Baba Amte (Muralidhar Devida Amte)

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

December 26, 1914--Feb 9, 2008

Baba amte was no saint and he was called Baba by his parents, meaning little one, Baba Amte was a social worker who helped that part of the society and helped them stand on their own feet and live with dignity, who are otherwise shunned, these were the people suffering from Leprosy.
Born on dec 26, 1914 as Murlidhar Devidas Amte in Hingaighat in Maharashtra, the eldest son of an affluent Brahmin Landlord, his life was privileged but he rebelled against injustice and discrimination on the basis of Birth, caste and creed, he was called baba by his parents, meaning little one, he was a respected Indian Social Activist, He founded many ashrams and communities for the service of Leprosy patients and other marginalized people shunned by the society.
After earning his bachelor's degree Mr Amte went to law school at the request of his father, who gave him a sports car with Panther skin seat covers, he graduated in 1936
Trained in law, Baba Amte had a lucrative practice at Wardha. It was then that he got involved in Indian freedom struggle and started acting as a defence lawyer for leaders imprisoned in the 1942 Quit India movement. He was deeply influenced by Mahatma Gandhi, with whom he spent some time in Sevagram Ashram. Baba Amte was follower of Gandhism for his entire life. He practiced various aspects of Gandhism including weaving and wearing khadi, dedicating his life to the cause of upliftment of the downtrodden classes of society. Baba Amte believed in Gandhism and followed the ideals laid by Gandhi. After his stay at Sevagram, Gandhi's ashram near Wardha, Baba Amte was fascinated by Gandhi and became his disciple. Gandhi conferred upon Baba Amte the title Abhayasadhak (translated as The Fearless Aspirant), for his fight against leprosy.
All his life, Baba Amte was a follower of the Gandhian philosophy and lead a spartan life. He wore Khadi clothes from the looms of Anandwan, and ate fruits and vegetables grown in Anandwan. He believed in the concept of a self-sufficient village industry for the empowerment of seemingly helpless people, and successfully brought his ideas into practice when he established Anandwan.
Baba Amte also used Gandhian principles to fight against the government. He used the same non-violent means to fight the Indian government during theNarmada Bachao Andolan that Gandhi used against the British Raj.
In spite of his emulation of Gandhi's social and political work, Baba Amte was himself entirely non-religious, and was an atheist. He worked in the Kitchen in Sevagram and learned to manage the donated funds for the social work from Mahatma Gandhi.
In 1946, Baba got married to Sadhana Guleshastri, who was later referred to by community members as Sadhanatai or simply Tai ("elder sister"). Their two sons, Vikas and Prakash, are both doctors. Both have dedicated their lives to social work and causes similar to those of their parents. Elder son Dr. Vikas Amte runs the Maharogi Sewa Samiti ("Leprosy Service Society"). Vikas, along with his wife Dr. Bharati Amte, coordinates operations between Anandwan and satellite projects while also running a hospital at Anandwan. Dr Prakash Amte and his wife Dr. Mandakini Amte run a school and a hospital at Hemalkasa village in the underprivileged district of Gadchiroli in Maharashtra. While on a picnic to Bhamragad in Gadchiroli along with his father, Prakash Amte, then a doctor doing his post doctoral studies, was very moved after seeing the misery of Madia Gond tribes in Hemalkasa. In the meanwhile he got married to Dr. Mandakini Amte (later known as Mandatai) who left her government job and moved to Hemalkasa to eventually start a hospital, school and an orphanage for injured wild animals including a lion, leopards and more. Their sons Digant and Aniket are both doctors themselves have decided to dedicate their lives to the same cause.
Anandwan was the first of the three ashrams started by Baba Amte to treat and rehabilitate leprosy victims from the disadvantaged sections of society. After taking a leprosy orientation course at the Calcutta School of Tropical Medicine, Baba Amte began his fight against leprosy. He used to set up about 11 weekly clinics around Warora, in Chandrapur district. Taking his work to the next level, he started the "Anandwan" (Forest of Joy) ashram in a remote jungle near Warora to help rehabilitate patients. Anandwan was registered in 1951 and received a state land grant of 250 acres. In those days, leprosy was associated with social stigma and patients were disowned by society. It was then believed that leprosy patients were sinners, paying for sins they had committed. There was also a widespread fear that leprosy was contagious and could be spread by touch. Baba Amte strove to dispel these myths and once even allowed bacilli from a leprosy patient to be injected into him while participating in an experimental test.
Baba Amte also founded the Somnath and Ashokvan ashrams for treating leprosy patients. The community development project at Anandwan in Maharashtra is recognised and respected around the world and has done much to dispel prejudice against leprosy victims. Today, Anandwan has two hospitals, a university, an orphanage and also a school for the blind. The self-sufficient ashram unit has more than 5,000 people residing in it.Baba Amte had not been keeping well for several years in his later life. He was compelled to lie down on a bed for much of the time due to a severe Spondylosis. In 2007, he was diagnosed with Leukemia.
Baba Amte died in Anandwan on Feb 9, 2008, at the age of 93 years, As per his last wish, he was buried and not cremated.
Upon his death, the 14th Dalai Lama, among others, expressed his condolences saying, "His demise is a great loss to all of us. I am an admirer of Baba Amte. I vividly remember my visit to his thriving community of handicapped people at Anandvan in 1990".
Honours and Awards
Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1985. Gandhi Peace Prize in 1999
Damien-Dutton Award USA, 1983 Highest international award in the field of leprosy
United Nations Human Rights Prize, 1988. International Giraffe Award, USA, 1989
The Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion, USA, 1990, Global 500, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), 1991, The Roll of Honour for Environmental Achievement
The Rights Livelihood Award, Sweden, Awarded by the Government of India, Padma Shree, 1971, Padma Vibhushan, 1986, Welfare of the Disabled Award, 1986Dr. Ambedkar International Award for Social Change, 1999,
Other Awards
Dalit Mitra Award, 1974: Government of Maharashtra
Rashtriya Bhushan (Pride of the Nation), 1978: F.I.E. (India) Foundation
Jamnalal Bajaj Award, 1979
N.D. Diwan Award, 1980: National Society for Equal Opportunities for the ‘Handicapped’ (NASEOH), Bombay
Ramshastri Award, 1983: Ramshastri Prabhune Foundation, Maharashtra, India
Indira Gandhi Memorial Award, 1985: Government of Madhya Pradesh, Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award, 1986: Delhi , Fr. Maschio Platinum Jubilee Award, 1987, Bombay
G.D. Birla International Award, 1988, For outstanding contribution to humanism
Mahdeo Balwant Natu Puraskar, 1991, Pune, Maharashtra
Adivasi Sewak Award, 1991, Government of Maharashtra, Kusumagraj Puraskar, 1991
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Dalit Mitra Award, 1992, Government of Maharashtra
Shri Nemichand Shrishrimal Award, 1994, Fr. Tong Memorial Award, 1995, Voluntary Health Association of India, Kushta Mitra Puraskar, 1995, Vidarbha Maharogi Sewa Mandal, Amravati, Maharashtra, Bhai Kanhaiya Award, 1997: Sri Guru Harkrishan Education Trust, Bhatinda, Punjab, Manav Sewa Award, 1997: Young Men’s Gandhian Association, Rajkot, Gujarat, Sarthi Award, 1997, Nagpur, Maharashtra, Mahatma Gandhi Charitable Trust Award, 1997, Nagpur, Maharashtra, Gruhini Sakhi Sachiv Puraskar, 1997, Gadima Pratishthan, Maharashtra, Kumar Gandharva Puraskar, 1998, Apang Mitra Puraskar, 1998, Helpers of the Handicapped, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, Bhagwan Mahaveer Award, 1998, Chennai, Diwaliben Mohanlal Mehta Award, 1998, Mumbai, Justice K. S. Hegde Award, 1998, Karnataka, Baya Karve Award, 1998, Pune, Maharashtra, Savitribai Phule Award, 1998, Government of Maharashtra, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Award, 1988: FICCI, for outstanding achievements in training and placement of disabled persons. Satpaul Mittal Award, 1998, Nehru Sidhant Kendra Trust, Ludhiana, Punjab
Adivasi Sevak Puraskar, 1998, Government of Maharashtra. Bharathvasa award,2008D.Litt., 1980: Nagpur University, Nagpur, India
Krishi Ratna, 1981: Hon. Doctorate, PKV Agricultural University, Akola, Maharashtra, India
D.Litt., 1985-86: Pune University, Pune, India
Desikottam, 1988: Hon. Doctorate, Vishwabharati, Shanti Niketan, West Bengal, India.
Baba Amte's quotes:
"I don't want to be a great leader, I want to be a man who goes around with a little oil can and when he sees a breakdown offers his help. To me, the man who does that is greater than any holy man in saffron-colored robes. The mechanic with the oil can, that is my ideal in life."
"I am leaving to live along the Narmada. Narmada will linger on the lips of the nation as a symbol of all struggles against social injustice."
" One can live without fingers, but not self-respect."Idiot
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Reference- Wikipedia.
It is very late for this as he passed away on Feb 9, 2008, but I thought better late then never, he has been in my mind for a very long time, during my late twenties, after 5 years in industry, I wanted to join some social organization like his but destiny wanted something else from me, so I moved away from that ideal.
It is an irony that like Mahatma Gandhi he was also overlooked by the Noble Prize Community, :-)) just a fact, nothing political here. I am just trying to pay my respects to the great soul who tried to make a difference in the lives of millions of people with simplicity and courage. And "Bharat Ratna" is also missing from his list of Awards. For the list of awardees go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharat_Ratna
There is this documentary at this site, which shows in what conditions he did his work, http://www.babaamte.net/
This one is good, I picked it up from the Internet: Two great Hero's
Baba Amte's complete biography: http://mss.niya.org/people/baba_amte.php

