WHO IS SRI SAI BABA OF SHIRDI? By Shri H.H.NARASIMHASWAMIJI Founder - All India Sai Samaj (Re d.!

" Madra# - $%% %%& SAI BABA of Shirdi is a name to conjure with. In fact, his name is used as a sacred and powerful mantra by thousands of persons. He is not a non-historic or remote personality, but one who was with us in the flesh till 191 , mo!in" familiarly with tens of thousands and that for decades. A short account of Sri Sai Baba will be interestin" and will also pro!e in many cases the turnin" point in the li!es of numerous readers, as it has done in the past. #. $f Sai Baba%s birth, parenta"e, and antecedents, no person that we ha!e met can "i!e any account. But Baba himself "a!e some hints which ha!e been !erified and wor&ed upon. He seems to ha!e been born some time between 1 #' and 1 (' A.). in the !illa"e *athri, in the +i,am%s State. His parents were Brahmins who handed him o!er at a tender a"e to a fa&ir. After the fa&ir%s death, some fi!e years later, the child passed in the care of his -uru )e!a, -opal .au )eshmu&h, a "reat Bha&ta of -od /en&ateswara of 0irupati. After a splendid period of ten years of intense lo!e and de!otion towards his -uru--od, the boy obtained the -uru%s "race. As directed by the -uru, he went westward and came to Shirdi in the Bombay *residency 1Ahmedna"ar )istrict2, and after some wanderin"s, settled and spent the rest of his life there. He passed away on the 1(th $ctober, 191 13 p.m. /ijayadasami )ay, after 4&adasi be"an2. 0he tomb erected o!er his remains is now the Sai 5andir attractin" the de!otion of persons from all parts of the country. 3. +obody dies6 least of all, a self reali,ed soul li&e Sai Baba. Atma"nanis or 7i!anmu&tas are said to become /idhehamu&tas or nira&ara *arabrahmam when the fleshy sheath is cast off. 48ceptions to this rule are mentioned in the Brahma sutras. Bhru"u, +arada, and other eminent de!otee-"nanis ha!e, instead of mer"in" in the Absolute when they cast off the body, continued to remain in their subtle body 1Su&shma sarira, which howe!er could be rendered "ross and !isible or sthula at will2 in order to co-operate with di!ine 9eelas, renderin" ser!ice to humanity. 0hese are styled apantaratmas. Sai Baba is now an apantaratma. Before shufflin" off his mortal coil, he said that his de!otees need not be sad or fri"htened at his castin" off his fleshy "own 1&upni2 and that where!er and whene!er any de!otee should thin& of him, he would be present and attend to him. 0his has been found indeed to be true by innumerable persons: and earnest souls can still ta&e Baba at his word and pro!e its truth from their own e8perience. ;. Sai Baba, the soul of truth and reality has ne!er spo&en untruth. <Anrutam no&tapur!am me nacha !a&shya &adachana% 1=ntruth, I ha!e ne!er uttered nor will I utter it at any time2, was the remar& of Ayodhya .ama as also of this Shirdi .ama. (. 0he early decades spent by Baba at Shirdi are almost wholly for"otten. He was first li!in" under a mar"osa tree leadin" the life of a perfect ascetic. +e8t, he remo!ed to a dilapidated mos>ue in the !illa"e, and resided there to the end of his life. He had nothin" that he could call <mine%. ?or thirty years and more, he was leadin" the life of holy po!erty, and then his de!otees whom he affectionately termed his children, pressed the pomp and show of royalty upon him. ?or the last ten years of his life, he appeared as a prince thou"h he beha!ed throu"hout li&e a poor fa&ir, who either owned nothin" or e!erythin" in the world. His was the life of perfect celibacy 1naishti&a rahmacharya with astalitha urdh!arethus2, a fact which was beamin" out of his brilliant ti"er li&e eyes. His !irtues were numerous - Anantha&alyana"una and would naturally sin& into the heart of those comin" in contact with him, and thus raise them "radually on the hi"hest. <Apana sari&a &arita tat&al%, is a sayin" of 0u&aram, which means that

"reat souls raise the de!otees to their own le!el: !ide Bha"a!ata, where 9ord @rishna says, <0hou"h de!otees do not wish to be one with me, I pull them unto myself%. A. Amon"st his >ualities, the most notable was, of course, lo!e - uniform, all embracin", intense lo!e, showered on all and at all times, without any idea of the e8tent of sacrifice in!ol!ed or any idea of recompense - truly maternal lo!e at its hi"hest. -od is lo!e and the means to reach -od is also lo!e. Baba was nothin" but the embodiment of lo!e. 0his lo!e was perpetually manifestin" itself in e!ery act, word, and thou"ht of his, thou"h at times hidden by his ascetic modes of life. In the be"innin" he would mo!e and tal& with none e8cept under strict necessity. Howe!er, when there was any sufferin" in the !illa"e, he would run to relie!e it and would accept no recompense. B. <Saisan"at!e nissan"at!am% was the other e8ception to his rule of asceticism. Chere there were saints or holy people, he would be found in their company. Some of these saints li&e 7ana&i )as and )e!i )as were the first to disco!er his merits: and in the early ei"hties of the 19th century, some of them re!ealed the fact that Baba was li&e a diamond lyin" on a dun" hill, and that the world would one day disco!er what a "reat .ama Bha&ta he was. 0he world has since disco!ered that fact, and more, has identified him with .ama, @rishna, 5aruti, )atta, etc. . At the time of his arri!al at Shirdi, Baba appears to ha!e been a thorou"h adept in the *rema mar"a, the path of lo!e and e!idently possessed of all power, which naturally issues from such lo!e. He seldom cared to use his power, but once, a manifestation was wrun" out of him. 0he shop&eepers who supplied him "ratis with oil, one day refused the supply, and "athered in a scoffin" mood to see what the <mad fa&ir%, as they styled him, would do without oil for his lamps. Baba simply filled up his empty earthen lamps with water, and the wic&s inserted in the water were burnin" all ni"htD 0his "a!e a rude shoc& to the !illa"ers% notion that Baba was ne"li"ible and mad fa&ir. 9. Baba howe!er was ne!er ne"li"ible. ?rom the !ery be"innin", he was always helpin" humanity at first by dispensin" medicines and later by dispensin" <=dhi% i.e., /ibhuthi or ashes from the fire that he always &ept burnin" by him. =dhi has played a !ery important part in the "race shown by Baba to people all these years, and it is still bein" sou"ht and used by people all o!er the country. But, as Baba e8plained, it is not the =dhi itself that wor&s the wonder. EFChat can the =dhi doG +e!ertheless, ta&e the =dhi as it is wantedH, said Baba to -.-.+ar&eI 0he de!otees% Bha&ti 1faith and de!otion2, for instance, has always to ta&e its part in the "ood results produced by the =dhi. 0he =dhi was "enerally the material with which His blessin"s were issued. 0he =dhi is the cup enshrinin" the really !aluable blessin"s of Baba. But these blessin"s often came and do come without the =dhi. 1'. Chen people came to him, he would "i!e them the =dhi and say <Allah bale &are"e% 1i.e. -od will bless2 and e!erythin" he uttered pro!ed effecti!e. $nce he said <I "o on spea&in" thin"s here and thin"s happen there.% Baba%s words were words of authority. Chen he said that there should be water on a waterless roc&, water was found there. EJharter 3('I. Chen he addressed the elements they obeyed him. ?ire, water, and air were seen by se!eral de!otees to obey his orders. He ordered hi"h flames to sin& down and they did. He ordered the rain and storm to cease and they ceased. He willed a cool bree,e to blow near the fire on a bla,in" summer day and cool bree,e blew there.EJharters 3;1.;I 0he dead were re!i!ed. 0he heart of e!ery one present or absent, he &new without effort and he could control it. He was reali,ed to be a sar!antharyami. He himself declared, <Aham Atma hi Jhandor&ar Sar!a bhutasaya sthitah% i.e. <$, Jhandor&ar, I am in the hearts of all creatures%.

11. $f the many <miracles% performed by Baba and witnessed by many eminently respectable persons 1many of them still li!in"2, it is sufficient to "i!e but a few instances to show how and why they were resorted to. Baba identifyin" himself with -od and "ods declared that there was ne!er any miracle performed by him. .eally, there are no <miracles% in the uni!erse if <miracles% mean the !iolation of the laws of +ature or of -od. *eople be"in to "enerali,e about the laws of +ature from the few facts &nown to them and when a stran"e phenomenon suddenly appears in apparent contradiction of their artificial <law of +ature%, it is declared to be <miracle% - a !iolation of the so called law. A truly scientific mind would rather add the new fact to the old facts and try to remold the old law so as to include the new fact obser!ed. 5an&ind is not omniscient. $ne day, the science of the future will "i!e scientific e8planations for the so-called <miracles% of all times. 1#. But beyond the miracles of Baba, there is one bri"ht, mar!elous fact, worthy of people%s adoration and that is, his "olden heart of lo!e with its messa"e of uni!ersal lo!e. Baba lo!ed all - Hindus, 5oslems, Jhristians, and Buddhists, the learned and the illiterate, the poor and the rich, the priest and the criminal - ali&e. His messa"e to all his de!otees is <9o!e ye, one another, as I lo!e you all%. 13. Baba declared that if people hated one another, his heart was smartin" with pain and sorrow and if persons for"a!e enemies and endured the ill-treatment, he was hi"hly please. 0his is the most !aluable lesson for this day and for all time. A story is told in Bha"a!atham of the world "oin" as a cow to Brahma, "roanin" under the wei"ht of the cruel Asuras harassin" innocent people. 0hat is just the spectacle all o!er the world to day. Hatred, destruction, plunder, and absolute disre"ard for truth and !irtue, are the predominant features in the daily history of the world to-day. 5an%s claws and teeth are red with the "ore of brother man: and the criminal is not apolo"etic but blatant. Ji!ilisation is in imminent dan"er of bein" submer"ed in pools of human blood and de!astatin" fire lea!in" the human form a fossil to be disco!ered within some roc&s by some later race. 0he only thin" that can a!ert this doom is lo!e, a re!i!al of the !ery ancient messa"e to Asuras from -od <)ayadhwam% i.e., <Be merciful%. 1;. Baba%s whole life was an illustration of how this di!ine messa"e could be carried out in life, and the more Baba%s messa"e is heeded, circulated, and preached, the "reater is the hope for humanity a!oidin" the threatened catastrophe. Incidentally, it may be noted that while the @shtriyabalam of A&bar failed, the Brahmatejobalam of Baba is steadily achie!in" the benefit of the people. <)i&balam @shatriyabalam Brahmatejobalam balam% - ?ie upon @shatriya%s power, Spiritual power alone is power%, was said by the @ind /is!amitra when he found that all the arrows showered by him upon /asishtha were of no a!ail, by reason of the Brahmadanda which /asishtha had placed by his side as a protection. %4&ena brahmadandena astrah sar!ah !inish&rtah%. 1(. $ne species of miraculous achie!ements wrou"ht by Baba for the benefit of his de!otees is the blessin" "i!en for issue. Chene!er Baba blessed anybody and said that there would be issue, in!ariably the lady brou"ht forth the child, either male or female, in twel!e months, e8actly as stated by Baba. Here are a few e8amples6 )amodar S. .asane had two wi!es, but no issue. His horoscope showed a papi or cruel planet in the putrasthana and astrolo"ers declared that he would ha!e no issue in this birth. But Baba "a!e him four man"o fruits and directed him to "i!e them to his junior wife. Baba assured him that he was "oin" to ha!e ei"ht children throu"h that wife, the first two bein" males. 0he lady ate the fruits and had just ei"ht children, with their se8es as mentioned by Baba. 0his would remind one of the issue less monarch )asaratha, consultin" his @ula"uru /asishtha. Accordin" to the directions of this -uru, Aswamedha and *uthra&ameshti ya"as were celebrated on a "rand scale 1e!en thou"h it was not stated that there was any papi in the putrasthana of )asaratha2 and four sons were brou"ht forth

