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you for your sweet pure life."
Of one mind and heart, hundreds of people stood up and told Gurudev of their decision to stop taking alcohol which was spoiling their family harmony. Many were inspired to renounce cruelty to animals as well. It was a moment of elation and rejoicing, awakening in these formerly downtrodden people a new conviction in their own self-worth and in the way to use their energy for life.
*
As more and more people became inspired by Gurudev as a living example of his trans-religious message, it became evident that for everyone to be able to hear him, a microphone was necessary. No monk in his group had ever sanctioned the use of such a device. Gurudev became the first to make use of
one.
The Mayor of Bombay, leaders of the Maharashtra State Government, and congressmen often attended Gurudev's talks. They also invited him to speak to the public on their platforms. One such occasion was Republic Day, marking the day India became an independent republic. The Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Shri K. K. Shah, in his introduction of Gurudev to the public, expressed the way everyone who came to know Gurudev felt about him, "... a universal man, a citizen of the world. That is why hundreds of people are ever eager to listen to him. His sympathy extends to all. His compassion for those who seem unpromising and unattractive draws them to him. His celebrating Republic Day on Princess Street with us tends to purify our public life."
Thanks to the microphone, many outwardly unpromising people benefitted from hearing Gurudev's street rostrum talks. One day, Gurudev gave a long and moving talk about Upagupta, the Buddhist monk who, upon appreciating the beautiful soul in a famous dancer, helped her to see herself with respect. At the end of her days when her youth, beauty, and energy had been spent, nobody was willing to be her friend. The king had even compelled her to live in a hut at the outskirts of the city. She was sick and suffering from skin blisters. Upagupta, whom she had met and longed to love in
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