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Sai Vichaar 01.Feature of the Week: The Glory of Saibaba lives on! 02.Contributed Article:Sai Aaise Ne Barmbar Mile! 03.Experiences of Devotees 04.Devotees Say 05.Sai Activities 06.Prayer Club 07.Quote of the Week 08.Question of the Week 09.Subscribe to Sai Vichaar 10.Email Newsletter to a friend 11.Submit Articles to Sai Vichaar 12.Un-Subscribe Sai Vichaar 13.From the Editor's Keyboard 14.Disclaimer From the Editor's Keyboard... Saibaba.org has received several requests from Sai Chitra Yatra anchor homes to extend Chitra Yatra. To accommodate the necessities of devotees wanting to host the Sai Chitra Yatra, the Chitra Yatra is extended through this winter. The dates will be communicated to the anchor homes. If you have any questions, please contact maildrop@saibaba.org. Sai devotees and readers are urged to contribute to the "Feature of the week". In the true spirit of Sai devotion, contributors are requested to remember the global nature of Sai Vichaar readership. Therefore, the content, language, style and presentation, appropriate to a worldwide readership will be spiritually rewarding and fulfilling. It should also be noted that when a section from any material other than their own is quoted or referred to, it is the authors' responsibility to acknowledge the source appropriately. Vikas Malhotra from Hyderabad, India suggests the following "Question of the week", "What is the significance of waving the Aarathi three times during a pooja ritual?" Humbly Yours, The Editor
Disclaimer 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 saibaba.org is not
responsible for the opinions expressed by individual contributors.
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 Feature of the week:The Glory of Saibaba lives on! Alas! The fateful day dawned. It was on Tuesday 15 October 1918,the festival of Dasara that Baba gave up his mortal coil. Baba asked His devotees to leave Him alone and in the meantime to have their lunch. The devotees obeyed Baba's order, but a few devotees namely Laxmi Bai, Bhagoji, Bala Shimpi and Nanasaheb Nimonkar stayed back with Baba. At about 2.30 P.M before the devotees could finish their lunch, they received the heart -breaking news of Baba leaving his body. Devotees from various places rushed to Shirdi. What could they offer to merciful Lord except their tears of love and sorrow? The sorrowful cries of devotees- "Baba! Baba rent the skies. The body of Baba was kept for 72 hours and later as per the wishes of Baba, when he was living in the flesh, he was laid to rest in what is now called the Samadhi Mandir the present temple at Shirdi. Baba continues to live on in the hearts of every devotee and therefore he is living. Just as He lived his mortal frame at Shirdi, so He remains, now and forever, as the formless, Immanent Force. To this day Baba continues to answer the heartfelt prayers of His devotees and showers His blessings on them. He comes to the rescue of those who earnestly appeal to Him for succor. Baba met and fulfilled all the needs of His devotees and through his unlimited grace enabled them to tread the spiritual path. Baba used to say," My treasury is full and I can give whatever one needs, but before I give, I must test whether one deserves it or not." Baba used to bring out the defects in a person and correct them in such a way that the devotees themselves were made to realize their shortcomings and improve upon them. It was not that Baba merely insisted upon His devotees to cultivate qualities conductive to spiritual advancement .He emphasized the need for righteous thought and action, which are the first steps of salvation and as such gave paramount importance to purity of thought, word and deed. Baba never tolerated indolence and carelessness on the part of His devotees. "I am the self seated in the hearts of all beings." As declared by Lord Krishna in the Srimad Bhagawad Geetha, Baba proclaimed that He was present in all beings and every creature on earth was one with him. Besides this, Baba also described that God is more concerned with the purity of mind, charitableness, brotherhood and kindness towards all creatures on earth than all the costly and vain offerings of the world. Sai Baba's life was distinguished in being exemplary to all of mankind. His attire was simple. He wore a long, flowing gown called "kafni" and covered His forehead and hair with turban. With all these Baba radiated an indescribable glow that was altogether divine and captivating. God incarnates come in to this world with specific objective of "Protecting the innocent, destroying the wicked and re-establishing the righteousness." As soon as their mission is completed, they dispense with their mortal frame and leave this world, attaining "Maha samadhi". With the passing away of Sai Baba, one should not consider it the end of glorious chapter. Contrarily, the blessed phase has just begun. Baba left behind us a legacy of priceless Possessions- the Illimitable Divine Treasure of His teachings, saturated with the nectar of Love, compassion and Humanness. He left His Divine footprints in the shifting sands of time, footprints that remain deeply embedded even as time passes relentlessly. His wonderful teachings are like precious jewels, set in the golden crown of Eternity, ever shining bright not withstanding the passage of time just as a freshly Diamond shines in all its maiden glory catching the brilliant light of the dazzling sun! Since the last one and a quarter of a century, many seasons have come and gone, many years have passed by. The days have changed, man has changed, the world has changed, but the wonderful leelas of Sai Baba remain unaltered. The glory of Sai Baba lives on!