by his >ueens. In .asane%s case, there was no /asishtha nor were any ya"as. 4!idently, /asishta, /amade!a, .isyasrin"a, Bhru"u, *uthra&ameshti and Aswamedha were all inside Sai Baba who declared that the de!otee would ha!e ei"ht children. 1A. Another case is more interestin". $ne Scindhe had se!en dau"hters and no sons. He went up to the temple of )attatreya at -an"apur, #'' miles away from Shirdi, and prayed there for male issue. He !owed that if he were "ranted a son within twel!e months, he would brin" the child to -an"apur and ma&e his offerin"s. He had his prayers answered and obtained a son in twel!e months. But, for about si8 years, he did not "o to -an"apur at all. 0hen he came to Shirdi. Baba loo&ed at him and spo&e fiercely, <Are you so conceited and stiff-nec&edG Chere was there any male pro"eny in your *rarabhda &armaG I tore up this body 1pointin" to his own body2 and "a!e you a male child in answer to your prayer%. 0his was not only occasion when Baba declared that he had o!erridden the wor&in"s of *rarabhda &arma. A third case is interestin" from another standpoint. A pleader of A&&al&ote had re!iled and moc&ed at Baba in his student days and had subse>uently lost his only son. ?ancyin" that the loss was the result of his irre!erence towards Baba, he came to Shirdi. Baba blessed him and declared that he 1Baba2 himself would fetch the soul of the deceased son and place him within the womb of the /a&il%s wife. In twel!e months thereafter, she was deli!ered of a male child. 1B. Incidentally, it may be mentioned that it was the blessin"s for issue more than anythin" else that made the educated, especially from towns, to "o to Baba. $ne -opal .ao -undu, A .e!enue Inspector, who had two wi!es but no issue, sou"ht and obtained Baba%s blessin"s and the fruit of those blessin"s, a son. He broadcast the &indness of Baba and his wonderful powers abroad, and a lar"e number of educated people includin" )eputy Jollectors, Jollectors, and political leaders li&e 9o&amanya 0ila&, floc&ed to Shirdi. 1 . In 1 A, Baba died his first death. $ne day when sittin" alon" with his de!otee 5halaspathi in the )wara&amayi 1as his mos>ue was named by him2, Baba said that he was "oin" to Allah and that conse>uently for three days his body was to be loo&ed after for, after that period, he mi"ht return to the body, and that in case he did not do so, the body should be interred near the mos>ue. *resently Baba%s body became a corpse. An in>uest was held o!er the same and the officer holdin" the in>uest insisted on 5halaspathi buryin" the body. But 5halaspathi !ehemently opposed the proposal and succeeded in pre!entin" the internment. $n the fourth day, Baba%s body re!i!ed and for thirty-two years thereafter, Baba wor&ed throu"h that li!in" fleshy case and finally left it on the 1(th $ctober, 19 1, with the same prescience and clear control o!er all the circumstances which he showed in 1 A. 0his lea!in" of the body at will and returnin" to it at pleasure is an art, a Siddhi, described in the Ko"a Sasthras: and Baba%s e8ercise of such powers con!inced and would con!ince many of the truth of the Sasthras. <)harmasamsthapanarthaya sambha!ami yu"e yu"e% 1i.e. <I am born in each a"e for establishin" )harma%2 said @rishna of )wapara Ku"a to Arjuna. And this di!inity of the twentieth century A.). in @aliyu"a, li&e other men of -od 1)e!atmas2 of the same period, has fre>uently by his conduct pro!ed the truth of, and confirmed, the belief in )harma and Sasthras. 19. $ne noticeable feature of Baba%s life after his return to the body was that he be"an to encoura"e the arri!al of Bha&tas to his feet. 4!idently the object of his return to his body was to carry out his mission more fully and for a lon"er period on earth, especially with reference to the de!otees and others bound to him by former ties, rinanubandha. 0his is well illustrated by his call to +arayana -o!ind Jhandor&ar, B.A., *ersonal Assistant to the Jollector of Ahmedna"ar, to come to his feet. #'. Chen +.-. Jhandor&ar or <+ana% as Baba affectionately called him, was haltin" at @opar"aon, Baba sent word to him repeatedly to come to Shirdi for a !isit. +ana after much

hesitation came up to Shirdi and as&ed Baba why he was sent for. Baba replied that for four pre!ious births, +ana had been intimate with Baba and that therefore in this life also, he should "et into similar close contact. A"ain +ana hesitated. But Baba, by the e8ercise of his wonderful powers and his &indness especially, filled +ana%s heart with faith and "ratitude for numerous miraculous fa!ors showered upon him. $n one occasion when Jhandor&ar was stranded on a hot day on a waterless hill 1Harischandra Hill2 unable to climb up or "et down, he suddenly e8claimed: <If Baba were here, he would "i!e me water%. Baba who was then at Shirdi, forty miles away, mentioned to the people there that +ana was thirsty and should be pro!ided with a palmful of water. At that time, a Bhil appeared on that hill and pointed out a palmful of water to Jhandor&ar, under the !ery roc& o!er which the latter was seated. 9ater when +ana !isited Shirdi, Baba informed him that it was :he who pro!ided water on the waterless roc&. Similarly, on another occasion, when the thirsty Jhandor&ar prayed to Baba in the midst of a forest for tea bein" "i!en him after he should emer"e from the forest, tea was suddenly pro!ided in the middle of the ni"ht in a forlorn place. A"ain when +ana%s dau"hter was under"oin" the tortures of prolon"ed parturition, Baba sent a "osa!i from Shirdi with =dhi to be used for easin" the parturition. 0he "osa!i wanted to &now how he could "o to 7amnere, which was +.J.J%s camp, across thirty miles of country road from the railway without funds, Baba simply answered that e!erythin" would be pro!ided. At the station, the "osa!i found a 0on"a and a li!eried peon waitin" for him, professin" to ha!e been sent by Sri Jhandor&ar. Chen the "osa!i went up in that 0on"a and deli!ered the =dhi, its use was >uic&ly followed by safe and comfortable deli!ery. 0hen he mentioned the 0on"a, the horse and the li!eried peon to Jhandor&ar, who wondered, as he had not sent any of these and nobody else could ha!e sent these. Both the "osa!i and +-J wondered at Baba%s power to pro!ide e!erythin" he wanted at any place and at any time and at the depth of Baba%s lo!e for his de!otees. #1. +ana had innumerable proofs of Baba%s !ast, nay, unlimited powers, his perpetual watch o!er his belo!ed de!otees, his in!ariable &indness towards all that approached him, and summed them all up in the phrase that Baba was omnipotent, omniscient and uni!ersally &ind. +o word aptly e8presses the sum total of these attributes e8cept <-od%. Jhandor&ar was con!inced that Baba was -od and worshipped him as -od: and by reason of Jhandor&ar%s !ast influence, Baba%s "reatness and "lory became &nown to all in !arious parts of 5aharashtra. ##. $ne -anpat .ao Sahasrabuddhe, a constable attendin" on +-J was similarly turned in to a de!out Bha&ta and made to >uit -o!ernment ser!ice 1in 19'(2 substitutin" therefore the ser!ice of -od or Baba. Sri Sahasrabuddhe has thence forward been &nown as )ass -anu 5aharaj and as a @irtan&ar-de!otee of Baba all throu"h these forty years. By his powerful Hari&athas and his talents, he has carried Baba to the homes of tens of thousands in 5aharashtra. His wor&s on Baba are the earliest authorities on the life of Baba. 0he abo!e mentioned two "entlemen with others li&e H.S. )i8it and Anna )abol&ar, may be re"arded as Baba%s apostles who carried the faith in Baba to the len"th and breadth of 5aharashtra. #3. Baba%s own miraculous personality sur!i!in" his release from his physical body has howe!er been the principal reason for the success of all this propa"anda. His power is still wor&in" and by reason of that alon", myriads in 5adras and other *residencies ha!e become firm adherents to, and worshippers of, Baba. 0he faith is well "rounded in the e8perience showered upon them now as liberally and miraculously, as they were showered before Baba%s passin" away. Baba%s fi"ure is occasionally seen by, and his wondrous powers are manifested to, those that ha!e the necessary faith, at any place, as Baba has no partiality and his "race cannot be the monopoly of any person or place. Conders are bein" wor&ed by him today at !arious places and therefore Sai 5andirs ha!e sprun" up in many of them.

