Love is My Form_8_Cutting Ties | Sathya Sai = Light of Love

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LOVE IS MY FORM – A Biographical Series On Sri Sathya Sai Baba

– Volume One, The Advent (1926–1950) by R. Padmanaban

Cutting Ties – Chapter 8

Sai Baba Gundu: Raju declared His Divinity, setting on this historic rock

After the summer holidays, the school at Uravakonda reopened for the new session. Raju went along with his brother to the school as if nothing at all had happened. It was only then that he actually attended school. He became the leader of the school prayer - a role he had played since he was a small boy, delighting the teachers with his mellifluous voice. The teachers admired him and vied with each other to teach in his class - Manchiraju Thammiraju and Mehboob Khan being especially fond of him. Venkamma recalls that Raju was admitted to Form Three (VIII Standard) in the High School at Uravakonda and that his claim of being Sai Baba and the news of his miraculous powers had spread to the people there.

In those days, the singing of a prayer composed by Rabindranath Tagore, began daily sessions in schools established by Annie Besant of the Theosophical Society. The same prayer was sung in Raju's school.

Aharaha thava aahvaana prachaarita

Shuni thava udaara vaani

Hindu Bauddha Sikha Jaina Paarasika

Mussalamaano Christanni

Pooraba paschima aase

Thava simhasane paase

Premahaara hoye gantha

Jana gana aikya vidhayaka jayahe.

Moment to moment, Thy clarion call resounds

Hearing Thy magnanimous words,

Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Parsees, Muslims and Christians

Come from East and West to Thy throne,

Making the garland of Love.

Hail to Thee who unites all humanity!

The song-which speaks of the unity of religions, peace and tolerance, the basic philosophy of Indian life-was destined to become the forerunner of the National Anthem, years later.

One Thursday, as Raju was playing and talking to some of his classmates in the school, he raised his hand and waved. Yellow coloured rice grains (usually used for worship, hence regarded as sacramental) fell on the heads of his companions. Abdul Khader, the student leader came to know of it and asked Raju where he had got the rice from and how it had emerged from his hand. Raju spread his right palm and pointing to it with his left index finger, showed Abdul Khader the mark of a lotus in the centre of his palm.

On Thursdays Raju was known as 'Sai Baba' to the visitors of his brother's house and later at the house of Anjaneyulu, the Excise Inspector. Raju would go home early on Thursday afternoons, with permission from the teachers, to get ready for puja. The puja would begin after five in the evening and would go on until eight or nine at night. Often there were no classes on those afternoons because most of the teachers, holding him in high regard, would leave school to attend puja. Often people would seek his counsel, bringing their problems and worries. 'After arathi he would materialise vibhuti, sweets and fruit and distribute them as prasadam to the devotees. He also answered questions, most of them before they could be asked.'

Even his Headmaster, struck by the radiant glow on Raju's face, bowed his head in salutation to him. Though many gathered at the house for prasadam, the Headmaster and teachers like Manchiraju Thammiraju, V C. Kondappa and Sesha Iyengar, came to listen and benefit from Raju's spiritual wisdom. Many teachers, including Peraraju (who wrote poems about him) and H. S. Venkataramana, named their children after Baba, while some others were afraid and treated him as a Divine Being. In those days the people of Uravakonda also felt devotion towards him and performed rituals, pujas and attended bhajans in large numbers.

Outside of school hours Raju would advise his classmates how to live a noble life. He would collect a group in the Subramanya Temple and teach bhajans and songs on Sai Baba of Shirdi. The name Sai Baba of Shirdi thus became a link for the world.

Raju's following was unquestionable. The boys would sometimes neglect their homework spending their evenings singing bhajans or following Raju. The elders, supported by irate teachers, often punished them for this behaviour. "We were beaten countless times," K. Sitharama Rao his classmate, would say later-adding that Raju was much colded by his sister-in-law for neglecting his studies. "You are not even a Brahmin boy like your friends," she would shout at him. "They at least can ask for alms moving from door to door, whereas you cannot even do that. If you don't study well, how are you going to live?"

Afraid of inciting the wrath of the elders, the boys would po tone Miran Moinuddin to act as watchman whenever they planned a big bhajan meet. If an elder was sighted, Moinuddin would alert the boys; and the bhajans would end abruptly. For discharging this duty, he would be allowed an extra helping of the day's prasadam, earning himself the nickname Prasadam Bhakta (devotee of consecrated food).

The two classrooms in Sri Karibasavaswami District Board High School where Raju studied, years later, Moinuddin would visit Puttaparthi to have Baba's darshan. He stood near a statue and looked at Baba with intense longing. Baba spotted him from a distance, came near and asked, “Is that not Prasadam Bhakta? When did you come?” Moinuddin was besides himself with joy that Baba still remembered him in the old intimate way.

