Sai Baba the Master by E.Bharadwaja

[Guest guest]

The Divine Ministration

D.D. Nanasaheb Rasne who served Baba for nearly two decades has told

the

author of a remarkable incident in this period of Baba’s life as

recounted

to him by Saint Gadge Maharaj himself.

 

Sri Gadge Maharaj (alias Sri Guzadi Maharaj) a famous saint of

Maharashtra, was serving in a provision store at Sivagaon Pathadi. One

day

Sai Baba came there from Selu Manvat and begged for roti. When no one

gave

him any, he picked an ear of Jawar from a ripe farm and went away,

munching it. Gadge went home on leave, picked up roti and proceeded in

search of the fakir. At last, he found the latter sitting under a tree

in

a nearby jungle. The fakir demanded, “Why have you come here?”

 

“I noticed that they hadn’t offered you roti, and so I got it for

you.”

 

“Will you give me whatever I demand?”

 

“You may ask for anything except money which I don’t have”.

 

“I need your life. Give it.”

 

“How can I take it out and offer you? Take it by your hand, I am

ready!”

 

The fakir then kept his hand on Gadge’s head in blessing. The latter,

instantly galvanized with intense renunciation, at once went back,

bade

goodbye to his family and rushed to his guru who, in the meanwhile,

went

ahead. When baba saw him he was wild and roared, “Rogue, why have you

come

to trouble me further?”

 

“I cannot part from you!” Gadge submitted.

 

Baba then led him to the nearby tomb of a Moslem saint, commanded

Gadge to

dig a small pit nearby and fill it with two pots-full of water.

Getting

down into that, Baba sipped a little of the water and directed the

other

to do the same. Gadge obeyed and at once grew oblivious of everything

in a

deep yogic trance. By the time he regained his sense, Baba had left.

 

Subsequently, Gadge reached Shirdi. Baba was at the mosque and the

curtains within were lowered. Gadge lifted a curtain up and peeped in.

Baba grew wild and cried, “Bastard, have you come to eat my bones,

having

already eaten my flesh? Why trouble me even after I gave you what I

have?”

When Gadge said that he would not leave him, Baba flung a brick at

him. It

struck the former on his brow, leaving a permanent crescent mark. Baba

then calmed down and said, “You’re fully blessed and will henceforth

be a

sadguru. God will bless you”. Gadge instantly attained perfect

Enlightenment.

 

Long after, on the eve of his mahasamadhi, Sadguru Gadge Maharaj

visited

Shirdi singing, “Ham jato Amche Gaona” (“I am going to my original

abode”)

. He swept the village clean, sang Bhajans and told his devotees, “We

shall never meet again. I am going away!” Then he proceeded, singing,

to

the bank of river Narmada and attained mahasamadhi.

 

 

 

 

 

(To be contd....)

 

Source http://www.saibharadwaja.org)