The Essential Sai Satcharita

Sai Baba's Devotee Speaks
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The Essential Sai Satcharita

This special series includes additional chapter commentaries on the Sai Satcharita by Dr. Vinny Chitluri giving devotees precious insights into Baba's life and teachings.

  1. 07/16/2020

    Introduction

    The Sai Satcharita is the Bible for Sai Baba's devotees, in the truest sense of the word, as it chronicles the life and teachings of Baba. This sacred work has been documented by Baba's intimate devotee, Govind R. Dabholkar, whom Baba lovingly named Hemadpant. The book is titled Sai Satcharita, and not 'Sai Satcharitra' – as it is commonly misspelt. A 'Satcharita' is a record of leelas, teachings and incidents, whereas a 'Satcharitra' is a biography, which the work is not. The original work of Hemadpant was written as a series of poetic verses called ovis, composed in vernacular Marathi. It was, therefore, not very accessible to everyone because of the language barrier. Over the years, it has been translated into various languages. The more commonly known works were abridged editions that edited Baba's words and leelas, thus changing the context, intensity, and essence of the work, to some extent. The translations did, however, fulfil a very big and important purpose by making the work accessible to many devotees all over the world. The author, Indira Kher, has painstakingly translated the wonderful, original manuscript very accurately in her English edition, where it is a literal translation – verse by verse, ovi by ovi. It is highly recommended that a devotee get a copy of this edition as it is the closest an English-speaking reader will get to the original work of Hemadpant. For devotees who are new to Sai Baba, I would recommend that one read a short book written by author Arthur Osborne – The Incredible Sai Baba – before proceeding any further. This should give the reader an overview of Baba's life, which would be very helpful before commencing the reading of the Sai Satcharita. Reason For The New Edition What we have compiled here is – The Essential Sai Satcharita – which has been put together with the intent of taking the essence of the original work and making it more accessible to readers today. The original composition by Hemadpant includes philosophical commentary which is precious and relevant; making it, however, difficult for the contemporary reader to quickly access the important leelas and sayings of Baba, as Hemadpant, in the original work, has intertwined the two throughout his work. A lot of time needs to be invested in sifting through a large part of the commentary in order to find these precious jewels. A typical devotee of today's younger generation leads a life very different from that of the era when the book was originally composed. Today's reader might have a busier work routine, time constraints, and a shorter attention span, thereby making the need for this new edition even more urgent. For the modern reader, the new edition serves an additional purpose – that of remaining true to the original manuscript – through its compilation of all the leelas and sayings of Baba. The words of Baba are impregnated with deep meaning. They can penetrate the heart, mind, and soul of an earnest and receptive devotee and can bring about a transformation. In this digital format, the the new edition also makes references and provides links to various important and relevant resources such as videos, articles, and photographs that correlate to the given section that is being read. To augment the reading experience and support the reader further, an audiobook version of the Sai Satcharita is also in the process of being recorded. This should enable devotees to hear Baba's leelas, smaran, and teachings while on the go. The digital edition and the audiobook are designed to complement each other; one not being a replacement for the other. The audiobook carries two additional short commentaries at the end of every chapter. The first commentary is by Dr Vinny Chitluri who is an authority on Sai Baba's life. Her chapter-wise commentary gives precious insights and perspectives into the details of Baba's life, which a new devotee would find only after years of painstaking research and exploration. The second commentary is by Advaita teacher and author, Gautam Sachdeva. His spiritual insights give devotees pointers on the deeper meaning of Baba's teachings and leelas. Gautam guides devotees on how they can apply the teachings to their daily life and thus live the path as shown by Baba. To sum up, this truly essential edition has been compiled with the purpose of providing a tool to help devotees remain in constant remembrance of Baba, deepen their understanding of Baba's teachings, and become living examples of the path Baba has shown us. Taking advantage of the convenience of modern technology, we endeavour to make this portal an important platform to help sincere devotees of Baba. In addition to e-books and audiobooks, we shall be adding an important 'Resources' section – an entire library that will have categories on Baba's Mahabhaktas, the leelas, the experiences of devotees, interviews with luminaries, and a host of other tools – sha...