#;. Baba, howe!er, is not a mere wor&er of miracles. He is a Samartha Sad"uru. He applies miracles or miraculous means to fill with faith and "ratitude the hearts of de!otees. -ratitude soon turns into lo!e and then Baba%s real wor& is seen. Baba purifies the hearts of all of the dross of low attachments and their conse>uences, and "radually raises the de!otees% souls to loftier and still loftier states of bein", till they finally mer"e into himself. *eople be"in with the notion that Baba is a &ind pro!ider of all that they need and in fact resort to him to ha!e their temporal needs satisfied. But they disco!er 1at least many do2 that Baba is after all their Ishtamurthi, their own .ama or Si!a, the -od of their fathers who has now ta&en a new shape to carry out the ancient di!ine plan of the =ni!erse, and that <-od fulfils himself in many ways lest one "ood custom should corrupt the world%. #(. 0he >uestion is often as&ed whether Baba was a Hindu or 5oslem. 0he first remar& to ma&e about this >uestion is that the cause for this >uestion should be loo&ed into before it is answered. 0here is a stron" feelin" on the part of the Hindus that they should not "o near a 5oslem whose !iews run counter to their cherished ideas, and who would destroy their reli"ious emblems and idols. Similar is the repu"nance on the part of the 5oslems to accept purely Hindu traditions which they consider too idolatrous and unholy. Chen we come to ta&e an impartial !iew, we find, whether we are Hindus or 5oslems, that the abo!e >uestion is irrele!ant or of !ery little importance. ?irst about the irrele!ancy. 0he Sufi and the $rthodo8 Hindu, both a"ree that when a person has reached perfection, i.e., the le!el of Brahman, the >uestion of caste does not arise at all. Jaste 1or <7athi% as it is called in !ernacular2 refers to that which has born and that which has <janma%. 0he self-realiser who is identical with -od is not born thou"h his body was born. But the body is not <he% and there is no need to "o into the >uestion as to whether the body arose from parents who were Hindus or 5oslems, or was trained and brou"ht up amon" 3ither of them. Sri San&ara%s well-&nown phrase about the reali,ed soul is <7ati +iti @ula -otra duura"am% - that it is far abo!e >uestions of caste, family clan, etc., and San&ara%s 5anisha *ancha&a repeatedly closes with the line, <Jhandaalostu )wijostu sad"ururityeshau manaishaa mama% - <9et him be a chandala or Brahmin: he 1the reali,ed soul2 is my -uru%. Chat does it matter whether the @ohinoor is lyin" on a dun" hill or in a palaceD 0he Sufis too ha!e e8actly the same !iew as re"ards these distinctions. Howe!er, the reason for raisin" the >uestion is a stron" feelin" re"ardin" the necessity of protectin" one%s own reli"ious sentiments ade>uately from bein" harassed !iolently by a person of an opposite sect. $n this matter, it may be pointed out that whether Baba was a Hindu or a 5oslem, he allowed e!ery sect to &eep to its own method of approachin" -od. 0o Hindus, he said6 <Jontinue your .ama worship, and worship the stones which your forefathers worshipped%. He e!en presented some lin"ams, sil!er padu&as, pictures and coins for worship by Hindus. 0o 5oslems, he ne!er "a!e any of these but allowed them to follow their nira&ara 1formless2 form of worship as far as it is possible. So the real cause for raisin" the >uestion about one bein" a Hindu or 5oslem does not arise in this case on account of the e8treme catholicity of Baba%s !iews and practice. But prejudices die hard and in spite of all that is said, persons still han&er to &now whether Baba was a Hindu or a 5oslem. It may be pointed out that thou"h his ori"inal antecedents were un&nown: his continued residence for about (' years in a mos>ue was considered a sufficient reason for most people to consider him to be a 5oslem. 0here is a 0amil pro!erb that if one drin&s anythin", e!en mil&, under a *almyra tree, he will be ta&en to ha!e drun& toddy. #A. 9et us e8amine the real facts. Baba%s antecedents as mentioned already were re!ealed by himself. 4!en after they are fully considered, still the >uestion must be deemed doubtful whether he was a Hindu or a 5oslem. But 17anma or 7athi2 by actual birth, he was of Brahmin parents, and hence by a !ery lar"e number of persons, he is considered to be a Brahmin. But accordin" to Baba%s own statement, he was handed o!er in his !ery infancy to a fa&ir who brou"ht him up for about fi!e years accordin" to Islamic faith. After the death of the fa&ir, Baba was handed o!er to a Brahmin -uru by name Sri -opal .ao )eshmu&h of </en&usa%. 0he stay

of ten years under this -uru and the mar!elous initiation into di!inity by the -uru%s purna &ripa, ou"ht to clear all doubts, and establish that Baba was Brahmin or at least a Brahmin. But as fate would ha!e it, the -uru after conferrin" upon Baba his purna&ripa and raisin" him to di!inity, directed him to "o westwards and Baba had to spend the rest of his life in a mos>ue mo!in" with all ali&e as an ati!arnasrami, i.e., one beyond all caste rules. Ce do not &now what an e8pert lawyer would conclude as to Baba%s caste in these circumstances. But whate!er that may be, to those who considered him a 5oslem, he responded as a 5oslem and to those who cared to treat him as a Hindu, he responded as a Hindu: and he e8pounded the @oran to the former and the Sasthras to the latter. By the Hindus, he has been worshipped as .ama!atara or Sriman +arayana for so many decades while others treated him as merely human. 0his reminds us of an incident about @rishna. Chen Sri @rishna went with Balarama and others to a ya"asala and wanted food, the Brahmins were wonderin" whether they could offer the food prepared for "ods to @rishna, who appeared to ha!e been born in a @shatriya family but brou"ht up amon" 1/ysias2 cowherds. He was re"arded as -od by many, but the Brahmins were doubtful about his caste. By reason of their i"norance 1ajanna2 they offered no food at all to @rishna. 0hen Sri @rishna sent word to the ladies, who ran up all at once with "reat de!otion and "a!e up all that they had prepared for the -ods to him whom they considered as the -od of -ods. 48actly the same thin" happens now. *ersons whose pious leanin"s render they easily attracted to such "reat souls as Baba run up to Baba and ne!er bother their heads o!er >uestions of his 7athi or caste, and li&e the Brahmin ladies, deser!ed and obtain the hi"hest blessin"s while many doubtin" 0homasses 1samscyatmas2 e!en of the hi"hest castes, "o on debatin" endlessly about the >uestion of the caste to which a holy man belon"s and lose their chance of benefitin" themsel!es here and hereafter. It depends a "reat deal upon once%s poor!a sambanda or rinanubhanda whether one is attracted by Sri @rishna or Sri Sai: it may be noted that persons wish to discuss this >uestion of caste only when their feelin"s ha!e not been roused. But when one is in intense pain or "reat trouble, his heart leaps out with the re>uest, <Baba, help me%, ne!er mindin" a brass pin as to where Baba was born or how he was brou"ht up: and once he recei!es innumerable and miraculous benefits, he "ets perfectly con!inced that Baba is -od to him, whate!er he may be to others and he cares not for discussions as to the le"al position re"ardin" Baba%s caste. Baba himself used to say at times to such Hindus as considered him a 5oslem6 FI am a 5oslem, don%t come to meH and to persons who re"arded him as Sad -uru or -uru--od6 <I am a Brahmin. -i!e me da&shina. 0his place wherein I am sittin" is not a mos>ue: it is a Brahmin%s mos>ue: it is )wara&a 5ayee%. He was e!erythin" to e!eryone. EKe yatha maam prapadyante, thaamsthathai!a bhajaamyaham% - -itaI. #B. Apart from Baba%s caste, some persons raise the >uestion whether he was a Brahma"nani and if so how he happened to perform miracles. *ersons who raise such curious doubts would do well to analy,e their own >uestion and find out its implications. Jan it be !ery seriously contended that he who performs miracles must be an a"naniG Cill Sri @rishna and Shan&ara be labeled a"nanis by these peopleG If these people analyse their own minds, they will disco!er the reason fro their doubts. Spiritual aspirants 1Sadha&s2 are often decidedly to lose by attendin" to the thaumatur"ic powers or Siddhis deri!ed from their Sadhana and many -urus ha!e warned their de!otees from han&erin" after Siddhis. It is also pointed out by such "urus that there is a waste of accumulated powers in the e8hibition of Siddhis and the performance of Siddhis is "enerally attended with the dan"er of increasin" one%s passions especially the rajas and 0amas, which are embedded in one%s nature. But can these objections e!er arise in the case of one li&e Sai BabaG 0he differences between miracle-mon"ers and souls li&e Sri @rishna and Sai Baba are these. ?irstly, in the case of the latter, power arises not by the repetition of mantras or by the adoption of tantras, but simply as part and parcel of their di!ine nature. Secondly, these hi"h souls ha!e no han&erin" for the results of the Siddhis. 0hey do not as& for recompense, nor do they try to attain ulterior aims of their by ha!in" recourse to Siddhis. 0hirdly, the Siddhi power, bein" part of their nature, does not e8haust itself by any number of miracles. ?ourthly, they are

