Miracle
In Marathi there is a saying 'the meaning of which is "No body bows down unless he sees a miracle". This saying is true to a great extent. If anything is done, which puzzles you for which you are not able to argue with cause and effect, then you are apt to call that act as a miracle. This act then makes you attribute some supernatural power to the person, who performs the miracle and then naturally what follows is that you honour the person and bow down to him.
If we look at the biographies of so many saints in different parts of the world, then at some stage or the other, they are said to have performed miracles in some form or the other. These miracles are legendary and usually there are no means to verify them by actually contacting the persons referred to in the legend as most of them, are usually out of this world, where no one-can approach them. If we review the biography of Shri Sai Baba as depicted in Sai Satcharita, we will come across the following incidents, which may be classed as miracles.
1. Driving the Cholera epidemic out of Shirdi by grinding wheat in a hand-mill
(Chapter 1 )
2 Baba's reference to the discussion that took place at Sathe's Wada and asking the question "What did this Hemadpant say?" (Chapter 2 )
3. Advice to Bhagwantrao Kshirsagar and reminding him about the worship of Vithoba in the family (Chapter 4.).
4. Streams of Ganga-Yamuna water flowed from both the toes of Shri Baba (Chapter IV).
5. Appearance of Shri Baba under the neem tree (Chapter 4).
6. Shri Baba traced out Chand Patil's mare ( Chapter 5 )
7. Shri Baba brought out a live burning coal by thrusting His prong in the ground. (Chapter 5)
8. Water started oozing from Baba's Satka, when He dashed it on the ground. (Chapter 5)
9. Lighting lamps with water. ( Chapter 5 )
10. Shri Baba saves the child of a blacksmith by thrusting His arms into the Dhuni. (Chapter 7 )
11. Shri Baba takes over the Bubonic plague, from which the son of Shri Dadasaheb Khaparde was suffering. (Chapter 7)
12. Shri Baba foretold the visit of Nanasaheb Chandorkar to Shirdi (Chapter 7)
!3. Shri Baba told master Tarkhad about the neglect of His Puja at Bandra, at Tarkhad's house on the same day. (Chapter 9)
14. Shri Govind Balaram Mankar was questioned by Shri Baba about not offering to Him, the Pedha given to him by Mrs. Tarkhad for giving it to Shri Baba. (Chapter 9)
15. Shri Baba told Mrs Tarkhad that the food offered by her to a dog reached Him and gave Him satisfaction. ( Chapter 9)
16. Shri Baba controls the storm and rain at Shirdi. (Chap. 1I)
17. Shri Baba quenches the fire in the Dhuni by dashing His satka on a pillar and commanding the fire to become calm. (Chapter II)
18. Shri Baba knew that the munim of Kaka Mahajani would become sick and hence He ordered Kaka to return to Bombay on the next day. (Chapter 12)
19. Shri Baba knew that .'Bhausaheb Dhumal's case at Nipani would be postponed and hence He did not allow Shri Dhumal to leave Shirdi for a week. (Chapter 12)
20. Shri Baba gave darshan to Shri Moolay Shastri of Nasik in the form of the latter's Guru, Shri Gholap Swami. (Chapter 12)
21 Shri Baba gave darshan to a doctor in the form of Shree Rama. (Chapter 12)
22. Shri Bbimaji Patil got rid of T. B. because of the favour of Shri Baba. (Chapter 13)
23. Shri Baba cured Bala Ganpat Shimpi of Malaria by asking him to execute a recipe (Chapter 13)
24. Shriman Bapusaheb Booty was cured of dysentry and vomitting by Shri Baba, (Chapter 13)
25. Shri Booty was cured of cholera by Shri Baba by prescribing to him an infusion of almonds, walnuts, etc. (Chapter 13)
26. A Swami from Alandi was cured of his pain in the ear. (Chapter 13)
27. Shri Baba cured Kaka Mahajani of diarrhoea by giving him a handful of groundnuts to eat. (Chapter 13)
28. Dattopant of Harda was cured by Shri Baba of his stomachache, which he had for fourteen years. (Chapter 13)
29. Shri Baba cured Madhavrao Deshpande of his piles trouble. (Chapter 13)
30. Shri Baba cured Gangadharpant, the elder brother of Shri Kaka Mahajani of his stomach-pain merely by touching his belly. (Chapter 13)
31. Intense stomach-pain of Shri Nanasaheb Chandorkar, was cured by Shri Baba by asking him to eat burfi. (Chapter 13)
32. Shri Baba asked Shri Ruttonjl Shapurji Wadia, dakshina of Rs. 5, subtracting therefrom an amount of Rs. 3-14-0, which he had spent on the reception of one Moulvisaheb at Nanded. (Chapter 14)
33. Shri Ruttonji Shapurji Wadia was blessed by Shri Baba with a son. (Chapter 14)
34. Rao Bahadur Hari Vinayak Sathe was asked by Shri Baba to remarry and blessed him that he would get a son and accordingly he got a son from his second wife. (Chapter 14).
