“Yes … You Shall Have Me”

After finishing his primary education at Balsarai, Maharaj Charan Singh attended the high school in the village of Baba Bakala, about a three-mile walk from the Dera. In those days, the way to Baba Bakala was through fields and uneven terrain. Maharaj Charan Singh Ji, even at that young age, used to cover the three-mile distance every morning on foot and walk back in the evening. Thus from early boyhood he became used to long walks and developed a liking for them. At times, when he walked back from the school after playing football and other games, it would be dark by the time he reached Dera.

Kind and tolerant from the beginning, Maharaj Charan Singh Ji would never complain or bother anyone about his personal needs. Once Bibi Ralli bought him a pair of new shoes for school, but they were a bit small, and therefore uncomfortable for him. He wore these ill-fitting shoes out of the Dera every morning on his way to school, left them in a bush just outside the Dera, and picked them up in the evening on his way home. One day, the Great Master was taking an evening walk with Bhai Shadi in the direction of Baba Bakala and saw young Charan returning from school barefoot. When he asked where his shoes were, the boy replied that they were in the bushes because he was unable to walk in them. The Great Master was moved; he asked Bibi Ralli to get new shoes for the boy and cautioned her to be more careful about young Charan Singh’s needs and comfort.

Durga Das Sehgal relates an incident about young Charan Singh’s love for his Master. When he was only ten or eleven years old, he went to the Great Master one day after returning from school and bowed at his feet, almost embracing them. Hazur lovingly patted him on the back and said, “Son, I am very pleased with you. Ask for anything and I’ll give it to you.” He replied, “I have nothing to ask for.” Hazur said once again, “Ask! Whatever you want you shall have.” When the boy made the same reply and Hazur repeated the question, Charan Singh replied, “I only want you ­– nothing but you.” Maharaj Ji’s face lit up, and with pleasure he said, “Yes, my son, you shall have me.”
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