is omnipresent. Swami's devotees in Madurai immediately communicated this mystic event to all other devotees. Everyone was astonished and thrilled at the divine ways of Devi in the form of Swami. After the function came to a close, Swami asked us to take the Devi idol to our house. In the year 1993, on new year day Swami called our house Nethrambikai kshethram, the abode of Devi. To prove this, in the year 1999, an idol of Kalyana Bagavathi was installed in our house which is guiding and protecting us till date.

   In the year 2000, the Navarathri festival was held at the Peetam for the very first time. It was also the first time I could not attend since I was away in the United States to help my daughter. Swami gave Kaiyana Bagavathi lamps to the devotees. The significance behind the lamp was that Kaiyana Bagavathi took over the role of Kuladevi (family deity) of all the devotees so that they all would get united as one family under Devi's roof. The lamp was to be lit daily with ghee and during any important function held in the family. One should feel the presence of the family deity in that lamp and by worshipping it, one can seek Devi's blessings for the entire family. Swami told the devotees in advance that during navarathri, they would encounter anubhavam, adisayam, ascharyam, and adhbutham (experiences, wonders, astonishment and marvels) in events which symbolically represent the four Vedas. Every day the devotees could witness and experience an incident involving all the of four above. Swami gave jyothi darshan to all on many occasions during Navarathri, thrilling moments for all present. Another notable miracle was that seven siddhars visited the peetam in sukshma sareeram and displayed their miraculous siddhis as per Swami's narration to his devotees. Swami with his divine vision, attributed their visits and sadhanas correlating them with the day's happenings. Swami was fasting on all the ten days, consuming only water. He gave divya darshan of Kali during Lalitha Sahasranama archanai. Several times, athma jyothi was flashed to all and it was seen all over the body of Swami. The bhajans added greatly to the pious and spiritual vibrations prevailing in the peetam. It was a wonderful sight to witness Swami materializing haldi powder from rain drops. The devotees who attended the navarathri function witnessed incidents every day and could feel the fourfold phenomena of adisayam, ascharyam, anubhavam and adhbutham.

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