BABA AND HUMOUR (7)

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BABA AND HUMOUR (7)

 

Again, on one occasion, when Hemant Pant alias Anna Dabolkar came to

Baba, there was in the fold of his coat some channa, that is, fried

grain, and it fell from his coat; and people were joking about him.

That was a day of the fair at Shirdi, and Dabolkar had perhaps been

to the fair. Baba, wanting to have a joke at him, said, `Oh! This

channa shows that he is in the habit of eating things all by himself

without sharing it with others'. Dabolkar was upset and he protested

that he had no such habit. But how the channa got into his dress, he

could not explain. Then, Baba made further use of the occasion and

told him, `When you eat, do you give things to me? Am I not always by

your side?' Thus impressing on him a very valuable lesson that Baba

was present everywhere, and that they should first offer their food

their food to him as their Gurudeva, before taking their food. This

is a sacred lesson, and this teaching is divine. But it came out as

Baba's humour, and poked fun at Anna Saheb Dabolkar.

 

Baba's saying, `I am not at Shirdi', when he was actually staying

with them at the Mosque, was another instance of humour combined with

great spiritual truth. By his statement that he was not at Shirdi, he

wished to convey that he was not the physical body seen at Shirdi,

but the real personality, which is a divine Force, present

everywhere, especially in the hearts of all people. Baba meanwhile

enjoyed the puzzled looks of people who thought that he was talking

untruth by denying his presence at Shirdi. This was especially the

case with a local lady, who could not understood what Baba meant by

his words to Mrs. R. A. Tarkhad. Baba said to the latter, `Mother, I

am going thrice a day to your house in Bandra, Is it not?' and the

lady said. `Yes'. The local lady said, `We are seeing Baba here

everyday, and how could he go thrice a day to Bandra, which is 100

miles away'. But Baba said, `I go to that house'. He then gave a

description of route, etcetra. The local lady did not understand that

Baba was referring to his travelling in his linga sarira to his

devotees places and accepting the naivedya, offered three.

 

Another practical joke played by Baba for effecting good was the

following. Kaka Mahajani was suffering from diarrhoea. He had

frequent motions and so he had to carry with him a vessel lota of

water. He had come to the Mosque, along with the lota of water. He

had come to the Mosque, along with the lota of water. Baba knew very

well his condition and when Kaka was there, he suddenly got into a

rage and uttered words and acted in such a furious way that all the

people took to their heels. In the rush and bustle some one seated at

the mantap eating ground nuts left the groundnuts and fled for life.

Kaka Mahajani thought that he must also go away. He was proceeding to

take his vessel in order to move away. But Baba quietly came down to

him and asked him to sit. Then they took up the groundnuts left by

that stranger, and both of them consumed the ground nuts, and drank

water. Now groundnut and water is hardly the best treatment for

diarrhoea. In ordinary cases, it would accelerate diarrhoea and make

the man miserable. But in this case, Baba said, `Your anus be

closed', and the discharge ceased. Kaka Mahajani was cured. Baba had

used his apparent fury for the purpose of securing groundnuts for his

devotee.

 

(Courtesy: H H Pujyasri B. V. Narasimha Swamiji)