    14 min

  2. 07/16/2020

    Foreword by Vinny Chitluri

    The Essential Sai Satcharita

    4 min

  3. 07/16/2020

    Chapter 1

    It was during the early 1910s that Hemadpant went to visit Baba in Shirdi. It was then that he first witnessed the following incredible leela of Baba, and was inspired to write Baba's life story in the ensuing chapters of the Sai Satcharita. One morning, in Dwarkamai, Sai Baba sat at the grinding stone after completing His morning rituals. Carrying a scuttle-like basket in His hand, Baba went towards a bag of wheat and began taking its contents out in a rather hurried manner; filling cupfuls of wheat up to the brim and straight into the basket. Baba then spread out another empty sack on the ground near Him. He placed His grinding quern on it and attached its wooden peg firmly in place so that it would stay secure while grinding. Getting Himself ready to grind, Baba rolled up His sleeves, tucked in the folds of His kafni, and then sat down near the grinding quern with His legs spread outward. "What is this sudden idea – that of grinding wheat?" Hemadpant thought to himself. Puzzled as he was, he continued to think, "To a poor penniless one, without attachment to any material possessions, why should there be any anxiety about worldly things?" However, with His head bent downward, Sai Baba had taken a firm hold of the handle of the quern. Baba kept rotating the quern stone with His own hands intensely, as if He were crushing something more than just wheat, with enmity and hatred, into the flour. "Many a saint had I met before; but here was the one grinding wheat at a quern! What pleasure could grinding give Him? Only He can understand His strange ways!" People watched Baba in astonishment, but no one dared ask Him what He was doing. As the news of this activity travelled, residents of the village came running and a crowd gathered. The women gasped for breath as they ran. Four of them hastily rushed up the steps of Dwarkamai and held Baba's hand, seizing it as they snatched the handle of the grinding stone away from Him. Baba retaliated and began quarrelling with the women; but without paying any heed to Him they started grinding the wheat at once. And as they began, they also started chanting Baba's praises and His marvellous leelas. Touched by their genuine affection for Him, Baba's outward display of anger vanished, With tenderness and love, a pleasing smile stole over His face. All the wheat that Baba had kept there was ground. It measured a full eight pounds (four seers); the basket of ground wheat was now emptied. And then the women began to make lofty assumptions in their minds about the purpose of it all. They thought to themselves, "Sai Baba does not prepare wheat bread for Himself; to subsist on alms (bhiksha) is His actual practice. What then will Baba do with all this ground wheat flour? Moreover, Baba has no wife, no children, or family. Baba is all alone, without any worldly binding of hearth and home, or of any material possessions; what then would Baba want all this flour for?" One of them then had the audacity to say aloud, "Oh! Sai Baba is compassion itself! All this flour is only for us. Just wait and see! Baba will now distribute all this flour to us. Baba will now divide it into four shares, one for each of us!" The other women happily assumed this would happen, and were beginning to build castles in the air. But only Sai Baba knows His own ways; none other can comprehend His ultimate purpose. And yet, the women waiting there, salivating in their minds, overcome by greed, wanted to get their hands on the wheat flour! When all of the wheat grain was ground and the flour spread out, the grinding quern was put back in its place. The women began to fill the scuttle-like basket with the flour, and in their minds, they were already walking towards their homes with the flour. All this while, not a word escaped Baba's lips. But as they proceeded to divide the flour in equal parts, listen to what Baba had to say. What follows is from the original script in Marathi documented by Hemadpant. It gives an insight into how direct Baba could be when needed, unlike what many television series wrongly portray Him to be. The word Randa that Baba used for them is impossible to translate, but it gives the reader a glimpse of the intensity of Baba's words. The attempt at an English translation is given below. "Where do you think you are taking the flour? Does it belong to your father that you are carrying it away? Go at once to the village boundary and throw all of the flour at the side of the stream there!" "Leech-like whores! How you came running to loot Me! Was it some borrowed wheat that you wanted to claim?" The women were ashamed of their greediness and were quite shaken up! In whispers they spoke amongst themselves trying to find consolation. Then immediately they left for the village boundary as Baba had commanded them to, No one understood Sai Baba's intention at the time. The reason for His leela that was unfolding – nobody could quite comprehend. Waiting pa...