To continue his beautiful work, interested people can donate at this websitehttp://www.babaamte.net/donate.html

Rs 25000 = 685$ CDN

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal, June 2008

Guru Nanak - Book of Saints-Swami Sivanand Maharaj

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

http://www.asitusi.com/guru_nanak_dev_ji.php

Whenever there is a big catastrophe in the land, whenever there is decline of righteousness,
whenever there are oppression and chaos in the land, whenever the faith of the people in GOD wanes, great men or saints appear, from time to time, to enrich sacred literature, to protect Dharma, to destroy unrighteousness and reawaken the love of God in the minds of the people. India was in a bad plight. Babar from Turkey invaded India, His armies assaulted and sacked several cities. The ascetic captives were forced to do rigorous work. There was wholesale massacre everywhere. The kings were bloodthirsty, cruel and turannical. There was no real religion. There was religious prosecution. The real spirit of religion was crushed by ritualism. The hearts of the people were filled with falsehood, cunningness, selfishness and greed. At such a time Guru Nanak came to the world with a message of peace, unity, love and devotion of God. He came at a time when real religion was replaced by mere rituals and forms. He came to preach the gospel of peace, brotherhood or the unity of humanity, love and sacrifice.
Nanak, the Khatri mystic and poet and founder of the sikh religion, was born in 1469 A.D. in the village of Talwandi on the Ravi river, in the Lahore district of punjab, on one side of the house in which Guru Nanak was born, there stands now the famous shrine called" Nankana sahib".

Now in Pakistan

http://photos.waheguroo.com/details.php?image_id=2898&s=7619d54a223f2698c938295623c6ec73

