November 23, 1926, is a red-lettered day in the history of mankind. On that day
was born in the (then) obscure village of Puttaparthi, a charming baby boy in
the Ratnakara family. None realised then, and indeed for a long time
thereafter, that Divinity had incarnated in human form as Ratnakara Venkata
Satyanarayana Raju, grandson of Mr. Kondama Raju, and son of Pedda Venkama Raju
and Easwaramma.
The birth of ordinary mortals is the direct consequence of earlier lives. The
karma or the track-record of earlier births, i.e., the nature of deeds
performed, both good and bad, determine the futurejanmas or births. In short,
human birth is a karma janma (birth that is the consequence of earlier births).
However, when the Lord comes down in human form, it is a different story
altogether.
He incarnates as a part of His unfathomable Cosmic Drama, to play as it were, a
cameo role. He decides the time and the place of His incarnation, the parents,
and also how His life would unfold. Thus, the Lord's birth as a human is a part
of His Divine Sport or Leela; in other words, His life is a Leela Janma.
In the Sathya Sai Incarnation, the Lord chose the Ratnakara family on account
of the purity, piety, and the devotion of its members. Prior to the
incarnation, Pedda Venkama Raju and Easwaramma had been blessed with one son
and two daughters, Seshama Raju, Venkamma, and Parvathamma, in that order.
Some years passed and Mother Easwaramma longed for another son. She observed
all the prescribed austerities, and soon her prayers were answered - she was to
become a mother again. Even before its birth, Easwaramma knew that the child to
be born would be unusual. There was a definite reason for such a belief.
Sometime prior to the birth of this new boy, Lakshmamma, the mother-in-law was
engaged in the worship of Lord Sathyanarayana. The Lord then appeared in her
dream and blessed her, indicating that He would be born in her family.
Promptly, Lakshmamma alerted Easwaramma that the latter might have strange
experiences, but ought not to worry about them. Shortly thereafter, Easwaramma
had precisely one such experience.
One day as she was drawing water from the well, Easwaramma was startled by the
sight of a big blue ball of light. The ball came directly towards her and
entered her; Easwaramma fainted and fell. The Lord had entered her womb for the
mandatory stay prior to physical birth as Sathyanarayana Raju. Thus, the Lord
was not begotten, but immaculately conceived, even as His Son (Jesus) had been,
two thousand years ago.
Sathya was born in the early hours of November 23, 1926. There were any number
of unusual incidents accompanying His birth, as also in His childhood (as in
the case of Lord Krishna). Though they all gave strong hints of His Divinity,
few realised until much later that Sathya was the Lord Himself. But all
unfailingly recognised that Sathya was most unusual, extra-ordinarily
intelligent, precocious, and above all, always full of Love and compassion.
In Primary School, Sathya helped His classmates in diverse ways. Though from a
poor family, He did not hesitate to give away His clothes to needy classmates.
More importantly, He never lost an opportunity to turn the minds of His friends
towards God. Among other things, He formed a bhajan group for this purpose,
which later became very popular.
It was time to move on to Higher Secondary School, but such a school was
available only in Bukkapatnam, several kilometers to the north of Puttaparthi.
Young Sathya now had to trudge back and forth every day, no matter what the
weather, the muddy path through fields, walking on bunds, and wading through
water, as required. In the Bukkapatnam School too, He was a model student, ever
helpful to others.
Making students God-conscious remained His prime occupation, and to hold the
attention of His mates, He would often materialise prasadam (gift-articles or
vibhuti), much to their amazement.
Sathya was an automatic choice for the class-leader (monitor), but this brought
its share of problems. Once, His teacher asked Sathya to slap all the boys in
the class for an infringement of discipline. Instead of slapping hard as he was
expected to, Sathya merely patted the cheeks of the errant pupils. This greatly
angered the teacher, who then directed all his wrath on the class-leader.
Sathya bore the punishment in stoic silence; for Him, it was all a part of the
Drama scripted by Him, and this particular scene was being enacted to impart
some lessons to humanity.
On another occasion, the teacher handling a particular class-hour (period)
noticed that Sathya was not writing down what was being dictated, while all
other students did. When questioned, Sathya replied that He was not taking down
because He already knew the lesson. Interpreting this response as gross
impertinence, the teacher asked Sathya to stand up on the bench, a form of
punishment popular in those days. Sathya obediently did.
After a while the School bell rang, signalling the end of the period in
progress, and the commencement of a new period. It was time for the teacher to
leave the room and make way for another one who was to handle the next period.
