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Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sai Baba of Shirdi

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EXCERPT FROM MEDITATION TIMES MAY 2011
EXCERPT FROM MEDITATION TIMES MAY 2011

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Shirdi TempleSai Baba of Shirdi
also known as Shirdi Sai Baba or in Marathi:
शडचेी साईबाबा 
,Urdu:
درﺷی ئﺎﺳیں ﺎﺑﺎﺑ
), was an Indian guru, yogi, and fakir who isregarded by his Hindu and Muslim devotees alike as a saint.Saibaba of Shirdi lived between 1838 and 1918, whose real name,birthplace and date of birth are not known. An Indian spiritual guru and afakir that transcended the barriers of religions, Saibaba of Shirdi wasregarded with great reverence by both Hindu and Muslim followers. He livedin a mosque and after death his body was cremated in a temple.
 
His philosophy ingrained
‘Shraddha’
meaning faith and
‘Saburi’
meaningcompassion. According to him Shraddha and Saburi were the supremeattributes to reach the state of godliness.It is believed that at a tender age of 16 yrs Shri Saibaba arrived at thevillage of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra and remained theirtill his death. He found shelter in Khandoba temple, where a villagerMahalsapathi in the temple addressed him as Sai or Saint.Saibaba of Shirdi lived an extremely simple and austere life, sleeping on thefloor of temple and later taking a ruined mosque as his shelter. With hisarrival to Shirdi, in no time he began exhibiting a hypnotic attraction amongpeople as they began flocking to him. He is attributed many miracles doingthings that were beyond a mortal’s power. He never discouraged theseattributes and soon his fame spread like wild fire. Many pilgrims cameseeking his blessings. Such was his hypnotism that even the mundane of hisactivities attracted large crowds.Popular among both Hindus and Muslims, Saibaba became a greatharmonizingforce between the two disparate communities. He regularlyrecited Hindu and Muslim prayers. His Hindu followers considered him to bean avatar or reincarnation of Shiva and Dattatreya. Sai Baba did not leaveany written works. All his teachings were oral and catchy. His sayings wereshort, crisp and in layman language with which the common mass couldeasily associate.Sai Baba of Shirdi was unique in the sense that he lived his messagethrough the essence of his being. He lived among the common peopleadorning a torn kafni (long robe), sleeping over a mat while using brick ashis headrest and got his food by begging. Such was his smile that radiated amystical charisma and deep seated inward look that hypnotized the peoplewho visited him.His most concise message for one and all alike was ‘
Why fear when I amhere’.
Saibaba said that he was a slave in the service of those who loved him. Hewas ever living to help those who turn to him and that he has to take care of his children day and night.
 
Saibaba’s mission was to restore belief in god and according to him, ‘I givepeople what they want in the hope that they will begin to want what I wantto give them (knowledge of the Ultimate).’He then taught values of totalsurrender to the Almighty Master (
ALLAH MALIK EK
-The only ONE) andexperiences his grace.His lifeThereis no clear record of Sai's given name, nor of his origins. Sai arrived atthe village of Shirdi in Maharashtra state when he was about sixteen yearsold. He took up residence in a Khandoba temple, where a villager(Mahalsapathi) atworship first called him Sai (‘saint’).He fostered an extremely simple and ascetic life: living in the village as amendicant monk, and sleeping on the floor in the temple, and later in adilapidated mosque.Sai soon began to attract followers who addressed him by the name Baba(‘father’). He worshipped both at Hindu temples and Muslim mosques, andencouraged tolerance between the faiths.Numerous miracles were attributed to him. He did not discourage suchattributions, and his fame spread. Many pilgrims came for his blessings,andhe attracted large crowds even for the most mundane of his activities.Sai remained in Shirdi all his life. Baba breathed His last with His headresting on one of His devotees lap.His last words were, ‘Place my Body in Buti's wada (mansion), I will getpeace there only.People will serve me only if I am placed in Buti’s wada.’ Thus as per His last wish He was buried in the ‘Buty Wada’also known asSamadhi Mandir.Hindu devotees consider him an incarnation of Lord Dattatreya. Manydevotees believe that he was a Sadguru, an enlightened Sufi Pir, Urdu:
پیر
,or a Qutub. He is a well-known figure in many parts of the world, butespecially in India, where he is much revered.
Sāī
is of Sanskrit origin, meaning ‘Sakshat Eshwar’ 
sa]at $Zvr
or the divine.The honorific ‘Baba’ means ‘father; grandfather; old man; sire’in Indo-Aryanlanguages.
 
