Guest guest Posted September 28, 2005 Report Share Posted September 28, 2005 THE GLORY OF SHIRDI SAI Third Year of Publication Published as Bi-Weekly Issue 20 / 2005 29-09-2005 Please visit our Web site: http://www.saidarbar.org --------- THIS ISSUE CONTAINS 1. FOUNDATION STONES FOR THE SPIRITUAL LIFE 2. SAI'S NEWS FROM TIME MACHINE 3. FOOT STEPS OF HOLY FEET 4. SAI IN DREAMS 5. QUINTESSENCE OF SRI SAIBABA'S PHILOSOPHY 6. SANATANA DHARMA& SRI SHIRDI SAIBABA 7. SAIBANISA OFFERS PRANAMS TO ….. 8. DEVOTEES EXPERIENCES 9. SPIRITUAL GEMS FROM SAI SATCHARITRA 10. SAI WITH CHILDREN 11. ARTICLES FROM SAI DEVOTEES 12. LETTERS FROM SAI DEVOTEES 13. TELUGU SECTION 14. FROM SAI ORGANISATIONS 15. SAI'S BOOK WORLD 16. EDITORIAL. -- 1. FOUNDATION STONES FOR THE SPIRITUAL LIFE: Rajeswari Kasturi, Saidarbar – Hyderabad. >From the Satsanghs of Saibanisaji http://www.angelfire.com/celeb2/saidarbar/pages/S3500055.htm 90. You should give respect to people after seeing their good character, irrespective of age, caste, creed or sex. 91. You should know that the pain to the body is caused due to unjustified acts and the happiness to the mind is caused due to justified acts. 92. The way there is no chance to revive the life after death, in the same way good or bad acts once performed, cannot be reversed. So think twice before doing anything. 93. You behave with others the way you expect them to behave with you. 94. There is limit even for being good or kind. 95. If you give love and respect to your mother (living God) is more than worshipping God in a temple thousand times. 96. In this world your parents are the only well wishers. Whereas all others will come and go as per their necessities. 97. A person who is averse to extra martial life, others money, pride and jealousy is a holy man and you should befriend him. 98. Starving the body and confining to jungles is not the real penance. Living in the society while following the path of non violence, truth, and showing mercy towards the lesser privileged is more than penance. 99. Chanting the name of Lord without doing your duty is not right in spirit. Doing your duty correctly is as good as worshipping the God. To be Continued… ----- 2. SAI'S NEWS FROM THE TIME MACHINE: Bhadrapada 1910: H.H Gajanan Maaraj of Shegaon left his mortal coil. At the same time Shirdi Sai Baba grieved profusely and said "Hallo! My Gajanan is gone". Bhadrapada 1922: Mahalsapathi passed away on 11-09-1922 ------ 3. FOOT STEPS OF THE HOLY FEET –13 EXPERIENCES OF SAI.BA.NI.SA WITH SHIRDI SAI Sai has in the chapter numbers 22nd and 42nd preached to look for GOD in all the creatures. He identified himself with the dog that Lakshmibai Sindhe has fed with a loaf of bread. He who can see `ME' in all the creatures and feeds the hungry is my true devotee were his key words. I for that matter experienced the essence of his teachings and two such experiences are as mentioned below. My memory goes back to the 'DIWALI'- The festival of lights of the year I991 celebrated by all. It is also customary to perform 'LAKSHMI POOJA' during the evening hours. I requisitioned the services of a priest and both - self and my wife participated in the rituals. The priest was chanting mantras but my mind was pre - occupied with thoughts about SAI. I had a funny thought in my mind that Sai should grace the ritual and bless me in some form or other before the pooja concludes. I was anticipating that he would arrive in the form of some friend or relative to bless us. After lapse of some time I could feel some velvet like touch near my legs and I bent down to have a glance. I was astonished to find a giant sized frog and it was quite an unusual site as it was very uncommon to sight it except during monsoon season. It never rained in the recent past too. I pointed to my wife sitting by my side and both of us felt happy that Sai made his presence felt in this form. There after, the frog got down the stairs and slipped in to our garden as pooja was nearly ending. It was the festival of 'BAKRID' - being a holiday, I came out after having finished my lunch and found a white goat with a white beard looking towards me with compassion. I recalled what Sai has said in the 9th chapter and had a feeling as if Sai is waiting in front of me wanting food. I called for my wife and offered two loaves of bread to the goat. It gladly accepted the food, had a small bucketful of water and left my place. My heart was filled with joy and I had the satisfaction as If Sai himself had the food. BOW TO SAI - PEACE TO ALL To be Continued… -------------------------------- 4. SAI IN DREAMS: These are the dream sequences and messages as received by SAIBANISA >From our beloved GURU LORD SAINATH OF SHIRIDI. In Anticipation that this Feature will help in one's spiritual growth are hereby compiled from his personal Diary and presented to SAIBANDHUS. Translated and presented by RAGHU RAMAN SATULURY. JANUARY-1994: 03-01-1994 Baba appeared as an unknown person and said- "In the eyes of God there is no discrimination between caste, creed or class of the people. Therefore the need of the hour is to move forward while chanting the Lord's name". Before the eyes of God, all human beings are equal. 04-01-1994 In a fit of rage and over an argument, I come to loggerheads with a friend of mine. We crossed each other with swords. For self-defense I fight back and the friend is killed. I ran away from the site. I was branded a murderer and policeman was after me. I was elusive for some time. Later I surrendered to the police with the fond hope that God is above all and justice shall be done. I was presented in the Court Room and I woke up with a knee jerk and saw Sai's photograph before me. It appeared to me as if Sai was assuring me that "Those who have the divine strength shall never fail and can boldly face any situation with courage". Spiritual power is mightier than muscle power. 