    9 min

  4. 07/16/2020

    Chapter 2

    The Purpose Of This Work In the first Chapter, we witnessed Baba's leela in which He prevented the cholera epidemic from entering Shirdi by grinding wheat at the quern stone and having the flour strewn along the borders of the village. As Hemadpant began to hear and experience these marvellous leelas of Sai, his heart overflowed with joy and love. This ecstatic devotion for Baba that he felt found expression in the sacred verses that he wrote. The thought came to Hemadpant that the sins of the listener would be mitigated by hearing the leelas of Sai. He felt that other devotees would experience the same joy that he and others who witnessed these leelas had felt from their firsthand experience. Documenting the life of a saint is, however, not an easy task, and it is certainly not possible unless it is ordained by the saint himself. Hemadpant thought to himself, "In trying to determine the true nature of the Self, the scriptures and all the four Vedas fall silent. How then will I know your true nature, O Sai?" In whatever manner a devotee may wish to serve the Sadguru, it is truly the Sadguru who Himself gets the service done. The inspiration comes from the saints, and the devotees chosen for the service are mere instruments and not the doers. Having witnessed Baba's leelas for years, the idea of sharing these precious jewels for the benefit of the simple and earnest devotees was germinating in Hemadpant's mind and heart. Those devotees who had not had actual darshan of Baba could gain merit by listening to the stories of His sacred life. It is indeed the one who is blessed who feels an urge to read these stories and is, in turn, blessed with an experience of joy and inner peace when he does so. Baba Grants Permission For The Writing Of His Stories Hemadpant, at the time, was nearly sixty years of age and doubted his own ability to write the book. He felt that neither his mind nor body would be able to support him and feared that the work might be compromised and might even lose its integrity. Yet, despite these obstacles, he felt that instead of wasting time on something else that might be meaningless, he would rather be only in Sai's service. Hemadpant believed that the work would help him make some spiritual advancement, no matter how it would turn out, When the desire to write arose in Hemadpant, he did have the chance, but could not muster the courage to share it directly with Baba. So when he saw Madhavrao (Shama), he immediately conveyed this wish to him. No one was around Baba at the time, and Madhavrao then took the opportunity to broach the subject. Said he, "Baba, this Annasaheb says that he wishes to write down your life story to the very best of his ability, if only you will grant him permission for it. Baba, please do not say 'I am but a fakir, begging alms from door to door, and merely subsisting only on bread, with or without any greens! Of such a one as Me, why would you want to write a life story?' – For you are the diamond which has to be set in its socket." Hemadpant then thought to himself, "Oh, if only Baba, You give Your permission and blessings, the book will then write itself, and You will get it written, and will remove all the obstacles in its way." Baba, who knew everything, was moved to compassion as He felt the sincerity of this prayer. He said, "Your wish will be fulfilled." Hemadpant at once placed his head on Baba's feet. Baba placed His hand on Hemadpant's head and gave him udi as prasad. Hemadpant's anxious and impatient mind began to feel a sense of peace and calm. Knowing that the wish of my heart was sincere, Baba said the following, indicating His consent for the work. "Collect and make a record of all the stories, conversations and experiences." "It is good to keep a record. He will have my full support. He is merely the instrument; for I Myself will write My own story." "I Myself will narrate My own story, and fulfil the wishes of my devotees. He should only dissolve his ego and surrender it at My feet." "He who conducts himself in this way, will get from Me complete assistance. Not only for the writing of this book shall I labor, but for all the needs of his home." "When one's ego totally dissolves, and not even the slightest trace of it is left behind, it is then when 'I' will dwell in him, and by My will the book shall be written." "When the work of listening, contemplation or writing is begun and this thought is held firmly governing it, then such a one will only be the instrument." "Certainly a record must be kept, wherever you are, whether at home or outside, keep remembering these stories, and you will experience contentment and peace." "Listening to my stories, singing them as a kirtan, contemplating them, will increase love and devotion for Me, and all ignorance will be dispelled instantly." "Where faith and devotion are, there I remain forever enslaved. Of this, have absolutely n...

