Sai Baba the Master by E.Bharadwaja

[Guest guest]

Dr. K.B. Gawankar, in his book on Sai Baba, has recorded a few more of

Sai

baba’s reminiscences of his pre-Shirdi days. Once Sai baba told his

devotees, Bade Baba and Bapugir Gosavi, “I grew up in Mahurgad (a holy

place sanctified by the presence of Lord Dattatreya); when people

pestered

me I left for Girnar; there too people troubled me much and I left for

Mount Abu. There too the same thing happened. Then I came to Akkalkot

and

from there to Daulatabad. There Janardana Swami (a great saint) did me

a

lot of seva (i.e. service). Then I went to Pandharpur; from there I

came

to Shirdi”.

 

Dr. Gawankar also records a significant aspect of Sai Baba’s life.

Once

Baba asked Smt. Kasibai Kanitkar, “Did Lord Datta give you anything at

Kopergaon?” “No”, she said.

 

“Do you know Sakharam Maharaj of Angaonkawad? (A famous saint of that

place). He is my guru bandhu. We served the same guru. We planted two

mango saplings there.”

 

Next day, when Smt. Kasibai went to Kopergaon to see the saint Sri

Sakharam Maharaj, he gave her two mangoes and said, “Sai Baba has sent

these for you.”

 

There is a mention in Sri Sakharam’s biography of his frequent

chattings

with “a young fakir” who, according to Gawankar, was undoubtedly Sai

baba

himself. It is also recorded that once Sakharam Maharaj told his

devotees

that he was going to his ‘brother’ and then he proceeded towards the

river

Kamode. Devotees who accompanied him thither saw a fakir on the

opposite

bank of the river. He was the fakir aulia of the Nizampur Dargah. They

saw

each other and exchanged hearty smiles and returned to their

respective

abodes. Dr.Gawankar conjectures that it is possible that the fakir

aulia

was Sai Baba himself. Chronologically, this incident took place

between

Sai Baba’s earlier disappearance at Shirdi and his second and

permanent

arrival there in 1858.

 

How dearly Sai Baba cherished this phase of his life can be seen from

this

incident: Bapusaheb Jog was a devotee of Sri Sakharam Maharaj. On one

of

his visits to the latter’s mutt (monastery) at Angaonkawad, he saw the

two

mango trees that were mentioned earlier by Sri Sai Baba. On one of his

later visits, jog plucked a mango from one of them as an offering to

Sri

Sai Baba but realized his error when he found it to be too unripe.

Then he

purchased two good fruits on his way for Sai Baba. Later when he

offered

the two ripe mangoes Sai Baba would not, take them! He only wanted the

mango that Jog had plucked at Angaonkawad! When Sai Baba took it in

his

hands tears of joy flowed freely from his eyes. Baba examined it and

said,

“It is not yet ripe.” Bapusaheb Jog said, “Yes, Baba.” Sai Baba stared

at

it for a while and with a sportive sparkle in his eye said, “Is it

so?”

and ordered that it should be cut and distributed to all the devotees

assembled there. Everyone was surprised to note that the mango was

indeed

ripe and sweet!

 

 

 

 

(To be contd....)

 

Source http://www.saibharadwaja.org)