There is never a dull moment with Sai Baba

November 14, 2009

There is never a dull moment with Sai Baba14/11/2009 Venkat Raman

I have often heard some people say that they visit Sri Satya Sai Baba in Puttaparthi (Andhra Pradesh) or Whitefield (near Bangalore) expecting him to materialise a gold chain, a wristwatch or at least vibhuthi (sacred ash).

Baba rarely obliges them.

For, his objective is to draw people into a world of piety, chastity, righteousness and good behaviour, and not to show them ‘miracles.’

“Then why do you do it?” I used to ask him.

“One day you would be writing impressive headlines to draw the attention of people to read your stories,” he prophesied.

“Why are there rewards for achievers?” he said, hoping that I would understand the import of his thoughts.

I have had the honour and privilege of knowing Baba since I was a teenager and learnt from him about life in all its vicissitudes over countless meetings and discussions.

I have also met people who used to arrive at the ‘Prashanti Nilayam’ in Puttaparthi just to have a glimpse of their favourite Bhagawan (God).

I distinctly remember a great writer and editor of a magazine telling Baba 30 years ago, “I Want Peace.”

Lofty, meaningful goals

Instant came the reply, “Remove I (ego) and Want (desire) and you will have Peace.” Then turning to me, he said, “Just like all the wealth that one has, just like what you call, ‘miracles,’ everything is illusion. What is ultimate is the truth – of who you are and what you do.”

Baba also used to tell me time and again, “Do not just to strive to raise your Standard of Living. You should lift the your Standard of Life. The former is material but the latter is eternal.”

My career has taken me to many countries around the world, I have spent more years living elsewhere than in the land of my birth, but I have never lost touch with the Greatest Teacher that I have ever had in life.

I also remember many world leaders, celebrities and people who you read about in newspapers or watch on television preferring to wait along with the crowd, rather than seek a special audience (not that he would always oblige) with Baba.

“Everyone is important for Baba and everyone is equal before my eyes,” he would say and then invite the least expected person and his family for a special meeting.

“Every person aspires for happiness and peace without understanding nature. While we are all a part of nature, why should we differentiate between each other in terms of wealth, community and religion? Though there are many determined men, no one knows the goal of life,” he said, speaking on his birthday recently.

Great social worker

Baba’s Birthday (November 23) has always been a special occasion for me since my formative years. I would be excited to see a few hundred people (compared to tens of thousands today) come together to sing in his praise and do voluntary work.

Baba is a great social worker.

From building roads and bridges to bringing potable water to the poor people in villages, he has achieved more than what any government anywhere could claim to have done in years.

Education has always been his passion.

“Look at those innocent faces,” he would say, showing me some photographs or pointing to children in an assembly, “they are so impressionable and therefore it is important that they are shaped well. Education without character is useless. It is like chanting a mantra without either understanding its meaning or concentrating on God. We should not let our children go astray.”

The educational institutions that he has built or funded are all today citadels of understanding and appreciating the larger aspects of life, rather than rote learning of arts and science subjects. Students are taught qualitative aspects of life and emerge from these schools and colleges as fine young men and women, without being addicted to alcohol, drugs or cigarettes.

An inimitable Avatar

Those were days of intense curiosity as well. I used to hear from ‘Kasturi Kaka’ that Satya Sai Baba is an Avatar and an actual incarnation of the full power of Divinity, of the Godhead.

“The birth of Satya Sai was an auspicious event, which has not occurred for more than 5000 years. In another major Age of Mankind, Baba was Lord Krishna, he would say.

Baba says that that divine essence has come again, as the prophets have foretold, to guide and uplift Mankind at this critical time in human history.

It is a historical fact that Divinity appears amongst us in order to remind us of our divinity.

“I know who I am. I have come to help you to realise who you are. You are no less. All of us are God Incarnate,” Baba has said on many occasions.

The Bhagavan, the Supreme Being, the Social Worker, the Doctor who cures all ailments and above all, the World’s Greatest Teacher is a class to Himself, attracting people of all religious faiths, income groups and nationalities into his fold. Whether he is an Avatar or not may be a subject of debate but the former is gaining ground.

On the occasion of his Birthday on November 23, Indian Newslink offers its salutations to Baba on behalf of millions of his devotees all over the world.

Celebrations in New Zealand

Indian Newslink understands that Satya Sai organisations and groupings will mark the 84th Birthday of Satya Sai Baba on November 23 with prayers and other events. The following are some of them:

· Skiptin Hall, 53 Skipton Road, Mangere, Manukau City from 715 pm to 930 pm

· Mahatma Gandhi Centre, 145 New North Road, Eden Terrace 7 pm to 9 pm

· Kelston Community Centre, 126 Awaroa Road, Kelston, Waitakere 630 pm to 945 pm

· Edgewater College, 32 Edgewater Drive, Pakuranga, Manukau 430 pm to 730 pm

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