Divine Visions

Tears on a picture of Lord Datta

Swami had told from the very beginning that He has come down to this world to propagate knowledge and devotion; not to perform miracles. Yet, Mrs. Bhavani, wife of Mr. C. Balakrishna Murthy, had been pressing Swami to show a miracle for a very long time. Finally, Swami agreed. One day while worshipping a picture of Lord Datta, Swami asked Mrs. Bhavani and Mr. C. Balakrishna Murthy, to look at the eyes of Lord Datta, in the picture. Both of them looked at the eyes of Datta. Suddenly two streams of tears started flowing from the eyes of Datta in the picture. Smt. Bhavani and her husband were astonished. Bhavani touched the tears and shouted, "Look how cold these tears are! They are just like ice-cold water!" The tears stopped flowing as soon as Bhavani touched them. However, the marks of the tears remained on the photo throughout the day. Swami told them that the tears were cold since Lord Datta was happy with them. This was the first miracle performed by Swami. The news of the miracle spread and Swami performed some more miracles.

Swami as Lord Datta

Seethamma sees the Lord. Datta Mrs. Seethamma is one of Swami's devotees in the Krishna Lanka area of Vijayawada, India. She is a neighbor of Mr. C. Balakrishna Murthy. One day Swami appeared to her with three faces, six hands and a golden colored body. The three faces represent the three aspects of the Lord, namely, creation, sustenance and destruction. The Lord as the Creator is called as Brahma. The Lord as the Sustaniner of creation is called Visnu. The Lord as the Destroyer of Ignorance and evils called Siva. Lord Datta is the Lord who includes all these three aspects. He is the Trinity of Brahma, Visnu and Siva. This Lord comes down as the human incarnation and is called Datta. The lady was so astounded by this vision of Lord Datta that she went into a semi-conscious trance for three days.

Devotee describes vision. On another occasion, Swami went to the residence of Sri. G. Sivarma Murthy, retired Secretary of Khadi Board, in the Khadi colony at Tirupathi for three consecutive days to sing devotional songs. On third day Swami gave the vision of Lord Datta to Mrs. Srivalli, the eldest daughter-in-law of Sri. Sivarama Murthy and asked her to describe the vision to the devotees present there. Smt. Srivalli announced in a loud voice that she was seeing Swami as Lord Datta having three faces and six hands.

Vision on deathbed. Mr. Subramanyam, a bank employee in Vijayawada, was very intent on having a vision of Lord Datta. He asked permission from Swami to go to Ganagapur, which is an important center of pilgrimage for devotees of Lord Datta. Swami told him that there was no need of going to Ganagapur since he would get a vision of Lord Datta within a month. In the meanwhile Mr. Subramanyam fell seriously ill and was on his deathbed. While on deathbed, he saw the vision of Lord Datta as predicted by Swami. Lord Datta appeared to him with three faces and six hands. The surprising thing was that all the faces of Lord Datta were none other than the face of Swami. Before dying, he told about this miracle to his wife and told her that Swami was none other than the Lord Himself.

Devotee touches divine wheel. Mrs. Bharati, an artist on the All India Radio (A. I. R.) is an ardent devotee of Swami. She had been yearning for vision of Lord Datta from Swami for a long time. Finally, one day Swami blessed her with the vision she wanted.

Following is the episode in her own words. "I had been pleading to Swami for a long time to show me some miracle. He always seemed to show miracles to His devotees in Vijayawada and not to me. One evening at about 8.00 pm, I went to visit Him. There were several others in the room, who had also come to meet Him. After meeting Him, I stood up to take His leave. Suddenly I saw two bright lines of light appearing on the face of Swami. I was wonderstruck and gaped at Swami. Slowly His face got divided in to three faces. All the three faces were His own image. I saw a brilliant Siva Lingam (a symbol representing the wave nature of energy) on the chest of Swami. Then I found the radiant disc of the Lord (Visnu Cakram) rotating around His index finger. I suddenly became conscious about other people around me. I could not help wondering if they too were seeing what I was seeing. However they all seemed casual and obviously were not having the vision. I asked some devotees to stand in my position and look at Swami. They stood and looked but they saw Swami as usual.

Then Swami became serious. He told me that a divine vision is not a cinema to be shown to all. I realized my mistake and went and sat down near Swami, with my eyes completely fixed on the radiant Visnu Cakram, rotating around His finger. Different colors of radiance were emanating from it. Swami explained to me about the significance of the five colors that could be seen. I was particularly interested in knowing about the red, blue and white colors surrounding the wheel. Swami told that those three colors represented Brahma, Visnu and Siva respectively. The three colors together represented Datta, who is the trinity of Brahma, Visnu and Siva together. Swami stated that the power of the wheel is always at the edge. This means that Datta or the ultimate Lord alone rules over the the cycle of karma (deeds) and kala (time), and that they get their power through Him alone. He said that the five colors in the wheel represent the five elements that constitute creation. Therefore the Visnu Cakram represents the entire creation. Thus Swami was explaining the entire spiritual background and significance of the vision.