Mr. Mahboob Khan, this other teacher, entered the classroom and to his utter
surprise saw Sathya standing upon the bench. Khan loved Sathya very much, and
to him it was inconceivable that Sathya would have done anything to deserve a
punishment. He also noticed that the teacher who had handled the previous
period was not vacating the chair.
To his astonishment he then discovered that this teacher was not getting up
from the chair because he was stuck or glued to it - whenever the teacher tried
to get up, the chair also lifted! In a flash, Khan understood the problem. He
asked Sathya to get down from the bench and the stuck teacher promptly got his
release! Years later Swami disclosed that this drama was staged not to inflict
humiliation on the teacher concerned but to make people conscious of His Divine
powers. Humiliation is something that does not exist in Swami's dictionary.
Around this time, Mr. Seshama Raju, Sathya’s older brother, went to Kamalapuram
to stay with his in-laws, and also qualify there as a teacher. Kamalapuram
boasted of a good school and Seshama Raju thought that this was the school
where Sathya ought to study - the entire family pinned its hope on Sathya, and
dreamt that one day He would go to college and eventually end up as a big
officer in the Government. And so, to Kamalpuram, Sathya went.
Seshma Raju's in-laws, being relatively well heeled, looked down upon Sathya
since He was quite poor. As a result, He was not only ill-treated but also
called upon to perform arduous house-hold duties. He had, for example, to fetch
drinking water everyday from a far-off well. Such chores left scars, which
remain to this day.
In the Kamalapuram School, Sathya was a great favourite of the Drill Master who
doubled also as the Scout Master. Once, there was to be a grand General Fair
and Cattle Show in the neighbouring village of Pushpagiri.
The Scout Master wanted his troop to go Pushpagiri and render service of the
type scouts were expected to. A subscription of ten rupees was collected from
each boy for meeting the various expenses connected with the trip, including
the bus fare.
Not having the required amount, Sathya excused Himself from joining the group
but assured the Scout Master that He would somehow or the other be in
Pushpagiri at the appointed time for duty. While His friends went by bus,
Sathya walked the entire distance, with little to eat on the way.
When He finally reached Pushpagiri, He was very tired but did not flinch from
discharging His duties. Just before returning, He thoughtfully bought a few
small gifts for folks back home. When He returned, what greeted Him was not
appreciation for the gifts but a severe punishment because His absence had
created problems with the supply of drinking water.
Much later, Swami revealed that He deliberately created such painful situations
for Himself in order to teach the lesson of forbearance and equanimity.
Despite the harsh treatment constantly administered, Swami has never ever
criticised either His older brother or His sister-in-law, maintaining always
that they were but mere instruments in His Drama, with specific roles to play.
His teacher's training concluded, Seshama Raju moved from Kamalapuram to
Uravakonda to take appointment as a Telugu teacher in a school there. Sathya
went along and joined that school. Once again He excelled in everything, and
became the cynosure of all eyes. But once He was back at home, it was the same
painful routine; no let-up at all.
And then, came the prophetic declaration...
declaration...
March 1940 marked a turning point. Sathya was allegedly stung one day by a
scorpion, found in plenty in Uravakonda. His health became impaired and the
village medics were consulted, but it did not help. Sathya's behaviour also
appeared to undergo a change, and He became an enigma to all. Convinced that
Sathya had come under the spell of evil spirits, all sorts of quack remedies
were tried but they were of no avail.
An exorciser was summoned but before he could get started, he heard a
mysterious voice warning him; obeying the warning he promptly withdrew.
Meanwhile, a frantic message was sent to Sathya's parents in Puttaparthi, and
they both rushed to Uravakonda consumed with anxiety.
Everyone was puzzled since Sathya was no longer the ideal and model school boy
of the standard type. He was remote, withdrawn, and indifferent to worldly
matters. If He spoke, which was rarely, it was always on spiritual matters.
At times He would burst into non-stop recitation of Vedic hymns He had never
learnt. On matters philosophical and spiritual, He dared even to correct
elders, acknowledged experts and scholars – all this was something He was never
known to do before.
Sathya was then taken to other places like Bellary and Dharmavaram for
treatment but there was no improvement. One more attempt was made and this time
He was taken to an exorciser in Kadri, a mean and cruel person. Here, young
Sathya was put through incredible physical torture, unimaginable even in the
proverbial Hell. The witch-doctor was verily an agent of death, and when his
atrocities mounted, Sathya was whisked away back to home in Puttaparthi.
Days and weeks passed, and Sathya continued to be "abnormal". Came May 23,
1940, and with it a revelation. That morning Sathya was in a good mood,
materialising flowers and sugar candy in plenty, and distributing them to all
those who called on Him. Father Venkama Raju heard about this but was neither
pleased nor amused.
