SHRIDI SAI BABA

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8.8 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:27:00 +0000

Need for a Guru - Sastraic authority:-

“Acharya Devo Bhava” is mentioned in Taittiriya Upanishad.

Acharyavan Purushoveda says, “it is the man who has a Guru that can get knowledge or realization.”

Mundaka Upanishad says, “to get Brahman, Knowledge realization, one should go with his Guru who has realized God.”

Srimad Bhagavata says, “the Sadhaka must resort to a Guru devoted to God, who has realized God and is calm.”
The Katha Upanishad says,”in this matter of realization unless some one else speaks it out, there is no way.”

Guru Gita says, “Studies do not suffice. Without a Guru, there is no Realization.”

This Atman, that is, its realization is not got by study or repeated chanting Vedas nor by keenness of intellect or by much learning. It is he whom Realization desires that gets it. To him it reveals it’s from. Of course this realization, which is personified, comes as a matter of fact because there are methods through the grace or bodies of the Gurus.

Even Vyasa, who taught his son Suka all the Vedas, sent him to Guru Janaka for confirmation. King Janaka acted as his Guru and enabled him to perceive that what his Guru had taught and what the Vedas explained was the same as the actual realization, which Suka had in him. Until and unless such a seal is set on one’s realization, that realization is not complete.

8.7 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 11:03:00 +0000

8.7 - Guru Worship

That is a correct description of Baba’s Marga. It has been called Guru Marga in Guru Gita. Guru Marga is a form of Bhakthi Marga in which faith in and devotion to the Guru is the only Sadhana for achieving everything including salvation, Mukti or Brahmaiktya, Satchidananda conquest of samsara, and also all yoga, siddhis and temporal welfare.
Here Baba showed the applicability of the Guru Gita to religious progress. The one who is acquainted with the ‘ins’ and ‘outs’ of the spiritual field, a forest is a vanjari. The fourth person, Baba who realized that a guide was needed, and mere talk with bookish knowledge was of no use at all to help one to realize God and himself. Above all, the question was not an intellectual one. It was a problem as to how a particular soul was to be raised to realization, and that as essentially a matter of moulding the entire soul of the student or sishya. What is wanted therefore is humility, receptivity, and a powerful desire to reach the goal with the aid of a Guru. Therefore, a readiness to adopt a Guru and surrender everything to the Guru is needed. Everything is Tan, Man, Dhan that is, body, mind and possession. As a result of the intense love he bore to his Guru, Baba sacrificed and surrendered at the feet of his Guru. The solution of the problem as to whether there is need for a Guru is already reached when the sishya get into the proper humility, receptivity, and longing attachment to the Guru, culminating in mutual love. Then realization is reached. Purely by Guru’s grace, Realization flashes upon the sishya. Baba said, “The Guru’s grace is our only sadhana. Jnana comes as experience or in the wake of Guru’s grace. He alone succeeds who feels the Guru is the one thing needed.”

8.6 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:01:00 +0000

As we roamed aimlessly through forest, we met a man who works in the forest. He asked us “where are you going in this heat into the forest?” We gave no direct reply. He warned us politely not to get lost into the thick woods and that too needlessly. He offered his food to us. We disdained his advice and walked into the forest.

But in that vast and dense wood we lost our way. To our surprise we met the same forester. He said that by relying on our own cleverness, we had got into a wrong way. He said that a guide is a must to show the way. By saying “Do not refuse offers of food. Such offers are auspicious signs of success in one’s endeavour.” he again invited us to take food with him. Again we declined the food and went away. I soon felt hungry and I went and accepted a bit of bread and ate it and drank some water.

The forester then said, “What was your dispute?” and I told him all our talk. The others left him and did not care for him. But I reverently bowed to him. Then he took me to a well tied up my legs with a rope, and suspended me, head downwards, from a tree by the side of the well. My head was about three feet off the water, which I could not reach. And the forester left me there and went away. I do not know, where he has gone. He returned after 4 or 5 hours and asked me how I felt. I answered, “My time was passed in great bliss”. The forester might be pleased with me. He drew me near him, passed his palm over my head and body and spoke to me tender words dripping with love. He put me into his school where I entirely forgot my father and mother and all attachments and desires. I loved to gaze at him. If he were not there to see, I would not like to have eyes at all. I did not wish to go back. I forgot all other things but the forester, the Guru. My life was concentrated in my sight in him. That was the object of my meditation. In silence, I bowed. Meaning, Realisation flashed upon me, of itself without effort or study purely by his grace.

Guru’s grace is our only sadhana. Jnana comes as experience or in its wake.

8.5 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:00:00 +0000

There are so many souls, which has been immersed deep into the forest of Samsara and lost all knowledge of even the cardinal directions and got confused. Salutation to the Guru is a must that shows the path to get out of this. The Guru alone can help one to enter the spiritual field. On one occasion this point was raised by Baba. Baba was referring to the fact that he himself was a Guru who could guide those who came to Shirdi or to his feet to make spiritual progress. About the necessity for a Guru, Baba mentions the discussion between himself and three other fellow disciples.

Baba himself described how he met his Guru. Once myself and three others were studying our pothi, parayana puran, and other works and discussed how we were to get realization.

One said we should depend on ourselves and not on a Guru. For Gita says, Raise your self by the Self (uddharet-Atmana).

The first sadhaka here is like the Devil quoting scripture. In quoting Gita, he wrests a verse out of its context and misapplies it. The Gita emphasizes the need for a Guru to get realization, and these are ignored and the wrested verse is treated as cancelling the other express reference to the need for a Guru. The Sadhaka ignores the all-important fact that the Gita upadesa is given to Arjuna only after he got disgusted with his life situation and he made Prapatti and Saranagati.

The second and third sadhakas quote the need of qualifications or requisites for Brahmajnana as per Vivekachudamani. But this is mere reproduction by bookworms.

