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By Carol
Bruce
This story describes how a very special photograph of the
Risen Christ wa manifested by Sathya Sai Baba for a visitor
to one of his ashrams known as Prasanthi Nilayam, which
means the Abode of Peace, in Puttaparti, India, in 1985. I
relay the details to you as they were conveyed to me by
Barbara McAlley, a friend whom I met “quite by chance” in
the lobby of a Bombay hotel in July, 1987. We established an
immediate rapport, both being English, although she had been
living in New Zealand for the past twenty years. When
Barbara first showed me this wondrous photograph of the
Risen Christ in our hotel room in Bombay, I couldn’t wait to
hear her story of how it had come into being, knowing it was
more than just a coincidence that we had met. Barbara had
been a devotee of Sathya Sai Baba, who many people feel is
the Avatar of this Age, for a number of years. Now she was
just returning from her second visit to see him. She was
carrying this photograph of the Risen Christ with her, not
only because it had originated in Puttaparti in the first
place, but also because she always took the picture with her
when she travelled.
In 1985, Barbara had gone to Puttaparti with a friend from
New Zealand. Her friend, who at the time was very much
caught up with the suffering of Christ, had with her two
items which she hoped Sai Baba would bless for her
-
a crucifix and a black and white photograph of a computer
printout of the image of Christ taken from the Turin Shroud.
Daily, they had attended Darshan, a Sanskrit word meaning
the devotional seeing of and gazing upon (as a blessing),
the Master, in order that they might sit at the feet of
their Lord.
On one such occasion, Sai Baba stopped in front of them and
looked at the items that Barbara’s friend held out to him
for a blessing. However, he refused to accept the crucifix.
When will we Christians take Christ off the cross and place
him in his proper context? Of the cross Sai Baba has said at
another time, “Let the longer piece of the cross represent
God’s Will and the shorter piece your will. If I lay the two
pieces side by side, parallel to each other, there is no
cross. It is only when my will conficts with God’s Will,
when I cannot say Thy Will be done, O Lord, that the cross
is created. The way to take down the cross, therefore, is
always to accept gladly and lovingly whatever trial, pain or
loss God sends and surrender our ego.” Then, as Sai Baba
focussed his attention on her friend’s photograph of Christ,
Barbara was spell-bound as, with a lift and a wave of his
hand, Sai Baba drew from that photograph of the Turin Shroud
the black and white image of Christ until there was nothing
left but a blank sheet of gloss paper. Then, in the same
manner, he created on that blank sheet (just as if it were
in a developing tray in a dark-room) the color image of the
Risen Christ as you see it today. This image has eyes so
full of love and compassion that they comfort and touch you
on a deep inner level when you come into its range of
vision. Then, with a blessing for the two women from New
Zealand, Sai Baba wnt on his way, khowing full weel that
life would never be the same for them again ! This semms to
be the case for all those who visit Sai Baba, including
myself.
Barbara has commented that if she does nothing more with her
life than pass on copies of this photograph, she will be
well satisfied ! She has also said that this experience with
Sai Baba has proved to be an encouragement for her to go on
and achieve things which she had previously thought to be
quite impossible. Although I did not choose to create an
opportunity to see this photograph of the Risen Christ or to
meet Barbara when we were together at the ashram, it would
seem that it was arranged by Sai Baba that we should meet
shortly afterwards in that hotel lobby in Bombay, so that I
might be instrumental in distributing this very special
photograph in Europe and America and in various other
couontries around the world.
Barbara said during our first conversation in the hotel that
it was apparent to her that Sai Baba wanted me to have the
photograph and to take it back to England.
***********************
"Let the longer
piece of the cross reprensent God’s Will and the shorter
piece your will. If I lay the two pieces side by side,
parallel to each other, there is no cross. It is only when
my will conflicts with God’s Will, when I cannot say Thy
Will be done, O Lord, that the cross is created. The way to
take down the cross, therefore, is always to accept gladly
and lovingly whatever trial, pain or loss God sends and
surrender our ego."
Sathya Sai Baba |
