Manik Da’s wife was Bakul Di. They had two daughters – Champa and Esha. ( Champa is now our Facebook friend named Anamika Brahma – probably she stays in Konnagar.) Manik Da held a good post – probably he was head 😭.E but he had no ego. He was totally a simple man. It was fact that he was afraid of Bakul Di a little but he loved the ashram and Guru Maharaj very much. I am mentioning Manik Da’s devotion to his guru, Swami Paramananda. Then as Guruji stayed in Ajimgunj Paramananda Mission in winter and so many devotees came to Guruji in Ajimgunj Ashram by the train from a long distance, so the trains which arrived at Ajimgunj station after 9:00 p.m. – Manik Da attended those trains. He offered tea free of cost for the devotees who came from a long distance, he arranged rickshaws for the devotees so that they could arrive at their destination – Ajimgunj Paramananda Mission, he told them the route from Ajimgunj station to Ajimgunj Ashram. Perhaps the last train was at 11 p.m. or 11.30 p.m., Manik Da made one or two rickshaw pullers delay to go their home engaging themselves to gossip with him, offering them tea free of cost. He did so for the reason that if any devotee alighted from the train, he or she would face no problems and besides this, the rickshaw pullers also would earn some money. Was this not a devotion? Were such kinds of persons not noble? In Paramananda dalliance, in the world of Swami Paramananda – how many such kinds of persons were who were less important but noble – only God Swami Paramananda knew these numbers.
Guru Maharaj made fun with Manik Da in the sitting and He acknowledged Manik Da’s wife Bakul Di as the witness. Then He told, “Hey, Bakul – you tell, didn’t Manik do this work?” Finding no way, Bakul Di acknowledged this but that time Manik Da laughed like an innocent child. That laughter was incredible!!! Many times, we also drank tea and chewed betel whose expenditure was spent by Manik Da. We acknowledge that we were bound to drink tea and chew betel free of cost because if we could not eat anything, Manik Da became angry – he felt sad.
Once Guru Maharaj made a bit of fun with Manik Da voluntarily – I am unable to hide the incident. But if Anamika and Esha read this post, they must feel bad or ashamed. Guru Maharaj told us the incident in the sitting several times and so many times He told the incident, so many times He burst into laughter. That’s why, I am telling the incident.
Once Guru Maharaj direct alighted at Ajimgunj station from a night train coming from an outside place and that time He was alone. Manik Da noticed that train but he saw no devotees alighting from the train. As usual, he went to his rail quarters. These rail quarters were beside Ajimgunj station. Usually, Bakul Di served supper to their daughters and made them lie in the adjacent room after their study was over. When Manik Da returned home, they took their supper. That day, Bakul Di also felt asleep. Returning home, Manik Da took off his clothes. After then just Manik Da applied a soap to his face and hands entering the bathroom – then there was a loud knock on the door!!! Then Manik Da thought who came here in this dark night? So, being disturbed, he asked the person, “who?” At once there came a reply in a deep and grave voice like the rumbling of clouds, “I am Swami Paramananda. Manik, open the door.” At once he shouted, ” Gu- ru- deb” ( guru). Wrapping his waist in a napkin, Manik Da came out of the bathroom and in this way he was going to open the door but a fact struck his mind. He wrapped a lungi haphazardly which was hung on a rope in front of him and after then he opened the door. Just Guruji entered the room, Manik Da bowed down his head on the feet of Guru Maharaj. ( Bakul Di also awoke but she did not arrive at the spot.) Just Manik Da stood up, Guruji looked at Manik Da in a crooked glance and He ordered Manik Da in a grave voice, “Manik, first you change Bakul’s petticoat.”
At the sudden arrival of Guru Maharaj, Manik Da was so overwhelmed by joy that he was unable to differenciate between a lungi and a petticoat. From this incident, we come to know that why Shabari Maa from Ramayana and Bidur’s wife from Mahabharata offered their gods the skins of the fruits instead of the cores of those fruits.
[Translated by Ramprasad, a former student of Banagram Ashram.]