Glory

to Shirdi Sai Baba

Vasan Sri

This article pays tribute to Shirdi Sai

Baba and brings out certain facets of His
glory. Shirdi Sai Baba is worshiped by
millions in hundreds of temples in India
and in foreign countries.
[Note: This article refers only to Shirdi
Sai Baba and not to any other Baba who
might have made many claims to His
lineage.]
Dwarkamayi
Sai Baba or Shri Maharaj lived in a
dilapidated mosque which he called
"Dwarkamayi"....'Mother Dwaraka". It was a

mud structure where he stayed for nearly 60

years, with wooden rafters and mud
flooring. There are anecdotes when he
refused to renovate the crumbling mosque.
What he had inside the Dwarkamayi? One
fire-altar [dhuni], a few pots, one chakki
or grind stone to manually grind wheat and
other grains,a small 'jula' or swing like
bedstead used sometime and some sacks of
grains....that was all.
Earlier, he never had a permanent stay
anywhere, but wandered in the woods nearby,
barefoot.
Now the same Sai is treated like a Prince
in Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi and in hundreds

of temples throughout the world.

Abhishekas, archanas and aradhanas are
conducted with pomp for His idol.

Handi
Sai Baba begged for alms throughout his
life, going around the few streets in
Shirdi, sometimes a few times a day and
collected roti [unleavened bread], gruel
and other things which he held in a small
sling bag or tin mug. [Some of these
articles are kept in the museum near the
Samadhi Mandir.] He used to distribute
freely these food items ,even to dogs and
cats, and eat only very little.

Yet Baba had the compassion to cook food

for nearly 50 persons in the village, by
keeping a large handi or cauldron in front
of Dwarkamayi . Legend has it that he used
to stir the contents of this cauldron by
dipping His bare hands and His arms bore no
burns. Why did He cook like that? He
knew that there were several poor people
who went without food in that village.
Today Shirdi 'bhojanalaya' feeds thousands
of pilgrims at a modest price of Rs 10 [15
cents].[This bhojanalaya, a large hall, has
an image of Sai stirring a cauldron at its
entrance. Bhojanalaya derives much of its
energy for cooking from the Sun, with solar

collectors mounted on the roof [parabolic

reflectors which heat up water to get
steam]].

Shirdi town
When I visited Shirdi for the first time
with my wife in 1983, it was a small, dirty
village, with no drainage, with swines
roaming around and a few dhabas [road-side
food stalls] for food. There were no lodges
and we boarded with a family in a small bed
room on the first floor.
Now Shirdi is a well developed town, with
hundreds of lodges, even five star hotels
like Sai Oberoi, and big malls for

pilgrims who do shopping. Several private

mansions have come up for retiring
devotees. Pilgrims have several thousand
rooms available ,constructed by the
Sansthan [temple organization] at rates
ranging from Rs 60 per day to Rs 1000 per
day with all modern amenities.
It has large highways and one by-pass
road for lorry traffic going to Nagpur from
Mumbai. Several wide roads have been
constructed in the last five years. It is
marvelous to see the town today and it is
all due to one temple of Sai.
Hundreds of shops abound in this town that
one wonders how they all thrive with

business. The fact that they are prosperous

is evident---more shops and malls are being
constructed.
Transport
When I traveled to Shirdi from Mumbai in
1983, there was only one bus going from
Dadar to Shirdi; the same bus would make
the return trip around 5 PM...
Now there are hundreds of buses and taxis
between Mumbai and Shirdi and also from
Nasik and Pune. A railway station called
'Shirdi Sai Nagar' was built a few years
ago, connecting by rail to many parts of
India.
Other facilities

We learn that Sai used to practice as a

local 'native doctor' giving herbal
medicines to patients.Now you find a modern
large "Sai Hospital" close to the temple
run by the Sansthan [temple
organisation].There are also several
schools and a polytechnic for local
students.
The Glory of Sai is seen in the rapid
development of every aspect of life in
Shirdi which was a sleepy village...without
much help from the State government, but by
the zeal and munificence of Sai devotees.
A God for young and old
G S Khaparde, a great devotee of Sai Baba

and a follower of Bal Gangadhar Tilak

during the Freedom struggle, wrote his
diary of his stay in Shirdi and called Sai
Baba , a " God who walked on Earth".
Now Sai Baba is worshiped by the young and
the old persons who come to the Samadhi
Mandir or in several temples. Unfortunately
very few young people go Hindu temples
these days in big cities.
Sai devotions have brought many people to
His temples ,irrespective of caste or creed
and religion. It is pleasant to see many
Sikh devotees thronging the Samadhi Mandir
in Shirdi even though Sikhs are averse to
worshiping idols.

Many young persons seek favors from their

favorite God, Shirdi Sai---for jobs, for
marriage or for financial problems in the
family. Sai fullfils their wishes
abundantly. Then they feel attached to Sai
worship for the rest of their lives.
The Sai Phenomenon
The Sai phenomenon or 'Sai-ism' as some
called it , is thrilling . My family had
known Sai for the past 60 years and had
worshiped over the decades. But many came
to know about Him only in the past 20 or 30
years. [This is attributed to several
movies on the life of Shirdi Sai and TV
series]. Many have dedicated themselves to

building temples for Sai throughout the

world.
Social service in Sai temples
Almost all the temples have a social
service component ,with dispensaries, free
food for school children, skill development
classes and above all---'annadan' or offer
of food for the needy. The extent of these
services, taken from all the temples, would
be enormous and cannot be expressed in
sheer numbers.
No mutts [monasteries], no books , no
missions and no pontiffs, no ashram!!
Recall that Shirdi Sai did not start a mutt
or a mission. He wrote no book and did not

pontificate about ideals and commandments.

He did not start any sect and preach a
sectarian philosophy, unlike the Acharyas
[Adi Sankara,Ramanuja or Madhva or Vallabha
or others in Hindu fold.] He had not
started a mission like Ramakrishna Mission
or Chinmaya Mission or a society like Arya
Samaj. He had no need for these things!!
He did not even start a small ashram for
His devoted followers or 'disciples' .
Yet we see His Glory acting through His
Grace flowing to devotees. That is the
mystical secret or mystical light of Shirdi
Sai.
He did perform miracles to alleviate the

suffering of His devotees, but not cheap

miracles like bringing out gold ornaments
or jewels.
[Some have contended that He was a Sufi
saint and followed the tenets of
Sufism...may be, if he was a Sufi saint
whose 'durga' or mausoleum would confer
great benefits to pilgrims ( like that of
Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti in Ajmer) , He was
no ordinary Sufi saint---He was supreme
Sufi Master.

A Sadguru for all
Shirdi Sai trained several devotees in His
own way--no single method. Some he would

ask to remain silent in meditation; for

some He would suggest reading scriptures or
doing formal pooja...His methods varies
according to the spiritual state of the
devotee. He did not offer any mantra and
said that his method is not speaking any
mantra in the ears but different.

His main dictum was " shraddha" [faith,
sincerity of purpose] and "saburi"
[endurance, patience, perseverance] in
spiritual pursuit .
He also said tha he was lavish in giving
worldly benefits to devotees , draw them
closer and then turn them to higher

spiritual goals..
He told devotees to follow their own
religion ,no need to convert to another
religion,but show kindness to all,
including animals.
If one is drawn to the 'Circle of His
grace' , one is bound to benefit for the
rest of one's life and for future lives as
well.
-----------------------------------------