Contributed Article: Sai Aaise Ne Barmbar Mile! Contributed by Sai Devotee
KUCH AAISE KARNI KAR PYARE,
YEH JANAM NE BARMBAR MILE, IK IK VASTU SE PYAR KIYA, KYON JAGAT NE THUJKO GHERA HAI, SAI KI KARUNA TUJH PE HOUI, Ganesh Babu, Guntur, AP,India He said that he is coming from Shirdi and he wanted to see me personally for getting articles in his Sai magazine "Sai Yugam" in Telugu. Saying his name as B. Narayana Reddy, he said that he worked as a public prosecutor and now settled in Shirdi doing divine service. Then I felt that Baba has come in his form. I offered him dinner and later he said that he has to go back to Shirdi as he lost his money in the journey, when he slept in the train. Then he asked me support to purchase a ticket to Shirdi. I got puzzled for a while, as it was the end of he month and I could not afford his request. Anyhow, I decided to support him with few hundred rupees and I gave him those few hundreds left with me. I wished him a nice journey to Shirdi. This is how Baba will test us in different shapes. We have to identify them carefully and cleverly. When we are tuned with the master, he will look after every thing in our life. Sai's leelas and power of vibhuthi cannot be explained in simple terms. A small part of my experiences and Baba's divine presence in my home were presented in Sep 17, 1998's Sai Vichaar. My mother Bhanumathi, with whose grace I came into Sai fold, was with us in US last year. Her presence in Columbus attracted Sai devotees and encouraged everybody for active participation in Sai activities. Sri Viswayogi Viswamji during his visit to Columbus blessed us, with the forecast of a temple for Sai.
A Sai Devotee No logical system we are aware of belittles the power and complexity of the human mind. As simple human beings, it is the subtlest, and hence our most partially understood aspect. As a part of an advanced religious studies class, I was required to do some heavy studying on Freud and his works. Impressionable that I am, I was readily influenced by what this famous atheist had to say about the 'real' nature of miracles and spiritual and religious experiences. To state it concisely, they are just 'psychosis'; a more exotic genus of mental affliction. Despite a few blaring flaws, it was a splendid line of thought! Given that I was attracted to our Lord since a very young age, and given that none in my family save me believe in him and his love, I began applying my newly acquired knowledge to all and any experiences I had in His shade. Why was I the only 'sparrow'? Was it MY psychosis that this association happened? What about the bliss I experienced at His samadhi the first time He took me to Shirdi? Psychosis repeated? Because I 'wanted' to experience it? And WHAT about all those tests I "knew" I couldn't pass, but for him? Dr. Freud had, from his grave, succeeded in pulling the rug of belief from underneath me. At least temporarily. Demonstrably, you are all wonderfully religious minded people. Excellent. But if at all feasible, think of your life without God: without someone, without some vessel to place your hope, fears, prayers, blame, anger, sorrow, anything and everything in. You are alone in this tempest we call existence. Death, which may "snatch us away at any moment", wears a more fearsome mask. The world and its sorrow are too horrid to take on without this prosthetic we call 'God'. We think then, "What is life's purpose now? What is it to live morally if the concepts of Heaven or karma or dharma have now ceased to exist? Why abstinence? Isn't moral a fabric woven by religion? But isn't religion false? Life? To be born, to live, to die? And? AND? That's IT?". My sentiments, at that point of time. Radiology, an arguably 'believable' science, has established the age of this planet to be around 4 billion years. Since then, Earth has seen meteor showers, gargantuan tidal fluctuations, comets scorching its surface, and a host of other events. Perhaps we, the human race, are just another 'surface disturbance'; no point in talking pride over accomplishment or intelligence, for we'll go too. Disappointing! To answer my fickle mind's but (to me) logical queries, I frantically searched books (balms for a bruised soul!) for an answer. In religious works, I read that here are "96 crores" to be the total number of species on the planet... People who have read this before (winks) need take no offense; some other works beg to differ by as much as plus-or-minus forty percent! I was rather amusingly perturbed. I concluded that religion, ritual, and practice 'are' faux; if the true grace of the Guru be on us, we do not need them. But why would the 'merciful' Guru put us through this artificiality? We are not 'ready' yet? Why! *When* would we be ready then? After the successful realization of MORE artificiality? Why should we blame ourselves or our karma when we forget a fast in the Guru's name? Why timed ritual? To attain marginal and infinitesimally tiny "self-control"? Is not the Guru attained by overpowering love? Why force and fool ourselves into thinking that ritual, seasonal visits, donations, charity will make up for that Love missing in us? Love that does away with 'any' desire for anything on the part of the Guru and us? Oh we have to live is it not.. Then why would you use ritual and religion to think you are invoking the Guru's grace to ease your stay here? Why fret and fume over troubles and situations in life? Why not submit to his infinite Love mutely? Do you have to scream and weep and talk to attract His attention? Isn't love, true love, devoid of expectation? Then does true love necessitate ritual and religion? So why aren't they false? Kindly enlighten. A Sai Devotee I would like to thank SaiBaba.org for the beautiful Diwali greetings. I was so overwhelmed to receive it. I had just then finished my daily prayers to Sai and switched on my PC. I saw Baba`s greetings and tears started running down my cheeks. Thank you Baba for everything. Please continue to shower your blessings on one and all. Jai Sai Ram!
