Sai Baba the Master by E.Bharadwaja

[Guest guest]

I will conclude this chapter with an instance of how Baba has been

actively guiding me in my material life also. Owing to my keen

reflection

on joy and sorrow in life I came to a decision to remain a celebate

all my

life and dedicate all my energies to the spiritual quest. Even my

father

had stopped pressing me to get married. This was before I stayed at

the

ashram.

 

At that time I used to visit a recluse saint at a nearby town,

Chirala. He

was a perfect Avadhuta. One day when I saw him, he gave me an old,

dark

nylon sari with which some generous soul probably covered him the

previous

night to protect him from the winter cold. He told me to cover myself

with

it and to keep it with me. Some friends later remarked that the saint

indicated that I should get married but I was not convinced. After a

year

or so I happened to visit a celebate saint who lived in the thick

forests

of Chinthapalli range who explicitly told me that I should get married

in

view of my karmic ties since a former life and that I had better clear

them off. After he attained niryana (shedding his physical frame) I

had a

doubt. The saint was known to my father and my eldest brother. Could

he

have counselled me to oblige my father? But there was no way of

ascertaining the truth. In 1973, I visited Shirdi to pray for explicit

guidance in the matter. I stayed there for a week, spending all my

time in

circumambulating the samadhi (tomb), devout study of Baba’s life and

prayer. On the seventh day, which happened to be the holy Vijayadasami

(dassera festival) the anniversary of Baba’s mahasamadhi was being

celebrated I finished my chosen routine by midnight and I waited near

Baba’s samadhi for half an hour but I did not receive any message from

Baba.

 

Tired with the day’s routine I relaxed in the nearby park. Within five

minutes a bespectacled gentlemen approached me and said, “ One great

man

is staying with me in my room. He is one Puran Dalayi from Bombay. He

wants you to see him. I am Roy from Calcutta”. I was at first

surprised by

the unsolicited greeting. I even suspected that probably some smuggler

must have mistaken me, from my midnight walk for one of his own tribe

and

thus was seeking to establish contact with me. However, I wished to

see

what it was and I at once went to his room which was nearby. An

elderly

man of about 55 or 60 was standing before a room in which there was no

light. At my approach he entered the room, switched on the light and

turned round. I was amazed to find before me a man who seemed an exact

replica of the forest-dwelling Swami (of Chinthapalli) who was no

more!

Only when this gentleman addressed me in Hindi did I realize that this

was

a different man. He said, “Sai Baba appears before me in my dhyana.

Today

I paid my respects to the samadhi and sat here in our room for

mediation.

Baba appeared before me and said, ‘One of my devotees is doing

pradakshina

(circumambulation) to my samadhi for a message from me’. Convey this,

my

message, to him at once!” Saying thus he gave me a message. I told

Baba

that it was not possible for me to identify the said devotee in that

crowd, and so I said I would go and sit in the nearby park and I would

deliver the message to whosoever comes there within five minutes of my

sitting there. Should no one come, it is not my business. ‘So you

should

impel the said devotee to go over there within that time’. So saying,

I

sat in the park. You came within that time and so I had sent for you

and

came here. Here we can have privacy. Now, young man, what is your

problem

for which you want a message from Baba?” “I am sorry to say so but I

do

not want to share my problem with any one except Baba. If you tell me

the

message which he wished you to convey to me, I shall see whether it is

connected with my problem and, If so, I shall accept it”. The old man

smiled and said, “You wished to know what Baba has to say regarding

the

question of your marriage. Baba wants me to tell you that you should

get

married and that thereby your karmic ties would be worked out.” “Yes,

that

was the issue I had in mind”, I confessed. “After your marriage both

of

you should come to Shirdi and serve Baba for at least a week. That’s

baba’s pleasure,” he added. Accordingly, my marriage took place on the

6th

of March, 1975 and on the 14th of April , my wife and I visited Shirdi

and

stayed in his service for two weeks.

 

(To be contd....)

 

Source http://www.saibharadwaja.org)