Baba’s Special Public Darshan
-Kishan Singh-
Soon came the divine day for which ev eryone was eagerly looking forward to with love. It is beyond my pen to detail the glory and sanctity of that day Baba arrived in Dehra Dun on 18.2.53 for a short stay of a few months in connection with His spiritual work. Before and after His arrival, a num- ber of ‘requests were received by me to ask Baba to give darshan to the public Baba accepted to the requests and conde- scended to grant darshan to the public of Dehra Dun on 23rd March 1953, the day of birth of Lord Rama. A restriction was how ever laid down by Baba that no personal interviews would be granted and He would not give darshan to anyone earlier or later than that date. The date, of the darshan was notified in the press and handbills were dis- tributed that anyone, irrespective of caste, creed or sex was welcome to come for Baba’s darshan
<p>Though the time fixed for the darshan was between 8 and 11 hours and 14 to 18 hours in the afternoon, a number of people gathered for the darshan much earlier than the appointed time. The eagerness to see Baba after having waited for a month could safely be judged by their presence before 8 A.M. on that day Baba, being touched with their love and enthusiasm, ordered that the doors be flung open at 7.45. The darshan was held at 107A Rajpur Rd. Baba began using.His alphabet board to address the visitors. Baba’s face seemed exceptionally bright and radiant on that day. He attracted the visitors like a bee to a blossom. Murmurs were heard amongst the crowds regarding Baba’s divine personality Baba seemed to be attracting them so much that there were repeated requests for allow- ing them to sit for a few minutes in His divine presence. They were revolting to leave the room immediately after His darshan. The room in which Baba was giving darshan was not very spacious, as He did not approve the idea of pitching awning for the occasion in the open grounds of the bungalow. Baba lovingly permitted the visitors to stay in His presence but not for more than five minutes. A longer stay in the room was not permitted, as Baba did not want to tax the patience of the other visitors standing in the queue. As soon as Baba started giving darshan, the atmosphere was surcharged with ecstasy and everyone felt very happy to see him
All the time that the darshan programme was in progress. Baba presented a lively appearance with His fingers beautifully playing on the alphabet board, some times blessing the visitors and some times showering His love on them. Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Christians Parsees and men belonging to all faiths were enjoying the great feast of His darshan.