sai_pranam

In view of this understanding it would be in the fitness of things to substitute the word miracles by the more comprehensive term - leelas. This exquisite denomination at once gives to these uncommon experiences of Sai bhaktas the correct touch of dignity which places them far above the trivialities of a soothsayer or even above the lesser miracles of a prophet who is not an Avatar. The Divine leela is one of the most aesthetic aspects of the religious philosophy. It lies in the nature of the supreme Purushottama to reveal Himself in the way he does. His leelas are His manifestations, and since the Lord is all in all, there can be no miracles from the point of view of the eternal. Sai Baba, therefore, does not perform any miracles in this sense. He simply manifests his leelas in order to sport with his devotees.

Nevertheless, from our limited level of comprehension the marvelous experiences of many of Baba’s cherished devotees are miraculous enough. Quite a collection of these tokens of the great master’s grace have been compiled in the excellent volumes of the revered Narasimha Swamiji, and in the authentic efforts of ‘Hemadpant’ in his Sai Charita. All the same, it would not be amiss to mention here a few of these remarkable instances of Baba’s great powers. The story of how the master once lit his wick lamps by feeding them with water instead of oil is a very well-known testimony of many of his devotees who actually saw the miracle. Baba was in the habit of borrowing oil from the shopkeepers of the village for his little lamps which he kept burning the whole night, both in the masjid and the temple. Once these merchants who were wont to supply him oil gratis took it into their head to refuse this little service to the master. Quite unperturbed, the saint filled his lamp containers with water and lighted the wicks -- and lo, they started burning all throughout the silent watches of the night as if in defiance of the ungracious behavior of the shopkeepers who later repented and became his disciples.

Instances abound too of Baba’s control over the elements. Christ-like he could command the winds and the rain and the lightening to obey his behest. One evening there was a terrible and destructive storm at Shirdi, and the little village was flooded with incessant rain. The many local deities were sought to be appeased but in vain. At last the people flocked to the masjid and prayed to Baba to quell the storm. The great Yogi came out to the edge of the masjid and ordered the storm to cease. At once the winds and the rain and the lightning obeyed his sweet will and became still.

These wonderful miracles have not ceased to take place today though the master is not visibly present. The curative impact of his personality on the sick and ailing and even those suffering from so-called incurable and grave maladies are too well known and too amny to recount in this little volume. Under the aegis of our beloved Guru the lame have indeed walked, the blind have recovered their sight and the deaf their hearing, an in his infinite mercy he still goes about healing the sick and giving succor to those that are otherwise bruised and unhappy.

Baba’s ways are indeed inscrutable. Only those whom he wishes to accept as his own are able to reach him or go to Shirdi. In those days some visitors were summarily dismissed by the Master, others who had gone for a short visit out of mere curiosity were made to stay on until they became his devout followers.

It is interesting to record one more experience of a living devotee as an example of one of the most extraordinary leelas of the Shirdi Saint. Dr. Rustomji, a homeopath who was once engaged in medical work in the homeopathic dispensary in Shirdi, tells us of this wonderful miracle. It appears that the doctor was owing a sum of Rs. 300/- to a certain party in Bombay. The doctor came down to Bombay and made out a cheque for that amount and passed it on to his friend, telling him that he could cash it when he liked. On returning home, however, the doctor found much to his dismay that his pass-book showed that he had not that much balance in his account. The thought that his cheque might be dishonored, and what his friend would think about him in consequence upset the doctor very much. In this predicament, with his usual implicit faith in his Guru, Dr. Rustomji pleaded with Sai Baba to get him out of the impasse. His prayer was answered in a strange way. A couple days later a casual acquaintance called on the doctor and asked him if he would keep a small packet for him which he would come and claim after three months. Dr. Rustomji was surprised at this unusual request and the man what the packet contained. “It contains the sum of Rs. 300/-”, was the amazing reply! “Do you mind if I use the money”, asked the doctor promptly. The gentleman said he would not mind what the doctor did as long as the money was returned to him when he came to claim it after three months. One can imagine the doctor’s reaction! Surely this was Baba’s leela, he felt. He rushed to the bank with the amount and after ascertaining that his cheque had not yet been presented he paid in the amount into his account with a sigh of relief. His honor was saved.

Three months passes by, but the man who had given him the money to keep did not turn up. Nor did the doctor know about his whereabouts. After six months Dr. Rustomji suddenly saw his benefactor walking down the road. The doctor at once went up to him and after greetings were exchanged said, “Why did you not claim your money all these months? You can take it back now.” But the man so addressed looked blank and said he had not given any money to the doctor. Thinking that the man was joking, the doctor tried to press the packet of notes into his hands. But the gentleman reiterated that he had not given him any money!

I would like to add two from among the many remarkable miracles that I actually experienced as a token of Shri Sai Baba’s infinite love and protection. I somehow feel an urge to reveal these miracles here as a gesture of gratitude to my great guru.

Round about the year 1950, I started suffering from a peculiar ailment of the throat, a severe irritation and congestion which prevented me from indulging in my cherished hobby of singing. As a sincere student of vocal Hindustani classical music, I was apprehensive and miserable. In about 10 minutes, my voice would become hoarse, and I would have to put down my tanpura with a feeling of frustration. I consulted many doctors, both allopathic and homeopathic, but no one was able to give me the slightest relief. After six months of unremitting torture, I went to Shirdi. As I stood before Sai Baba Samadhi, my heart and eyes suddenly welled up with tears, and in an impassioned outburst I poured out my protest to my Guru. Having thus relived my pent-up feelings, I came out of the Samadhi Mandir and went over to visit a friend of mine who at that time stayed in the precincts of the Sansthan. My friend and I discussed and talked about several topics of interest, and in her pleasant company I almost forgot my misery and my recent outburst at the Samadhi.

At about 7.30 p.m. I took leave of my friend to go to the room that had been allotted to me. It was one of those old rooms, on the ground floor, just behind the Gurusthan. I opened the lock and entered the room which was absolutely vacant and unfurnished except for my bag and bedding which lay still unopened in a corner of the room. Thinking that I would make myself comfortable, I started removing my sari from my left shoulder by unfastening the pin that held it up. As I removed the folds I heard something rustling in the sari; and a small packet about two inches long made up in a white paper fell from my sari to the ground. For a moment I was perplexed and looked around me, wondering what had happened. But the door and windows of the room were shut, and there was no one there but me. I picked up the little packet. It was neatly folded as if by a compounder or a chemist and as I carefully unfolded it I discovered to my amazement that it contained 6 or 7 tiny white tablets such as are commonly used in Homeopathy. When I realized the significance of this, I draped my sari again and rushed out to my friend with the tablets in hand.

My friend was devoted to Baba and had had experiences of Baba’s leelas. She said, “You understand, don’t you, that this is Baba’s Prasad. What are you going to do about it?”. I replied: “I am going to take all these tablets right now”, and I put these pellets in my mouth. Strangely enough, I did not then somehow connect this miracle with my urgent prayer for my throat. It was when I returned home and that all the congestion in my throat had entirely disappeared that I relaxed the magnitude of the miracle with which I had been blessed. The medicine, whatever it was, literally dropped like manna from heaven and healed me, perhaps, of some serious malady. My heart overflowed with gratitude. (to be contd..)

Year 2 Volume 1

23rd Nov 2002

Contents:

Prayer

SaiRam

Editorial

Sai Speaks

Saint of Shirdi

Mani Sahukar

Women

Sai Answers

Sai Reveals Truth