Wonderful experiences of Sai devotees in this issue of Sai Vichaar Magazine

May 11, 2007

Jai Sai Ram,

Below are pasted the experiences of Sai devotees, as read in the most recent issue of the Sai Vichaar Magazine...

Baba does everything in such precision to instill Faith, really...

Jai Sai Ram

---------

EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES:

RajeshThis is my 3rd posting in this Newsletter. The 1st one was posted on 4th August 2005, when I went to Baba after loosing everything (we lost our beloved daughter who was 12 years of age) with a hope that Baba will show us the path. This was the test of our " Faith " . The 2nd one was posted on 6th July 2006 when by Baba's grace my wife conceived once again (after a gap of 14 years), and was going through the very tough and difficult pregnancy phase due to many pregnancy related complications. This was probably the test of our " Patience " . And now the 3rd one, the time for " Baba's gift " , my lovely son Somaditya, who by Baba's grace was born on 30th September 2006 the day of " Ashtami " (the eighth day of Durga Puja considered very auspicious). I had mentioned in my 1st posting that we were trying to bring our daughter back and here is Somaditya with the similar " birth marks " which my daughter bore. The doctor had predicted the same due(birth) date i.e. 2nd October for Somaditya, which was also my daughter's birthday, however he was born two days earlier. But the time was again during Durga puja. My daughter was born on " Shashthi " (the 6th day of Durga Puja), whereas Somaditya was born on " Ashtami " (the 8th day of Durga Puja). So as per Hindu calendar he is born two days later whereas based on English calendar he was two days earlier, that means the net, he was born on the same date with similar birthmarks which means my daughter was back! This is just a miracle made possible by " The Almighty " , " The Humble " and " The Merciful " Baba.

MeenakshiI wanted to share a beautiful experience with all. I always offer nice clothes to Baba on Ramnavami day. I make it a point to select the best color and nice border and stitch it by hand and give it in the temple before Ramnavami. One night I had a dream where I am standing in a long line to take darshan of Baba and as I was standing there I saw a curtain and I pushed it aside only to see Baba relaxing on the cot and I was telling my husband that if we are good enough Baba will always call us in. No sooner I said this I heard Baba saying " now who is stopping you? " So we both went inside and it appeared that Baba wasn't that happy with me and I asked Him why for that Baba asked me when was the last time you gave me any clothes and money. I was feeling very guilty in my dream and said Baba I will get you good clothes but regarding money You need to ask my husband. Next morning when I got up I was thinking about this dream and as it was a Saturday when I went shopping I bought a green color cloth with good border and came home only to realize that it was Ramnavami next day! I couldn't explain how I felt that in-spite of me completely forgetting about it (not purposefully as I do have lots of responsibilities as I just changed to a new job that too with His blessing), He made me buy what I always buy for Him otherwise I would have felt so terrible if at all I missed it out. Thanks a lot Baba, You gave me so much importance and love by doing this. Please give me enough strength to stay the same in Your eyes. I love You.

BapuOn Friday, 27th April I was terribly worried, as I did not have any money even to manage day to day needs of the family. Though I have been in business since decades I lost everything 2 years ago. I was also devoted to Aravindashrama. But my association with Sai Baba is decades old, which I did not consider seriously. However on 13th March I got a picture of Baba (copy of original photo with umbrella). By sheer chance I went to meet my classmate with whom I studied for my B.E. degree during early seventies. He wanted to execute some small work for his residence and for that he gave me immediately Rs 20,000 in cash. Incidentally he had returned from Shirdi just day before and gave me Baba's prasad and the original photo. This incident created some sort of mental shock for me. Subsequently I have completed 7-day parayana of Shri Sai Satcharitra. Though I have very serious financial problems I am confident Sai will come to my rescue. My life is in His hands. At this point I can offer myself to Him and nothing else. I am not in a position to go to Shirdi also at the moment. Let his will prevail.