35. Shri Baba told Shri Bapusaheb Jog to give his guest (Shri Cholkar) cups of tea fully saturated with sugar and thus showed that He knew Shri Cholkar's vow to drink sugarless tea. (Chapter 15)
36. Shri Baba predicted the meeting of two lizards on the wall of the masjid. (Chapter 15)
37. When one Shri V. H. Thakur met Shri Baba, He told him about the former's meeting with Kanarese saint Appa and buffalo ride in the Nhane Ghat. (Chapter 21)
38. When a pleader from Pandharpur came to Shirdi and bowed down to Shri Baba, He remarked referring to some discussion, which took place in the bar-room at Pandharpurt in which the pleader had taken part. (Chapter 21)
39. The danger to Shri Babasaheb Mirikar, from a snake, was foretold by Shri Baba. (Chapter 22)
40. A great astrologer named Nanasaheb Dengie once foretold the danger to the life of Bapusaheb Booty; but Shri Baba told him that the danger would be averted. A snake was accordingly seen in the privy by Shri Booty; but it went away without giving any trouble to Shri Booty. (Chapter 22)
41. Shama was cured of snake-bite by Shri Baba. (Chapter 23}
42. Damu Anna was saved by Shri Baba from two severe losses in cotton and grain speculations by giving advance warnings. (Chapter 25)
43. Shri Baba gave four mangoes to Shri Damn Anna and blessed him. With Shri Baba's grace, Shri Damu Anna got children. (Chapter 25)
44. Shri Baba gave three rupees to Shri Harishchandra Pitale and reminded him of the two rupees given to his father by Shri Akkalkot Maharaj. (Chapter 26)
45. When Laxmichand from Sancacruz met Baba, the latter told him about all the things that had happened en route from his house to Shirdi. (Chapter 28)
46 Shri Baba referred to Laxrnichand's desire to eat sanza and and the pain in his back. (Chapter 28)
47. Though Megha poured the water of the Gomati river, brought by him, on the whole body of Shri Baba, only His head was drenched and the rest of the body was quite dry. (Chapter 28)
48. Shri Baba gave darshan to the chief lady of the: Madrasi Bhajan Mela in the form of Shri Rama (Chapter 29)
49. Shri Balabuva Sutar had prostrated himself before Shri Baba's portrait four years before his actual meeting with Shri Baba at Shirdi in 1917. In his first meeting with Shri Baba, He mentioned that He knew Shri Sutar since four years, referring to Shri Sutar's first prostration. (Chapter 33)
50. Shri Baba cured a doctor's nephew from Malegaon of Tubercular bone-abcess by application of sacred Udi on the abcess. (Chapter 34)
51. Shri Baba informed Dr. Pillay that he will be cured within ten days. He also foretold of the pecking by a crow. Both the aforesaid events took place accordingly. Udi was used all along for application. (Chapter 34)
52. The wife of Shama's younger brother, Bapaji, who was staying near Sawool Well, was cured by Shri Baba cf Bubonic plague by the use of Udi, within one night and this was foretold by Him to Shama. (Chapter 34)
53. Shri Baba blessed a woman of Kayastha Prabhu caste from Bombay and she had painless delivery. (Chapter 34)
Note:-The cases of Irani's daughter and the Harda gentleman relate to the use of Udi. They did not have direct contact with Shri Baba.
54. Shri Baba spoke exactly in the tone of Kaka Mahajani's friend's father. Shri Baba knew that he had no intention to give Dakshina and hence Shri Baba did not ask him to pay the same, though 'He asked Shri Kaka Mahajani to pay it. (Chapter 35)
55. Shri Baba gave grapes to Shri Thakkar of the Solicitor's firm, Thakkar Dharamsey Jethabhai and though the first few given to him had seeds, on his thinking that if Shri Baba was a saint, He should have given him grapes out of the same stock without seeds as he did not like seeds, he found that those given to him at the second time were entirely seedless. (Chapter 35)
Note:-The case of a Kayasth Prabhu gentleman of Bandra, who suffered from Insomnia and of Smt. Newaskar, narrated in Chapter 35, relate to the power of Udi.
