Sai Satcharitra - Chapter III
Sai Baba’s Sanction and Promise - Assignment of Work to Devotees - Baba’s Stories as Beacon - Light - His Motherly Love - Rohilla’s Story - His sweet and Nectar - like Words.
Sai Baba’s Sanction and Promise
As described in the previous chapter, Sai Baba gave His complete
assent to the writing of the Sat-Charitra and said, "I fully
agree with you regarding the writing of Sat Charitra. You do your
duty, don’t be afraid in the least, steady your mind and
have faith in My words. If My Leelas are written, the Avidya (nescience)
will vanish and if they are attentively, and devoutly listened
to, the consciousness of the worldly existence will abate, and
strong waves of devotion, and love will rise up and if one dives
deep into My Leelas, he would get precious jewels of knowledge."
Hearing this, author was much pleased, and he at once became fearless and confident, and thought that work was bound to be a success. Then turning to Shama (Madhavrao Deshpande) Sai Baba said.
"If a man utters My name with love, I shall fulfill all his wishes, increase his devotion. And if he sings earnestly My life and My deeds, him I shall beset in front and back and on all sides. Those devotees, who are attached to Me, heart and soul, will naturally feel happiness, when they hear these stories. Believe Me that if anybody sings My Leelas, I will give him infinite joy and everlasting contentment. It is My special characteristic to free any person, who surrenders completely to Me, and who does worship Me faithfully, and who remembers Me, and meditates on Me constantly. How can they be conscious of worldly objects and sensations, who utter My name, who worship Me, who think of My stories and My life and who thus always remember Me? I shall draw out My devotees from the jaws of Death. If My stories are listened to, all the diseases will be got rid of. So, hear My stories with respect; and think and meditate on them, assimilate them. This is the way of happiness and contentment. The pride and egoism of My devotees will vanish, the mind of the hearers will be set at rest; and if it has wholehearted and complete faith, it will be one with Supreme Consciousness. The simple remembrance of My name as ‘Sai, Sai’ will do away with sins of speech and hearing".
Different Works Assigned to Devotees
The Lord entrusts different works to different devotees.
Some are given the work of building temples and maths, or ghats
(flight of steps) on rivers; some are made to sing the glories
of God; some are sent on pilgrimages; but to me was allotted the
work of writing the Sat Charitra. Being a jack-of-all-trades but
master of none, I was quite unqualified for this job. Then why
should I undertake such a difficult job? Who can describe the
true life of Sai Baba? Sai Baba’s grace alone can enable
one to accomplish this difficult work. So, when I took up the
pen in my hand, Sai Baba took away my egoism and wrote Himself
His stories. The credit of relating these stories, therefore,
goes to Him and not to me. Though Brahmin by birth, I lacked the
two eyes. (i.e. the sight or vision) of Shruti and Smriti and
therefore was not at all capable of writing the Sat-Charitra, but
the grace of the Lord makes a dumb man talk, enables a lame man
to cross a mountain. He alone knows the knack of getting things
done, as He likes. Neither the flute, nor the harmonium knows
how the sounds are produced. This is the concern of the Player.
The oozing of Chandrakant jewel and the surging of the sea are
not due to the jewel and the sea but to the rise of the moon.
Baba’s Stories as Beacon- Light
Light houses are constructed at various places in the sea, to
enable the boatmen to avoid rocks and dangers, and make them sail
safely. Sai Baba’s stories serve a similar purpose in the
ocean of worldly existence. They surpass nectar in sweetness,
and make our worldly path smooth and easy to traverse. Blessed
are the stories of the saints. When they enter our hearts through
the ears, the body - consciousness or egoism and the sense of
duality vanish; and when they are stored in the heart, doubts
fly out to all sides, pride of the body will fall, and wisdom
will be stored in abundance. The description of Baba’s pure
fame, and the hearing of the same, with love, will destroy the
sins of the devotee and, therefore, this is the simple Sadhana
for attaining salvation. The Sadhana for Krita Age was Shamadama
(tranquillity of mind and body), for Treta Age, sacrifice, for
Dwapara, worship, and for Kali (present) Age, it is singing of
the name and glory of the Lord. This last Sadhana is open to all
the people of the four varnas (Brahmins, etc.). The other Sadhanas,
viz. Yoga, Yagya (sacrifice), Dhyana (meditation) and Dharana
(concentration) are very difficult to practice, but singing and
hearing the stories and the glory of the Lord (Sai Baba) is very
easy. We have only to turn our attention towards them. The listening
and singing of the stories will remove the attachment to the senses
and their objects, and will make the devotees dispassionate, and
will ultimately lead them to self-realization. With this end in
view, Sai Baba made me or helped me to write His stories, Sat-Charitramrita.
The devotees may now easily read and hear these stories of Sai
Baba and while doing so, meditate on Him, His form and thus attain
devotion to Guru and God (Sai Baba), get detachment and self-realization.