Thus Sai Baba denotes ‘holy father’ or ‘saintly father’.His parentage, birth details, and life before the age of sixteen are obscure,which has led to speculation about his origins.Sai Baba had no love for perishable things and his sole concern was self-realization. He remains a very popular saint,and is worshipped by peoplearound the world. He taught a moral code of love, forgiveness, helpingothers, charity, contentment, inner peace, and devotion to God and guru.Sai Baba’s teaching combinedelements of Hinduism and Islam.He gave the Hindu name
Dwarakamayi to the mosque he lived in
. Hepracticed both Hindu and Muslim rituals,andtaught using words and figuresthat drew from both traditions.Hewas buried in a Hindu temple in Shirdi.One of his well-knownepigrams,
‘Sabka Malik Ek’
(‘One God governs all’),is associated with both the Bhagavad-Gitaand Sufism. He always uttered ‘Allah Malik’ (‘God is King’).Though the debate over his Hindu or Muslim origins continues, many of hispractices point more to his being a Muslimbelieving in the unity of God,reciting Al-Fatiha and other Qur’anic readings at Muslim festival times,listening to hamds and qawwali twice daily,practicing Salah (Namaz),wearing clothing reminiscent of a Sufi fakir, eating meat, and abstainingfrom alcohol.A mosque still stands in Shirdi, a place whereinhe once lived and continuedto visit regularly. According to Purdom, when Kulkarni Maharaj requestedUpasni Maharaj to pay a visit to Sai Baba, Upasni replied ‘Why should I go toa Muslim?’ Sai Baba is revered by several notable Hindu and Sufi religious leaders.Some of his disciples became famous as spiritual figures and saints, such asUpasni Maharaj, Saint Bidkar Maharaj, Saint Gangagir, Saint JankidasMaharaj, and Sati Godavari Mataji are few names to remember.
Early Life:
Historians and devotees agree that there is no reliable evidence for aparticular birthplace or date of birth. Various communities have claimed that
 
he belongs to them, but nothing has been substantiated. Many historianssupport this finding. It is known that he spent considerable timewith fakirs,and his attire resembled that of a Muslim fakir.Baba reportedly arrived at the village of Shirdi in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, India, when he was about 16 years old. It is generallyaccepted that Sai Baba stayed in Shirdi for three years, disappeared for ayear, and returned permanently around 1858. These calculationssuggest abirth year of 1838.Sai Baba led an ascetic life, sitting motionless under a neem tree andmeditating while sitting in an asana.
The Sri Sai Satcharita
recounts thereaction of the villagers:The people of the village were wonder-struck to see such a young ladpracticing hard penance, not minding heat or cold. By day he associated withno one, by night he was afraid of nobody.His presence attracted the curiosity of the villagers, and he was regularlyvisited by the religiously inclined, including Mhalsapati, Appa Jogle andKashinatha. Some considered him mad and even threw stones at him.SaiBaba left the village, and little is known about him after that. However, thereare some indications that he met with many saints and fakirs, and worked asa weaver. He claimed to have fought with the army of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
Return to Shirdi
In 1858 Sai Baba returned to Shirdi. Around this time he adopted his famousstyle of dress consisting of a knee-length one-piece robe -popularly knownas ‘kafni’and a cloth cap. Ramgir Bua, a devotee, testified that Sai Baba wasdressed like an athlete and sported ‘long hair flowing down to the end of hisspine’when he arrived in Shirdi, and that he never had his head shaved.It was only after Baba forfeited a wrestling match with one Mohdin Tambolithat he took up the kafni and cloth cap, articles of typical Sufi clothing. Thisattire contributed to Baba’s identification as a Muslim fakir. And this was thereason for initial indifference and hostility against him in a predominantlyHindu village.
 
According to B.V. Narasimhaswami, a posthumous follower whowas widelypraised as Sai Baba’s ‘apostle’, this attitude was prevalent up to 1954 evenamong some of his devotees in Shirdi.For four to five years Baba lived under a neem tree, and often wandered forlong periods in the jungle around Shirdi. His manner was said to bewithdrawn and uncommunicative as he undertooklong periods of meditation.He was eventually persuaded to take up residence in an old anddilapidated mosque and lived a solitary life there, surviving by begging foralms, and receiving itinerant Hindu or Muslim visitors.In the mosque he maintained a sacred fire which is referred to as a dhuni,from which he gave sacred ashes (‘Udhi’ –fragrant smoke) to his guestsbefore they left. The ash was believed to have healing and apotropaicpowers. He performed the function of a local hakim, and treated the sick byapplication of ashes. Sai Baba also delivered spiritual teachings to hisvisitors, recommending the reading of sacredHindu texts along with theQur’an. He insisted on the indispensability of the unbroken remembrance of God’s name (dhikr, japa), and often expressed himself in a cryptic mannerwith the use of parables, symbols and allegories.Sai Baba participated in religious festivals and was also in the habit of preparing food for his visitors, which he distributed to them as prasad. SaiBaba’s entertainment was dancing and singing religious songs. His behaviorwas sometimes uncouth and violent.After 1910 Sai Baba’s fame began to spread in Mumbai. Numerous peoplestarted visiting him, because they regarded him as a saint with the power of performing miracles, or even as an Avatar.They built his firsttemple atBhivpuri, Karjat.
Teachings and practices
Sai Baba opposed all persecution based on religion or caste. He was anopponent of religious orthodoxy -Christain, Hindu and Muslim.Although SaiBaba himself led the life of an ascetic, he advised his followers to lead anordinary family life.Sai Baba encouraged his devotees to pray, chant God’s name, and read HolyScriptures. He told Muslims tostudy the Qur’an, and Hindus to study textssuch as the Ramayana, Vishnu Sahasranam, Bhagavad Gita, and Yoga
 