How to get self-control and release from doubts?

How to feel the animal nature and overcome them?

How to overcome our desires?

There lies the hurdle. Books do not solve. Surrender to a loving Guru and love towards that Guru alone can solve these problems.

Baba the fourth sadhaka was practical and noted that Surrender and Love to Guru were the only solutions.

Second one said, ‘the main thing is to make the mind self-controlled, free from thoughts and doubts. It is we who are in every thing everywhere.’

Third one said, ‘the form that is in phenomena is ever changing. The formless is unchanging. So we must always be making Vichara that is distinguishing between Nitya, unchanging and Anithya changing.’

Then Baba said, ‘I dislike bookish knowledge. Let us do our prescribed duty, and surrender our body, speech and life to a Guru, who is all pervading. Faith in him is the thing needed.’

8.4 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 09:46:00 +0000

Diksha is a special process for removing evil taints and initiating pupil with powers and siddhis.

Kinds of Dikshas are:

Chakshusi by mere glance

Sparsa by touching the head.

Vacha by words blessing.

Manasi mentally blessing.

Sastri by teaching sastras.

Yoga is Guru entering into the pupil’s mind inwardly.

Howtri Kriyavati performing homas with fire.

Howtri Jnanavati doing the homa mentally, to bless the pupil.

Need for a Guru.

The question is whether Guru is needed or not? Even now people conduct heated arguments. Some arguing that there is need and others arguing that there is no need. These debates are usually fruitless and they excite and result in loss of peace. A good example is Heamdpant alias Anna Saheb Dabolkar’s case. On his first visit to Shirdi, he hotly contested for one hour or so that a Guru was an unnecessary fetter and quoted the Gita, in his support. Bala Saheb Bhate took the opposite view and maintained that destiny was supreme and that all had a Guru. The discussion made Anna Dabolkar less fit to approach the great Guru Sai Baba by reason of restlessness. But Baba by graciously revealed his Antarjnana. All that passed during the discussion made Anna Dabolkar feel humble and contrite. He felt that Baba was a wondrous Supreme Power before whom he and his weak powers should bend and given up his “reason” and supposed independence. And thus he became the sishya of Baba. By Baba’s grace he found that destiny had fixed him up.

The Sastras, for example, Srimad Bhagavata, Bhagavata Gita, Guru Gita, Katham Mundadam Taittiriya, Maha Narayanopanishad say clearly that without a Guru Brahmanjnana and Moksha cannot be attained.

The need is questioned as a rule by persons not yet fit to be sishyas that is those without humility, reverence, patience, receptivity and other virtues, or the proper attitude towards great saints. They must be advised to have Satsang. That is they must move with bhaktas and fit themselves for further progress. When they are fairly fit, they will get their Guru. It is not the truth that sishyas always go out to find the Guru. The reverse is often true. There are many noble souls waiting to be approached by persons who want to become sishyas and have the proper attitude and training.

“Let students come.”

There are great souls who have attained perfect peace and who are working to benefit and bless the world like the spring season. Though they have themselves crossed the terrible ocean of samsara, they are ferrying others across without any reward or recompense or motive. Sai Baba himself sent for N.G. Chandorkar expressly and drew hundreds or thousands to him inwardly and unnoticed by them. Baba says, ‘No one comes to me except by my drawing. I draw people to me under various pretexts such as the worldly objects they want. When a boy ties a bird’s foot with one end of a string and pulls the other end, can the bird refuse to come?’ This drawing is mostly due to rinanubandha. That is prenatal ties and obligations. This is termed by Baba Saheb Bhate, the irresistible pull of destiny. The need for a Guru is patent especially in worldly affairs. People do not expect the children to learn the three ‘R’s, drawing, etc., without a teacher. If this is so in the material world, how much more essential is the need in the subtle spiritual field? Generally one’s spiritual progress and the stages one has to go through, and the way of mastering problems that arise there are often dealt with in books on religion. These books will not suffice to enable one to tackle this subject effectively. Religious literature is a vast forest, through which one cannot pick one’s way.

8.3 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 11:32:00 +0000

The Kula Moolavatara Kalpa Sutra Teeka Gata Kulagama mentions six classes of Gurus in regular gradation. They are;
Preraka One who just starts the pupil
Suchaka One who indicates and carries further
Vachaka One who regularly teaches and coaches
Darscaka One who points out the way and goal to the pupil.
Sikshaka One who regularly teaches and guides the pupil fully. These five are preparations to go to the 6th.
Bodhaka one who is also called the Karana Guru, who thoroughly illumines the pupil and prepares him for Brahma Jnana and Moksha.
There are Gurus who are seen and others unseen; and there are Gurus who merely impart teachings and do not care for results. That is, they do not undertake any responsibility for the disciples.

There are others who give definite undertakings and carry out the same at all costs and if necessary life after life proceeding to seek the disciple in subsequent lives for the purpose. The best instance of such a Guru is Sri Sai Baba who undertook liability for H.S.Dixit, N.G.Chandorkar, Bandara Master and M.B. Rege and others.

