Monthly Newsletter
Loving Sairams dear fellow devotees in this spiritual journey.
By the Divine grace of Lord Sai and all your support and encouragement Sai Times is now into our 6th year. This is our humble effort to spread Lord Sai’s messages and glory through value-based stories, experiences and Seva activities.
Hope you find this meaningful in your spiritual path. Looking forward to your continued support.
Shirdi Sai Gayatri
OM Shirdi Vasaya Vidamahe Sachidanandaya
Dhimahi tanno Sai Prachodayath
Om, Let me meditate on the God who lives in Shirdi,
Oh, God who is the ethereal truth and happiness, give me higher intellect,
And let that Sai illuminate my mind
Sai Leela
For next few months we will be sharing the experiences of the blessed devotees of Baba who were fortunate to be with Him physically when He was in Shirdi.
Devotee for this month- Chandrabai Borkar- Part 1
Smt.Chandra Bai Borkar was the wife of Sri.Ramachandra Borkar who lived in Vile Parle, Mumbai. She went to Shirdi and met Sai Baba for the first time in the year 1898. Baba used to give her udhi every day with his own hand in small quantities and Chandrabai preserved that carefully as it had great healing power.
She had deep devotion towards Sai Baba and at the same time powerful response to her devotion from Sai Baba. When she went to him in the year 1898, the present masjid had not been built, nor the Wada of Sathe which came after rebuilding of the masjid. Baba was then sitting under the neem tree which is now in Sathe Wada. She saw Baba filling his panathi’s, i.e., lamps with water, instead of oil, after drinking away the little remnant of oil mixed with some water. She also saw his lying on a plank in the Masjid hung up from the ceiling with strings made of slender shreds of cloth. There were lamps on the plank, whereon he lay. No ‘bigwigs’ were coming then. Whenever she went to Shirdi, she used to stay in the house of some villagers.
Baba’s kindness to her was very great. Her husband Mr. Borkar never went and saw Baba; but even to him, Baba showed great kindness. In or about 1909 her husband, who was an engineer, was engaged for the construction or repair of a bridge at Pandharpur. His residence was, therefore, at Pandharpur. When he was there, she had gone to Baba at Shirdi and was serving him.
One day Baba told her, ‘you had better go to Pandharpur and I will go with you’ and added that there was no difficulty for him to travel and that she should start expeditiously. So she started. She did not know what had happened there. When she reached that place, she found that her husband was not there, that he had resigned his work there and gone away to Mumbai. That information she got there for the first time and she was in great straits and sorrow. She had just a few rupees with her and had taken two companions with her. She had just money enough to take them back upto Kurdwadi. They went there. She had got thoroughly moody and was brooding over the situation. Suddenly a Fakir appeared before her, and asked her what she was brooding over. She evaded replying to him. He told her that her husband was at Daund and that she should go at once with her two companions to Daund. But, where was the railway fare to come from, she enquired. Then, he immediately delivered 3 tickets for Daund and went away. She took the tickets and with her companions boarded the train for Daund.
Meanwhile, her husband was at Daund drinking tea and sinking into half dozed condition or a reverie. A Fakir appeared before him and said, “How is it you are neglecting my mother? She is coming down by the train in carriage No. such and such” and gave him the number of her carriage.
He was startled and got up saying, ‘Who is this that is taking me to task?’ and looked up. But the Fakir disappeared. When the train arrived, she stepped down and her husband was there to receive her and take her to his quarters. Her husband told her of the Fakir’s appearance before him and wanted to see a photo of Sai Baba whom she was worshipping. She showed him the photo and he recognized therein the Fakir who came to him.
Chandrabai’s husband Ramachandra was a railway employee. In the year 1912, he was serving at Pandharpur railway station. In that year Ashadhi Adik Maas came and Baba advised Chandrabai, “You do Kokila Vrat, Lord Shiva will be pleased with you and He will take care of your family’s welfare”.
Adhering to Baba’s words, Chandrabai chose a pure and clean place near the River Godavari in Kopergaon village. One fine day, when Chandrabai was doing Pradikshana in the Shiva temple after finishing Arti, a young Fakir came and stood before her. He said thus, “Maai Mala Guda Chi Poli Ani Lasan Chi Chatani Dyaa meaning O mother please give me jaggery chapati with garlic paste (garlic pounded with spices, salt )”.
Chandrabai said, ” We observe vrat of Chaturmaas – four months from July to October and so we do not consume onion and garlic during these four months. Moreover, I don’t have any house of mine here. I am staying here to observe Kokila Vrat”. The Fakir said with a smile on His face and without any sign of disappointment, “Dennar Pan Chaangla Naahi Denaar Pan Changlaa meaning Welfare be to the one who gives and also to the one who does not give”.
