philosophical significance.
According to the ancient and revered custom, Hemadpant begins
the work, Shri Sai Satcharita, with various salutations.
(1) First, he makes obeisance to the God Ganesh to remove all
obstacles and make the work a success, and says that Sri Sai is God
Ganesh Himself.
(2) Then, to goddess Saraswati to inspire him to write the work
and says that Shri Sai is one with this Goddess, and that He is Himself
singing His own life.
(3) Then, to the Gods; Brahma, Vishnu and Shankar – the Creating,
Preserving and Destroying deities respectively, and says that Sainath is
one with them and He, the great teacher, will carry us across the river
of worldly existence.
(4) Then, to his tutelary deity Narayan Adinath, who manifested
himself in Konkan – the land reclaimed by Parashurama, (Ram in the
Hindi version) from the sea; and to the Adi (Original) Purush of the
family.
(5) Then, to Bharadwaj Muni, into whose gotra (clan) he was born
and also to various Rishis, Yagnyavalkya, Bhrugu, Parashar, Narad,
Vedavyas, Sanak, Sanandan, Sanatkumar, Shuka, Shounak,
Vishwamitra, Vasishtha, Valmiki, Vamadev, Jaimini, Vaishampayan,
Nava Yogindra etc; and also modern saints, such as Nivrutti, Dnyanadev,
Sopan, Muktabai, Janardan, Eknath, Namdev, Tukaram, Kanha, and
Narahari etc.
(6) Then, to his grandfather, Sadashiv, father Raghunath, his
mother, who left him in his infancy; to his paternal aunt, who brought
him up, and to his loving elder brother.
(7) Then, to the readers and prays to them to give their whole and
undivided attention to his work.
(8) And lastly, to his Guru Shri Sainath – an Incarnation of Shri
Dattatreya, Who is his sole refuge and Who will make him realize, that
Brahma is the reality and the world an illusion; and incidentally, to all
beings, in whom the Lord God dwells.
After describing in brief the various modes of devotion according
to Parashar, Vyasa and Shandilya etc., the author goes on to relate the
following story :
“It was some time after 1910 that I went, one fine morning, to the
Masjid in Shirdi to have darshan of Sai Baba. I was wonder-struck to
see the following phenomenon. After washing His mouth and face, Sai
Baba began to make preparations for grinding wheat. He spread a sack
on the floor, and thereon set a hand-mill. He took some quantity of
wheat in a winnowing fan, and then, drawing up the sleeves of His
kafni (robe), and taking hold of the peg of the hand-mill, started grinding
the wheat, by putting a few handfuls of wheat in the upper opening of
the mill and rotated it. I thought, “What business Baba had with the
grinding of wheat, when He possessed nothing and stored nothing,
and as He lived on alms!” Some people who had come there thought
likewise, but none had the courage to ask Baba, what He was doing.
Immediately, this news of Baba grinding wheat spread into the village,
and at once men and women ran to the Masjid and flocked there to see
Baba’s act. Four bold women, from the crowd, forced their way up and
pushing Baba aside, forcibly took the peg or handle into their hands,
and singing Baba’s Leelas started grinding. At first, Baba was enraged,
but on seeing the women’s love and devotion, He was much pleased
and began to smile. While they were grinding, they began to think that
Baba had no house, no property, no children, none to look after and He
lived on alms, and therefore, He did not require any wheat-flour for
making bread or roti, what will He do with this large quantity of flour?
Perhaps, as Baba is very kind, He will distribute the flour amongst us.
Thinking in this way and while singing, they finished the grinding and
after putting the hand-mill aside, they divided the flour into four portions
and began to remove them by taking one portion per head. Baba, Who
was calm and quiet up till now, got wild and started abusing them
saying, “Ladies, have you gone mad? Whose father’s property are you
looting away? Have I borrowed any wheat from you, so that you can
safely take the flour? Now, do this! Take the flour and throw it on the
village borders!” On hearing this, the women felt abashed and
whispering amongst themselves, went to the outskirts of the village and
spread the flour, as directed by Baba.
I asked the Shirdi people, “What was this that Baba did?” They
replied that, as cholera epidemic was spreading in the village this was
Baba’s remedy for the same; it was not wheat, that was ground, but
cholera itself was ground to pieces and pushed out of the village. From
this time onward, the cholera epidemic subsided and the people of the
village were happy. I was much pleased to know all this, but at the
same time my curiosity was also aroused. I began to ask myself ... What
earthly connection was there between wheat flour and cholera? What
was the causal relation between the two, and how to reconcile them?
The incident seems to be inexplicable. I should write something on this
and sing to my heart’s content Baba’s sweet leelas, thinking in this way
about this leela, my heart was filled with joy and I was thus, inspired
to write Baba’s life – The Sai Satcharita.
And as we know, with Baba’s grace and blessings this work was
successfully accomplished.
Philosophical Significance of Grinding
Apart from the meaning, which the people of Shirdi put on this
incident of grinding wheat, there is, we think, a philosophical
significance too. Baba lived in Shirdi for about sixty years and during
this long period, He did the business of grinding almost every day –
not, however, wheat alone, but the sins, the mental and physical
afflictions and the miseries of His innumerable devotees. The two stones
of His mill consisted of karma and bhakti; the former being the lower
one and the latter, the upper one. The handle, with which Baba worked
the mill, consisted of dhyan. It was the firm conviction of Baba that,
knowledge or self-realization is not possible, unless there is the prior
act of grinding of all our impulses, desires, sins; and of three gunas, viz.
Sattva, Rajas and Tamas, and the Ahankar, which is so subtle and
therefore, so difficult to get rid of.
This reminds us of a similar story of Kabir, who seeing a woman
grinding corn, said to his Guru, Nipatniranjan, “I am weeping, because
I feel the agony of being crushed under this wheel of worldly existence,
like the corn in the hand-mill.” Nipatniranjan replied, “Do not be
afraid, hold fast to the handle of knowledge of this mill, as I do, and
do not wander far away from the same, but turn inward to the centre,
and you are sure to be saved.”
Bow to Shri Sai — Peace be to all
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