Another classification is based on the powers and methods of the Guru. The Guru who teaches something secular or religious is merely called Guru. He who teaches about God or Sath is called SathGuru. He who uses all his siddhis and superior powers to carry the disciple right up to the goal is called Samartha SathGuru. Ramdas, Guru of Shivaji, and Sai Baba belong to the class of Samartha SathGurus. ParamaGuru is a Samartha SathGuru who looks after the entire welfare secular and spiritual of his disciple.
Diksha Guru who formally initiates the pupil and invests him with mantra, power.
Siksha Gurus, that is the usual Guru who teaches or trains a pupil.
Male Gurus usually prescribed in all Sastras for pupils to attain Moksha.
Female Gurus specially referred to in Tantra works to give mantra and training to pupils who aim at siddhis. The Sastras generally dissuade persons anxious to attain Moksha resort to female Gurus. In the case of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the Bhairavi Lady Guru trained him in tantras. After that came the Nanga Avadhuta Guru who initiated him into concentration on Nirguna Brahman. Similarly in the case of Sri. P.R. Avaste, a lady Guru initiated him into Mantra that is Siva Panchakshari permutations and combinations Japa, which would result in seeing various gods and produce various powers. Later he came to Baba.
Kula Gurus – hereditary
Other Gurus
Deciples prefer the Kula Guru to begin with. When there is no benefit, then go to a competent Guru. Baba was not the Kula Guru of Nana Chandorkar, but his rinanubanda Guru and in a sense the Guru of his Destiny.
Baba was a siksha Guru to N.G.Chandorkar and Balakram Manker.
Gurus for all round training and teaching for example, Venkusa.
Gurus for some push or help (for example Sai Baba to Narayan Asram)
Gurus for some mantra, tantra, special vidya, yogabhyasa, and asana.
Gurus for Vydeeki profession and Vedic study.
Gurus for secular purposes only.

Gurus for inward working Dakshinamurthi method and Baba’s.
Gurus for Oral teaching mainly.
Gurus for Both.

8.2 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 03:25:00 +0000

Derivation: The word Guru is a Sanskrit word. A number of Derivations are found in Guru Gita. Guru Gita is a part of the Skanta Purana. ‘Gu’ generally means ‘Guna’ and therefore means ‘darkness’. ‘Ru’ denotes light overlapping the darkness like fire. So Guru means the dispeller of darkness or ignorance.

Another derivation says that Guru is one who takes you to Brahman by removing the Gunas.

Sai Baba’s teachings are unique and cosmopolitan. In Arabic and Persian, Guru is called MURSHAD. Hence, Sufis used the word Murshad for Guru. Baba himself used the same word. For example Baba said. ‘My Murshad has taken me away from this body which is but my house’. This means his Guru had destroyed his indentification of self with the body (Dehatma buddhi). His Guru made him realize that He the Atma is not the body just like the fire which burns the fuel is different from the fuel, and the seer is not the seen. The Sufi equivalent for Sishya is Talib and Shakir.

we find everywhere in the world, the usual practice is to have Gurus.

Purpose for a Guru: Guru is a teacher. The essential question is, what he teaches or what help he gives or is expected to give.

Classes of Gurus: There are various classes of Gurus depending upon what is or given by Him to the deciples. For example Siksha or Diksha, secular or religious subject, sex of Guru, methods adopted, whether Guru is visible or invisible.

Guru Gita classifies Gurus under seven heads such as:

Suchaka is the ordinary school-master who gives secular teachings – the three ‘R’s and arts.

Vachaka is one who imparts ethical teachings, that is Dharma Sastra.

Bhodaka is one who teaches mantras for various purposes – secular or other, and stops with that.

Nishiddha is one who teaches mantras and other methods for achieving lower purposes just as marana, vasikarana, sthambana and akarshana. These are almost invariably used to achieve low earthly objects and are hindrances to one’s achievements of the spiritual goal. It is a danger for one to get under a Nishiddha Guru.

Vihita is one who teaches Virakti or detachment, that is frees one from all attachment to earthly things and prepares one for achieving one’s spiritual welfare. Vairagya or dispassion is the sine qua non for progress just as its opposite, namely, extreme attachment to kamini and kanchana, is a powerful barrier to all progress.

Karana instructs the sishya as to the import of the Mahavakyas the axioms or axles of the Upanishads. After securing thorough vairagya one is ready to get at least an intellectual grasp and then a realization of the grand basis of all mukti. Mukti is the realization of the real nature of oneself and of Atma, that is Paramatma; and the mahavakyas embody that truth. Thus the teacher of this basis of salvation is the cause, Karana for salvation and therefore the Karana Guru.

Parama Guru: The last and the greatest of all, who enables the sishya to thoroughly absorb the truth of the Mahavakyas and to realize for himself the Mahavakyas and thus escape samsara or rebirth, is the Parama Guru. He is also called the Moksha Guru. Others are mere Gurus.

IMPORTANT

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 15:47:00 +0000

FOR DETAILED STUDY PLEASE

8.1 - Guru Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:49:00 +0000

Sri Sai Baba’s beneficent work seen now is exercised through various means; Sai worship is one of the most important one. Guru worship is an important feature of the Sai movement. To understand Sai Baba’s life, Guru sishya relations and nature have to be studied. Sai Baba’s life and leelas explains the full significance and value of Guru marga.

Great Saints like Sai Baba, by their grace, achieve perfection to impart to others. Sri Sai Baba’s ability to conceal his real nature and the working of his mind and body obviously in pursuance of the directions of Sastras and Gurus. The saint must be too difficult to understand and undiscerned; move about like a dullard, idiot. Saibaba’s acting as a Sadguru and a Samartha Sadguru was unknown to the thousands that met him in life or heard of him thereafter. Only by revelation of devotee’s experiences that people now mostly realize that he was Samartha SadGuru and had various grades of devotees and deciples.

His biography is the practical illustration of what Guru and Sishya mean and of the principles that govern their conduct and mutual relation. The marga that Baba followed has puzzled many. Many asked and ask now whether he was a Yogi or a Jnani or a Bhakta or followed any marga of his own. Several thought and think that Baba cannot be classified under any of the divisions applying to saints and sadhus. As a result of study, aided by His own grace, one sees at last that he was an expert of all the margas, though his chief marga, was Bhakti Marga. Bhakthi Marga is described as Guru Marga. By following Bhakthi Marga and by worshipping Guru one can attain Jnana and siddhis including yoga siddhis.

Guru worship: Definition:

Guru may be defined as one who imparts information or gives training to anther. Any schoolteacher or moral teacher or the one who teaches the way to salvation or mukti or even teaches mantras for various religious or secular purposes, high, or low, can be called a Guru.