Nanak has been called the "Prophet of the Punjab and Sind", Nanak's father was Mehta Kalu Chand, known popularly as Kalu. He was the accountant of the village. He was an agriculturist also. Nanak's mother was Tripta. Even in his childhood , Nanak had a mystic disposition and he used to talk about God with saints. He had a contemplative mind and a pious nature. He began to spend his time in meditation and spiritual practices. He was , by habit, reserved in nature. He would eat but little.
When Nanak was a boy of seven , he was sent to Gopal Pandha to learn hindi. The teacher told Nanak to read a book. Nanak replied" what will it avail to know all and not have a knowledge of God?" Then the teacher wrote the Hindi alphabets for him on a wooden slate. Nanak said to the teacher, " Please tell me, Sir, what books have you studied? What is the extent of your knowledge?" Gopal Pandha replied. " I know mathematics and accounts necessary for shopkeeping", Nanak replied , "This knowledge will not in any way help you in obtaining freedom".
The teacher was very astonished at the words of the boy. He told him, "Nanak tell me something which could help me in the attainment of salvation", Nanak said, "O teacher! Burn worldly love, make its ashes into ink and make the intellect into a fine paper. Now make the love of God your pen, and your heart the writer, and under the instructions of your Guru, write and meditate. Write the name of the lord and His praises and write, He has no limit this side or the other, O teacher! Learn to write this account", The teacher was struck with wonder.
The kalu sent his son to Pundit Brij Nath to learn Sanskrit. The Pundit wrote for him "OM", Nanak asked the teacher the meaning of "Om", The teacher replied, "You have no business to know the meaning of "Om", now I can not explain to you the meaning of "Om", Nanak said, "O teacher! what is the use of reading without knowing the meaning ? I shall explain to you the meaning of "Om", Then Nanak gave an elaborate explanation of the significance of "Om", The sanskrit Pundit was stuck with amazement.
Then Kalu tried his level best to turn Nanak's mind towards worldly matters. He put Nanak in the work of looking after the cultivation of the land. Nanak did not pay any attention to his work. He meditated even in the fields. He went out to tend the cattle, but centred his mind on the worship of God. The cattle trespassed into a neighbor's field. Kalu rebuked Nanak for his idleness. Nanak replied , " I am not idle", but I am busy in guarding my own fields", Kalu asked him," where are your fields?" Nanal replied, " My body is a field. The mind is the ploughman, Righteouness is the cultivation. Modesty is water for irrigation. I have sown the field with the seed of the sacred Name of the Lord. Contentment is my field's harrow. Humility is its hedge. The seeds will germinate into a good crop with love and devotion. Fortunate is the house in which such a crop is brought! O sir, mammon will not accompany us to the next world. It has infatuated the whole world, but there are few who understand its delusive nature.
Then Kalu put him in charge of a small shop, Nanak distributed the things to saints and poor people. He would give away in charity whatever he could lay hands on in his father's house and in the shop. Nanak said, " My shop is made of time and space. Its store consists of the commodities of truth and self-control. I am always dealing with my customers, the sadhus and Mahatmas, contact with whom is very profitable indeed".
When Nanak was fifteen years of age, his father gave him twenty rupees and said, "Nanak, go to the market and purchase some profitable commodity". Kalu sent his servant Bala also to accompany Nanak. Nanak and Bala reached Chuhar kana, a village about twenty miles from Talwandi. Nanak met a party of Fakirs. He thought with in himself:" Let me feed these fakirs now, this is the most profitable bargain I can make". He purchased provisions immediately and fed them sumptuously. Then he came back to his house. the servant informed his master of his son's bargian. Kalu was very much annoyed. He gave a slap on Nanak's face.
The father thought that Nanak did not like sedentary work. Therefore he said to Nanak, "O dear son! Ride on a horse and do travelling business. This will suit you nicely", Nanak repllied "Revered father! My trade is divine knowldge. The profits are the purseful of good deeds with which I can certainly reach the domain of the Lord.
Then Kalu chand told Nanak:" If you do not like trade or business, you may serve in some office." Nank replied ." I am already a servant of God. I am endeavouring to do my duty honestly and whole-heartedly in the service of my Lord. I carry out His behests implicitly. I desire fervently to get the reward of devine grace from the Lord by serving Him untiringly and incessantly." On hearing this, the father became silent and retired from there.
There is a remarkable incident in connection with Nanak's visit to Mecca. At Mecca, Nanak was found sleeping with his feet towards the Kaaba, before which the Mohammedans prostrated themselves when performing their prayers. Kazi Rukan-ud-din, who observed this , angrily remarked. "Infidel! How dare you dishonor God's place by turning your feet towards Him?" He also kicked Nanak, Nanak silently replied" I am tired. Turn my feet in any direction where the place of God is not." Kazi Rukan -ud-din took hold of Nanak's feet angrily and moved them towards the opposite direction. The mosque also began to move . The Kazi was struck with wonder. He then recognised the glory of Guru Nanak.

Guru Nanak visited Hassam Abdal in the attock district in the North Western Frontier in 1520 A.D. He sat under a Pipal tree at the foot of a hillock. On top of the hill , there lived a Mohammedan saint named Vali Quandhari. there was then a spring of water on top of the hill. Mardana used to get water for the spring. Guru Nanak became very popular in a short time. The Mohammedan saint became jealous. He forbade Mardana from taking water out of the spring. Mardana informed Guru Nanak of the conduct of the Mohammedan saint. Guru Nanak said to Mardana." O Mardana! Do not be afraid. God will send water down to us soon." The spring that was on the top of the hill dried up immediately. There arose a spring at the foot of the hill where Guru Nanak halted . The saint was very much enraged. He hurled a big rock from the top of the hill down to the spot where Nanak was sitting. Guru Nanak stopped the rock by his open palm. The impression of his hand on the rock exists even now. For images ans story go to

http://pakistaniat.com/2007/01/29/pakistan-sikh-panja-sahib-hasan-abdal-guru-nanak/comment-page-3/

Now in Pakistan.

Then the saint came to the Guru, prostrated at his feet and asked for pardon. Guru Nanak smiled and pardoned the arrogant saint. There now stands a beautiful shrine by the side of the spring which is called: " Punja Sahib".
Nanak has given a beautiful summary of his teachings in one of his hymns as follows:-

Love the saints of every faith
Put away thy pride.
Remember the essence of religion
Is meekness and sympathy.
Not fine clothes,
Not the Yogi's garb and ashes,
Not the blowing of the horns,
Not long prayers,
Not recitations and tortuings,
Not the ascetic way,
But a life of goodness and purity,
Amid the world's temptations.
"Vahe Guru" is the Guru Mantra for the followers of Guru Nanak. The other important Mantra for repetition is :

"Ek Omkar Satnam Karta Purkh Nirbhav Nirvair,
Akalmurat Ajuni Savai Bhang Gur Parsad"

-God is but one, His name is true, He is the creator, He pervades the whole universe, He is without fear, He is without enmity, He is immortal, He is birthless, He is self-born and self -existent, He is the remover of the darkness (Of ignorance) and He is merciful", The Lord is eternal. He has no beginning and no end.
Guru Nanak invented the Gurumukhi characters by simplifying the sanskrit characters.

The holy Granth of the Sikhs is in Gurumukhi. It is worshipped by the Sikhs and the Sindhis. Every Gurudwara has a Granth Sahib, The holy Granth, popularly known as Adi Granth, contains the hymns of the first five Gurus.They were all collected , arranged and formed into one volume called Guru Granth Sahib by the fifth Guru. It contains a few selections from the hymns of Kabir and other contemporary Vaishnavite ( Hindu) saints, Later on, the hymns of the ninth Guru were incorporated in the holy Granth by the tenth Guru. The compositions of Guru Nanak are very extensive.
The Granth Sahib begins with the following: There is but one God whose name is true-the Creator", It contains a code of high morals . Purity of life , obedience to Guru, Mercy, Charity, temperance, Justice, Straightwardness, Truthfulness, Sacrifice service, Love and abstinence from animal food are among the virtues on which great emphasis is laid; while lust, anger, pride, hatred, egoism, greed selfishness, cruelty, backbiting and falsehood are vehemently condemned.

Guru Nanak settled down at Kartarpur towards the close of his life. His whole family lived there together for the first time. Houses for the dwelling of Nanak's family and a Dharmashala were also built Mardana also lived with the Guru. Every day the "Japji and Sohila"- The morning and the evening prayers composed by Guru Nanak-were recited in his presence. Guru Nanak reached his heavenly abode in the year 1538 A.D. at the age of 69. Guru Angad succeeded Guru Nanak. The other Gurus are: Guru Amardas, Guru Ramdas, Guru Arjun, Guru Hargobind, Guru Har Rai, Guru Har Kishan, Guru Teg Bhadur and Guru Gobind Singh.
May the blessings of Guru Nanak be upon you all!

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal, May 2008

Kabir

Kabir ( 1440 A.D. ---- 1519 A.D.) Kashi, India, was found on a lotus leaf in a lake called Lahar Talao near Kashi. and was found by Niru and Nima, a childless Mohammedan weaver.