While He was still explaining, a doubt entered my mind that perhaps this vision was merely an illusion or my mind's imagination, since others could not see it. I looked again at the divine disc Visnu Cakram, which was rotating with unimaginable speed. I decided to resolve my doubt then and there. Ignoring what Swami was explaining, I stretched out my finger and touched the Visnu Cakram. I received dreadful shock and I fell down with a loud cry. I lay unconscious for about an hour, I was told later. When I came back to consciousness, my heart was still palpitating wildly. Swami put His hand on my head and asked me to walk. I walked for half an hour. I felt somewhat better. For three days I could not bend the finger with which I had touched the Visnu Cakram. My heart kept palpitating erratically. Worried about my heart palpitations, I went to a cardiologist for a checkup. He told me that I had probably received some intense electric shock. After giving this vision, the body of Swami was also very weak for one month. Swami told some devotees that His nerves were burnt like a fuse wire after taking excessive current. All the devotees were sad that Swami was suffering. They requested Swami to not give any more visions to people. Swami told that His body is as normal as the body of any other human being. It is as liable to get hurt or pained as anyone else's body. The shirt of a king and the shirt of an ordinary person are both made of cloth. They can both be cut by a blade.

Wheel of light. One day Swami was sitting in the house of Shri. Bhima Sankaram. He was talking to Smt. Padmaram on the phone. Padmaram, who lives in the town of Ramachandrapuram, asked Swami to show her a miracle then and there. Swami scolded her for her foolish desire since only devotees of a low cadre hanker after miracles. Then Padmaram told Swami that she did not need to see the miracle herself but that He could show a miracle to the people around Him. They could later call and tell her about it. Smt. Rama, the sister of Smt. Padmaram, lives in Singapore and was in India at that time. She has a house in India, near the house of Sri Bhima Sankaram. Rama decided to meet Swami in Bhima Sankaram's home. It was midday when Smt. Rama entered Bhima Sankaram's home and looked at Swami. She saw a glorious wheel of light rotating slowly about Swami's head. The wheel had a five-colored radiance. Fiery sparks were flying from it. She was terrified. Her whole body began to shake and she ran away to her home nearby. She was so scared and bewildered that she passed out. It was night by the time she was able to speak about the incident to her family. Everyone in her family then visited Swami. Rama was so scared of Swami that she stood away from Swami and refused to come near Him. She told her sister that the blazing wheel could appear any moment with sparks flying all over. She was afraid that they would burn her.

After reassuring Rama that there was no need to fear, Swami revealed to her a secret about her previous birth. Rama was a dancer in her previous birth in the temple of Sri Rangam. She used to dance before the Lord, aspiring for a divine vision from Him. That wish of hers was fulfilled now. Swami then asked her to telephone Smt. Padmaram and relate this episode to her. Padmaram was very happy, since her wish was fulfilled. Later Swami jokingly said to Rama, "How fortunate you are! You have seen the Divine Wheel of Light! I am not as fortunate because the wheel was behind My head and I was unable to see it." Rama had a good laugh about it. It helped relieve the stress she was under.

Foot prints of Lord Datta. On 30th November 2001, it was the festival of Datta Jayanti or the birthday of Lord Datta. A big function was carried out in the shrine on the top floor of the house of Sri Bala Krishna Murthy. After the function, a sacred bed for Lord Datta was decorated so that Swami could sleep on it. Swami usually sleeps in the shrine, on the bed decorated for Lord Datta, whenever He is staying with Sri Bala Krishna Murthy. However that night Swami came downstairs and said that he would sleep downstairs that night and not upstairs in the shrine since He wanted to show a miracle. The shrine was closed that night. When it was opened in the morning, large footprints were seen on the bed that had been decorated the earlier night. Swami told that the footprints were of Lord Datta, who had first incarnated in the treta yuga or the second age (in the four-age recursive cycle of creation). Swami told that based on the size of the footprint, one can imagine how large Lord Datta might have been and how large people in general were in the treta yuga. The footprints on the bed remained for a long time and people flocked to see the huge footprints. The footprints were photographed and the photographs were distributed to devotees.

Appearing in the picture of Lord Datta. Mrs. Suguna, a devotee of Swami, doubted how Swami gave so many visions to people. She was talking to her friends and was commenting that such visions are mere illusions of the weak minded. She was telling that no one could delude her and make her see illusions, since she had a very strong mind. Later she went to a temple of Lord Datta along with her friends. All of them were prostrating before the picture of Lord Datta, when suddenly, Suguna saw Swami in the place of the picture of Lord Datta. Swami was laughing. She was shocked and thought that it was her imagination, but she saw the same thing again and again. Then she told about her vision to her friends and since then became a strong devotee of Swami.

Lord Datta in the fire altar. Sri K Satyanarayana, chairman of the engineering college in Vijayawada, is a true devotee of Lord Dattatreya (Lord Datta). He participates in discussions of divine knowledge with keen interest, for hours together. He gets so absorbed in divine knowledge that he even forgets his sleep. One day Swami was performing a traditional fire ritual-sacrifice. Sri K. Satyanarayana was sitting very close to the fire altar. Suddenly he saw Lord Dattatreya in the flames of the fire. He was very much surprised at this vision.

Atma Lingam (Wave of Radiation)

The Atma Lingam is a symbol representing the Lord and His cosmic energy. This symbol is generally associated with Lord Siva. Swami showed the Atma Lingam in His heart at the stroke of midnight to Phani, who is one of Swami's closest devotees. It appeared as a wave of brilliant radiation. A resounding "OM", which is the primal sound of creation, was heard. The vision went on for about twenty minutes. Phani touched the Atma Lingam with his fingers and the fingers started radiating the same light! He became unconscious for three days.

