Sathya Sai Baba Guru Bhajans
Jacque Waiden
Sai Baba's believers credited him with miracles such as materialisations of vibhuti (holy ash) and other small objects (rings, necklaces and watches),[9] spontaneous and miraculous healings, resurrections, clairvoyance, bilocation and he was purportedly omnipotent and omniscient.[10] His devotees believe these to be signs of his divinity, while other individuals have asserted that these acts were based on sleight of hand or had other explanations and as such, were not supernatural.[11][12][13]
In 1972, Sathya Sai Baba founded the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust.[14] Its goal was "to enable its members to undertake service activities as a means to spiritual advancement".[15] Through this organisation, Sathya Sai Baba established a network of free general [16] and super speciality hospitals,[17][18] free medical clinics,[19] drinking water projects,[20] schools, universities,[21] ashrams, auditoriums, and education technology.[22][23][24][25]
By virtue of his sizeable influence, many feel Sai Baba provides an example of "the phenomenon referred to as mahagurus; that is, gurus with a global reach."[26] Citing the number of Sai Centres (over 2000 in 137 countries),[27] the scope of service and charitable works (free hospitals, drinking water projects), social sphere and influence of devotees (royalty, celebrities, high ranking politicians along with a total number of devotees estimated to be from 6 to 100 million worldwide) as well as being seen as a global "movement extending in some very surprising ways."[26]
Sathyanarayana Raju was born on 23 November 1926 to Meesaraganda Easwaramma and Peddavenkama Raju Ratnakaram, to a Telugu-speaking Bhatraju family,[28][29] a community of religious musicians and balladeers,[30][31] in the village of Puttaparthi in Madras Presidency of British India (present-day Andhra Pradesh, India).[8][32][33] His birth was purported by his mother Easwaramma to be of a miraculous conception.[4][8] He was the fourth among the five children of his parents.
As a child, Sathya was described as "unusually intelligent" and charitable, though not necessarily academically inclined, as his interests were of a more spiritual nature.[8][35] He was uncommonly talented in devotional music, dance and drama.[35][5] From a young age, he has been purported to have been capable of materialising objects such as food and sweets out of thin air.[36]
Almost everything known about Sathya Sai Baba's early life stems from the hagiography that grew around him; these were narratives that hold special meaning[37] to his devotees and are considered by them to be evidence of his divine nature.[8][38][35]
In 1944, a mandir for Sai Baba's devotees was built near the village of Puttaparthi. It is now referred to as the "old mandir".[40] The construction of Prasanthi Nilayam, the current ashram, began in 1948 and was completed in 1950.[8][40] In 1954, Sai Baba established a small free general hospital in the village of Puttaparthi.[41] He won fame for his reputed mystical powers and ability to heal.[42] In 1957, Sai Baba went on a tour of North India, visiting temples in Delhi, Srinagar, Kashmir and Rishikesh.[33]
In 1963, it was asserted that Sai Baba suffered a stroke and four severe heart attacks, which left him paralysed on one side. These events culminated in an event where he apparently healed himself in front of the thousands of people gathered in Prashanthi Nilayam who were then praying for his recovery.[8]
On recovering, Sai Baba stated, "I am Shiva-Sakthi, born in the gotra (lineage) of Bharadwaja, according to a boon won by that sage from Siva and Sakthi. Siva was born in the gotra of that sage as Sai Baba of Shirdi; Shiva and Sakthi have incarnated as Myself in his gotra now; Sakthi alone will incarnate as the third Sai (Prema Sai Baba) in the same gotra in Mandya district of Karnataka State."[8] He stated he would be born again eight years after his death at the age of 96, but died at the age of 84.[43]
On 6 June 1993 there was an assassination attempt on Sai Baba's life. While reports vary, the official narrative is that four men (devotees) entered Sai Baba's residence under the premise of wanting to give him a telegram. When their path was obstructed, they stabbed two of the Baba's assistants to death, injuring two others.[44] Hearing the commotion Sai Baba sounded the alarm and police were dispatched to his residence. Upon arriving, the police said the four youths had locked themselves in Sai Baba's living room and the officers tried to break the door down. "The four were shot when they opened the door and attacked the police."[45][46] Sai Baba remained unharmed during the incident,[44] and later in a discourse cleared things up saying there was no bid on his life.[47] Many aspects of the event remain unsolved and ambiguous.[47][48]
Another concern for Sai Baba's immediate safety arose on 17 January 2002 when an unknown man (later identified as Somasundaram) entered the Whitefield Ashram with an air pistol. He was apprehended by volunteers and handed over to police without incident.[49]
In March 1995, Sai Baba started a project to provide drinking water to 1.2 million people in the drought-prone Rayalaseema region in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.[50] In April 1999 he inaugurated the Ananda Nilayam Mandir in Madurai, Tamil Nadu.