Sayings of Kabir:

The life is passed in turning the beads, but the darkness of the heart is not destroyed, leave the turning of beads by the hand, but turn the beads of your mind.

If you have no devotion to God, you will not gain anything by pilgrimage. you may roam over the country and yet your heart wil be impure. The man who has gone to Varanasi to see Lord Viswanath, but has not destroyed hypocrisy, lust and greed and has no devotion , will gain nothing.


I am very fond of the words of my sweetheart-Beloved ( GOD). I do not get any solace if anybody tries to console me in other ways. If you make a fish lie on a golden cot and give it Ambrosia to drink, it will surely die in no time.


The diamond appraiser only can know the value of the diamond, Kabir says: Only he who has developed devotion can attain God.


Show thou a rose to him that showeth thee a thorn. To thee there is always a rose; to him there is a thorn for ever more.


Have no faith in this perishable body. Remember the Lord by all your breaths; that is the only way to salvation.


"Why dost thou trample upon me"? crieth the earth to potter, " A day will come when I shall trample upon thee".


The body is an inn and the mind a bird that has willingly taken a lodging in it . it is but a truism that none is none's relative.


'Virtue', abides where there is compassion, 'vice' where there is greed; 'death' where there is wrath, and the Lord Himself where there is forgiveness.


Every forest does not contain a sandal tree; every army does not contain a real soldier; every sea does not contain pearls; even so, a sadhu or a saint or a Mahatma is not found everywhere in the world.


Have patience; everything comes out in time. The gardener waters the plants daily, but it bears fruit only in season.


If I turn the whole earth in to paper, all the trees in to pens and the seven seas in to ink, even then the greatness of the lord cannot be fully described.


There is no greater evil than a bad word; it burns everything into ashes. A kind word is, on the contrary, like rain that falls in nectar-like torrents.


A word is priceless if one knows how to use it. Let every word be weighed in the scales of the heart before it is given out.


Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today, nor till the evening what yo can do this very momentl for you know not when death may overtake you, upsetting all your plans.


He alone is the hero who has all the five senses at his command. He who no such control never approaches the Lord.


A dumb man, having tasted sugar, cannot express its taste, Even so, the experience of Self-realisation can not be expressed.


Just as sugar toys are made of sugar and sugar exists in all os them, even so, the whole universe exists in Brahman and Brahman in it.


The sugar and the sugar toys are not two things ; they both are one. similarly , when real knowledge dawns the manifold universe appears as one.


Just as the tree is in the seed and the seed in the tree, even so is the world in Brahman.


When Kabir died, his body was claimed by both the Hindus and the Mohammedans, the king of Kashi, with the thousands of Hindus wanted to cremate the body and the Mohemmedans wanted to bury it, while they were quarrelling, Kabir's apparition appeared and said, " I was neither a Hindu nor a Mohammedan, I was both, I was nothing, Iwas all, I discern God in both, There is no Hindu and no Mussalman. To him who is free from delusion, Hindu and Mussalman are the same. Remove the shroud and behold the miracle!".


The shroud was removed, a large quantity of flowers were seen under it, half of the flowers were taken by the King of Kashi and cremated on the bank of holy Ganges, the ashes were buried and a temple was built, the temple is known by the name of Kabir Chaura, and the remaining half flowers were buried by Mohammedans at Maghar where Kabir passed away, a mosque was build over the grave. This is a place of pilgrimage for the Mohammedans.

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal, August, 2007

Kung Fu Tse ( Confucius)

Given below are some of the attributes of the "Superior Man", as enunciated by Kung Fu Tse ( Called Confucius by Europeans).

Purpose: The superior man learns in order to attain to the utmost of the principles.

Poise: The superior man, in his thought does not go out of his place.

Self sufficiency: What the superior man seeks is in himself and what the ordinary man seeks is in others.

Earnestness: The superior man in everything puts forth his utmost endeavours.

Thoroughness: The superior man bends his attention to what is radical, That being established, all practical courses naturally grow up.

Sincerity: Is it not his sincerity which distinguishes the superior man.

Truthfulness: What the superior man requires is that in what he says there may be nothing inaccurate.

Purity of thought and action: The superior man must be watchful over himself when alone.

Love of Truth: The superior man is anxious lest he should not get truth, he is not anxious lest poverty comes upon him.

Rectitude: The superior man thinks of the virtue and ordinary man thinks about the comfort.

Prudence: The superior man wishes to be slow in his words and earnest in his conduct.

Composure: The superior man may indeed have to endure want, but the ordinary man when he wants gives way to unbounded licence.

Fearlessness: The superior man has neither anxiety nor fear.

Ease and Diginity: The superior man has dignified ease without pride; the ordinary man has pride without dignified ease.

Firmness: Looked at from a distance The superior man appears stern, when approached , he is mild; when he is heard to speak, his language is firm and decided.

Capacity: The superior man cannot be known in little matters, but may be entrusted with great concerns.

Openness:The faults of the superior man are like SUN and MOON. He has his faults and all men see them. He changes again and all men look up to him.

Benevolence: The superior man seeks to develop the admirable qualities of men and does not seek to develop their evil qualities; The ordinary man does the opposite.

Broad-Mindedness: The superior man honours talent and virtue and bears with all, he praises the good and pities the incompetent.

Moderation: The superior man conforms to the path of the middle course.

Reserve power: That where in the superior man can not be equalled is this, his worth which other men can not see.

Kung Fu Tse speaks of the superior or the ideal man thus : " The superior man is a catholic and not a partisan, he does what is proper to the position in which he is. he does not wish to go beyond it, he finds himself in no position in which is not himself.

" The scholar considers honesty and good faith to be his coat of mail and helmet, propriety and righteousness to be his shield and buckler, He walks along bearing over his head benevolence, he dwells holding righteousness in his arms before him.

The governament may be violently oppressive, but he does not change his course, such is the way in which he maintains himself.

ॐ नमः शिवाय !

Sianala, Montreal, August 22, 2007।

Ramdas- A Mystic

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Ramdas was one of the greatest saints of the world. He was the inspirer of Shivaji. He was born of Suryaji Panth and Renuka Bai in Jamb, Maharashtra, in 1608 A.D. His original name was Narain. Ramdas was a contemporary of Sant Tukaram. He was a great devotee of Hanuman and Lord Rama. He had Darshan of Lord Rama even when he was a boy. Lord Rama Himself initiated him.

As a boy, Ramdas acquired some knowledge of the Hindu scriptures and developed a liking for meditation and religious study. One day he shut himself in a room and began to meditate on God. When his mother asked him what he was doing, Ramdas replied that he was meditating and praying for the good of the world. His mother was surprised at the precocious religious inclination of the boy and felt happy.

When Ramdas was twelve years of age, all arrangements were made for his marriage. He sat in front of the bride. There was a screen between the bridegroom and the bride. When the priests chanted "Sawadhan!' (be alert), Ramdas bolted away from the place and disappeared within the twinkling of an eye.

