VALUE OF GREAT SACRIFICE

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WHAT A GREAT SACRIFICE SHE MADE

In 1914, Ramanavami season, when myriads flocked to Baba, an old woman was shouting.

Old Woman: Hallo! take pity upon me, an old woman! Hallo, Baba, give me your darshan.

Shama went out and elbowed his way back with her into Sai Baba’s presence. She

melted into tears and held Baba with both her arms round his waist.

Baba: Mother! how long have I waited for you! Have you brought anything for me to eat?

Old Woman: Here is a piece of stale flat bread and an onion. I started my

journey with one flat bread and two onions. But tired by journey, I ate at a

stream in the morning and ate off half the cake with one onion. Here is the

remainder. You had better eat it.

Baba: (crunching the stale bread and eating it with gusto). How sweet, O mother, is your bread!

- Baba’s Charters and Sayings, #510,

Once Gandhiji went from city to city, village to village collecting funds for

the Charkha Sangh. During one of his tours he addressed a meeting in Orissa.

After his speech a poor old woman got up. She was bent with age, her hair was

grey and her clothes were in tatters. The volunteers tried to stop her, but she

fought her way to the place where Gandhiji was sitting.

"I must see him," she insisted and going up to Gandhiji, touched his feet. Then

from the folds of her sari she brought out a copper coin and placed it at his

feet.

Gandhiji picked up the copper coin and put it away carefully.

"This copper coin is worth much more than thousands," Gandhiji said, "If a man

has several lakhs and he gives away a thousand or two, it doesn’t mean much.

But this coin was perhaps all that the poor woman possessed. She gave me all

she had. That was very generous of her. What a great sacrifice she made. That

is why I value this copper coin more than a crore of rupees!"

(East and West Series, May 2004)

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