prompted by pure lo!e, @aruna and their employment of powers is a means for achie!in" the hi"hest temporal or spiritual ends for themsel!es and others. +one of these statements will apply to miracle mon"ers. # . In this short introduction we cannot possibly "i!e e!en a !ery rou"h outline of the !arious acti!ities of Baba. It is enou"h to say that he was a *rama"nani and Samartha Sad"uru. A "uru is one that teaches: a Sad"uru is one that teaches and draws one to -od: a samartha Sad"uru is one who draws people to -od employin" all his Siddhis and other hi"h powers for the purpose. It is not all "nanis who ha!e reali,ed -od that perform these miracles or chamat&ars. It is not the dehaprarabdha of se!eral "nanis to e8hibit any such power or to assume the role of samartha sad"uru, while it is the dehaprarabdha of others to ser!e humanity as such samartha sad"urus and e8hibit such powers. +o comparison ou"ht to be made about these two sets of "nanis. Baba ou"ht not to be compared with any other "uru. Jomparisons are always odious and hardly necessary for the benefit of any aspirant. If any person feels drawn to Baba by learnin" about Baba%s >ualities and acti!ities either from one%s own e8perience or of others well -&nown to him, he may at once proceed to ha!e further contact with Baba and "et the fullest benefit of such contact. 0here is no need for him to worry as to how Baba is to be classed - as an A!atar or A!alia, )e!atatma or Alwar, etc. $ne may simply feel the taste of su"ar and use it without raisin" the >uestions to whether it is deri!ed from beetroot, su"arcane or *almyra juice. +o wise men e!er worry about such matters. 0hey do not attempt to classify !arious "nanis. Ce must all be always humble in our approach to -od and di!ine persons. Any other attitude will simply thwart our endea!ors to reach di!inity or to attain the hi"hest benefit by spiritual e8ercise. #9. Ce may !ery well close this short pamphlet with the practical >uestion 112 what are the benefits that Baba can conferG And 1#2 what has one to do in order to obtain these benefitsG 0he first may be met by a counter >uestion. Chat benefits does one e8pect when he is approachin" BabaG Are they temporal or spiritualG Chate!er they may be, there is no benefit that is beyond the power of Baba to confer. He is worshipped e!ery day with phrases li&e <All-powerful% 1sar!a sa&thi murthaye namah2 etc., and the e8perience of de!otees pro!es that he is able to confer benefits of e!ery sort - curin" disease, both physical and mental, "i!in" relief to departin" and departed spirits and to those who are sufferin" from obsessions or infirmities, remo!in" domestic troubles, etc. 3'. $ne more word about these labels and comparisons. *eople are sometimes unconsciously assumin" to themsel!es ability to jud"e of all "rades of spiritual nature and power and say that @rishna is superior to .ama, Buddha is superior to Jhaitanya, etc., and cause irritation to others and confusion in their own minds. If we find the water in one cree& or bay saltish, should we say this cree& or bay is superior or inferior to the oceanG -od is one. )i!inity manifests itself in innumerable places and ways and accordin" to the needs of the times, and each "od-man does the wor& of alle!iatin" man%s miseries and raisin" him upward. Chen the >uestion is as&ed, why should one "i!e up his Si!a or .ama worship and "o to Sai, the answer is that there is no need. If one feels Sai is different from .ama or other Ishta )e!ata and that the latter ser!es all the purposes of the )e!otees, if one is thus satisfied and contented, Sai Baba has ne!er as&ed and does not as& such a person to chan"e his position. Baba is hi"hly conser!ati!e and wants each man to stic& to his reli"ion, caste, "uru. Ishta )e!ata, Idol, mantras and sampradaya. It is only if one feels that he is still left with a desire for further benefits which his customary contact with his Ishtamurthi, "uru, mantras, etc., does not ac>uire for him, and if he is disposed to place faith in Baba%s powers to "rant these or other benefits, that Baba allows or directs him to come to his feet. Baba does not interfere with his loyalties. ?aith in Baba is added on to the old loyalties. 0hat faith wor&s miraculous benefits and tends to stren"then itself. -ratitude and lo!e follow faith and the resultant benefits. 0hrou"h these, Baba purifies the heart and draws the de!otee hi"her and hi"her up the spiritual ladder. 0hat man who came for worldly "oods finds his desires

purified, his mentality chan"ed and thin&s more and better of Baba till at last, findin" that Baba is only one of the numerous names and forms assumed by -od, resi"ns himself to Baba. He then reali,es the absurdity of institutin" comparisons between Sai and other names or forms and of as&in" why one should "o to Sai. It is only those who are specially blessed by poor!a&arma that can be drawn by each of these personalities, and when so drawn no >uestion arises, and all doubts are dri!en off. $ne hu"e wa!e of faith, lo!e and &nowled"e drowns the soul and draws it to the feet of -od, in Sai form and in all forms. 31. Chat are we to do to obtain our desired ends with the help of BabaG 0here are some who raise >uestions e!en preliminary to this. Is it not better not to desire at allG Is it not de"radin" to "o on prayin" or as&in" for this or thatG 0o persons who really care for nothin" i.e., to ad!anced /ira&tas, this >uestion really will not arise. 0hey are not compelled or induced to "o to Sai Baba. See Bha"a!atha - <+ir"rantinopi.. Iththam bhutha "uno Harih% - i.e., !ira&tas are attracted by the nish&amya leelas of the 9ord. Sai Baba%s leelas were purely unmoti!ated by desire. His whole life in the flesh was one continuous self-sacrifice for the sa&e of humanity. In ser!in" 5an, he was ser!in" -od: and he ad!ised his de!otees to do the same. 3#. =ndoubtedly it is better not to desire than to ha!e desires and to see& their "ratification throu"h the help of Sai Baba etc. But how many are there who can calmly reason thus and find power to crush the roots of desire in their heartsG If there are any such amon" the readers, they are not as&ed to see& Baba%s help or -od%s help, if that is different, to attain any objects. 4!en the desire for 5u&ti - liberation - is a desire: and e!en to attain that, people pray and see& the aid of e8perts, i.e., sa"es who &now the way to liberation and who are "racious enou"h to e8tend their help to those who see& help. 33. 0he !ast majority want benefits, temporal and spiritual, temporal first and then spiritual. 0he body and its adjuncts, a family. 4tc., ha!e to be maintained with sufficient prouision for health and some de"ree of comfort before people can thin& of spiritual thin"s. Sai Baba may be approached by all who feel the need for this ur"ent help. 0he more impassioned their appeal, the more faith they ha!e in Baba, the >uic&er will be the results, other thin"s bein" the same. 0o these we may su""est the ways and means of contactin" Baba. 3;. 0here are no special ways for approachin" Baba, i.e., ways different from those adopted for approachin" other hi"h and noble personalities. How do we approach our motherG It loo&s ridiculous for us to as& such a >uestion. 0he mother has showered her lo!e on the child lon" before it is aware of such lo!e. 0hus Baba has similarly played the part of an unseen mother showerin" benefits on her children, the de!otees, e!en from their pre!ious births. But how are they to approach Baba nowG 9et them sincerely wish to do so. At once the approach has been started. 0hey are impro!ed from that !ery instant. 0hey "et more and more enthusiastic and "et more and more benefits. 0hese produce "ratitude first and finally stron" lo!e. 9et the reader daily thin& of Baba, seein" his fi"ure in the medals, pictures etc. he &eeps with himself and let him read about Baba%s "reat deeds more stron" than ll poetic thou"ht. Baba%s 1' +ama!alis is a mnemonic de!ice for forcefully recallin" these >ualities. 9et him attend Bhajans and *ooja where sincere de!otees "ather. $ne son" from a sincere de!otee, one artless son", will thrill the hearer and fill him with awe, joy, piety and lofty sentiments that will last a lon" time. 9e one always "o in for ser!ice to humanity or to lower creatures for the sa&e of Baba i.e., !iewin" Baba as e8istin" in each indi!idual person or creature that he sees. Baba himself will direct the further steps of the earnest en>uirer. Cays and means for further contact and further "rowth will be disclosed by Baba himself in innumerable ways to each ardent de!otee. 0he manner in which he imparts these !aries. Some of hi"hly emotional nature see him at times e!en today and some tal& with him durin" wa&in" hours. $thers "et such contact in their dreams. Still others earnestly wantin" some response and piously openin" some boo& with a prayer, find their response in that

boo&. $thers resort to chits. $thers simply rely on the correctness of their intuition that the thou"h su""ested to them at a particular time is the thou"ht "i!en by Him. In these and other ways, people "et their contact and benefits from Sai. Sai is not different from -od. Are not all these ways adopted by de!otees in !arious reli"ions to "et access to and a response from their -od or Ishta )e!ataG 0he same applies to Sai Baba. 0here are numerous Sai Bha&tas who ha!e such intense faith in Him as their -od and who "et their response and benefits from hi. If any reader is !ery earnest and wishes to pursue this matter further, it must be !ery easy for him or her to ascertain who are the Sai Bha&tas in their district or pro!ince with such Bha&ti and, if these are noted for their pure and lofty nature, they can and mi"ht be approached with perfect safety and ad!anta"e. LLLLL IS SAI BABA 'I(IN) AND H*'+IN) NOW? Sai Baba seems determined to sol!e the abo!e >uestion to the satisfaction of innumerable en>uiries found here, there and e!erywhere in the country. It is not merely a >uestion arisin" from curiosity. It often arises from necessity. *ersons there are in thousands who "et into trouble and cast their eyes about in e!ery direction in >uest of relief. <Is there no -odG Is there no SaintG Is there no 5antraG Is there not anythin" that will come to my rescueG% Is that what a person cries out. At such sta"es when there is some person or other in the nei"hborhood connected with Sai Baba, then that person in distress runs up to Sai Baba, with the assurance 1born of need2 that He is not only li!in" and helpful, but that He is the only person that can help one in such junctures. 0herefore it is of the utmost importance that people throu"hout the country should be &ept informed in their own lan"ua"es or in any common lan"ua"e, 4n"lish or Hindi, of the fact that Baba is now li!in" and wor&in" to benefit all and sundry in a way in which no other person &nown to us is shown to be wor&in". 0here is no other person shown to ha!e such chamat&aric superhuman power and intent solely upon benefitin" all persons that put their trust in him. $f course, mere chamat&ar or ma"ical feats or psychic power, unaccompanied by a noble purpose or by di!ine >ualities is not worth the attention of pious people%s intent on achie!in" their own spiritual welfare. But supranormal e!ents always draw the attention of the educated and cultured classes and of others. So, without further e8cuse, we shall proceed to describe and narrate !arious circumstances and e!ents which carry con!iction to the mind of e!en the dullest that Baba is li!in", is powerful, is beneficent and is just the di!ine person that one needs in any juncture. BabaMs 9eelas or chamat&ars are !ery !aried and ha!e e8tended o!er a !ery lon" period. Somewhere about the close of the last century they be"an. 0hey are continuin" still up-to-date, and from time to time in new places and in !aried ways. Baba is showin" all people irrespecti!e of reli"ion, caste, a"e, se8, and position etc, that he is that superhuman, beneficent power that people call their Ishta or Ishta )e!ata or -uru-)e!a, and that he is a!ailable to any earnest soul and responds to e!ery earnest call. 0here are se!eral boo&s 1notable -ospel of Sai Baba and Sai Satcharita2 settin" out BabaMs 9eelas upto recent times. ?or the sa&e of con!enience, we may be"in with BabaMs recent 9eelas throu"h 5atru Sri @rishna Bai of .amacbandrapuram near .ajahmundry, 4ast -oda!ari )istrict, Andhra State. Her husband is 5r. Seha"iri .ao, Superintendent of the office of the Accountant -eneral, *osts and 0ele"raphs, Simla. 0hat "entleman "ot first a !ery superficial contact with Baba, as numerous South Indians at +a"pur 1where 5r. Sesha"iri .ao was at the time2 adored Baba and communicatin" facts about Baba, It is the need, as we already stated, that creates faith. $n one occasion in 19;A 5r. Sesha"iri .ao was in a ti"ht fi8. In his official capacity as Senior )i!isional Accountant, +a"pur 0ele"raph )i!ision, he was entrusted with the 0reasury &eys, and be had put them in a drawer and &ept the &ey of the drawer alone with him. $ne mornin" when he came and opened the drawer, to his

