He Reveals His Presence in Unlimited Ways

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In 2005, I had been very sick for many months and was doing some Ayurvedic treatment with a doctor in Udupi. There were two didis from another sangha there. Every morning we had to wait together for an hour or two outside the treatment room for our turn.

One of those didis was a secretary of an ISKCON guru and she read Srimad Bhagavatam every morning. I have to admit my spirits were so low at that time, I was just sitting there reading the newspaper. I was chanting but I couldn't get myself to open a book. I was depressed and in a ton of physical and mental pain. Somehow I finished my rounds but other than that, I couldn't do much. So this had been going on for two or three weeks. This didi read the Bhagavatam, I read the newspaper.

Some newspapers in India print a spiritually related column called the Speaking Tree. I read that even though it was usually Mayavad philosophy. One day I opened it and I was astounded. I cried out, "My Gurudev is in the newspaper! My Gurudev!"

I told everyone, "My Gurudev is in the newspaper!" I had tears in my eyes. That day there was an article of Srila Guru Maharaj published in the "Speaking Tree."

The didi who had been reading Bhagavatam all those days then suddenly said, “Wow—his is really far out, I am sitting here reading Bhagavatam every day and you... your Guru Maharaj even appears to you in the newspaper.“

This really showed me, that even if I fall down, somehow or another, Srila Guru Maharaj will catch hold of me to lift me up again.

—Urmila Dasi

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