For twelve years Ramdas stayed at Nasik on the banks of the Godavari. He used to get up very early in the morning, go into the Godavari river, and with his body half-immersed in water, recite the sacred Gayatri Mantra till about noon. Then he would go round for alms. He first offered the collected food to his Deity Sri Rama and then took it as Prasad. After resting a while, he used to attend religious discourses in the various temples of Nasik and Panchavati. Ramdas also studied Sanskrit and copied in his own hand the Ramayana of Valmiki. This manuscript is still preserved in the collection of Sri S.S. Dev of Dhubliah.

Ramdas did Purascharana of the Rama Mantra of thirteen letters Sri Ram Jaya Ram Jaya Jaya Ram, thirteen hundred thousand of times at Tafali, near Nasik, on the banks of the Godavari. After the Purascharana was over, once again Ramdas had Darshan of Lord Rama. It is said that Ramachandra ordered Ramdas to visit holy places such as Nasik, Haridwar, Kasi, etc.
Ramdas sprinkled over a dead body holy water uttering the name of Rama and the dead body was restored to life. Ramdas had to do this, because he had blessed a woman who had just lost her husband.

Ramdas was an Advaitin (Non Dualist)and a Bhakta (Devotee) in one. He had this very noble quality that he never hated any religion or nation. His main object was to spread the Hindu religion throughout India.

Ramdas had not visited Pandharpur, as he had not known the existence of this holy place. One day, the tradition says, Lord Panduranga Vittal, in the form of a Brahmin, with a batch of three hundred pilgrims, appeared before Ramdas and asked him whether he had any objection to see Lord Krishna. Ramdas replied in the negative. Panduranga then took Ramdas to Pandharpur, and when the Bhaktas approached the temple, the Brahmin disappeared. Ramdas then knew that it was none other than the Lord that had brought him to that holy place. He entered the temple, and to his great surprise, found Sri Rama standing alone on a brick.
Ramdas addressed the Deity thus: "O Lord, what are You doing here alone? Where is Your brother Lakshmana and Your consort Sita Mata? Where is Maruti and where are the monkey hordes?". On hearing these words, the image at once transformed itself into Sri Pandarinath. Ramdas then praised Panduranga for His kindness, prostrated before Him and sang songs of joy for getting His rare Darshan. Ramdas now felt doubly convinced that the several incarnations of the Lord were but His several forms and preached that everyone should respect and worship the One who took care of one and all in the world. Ramdas then worshipped Panduranga to his heart's content and became a frequent visitor and Bhakta of Panduranga Vittal also. In Pandharpur, Ramdas came in contact with Tukaram and other saints of Pandharpur. In his pilgrimages, Ramdas observed and studied the social, political and economic conditions of Indians and their utter helplessness in life.

It is said that Sri Rama ordered Ramdas to go to the banks of the Krishna and help the cause of Shivaji, the incarnation of Siva and founder of the Kingdom of Maharashtra. Ramdas came to the Krishna and went about preaching from Mahabaleshwar to Kolhapur. He established eleven principal seats of Maruti which emphasized the importance of physical development. He installed the shrines of Sri Ramachandra at Champavati and introduced Sri Rama Navami Mahotsava and the procession of Sri Rama's chariot. It was at the place called Singanvadi that Shivaji became the disciple of Ramdas.

Shivaji placed the sandals of his Guru on the throne and acted as regent of the kingdom under the orders and guidance of his Guru and adopted as ensign the flag of orange colour. There is a beautiful and romantic incident current in the Maharashtra country about Shivaji's adoption of the Gerua flag and his ruling the kingdom in the name of Saint Ramdas.

One day Shivaji saw, from the terrace of his palace, his Gurudev Ramdas going about the streets with his begging bowl. Shivaji was surprised and could not understand why his Guru should beg when he himself had already placed all his resources at the disposal of his Gurudev. However, Sadhus are difficult to understand. Shivaji therefore called for his companion Balaji, wrote a small chit and asked him to give it to Guruji when he came to the palace. About noon, Ramdas came to the palace with his bowl and Balaji prostrated before Gurudev and placed the chit at his feet. Briefly, the chit conveyed that Shivaji had made a gift of his whole kingdom to Gurudev and he humbly solicited his Gurudev's blessing. The Guru smiled and told Balaji that it was alright. Next morning Ramdas called on Shivaji and asked him what he proposed to do with himself as he had disposed of his kingdom.

Shivaji prostrated himself before Ramdas and said that he would be very happy and consider himself blessed if he should spend his life in his Gurudev's service. Then Ramdas said, "Take this bowl and let us go on our rounds". So Ramdas and King Shivaji went round Satara begging. The people reverently bowed before the pair and gave them alms. The pair returned to the river. Ramdas prepared his simple meals and Shivaji partook of what was left after his Gurudev had finished his meals. Then Shivaji, with a smile, asked his Gurudev what he was going to do with him after reducing him to a beggar. Ramdas knew that the opportunity had come to set up a lofty ideal for the king.

Ramdas asked Shivaji to rule the kingdom in his (Ramdas's) name, to take the Gerua Chaddar for his banner and defend its honour with his life, and to think that the kingdom did not belong to himself but treat it as a trust to be ruled justly and well before God. And thus had come the Gerua banner to Shivaji.

Ramdas spent several years in visiting holy places of pilgrimage. He erected several Hanuman temples in Maharashtra. When he returned from his pilgrimage, somebody told Ramdas that his mother was pining for him, and that she had lost her eyesight on account of extreme sorrow arising out of his separation. Ramdas immediately went to see his mother. He made prostrations to his mother. His mother was exceedingly pleased to meet her son after an absence of many years. Ramdas touched the eyes of his mother. She got back her lost eyesight through the Yogic power of her son.

Ramdas's ways were very peculiar. He appeared to the outside world as a mad man. He had a small bow. He used to have, by his side, a large number of stones with which he pelted every object he saw. To men really interested in his teachings, he gave the Mantra Sri Ram Jaya Ram Jaya Jaya Ram.

Ramdas had eleven hundred disciples, of whom three hundred were women. The women disciples were also expert preachers and were virtuous. Ramdas sent his disciples to all parts of India to spread the Hindu religion. His disciples and Mutts in the North directly or indirectly helped Shivaji and his work. Ramdas's organisation in the South, round about Thanjavur, helped Shivaji's son Rajaram to go to Jinji and carry on the Twenty Years' War with Aurangazeb. When Ramdas visited Thanjavur, Venkoji, who was the step-brother of Shivaji, became his disciple. Ramdas appointed Bhimaswami, his direct disciple, as the Mahant of the Thanjavur Mutt.

