Kondama Raju was the grand father of this body. He was also like my mother. He had two sons. The father of this body was Pedda Venkama Raju. His younger brother was Chinna Venkama Raju. Two sons of his deceased brother, Subba Raju and Venkatarama Raju also lived with him. When all the four were together, the family was large and there was a desire to have division of property. At that time, this body was eight years old. Kondama Raju summoned the sons. They told him, ‘At this stage, you cannot live alone. So, you can stay with each of us by turn’. He replied, ‘I don’t want to stay with any one of you. You can take your share of the property. Leave Sathya with me. It is enough. If Sathya is with me, everything is with me.’
From then onwards Swami was staying with Kondama Raju. He was a great devotee and lived up to 116 years. Due to his deep devotion, he recognised the truth about Me. Swami was entering His 9th year. At that time there was no one near us. He closed the door. I was then preparing food. Swami knew the art of cooking well. People from the neighbourhood used to come to our house to take food prepared by Swami. While I was in the kitchen, Kondama Raju came uttering ‘Sathya, Sathya’ and held both My hands. He said, ‘These are not hands. I consider them as Your feet. I have one wish to make to You. Before I pass away, You must pour water into my mouth at the last moment of my life.’ Swami gave him this promise. After that, he lived for 19 years. He used to visit the new Mandir after it was opened both morning and evening.
Kondama Raju was in the habit of coming early in the morning. Swami used to sleep outside the Mandir on the sand. Expecting His grandfather, Swami would cover Himself completely including face. I did not want him to know that I was awake. Assuming that Swami was asleep, the grandfather would touch Swami’s feet and leave. He had an embarrassing feeling that others might have a mistaken impression on seeing a 116 year old man touching the feet of a young boy. An soon as Kondama Raju left, Swami would get up. Gopis used to sing a song, ‘O Krishna, can anybody wake up a person who is pretending to sleep? How can anyone open the eyes of a person who has deliberately closed his eyes?’ Like that, I used to keep My eyes shut and pretended to be fast asleep. This was one of the leelas I used to perform.
The time for fulfilling the promise I had made to Kondama Raju was fast approaching. In those days, I used to drive the car myself. I was going to city in Morris 200. Kondama Raju called Swami’s mother Easwaramma and said, ‘Come here, Swami is coming. He is coming for my sake. My last moment has come. Therefore, please bring a tumbler of drinking water’. He then asked her to put a few Tulsi leaves in the tumbler. He asked Swami to sit on the cot. He said, ‘Swami, the sky may come down but You will keep Your promise. The ocean may dry up but You will not go back on Your word. To fulfil the pledge You gave 30 years ago, You have now come’.
Swami broke into laughter. Kondama Raju said, ‘Don’t try to deceive me through Your laughter. Take this tumbler and drink a little of the water and pour the balance into my mouth’. Then he related a story. ‘Dasharatha performed Putrakameshti Yajna to get four sons. Lord Narayana Himself took birth as his son. Adisesha was born as Lakshmana. The conch and mace manifested as Bharata and Shatrughna. Although he had four sons, no one was present to administer water to him at the time to his passing away. Swami, You have taken birth in my Ratnakara lineage in Apastamba Dharmasutra and Bharadwaja Gotra. All these are the signs of Divinity. This means that the Divine is born in my family. Now fulfil at least this prayer of mine. Do not refuse’.
Swami replied, ‘I have come for this very purpose’. When I started to pour water into his mouth, he protested saying, ‘You must first drink a little and pour the remainder in my mouth’. Swami drank a little and poured the rest in his mouth. He then turned to his daughter-in-law and said, ‘Easwaramma, the fame and power of your son will spread all over the world. The whole world is changing. Lot of people from foreign countries will come. Be on the alert. Do not give room for the delusion that this is my son and my child. He belongs to all. Swami belongs to everyone. He is not related to one family only’. He placed his hands on Swami’s feet and breathed his last. Even he keeps coming to me from time to time. He told me, ‘I have no further rebirth. By my association with You, my life has been redeemed. With Your Grace, I have become immortal’. He used to come from time to time and warn me against what was happening in the Mandir. ‘No one can touch You and there can be no danger to You from any quarter. Because of my past physical association with You, I am saying this. It is a mere prayer to You’. Even now Kondama Raju and Easwaramma keep coming and talking to Me. (SSS Vol.31, pp. 190-194)
On a particular evening, I went to Puttaparthi to see him. At the time, Kondama Raju was sitting on a cot, deeply immersed in singing a ballad, which described Rama lamenting over the fainting of Lakshmana in the battlefield. He was very fond of this particular episode from the Ramayana. Rama lamented, ‘In this world I might find another mother likeKausalya, a wife like Sita, but definitely not a brother like Lakshmana.’ This is what he was singing to himself when I entered his room. I said, ‘O grandfather, what are you doing?’ He exclaimed, ‘O Swami, You have come,’ and fell at My feet. He said, ‘Swami, I am fully aware that you are not an ordinary child, but Ishvara Himself. You are born in our clan to redeem all of us. But I pray that You fulfil a small desire of mine. Dasharatha did not have the good fortune of drinking water from Rama’s divine hands at the time of his death. But Jatayu was fortunate enough to be the recipient of such an act of grace in his last moments. Swami, let me also have the good fortune of sipping water from Your divine hands when my end approaches.’ I promised that I would certainly fulfil his desire.