dismay he could not disco!er the &eys. 0here was no sort of e8planation for the disappearance of the &eys. All the same he would "et into hot waters with his superior and mi"ht suffer in his presti"e and position. He did not &now what to do. So, he suddenly offered a prayer that if Ba,a i# really powerful and helpful, he should disco!er for him the &eys. Soon after ma&in" that prayer he went to the bo8 a"ain and opened it. 0his -ime alone, beholdD the &eys were there ri"ht in front of him, and it was a wonder where they had "one, how not found at so many pre!ious searches by himself and his ser!ants, and how suddenly they reappeared. So, he had some faith in Baba. But it was his wife that had to play the all important part of a !ery powerful, spiritual dynamo for the spread of Sai propa"anda, She also had at first only a !ery superficial &nowled"e of Sai Baba. In 19(', in 5ay-7une, she was with her father at .amachandrapuram and her husband had come from +a"pur to stay at .amachandrapuram for recuperation of his health. He wanted to start bac& on the 1Ath 7une 19(' to +a"pur. But suddenly on the 1;th she too& ill. She did not "et up from her bed until 1' in the mornin", whereas her usual hour for >uittin" bed was between ( and A. So, the husband went into her room at 1' a.m. to see what the matter was. She slowly opened her eyes and called him to her side. Her !oice was feeble. She said weepin". FI am "oin" to die: please loo& after my childrenH. 0his was a stunnin" statement and a "reat shoc& to the husband. He as&ed her, MChat are you ailin": fromDM She Said, FI cannot say what I ail from, but 1 feel terrible pain.M5r. Sesha"iri .ao thou"ht that this must be heart attac&. 0hen she pointed to a portion of the room, and said M0here, that fellow, that fellow: 1 am nearin" my death by reason of that fellow M 0hen 5r. Sesha"iri .ao thou"ht that it was all hallucination, and the best thin" would be to "et medical aid. But she a"ain said, NKou do not belie!e me. I see that fellow is there. Kou tell me that I will become all ri"ht.N 5r. Sesha"iri .ao as&ed his father-in-law to "et medicine. She could not e!en "ulp down water. So, some medicine was forced down her mouth, and yet she was restless. In the e!enin" at A or B, she a"ain called her husband to her said, and repeated, FI am "oin" to die. Kou do not belie!e me.H 0o o!ercome her fears, the husband too& a photo"raph of Sai Baba 1which had been "i!en to him by his +a"pur cler&2 and &ept it under her pillow and told her, M0his Sai Baba 1photo"raph of Sai2 will ward off all e!il spirits.H He was not >uite sure that Sai would, but necessity made him say it. 0hen he went upstairs to sleep. )ownstairs the lady was sleepin" and her father was watchin". At 1# midni"ht the lady cried out, M?ather, father, I am dyin". Somebody is ta&in" out my life.M 0hen the father "ot up and rushed and saw that her body had already been partly dra""ed out of the cot and her le"s were dan"lin" down. HO put her body into her bed and retired. 0hon a con!ersation was heard in her room. 0he lady was utterin" the name of Sai Baba and .a"ha!endra Swami. She said that these two had come to rescue her. She as&ed her father, who ran up to her. M9ift up the pillow. .a/e ou- a pac&et, and put its contents into my mouth.M 0hat "entleman thou"ht she was ra!in", as nobody had put any pac&et of medicine under her pillow. But she repeated her words, and said, NSimply obey: do not ar"ue.N 0hen the father lifted up the pillow, and there was a pac&et there. 0hat was opened. It contained a 0ulsi leaf as bi" as a betel leaf. 0here was also /ibhutti. 0hen he too& up both these, put the /ibhutti into her mouth and retired. She then had !ery "ood sleep. 0he father on further e8amination found that the whole of her sari was co!ered with /ibhutti and 1here were N@olamN borderline mar&s of /ibhutti on all the four sides of the cot. 0hen the husband came down and saw all these thin"s for himself. In addition, he noted the impression of a hand on her head. 0hereafter she reco!ered completely. Some time later @rishna Bai said that .a"ha!endra Swami and Sai Baba wanted one anna nic&el piece to be &ept under her pillow. Her husband placed it under the pillow. 0hey were waitin" to see who would ta&e that one anna piece, and how it would disappear. 0hey went for their meals. At that time, in @rishna BaiMs room some con!ersation was "oin" on. He "ot up and entered the room. He found the room was full of a sweet smell. She said that the one anna coin was ta&en away by these two, namely, .a"ha!endra Swami and Sai Baba, and in its place they had left somethin", and she wanted them to see what it was. 0he husband remo!ed the pillow, and found that there was no one anna piece, but in its place, there were fresh 0ulsi lea!es and bil!a lea!es. 0hese were left as a protection to her. 0hat

is what she said. 0hat day she was all ri"ht, and, therefore went upstairs to sleep. At 1# midni"ht a"ain there was some con!ersation in this ladyMs room. 0he husband went up and found that she was recitin" four -ita stan,as. B.J. I/ 1B2 112 Kadayadahi B. -. 1 2 1#2 *aritranayasadhunaro B. -. / 1##2 132 Ananyaschintayantomam B. -. P/III 1AA2 1;2 Sar!adharma *arityajya Raghavendra Swami had as&ed her to "et these by heart. She pleaded that she did not &now Sans&rit, it seems. But .a"ha!endra Swami did in fact, teach her these four stan,as, and other parts of -ita, e8plainin" their meanin"s also. She said that .a"ha!endra Swami and Baba had &ept three thin"s under her pillow, in addition to 0ulsi lea!es and Bil!a lea!es. She said, F*lease loo& for themH. Sesha"iri .ao lifted up the pillow and searched. He found three thin"s, namely, 112 a pac&et of /ibhutti 1#2 a bi" 0ulsi leaf enclosin" &um&um and 132 mritti&a, that is, the sacred earth of the 0ulsi plant used with "reat re!erence by 5adh!as especially - the lady belon"s to the 5adh!a Sect, 9ater her husband went to his own room, and found under his own pillow sandalwood paste in two pieces. His father-in-law also had the same in his room. 0hey were all fra"rant. 0hese e!idently were shown to them to put faith in Baba and to belie!e that there is some superior and "reat powerful force which cannot be easily understood by ordinary men. ?rom that time onwards, as a re"ular feature at about A-3' p.m. /ibhutti mar&s would appear on the forehead of the lady. 0his went on for months that is, till about ?ebruary, 19(1. 0hat was seen by many people. 0hen Sai Baba as&ed the lady to do Sai *ooja on all 0hursdays. Her *ooja was !ery peculiar. )urin" that *ooja, she would be "oin" on tal&in" in an undertone, somethin" midway between deli!erin" a lecture and loud thin&in". $n closer e8amination of what she spo&e, the husband found she was discoursin" on philosophic truths, -ita Slo&as, their meanin"s, the definition of 5aya, *ra&riti, etc. Some phenomena also be"an to be e8hibited throu"h her or by her. At the be"innin" of the *ooja she would place an empty dubba 1a closed receptacle2 in front of her, and at the close of the *ooja, mysteriously that empty dubba would be found to be full of Vibhutti. 0his is from Baba himself this /ibhutti was distributed to all people as Sai prasad. Another remar&able fact was that Baba said on one occasion that Mthis lady had ei"ht more births to "et 5u&ti 19iberation2 but he would compress all those ei"ht births into this !ery birth on account of his infinite compassion for her. He could not pre!ent *rarabhda but could compress *rarabhda. So she had to die and come bac& to life e!ery month in the course of ei"ht months. )urin" her monthly period, she would become hopelessly ill: her face would show si"ns of a dyin" person, i.e., li!id pallor. Kama &in&aras would come: their son"s and shouts would be heard in the room etc. 0here were also other indications of impendin" death, that is, on all the four sides of the cot, lines which bad been drawn with /ibhutti pre!iously would disappear. At such times, Baba. Said, MShe and all connected with her should ma&e +ama SmaranM i.e. remember -od. 4!en doctors who attended on her at such times would join in the +ama Smaran. At 1# midni"ht, she would cry out, <I am dyin"H. Immediately 5r. Sesha"iri .ao and others would cry out MBabaD BabaDM Her life actually did depart from her body which became a li!id, corpse, and then Sai Baba a"ain "a!e her life. $n one occasion, she !omited blood from her mouth. Si8teen times are !omited, and the !omit still went on. Sesha"iri .ao just then returned from his office. All the medicines he tried to stop the !omit failed. 0hen he too& Baba to tas& for not curin" his wife. Baba throu"h the mouth of his wife answered. NKour husband is abusin" me, because I do not cure you. I can cure anybody but not you. If you are to be cured now you will ha!e to ta&e another birth to wor& out your *rarabhda. So you must

