Maharaj
Omniscience · Omnipresence · Omnipotence · Other Divine Lilas · Mahasamadhi Lila · After Mahasamadhi
Divine Reality
The Ghost
In 1963 Nasir Ali, a retired sub-inspector of police and long-time devotee of Maharaj, came to meet Baba at the home of Suraj Narayan Mehrotra in Lucknow. He was eighty-four years old at the time and wanted to narrate an important event in his life to Baba. Baba, putting his finger to his lips gestured to him to keep quiet, but Nasir Ali was so overwhelmed by emotion that he carried on and began his story joyfully:
"Many years ago when I was young, I was the station officer at a village police station. One day I had to go and investigate something far away and got back at about 11 p.m. When I asked the head constable about the day, he told me that a man had been put in the cell under Section 109. I peeped inside and saw a tall, well-built man there. I went home and after having my supper went to sleep."
Early in the morning the two night-duty constables were at my door, shaking in their boots and wanting to resign. When I asked the reason, they told me that the man held under Section 109 was a ghost. He was in and out of the prison all through the night. When he came out, the lock and the door opened automatically, and when he went back in, they closed. As soon as it was daylight, I went to the station and saw the same man I had seen the night before. I thought that he could not be a ghost, so he must be a saint. I accepted my mistake and offered my apology for the disrespect shown to him. The man said, "Neither have you made a mistake nor have I been insulted. So there is no need for an apology." I asked him to join me for a meal, for I would then know that he was not displeased with me. He agreed and came to my house.
"He rested for the whole day and then went out in the evening to attend the call of nature. I sent my two sons with him. On the way he took apples out from under his blanket and gave them to the boys to eat. He asked them to go back home, but they were not prepared to leave him. Then he went behind a mound for ablutions and disappeared. He was not to be seen anywhere on that flat land. That man [pointing to Baba] was our Baba."
"After this incident Baba was always kind to me. He came to our house once or twice a year, and he protected me from worries and troubles. Whenever I was in distress, I would fast for the whole day. Then I would take a bath and shut myself in my room. Sitting on the floor in the darkness, I remembered Baba and he would come and sit beside me. I would tell him my problem, and he would give me a solution. He himself helped me and steered me out of all troubles."
"Many years ago when I was young, I was the station officer at a village police station. One day I had to go and investigate something far away and got back at about 11 p.m. When I asked the head constable about the day, he told me that a man had been put in the cell under Section 109. I peeped inside and saw a tall, well-built man there. I went home and after having my supper went to sleep."
Early in the morning the two night-duty constables were at my door, shaking in their boots and wanting to resign. When I asked the reason, they told me that the man held under Section 109 was a ghost. He was in and out of the prison all through the night. When he came out, the lock and the door opened automatically, and when he went back in, they closed. As soon as it was daylight, I went to the station and saw the same man I had seen the night before. I thought that he could not be a ghost, so he must be a saint. I accepted my mistake and offered my apology for the disrespect shown to him. The man said, "Neither have you made a mistake nor have I been insulted. So there is no need for an apology." I asked him to join me for a meal, for I would then know that he was not displeased with me. He agreed and came to my house.
"He rested for the whole day and then went out in the evening to attend the call of nature. I sent my two sons with him. On the way he took apples out from under his blanket and gave them to the boys to eat. He asked them to go back home, but they were not prepared to leave him. Then he went behind a mound for ablutions and disappeared. He was not to be seen anywhere on that flat land. That man [pointing to Baba] was our Baba."
"After this incident Baba was always kind to me. He came to our house once or twice a year, and he protected me from worries and troubles. Whenever I was in distress, I would fast for the whole day. Then I would take a bath and shut myself in my room. Sitting on the floor in the darkness, I remembered Baba and he would come and sit beside me. I would tell him my problem, and he would give me a solution. He himself helped me and steered me out of all troubles."
