BABA'S HELP IN RELIGIOUS EFFORTS

Baba's help to Mahlsapathy in his religious efforts and in securing a
good end may be noted, because dying on an Ekadasi day is conducive
to or indicative of Sadgati. Mahlsapathy passed away, in
circumstances to be described more fully later, on an Ekadasi day in
1922 after a life of religious striving. In the case of Mahlsapathy,
his firm faith was in Khandoba, and Baba treated Khandoba, Vittoba,
and Allah as the same. c.f. BG IV 11 & VIII 21 – All worship is God's
worship. God reaches us in the form we choose.

Khandoba's grace to Mahlsapathy was manifested several times, and
whenever there was a difficulty for Mahlsapathy, Khandoba gave him
visions. In one of those visions, Khandoba asked him to go and see
Vittal at Pandharpur, and in case of such a poor man like
Mahlsapathy, who had to beg his bread for himself and family, a
pilgrimage to Pandharpur was no joke. But by Khandoba's grace, he got
some pecuniary help for the journey, and a well-to-do family as his
companions. With them he reached Pandhari.

At Pandharpur, the crowds were always unmanageably large, and it was
not easy for one to cut his way through the mass to Vittal. Then
there were the professional priests demanding coins to take a man to
Vittal image. But Mahlsapathy had no coins, and so special
interference on his behalf by Khandoba was necessary. As he was
moving with the crowd nearer and nearer to Vittoba, suddenly people
began to note that Mahlsapathy's face was exactly like Khandoba's and
said that Khandoba had actually come to take darsan of Vittoba and
cleared a way for him. The Pandas also must have been similarly
impressed. That made Vittal darsan easy for Mahlsapathy.

Similar instances of help for himself and party were manifested at
his pilgrimage to Jejuri. Once when they were going on their horses,
the police intercepted them on the way and examined their passes.
Finding one having no pass, they stopped him and put him into the
police station; and the procession could not start from the village.
That man had to go and get a pass from a Kulkarni. that Kulkarni
showed his talent for taking work gratis from all persons. A Niti
sloka says rightly:- Makshiko Maruto veseya yachako mushakas tatha
gramanirganakas chaiva saptaiate para badhakah, i.e., gnats, winds,
courtesans, beggars, rats, village headmen and karnams (i.e.,
kulkarnis) these seven are pestering parasites. He delayed the issue
of a pass and said, `You go on splitting fuel for me. i.e., to do
work gratis. Then the man took up the axe and after a few strokes,
the handle was broken. Then the Kulkarni gave him a second handle.
The second handle also broke. Then a third handle was given, and that
also shared the same fate. Then the Kulkarni said, `God does not
allow you to work', and gave them the pass.

Courtesy: HH Pujyasri B. V. Narasimha Swamiji
(Shri Vasuki Mahal Shirdi Sai Baba Trust, Coimbatore-641025, India)