56. Mrs Aurangabadkar got a son through the grace of Shri Sai Baba. (Chapter 36)
57. Shri Baba attended Mrs. Dev's Udyapun ceremony as a Sannyasi with two others. (Chapter 40)
58. Shri Baba appeared in the house of Hemadpant in the form of a portrait as per His promise. (Chapter 40)
59. Shri Baba averted the deaths of Ramchandra Dada and Tatya Patil. (Chapter 42)
60. Shri Sai Baba pervaded all creatures (Chapter 42)
61. Shri Baba permitted Shama to go to Banares and Prayag and told him that He would be ahead of him and Shama found Baba's portrait at Gaya as promised by Him. (Chapter 46)
62. Shri Baba knew the past lives of Veerbhadrappa and Chennabassappa, (snake and the frog) and ordered Veerbhadrappa (the snake) to leave Chennabassappa (the frog). (Chapter 47)
63. Mrs. Sapatnekar got a son by the grace of Shri Baba (Chapter 48)
64. Shri Baba declared the name of Hari Kanoba without asking anybody about it and returned his new sandals to him. (Chapter 49)
65. Shri Baba quoted correctly the thoughts of Shri Somadeva Swami while he was on his way to Shirdi. (Chapter 49)
66 Shri Baba knew the restlessness of the mind of Shri Nanasaheb Chandorkar on seeing the face of the beautiful woman, who had come to take Shri Baba's darshan and aavftcd Srtm ??? Chandorkar accordingly. (Chapter 49)
67. Shri Baba knew that Shri (Kakasaheb Dixit was coming to Shirdi from Ahmednagar and He therefore sent Shama to receive him. (Chapter 50)
68. Shri Baba knew that Shri Tembye Svvami had sent a coconut to Him through Shri Pundalikrao and asked the latter to give it to Him. (Chapter 50)
69. Shri Baba cured Shri Balaram Dhurandhar of his Asthma trouble by giving him His pipe to smoke, (Chapter 50)
The incidents, mentioned above, are usually termed as "miracles" by ordinary people, because they could not have taken place unless the person concerned had supernatural powers; but Shri V.T. Nandwani, one staunch Sai devotee from Bombay, sometime before suggested some classification for these events. An event like bringing out live burning charcoal by thrusting the prong in the ground is in his opinion no doubt a miracle, because no ordinary person would be able to do it; but curing Shama of snakebite or blessing Shri Ruttonji Shapurji Wadia with a son, should not be called a miracle, because here only one person was concerned and by the grace of Shri Sai Baba, that person got certain favours. Hence, such incidents in his opinion should be called divine favours and not miracles.
The classification proposed above by Shri Nandwani seems to be worthy of consideration. All the saints are believed to be awatar's (incarnations ) of God. Of course, some devotees have gone a step ahead and they believe that Shri Sai Baba is God himself. If therefore God is pleased to do away with the agonies or difficulties of any devotee, if the God feels like running to the help of His devotee and shows any particular favour to a devotee then that favour can naturally be called a divine favour. The devotees may consider this point and consider Shri Sai Baba's favour as a divine favour.
We may now consider the incidents referred to as miracles. Some people seriously believe that the age of miracles is no more in existence. The miracles might have taken place in the past centuries. The twentieth century is not so auspicious that it can witness any miracles; but there are no doubt certain people, who still believe that miracles do take place and some so called saints exploit the situation to add glamour to their personality and greatness. If we look around us with open eyes, we will be able to see such so called saints, who perform such miracles in a gathering of their devotees, so that they should go round and advertise about his greatness as a saint. The simple minded devotees, who simply get stunned at the sight of the miracle, go round advertising the greatness of their guru. This has a salutory effect on many other devotees, who are far off and who do not have constant personal contact with the guru. This advertisement of their guru, done by a few devotees, is believed by them and thus these saints are purposely showing these miracles among their devotees in order to advertise themselves and increase their following; but when we look at Sai Satcharita, we do not find a single incident where Shri Sai Baba performed a miracle to advertise himself.
From the incident of lighting the lamp with water to the incident of the coconut sent by Shri Tembye Swami, we see that Shri Baba acted in the situation not with any particular motive; but it was his mere leela. He acted at that moment freely without any object in view. It will thus he seen that in view of the modern concept of miracles, the incidents that took place in the life of Shri Sai Baba can now be classified as His leelas and divine favours and not as miracles, performed to astonish and attract the devotees.
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