Sai Satcharitra for kids and for everyday reading
Introduction:
Shri Sai Baba
lived in Shirdi, which is in Maharashtra, India, between 1858 and 1918.
Devotees believe that Baba is an incarnation of Lord Dattatreya, and lived a
life of purity and love. Baba delivered spiritual teachings to his visitors,
recommending the reading of sacred Hindu texts and the Qur'an. He did not
believe in any one religion, but in one God and the goodness of people. Baba advised
his followers to lead moral lives, help others, love every living being without
discrimination. Most importantly, Baba taught people to develop two important
features of character: faith (shraddha)
and patience (saburi).
Shri Sai
Satcharitra is collection of stories and miracles (leelas) that have been witnessed by devotees of Shri Shirdi Sai
Baba during his lifetime. They were written down by one of Baba’s devotees, Hemadpant,
so that future generations would understand His love and teachings.
Chapter
1:
Around the year
1910, Shirdi was plagued by the epidemic of Cholera. The people of Shirdi asked
Baba for help, claiming that they did not know what to do to help their loved
ones. After hearing many such requests, Baba awoke one morning, washed his
hands and face, and started to grind wheat using a hand mill. The villagers
were confused as to how this practice would help their sick families, but still
helped Baba with His task. Finally, when all the wheat was ground into flour,
Baba told the villagers to take scatter the flour around the village borders.
When the villagers asked why, Baba smiled knowingly and told them that the
Cholera would subside. Baba’s devotees believed that it was not wheat, but the
disease, that had been ground and thrown away from the village. Shirdi was no
longer plagued by Cholera within a few months, and the villagers lived well.
Chapter
2:
Hemadpant, the
author of Shri Sai Satcharitra, did not think that he was worthy enough to
write such a historic piece of work on Baba. He considered the momentous life
of Sai Baba, and believed that he would not be able to achieve his goal of telling
the world the stories of His grace, love, and teachings.
Hempadpant
believed that the only reason he was brave enough to start his work was because
he had faith in his Guru. He argued that a guru could not make a lazy man do
work. When Hemadpant posed the question to Baba, He replied that a guru is like
a guide: no matter how dangerous or tough a path is, a guide will be able to
lead one to one’s destination without approaching any harm. People have been
able to attain self-realization and the virtues necessary for progress by
submitting to their Gurus through faith and patience (shraddha and saburi).
Hemadpant looked
to his Guru, Shri Sai Baba, before starting his work. He took a trip to see
Baba in Shirdi, and obtained a darshan
from Him, where he was able to surrender himself, his doubts, and his ambitions
at His feet. With this act, his thoughts and ideas were changed, allowing him
to start his work without any worries and with the blessings of the Lord.
Chapter
3:
A story in which
Baba’s love is shown is in the story of Rohilla. Rohilla, a tall and strong
man, came to Shirdi in search of Baba. He stayed in Shirdi and cried out the
Lord’s name throughout the night, which disturbed the people of the village. The
villagers came to Baba, asking him to help them with this problem. Baba ignored
the pleas of the people, and told them that Rohilla’s wife was a bad woman, and
that his cries at night were keeping her away from the village. In reality,
Baba knew that Rohilla had no wife. He prayed loudly to keep his mind away from
any bad thoughts (durbuddhi), keeping
his mind and heart pure. Sai Baba supported Rohilla because he chanted the
Lord’s name, showing his love for God and His teachings.
The purpose of a
lighthouse is to lead boats to safety, avoiding any rocks or dangers along the
shoreline. The stories of the miracles (leelas) performed by Sai Baba serve a
similar purpose in the lives of His devotees. Stories of Baba’s love and caring
will guide people along the right path, helping them to lead better lives.
Baba’s love is all-encompassing, and is evident at all times.
Chapter 4:
Shri Sai Baba had many devotees who
loved Him. He believed that all people had goodness inside them, and that
chanting the Lord’s name would help to bring that to the fore. The following
tales are about Baba’s followers and their love and devotion to Him.
Goulibuva was a great devotee of Sai
Baba. Although he was quite old, close to 95, he made many religious journeys
to obtain darshan from the Lord. He
believed that Baba was the Lord on earth, calling Him “Pandharinath Vithal.”
Goulibuva was devoted to Baba and chanted His name, praising the Lord who
helped the poor and helpless until his death.
Ganapat Dattatrya Sahasra Budde, whom
people affectionately called Das Ganu Maharaj, was a great poet and musician.