    27 min

  5. BONUS

    Chapter 1 - A Deeper Understanding

    Chapter 1- Gautam Sachdeva's Commentary Baba Sai and The Wheat Grinding Story Significance Coming to this first story in the Sri Sai Satcharita, I think it is no coincidence that this story is the first. There's a reason for everything, there are no coincidences, especially when it comes to messages from Spiritual Masters. You see, this story sets the stage for understanding all the stories which are to come. And the reason is this- in this story itself, we are shown how limited is the thinking by the individual, by the me (ego). In this case, the four women thought that the wheat (being grinded by Baba) was for them. They assumed this without asking Baba, not realizing that the Guru functions on a completely different dimension, and always for the benefit of all. So at a gross level of understanding, we can see that- Oh! these four women were taught the lesson of not to be selfish. But actually, this is for us as readers, that when we go forward on this journey together, of reading and going through the commentaries on the Satcharita, we should not look at it from the perspective of an individual. And that is why the great Gyani Nisargadatta Maharaj, used to tell His devotees, that when you read the Bhagavad Gita, read it from the point of view of Lord Krishna and not of Arjuna which means that read it from the point of view of the Universal Consciousness, not the small identified consciousness. And therefore, as I said in the beginning, this sets the tone for the entire Satcharita and has been placed as the first story for a reason. So, let's take this journey together and see that whenever we think with our limited intellect, and that too for our own gain as in this case of the ladies in the wheat grinding story, our perspective does not take into consideration of our brothers and sisters and humanity as a whole. Now, we will never understand what is the connection between the ground wheat and the cholera epidemic being eradicated from Shirdi. It is only the Absolute, the Source represented by Baba who knows the leela behind that. But the story is loud and clear. He was concerned about the welfare of all. And when He realized that some of His disciples were usurping that for themselves, that they were only concerned about themselves, Baba admonished them. And most likely, they did not make this mistake ever again- the mistake of taking the Guru for granted and thinking that He is only working for certain individuals' benefit. So, friends, let's move on this journey together, a journey of deep understanding which will most certainly impact our daily living.

