Seeing the majestic Goddess, he shouted loudly and joyfully, which frightened the people sitting in the next room. The young man's cries were loud and continued for several minutes. The people sitting outside the doors of Sathya Sai Baba's room did not dare to enter the room, but they waited with tension for the denouement. Soon after, the door opened, and the young man came out of the room – his face was joyful, and his eyes shone with bliss.
At the end of this communication, Sathya Sai Baba brought the young man out of the trance and gave instructions that it was not necessary for him to go into the forest and become a hermit, instead he should practice meditation daily and work in his specialty of helping people around him, by his example.
I remember how this event was vividly discussed in the ashram. Many people wondered how Sathya Sai Baba was able to push the boundaries of time and space. Sathya Sai Baba also told this young man about his previous incarnations. Since this is a personal topic, I prefer to remain silent about it.
26. His eyes are like the ocean, plunging into them you can find eternity
A person standing on the shore admires the scenery of the majestic ocean, but he sees only waves running along the surface. Only a diver who plunges into the depths of the ocean waters discovers treasures – precious pearls hidden in the depths.
(Sathya Sai Baba – "Summer Showers in Brindavan", 1979)
Imagine this scenario for a moment. The Avatar is completely focused on you, He looks into your eyes, and you peer into the depths of his gaze. It is difficult to endure such an amazing, loving, and piercing look as it scans right through you leaving you with nowhere to hide. We all must independently discover the Truth about ourselves. The answer to the question about the nature of one's "Self" can only be found independently in meditation. Of course, direct communication with Sathya Sai Baba could in some sense replace many hours, or maybe many years of meditation practice.
Sathya Sai Baba was in perfect awareness of the True Self. Looking into his deep eyes was like seeing the purity of your own True Self. Sathya Sai Baba's eyes were like the ocean and plunging into them I found eternity. I remember the first time our eyes met, I could not bear more than one moment and so looked away as the feelings of omniscience and purity were so strong. I was simply not ready.
Gradually, I was able to look into his eyes longer and experience unspeakable joy. The feeling came over me as if something significant was happening, but what exactly, I could not fully understand or realize. Perhaps the best words to somehow describe these experiences are the indulgence of Divine Grace.
Sathya Sai Baba was attentive to every question with which people came to him. If a person came with a question related to healing from illness or a family drama, he would discuss these topics as carefully as he discussed questions related to philosophy and meditation.
Sathya Sai Baba was not at all like those gurus who consider questions of high philosophy worthy of discussion, while neglecting issues related to so-called mundane topics. Sathya Sai Baba perceived the whole life of each person. In love and compassion, he manifested himself as a universal loving mother, caring for every person.
After leaving their audience with Sathya Sai Baba, people would enter a special state of peace and bliss, sometimes for several hours. I remember after my own personal communication with Sathya Sai Baba, other followers immediately approached and implored me to share on the things that Sai Baba advised me, or to tell them the events of our direct communication.
I understood very well the desires of the people to learn as much as possible about our beloved Sathya Sai Baba while in informal communication with me. I tried to politely avoid talking to others for the first few days immediately after talking with him.
I preferred to retire to my own space and spend time comprehending, as far as was possible, everything that happened during our direct communication. Often, my usual form of comprehension disappeared – I had no words, and they were insufficient for conveying the depth of awareness and altered states of being. A few days later, I would gradually enter the normal rhythm of life, albeit knowing I was a different person; and by that, I mean, transformed. The old was gone, the new had arrived.
What does it mean to plunge into the depths of the ocean waters that Sathya Sai Baba spoke of? The ocean is a symbol of Absolute Consciousness. In the Avadhuta Gita, the sage Dattatreya speaks of the nature of Consciousness:
“I Am” Absolute Consciousness, for me there are no enemies and friends, how can “I” speak of something as good or bad? My Divine Consciousness is devoid of expansion and contraction, fullness and emptiness, it is beyond existence and non-existence. There are no prescriptions and rules for me, the Self is beyond conditioning, how can "I" describe the nature of my Absolute Consciousness, it is beyond the mind.”
Only you can walk your own path in life, so the colossal blessings of Sathya Sai Baba do not cancel the practice of meditation. There is no need to shift the responsibility for everything that happens in life to Sathya Sai Baba and expect him to solve all your problems in a second, while you will lazily wait and do nothing. Alas, this does not happen. You can observe the beauty of the ocean as much as you like, but at some point, you need to have the courage to dive into the depths and find the treasure waiting for you.
27. Sathya Sai Baba saved the elder of the Himalayan tribe
The Himalayas is a very long mountain range located in the north of India, which runs from the eastern to the westernmost border of the country. In this vast territory there are several Indian provinces, one of which is called Assam. At some point in this part of the Himalayas clashes began between hill tribes and representatives of the government of India.
The country's leadership tried in every possible way to calm the raging tribes and fulfill all their demands. In order to calm the local population, the governmentbuilt schools and hospitals in this remote mountainous area and began to develop agriculture more actively. Despite all of these efforts, conflicts continued.
One of the elders of the tribe suddenly fell ill and became very weak, the main problem was the poor condition of his stomach. He could not eat, he constantly vomited, and he had relentless stomach cramps and pain. The government sent the elder to the best hospitals in Delhi and then Calcutta for treatment, but this did not help. Then some government officials decided to send him to Sathya Sai Baba and ask for healing. It was a truly unusual decision for government officials.
In the end, the representatives of the tribe brought their elder to the ashram. Sathya Sai Baba invited them for a private conversation. During the meeting, he materialized for them a plate with the image of the God of the Sun and the God of the Moon.
This was doubly miraculous, because the tribe was just about to build a temple to the Sun and Moon. Sathya Sai Baba sensed their desire, and before they themselves asked him about it, he presented the magical plate, which they subsequently would place at the base of the altar.
At the end of the meeting, Sathya Sai Baba materialized sacred ash for the sick elder and asked him to eat it immediately. After the audience ended, the entire delegation went to the dining room. The elder felt very hungry and decided to eat.
The escorts were worried because they assumed that due to stomach problems, he would instantly become ill and possibly even vomit. The elder ate a huge amount of food with gusto and felt great. He claimed to have received instant healing from Sathya Sai Baba's sacred ashes.