Below is Phani's description of this unforgettable incident. "It was a certain Monday of the month of Karthika (according to the Hindu calendar); a day, particularly auspicious for worshipping Lord Siva. In the evening, Swami spontaneously started singing hymns on Lord Siva. All the devotees joined Him. The singing went all till about 11pm. All the devotees took their leave and went to sleep. However I remained there, sitting humbly at Swami's feet. I generally go to bed only after Swami goes to sleep. Swami forced me to go to bed since it was getting late. However I insisted on keeping up as long as He was awake. Swami scolded me for disobeying Him but I refused to budge. I sat there quietly rubbing His feet. Swami started singing a hymn on the Atma Lingam. Swami composes all these devotional hymns extempore. It was midnight, when an intensely bright wave of radiation appeared in the form of a Siva Lingam on the chest of Swami. The whole room was filled with a brilliant white light more powerful than anything I have ever seen. Swami's whole body was radiating an ethereal light. A resounding "OM" could be heard constantly. The vision lasted for about 15 to 20 minutes. I tried to hold the Atma Lingam in my hands. Since the Lingam is not made of matter but out of intense energy, my fingers penetrated it. I drew my hand back and looked at my fingers. My fingers too were glittering as if covered by mercury. As soon as I touched the Lingam, it slowly reduced in intensity and started disappearing into the heart of Swami. I was extremely exhilarated. However soon a weakness came upon me and I passed out. I apparently did not wake up for three days".

"Next morning, Swami told other devotees "Last night Phani saw the Atma Lingam. It is the first wave of thought of Lord, which results in creation. In the past Ravana got a similar vision however what Ravana saw was only a representative image of the actual Atma Lingam. For the first time in creation, the original Atma Lingam was shown. Phani is an incarnation of Adisesa, who is represented as the thousand-hooded cobra in the heavens. He is the closest servant of the Lord. It was therefore that he could withstand the vision and manage to survive even after touching the Atma Lingam. Any other ordinary mortal would not have been so lucky. All the other devotees felt very bad that they missed this great miracle as they went to sleep early. However Swami told them that nobody could get such a divine vision unless they truly deserved it.

Viswarupa-the cosmic form of the Lord

Guru Pournima, is the birthday of Sage Vyasa. It falls on a full moon day. This day is celebrated as the 'Day of the Guru', when all teachers and especially the Guru or the spiritual teacher is worshipped. On one Guru Pournima day, Swami gave a 3 hour long discourse. While giving the discourse, He suddenly stood for five minutes. At this time, Mrs. Seethamma and Mr. Ajay, who were sitting there, saw the exact same vision which left them spellbound. They both saw the whole universe in Swami. Yet both kept silent about their vision. At the end of discourse, Swami asked the two of them to explain about their vision to other devotees. Both of them related their experience in the following words, "We saw Swami as a huge figure radiating a dazzling light. The faces of all the deities and sages could be seen on both sides of the face of Swami. A golden chariot was standing behind Swami. Arjuna was seen prostrating at the feet of Swami. The whole universe was seen within Swami." Swami told devotees that the same vision was seen by two different people at the same time. Other devotees could not see anything different. This proves that such visions and miracles are not mere illusions or mass hypnosis. Swami chooses what vision to give to whom. Earlier that day, before Swami arrived to give the discourse, Seethamma had been talking about the vision she had a few days ago, with other devotees. She described the vision of Lord Datta who appeared golden in color. Ajay had remarked that Swami gave visions only her while some other devotees including himself were not that fortunate. Swami mentioned about this conversation also as one of the reasons for giving the simultaneous vision.

Swami as Lord Brahma

Where the Lord rests. In the house of Shri C. Balakrishna Murthy, Swami often gives spiritual discourses in the evening to devotees. After the discourse, He retires in the upstairs room, which has been converted into a shrine of Lord Datta. In the shrine is a bed meant for the Lord. Swami always sleeps on it. One day, soon after the discourse, Swami entered that room as usual. He closed the doors and was getting ready to sleep. Sri C. Balakrisha Murthy was very curious to see how Swami slept. He came to the door and tried to peep through a crack in it. To his dismay, Swami suddenly opened the door and told him seriously "Do not try to peep in and see Me once I close door." So saying He shut the door. When Swami visited their home again after a few days, He told all family members of Bala Krishna Murthy, that no one should try to see Him while He slept.

One night Mrs. Sri Lakshmi, the eldest daughter-in-law of Bala Krishna Murthy, could not contain her curiosity and actually managed to peep through a window of the room in which Swami was resting. Following is her experience in her own words. "I always respected Swami as a saintly and scholarly person. However my father-in-law (Shri C. Balakrishna Murthy) told me that Swami is Lord Datta Himself. I could not get myself to believe it, at all. I could not help thinking that he was an ordinary human being. The upstairs room of our house, which had been converted to a shrine for Lord Datta had a bed for Lord Datta that I would personally make every night. I would place a picture of Lord Datta on it every night and imagine that I was putting Lord Datta to sleep. When Swami would visit us and occupy the shrine-room, He would sleep on that bed, which was meant for the Lord. I was pained because I felt that the impure feet of an ordinary person were polluting the divine bed of the Lord".