    4 min

  6. BONUS

    Chapter 1 - Historical Commentary

    As in the beginning of any Pothi, Dabholkar starts with the invocation of the deities, and veneration of all the gods and goddesses, and seeks their blessings for the success of the sacred work that he has undertaken. Then, he describes the Leela of Baba grinding wheat. Baba then asks the four ladies to throw the flour along the boundaries of Shirdi, and thus prevents the cholera epidemic from entering the village and saves the villagers. I shall now talk about the remote village of Shirdi and the Dwarka Mai, where Baba spent 60 years of His life until He took Maha Samadhi in 1980. Shiladi, or Shirdi, was a small remote village. It had about 700 homes with a school and two wells. There were no roads, street lighting, or any other amenities. However, the villagers had jobs. They were goldsmiths, blacksmiths, potters and farmers. The Dwarka Mai was an old dilapidated mosque, and it was the garbage dumping site for the villagers. Even the lizards had run away from it. It was cleaned and Baba resided there. The floor was uneven with pits in it, and it was covered with a slurry of cow dung, but was very clean. All the devotees congregated there for Baba’s Darbar and to seek His blessings. Dikshit, Apte and Dabholkar were like-minded friends, who read the Bhagavad Gita together. They had a pact that if any of them met a saint like Shivaji Maharaj's guru, Sant Ramdas Swami, they would go and meet him. Dikshit was the first to go to Shirdi, and from Shirdi, he wrote to them about Baba’s glorious divinity. Dabholkar, however, was wavering in his mind, as he did not believe in Sadgurus, the reason being, a friend of his had recently lost a son in Lonavala. After all medical remedies failed, he asked his guru to sit with the child. However, the child passed away, so Dabholkar thought, 'What is the use of having a guru if he can't save the child?' Dikshit repeatedly asked him to go to Shirdi, but he made excuses. However, it was Chandorkar who forced him to visit Shirdi and thus he came to Shirdi in 1910, and seeing Baba, his life changed forever. I shall now talk a little about the significance of the quern, or hand mill. If one is born, one has to perform Karma, which leads to a cycle of rebirth. One should perform Nishkama, or selfless Karma, without looking for the fruits of the action. Only then, can one destroy the Karmabeej, or the seed that yields the harvest of rebirth. How does one become free from the shackles of rebirth? The Bhakti Marg is the easiest and the best path to follow. This can be achieved by visualising the quern. The quern has two grinding stones. The lower is stable, and is symbolic of Saburi. The upper is Nishta. Saburi is joyous, courageous forbearance. Baba says: “Saburi overcomes sin, suffering, adversity, and wards off disaster and drives away all fear.” Nishta is unwavering faith, oblivious of hunger and thirst. Day and night is spent in loving devotion. Thus, the upper grinding stone is rotated with determination and concentration and the goal is achieved. The wheat flour so obtained is the Karmabeej, which is destroyed. The quern will not rotate without a handle or a wooden peg. The peg has to be knocked firmly into the socket or the hole of the upper grinding stone, so that it does not become loose while grinding. In one quern, at one time, there is only one peg which is fitted into the upper stone, or Nishta. This peg guides the rotation of the stone. The wooden peg represents the Sadguru. So, one should have one Sadguru, Saibaba, who will show and guide you along the path of salvation, after which, you will be able to pull up your sleeve and rotate the quern of Nishta and Saburi in that direction. Then, the wheat of Prarabdha will be ground easily, and the flour will be readily available. The Karmabeej will be destroyed and the cycle of birth and death is halted. Mahamari is then stopped and Moksha is obtained. Baba would often grind wheat and He would do so in the afternoon when the devotees had gone to their rooms and He was all alone. Once, a lady from Mumbai came and saw Baba grinding wheat. She asked, "Baba, why do you grind the wheat? And why do you throw it at the village boundary?" Baba said, “Akkabai and Maribai, the deities of cholera and smallpox, want to enter the village. So I feed them on the other side of the village and prevent them from entering Shirdi. As they are satiated, they do not enter Shirdi, and thus I save my devotees." In 1917, during the month of Vaishakh, a doctor, his wife and his son came to Shirdi. He hoped that Baba would drive away the evil spirit that tormented his son. In the Dwarka Mai, the doctor thought that Baba's grinding of the wheat and throwing it at the outskirts was futile, and just a superstition. Baba, reading his thoughts, asked him to come at 3 p.m. Exactly at 3 p.m., he and his family went to the Dwarka Mai. The doctor and his son sat massaging Baba's legs, as per Baba's orders. Just then, an ugly devilish...

