Bhagavan Nityananda as I remember
BY DR. GOPALKRISHNA RAGHUNATH SHENOY
My Father………..X To remain ceaselessly connected
The month of Shravan
The most of the monsoon season is over. Now it is the beautiful month of Shrawan. There is greenery everywhere. The mountains, the paddy fields, the plains, all have become lush green. There are many small rivulets winding through the fields. Frogs are plentiful. There are small fishes in the ponds which young boys try their skills in catching. The month has many festivals to celebrate. Mondays are dedicated to Lord Shiva. Fridays to Manglgauri. Then you have Nag Panchami, Raksha Bandan and Narli Poornima. Krishna Janmastami and soon there would be arrival of Ganesha in Bhadrapad. Life looks beautiful as the clouds and sun play hide and seek, bringing short showers, that to out of their own choice as one field receives the shower while the immediate neighboring field receives none!
In that period of Shrawan, Bhagavan mostly remained inside the Vaikuntha. Visitors were few. Only the regular ones came. Several jungle vegetables were available, like tender bamboo shoots, Kantole, Taikala, different edible roots, leafy vegetables, etc. We took the opportunity to prepare the rare dishes and offer to Him. From Bamboo shoots, Kirlabajhi, Ambade from Taikala leaves, Madi phodi, Phagilapjodi, Gajbaji, etc, typical Konkani dishes. They were made piping hot and offered to Him with rice. He was served when He asked for. He ate a small quantity and gave rest to all those who were present. Sometimes He used to ask for some quantity to be kept aside saying there would be visitors. How did He know? Yes, someone or the other used to come late-evening and serve the hungry visitors. One such person was A T Patil, son-in-law of Shri Banurao Khade.
