Sai Baba of Shirdi
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- This article is about the original, turn of the century Shirdi Sai Baba from Bombay state (now Maharashtra). See Sai Baba for other persons calling themselves Sai Baba.
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Sai Baba of Shirdi or Shirdi Sai Baba (c. 1838 - October 15, 1918), born under an unknown name, was an Indian guru and fakir, who is regarded by his Hindu and Muslim followers as a saint. A walking example of religious and communal harmony, Sai Baba lived in a mosque, was buried in a mandir (Hindu temple), embraced several Hindu and Muslim practices and spoke in a language that drew from both traditions. His most popular dictum is one of tolerance, one that speaks to the truths of both the Qur'an and the Upanishads, the simple statement that says of God: "Sab ka Malik Ek" ("[He] is the Lord of All.")(सबका मािलक एक)
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His life
His Hindu followers see him as an avatar or incarnation of Shiva and Dattatreya. He arrived at the village Shirdi in Bombay state when he was about sixteen years old. Nobody knew his name and his origins. He lived and died there as a beggar monk in a dilapidated mosque. He received his name Sai (meaning Saint) from a villager called Mhalsapati who was the pujari of the Khandoba temple. Later, when he was older, others started adding the name Baba (meaning father) as a reverential title. He is buried in what is known as Samadhi Mandir, originally a shrine for Krishna the philanthropist behind which he had blessed during his lifetime. He had both Hindu and Muslim habits and traits. For example, he would say, "Rama is Allah" when he entered a mosque and would say "Allah Malik hai" (Allah is the supreme Lord) in a Hindu temple. One of his favorite prayers from Hinduism was the Vishnu sahasranama.
His religion, philosophy and practices
Like the inimitable Kabir of 15th century Benares, Shri Shirdi Sai Baba eschewed narrow communalism and embraced a philosophy that sought to unite seemingly disparate religious communities, those of Muslim and Hindus. His followers believe that Sai Baba had miraculous powers and that he will be ever active and continue to do miracles from his tomb. The most important holy book of the Sai Baba movement is the Shri Sai Satcharita written by Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar whom Sai Baba blessed and titled Hemadpant. The book is quite devotional in style and recounts his life, stories of his god-like gifts and resembles the famous Shri Chaitanya Charitamrit and Shri Ramakrishna Kathamrit (known in English as "Gospel of Shri Ramakrishna") which are both detailed accounts by devotees of the lives and teachings of those spiritual leaders.
According to the Satcharita, Sai Baba said about charity: "Unless there is some relationship or connection, nobody goes anywhere. If any men or creatures come to you, do not discourteously drive them away, but receive them well and treat them with due respect. Shri Hari (God) will be certainly pleased if you give water to the thirsty, bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked and your verandah to strangers for sitting and resting. If anybody wants any money from you and you are not inclined to give, do not give, but do not bark at him like a dog."
Sai Baba never spoke much and seemed to lose his temper very quickly. Followers believe that he only pretended to get angry in order to teach his followers humility and lead them on the right (spiritual) track. He kept an ever burning fire and distributed udhi (ash) from it to his followers. Ash has several symbolic meanings in Hinduism. He asked dakshina (money) from people that he gave away to other people. Followers believe that this unusual behavior was a way to transform them spiritually e.g. by doing away with greed and attachment.
An overview
Today a widely beloved saint in India, his face seen adorning the shrines, lockets, billboards and even cars of Hindus and Muslims alike, Shri Shirdi Sai Baba has a large following. While he is recognizable throughout India, his devotees are especially numerous in the state of Maharashtra, the place of his birth. The Samadhi Mandir where he is buried marks a well-known pilgrimage.
At least three gurus and two youngsters have claimed to be the reincarnation of Shirdi Sai Baba. [1] By far the most famous is Sathya Sai Baba (born circa 1926-1929) who lives at Puttaparthi, India. Another guru who claims to be Shirdi Sai Baba's reincarnation is Bala Sai Baba.
References
1. Rigopoulos, pages 245-249
Bibliography
- Rigopoulos, Antonio The life and teachings of Sai Baba of Shirdi State University of New York press, Albany, (1993) ISBN 0-7914-1268-7
- Dabholkar, Govindrao Raghunath (alias Hemadpant) Shri Sai Satcharita Shri Sai Baba Sansthan Shirdi, (translated from Marathi into English by Nagesh V. Gunaji in 1944) available online (http://www.shirdi-sai-baba.com/sai-books.html)
External links
- Shirdi Sai Baba forum (http://www.shirdi-sai-baba.com/forum/)
- Homepage of the Shridi Sai Baba organization (http://www.shrisaibabasansthan.org/)
- Hindu perspective on the Saint (http://www.saibaba.org/)
- Mildly critical article that gives a good overview (http://www.indiayogi.com/content/indsaints/saibaba.asp)
- Sai Baba (http://www.shirdi-sai-baba.com/)
- http://www.cosmicharmony.com/Av/ShrdSai/ShSai.htm
- Sai Darbar (http://www.geocities.com/wallingfordsai/)
- Shirdi Sai Dham, Princeton Junction, NJ (http://www.shirdisaidham.org/)
- International Gita Society (http://www.gita-society.com/)
- Florida Shirdi Sai (http://www.shirdisai.org/)
- Shirdi BaBa (http://www.shirdibaba.org/)
- Dotcom Services (India) Pvt. Ltd (http://www.shrisaibaba.com/)
- Saibaba Temple, Monroeville, PA 15146 (http://www.baba.org/)
- Saidarbar Canberra (http://www.angelfire.com/sd/SaidarbarCanberra/index.html/)
- The Life Story of Shri Shiridi Sai Baba (http://www.geocities.com/seenukv/)
- Official Website of Shri Saibaba Sansthan, Shirdi (http://www.shrisaibabasansthan.org/)
- Saibaba - Master of the Universe (http://www.osaibaba.com/)
- Shri Shirdi Sai Center of New Jersey (http://www.saikrupa.org/)
- Telugu Shirdi Sai (http://telugubhakti.com/)
- SaiBharadwaja (http://www.saimaster.org/)
- Saibaba of Shirdi (http://www.saibabaofshirdi.net/)
- Shri Sai Parivaar, Bay Area, California, USA (http://www.shradhasaburi.org/)
- Shirdi Sai Sharan (http://www.shirdisaisharan.org/)
- Saibaba, Minnesota, USA (http://www.hamaresai.org/)
- Sai Leelas (http://www.saileelas.org/)
- Sai Darbar (http://www.saidarbar.org/)
- Sai Patham (http://www.saipatham.com/)
- Saibaba-Houston, Texas (http://www.babamandir.org/)
- Shirdi Sai Temple, Flushing, NY (http://www.dwarakamaishirdi.org/site/home.php/)
- Sai Swar (http://www.saiswar.com/index.html/)