under"o this trouble now. A"ain he said,% Chen I ha!e assured him that there is no dan"er to life, why should be an"ryGM So sayin" he stopped the blood !omit in a most miraculous way. As she was lyin" down, somethin" li&e a root fell on her hand from abo!e, and that stopped the blood !omit. Sai Baba was not opposed to cure her disease, but be wanted that her *rarabhda should be wor&ed out. $n the last and final, occasion, the 9ord of )eath himself came 1Kama2. All people includin" Sesha"iri .ao were by the side of her bed. 0hey left a sudden fra"rance in the room and an o!erwhelmin" fear in their hearts. 0hat indicated that Kama was present. 0hen some con!ersation was "oin" on in the room between the unseen Sai Baba and the unseen Kama. Kama said that he had to do his duty. Baba said,% -o on. Jarry out your duly. Sounds alone were heard by those in the room. 0hen 5r. Sesha"iri .ao and others were all o!erjoyed. 0hus, all her future janmas due to *rarabhda were wiped out. She reco!ered her health soon. 0he lady throu"h BabaMs fa!our was able to ha!e clairvoyant ideas as to what thin"s were "oin" on and where. $n one occasion, she and her husband had to lea!e .ama-chandrapuram for +a"pur. 0he lady said at 3 p.m. <9et us start%. But by startin" at 3 p.m. they would not "et any train at .ajahmundry for Be,wada, accordin" to the railway time table. At .ajahmundry they would ha!e to wait for se!eral hours. But as his wife insisted, the party started, and by bus they reached .ajahmundry at A p.m. 0hey went to the boo&in" office and as&ed about trains. 0he boo&in" cler& said, M0he train which should ha!e come in the mornin" has come only just now. Kou can start and "o to Be,wada.0he boo&in" cler& "a!e them the tic&ets. So they reached Be,wada at 1 in the ni"ht. 0hey were so late that they did not &now where to stay. But at Be,wada there was 5r. Sesha"iri .aoMs cousin. 5r. Sesha"iri .ao did not &now his address. 0here was no one to tell them of his address. Suddenly, a youn" boy of si8teen came and said, MI will ta&e you to the house of a municipal councilor who will direct you.% He too& them to the municipal councilor who showed Sesha"iri .ao the house of his cousin. 0he youn" man suddenly disappeared. 0he lady said, M0hat youn" man must be Baba himself.M A"ain, sometime later, 5r. Hanumantha .ao, the father of the lady "ot a letter which bore the mar& of Shirdi as the despatch station with a si"nature purportin" to be that of Sai Baba attached to the bottom of the letter. 0he postal mar& was .ahata *ost. 0he letter said, M-o and see the *ooja performed by your dau"hter at +a"pur.M It also contained -ita Slo&as. 0here was also warnin" that Hanumantha .ao should not treat the lady merely as his dau"hter. He must treat her as BabaMs disciple. So, in obedience to the letter, he came to +a"pur and saw her *ooja. 0here he was impressed with the wonderful spirituality of his dau"hterMs *ooja. Baba said that he must carry out certain thin"s throu"h @rishna Bai. In order to communicate his ideas Baba was writin" on plantains. 0his was one of the thin"s which the father saw. Baba wrote sometime on se!eral plantains but at other times on one. Sometimes Baba would write on !ery small lea!es in microscopic letters. $ne e!enin" when Sesha"iri .ao was meditatin" in his room, Baba appeared and told @rishna Bai in her room, MKour husband is prayin" to me in his room. Chy not your husband comes hereG Chen the husband went to her room, he saw a wonderful thin". 0he table near her was smeared with /ibhutti. $n that, a hu"e person sat. 0hat was Baba. 0he breadth across the two parts of his nether body on the table was o!er four feet. 0his phenomenon was repeated at .amacbandrapuram also twice or thrice. $ne of the men said at a *ooja, M9et us see how Baba is eatin".N 0he *ooja room was full of a number of BabaMs pictures. $n one picture, under the mouth, a small peda was placed. 0his peda mo!ed from the mouth of one photo"raph to another photo"raph, and, after "oin" to the last photo"raph, disappeared. 0hen the audience said, MCe are satisfied as to your eatin".M A"ain this ladyMs "randmother came up one day and said that she would belie!e in Baba if Sai Baba himself put one peda prasad into her mouth. *eople lau"hed at the idea. But late in the ni"ht, she suddenly wo&e up and said somethin" li&e a li,ard had fallen into her mouth. 9i"ht was brou"ht, and it was disco!ered that it was not a li,ard but a peda that was in her mouth. So, she "ot con!inced that Baba was wor&in" 9eelas there. 5r. B. /en&ataratnam, 48-5inister of the 5adras -o!ernment, attended

her *ooja. $n one occasion, when she was "oin" on tal&in" in a peculiar, unconscious way, li&e one possessed, she as&ed him whether on such and such a day some body did not "o to his house for food, whether he had not tried to send him away, and whether he did not accommodate that man on that day when he insisted on accommodation. A"ain Baba throu"h her as&ed, M)id he not as& for .s. # when lea!in" the placeGM 5r. /en&ataratnamMs reply was in the affirmati!e to all these >uestions. A"ain Baba as&ed 5r. /en&ataratnam, whether on the day pre!ious to his comin" to .amachandrapuram, be did not "i!e a two-anna piece to a be""ar on the way. 5r. /en&ataratnam admitted it. 0hen Baba said, <I was that be""ar.M Similarly, Sri -, /iswanatham Jhetty, 7oint .e"istrar of Jo-operati!e Societies, attended her *ooja. He said while lea!in" the place that he had a hea!y pro"ramme and therefore could not return for a lon" time. But after he left, the lady said, MKou will see that he comes bac& and for three days attends the *ooja.M Actually for a !ariety of reasons, 5r. Jhetty could not lea!e .amachandrapuram for three days and he did attend *ooja on all the three days. 10he abo!e are e8tracted from 5r. @. Sesha"iri .aoMs lecture at the 5ylapore A. I. S. S. Sai 5andir in ?ebruary 19(3 in obedience to BabaMs order to him to publish all he &new of BabaMs 9eelas as manifested throu"h Srimathi @rishna Bai2. 5r. -6 /. Jhetty had plenty of e8periences of a most con!incin" sort, and therefore, he is a staunch Bha&ta. $n one of the earlier occasions, that is, at the commencement of his contact with Sai Baba, there, he had stri&in" proofs of BabaMs bein" ali!e, bein" useful and respondin" throu"h human !oice to the calls of his Bha&tas. $ut of true de!otion, when be was proceedin" one day to .amachandrapuram from @a&inada, he "ot a !ery lar"e rose "arland, called M+ela 5alaiM in 0amil, because its rolls from the nec& to the "round. 0hat "arland was full of roses and the number of petals may therefore be easily "uessed to be somethin" in four fi"ures. 0his "arland was placed round BabaMs nec& i.e. on the portrait. He also carried flowers, fruits, etc. Chen the *ooja was o!er, he noted that somehow 1mysteriously2 e!ery petal of e!ery rose in that hu"e "arland had on it written 1$5 SAI. If any one of us attempts to write M$m SaiL on rose petals, the chances are that !ery few petals would be left on the stal&, and the petals would all be on the "round. Besides, it would be a matter of se!eral hours for us to complete the inscription on thousands of petals. $n the other hand, suddenly in a few minutes the whole "arland became full of inscriptions. 5r. -. /. Jhetty was blessed with response in other respects alto. 0he plantains he too& "ot inscriptions on them. He had ta&en an apple and placed it before Baba. At the close of the *ooja, the lady as&ed him to ta&e the apple. 0hen he wondered <what, with no si"ns of Baba acceptin", am I to ta&e the appleGM He only thou"ht so but said nothin". But Baba &new it, and throu"h the mouth of the lady said, MChat does he say that there is nothin" worth of noteG 9et him lift up the apple.% Chen the apple was lifted up, it was noted that the bottom portion had disappeared: cut of clean with a &nife, and the cut portion had disappeared, that is, accepted by Baba. In!isible hands did all inscriptions and remo!al of cut part while he and all were in the *ooja room. Seein" that 5r. Jhetty was >uite happy and >uite sure that his offerin" had been accepted by Baba, Similar to this, and numerous other incidents too& place. 5r. Jhetty "ot also specific answers for his problems about his son, his dau"hter, etc. BabaMs answers were so clear and full that be 15r, Jhetty2 could answers clearly the >uestion at 1be top of this pamphlet without a momentMs hesitation, that Baba is undoubtedly li!in" and is undoubtedly helpful at least to those who ha!e faith 1Bha&ti2 in him. +ow, on one of those occasions, Baba%s 9eelas too& a peculiar shape. One 5r. .amachandra .ao from +a"pur, businessman and a de!otee of Baba, throu"h that lady, and some others came to .amachandrapuram. 0hey had an idea that a temple must be built for Baba, and that instructions must be "ot from Baba. 0hey put the >uestion to the lady. 0he answer was that Sri B. /. +. Swami, *resident of the AH India Sai Samaj, must come. Sri B. /. +. Swami and with him a number of Bha&tas started from 5adras. 0he chief amon"st the Bha&tas was one 5r. S. +. J. Sriman +arayana Jhaudhry, formerly *ublic *rosecutor 1at -untur2 whose mental health was affected, and who conse>uently, could not practice. 0hey too& with them three apples and one cas&et 1sampatam2 full of hal!a, and this was opened by Swami and a"ain closed after notin"