To Read Continuation, please

7.4.3 - HOW CAN POLYTHEISM AND MONOTHEISM BE RECONCILED?

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 04:17:00 +0000

To enabling the Jiva to get laya in bliss, Baba similarly expressed his approval of use of music. Baba himself in his early days used to dance with tinklets tied to his feet singing rapturously songs of Kabir, some of which undoubtedly referred to the beauty and blissfulness of infinite God. Like Thyagaraja Swamikal, Baba must have enjoyed musical laya. Thyagaraja Swamikal asked,”Is it possible for a man whose mind does not melt with music and merge with laya. Is there any other way to obtain laya and to reach God?” Baba told Rangari that on the night previous to his coming, there was bhajan and music, and all night he was in rapture. Baba said ‘They abused me’.

Most Hindus revelled in meditating on the details of God forms attained laya or mystic absoption. Thyagaraja did the same with the aid of music. Sufi and Christian adorers of God without form also succeed often in merging their selves in rapt communion with God. Both these groups of mystics show that concentration in the end gives the longed for bliss of God and is the way to reconcile all religious differences. Baba as the pastmaster of mystic bliss and lord of siddhis or psychic powers flowing from mystic concentration helped on the reconciliation of these apparently conflicting faiths of Polytheism and Montheism.

7.4.3 - HOW CAN POLYTHEISM AND MONOTHEISM BE RECONCILED?

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 04:17:00 +0000

7.4.2 - HOW CAN POLYTHEISM AND MONOTHEISM BE RECONCILED?

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 04:17:00 +0000

But apart from verbal differences, taking essence into consideration, if God is bliss and man is only a spark from God, the spark, after much sadhana, gets reabsorbed in the original flame from which it came. Then, the process of approach, absorption and getting back may be called worship. But merging permanently with the original flame or bliss or love, is called worship.
Worship is usually described as a Sadhana or means. The end of it is reaching God. Persons of all grades of spiritual development were flocking to Baba’s feet, and a very large number of them were incapable of any rhytham or Laya or merger in God. But a few occasionally touched that Laya. In the morning, when the dew was falling, Once Balwant Khaparde and Bhisma went out and the Sun was just rising. The Sun’s rays hit them and threw their shadows behind them. Their shadows began with their feet and continued right on to the distant horizon, and at the horizon there did the piercing of the dew by the Sun’s rays cause a rainbow. Thus the long shadow of each of them was crowned with a halo of the seven-coloured rainbow. This made them marvelous. From each one, who is finite, goes out an infinite shadow, which at the other end is crowned with divine glory! This was by the rays of the Sun who sends his rays upon all. The Sun is typical of god. The halo of glory cast round the head of the shadows was also typical of Godhead, and so each one had a feeling that he himself was identical with that elongated shadow which had a crown on its head. Therefore each one dimly sensed his divinity. The finite body and its infinite and glorious shadow were really one. The Sun showed the oneness. That was the mystic meaning to be attached to their morning experience of the Sun, the dew, and their shadows. They communicated their experience to G.S.Khaparde who said that Baba had kindly given them a mystic experience of Atmananda. Keeping this in their minds, they went to see Baba. Baba gave them a smile of approval and said nothing. One would take it that Baba set his seal of approval on their interpretation of this natural phenomenon of having long shadows of themselves crowned with divine glory, and considering the same as typical or significant of their being in essence divinity, something infinite, blissful, and beautiful, and that their Jivas must be recognized by each one of them as being the Paramatma, that is, Divine, as was demonstrated by their blissful laya absorption for a moment.

7.4.1 - HOW CAN POLYTHEISM AND MONOTHEISM BE RECONCILED?

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:02:00 +0000

This question rises in the minds of most of the people. Monotheism and polytheism reflect different levels of thought and action and that the two are poles apart. In one sense that is true. Yet it is also the recognized truth in the lives of great souls and in the history of nations that the two co-exist and are reconcilable in Mysticism. This is well illustrated in Hinduism.

Is God really one or many? In the case of the one God, is worship necessarily external and formal or might it be equally advantageous, if not more advantageous, without external formalities? The realization of pure Sat Chit Ananda is worship? If it can be termed worship, then probably the term worship must have an extended significance, which ordinarily it does not have. When a person is simply enjoying Satchitananda he is generally referred to as in a blissful state, and he might even express his own condition by the words Main Allah Hum, I am God, Aham Brahmasmi, Soham, that is, if the individual soul has so completely surrendered itself to and got identified with the Paramatman, then there may be no such thing as relation of one soul to another. Worship is usually understood as the attitude of one soul, a Jiva, towards God, viewed not as identical with it, but as in some way different from it, though the Godhead might include the Jiva. One might worship a God, which includes oneself because it includes others also, and is thus different from one. If worship must necessarily bring about differences between the worshipper and the worshipped, it is not correct then to say that the merger of the individual soul in the Paramatman is an act of worship. It may be the ultimate end of worship. There is Atma Nivedana worship ends. But ordinarily no one would think loss of identity is worship. As in the pages of Wordsworth, we come across passages where the soul is lost in admiration of the beauty, the infinite character and the glories of Nature treating them as expression of love and joy arising on God’s Visitation. That is described sometimes as an act of worship as loss of self is only temporary. Even the person who worships a God-form is lost in it for a time and then comes back to himself and treats that from as different from him. A mystic has various stages, one stage of which is losing himself in Nature or in a God-form other than Nature. Thus Nature and he are two different objects, and that is how the term worship may be applied to such cases.

