I am most fortunate On this auspicious occasion of the 86th Birthday of our most Beloved Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, I convey my greetings to all the devotees, elders, brothers and sisters. This is the first birthday we are celebrating in the physical absence of our Beloved Bhagawan. Though Bhagawan is physically not present amongst us now, He is spiritually the Indweller in our hearts not only now, but forever and ever. Bhagawan continues to grant His physical presence to those who yearn to see Him physically and hear His nectarine words. However, those who are engaged in other thoughts and activities may not be able to feel His Divine Presence. Puttaparthi is a famous pilgrim centre, since Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba had chosen to make it His birthplace. This is a holy place. We read in the Puranas and legends that Lord Krishna was born in Mathura. We believe in it and visit that place and experience great bliss. The great epic Ramayana tells us that Ayodhya was the birthplace of Lord Sri Rama. Even now people go to Ayodhya with intense yearning to have the darshan of Lord Sri Rama and experience Divine Bliss. In the same way, Puttaparthi, the birthplace of Beloved Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is a great pilgrim centre for all of us. This is a holy place, for God Himself had incarnated here and walked amongst the devotees, granting His holy darshan every day to millions of people from all over the world. He strove tirelessly for over eight decades to teach good behavior to all of us and bring about a transformation in our hearts. He exhorted one and all to live in love, peace and happiness. Not even once in His Divine life He desired to have anything for Himself. His only desire was to make us desireless. I always feel that I am most fortunate, not because I became a minister, a chief minister or a governor, but because I became one among the millions of devotees of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. It gives me tremendous satisfaction and happiness. Bhagawan used to call us ‘Bangaroo!’ endearingly. Today we miss that endearing call. However, think for a moment from the depths of your heart about Bhagawan’s infinite love and affection for us. We will still be able to feel the sweet sound of Bhagawan’s call ringing in our ears. No doubt there were people who doubted and criticized God in puranic times too. We need not care for such people. Wherever there is good, we must be able to welcome it. We need not be concerned about all other things. Some people indulge in loose and unnecessary talk whether Sri Sathya Sai Baba is God or not. When we look at the great service activities undertaken by the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations under the Divine inspiration and guidance of Sri Sathya Sai Baba in India and abroad keeping Puttaparthi as His headquarters, it is clear that only God can undertake and complete such gigantic tasks and none else. Puttaparthi was once a remote village and today it is the headquarters of Avatar Sri Sathya Sai Baba Whose mission has reached every nook and corner of the world and His Divine Name is being chanted by millions in 151 countries. What more proof is required to call Him God? Today we are celebrating the Birthday of ‘that God’ in the absence of His physical form. Today all the devotees gathered here in vast numbers firmly believing that Bhagawan is spiritually present here, though not physically. Come! Let’s march forward with such sincere and firm belief…let’s undertake more and more service activities for the benefit of the society… May we all walk in the path shown by Bhagawan by improving ourselves and working for the uplift of the society! Come! Let’s help our fellow human beings as exhorted by our Beloved Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba! I am beholden to Bhagawan for granting me this opportunity of participating in this programme along with you all. Sairam