Ramdas generally preferred to live in the forest, where he would say, he had better meditation. In his last days, Ramdas devoted his time partly to literary activities and partly to the systematic building up of his disciples and Mutts, both in the North and in the South. The literary works of Ramdas such as Dasabodh, Manache Shlok (verse addressed to the mind), Karunashtakas (hymns to God) and Ramayana (describing only the conquest of Lanka by Sri Rama and the vanquishing of Ravana) are very popular. It was as a tribute to Ramdas's extraordinary patience and determination in rehabilitating the Hindu religion in India that people named him Samartha (all-powerful, or King of Kings) Ramdas, a name which he richly deserved. This great Guru of Maharashtra breathed his last in 1682 at Sajjangad, near Satara, a fortress which was given to him by Shivaji for his residence.

Ramdas repeated the Rama Mantra with his last breath. At the time of his departure from the world, a dazzling light emanated from his body and Ramdas was absorbed in the image of Lord Rama.

The last instructions of Ramdas to his disciples were: "Do not think much of your bodily wants. Have Satsang with devotees. Keep the image of Lord Rama in your heart. Repeat the name of Lord Rama always. Annihilate lust, greed, anger, hatred and egoism. See Lord Rama in all creatures. Love all. Feel His presence everywhere. Live for Him alone. Serve Him in all beings. Make total and unreserved surrender unto Him. You will always live in Him alone. You will attain immortality and eternal bliss".

..........................................................................................................................Swami Sivananda

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal, July 2007

Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi a Mystic

Mahatma Gandhi (Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi) during freedom struggle

Gandhi in the uniform of a sergeant of the Indian Ambulance Corps. He served during the Boer War (1899).

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born into the Hindu Modh family in Porbandar in 1869. He was the son of Karamchand Gandhi, the dewan (Prime Minister) of Porbandar, and Putlibai, Karamchand's fourth wife, a Hindu of the Pranami Vaishnava order. He was born into the vaishya, or business caste.
In May 1883, at the age of 13, Gandhi was married through his parents' arrangements to Kasturbai Makhanji (known as "Ba"), They had four sons: Gandhi was a mediocre student in his youth at Porbandar and later Rajkot. He barely passed the matriculation exam for Samaldas College at Bhavanagar, Gujarat. He was also unhappy at the college, because his family wanted him to become a Barrister.
At the age of 18 on Sep 4, 1888, Gandhi went to University College London to train as a barrister. His time in London, the Imperial capital, was influenced by a vow he had made to his mother in the presence of the Jain monk Becharjee, upon leaving India, to observe the Hindu precepts of abstinence from meat, alcohol, and promiscuity. Although Gandhi experimented with adopting "English" customs – taking dancing lessons for example – he could not stomach his landlady's mutton and cabbage. She pointed him towards one of London's few vegetarian restaurants. Rather than simply go along with his mother's wishes, he read about, and intellectually embraced vegetarianism, He joined the vegetarian society, was elected to its executive committee, and founded a local chapter.

He was encourages to read the Bhagvad Gita. Not having shown a particular interest in religion before, he read about Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and other religions. He returned to India after being admitted to the bar of England, but had limited success establishing a law practice in Mumbai, later applying and being turned down for a part-time job as a high school teacher. He ended up returning to Rajkot to make a modest living drafting petitions for litigants, but was forced to close down that business as well when he ran afoul of a British officer. In his autobiography, he describes this incident as a kind of unsuccessful lobbying attempt on behalf of his older brother. It was in this climate that (in 1893) he accepted a year-long contract from an Indian firm to a post in Natal, South Africa.
Civil Rights Movement in South Africa (1893—1914)

Gandhi read his first newspaper at the age of 23, and was prone to stage fright while speaking in court. South Africa changed him dramatically, as he faced the discrimination commonly directed at blacks and Indians. One day in court at Durban, the magistrate asked him to remove his turban. Gandhi refused and stormed out of the courtroom. He was thrown off a train at Pietermaritzburg, after refusing to move from the first class to a third class coach while holding a valid first class ticket. Traveling further on by stagecoach, he was beaten by a driver for refusing to travel on the foot board to make room for a European passenger. He suffered other hardships on the journey as well, including being barred from many hotels. These incidents have been acknowledged by several biographers as a turning point in his life, explaining his later social activism. It was through witnessing firsthand the racism, prejudice and injustice against Indians in South Africa that Gandhi started to question his people's status, and his own place in society. However, these events by no means explain why he inculcated non-violence instead of aggressive revolution.

At the end of his contract, Gandhi prepared to return to India. However, at a farewell party in his honour in Durban, he happened to glance at a newspaper and learned that a bill was being considered by the Natal Legislative Assembly to deny the right to vote to Indians. When he brought this up with his hosts, they lamented that they did not have the expertise necessary to oppose the bill, and implored Gandhi to stay and help them. He circulated several petitions to both the Natal Legislature and the British Government in opposition to the bill. Though unable to halt the bill's passage, his campaign was successful in drawing attention to the grievances of Indians in South Africa. Supporters convinced him to remain in Durban to continue fighting against the injustices levied against Indians in South Africa. He founded the Natal Indian Congress in 1894, with himself as the Secretary. Through this organization, he molded the Indian community of South Africa into a homogeneous political force, publishing documents detailing Indian grievances and evidence of British discrimination in South Africa. Gandhi returned briefly to India in 1896 to bring his wife and children to live with him in South Africa. When he returned in January 1897, a white mob attacked and tried to lynch him. In an early indication of the personal values that would shape his later campaigns, he refused to press charges on any member of the mob, stating it was one of his principles not to seek redress for a personal wrong in a court of law.
At the onset of the South Africa War, Gandhi argued that Indians must support the War effort in order to legitimize their claims to full citizenship, organizing a volunteer ambulance corps of 300 free Indians and 800 indentured labourers called the Indian Ambulance Corps, one of the few medical units to serve wounded black South Africans. He himself was a stretcher-bearer at the Battle of Spion Kop, and was decorated. At the conclusion of the war, however, the situation for the Indians did not improve, but continued to deteriorate. In 1906, the Transvaal government promulgated a new Act compelling registration of the colony's Indian population. At a mass protest meeting held in Johannesburg on September 11th that year, Gandhi adopted his methodology of Satyagraha (devotion to the truth), or non-violent protest, for the first time, calling on his fellow Indians to defy the new law and suffer the punishments for doing so, rather than resist through violent means. This plan was adopted, leading to a seven-year struggle in which thousands of Indians were jailed (including Gandhi himself on many occasions), flogged, or even shot, for striking, refusing to register, burning their registration cards, or engaging in other forms of non-violent resistance. While the government was successful in repressing the Indian protesters, the public outcry stemming from the harsh methods employed by the South African government in the face of peaceful Indian protesters finally forced South African General Jan Christiaan Smuts to negotiate a compromise with Gandhi.

