FROM SHRI C.B. SATPATHY'S MESSAGE 

……“Sitting in Shirdi Masjid, Baba had said that there are many paths, but one of the paths leads to God through Dwarkamayi. When one analyses how Baba led thousands of people towards God realization at Shirdi a certain pattern evolves. The basic principles of the Sai path are based on:

(a) The existence in physical form of a perfect being known variously as a Perfect Master, a Sadguru or a Qutub as called by the Sufis. A Qutub simply means an axis, a pivot around which others, both living and non-living, revolve. The Perfect Master, having himself experienced different stages of evolution including that of man has at last reached the stage of God. However, those among these perfect beings, who out of infinite compassion, make the greatest sacrifice of not enjoying the blissful state of God but incarnate in a human body on earth to serve the imperfect, suffering humanity are called the Perfect Masters. As Meher Baba has said, at any point of time there are five Perfect Masters on the earth in embodied form.

(b) When in human body they act both as human beings and Gods. As Gods they have infinite power, infinite knowledge, infinite happiness and infinite existence. Like God they are Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient enjoying the powers of the Almighty. They share their power, knowledge and pleasure with the millions of human beings by methods un¬perceivable by human beings and are known as Leelas or divine miracles. All miracles are based on the laws of nature, only one has to know, experience and master it. All the elemental forces of nature like fire, water, air etc. defined as deities by the Hindus, work under their command or wish. As Gods they see everything in themselves and themselves in everything. So they serve everyone without any differentiation as if they are serving themselves. They see God in everyone, even though others may not be able to see God in them. They give infinite love to others and take infinite pain from others. Once any human being or any species is linked with them in any manner, they ensure that these creatures are evolved, life after life till they merge with God from where they came. This ultimate stage of evolution is ordinarily known as Mukti or Moksha.

(c) These Perfect Masters alone are capable of leading human beings to God realization. They follow what is common and universal in all religions i.e., humanism based on love. Out of love they not only take care of the spiritual evolution of the devotees but also their temporal requirements. Once one has surrendered to them they look after all needs of the devotee as a mother would do for a child. They can go to any extent, even to sacrifice their human body, to protect their children. That’s what Baba did for many as can be read in Sri Sai Satcharitra, and as experienced by many. To develop closer and closer link with Him, one has to develop faith in Him, even patiently under the most trying circumstances. Also, to develop the qualities of humility, sacrifice, tolerance and steadfastness in devotion and actions desired by the Sadguru. One will evolve earlier than others worshipping too many deities if he follows this path of Guru. Baba used to give visions to many people in the form of their deities, like Hanuman, Ganesh etc. which convinced them that there is no difference between Baba and any other deity or even God. One can therefore, at the first stage try to see all deities in Baba, worship Him in the method in which other deities are worshipped. In short, one should try to see and seek everything in and from Baba. This path may be difficult at the initial stage but can certainly be achieved with steadfastness and faith in Baba. So let us try.”…….

FROM "LIFE OF SAI BABA" BY NARASIMHA SWAMI   

……“Shirdi Sai’s 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 whether he was a Yogi or a Jnani or a Bhakta or followed any marga peculiarly his own. Several thought and think that Baba cannot be classed 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 adept of all the margas, though his chief marga, was Bhakti marga, the special form of it that it described as Guru Marga in the Guru Gita, and that Jnana and siddhis including yoga siddhis came in the wake of his Guru bhakti. These will be made clearer as we advance in the study of Sri Sai’s Life and of his relation to devotees.
Definition: Guru may be defined as one who imparts information or gives training to another. Any school teacher 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.
Derivation: The word Guru is a Sanskrit word and a number of derivations are found especially in Guru Gita, which is a pad of the Skanda Purana. 'Gu' generally means 'Guna' and therefore means 'darkness'. 'Ru' denotes the action of destruction just as fire destroys or removal. So Guru means the dispeller of darkness or ignorance.

