Bereavement

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Bereavement

 

It was a grim situation. Tatya Kote fell at the feet of Sainath and

urged Him to revive Bayaja maa, his mother. Bayajabai, herself a

devout devotee of Sainath, was on the deathbed waiting for the last

word from the God she had known. How could God convince a grieving

devotee who wants his mother to be alive? How can a guru explain his

follower the irreversible course of nature? The temporariness of

body, and the everlasting attribute of atman?

 

Sainath lovingly coaxes Tatya and assures him that He would

rejuvenate Bayajabai from death provided Tatya showed him one single

household on earth, where there is no death! Is this possible? Cycle

of events in human life seem to follow a predestined path that is

hard to understand. Death seems to be one such event that reminds the

mundane material man, the temporary nature of the human body and its

attributes. The duty of Guru is to lead the disciple in the right

path, in life and death. Sainath's guidance in this matter is quite

clear. He has always guided the faithful in the right direction. A

close examination of His message would reinforce the same thought.

Several incidents depict the way Sainath helped His devotees by

averting what could be termed as, a certain death. In some cases, He

has blessed His children by providing a righteous demise, the

examples of Megha, Vijayanand, Balaram Mankar and the Tiger to name a

few (vide Chapter XXXI, Sai Satcharitha). Sainath Himself is believed

to have given His physical body to protect ailing Ramachandra Patil,

another devotee who was on the deathbed during the fateful

Vijayadashami day in 1918.

 

The question that why one should die may not be as important as how

one should live or what is to be accomplished by human life or death.

For one who believes in Saibaba, the " thrikaala gnaani " (one who is

aware of the past, present, and the future), the fear of death should

never be a matter of concern because His guidance will remove one's

fear of life. Why does one want to fear death when he is not afraid

of the life, the more dreaded karmic cobweb capable of multitude of

myth and deceit; the tigers and wolves that Sainath referred to?

Finally, what does one achieve from a Guru who fulfils small desires

but appears to let the disciple suffer by not coming to rescue at

times of larger calamities? The wisdom! The realization that the

karmic cycle of joy and sorrow is superceded by bhakthi (devotion)

and saadhana (perseverance).