7.3 - Unification and Purification of Hinduism

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 10:28:00 +0000

For example,Siva is the essence or heart of Vishnu and Vishnu is the heart or essence of Siva. It is a faith that any one who makes the slightest difference between the two goes to Hell. There are many similar authorities. But why go to authorities? Does any one think that God, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, who is responsible for the creation, maintenance and dissolution of the universe can be many? If there are many, the universe will be chaos, not a cosmos. The above are functions or aspects of one and the same God. Baba always impressed this silently on all the people. We have the opposite ideal deeply ingrained in us. We are bodies, we think. So we think Siva, Vishnu and Brahma are embodied beings, murthis with eyes, legs, nose and crown. It is absolutely essential for the seeker after salvation to discard these and consequent differences. So Baba stressed unity just as even Srimad Bhagavata stresses unity. The Vedas on which all schools rely seem to support the idea of multiplicity of Gods and in fact multiplicity of objects in the universe.
The Vedas affirm the existence of duality and that duality is but an illusion. Refuting that duality at the end, the Vedas are satisfied. Baba did not stop with stating the principles on which all could be brought to a common basis. He went further and worked out the actual unity of the groups by brining men from different groups and making them all form one solid block of Sai devotees under his own care. Those who came to him saw in him their only God, recognized him as their Guru deva.
They had that highest religious sentiment. There was no possibility of their tearing themselves off into divisions, though their original loyalties were maintained in other respects. Baba hated intolerance and made people tolerate each other’s views and peculiarities. He did not allow Hindus under him to fight against Muslim devotees. He removed disparities and made them work in unison as fellow devotees, as brothers in Sai faith.

Thus, he worked out not merely the unification of Hinduism but also the unification of Hinduism with the other great religion in India, namely, Islam. When the essentials of Sufism are put forward, it is difficult to say whether those essentials do not constitute real worship according to the Bhagavata doctrine as well as esoteric Christian doctrine. Sai Baba is both a perfect Sufi and a Parama Bhagavata following the Bhagavata or Parama Guru of the Guru Gita embodied in Skanda Purana. The one thing that religions must agree upon is that God, the Supreme Power, is SAT CHIT ANANDA; the highest bliss that man can know is represented to be GOD, and GOD is, therefore, the ultimate goal of all religious striving, and every effort should be made by every sincere and honest seeker of truth to realize this real Sat Chit Ananda as the basis of the Universe and the basis of his own personality. All personalities will, therefore, finally merge in the one grand personality, Paramatama, that is God, which is Love. This is the essence of Baba’s teaching and practice and is well fitted to be the basis of unification of all faiths in India and in the world.

7.2 - Unification and Purification of Hinduism

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 03:47:00 +0000

As the backbone of his religion, Baba had the unity of God-head in all names and forms. This is the feat that must be achieved by all human beings and especially Hindu should attain unity and purity of religion. Therefore those who contacted Baba by worshipping him at Shirdi or elsewhere were deeply impressed with Baba and felt this truth all god forms such as Vittal, Maruti, etc., are God.

“All that is Allah” was what Baba told the Rohilla. Baba constantly used one name for another, namely, Vittal for Khandoba or Maruti for Vittal, and it may be noted that advanced bhaktas following do the same. He told Upsani Maharaj that he Upsani would get God’s grace after four years of severe training at Shirdi, and the word he used for God’s grace was “Khandoba’s grace”. When he referred to Upsani’s residence at Shirdi, he would say “Vittoba’s temple”, but Upsani Maharaj corrected him and said it was Khandoba’s temple outside. Baba would again correct Upsani Maharaj and say, “What is the difference between Khandoba and Vittoba?” By persons who are ingrained in Hindu notions of difference between Siva and Vishnu, Kahndoba would at once be declared Siva’s Avatar and Vittal as Mahavishnu’s avatar, and so the two can not be the same in their functions, their dresses, or their pleasures. The two, Mahavishnu and Siva, are severely contrasted daily by murthy minded Hindus.

That is to say, Vishnu is always dressed up in fine Pitambar, a golden dress, and given a fixed number of ornaments, weapons, insignia, whereas Siva is either undraped as in the Linga or clad with tiger skin, and he wears his hair on the head in the form of a rough tuft. But Vishnu’s hair is nicely combed are presentable. In the description of accompaniments also, living or other, the two are described differently and presented differently in temples. Mahavishnu is surrounded by Lakshmi, bhaktas and bhagavatas, all wearing Namams, whereas Siva is ashsmeared and surrounded by ghouls, demons, and fierce looking creatures, for he is supposed to dwell in the cremation ground, which is considered a polluted place to visit. Hindu groups exultingly developed the peculiar merits, each of its own murthi ideas, as contrasted with those of others; and the Vishnu mata kandanam by saivas and the saiva mata kandanam by the Vaishnavas gave plenty of scope for hair-splitting, philosophizing, and bitterness for centuries, and in practice, often the followers of each kept themselves apart from the others. Even in the valmiki Ramayana., Bala Kanda, there is a chapter showing that siva came to conflict with Vishnu, and even after they stopped their fight, their followers continued their fight. This unedifying spectacle of degrading religion by enthusiasm over unessentials and exulting over differences has worked sufficient harm already to the great neglect of the essence of religion that should alone be stressed by all sensible and truly religious persons. Baba, therefore, drew the attention of all his bhaktas to the fact that whether you called your god, siva or Vishnu, he is the supreme power that is responsible for the creation, maintenance, and the withdrawal of the world, and he gives you all that you need and finally the highest bliss at his own feet. This, being the central essence of all Theism, is or should be the central plank for unifying all branches and sects of Hindus and also unifying Hinduism with Islam and other theistic religions. In fact, world unity of religions can be achieved mainly on this basis. Sporadic teachings on the same lines existed.