06-01-1994 Sai has rolled back the time and drawn me to the adventures during my youth. The period dates back to 1962-1965, when we were living in Kakinada (A coastal town in Andhra Pradesh). Good, bad or moral values were of least importance to me and I was leading a carefree life. The house was a thatched one with mud tiles. I saw a Cobra in one of the wooden beams, shedding off its skin while undergoing lot of pain. Finally the reptile left place. Time passed and later I took up a job assignment during the year 1965 and had to leave the town. "Sai conveyed that life is like that of a cobra. Shed the inner ego to adorn the Lord". Transition from one stage to another is a natural phenomenon. 09-01-1994 Before going to bed I prayed Lord Baba and sought HIS help to overcome the attachment towards wife, wealth and children. I was shown with the following visuals. Children are the effected lot when both the partners adopt wrong ways and means in leading their lives. Bonds of love are broken. Society isolates them. In another scene, the wife is totally not under the control of the husband and ultimately the family life is shattered. In another case, the head of the family with all the hardships support the family and fulfill moral as well as social obligations well in time. After retirement, he fell sick, turned immobile and confined to bed. Wife and children do not get him the necessary medical aid fearing the expenses. Even the request for serving him with poison goes unheeded as wife and children were not mentally prepared to loose the regular monthly income coming from him as pensioners benefit. "What attachments one does expect to develop after going through such situations"? Money is the only binding factor in all the relationships. To be continued….. ---- 5. QUINTESSENCE OF SRI SAIBABA'S PHILOSOPHY: (By Late Sri Bharam UmamaheswaraRao) "Shashi": shashi_31 10. Uniqueness of Sri Sai Baba and his Teachings Sri Sai Baba says that all religions point out one TRUTH – GOD IS ONE. Truth is God. All religions teach the same principles such as Dharma, Shanti, Prema and Ahimsa. Baba further said – `Religion is for Realization. As you are all groping in darkness, you are all making political capital out of Truth of Religion. Religion is made of man. Everyone had got the independence of choosing his own beloved way. Religion depends on the circumstances of Sadhaka'. OMKARA merges in the Upasana. AUM emerges from Brahman. Brahman is the primary source for AUM. So realize that OMKARA is Brahman. God in all Religions is BRAHMAN. All religions proclaim that forms may be many but God is one. Any prayer in any religion without uttering OMKARA is futile. Such prayer remains imperfect. For God-Realization OMKARA is the BEEJAKSHARA for all religions. In the Hindu religion all prayers begin with OMKARA and it precedes all the Mantras. OMKARA is the symbol for the chosen deity in every religion. Hence the OMKARA is important in Upasana in all religions. OM comprises the three symbols. The PARABRAHMA is embodiment of OMKARA. Therefore, people belonging to all religions chant the OMKARA. OMKARA is pure wisdom and confer Bliss. Hence this is the Mantra without any distinction of Nationality or religion. To be continued….. -------------- 6. SANATANA DHARMA & SRI SHIRDI SAIBABA Saibanisa-Gopalarao Ravada—Saidarbar Hyderabad –India SRI MAHA BHAGAVATHAM—SRI SHIRDI SAI SATCHARITA 11) Prahladha addresses his father- "you think, you have conquered the whole World. It is a false notion of yours. If you can successfully overcome your inner enemies, it is as good as you're having conquering the World". The inner enemies are - desire, anger, miserliness, lust, ego and avarice. Sri Sai asked for a dakshina of Rupees six from Thread's wife at the time of taking permission from Baba to leave Shiridi. She was not having money with her and Tharkad was left with money just enough to reach home back. Her husband tells her what Baba wanted from her was to discard the Arishadvargas residing in her. She offered them to Baba which he readily accepted. 12) Gajendra, the elephant king fought with the crocodile for thousand years and ultimately prostrated and invoked Lord Srihari to come to his rescue. Srihari then rushes to his surrendered devotee Gajendra with all his weapons and thus saved him. Sri Sai during the days of First World War comes to the rescue of an Indian captain working for British Naval Forces (Captain Jahangir Daruwala). Baba saved the ship from sinking on hearing the Captain's prayers. Sai on hearing the mother's cry for help saved the child of a blacksmith who fell from the mother's lap accidentally in to the kiln. In the process, Baba himself suffered the burns. 13) In the aftermath of the fight between the Suras and Asuras, Suras had lost their kingdom. Saint Kashyap consoles his wife Athidhi (Mother of Suras) and advises her to continue to follow the tradition of offering food and shelter to a visiting guest who so ever it may be. If this tradition is implemented fully, then good times would again come to her children. Sri Sai advocated to follow the same tradition which he unfailingly followed in Dwarakamayi. SANATANA DHARMA –NEWS FROM ABROAD: 1. Hindu Community in Pomona Celebrates Acharya Day www.thejournalnews.com POMONA, CALIFORNIA, September 5, 2005: The Hindu community of Pomona gathered together recently to celebrate Acharya Day (a day to honor all Hindu spiritual leaders) at the Sri Ranganatha Temple and involve the community in Hindu culture. Sri Kuchibhotla, a member of the temple's board of trustees, says, "Back home, we live with our elders or we go visit them and learn from them. Here we don't have that. But the temple has provided that for the children. They may not have their own grandparents, but they have other elders. It's like a family for them." Around 200 people attended the festivities