I am here to narrate a wonderful story of my transfer back to Jammu from Srinagar which wonderfully materialized by the grace of Divine Mother Maa Chandi of Machel village, in Doda District of Jammu and Kashmir State.
I was working in Directorate of Social Welfare and was attached with the Administrative Department there being shortage of stenographers in the year 1989. The Administrative Department moved to Srinagar in summer months and I was bound to go with durbar move. I was not happy to move because of my family circumstances. The children were too young, my mother was mentally disturbed and needed look after. However in confusion I moved with the Durbar Move to Srinagar. The militancy in the State was just catching momentum and there was fear of cross firing, grenade attack by the militants or any other action of sabotage was expected at any time, any moment. Every one was holding his breath while traveling to office in security escorted transport or coming back to hotels arranged for housing the staff by the State Govt.
Though there was no other problem, we were getting Break Fast, Lunch and Dinner provided by Govt. Free of Cost. Tea was also being served. There was all comfort provided to us. But having problems at my house hold I could not enjoy the privileges as other people could do. The one and only one discomfort I was having was that sometimes the room mate did not take care of my comfort and indulged in actions which I was scared of. He called group of other employees and started long session of playing cards with them. I was peace and silence in my room as I liked to read books, do some meditation.
I was devotee of lord but did not know about the other form of divine mother (Photograph given above) Maa Chandi, enshrined at village Machel, District Doda. Years passed and passed, I was being ignored by my office mates being not original posted there but my status there was that of a guest. I worked with all zeal to satisfy the officers. That has been my motto all the years of Service to J&K Government. I always considered the Work as Worship. I was the only computer knowing person in my Department and Office. Prior to that other departments were having computers but Social Welfare Department was not having till date. I was the Ist man to handle computer when these were ordered and installed in the office. I formally taught its use to my fellow employees. I was holding the post of Junior Scale Stenographer then and further was not seeing any prospect of promotion being caught in Administrative Department. Whenever, I had any problem I mentally bowed to lord and requested for my transfer out side Administrative Department and my repatriation to Directorate of Social Welfare Department.
One cold evening in the month of October 1998, I was sitting in gloom in my hotel room. I was upset by the rude behavior of my room mate who was a chain smoker, Drinker and was vociferous in making demands. I was complete vegetarian being devotee of lord as taking non-veg meals is not supported in Hinduism. But my room mate was very fond of non-veg dishes and kept drinks also in the one almirah which we shared. To day when taking dinner, I found a chicken bone settled at the bottom of the vegetarian dish (Rajmah curry). By that time I had become devotee of Divine Mother Chandi of Machela Village , a photograph of which was also enshrined at my home at Jammu.
Keeping the eyes closed I deeply prayed to almighty, omnipresent, and omnipotent mother Chandi to forgive me for not being able to comply to the spiritual discipline due to being dependent on hotel staff for my meals, and do some thing to bring me out of that hell. During the whole night I could not sleep well and kept disturbed due to what happened in the day. A week after that I planned to go to my home at Jammu but the officers were not ready to spare me for two days. How ever I sought favour of one of the superior officer of my Department who agreed to and got me permission to leave the station with sanction of 7 days leave , which I am sure, happened by he grace of my all powerful mercy of my divine mother Maa Chandi.
Reaching at home, I took a sigh of relief when I entered the peaceful atmosphere blessed by the form of Maa Chandi of Machel Village, recently enshrined in a room which was turned to temple. There are many interesting incidents which took place in our home after the enshrinement of Divine Mother. These will be mentioned in some other page after wards. But, what I am going to narrate was the first blessing of Maa Chandi and which could be called a live miracle.
Navratras ( The Seven sacred days when special worship of Divine mother is done by almost every Hindu Family) were being celebrated and we had to worship divine mother in the Morning and Evening. On the third day of my arrival back to my family, my family members were preparing to go to Police Lines, Jammu where the Divine Mother was having her main Temple. It was 9.30 in the evening, some conveyance being arranged I was being called my family members to make hurry as the conveyance may not leave without collecting us. The Police Lines was around One kilometer away from my home and therefore in a hurry to leave I was searching for the coins which I had misplaced some where. I had kept these (Around Rs. Nine) for that purpose. I could not collect these and left with dismay that I shall not be able to offer some coins on the alter of Maa Chandi. There is a board asking devotees not to offer cash in the Temple. But devotees are not satisfied unless they put some coins or cash on the alter. En route, I kept scolding my memory due to which I could not remember where had I placed the change.
However, when we (me and my family members) reached the temple it was fully packed with devotees who were chanting the devotional songs with full music. The room was filled with scent and mist arising out of incense sticks. Those devotees who could not enter the temple room were seated out side the entrance door waiting for their turn to have a glance of Divine Mother. Raju Bhaiya was the medium and divine mother Chandi was in presence and sermonizing the devotees. What should I call it if not the grace of Maa chandi who ordered the other devotees to make way for our entry in the Temple Room. We , one by one made entry to that place. Divine Mother Chandi, who was present in Raju Bhaiya threw a flower towards me which hit me directly as soon as I entered the room. The other devotees pointed me to lift that flower from floor and this was a gesture of kindness This was my first darshana(glance) of Chandi Maa. Looking directly in to my eyes and with a sarcastic smile at her lips, she told me
" I have set in motion the phenomenon for bringing you back, don’t worry." I felt a wave of shivering running through my spine and it appeared to me that my whole body, each cell of it, has been electrically charged through the divine gaze of the Divine Mother.