---------- Forwarded message ----------svlist <svlist

>10-May-2007 09:10Sai Vichaar for Thursday , May 10, 2007mystic_saurabh

Sai Vichaar

www.saibaba.org

Thursday , May 10, 2007 :: Volume 9, Issue 52

(In its nineth year of publication.)

Sai Vichaar is a Weekly newsletter distributed every Thursday and is devoted to the life, philosophy and teachings of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi. Feel free to forward this newsletter to your interested associates in its original form.

IN THIS ISSUE: FEATURE OF THE WEEK

CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE

DEVOTEES SAY

PRAYER CLUB

EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES

QUOTATION OF THE WEEK

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

SAI ACTIVITIES

FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD

FEATURE OF THE WEEK: Will Logic Help?

" There are several ways to go up. One starts from here. The journey is difficult, path full of tigers and wolves. If you have a Guide with you, then your journey would be safe " . These words are not new to a Sai devotee. However, what may be lacking in him/her is the inability to remember of Sadguru's assurances. This is enough to make the difference between hope and despair, happiness and gloom. To be cautious of tigers and wolves needs a very conscientious effort, for most of those beasts are hidden in the self. Karma, Bhakthi, Gnana and Yoga are the different roads leading to the same destination. Sai Baba has stressed once and several times, the importance of Devotion and surrender of the Self. For the material man, this may sound like a forfeiture of the self, a passive giving in to some unknown entity. Does this surrender demean the human spirit? Does this by any means make a man less divine? Not at all! The ability to even raise this question is a function of human nature, the ability to analyze, discriminate and identify with a particular attribute. If we let the self, give itself away, we are divine! Dispel the darkness and what we have is light! Traits that have made the man a superior being on the globe are the same ones that seem to take him away from the self. The material self of the day is the result of the sequential build up of our intellectual function, the faculty immersed with the pursuit of definitions, data, facts, figures, theses, and functions. Does this approach help one in anyway to seek the perennial happiness? If so, how far is the goal? From the days of Flat earth to the hurricanes on the mars, centuries of time are just a few feet of the miles. Who shall build the computer that takes us to God? Saadhana, and surrender, faith and patience are not passive states of existence. On the other hand, they are the active pursuits that are not easily comprehensible and unquantifiable entities running parallel. On this beautiful Thursday, let us remember His love towards us, towards our perfections and imperfections. Let us reinforce our faith in Sainath and experience His blessings.

CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE: Real vs. Shadow

This story of two birds is mentioned in the Upanishads. Two birds are sitting on a tree. The first bird is sitting on a higher branch in a serene and peaceful manner. The second bird is sitting on the lower branch and it is busy in tasting and enjoying the fruits. Accidentally, the second bird ate a bitter fruit. It felt disgusted and looked around. It saw the first bird and wondered at the calm nature of the first bird. Never mind. Again it became busy in eating the fruits. Once more it ate a very bitter fruit and it felt miserable. This time it decided to go near the first bird to know the secret of its tranquil nature .As the second bird started flying near the first bird a surprise thing happened. The second bird discovered the fact that it is nothing but the shadow of the first bird. It was never as solid as it thought of. The first bird is the true and the real nature of the second bird. All the time the second bird was the part and parcel of the first bird only. In the ignorance the second bird identified itself as separate from the first bird. Joyfully, the shadow of the second bird melted away in the majestic light of the first bird. This story talks about the real essence of life is the Lord only (First bird). All of us are expressions of that single divinity in different names and forms. But, in practicality one is perplexed by the various situations in life that makes one to forget the real nature of oneself and to get identified with the false shadow of the ego (Second bird). How to apply this truth in our daily lives is the million-dollar question! The answer is neither simple nor ready made. Initially one should listen the truth from a Guru (sravana), then one should do manana of remembering it, and one has to contemplate (nidhidhyasana) on the various possible ways to bring it into real life situations. The teacher is the pivotal point in the sadhana. Faith (sraddha) and Patience (saburi) are very much essential in the practice of the vedantic truths. One needs a Sadguru for guidance ad support. It does not matter even if one fails thousand times in practicing it. Definitely each time one becomes better and better. This awareness of the real nature (only one divinity expresses itself in different names and forms) helps one to reduce the negative feelings of enmity, anger, hatred and jealousy towards others and promotes the positive feelings of Love, Kindness and Forgiveness. There is only one light shining through different media. The knowledge of the ephemeral nature of the ego and eternal nature of the Self or God helps one not to become overburdened and collapsed under the difficult situations of life. This makes one to approach life in a less stressful way. Without giving up if one starts practicing it is sure that the truth becomes a way of life. Jai Sai Ram. (Contributed by Sai devotee)