7.1 - Unification and Purification

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 04:26:00 +0000

The Divergences of worship between classes or groups in India are so great that some foreigners thought that there was nothing like Hinduism. In worship, there is nothing in common at all between the Todas and the Brahmins and that they reflected different levels of thought and had contents of truth or degrees of philosophy in them. Toda worship might simply amount to bowing to natural forces or a few objects. The worship by the highest cultured classes in Hindu temples reveals a great diversity of philosophical systems. Worship in Siva temples, Vishnu temples, Jain temples and other temples, was noticeable enough. Baba bridged the differences by enclosing Siva and Vishnu temples in the same compound or inside the Mosque. In some cases there was amicable worship of the different deities inside the same place but in others the difference of view were intensified by the closer contact. In some cases, the bhaktas of Siva claim the Siva should have priority in procession and that Vishnu’s procession must follow. The other group contests this claim. These and other similar matters appear however to be a quarrel over trifles. But there was bitterness enough to take the differences to courts and even to the highest court like the Privy Council. It was only easy for anyone to say that there was a single religion called Hinduism, the characteristics of which one could set out. In any case, there was a war of literature going on during the last two or three centuries developing bitter antagonism between Siva and Vishnu faiths and between Jain and both of these and other similar religious institutions. The quarrels were always on non-essentials. But anyhow they prevented unity and sowed dissension. The consequence on society was to weaken society and demoralize religion. Therefore, in order, to unify the people and to purify the religion and raise it to the highest grade, the one great thing needed was to discover what was the essential substratum of all these faiths called Hinduism and to bring in actual practice and views of the adherents of all sects into one mass that could work harmoniously. Marvelously, Sri Sai Baba has done the good work in this connection. Having been brought up in his earliest years by a fakir, the idea of unity of God struck deep in him. At a very early age, he changed his residence and his caretaker. Coming under the Selu Zamindar’s care He involved contact with various forms of gods. Thus, Baba naturally developed the feeling that the one God or Allah that he knew in his earliest years under the fakir was the same as Venkatesa whom his Guru at Selu worshipped. Other gods or god-forms that were incidentally brought to Selu or were visited by his master were all forms of the same God. Baba believed as follows:
“The Real is one. The wise call it variously.
All gods are part of God”.

6.6 - Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 04:34:00 +0000

According to the Sastras, all gods are parts of God Agni Anya devathah. Hence He was all gods. Baba had the complete realization of the fullness of God, not merely of God forms, but God essence. He was Sat Chit Ananada. He had absolute freedom from attachment to all earthly objects and emotions, which take persons away from God. Therefore, Baba was best fitted to bring all persons into a common fold. People had desires or objects that religion could grant through service to Him and acceptance of Him as the Gurudeva or guide. This work, which occupied so many decades of Baba’s life on earth, has greatly developed since his journey to HEAVEN.

Justice Mr. M.B. Rege made remarks in his foreword to Baba’s Charters and Sayings as: ‘ Now that the fleshy body is gone, he is to me only God’.

The fleshy body repelled many people who came to him because of their sectarian or other prejudices. When a person reads about Baba and note the effect of prayer to him with full faith, the physical body of Baba, the Muslim appearance, is not visible to repel him. Thus, his casting off the fleshy body in 1918 leaving tens of thousands bound to him by love and a system of worship by love. With the fame of his leelas He continued his mission to unify all faiths by acceptance of him as the common Gurudeva. Both Hindus and Muslims practice the worship of, or prayer to, tombs of saints. Hence it was easy for him to complete his mission successfully, even when He was not alive.

Kabir objected to images and image worship. On the other hand, Baba allowed people and even directed people to get to particular temples to worship the images there. He presented lingas, paduks, coins, and pictures to devotees as fit objects of worship especially his own pictures. These images too are needed to make the minds steady and concentrated in meditation. These steps helped others to bring more people into Baba’s fold.

Regardless of castes or creeds, any one who pins his faith to Baba, and appeals to him, gets remarkable relief. Therefore, leaving aside Baba’s birth, parentage, or training, in his corporeal life, people feel and convinced that this Sai is nothing but god. He is the dispenser of desired things to those who want them and make the proper approach. So Baba is the God or the God-man to all Sai devotees. While unifying India on that basis, he is the granter to millions of individual devotees, of all their cherished or most ardently longed for objects.

6.5 - Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 06:29:00 +0000

Love, keenest and burning love was the means and the end. Really every one wants Love with relief from distress and attainment of desired objects. Any person, irrespective of Religion can get Love, relief from distress and attainment of desired objects at Baba’s feet. Difference of religion did not arise at all as love to the Guru was the common plank of all. Many Hindus identified Baba with various gods or Avatars. Each man saw in Baba sometimes the very form of the deity that he wanted to worship. A South African doctor would respect none but Rama and did not care to approach a Muslim as Sai Baba was supposed to be. But when that South African Brahmin doctor came to the Masjid on the express stipulation that he would not bow to a Muslim Baba, he stayed for a few minutes outside and, afterwards, darted into the Mosque and fell at Baba’s feet. When asked for an explanation, he gave the answer, ‘I saw that Baba’s form was really the wonderful form of Neela Megha Syama Rama. As I found my Rama in Baba, I worshipped him’. Later Baba blessed him with Parama Ananda and love. This is a typical instance.

A Sub-Inspector of Police M.S.Nimonkar had regard for nothing except Hanuman, and when he was looking on, Baba appeared to his eyes exactly like Hanuman with all the hair and prognathous face. Binnewalla, N.G. Chandorkar’s relative, did not care for anything except Datta, and was anxious to go away form Shirdi Where Baba was worshipped. He wanted to go to some place where Datta could be seen. Suddenly to his eyes, Baba appeared with three heads, that is, as Datta. Baba exercised his powers to induce faith in the minds of all persons who approached him. Thus, he was Siva to Megha, Rama to the South African doctor, Krishna or Vittal to Krishna bhaktas, Maruti to Maruti bhaktas.

