The Shiva-Shakti Avatar - Sri Sathya Sai Baba

 The feet that differed

Prof. Anil Kumar was a delighted man. He had just been beckoned into the ‘interview room’ by his master and god, his Swami, Sri Sathya Sai Baba.

The term ‘interview room’ does not do any justice to what happens inside. Probably, the Hindi term for ‘interview room’ - Sakshatkar Kaksh - provides an indication of the powerful experiences that transpire within. Sakshatkar, on one hand, means a face-to-face interaction but, on the other hand, it also means experiencing the manifestation of the omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient divinity in a physical form. The interview rooms where Swami granted audiences and interactions to tens of thousands of people have witnessed millions of magical moments and the professor was in for one such moment. 

He went in and found Swami seated on His chair in the northwestern corner of the room. He rushed and seated himself at His feet. Even as Swami began to converse, the professor placed his hands on His feet and began enjoying the bliss of Padasevanam (service to the feet of one’s Guru/God). A few minutes later, he realized that there were some deep impressions in the flesh at the left ankle. Looking down, he realized that they were impressions that were probably created by a heavy anklet. Surprisingly, these impressions were absent on the right ankle. Unable to bear the curiosity, he interrupted the conversation and asked,

“Swami, what are these marks on your left ankle?”

Swami smiled and gave a reply that thrilled the genial professor to the core.

Anil Kumar sir on one of the several occasions when he got an interview from Swami.

The differential diagnosis

Dr. Narottam Maharaj Alreja had the greatest good fortune of being the ‘personal physician’ of his Avatar of the Age - Sri Sathya Sai Baba. He had earlier worked in the well known J.J.Hospital, Mumbai, as its Superintendent and had joined the Sri Sathya Sai General Hospital, Prasanthi Nilayam as its Superintendent in the year 1975. 

One afternoon, at about 1:30 pm, he suddenly received summons to Swami’s residence. Wondering what the issue might be, he gathered his medical bag and rushed to the spot. Swami welcomed him with a smile and said that he was feeling uneasy. The one who is always at the most supreme easy sports uneasiness only to convey a message and grant an experience. That would be the doctor’s discovery that day. 

“Check my blood pressure”, the doctor was advised and he immediately readied his sphygmomanometer to do the same. Putting the cuff to Swami’s right arm, Dr. Alreja pumped the machine to take measurements. The blood pressure was 80/56 and pulse rate 48 per minute. This was not good but the doctor knew that he was face to face with God.

“Is there anything serious, Alreja?” Swami enquired.
“Swami, what can ever be serious with Swami?”
“But the expression on your face changed when you took the readings...”

“May I take the BP readings for the other arm?”

“Do whatever you need to form your diagnosis.”

Dr. Alreja removed the cuff from Swami’s right arm and slid it over His left arm. As he pumped up the machine and listened carefully in his stethoscope, the BP showed 120/80 with a pulse rate of 72 per minute. This was the perfect ‘normal’.

“Now what is your diagnosis?” Swami asked.

Alreja was a devotee first and doctor later. He prostrated to Swami and gave his diagnosis.

Dr. Alreja speaking in the General Hospital (2003)

“You got a heart attack with a blockage of the artery. You say that You are Siva Shakti Swarupa. Siva on the right side had taken over the heart attack of a Siva bhakta. On the left side, Shakti was unaffected. Am grateful that you provided me with medical proof that you are Shiva-Shakti.”

At that moment, Swami raised the robe and blessed the doctor with another beautiful revelation and experience.

“See on the right chest and arm, there is hair. On the left side of My chest and arm, there is no hair.”

The Shiva-Shakti Swaroopa

In the interview room, it was a similar experience that was granted to Prof. Anil Kumar. He immediately realized that the curtains had been parted for him to witness the Shiva-Shakti. Even as that realization dawned, Swami confirmed it, saying,

“That is the Shiva-Shakti swaroopa.”

The earliest recorded instance of Swami indicating the Shiva-Shakti is when, as a child, He would apply both vibhuti and kumkum to His forehead. The ‘parents’ and ‘friends’ would wonder what was happening, unaware that a revelation was in progress. Nobody probably even thought of this aspect of the Avatar till the magnificent miracle and declaration during the Guru Poornima of 1963 when Swami cured a paralytic stroke to the left half of His body by just sprinkling a few drops of water and then stood up to deliver the divine discourse, revealing the secret of Shiva-Shakti. (We have included that historic discourse in this issue of ‘The Eternal Companion’)

The name ‘Sai’ itself means Shiva-Shakthi. Etymologically, the first letter Sa(h) signifies the supreme Divinity (Eeshvara) or Shiva. Ayee, the second word signifies Shakthi, Ambaa or the universal Divine Mother. If the two letters are joined, the euphonic combination becomes Saayee: The great Vedic scholar and seer of the holy Mantra, the Sri Sathya Sai Gaayatri, the late Ghandikota Subramanya Shastri versified in Sanskrit as follows:

Shivah Sah Ithi Anena Ukthah

Ayee Ithi Ambaa Prakeerthithaa

Thath Samyogah Shivas-Saambah

Saayee Ithi Prathipaadhyathe

There is also the beautiful incident of Swami’s reminder to the great Sanskrit scholar. 

