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Story goes that a habitual drunkard approached Swami Vivekananda, full of
remorse. He asked him, “Master, is there redemption for me in life?”
“Did you ever glimpse at Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, my Guru and Master?”
was the question that Swami Vivekananda asked in return.
“Not exactly from close quarters,” the man replied thoughtfully, “but I
remember seeing him on one occasion, for a fraction of a moment as I was
passing by a gathering in his presence.”
“Go happily your way my friend, for your life is indeed redeemed,” said Swami
Vivekananda before adding emphatically, “You have seen the great one. Why do
you even have a doubt whether you are redeemed or not?”
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When it comes to a life with the Divine, numbers and quantities go out of the
window. It does not matter whether one was in the Divine presence for a few
moments or for a few years – just the fact that one was IN THE DIVINE PRESENCE
is enough to redeem. In this context, the life of Sathya Geeta is one that is
sure to arouse envy even in the angels of highest heavens.
It was a short life indeed – only about 9 earthly years. But in those years she
attained what many souls do not get in hundreds, nay thousands of years of
great penance, an opportunity to spend Divine time at the lotus feet of
Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. Swami’s little elephant shed her mortal coil in
the early hours of 22 January, 2013. The precise time was 4:20am and the very
auspicious Brahma Muhurtam, a time that is best utilized in spiritual pursuits,
had just begun. The day was the first Ekadasi (eleventh day) of Uttarayana (a
period which is considered very spiritual and holy as per Bharatiya
traditions). Even the grandsire of the epic Mahabharatha, Bheeshma, who had the
boon to give up his life whenever he chooses, picked the Uttarayana period to
shed the mortal coil. If the manner and circumstances in which one dies is
supposed to speak about how one lived, Sathya Geeta’s passing indeed tells a
lot about how blessed her life was.
She arrived at Puttaparthi in 2007, as a 3.5 feet bundle, just a few years old.
Even with her arrival, she faced mighty expectations from the devotees of Baba
who saw in her the spirit of Sai Geeta, Swami’s pet elephant who had passed
away a few months earlier. Her’s had been a life of unmatched love for Swami
and everyone was desperate to have her back in some way. Sathya Geeta seemed to
be the answer.
That was not her name. As a cub, she had been christened Lakshmi. But when
Swami visited the shed behind the planetarium to see the new baby elephant, He
longingly and lovingly addressed her, “Geeta... Geeta...”. Thus, it was that
the naming ceremony happened spontaneously as Lakshmi took on the name of ‘her
Lord’, Sathya with the ‘surname’ Geeta which seemed like the perfect one for
any elephant that belonged to the Lord! Swami visited the calf on July 21,
feeding her sugarcane pieces and fruits. And after that, little Geeta took up
the mantle that had been carried thus far by Sai Geeta, leading all the
processions on all occasions.
Swami visits the little elephant for the first time, 21 July 2007
Mr. M. G. Nandagopal, librarian at the Brindavan campus and a member of the
Vedam group fondly recalls, “I have a very special memory granted by Sathya
Geeta for all our vedam boys. It was a festive occasion at Prasanthi Nilayam.
But, we were told that the procession would consist only of the band-boys
leading Swami from Yajur Mandir. Always with a hope, I had asked if there was
any chance for Vedam boys also to join the procession, and got a negative
reply. At 10 pm that night, I got a call saying that Swami wanted Sathya Geeta
to lead the procession. And so, the Vedam boys also should be there to escort
Her. WOW! We thanked Sathya Geeta profusely for getting us this bonus chance
from Swami.”
Just like Swami’s children in the Primary School, little Geeta had a very
sweet, innocent and childlike nature and it was evident from her routine that
began every morning at the Brahma Muhurtam. The routine included exercise,
praying and playing apart from eating, drinking and resting. And by her side,
throughout the day was Mr. Pedda Reddy, who had dedicated his life to caring
for Swami’s elephants - Sai Geeta and now Sathya Geeta. Radiosai had prepared a
short video on the daily routine of the little Sathya Geeta. The video was
watched by our dear Swami at His Yajur Mandir with rapt attention. A smile
played on His lips as He watched His '4-legged Primary School student'!
View the Video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=FNiww09QH_g
A real bundle of energy she was and she brought a whiff of youth in her aged
caretaker too! Mr. Pedda Reddy would be often seen running on the road
alongside the mischievous Sathya Geeta, trying to discipline her by holding her
ears. And so, when, one day, she started to walk with a limp, the caretaker got
worried for her. Had she got some injury?
He examined her and found nothing. And yet, she limped. His previous experience
with Sai Geeta had taught him that whenever there was a problem, he should rush
to Swami. But it was during a time, when Swami’s accessibility was on an
all-time low. He wondered as to what to do. That was when Mr. Rathnakar,
currently Trustee of the Central Trust, came to him. He told him, “Swami told
me that Sathya Geeta is not fine and that she was walking with a limp. He has
given money to get her treated by the best of doctors.”
Ah! When they say that the Lord listens to the call of a devotee, it surely
includes those in the animal kingdom as well! Sathya Geeta was suffering from
the initial stages of juvenile arthritis! And the timely action got her back on
her feet, in no time. Soon after that, almost every fortnight, on a Thursday,
Sathya Geeta was given the privilege of having Swami’s darshan from inside the
compound walls of Yajur Mandir. In fact, she was one of those blessed few
devotees who had darshan of Swami before He was taken to the hospital.
On that day, Swami had fed her fruits and goodies. He had patted her and given
vibhuti for her. He knew and maybe she knew too that it would be the last time
that they would be seeing each other physically.
And today, Sathya Geeta seems to have been in a great hurry to join her beloved
Swami. The physical reason which was the cause for her to shed the body was a
block in the gastro-intestinal tract because of which she had no bowel movement
for almost 24 days. The vets from Hyderabad and Chennai did their best to
locate the block. They searched from the oral cavity and also from the aboral
end. They did not have much success and as they were debating on a surgery,
Sathya Geeta seemed to smile at them.
One of the doctors said that an elephant is capable of living for more than 30
days without dropping dung. So, medically it was still possible to treat her.
However, like the great Bheeshma, it seemed that the little Geeta too had
decided to leave at the auspicious hour on the auspicious day.
We can only celebrate the merger of this soul with its Lord. Blessed indeed is
this life that seemed to have been created only to give company to the Lord.
The fact that she had won many hearts even in her short life is evident from
the scores of people who gathered with flowers and fruits in their hands, and
devotion in their hearts to catch a last glimpse of the little Geeta who will
forever remain that - Sai’s little Geeta.
- Radio Sai Team
http://media.radiosai.org/journals/vol_11/01JAN13/05_krishna_geeta_sathya_geeta_sathya-sai-babas-elephant.htm
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Press Releases by Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust
THE PASSING AWAY OF SATHYA GEETHA:
We record with deep regret the passing away of Sathya Geetha,the favourite
elephant of Bhagwan Baba.this morning at 4-30 AM.The pachyderm was ailing for
the last three weeks annd expert specialist veterinarians from Kerala and
Tamilmadu had been brought in to treat her.She was suffering from Intestinal
Volvulus leading to Intestinal Torsion and Colon Impaction..In spite of the
best medical attention Sathya Geetha breathed her last in the early hours of
the morning.
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Sathya Geetha was 9.5 years old and was originally brought from Karnataka.The
devotees would fondly remember the many delightful and engaging interaction in
the last few years between Swami and His favourite elephant Sathya Geetha.
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Media Coordinator
Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust
Prasanthi Nilayam