DEVOTEES SAY:

GopikrishnaBefore drawing any conclusion whether you are committing a sin or not, I sincerely advice you to look at the way the Nature works. Whenever you resolve (remember it is a thought vibration, which has energy) to do something, the Nature automatically acts favorably (corresponding vibration) and reacts (opposing vibration) to test you. If you stick to your resolution, in spite of all problems and hurdles, your will become strong and strengthened and you succeed in your efforts to keep up the resolution. If not, you will become mentally weak and susceptible to negative vibrations. That is the reason, our elders advice us to be strong mentally while making a resolution or promise and be sincere in one's efforts to live up to that resolution. Now, the question is how sincere you are, in spite of all temptations, enticements and hurdles. You are going back on your resolution means, you are not strong enough. So, become strong mentally and stand up against the opposing or negative situations, and I am sure, you will succeed. May Sai Bless You. All the best.

RadhikaA few days before, I was very tensed and disturbed because of certain health problems. I prayed to Sai Baba that my medical report would come negative, as it was feared that I might have cancer. The reports came and nothing was there as I suspected, I think it is Sai Baba's grace and His blessings. Sai now a days my daughter is having tough time Please help her. I promised her that god would help her she is working hard to get good grades please bless her with good grades. She is having huge tests in next 2 weeks please be with her and help her to succeed and create faith on you and bless her with Mentorship the one which she applied. Bless my husband, son and all.

SanjeevThis is to thanks to Vipul on his article " Why Sai Baba will not listen to some people and not comes in their Dreams " on May 3rd 2007 edition of Sai Vichaar. How beautifully worded was his article about how we see things and think that why Sai Baba will not listen to some people and what we feel. I am so thankful to Vipul for sharing with us. Reading such experiences makes us firm believer to have Shraddha and Saburi. May Sai God bless him and every believer.

SubramanianThanks a lot for your blessings and love to our family. The house-warming function on 30th April 2007 went on very well. You were with us all the time guiding us every minute. Thanks Sai Maharaj. Please be with us always. We are at Your lotus feet. Let myself, my wife and our daughter be within Your shadow and be blessed always. Please protect us Lord Sainatha.

AnandRecently me, my wife and six years old son went to India, we went through Lufthansa from US to Bangalore with stop over in Frankfurt Germany. When we arrived in Germany we had stopover for 4 hours. We just came out of flight and I found while checking my next flight information that my passport was missing ( though my wife and son's passport was there mine was lost). I had my Indian visa stamped on the passport. I was shocked, could not think for the moment, just prayed to Saibaba and approached the gate from which we came. I talked to the security and went back to the plane, plane was ready to go back to docking station. I explained to flight crew about my situation, they were good and we searched the plane and found my passport under my seat. Thanks to Sri Shirdi Sai Nath I got my US passport back. We went to India and stayed there for 4 weeks and during the stay I had darshan of Sai in Shirdi. As Baba says, " have faith in me and I will solve all your problems " .

PrasanthiThanks for helping me in solving some of my official issues which was creating a big headache for me from a long time. Baba without Your blessings and support I could not have managed a single day in my present organization. I feel Your presence at all the times and You were there all the times when I needed You. I am so grateful to You, Baba. Please help me in finding some new job. I will post my experience once I shift my job and settle down in my career. Kindly bless us as You always do.

