Shri Sai Satcharitra Chapter 33

Chapter – 33

Greatness of Udi Scorpion Sting and Plague Cases Cured – Jamner Miracle - Narayanrao’s Sickness - Balabuva Sutar – Appasaheb Kulkarni - Haribhau Karnik

In the last chapter we described the greatness of the guru; now in this chapter, we will describe the greatness of udi.

Preliminary

Let us bow before the great saints. Their merciful glances will destroy mountains of sins and do away with all the evil taints of our character. Their casual talks teach us good lessons and confer on us imperishable happiness. Their minds do not know any difference such as, “This is ours and this is yours.” Such differentiation never arises in their minds. We can never repay the debt we owe them in a single life, or even in many future lives.

Udi

It is well known that Baba took dakshina from all, and out of the amount thus collected, He distributed most of it to charity, purchasing only some fuel with the balance left. This fuel He threw in the dhuni - the sacred fire, which He kept ever burning. The ash from this fire was called udi and was freely distributed to the devotees at the time of their departure from Shirdi. What did Baba teach or hint by this udi? Baba taught by His udi that all the visible phenomena in the universe is as transient as the ash. Our bodies, composed of matter comprising the five elements, will decompose after all their sense enjoyments are over, and will be reduced to ashes. In order to remind His devotees of the fact that their bodies will be reduced to ashes, Baba distributed udi to them. Baba also taught by the udi that Brahma is the only reality and the universe is ephemeral - that no one in this world, whether it be a father, mother, wife, or child is really ours. We come here (in this world) alone, and we have to go out alone.

It was found that the udi cured many physical and mental maladies, but what Baba really wanted, was to din into the devotees’ ears, the principles of discrimination between the unreal and the real. He wanted to cultivate non-attachment for the unreal by His udi and dakshina. The udi teaches discrimination and the dakshina, nonattachment. Unless we have discrimination and non-attachment, it is not possible to cross the sea of mundane existence. Sai Baba, therefore, asked for and took dakshina, and, as the devotees would take their leave, He would give udi as prasad, besmearing it on their foreheads while placing His hand of blessing on their heads. When Baba was in a cheerful mood, He used to sing merrily. One such song was about udi. The theme of this song was, “Oh, playful Rama, come, come, and bring with You sacks of udi.” Baba used to sing in very clear and sweet tones.

Thus, udi has a strong spiritual implication, but it has material significance as well. It confers health, prosperity, freedom from anxiety and many other worldly gains. The udi, therefore, creates both material and spiritual benefits. The following story narrates the healing benefits of udi.

Scorpion Sting

Narayan Motiram Jani of Nasik was a devotee of Baba. He was serving under another of Baba’s devotees by the name of Ramachandra Vaman Modak. Narayan and his mother decided to go to Shirdi and see Baba, who told them he should no longer work in the service of anyone, but should start an independent business. Some days later, this prophecy came true. Narayan left the service in which he was employed and started a boarding house, “Anandashram”. This new business thrived. Once, a friend of Narayanrao was stung by a scorpion. The pain it caused was severe and unbearable. As holy ash is most efficacious in such cases when applied directly to the source of pain, Narayanrao searched to find some udi, but was unsuccessful. He then stood before Sai Baba’s picture and invoked Baba’s aid. He chanted Baba’s name and, taking out a pinch of the ashes from the stick of incense burning in front of Baba’s picture and visualizing it to be Baba’s udi, he applied it directly to the area of the scorpion sting. As soon as he took his fingers away from the wound, the pain vanished and both Narayanrao and Narayan Jani were amazed and grateful to Baba.

Bubonic Plague Case

Once a devotee in Bandra learned that his daughter, who was staying in another village, had come down with bubonic plague. He had no udi with him, so he sent word to Nanasaheb Chandorkar to send some. Nanasaheb got the message while en route near the Thana Railway Station. He was travelling with his wife to Kalyan. He had no udi with him at that time. He, therefore, picked up some earth from the road, meditated upon Sai Baba, invoked His aid, and applied it on his wife’s forehead.

When the devotee then went to his daughter’s house, he was thrilled to learn that his daughter, who had been suffering for three days, began to improve the very moment Nanasaheb invoked Baba’s aid near the Thana Railway Station.

The Jamner Miracle

In 1904-1905 Nanasaheb Chandorkar was mamlatdar at Jamner, in the Khandesh District, which is more than 100 miles from Shirdi. His daughter, Mainatai, was pregnant and was about to deliver. Her case was very serious and she was suffering from labor pains for two or three days. Nanasaheb tried all types of remedies, but they proved ineffective. He then remembered Sai Baba and invoked His aid. At that same time in Shirdi, Ramgirbuva, whom Baba called Bapugirbuva, wanted to go to his native village of Khandesh. Baba called him and told him to take a little rest and stop at Jamner on his way home and give some udi and a copy of the arati to Nanasaheb Chandorkar. Ramgirbuva said he had only two rupees with him and that amount was barely sufficient for the railway fare to Jalgaon, so it was not possible for him to go from Jalgaon to Jamner, a distance of about 30 miles. Baba assured him he need not worry, as everything would be provided for him. Then Baba asked Shama to write the well known arati composed by Madhav Adkar (a translation of this is given at the end of this book) and give a copy of it with the udi to Ramgirbuva who would then deliver it to Nanasaheb.

