Among the many frequent visitors, there was one lady of exceptional spiritual competence. She had all the potential for being spiritually awakened but seemed to be waiting for the grace of a Guru. She belonged to the Komti caste, a trading community (vaishya) and appeared to be endowed with wealth and prosperity.

None noticed her, for she had been keeping to herself at the far end. Each day she would come and take Shri Prabhu’s blessings and sit in the corner till the close of the day when all the crowd would disperse. Thus, on each day she was experiencing the Grace of Shri Prabhu, for it appeared that she had finally met her ordained Guru. The Grace was silently flowing through her and preparing her for the path chosen for her in the Sampradaya.

This remarkable lady was none other than Venkamma, who became a powerful force, Shakti Svarupini, in Shri Manik Prabhu Sampradaya.

Great saints have an insight which is unlike that of normal persons. Among the large crowd which was coming over for his Darshan, he had seen her spiritual preparedness with his mystic eye. No one has admittance in spiritual matters unless they are so authorised. The person has to be an Adhikari, qualified to receive initiation and retain the extraordinary power bestowed on him. An unqualified person will not be able to receive, let alone sustain the power of penance. Shri Prabhu realised that here was one such personality who was well equipped for being initiated. Therefore, when all the persons left his presence, he called her. “You have taken Prasad more than once”, he told her, “Why do you then come again and again. Why don’t you go back to your family?”

When the reference to her home and family was made, she seemed to come out of a trance. Where was her home? Who were her father, mother, brothers and sisters? She replied, “I do not know where my home is or my family. I have therefore come to you to seek guidance to the place of my abidance. Your lotus feet appear to me to be the place where I can take shelter”.

These words had more significance than was prima facie apparent. She was receptive to the resonance which was passing from Shri Prabhu and she was so much immersed in that Grace that the entire surrounding seemed to have become full of Shri Manik Prabhu. Her heart was pure enough to become the resting place of Shri Prabhu’s Grace.

It is rare for one to be spiritually inclined. People gather around Gurus looking for material gains and economic prosperity. Few and rare are those who come with two bare hands but go back with abounding grace showered by innumerable hands of the Lord. Few therefore, know the importance of asking and what it is to receive without asking. Therefore Shri Krishna rightly pointed out to Arjuna, “Among thousands of men scarcely one strives for perfection, and of those who strive and succeed scarcely one knows Me in truth” (Bhagavad GitaVII.3.). In Avadhoot Gita also it is said at the outset that “It is only with the Grace of the Lord that the knowledge of Advaita is born, which alone protects one from great danger” (Avadhoot Gita I.1).

Devi Venkamma seemed to be one such rare person in whom the knowledge of Advait had ripened. For her, Shri Prabhu became the creator, the sustainer and the deliverer. In fact, in time to come she was to realise the unity of herself and her Guru. People often think that this is possible only for the chosen few on whom the Guru sheds his grace. They forget that the fault lies not in the unwillingness or in the inability of the Guru to shed such grace but because of one’s own infirmity, incapacity to receive such Grace. Consequently, their own weakness is transferred to the Guru and they wander searching for Guru after Guru of their liking.

However it is not so. The Guru’s Grace does not depend upon how much you please him with your outward service, wealth and prosperity, when your own heart itself is poor and incapable to receive the ever flowing grace. If the people keep their minds and hearts pure and auspicious then the Lord is sure to dwell therein. A popular verse says: “What were the good practices of Vyadha? What was the age of Dhruva? What was the learning of Gajendra? What was the prowess of Ugrasena? What was the beauty of Kubja? What was the wealth of Sudama? The Lord, who is the lover of devotion, is pleased with devotion itself and does not bother about other qualities”

It is only on the basis of such absolute Shraddha that the Lord takes the devotee under his shelter and gives this assurance as said in Bhagavad Gita. “Those who worship Me, meditating on Me alone, to them who ever persevere, I bring attainment of what they crave and security in what they have” (IX.22). “Swiftly does he become a soul of righteousness and obtain lasting peace, O Arjuna, you know this for certain that My Devotee perishes never” (IX.31). Therefore, He strongly recommends to each of us, “On Me fix your mind; to Me be devoted; worship Me; revere Me; thus having disciplined yourself, with Me as your goal, to Me shall you come” (IX.34).

However, how many of us are prompted by such an urge or inclination? We seek Gurus to fulfil our wishes and our desires, which are mundane, temporal and entirely transitory. Our eyes are so full of desires that we are incapable of seeing the grandeur of the Lord. Venkamma, However was not such a devotee. Her non-attachment and sense of renunciation was complete and final. Even then, Shri Prabhu desired to test her. “You are young and in society many types of people are to be found. It would, therefore, not be proper for you to take such a sudden decision. For your own good, I plead that you return to your family”.

Venkamma was not to be shaken from her resolve as she had already renounced everything and everyone for the Guru whom she had now found. Even a child sometimes becomes firm with its mother. She said, “Master, I have left everything, father, mother, family and friends, with full knowledge and consideration. I have no goal except your feet. I can never go anywhere else, even if I so desire”. Seeing her firm determination and hearing the intense, austere tone of her voice he finally said, “If you want to stay here you will have to come without your wealth and possessions”. Venkamma discarded, without any hesitation, all her jewels and ornaments then and there and became ready to follow her master. People were wonderstruck at such intense Vairagya and fell at her feet. Shri Prabhu recognised her as the manifestation of his Shakti and declared that none could have access to him save through the grace of Shakti Svarupini, Devi Venkamma. She was sent to Shri Prabhu’s mother till she became fully energised to play the role which was ordained for her.

It is one of the fundamental tenets of the Hinduism that one cannot attain his spiritual goal unless one is energised by Shakti, the energy of the Supreme Lord. What we call Nature or Prakriti is but the outward manifestation of the Lord, which becomes reality only when it is energised by the power of the Lord.
In Devi Bhagavat, she is identified as Durga, Rama, Radhika, Dhareshwari, Jambuvadini, Arunika, Minakshi and Madhumati. She is also known as Matanga Kanya. In Shri Manik Prabhu Sampradaya, Shri Prabhu’s Shakti, Venkamma, is referred to as Madhumati Shyamala.

Later she attained Samadhi at Maniknagar in the year 1865. Ramchandra Buva Nasikkar, who was present on the occasion has vividly described the incident. She sang and danced the whole night and in the early hours of the day she left her mortal coil and merged her Self in the Universal Self. When people of her community gathered there and started preparing for the funeral they were amazed to hear the sound of AUM emanating from her corpse. On being informed of this Shri Prabhu rushed to the spot where the corpse was lying and ordered that a Samadhi be built for her. Shri Prabhu personally supervised the ritual of Samadhi for Venkamma.

Later Shri Martand Manik Prabhu built a temple over her Samadhi and prescribed the rituals for worship. He composed a number of Bhajans in her glory and started celebrating the Devi Navaratra Utsava in her honour. Even today Venkamma’s temple is considered to be a very important shrine for the devotees of Shri Manik Prabhu Sampradaya.