On one Shankara Jayanthi day ( the birth anniversary of the Indian guru, philosopher and Adwaitin, Adi Shankaracharya), Swami asked Sri Ghandikota Subramanya Shastri to address a large gathering of devotees in the spacious Poornachandra Auditorium. Being a master of Vedic learning and practice, he dwelt at length on the divine qualities and powers of Swami, comparing Him with several Vedic divinities - Gayatri, Dattatreya, Vishnu and the like. By a slip of memory, he forgot to mention the Shiva aspect of Baba, although Shiva happened to be his Ishta Devatha or favorite form of Divinity. Later, through the rest of the day he regretted this omission.

The next morning, after the regular bhajan was over, Swami graced the scholar and his son, with a memorable interview. The discussion centered on the triple Vedic paths of Karma, Bhakthi and Jnaana (Work, Worship, and Wisdom) and the triple divinities: Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. At the end, Swami led them into the Bhajan Hall and showed them around the new decorative installations in the Bhajan Mandir. Stopping in front of the Shirdi Baba painting, He waved His right palm and lovingly materialized an unusual color picture.

The photograph materialised by Swami

"Idhi naa nija svaroopam (This is My True Form)”, He declared. This electrified the Vedic scholar.

If the word Esha (short for Eshwara or Shiva) is reversed in its Sanskri rendering, it becomes Shaayee, which further reduces to Saayee or Sai. Thus Swami's name as well as its meaning point in the direction of the Shiva-Shakti. 

Bhakti’s logic

I had once asked my 6-year old daughter, Bhakti (as named by Swami in my dream), 

“Why is it that we have Avatars of Vishnu but not of Shiva?”

Pat came the reply,

“That is because Vishnu is in Vaikuntha and needs to descend to the Earth. Shiva lives in Kailasa which is already on Earth. There is no need for an Avatar.”

A child’s spontaneity always holds a Truth. Indeed, Shiva-Shakti lives on Earth. And we are fortunate to have seen, touched and experienced our dear Swami. 

                                              The Story of Shiva-Shakti - Gurupoornima 1963

His Boys His Voice - Part 1 - Parting the veil of Maya

 “In this Avatar (Divine Incarnation), the wicked will not be destroyed; they will be corrected and reformed and educated and led back to the path from which they have strayed. The white-ant infested tree will not be cut; it will be saved.” 

Sri Sathya Sai Baba (Mahashivarathri 1955)

Ever since the start of the colleges at Anantapur, Brindavan and Prasanthi Nilayam, Swami started spending increasing amounts of time with His students. On many occasions, He remarked to different people that seventy five percent of His time would be spent for the students. That was evident as Swami poured His time on His students, be it in the interview room, the bhajan hall, the hostel, the institute auditorium, the Trayee sessions or the ‘PC sessions’ (private sessions in the Poornachandra auditorium). Every visionary needs good succession planning to carry on the envisioned mission. Swami’s succession planning can be understood from His shift in emphasis from “My Life is My Message” to “Your Life is My Message”. 

The students were both near and dear to Him.

It appears as if Swami chose the students as the working sample to signal this shift in emphasis. 

In many private interviews and interactions, Swami told the devotees that His life was His message. It was during the First World Conference, on the 17th of May 1968, that Bhagawan decided to probably publicly announce the same.

“Many of you plead for a 'Message' from Me, to take to the Samithi of which you are members. Well. My life is My message. You will be adhering to My message if you so live that your lives are evidence of the dispassionate quiet, the courage, the confidence, the eagerness to serve those who are in distress, that My life inspires you with.”

And that is why, all His life, He ate as we do, moved about like us, spoke in our languages, behaved in a manner that we recognise and understand - so that we feel kinship with Him and submit ourselves to His alchemical love. His plan is to transmute the seeker of the world into a seeker of Sathya (Truth). However, even as He sang along, spoke and engaged with everyone, He would part the clouds of Maya to reveal His divinity and ultimate objective.

Lord Rama's actual birthplace

The students were blessed with a number of such opportunities of spotting the Divine behind the veil and, at the same time, developing a kinship and friendship with the Universal Sakha. This would happen after the darshan and interview sessions when Swami would come ambling towards the students and interact with them, the teachers and others. These interactions could be casual or formal, jocular or serious but they would always contain profound lessons and insights. For instance, one morning, Swami was speaking to a group of high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Education from the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In the full view of the students, Swami said,

“All parties have their eyes only on votes but are not genuinely concerned about the welfare of the nation. Everybody wants to be a leader today but no one wants to accept the responsibilities. A leader must lead and not push. But today’s leaders simply push from the back.”

When the torrent of Truth seemed to have subsided, one of the officials mustered the courage to ask Swami about a burning social issue.

“Bhagawan, You must be knowing where Rama Janma Bhoomi (birthplace of Lord Rama) really is, don’t You?”