Relying on Baba’s words, Ramgirbuva left Shirdi and reached Jalgaon at about 2:45 a.m. He had only two annas left and was in a hard plight. To his great relief, he heard someone calling out, “Who is Bapugirbuva of Shirdi?” He immediately went over and identified himself. The peon, professing to be sent by Nanasaheb Chandorkar, then took Bapugirbuva out to an excellent tanga with a fine pair of horses and driver and asked him to get in. The peon and Ramgirbuva then drove quickly through the night and by early morning, they came to a small brook. The driver took the horses for water and then asked Ramgirbuva to partake of some food. Seeing the beard, moustache and livery of the peon, Ramgirbuva suspected him to be a Moslem and was unwilling to take any refreshments from him, but the peon satisfied him by saying that he was a Hindu, a Kshatriya of Garhwal. He explained Nanasaheb had sent the food, so there should be no difficulty, nor any doubt, about acceptance. Then both of them had some food and continued on the journey. They reached Jamner at dawn. Ramgirbuva alighted to attend a call of nature and returned within a few minutes, but found no tanga and no peon. He was dumbfounded.

He then went to the neighboring katcheri and made inquiries. Having learned that the mamlatdar (Nanasaheb Chandorkar) was at home, Ramgirbuva went to Nanasaheb’s house, announced himself, and gave him Baba’s udi and arati. At this time, Mainatai’s case was most serious and all were deeply anxious about her. Nanasaheb called out to his wife and asked her to give the udi, mixed with water, to their daughter to drink. He then asked his wife to sing Baba’s arati. Nanasaheb thought that Baba’s help was most opportune. In a few minutes, the news came that the delivery was safe and the crisis had passed away. Then, when Ramgirbuva thanked Nanasaheb for the peon, tanga and refreshments, the latter was greatly surprised, as he had sent none to the station and was not even aware of any person coming from Shirdi.

Mr. B.V. Deo of Thana, retired mamlatdar, made inquiries about this matter with Bapurao Chandorkar, the son of Nanasaheb. He also asked Ramgirbuva questions and, after satisfying himself, wrote an elaborate article, part prose and part poetry, in ‘Sai Leela’ magazine (Vol. 13, Nos. 11,12 and 13). Brother B.V. Narsimhaswami also wrote down some statements of (1) Mainatai (No.V, page 14) and (2) Bapusaheb Chandorkar (No.XX, page 50) and (3) Ramgirbuva (No. XXVII, page 83), dated June 1, 1936, September 16, 1936 and December 1, 1936 respectively and published them in his Devotees’ Experiences, Part III. The following is quoted from Ramgirbuva’s statement: “One day Baba called me to Him and gave me a packet of udi and a copy of the arati. I had to go to Khandesh at that time. Baba directed me to go to Jamner and told me to deliver the arati and udi to Nanasaheb Chandorkar, who lived in Jamner. I told Baba all I had was Rs. 2/, and asked Him how that could take me by train from Kopergaon to Jalgaon, and then from Jalgaon to Jamner. Baba said, “God will give.” That was on a Friday and I started out at once. I reached Manmad at 7:30 p.m. and arrived at Jalgaon at 2:45 a.m. At that time, plague regulations were enforced and I had a great deal of trouble. I was unsure what I should do in order to get to Jamner. At about 3:00 a.m., a peon in boots, turban and well equipped with other details of good dress came to me and took me to a tanga and had me get in. I was very frightened. We reached Jamner early in the morning and by the time I had attended my call of nature, the tanga and peon had disappeared.”

Narayanrao

Bhakta Narayanrao (the father’s name and surname are not given) had the good fortune to see Sai Baba twice during the latter’s lifetime. Three years after the passing away of Baba in 1918, Narayanrao, who became ill within a year of Baba’s mahasamadhi and suffered quite a bit, wanted to come to Shirdi, but was not able to. Since all the ordinary remedies provided no relief from his illness, Narayanrao meditated on Sai Baba day and night. One night, he had a vision in his dream. Baba came to him through a cellar and comforted him saying, “Don’t be anxious! You will be improving by tomorrow, and within a week, you will be on your legs again.” Narayanrao became perfectly well within the time mentioned in the vision. Now the point for consideration is this: Was Baba living because He had a body, and was He dead because He left it? No, Baba is ever alive, for He transcends both life and death. He who loves Him wholeheartedly gets response from Him at any time and at any place. He is always by our side and will take any form and appear before the devout bhakta and help him.

Appasaheb Kulkarni

Appasaheb Kulkarni had a chance to receive Sai Baba’s blessings in 1917 when he was transferred to Thana. There, he began to worship Baba’s picture which was presented to him by Balasaheb Bhate. Kulkarni performed the worship in real earnest. He offered flowers, sandal paste and naivedya daily to Baba in the form of His picture and he longed intently to see Him. It may be noted in this connection that seeing Baba’s picture earnestly is equivalent to seeing Him in person. The following story illustrates this statement.