including many young children and teenagers. The temple focuses on reaching out to the community so that they do not lose touch with their religion and culture. Kamali Sundararajan, 14 and an East Windsor, N.J. teen, says, "This time I've learned to appreciate my culture more because it's a lot more complicated then I thought." When Kamali and her sister recited prayers as part of the children's program, Kamali's father said, "I am proud to see my daughters saying the hymns that I taught them." According to this news release, other activities included a drama depicting a former acharya teaching his students, religious music and a Jeopardy-style game for the adults. Five-year-old Tara Patel sums up her view of the day, "I like the temple because they are so nice to me and they love me." - Nashville Hindus Celebrate Birthday Of Lord Ganesha www.tennessean.com NASHVILLE, USA, September 12, 2005: Local Hindus, joined by hundreds traveling from around the Southeast, yesterday concluded a festive celebration of Sri Ganesh Chaturthi, the birthday of one of the most revered Hindu deities. Celebrating the birth of Lord Ganesh or Ganesha is the reason for one of India's most elaborate festivals. It lasts 10 days, and rituals among believers include fasting, praying and laying out offerings to Ganesha, who is sometimes referred to as Ganapati. Sri Ganesha Temple in Bellevue was abuzz with activity yesterday, the final day of a local six-day observance. Out-of-town vendors operated tables that lined the foyer where groups of people gathered and greeted friends. -------------------------------- South African Temple Marks First Anniversary news.webindia123.com JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, September 21, 2005: Saints and devotees from all over the country and abroad descended here to mark one year of the Swaminarayan Mandir (BAPS), which has become a major tourist attraction because of its spectacular design. The occasion was celebrated with a series of discourses and special prayer sessions. Bharatbhai Parbhoo, secretary of the temple, said it has become a major community gathering center with regular services throughout the week. He also lauded the youth who participated with fervor in the activities of the temple, which also runs two strictly vegetarian restaurants as a means of raising funds for self-sufficiency. Two young devotees - South African Mahesh Naik, working in the diamond industry, and Fulesh Bilakhia, a textile importer settled here - both aged 32, shared similar sentiments about the role that the temple plays in their lives. "It helps keep our younger people away from the scourge of drugs and other ills on the streets and provides an outlet for them to use their energies to benefit others as well," said Naik. "I am very happy that even being away from India, there is a facility like this where my family and I can exercise the kind of spiritual needs that we have, and also assist others while learning at the same time," said Bilakhia. Visiting saint Pujyayug Drashthadas from the Kenyan chapter of the Swaminarayan organization said the activities and functions hosted by the Lenasia temple were very impressive and augured well for the community service that was an essential part of the doctrines espoused by their spiritual head. Compiled by SaiSevak SrinivasaRao Kasturi Saidarbar – Hyderabad. ------------------ 7. SAIBANISA OFFERS PRANAMS TO SAINT "RAMAKRISHNA" (1836 - 1886) The great 19th century saint Ramakrishna is loved the world over. His simplicity, directness, charm, and divine madness often inspired his disciples. Ramakrishna was the guru of Swami Vivekananda, one of the first popularizers of Hindu mysticism in the West. Ramakrishna's poems were spontaneously composed songs of spiritual ecstasy, often incorporating verses from popular devotional songs and poetry, especially lines from Ramprasad and Kamalakanta. ----------------- 8. DEVOTEES EXPERIENCES: thota 9/1/2005 14:00:10 -0500 Baba Manifestation and Reinforcing of Faith This is a surprising coincidence of the prasad offering to Baba. I had offered Peda to Shirdi Saibaba in Long Islands, New York when I had been with my family on the occasion of my eldest daughter birthday that is now in Bangalore on Aug 11, 2005. We had gone to visit Baba temple from Toronto, Canada to New York on the cordial invitation of Ardent Devotee and world famous cancer Surgeon Dr.Noori Dattareya, who established Baba temple in New York of his hard earned self funds. Secondly, we offered Baba Moti Boondi Ladoo on Krishna Janma Astimi on Aug.26, 2005 at my place in Toronto, Canada. Is it a Blessing of Baba manifestation to Veena Didi at her place in New Delhi, India or a mystery miracle of Baba once again on the Photo Frame of my offerings at her place. Baba had manifested Udi when Veena Didi had come to bless my new home in Toronto, Canada on the lap, hands and foot of His idol which was surprisingly presented to my daughter on the eve of our new home from Shirdi by her friend May Baba always Protect and shower His Blessings on His Devotees. Ravinder Thota Canada drkalaga 9/03/2005 17:07:00 -0600 Another Miracle from Saibaba! Monday morning, at 11 a.m. or so, I was in my office here in Jacksonville pegging away at some of my projects when the phone rang. To my surprise, it was from Pune, India... A couple, Mr. and Mrs. Raghavan, are on the other end. I don't know who they are and for that matter I do not know anyone in Pune. What is more amazing is how they got my location, office phone number... When they excitedly explained, I was awe-struck with a mixture of joy, amazement, utter disbelief and reassurance too. The couple are Saibaba devotees since 7 years and it seems that Sai gives them visions about people, places and situations, so that they can help out. Monday morning Sai appeared to Mr. Raghavan in a dream and urged