"My father-in-law had told me that Swami had told him that nobody should try to peep into the room, where Swami slept. However I did not care about his instructions. I wanted to look inside and prove to my father-in-law and the family that there was nothing extraordinary about Swami; either when He is awake or when He slept. To my great astonishment, I saw Lord Brahma (Lord, as the Creator) in the place of Swami. His Divine Radiant Form was lying on the bed radiating brilliant light more intense than a thousand light bulbs. I was on the verge of losing consciousness. Somehow, I managed to see Swami inspite of the intense radiance. He appeared snow-white in color. Swami had His hand on His forehead and appeared to be in deep thought. This was apparently His normal mode of sleeping. His eyes were open and He was staring at something above. His eyes looked slightly pinkish color. I ran away in extreme fear and excitement. I remained speechless for an hour".

When all her family members enquired what had happened, she finally revealed her vision. Next morning, all the family members stood outside Swami's room respectfully with folded hands. Swami opened the door and smiled. He said referring to Mrs. Sri lakshmi, "She has seen Lord Brahma. The intense radiance that she saw is called Brahma Tejas." Later Mrs. Sri lakshmi asked Swami what he was thinking about when she saw Him in the room. Swami replied plainly, "I was thinking about how to uplift My devotees."

Swami as Lord Krsna

Clearing Vasumathi's doubts. Smt. Vasumathi did not believe the divine visions shown by Swami to Phani. She told Phani that the vision of Atma Lingam, he had had, could have been an illusion. She also expressed doubts about the visions of many other devotees. Swami wanted to remove her illusion. On one Krsna Astami (the birthday of Lord Krsna), amidst all the festivities, devotees of Swami made Him sit on a chair and were worshipping Him as Lord Krsna. Smt. Vasumathi was also present there. Swami looked at her and smiled. He asked her if what she was seeing was an illusion. Suddenly Smt. Vasumathi burst out crying, "O Swami! I see You as Lord Krsna Himself. I see the divine flute in Your hands. I also see the same Krsna, playing the flute in every part of your body. I see Him in Your feet, hands, shoulders, chest, neck and everywhere. No, this is not an illusion. This is real. I have never seen anything so real! Please forgive me for my ignorance". So saying, she fell at the feet of Swami in complete surrender. She was so overcome with emotion that it would have been dangerous for her life. She lay there unconscious and shivering. Realizing her condition, Swami placed His hand on her head and she recovered immediately.

Padmavathi's wish fulfilled. Once, Swami conducted a seven-day festival in remembrance of Lord Krsna. In these seven days Swami gave several discourses on Lord Krsna. Swami also sang several devotional songs, composed by Him on the spur of the moment. He also sang Sanskrit verses from the Bhagavad Gita. Smt. Padmavati, had been attending the celebrations with a lot of interest and sitting right before Swami all the while. She is very devoted to Lord Krsna. She had also been asking Swami for a vision for a long time. On the last day, when the seven-day celebrations were about to end, Swami suddenly rose from His seat and stood before her. He waved His hand telling her "O mother! Look at Me at this moment, while this celebration is about to end." She looked at Swami. He appeared as Lord Krsna. She later described to other devotees what she saw, "Swami appeared as Lord Krsna Himself. There were three vertical lines on His forehead, (tripundra tilakam) as one would normally expect to see on the forehead of Lord Visnu. (Lord Krsna was an incarnation of Lord Visnu). Surprisingly, on the central line on His forehead, there were three shining stars. His resplendent golden crown was adorned with a delicate peacock feather. In His outstretched hand was the divine flute, whose music had enchanted the Gopikas of Vrndavanam". Smt. Padmavathi was so dazed with the vision that she was unable to speak that day. She spent most of the day weeping, making her family anxious. It was only the next day that she was able to tell her experience to others.

Swami as Lord Rama

Ayodhya is the birthplace of Lord Rama. On 15th March, the foundation ceremony of a temple of Lord Rama was to be conducted at 2:15 pm in Ayodhya. It was a national event and the Prime Minister and other dignitaries were expected for that occasion. At that time, Swami was staying in the house of Mr. Venkateswara Rao at Vijayawada, which is about 1000 km away from Ayodhya. A lot of disturbance was expected in Ayodhya since there were some communities opposed to building the temple there. Swami was singing devotional songs. While singing, he was making hand gestures as if he were shooting arrows with a bow (Lord Rama, was the greatest archer of all times). Swami said "I have shot nine divine arrows, which I got from My Guru, Viswamitra. Now fear not, for there will be no disturbance in the function." Viswamitra had given Lord Rama several divine weapons (arrows) to destroy demons.