In 2003, Sai Baba suffered a fractured hip when a student standing on an iron stool slipped and the boy and stool both fell on him. After the incident he gave darshana from a car or his porte chair.[51] After 2004, Sai Baba used a wheelchair and slowly began to make fewer public appearances.
On 28 March 2011, Sai Baba was admitted to the Sri Sathya Sai Super Speciality Hospital in Puttaparthi after he complained of giddiness and slowing of the heartbeat.[52][53][54] Initially his condition improved and on 4 April it was reported all his vital parameters were near normal,[55] however over the course of the following weeks, multiple organ failure set in and his condition progressively deteriorated. He died on Sunday, 24 April at 7:40 IST, aged 84.[56]
Sai Baba had predicted that he would die at age 96 and would remain healthy until then.[57] After he died, some devotees suggested that he was referring to that many lunar years, as counted by Telugu-speaking Hindus, rather than solar years,[58] and using the Indian way of accounting for age, which counts the year to come as part of the person's life.[59] Other devotees have spoken of his anticipated resurrection, reincarnation or awakening.[60][61]
Sathya Sai Baba's body lay in state for two days and was buried with full state honours on 27 April 2011.[62] An estimated 500,000 people attended the burial. Political leaders and prominent figures attending included then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi (who later became Prime Minister of India), cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and Union Ministers S. M. Krishna and Ambika Soni.[63][64][65][66]
Political leaders who offered their condolences included the then Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,[62][67][68] then Nepali Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal[69][70] and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.[71] Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, whose birthday was that day, cancelled his birthday celebrations.[72] The Hindu newspaper reported that "Sai Baba's phenomenal mass appeal lay in his unswerving commitment to communal harmony, his encouragement of charitable activity and public-spiritedness, and his own example in building educational and health care institutions that focused on meeting basic needs on a large scale."[73]
Ravi Shankar, Founder of the Art of Living, issued this statement. "Baba will continue to live in the hearts of millions of devotees... his message of 'Satya Dharma Shanti Prema' which has transcended all barriers of caste and religion."[75]
The Dalai Lama expressed shock over the demise of Sathya Sai Baba.[76] In a message he said, I am saddened by the passing away of Sri Sathya Sai Baba,the respected spiritual leader. I would like to convey my condolences and prayers to all the followers, devotees and admirers of the late spiritual leader."[77][78]
The Government of Karnataka declared 25 and 26 April as days of mourning. The state government of Andhra Pradesh (where Prasanthi Nilayam is located) announced a four-day State Mourning period and decided to honour Sai Baba with a State Funeral.[79][62]
On 10 April, direct relatives expressed wonder as to why they were kept in the dark and knew nothing about Sai Baba's state of health. "It is almost two months since Baba stopped taking food [but] we were not told about it."[52] Family members said they were livid about the secrecy around Sai Baba's health and medical treatments and as to why the trust was not allowing anyone direct contact with him except for Sathyajit, his personal attendant.[83] They only saw him from a distance in the ICU on April 2 after raising a furore.[83] It was on 28 March, when Sai Baba complained of giddiness and slowing of the heartbeat that he was taken to hospital.[52]
On 21 April, the Deccan Herald reported an allegation stating Sathya Sai Baba had died 20 days prior and that his death was not being announced in order to get money from Indian and foreign devotees.[84]
On 28 April 2011, four days after the passing of Sai Baba, The Times of India printed a story questioning the time of Sai Baba's death. A firm making freezer boxes claimed the one in which Sai Baba was kept was ordered on 4 April, partial payment was also made at that time. The freezer box arrived in Puttaparthi on 5 April. Sai Baba was admitted to hospital on 28 March but his condition had officially worsened on 15 April. "The order was placed by Rajendranath Reddy of Bangalore [and] according to sources, the powerful Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust had a role in ordering the freezer box."[85]According to Lakshmi, the owner of Kumar and Co International (freezer box) company, her colleague Ganesh called Rajendranath to confirm the purchase for Sai Baba. "He confirmed the same and told Ganesh not to discuss the matter with anyone."[85]
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