PratibhaI want to share my experience with all the Sai devotees. My husband has congenital heart disease, recently doctors checked him again and sugested valve replacement. I was scared like anything and prayed Sai. I started reading Sai Satcharitha and believe me my fear was fading away. As if Sai was telling me not to worry. We went to the doctor whom we prefer since my husband's childhood and by Sai's grace he said that there was nothing to worry and my husband was fine. I can never ever forget this incident in my life. Sai I don't have words to thank you. Please shower Your blessings on us and on all Sai devotees. Thank You so much Baba.

PRAYER CLUB:

SwethaBaba, you know that my husband is facing many difficulties to get his visa and get PhD. Please help him and shower your blessings.

SaikiranSai Baba my nephew is suffering from a disease named Infant Spasm. Please cure him completely because I know that You can do anything. Please Baba help that poor child and his parents.

AartiMy daughter is only 3 months old. She is having some skin infection and it is increasing day by day. Please pray to Baba for my little one.

ViswasPlease help my mother to recover her legs pain. She is suffering so much. Tomorrow my mother is going to Doctor. Please bless my mother so that she did not have any problems and recovering very soon.

KaviBaba this time please show some mercy on my brother, he lost his laptop and all the info is there. Baba please help him to find the laptop.

SudeviBaba please solve this big problem. We don't have much time with us. Baba please listen to our prayers from bottom of our heart. Please Baba help us to come out of it. Please deva make our faith on You more and more. Please take care of everything. Please Baba save us.

Sai devoteeDear Baba, kindly bless me and erase all the dirty, negative and unhealthy thoughts from my mind and fill my mind with thoughts of success, courage, confidence, victory and enthusiasm.

Sai devoteeOm Sai Ram. I need your help and solution to the problems I am going through since the last five years. I have been working in a reputed organisation on a good post and have been a very conscientious worker. Five years back I was given a promotion to a better position without a change in my grade. In spite of my making several requests to my bosses till date there has been no change in my grade. I know You have created end number of miracles in my life and I know You have an answer to my problem. Baba I look forward to Your blessings, help and solution and I promise I shall definitely post my experience.

PadmaDear Baba, plesae save me from all my problems. Guide my son to study and do hardwork for his examinations. Please save me from my husband's problems. This time please bless me to have good increment.

VijayaMy beloved Baba, my son's first author project paper is not yet published. It is being held up. Swami, we pray that all obstacles be removed and the paper be approved and be published in a reputed journal.

VishwashitaBaba, I am worried about the fate of our parental house (which is like a temple to us) and a piece of land purchased by me with my hard earned money. Please rest my fears in peace. You know very well that I have none other than You to turn to.

EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES:

RajeshThis is my 3rd posting in this Newsletter. The 1st one was posted on 4th August 2005, when I went to Baba after loosing everything (we lost our beloved daughter who was 12 years of age) with a hope that Baba will show us the path. This was the test of our " Faith " . The 2nd one was posted on 6th July 2006 when by Baba's grace my wife conceived once again (after a gap of 14 years), and was going through the very tough and difficult pregnancy phase due to many pregnancy related complications. This was probably the test of our " Patience " . And now the 3rd one, the time for " Baba's gift " , my lovely son Somaditya, who by Baba's grace was born on 30th September 2006 the day of " Ashtami " (the eighth day of Durga Puja considered very auspicious). I had mentioned in my 1st posting that we were trying to bring our daughter back and here is Somaditya with the similar " birth marks " which my daughter bore. The doctor had predicted the same due(birth) date i.e. 2nd October for Somaditya, which was also my daughter's birthday, however he was born two days earlier. But the time was again during Durga puja. My daughter was born on " Shashthi " (the 6th day of Durga Puja), whereas Somaditya was born on " Ashtami " (the 8th day of Durga Puja). So as per Hindu calendar he is born two days later whereas based on English calendar he was two days earlier, that means the net, he was born on the same date with similar birthmarks which means my daughter was back! This is just a miracle made possible by " The Almighty " , " The Humble " and " The Merciful " Baba.

