Sai's Grace 2

[drkalaga]

Dear fellow devotees,

Sai tests ALL of His devotees before he answers their prayers. Here is an example of the story of Saint Meher Baba, which I recently read somewhere.

Meher Baba was of Persian origin but by divine will He was ordained to be a monk. He once came to Shirdi to see and get Sai’s blessings. But just as Sai did in the case of Haji Sidiq Falke, He refused to meet Meher for several days and tested his patience. Many of Meher’s fellow travelers were tired of waiting and were ready to leave but Meher did not. One day when Sai was walking along the street, Meher simply approached Sai and did a Shastanganamaskar (prostration). Sai made a wry smile and simply uttered the word “Parvardigar”, touched Meher’s head and walked away. With that one utterance Sai gave Meher Divine Bliss (Aatma Jnana).

“Parvardigar”means so many things in so many cultures…but usually is meant to address The Lord Almighty. “O Parvardigar” is also the common name of a prayer created by Meher Baba, sometimes called the Universal Prayer or the Master's Prayer.

The prayer is a prayer of praise, listing the attributes of the God. It specifically uses names of god from various traditions including Sikhism (Parvadigar = "cherisher", also Hindi "preserver"), Hinduism (Prabhu, Parameshwar, Parabrama), Islam (Allah), Judaism (Elahi), Zoroastrianism (Yezdan, Ahuramazda, Ezad), and Christianity (God the Beloved). The attributes praised are those of omnipresence, omnipotence, omniscience and infinite love.

It is an amazing thing that Sai addressed Meher with that word. But the point is, Faith demands Patience. They are both sisterly or brotherly virtues.

Best Wishes,
= Sriram


Dr. Sriram Kalaga
Joplin, Missouri, USA
e-mail: drkalaga@aol.com