According to the feeling or attitude of mind of each person, you give him your experience. Such is Baba’s merciful leela or sport. Thus, he really was God; that is, he had not merely essence of God, Supreme Power and Love but also every form of God that the devotee wanted to see. With perfect truth Baba said,”Main Allahum(I am Allah or God),” as he was completely self- realized. When a Deputy Collector was gazing at Lakshminarayana’s figure at Bombay and concentrated his mind on that image it disappeared and Baba’s image took its place; the Deputy Collector was afraid that his concentration was a failure. But when he came to Shirdi. Baba knew what happened and asked him, “What is the difference between this form and Lakshminarayannan’s form? I am Lakshminarayan’. He showed in himself the form Ganapathi to others such as B.V.Dev’s sister.

6.4 - Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 04:43:00 +0000

Here is another incidence to quote. H.S. Dixit was generally observing all propriety. Once, when talking at his quarters with some others, he fell into the unfortunate mood of decrying Christianity. After that, he went up to Baba to pay his respects. But Baba severely said, “Don’t come near me”. At once Dixit felt that, by decrying Christ and Christianity he had offended Baba. Immediately he repented. Only thereafter, Baba allowed him to approach him. When devotees were quarrelling amongst themselves, Baba expressly declared that he was feeling great pain. When devotees were pulled on amicably, he felt happy. His message was “Love one another like I love you all”. Baba’s love and wonderful power of reading and controlling hearts was mainly responsible for perfect harmony between Hindus and Muslims lived at Shirdi. In other places, in a Muslim festival, battles were fought, and heads were broken. But at Shirdi there was not a single occasion of a Hindu-Muslim clash or fight. When Baba’s pictures was carried in procession through all the streets including the neighbourhood of the Muslims, no one felt the least repulsion or objection. On the other hand, around the palanquin carrying his picture, Hindus and Muslims struggled with each other for the honour of carrying various insignia of devotion, namely, whisks, umbrella and Maces etc., Baba distributed Prasad brought by members of any community to all, and members of all communities accepted them without grudge. The important point to note about Baba’s unification is that there was no fixed book or doctrine to which he wanted all people to follow; and no fixed observance was forced on any one. Most of the devotees were Hindus, and they carried on their worship of Baba at the Masjid with rituals based on the Pandharpur Arti. Their bhajans were full of allusions to Hindu mythology. The Muslims who were present on such occasions were free to ignore all the above and simply regard Baba as their kindly disposed Auvlia - their Guardian. Christians and Parsis also had the same freedom and they adopted whatever course they thought was proper. There was no compulsion of any sort in the matter of religion before Baba. The common point was attachment through powerful love to the personality of a weird Guru who exercised all his vast and wonderful powers of seeing or knowing, everything everywhere and of even doing the impossible for the benefit of his devotees.

6.3-Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 03:40:00 +0000

The result was that Sai, allowed his worship to be done at the mosque by different people with varying sets of ideas. He was drawing all people to mysticism, the common essence of all religion. Thus He built up a slow but inevitable process of uniting community engaged in worship which ultimately could include at least the whole of India.

Sai devotion means:

1. Tolerance towards all,

2. Faith in god and in Sai as Guru, and

3. the acceptance of the basic principles found in all religions.

Sai Baba stressed these factors from time to time and many time. Sai allowed the Hindus to adopt their puranic method of worship and treat him either as an avatar or ishtadeva.

He allowed muslims approaching him to read their Koran and the shariat at the mosque and to join his flock as his devotees, treating him merely as an Auvlia or a saint with remarkable powers.

All alike noticed that sai was the soul of love and purity, and a storehouse of superhuman power and superhuman enlightenment. Thus Baba has succeeded in drawing the otherwise jarring and warring sects into a peaceful flock of Sai devotees.

During the daytime, when pooja is conducted with all the din, bustle, and formalities of mantras and rituals of Hindu worship in the Mosque or Dwarkamayee, the Muslims did not interfere. When the Muslims on idga day have their rituals or prayers at Baba’s Mosque, the Hindus did not interfere.

During the day, Hindu puranas, Tukaram gathas, Ramayan, Vedas, were being read or recited. At night the Koran or shariat was read or repeated either by Abdul or by a person known as their Rohilla; offerings were brought to Baba were distributed by him to all after fatia was pronounced in true Muslim fashion.

Though Baba did not himself perform the five Namazes every day he encouraged the orthodox Muslims to do so at his place. Baba was displeased and showed his anger when any religious intolerance was exhibited. On one occasion a devotee came up and informed Baba that the newly appointed Foujdar(police sub-inspector) at Rahtha is neither a Hindu nor a Muslim but a Christian. Baba’s immediate reply was, ‘What of that? He is my brother’.

6.2-Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Mon, 26 May 2008 04:39:00 +0000

Kabir, Guru Nanak, and others attempted politics in the field of literature and religion. They tried to establish the bedrock of ideas on which Indian unification in religion could be accomplished. Each had some degree of success, but even their efforts fell short of that completion and perfection.

Sai Baba declared on one occasion that in a former janma he was Kabir, and it may be noted that Baba, as Kabir, was suiting the narrow views of former centuries, while Baba of the 19th and 20th centuries had broader views and more efficient means of reaching unity. Kabir brought under his own leadership Hindus and Muslims who gave up former labels and were called Kabir panthis. But after his demise, the spirit of division came in, and there were Hindu Kabir panthis and Muslim Kabir panthis separating each form the other. Guru Nanak also accomplished the same remarkable feat in bringing Islam and Hinduism Closer to each other. But the Sikhs, who now represent the fruits of his labours, cannot provide any basis for the religious unification of India.

Sai baba fully grasped the difficulties of the problem. The only thing that could bring Hindus and Muslims together was a weird, saintly personality acting as a Guru or god- man. He must be absolutely neutral, and must allow all Sections of religions to have their own ways. Sai Baba, having all these qualities, was bringing all people to a common platform, namely devotion to that saintly personality and enabling them to see that the differences are petty and ridiculous, unworthy of serious men of jnana or realisation. Divine qualities combined with super – human powers were in Sai Baba. Even-minded beneficence were so patently manifested that all alike. Hindus, muslims and Christians, who came to know about him felt that they were before a higher influence and that they could all approach and reach god through him; that he was the high watermark of saintliness, or godliness of god head and they willingly made him their Guru deva or protector. Some of them treated him as their God.