him to contact me. It seems that I was Raghavan's older brother in my previous births (in Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh) and has cheated, swindled all his money; that karma is what is creating obstacles and failures in my path in this life! Sai asked the couple to forgive me for my sins and pray for me. It is only their prayers which will erase my prarabdha karma from now on... What made my jaw drop is the fact that my name, location, office phone number appeared on a sheet of paper for them... They also told me some details of my brief failed marriage of 2003 which no one knew! Moreover, Mr. Raghavan is scanning Sai's message and will be mailing me the copy of the same! I can't wait to receive it. I see that as nothing short of Sai's direct assistance to me! A Miracle of the Highest Order! I look back on the days and nights I spent alone, often in tears, wondering what is wrong with my destiny... and when I will be blessed by Sai's grace. There were times I just sat in front of Sai's photo and cried my heart out, in agony and angst and disappointment. But I held on to His feet, name and image in my heart. I was in Shirdi on 26th Dec 2004 ... and exactly 8 months later, He is showing me His holy grace! This is what is meant by 'saburi'. Om Sai Ram! Om Sai Ram! Last night, I told all this to my mother who revealed that a few months ago, she had a vision of Goddess Lalithadevi with Sai's face!! Incredible! For those of you who are enduring distress and problems in life, my advice is this: cling to Sai's feet and never let go. No matter what. I began a daily Sai Abhishekha on June 16th (my birthday) and I am reaping the fruits of that devotion now! Om Sai Ram! Dr. SRIRAM KALAGA Jacksonville, Florida USA --------------------- 9. SPIRITUAL GEMS FROM SAI SATCHARITRA Swamy" swamymain Thu, 22 Sep 2005 23:32:10 -0700 (PDT) Sai Ram. I apologise for missing the column in the issue dated 15th September. I went to Shirdi and enjoyed the blissful darshan of Sai Baba. So, with pranams at His lotus feet, let us continue with the Spiritual Gems from Sai Satcharita. We are in the middle of the Chapters 16 and 17 dealing with Brahma Jnan. Brahma Jnan is the ultimate knowledge which frees a man from the cycle of birth and death. While the whole of Satcharita is full of Brahma Jnan and the teachings of Baba, these two chapters form the core of this book. So, it is appropriate that we enjoy this feast leisurely. So, let us continue with the qualities that are essential for a person to realise Brahma. (6) Preferring Shreyas, (the Good) to Priyas (the Pleasant). There are two sorts of things viz., the Good and the Pleasant; the former deals with spiritual affairs, and the latter with mundane matters. Both these approach man for acceptance. He has to think and choose one of them. The wise man prefers the Good to the Pleasant; but the unwise, through greed and attachment, chooses the Pleasant. Sai Ram. This builds on the previous quality mentioned, viz., right conduct. External things are but manifestation of our internal thoughts and desires. If there be no fertile soil of our mind, sensory inputs cannot sprout and take root, as explained by Baba in a later chapter. Just like good thoughts and bad thoughts keep coming in the mind, external things or objects like food, clothes, other materialistic objects, people etc., keep coming across our path to test us with respect to our purity of mind, will power and our discriminating power etc. When we choose the good (good from spiritual point of view), we are exercising our intelligence, will power and discriminating ability. Our Buddhi is the capable Sarathi or driver and our body, mind ego is in safe hands and our journey goes on unimpeded till we reach our destination which is the abode of Vishnu (Literal Meaning is All Pervading - God). If on the other hand, like a child which goes after sweets and falls ill if allowed to indulge, if we allow our sensory pleasure-seeking tendencies to govern our life, we get into trouble and will end up like Tatya and the European gentleman who disregarded Baba's instructions and whose horses ran in an uncontrolled manner and met with accidents. The English word for pleasant things or people whom we love is 'dear' and this word has two meanings. One meaning as mentioned is something or someone we love. The second meaning is that which is expensive. So, going after priyas is expensive from a spiritual angle too. Even in Telugu we use the word priyam for these two meanings. (7) Control of the mind and the senses. The body is the chariot and the Self is its master; intellect is the charioteer and the mind is the reins; the senses are the horses and sense-objects their paths. He who has no understanding and whose mind is unrestrained, his senses unmanageable like the vicious horses of a charioteer, does not reach his destination (get realization), but goes through the round of births and deaths; but he who has understanding and whose mind is restrained, his senses being under control, like the good horse of a charioteer, reaches that place, i.e., the state of self-realization, when he is not born again. The man, who has understanding as his charioteer (guide) and is able to rein his mind, reaches the end of the journey, which is the supreme abode of the all-pervading, Vishnu (lord). Sai Ram. This idea comes from the previous one and is detailed here. Baba gives this upadesh to Nanasaheb Chandorkar in one of the later chapters. And the stories of the chariots meeting with accidents have already been covered and are to be read with esoteric significance in this situation. Sai Ram. Even after getting self-realization, one may take birth like Baba did but in that case, the person has no body consciousness and he/she lives for everyone. (8) Purification of the mind. Unless a man discharges satisfactorily and disinterestedly