Sai Baba, one of the foremost saints of modern India, lived in the small village
of Shirdi in
the state of Maharashtra for sixty years. Due to his presence
there even after his Samadhi, today the small village has
transformed itself as a great spiritual center to people from
all religions.
Shri Sai Baba, inspite of his great spiritual stature, never publicized himself through
discoursing, touring and preaching---unlike today’s many
‘so-called’ saints. Rather, he discouraged unnecessary
publicity. But still, his spiritual perfection is still drawing
innumerable devotees to him from all over the world.
Even after his Samadhi
in 1918, Sai Baba still continues to be a dynamic spiritual
force which invokes countless devotees for their spiritual and
material progress.
Sai Baba did never reveal his original name, time and place of birth, especially
his religion and caste, and even the names of his
parents. Through this, he has emerged as a solution to all the
religious and communal differences that are destroying the world
today. He preaches that God is Almighty and he has given all the
souls on earth equal opportunity to reach him, whichever is the
religion they belong to. ‘Sai Baba’ is the name given to him by
his first devotee, Mahalsapathi – ‘Sai’ means ‘Saint’ and ‘Baba’
means ‘Father’. The name is just an expression of love,
reverence and devotion.
Sai Baba never
discriminated between the rich and the poor. He was equally
indifferent to honour or dishonour shown to him by the people.
He used to utter the name of ‘Allah’ frequently.
All religious scriptures
spell that any spiritual quest does not fulfill without a proper
guide or Sadguru. Shri Sai Baba has led many seekers as a
Sadguru towards spiritual progress. These seekers are either
drawn to him by himself or by other saints and deities.
All religions preach that
God is Almighty and He is omnipresent. The omnipresence of God
is clearly manifested in the various experiences that Sai Baba
has given to his devotees--- anywhere, anytime. He once said,
“He who thinks that I am only at Shirdi has never known me. I am
omnipresent----anywhere, everywhere, all the time and in all
creation. I am at Shirdi and everywhere. I am formless and
everywhere! I am everything and beyond. All the Universe is in
Me. Wherever you see, whatever you see, I am there.” He not only
preached this, but he demonstrated the truth through his deeds (Leelas).
The spiritual perfection
of a Sadguru consists in realizing his essential identity with
the One Spirit of all Existence (God Almighty). Sai Baba, the
Perfect Master, has demonstrated that he is in all gods of all
religions-----the various gods in Hindu religion, the Allah and
the Christ.
The omnipresence of
Shri Sai Baba demonstrated that he knows everything that has
happened, happening and will happen in the lives of all
creatures in the world. In addition to this, he also
demonstrated that omnipresence of God is also manifested in the
non-living things. This provides an effective check on the evil
propensities of devotees. But still, he always said, “I am the
slave of God”; “Allah Malik”.
Bhagawan Ramana
Maharshi once said that contact with the Sadguru continues even
after his physical death. The tomb of Sai Baba (Samadhi)
today is speaking to and leading his devotees towards spiritual
perfection.
Sai Baba
promises that he will lead his devotees both materially and
spiritually if they simply remember his omnipresence
always----in everything they do and in everybody. Study of
life histories of Saints -
Mainly Life history of SaiBaba;
Previous Incarnations of Lord Dattatreya;
Life histories of other saints and most of the books written by Pujya Master Ekkirala Bharadwaja
remembering his holy deeds (leelas), coupled with meditation and prayer helps the devotees to do so.
All the mystics
of the world and all saints have declared that the immediate
presence of a realized sage is one of the most potent forces in
the spiritual advancement of Sadhak or the seeker. Contact with
them induces in us inner peace and purity,
restores our
sense of values, wipes out illusory allurements of the senses
and turns us towards spirit with renewed vigour. Besides, when
approached in a proper manner, they can enable us to realize
that all the saints are One in essence.
So let us all
follow the great saint of today, the greatest of the great, Shri
Sai Baba of Shirdi and make ourselves better and better human
beings. Through his guidance, let us all try to make this world
a better place to live in for ourselves and fellow human beings
by shedding off the ill-lead religious and communal differences.
Lets all follow him to shape ourselves as the most lovable
children of God.
__ Jai Sai Master __
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