Sai Baba and His devotees frequently sang praises of the Lord. When this
chanting continued at once for seven days at a time, it was called Namah Sapta. One day, Baba asked Das
Ganu Maharaj to chant the Namah Sapta.
Ganu Maharaj replied that he would only do it if the Lord (whom he called
“Vithal”) appeared to him on the seventh day. Baba told him that it would
surely happen if Ganu Maharaj’s prayers were honest and devout. As it turned
out, Vithal appeared to Ganu Maharaj in Shirdi after the seven days’
prayer.
Das Ganu Maharaj, like many Hindus,
believed in the purity of holy water (theertham).
When Ganu Maharaj came to ask Baba for his permission to go on a holy journey
to visit the Ganges, Baba replied that it was not necessary, and that all he
had to do was to believe in the Lord. When Das Ganu Maharaj placed his head at
Baba’s feet, streams of the holy waters of the Ganges and Yamuna flowed onto
his head. Ganu Maharaj was overcome with love for his Lord, and immediately
sang the praises of Baba.
Similarly, a man named Kaka Dixit,
another devotee of Baba, was meditating when he saw a vision of Vittoba. When
Kaka Dixit went to Baba for a darshan later
that day, Baba told him to remain pious, and that the vision would come true
soon enough. That afternoon, as Kaka Dixit was returning to his home, he saw
merchant selling pictures of Vittoba. Kaka Dixit, bought a picture of the Lord
and placed it in his shrine.
Nana Saheb Chandorkar, an employee in
the civil court, had heard many tales of Baba’s love and mercy. After his
department exams, Chandorkar prayed to Baba, promising that he would come to
Shirdi and distribute sweets in His name if he passed. Chandorkar passed his
exams, but did not have the money to make the trip to Shirdi. To fulfill his
promise, he stopped putting sugar in his tea, saving money to make the trip to
see Baba. When he was finally able to get Baba’s darshan, Chandorkar felt that his life had been made better with
His blessings.
Chapter 5:
Shri Sai Baba was only in Shirdi for a
few years before suddenly disappearing. His devotees were baffled that He had
left them on their own, but knew that if they were devout, He would return to
them. Baba returned to Shirdi in quite an amusing way.
Chand Patil, a wealthy man who lived in
Nizam, lost his horse while on a trip to Aurangabad. While on his way home,
Patil came across a queer man sitting under a mango tree. He wore a Kafni (a long robe) and a cap on His
head, which made Him look like a Fakir (a
Muslim saint). The man called out to Chand Patil, and asked him what his
problems were. Patil told him that he had lost his horse, and had not found him
after months of searching. The Fakir told
Patil to search in the dam close to where they were sitting, where Patil found
his horse.
Chand Patil returned to the Fakir with his horse, where the two men
started to smoke a chillim (pipe).
Patil realized that there was no fire to light the lamp nor was there any water
to wet the pipe with. Patil watched with amazement as the Fakir struck the chillim
on the ground, starting a flame. When the men had finished smoking the chillim, He struck it against the ground
again, magically soaking it with water. Once the two men had rested, Chand
Patil invited the Fakir to his home
so that he could be a part of his nephew’s marriage celebrations. The Fakir accepted Patil’s hospitality, and
went to his home the next day, where He was again invited to attend the
marriage of Patil’s nephew in Shirdi.
Chand Patil’s whole family and the Fakir went to Shirdi for the marriage,
but when the Fakir stepped off the
carts onto the ground, a villager, Mahalaspati, cheered “Ya sai,” which meant “Welcome, Sai.” After that day, the Fakir was known as Sai Baba, and
remained in Shirdi from then on.
Sai Baba had no home or earthly
possessions, but started to live in an old mosque in the middle of Shirdi to
serve the people of the village.
Baba used to borrow oil from local
shopkeepers, called the Banias, to light the mosque throughout the night. After
some time, the Banias decided that they would no longer supply Baba with oil.
Baba was not worried by this, and returned to the mosque with his tumrel (tin pot). He added water to the
few drops of oil in the tumrel, drank
it, and returned it to the container. He then used this water to fill all the
lamps, and lit them. The lamps burned throughout the night, bringing shame to
the Banias, who then apologized to Baba and repented for their mistake.
Chapter 6:
Gopalrao Gund, a great devotee of Sai
Baba, was blessed with a baby boy. He wanted to celebrate the occasion with a
grand festival on the day of Rama Navami.
