Om Sri Sai Ram.
"ALLAH MALIK HAI!"
Sai Baba blended his unique personality of Hindu and Mohammedan characteristics, and had followers of both faiths. He never forbade any Muslim from eating meat, and sometimes ordered Brahmin priests to give up vegetarianism and eat food against their wish. On a rare occasion, he himself would cook meat dishes and distribute the food to those gathered.
Although his eyes were always intense and lustrous, his nature was cordial. His personal habits were austere, but his ashram compound was always informal and lively. His personality was sweet-tempered and tolerant, although at times he was jalali, or fiery, and would become enraged at someone's failures.
An aspect of Sai Baba's jalali side was portrayed by a pet he had – a tiger. For some years the tiger lived with Sai Baba at Shirdi and would accompany him on his walks. The tiger was his pet, as an ordinary man's would be a dog or cat. When the tiger died it was buried by Sai in its own tomb.
WHEN PEOPLE CAME for Sai Baba's darshan, it was quite common for him to demand that they empty their purse or pockets of their money and give it to him as dakshina – a monetary gift to the Master. But if anyone approached him with material desires, Sai would say, "Allah malik hai!" – meaning in this instance, "God is the Giver!" Sai Baba kept a pile of small stones near his own large stone seat, and he would pick up a stone and throw it at whoever came for his darshan. Although miracles happened to many people, those who were hit by the stones did receive his blessing and became Sai's real devotees.
In 1886, Sai Baba suffered from a severe asthma attack and told his disciple Malsapati, "Protect my body for three days. If I return it will be all right... . If my body does not return to life, bury it and plant two flags over the grave." Sai then closed his eyes and entered a state of samadhi, appearing to be dead. His breathing and pulse stopped completely and his body remained lifeless for three days and nights. Some of the Master's devotees were grief-stricken, believing their Master had died. They wanted to perform the last rites, but the faithful disciple Malsapati prevented them by cradling Sai Baba's body in his lap. Exactly as Sai had foretold, after seventy-two hours his eyes slowly reopened as he reentered his body, but he did not speak of the work he had done while in that state, or why he entered this samadhi.
VENKUSHA & KABIR
A close disciple who was always seated in Sai Baba's court was named Barra Baba, which means "Big Baba." He was a huge, fat man. Sai Baba would give Barra 100 rupees per day for his food and the man would eat and eat, dining for several hours. Sai Baba would eat only the breads and raw onion that he had begged for, while Barra Baba would eat plateful after plateful of the finest food available.
Why was Sai Baba so particular that this disciple be given a huge sum of money for an enormous amount of food while he himself lived on what he begged? This giant fat man was a storehouse for the sanskaras of all those who had handed over their money to Sai Baba during darshan, and the sanskaras of those people were completely wiped out when Barra Baba, at his death, attained mukti – liberation.
Once a known thief was caught by the police with a bag full of jewels. The thief told the police that he had gotten the gems from Sai Baba. An inspector came to Shirdi to investigate the matter and interrogated the fakir at length. The policeman filled out his report as he questioned the Master:
"What is your name?" he inquired.
"They call me Sai Baba."
"What was your father's name?"
"Also Sai Baba."
"What was your Guru's name?"
"Venkusha!"
"What is your creed or religion?"
"Kabir!"
"What is your caste?"
"Parvardigar!"
"How old are you?"
"Hundreds of thousands of years."
"Will you swear in court that what you are saying is the truth?"
"I am the Truth."
"Do you know the accused?"
"Yes, I know him ... I know everyone."
"The accused says he is your devotee and has stayed with you. Is that so?"
"Yes, all are with me ... All are mine."
"Did you give the accused some jewels as alleged by him?"
BOTH HINDU & MUHAMMADAN
"Yes, I gave them to him. Who gives what and to whom?"
"If you gave the accused the jewels, how did you get them?"
"Everything is mine! Everything has been given to me."
The policeman was overwhelmed. Subsequently, the thief was cleared of the charges and the case was dropped.
SAI BABA would keep a dhuni (fire) burning in the Mother of Mercy mosque each night. He would also keep a small oil lamp burning in the mosque and would obtain oil by begging from different shopkeepers in Shirdi. On one particular day, however, not one shopkeeper would give him kerosene. Sai returned to the mosque and, filling the lamp with water, lit it! The lamp thus burned without fuel, and when early the next morning the villagers came to know of this "miracle," their faith in him was kindled and Sai became the true center of attention in Shirdi.
A Perfect Master sees all who are closely connected with him. One day in 1910, Sai Baba was sitting near the dhuni when suddenly, instead of putting wood on the fire, the Master pushed his arm into the flames. A devotee rushed toward him and pulled his arm out, but it was seriously burned. When asked why he had done this, Sai explained, "One of my followers is a potter not far from here. His wife was just then working at the kiln with her daughter on her lap. Hearing her husband call her, she got up and the child accidentally slipped into the furnace. At that moment, I thrust my arm into this fire. I do not mind these burns; the child was saved. Had I not done this the little girl would have died."
After several years in Shirdi, Sai Baba had a temple built near the mosque in memory of his Guru, Gopal Rao. By erecting this new temple in honor of a Hindu saint next to the old Islamic mosque, it could be construed that it was a part of Sai Baba's spiritual work to unite the Hindus and the Muslims spiritually. In fact, Sai Baba used to refer to his mosque, the Mother of Mercy, as a "Brahmin mosque."
Sometimes in the mosque Sai Baba would have the Koran read to him by his Mohammedan followers, and sometimes in the Gopal Rao temple he would have the arti and puja performed, and have the Gita and Ramayana read by his Hindu followers.
Sai was an unusual Perfect Master, for he was a unique blend of
FIRST WORLD WAR
Hindu and Mohammedan spiritual characteristics and his work with both religions signified that there is no real difference between the two, for the One worshiped is the same.
No one can determine whether Sai Baba was born a Hindu or a Muslim, but it is certain that his spiritual upbringing was directly connected to both, because he had both Hindu and Muslim Masters. Sai was unique: he dressed like a Muslim, but bore the caste marks on his forehead of a Hindu. He would celebrate the holy days and festivals of both religions with equal fervor. He quoted the Koran to the delight of the Muslims, but was equally well versed in the Hindu Vedas or Shastras.
To someone like Sai Baba, his own human identity and religious differences were nothing into nothing. When someone once asked him where he was born, he replied, "I have no residence."
Over the years thousands flocked to Sai Baba – many with material gain on their minds. The Master once remarked about those who sought his blessing: "It is I who seek them out and bring them to me; they do not come by their own volition. Even though some may be hundreds of miles away, I draw them to me like sparrows with strings tied to their feet."
He would often repeat to his devotees: "I give you what you want so that you will begin to want what I want to give you. My Master told me to give bounteously to all who beseech me, but none of you beseech me with wisdom... .
"My treasury is open. But none of you bring a cart to haul away the real treasure. Dig deep and take what is rightfully yours, but none of you want to take the trouble.
"I tell you, all who come to me, this opportunity will not return! I am the One, I am God!"
SAI BABA controlled World War I. When the Master would come from the mosque to the temple of Gopal Rao, his arti would be sung between these two buildings. At that time, when he was walking between the mosque and temple, a strange light would be seen on his face. It was also noticed that he would make strange signs in the air with his fingers. This behavior continued daily for four years, from the start of World War I to its conclusion.
During the war years, Sai Baba would often say: "I am formless and I am everywhere. I am not this body you call Sai.
continued....