Later all devotees were waiting anxiously to hear any news about Ayodhya that day. Swami said that the foundation ceremony in Ayodhya took place at 3:30 pm instead of the scheduled 2.15 pm, and that the ceremony took place peacefully. This news was announced on the television only at 4.00 pm. Apparently some dignitaries were delayed and the program was pushed ahead to accommodate them. Swami had told this news before it was announced on the television or radio. Swami said that He had given Seethamma a divine power by which she could see all the events in Ayodhya as they were happening. Seethamma described the whole scene in Ayodhya to devotees present. She also told them that she could see Hanuman, the great ape-devotee of Lord Rama and several monkeys who had come to witness the event. Swami as Lord Narasimha

One day a devotee, called Ajay, asked his wife to prepare a particular sweet drink called 'panakam'. She was busy and did not pay much attention to his request. In the evening Swami arrived in their home and asked Ajay's wife to prepare the same drink for Him. He told her that panakam is the favorite drink of Lord Narasimha. Lord Narasimha is the ferocious form of the Lord. Swami told her that He was in the form of Lord Narasimha at that time. He also told her that He had tried to tell her to make that drink for Him in the morning through her husband, Ajay. However she had not paid heed to his request. Other devotees were surprised to note that Swami knew about this incident that took place between Ajay and his wife. None other than the two of them knew that Ajay had asked her to make panakam that day. In this incident Swami did not give anyone the vision of Lord Narasimha, but all the devotees understood that He was the one who spoke through Ajay that morning and asked for the drink.

One day Swami told His devotees "People are killing fish in the sea and animals and birds on earth for food. When God has given a lot of grains and vegetables for food why should people kill the innocent living beings unnecessarily? The sea is the father and earth is the mother of mankind. Both are angry with humans. The earth will shake with anger and the sea will drown these people." As He said this, Swami appeared as Lord Narasimha to Smt. J.Bharathi. She was terrified to see the fierce form of Lord Narasimha. The vision was very much frightening. Next day, a powerful earthquake took place off the coast of Indonesia. It unleashed tsunamis in the Indian ocean, which wreaked havoc on the coastlines of several countries and took a huge toll of human life.

Swami as Lord Venkatswara

Phani sees Lord of Tirupathi. Some devotees have seen the face of Swami in the idol of Lord Venkatswara in the temple at Tirupathi. Phani, an ardent devotee of Swami had a spectacular vision of Swami as Lord Venkatswara. It was an interesting incident. Phani was forced by his parents attend an interview for an advantageous job in Chennai. Some fourteen candidates were short-listed for the interview from two hundred applicants and Phani was among them. There were four vacancies and Phani ranked second in the preference of the employers. Therefore he was certain to get that job. Phani was unwilling to accept the job because it meant that he would have to live in Chennai, away from Swami. However his parents wanted him to take the job. It was noon and Phani was waiting for the interview with a conflicted mind. Swami appeared as Lord Venkatswara before him and asked, "Shall I give you this job?" Phani replied, "No, my Lord. Just give me the opportunity to serve you." Immediately after that, Phani was called in for the interview. Needless to say, Phani turned down the offer at the end of the interview.

On the same day and exactly at the same time in Vijayawada, Swami was talking with Phani's parents. He told them, "I offered a job to Phani in Chennai just now, but he refused it". When Phani returned back from Chennai to Vijayawada, he ascertained the fact by verifying the exact date and time of the vision. He realized that Swami is Lord Venkatswara. He had appeared as Lord Venkatswara to him in Chennai, while several hundred miles away, He was talking with Phani's parents in Vijayawada at the same time.

Later when Phani went to Mumbai (Bombay), several devotees of Swami asked Phani how Lord Venkatswara looked like in his vision. Phani replied "The face of Lord Venkatswara was that of Swami. His divine conch (Sankha) and divine disc (cakra) were present, one on either side of His head." He could not describe the incredible vision in any greater detail than that. The devotees in Mumbai were extremely eager to know how Swami appeared in that vision.

Then by the wish of Swami, Sri Sharma, another devotee of Swami, who is an expert photographer, took a picture of Swami decorated as Lord Venkatswara (Which you can see in this book). When Phani returned from Mumbai, and saw this photo, he was astonished to see exactly the same form of Lord Venkatswara as he had seen in the vision. Actually neither Swami nor Sri Sharma had been told about the conversation between Phani and devotees in Mumbai. As soon as Phani saw this photo, Swami told him, "Send this photo to those devotees who asked you how Lord Venkateswara looked like in the vision. Tell them that this is exactly how He appeared before you."

Vision at Tirupathi. Smt. Kalavathi went to Tirupathi, where there is a very famous temple of Lord Venkateswara. When she looked at the idol of Lord Venkateswara, she saw the face of Swami one on either side of Lord Venkateswara. When she returned, Swami asked her if she had had any vision in Tirupathi. Kalavathi was confused, firstly by the vision and secondly by how Swami came to know of her vision. She kept silent. Finally, when Swami insisted, she told Him about the vision.

More visions in Tirupathi. When Sri Phani and Sri Ajay went to Tirupathi, they saw a bright radiance around the Lord. Overjoyed by the vision, they sang a devotional song composed by Swami on Lord Venkateswara. As they sung the song, they saw Swami at the heart of the idol of Lord Venkateswara. What caught their attention was a curious fact that Swami was wearing a red sweater; one which Swami actually wears in winter.