Balabuva Sutar

A saint in Bombay by the name of Balabuva Sutar, who, on account of his piety, devotion and bhajan was called the “Modern Tukaram”, came to Shirdi for the first time in 1917. When he bowed before Sai Baba, the latter said, “I’ve known this man for the past four years.” Balabuva wondered how that could be possible, as this was his first trip to Shirdi. But thinking about it seriously, he recollected that he had prostrated himself four years ago before Baba’s portrait in Bombay and so he recognized the significance of Baba’s words. He thought to himself, “How omniscient and all pervading are the saints and how kind are they to their bhaktas. I merely bowed to His photo, and yet this fact was noticed by Baba. I now realize that seeing Baba’s photo is equivalent to seeing Him in person!”

Appasaheb Kulkarni

Now to return to Appasaheb’s story. While Appasaheb Kulkarni was in Thana, he had to go on tour to Bhivandi and was not expected to return for a week. In his absence, the following wonderful thing took place on the third day. A fakir turned up at Appasaheb’s house at noon. His features exactly resembled those in Sai Baba’s photo. Mrs. Kulkarni and the children all asked him whether he was Sai Baba of Shirdi. He said, “No,” but that he was an obedient servant of His and had come there at His order to inquire about the health of the family. He then asked for dakshina. The lady gave him a rupee. He gave her a small packet of udi and asked her to keep it in the shrine along with the photo for worship. He then left the house and went away.

The following will describe the wonderful leela of Sai Baba.

Appasaheb could not proceed with his tour as his horse fell sick at Bhivandi. When he returned home that afternoon, his wife told him about the fakir’s visit. He winced mentally as he had not been there to receive the darshan of the fakir and was dissatisfied that only one rupee was paid as dakshina. He thought to himself that had he been present, he would have offered not less than ten rupees. Thinking in this manner, he immediately started off in quest of the fakir and searched for him in the masjid and other places, without taking any food. His search was in vain, so he returned home and had something to eat. (The reader may remember at this point Baba’s dictum in chapter 32 that God’s quest should not be made on an empty stomach.) Thus, indirectly, Sai Baba taught Appasaheb a lesson about the importance of feeding the body.

After his meal, Appasaheb went out for a walk with a friend, Mr. Chitre. After walking some distance, they saw a man approaching them rapidly. Appasaheb thought that he must be the fakir who came to his house at noon, as his features tallied with those in the photo of Baba. The fakir immediately put forth His hand and asked for dakshina. Appasaheb gave Him a rupee. The fakir demanded again and again, so Appasaheb gave Him two more rupees, but still He was not satisfied. Then Appasaheb borrowed Rs. 3/ from Mr. Chitre and gave them to the fakir, but the fakir wanted still more. Appasaheb than asked the fakir to accompany him to his home, and when they arrived there, he gave Him three more rupees, in all nine. The fakir showed dissatisfaction and demanded again.

Appasaheb then told Him he had a currency note of Rs. 10/. The fakir asked for the note, took it, and returned the nine rupees in cash, then went away. (Appasaheb had said he would pay Rs. 10/. That sum was taken from him and nine rupees, consecrated by Baba’s touch, were returned to him.) The figure 9 is significant. It denotes the nine types of devotion (vide Chapter 21). It may also be noted here that just before Baba took his mahasamadhi, He gave Rs. 9/ to Laxmibai Shinde. Appasaheb examined the udi packet and found it contained some flower petals and akshata. Then, sometime later, he got a hair from Baba when he saw Him at Shirdi. He put the udi packet and the hair in a talisman and always wore it on his arm. Appasaheb realized the power of the udi.

Though very clever, Appasaheb only earned Rs. 40/, but after he secured Baba’s photo and His udi, he received many times forty rupees per month and also gained much power and influence. Along with these temporal benefits, his spiritual progress was rapid. So those who are fortunate enough to get Baba’s udi should, after a bath, apply it on the forehead and drink a bit mixed in water as holy tirth.

Haribhau Karnik

In 1917 Haribhau Karnik of Dahanu (Thana District) came to Shirdi on Guru Pournima day (in the month of Ashada) and worshiped Baba with all formality. He offered clothes and dakshina and, after taking Baba’s leave through Shama, started to walk down the steps of the masjid. Just as he was leaving, he thought he ought to offer one more rupee to Baba, and so he started to turn around. Shama quickly informed him by signs that as he had received permission from Baba to leave, he should go and not return. Thus, Haribhau then started for home.

On his way home, he stopped at the temple of Kala Rama at Nasik to receive darshan from a saint by the name of Narsing Maharaj who always sat just inside the big door of the temple. As Haribhau approached the saint, Narsing Maharaj quickly got up, leaving his disciples, and caught Haribhau’s wrist saying, “Give me my one rupee.” Karnik was quite surprised. He paid the rupee most willingly, realizing Baba, through Narsing Maharaj, had recovered the additional rupee he had intended to give just before leaving Shirdi.

This story illustrates how the saints work in unison and, in reality, all saints are one.

Bow to Shri Sai - Peace be to all