Sai Baba the master

[Guest guest]

For fifty six long years since 1858 devotees went on

pouring in and out of Shirdi for the darshan of Sai

Baba, “the diamond on the dunghill.” Everyday the

devotees that flocked there numbered hundreds. What

Baba said in the early days of his arrival at Shirdi

came literally true. Long before 1908, when Shirdi

was still a quiet, nameless village Baba said,

“Mansions will rise up in this village. Bigwigs will

come. Guns will be fired. Chariots, horses, elephants,

all will come. Grand processions will be held.” People

then laughed at his naive imagination. But around the

year 1914 all these came to pass, and Sai Baba’s glory

was steadily increasing like the glory of the sun

towards noon tide. Why wonder if the then famous

saint, Sri Madhavanath described Sai Baba as the

Kohinoor among saints? The joy and zeal of Sai’s

devotees seemed an unending spring season.

In 1914,Sai Baba made a very casual

remark to one of his devotees. He pointed out a piece

of waste land of the village to Mrs. Bapusaheb Jog and

said, “It is my site; a big mansion will rise up here

and we shall live there. Big people would look after

me.” Mrs. Jog took it as one of the very many

inscrutable things he said and hoped that one day she

might understand what it meant. Two years passed by

and she forgot all about it.

It was the Hindu festival of Vijayadasami in 1916.

Devotees flocked to Shirdi and the whole village

looked like a big fair. All the people of the village

went in a procession to attend the ceremonial

seemollanghan, carrying worship-materials like

incense, singing and playing instruments. They would

cross the border line of the village and then return.

(This ceremony was probably a relic of the custom of

ancient kings proceeding on wars of conquest across

the borders of their kingdoms on that auspicious day.)

In the evening, when all the people were

returning,Sai Baba suddenly flew into a wild rage. It

was one of Baba’s characteristic ways to flare up on

such auspicious occasions. He took off his

head-dress, kufni, and his langota

(underwear) publicly, tore them up and flung them in

the sacred fire.

 

Baba’s eyes burned like live coal and his whole body

seemed to glow with an uncanny aura. He stood stark

naked in the center of the mosque and shouted “You

fellows, look at me and decide whether I am a Moslem

or a Hindu!” (i.e. whether he was circumsized in the

Moslem fashion or not.) None dared to pacify Baba.

At last the leper devotee, Bhagoji made bold to

approach Baba and succeeded in tying a new langota

round Baba’s waist. Though Baba did not physically

obstruct him, he shouted and cursed. Bhagoji gently

said, “Baba, today is the holy seemollanghan. Why

are you angry and why do you frighten people thus?”

Striking the ground with his satka or staff, he said,

“This day is my seemollanghan.”

 

Baba did not calm down and the people doubted whether

the usual

chavadi procession could be conducted that day. After

an hour or so Baba cooled down, dressed himself up,

and resumed his usual seat. A little later, he took

part in the procession. What Baba meant when he said,

“This day is my seemollanghan,” none could

understand.

 

Sai Baba the master.

www.saibharadwaja.com

on behalf of mr.leeladharji

 

 

 

 

 

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