Gopalrao Gund asked Baba for advice, who granted His permission for the
celebration. Unfortunately, there was a scarcity of water in the village, and
the remaining water was salty. Upon hearing this news, Baba dropped flowers
into the well, making the water sweet. After the celebration, Gopalrao Gund and
his friend, Nanasaheb Nimonkar, added two embroidered flags to the top of
Baba’s mosque. This act is still performed in Shirdi on days of celebration.
The festival of Rama Navami has since been a grand celebration in Shirdi. Each
year, more devotees became involved in the process, adding songs, music, and
traditions to the celebrations. Sai Baba was happy when His followers started
becoming involved in the festival because people were willing put aside their
differences and work together to make the celebrations successful.
Chapter 7:
Shri Sai Baba was a good and tolerant
Guru. He believed that as long as people were pure of heart and pious in their
beliefs, God would be good to them. He did not like to differentiate between
religions or sects, and liked to participate in any functions that praised the
Lord. Hindus, Christians, and Muslims prostrated before Baba, asking for his
blessings. He treated all people in the same manner, and let his love flow
through each person that received his darshan.
Sai Baba was proficient in many forms
of Yoga, and liked to use His practices to help the people that believed in
Him.
While Baba was sitting near the dhuni (holy fire) in His mosque one day,
He reached for a log to push into the fire. But instead of a log, He pushed His
arm into the fire, which burned and scorched immediately. Baba’s followers came
running towards Him, and dragged him away from the fire, asking Him why He had
done such a thing. Baba replied that He had sensed that the wife of a
blacksmith was near a fire in her home. She had been in a hurry and slipped
near the fire, dropping her child into the furnace. Baba thrust his hand into
the dhuni to save the child. His
followers were amazed as to see the love and mercy of the Lord.
Leela, the wife of one of Baba’s
devotees, was worried for the health of her son, who was suffering with the
Bubonic Plague. She went to Baba, and told Him that she was scared that her son
may not be able to survive the disease. Baba told her that illness would pass,
just as the clouds in the sky would move away, revealing the sun behind them.
Saying this, He lifted up His kafni, showing
her the bubbles of pus on His chest. Baba smiled and said that He suffered for
His devotees, and that their difficulties were His. Baba suffered for all that
believed in Him because He believed in their devotion and the love that they
showed for Him.
Chapter 8:
The author describes how taking birth
in a human form is double-edged sword. Humans can make the best of the
situation or ruin the opportunity by squandering in vices. The virtues of
forgiveness, charity, and benevolence will help people move towards becoming
more pure and, in turn, more in tune with God. By submitting oneself to a guru,
the path to enlightenment seems clearer. Sai Baba’s devotees were known for
being humble and pious due to their love for Him. Baba, in turn, showed love to
anyone in whom He saw God.
One such example is Tatya Kote’s
mother, Bayajabai, who was known for her service to Baba. She would spend time
everyday searching for Baba in the forest where He did penance. Though she was
poor, Bayajabai would bring Baba food and vegetables everyday and feed Him
throughout his stay in the forest. Baba was immensely pleased by her faith and
service and helped both Bayajabai and her son when they needed His help.
Chapter 9:
Although many devotees came to visit
Shirdi to obtain Sai Baba’s blessings, people believed that they could not
enter or leave the village of God until He gave them permission. Sometimes, He
would give hints or suggestions, and other times, His hints would be less
overt. Devotees who followed Baba’s word were rewarded, while those who did not
usually fell into problems.
Once, Baba’s devotee, Tatya Kote, came
to Baba in a rush and told Him that he was going to Kopargtaon Bazaar. Baba
told him not to rush, and to wait a while before leaving. Not listening to His
words, Tatya Kote immediately left the village on his bullock cart. Soon, one
of the horses steering the cart sprained its leg, and fell down. Tatya returned
to the village and acknowledged his mistake in not listening to Baba’s advice.
Another instance of this was seen when
a wealthy European man arrived in Shirdi to obtain Baba’s blessings. He wanted
to be treated differently than the other devotees, and wanted special
permission to kneel before Baba and kiss His hand. Baba did not like this, and
prevented his entry into the mosque on every attempt. Baba told the man to sit
with the other devotees, to which the man got angry and threatened to leave
Shirdi. Baba told the man to stay another night in Shirdi, and that He would
meet him the next day. The European man left the village anyway, meeting with
an accident on the way. After seeing the problems that fell upon people who
didn’t listen to Baba’s words, everyone that entered the village was careful to
ask for Baba’s permission and blessings before journeying into and out of
Shirdi.
