Daily Readings
Sai Satcharita Chapter 16-20
Sai Satcharita Chapter 16-20
Shri Sai Satcharitra for Kids
Chapters 16 & 17:
Shri Sai Baba was known for being full of Sat-Chit-Anand, which translates to existence, knowledge, and bliss. He accepted even small offerings as long as they were offered with love and devotion, but rejected offerings that were given out of pride. There was once a very rich man who had everything he could wish for. When he heard of Baba, he went to Shirdi to ask Baba was Brahma-Jnana, the knowledge of God. When he saw Baba, he fell at his feet, and asked for Brahma-Jnana, saying that his journey had been very difficult and knowledge of God would have made his life journey worth it. Baba replied that He would happily show him Brahman because people rarely came to Him for spiritual matters. He ushered a boy in the mosque and told him to get a loan of Rs. 5 from the local merchant. When the boy returned empty-handed, Baba asked him to search for other people in the town from which he could get the loan of Rs. 5. The boy came back without the money, though Baba knew that he would not bring the money. The wealthy man that had come to see Baba was sitting in front of Him with a lot of money in his pocket, and did not offer to give Him the loan of such a small amount. The man repeated his prayer to Baba, asking him to show him Brahman, when Baba replied that He already had. Any man that truly loved Baba would have offered the money without hesitating, whereas this man had sat in front of Baba for a long time and watched Him go through this ordeal for the Rs. 5, and not done anything to help. Baba explained that in order to see Brahman, one had to be able to surrender one’s vital forces, one’s five senses, one’s mind, intellect, and ego. The man, although wealthy, was not ready to surrender these things to God. Where there is greed, there is no room for thought or meditation of God.
Chapters 18 & 19:
Mr. Sathe, a man who worked for the Governor of Bombay, had suffered many losses in his business. He was a very sad man, and thought about leaving his home and family due to his troubles. His friends told him to go to Shirdi, where he could get some peace of mind after getting Baba’s darshan. After seeing Baba, he was happy, and felt that his good karma from his previous births had brought him to Baba’s Holy Feet. Mr. Sathe worked hard, studying the Guru-charitra, and after seven days of study, Baba blessed him with a dream in which He explained everything in the Guru-charitra to Mr. Sathe. The man was very pleased, and asked one of the men closest to Baba whether he should continue his study for another seven days or stop at this point. Baba sent a message through the man that Mr. Sathe should continue study for another seven days, at which point God would bless him and free him from his mundane existence.
Hemadpant, Baba’s devotee, was in Shirdi during this time, and heard the news of what Mr. Sathe achieved from his seven days’ study. He felt sad because he had been studying the Guru-charitra for forty years, and had not received anything close to what Mr. Sathe had gotten. Baba noticed Hemadpant’s thoughts, and read his mind. He did not want to His devotees to have any evil thoughts, so He sent Hemadpant to another devotee, Shama’s, house to ask for some dakshina. Hemadpant went to Shama’s house and noticed that he book he had been reading each day, the Nath-Bagwat, was left open to the section he had left incomplete. He was surprised, and finished the section as he wanted to Shama to return home. Hemadpant told Shama that Baba had sent him to collect dakshina from him. Shama replied saying that he had no money to give, but he would replace the number of rupees with namaskaras (bows). Shama then started to tell a story of when Mr. Sathe was visiting, when Hemadpant started to feel inner peace. He realized that Baba had sent him to Shama’s house for that reason. He felt grateful and listened as Shama recounted a story of Baba’s grace.
Radhabai was an old woman who had come to Shirdi to obtain Baba’s darshan. She began to love Baba and was devoted to him. She decided that she would fast, not eating food or drinking water, until Baba took her as his disciple. The villagers were unsettled by this, and asked Baba to have mercy in the old woman. Baba finally relented and called her to His mosque. He explained to the woman that He had once had a Guru whom He had been very faithful to and loved very much. He had been with His Guru for many years, and he did not give Him any special mantras or teachings. He told the woman to make Him the sole object in her thoughts and actions, and that would make her life worthwhile. The lady took Baba’s advice, seeing the love in His statements, and gave up her fast.
Hemadpant returned to Baba after hearing this story, and bowed before Baba. Baba asked him if he had understood the significance of the story, to which Hemadpant replied that he did. He loved Baba and stayed in Shirdi where he could serve Him.
Chapter 20:
Das Ganu, one of Baba’s devotees, once started writing a commentary on a part of the spiritual work, the Upanishads. The part of the work that Das Ganu had started working on was considered the smallest part, but contained a lot of meaning and insight into spirituality. It was very hard to decipher and had many hidden meanings. Upon reading the difficult text, Das Ganu went to Baba for help in understanding the work. Baba blessed Das Ganu, told him not to be anxious, and that his doubts would soon be cleared by the maid of Kakasaheb Dixit on his way home that day. The people mosque laughed at this statement, asking Baba how an illiterate mad could decipher the difficult text. Das Ganu was also confused, but believed that Baba was God, and believed that what He said would come true. On his way home, Das Ganu stayed with Kakasahed Dixit, hoping to get answers for his questions. While Das Ganu was at the home, he heard a girl singing beautiful songs, and soon realized that it was the sister of Kakasaheb’s maid who was singing. She was doing chores, wearing a torn rag, while singing a song about a beautiful sari. He was pleased that her spirits were so high even when her conditions were so poor. The next day, he acquired a sari for her, and saw that she was extremely happy when she wore it. The next day, she put the sari back in the box that it came in, and wore her torn rags. Das Ganu admired her attitude, seeing that she was as happy wearing her rags as she was in the saree. He realized that feelings of pain and pleasure were all dependent on the attitude of the person. Das Ganu was now able to understand what the religious text was trying to convey, and the lesson that Baba had wanted him to learn: man should enjoy whatever God has given him, and be content with what he has in life.