Many would come to seek his help. On one occasion, a Muslim horse-cab driver lost his horse. He was greatly distressed, as his livelihood depended on the horse and he would go hungry, unless the animal was found. Someone suggested he go to Raju. When he came there, Raju said, "Go to the grove on the outskirts of the town, about a kilometre and a half away. Your horse will be found grazing there." The driver did as directed and found the horse as Raju had said he would. Interestingly, a similar episode took place during the times of Sai Baba of Shirdi, when another horse-cab driver lost his horse, and in a similar fashion, Sai Baba helped the poor man recover it.

To edit in another incident, a teacher reported the loss of his pen. Raju instantly named a certain servant as the culprit. The teacher protested and vouched for the servant's innocence and honesty; however, he searched the servant's belongings, in the latter's absence. The pen was not found, but Raju explained that the servant had sent it to his son in Anantapur and a detailed enquiry soon confirmed Raju's words.

A further incident concerns a Brahmin, who

... disgusted with his crippled son, secretly took him and left him in a faraway place. Later when he felt repentant, and looked for the son, he was missing. He went to [Raju,] ... who told him that in three days he would get news of his son and in eight days he would return. As predicted, a letter arrived from a local government officer informing the father that his son had been found and, in a week, the boy was brought home.

There were a host of such predictions, and all turned out true. So, many people began to perform puja and bhajan sin his presence. Seshama Raju was not happy about this, for he was anxious that his brother should complete his studies and carve out a career for himself. He insisted on [Raju being formally educated]. ... [Raju] used to comment that the Telugu Pandit (i.e. his brother) did not know anything about him!

Raju's teacher, Manchiraju Thammiraju (1894 -1976) was greatly drawn towards him. Raju would answer his questions on philosophy, which also brought the other teachers to him. One Thursday, Raju told them to ask him questions. There was a great commotion, as the teachers vied with one another to ask questions. Like an adept scholar Raju answered all their queries.

H. S. Venkataramana was the Science Teacher and Assistant Headmaster at the Uravakonda School. His eminence in teaching earned him the President's Award. He ... scorned and challenged [Raju's] ... claim to divinity. [Raju] ... was unruffled and told him in his inimitable gentle voice, "Conduct any experiment or test that you like. Then decide whether to believe or not to believe."

Then, Venkataramana took a cocoanut and said, "I will break this cocoanut now; can you tell me how it will break?"

[Raju]. .. said, "It will break into five pieces."

When Venkataramana broke the cocoanut, there were exactly five pieces. Even then, he did not have faith in young Raju. Once he was suffering from an acute stomach-ache, which no doctor could cure. Some of the teachers suggested that he go to Raju, who by that time had started to cure diseases. Venkataramana's stubborn pride did not allow him to go to his student. When his wife approached Raju, he asked her, "How is your husband's stomach-ache?"- materialising some vibhuti and giving it to her. That very moment Venkataramana's stomach-ache disappeared. Finally convinced, he changed his attitude and became one of Raju's foremost disciples; many others followed and became devotees as well.

The Headmaster, T. Lakshmipathi, maintained stringent discipline and as a teacher was very systematic. Being a devoted man, he held bhajans in his house every Sunday. His daughter, Lalitha (1934-) would recall that Raju attended the sessions and took the lead in singing. "His song 'Karunakara Karunincha Rava' till rings in my ears. The whole day was spent in upasana and in the evenings, there was puja. He even materialised a rose for my mother. I went to school with Raju and played with him in the evenings."

Raju's bountiful acts of grace had begun. He would bless the sick with vibhuti prasadam, and they were cured. To dispel doubts that he was none other than Sai Baba of Shirdi reborn, he would often materialise not only pieces of the robe or kafni worn by Sai Baba of Shirdi but also pictures of Him.

One Thursday, Bindela Hanumantha Reddy, one of Raju's classmates, wanted to talk to him. Although he waited for a long time, Raju did not look at him. In his anger, he threw at Raju whatever came to his hand. When the Headmaster heard of the incident, he had Reddy's food stopped in the hostel as punishment for this outrageous offence. This came to the notice of Abdul Khader, the student leader:

I approached the Headmaster and asked him about the incident, requesting him to continue the food. The Headmaster said that the student had acted with great disrespect. I suggested to him, "Sir, next Thursday I will meet Raju and ask him what is the right course of action to take. Whatever he says, we can do."