Swami as Lord Padmanabha

One day Sri G. Lakshman from Mumbai was sitting in his living room. Suddenly Swami appeared to him as a gigantic figure, several times larger than a multi stored building. Then the same vertical personality of Swami lay horizontal and appeared as Lord Padmanabha, on the bed of thousand headed serpent (Adi Seva). Ananta Padmanabha is the Lord lying in the mythical Milk Ocean on the thousand-hooded serpent, Adi Seva. The vision lasted an hour and Lakshman was highly elated. Actually, the earlier night, Lakshman had been listening to divine knowledge from Swami throughout the night. Swami was pleased at his genuine interest in divine knowledge. Swami had asked Lakshman in the early morning "I want to give a vision to you". Lakshman said that he did not need to see any miraculous vision since divine knowledge itself is an infinite vision. Swami kept silent. Later He gave this vision to Lakshman and told him that Ananta Padmanabha represents the infinite true knowledge as said in Veda (satyam jnanam anantam brahma).

Swami as Lord Shiva

Swami was in Sri Sailam, which is a holy place for the devotees of Lord Siva. Other devotees including Sri C. Bala Krishna Murthy were also with Him. A great saint called Baroda Maharaj was also staying in the temple. He would not take any food except a glass of milk at midnight. One morning, Swami told the devotees that He had given a vision of Siva Datta to Baroda Maharaj. Siva Datta is the same three-faced Lord Datta, but with the face of Lord Siva in the central position as opposed to that of Lord Visnu. After saying this, Swami visited the temple along with the devotees. As soon as Baroda Maharaj saw Swami, Maharaj stood up and caught hold of Swami. He broke into raptures, "Today, I have seen the vision of Datta". He was holding the hands of the Swami and dancing and singing for a long time. Devotees realized the truth in the words of Swami, when He had said that He had given a vision to the saint.

Swami as the Divine Mother

One day, a devotee called Mrs. Saritha, came from Guntur, a nearby town, to visit Swami. In the evening, Swami was singing devotional songs along with all other devotees. Suddenly she became extremely thrilled and ran towards Swami. She fell at His feet in respect and humility. Devotees were wondering what had happened. She later told other devotees, "I had a vision of Swami as the Divine Mother, Lalita, decorated with divine jewels. When I fell at the feet of Swami, I saw that the feet were decorated with turmeric and golden anklets, which are so characteristic of the Divine Mother. The vision was so impressive that its memory is fresh as ever in my mind. It was certainly not an illusion".

Swami as Sri Shirdi Sai Baba

Swami advises Purna. Smt. Purna is a devotee of Sri Sai Baba and lives in Rajmundry. Once Sri Sai Baba appeared to her in her house and said, "You should sit in this prayer room and worship Me". Later this lady happened to visit Swami. Surprisingly, He told her the same words that Sai Baba had told her in her vision. He gave His photo to Purna and asked her to worship Him sitting in the prayer room of her own home. She had not even mentioned about her vision of Sai Baba to Swami. Swami further stated that He and Sai Baba were one and the same. She was astonished. Swami also told her that there is no need of traveling so far to visit Him, since He was always with her.

Vishwanath sees Sai Baba on deathbed

It was the day of Guru Purnima. Swami gave a divine discourse in the evening. There were several devotees attending the discourse that day. After the discourse, a sweet fragrance of lotus flowers emanated from Swami's body. It spread all over the room and lasted for twenty minutes. After that a fragrance of camphor came and lasted for 10 minutes. Then a fragrance of sacred ashes (vibhuti) came for 10 minutes. Swami explained that the three different scents represented Lord Brahma, Visu and Siva respectively. He concluded the function with this explanation.

As all the devotees were slowly dispersing, a young college student named Vishwanath walked up to Swami and sat near Him. On seeing him Swami sang a devotional song on Sri Rama and asked that boy to worship Sri Rama. The boy was surprised. He was a devotee of Sri Rama and had later become a devotee of the late saint and human incarnation of God, Sri Shirdi Sai Baba. He had not told Swami anything about his background. Swami was not even introduced to him. He wondered how Swami knew about his devotion to Lord Rama

Later a conversation ensued between the two of them as follows:
Vishwanath: Swami, can You please give me a vision of Shirdi Sai Baba?
Swami: I do not have capacity to give you a vision of Him. You go to Puttaparthi. Meet Sri Satya Sai Baba. He can grant you, your wish. When He blesses you, please pray to Sri Satya Sai Baba for my sake too
. Vishwanath: Alright Swami, I shall do as You say.
Looking at the sincere devotion and obedience of the student, Swami, out of compassion decided to fulfill his wish there and then. He asked Vishwanath to go and sit near the opposite the wall and instructed another devotee to switch off the light in the room. In the dim light, Swami lay on the couch, rolling from side to side as if uneasy and suffering from some affliction. Then He spoke to Vishwanath.
Swami: Vishwanath, what do you see now?
Vishwanath: (sobbing loudly) O Lord! I can see Shirdi Sai Baba Himself.
Swami: What is Sai Baba doing?
Vishwanath: Sai Baba looks very sick. He is on his deathbed. He is having a lot of trouble breathing. But His eyes are glowing with a heavenly light.
Lakshman sees Swami as Shirdi Sai Baba. One day Sri Lakshman visited Swami. Swami was singing a song on Sri Shridi Sai Baba. Lakshman suddenly saw Sai Baba in place of Swami. A fragrance of camphor came from His body. The fragrance remained with Lakshman for three days.

