19. The miraculous ring of Lord Shiva, which opened the door to the world of the Gods for my friend and almost drove him crazy
A young man came to the ashram whose name was Alexei. He was from Novosibirsk. Sathya Sai Baba often invited for an interview the group with which Alexei came and always talked with him for a long time. He once asked him, “what do you want? I will do anything for you.»
In response, the boy replied, “Bhagavan, I want you to be with me at the time of my death and guide me on my posthumous journey.”
It was strange to hear these words from a young man who looked to be in his early twenties. This was said so sincerely that Sathya Sai Baba replied, “yes, well, when you die at a ripe old age, I will be invisibly present at the moment of your death and guide your soul to the world of eternal light.”
Even now, remembering this amazing conversation, I feel unspeakable grace. Once, Alexei asked Sathya Sai Baba, “I want you to materialize a ring for me, but such that no one has such a ring, only me. Let your portrait and symbols of Lord Shiva be on it.”
Sathya Sai Baba looked at him sternly and said, “you don’t need such a ring. I have given you so much. Look, you communicate with me very often, I initiated you into the mantra of Lord Shiva, I often invite you to my place, answered all your questions, I even blessed you to go to the Himalayas!”
The young man insisted and continued to demand a special ring. Sathya Sai Baba shook his head and said, “well, if you insist, I will materialize for you the ring you want.”
Sathya Sai Baba made several circular movements with his right hand and a ring appeared. It really was quite unique. I had never seen such a ring in my life. The people who lived in the ashram at that time, when they saw it, were very surprised, because no one had seen such an unusual ring before. It was golden and the central part was in the form of a twelve-petaled lotus, in the center of which was a colored portrait of Sathya Sai Baba, and the ring itself was in the form of two golden tridents.
A few days after that, Alexei left for the Himalayas, and a few months later we met with him in Moscow. I immediately noticed he did not have a ring on his hand. At first it was awkward for me to ask, but I eventually asked him where the ring was. He sighed heavily and told me the history of the ring.
Leaving Puttaparthi, Alexei went to the Himalayas. Gradually, he noticed a strong energy emanating from the ring, which introduced him into deep trance states. While in these states, he felt as if a bright light was lit up in his forehead, and he began to receive visions of various Gods, which were visible as if in reality. At first, he was not sure if it was because of the ring, and so Alexei took off the ring, put it next to him, or put it in his bag. When he did this, he noticed that only then did the mystical experiences stop.
At first, he liked the mystical experiences because they aroused delight and curiosity. Then he began to feel that his brain simply could not withstand the powerful energy and intensity of them. Sometimes, he felt as if his head was ready to break into small pieces from such divine vibrations and wonderful visions. He could not sleep, could not communicate normally with people, and he moved with difficulty. It was only after he removed the ring and put it next to him that the mystical state instantly left, and he returned to ordinary human consciousness.
Over time, the wonderful ring became more and more active, and it did not matter whether he put it in a bag or on a shelf, it continued to energetically influence his consciousness. Walking the streets, Alexei saw the worlds of the Gods everywhere, and when he went to bed, the visions became even more intense.
After some time, Alexei arrived in Moscow near the end of December. December 25 was approaching, which is the Catholic Christmas. Somehow, he ended up in the Catholic Cathedral of Moscow, which is located near the Krasnopresnenskaya and Barrikadnaya metro stations. Alexei entered the church, with its solemn atmosphere and brightly lit and decorated altar. In front of him stood a large Christmas tree.
Suddenly, Alexei realized the only way to stay sane was to give up the ring and symbolically give it back to God. He took the ring off his finger, went up to the tree, put the ring on a branch, bowed to the ground, thanked God for everything, and quickly left the church. Alexei did not know the further history of this amazing ring. After that, he returned to normal and was happy to live on without the wonderful ring.