Divine Encounters - Part 1

Raul Kamal, 13.11.06

Throughout our fortunate lives, we experience certain things which solidify our faith in God. Although we should not simply look for ‘divine encounters’ to strengthen our faith, I would like to share some of these experiences with you as these have taught me valuable lessons in life.

It is a common fact that human characteristics are determined by a combination of nature and nurture. That is to say that we gain characteristics from our families and we are also affected by our upbringing and our surroundings.

That is why we are encouraged to sit in the company of enlightened beings so we too can learn from their way of life and better ourselves as people. In fact, we don’t realise it but as we share a common Spiritual Teacher, our thoughts and actions can be very similar at times. At several stages in my life, I have had people who I have never met before approach me and ask me if I follow the teachings of His Holiness Satguru Baba Hardev Ji.

Apparently, it was my aura and my actions that enabled these individuals to recognise that I was a student of my Spiritual Teacher.

This made more sense to me after I experienced the same thing and was able to identify a devotee of His Holiness Satguru Baba Hardev Ji. I was browsing an Internet site where individuals were able to post comments about themselves. People mentioned their likes, their dislikes, their favourite quotes as well as their outlook on certain aspects in life.

Whilst reading a certain individuals comments, I found myself nodding and agreeing to most of her views on life. She came across as a humble and virtuous person. However, it was only after reading her favourite quote, which was related to spirituality, that made something inside of me click and I became certain that this person was a follower of the Sant Nirankari Mission.

I contacted this person to satisfy my curiosity and asked her if she believed in the teachings of His Holiness Satguru Baba Hardev Ji. It was no surprise to me when she told me that she attended Nirankari congregations regularly in North America. Consequently we decided to stay in touch and from time to time discussed our spiritual views. However, it was a few months later when this devotee taught me that ‘actions speak louder than words’ by assisting me with a task.

The task began earlier this year when I had been asked by my employers to sit for an Apple Macintosh exam to show that I am able to support Apple computers. As I was the first employee to sit this exam in my organisation, I had no resources or course material and was asked to find the required resources to study for the exam.

This was not going to be straightforward as this syllabus was relatively new. Fortunately, I was able to find the course material to start studying for this exam. The real challenge arose when, with only a couple of days before the examination, I was looking for mock exam papers.

When studying for IT certifications especially, mock exam papers are a vital part of the preparation process and I was finding it very difficult to get hold of such a paper. Eventually, after hours of searching the internet I found a website which sold the exam paper I required.

With time running out before my examination, I hurried to purchase the mock exam paper but for some technical reason, this USA website would not accept credit cards from the UK.

I became very worried at that time and thought about how I would let my colleagues down if I failed this exam.

At this stage, I engaged in deep mediation and began praying. Only a few minutes later, the North American devotee I had met through the Internet sent me an email asking me how I was doing.

I mentioned that amongst other things, I was due to take an examination in a few days and that I was in desperate need to obtain this mock exam paper which I could not purchase.

The devotee duly offered to purchase this mock exam paper for me stating that she would consider it an honour to help someone in their moment of need.

Due to the difficult circumstances, I reluctantly agreed stating that I would only accept this kind gesture if I was able to pay back the money which I saw as a small loan.

The devotee agreed and only a few minutes after I had directed her to the relevant website, I received an email with the mock exam paper and an invoice for $32.50.

In the few days that followed, I studied very hard and used both the course material and the mock exam paper to revise for the pending examination.

When the day of the examination arrived, I remember reciting a small prayer and heading into the exam room. I recall being very focused on the task ahead and when I looked at the first question, I was pleasantly surprised.

The first question was virtually identical to a question I had revised on the mock exam paper so I was able to answer this with ease. The second question was also very similar to a question from the mock exam paper so I was able to respond to this with the correct answer.

After I had read the third question I noticed an obvious trend. I flicked through the exam questions and noticed that all the questions on my exam paper were similar to those I had revised a few nights before from the mock exam paper!

At first, I was quite surprised by this but quickly regained my composure and begun answering the questions very confidently.

As I was answering the questions I was very confident that I would pass the exam but remember being in constant awe of God Almighty who had blessed me with such good fortune.

As I finished this online exam, I waited for the computer to calculate my grade. I was still trying to comprehend what I had just experienced and thought, ‘if I pass this exam, I will share this inspirational experience with other devotees’.

My result came up. I had passed the examination with 27% to spare. I was both ecstatic and relieved.

After sharing this result with my colleagues and family, I contacted the devotee who had helped me purchase the exam paper, in my time of need.

I had not forgotten her kind gesture and wanted to pay her back for her act of selfless service. As soon as I contacted this devotee, she congratulated me and asked me if she could ask for something in return.

“Sure, why not”, I enthused. Her request was simple. She asked me not to give her any money for her act of kindness and simply asked for my blessings that she could begin her post grad studies that she was having problems registering for.

I reluctantly agreed to this request and told the devotee that I would repay her act of kindness in person some day and that I pray that God Almighty resolves all her problems and continues to guide her throughout her life.

About six weeks passed before we spoke again. This time it was the devotee who was beaming gleefully. What was making her so happy I thought? She explained to me that she had wanted to apply for post grad studies in a particular university in which a prerequisite was submitting your GMAT scores.

Without the submission of these grades, she would not have been able to attend the university. The devotee went on to explain that this was something she had wanted to do for herself. This meant, not asking her parents for any help with funding. She had never told me before but admitted that she was finding it difficult to finance her studies and when the prerequisite of submitting her GMAT scores had become an obstacle, she had almost considered giving up on the idea of studying.

I was furious to hear that someone who had helped me was doing so at her detriment and offered to help immediately. “You don’t need to do that” she exclaimed. “Something amazing has happened”.

The devotee began by explaining how she did not have to pay to submit her GMAT scores to her chosen university as her previous university had submitted her scores to the five closest universities geographically.

What was even more surprising was that she had saved $32.50 from not having to submit her GMAT scores! That was the same amount that this devotee had spent on helping me obtain my mock exam paper!

More than a coincidence, I believe that this was God Almighty putting two devotees in a position where their true character was displayed and where one devotee could help another.

The message here is simple. That the seeds you sow today, will be the fruit you reap tomorrow. As it is written in the Avtar Bani:-

Everyone shall reap the fruit of his own actions;

True is the court of Divine Lord, one would reap as he sows. (Thou Formless One 33)