that it was full. All these with other fruits and flowers were ta&en to .amachandrapuram, which was reached at about 11-3' a.m. on I -3-I9(# and placed in the small *ooja room about 1'M8l$L, where *ooja was "oin" on, and where the entire "round floori was full of Bha&tas and their offerin"s. $n a wall Mthere were many pictures of Sai Baba, 0he lady herself 1@rishna Bai2 was In deep concentration and "oin" on with Sai *ooja. At the close of the *ooja 1i.e. by noon or 1#-3' p.m.2 her father as&ed the de!otees the >uestion. MHa!e you counted your offerin"sGN 0he swami and others lau"hed, because there was no necessity to count what they offered to -od. But then S. +. Jhaudhry said that he had placed three apples for nai!edya, but there were only two then. It was Impossible physically for anyone to "et into the room across the seated Bha&tas and carry away one apple. But there it was, that one apple had disappeared. 0he lady herself then lifted up the cas&et and opened the lid and loD And beholdD 0here was a deep plou"hin" up of the hal!a. A fin"er had e!idently been inserted and a "ood >uantity or hal!a remo!ed. Chere the remo!ed hal!a had "one, and who remo!ed It was a. mystery. 0he only e8planation was that Baba had accepted the hal!a prasad also. $n the fruits that had been placed, inscriptions were found. It was made clear to S. +. Jhaudhry, Sri B. /. +. Swami, and others that Baba was "racious enou"h to accept the presents of the party. 0hen 5r. S. +. J answered to himself the >uestion at the head of this pamphlet. He felt firmly con!inced of the truth that Sri Sai Baba is li!in" now, and is mysteriously helpin" his de!otee by acceptance of their "ifts. 0his at once effected a chan"e in him. He was no more abnormal. He lost his diffidence fear, etc. ?rom that day onwards, he be"an to attend to his pri!ate and other wor&, and he could also attend court and is now ha!in" "ood practice. So, many other persons also "ot con!incin" answers to the abo!e >uestion. As for the Swami, he found that the lady at the close of the *ooja was rapidly lecturin" away in 0elu"u on matters of philosophy and reli"ion. 0he best lawyers and pundits there could not repeat or translate what she said. $n the second day, >uestions wore put to Baba throu"h her. 0he answers came. 0he answers related to the health of some of the !isitor present, their relations and other matters. $n the whole 1he answers were intelli"ent and satisfactory. 0his a"ain helps us to answer the >uestion mentioned abo!e. As for the main matter, for which Sri B. /. +. Swami was in!ited, the answer was that Sri B. /. +. SwamiMs present wor& was >uite satisfactory, that he need not do anythin" more than simply remain at head>uarters and as& his de!otees and friends to carry out BabaMs wor&, and that e!erythin" would "et on all ri"ht. 0hat settled the >uestion of Sri B. /. +. SwaraiMs responsibility for a new temple buildin". But Sri B. /en&ataratnam -aru was there. He is the *resident of the Jo-operati!e Ban& at .amachandiapuram. He, with the help of others, has succeeded in buildin" a beautiful temple and placin" in it marble ima"es of Sai Baba, .adha and @rishna and he has carried out the other instructions of Sai Baba, as to the fittin" up of the temple and the pratishta itself. 0hat installation too& place on 11th April 19(;, that is, on the .ama +a!ami day. 0he *ooja by the lady is now "oin" on in that temple. 0he best way of windin" up this small pamphlet is to refer to !ery recent instances in the 4ast -oda!ari )istrict. Some twenty miles from *ithapur .ailway Station are the 0hotapalli Hills, and on them, His Holiness Sri $m&aar Swami has put up a Shami Ashram, that is the main mother Ashram. He is carryin" on his life of peace and propa"anda for peace with the aid of an 4n"lish 7ournal Peace and a 0elu"u 7ournal Shanthi. 0he SwamijiMs wor& is mainly philosophical. He is the author of MJosmic ?lashes%. Showin" his ele!ation of thou"ht and di"nity of e8pression with a mastery of style rarely to be seen. Chat, howe!er, came to this philosophical Swami at the be"innin" of this year was Sri SaiMs "race to inspire in him some more spiritual de!elopment based on attachment to Sai. It is for such spiritual de!elopments that Baba shows his chamat&ars. About 5arch last, chamat&ars be"an in the 0hotapalli Shanthi Ashram in a stran"e way. 0here was Birthday celebration "oin" on and some lady de!otees of the Swami had "one there. 0hey were staunch Sai Bha&tas, and they carried their Sai pictures, etc. with them. After the usual *ooja on that Ashram were o!er,

these ladies sat up in a small room and carried on their Sai *ooja. $thers of the Ashram and !isitors joined them. 0his Swamiji, seein" the !ast crowd and the insufficiency of the room, as&ed them to "o upstairs to his own meditation room. 0hen perhaps as a result of the SwamiMs dedication of his meditation room for Sai 5andir, BabaMs 9eelas be"an to be shown abundantly. +ai!edyas placed included plantain fruits, and inscriptions in 0elu"u letters 1Sai2 appeared on these fruits. $n the flowers placed before Baba, inscriptions similarly appeared. *eople were wonderin", and one of those present placed a wood apple as an offerin" to Baba and prayed that an inscription should appear on it. 0he letters MSAI% appeared on it. His Holiness $m&aar Swami himself came up with a coconut without bar&, and placed it as an offerin" before Baba. 0hen the letters MSAI% in 0elu"u were found to be written on the two sides of the coconut. 0he Swami is retainin" that coconut with these inscriptions. ?aith, full faith be"an to de!elop all round. Sri .ajaji of the Ashram had a "old rin" and he offered it to Sai Baba with these words. MBaba, I will "i!e this to you in case you write your name on it%, and placed the rin" before the picture in the *ooja. At once the 0elu"u letters MSAIM appeared on the rin". Some others who did not belie!e be"an to offer watches, chains etc, and placed them before Baba, and the name MSaiM appeared on e!ery one of them. Some one present, feelin" that the rich and the well to-do classes alone were the beneficiaries in the chamat&ars, wanted somethin" to be done for the )aridra +arayana and sic&ly +arayanas. He too& up a ball of /ibhutti and offered it at the *ooja. 9o.Mand behold, in a few minutes, the letter <SAI 5A+)=% in 0elu"u appeared on the ball. 5andu means, medicines. 0he whole ball was therefore the medicine which was consecrated by Baba and could be "i!en to all and sundry. 0here was a patient with hi"h fe!er in the Ashram. A bit of that /ibhutti <Sai 5anduM with water "i!en to him remo!ed the fe!er and enabled him to dischar"e his normal duties immediately. 0he Ashram cow had some disease, and the mil& drawn from its udder was blac&ish and this 5andu was smeared o!er the cow, and 9oD And behold, thereafter the mil& yielded by the cow was sweet and normal. So, Sai had really "i!en his M5anduM medicine for the benefit of the dumb, the poor and the helpless. ?aith in Sai was !ery powerful and combined with the pre!ious faith of the Ashramites. 0his was shown in a remar&able incident one e!enin". A lady ta&in" lea!e of the Swami at his Ashram at dus& was "oin" o!er the lawn to reach her room, but, on the way a serpent crawled o!er one of her feet and she placed the other foot on its tail. At once she noticed that it was a serpent. She cried out M$5 SAIM: and the serpent instead of stri&in" at her >uietly bowed its head, retreated and climbed up a tree. *eople said, <Baba is here doin" wonders. So we must build a permanent temple for himM, 0hen a piece of paper was found in front of the de!otees with the followin" written on it, namely, N0his is SaiMs Sarmidhya 1or presence2N in 0elu"u. 0he same 0elu"u letters were seen simultaneously to appear on the wall of the *ooja room. *eople were con!inced that undoubtedly Sai Baba was present, and was respondin" to the de!out and earnest prayers of the Bha&tas there. But as the Swamiji said, Sai bein" a form of -od, He is present not only in one place, and people should not o!erstress the miraculous appearance of BabaMs 9eelas, thou"h He is more easily communed with there. So $m&aar Swami in!ited and in!ites people to "o there for such Holy Jommunion. $n .ama +a!ami ni"ht he "ot up at midni"ht and wrote out a manifesto containin" all the abo!e facts and e8tendin" an in!itation to all de!out Bha&tas to "o to Shanthi Ashram for communin" with Sri Sai and not for the mere curiosity or fun of "ettin" inscriptions on watches and chains. As for himself, the Swami declares that he felt that a )i!ine presence was now co!erin" him up both inside, outside, and on all sides. He has composed son"s in 4n"lish and 0elu"u mentionin" that he felt identical with Sai, and that the feelin" was one of Bliss. 0his appeared in an issue of the 0elu"u journal <ShanthiM and has been broadcast. 0his is an e8cellent answer to doubtin" 0homases who still as&, MIs Sai Baba li!in" and will he help or can he helpGM 4!en the dullest intellect must now see that such >uestions are ludicrous or flippant. Ce need not repeat other instances where Baba had come to help. 0he number of such instances now is le"ion. Baba has

shown His powers at Joimbatore, 5adras, and so many other places. Ce may perhaps ma&e an e8ception in fa!our of Joimbatore and Ahmedabad and close this pamphlet. 0oim,a-ore Joimbatore was specially luc&y in ha!in" e8traordinary benefits "ranted to some of its citi,ens. )urin" the last "reat world war, a Joimbatorean, 15edical2 Japtain )e!araj, was in the 5editerranean on board a ship. 0he enemy attac&ed that ship with bombs, and the !essel !ery badly suffered dama"e. Japtain )e!araj was at one end, and Sri Sai, his -uru-)e!a sa!ed him completely from any harm. 0his became widely &nown, and at Joimbatore many Bha&tas turned their hearts to Baba. Amon"st these one prominent de!otee was Sri Soundararajan. He started Sai *ooja and Sai Bhajan at home. He constructed a small cotta"e for the public 1' carry on *ooja and Bhajan at one end of the town. $ne e!enin" when *ooja with Bhajan was "oin" on, there was a fairly "ood crowd, and amon"st the crowd came in a sna&e. It crawled o!er the foot of a boy who in fri"ht cried out <sna&e, sna&e%. But he was the only one fri"htened. 0he sna&e stood coiled ( or A feet from the crowd and seemed to follow the music of the Bhajan. It was dan"lin" its head from side to side but &ept its place. *eople who loo&ed at it were wonderin" what sort of sna&e it was that was not fri"htened at the si"ht of men and could appreciate the Bhajan music. It &ept on there from ( p.m. to 9 p.m., the time for closin" the Bhajan temple. 0he men who were all an8ious to depart went away then and came bac& ne8t mornin". Chat a stran"e thin" was it for them to noteD 0he ne8t mornin" when they came they saw the sna&e was still in the 0emple. 0he temple was a mere thatched cotta"e and not a pucca buildin". It is near the road side. 0he people there made up their minds that the sna&e was nothin" but Sai Baba, and that they should offer their worship to Sai Baba by ta&in" heaps and bas&ets of flowers of samanai 1Jhrysanthemum2. A number of de!otees stood all round this sna&e and pic&ed up these flowers and dropped them o!er the head of the sna&e utterin" the Ashtothra +ama!ali of Sai Baba, namely, $m Sri Sainathaya +amah, etc. 0he sna&e stood all this >uietly and when o!er a thousand flowers had fallen on its head, it was still in their midst, and then they were >uite sure and perfectly con!inced that this sna&e was nothin" but Sai Baba, and they called it +a"a Sai. 0hen one of the de!otees said, <Kou are undoubtedly Baba. If we tell people that we worshipped you li&e this, they will not belie!e us. So we must ta&e a photo"raph of you. So, Baba, you must remain in your position till a photo"rapher is brou"ht from the town.M It too& more than half an hour for a photo"rapher to come, but the sna&e was still there. 0he photo"rapher placed his camera close to it and too& an e8cellent snap of it. 4!en men - let alone children - sna&e there heads at the time of ta&in" photo"raphs, and thus spoil the photos. But Sai did not >uail in the least. 0he firm attitude of +a"a Sai was shown by the e8cellent photo"raph that was the result. 0hen after 11 a.m. the +a"a Sai that had come in at ( p.m. the pre!ious day left the place. 0his place is fairly close to the town, and Joimbatore bein" hi"hly populous, thousands of people, hearin" of the mar!el, came from the town and beheld +a"a bein" in the midst of the temple and "ettin" worshipped. 0he photo"raph is now a standin" proof of BabaMs 9eela. Baba showed this 9eela e!idently in order to stri&e the attention of e!en the dullest in these days of atheism, indifference, and scorn at reli"ious matters. Somethin" wonderful is necessary to sha&e people out of all this. So, Baba showed these chamat&ars to con!ince them. 0his result was that more and more, thousands upon thousands, came day after day to loo& at the place where Baba came and "ot worshipped. 0hey put up a +a"a Sai temple of Baba at Joimbatore and it is hi"hly popular. Ahmeda,ad