Vasistha.He advised his devotees and followers to lead a moral life, helpothers, love every living being without any discrimination, and develop twoimportant features of character: Faith (Shraddha) and patience (Saburi).He criticized atheism.In his teachings, Sai Baba emphasized the importanceof performing one’s duties without attachment to earthly matters, and of being content regardless of the situation.Sai Baba interpreted the religious texts of both Islam and Hinduism. Heexplained the meaning of the Hindu scriptures in the spirit of AdvaitaVedanta. His philosophy also had numerous elements of bhakti. The threemain Hindu spiritual paths -Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga, and Karma Yoga-influenced his teachings.Sai Baba said that God penetrates everything and every being. Heemphasized the complete oneness of God which was very close to theIslamic
tawhid 
and the Hindu doctrine of the Upanishads. Sai Baba said thatthe world is transient, and that only God and his gifts are eternal. Heemphasized the importance of devotion to God -bhakti -and surrender tohis will. He also talked about the need of faith and devotion to one’s spiritualguru. He said that everyone was the soul and not the body. He advised hisfollowers to develop a virtuouscharacter, and taught them that all fate wasdetermined by karma.Sai Baba left no written works. His teachings were typically short, pithysayings rather than elaborate discourses. Sai Baba would ask his followersfor money (dakshina), some of which he would give to the poor and otherdevotees the same day, and the rest was used to buy wood to maintainDhuni. According to his followers, this was done to rid them of greed andmaterial attachment.Sai Baba encouraged charity, and stressed the importance of sharing. Hesaid: ‘Unless there is some relationship or connection, nobody goesanywhere. He emphasized if any men or creatures come to you, do notdiscourteously drive them away, insteadreceive them well and treat themwith due respect. Shri Hari (God) will certainly be pleased if you give waterto the thirsty, bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked, and your verandahto strangers for sitting and resting. If anybody wants any money from youand you are not inclined to give, do not give, but do not barkat him like adog.
 
Otherfavorite sayings of his were: ‘Why do you fear when I am here’, and ‘He has no beginning... He has no end.’ 
Eleven Assurances
Sai Baba made eleven assurances to his devotees:1.Whosoever puts their feet on Shirdi soil, their sufferings will come toan end.2.The wretched and miserable will rise to joy and happiness as soon asthey climb the steps of the mosque Dwarakamayi.3.I shall be ever active and vigorous even after leaving this earthlybody.4.My tomb shall bless and speak to the needs of my devotees.5.I shall be active and vigorous even from my tomb.6.My mortal remains will speak from my tomb.7.I am ever living to help and guide all who come to me, who surrenderto me, and who seek refuge in me.8.If you look at me, I look at you.9.If youcast your burden on me, I shall surely bear it.10.If you seek my advice and help, it shall be given to you at once.11.There shall be no want in the house of my devotee.
Shirdi Sai Baba movement
The Shirdi Sai Baba movement began in the 19
th
century, while he was livingin Shirdi. A local Khandoba priest -Mhalsapati Nagre -is believed to havebeen his first devotee. In the 19
th
century Sai Baba’s followers were only asmall group of Shirdi inhabitants and a few people from other parts of India.The movement started developing in the 20
th
century, with Sai Baba’smessage reaching the whole of India.During his life, Hindus worshiped himwith Hindu rituals and Muslims considered him to be a saint. In the lastyears of Sai Baba’s life, Christians and Zoroastrians started joining the ShirdiSai Baba movement.Shirdi is regarded asthe majorHindu places of pilgrimage.The first SaiBaba temple is situated at Bhivpuri, Karjat. The Sai Baba Mandir (Hindutemple) in Shirdi is visited by around twenty thousand pilgrims a day andduring religious festivals this number can reach up to a hundred thousand.
 
Shirdi Sai Baba is especially revered and worshiped in the states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat.The Shirdi Sai movement has spread to the Caribbean and to countries suchas the United States, Australia, Malaysia, and Singapore. The Shirdi Sai Babamovement is one of the main Hindu religious movements inEnglish-speaking countries.
Sai Baba disciples and devotees:
Shirdi Sai had many disciples and devotees some of these are as follows:1.
Nana Saheb Chandorkar
: Deputy Collector –legend has it that SaiBaba saved this man’s daughter from labor complications.2.
Ganapath Rao
: police constable who resigned to become an ascetic,and also known as DasGanu, He was an itinerant who spread SaiBaba’s message.3.
Tatya Patil
: had immense faith in Sai Baba and served him until SaiBaba took samadhi. He is also known to be Sai Baba’s youngerbrother.4.
Baija Mai Kote Patil
: Sai Baba treated her as his mother.She wasTatya Patil’s mother.5.
Haji Abdul baba
: He served Sai Baba until Sai Baba died in 1918.6.
Madhav Rao Deshpande
: Later known as Shama, one of the staunchdevotees of Sai Baba.7.
Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar (Hemadpant):
Sai Baba allowedhim to write the
Shri Sai Satcharita
.8.
Mahalsapati Chimanji Nagare:
A priest of Khandoba Temple.
Reported miracles
Sai Baba’s millions of disciples and devotees believe that he performed manymiracles such as bilocation, levitation, mindreading, materialization,exorcisms, m
aking the river Yamuna, entering a state of Samādhi at will,
and lightning lamps with water, removing his limbs or intestines and stickingthem back to his body (Khanda Yoga), curing the incurably sick, appearingbeaten when another was beaten, appearing in the flesh after death,preventing a mosque from falling down on people, and helping his devoteesin a miraculous way.
 