Gu karascha Andhakarastu
Ru karah tannirodhakrit
Andhakara Vinasitwat
Guru riti Abhidhiyate

Another derivation says that Guru is one who takes you from the Gunas to that beyond the Gunas that is, Brahman.

Arabic and Persian: It is always better especially when dealing with Sai Baba whose teachings are unique and cosmopolitan to give the word Guru its equivalents in Arabic and Persian, as used by Sufis, Murshad is the Sufi equivalent which Baba himself used. 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 identification of self with the body Dehatma buddhi and made him realise that He, the Atma, is not the body just as the fire which bums the fuel is different from the fuel, and the seer is not the seen. The Sufi equivalent for Sishya is Talib and shakir.

Everywhere in the world we find, the usual practice is to have Gurus.”……

POEM

TAKE ME INTO YOUR LAP

To reach you BABA, I know you made for me, a milestone map.
You started my journey for me to quickly reach your lap.
But, your tests on the way make my energy sap.
I feel lost because Maya around me is a strong wrap.
I talk to you every day to get me out of this trap.
But, like a father, on my knuckles, you give me a rap!

To reach you, I think now, a million lives is the gap.
Why are you cruel to burden me in this worldly trap?
I own nothing, I want nothing, but your Divine Love to trap.
I hope you are listening to me and not taking a nap!
I am your helpless child Baba, so quickly take me into your lap.

M. D. Kumar, Patna

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DEVOTEE'S EXPERIENCE

The Day I Lost 'My Baba'!

I start each day with seeing Baba in my cell, wishing Him good morning and kissing Him, singing His songs, and thinking of Him all the time and doing His puja with Him on my mangalsutra.(one Sai devotee from India sent me a small silver pendant of Baba to put on a chain, and I added Him on my mangalsutra with a small gold color safety pin).

I leave Him on my mangalsutra at His Lotus Feet of Palarathi Idol (He looks so loving and handsome with a gold color kireetam and a grand garland around Him) on my dresser when I go to work. He came from Shirdi to come into our own house!

I have on my cell phone Baba's picture and I call my cell as 'my Baba'. I take 'my Baba' everywhere I go. On last Rakhee day, I was working; and when I was closing the register at Macy's, my mom called me and I told her that I was coming out of work so I would call her from the car, and being in a hurry to go somewhere else, I put 'my Baba' on the counter and walked out, completely forgetting Him. The time was 7 p.m.

As I started the car, I looked for 'my Baba' and couldn't find Him anywhere, in my purse or in the car. I felt a sharp knife in my heart and as if I lost everything, including my heart and felt a big black hole inside, completely empty. I ran frantically into the work place and started asking everyone if they saw my cell. Then I remembered I put Him on the counter and ran there, only to find the counter empty. I asked another employee if she saw my cell. She said no. Then I saw two Chinese women walking towards me from the fitting rooms, and one lady said to me, "here is your cell phone, I saw it here and thought of giving it to someone". My heart jumped a beat as I looked at 'my Baba' in her hands, I took it and hugged her and said: " may God bless you both" and went to my car. I started thinking... I lost 'my Baba' and that Chinese woman took it knowing it's not hers but Baba made her come back and give it to me. I thanked Baba for coming back to me and opened 'my Baba' and kissed Him. My heart felt normal...

At home my daughter was getting ready to tie Rakhee to her brother and wore a saree and was looking for a safety pin on my dresser and saw a small gold color pin and felt that was too small so she took another regular sized safety pin from a box. When I came home and after my shower took my mangalsutra to wear for His puja, I was shocked to see He wasn't on my mangalsutra. Baba's pendant was still on the dresser near His palarathi idol. I felt a sharp pain in my heart and looked at Baba and said " Oh no Baba , You are not leaving me," and saying so I took Him and looked for the gold color safety pin, and it was next to the idol and the pin was closed! I just took Him and put Him back on my mangalsutra and went to do His puja.

I was thinking someone in my home wanted a safety pin so took out Baba and took the pin but changed their mind and left it there.

