Published on Sunday, December 19, 2010 @ 1700 hrs.

On the evening of 17th Dec, the Youth and Balvikas from Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh staged a dance drama entitled “Murali Madhavam” in the immediate Divine Presence in Prasanthi Nilayam. The programme was a part of a three-day Parthi Yatra organized by Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations, Srikakulam.

Murali-Madhavam was an adaptation from the times of Dwapara telling the story of the evolution of a devotee into an image of His chosen God.

Suru was an accomplished flute maker.  In His quest for a perfect flautist, Suru came to hear, from an old woman belonging to Repalle,  about a little lad by name ‘Kannaiah’ and his mystical flute. On the advice of the woman Suru travels to the neighbouring village to find the answer in reality. He listened to the soul-stirring notes of the flute played by the little ‘Kannaiah’ to his utmost conviction.

Suru made up his mind to make a perfect piece of flute for ‘Kannaiah’. Despite oddities, after repeated attempts that lasted for seven long years, Suru finally made a ‘master-piece’ that had all attributes of the ‘original’ Kannaiah flute.

By then, little lad ‘Kannaiah’ had grown into become the king of Mathura. Lord of all lords, King Krishna came over to Repalle to celebrate the birthday and utilizing the opportunity, Suru sent his little son to Repalle with the ‘master-piece’ to be presented to the Lord as a ‘birthday gift’.

Most inadvertently, in a strange turn of events, the little lad misplaced the ‘master-piece’ into a pile of flutes made by Suru. Upon hearing this Suru was down stricken, but did not give up until he could trace the original piece from the pile of thousands of flutes.  …And he sent the same with his son without wasting any further time.

Lord Krishna who is known for His ‘taste for testing’ his devotees refused to accept the gift excusing Himself, telling that He has forgotten the art of playing. Playing with mincing words with the kid, the Lord returned the flute along with the one He originally possessed and was no longer in ‘practical use’.

Suru was upset beyond reason and started lamenting. Taking His testing phase to a climax, The Lord appeared at Him ensuing an interesting dialogue with His devotee.

Playful Lord took out flute after flute from the pile, playing perfect piece with elan. Here was the wake-up call for the devotee. Understanding his folly of limiting The Mighty Lord within his self-set boundaries, Suru was finally a surrendered man with awakening.

Rewarding His devotee for his unflinching devotion and dedication, Bhagawan, calming down an emotional Suru told him that he (the flute maker) is his real flute whom he had been preparing for many births. He blessed him with His Vishwaroopa Darshanam.

The final scene witnessed a supplication by the Srikakulam devotees comparing themselves with the thousands of flutes in the presentation, but longing to be transformed by the Divine Touch to become His perfect instruments.

Interspersed with series of dances, the one- hour presentation turned out to be a visual treat, rich with melodious music and colourful costumes. Poems and songs for the drama were taken from the original Divine collection.

Post presentation safari pieces were distributed to the entire crew while, blessed prasadam went for distribution to the packed audience.

The crew was devotedly awaiting The Lord to be in the midst. ...And the Lord could not resist. After a brief pause post Arathi, Bhagawan moved down, posing with the crew. Bhagawan chose to interact with some and also lit the Akhanda Jyothi which would travel back to the district. From the past five years the district has been blessed with this good fortune of carrying the Akhanda Jyothi from Prasanthi. These Akhanda Jyothis would be placed in different centres/temples for the benefit of devotees.   

Earlier Bhagawan arrived in the hall at 1830 hrs. for a complete round of darshan blessing the thousands that included over 3400 Srikakulam devotees.

The Srikakulam group also took out huge procession outside the main gates of Prasanthi, an annual affair reflecting religious fervour.