The Angels Of Bhakti-Dham

Do you believe in Magic? Well there are two things, you either believe in magic or you believe in the ways of god. Whatever you call it, it all depends on your personal experiences and methods of perception. In order to realise the same you must in the first place enter Bhakti-Dham, the land of the sparrows.

It all started a few years back, when Kalidas had been in great trouble. He was struggling academically, his parents were unwell and there was an impending financial crisis too. Amidst all this he discovered the Devi's temple. Situated in a very secluded place in the city, he spotted it while he was returning from his morning walk. The area was half a mile from the road behind his house, with a dense forest cover. 

His first steps inside the temple made him realise two things- Firstly the place was neglected and secondly though neglected for a long time it had an aura which seemed to be a million years old. He cleaned the marble walls, and the tiles of the floor, cleared all the leaves and dirt. Mata Rani had been waiting it seemed, as Kalidas wiped the feet and the body of the Pratima with devotion, as every layer of dust came off, Mata Rani seemed to flare with a unique light.

There was something peculiar about the ceiling though, a corner had been inhabited by several small sparrow birds. In their cute nests and their enchanting voices Kalidas discovered an enigmatic essence of love, he let them remain there. After the cleaning was done, he would arrive there with his Sitar. He would then perform his Pooja and in his ecstatic moods would begin singing songs in bhakti for Ma.

Bhakti. Devotion. It is an attempt to shed ones ego, realise the selfless nature of Ma, surrender at her feet, and offer whatever strength and love one carries within unblemished by worldly vices and desires. That is true Bhakti. His songs started with his pains but gradually moved to stanzas where he understood that his love for Ma was greater than his pains, and very slowly as Kalidas with teary eyes would fall on Ma's feet, he would realise that she was the ultimate Shakti and he, her inseparable part.

Magic. The sparrows. Ma Durga. Ma Durga created Kalidas, his problems, the light to make him look beyond his problems and also the sparrows. She is the creator of Fire, which illuminates the candle of hope and immolates the forests of evil. The eyes of the sparrows twinkle in her Magical vision as they sense the music coming from the sitar of Kalidas.

There was a brief burbling sound which came from the temple walls it seemed and it quickly disappeared the moment Kalidas opened his eyes. This routine followed everyday since then for almost a year. He discovered himself in this process. His true nature. He wasn't the slave of the world, he was a conqueror, a fighter. Problems and sorrows could move him, but deep inside there was a temple too, which remained fixed, immovable. A temple of love, a temple of strength, a temple of stories of courage, the Devi inside which asked him everyday to keep moving forward no matter what, to build character!

One fine day during Navratri, he was singing for Ma in his euphoric state and when he opened his eyes he saw himself wet, a waterfall with waters from the holy river Ganga, Marigold petals, sandalwood paste slowly falling on him, drenching him in the bliss of a place unknown. The waterfall was the gate of Bhakti-Dham.

As he took a few steps, he felt his body become light and the very next moment many sparrows were flying over a river. Their beautiful voices singing the glories of Ma, the voices not of humans but the voices of nature's purest forms. The river water reflected the sky which was reddish pink, it also reflected the sparrows. Inside the water very steadily appeared the feet, the feet of Ma Durga, the sparrows rejoiced further and flew with a mystical zeal. Ma took her complete form finally and called all the sparrows the following way, in the form of a song-

" Your Maiyya is searching for you O children

   Come to her bosom and find love

   I will wait even if the tempest has risen

   For I know you can see the light of my       mountains, which are much above

  Yes you will have to climb mountains

  But realise that I have held your hand

  Then there will be starry fountains

  For you shall see that both the goal and the journey have my colours, do you understand?

 When you cry, I cry

 When you smile , I smile

 Fly high O Children fly high 

 I will be with you through every mile

 And when you shall be tired

 I shall spread my arms

 Infinite strength is what which transpired

 For us to be one, that's where are all the charms

Your Maiyya is searching for you O children

   Come to her bosom and find love

   I will wait even if the tempest has risen

   For I know you can see the light of my       mountains, which are much above"

One more gate appeared inside Ma Durgas chest and the sparrow birds flew happily inside it. Ma's third eye opens. There is only one Swaroop, Omkar, the creator, the destroyer, the propagator, and also the one who is beyond all this. The all beautiful, the all peaceful, the all selfless. Kalidas opened his eyes. He took a step and found himself in close contact with the temples marble wall which was glowing with a magical light. His Sitar was on the floor placed majestically, Ma Durgas Pratima shined, the cute sparrows produced their sweet voices, busy and lost in their own world it seemed. The wall. For a fraction of second Kalidas felt there was some bubbling voice coming from the wall of the temple but then could no longer hear it. He bowed before Ma and touched her feet.

As the nine days of Navratri ended, magically the crisis situations in which he was trapped a year back had all resolved. No it didn't happen all of a sudden. It took time. The journey was tough. Well, then why do we call this magic? We call it magic because for the first time in his life it wasn't the skin which searched for emotions, it was his soul which searched deep  through a wall which looked as if it had turned outward towards the world, but in reality had paths paved somewhere deep within, leading to the mystical Bhakti- Dham. Perseverance, persistence and faith. Magic.

The distance those sparrows covered was phenomenal. Leave this living world, they crossed galaxies of this whole universe. Songs coming from pure hearts, connecting rhythms dedicated to the divine feet, they slowly moved past this universe too. The network is humongous yet very easy to connect. IF YOU ARE IN YOUR ROOM, CLOSE YOUR EYES AND CALL MA. YOU WILL CROSS THE WATERFALL(THE GATE OF BHAKTI-DHAM), AND THEN THROUGH THE WALLS OF YOUR ROOM SHALL FLY THOSE ANGELS, THOSE SPARROWS...IN BHAKTI-DHAM...YOUR CALLS WILL VERY SOON REALISE THAT SOMEONE ELSE IS CALLING YOU TOO, MA DURGA IN HER SWEET VOICE-

"Your Maiyya is searching for you O children..............."