    12 min

  7. BONUS

    Chapter 2 - A Deeper Understanding

    Chapter 2 - Gautam Sachdeva's Commentary Guru-Disciple Relationship The second chapter is the most important one, because it sets the tone for the Guru-disciple relationship and it also defines this relationship. You see Hemadpant has been most open and candid in admitting his resistance to the concept of having a Guru initially and in spite of that, he fell at Baba's feet. Now, there are various aspects here which are important. One is this resistance to the concept of a Guru. This should be explored a bit. We have no resistance when we are born; our parents are looking after us and the Indian scriptures say that your parents are your first gurus because they raised you and they guide you. There after you go to school; your teachers are your gurus in that sense, as they teach you. Now, if during your formative years you have these kinds of gurus, then what about facing life's challenges, life's ups and downs, life's mysteries. Isn't it natural to want a guide? Who has walked the path and who can help make your journey, maybe not easier, but simpler? That is the Guru. The Guru literally translates as the removal of ignorance. Another word for Guru is Light- the Light of Consciousness. It also translates as Spiritual Weight. There are various dimensions to this word 'Guru'. So, we are actually surrendering to all these dimensions of the word 'Guru'. The Guru is considered to be God in human form, but many of us are not willing to accept this, we still see a Guru as an individual. So, this chapter is very pertinent to people who have a Guru in their lives, Sadhguru being Sai Baba. This chapter is pertinent to people who look down upon the concept of a Guru as well as it is pertinent to people who are indifferent. You see, so, it is very important to understand that it is the disciple who sees himself or herself separate from the Guru. The Guru sees no separation. For the Guru, the Guru and disciple are one. So what Hemadpant has shown to us is that no matter how much pride got in the way, which was depicted by him saying that he didn't need a Guru and what use is a Guru if He cannot change someone's destiny, no matter the level of pride, he still landed at Baba's feet. And this happens because of the Grace of the Guru. In spite of this resistance, he found himself there. This is the compassion of the Guru. Now we all need to understand from this that the Guru is a guiding light. When we approach a Guru with suspicion, apprehension, we are actually doing injustice to ourselves because the element of trust is missing. So Hemadpant is laying bare all these aspects in the Guru-disciple relationship, but we have to pick these up. You see, Sai Baba himself said that in your life, it will be tremendously beneficial to have a Guru. He himself has said that. In our religious rituals, we have havan (sacred fire) and we offer coconut to the fire. That coconut represents the ego. When we bow down to a master, we are offering our ego at the feet of the Master. But some people resist bowing down, they feel 'Oh we should not give our power away to anyone. Who is this person? Why should we bow down before this person? We should only bow down before God or before Sai Baba for that matter.' All this is very arrogant thinking, where the understanding has not been perfected. Because if the Guru is God in human form, then you are bowing down to God. So, friends, this chapter specifically shows that the relationship has to be built on surrender and trust. And Baba himself has said that, I cannot change the Prarabdha (destiny) of somebody, but yet He provides the cushion. So, if one is going through challenges in life, it is the Guru who keeps your boat afloat, that is the difference. That is a huge difference. You are able to get the strength, thanks to the Guru, to see yourself through to the other shore. So this aspect I wanted to cover, and I hope I have done justice to it in this brief time. I would also like to add a couple of things here. In the story itself it is mentioned that Lord Ram had a Guru, Lord Krishna had a Guru. In fact even Gautam Buddha had two Gurus. So if such Great Beings had Gurus why must we ordinary people feel that 'Oh, we don't need a Guru.' So what Hemadpant has said is that everyone has to come under the Grace and umbrella of the Guru. And the beauty is that it is the Guru who is pulling us to Him, just as Sai Baba pulled Hemadpant in spite of all the resistance. So isn't it better if we are open from the start itself to receive the Grace? The other thing is when Baba gave Hemadpant, the name Hemadpant, He based it on someone else who was called Hemadpant, who was a writer. That vibration itself must have infused Hemadpant with those qualities which enabled him to bring out the book. This is the Master's Grace. So, that aspect has been, I feel a big reason for the Sai Satcharita to take shape thereafter because Hemadpant himself has now absorbed this new vibration, which ...

