1 Saibaba-The Invocation of the Divine MY OBEISANCE TO SHRI GANESH, TO SHRI SARASWATI, AND SHRI GURU MAHARAJ! TO THE FAMILY DEITY, TO SHRI SITA-RAMCHANDRA, MY MOST HUMBLE OBEISANCE! I BOW IN REVERENCE TO THE MOST VENERABLE GURU SHRI SAINATH! 1. For a smooth, unhindered completion of a work once begun, the wise and the learned sing, at the outset, the praises of the tutelary deities, and invoke their blessings. 2. By so praising the deities, by making an obeisance to them all, impediments are sought to be forestalled and the desired goals achieved. 3. Let us, therefore, bow, first to Ganapati, the benign figure of the elephant- god, with his twisted trunk; the Protector of the Meek, and the Lord and Master of the fourteen branches of learning. 4. Fourteen worlds are contained in your belly and hence you are called, ‘Lambodara’, while in your hand is the powerful, sharp-edged axe with which you strike down the obstacles in the way of your devotees. 5. O Lord of the Ganas (of Shiva), O elephant-faced God, I bow to you who assuage the pain caused by impediments. Pour your Grace into my utterances, I pray! 6. You are the succour of your devotees. Under your anklets come rolling all the obstacles. Just one glance from you is enough to drive away all want and poverty. 08/28/05 7. In the ocean of worldly life, you are the Ark; the Light of Knowledge you are, in the Darkness of Ignorance! You, O Lord, with your twin consorts, Riddhi and Siddhi (signifying Prosperity and Success), look upon me graciously, I beseech! 8. Hail to you, O Lord, who are the destroyer of the woods of impediments, and whose vehicle is the humble mouse. O son of Girija, O God of benign countenance, to you I bow! 9. Here do I follow the customary practice of making an obeisance to the tutelary deities, that I may complete my work unhindered, and be blessed with good fortune. 10. And yet, is not this Sai Himself, Gajanan, and Ganapati, who, axe in hand, will remove the obstacles to the narration of his story? 11. He is indeed Gajanan and Bhalchandra with the crescent moon on his forehead. And he boasts of a single tusk, and elephantine ears. He is the Terrible One of the broken tooth, the Annihilator of the jungle of obstacles. 12. Most Auspicious among the Auspicious, O long-bellied Lambodara, O compassionate Ganaraya! You are none other than Sai Himself! May you lead me on to the Abode of Eternal Joy and Peace. http://suratiundhiyu.wordpress.com/ 13. I now make obeisance to goddess Saraswati, the daughter of Brahma! May she with her art and ingenuity alight upon my tongue, making it her vehicle, the swan. 14. Goddess Saraswati, draped in spotless white, with the tiny vermilion mark on her forehead, holds the Brahma-veena gracefully in her hand, as she rides her swan. O Saraswati, look upon me kindly! 15. Unless the Presiding Goddess of Speech, this Mother of the Universe is propitiated, can ever literatures or art, verse or tale, sit gracefully upon one? And, without her Grace, can I venture to write this story of Sai? 16. This Mother of the Universe, from whose wombs were born the Vedas, verily is she the river of all the glorious Learning! May she make one and all, drink at my hands, the nectar-sweet story of Sai’s life. 8/29/05 17. It is, as if Sai Himself, as Bhagavati, as goddess Saraswati, holds the Omkar- veena in hand and sings His own Life-story for the deliverance of His devotees! 18. My obeisance, now, is to Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh, who symbolize Creation, Preservation and Destruction, of the Universe, respectively. They are the epitomes of Sattva (Harmony), Rajas (Motion), and Tamas (Inertia). 19. O Self-illumined Sainath, to us you are truly, Ganadheesh and Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. 20. You alone are our Sadguru, the boat to ferry us safely across the Ocean of Life. And we, your devotees, are as travellers aboard the ship and beseech you to guide us to the shore yonder. 21. But for the merit of some good deeds of our past births, how could we have been so compellingly drawn to your holy feet, which have proved to be our sole refuge? 22. I now, bow to my family deity, Narayana Adinath, who abides in the Sea of Milk, and is the Redeemer of all, from sorrow, suffering and pain. 23. When Parashuram forced back the waters of the ocean and created a new land called ‘Konkan’, in that land appeared Narayana. 24. Narayana dwells within and rules over the hearts of all the creatures, protecting them with loving kindness. It is from Him that I draw my inspiration. 