Bangalore To Shirdi Tour Package

By Author: Sri Sairam Subhayatra
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Activities done by Sai Baba

Contrary to his usual reserve, at night he sometimes went to the takiya, a resting place for Muslim visitors. Here, he sang devotional hymns, among which figured some popular motives attributed to Kabir. He apparently also sang in Persian or Arabic, languages the local people could not understand. He is described tying bells (ghungur) to his ankles and dancing, enraptured in ecstatic joy.

Sai Baba's abode in the masjid brought him into closer contact with the local people. He would sometimes perform healing acts, collecting herbs and inexpensive drugs from local shops and apply them to the sick. He is said to have cured snake bite, leprosy by using snake poison, and "rotting eyes" by using nuts for an alkaline aseptic.

At this time it was reported that the young fakir Sai Baba was attired in a white turban, clean dhoti and a shirt. There are narratives of some interaction with a large wrestler who was defeated by Sai Baba in contest. The wrestler demanded a return bout and should Sai Baba lose, he would have to change his clothing and don a kafni (a long robe). It was said that ...
... Sai was in no mood to enter the arena again, and conceded the fellow the victory he sought, and donned the kafni and kerchief on his head. The wrestler was filled with remorse and pleaded with Baba to resume his former style of dress and released him from the obligation. But the young Sai Baba stuck to his word.

At this time the dilapidated mosque became the centre around which Sai Baba's life revolved. Inside, Sai Baba built a dhuni, that is, a sacred wood-fire which he kept perpetually burning. Sai Baba is described as sitting in front of the fire, facing the south, keeping his left hand on a wooden support, a typical aid used by Indian ascetics. The local villagers reported seeing him sitting in front of the fire for hours. From the dhuni he would draw the sacred ash (udi) which had healing power. Sai Baba no longer used herbs or concoctions for healing requests. Inside the masjid was a large, flat stone on which Sai Baba would sit for hours in his typical posture, his right arm resting on his right thigh or lap, the foot or the ankle on the opposite knee, and the head slightly inclined in an attitude of contemplation or reflection. The left hand lies on the foot or the ankle of the crossed leg.

Such a posture in Indian iconography represents sovereignty and is the prerogative of gods and rajas alone.

It was around this time that the tradition of Sai Baba's miraculous powers (siddhi) began to grow. One Nanasahheb who had no son interceded with Sai Baba for male progeny, and after some time, Nanasaheb got a son. Many other instances of Sai Baba granting offspring to couples is recorded. Baba's touch, words such as Allah karega (Allah will do this) or that Faqir is good and even his glance were thought to be powerful enough and produced the desired effect. Due these and other miraculous occurrences, Baba's presence increased significantly, to the point that several people started revering him as a saint possessing special powers.

A few Hindus began offering him some kind of worship inside the masjid, though it is told that Sai Baba strongly disapproved. The Muslims of the village protested against this practice, for in their eyes it was an obvious sign of impiety and idolatry. One Muslim challenged Sai Baba when sandal paste was being applied to his forehead. Baba had to appease him by pointing out that he had to bend to circumstances. Baba replied, "Jaisa Desh, Aiysa Vesh", meaning, When in Rome, do as Romans do. On other occasions, Baba pointed out that if Hindus wished to please themselves by worshipping him inside a mosque, it was no loss to Islam, but only to Hinduism.

Baba's fame grew, and the rivalry between the two communities claiming Baba as their own grew. Baba himself maintained an ambiguous profile, unwilling to identify with either of the two religions. When pressed on whether he was a Hindu or a Muslim, Baba would get very angry and abuse people. Baba would often talk about the Hindu gods, sometimes quoting sacred texts from the Bhagavad Gita, or Isa Upanishad; with his Muslim followers, Baba would always talk of Allah and the Koran, often quoting Persian verses. It is said that one of his favourite expressions was Allah rakhega vaisa rahena, meaning, "Let us be content with what we have and submit our will to Allah".

This it was that many came to Baba from many faiths. In later years, Parsis and even a few Christians would come to Shirdi and visit Sai Baba. All had free access to the masjid: outcasts, lepers, dogs, birds, etcetera. This is one reason why the masjid came to be known as Dwarakamayi, "the many-gated mother". Dwaraka literally means many gated, and mayi means mother. The masjid or Dwarakamayi began to attract more and more people from surrounding villages.

An early Samadhi

Some sources give accounts of Sai Baba leaving the body for three days in 1886.

In 1886, Baba made an attempt to cross the border line. On a full moon day, Baba suffered from a severe attack of asthma. To get rid of it, Baba decided to take his prana up high and to go into samadhi. He said to Mhalaspati: "Protect my body for thre days. If I return, it will be all right; if I do not, bury my body in that open land (pointing to it) and fix two flags there as a mark." Saying so, Baba fell down at about 10 PM. His breathing stopped, as well as his pulse. It seemed as if his prana had left his body. All the ... villagers came there and wanted to hold an inquest and bury the body in the place pointed out by Baba. But Mhalaspati prevented that. With Baba's body in his lap he sat full three days guarding it. After three days had passed, Baba showed signs of life at 3 AM. His breathing commenced, the abdomen began to move. His eyes opened ands stretching his limbs, Baba returnd to consciousness (life) again.

Increasing visitors and the future

Sai Baba began to get an increasing number of visitors after 1890. His fame began to spread and his darbars (sessions in the masjid) began to absorb more of his time. Sai Baba made one prediction about what would happen in the village of Shirdi in the future:

Long before Chandorkar and others arrived, i.e., in the last century, Baba spoke of the future of shirdi. Baba told Bhagat and others who were with him at the chavadi: "In this place (Shirdi) there will be huge storeyed buildings rising. Big fairs will be held, and big men, Subhedars, and others will be coming. My Brahmins will gather and elephants, horses and Shankar Nana (an auspicious leader) will also come. Guns will be fired. People hearing this began to smile. They thought: "What! All this for some worthless nook of an insignificant hamlet?" But some decades later, every one of Baba's statements came true.

He advised most of this devotees to lead a normal family life, discouraging "mystical flights" and condemning ascetic excesses. Indeed, very few were the persons whom he encouraged to take to the path of renunciation, i.e., sanyasa.

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