A British-educated lawyer, Gandhi first employed his ideas of peaceful civil disobedience in the Indian community's struggle for civil rights in South Africa. Upon his return to India, he organized poor farmers and labourers to protest against oppressive taxation and widespread discrimination. Assuming leadership of the Indian National Congress, Gandhi led nationwide campaigns for the alleviation of the poverty, for the liberation of women, for brotherhood amongst differing religions and ethnicities, for an end to untouchability and caste discrimination, and for the economic self-sufficiency of the nation, but above all for Selfrule—the independence of India from foreign domination. Gandhi famously led Indians in the disobedience of the salt tax on the 400 kilometre Dandi Salt March in 1930, and in an open call for the British to Quit India in 1942. He was imprisoned for many years on numerous occasions in both South Africa and India.
Throughout his life, Gandhi remained committed to non-violence and truth even in the most extreme situations. A student of Hindu philosophy, he lived simply, organizing an ashram that was self-sufficient in its needs. Making his own clothes—the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl woven with a chakra, he lived on a simple vegetarian diet. He used rigorous fasts, for long periods, for both self-purification and protest. Gandhi's life and teachings inspired Dr Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Biko and Aung San Suu Kyi and through them the American Civil rights movement and the freedom struggles in South Africa and Myanmar respectively.

In May 1915, Gandhi founded an ashram on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India and called it Satyagraha Ashram (also known as Sabarmati ashram). There lodged twenty five men and women who took vows of truth, celibacy, ahimsa, nonpossession, control of the palate, and service of the Indian people.

Under his leadership India won Independence on 15 August, 1947

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Jan, 2007.

Shri Swami Sivananda Maharaj

Shri Swami Shivananda Guru

Shri Swami Sivananda - another mystic par excellence. a medical doctor by profession but the pull by the nature to renounce the world and serve the unknown was so over powering that, he renounced the world at the young age of 36 years, after excelling in medicine in India and Malaysia, but as nature wanted something else from this spirit, he returned to his final destination, Rishikesh in India.

( Sep 8,1887--Jul 14,1963)

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Life history of this great saint can be read at the following site

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http://www.dlshq.org/saints/siva.htm,

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and all his teachings, e-books, e-articles and other information can be downloaded from

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http://www.dlshq.org/,

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Another site devoted to this great saint is

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http://www.sivananda.org/

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The data generated by this saint in the fields of yoga and vedanta all written by himself are worth reading and worth practising for a better life and for a better understanding of our mind body and soul.

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All this was possible only when he renounced this world and entered sanyasa ashram (Monk Order) and got initiated rest is history, it needs shear devotion, determination and sacrifice to achieve this level of universal understanding, above all a heart so thirsty for knowledge that it is very difficult to quench it with nothing less than the ultimate knowledge of the ultimate.

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Swami Sivananda Saraswati : God has given us a great gift in the form of this human body. The only purpose of this human birth, which is very difficult to get, is to realize God and hence terminate this incessant cycle of birth and death.

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Many Yoga centres and ashrams were started by his disciple Shri Swami Vishnu-Devananda in the west, and the first centre was started in Montreal, Canada in 1959.

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http://www.sivananda.org/montreal/en/index.htm

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Out of all his teaching the small quote is very educative and catchy.

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" Serve- Love- Give-Purify-Meditate-Realize" .

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A very long list of very educative articles can be downloaded free and can also be saved for you personal reference is available at:

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http://www.dlshq.org/download/download.htm

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In this list "Practical lessions in Yoga " is very informative and well explained for begginners.

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Shri Swami Sivanada passed away on 14 July 1963 in his Kutir on the bank of Ganges, In Sivanandanagar.

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Montreal

Jan , 2007

Swami Ramakrishna Paramhansa

Shri Swami Ramakrishna Paramhansa

Shri Swami Ramakrishna Paramhansa, a mystic, (Gadadhar Chattopadhyay) was born to poor Khudiram and Chandramani in the village of Kamarpukur, West Bengal province of Bharat(India). Gadadhar disliked school, and did not show interest in earning money. Instead he devoted most of his time with nature, he liked visiting monks, He respected people from lower caste.

Rani Rashmoni founded a temple at dakshineswar, Gadadhar was to decorate the deity Bhavatarini, he began to question if he was worshipping a piece of stone or a living goddess. If he was worshipping a living Goddess, why should she not respond to his worship? This question nagged him day and night. Then, he began to pray Kali "Mother, please reveal yourself to me, Am I not also your son?" he would weep and some times cryout loudly while worshipping, At night, he would go into a nearby jungle and spend the whole night praying.

One day he grew so impatient to see Mother Kali that he seized a sword hanging on the wall and was about to strike himself with it, when the light from the deity spread across the temple, the very sight of this devine illumination made him unconscious, it is a general talk that, when such a light comes out particularly from Kali, one should start looking at it from the feet to the head to avoid the ferocious appearance of goddess Kali, many monks have lost their minds and gone crazy when gazed directly at the illumination.

by doing so the appearance of the goddess takes the form of very pleasing goddess durga,

Ramakrishna was initiated in advaita vedanta by a wandering monk named Totapuri, in the city of dakshineswar, Ramakrishna started to remain in the state of Samadhi for six months at a stretch.
Rumors spread that Ramakrishna had gone mad, marriage was proposed, instead of objecting to the marriage, he mentioned Jayrambati, three miles away from Kamarpukur, the five-year-old bride, Sarada, was found and the marriage was duly solemnised. she remained with her parents till she turned 18, then she joined Ramakrishna, but by then Ramakrishna was way deep in renunciation, so Sarada become his first disciple, he began to treat her as the Universal mother and would perform puja, Sarada as Tripura Sundari Devi. He said, 'I look upon you as my own mother and the Mother who is in the temple'. Ramakrishna impressed upon Sarada Devi that she was not only the mother of his young disciples, but also of all humanity. Initially, Sarada Devi was initially shy about playing this role, but slowly, she filled it with courage.

Sarada Devi

Her renunciation is believed by devotees to be a striking quality that she shared with her husband in a measure equal to, if not beyond, his. The true nature of their relationship and kinship was believed to be beyond the grasp of ordinary minds. Ramakrishna concluded, after close and constant association with her, that her relationship and attitude toward him were firmly based on a divine spiritual plane. Devotees believe that as they shared their daily lives, no other thought other than that of the divine presence, arose in their minds. An account of such continuous divine relationship between two souls of opposite gender is unique in religious records, not known in any of the past hagiographies. After the passing away of Ramakrishna, Sarada Devi became a religious teacher in her own right and she is called as holy mother.
He soon came to be known as Ramakrishna Paramahansa, seekers of God were attracted to him, he taught the basic truths of religion for about fifteen years and eventually developed throat cancer and attained Mahasamadhi on 16 August, 1886.
Ramakrishna's taught oneness of existence, the divinity of living beings, the unity of god, and harmony of religions, he beleived that the primal bondage of human beings were lust and greed, he emphasized that God-realization is the supreme goal of all living beings, religion was merely a mean for the achievement of this goal. Devotees believe that Ramakrishna's realization of nirvikalpa samadhi also led him to an understanding of the two sides of maya (illusion), to which he referred as Avidyamaya and Vidyamaya. He explained that avidyamaya represents dark forces (e.g. sensual desire, evil passions, greed, lust and cruelity), which keep the world-system on lower planes of conciousness. These forces are responsible for human entrapment in the cycle of births and death, and they must be fought and vanquished. Vidyamaya, on the other hand, represents higher forces (e.g. spiritual virtues, enlightening qualities, kindness, purity, love and devotion), which elevate human beings to the higher planes of consciousness. With the help of vidyamaya, he said that devotees could rid themselves of avidyamaya and achieve the ultimate goal of becoming Mayatita - that is, free from maya.

