God is Kind
Abhijata Iyengar's IC23 Keynote Address - Part 1
Video: IYNAUS Convention 2023
It felt safe, secure, we started the journey. And out of the blue, guruji said, God has been kind to me. Now I naturally asked, why? I mean, first of all, this whole trip is wrong. And in that guruji is finding some reason to make something good out of it. So why do you say God is kind? I just wasn't able to let go of that decision by guruji. And guruji told me he was looking out the window and he said, I still remember those days. I used to walk these paths, miles on end, he said. I was all alone, scorching heat, no water, no chappals. Chappals is the Indian footwear. I didn't have even chappals on my feet. I used to be so thirsty, but there would be no water for me. And now see, I have a big car. There's a driver who's going to drive me and look at the number of water bottles that they've kept for us. I'm fortunate, he said. Now, I was moved by that. Indeed, if he put it like that, yes, God seemed kind. And he continued. He said, sometimes, Abhi, I would walk this path alone.
And I would even faint on few days because I would not have proper nourishment, not enough food to eat. One day, somebody must have found me unconscious because when I was woken up by water being sprinkled on my face, he said there was an old man standing in front of me and he gave me a Coco- He gave me coconut water. It was a stall that had a lot of coconut, so he probably was selling coconuts. And this old man offered the coconut water to me. Guruji was narrating to me. And he said, I didn't have a single paisa. Paisa is equivalent to a cent. So I didn't have a single cent in my pocket. So how could I accept this coconut water from him? So I said, No, I don't want it. I'll be fine. And the old man, but didn't relent, he tapped on my shoulders and he said, I'm not going to charge you for this. He insisted and he offered the coconut water to me and he told me to come to the stall whenever I wanted for coconut water. I still remember the taste of that coconut water, guruji told me.
I can't forget those days. God is very kind, he said.
Abhijata Iyengar,
IYNAUS Convention 2023