Later during dinner, I casually asked my husband if he took the safety pin holding Baba on my chain. He said no. I asked my son, he also said no. But my daughter told me that she went to my room, looking for a safety pin and took a big one but not the small one. She also said she saw the gold pin next to Baba's idol at the same time. I got curious and asked her at what time. She said exactly at 7 pm! Then it struck my matti burra, that at my work I lost 'my Baba' at 7 pm and at home too He went away from my mangalsutra at exactly 7 pm too! What can I say?

Neeraja, Texas, USA

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Gems from Shirdi Baba Manuscript
1. One who has recognised the light of Allah is the true Knower
2. In order to reach a higher stage of God-realisation, it is necessary to practice renunciation
3. Only the person who has the taste or experience of the Power of God, can realise God
4. If you triumph over lust and anger, they will not be able to keep you under their control
5. Love with honour, realising the greatness of the Name of God, always be happy
6. Before you proceed on the path of Allah, you should discipline the mind. The heart is created for the realisation of God

The essence of Shirdi Baba's teachings on the way to reach God is that you must renounce the worldly pleasures, but the most important thing is to open the heart in love of God.

Loving God exclusively is the key-not thinking or intellectualising.

Dr. Abdelfattah M.Badawi, Cairo, Egypt

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Venkata Subba Rao Lanka

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SHIRDI SAI BABA SANSTHAN, CANADA

RAM NAVAMI CELEBRATION

Shri Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan, Canada (Toronto) Cordially Invites all to Join in Celebrating Ram Navami Festival on Saturday March 31 2007 program starting with Kakad Aarti at 8:00am to Shej Aarti at 7:30pm – Maha Abhishek& Alankar - Bhajan Sandhaya - Naam Jaap – Paalki Procession – Preeti Bhoj (lunch & dinner with refreshments) at 207 Queen’s Plate Dr. Etobicoke M9W 6Z7(Highway27 & Rexdale just south of Humber College Blvd ). For further details please visit http://www.shirdisainath.org/ or call 416-294-4804

THE RESOURCE CENTRE

SHIRDI SAI MANDIR, TORONTO, CANADA

The Shirdi Sai Mandir located at 2721 Markham Road, Toronto, Ontario, M1X 1L5 (Intersection of Markham and Nashdene) is open through out the day on Saturday, Sunday and holidays and in the morning and evenings on all weekdays. Baba's Kakad Aarti, Abhishek Puja, Madhyan Aarti, Dhoop Aarti, Satcharita Reading and Shej Aarti are performed every day. Bhajans and Sai Naam Sankirtan in the evening on Thursday and Saturday. For information regarding the daily schedule, temple activities and events please visit Mandir's website:http://www.theshirdisaimandir.com/ or send an email to info@theshirdisaimandir.com or call 647-444-4724.

Shri Shirdi Sai Sansthan Los Angeles

By the grace of our Shirdi Sai we are happy to announce the inauguration of Shri Shirdi Sai Temple in LA region in the city of Montebello. We need the support of all Sai Devotees. For more information please email krishna@shirdisaila.org

Shirdi Sai Center, Bay Area, California

Location: 897-B E. Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale, CA - 94086

Daily timings and activities:

Weekdays:
6:15 am – 7:40 am: Abhishekam and Kakad Arathi at 6:30 am
11.45 am – 12:30 pm: Madhyan Arathi at 12:00 pm
6:00 pm – 9:30 pm: Dhoop Arathi at 6:30 pm and Shej Arathi at 8:30 pm

Weekends:
6:15 am – 7:40 am: Kakad Arathi at 6:30 am
11:00 am – 9:30 pm: Madhyan Arathi at 12:00 pm, Dhoop Arathi at 6:30 pm and Shej Arathi at 8:30 pm

Every Thursday:
7:30 pm – 8:30 pm: Shirdi Sai Bhajans

For more information please call 408-705-7904 / 408-564-6704 or send email to saibandhu@yahoo.com or visit our website at http://www.Shirdisaiparivaar.org

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