6.1-Expansion of Worship

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 15 May 2008 03:56:00 +0000

We have seen so far how the worship of Sri Sai Baba expanded during his lifetime. This did not stop with 1918 but continued to expand further and further. It further extended in its inwardness and attained high results. Modes of worship spread Sai faith to all parts of India and beyond. Any one touring the Indian States can observe the results of Worship of Sri Sai. There are over hundered institutions named after Sai, carrying on Sai Puja, Sai Bhajan, Sai Prachar, often called Sai Samajs or Sammelans, Bhajan groups. Most of them have Sai Mandirs with decent buildings suitable with gopuras or towers with compounds. In Madras city alone we have the Mylapore All India Sai Samaj Sai Mandir, the Guindy Sai Mandir and the Egmore Sai Mandir. At Kurnool, Coimbatore, Ventrapragada, Tenali and other places there are notable Mandirs attracting thousands to worship there. Sri Sai Baba has foreseen all this expansion.

Baba allowed his own worship with the forethought that it would be the means for providing temporal and spiritual benefits to millions of individuals and also the means of solving India’s national problems of communal and religious unity as Sarva loka malapaha. In India we have not merely Hindu and Mohammadan divisons but various subdivisions of religion, among their major communities also. They differ widely from one another in their ideas and modes of worship. Till recently, religion meant differences between group and group and, therefore, mutual conflicts, preventing the unification of India or even of Hinduism, urgently calling for its purification and unification. Sri Vishnu and Siva conflicts have been going on for centuries (also Hindu-Muslim conflicts). Credit must be given to Akbar for trying to solve the problem of religious disunity in India by using his powerful position and influence. He tried to unify and consolidate the two chief religions, namely, Hinduism and Islam, by making the representatives of both gather at one place to worship the common father for all, Din Ilahi. Akbar’s attempt though slightly successful during his days, perished with him. His successors did not take up the idea and some of them took up the opposite idea of oppressing the non-Muslims and compelled them embrace Islam. Aurangazeb did so.

5.7-Result Of WORSHIP

noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 15 May 2008 03:53:00 +0000

Lastly comes the example of the rivers. The current of devotion is attained by losing one’s own entity or existence in that of the divine or the end of the course. The river is inevitably drawn down. Does water go back or upward? It is drawn downward and downward, and finally it meets the ocean. The waters of the rivers were originally part of the ocean, and after being held up in the form of water vapor, cloud and rain, they take the shape of a river. So, it is the oceanic waters that flow through the rivers and get back to their original source. The devotion of the river that was issued out of that immense, endless, infinite expanse called the ocean makes it get back to that ocean and be lost in it. Once the rivers Ganges, Indus, get in to the ocean, they cannot be segregated again as Ganges or Indus water. Purna laya is the end of the devotion and that is obtained by the jives surrendering themselves, that is, making atma nivedana, which is the last mode mentioned in the navavidha Bhakti. That is both devotion and also absorption. After that there is nothing further to reach.

Thus the various stages, attitudes, and relations of a Bhakta can be very well dwelt upon and learnt by studying the above illustrations and applying them to oneself.

A number of loving bhaktas are ever remaining in one’s heart who show how Bhakti achieves its ends. The end of Bhakti is not achieved by the offer of money to God or by mere learning or by age or beauty of a person; God does not want any of these. God wants only heart, that is, your self, and he will not be satisfied with anything else.

For the hunter Kannappa, what Achara or religious course of conduct had he?

For Dhruva, What was his age?

For the elephant Gajendra, what education or degrees and titles had He?

Had Vidura, favourite of Krishna, any qualification in respect of caste? He was the son of a slave or dancing girl.

For the king of Yadavas called Ugrasena, who was favoured by Krishna, what manliness had he? He was a great coward.

For Kubja, who was favoured by Krishna, had she any great beauty? She was deformed.

For Sudhama, known as Kuchela who also was favoured by Krishna, had he any wealth?

Therefore, God is pleased with and wants only Bhakti or devotion. God is captured by love or prem. The above facts refer to well known bhaktas who received great help or favour from Krishna or God on account of their Bhakti. One’s profession or conduct, that is, whether one is a hunter or Vaideek Brahmin, whether one is younger old, whether one is highly learned or a creature without education, whether one is a high caste person or the son of a slave whether one is a brave man or a coward, whether one has beauty or wealth, none of these are the reasons for God’s help and favour. God is pleased by Bhakti alone and Bhakti can capture Him.

This contains the essence of the doctrine of Bhakti or devotion, and therefore, earnest readers who are anxious to study the history of Sai Baba, who realized in himself the perfection of Godhead by attaining Purna laya, concentrating his mind always on God with intense love from his earliest period of life, and thereby attained Aikya, so that he could say Mai Allahum, that is Aham Brahmasmi could exhibit all the powers of God; would find the use of the above stanzas. Sai identified himself with Krishna and with every other form of God. As the object of everyone should be to please God in Sai form or in any other form, one may note how in point of historical fact, from this biography, numbers of people were drawn to Sai Baba and achieved the love olf Sai Baba, and thereby achieved every object of human existence. The succeeding chapters of this book would deal with the details of a large number of devotees being drawn to and benefiting from Baba, and would fully illustrate the truth of the above verses. At present we have sufficiently satisfied highly sensitive readers who wish to have the essence of Sai Baba’s Marga placed before them, before we deal with the expansion of the Sai movement and the details of persons who approached him, and the problem that arise for consideration in the life of Baba.

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noreply@blogger.com (ஞானவெட்டியான்) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:23:00 +0000

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