MeenakshiI wanted to share a beautiful experience with all. I always offer nice clothes to Baba on Ramnavami day. I make it a point to select the best color and nice border and stitch it by hand and give it in the temple before Ramnavami. One night I had a dream where I am standing in a long line to take darshan of Baba and as I was standing there I saw a curtain and I pushed it aside only to see Baba relaxing on the cot and I was telling my husband that if we are good enough Baba will always call us in. No sooner I said this I heard Baba saying " now who is stopping you? " So we both went inside and it appeared that Baba wasn't that happy with me and I asked Him why for that Baba asked me when was the last time you gave me any clothes and money. I was feeling very guilty in my dream and said Baba I will get you good clothes but regarding money You need to ask my husband. Next morning when I got up I was thinking about this dream and as it was a Saturday when I went shopping I bought a green color cloth with good border and came home only to realize that it was Ramnavami next day! I couldn't explain how I felt that in-spite of me completely forgetting about it (not purposefully as I do have lots of responsibilities as I just changed to a new job that too with His blessing), He made me buy what I always buy for Him otherwise I would have felt so terrible if at all I missed it out. Thanks a lot Baba, You gave me so much importance and love by doing this. Please give me enough strength to stay the same in Your eyes. I love You.

BapuOn Friday, 27th April I was terribly worried, as I did not have any money even to manage day to day needs of the family. Though I have been in business since decades I lost everything 2 years ago. I was also devoted to Aravindashrama. But my association with Sai Baba is decades old, which I did not consider seriously. However on 13th March I got a picture of Baba (copy of original photo with umbrella). By sheer chance I went to meet my classmate with whom I studied for my B.E. degree during early seventies. He wanted to execute some small work for his residence and for that he gave me immediately Rs 20,000 in cash. Incidentally he had returned from Shirdi just day before and gave me Baba's prasad and the original photo. This incident created some sort of mental shock for me. Subsequently I have completed 7-day parayana of Shri Sai Satcharitra. Though I have very serious financial problems I am confident Sai will come to my rescue. My life is in His hands. At this point I can offer myself to Him and nothing else. I am not in a position to go to Shirdi also at the moment. Let his will prevail.

QUOTATION OF THE WEEK:

" When the devotees surrender themselves completely to their Sadguru, He sees that the religious functions in their houses are duly executed and complied with all the necessary formalities " .-Sri Sai Satcharitra

QUESTION OF THE WEEK:

Q. Why is Thursday important for Baba? A. by Vandana Thursdays are important to Baba devotees. Baba, who gave importance to the Guru traditions, told His people that Guruvar (Thursday) is very important for Him. So we consider Baba as our Samardha Sadguru and so we should see to that on all Thursdays we salute Sai Baba and get His blessings as a Guru and follow His advice and become one in the Sai army! Jai Sairam.

SAI ACTIVITIES:

Shirdi Sai Temple of Chicago and Suburbs, Illinois, USAShirdi Sai temple is open daily from 8:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m (Winter hours). Daily program includes Kakad Arathi at 8 a.m. followed by Abhisek. Madhayana Arathi at 12 noon, Dhoop Arathi at 6 p.m. and Shej Arathi at 9 p.m. Archana, Homams, Sahasranama and sponsored poojas continue in between the Arathis. To request a pooja for yourselves, your friends and family, please call. Devotees can request water (Abhishek Jal) from the Holy bathing of Baba by sending us an email or by phone. Temple is located 25 minutes drive west of Schaumburg on intersection of IL Route 47 and Plank Road in Hampshire, IL. For more information please call 847-931-4058 or send email to maildrop.

Shri Saibaba Mandir, Minneapolis, MinnesotaSaibaba activities in Minneapolis were conducted at Shirdi Saibaba Prayer center since the year 2002. Now, with the grace and blessings of Baba and the support of devotees, a new Saibaba Mandir has begun to function at 1835 Polk St NE, Minneapolis from July 11th 2006. Please visit www.hamaresai.org for all details.

Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of Dallas/Fort Worth, TexasSri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of DFW Metroplex is located at 2109 West Parker (Parker Plaza), Suite 212, Plano, TX 75023. For temple hours and activities please call the temple office at 469-467-3388 or visit the website www.shirdisaidallas.org.

Shirdi Sai Center in Bay Area, CAShirdi Sai Center is located 897-B East Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale, CA 94086. For more information please call 408-705-7904 or 408-564-6704 or send email to

saibandhu. You can also visit our website is www.Shirdisaiparivaar.org.

Shirdi Saibaba temple, Los Angeles, CADevotees in Los Angeles area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Los Angeles area. The temple is located at - 144 South 4th Street, Montebello, CA 90640. For more information please call Krishna Samantula at 949-679-9938 or visit www.shirdisaila.org.

Saibaba Temple, Columbus, OhioDevotees in Columbus and surrounding Ohio locations area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Metro Columbus area. The temple is located in a leasing space at 7674 Sawmill Rd, Dublin, OH 43016. Please attend daily Aaratis and Thursday bhajans. For more information please call Panditjee at 614-799-8411 or visit www.saibaba.cc.

Shirdi Sai bhajans every Thursday at Maitland, FloridaDevotees are invited to participate in Sai study and bhajans on Thursdays between 7-8 pm at Meditation Gallery, 219 E Horatio Ave, Maitland, FL 32715. For more details please contact Bonnie at 407-830-1276.

FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD:

Writers of Contributed Articles are requested to identify themselves by giving their name. Unless Baba wills nothing can be done and it is symbolic of one's humility not to be given too much credence to their writings or expressions. However, in respect to the etiquette of publication, it is only customary to identify the source of writings. Sai Vichaar hopes that devotees would oblige. A Sai devotee suggests the Question of the week as follows, Q. If faith and patience doesn't work what would one do to obtain Baba's help?

Humbly Yours,The Editor

ABOUT THIS EMAIL:

This newsletter is not sent unsolicited. This newsletter is e-mailed to you because of at least one of the following reasons:1. You have d through our on-line page,2. You have visited our web site and shown interest in the Sai topics and asked for information, or

3. You have been gifted a subscription by a friend or a relative. To Subscribe Sai Vichaar for receipt by Email please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html

and select the option from the menu. If you are subscribing the newsletter for your friend or a relative, we request that the person concerned may be notified about receiving the newsletter and the willingness to receive the newsletter be confirmed. To Un-Subscribe receipt of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html

and select the option from the menu. If you have problems accessing the web page due to network problems, please send an e-mail to

support with the words " Un Sai Vichaar " in the subject line. To make a contribution to any of the sections of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html

and select the Submit Articles to Sai Vichaar option from the menu. Back copies of HTML version of Sai Vichaar can be accessed by visting the URL http://www.saibaba.org/whatsnew.html

.. For any questions or more information regarding this e-mail or our web site, please send an e-mail to maildrop

and your inquiries will be attended to promptly. Thank you,The webmaster

From and Editor:

Shirdi Sai Baba Web Site

Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha

(A non-profit organization)

Mail:

12N950 State Route 47

Hampshire, IL 60140, USA

Email

maildrop

Phone

847-931-4058

Fax

847-931-4066

© Copyright 1998-2006 saibaba.org, Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha - Sai Vichaar Weekly may only be redistributed in its unedited form. Written permission must be obtained to reprint or cite the information contained within this newsletter. Sai Vichaar is devoted to the philosophy and teachings of Shri Sadguru Sai Baba of Shirdi, and will take every measure to avoid topics or themes contradicting the same. Sai Vichaar team or the Shirdi Sai Baba web site is not responsible for the opinions expressed by individual contributors.

-- " Let Noble thoughts come to us from every side " .- RigVeda (1-89-i)