After the Fakir left, when Chandrabai recalled that incident she felt that the Fakir had the same glow on his face which she saw on Baba’s face in Shirdi.She thought, “To conclude my Kokila Vrat I cannot go to Shirdi and offer anything to Baba, but when He came to me, I sent him empty handed!!! Who is more unfortunate than me? God came to my place and I sent him without giving Him anything”. She became very restless at night and said to herself, “The night is not passing away quickly”. She mentally started praying to Baba, “O my loving Sai Nath! Please pass away this black long night quickly, so that I can come to Shirdi to have your Darshan”.
Somehow the night passed and she woke up early, quickly finished off her morning chores, prepared jaggery chapati and garlic paste for Baba and set off for Shirdi.
On reaching Shirdi, she saw that Baba was returning from Lendi Baag. She immediately fell at Baba’s feet. She was very content with Baba’s Darshan and her love flowed in the form of tears. After the noon arti was performed by Bapusaheb Jog in the Dwarkamai,Baba sent all devotees to their lodgings and homes and Chandrabai then offered jaggery chapati and garlic paste made out of love to Baba.
Baba said, “When I came to you to get my desired thing, you did not give me, now why have you come to me with these things?” Chandrabai said, “Ignorant being as I am, I could not recognize you but now I have come to you with your desired food”.
Baba said to others, “She is my sister in my last seven births. Wherever I go she finds me and comes to me” and turned to Chandrabai and said, “Go, your Vrat will be fruitful”. In this way Baba blessed Chandrabai.
Chandrabai realised that Lord Shiva had taken form of Sai Baba for completing Kokila Vrat and thus her joy knew no bounds. She concluded Kokila Vrat and returned to Pandharpur quite contended and happy.
http://saiamrithadhara.com/mahabhakthas/chandrabai_borkar.html
Sathya Sai Gayatri
Om Saieshwaraya Vidmahe
Sathya Devaya Dheemahi
Thanna Sarvah Prachodayath
We know Sri Sathya Sai as Supreme Divinity Incarnate
We meditate on this God of Truth
May Almighty God lead us to Liberation
Swami’s Vesak day message
Eightfold Path
The Eightfold Path is Right Vision, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration. It is the path of the spiritually noble.
Mukti, or liberation, is freedom from suffering. The Triple Jewels, Triratna Sharanam, are means to achieve Mukti and to reach the goal of Nirvana, which is the only truth. These are closely inter-related. It is said that in order to attain Nirvana, one should have a pure heart. Indeed, the Buddha’s emphasis was entirely on purity in every aspect of daily life.
The Buddha also recognized the principle of unity of the Self and based His life on this Truth.
In Gita Vahini, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba wrote: “The bliss in which the person of steady wisdom is immersed does not arise from external objects; that person has no need of them, either. Bliss is in everyone as part of their very nature. Those with pure consciousness find the highest bliss in the realization of their own reality, the Atma (Self).”
The Buddha lives forever and not just in the noble and sacred story of the Crown Prince who sacrificed his royal birthright to seek, and eventually achieve, Self-Enlightenment and to declare a new path that leads one to Nirvana. The Buddha lives on as the supreme ideal of man’s potential for Buddhahood. Within us all lies the potential to become a Buddha, an ‘Awakened One’.
Story Time
Value- Peace
Sub value- Patience
One day Buddha was walking through a village. A very angry and rude young man came up and began insulting him. “You have no right teaching others,” he shouted. “You are as stupid as everyone else. You are nothing but a fake.”
Buddha was not upset by these insults. Instead he asked the young man, “Tell me, if you buy a gift for someone, and that person does not take it, to whom does the gift belong?”
The man was surprised to be asked such a strange question and answered, “It would belong to me, because I bought the gift.”
The Buddha smiled and said, “That is correct. And it is exactly the same with your anger. If you become angry with me and I do not get insulted, then the anger falls back on you.”
Learning
One must learn to control our anger. Our words and actions can affect others. Think before you speak. Also develop patience and tolerance towards someone who behaves angrily.
Source- buddhajourney.net
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INDIVIDUAL SADHANA AND SEVA OPPORTUNITIES
Akhand parayans– Sri Shirdi Sai Satcharitra, Sri Sathya Sai Satcharitra Tapovanam , Sri Sathya Sai Kalpadruma group parayans online as well as being part of the weekly whats app group parayans
Tapovanam Mahaparayans-Devotees from all over the globe are invited to join this parayan and also to help in coordination
LA CASA- (Home to Love All Care for All Serve All) helping out migrant workers for meals, medicines and other needs in Singapore and other education, medical and water projects in India
Translation Seva- Human value stories, Sai literature being translated in different languages.
Sai literature-Blogging on Sathya Sai Speaks, Sai Vahinis- essence of vedas and Upanishads by Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.
Glory of Sai– Spreading of the message of Universal love through stories, interviews, articles- Seva- Administration of social media pages, blogs, IT help, audio visual, transcription etc
Experience Sharing- Devotees can share their written experiences on the parayans, transformations by different seva activities, Sai leelas especially after Baba’s Mahasamadhi.
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Samastha Lokaha Sukhino Bhavantu
May All the Beings in All the Worlds Be Happy
Premaarpan 