Sai Baba’s Sanction and Promise
As described in the previous chapter, Sai Baba gave His
complete assent to the writing of the Satcharita and
said, "I fully agree with you regarding the writing of
Satcharita. You do your duty, don’t be afraid in the
least, steady your mind and have faith in My words. If
My Leelas are written, the Avidya (nescience) will
vanish and if they are attentively, and devoutly
listened to, the consciousness of the worldly existence
will abate, and strong waves of devotion, and love will
rise up and if one dives deep into My Leelas, he would
get precious jewels of knowledge."
Hearing this, author was much pleased, and he, at once,
became fearless and confident, and thought that work was
bound to be a success. Then turning to Shama (Madhavrao
Deshpande) Sai Baba said.
"If a man utters My name with love, I shall fulfill all
his wishes, increase his devotion. And if he sings
earnestly My life and My deeds, him I shall beset in
front and back and on all sides. Those devotees, who are
attached to Me, heart and soul, will naturally feel
happiness, when they hear these stories. Believe Me that
if anybody sings My Leelas, I will give him infinite joy
and everlasting contentment. It is My special
characteristic to free any person, who surrenders
completely to Me, and who does worship Me faithfully,
and who remembers Me, and meditates on Me constantly.
How can they be conscious of worldly objects and
sensations, who utter My name, who worship Me, who think
of My stories and My life and who thus always remember
Me! I shall draw out My devotees from the jaws of Death.
If My stories are listened to, all the diseases will be
got rid of. So, hear My stories with respect; and think
and meditate on them, assimilate them. This is the way
of happiness and contentment. The pride and egoism of My
devotees will vanish, the mind of the hearers will be
set at rest; and if it has wholehearted and complete
faith, it will be one with Supreme Consciousness. The
simple remembrance of My name as ‘Sai, Sai’ will do away
with sins of speech and hearing".
Different Works Assigned to Devotees
The Lord entrusts different works to different devotees.
Some are given the work of building temples and maths,
or ghats (flight of steps) on rivers; some are made to
sing the glories of God; some are sent on pilgrimages;
but to me was allotted the work of writing the Sat
Charita. Being a jack of all trades but master of none,
I was quite unqualified for this job. Then why should I
undertake such a difficult job? Who can describe the
true life of Sai Baba? Sai Baba’s grace alone can enable
one to accomplish this difficult work. So, when I took
up the pen in my hand, Sai Baba took away my egoism and
wrote Himself His stories. The credit of relating these
stories, therefore, goes to Him and not to me. Though
Brahmin by birth, I lacked the two eyes. (i.e. the sight
or vision) of Shruti and Smruti and therefore was not at
all capable of writing the Satcharita, but the grace of
the Lord makes a dumb man talk, enables a lame man to
cross a mountain. He alone knows the knack of getting
things done as He likes. Neither the flute, nor the
harmonium knows how the sounds are produced. This is the
concern of the Player. The oozing of Chandrakant jewel
and the surging of the sea are not due to the jewel and
the sea but to the rise of the moon.
Baba’s Stories as Beacon- Light
Light houses are constructed at various places in the
sea, to enable the boatmen to avoid rocks and dangers,
and make them sail safely. Sai Baba’s stories serve a
similar purpose in the ocean of worldly existence. They
surpass nectar in sweetness, and make our worldly path
smooth and easy to traverse. Blessed are the stories of
the saints. When they enter our hearts through the ears,
the body - consciousness or egoism and the sense of
duality vanish; and when they are stored in the heart,
doubts fly out to all sides, pride of the body will
fall, and wisdom will be stored in abundance. The
description of Baba’s pure fame, and the hearing of the
same, with love, will destroy the sins of the devotee
and, therefore, this is the simple Sadhana for attaining
salvation. The Sadhana for Krita Age was Sama-dama (tranquillity
of mind and body), for Treta Age, sacrifice, for Dwapara,
worship, and for Kali (present) Age, it is singing of
the name and glory of the Lord. This last Sadhana is
open to all the people of the four varnas (Brahmins,
etc.). The other Sadhanas, viz. Yoga, Tyaga (sacrifice),
Dhyan (meditation) and Dhyan-Dharana (concentration) are very
difficult to practice, but singing and hearing the
stories and the glory of the Lord (Sai Baba) is very
easy. We have only to turn our attention towards them.
The listening and singing of the stories will remove the
attachment to the senses and their objects, and will
make the devotees dispassionate, and will ultimately
lead them to self-realization. With this end in view,
Sai Baba made me or helped me to write His stories, Satcharita.
The devotees may now easily read and hear these stories
of Sai Baba and while doing so, meditate on Him, His
form and thus attain devotion to Guru and God (Sai
Baba), get dispassion and self-realization. In the
preparation and writing of this work, Satcharita,
it is Sai Baba’s grace which has accomplished
everything, making use of me as a mere instrument.