In the preparation and writing of this work, Sat-Charitramrita,
it is Sai Baba’s grace which has accomplished everything,
making use of Me as a mere instrument.
Motherly Love of Sai Baba
Everybody knows how a cow loves her infant calf. Her udder is
always full and when the calf wants milk and dashes at the udder,
out comes the milk in an unceasing flow. Similarly a human mother
knows the wants of her child and feeds it, at her breast in time.
In case of dressing and adorning the child, the mother takes particular
care to see that this is well done. The child knows or cares nothing
about this, but the mother’s joy knows no bounds, when she
sees her child beautifully dressed and adorned. The love of mother
is peculiar, extraordinary and disinterested, and has no parallel.
Sadgurus feel this motherly love towards their disciples. Sai
Baba had this same love towards me, and I give an instance of
it below: -
In 1916 A.D. I retired from Government Service. The pension that was settled in my case was not sufficient to maintain my family decently. On Guru-Pournima (15th of Ashadha) day of that year, I went to Shirdi with other devotees. There, Mr. Anna Chinchanikar, of his own accord, prayed to Baba for me as follows: - "Please look kindly on him, the pension he gets is quite insufficient, his family is growing. Give him some other appointment, remove his anxiety and make him happy." Baba replied - " He will get some other job, but now he should serve Me and be happy. His dishes will be ever full and never empty. He should turn all his attention towards Me and avoid the company of atheists, irreligious and wicked people. He should be meek and humble towards all and worship Me heart and soul. If he does this, he will get eternal happiness".
The question Who is this HE, Whose worship is advocated, is already answered in a note on "Who is Sai Baba" in the prologue, at the beginning of this work.
Rohilla’s Story
The story of the Rohilla illustrates Sai Baba’s all embracing
love. One Rohilla, tall and well built, strong as a bull, came
to Shirdi, wearing a long Kafni (robe) and was enamoured of Sai
who stayed there. Day and night he used to recite in a loud and
harsh tone Kalma (verses from Holy Koran) and shout "ALLAH
HO AKBAR" (God is Great). Most people of Shirdi were working
in their fields by day and when they returned to their homes at
night, they were welcomed with the Rohilla’s harsh cries
and shouts. They could get no sleep and felt much trouble and
inconvenience. They suffered in silence this nuisance for some
days, and when they could stand it no longer, they approached
Baba, and requested Him to check the Rohilla and stop the nuisance.
Baba did not attend to their complaint. On the contrary, Baba
took the villagers to task, and asked them to mind their own business,
and not the Rohilla. He said to them that the Rohilla had got
a very bad wife, a Zantippi, who tried to come in and trouble
the Rohilla and Himself; but hearing the Rohilla’s prayers,
she dare not enter and they were at peace and happy. In fact,
the Rohilla had no wife and by his wife Baba meant DURBUDDHI,
i.e. bad thoughts. As Baba liked prayers and cries to God better
than anything else, He took the side of the Rohilla, and asked
the villagers to wait and suffer the nuisance, which would abate
in due course.
Baba’s Sweet and Nectar-like Words
One day at noon after the Arti, devotees were returning to their
lodgings, when Baba gave the following beautiful advice:-
"Be wherever you like, do whatever you choose, remember this well that all what you do is known to Me. I am the Inner Ruler of all and seated in their hearts. I envelope all the creatures, the movable and immovable world. I am the Controller - the wirepuller of the show of this Universe. I am the mother - origin of all beings - the Harmony of three Gunas, the propeller of all senses, the Creator, Preserver and Destroyer. Nothing will harm him, who turns his attention towards Me, but Maya will lash or whip him who forgets Me. All the insects, ants, the visible, movable and immovable world, is My Body or Form".
Hearing these beautiful and precious words, I at once decided in my mind to serve no man henceforward, but my Guru only; but the reply of Baba to Anna Chinchanikar’s query (which was really mine) that I would get some job began to revolve in my mind, and I began to think whether it would come to happen. As future events showed, Baba’s words came true and I got a Government job, but that was of short duration. Then I became free and solely devoted my self to the service of my Guru-Sai Baba.
Before concluding this Chapter, I request the readers to leave out the various hindrances viz. indolence, sleep, wandering of mind, attachments to senses, etc. and turn their whole and undivided attention to these stories of Sai Baba. Let their love be natural, let them know the secret of devotion; let them not exhaust themselves by other Sadhanas, let them stick to this one simple remedy, i.e. listening to Sai Baba’s stories. This will destroy their ignorance and will secure for them salvation. A miser may stay at various places; but he always thinks of his buried treasure. So let Sai Baba be enthroned in the hearts of all.
In the next chapter, I shall speak of Sai Baba’s advent in Shirdi.
Bow to Shri Sai - Peace be to all