The famous Swami Vivekanada ( 1863-1902) was his first desciple and he started the

Swami Vivekanada

Ramakrishna matth and Mission institute of culture in Calcutta in 1897, Swami Vivekananda become famous after his speech at Parliament of Religions held in Chicago in 1893, after a very hectic but short public life of mere 10 years, swami vivekananda also suffered from throat cancer and in the midst of acute physical suffering he left for posterity his four classics: Jnana-Yoga, Bhakti-Yoga, Karma-Yoga, and Raja-Yoga, all of which are outstanding treatises on Sanatana( Hindu) philosophy. He passed away at the young age of 39 years.

Under his leadership many national and international vedanta Societies were started, one in Toronto was started in 1968, Vedanta Society of Toronto, 120 Emmett AvenueToronto, Ontario M6M 2E6Phone: 1-416-240-7262 Fax: 1-416-245-3764E-mail: vedanta@total.net, society@vedantatoronto.ca

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

Sianala, Jan 2007

Shri Shirdi Sai Baba

Shri Shirdi Sai baba

( xxxxx-----15 Oct 1918 )

Shri Shirdi Sai Baba, a mystic, lived as a fakir in shirdi, begged his food and spent his renounced life under the neem (Azadirachta indica) tree, Shri Hemadpant wrote "Sai Satchritra in Marathi and was blessed by Sri Sai in 1910 to initiate this work, english translation of this work was done by Shri Nagesh Vasudev Gunaji, Shri Sai breathed his last on 15 Oct 1918.

Mystic's divine powers, he used to lit lamps with pure water, could pull out a burning piece of coal out of the ground using two tongs to lit his pipe.

The Samadhi mandir is at Shirdi about 15 KM from the nearest railway station of Kopargoan, which is about 296 KM from Mumbai, this is a grand temple and is visited by millions, boarding and lodging is available near the temple.

Datta Avatar Sadguru Sai! Majla Tthav Dhava Payi!!

More than three generations of my family have been worshipping Shri Sai Baba.

Prardhanastakam

1. Shantachitta Mahapragnya Sai nadha Dayadhana!

....Daya Shindhu Satyasvarupa Mayaatama Vinashna!!
2. Jaata Gaotateeta Siddha Anchitya Karunalaya!
....Pahimam Pahimam Naadha Shirdigrama Neevasaya!!
3. Sri Gyanarka Gyanadaatya Sarvamangala Karaka!
....Bhakta Chitta Maralaahe Sharnagata Rakshaka!!
4. Srishti Karta Viranchittey patatu Indirapati!
....Jagatra alayaneta Rudratotuncha Nishchiti!!
5. Tujavenney Ritakotthey Tthav Naya Mahavaree!
....Sarvagnyatu Sai Nadha Sarvanchaka Hridayantree!!
6. Kshama Sarvaprardhinchi Karaviheytee Maaganey!
....Abhakti Samsayachatya Latta Shri Granivariney!!
7. Tudheynu Satsametaneyva Tu Indu Chandrakanta mee!
....Svarnnadhirupa Tvatvapadha Aadharey Dasaheenamee!!
8. Ttheyva Aataa Shri Majhya Krupeychakara Panjara!
....Shoka Chinta Nivarani Gannoo Ha Tava Kinkara!!
..............Jaya Jaya Sai Sadguru Parmatma Sai!
(Source- Shri Shiridi Sai baba Jivitha Charitra - Shri Patti Narayana Rao)

Shri Sai Nitya Daiva Prardana

Karuna murthy agu o sai maachittam sarva kala sarvavasthalayandunu mee padaara vindamlu yandu lagnam aii achanchalam ayna bhakti to kuudi undunatulu anugrahimpumu!
## Guardian of forgiveness O Sai please bless my heart so that always and all the time it is focused at your feet with unshaken and un distracted devotion.##
Paramadayanidhi baba! prataakalam nidra lechinadi modalu marla parundu varukunu manovakayam maa valana evari ki ni apakaram kalga kundunatlunu itara prana kotlaku upakaram cheyyu lagunu sadbudhini daya cheyamu.
## Prime Guardian of forgiveness! Please bless me with good intended mind so that right from getting out of bed in the morning till again falling asleep, I should utter only to do good but not to hurt anyone. ##
Sacchidanandamurthy! sadguru! O Shiridi Sha! Maa antha karnamunandu yenaddunu ye vidhamayna dustha sankalpam gaani vishaya vasana gaani agyana vruuti gaani jora padakundulatnu daya to anugrahimpu nu.
## Sacchidananda murthy! O Good teacher! O Shiridi Sai! Please guide my soul so that it does not rush into any kind of evil intentions, evil obsessions & habits, and ignorant jobs##
Nimba vriksha mula nivasa! abhaya svarupa! maa yandu bhakti, gyana vairaga beejam ankurinchi sheegramga pravrudamulagunatlu ashirvadimpamu mariyu ee janmam nande kadateri mee saanidhyamu na ketanchitavalisina shakti samardyamulunu karuna to nosangumu.
##O resident of the Neem Tree! Fearless Form of god! Please plant the seed of renunciation in me and bless me with abilities to overcome the desires of this physical life.##
Daasa guna hridya nandunavu deenalu palita kalpavriksha swarupudavu! neevu tappa naku inka evaru dikku?
## Your heart beats for all the downtrodden and poor, you are god's form of "tree of wish " for the poor, other than you who is my caretaker##
Ninnu ashrainchitini asatu nuunchi satunaku konipamu ! tamsu nundi jyoti loni ki teesukoni pomu, mrutyu nundi amrutatvamu pondacheyumu eede naa vinatee anugrahimpumu nee dari cherichkonumu.
## As I lean on to you, Please bless me so that I can walk from untruth to truth, from darkness to light, from death towards ambrosia, this is my request, please accept my request so that I can reach you##

Om Sai Ram Sai Ram Sai Ram Sai.

Eee Prardhana Ubhaya Velalo Smarinichvariki Sai Eeshu Ni Anugraham tappaka kalugutundi.

## Those who read this prayer in the morning, will definitely receive Shri Sai Eeshu's blessings##
Shri Sai Gayatri Mantra

Gyana Rupaya Vidmahe

Avadhutaya Dhi Mahi

Tanno Sai Prachodayat.

Om Shri Sai Devo Namah!

ॐ नमः शिवाय!

SIanala, Dec 31, 2006