A large amount of literature on spirituality exists in print media. With popular 24x7 internet connectivity many concepts of spirituality and religion are literally sitting on our finger tips. This has resulted in overloading our mind with so much of information that in most of the cases a man is too confused to make use of this knowledge in actual practice.
What is the use of mindless collection of such information, if not put into actual use? We get many opportunities in our daily routine where we can apply our spiritual knowledge and get benefitted. Unfortunately, we usually fail to do so on one pretext or the other. A divine bliss can be experienced by any one of us simply by encashing such GOD given opportunities.
At the risk of being misunderstood, I am stating below one of my recent real-life experiences. The purpose of this story is that it may motivate some spiritually inclined people to actually experience divine bliss in their spiritual ‘taste bud’.
The story goes back to chilling winter months of Nov-Dec 2010 when my house was under construction in sector-46 of Noida (NCR). Gopi and his wife were employed as watchman-cum-daily wagers at the construction site. They were given all possible help to construct a ‘Jhuggi’ (hut) nearby as a shelter to stay therein to protect their family against vagaries of weather.
One day during a routine visit from Delhi to my plot, I saw a shabbily dressed Gopi’s daughter (Ruby), aged about 5 years, happily playing on the dirty semi-pacca road in front of my plot. I casually noticed a swelling of a walnut size on the right side of her nose, touching her eye. I ignored it thinking it to be due to some injury while playing.
After about a week, I again noticed the same swelling on her face without any apparent change in its physical appearance. On inquiring, Gopi told me that the malady was right from her birth with the only difference that the growth had increased in size from that of a pea to a walnut. He also told that even now the growth was slowly increasing in size day by day but was painless. On examination, I realized that the growth was not hard but appeared to contain some fluid in it.
On further probing, I was deeply pained to realize that no attention was being paid to her treatment because a poor family did not want to spend their limited resources on a female child merely because of her limited financial contribution and expenses involved as she grows.
After persuasions, Gopi took Ruby for treatment to a local hospital. After investigations, he was told that she needs to be hospitalized for a few days for a surgical operation to remove fluid from inside the growth and for aftercare thereafter, with estimated expenses of about rupees twelve thousand.
Gopi did not give me the feedback for quite some time for the reasons of expenses being beyond his capacity and his hesitation to ask for such a huge amount as financial help from me.
I discussed the matter with my wife, who was keener to help the female child that too of a very poor person. Before undertaking the venture we decided to take a second opinion mainly due to our apprehension of dilution in business ethics of some in medical profession.
Dr DD Arora, a resident of this very sector willingly cooperated and on his advice, I took Ruby to a charitable hospital in Delhi, where he was working part-time. After a few investigations, I was shocked to be told that her malady was much more expensive and that it was a complicated neurosurgical problem. I was advised to consult a particular neurosurgeon in RMLH (Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital) in Delhi.
I was aware of very tedious and time-consuming procedures involved for treatment in a Govt. hospital in Delhi. Prolonged medical examinations and investigations spread over a couple of months, were done both at RMLH as well as some expensive ones from outside (own resources), as advised from time to time. Finally RMLH concluded that her neurosurgical treatment was beyond the scope of even that hospital. I was also warned that any accidental puncture of the ‘growth’ by any sharp object and consequent leakage of fluid from it could cause sudden risk to her life. I was explained that the fluid collected was due to birth defect of minor internal leakage of fluid around her brain. I was advised to consult AIIMS (Delhi), where Dr Mahapatra (HOD) was said to be the only doctor in Delhi capable and experienced enough to undertake such a complicated neurosurgical operation.
In AIIMS, again I was aware of facing similar procedural hassles. Since I had most of investigation reports already with me, a team of neuro-surgeons of AIIMS examined the case and categorized the patient to be operated upon under most urgent” category. Since Gopi did not possess any BPL card, the expenses estimate given was a little over rupees one lakh. I was asked to deposit the amount immediately and thereafter wait for her turn for admission in AIIMS.
My hectic efforts to get some concession under discretionary powers of the management of AIIMS for very poor patients were successful. Similarly, I could also get some financial help from a designated fund from the office of Vice-President of India and from an NGO in Delhi. The balance financial help came as generous contributions by my wife and son.
After completing all formalities, Ruby was admitted in AIIMS for routine pre-operation investigations. On the appointed day of operation at about 5.00 AM, I got another shock when told that the operation was to be postponed indefinitely because Dr. Mahapatra had met with a fracture in his hand and that none else was authorized to perform that operation. Therefore, Ruby was discharged with a promise that she would be readmitted on priority after his recovery.
Again after usual strenuous constant perusals, Ruby was readmitted after about a month. It was an irony of circumstances that in nick of time, in spite of best of persuasions, other than Gopi by himself, none of his close relatives or friends were coming forward to donate certain ‘units’ of blood mandatory before undertaking the operation. Here again my own family members and friends were called upon, who willingly volunteered to fill the gap (I & my wife being ineligible to donate blood due to upper age restrictions, as per AIIMS rules).
Finally she was successfully operated by a team of neuro-surgeons led by Dr Mahapatra. She was discharged in August 2011 after an ‘after-care’ for a few days in ICU and in general ward.
Thus the life of a poor female child was saved by grace of GOD. Innocent Ruby now lives literally a new life unaware of what a traumatic phase she had undergone. Gopi has taken my advice and admitted her in a nearby Govt. school. She is now studying in Class IV.
For the efforts put in, I feel adequately rewarded in the form of daily small doses of divine bliss that I get every time I see Ruby sitting in the caring lap of her father, playing happily outside on the same road, or going to her school in her cute school uniform.
I shall be failing in my duty if I do not acknowledge selfless help rendered by everyone I approached. This gave me enough divine motivation to face all sorts of hurdles at various stages and to make it a success story in saving life of a poor female child without her parents having spent a penny.
Is it not an example of a raw (poor) ‘Ruby’ cut (surgically operated) and now being polished (school education) to live a fruitful life?
Or is it Spirituality in Action?
Conclusion
It helps to accumulate knowledge but my long experience shows that while discharging our worldly duties, we do get many opportunities to taste divine bliss but we miss them on some superficial pretext. Identify a GOD given opportunity, start a good work without any apprehensions and you will see that all the problems en-route will fall in line due to some divine motivational force working in the background through some spiritually inclined individuals. Divine help flows down automatically for HIS cause. Take a step and feel blissful vibrations.
(The author is a retired Indian Air Force Officer with an engineering background. Has held important posts in the private sector too. Deeply spiritual, he has keen interest in social activities; email: clbedi@yahoo.co.in)