I could not understand what the Divine Mother was talking about. Where she hinted me to bring back. In the past, I have been making many prayers to Divine Mother requesting her to:-
1. Bring me back to her feet so that I remained attached with her and do not fall prey to bad company and indulge in bad habits.
2. Get me back to Jammu so that I could live in my home and worship her. As stated above, I had not freedom to take the food of my choice. Being vegetarian, it pained me when a chicken bone was found at the bottom of my vegetarian dish. But there seemed no scope for my being relieved from the Secretariat where I was attached for the last three four years as there was already shortage of computer knowing staff and the superiors were in no moods to let me go.
However, later both the aspects shown above were fulfilled, the first on the same day.
Divine mother, after few minutes addressed to me " I do not see some good karma (deed)in your this and last reincarnation, but some incarnations back, you were a Pundit (Priest) in Kashi and worshipped me. I take you to my refuge. Placing her gracious hand on my head she whispered a Mantra (Sacred Hymn) in my ear and asked me to keep practicing it. This way my first request above was fulfilled.
Shortly after that, I had witnessed the most wonderful experience in my life and with that I became finally a full fledged devotee to Maa Chandi also famously know "Maa Machela" her Main Shrine being located at village Machel.
The Divine Mother again started to address the devotees" You may believe it or not but during Navratras I pay visit, at least once in 24 hrs and do one of the job of the devotee, with my own hands, the devotee whether knows it or not" The turning her gaze on me she loudly asked to devotees " Is there any devotees to was searching for his lost coins before coming here " I stood up immediately and with folded hands agreed that it was I who was trying to search my coins but could not find them. Smiling at me she again asked " What you had to do with coins, I do not need any, do you not see board displaying that no cash should be offered over here. I kept mum but I desired had I brought my coins I should have offered some. This wish to offer something out of our earning is quite natural in Hindus. This satisfies their urge to offer some earnings Divine Mother being superior to all human relations, the Mother of Mothers. Then the rituals for that day were concluded and the medium Raju Bhaiya came out of Trance.
After going to retiring room of Raju Bhaiya all the family members also went to see parents of Raju Bhaiya who were family friends of my wife. Suddenly my wife asked me to give her the flower which divine mother had showered on me as it was a token of kind gesture of divine mother and had to be preserved as a token of her blessing. No more had my wife asked for it and before I could put my hand to the side pocket of my shirt, I noticed some weighty thing hanging in my pocket which I did not notice earlier. With a hurry to see what it was and from where it came, I put my hand hastily in to the pocket and was stunned to find out the cold touch of coins which I had left at home and which I had been repenting all the way. The coins weighed at least 150 grams and were the same which I had been searching for. With this I was wonder struck with the omnipresence of Divine Mother. Now I came to understand the actual meaning of the sermon that she did one job of the every devote though he may not come to know it. She had done this for me today. The coins which had been misplaced have been miraculously placed in my pocket without my knowledge. How could I ignore her blessings and omnipotence?
The prediction made by the Divine Mother regarding my second prayer also materialized all of a sudden shortly. There was not even any distant hope of my transfer. Two weeks after my return back to Srinagar one day, Mr. Sukh Dev Singh Rattan who was functioning as District Social Welfare Officer, Jammu who had come to Srinagar told me that one post of Sr. Scale Stenographer has fallen vacant due to the promotion of Sh. Hem Raj Sharma, who was holding the post of Steno Instructor in Ladies Vocational Centre, Jammu had been promoted to the post of Private Secretary and had reported for duty at Civil Secretariat. His post remained unmanned for many months. The Superintendent, Ladies Vocational Centre, Jammu, Mrs. Vijay Luxmi had sent a proposal for my placement against that post of Steno Instructor, in LVC Jammu. Mr. Sukhdev Singh took the matter up with the then Commissioner, Social Welfare Department Mr. A.K. Angujrana, IAS, who out rightly rejected the proposal on the plea that there was already shortage of man power in the Department. I felt depressed. After that some more officer took up the matter again with other officers of Department but no one agreed to the proposal stating that I was a Junior Stenographer and the post which was to be filled up was that of Sr. Scale Stenographer. With this my proposal was filed.
Desperately, I again applied for leave and came back to my home at Jammu. On my next visit to the Shrine Temple of Police line the Divine Chandi Maa amusingly pointed out to me that I was worried as officers were averse to help me out. She ordered me to have a satang (devotional group chanting) at my home soon so that hurdles in my way are removed. And lo, after holding satsanga, when I returned back to Sriangar on work, the scenario changed dramatically.
One day I decided to personally meet Mr. A.K. Angurana,IAS, the commissioner and request him to kindly let me go to Jammu and consider me for promotion to next grade, the grade of Sr. Scale Stenographer so that I could be adjusted against the vacant post. To my surprise, Mr. Angurana agreed to my request and directed Director, Social Welfare to pass on my Promotion Orders to the next Grade and post me against the post of Steno Instructor, LVC, Jammu. After some reluctance, the Director then kindly passed the order of my Promotion and Transfer back to Jammu. It happened in the month of Feb 1999. Till now I am serving on the same post and am to retire one year after i.e. 28th Feb., 2009.
All this speaks volumes about the divine mercy of Maa Chandi of Machela and her omnipresence, omnipotence and omnificence. My whole life had changed for the better. Thanks a lot to the Merciful Divine Mother.