According to his followers he appeared to them in dreams after his death,and gave them advice. His devotees have documented many stories.
Historical sources
Biographers of Sai Baba -Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar, Acharya EkkiralaBharadwaja, Smriti Srinivas, Antonio Rigopoloushave based their writing onprimary sources. One such source is the Shirdi Diary by Ganesh ShrikrishnaKhaparde, which describes every day of the author’s stay at Shirdi.Speculation about the unknown episodes of Sai Baba's life are primarilybased on hisown words.The most important source about Sai's life is the
Shri Sai Satcharita
,written in Marathi in 1916 by
Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar
, whom SaiBaba nicknamed Hemadpant.It consists of 53 chapters, anddescribes Sai Baba’s life, teachings, andmiracles. The book compares Sai Baba’s love to a mother’s love: caring andloving, but reprimandingwhen needed. It describes Baba’s lifestyle, hisselfless attitude, and his love for his devotees. The book describes how oneshould surrender one’s egoism at God’s feet and trust one’s guru. It explainshow God is supreme and His devotees should trust Him and love Him. Itteaches that God is omnipresent in all living things, so that everything onEarth must be treated with love and respect.
Sri Sai Baba and HisTeachings
by Acharya Ekkirala Bharadwaja is an in-depth study of Sai Baba’s life routine and activities.B.V. Narasimhaswamiji has written important books such as
Sri Sai Baba’sCharters and Sayings
and
Devotee’s Experiences of Sai Baba
.
Hinduism
During Sai Baba’s life, the Hindu
Saint Anandanath of Yewala
declaredSai Baba a
spiritual diamond.
Another
Saint, Gangagir
, called him a
‘jewel’
.
Sri Beedkar Maharaj
greatly revered Sai Baba, and in 1873, whenhe met him he bestowed the title
Jagadguru
upon him.Sai Baba was alsogreatly respected by
Vasudevananda Saraswati
(known as
TembyeSwami
).He was also revered by a group of Shaivic yogis, to which hebelonged, known as the
Nath-Panchayat.
 
Other religions
In Islam, Sai Baba mainly appears in Sufism as a Pir. Meher Baba declaredBaba to be a
Qutub-e-Irshad
-thehighest of the five Qutubs, a ‘Master of the Universe’in the spiritual hierarchy.Sai Baba is also worshipped byprominent Zoroastrians such as Nanabhoy Palkhivala and Homi Bhabha, andhasbeen cited as the Zoroastrians’most popular non-Zoroastrian religiousfigure.Meher Baba met Sai Baba only once in his lifetime, during World War I, inDecember 1915. Meher Baba was still a youngster named Merwan SheriarIrani when he met Sai Baba for a fewminutes during one of Sai Baba’sprocessions in Shirdi. This event is considered as the most significant inMeher Baba’s life. Shri Sai Satcharita (Sai Baba's life story), makes nomention of Meher Baba. But in
Lord Meher
, the life story of Meher Baba,there are innumerable references to Sai Baba.Meher Baba credited hisAvataric advent to Upasni, Sai Baba, and three other Perfect Masters –Hazrat Babajan, Hazrat Tajuddin Baba, and Narayan Maharaj.Sai Baba left behind no spiritual heirs and appointed no disciples, and didnot even provide formal initiation (diksha), despite requests. Some disciplesof Sai Baba achieved fame as spiritual figures, such as Upasni Maharaj of Sakori. After Sai Baba took Mahasamadhi, his devotees offered the dailyAarti to
Upasani Maharaj
when he paid a visit to Shirdi, two times within10 years.In India, itis a common sight to find a Sai Baba temple in any city or town,in every large city or town there is at least one temple dedicated to SaiBaba.There are even some in towns and cities outside India. In the mosquein Shirdi in which Sai Baba lived, there is a life-size portrait of him by ShamaRao Jaykar, an artist from Mumbai. Numerous monuments and statuesdepicting Sai Baba, which serve a religious function, have also been made.One of them, made of marble by a sculptor named Balaji Vasant Talim, is inthe Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi where Sai Baba was buried.In Sai Babatemples, his devotees play various kinds of devotional religious music, suchas aarti.
 
