A slow slumbering Saturday was once again upon me. The week had left me exhausted. The difficulties that had fallen on me, I was too tired to even complain about their unfairness. The loss of trust and betrayal had left a bitter taste in my mouth. As the solitary shaft of the morning light slipped into my room through the creaks in the window, I sat up clumsily, whispering a silent prayer and trying to think of the day ahead. Instead my mind fleeted backwards (Ah! the mind! When will it ever listen to me?!) to the days when things were different, when people were different, when Saturdays were different. I tried not to feel bad about them. I tried not to feel bitter. I tried not to feel terrible. My mind, surprisingly, listened to me for once.
Feeling the menacing morning heat all over my body, I stepped out of my bed wondering whether I should pamper myself with an AC this summer. The heat and the summer reminded me of my year in Arizona! Oh how I loved complaining about its heat! I found it strange, as much as I complained about the intolerable mercury level of the Grand Canyon State of USA, it was not without a touch of fondness.
I turned the newspaper munching on my break-fast, clearly my mind pre-occupied with a hundred things. These days my mind remains occupied with so many things! I tried to pay attention to the comments on Pranab babu’s budget by the financial pundits. But soon the mind escaped again. Ah! the mind!
I sat staring at my lap-top. I played some music, and soon my room was filled with soothing vibrations. Alone in my room, I felt liberated. I felt a strange satisfaction and a power of conviction. The dark lumbering clouds that filled my mind over the last few days, something deep inside assured me will dissolve soon. Feeling much lighter and better, I decided for Kahani in the evening.
Kahani- I’ve heard enough good things about it to wean me away from my instinctive hesitation for a Bollywood movie. The setting being Calcutta, the gorgeous Vidya Balan being the protagonist, the fast-paced thriller being the theme- all of it sounded like a delicious combination. And as luck would have it I got a good corner seat right at the back when I booked my ticket online.
And what a movie it was! Watching it I soon found myself back in the all so familiar grimy streets of the City of Joy, my own Calcutta! It is now my seventh year that I am staying away from her. Watching the movie made me realize how deeply I am still connected to her, in spite of my never ending complains and grudges. The noise, the warmth, the rain, the clouds, all felt like an extension of my ownself, which in the din of things I almost forgot. The women wrapped in saris, exactly the way I see my mother wearing it, I felt as if I have known them forever. The crowded streets, the chai wallahs, the narrow alleys, the glistening faces- all took me back to the time when they were so familiar that I hardly noticed them. And yes, how can I forget the Durga Puja! The annual advent of the Divine Mother fills the air of Calcutta with a festivity that only a Calcuttan can feel and connect to. The flashing lights, the splendid pandals, the wide-eyed bejeweled idols of Ma Durga, showering un-inhibitedly her divine benedictions on all her children, the defiant spirit of exhilaration in an otherwise capricious city, all of that came rushing back to me. After all these years.
But what filled my heart, in this season of betrayal and ingratitude is that the power of love is still the strongest. It can fill the spirit with so much resilience, that even the most insurmountable hurdles fizzles away when faced with it. The strength that wells up in the heart, pure and unsullied, what can stand in its way? The inevitability of what is right and goodness to prevail over what is wrong and unjust, I walked out of the dark theater into the bright multiplex, once again reassured of this faith. I could hear Tagore's immortal lines "Jodi tor daak shune keu na ashe tobe ekla cholo re" (If no one heeds to your call, then walk alone!) as it floated out of the theater before getting drowned in the cheerful chattering.
This is a letter written to Mr. Vir Sanghvi in response to his article on Satya Sai Baba in 2006 that appeared in his column Counterpoint. I happened to chance on it again today and thought of sharing it. I did not get any reply from him. Today Vir Sanghvi remains embroiled and discredited after the Nira Radia case, while Satya Sai Baba has attained Mahasamadhi and ever since has been hailed as a Divine Incarnation by more and more people and His unimaginable contribution to Humanity finding ever increasing recognition. He continues to guide and inspire millions of His devotees to become better human beings.
Dear Mr. Sanghvi,
I don't know whether I should write this email to you in the first place. I had and perhaps still have a high regard for your views on a wide range of issues. I find them well nuanced, filled with conviction, and most importantly refreshingly unbiased and to a large extent unopinionated . But your recent column on Sri Satya Sai Baba has completely dissappointed me. It seemed reading your article that you are somehow deeply disturbed by the growing following of Sai Baba and have an urgency to express your displeasure without trying to understand why and how he became what he is considered to be - a divine incarnation worshipped and revered by millions all across the world.