Chapter 10:
None knows the exact birth-date of Sai
Baba or how He came to be in Shirdi, but it could be approximated by His stay
in Shirdi. Since Baba was sixteen when He first came to Shirdi, and twenty when
He reappeared in the village to stay forever, it can be assumed that Baba was
born in 1838. He was approximately 80 years old when He ascended to the
celestial plane. Throughout His time on Earth, Shirdi Baba always preached one
message to his devotees. He said that all Gods were one, and that there was no
difference between religions because they all believed in God and a Supreme
Being. Baba used to read scriptures from all the religions, and pray to both
Allah and the Hindu Gods. He saw Divinity in all people, animals, and beings.
One such story is described in the tale of Nanavalli.
Nanavalli was a quiet man who lived in
Shirdi, and worked for Baba at his Masjid. One day, he came to Baba and had a
strange request that Baba get off His seat as he wanted to sit on it. Baba was
not angry at all, and got up from His seat to let Nanavalli sit in it.
Nanavalli sat in Baba’s feet and then fell at Baba’s feet. He passed away that
day after serving Baba his whole life.
Chapter 11:
Dr Pandit was a friend of Tatyasaheb
Noolkar and also a devotee of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba. He came to Baba’s Mosque,
and after darshan, decided to stay with Him and His devotees in Shirdi. One
day, Dr Pandit reached for Baba’s puja plate, and applied sandalwood paste on Babas
forehead. To everyone’s surprise, Baba
did not say anything, and allowed Dr Pandit to do so. Baba later told the other
devotees that He allowed Dr Pandit to put sandal paste on His head because Dr
Pandit’s heart was pure. It was an act of devoutness to his Guru, so Baba was
happy about it.
The story of Sidik Falke is one that
shows Babas grace and will. Sidik Falke was a Muslim man who had made
pilgrimages to Mecca, Medina, and Shirdi. He lived in Shirdi, and sat facing
Baba’s mosque every day. Baba did not allow him inside the mosque for nine
months, for which Falke felt very bad. Falke asked other devotees to help him
enter Baba’s heart. Shama, one of Baba’s most beloved devotees, tried to help
Falke by acting as a go-between for Falke and Baba. Baba asked Falke difficult
questions, for which Falke always assented. Finally, Baba went to Falke with
anger and told him that he did not need Baba’s blessing as he already prayed to
Allah. Falke lowered his head and gave himself to Baba freely, for which Baba
was then happy and accepted him as his devotee. Baba saw that Falke was not
religiously swayed or biased. He was happy to pray to all Gods and treat all
religion as one.
Chapter 12:
Babas devotee, Kaka Mahajani, once went
to Shirdi from Bombay for the Gokul Ashtami festival. He wanted to stay
there for a week, when Baba called him near and asked when he would be returning
home. He was surprised at this question, but he answered saying that he wished
to leave Shirdi in a week’s time. Baba told him to leave the next day, which he
followed. When he returned to Bombay, it turned out that his employer was
waiting for him and that his job was in jeopardy. Baba had forseen this and
told him to leave Shirdi immediately so that he could reach Bombay in time to
save his job.
Another story in which Baba’s word
changed a man’s life was in the instance of Moolay Shastri, a Brahmin from
Nasik. Moolay Shastri went for Baba’s darshan
in His mosque with the magistrate of the town and a few friends. Moolay
Shastri did not enter the masjid because he did not think that it was a pure or
sacred place. But when he started to throw flowers at Baba’s feet, the image
before him transformed into his Guru, whom Moolay Shastri trusted and loved. He
was taken aback, and thought he was dreaming, but the image did not change.
Then, Moolay Shastri bowed in front of Baba and sang the aarti with His other devotees, leaving all doubts at Baba’s feet.
(To
be continued ….)
Reference:
Guru provides
proper guidance to the seeker of knowledge, in the Atma-Gyan (self-realization
) and Brahma-Gyan (the realization of the ultimate- Brahman). Guru dispels the darkness caused by ignorance.
(‘Gu’ means darkness and
‘ru’ means, its removal). God is extremely simple. But our minds are so
complicated. That is why we need a Guru -- not to teach us about our path, but
to teach us about our mind, and to get us through the mind to that absolute
simplicity, which is God.