Postage Stamp
Indian Postal Service released a Sai Baba commemorative stamp in May2008.
Largest Solar Plant at Shirdi
On July 30, 2009, the New and Renewable Energy Minister Farooq Abdullahinaugurated what has been acclaimed as the largest solar steam system inthe world, at the Shirdi shrine. The Shri Sai Baba Sansthan Trust paid anestimated Rs.1.33 crore for the system, Rs.58.4 lakh of which was paid as asubsidy by the renewable energy ministry. It is said the system can cook20,000 meals per day for pilgrims visiting the temple.
His religion, philosophy and practices
By his example, Sai sought to unite the seemingly disparate religiouscommunities of Muslim and Hindus. He regularly recited Hindu and Muslimprayers, such as the Hindu prayer Vishnu Sahasranama. Many of his Hindufollowers consider him to be an avatar (incarnation) of Shiva and Dattatreya.He left no written records; Sai's teachings were oral: typically short, pithysayings rather than elaborate discourses. Sai often seemed to lose histemper with those around him. His followers believe that he only pretendedto get angry, in order to teach humility and foster right spiritual action.Sai encouraged charity. He said: ‘Unless there is some relationship orconnection,nobody goes anywhere. if any man or creaturecome to you, donot discourteously drive them away, but receive them well and treat themwith due respect. Shri Hari (God) will be certainly pleased if you give waterto the thirsty, bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked and your verandahto strangers for sitting and resting. If anybody wants any money from youand you are not inclined to give, do not give, butdo not bark at him like adog.’ Other of his favorite sayings were: ‘Why do you fear when I am here’, ‘He has no beginning... He has no end’, ‘All things arise from him and intohim they return’.
His legacy
Sai Baba is among the most popularof Indian saints, and continues to havea large following. His image seems to be everywhere: it may be seen on
 
shrines, lockets, billboards and cars of Hindus. While he is recognizablethroughout India, his devotees are especially numerous in the state of Maharashtra, the place of his birth and in Andhra Pradesh. His Samadhi is awell-known place of pilgrimage.Many religious teachers, groups and organizations promote his teachingsand devotion to Sai. Among the most prominent is the Shri SaibabaSansthanTrust, which also takes care of the shrines and temples in Shirdi.Some followers of Sai Baba achieved fame as spiritual figures: these includeUpasni Maharaj of Sakori and Meher Baba of Ahmednagar.At least three gurus and two youngsters have claimed to be thereincarnation of Shirdi Sai Baba. By far the most famous is Sathya Sai Babawho lives at Puttaparthi Andhra Pradesh, India. Another guru who claims tobe Shirdi Sai Baba’s reincarnation is Bala Sai Baba.
Chronology of the life of Shirdi Sai Baba
Chronological list of events (episodes) concerning Sai Baba1835Sai Baba was born in very early hours of September 27 or 28, 1835 to apoor Hindu couple, Gangabhavadya and Devagiriamma. The newborn infantis left in the woods, abandoned. The infant is immediately discovered andadopted by a childless Muslim fakir and his wife.1838Sai Baba lives with the Muslim couple for 4 years. Meanwhile the fakir dies.The wife is left to tend the child alone. Even as a small child Baba stirs upsentiments between the Hindu and Muslim community by worshiping Allah inHindu temples, and Hindu gods in the mosque. In fear of increased problemsby a sole widow, Baba is handed over for care with a local mendicant andstory-teller, Venkusa.1839-51Sai Baba spent 12 years with his Guru. The name of his Guru was
GopalRao Deshmukh
(Venkusa, also known as Venkavadhuta) of Selu. Somesay, ‘Baba practiced penance at the tomb ofHis Guru in the cellar under the
 
Neem Tree at Shirdi’. Arrival of Devidas at Shirdi (Aged 10-11 years) tookplace in 1846. When he enquired, BABA mentioned the name of his GURU asVenkusa implying VISHNU (
Parvardigar
–refers to God).1851Sai Baba first appeared at Shirdi and stays in the village for two months. Heis noted to reside day and night under a Neem Tree atabout the age of 16Yearswhich he claims is growing over the tomb of his old guru. After twomonths Baba disappeared to an unknown place.1855-1857Sai Baba travels about from place to place and finally ends up inDhoopkheda (or Dhoop) in Aurangabad District. There he ends up attendingthe marriage of Chandu Patel’s son in 1858.1858Sai Baba returns to Shirdi along with themarriage-party of Chand Patil andremained at Shirdi for ever till His Samadhi. A widowed Deputy Collector andSettlement Officer by name H.V. Sathe (Hari Vinayaka Sathe) comes toShirdi on the death of his wife. Baba takes great fondness to Sathe. Sathewas the first to set up apartments at Shirdi for temporary visitors. Babaregarded Sathe as his right hand in regard to all matters. Because Baba waskeeping Sathe close to him and relying on him for everything, the residentsof Shirdi grew jealous towardshim.1865Saint Manik Prabhu of Homanabad in Bidar District of Karnataka passedaway in 1878, Chaitra Vadya 14. H. H. Akkalkot Swami left His mortal coilat Akkalkot in Solapur District of Maharashtra. He first appeared in 1835. Itis reported that three of them (Manik Prabhu, Swami Samartha and SAIBABA) met at Humanabad.1885Saint Anandnath aged 95 yearsof Yewala Math and a disciple of AkkalkotSwami visited Shirdi and seeing Sai Baba exclaimed, ‘This is a precious realdiamond.’ 
 