Your column has three main allegations against him.
1. The homosexual allegations.
2. His alleged miracles.
3. If he is God why doesn't he do this, this and this.
Let me take them one by one.
1. Homosexual allegations :
Satya Sai Baba declared his Divine Mission at the age of 14 in the remote remote village of his birth, Puttaparthi in 1940. A westerner visiting in late 1960s described the village as "10 minutes past the stone age". Today his followers number a few millions. And the name and fame of that little hopeless hamlet has reached all corners of the planet. You mention rather ambiguously that the number of allegations against Baba have reached "triple figure mark". That means a few hundreds. Of course all those allegations have no verifiable evidence whatsoever, and almost never taken to any court of law. But even then, what is your source for such allegations Mr Sanghvi? All that you could scramble scourging the net using google search is that the number of allegations have reached "triple figure mark"! You also mention that all the allegations came from his Western "devotees" and not a single Indian. NO INDIANS. If there is any truth to those allegations then surely one would expect at least a few Indians to also have similar experiences to complain about? After all there were ONLY Indian devotees in the younger days of Sai Baba. The westerners started coming only from 1970s when Baba was in his 50s. There should have been a few. Right? But not even one!! If there can be cases against the Prime Ministers and Chief Ministers, of course somebody could have gone to court with these. But did anybody go to the court with these allegations Mr Sanghvi?
Yes of those "hundreds", on record ONLY ONE "devotee" of US went to court with these allegations. Did you keep this news? Do you know what happened?
The young man who made most of these allegations against Satya Sai Baba and who was the star accuser in the malicious and vicious BBC documentary, filed a case in California in January, 2005.
The case was set for hearing on April 28 th, 2006.
During the handling of the lawsuit, witnesses were identified and interviewed, who were present in Prashanti Nilayam, when the molestations alleged by the plaintiff were supposed to have taken place.
One of the witnesses, Mr. Kreydick was examined by lawyers and the proceedings were recorded on video tape. This happened on March 16 th, 2006 . Subsequently, the video deposition was made into a typed deposition, which Mr. Kreydick signed on April 7 th, 2006 . He also issued a personal statement to the effect that although he originally believed in the allegations made against Sai Baba, he later discovered that there were many critical discrepancies and contradictions in the allegations made by the plaintiff and the anti-Sai community in general. His said that all these allegations had a hidden bias. He therefore retracted his earlier position in support of the allegations.
This marked the turning point. The young man who filed the complaint then dismissed his own lawsuit on April 19 th, 2006.
The case was then dismissed with prejudice. It means no damages to the plaintiff, and that the case can never be filed again in any court in America or in India.
Its sorry the google searches you did never came up with this information.
Well Goebles was right in a limited sense. If you can repeat the same lie again and again it becomes a truth. At least to some! And I am so sorry Mr Sanghvi you fell for the trap. It was not at all expected from you.
I think thats enough on the first allegation. If you care to know the truth, be truthful to yourself and find out for yourself what is the truth out there. Who are spreading these misinformations. Which people are funding. And why they are doing this.
Try to find out who are these people who are harping these false allegations. There is a common element to all of them . You will then see why its the way it is.
2. Miracles
Well Sai Baba has made it clear many times the so called miracles are only a very small part of his reality. Sadly his overenthusiastic devotees give them more importance than his teachings. But thats beside the point. Lets adress the issue squarely.
You said that "The sad reality of the Sai Baba's 'miracles' is that every single one of them can easily be duplicated by even a moderately-talented conjuror." If it was so simple, our country if not the whole world would have been dotted by Sai Babas! At least there would have been a few thousand free super-speciality hospitals and universities. If it was so simple why only ONE Sai Baba? Now don't say he enjoys political clout. He started as a simple village boy born in desperately poor conditions, with only middle school education, and absolutely no connection to the high and mighty. The powerful started coming only much later when the amazing stories about Him started making rounds . But today He is the spiritual leader with millions of followers coming from all kinds of back grounds from all over the world? Can you tell me ONE more "miracle-monger" who have achieved this in the history of mankind?