the duties of his station in life, his mind will not be purified and, unless his mind is purified, he cannot get self-realization. It is only in the purified mind that Viveka (discrimination between the Unreal and the Real), and Vairagya (Non-attachment to the unreal) crop up and lead on the self-realization. Unless egoism is dropped, avarice got rid of, and the mind made desireless (pure), self-realization is not possible. The idea that 'I am the body' is a great delusion, and attachment to this idea is the cause of bondage. Leave off this idea and attachment therefore, if you want to get to the Self-realization. Sai Ram. Again each idea builds upon the previous. Purity of mind is essential for natural purity of conduct. One may restrain the sensory organs but in the long run, the stress becomes too much and the fall will be that much steeper. So, the soil has to be purified so that the weeds of sensual desires don't take root. Of course, if some idea comes up like a weed, it needs to be immediately uprooted and burnt so that the weed does not propagate. Just as a lamp shines brightly through a clear glass, the viveka, the discriminating part of the mind shines forth in a pure, clear mind. And such a good charioteer is able to control the sensory horses well, like Sri Krishna took care of Arjuna's chariot. In fact, the whole story of Kurukshetra is not only a historical fact but is also endowed with esoteric significance. (9) The necessity of a Guru. The knowledge of the self is so subtle and mystic, that no one could, by his own individual effort ever hope to attain it. So the help of another person-Teacher, who has himself got self-realization, is absolutely necessary. What others cannot give with great labour and pains, can be easily gained with the help of such a Teacher; for he has walked on the path himself and can easily take the disciple, step by step on the ladder of spiritual progress. Sai Ram. The Guru is also called Acharya since he walks on the path and has been bestowed with the knowledge of the path so that he can guide others. The ego is determined to preserve itself and thus will play all sorts of tricks. It leads the sadhaka astray. So, the help of a Guru is indeed necessary. Even God, when He took the avatar as a human being like Rama and Krishna set an example by serving a Guru. Sai also set an example and how He served His Guru is given in the next chapter. When we read about ladder, we are reminded of the Snake and Ladders game. We make progress and then we are suddenly captured by a big snake and are put down. That is destiny or luck. And we will be seeing how that aspect works. The word ladder is also significant here since each idea is acting as a ladder for us to progress spiritually. (10) and lastly the Lord's Grace is the most essential thing. When the Lord is pleased with any body, He gives him Viveka and Vairagya; and takes him safe beyond the ocean of mundane existence, "The Self cannot be gained by the study of Vedas, nor by intellect, or by much learning. He, whom the Self chooses, by him It is gained. To him the Self reveals its nature", says the Katha Upanishad. Sai Ram. That invisible Grace of God is luck or destiny. But one has to strive again and again so that one reaches the destination. When God's grace is bestowed upon us, it is like going up a ladder. When God's grace is not available, even the most sincere and severe penance etc., is of no use and we end up being caught by a big snake and are pulled down to its tail. Sai Ram. We will continue with this chapter. S.V.Swamy Author, Editor, Proof-Reader and Book Reviewer www.freewebs.com/swamyreviews ------------------------------- 10. SAI WITH CHILDREN: http://www.saidarbar.org/HTML/portraits/7.jpg Smt. Madhu Gopal Ravada, Saidarbar, Hyderabad. Hello Children! I am Madhu aunty. Do you know Baba use to play with children and used to tell stories to them? I felt children visiting Saidarbar should be entertained with good stories. For the last 2 years I have told you about Lord Krishna's Leelas and Lord Rama Story. Now I want to tell the stories what heard in my child hood. THE SPOILT PRINCE: Once there lived a King named Bhim Singh. He was very brave and kind. His subjects lived in a great peace and happiness. The rich and poor were treated alike in the kingdom. Unfortunately, the king had no issue. This made him very sad. The subjects could not bear the sorrow of the King. So they went to the different temples. They prayed for a son for him. The King, along with the Queen Leelabai, visited the different places of pilgrimage. Probably the gods would bless him with a son. The combined prayers of all bore fruit. The Queen was blessed with a son. There was a great joy in the whole kingdom. People went dancing and singing to the royal palace and blessed the child. The King distributed sweets and rewards all round. The prince was named Arjun Singh. As the prince grew older, the King arranged for his proper education. Expert teachers in different fields were called from all over. Slowly the prince grew up into a fine young man. The King and the Queen felt very proud of their son. One day something happened which deeply saddened the heart of the King. It was the general practice for the poor and needy people to gather before the Prime Minister of the King. They always got help. One day while the needy people were being helped by the Prime Minister, the prince happened to pass that way. He stopped and asked the Minister what he was doing. When he learnt that this was done every day, he got very angry. He felt that this was a wasteful act. The royal treasury would become empty one day if this practice was continued. The Minister tried to explain to him. Helping the poor and needy persons brought glory to the King. It also made the gods happy. But the prince was not satisfied. He ordered the people to be driven