1886, April 16Mahasamadhi of Shri Ramkrishna Paramahansa of Bengal 1886, Margashirsh15 Sai Baba got rid of an attack of asthma, by going into Samadhi for 72Hrs.1887Manthrapragada Ramalaksmhi Devi, and my father, Venkata Narasimha Raowho were childless in spite of effortsvisited their Guru, Shirdi Sai Baba, in1887 and prayed to him for a child. As the fruit of Shirdi Sai Baba’s grace, Iwas born to them on August 8, 1888. Shirdi Sai Baba himself gave me myname, Shringeri Sharada Devi. As I am of fair complexion, he used tolovingly call me Gori.1889Abdullah arrived at Shirdi from Nanded (in West Khandesh near Jalgaon andAmalner).1892 (approx)Nanasaheb Chandorkar arrived at Shirdi for the first time after being invitedby BABA many a time showing his intimate relations with NANA since hismany previous births.1894 (approx)Das Ganu (Ganesh Dattatreya Sahasrabuddhe) accompanied NanasahebChandorkar to Shirdi for the first time.1896Celebration of ‘Urus’ –spiritual gatheringstarted at Shirdi owing to theefforts of Gopalrao Gund, aCircle Inspector of Kopargaon.1898Sai Baba was seen sleeping on a narrow plank suspended with old ragsabout 7 or 8 feet above ground with lighted lamps placed on the plank.(Uknown year) About this time, the parentsof Shyam came to Shirdi withthe two-year old child named Mohan Shyam. A small school for childrenstarted adjoining Baba’s room. Shyam used to watch Baba at nights through
 
the ventilator. Baba used to sleep on an eighteen-inch wide plank suspendedwith old rags about 7 or 8 feet above ground with lighted lamps placed onthe plank. Shyam was apprehensive that Baba might fall from his lofty butnarrow perch during sleep. Shyam prayed to stay near Baba and serve himfor his remaining days.1899-1900Nanasaheb Chandorkar visited Shirdi with his sister-in-law’s husband, ShriBiniwale. Baba scolded Nanasaheb for dissuading Biniwale, a devotee of ShriDattatmya from visiting Datta Temple on the bank of Godavari River to avoiddelay in reaching Shirdi.1900-1902Sai Baba like a learned Pandit explained Geeta to Nanasaheb Chandorkar,who believedthat BABA was not well versed with Sanskrit language of Pandits.1903Das Ganu left Govt. service and as per Baba’s instructions settled at Nandedand started performing kirtans and writing life histories of recent saints.1903Das Ganu’s book
‘Sant Kathamrit’
was published. (Ch. 57 is about SaiBaba’s advice to Nanasaheb Chandorkar).1904, AprilRao Bahadur H. V. Sathe first arrived at Shirdi at the age 49 years).1904-1905Nanasaheb Chandorkar’s pregnant daughter Mainatai at Jamner in JalgaonDistrict had severe pains of delivery. Sai baba sent Udi and Arati withRamgir Gosavi from Shirdi and she had a safe delivery. Sai Baba even tookthe form of tonga’s Rajput driver to make Ramgir reach Jamner safe and ontime.
 
1906Das Ganu’s book
‘Bhakta-Leelamrit’
was published. (Chs.31, 32 and 33about Sai Baba).1906Nanasaheb Chandorkar was transferred as Mamlatdar from Nandurbar toPandharpur. On the way, he stopped at Shirdiwith his family and startedrequesting Baba to accompany them to Pandharpur and stay therepermanently with them. The devotees then told Nanasaheb about thesinging of bhajan just finished in which Baba’s mood of going to Pandharpurand staying there forever was expressed. The text of the song was,‘I wantto go and stay at Pandharpur.’ 1906Shivamma Thayee’s uncle meets Baba for the first time, while Baba isvisiting Vellakinaru inCoimbatore. Baba told Shivamma’s uncle, ‘She is theonly girl inthe whole lot who will be a highly elevated soul.’Baba thenslowly chanted the Gayatri Mantra to Shivamma.1907Radhakrishna Mai (Sunderabai Kshirsagar) arrived at Shirdi.She was younggood-looking widow aged 25 years. She was blessed by BABA who usedtosend a part of food collected as (Bhiksha) to her.1908Sathe Wada was constructed.1908 EkadashiKashirarn Shimpi died on Chaitra Shuddha 11. BABA saved his life in amysterious way when he was assaulted by thieves in a jungle.1908PundalikRaoof Nanded met Shri Vasudevananda Saraswati of Tembe Swamiat Rajahmundry on banks of Godavari River in Andhra Pradesh and Swamigave a coconut to be presented to Sai Baba. BABA showed cognizance of Swamiji’s gilt and showed his oneness with Swami by describing him as hisbrother (Bhau).
 
1908Shri Tatyasaheb Noolkar, then Aged 45 years -the Sub-judge of Pandharpurfirst arrived at Shirdi in 1908. Gurupournima festival was prompted by Babafor Dada Kelkar, Tatyasaheb Noolkar, Madhavrao Deshpande and others.1909Saibaba threw an ochre garment on Balasaheb Bhate, Mamlatdar of Kopargaon, and an atheist, on his very first visit and Balasaheb lostcomplete interest in worldly matters. He retired prematurely from serviceand settled down at Shirdi permanently.1909Bapu Saheb (Sakharam Hari) Jog on retirement from Govt. service came tostay at Shirdi permanently accompanied by his wife.1909Bhimaji Patil ofNarayangaon in Pune Districtcame to Shirdi for getting hischronic tuberculosis at the last stage and was cured by Baba’s blessings.1909, Nov 2HariSitaram alias Kakasaheb Dixit then Aged 45 years, a prominent solicitorand M.L.C. first arrived at Shirdi. Baba used to call him affectionatelyLangda Kaka and removed fear complex from his mind.Kaka Dixit wasknown for his obedience to Baba’s orders.1909, Dec 10Devotees began to offer regular worship to Baba in the Chavadi, where Heslept on alternate days.1909, Dec 25Baba gave darshan in the form of Sri Rama to a doctor, devotee of Sri Ramawho came with a Mamlatdar.
 