Ahmedabad is a still stran"er-thou"h not so !ery dramatic - instance of BabaMs chamat&ars. Here a well-&nown lawyer of "ood standin", Sri J. J. 5an&ewallah, was the person to whom or for whose benefit BabaMs 9eelas were performed. Ce may "i!e his e8perience as it appeared in the September 19(3 issue of the Sai Sudha, in the words of Sri 5an&ewallah himself. ?rom 19; to 19(#, for fi!e years continuously, I suffered from )ropsy and "astric ulcer. I had no appetite. I !omited blood and could not eat anythin" or e!en ta&e water. 5y wei"ht became abnormal, !i,. 3'' pounds last year, from 7anuary onwards. I was bed ridden. )octors attended on me. About 19(# April, the chief doctor of the hospital and other consultin" doctors of the city "a!e up hope of my reco!ery. $n one day, the chief doctor noticin" that blood in profuse >uantity was comin" out of my mouth and that my wei"ht due to dropsy was abnormally hi"h, !i,. 3'' pounds said that there was no sufficient blood in the body and that surroundin" poisons would pro!e fatal in # days. Some friends and relations had ad!ised me to worship Sai Baba 1whose temple was opposite to my house2 in April, 19(# and I had hun" up BabaMs picture in front of me and worshipped him. After loo&in" into his photo, I "ot affection for him. ?irst, I had apprehension that I should not worship a 5ohammedan Saint. But, the continuous attraction of His photo on my mind and relationMs tal& "a!e me a sudden !ision of Baba when I was awa&e at A p.m. He then said to me. NI am not a ?a&ir. But I am an incarnation of -uru )atta. 0here are nine "ems 1includin" me2 who are incarnation of )atta, namely. 0ajuddin Baba of +a"pur, )huniwala )ada of @handwa, /ishnu )ebananda Saraswathi of +armada, the 5ahant of A&&al&ote, etc.N 0he ne8t day, I "ot # boo&s in -ujarati on Baba and read them. Some days later when the doctor completely "a!e up hopes and stated that life will pass away in # hours 1at noon2, then Baba appeared in front of me at about 1 p.m. ?irst a li"ht came from the door and Baba came in that li"ht, and my mother Sri Si!a"an"a and I saw Him and Heard his words. He said NBaccha, 5ad "abra tumara sub du&ha me hardeyaN to me: and to my mother he said N0umara sub du&ha me hardeyaN which means, NJhild, fear not, All your disease 1or troubles2 I ha!e ta&en away.N NSend your "randson 0urt immediately to Shirdi.N 0hen he disappeared throu"h the door. As my son had not sufficient e8perience of tra!el and as my sudden death would necessitate the presence of my son for funerals as apprehended by some, I and my mother had to consult to"ether, but we told my son to start in the e!enin" for Shirdi, and he did. At Ap.m. on that day, Baba a"ain appeared and told us. N)o not be afraid. I am with your son also. 0omorrow at 1# $Mcloc& you will recei!e a wire from your son that he has reached Shirdi safe.N After A p.m. the doctor !isited me. He a"ain "a!e up hopes of my sur!i!al and moc&ed at the abo!e e8perience, which was narrated to him. He said. N0his is mere hallucination.H In 1 or #hours, life would depart. 0his he said to my mother, and other close relations. +e8t day, at 1# noon, I "ot my sonMs wire N.eached Shirdi safe.N 0hen from that moment, I be"an to pur"e. I pur"ed continuously for #; hours. =rine also passed. +o blood passed. +e8t day, all poisons had passed out in that way, in the stools and urine: and my body became li"ht. It is wei"hed. 0he wei"ht was B( pounds. 0he heart beatin" and the pulse were normal. 0he doctor came when the pur"in" was "oin" on. He was surprised. He was present at the wei"hin" and the resumption of normal pulse and normal beatin" of the heart. 0he doctor was satisfied that I had now become safe and was sa!ed by the Nmysterious ways of BabaN. ?rom that date of my health re"ularly impro!ed. In # months, I could and did ta&e ordinary food. I am alri"ht since then. I am doin" re"ular lawyerMs wor& now as before. I am always prayin" to Baba. In other matters, e."., domestic, Baba is "uidin" me and protectin" me. 0hen I went to Shirdi and I ha!e now completed all my South Indian pil"rima"es. I will !isit Shirdi a"ain on my way bac& home. I came to 5adras 3 or ; days bac&, as the "uest of 5r. Ambalsi @hapadia of Adyar. $n th ni"ht and on 9th mornin". I had a !ision of Baba 1about ( a.m.2. He commanded me to !isit his temple in 5ylapore and all his de!otees there. So I came here yesterday and to-day.

In 19(3 was the first appearance of Baba to Sir 5an&ewalla but this did not stop with 19(3. In 19(; he had repeated appearance and help of Baba. 0hat was for his benefit. But Baba appeared before him in Au"ust 19(; for the benefit of the public. 0his pamphlet had been written, and attempts were bein" made to print it in Au"ust. 0here was inordinate delay on the part of some printer who undertoo& the tas& of printin" it. 5eanwhile Baba made use of the delay for furnishin" the best answer to the >uestion at the top of this pamphlet. He appeared on the mornin" of #3- -19(; to Sri 5an&ewalla and the messa"e he "a!e was for publication and broadcastin" in this pamphlet and in the History of Sai Baba that was bein" written by Sri B. /. +. Swami and nearin" completion for which also the followin" messa"e in the best 4pilo"ue as it is for this pamphlet. 0his messa"e published in Sai Sudha, September, 19(;, runs as follows6Q FIt is with "reat sense of surprise, joy, and blessedness that I am pennin" these few lines to you, bein" yester ni"ht reminded by Shri Sai Baba, who, with His habitual smilin" face, inspired me in semi awa&ened state at the dawn of the mornin" to refer this matter to you, and to brin" to your notice that Shri Baba is always present before his Bhaktas. He is the guiding and all per!adin" power that shapes the ends of de!otees and e!en of the uni!erse. He has once sa!ed me from the jaws of death, and he only "uides me in all my and e!erybodyMs career, in this world. I saw Baba standin" before me with his stic& lau"hin", and tellin" me the abo!e fact and especially as&in" me to refer the same to you. ChyG 0hat I do not &now.H By the "race of Shri Baba after I reco!ered from 1attac& of the icy hands of *luto2 death I appeared in many ci!il and criminal cases includin" cases under sections 3'#, 3'B I. *. J. murder, and homicide, and I ha!e become successful in all cases. Every moment in life ! feel the presence of Shri Baba. I always feel that like a parent ta&in" care of his child, "e always takes care of me. I ha!e sometimes to pass throu"h se!ere tests in life. I had to stru""le hard with worldly affairs, but in all, lam triumphant. 4!en in spiritual worship, BabaMs presence is felt. He always reminds me at the proper time and ma&eL me feel that he is present watching all my movements and guiding and shaping my lifeMs career in a wonderful way. I a"ain remind you that I am writin" you this at the e8press command of Shri Baba, who has commanded me to refer this matter to you.N A"ain to ma&e assurance doubly sure, Baba was in!ited to write his name at 0hotapalli hills, Shanthi Asram on a sil!er plate. His auto"raph in 0elu"u was, accordin"ly found on the plate. He sent that by the &indness of Sri $m&aar Swami to Sri .ajeswarananda who presided on A-1'-(; at the 1st birthday celebration of Sri B. /. +arasimha Swami and presented to Sri B. /. +arasimha Swami. It is now &ept amon" articles in the *ooja room of the A.I.S.S. 5ylapore Sai 5andir to enable all de!otees to see for themsel!es how Baba is the N9i!in"N -od of his de!otees acti!ely helpin" e!ery one in the uni!erse. ?rom all these the abo!e instances are only an infinitesimal fraction of the miracle and bene!olent acts done by Baba throu"hout the country - one would see that Sai Baba is undoubtedly now li!in" and retainin" the same nature and carryin" on the same mission. )urin" his life in the flesh up to 191 at Shirdi, Baba said M5alm Allahnm.M His nature functions and mission were all di!ine. 0here are undoubtedly to help people who put faith in -od, especially in the form of Sai. So, Sai is still carryin" on his mission of remo!in" the distress, of stren"thenin" faith, of helpin" de!otees of trouble, 1*aritranaya Sadhunam2, and of leadin" those who surrender themsel!es to him to the hi"hest "oal that man can attain, 1)harina samstapanartaya2. Baba is continuin" his life in ethereal or Apantaratma shape without any fleshy body, thou"h whene!er he chooses, li&e +arada and Bhri"u, he does put on his fleshy body and appears to people in order to carry out his hi"h and di!ine plans for the benefit of indi!iduals or society. 0his will, therefore, suffice for this short pamphlet to enable people to sha&e off their doubts,

fears, and inertia, and rouse them into a determination to "et to &now more of Baba, to "et more contact with him, and to "et all that they want, especially freedom from disease, trouble, etc. with his aid, ultimately freedom from all bonda"e, sorrow and misery. 1BOW .O SAI +*A0* .O A''2
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