Motherly Love of Sai Baba
Everybody knows how a cow loves her infant calf. Her
udder is always full and when the calf wants milk and
dashes at the udder, out comes the milk in an unceasing
flow. Similarly a human mother knows the wants of her
child and feeds him, at her breast in time. In case of
dressing and adorning the child, the mother takes
particular care to see that this is well done. The child
knows or cares nothing about this, but the mother’s joy
knows no bounds, when she sees her child beautifully
dressed and adorned. The love of mother is peculiar,
extraordinary and disinterested, and has no parallel.
Sadgurus feel this motherly love towards their
disciples. Sai Baba had this same love towards me, and I
give an instance of it below:-
In 1916 A.D. I retired from Government Service. The
pension that was settled in my case was not sufficient
to maintain my family decently. On Guru-Pournima (15th
of Ashadha) day of that year, I went to Shirdi with
other devotees. There, Mr. Anna Chinchanikar, of his own
accord, prayed to Baba for me as follows:- "Please look
kindly at him, the pension he gets is quite
insufficient, his family is growing. Give him some other
appointment, remove his anxiety and make him happy."
Baba replied - " He will get some other job, but now he
should serve Me and be happy. His dishes will be ever
full and never empty. He should turn all his attention
towards Me and avoid the company of atheists,
irreligious and wicked people. He should be modest and
humble towards all and worship Me heart and soul. If he
does this, he will get eternal happiness".
The question Who is this HE, Whose worship is advocated,
is already answered in a note on "Who is Sai Baba" in
the prologue, at the beginning of this work.
Rohilla’s Story
The story of the Rohilla illustrates Sai Baba’s all
embracing love. One Rohilla, tall and well-built, strong
as a bull, came to Shirdi, wearing a long Kafni (robe)
and was enamoured of Sai who stayed there. Day and night
he used to recite in a loud and harsh tone Kalma (verses
from Holy Koran) and shout "ALLAH HO AKBAR" (God is
Great). Most people of Shirdi, were working in their
fields during the day and when they returned to their homes at
night, they were welcomed with the Rohilla’s harsh cries
and shouts. They could get no sleep and felt much
trouble and inconvenience. They suffered in silence this
nuisance for some days, and when they could stand it no
longer, they approached Baba, and requested Him to check
the Rohilla and stop the nuisance. Baba did not attend
to their complaint. On the contrary, Baba took the
villagers to task, and asked them to mind their own
business, and not the Rohilla. He said to them that the
Rohilla had got a very bad wife, a Zantippi, who tried
to come in and trouble the Rohilla and Himself; but
hearing the Rohilla’s prayers, she dare not enter and
they were at peace and happy. In fact, the Rohilla had
no wife and by his wife Baba meant DURBUDDHI, i.e. bad
thoughts. As Baba liked prayers and cries to God better
than anything else, He took the side of the Rohilla, and
asked the villagers to wait and suffer the nuisance,
which would abate in due course.
Baba’s Sweet and Nectar-like Words
One day at noon after the Arati, devotees were returning
to their lodgings, when Baba gave the following
beautiful advice:-
"Be wherever you like, do whatever you choose, remember
this well that all what you do is known to Me. I am the
Inner Ruler of all and seated in your hearts. I
envelope all the creatures, the movable and immovable
world. I am the Controller - the wire-puller of the show
of this Universe. I am the mother - origin of all beings
- the Harmony of three Gunas, the propeller of all
senses, the Creator, Preserver and Destroyer. Nothing
will harm him, who turns his attention towards Me, but
Maya will lash or whip him who forgets Me. All the
insects, ants, the visible, movable and immovable world,
is My Body or Form".
Hearing these beautiful and precious words, I at once
decided in my mind to serve no man henceforward, but my
Guru only; but the reply of Baba to Anna Chinchanikar’s
query (which was really mine) that I would get some job,
began to revolve in my mind, and I began to think
whether it would come to happen. As future events
showed, Baba’s words came true and I got a Government
job, but that was of short duration. Then I became free
and solely devoted my self to the service of my Guru-Sai
Baba.
Before concluding this Chapter, I request the readers to
leave out the various hindrances viz. indolence, sleep,
wandering of mind, attachments to senses, etc. and turn
their whole and undivided attention to these stories of
Sai Baba. Let their love be natural, let them know the
secret of devotion; let them not exhaust themselves by
other Sadhanas, let them stick to this one simple
remedy, i.e. listening to Sai Baba’s stories. This will
destroy their ignorance and will secure for them
salvation. A miser may stay at various places; but he
always thinks of his buried treasure. So let Sai Baba be
enthroned in the hearts of all.
In the next chapter, I shall speak of Sai Baba’s advent
in Shirdi.
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