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Strange turn of Events at Uravakonda
On March 8, 1940, the whole town was shocked to hear that a big black
scorpion had stung Sathya. There was a belief current in Uravakonda and
the surrounding country that no one will survive a snakebite or scorpion
sting in the place, because of the many-hooded serpent stone that has
given the name to the place. The rock looks as if a serpent has raised its
head to strike its fangs and hence, the dread superstition has gained
currency. It was about seven o'clock, at dusk, and Sathya leaped with a
shriek, holding the right toe!
No scorpion was discovered, however; and, Sathya slept that night without
any sign of pain! Every one felt relieved, only to become anxious once
again, when exactly at 7 p.m the next day, Sathya fell unconscious and
became stiff; he would not speak and breathing appeared faint. Seshama
Raju, the brother and others got alarmed; they inferred that it must be
the scorpion-poison that has taken 24 hours to affect the heart. So,
Seshama Raju brought in a doctor, who gave an injection and left behind a
mixture. Sathya was apparently unconscious throughout the night. The
doctor came again in the morning and declared that the boy was out of
danger!
An incident happened in the night which showed that Sathya was not
'unconscious' but, that he was even supraconscious! Some one suggested
that Muthyalamma; the Devatha near the Hill might be propitiated, because
the condition of the boy might be due to some evil spirit that possessed
him. So, volunteers hurried to the temple, got down a ladder into the
sanctum sanctorum, and offered worship, placing flowers and incense, and
breaking a coconut. Just when they did it near the hill, Sathya, who was
to all intents 'unconscious', said, "The coconut has broken into three
pieces," and when the volunteers came home with the offerings, they had
with them three pieces, and not the regular two!
Sathya got up in a day or two and began to behave in an extraordinary way.
Baba has said that He Himself initiated the process of manifestation, for,
He could not wait any longer, playing about as a mere boy, with 'brother'
and 'sister' and 'classmates' and other secular bonds. He wanted to
demonstrate, as He said, that 'he was beyond both Visha and Vishaya',
unaffected by poison or the objective world. There was no scorpion, which
could sting Him.
Meanwhile, Seshama Raju had informed Puttaparthi about the state of things
at Uravakonda. He had written that Sathya was not answering any one who
spoke to him, that it was a Herculean task to make him accept food, that
he was spending the time mostly in silence but, sometimes bursting into
song and poetry, sometimes reciting long Sanskrit slokas, sometimes
talking the highest Vedanta. The parents took about a week to reach the
place, because of unforeseen and inexplicable difficulties that caused
delay and increased anxiety.
Seshama Raju got nervous why the parents had not arrived; he got a man who
agreed to travel to Anantapur on a bicycle and from thence proceed to
Bukkapatnam and Puttaparthi; when he was describing to the man the route
he has to take to reach his parents, Sathya interposed and said, "Why, you
need not send for them now; they will be here in half an hour," and, true
to his word, they came in, exactly thirty minutes later.
The parents caught the infection of fear at the condition of Sathya; he
sang and spoke and behaved in such a queer manner, they thought. He also
became stiff, off and on, and appeared to leave the body and go elsewhere.
It was all so mysterious.
One day, while Sathya was lying as usual without any awareness of his
surroundings, he asked some one to bring in the Sastri of the neighbouring
house! "He is reading the Bhagavatham all wrong; he is explaining it the
wrong way. Go and bring him here", he commanded; of course, the Sastri
would not come. "What does that brat know about this Sanskrit Bhagavatham
and the right and wrong of the meaning which I gave now to these people
here? How did he hear it, by the way? Tell him to mind his own business,"
the Sastri had continued his exposition. However, Sathya persisted and so,
the Sastri had to come, at least to satisfy the parents, who said, "Come
and teach the boy a lesson in humility. That will be enough. He has become
latterly too uncontrollable."
When the Sastri arrived, Sathya asked him to repeat the exposition and
pointed out to him where he had erred; and poured out in quick succession,
a series of questions, like 'who is the father of Vali?' 'When was Ravana
born? 'Who is Garuda's sister? Etc. that floored the scholar. Finally, the
Sastri fell at the feet of Sathya and asked him pardon for not obeying His
summons immediately.
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