away. No more help was to be given to such people from then on. The Minister could not do any thing. When the King heard this he was heart broken. How could his own son be so hard hearted and mean? His peace of mind was gone. Gradually he heard other stories too of the prince's cruelty. He was not only self willed but was growing into a tyrant too. The people were slowly becoming against him. This would one day lead to the doom of the kingdom. The unhappy king invited learned persons and Sadhus from all over the country. He told them the reason of his unhappiness. There was complete silence in the royal court. Nobody seemed capable of solving the problem. At this the king felt very dejected. Very sorrowfully he enquired if there was no one who could make the prince a better person. At last a very old Sadhu got up. He consoled the king and told him not to worry. He would reform the prince and change his ways. Now, it was the practice of the Prince to go to the jungle for hunting. The next day when he reached there the old Sadhu was already there. The prince paid his respects to him. The Sadhu gave his blessings to him. Then he asked the Prince if he would do something for him. The Prince readily agreed. The Sadhu showed him a plant some distance away. He told the prince to pluck its leaves and to taste them. If they had a good taste, he was to bring them back to him. He had to prepare Prasadam for God with those leaves. The prince went near the plant. He plucked some leaves from it and tasted them. His mouth was on fire. They were bitter as poison. Angrily throwing them away he returned to the Sadhu. He told him that the leaves tasted very, very bitter. Now the Sadhu asked him why he had spat out those leaves. The prince replied that such bitter leaves could never be kept in the mouth. They had to spat out. The Sadhu now said, "Look here, my son, this is the way of the world. People here dislike bitter things. They not only spit out such things but also avoid them like poison. Bitterness gives birth to hatred and sweetness generates love." The bewildered prince asked him the meaning of this. The Sadhu again spoke, "Son, I am revealing to you the secret of that great truth of life which you have not yet learnt. Go, and remember this that by being sweet spoken and sweet natured you can conquer the world. Every one will love you and follow you." The Prince's eyes were opened. When be came back to the palace he was a changed person. Now he behaved kindly and sweetly to all. The King, his father, was overjoyed. A great weight has been lifted from his heart. After him his son would now rule wisely and well. -------------- 11. ARTICLES FROM SAI DEVOTEES: "Sankaraiah Dubagunta" sainama EXPERIENCE OF KERAVAR RAMACHANDRA PHADATALE Sri Keravar Ramachandra Phadatale visited Shirdi first in the year 1896 at the age of 10.The experience narrated below occurred after 54 years i.e., 1950 as narrated in Sai Sudha, June'1951. "He had Rs 9 and odd in this pocket. That was clean scissored of by someone in the crowd. This he noticed after Midday Arthi. Some friends then offered to pay him his rail fare to Poona. But this devotee declined it saying "If Baba gives me money, I will go to Poona. Else I shall reside permanently at Shirdi". One morning he went out to ease himself and sat on ground near the stream in the village boundary. He was then unintentionally racking up the sands of the bed of the stream in front of him. Lo! and Behold!! He picked up from under the dry sand, a ten rupee note and one rupee note. He rejoiced to see that all the anger he vented on Baba for loss of his money resulted in the recoupement of the lost money. He informed his friends of it and he got back to Poona". Dear Readers, Baba has special way of solving devotees' problems. In the above case the devotee took a firm decision of not leaving Shirdi till he got money. This decision must have moved Omniscient Sai to arrange money. By adding 'Shraddha' and 'Saburi' to nine types of devotion, Baba gave eleven assurances (He lost Rs 9 and got Rs 11). OM SAI SRI SAI JAYA JAYA SAI!!! D.Sankaraiah. -------------------------------- 12. LETTERS FROM SAIDEVOTEES: Ramalingam Balaji: tharabalaji Thu, 22 Sep 2005 06:18:49 +0300 Sai Ram to all. If any one has the Aarti of Shirdi Baba (from Kakad to Shej), in TAMIL TEXT, is it possible to send me a soft copy of the same (may be scanned as pdf file?) ASAP? Thanking you in advance. Thara Balaji ---- pujaar 9/15/2005 09:24:44 -0600 Om Sai Ram! I am a staunch devotee of Shirdi Sai Baba and a regular reader of "The Glory of Shirdi Sai", thanks to my friend Sandhya who first sent it to me. I just love reading the word of Sai and the experiences of people from their real life are very inspiring to me. I would like to get acquainted with sai devotees in Atlanta, GA area. If interested, please email me at pujaar. Thanks, Pooja U.S.A. radnistala Wed, 21 Sep 2005 11:37:47 -0700 (PDT) Sairam, Just wanted to thank you for the invitation to join the Saidarbar . I was elated to see the invitation in my inbox. I spent some time this afternoon going through the various messages/files & pictures posted and discovered an abundance of Sai wealth in there. My husband and I are part of the Wallingford, PA Sai community here in the US. Just this past weekend we had the 2nd annual day celebrations in Sai Mandir, New York. With the blessings of Lord Sai it of course was a huge success. Radhika ---------------------------- 13. TELUGU SECTION: Please visit: http://68.88.118.16/telugupages/Misc/ShiridiSai/shirdisai.htm -- FOR STARTING A SAIDARBAR CHAPTER OUT SIDE INDIA: Please contact: saidarbar & saidarbar --------------- 14. FROM SAI ORGANISATIONS: Murali Krishnamurthy" murali_krishnamurthy2003 Thu, 22 Sep 2005 07:32:29 -0700 (PDT) Invitation Inauguration of SAIDARBAR- LAUREL, MD-USA With Shirdi Baba's blessings and under guidance