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.
20. Sathya Sai Baba told me my name
Sathya Sai Baba was absolutely clairvoyant. He knew all the thoughts of the people before they had time to say anything. However, during personal interactions, Sathya Sai Baba sometimes asked questions from those present. What question could Sathya Sai Baba ask and why? In my opinion, the questions that he asked were aimed, first of all, at pushing and directing a person to reflection. These were questions he did not require an answer to. His questions helped people to think deeply about the essence of their lives. Once Sathya Sai Baba asked me a question. He said, “what is your name?” I answered that my name is Svyatoslav (Dubyanskiy). Then he said, “yes, that is the correct answer. Your name is Svyatoslav (Dubyanskiy).”
At that moment, I thought that he asked me this question in order to get to know me, because this was my first personal contact with him. Subsequently, I realized the significance of this question was that I did not need to receive a so-called "spiritual name."
During the following years, I visited several Indian and Tibetan yogis and received empowerments and initiations into various meditation techniques and mantras. During my travels in India, various esoteric schools tried to give me a "spiritual name" three times. The first time it happened at the Tantric Ashram in the very south of India, the second time at the Tibetan Nyingma School, and the third time at the Kriya Yoga Ashram in the Himalayas. Every time they tried to give me a “spiritual name,” I remembered the words of Sathya Sai Baba and felt I was not at all comfortable changing my real name. This does not mean that Sai Baba was against "spiritual names." I know several cases when he himself gave "spiritual names."
Giving "spiritual names" is an ancient and very deep tradition. By accepting a new name, a person changes his destiny and reveals new qualities in himself. For some, the adoption of a "spiritual name" is very beneficial, but it is not for everyone.
21. God is the Creator; therefore, it is in creativity that a person is likened to God
One day Sathya Sai Baba asked me, “what are you doing?” It seemed to be a very simple and elementary question. When I heard it, I immediately felt he was asking me about something very important, about the essence of my life. Asking this question, he stared straight into my eyes, inside me his soft voice echoed once again, what are you doing?
At that time, I traveled a lot in India and studied various systems of
