Janani Kalpana Jnana Thapaswini shared spiritual experiences

Pothencode: “A simple looking man, radiant, dressed in white, and what he spoke were convincing truths.” These were the words of my father, Ambadi Krishna Pillai, after meeting Guru for the first time at Pothencode Santhigiri Ashram. Janani Kalpana Jnana Thapaswini said this while sharing her experiences with the Guru at the Spiritual Zone Conference Hall on the 38th Sannyasa Deeksha Varshikam at Santhigiri Ashram.
Janani’s words and her own experiences were reminiscent of the modesty of the Ashram which began from a thatched hut. The first time she came to know about the Guru was from someone who worked with her father. As a child, she waited late at night with his mother and siblings to listen to the words of her father who had gone to see the Guru. Janani said that her family was very pious and observed all rituals. She used to sleep listening to the verses of Narayaneeyam from childhood.
She reached the Ashram for the first time on 5th July 1982. ‘The prayer hall was tiled that time. The kitchen was adjacent to it. There was a thatched shed in the middle. Several pigeons were seen moving on the white sand spread on the ground. Squirrels were running on tree branches. The sights I saw when I reached the Ashram with my family members and the taste of the food that I ate for the first time remain indelible in my mind even today. The Guru was sitting on a chair in the veranda of Parnashala near the Prayer Hall. We all bowed to the Guru. Guru asked us to sit on the palm mats placed in the Parnashala. Guru spoke to us for three hours that day’, Janani said.
‘We repeated our visits to the Ashram frequently. Each visit was an experience. Permission was granted to us to perform Guru Puja. The next day after performing Guru Puja, during prayer, I saw some colorful visions with spheres and lights. I suddenly closed my eyes. I told my father that the vision continued even after closing my eyes. Father said that he would meet the Guru and inform him. He took me in front of the Guru. I was 11-year-old then. Guru told me that this was an aspect of darshan and how to keep it. Guru said, “You can do greater things for the world than you think.”
Janani said that she experienced many visions, and every time Guru explained their meaning and made corrections wherever necessary. Janani shared her experiences of traveling with Guru and his visit to their house in Kattakkada. Janani narrated how she felt a desire to come and stay in the Ashram permanently, but she was unable to come when she got Guru’s permission. She told the members of Guru Dharma Prakasha Sabha how she finally became Guru’s disciple after overcoming all odds. Ambadi Krishna Pillai, Janani’s father, had served Guru for a long time. Guru was always pleased with his nearness. He had worked as the Secretary of the Ashram and was in charge of the Ashram’s Cultural Wings. He merged with Gurujyothi on 13 January 2002.