Shaping of the Devotee

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XI. SAI BABA AND NANA SAHEB

SHAPING OF THE DEVOTEE

 

If Sai Baba is known to and worshipped by thousands— nay tens of thousands, to

their great temporal and spiritual advantage to-day, the credit is in no small

measure due to the late Narayan Govind Chandorkar, commonly known as Nana Saheb.

Born in a well-to-do family of pious Brahmin Parents, hs quickly graduated and

entering Government service, rapidly rose to the position of the personal

Assistant to the Collector in 1887. Shortly thereafter came to him the call from

Baba which entirely transformed his life.

The First Call :

One day when he was camping at Kopergaon, for Jama-bandi, Appa, a village

officer of Shirdi, came and told him that Sai Baba wanted him to call at Shirdi.

This message was disbelieved as Nana Saheb had never seen Baba and had nothing

to do with him. Appa was ridiculed and Nana added that even if there was a real

call, he was not prepared to go , to Shirdi. Baba repeated his message a second

time with the same result. Sibyllike, Baba sent his message for the third time

and Nana came at last to see him. After prostrating himself at Baba's feet and

presenting him with some almond and candied sugar, Nana asked why he had been

sent for. Baba said "Nana, there are so many in the world. Do I send for them?

You and I have been connected with each other for four generations. You are not

aware of that fact. But I am. Be visiting me when time permits".

Nana went back, somewhat impressed by Baba's weird knowledge of prenatal

history, but fancied that Baba and his powers had little to do with his own

present life. The seed of faith had been sown however and was gently developing

unperceived. Baba was not the person to neglect the plant he himself sowed.

A Safe Guide :

When plague broke out in Bombay, inoculation was the only known preventive and

Collectors of various districts were keen on its spread. But this prophylactic

being a new discovery there was a widspread apprehension that it might to harm;

and in order to induce the general public to submit to it, officials and other

men of position were called upon to set an example by inoculating themselves.

Nana Saheb had his fears. Then it struck him that Sri Sai Baba would be the

safest guide for him to consult. When he went to Shirdi, Baba assured him that

there was absolutely nothing to fear and bade him to go in for inoculation. Thus

encouraged, Nana Saheb got inoculated and strange to say, there was neither

fever nor swelling, nor any other harm. Encouraged by his example, large numbers

of the intelligentia and in their wake, an appreciable section of the general

public, submitted to inoculation and obtained immunity; from the epidemic.

Nana's faith in Baba was strengthened and his visits to Shirdi became more

frequent.

Stranded on a Hill:

Sometime later, Nana Saheb went up a barren shadeless, . waterless hill,known as

Harischandra Hill. When he ,was half-way up,the scorching heat of summer told on

his system and he felt the pangs of thirst. But there was no water -any water to

be seen and no shade to rest under. He sat on a rock and exclairned that if Sri

Sai Baba were present there, js,,he would .surely provide him with water. A

friend by his side reminded him that "ifs" were no .use, that-Sri SaLBaba was at

Shirdi scores of miles away and that he should try and ... get up to walk up or

walk down. But poor Nana Saheb was unable to move even a few steps.

Just at this juncture Sri Sai Baba was 'seated at his mosque at Shirdi.

He remarked to those present, "What shall we do? Nana is thirsty. He is

panting for water and the heat (of summer) is great. A little water at least

must Be given to him". None of -.the listeners understood, the exact

implication of what Baba spoken.

The Relief:

On the Hill, Nana Saheb, after a short spell of gfura silence, looked up and saw

a Bhil passing by. ."Well my friend"; cried Nana, "I am very thirsty. Can a

little water be had here to drink?Dear!" replied the Bhil "under the very

rock you are sitting upon, water is available'1. And the Bhil went away. Nana's

friends then, with much effort pushed away the rock he sat on; and lo! there was

under it was potable water just enough to quench one man's thirst. How could any

one have known of its presence there? None could discover how and when that

water got there. Nana felt that Baba must have provided it.

Some days later Nana went to-Shirdi and Baba's first words to him were: "What

Nana did you get water?" Nana shed tears of joy and his faith was greatly

strengthened. People there told him of Baba's reference to him and his thirst

oivthe memorable day, Nana placed himself thenceforward, entirely -under Baba's

protection and was often thinking of him.

 

(This is from the book"The Wonderous Saint Sai Baba" written by

Pujyasri B.V.Narasimaswami,founder President of All India Sai

Samaj, Chennai....this book can be read at www.saileelas.org)