Police cover for Sai Baba Paduka Darshan

Over a hundred security guardsand hundreds of policeman provide security to ensure peace and order during the one0and-half-day at shirdi shirdi sai baba darshan at campal Panaji. Chairman of the Goa Pradesh Shree Sai Baba Paduka Darshan Sohala Samiti, Anil Counto, said that they are expecting over a lakh devotees to gather at the Bandodkar ground on Sunday, February 22, from all over Goa to catch a glimpse and pay their respects to the Sai Baba Paduka, which will arrive all the way from Shirdi. Suresh Waable of the Saunsthan informed that the paduka will arrive in Goa on February 21at 4 pm, and will be welcomed by chief minister Digambar Kamat at Patradevi along with other cabinet ministers and MLAs. On Sunday, the Paduka Darshan of Shirdi Sai Baba and Bhakti Sammelan will be organised at the grounds at Campal. Governor of Goa S S Sidhu and chief minister Digambar Kamat will be present for the ceremony. Ashok Khambekar of the Shirdi Sai Saunstha said, "The paduka abhishek will take place on Sunday at 6 am. Thereafter, devotees will be allowed darshan up to 12 noon. At 6 pm Saanj aarti will be performed and Sez aarti at 10.30 pm." Dr Ekanth Gadekar said, "At 4.30 pm on February 22 devotees will be offered Mahaprasad. We have made arrangements for 10,000 to stand in a queue at one time for the paduka darshan and 25,000 will be accommodated in the pandal at a time during the darshan." The event is being organised by the Shirdi Sai Saunstha and Goa Pradesh Shree Sai Baba Paduka Darshan Sohala Samiti to celebrate 100 years of the first Sai Baba palki or palanquin that travelled from Dwarka Mai to Chawdi in Shirdi in 1909.

Grinding of Wheat

It was in the year in 1910. Hemadpant came to shirdi . One day after washing his face , Baba sat in Dwarkamai and started grinding wheat . He lived on alms. He had never done the grinding before. So all whoe were nearby were looking with wonder at this. Four bold women went inside the mosque, and requesting Baba to sit aside, took the grinding stone and started grinding . Though Baba got angry at this he kept quiet, seeing their affection for him. On completion of the grinding work, the ladies divided the flour into four parts and wanted to take it for themselves. Baba, watching them calmly till then got angry and scolded them," Oh ladies! Are you crazy? Are you thinking that this flour is your property to take it? I never took any wheat from you. Then why are you taking this flour? He cooled down after a while and said," It is all right. Take the flour and sprinkle it on the boundaries of this village." The ladies bowed their heads in shame , touched Baba's feet , went quickly and sprinkled the flour on the boundaries of the village.The villagers told hemadpant that there was cholera in the village , and only to eradicate it Baba had done all this . Hemadpant did not understand the relationship between cholera and the wheat flour, but the epidemic in the village gradually subsided. Then Hemadpant cocluded that what Baba ground that day was not wheat , but the cholera epidemic which he had sent outside the boundaries of the village . after seeing this leela of Baba, Hemadpant desired to write the Life history of shirdi sai Baba, containing all the leelas and miracles of Baba . He sought the permission of Baba to write the book. But Baba asked him to wait for some time. In the year 1917 Hemadpant tried again through Shama. Baba blessed him and gave udi prasad. The life history of shirdi sai Baba which hemadpant started writing in Marathi language with the blessings of Sai Baba when he was alive, is read all over the world. This was translatesd into Telugu by Sri Pratti Narayana Rao.

Fakir Madhu Shah

In the year 1913 , Maddhu shah, a resident of Meerin Village near jalgaon, came to Shirdi and requested Baba for Rs.700 which was urgently required for a good cause . At the instance of Baba, Jog gave Rs.700 in coins to two youths, Lakshman and Gulab with a direction to give this money to Maddhu Shah. But the youths gave only Rs.500 to the fakir, Maddhu shah, and kept for themselves the balance of RS.200.
Maddhu shah told Baba that he received only Rs.500 Baba appearing not to have taken note of it, gave the fakir udi as prasad and sent him away. The fakir travelled for about two miles and was near neemgaon, when a tahslidar named Erun Shah, passed in atonga. On seeing the fakir, he got down from the tonga, gave the food packet he was carrying and also Rs.200. The fakir took the money and food packet, and feeling very happy, continued his journey after some rest.
Erun shah the tahslidar, reached Shirdi and stayed in the house of Tatya Patil. He told him a dream he had. In his dream someone told him," come to shirdi in tonga. On your way near to neemgaon you will find a fakir with a tiger skin on him. GIve him Rs.200 and also some food.
Six Months after the above mentioned incident, the two youths, Lakshman and Gulab, came to Erun Shah and gave himm Rs.1,000 each in some other connection. That day again Erun shah had a dream. Someone told him in his dream," In your dream about six months back, as per my direction you gave a fakir of RS.200. Today, I am giving you ten times that." What moral we learn from this story is , Baba collected ten timed the amount from Lakshman and Gulab, which they had misappropriated, not carrying for Baba;s instructions and made the two youths pay to Erun Shah, who obeyed Baba's instructions, ten times the money he had paid to the fakir. Those who steal God's money will have to pay back ten times that during this birth or in the future. Under any circumstances one should be willing to spend for God but if one is tempted to take god's money then one will have to suffer.

Desiring Mantropadesa From Baba

An old Woman called Radha Bai Deshmukh treated Baba as her Guru and she wanted to have Mantropadesa and also Atma Sakshatkara. With this determined desire, she went to shirdi and requested Baba to teach her Mantras. But Baba kept silent. Then she went on a fast and decided not to take food or water till Baba taught her Mantras. Her fast continued for three days and she became very weak. Shama noticed this and fearing that Baba might get a bad name if anything happened to her, requested Baba to interfere in the matter and save the woman.
Thus Baba sent for her and told,'' Mother, I am like your child. You are like my mother.Why are you undergoing this agony and desiring wealth? I am a fakir. Show Kindness to me. My Guru was a great' Satpurusha'. When I approached him, he asked me two coins as dakshina. They are not ordinary coins. One is Shraddha (faith) and the other is Saburi (patience). Shraddha means faith , doing work correctly, and saburi means patience- equanimity in the face of difficulties. As soon as he asked for them, I improve these two qualities in me and gave them to my Guru as dakshina. He immediately got my head tonsured and accepted my dakshina.
" When my Guru was in mediatation I used to sit in front of him, and focus my eyes on his face, withour diverting it on other matters; this went on for days , forgetting hunger and thirst. He also used to look at me with love. On such occassions we used to be full of mutual love and happiness. I could not withstand our seperation even for a moment. There was no other goal for me except my Guru. I never carved for anything other than my Guru. He also desired to have my love only and nothing else. He used to radiate his affection on me always.
" I will never tell a lie sitting in this mosque. My Guru did not tell me any Mantra I cannot also give any advice to you. If you want to have me as your Guru, you must behave as I did in the case of my Guru. Keep me as the goal of your thoughts and ideals. see me with undeterred sincerity and I will also see you in the same manner. Some drawbacks and pressures in life will try to sepearte us. Withour yielding to such things you should exercise patience and be happy. Unless you act like this , you cannot reach your's life goal. You need not bother about the four kinds of practices six Shastras or eight kibds of yoga. With strong devotion, if you serve your Guru that is enough. This is the only true thing that my guru taught me.''
These nectar-like words of Baba changed the heart of the old woman and she gave up the fast . That day Baba made her sit next to him and eat her food.