    14 min

  8. BONUS

    Chapter 2 - Historical Commentary

    In Chapter 2, Dabholkar witnesses Baba grinding wheat, and the villagers tell him that Baba thus prevented the cholera epidemic from entering the village. He is intrigued, and decides to write the Shri Sai Satcharita so that it will be instructive for the devotees, and spiritually uplift them. However, he is plagued with doubts about his ability to write the life of a magnanimous saint like Sai Baba, whose life is as deep as the ocean, and all-pervasive as the sky itself. To write the life of a saint, one should become a saint. Nonetheless, he feels that if this sacred work is accomplished, the readers, especially those who have not seen Baba, would be greatly benefited, and they would progress on their spiritual journey to attain their goal of self-realisation. Dabholkar had utmost faith in Baba, and he is sure that, with Baba's blessings, Baba himself will get this work done through him. So, he seeks Shama's help to get permission from Baba, and Baba gives him His consent and blessings. On the very first day of his arrival in Shirdi, he and Bala Bhate had a heated discussion about the necessity of having a guru. Bhate said that it was absolutely necessary to have a guru, while Dabholkar believed that everyone should advance spiritually by doing Sadhana. The next day, Baba asks them about it, "And what did this Hemadpant have to say?" Thus, Baba gives Dabholkar the name of Hemadripant, or Hemadpant. Hemadripant was a man of many virtues. He was the minister of the king of the Yadava Dynasty, and was a prolific writer. So, the name suited Dabholkar, but it was also a dart at his arrogance, as he thought that he had won the discussion with Bala Bhate, so this was the first lesson in humility for him. Dabholkar then surrenders his ego at Baba's feet, and starts collecting material for Baba's Gatha. I will now seize this opportunity to talk about the life and transformation of two skeptics, Balasaheb Bhate and Annasaheb Dabholkar. The transformation of Balasaheb Bhate The story of Balasaheb Bhate is mind-boggling. He was a Mamledar in Kopergaon, and a friend of Chandorkar. The two had known each other since their college days. While Chandorkar was well versed in religious scriptures, Bhate was just the opposite. His motto in life seemed to be smoke, drink, eat, and be merry. Chandorkar was an ardent devotee of Baba, and Bala was a skeptic. Whenever they met, Bala ridiculed the very idea of a well-educated person like Chandorkar paying obeisance to a human. Often, he tried to convince the devotees from not making the pilgrimage to Shirdi. It seemed as if his mission in life was to sabotage the pilgrimage of any devotee going to see Baba. Later in 1894, he was transferred to Sakori, where he heard a Kirtan about Kabir and Kamal by Sant Bhau Maharaj. Somehow, he was drawn to the Kirtan and listened to it attentively. He then came to Shirdi and took Baba's Darshan. The very sight of Baba filled him with peace and bliss. He just sat and stared at Baba, oblivious of his surroundings. After a while, his companions asked him to accompany them back to Sakori. He said, "Wait, wait a bit." They waited, but he continued sitting and the hours rolled by, so they left. So changed was he that he decided to stay on in Shirdi, and make it his home. The once responsible person seemed to have forgotten all about his job, his family, and his home. He stayed on and served Baba until Baba's Mahasamadhi. This dramatic change caused concern amongst the other devotees. Dikshit, Chandorkar and Shama asked Baba to intervene. Baba asked him to apply for six months of leave. This application he did write and send, but his mind was made up. Even his superiors, co-workers and friends came to advise him and take him back. He just said, "Once a person finds his goal, he should not leave it." His employer, knowing that he was a good employee, gave him a pension of 25 rupees per month on a compassionate basis, as his mind was gripped by the Fakir of Shirdi and Bala had religious melancholia. Balasaheb progressed spiritually under the compassionate Fakir, and stayed on in Shirdi until his death. Mention is made of him in the Sai Satcharita, chapters 1 and 44. After Baba's Mahasamadhi, the 13th day's ceremony was conducted by Bala, when he performed Til Anjali, Til Tarpanam and Pind Pran. Dikshit was very fond of Bhate because after his transformation, Bala Bhate spent all his time doing Seva, reading and studying spiritual books. He had a wonderful lustre on his face. Dikshit arranged for his family to come and stay with him. He also took care of Bhate's son, Babu, who was the same age as his own son, Ramkrishna. So he got them admitted into a Marathi school and treated them like twins. He paid for their education, and both the kids got new clothes, uniforms and stationery at the same time. After completing their education in Shirdi, they went to Mumbai for further education. Ramkrishna chose to do B.Sc., while Babu Bhate ...

    12 min
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This special series includes additional chapter commentaries on the Sai Satcharita by Dr. Vinny Chitluri giving devotees precious insights into Baba's life and teachings.

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    Sai Baba's Devotee Speaks
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    © Sai Baba's Devotee Speaks
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