of Saibanisaji, We are very happy to inaugurate the 15th chapter here in Laurel, Maryland. We cordially invite you and family for the inauguration on Thursday, October 13, 2005 Vijayadasami day (Baba's Anniversary day) between 6:30 – 7:00pm. Venue: Residence of Murali Krishnamurthy For further details. Please email at: murali_krishnamurthy2003 ---- Saidarbar Chennai: saidarbarchennai For Activities of Saidarbar Chennai Contact saidarbarchennai Chennai Saidarbar Team. "Ramesh and Anitha" kandra For activities of Saidarbar Canberra Please visit: http://angelfire.com/sd/SaidarbarCanberra --- Shirdi Sai Baba" technical 20 Sep 2005 12:43:07 -0000 Second Annual Day function of Saidarbar USA SaiDarbarUSA's second annual day celebrations was held on 17th September, 2005 at SaiMandir, Baldwin, NY (www.saimandirusa.org). We (saidarbarusa.org devotees) are grateful to Dr. Dattatreyudu Nori and Ms. Vijaya Malladi of Dr. Nori Foundation Inc, who benevolently agreed to have us in SaiMandir at Baldwin, NY for this occasion and offered to serve Mahaprasad for all the participants. Devotees of Saidarbar were welcomed with open hands by the Priest Sree Raghu Kumar Sarma Sankaramanchigaru and other volunteers, who served all our needs, relentlessly, to make this event a grand success. There are no words to describe the `Magnificent Six Feet life size Vigraha of our dear Lord Shri Sai Nath at Sai Mandir, Baldwin, NY, which is an exact replica of the one at Shirdi in India' and a `Dwarkamai'. Tears rolled down the cheeks of many devotees, when they saw our Dear Lord Sai Ma and were reminded of Shirdi. Truly, every one of us had a feeling of visiting Shirdi. Devotees of SaiDarbar reached the temple around 10:30am. At that time Sri VishnuSahasranAma recitation was going on. As soon as it was over, Baba's Darbar was taken over by our Satsang starting with three Om's, Ganesha Shloka and Vigneshwara Gayathri followed by Shri Sai Ashtothram. Impressive start of Bhajans by Children with all musical accompaniments, took over the Darbar till Madhyan Aarti. After Madhyan Aarti, Priest Raghu did an Astothra namavali and Archana in the name of each family/members participated during this event. It was surprising to see the hall, which reached almost to its full capacity. Volunteers of SaiMandirUSA bestowed each devotee with Baba's picture and Prasad. After an excellent, delicious and Satvic Mahaprasad (lunch), bhajans (provided by SaiMandir) continued for an hour, and many adult members participated in the bhajans. We completed the reading of the last chapter of Shri Sai Satcharita, before our Dear Lord Shri Sai Nath. Probably Baba wanted that way, to finish His Satcharitam in his presence and showered His Blessings in abundance to all of us. The day concluded with a special Aarti for SaiDarbar, by the Priest Sree Sai Seetha Rama Sharma. Pamphlets of `Genesis of SaiDarbar Movement' was left at Baba's feet, for the distribution in that local area. It is truly a blessing to this chapter of SaiDarbar to have such a wonderful bunch of devotees, who participated and volunteered to their possible extent. Badri Narsimhan: wallingfordsai For Saidarbar Wallingford-PA- USA ---- "Shanthi Ramakrishnan": shanthi Sai Darbar Portland OR USA For activities Sai Darbar Portland OR USA Please contact: shanthi ------------ A.S.Rao, - raoas For Activities of Sai Darbar Kitwe, Zambia Please contact: raoas -------------------- Anil Zutshi: zutshi_anil_k For activities of Saidarbar Danbaru-Canitcut-USA Please contact: zutshi,zutshi ------------------- Satish Achanta: vskachanta For activities of Saidarbar Woodland Hills-CA-USA- Please contact: vskachanta ----------------- Ravi Subramanyam: sai_ravi For activities of Saidarbar Livermore-CA-USA Please contact: sai_ravi ---------- Suresh Vaghela: suresh,suresh For activities of Saidarbar-London Please contact: suresh,suresh -------------------- Sudha Chandrasekhar" sudhaaz Thu, 22 Sep 2005 20:32:33 -0700 (PDT) ANNUAL SHIRDIBABA SAMADHI BHAJAN We cordially invite all Shirdi Baba Devotees in the Valley to participate in the annual Vijayadasami SHIRDIBABA Samadhi Bhajan which commemorates the passing away of Shirdi Baba. Vijayadasami also marks the third anniversary of the AZSHIRDISAI Bhajan group in the Valley, originally begun under the guidance of the late Shri Ramakrishna Madhavapeddi. DATE: WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 12 TIME: 7:00 pm TO 9:00 pm For details contact sudhaaz --------------------- "Atlanta Sai Temple News" webmaster North America Shirdi Sai Temple of Atlanta For more details please contact the Temple 700 James Burgess Road, Suwanee, GA 30024 ------ "Shirdi Saibaba Prayer Center": sai For Further details Visit: Web Page: http://www.hamaresai.org/ Email: hamaresai -------------------------------- "Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of DFW" USA: shirdisaidallas Baba Pada Puja & Abhishekam This event repeats on the first Saturday of every month. Event Location: 2109 W. Parker Road, Plano, Texas It will be followed by Vishnu Sahasranamam at 11:00am. Please email your questions, comments or suggestions about the web site to: admin http://www.shirdisaidallas.org ---- "Om Sai Mandir" saisandesh Sai Sandesh September Issue can be read online at: http://www.omsaimandir.org/sai_sandesh_v2_issue9.pdf Back Issues are available at: http://www.omsaimandir.org/newsletter1.cfm ------------------- Saibandhu" saibandhu Thu, 22 Sep 2005 16:46:27 -0000 SHIRDI SAI MAHASAMADHI & DASSERA COMMEMORATIONS in the BAY AREA, CA We welcome all of you with family, to join us for SHIRDI SAIMAHASAMADHI & DASSERA COMMEMORATIONS in the Bay Area, CA on October16th (Sunday) in Sunnyvale between 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Venue: Presidential Ballroom Sunnyvale Community Center 550 E Remington Drive, Sunnyvale, CA 94087 --- "S Chopra" saileela99 SHIRDI SAI