days later we were interviewed. My friend waited for the right moment and asked Sathya Sai Baba why the clock had stopped. Vyacheslav's voice was frightened, but he was ready to listen to any answer, even the most severe.
Sathya Sai Baba carefully looked at the young man and in a calm tone said that nothing special had happened, the battery had just run out, and all that needed to be done after our meeting was to leave the ashram on the street and find the first watch dealer standing near the entrance and ask him to replace the battery.
At that moment, we didn't pay much attention to the fact that Sathya Sai Baba emphasized that we should find a very specific watch dealer and ask him to change the battery. First of all, Sathya Sai Baba pointed out that this should be done immediately after the interview and the merchant should be right next to the entrance to the ashram.
We felt that we should follow Sathya Sai Baba's instructions as closely as possible, and so decided to do as he indicated.
Hearing the consoling words of Sathya Sai Baba, my friend breathed a sigh of relief. He realized there was no danger to his life. Nevertheless, Vyacheslav tried to find out from Sathya Sai Baba the deep meaning of why the clock stopped after only a few months.
Sathya Sai Baba looked sternly at the young man and said, "new battery – new time." Everyone present at that moment understood that a new stage in life was beginning for the young man.
Subsequent events confirmed the prophetic words of Sathya Sai Baba. Immediately after returning to Russia, my friend began a new happy and successful stage in his life.
However, the story with the clock did not end there. In the next chapter, I will recount the events that show us that any miracle of the Avatar has the deepest meaning. The fullness of the divine plan is sometimes not clear to us from the very beginning, but may be revealed with time.
65. The divine game – the continuation of the story with the watch
After talking with Sathya Sai Baba, Vyacheslav and I left the interview room and quickly went to the exit of the ashram in order to try to find the watch dealer and change the battery. I felt I should go with my friend as it seemed to me that if I was already involuntarily drawn into this amazing story, then I should go change the battery with him and observe the developing events to the end.
As soon as we went outside, we immediately saw a watch dealer who was standing nearby. There was no other watch dealer nearby, so we had no doubt this was the same person to whom Sathya Sai Baba had directed us.
The merchant had a small cart on which he laid out a huge number of watches and batteries. We approached the man and said we just left Sathya Sai Baba's room, just a minute ago, and that he told us to change the battery at the first dealer we met near the ashram gate. The watch dealer was filled with tremendous joy and surprise.
He looked at us attentively unable to believe all of this was really happening. His shock was quite understandable, as we asked him to change the battery not on an ordinary watch, but on a wonderful watch that was a gift from Sathya Sai Baba. The merchant reverently picked up the wonderful watch and put it to his forehead, as if receiving a blessing from it.
It was completely natural because it was a watch from the hands of Sathya Sai Baba. The dealer replaced the battery and gave the watch back to my friend. After that, the merchant told us a story that revealed the depth of Sathya Sai Baba's divine plan.
The trader said a relative in his family had become seriously ill and that all family members prayed intensely to Sathya Sai Baba to help heal this relative. The merchant then explained that last night in his dream he saw Sathya Sai Baba, who said he was blessing his relative and he would be healed soon.
While sleeping, Sathya Sai Baba informed the merchant that the next day two foreigners would come to him in order to change the battery of his watch. Sathya Sai Baba also said it would not be an ordinary watch, but a materialized watch.
Waking up in the morning, the merchant did not know how to relate to such a strange dream. When my friend and I came and asked him to change the battery on the wonderful watch, he could not believe his eyes, because such an encounter was predicted by Sathya Sai Baba in his dream.
As soon as the merchant saw us, he delightfully realized this was the confirmation of his mystical dream.
After listening to this story, we felt indescribable joy. This story once again confirms that Sathya Sai Baba performs miracles, with the deepest meaning, that are difficult to understand from the very beginning.
Sometimes the miracle that Sathya Sai Baba performed for one person affected the fate of many people. We felt we had become instruments in the hands of Divine Providence.
66. Personal Spiritual Instructions
The spiritual instructions of Sathya Sai Baba have always been personal. They were addressed to the needs and spiritual level of the person who was currently listening to instruction. His recommendations were very diverse, which always amazed and surprised me, and sometimes confused me. Sometimes it took many months, and sometimes several years, in order to understand the full depth of the words he said.
Sathya Sai Baba advised some people to concentrate only on him and not to visit other ashrams or other teachers. Sometimes he said, “if you want to get the maximum spiritual benefit from “this place,” (“this place” he sometimes called his feet), concentrate and do not spray your attention.” Saying such words, Sathya Sai Baba pointed to his feet.
However, it should not be assumed that Sathya Sai Baba told