I am pretty sure dear Mr. Sanghvi you have never seen the Baba. It is not his miracles that brings millions to him. Its not vibhootis or watches. Its not even vibhuti and a host of other kind of materializations that reportedly takes place in his photographs all over the world. There are many sages and saints even now in our country who have their siddhic or yogic powers which would appear to us as super-natural. Read "Autobiography of a Yogi"by Paramhamsa Yogananda. You will understand what I am saying. Miracle-men are not new to our country. But still we have only ONE Satya Sai Baba. Do you know why? Visit him once if you are at all interested. You will understand.
You can fool a few for a few years by cheap magic tricks. What is it the mystery by which Baba has endured all the vicious attacks over the last 8 decades? Why inspite of all the scepticism from different quarters he is pulling more and more people from all walks of life to Him and his Divine mission? Only by trash magic? C'mon Mr Sanghvi you cannot be serious!
3. If he is God why doesn't he do this, this and this.
At last you have a serious point!
I don't know if you believe in the existence of God. If you do the question doesn't make any sense. Even if I accept your view that Sai Baba is not divine, then what about the God whom you believe? Why does not He/She/It solve the problems of life on earth? This is an old philosophical qiestion. And I am sure you know the answers from both sides of the divide.
If you don't believe in God...then what more can I say? Why only Sai Baba, Jesus, Nanak, Krishna, RamaKrishna and all of them were hoaxes!
You say why doesn't he cure himself. Why did not jesus , being the "son of God" save himself? Why did Paramahamsa Ramakrishna not cure his cancer? He said he talks with the divine mother! Surely she clould have cured him, if not he himself! The matter is much more profound than that Mr. Sanghvi. Physical sufferring is inevitable as long as the body is there. The divine beings teach us with their lives. Their life is their message. There have been thousands of well documented cases of healings done by Satya Sai Baba, only if you cared to find out. But he chooses not to heal his body. Because he wants his devotees to rise above the level of body-consciousness. I don't know if you will get me. Anyways.
Dear Mr. Sanghvi. I am 25,pursuing my PhD in Statistics from university of California. I grew up in the same city that you grew up in , Calcutta. I went to Don Bosco School. The reason I am saying this is because please try to understand why me and thousands of young persons like me look up to Satya Sai Baba as a beacon of Hope for mankind, a source of motivation and inspiration to serve the society, to foster brotherhood and love. It is not the watches or the Vibhutis, Mr Sanghvi.
You have mentioned about his social service programes. I am aware of RK Mission. I am greatly devoted to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Swami Vivekananda. And I hate to compare. But Mr. Sanghvi, RK Mission gained the stature it did after almost half a century of the passing away of Swami Vivekananda and even then have you seriously objectively considered and compared the Projects undertaken by Satya Sai Baba with that of RK Mission or for that matter any Non-governmental sector organization? If you really did, you could not come up with such a preposterous statement! The projects of Sai Baba are all inspired by him, executed by him and offered to the service of mankind in his very lifetime, involving thousands of crores of rupees and bringing together thousands of men inspiring them to work selflessly in a scale seldom seen before in the annals of history! Have you pondered on that for a few seconds Mr Sanghvi?
Can you tell me ONE Superspeciality hospital which offers the best of medical treatments TOTALLY FREE OF COST anywhere acorss this world? Can you tell me of ONE organisation which got life altering fresh drinking water to thousands of villages in the most arid regions quenching the thirsts of millions? Can you tell me of ONE Educational institution which has been offering the best education from kindergarten level to post graduation level in arts, commerce and sciences completely free of cost!! Anywhere in this world? By any organisation? Can you tell me of one other spiritual master who has a following of millions spread over more than 180 countries without ever making a visit outside India save for a lone visit to Africa in the 1960s?
And you still think its all cheap magic?
You have been a wonderful newsperson. I really look forward to your columns every week. But I don't know if I can again read your columns with the same appreciation as before. It does not matter to us who have or do not have faith in Satya Sai Baba, in what you or the whole world writes about him, or what you or anybody else who have not experienced him think him to be. Our faith stems from a deeper source, of our own authentic deeply personal experience of him. And it is reassured every day in a myriad of ways. I do not expect you or anybody else who have not made the effort to experience him get it. But we definitely wish more and more people could live in the same hope, in the same love and in the same truth, that millions of us do. If only they were sincere in finding out!
Only then you would understand why millions wait for hours to have just a glimpse of their beloved Baba. And loves him more than anything else.
Thank you,
Debarshi Dey.