BABA SANSTHAN OF CANADA Please contact: Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan of Canada www.shirdisaicanada.org (under construction) saileela99 Shammi Chopra ------------- babamandir Om Sairam! Mandir Pathrika is now in its third Year of publication. We added more information on Mandir in this issue. We request all devotees to contribute articles to Mandir Pathrika. Articles can be any information on Saibaba, Jalaram bapa or devotee Experiences, suggestions etc. Please email your articles to babamandir You can view all previous issues by opening the following link. http://www.babamandir.org/mandir/OnlineResources.html Vijay ------------------- info 12 Sep 2005 15:02:32 -0000 Sai Baba Mahasamadhi Day & Dushera Celebrations SHIRDI SAI BABA MAHASAMADHI DAY & DUSHERA CELEBRATIONS ON THURSDAY, October13th, 2005 Satya Narayana Vritha Katha 4.00PM to 6.00PM Dhoop Arathi 6.00PM to 6.30PM Special Bhajans, Baba Maha Abhishek 6.30PM to 8.30PM Shej Arathi followed by flower offerings to Baba`s Padhuka by devotees. 8.30 PM to 9.00 PM Activities include: Bhajans, Abhishekam, Arathi and Satyanarayana Puja SHRI SHIRDI SAIBABA TEMPLE, 46-16 ROBINSON ST, FLUSHING, NY 11355 ------------------------------- "Shirdi Saibaba Prayer Center" hamaresai Tue, 20 Sep 2005 17:48:04 -0700 (PDT) Invitation: MahaSamadhi 2005 - Saturday, October 15th, 2005 – 5 PM to 9 PM Sri Sachchidaananda Sadguru Sainath Maharaj ki Jai! Shirdi Saibaba Prayer Center, Inc. Twin Cities, Minnesota, invites you for the 87th Anniversary Celebrations of the MahaSamadhi of Sadguru Sainath Maharaj of Shirdi. The celebrations are scheduled on October 15th from 5:00pm at Geeta Ashram [10537 Noble Ave, Brooklyn Park, MN 55443 - Tel: 763 493 4229]. The program includes Abhisek to Baba, Ashtotra Nama Vali, Artis, Bhajans/Kirtans, Palki Seva and will conclude with Maha Prasad. Please join us in this celebration and invoke Sadguru Sainath's blessings. Program Schedule 5– 5:45pm Abhishek to Baba, Vishnu Sahasranama recital and Naam Jap 5:45 – 6:15pm Dhoop Aarti 6:15 – 6:30pm Experience Sharing /Sai Satcharita Parayan 6:30 – 8:00pm Bhajans 8:00 – 8:45pm Palki Seva 8:45 – 9:00pm Shej Aarti 9:00pm Maha Prasad Bow to Sri SAI, Peace be to ALL! Web: http://www.hamaresai.org Email: hamaresai Shirdi Sai Baba" technical 25 Sep 2005 16:03:09 -0000 Next Satsang on Saturday 1st October 2005 Dear Sai Bandhu, Our next Sai darbar and satsang will be held on Saturday the 1st October, 2005. 05:00pm - 05:30pm - Silent Assembly – Sai Nama japa 05:30pm - Satsang Prayer starts with 2 minutes Dhayna --------------------- 15. SAI'S BOOK WORLD: >From S.K. Kapoor, Honorary Secretary, Sri Sai Bhakta Samaj (Regd.) 17, Institutional Area, Lodhi Road, New Delhi – 110 003. E-mail: ssbsnewdelhi Web: www.saimemorial.com Books in English: 1. PUSHPANJALI - By Mrs. BELA SARMA Book can be obtained from Mrs.Bela Sarma, A-3 /154, Janak Puri, New Delhi -110058 2. GOD WHO WALKED ON EARTH – by Sri Rangaswami Parthasarathy – Price Rs.95/- Publisher: Sterling Publishers private limited, A-59, OKHLA INDUSTRIAL AREA, PHASE – II New Delhi - 110 020. Web: www.sterlingpublishers.com Please Note: Those desirous of using this facility (Sai's Book World) to spread the word about their books may send ONE new copy of the book to Saidarbar, for details contact: webmaster , saidarbar & saidarbar Acknowledgement of receipt of books will be done by E-mail only. Book(s) sent to Saidarbar will be retained by Saidarbar and cannot be returned. -------- E- Books from Saidarbar: 1. SAI A BEACON FOR HUMANITY: You can obtain your copy at http://www.ebeacon.indiainabook.com/other_books.htm 2. SAI IN DREAMS You can obtain your copy at http://www.ebeacon.indiainabook.com/ Contact for further details: Sai Sevak-Vijay Agarwal: vijishvanya - SAIDARBAR – HYDERABAD: http://www.angelfire.com/celeb2/saidarbar/pages/S3500041.htm We congratulate members of SAIDARBAR- LAUREL, MD-USA for starting a chapter in the service of Lord Sainath and HIS devotees We will be happy to conduct Tele-Satsanghs to cities out side Hyderabad, India on prior intimation. For further details please contact saidarbar --------- 16. EDITORIAL. Things impressed me from this Magazine: Starving the body and confining to jungles is not the real penance. Living in the society while following the path of non violence, truth, and showing mercy towards the lesser privileged is more than penance. Spiritual power is mightier than muscle power. What others cannot give with great labour and pains, can be easily gained with the help of such a Teacher (Guru); for he has walked on the path himself and can easily take the disciple, step by step on the ladder of spiritual progress. Lord's Grace is the most essential thing. When the Lord is pleased with any body, He gives him Viveka and Vairagya; and takes him safe beyond the ocean of mundane existence. Sai devotees may write about their Sai activities in their place, essays, articles and poetry on Sai to "The Glory of Shirdi Sai" - they may be address their contributions to E-mail id: saidarbar with a copy marked to webmaster We shall put in our best efforts to include them in the Glory of Shiridi Sai- the bi-weekly E -Magazine. Unless the author of the articles instructs, not to publish his/her E-mail id, we will publish them as a matter of routine practice. You can for THE GLORY OF SHIRDI SAI for a friend /relative by submitting e-mail ID in the main page of http://www.saidarbar.org Also read the old issues from: http://www.saidarbar.org/glory.htm Editor does not accept responsibility for the views expressed in the articles published. This e-magazine is intended for Private circulation only. Submitted by Sai Sevak: Srinivasa Rao Kasturi P.S. In case you do not like to receive "The Glory of Shiridi Sai ", Kindly reply UNSUBSCRIBE for our necessary action. 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