Swami as Sri Satya Sai Baba
Smt. Priyamvada, is a lecturer in Hyderabad and her husband is a doctor. They are close devotees of Sri Satya Sai Baba, who is a living incarnation of the Lord in Puttaparthi, India. Swami once visited their house and stayed with them for three days. While talking to Him, they indirectly asked for a proof of His divinity. Swami merely smiled but kept silent. Next evening, devotees gathered in their house for singing devotional songs. Swami was sitting in a chair behind the crowd of devotees. One lady, by the name of Smt. Gita, who was also a devotee of Sri Satya Sai Baba, entered the hall late. She had long desired to go to Puttaparthi and see Sai Baba seated on the silver throne. However her wish had not yet come true. As soon as she entered the hall, she looked at Swami. Swami appeared to her as Sri Satya Sai Baba. The ordinary chair, on which Swami was seated, appeared as a silver throne. She ran towards Swami and prostrated at His feet. She was wondering how Sri Satya Sai Baba came from Puttaparthi. Later she told Smt. Priyamvada about her vision.

Swami as Sri Narasimha Saraswati
Food for one, serves eighteen. Sri Narasimha Saraswati was a great saint and an incarnation of Lord Datta. On one memorial anniversary of Sri Narasimha Saraswati, Swami, with eighteen other devotees, was singing devotional songs in praise of the great saint. On that day there was only enough food for Swami. At noon, there was a ceremony in which food was to be offered to Sri Narasimha Saraswati. Swami asked all the devotees to join Him for lunch. The devotees told Swami that there was only enough food for Him and that they would go to their own homes and have lunch. Swami moved His hands around the vessel containing food. He said that when Sri Narasimha Saraswati had similarly moved His hands around a vessel containing food, a thousand devotees could be fed from that vessel. He added that feeding eighteen devotees was but child's play. The vessel was opened and food was served. Needless to say, that there was more than enough food for all eighteen devotees. The food simply multiplied as it was being served leaving eighteen satisfied devotees.

Swami as Adi Sankaracharya
Smt. Seethamma was suffering from a headache for a long time. When she visited the house of Sri C. Balakrishna Murthy to see Swami sor the first time, she was shocked to see Swami as Adi Sankaracharya (Lord Sankara). Golden rings were coming from the sky and were entering in to the head of Sankaracharya. After this vision, her headache disappeared forever. However Swami suffered with a terrible headache for three days.

Swami as the sun Smt. Venkata Lakshmi visited Swami. When she looked at Him, His face suddenly turned into a radiant globe more powerful than the sun. She was terribly frightened. Swami laughed at her. She turned around and was trying to flee. While fleeing, she looked back at Swami hoping to see the same vision of the sun. Swami mockingly said "You cannot watch a movie twice on the same ticket" Then Swami asked her to explain what she saw. She said that His face was brighter and hotter than the hottest summer sun.

Appearing in different places at once
Experience of Mrs. Manga. Mrs. Manga, a devotee of Swami, was once traveling from Mumbai to Vijayawada. Before leaving, she called up Swami and asked Him to accompany her on her journey. Swami was in Vijayawada at that time. Swami agreed and appeared to her in the train. However she alone could see and talk to Him. Swami was sitting before her and constantly talking with her. Other passengers thought that she was mad because she was apparently engaged in serious conversation with no one! When the train reached Vijayawada station, Swami got down from the train and went away.

On another occasion, Mrs. Manga asked Swami over the phone to appear in His original form before her. Swami agreed to appear to her soon. A short while later, when she was going to bathroom, and opened the door of the bathroom, Swami was right there in a frightening form. He was snow-white in color. His eyes were red and head clean shaven. He was stark naked. This was the form of a ghost called as 'Datta Digambara Pisachya Rupa' in the scriptures. Mrs. Manga got the fright of her life and she did not open the door of that bathroom for several days. Only after Swami assured her that He would not show her that terrible form again, did she start using that bathroom again. Swami told her that she should not have asked to see His original form, which even angels fear. He told her that it represents His austere and harsh form.

Swami appears in three places simultaneously. The day after the experience of Mrs. Manga, Swami proved His presence in three places on the same day and at the same time. Swami traveled to a certain city to deliver a lecture at a college. He was put up in the college for the night. On the same night, He was present with His family in Narasaraopet, which is a different town, where He slept with His family. A neighbor of Swami, in Narasaraopet talked with Swami for half an hour that evening. Also on the same night, Swami attended the annual gathering of a college in a third town. In that town, He traveled in the car of a devotee and slept in his house that night. Therefore, on the same day and at the same time, He was present in three different places and there were witnesses in all three locations, who swear that they not only saw Him but that on that night He slept with them. Swami told devotees that Sri Narasimha Saraswati was present in eight villages on the same Deepavali festival day and at the same time. The next day, Swami give a vision to Smt. Seethamma as Sri Narasimha Saraswati and also as Sri Akkalkot Maharaj, who was another incarnation of Lord Datta.

Visualized in absence. Devotees were singing devotional songs on the top floor in the house of Sri C. Bala Krishna Murthy. Swami was not present there. One devotee called Mr. Balakrishna, who is the grand son of Sri C. Bala Krishna Murthy, was present at that time in the house downstairs. He went upstairs to attend a phone call, clearly saw Swami sitting amidst His devotees and singing. He was astounded and came downstairs to tell his mother that Swami was there upstairs. His mother was confused because she had not seen Swami come into the house. However there had been an important phone message for Swami, and she told Balakrishna to go back upstairs and give Swami the message. Balakrishna went upstairs only to see Swami immersed in singing. Thinking that disturbing Him was inappropriate, Balakrishna thought that he would give the message later.