1910Baba’s ‘Handi’ritual,impliedoccasionally cooking food Himself in a bigcopper pot and distributing it to devotees and poor people withoutdiscrimination. This practice continued till this year. After wards owing toDas Ganu’s kirtans (musical recitals praising Baba), Baba’s fame spread farand wide and devotees started flocking together in large numbers offeringlarge quantities of food as ‘naivedya’ and thus there was no need of Handi.1910Ramachandra AtmaramaliasBabasaheb Tarkhad from Bandra, Bombay firstvisited Shirdi.1910Rao Bahadur Moreshwar W. Pradhan of Santacruz, Bombay first visitedShirdi.1910Govind Raghunath alias Annasaheb Dabholkar then Aged 51 years, theauthor of 
Shri Sai Satcharita
(Marathi), had his first darshan of Sai Babaand received significant and prophetic title of ‘Hemadpant. Baba gave himhis blessings and inspired him to write
SAI SATCHARITA -
a religiousscripture describing BABA’s life story and his divine play (leela)asmonumental as GURU CHARITRA-the old monumental POTHI -a poeticreligious scripture inspiring worshipto GURU, NARASINHA SARASWATI.1910Balkrishna Vishwanath alias Balasaheb Deo (Dahanu Mamlatdar) first visitedShirdi prompted by Nanasaheb Chandorkar. Deo used to describe him asBaba's child -with a full sense of surrender.1910Bhadrapad Shuddha,H. Gajanan Maharaj of Shegaon (Buldhana District of Maharashtra) left His mortal coil. He first appeared in 1878. At that verytime at Shirdi, Sai Baba grieved profusely and said, ‘Hallo! My Gajanan isgone. I must take bath again in reverenceto the Great Soul.’ 
 
1910Shrimant Gopalrao Mukund alias Bapu saheb Butty of Nagpur, (a richstatesman) started staying permanently at Shirdi.1910Harishchandra Pitale’s son suffering from epilepsy, was cured by Baba’smere glance at him. Baba gave Pitale three rupees and reminded him of tworupees earlier received by him from Swami Samarth of Akkalkot and thusshowed his oneness with all the other SAINTS (Vibhutis).1910, Ashwin Vady13Sai Baba pushed his arm into the brightly burning Dhuni to save ablacksmith’s child. The arm was scorched and burnt. Nanasaheb came fromBombay with Dr. Parmananda but Baba did not allow the doctor to treat him.Bhagoji Shinde’s service of massaging the arm with ghee and bandaging itcontinued till Baba’s Samadhi. This episode is in testimony to BABA’s cosmicexistence-HIS superconsciousness.1910 Dec 5Hon’ble Mr Ganesh Shrikrishna,alias Dadasaheb Khaparde of Amraoti(Maharashtra) first visited Shirdi. Mr.Babasaheb Khaprde was an ardentdevotee of BABA and his efforts were instrumental in bringing Loka ManyaTilak-(a great national leader –Khapurde’s contemparary) to Shirdi forBaba’s darshan and blessings in his movement for India’sfreedom from theBritish Rule.1910, Dec10Foundation-stone of Dixit Wada was laid with Baba’s permission.1910, ChristmasLala Lakhamichand of Santacruz in Bombaycame to Shirdi. Baba loved himvery much and affectionately accepted hispetty gifts given with love.1910Megha returns to Shirdi and stays till his death. In Baba’s company heunderwent mysterious experiences which transformed Megha from anatheist to an ardent devotee of Baba and spent his life in the service of Sai -
 
Shiva. He regarded Baba as Shiva-Shankar (Lord Shiva-Shankar -thewelfare Doer).1911Madrasi Sanyasi Vijayanand, while on a pilgrimage to Manas Sarovar, haltedat Shirdi and breathed his last while reading ‘Bhagawat’(a religious scriptwritten by Saint Eknath) for 3 days on Baba’s advice.1911, MarchTatyasaheb Nulkar then Aged 48, the Sub-judge of Pandharpur breathedhislast at Shirdi. Baba showed HIS oneness with Tatya Nulkar and describedhim as a pure soul and expressed HIS grief at Nulkars demise.After Tatyasaheb Nulkar passed away, Megha took over the regular dailyworship of Baba in the Dwarakamai. He used to stand on one leg whileperforming the Arati. Tatyasaheb Nulkar relinquished everything and stayedat Shirdi in Baba’s company till his demise Baba bestowed him with theunique experiences in self-realization. Baba advised him and Mr ShyamaDeshpande to perform Guru Worship(Pooja).1911Ram-Navami Festival was started at Shirdi owing to the efforts of ShriBhishma and Kaka Mahajani.1911, Ram-NavamiConstruction of Dixit Wada was completed andwas inhabited with due rites.1911Extension and roofing of the open space in front of the Dwarakamai wascarried out by Kakasaheb Dixit. Baba got enraged and tried to shake anduproot a pole. Then removing Tatya Patil’s pugree, struck a match, set thepugree on fire and threw it in a pit along with one rupee as if an auspiciousoffering to avert evil. Baba never liked renovation of his dwelling place viz.Dwarkamai (the masjid) and opposed any such effort by the devotees.1911Somdav Swami alias Haridwar Swami visited Shirdi.
 