Suspecting trickery, he armed himself with a big stick, approached Sathya, and
asked, "Who are You? Are You God, ghost, or devil?" The big moment had arrived
and Sathya calmly replied,
"I am Sai."
The stick slowly slipped out of Venkama Raju's hand but he still remained
puzzled. And so he asked: "What are we to do with You?" Sathya replied,
"Worship Me."
The father's next question was, "When?" Came the answer,
"Every Thursday."
That was when the worship of Sathya Sai first commenced.
One Thursday, someone challenged: "If You are Sai Baba, show us some proof."
Sathya then asked for some flowers. A bunch of jasmine flowers were given to
Him. He threw them on the floor; instead of falling randomly, they got neatly
arranged to form the words “SAI BABA” in Telugu. Such revelations not
withstanding, Sathya was forced to return to Uravakonda and resume school.
Looking back, one can see that starting from the very beginning and
particularly from March 1940, Sathya had been gradually setting the stage for
what was soon to follow. Right from the time He was a little boy, He had,
constantly and consistently, displayed the Divine qualities of compassion,
sacrifice, forbearance, and selfless Love.
Occasionally, He performed miracles to drop hints that He was indeed far beyond
the normal. Repeatedly He demonstrated His ability to absorb enormous cruelty
and physical punishment without any trace of hatred or rancour towards those
ill-treating Him. And last but not the least, He constantly diverted the
attention of one and all from the mundane to the Divine.
Came finally the day to snap all worldly ties and launch the Mission He had
incarnated for. October 20, 1940 was that day. On that morning, Sathya left for
school as usual but within minutes He was back home. Standing on the doorstep,
He flung aside the bag containing books and in ringing tones declared,
"I am no longer your Sathya. I am Sai. I don't belong to you. I have My work.
My devotees are calling Me. I am going. I can no longer stay here."
Walking up to a neighbour's house, He sat on a rock in the middle of the garden
there while people flocked, bringing flowers. And then, most lovingly and
compassionately Sri Sathya Sai Baba led the congregation in a bhajan that has
now become very familiar to us. He sang:
Manasa bhajare Gurucharanam,
Dustara bhavasagara tharanam
O mind! Meditate on the Lotus Feet of the Lord!
That alone will help you to sail across the turbulent sea called life.
The Avatar had finally revealed Himself. Physically, Sai was still a
fourteen-year old. Yet, such was His magnetism, and such was the faith of the
devotees who flocked to Him that they had no reservation in accepting Him as a
Divine Incarnation.
Baba now decided to return to Puttaparthi and make it the base for His Mission.
The residents of Uravakonda gave Him a ceremonial and tearful send-off, and
Baba was carried in procession. En route, He was joyfully welcomed and
worshipped in all the villages that He passed through. Back in Puttaparthi He
stayed with His parents for a few days and then shifted to the house of a pious
lady named Subbamma, who always had abiding faith in the Divinity of Sathya
Sai. Soon, Subbamma's unostentatious abode became a pilgrim centre.
They came in large numbers to worship Sai, and patiently and tirelessly,
Subbamma played hostess to them all. The crowds kept growing bigger and bigger,
and a new residence had to be found for Sai. In 1944, Baba moved to a thatched
hut in a vacant plot of land nearby. The plot was gifted to Swami by Subbamma.
Later the hut was replaced by a tin shed with verandas on either side - this is
the famousPaatha Mandiram (Old Mandir) of Puttaparthi folklore.
Baba stayed in the shed while devotees occupied the veranda. There was a total
absence of creature comforts and indeed even elementary conveniences that one
takes for granted. Yet, for those devotees, sharing the same roof with Bhagavan
Baba, was veritable heaven.
History repeated and Paatha Mandiram also began to overflow - Baba clearly
needed a much bigger place to receive His devotees. Plans were made and in
1950, and what is now known as the Mandir (in Prasanti Nilayam), came into
existence, in bare-bones form of course.
Once Baba moved to Prasanti Nilayam, the tin shed previously occupied by Him
was replaced by a brick and mortar structure - the Paatha Mandiram of yore had
now become the Pedda Venkama Raju Kalyana Mandapam (marriage hall); to this
day, marriages are celebrated in this hall.
Every Avatar has a Mission. In 1958, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba revealed that
His Mission would unfold itself in stages. The first sixteen years would be
dominated by contact with individuals. Following this, attention would be given
to groups. In the next phase, spiritual exhortation would be the dominant
feature, after which service to humanity at large would become the principal
focus.
Baba moves, lives, and acts like ordinary mortals do but His extra-ordinary
Love (Prema), if noticed, would immediately reveal that He is nothing short of
Divinity personified.
