Who is Sathya Sai Baba?

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Who is Sathya Sai Baba?

 

You may have heard of Sai Baba first in his role as educator,

healer, spiritual leader, social worker. Thousands of people in

every country in the world are witnesses to these aspects of Baba's

life and work.

 

These followers are not members of a sect or cult, but people of all

walks of life, races, cultural background and religions. For Baba

encourages us to seek the underlying unity and divinity in

ourselves, in others and in our lives. He says:-

 

"There is only one religion, the religion of Love,

There is only one language, the language of the Heart,

There is only one caste, the caste of Humanity,

There is only one God and he is Omnipresent".

 

Baba inspires not only through his teachings but above all through

his example; he lives austerely and in ceaseless service to those

around him, making himself approachable and available to thousands

daily, while maintaining a tireless programme of lecturing,

administrating, writing, encouraging the students. He has no

secretary, cleans his own room, accepts no money from anyone (indeed

fund raising is forbidden throughout the organisation).

 

His manner is always patient, gentle, gracious, often humorous and

playful. Although invited countless times to visit other countries,

Baba has so far stayed in India, (apart from one visit to Africa)

maintaining that one has to put one's own house in order before

advising others.

 

His birthplace, once a tiny rural village, is now a beautiful

university town with schools and colleges lining its main street; in

addition, hundreds of villages in surrounding areas have been

adopted by Baba's voluntary workers who have built roads, bridges,

schools and dug wells for them. Regular medical camps care for the

health of thousands of local people and Baba's Education programme

has been implemented in schools throughout India and other countries.

 

Again it is not only his example which inspires but his

extraordinary level of being, which shines through his teachings and

has an impact on all who come into his presence.

 

His frequently witnessed and documented healings, materialisations

of objects, telepathic powers and appearances in more than one place

at once are due to powers he was born with, not developed by special

disciplines. It is said he is not just a fully realised man but the

Main Spiritual Leader of this Age; his life certainly fulfils

prophecies in several religions. He says:-

 

"I know who I am; I have come to help you realise who you are".

 

What are we to make of all this? Could a man who left his village

school at 13 have such a profound knowledge of the world religions

and the ability to teach and explain them with sayings and stories

of Christ-like simplicity? Baba says:-

 

"Come, test, inquire,taste, experience".

 

He also says:

 

"...do not be attracted simply by stories of what I create by a wave

of the hand. Do not jump to conclusions with closed eyes; watch,

study and weigh..."

 

Since 1950, Sathya Sai Baba's residence and headquarters have been

in Prasanthi Nilayam (the Abode of Perfect Peace), a parcel of land

adjacent to the village. His name spread quickly in India, and then

he became known to people on every continent. For many years

Prasanthi Nilayam has been a gathering site for millions of

spiritual pilgrims, from all religions through out the world.

 

To his followers, Sathya Sai Baba is accepted as the Main Spiritual

Leader of this age; a Divine Being who has come to earth as a

manifestation of Divine Will to fulfil a cosmic mission. He has

stated:-

 

"For the protection of the virtuous, for the destruction of

evildoers, and for establishing righteousness on a firm footing I

incarnate from age to age. Whenever disharmony overwhelms the world

the Lord will incarnate in human form to establish the modes of

earning peace, and to re-educate the human community in the paths of

peace."

 

The fame of Sathya Sai Baba was spread, in the beginning, by the

stories of his "miracles", acts which cannot be explained by science

and which transcend physical laws. His manifestation of material

objects; the creation of sacred ash (vibhuti) on the palm and

fingers of his hand, to be used for spiritual and physical aid;

changing an object from one metal to another metal simply by blowing

on it; all of these and many more, before hundreds of thousands of

people, done "by an act of will."

 

He is known to heal the sick and maimed and blind; He has protected

from harm those who called for help, even though thousands of miles

away; He has appeared in his physical form in two different places

at the same time; and He has raised from the dead several persons.

And yet, He states,

 

"You have come to get from me tinsel and trash, the petty cures and

promotions, worldly joys and comforts. Very few of you desire to get

from me the thing I have come to give you, namely, liberation

itself."

 

It has been said that His greatest miracles are the transformation

of people who come to Him, often with doubts and apprehensions, and

who leave with love in their hearts, peace in their minds, and a

resolve to live a more useful, spiritual life.

 

Source: http://home.pacific.net.sg/~saibaba/whoissai.htm