“Yes! I do”, was the reply. With great excitement and anticipation, the official asked,

“Please tell us then - where is Rama Janma Bhoomi?”

“Where else - it is the womb of Kausalya!” Swami replied with a smile. 

Everyone including the questioner had a smile. It was evident that a nation had forgotten this important Truth and was bickering and fighting over a piece of land. Swami also showed the students that speaking with tact was as important as speaking the Truth. 

Who better than Sai Rama to reveal about Rama!

Truth in moments

On another occasion, Swami was speaking to a professor from the MBA department. Then, He turned His attention towards the students and began to speak to them. As He did so, He held the professor’s hand and was playing with the ring he wore. After a few minutes, Swami looked at the professor who said,

“Swami, You only gave that.” (An obvious reference to the ring.)

Pointing to the professor’s body, Swami asked instantly,

“And what about this?”

He then walked off to allow the profundity of what He had casually remarked to seep into the witnesses. Being the embodiment of Sathya, it is hardly surprising that Truth came so naturally to Him. And He used that Truth to constantly chisel the devotee. 

One day, the boys prayed that Swami bless the hostel with His visit. Swami asked,

“Why? What will you give me?”

“We will give ourselves Swami...”

“That you can do here itself. Why go to the hostel?”

“Swami, we will give you whatever you want...”

“Is that so? Then, I want fish sambar!”

All the students started laughing. Swami added,

“Yes! I want ‘fish’ and not ‘selfish’. Fish can at least clear the dirt in water. But selfishness only adds to impurities.”

Many were the ‘excuses’ Swami would give for not going to the hostel. They were only to increase the pining in the students and also shower wisdom through His words. On another occasion when students prayed for the same, Swami said that there was no need for the additional burden of His visit to the hostel when the students had exams. But when the students persisted, Swami called an elderly devotee and told him to drive some sense into the boys.

“Boys! You are now having exams and it will not be right for Swami to come to the hostel now.” Instead of stopping at that, the devotee continued,

“Anyhow, you must develop the feeling that Swami is with you wherever you are.  Else, what is the use?”

Swami now stopped him and asked,

“These boys want to know that if you have already developed that feeling, then why have you come here at all?” 

There was a mild laughter and the devotee presented his defence,

“Swami, what I meant was that I discharge my responsibilities wherever I am with full knowledge of Swami in my heart.”

The Lord doesn’t need clarification on what one meant. He always understands and replies to only what one means irrespective of the language or choice of words. Isn’t He the Bhavapriya? Swami’s reply was meant for everyone.

“Is Swami in your heart or are you in Swami? If I am holding this kerchief in My hand, My hand is bigger than the kerchief. In the same way, if i am in your heart, you are big and I am small.” 

The travel beyond everyone's imagination

There were many such gentle reminders of who He is so that the students remain focussed. On the 13th of October 1992, Swami came to the students and said,

“This afternoon, we got a phone call from Bangalore. Col. Joga Rao has been admitted in the ICU of Apollo Hospital. He is serious and they want Swami to come. Actually, I need not go there to save him. I can do it from here itself. But I am going there to teach you all how to show gratitude. Joga Rao is 86 years old and yet works like a young man. It is My duty to go and see him.”

The students asked when He would return.

“After one year!” 

As the students stared incredulously, Swami smiled and said,

“I will go and come back immediately.”

The next day, rumours ran high regarding Swami’s expected time of departure to Bangalore. But Swami appeared least perturbed as He granted morning and evening darshans as usual. During the bhajans, He revealed,

“Poor boys! They thought that I was going to Bangalore in the morning. They thought that the car would be brought and they would come for morning darshan. But I went to Bangalore last night itself. Within five minutes, I was inside Joga Rao’s room in Apollo. Joga Rao was excited and he said,

“Swami has come - get a chair!” But nobody else could see me. I sat with him the whole night. His blood pressure was fluctuating wildly and so was his pulse. Soon, his pulse stopped and his body became cold. But I revived him though the doctors said he was gone. Good man! He works a lot. He is a Karma Yogi. By morning, he had recovered completely. By 4 am, he started eating normally and wanted to come back to Puttaparthi at once. But I advised him to rest for a couple more days and then return. Swami has cured him.”

Col Jogarao's life was indeed a blessed one

God walking and talking spreads such a magical world of sweetness around, that the devotee hardly bothers about the inner world. Swami’s extended tours, His ever increasing personal involvement in the lives of devotees through many service projects and individual ministrations, His eloquent talks, and of course the incredible miracles flowing from His Presence opened a new era of faith and devotion which mankind had lost in building up a material civilisation. His purity, His simplicity and universality created such an aura around Him that whoever was touched by it felt blessed. He gently showed the scientists and intellectuals that there is a more humbling dimension to human understanding, that omniscience and omnifelicity is a reality, that all the religions have a much greater universal face than we wanted to believe, that the globe can become a single home for the Homo sapiens if we dare to take God’s hand and walk with Him. 

All this He achieved by just being what He was, a very loving, caring, unpretentious God who loved to share our lives. Humanity needed a palpable God, and He was that.

to be continued in Part 2