A Sai Devotee A Sai Devotee Satyabrata Mohanty Sai Devotee A Sai Devotee Raghu A Sai Devotee A Devotee A Sai Devotee A Sai Devotee A Sai Devotee A Devotee A Sai Devotee
Quotation of the Week
Q. What is the significance of Kabir religion? A. by A Sai Devotee As an introduction to Kabir, He was a great saint (a weaver by profession) who lived in the 14th or 15th century. His followers came to be known as Kabir panth or Kabir's religion. It should also be noted that, in Shri Khaparde's Diary, Sai Baba says that he was Kabir and that he used to spin yarn at that time. On observing the lives of both the saints, a lot of similarities can be noticed between them. The birth parents of both Kabir and Sai Baba are not known to the world. Kabir was found in a small leaf and was raised by a Muslim and worshipped Hindu's God Shri Rama. Shri Sai Satcharitra, which beautifully describes the life and teachings of Baba stresses the fact that Baba observed both Hindu and Muslim religions and cultures and none could say if he was a Hindu or a Muslim. Thus, there is a blend of both Hindu & Muslim religions in the lives of both the great saints, only to assure the people in the world that God is one, and it is us people, who created religions. The significance of Kabir's religion lies in the fact that it is infinitely higher to all the religions created by men. It is the religion of the One Almighty God. It is through this religion that one can realize the goal and purpose of human life and eventually attain the Para Brahma ("I am God") state in this very life. This religion makes one differentiate between the temporary perishable life and the permanent abode of God reaching which there is no return again to the cycle of births and deaths. Both Baba and Kabir assure the importance of a guru to guide us at every step in this journey of self-realization. If we can please Baba (God) by following the teachings and sayings of these saints in our everyday lives, God himself will guide us to the guru and will help us in our goal of self-realization. A poem of Kabir Like seed contains the oil, fire in flint stone Guru the washer man, disciple is the cloth Q. "What is the significance of waving the Aarathi three times in a pooja ritual?"
Shri Shirdi Sai Thaali for India progam ends on November 8th, 2002 Sending a gift is an act of giving. Giving develops detachment. Keeping in line with our mission, the Thaali concept is developed after careful consideration and deliberation and around material relating to Shri Sai Baba. The results of this program can only be measured by the happiness and peace one gets when one receives the thaali. Talking to someone who has actually received a Thaali and knowing their feelings only will make one realize the true value of Shri Shirdi Sai Thaali. We hope that Sai devotees around the world will use this opportunity to send Shri Shirdi Sai Thaali to their beloved in India this holiday season. To request a Shri Shirdi Sai Thaali, please visit http://www.saibaba.org. Hurry, this program ends on Friday November 8th, 2002. For any questions or concerns, please contact us by email at support@saibaba.org. Saibaba.org is a Non-profit organization. Shri Shirdi Sai Paduka and Dhuni installation at Deshmukh Village, Hyderabad Sadguru Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Vigraha Prathistha,Mahendra Hills,Secunderabad Shirdi Sai Baba Prayer Center, Kendall Park, NJ Shirdi Sai Baba Chitra Yatra And Weekly Satsang, Canada Shri Shirdi Sai Chitra Yatra in UK Shri Shirdi Sai Chitra Yatra in USA The journey which involves the ceremonial travel of Baba in the form of a portrait will stop at all Baba devotees homes who are interested in being a host to his protrait. The Yatra which will run till fall of this year, is open to one and all. There is no fees or charges involved to take part in this event. You may participate either as a host home or serve as an anchor point in your community. Vist online at yatra page for all the details and to register. For questions, comments, suggestions or to get details on an Anchor home
in your area, send us an email at maildrop@saibaba.org with the subject
line of "Shri Sai Chitra Yatra".
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