When the devotional songs were over and all the devotees came downstairs, Balakrishna's mother asked Sumathi, a certain devotee when Swami would come down. Sumathi replied that He would come down shortly. Saying thus Sumathi left for her home. After almost all devotees had dispersed, Balakrishna's mother asked some other devotee when Swami would come down. She was taken aback when the other devotees said that Swami had not been present for the singing that night. Unable to believe what they told her, she called Sumathi, who only a while ago had told her the Swami was there. Sumathi picked up the phone in her home and said that she had not come for the singing that night at all. The devotees quickly understood that it was another divine drama played by Swami. Next day, when Swami came to their house, Balakrishna's told Him about the last night's incident. Listening to the story, Swami burst into laughter.

Swami appears to devotees far away. Some devotees met Swami at Kurla railway station, Mumbai, and talked with them for ten minutes. Swami told them that He had just arrived in Mumbai from Vijayawada. Yet He had never left Vijayawada and was with His devotees in Vijayawada that day. Vijayawada and Mumbai are separated by nearly a thousand kilometers.

Swami appeared. Sri G. Lakshman heard about the golden light that appeared on Swami's face while devotees were taking His photograph. When he visited Swami in Vijayawada, he asked Swami to show him the golden light. Swami said to Lakshaman, "Why do you want to see the just the light? You will see Me. Go to Mumbai." When Sri Lakshman returned to Mumbai, he saw Swami sitting in a chair in his living room one morning. He was shocked and was about to say something to Swami but He disappeared immediately.

Other Visions
Electric arcs and colored rays. One day Swami was invited to the house of Sri A Seshadri, who is a leading auditor in Vijayawada. Swami was received well in his house. Smt. Lalitha, wife of Sri A. Seshadri touched the feet of Swami reverentially. In doing so she received a powerful electric shock as if from a high voltage wire. Their daughters, Ramya and Divya, who were present there, saw electric arcs coming out of Swami's body. Awestruck, they kept watching Him, till after a while the electric discharges slowly died down. Swami's entire body became radiant white in color like white-hot metal heated due to the electrical arcs.

After some time, both of them observed many colored rays emanating from the hand of Swami. Then they saw an intense pink-colored light coming from Swami. They also observed a pink colored aura around the head of Swami. Swami told them that the pink color indicated the divine love of the Lord. Swami explained that the many colored rays are formed by the mixing of the three fundamental qualities, of satvam, rajas and tamas. White represents satvam, red represents rajas and blue represents tamas. The infinite variety in creation is due to the mixing in different proportions, of these fundamental qualities. Swami also explained that the electric arcs emanating from Him represented various concepts of divine knowledge. The final white body that He took up, indicated that Swami is the embodiment of divine knowledge. The family was very happy on hearing these interpretations of the miracle they had just seen. Sri A. Seshadri often holds good spiritual discussions with Swami and is proficient in the logical analysis of divine knowledge.

Lip movement in a picture. One day Ajay asked Swami to show him a miracle. Swami agreed. That day Ajay was offering a sweet dish to a picture of Lord Datta. To his surprise, the lips of the Lord in the picture began to move as if He were eating the sweet. Ajay was shocked and just sat still in front of the picture for an hour. That very night, Ajay's wife too asked Swami to show her some miracle. Swami showed a small light to her for 5 minutes. The light slowly moved and merged in the picture of Lord Datta. This happened when she preparing a curry. She was so engrossed in watching the light merge with the picture that by the time it was over, the curry that she had put on the stove, was completely charred.

Glow overwhelms cameraman. Once, devotees planned to take a photograph of Swami. As He sat to have His picture taken the face of Swami began glowing with a brilliant golden light. The glow was so intense that the cameraman, Sri Sharma was astounded. When he was prompted by others to quickly take a picture of the miraculous vision, he said that the glow was so brilliant that the flash would not work and the film would get overexposed. Seeing the helplessness of the Sri Sharma, Swami reduced the intensity of the glow. When the light had faded and only a slight glow remained the cameraman could take a picture. The picture that came out showed a slight golden color to Swami's face.

For another picture, Swami was decorated as Lord Venkateswara. Devotees applied some face powder to Swami's face. When the cameraman (Sri Sharma) looked at Swami through the lens, Swami appeared blue in color as Lord Venkateswara is supposed to look. Sri Sharma was astonished and looked directly at Him. But Swami appeared normal when looked at directly. He again looked through the camera lens and Swami looked blue in color. Finally, He took the picture of Swami as Lord Venkateswara, in which Swami appears blue.

Repository of deities. Swami has appeared as Lord Visnu, Lord Rama Lord Ganesa, Lord Siva, Lord Krsna, Lord Hanuman, Lord Venkateswara and Lord Datta to various devotees. He has also appeared in female forms such as Goddess Saraswati, Goddess Laksmi and Goddess Lalita. At Ramachandrapuram, while singing devotional songs in a gathering, a bright aura was seen behind the photo of Swami.