1911, June 27Kashinath Govind Upaswii then aged 41 yearsfirst visited Shirdi andreturned again on 6 July. Baba ordered him to stay for 4 years in theKhandoba Temple.1911, DecKashinath Upasani composed the famous
‘Shri Sainath Mahimna Stotra
(hymn) in Sanskrit. These are now being recited daily during Arati atShirdi).1911, DecBubonic plague raged at Shirdi (Lasted upto March 15 next year) Babahowever saved lives of plague inflicted devotees by taking upon himself i.e.on his body the malody.1911, DecBaba’s grinding of wheat in the hand-mill. It was not wheat that was groundbut plague or cholera itself was ground to pieces and cast out of village.Seeing this Annasaheb Dabholkar (Hemadpant) was inspired to write
‘ShriSai Satcharita.’
1911, Dec5Dadasaheb Khaparde of Amraoti arrived at Shirdi again with family andstayed for 3 months. Shri Krishna Bhishma the author of 
Arati book‘Sagunopasana’
accompanied him. Dadasaheb Khaparde wrote diary of daily record of his stay at Shirdi in Baba’s company.1911, Dec 11Waman Rao Patel then Aged 22 years, Later Swami Sai Sharanananda firstarrived at Shirdi.1911, Dec 13Chandrabhan Shet Marwadi, uncle of Khushalchand of Rahataexpired.
 
1911, Dec 16Dr. Capt. Hate first visited Shirdi (who had just appeared at LCPSexamination.) Baba sent him a message in the dream saying, ‘have youforgotten me?’.1911, Dec 19Sai Baba’s great devotee and a great saint of Nath-panth order, Shri RamaMaruti visited Shirdi and stayed for 34 days. Ram Maruti offered ‘Naivedya’ to Baba and Baba very affectionately took a part of it (SWEET SANJA).1911-12Sagun Meru Naik arrived at Shirdi at the age of 23 and on Baba’s advicesettled permanently running a small restaurant for the devotees visitingShirdi.1912, JanDadasaheb Khaparde’s youngest son Balwant was cured of bubonic plagueby Baba by taking the disease on himself.1912, Jan 3Megha fed some Brahmins on completion of his Gayatri Punascharana (areligious ritual). Dadasaheb Khaparde attended it at Sathe Wada.1912, Jan 19Megha died at Shirdi at about 4 A.M. Baba lamented loudly and followed thefuneral procession for some distance.Baba showered flowers on Megha’sbody.1912, Jan 20Bapusaheb Jog started performing Baba’s Pooja and Arati after Megha’sdeath.He continued this till Baba’s Samadhi and even some yearsafterwards until he shifted to Sakuri and joined Upasani Maharaj there.
 
1912Transformation of Dwarakamai (the masjid) started. Pits were patched upand the stone slabs fixed on the floor. Baba gave up sack-cloth seat andstarted using cushion scat and bolsterin deference to devotees’ wishes.1912 JanGanapatrao, father of Tatya Kote Patil passed away. Tatya Patil stoppedsleepingin the Dwarakamai with Baba.1912, Feb 25
th
Madhavrao Deshpande (Shama) left Shirdi toattend Kakasaheb Dixit’s son’sthread-ceremony at Nagpur and Nanasaheb Chandorkar’s son’s wedding atGwalior. From there accompanied by Appa Kote, he went on a pilgrimage toMathura, Prayag, Ayodhya, Kashi and Gaya. At Gaya Madhavrao saw Baba’spicture atthe priest’shouse and was reminded of Baba’s words, ‘Aftervisiting Kashi and Prayag I would be reaching the religious place ahead of Shama.’ 1912, Mar 15Dadasaheb Khaparde returned to Amraoti. Mrs. Laxmibai Khaparde stayedbehind.1912, Ram-navamiDada Maharaj Satarkar, known as ‘Modern Tukaram’, was invited to performRam-navami Kirtan.When he boweddown in obeisance, Baba said, ‘I knowthis man since last 4 years’. Bala Buva had never met Sai Baba before but 4years ago at Bombay, he had prostrated before Baba’s picture. Thus Babaproved to His devotees that seeing His picture was equivalent to seeing Himin person.1912, AprilBalaram Dhurandhar along with his brothersvisited Shirdi for the first time.Before they arrived Baba had expressed, ‘Today manyof my Durbar peopleare coming’. Baba offered Balaram Chillim to smoke and since then his 6year old asthma was cured forever.

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