Kindness of Sri Saibaba
The all-knowing nature of Sri Saibaba is humanly impossible to decipher. This much must be said that Sri
Sai is aware of the innermost secrets of those who he wanted to benefit and expressed them as needed to
show the practical remonstration unique to His way. Sri Tarkhad in his Foreword to the book on Sri
Saibaba by MW Pradhan narrates one such incident:
A friend staying in Bandra, was one day leaving his place in the morning to go to his office. Near the door
of his block, his wife remembered that she had certain expenses to make, and asked him for a rupee. He
knew the necessity of this request and opening his purse discovered that he had no loose coin in it, but
currency notes. He told his wife that he would get these cashed in his office and in the evening on his
return home, he would pay her the rupee, to which she gave her assent.
On descending the staircase and coming upon the first landing, when fumbling for his handkerchief, he
found a rupee in that pocket. As there was ample time for him to catch his train, his duty was to go up to
his flat and hand over that rupee to his wife. Instead of doing that, nonchalant as most husbands are
everywhere, he went to his office and after getting the notes cashed, gave a rupee to his wife on his return
home in the evening, and forgot all about it thereafter.
Some days passed since, when both of them happened to go to Shirdi. No sooner they made their
obeisance than Baba said to his wife, "Mother, now-a-days one had become so untruthful, that though
there was a rupee in his pocket he would say there was none!"
Now the lady not knowing anything about the matter remained unperturbed, whereas the man
remembering the whole incident, threw himself at Baba's feet, and embracing them, shed tears of
repentance and joy. Repentance for his callousness in not having gone up and paid that rupee to his loving
and trusting wife, joy for the feeling of assurance of Shri Sai Baba's watch on the guidance and progress
of their worldly affairs.
(Source: “Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi: A Glimpse of Indian Spirituality” by Rao Bahadur M.W.Pradhan)