SHRI NATHJI AND THE HEALTH OFFICER

 

There was a time in the Himalayas of Mussoorie when Shri Nathji lived in a small Cottage overlooking a hill.

Every morning promptly at 9 am there would be a knock on his door and a Sikh Gentleman would be standing outside with flowers in his hands. He was Sardar Sunder Singh, the Health Officer of the City, out on his usual rounds of inspecting the city. He had made it a point to stop at HH Shri Nathji's Cottage and pay his obeisances and give his offering of flowers.

HH Shri Nathji always had impeccably clean habits and manners that would have been the envy of the best of civilisations. He was the humblest, politest and gentlest being in existence, and yet with a divine authority that no one could challenge and that made even the most proud and arrogant bow their heads before him out of a spontaneous reverence and respect.

Every morning HH Shri Nathji would dress up in his best clothes tor the health officer and wait in his arm chair. This was in contrast to many people of his age who met visitors in whatever they were wearing, whether dhotis or vests or knicker-bockers.

Generally the more high and mighty the host that you went to meet the more careless would he be about dressing up to greet you or anyone for that matter. it was only Shri Nathji who maintained the best of etiquettes which even over-awed the Britishers.

One morning there was a rainstorm accompanied by a thunderstorm. Not a bird was visible in the skies. The trees were dripping with the rain, which was splattering with ferocity on the tin roofs, while there was thunder and lightning in the skies.

As Shri Nathji began to dress up in anticipation of his daily visitor, his wife, Smt. Savitri Devi, said to him:

"There is no need to dress up and to wait for him, he wont come in this downpour where not even birds and animals are moving out!"

But HH Shri Nathji dressed up as usual and sat on his arm chair close to the door: " MY heart tells me that he will come!"

And sure enough as the clock hit nine there was a knock on the door - and there was the health officer standing in the doorway, a bouquet of flowers in his hands. He was in a drenched rain coat and umbrella and he said:

"Please accept my gift from the open door! Pardon me if I do not come inside as I will bring the water in along with my raincoat!"

HH Shri Nathji rushed up and embraced the visitor and said to him:

"Sardar Sunder Singhji! All the flowers in the world will fade away, but these flowers which you have brought for me as a gift of love, in the midst of this rainstorm shall remain fresh in my heart forever.."

And indeed the flowers of the Health Officer remained fresh in the life and memory of HH Shri Nathjii for as long as he was upon the planet earth, and each time he spoke to people the flowers came alive in his sermons as did the noble Health Officer.

Such indeed were the love-drenched episodes of HH Shri Nathji with all the people that he interacted with in life.