Obedience to Bhagavan - the only rule

As part of today's sadhana we look at a few moments from the life of Sri Sundaram (aka Sadhu Trivenigiri):

Standing before the deity in the Sri Subrahmania shrine in Tiruchendur in 1932, the following words flashed in his mind " Here i am, a God who does not talk. Go to Tiruvannamalai. There is a God who talks, the Maharshi"

He later received a reply from the Sri Ramanashramam telling him that the joys and sorrows of life are inevitable, and can be borne easily, if placed at the feet of God.

When he was choked with tears reading the Sri Ramana Vijayam his mother said:
God is calling you. Go to Him. This path will result in the salvation of 27 generations of our family. This is the upadesha of Mother Truth. Go along this path. If you meet any obstacles, regard it as maya. You will soon be liberated.

Sundaram: At first I merely thought Him to be a good man, but after some time, I came to understand that I was dealing with God Himself, my supreme Master, in whose hands lay my life and salvation.

One must master this art of instantaneous and unquestioning obedience, for the secret of realization lies in the utter surrender and renunciation of one's own judgement.

Blessed are those who had no other rule than obedience to Bhagavan.

Some words of Bhagavan to Sri Sundaram:

Eat to appease hunger and not to satisfy taste or craving

Sundaram! Attend to what I said first. It is from me that everything arises. Attend to it first.

Oh! you have made a sankalpa (resolution). Sankalpas lead to samsara.

Regarding the welfare of Major Chadwick:

How is he now? ... Please go and see him at once. He left his country and travelled thousands of miles, staying with us and making us his own. Should we not take care of him and look to his needs?

Once when meditating in the presence of Bhagavan, the mind persisted in wandering. I couldn't control it. So I gave up meditation and opened my eyes. Bhagavan at once sat up and said,

"Oh! You abandoned it thinking it is the swabhava (habit) of the mind to wander. Whatever we practise becomes the swabhava. If control is practised persistently that will become the swabhava."

- From the January, 1971 Mountain Path: "How Bhagavan Came To Me,"
by Sadhu Trivenigiri Swami. See this (Jan 1997).