SMT. J. DEVAKI KUTTY AMMA (1961)
It was by pure accident that I came across Her Holiness Sadguru Sri Rama Devi. In this land of ours it is by no means a strange phenomenon that a noble saint or a devoted Master forms the centre of attraction of a set or group of religious-minded people who try to perfect their selves and attain moksha by pursuing different paths. In fact it is quite common and when I first heard of sadguru Sri Rama Devi, I attached no special significance and took her to be one of them.
A friend of mine who was also related to me, while we met a few years back talked about Sree Sadguru Rama Devi and told me that the sadguru was at Trivandrum then and I may not miss an opportunity to see her. It was the advice I got that brought me to one of the most powerful personalities, I happen to have seen in all my lifetime. I met her for the first time while she was sitting in the midst of a few devotees and singing bhajan to them in a clear melodious voice. At the close of the bhajan she gave a discourse on how to be a sanyasin without breaking away from one’s relations. The style in local vernacular was simple and impressive. I do not remember exactly the impression I got at that time, but, I can say definitely, that by some unknown power of magnetism I was more and more drawn towards her. I became a regular visitor to her evening prayer meetings.
It was the personal interview which the sadguru was kind enough to grant me that brought about a change in me – a change that would ordinarily have taken years of experience to come about. She sat on a small sofa in a comfortable asan with her fingers interlocked and hands thrown in front. She was smiling pleasantly as I entered in and I felt the whole room radiant with the power of her divine presence. It was really an exhilarating experience and I hardly knew the passage of time. I felt as if I was in the presence of God Almighty herself with all her condescending magnanimity, love, affection and sympathy. Sitting below, looking at her radiant face and picking up those words uttered in a soft melodious tone in that solitude was really the most enchanting of experiences. I often recall this experience and feel a thrill of joy and happiness inside. Ever since I became a disciple of Sadguru Sree Rama Devi, I tried to put into practice the advice that I got from her. It is not an easy task to reconcile our theoretical conceptions with hard realities. Most of us have a bad temper and the habit of becoming a victim to it at the slightest provocation. Having learnt that this is a very bad habit and should be curbed with all our might, we try to do so. It is by no means easy. In my case I may say in all humility that though I have not been able to overcome this defect fully, I have to a great extent succeeded in curbing it by putting into practice the advice I got from Her Holiness. In the beginning it was really difficult. Sudden eruptions of anger seemed impossible to be suppressed. But I began to adopt the practice of thinking of something else other than the subject of provocation. On occasions when I could recall the face of the Holy Mother in samadhi the effect was salutary.
I have tried to practice the teachings of Her Holiness and I attend as often as possible, the meetings, satsanghs, bhajans at the local Mandir. By practicing her teachings I have the feeling that I am slowly evolving into a better person. I do not claim to be superhuman or anything like that, but I do think that I am in a way different from most of the people of my age who had not the opportunity to follow the path of our Guru Devi. I feel that the radiance that emanates from that divine soul has brought light to the darkness that prevailed within me and showed me a new path which leads to a fuller and meaningful life.