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Mother, Have Patience for Some Days |
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Pitamber
Pant, the husband of Shrimati Munni Devi, was in the Indian army and
lived at Sipahidhara, Nainital. Some years after his marriage he was
sent to Germany during the Second World War. He did not return for many
years, even after the war ended. His name was published in the
missing-in-action lists and not in the list of those killed, for there
was no definite proof of his death. Some women suggested to Munni that
she should fast on Mondays and worship Lord Shiva, which she did every
week. More years passed with no word from her husband, and people began
to suggest that she remove her jewelry and ornaments, as was the custom
for Indian widows.
One winter Munni Devi went to stay with her
father in Lucknow. She was on her way to Mankameshwar Mahadev temple
with a woman friend when she saw a big, bulky sadhu
lying on
the bank of the Gomti River. When he saw Munni Devi, he called her to
him with a gesture of his hand, but she hesitated to go towards him. He
sent his devotee to fetch her. When she approached and bowed before
him, he asked, "Where are you going? To worship? Sit
down. Where is your husband? Her short reply to the last
question was that she did not know. Baba said, "In the
army? Didn't receive a letter? It will come."
Munni said that Baba's words made her feel confident that her husband
was alive. She felt happy and overwhelmed and started to cry. Consoling
her, Baba quoted from the Ramayana, "Mother,
have patience for some days. Ram will come with monkeys."
He also said, "Do not worry. His letter will come and he
will come."
On her return home Munni Devi narrated the whole incident to her
father. He said that the baba
was Baba Nibkarori and that whatever he said would definitely happen.
After some time she received a letter from her husband, and shortly
thereafter he turned up. Pitamber Pant had been a prisoner of war. One
day a sentry came to him of his own accord and said that he would give
him an opportunity to escape and to be ready for it. After escaping and
facing many difficulties, he finally reached home.
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