25. My obeisance, next, is to that great sage and my original ancestor whom Bhargava (Parshuram) brought to Konkan, from Bengal, for the successful completion of the great Yajna (ritualistic sacrifice). 26. Bharadwaj, the greatest among the sages, the founder of my ancestry, who belonged to the Shakala branch of the Rig Veda, and who was also the founder of all the Adya Gaud Brahmins, - to him I bow respectfully. 27. Next, I make my obeisance to the Brahmins, who are the Brahman Incarnate, the veritable gods on the earth. And then, I proceed to pay my respects to the greatest among the yogis, - Yajnyavalkya, Bhrigu, Parashar, Narada, and others. 08/30/05 http://suratiundhiyu.wordpress.com/ 28. Ved Vyasa (son of Parashar); Sanak, Sanandan, Sanatsujat, Sanatkumar (born of the mind of Brahma); Shuka; Shaunak, the composer of Sutra; Vishwamitra and Vashistha;- 29. Valmiki; Vamdev, Jaimini; Vaishampayan and the nine munis i.e. Yogindra, etc. I prostrate in obeisance at the feet of all these sages. 30. Let me now worship all the saints, like Nivritti, Jnaneshvar, Mukat, Sopan, Eknath, Swami Janardan, Tukaram, Kanhoba, Narahari and others. 31. For a mention of all the saints by their names, this book will hardly have space. Therefore, I make obeisance to them all and pray for their blessings. 32. Then, I bow in respect to Sadashiva, my grandfather, who was a man of impressive piety, and who, finding this worldly, material life meaningless and empty, took his abode at Badrinath and Kedarnath, to the end of his days. 33. My father was a worshipper of Shiva and, having made Shiva his personal god, always wore rudraksha beads round his neck. Respectfully, I bow to him. 34. And then, how can I ever repay the debt of my mother, who spared no trouble, bringing me into this world and rearing me? Humbly, I fall at her feet in obeisance. 35. But soon she passed away, leaving me, a mere infant, behind. My paternal aunt, a pious soul, then looked after me, bringing me up most painstakingly. At her feet, I bow my head in great reverence. 36. The love and affection of my eldest brother for me, has no parallel. For me, he would have willingly given up his life. I cannot but be filled with gratitude as I bow at his feet. 37. As for you, O my listeners! I make my obeisance to you respectfully, as I pray for your undivided attention. Unless you, are attentive, how can I be happy? 38. The greater the connoisseur a listener is, waiting eagerly for more and more, the greater is the enthusiasm and verve of the speaker, as he goes on narrating. 8/31/05 39. If you yourselves are inattentive, then wherefore this narration? Hence it is, that I prostrate before you and implore you to listen to this tale with good cheer. 40. Full well you know, that I have no profound knowledge of science and literature. Nor have I perused any scholarly works, or even listened to the sacred stories of saints, being narrated. 41. I am aware of my shortcomings, too! I am conscious of my unworthiness. It is only in obedience to the guru’s command that I have ventured to attempt writing his ‘Life’. 42. My own heart tells me that before you, I am but a piece of straw. And yet, I beseech you to be gracious and accept me with all my faults. http://suratiundhiyu.wordpress.com/ 43. And now, let us remember our Sadguru and worship his feet with love and devotion. With body, speech and mind, let us surrender to him, who is the mainspring of all wisdom and inspiration. 44. Sweet dish is always reserved for the end of a meal. In the same way, the sweet adoration of the Guru marks the en d of this Invocation of the Divine. 45. OM Shri Sadguru! My obeisance to you, the only Refuge of this animate and inanimate Creation! You, and you alone, O Compassionate One, sustain this entire Universe, eternally. 46. Hiranyagarbha or the golden egg of the Brahman, from which comes the earth, its seven islands and nine continents, the seven heavens and the seven netherworlds, is itself, the well-known Brahmanda. 47. The Sadguru dwells far beyond the cosmic illusion, which creates this Brahmanda and which is known by the name ‘maya’ or the ‘unmanifest’. 48. In trying to describe the greatness of the Sadguru, the Ved-shastras become silent. Know that ingenuity or tricks of logic are of no avail here. 49. O Sadguru, you defy all comparison; for, to whichever object you are likened, you already pervade it, by virtue of natural attributes. Whatever object the eye falls upon, is but a form assumed by yourself.