An interview of my 'dreams' !!

My recent junket to Tirumala to attend a dear friend's wedding was an unbelievably phenomenal experience as it was by far the best wedding I ever attended in all these years. Be it the inherent holy atmosphere permeated with melodious chants, be it the flawless hospitality of the hosts, be it the tacit but conspicuous love between the bride and the groom or be it the extremely delectable food served on banana leaves, it was an experience I will cherish for the times to come!!! The enchanting charisma of the couple and the magic of their intense bonding wafted across the place and swept me off my feet and it was then I felt that ‘marriage’ makes complete sense when it comes to couples like them who share such an amazing quantum of understanding, faith and love.

The august wedding drew to an elegant close in the wee hours of a sunday and I sauntered down the street to reach 'Vaikuntam'. A closer look at each of the ‘Queue Complexes’(each of them meant for Dharma Darshan, Sudarshan and Sheegra Darshan) almost stupefied me as all the 3 of them were equally and astonishingly mammoth and impenetrable, fraught with sleep-deprived men, impatient women who calmed their wailing children by giving them a futile swinging motion in their laps, and senior citizens who propped themselves on the railing of the foot-over bridge.

Though I was flustered at the idea of seeking His darshan , in an attempt to please mom, who cautioned me against a darshanless visit to Tirumala, I forced myself into the queue, successfully sought His darshan after a good 3 hours and came back to the guest house with laddoos and not to forget, with a deluge of questions which had fountained in my mind during the 3-hour journey to His sanctum santorum. Fully drained out, I somehow fell prey to the monstrous sleep within, which was constantly pulling down my eyelids with too tremendous a force.

And then, I dreamt of something really unusual.. That I grabbed a chance to interview the Almighty Himself. !! Thus I reported..

'The Almighty allows us to gain a peek into His personal life as He squeezes some time out of His tight schedules.. So here He is in a tete-a-tete with the 'Times'.. '

I: So how does it feel to be the Creator of the universe? I mean the prayers, sevas, pujas, jewellery, prasadam, splendour, diyas , opulence, wealth and most importantly the devotees who queue up for tens and twenties of hours only to catch a glimpse of You ? How is the feeling like ?

God: (Smiles) Being candid, you guys make me feel so very special. In fact I feel so flattered.. But again, playing God is not all that easy you see..I have so many prayers to listen to , umpteen wishes to grant and a lot of 'prasadam' to relish (laughs). So my job really gets tough at times.

I: ' Prayers to listen' .. What kind of prayers do You listen to? Like, lakhs of pilgrims throng the place with hopes of getting their desires fulfilled and most of them sometimes go through hassles and stampedes only to see You.. So does it mean that the prayers of only those who've had such an ordeal are answered by You ?

God: Absolutely not !! I never asked people to come down here and make a wish.. I never expect my devotees to have a hassled journey in order to see me either.. If my people choose to come here and see me , it's just a matter of their belief and satisfaction which I totally appreciate.. And for your information I am omnipresent.. If you wish to , you might as well stay at your place and pray to me.. I shall be all ears to your requests.. !!

I: Well.. while I was standing in the queue, I saw this board indicating the various sevas and their astronomical prices ..


I just learnt that performing these sevas is the best way to please You.. I am certain that there are lakhs of Your devotees whose monthly income is much lesser than the costs of most of these sevas. Does it mean that it's only the economically stable ones who can please You and not the others who can't afford those sevas ?

God: I will overthrow your argument in just one sentence. My abode in Chilkur doesn't have any of the sevas and pujas you are talking about. In fact , it doesn't even have a hundi. Am I not answering your prayers there ? Thousands of people, on a daily basis, come down to thank me for fulfilling their desires.

The concepts of 'God' and 'religion' are being misinterpreted and hyped by all of you. I never asked you to perform these 'sevas' to impress me.. Nor do I favour those who perform them. In fact I answer every single , simple and honest prayer which is said from your heart.

I: To tell You the truth, I came to see You only coz mom insisted. She feels You are easily angered and that going back home without taking Your darshan might annoy You. True?

God: LOL !!!All that's balderdash dear !! That's just a gimmick of your elders to ensure discipline. Anger is the most destructive weapon !! .. I just can't run the universe if I am annoyed for trivial reasons. And you should have gone to your guest house and taken rest, I wouldn't have minded it !! I am not an attention-monger !! Please !! (smiles)

I: You said You are omnipresent. Where else can I see You ?

God: As against the common notion, I don't really possess a definite form or shape. I am rather the massive force which drives the universe. I reside in the rays of the sun at the crack of dawn, in the cold of an evening breeze , in the fragile petals of a flower and in the wetness of every drop of rain which sprouts life on soil .

I am the reason behind the greenery of plants and the blueness of the profound sky. You can feel me in the eternal love of your mom, concern of your siblings, and in the priceless affection of your friends. I am nothing but the consolidation of all the goodness of the world.

I: Anything that You'd like to convey to Your devotees ?

God: Stop banking on mere prayers and start working out things for yourselves. Though I decide the fate of everyone on earth, let me confess, I give in to indomitable fighters who relentlessly fight their fate written by me to live a life of their choice. !!

'Praying' for yourself is a selfish phenomenon. Praying coupled with 'sevas' to impress me and to get your things done is even more a selfish act. Instead of supplicating me for a thousand things for yourself , try praying for peace and happiness in the world.

I: Ok .. Thanks a lot for Your ...

My friend Dhaston, who was gallivanting around Tirumala all throughout the while I was sleeping, slammed the door in impatience as he had been waiting for me to open the door for quite some time. I woke up from my deep slumber to open the door for him.

"Parthu !!!! You were sleeping ??? Don't want to get back to Hyderabad ? Get ready for God's sake !! We are getting late for the train."

P.S. :

-> The first paragraph of this post is dedicated to Sreekanth and Kamala, the protagonists of a wonderful love story which culminated in the extraordinary wedding I attended in Tirumala.

-> Sreeku, I can't get my hair pulled and my ears twisted (:D :D )by dedicating the rest of the blog to both of you. I know you wouldn't really appreciate the not-so-devout opinions written above. Hehe.. :D

-> Gifting both of you a cornucopia filled with joy, success, serendipity, laughter, peace and pleasant surprises :-)

Yours,
Parthu :D