The following week, I went to see him again after visiting Subbamma’s house. Kondama Raju came to know that I was coming to his house. Immediately, he called Easwaramma and told her, ‘I am not going to live any longer. Having known that my end has approached, God is coming to shower His grace on me.’ She responded in an innocent way saying, ‘Where is God? How do you know that He is coming?’ Then Kondama Raju said, ‘O mad woman, still you are deluded by the feeling of a mother towards her son! Look there, God is coming.’ So saying he pointed at Me as I was entering his house. She too was aware of My Divinity. But she used to get carried away by her motherly affection towards Me. Similar was the case with Yashoda. Though she had seen all the fourteen worlds in Krishna’s mouth, she thought it was a dream or an illusion.
Kondama Raju told Easwaramma that Swami did not take sweets. Right from birth till today, I have not touched sweets. What is the reason? If I were to take sweets, thousands of devotees would start bringing sweets for Me. I do not take fruits either. I do not even touch milk or curds. I lead a very simple life. I take only Ragi gruel and groundnut chutney. Kondama Raju also used to relish this food. He used to say, Sathya, serve me whatever you eat.’ Early in the morning, I used to prepare tasteful Ragi gruel, groundnut chutney and some green leaves curry. The whole street was very fond of my cooking. Sometimes, on My return from Bukkapatnam, I used to find all those afflicted with fever make a beeline in front of the house waiting for Me. Kondama Raju would tell Me that they were all waiting to take the pepper Rasam from Me as it would give them relief. Immediately, I used to prepare pepper Rasam and distribute a glassful to each of them. They used to feel very happy and later on expressed their gratitude saying, ‘Swami, your pepper Rasam has given us great relief.’
(Swami far left as a small child and his Grandparents)
In those days, on festival days, such as Sankranti and Ugadi, etc., the dhobis and barbers used to come to the house for food. In the house, there was no one else other than Kondama Raju and Myself. So, I had to prepare food for many people. Easwaramma (Swami’s mother), Venkamma and Parvathamma (Swami’s sisters) used to prepare various delicious items including sweet puris in their respective homes on festival days. When they could prepare sweet puris, why not I also prepare and serve the grandfather? So, I also would prepare sweet puris and serve not only the grandfather, but also the washer man, the barber and others. On one such occasion, Pedda Venkama Raju (Swami’s father) came to see us at lunchtime. Kondama Raju invited him for lunch, as it was a festival day. Pedda Venkama Raju had his lunch with us and felt that the food items were very delicious. He went home and chided Easwaramma and Venkamma for not being able to make the items tasteful. He said, ‘Look at Sathya, what a fine cook he is! Why can’t you prepare the food items the way Sathya does?’
From the next day onwards, he started sending them to Me asking them to bring whatever food items I prepared. They would feel that because of My cooking that they were being blamed at home.
When I was nine years old, Seshama Raju, the elder brother of this body, decided to take Me with him to Kamalapur for studies. He felt that I was wasting My time staying with Kondama Raju. But, the grandfather objected to this, saying that I did not require any studies. But, things happened the way they were destined to
happen.
After the construction of Prasanthi Nilayam, one day I went to see Kondama Raju. He asked Easwaramma to get a glass of water. He told her, ‘God has come to take me away. He made a promise that he would pour water into my mouth with His Divine hands, before I leave this body. He has come to fulfil His promise.’ Puzzled by Kondama Raju’s request, Easwaramma said, ‘You are not suffering from any disease, you don’t even have fever or a cold. What makes you think that your end has approached.’ Then Kondama Raju said, ‘Death occurs as per the Will of God. Just as birth has no reason, death too has no reason. This is the Truth of truths.’ Easwaramma did not want to argue with him. According to his wish, she brought a glassful of water and gave him. He Sat down on the floor and made Me sit on the cot. He kept his head on My knees and said, ‘Swami, please listen to My prayer.’ Easwaramma was watching all this. She wondered, how is that he had so much love and regard for his young grandson. Kondama Raju said, ‘As You know, I was doing a small business to make both ends meet. Perhaps I may still have to pay a paisa or an anna to certain people. Please bless me so that I am not indebted to anyone in my death.’ I said, ‘so shall it be’ and started pouring water into his mouth. He breathed his last as he was drinking water. His desire was fulfilled. Before leaving his mortal coil, he told Easwaramma not to get deluded by body attachment. He said, ‘Bodily relationship is temporary, whereas Atmic relationship is permanent. So, give up body attachment and develop attachment to the Atma.’
From that day onwards, Easwaramma never stayed at home; she started staying in Prasanthi Nilayam. Everyday both in the morning and evening she used to come upstairs and talk to Swami. She also understood My Divinity very well. When I appeared in the form of Lord Shiva to her, she would ask, ‘What Swami? Why are you adorning the snakes around your neck?’ I would act innocent, ‘Well, I don’t have any snakes on Me.’ She would move away saying, ‘Look, there are some snakes inside.’ But later on not finding any snake inside, she would ask for forgiveness. Like this on many occasions, she had the experience of My Divinity. Similar was the case with Kausalya and Yashoda. Though they knew that their sons were Divine, they used to get carried away by their motherly affection towards them. Mothers are highly noble and virtuous. Their nobility cannot be described in words. It does not matter if you do not acquire worldly wealth, but you should try to win the wealth of your mother’s grace. Only then your life will be sanctified. (SSS Vol.32 Part I, pp. 193-198)