The following Thursday I went to Raju. By that time, there was a long queue of about a hundred and twenty to a hundred and fifty people waiting for him. After some time, somebody came and said, "Raju is calling one Abdul Khader." I went to Raju and he told me, "You have come to talk about Hanumantha Reddy, isn't it? It was I who forced the boy to act in that manner. It is appropriate to punish someone for wrongdoing. Tell the Headmaster to resume feeding him again."

Raju's Classmates

The Independence of lndia was a live issue in my mind in those days and I took the courage to blurt out a strange question. I asked Raju, "When will India get Independence?" The reply was immediate and firm, "We will celebrate Independence on the 15th of August 1947." I told this to many of my friends and relatives. Nobody believed it. Even I did not. When India finally got Independence, it was on that date four years later, I could not believe that Raju's words had actually come true. That day, I realised his greatness.

One day when Raju took three of his friends to the Shiva Temple at Budagavi, the boys witnessed a miracle that surpassed all description: As Raju entered the inner shrine, the place was filled with a glow that emitted from his face; the glow surrounded the deity, while another beam of light returned to Raju.

Anjaneyulu, the local Salt (Excise) Inspector, was very close to Raju. Raju asked him to procure a statue of Shirdi Sai Baba. Anjaneyulu replied that it was impossible to obtain one in the local market. Raju said, "Go to the Lakshminarasimhaswamy Temple festival at Pennohobilam and try." To his surprise, during the annual festival that took place on the 9th of May that year, he got one for eight annas (half a rupee).

Anjaneyulu, being a Shirdi Sai Baba devotee, created a personal shrine for Sai Baba in his garden, spreading a tiger’s kin on a boulder and placing the statue there for puja every Thursday. The boulder later became a landmark with the name Sai Baba Gundu (Sai Baba Rock).

Raju attended the bhajans at Anjaneyulu's house, as it was a quiet place and did not disturb the neighbours, being on the outskirts of the main town. Many devotees walked the distance happily to participate in bhajans every Thursday.

Anjaneyulu's children, Narasimha Dass and Subburathnamma, were Raju's schoolmates and were very close to him. Many years later, Narasimha Dass would narrate some wonderful events relating to Raju whom he would then respectfully call 'Swami'.

Swami was introduced to my family as my classmate. They developed great love towards Him. He used to visit my house daily, and enquire [about] the well-being of my parents, before going to school. Sometimes my father used to invite Him to share our food, and He would very kindly oblige.

Swami used to wear a white shirt and khaki shorts to school. Once He asked my mother to sew buttons on to His shirt. The shirt was torn, and so my father had the good fortune of presenting new clothes to Swami. Swami and I used to go to school together.

Narasimha Dass would add: "He would call me 'Dass', my father 'Ayyagaru' and my mother 'Ammagaru'. We used to call him Sathyam. After school, He used to play football with friends. He would be the goalkeeper." Thus, a relationship not of blood, but of love was formed.

On every Thursday, He would come to our house [from school], and, after a bath wearing Silk [dhoti and upper garment] ... He would perform puja ... [to a shrine of Shirdi Sai Baba.] ... He would then sing: "Manasa Bhajare guru charanam dusthara bhava sagara taranam."

Then He would sing "Baba Raava, Sai Baba Raava" (both composed by him).

When he sang, he would ask everyone to follow the song, in chorus.

During the bhajans, he would stand in deep concentration, glowing in splendour and keep swaying his body forward and backward, for three to four hours. During this time, he would advise, instruct, bless and materialise things (vibhuti, pieces of cloth from the kafni of Sri Sai Baba of Shirdi, picture prints, and fruits) for the visitors. He would raise his hand, pick up things from nowhere and give them away. Normally, he gave fruits or candies. He asked the devotees to open their mouths and would feed them the eatables himself. They had to eat the prasadam, immediately. Other objects that he gave were immediately to be taken home. No one else were to know what he had given. They were not supposed to be told of, to others. He would tell some people to go to a specified place, on a different day, for an interview. Afterwards, he would say, "I want to go; take arathi. Break the coconut after arathi." After arathi, he would usually fall down. We would wait in different places in the room to break his fall, for we were not sure where he would fall. My father would pick him up, keep his head on his lap and wave a fan on him. He would get up after fifteen minutes or so, tired with his eyes red.

'On recovering, Swami would ask my mother whether mangaaarth had been performed.'

Anjaneyulu's son would continue: Sathyam wrote a play, Parjjathapaharanam, and staged it at our house. He asked my father to arrange a stage for the performance. My father, who had eight attendants, arranged the stage in no time. This play was only for the family. He would wear my mother's sari. Father used to dress him up. My sister Subburathnamma played Devendrudu, Sathyam took on the role of Sathyabhama and he asked me to play the part of Sri Krishna. t.b.c.