Day 201 – Baba’s regard for Shrines

|| Aum Sai Ram || Aum Sai Para Brahmanaa Namah ||

“Before stating how Naivaidya was distributed, we shall refer to Nanasaheb Chandorkar’s story showing Baba’s regard for local shrines and deities.

Nanasaheb’s Disrespect of a Shrine

By drawing inferences or guessing in their own way, some people said that Sai was a Brahmin, and some said that He was a Muslim. In reality, He belonged to no caste. No one knew definitely when He was born, and in what community, and who His parents were. Then how could He be a Muslim or Brahmin? If He was a Muslim, how could He keep Dhuni ever burning in the Masjid, how could there be a Tulsi-vrindavan there, how could He allow the blowing of conches and ringing of bells, how could He allow all the different forms of Hindu worship there? Had He been a Muslim, could He have ears pierced and could He have been spent money from His pocket for repairing Hindu temples? On the contrary, He never tolerated the slightest disrespect to Shrines and Deities.

Once Nanasaheb Chandorkar came to Shirdi with his ‘Sadhu’ – husband of his wife’s sister, Mr. Biniwale. When they went to the Masjid and sat before Baba, the latter suddenly got angry with Nanasaheb and said, “You have been so long in My company then why do you behave like this?” Nanasaheb at first did not understand anything and humbly requested Baba to explain. Baba asked him, when did he come to Kopergaon and how he came to Shirdi from there. Nanasaheb then at once realized his mistake. He usually worshipped the Shrine of Datta, on the banks of the Godavari, at Kopergaon on his way to Shirdi, but this time he dissuaded his relative, who was a Datta Bhakta, from going to that Shrine in order to avoid delay and drove straight. He confessed all this to Baba and told Him that, while bathing in the Godavari, a big thorn went into his foot and gave him much trouble. Baba said that, that was the slight punishment he met and warned him to be more careful in future.”

– SHRI SAI SATCHARITA (Chapter XXXVIII)

|| Aum Sai Sharnam || May Peace Be To All ||