BABA'S DAILY ROUTINES
It is rightly said that an ounce of action is better than tons of speeches. Shri Sainath seems to have strictly followed the truth inculcated in this adage. He made no speeches but he led a life,which in itself was a lesson to the many who had the eyes to see and study.
One Mrs. Chhotubai Pradhan once remarked, "If we minutely observe Baba we would find as if he had two personalities; the one was completely merged as it were in God ever chanting his name while the other personality at the same time seemed to be busy looking after the devotees welfare speaking to them and moving about like ordinary man." Whatever that may be his daily routine in itself was a sufficient lesson and guide to all sincere aspirants of God. His life teaches one great lesson-namely, that not a minute, nay not even a second should be allowed to pass without the remembrance of the all kind, all-powerful God.
He once said to Shri Mahlsapathi, His night attendant to keep his hand on his heart and to wake him up so soon as he ceased hearing the name of God being chanted there. Then there are accounts of how Baba, Mahlasapathi and Tatya Patil rested at the Dwarkamayi for the night and how Baba would not allow any one of them to go to sleep. What in fact he wanted to preach thereby was that sleep should be avoided as far as possible and that the time unnecessarily spent in it should be utilised in prayers and remembrance of God.
There are devotees who rightly believe that he never had any sleep at night. His daily routine was equally instructive. He left his bed of gunny bag and coarse cloth pieces with a bed sheet over it of the same cloth at about 5 a.m. After easing himself and washing his mouth, he sat leaning against a Dhuni Pillar meditating for nearly two hours. Then coming out of the Dwarkamayi with slow steps he went up to the Chowdi and thence up to the back door or Navalkar's wade (guru Paduka Temple), saying prayers; He then returned to the Dwarkamayi in the same manner muttering prayers. Occupying his usual seat for a while taking a Chillam puff with his leprous servant at about 8 a.m., He would wash his face and hands up to the elbow with tender care fearing least he should in that act displace or tear off his skin-hair and then with a Dhoti dangling down his shoulders and with a tumbler in hand he would go to the five houses. He had fixed upon for alms. He would receive the Jwari breads in his dhoti and vegetables and all, liquids in the tumbler. Returning to the Dwarkamayi he would offer a part of his bread alms to the holy fire as oblation and then have his breakfast.
After breakfast and meeting his devotees and speaking to them at times in parables he would leave for Lendi, (which later on he developed into Mr. Pradhan's garden) accompanied by his leper servant. The leper servant carried a tumber of water in his hand and in later life he had on each side a devotee holding his arms to assist Him. He spent about an hour or more there and them returned to the Dwarkamayi where till twelve noon he received all the devotees allowing them to pay their respects to him in their own way, without allowing any one else to disturb them in this-their worship. Then followed the arti-the waving of lights. After distributing the several dishes of food received from devotees, He would spend some time with the devotees and then bade them adieu giving to each his holy ashes, applying the same to their fore had and blessing them keeping his hand on the head of each. Thereafter He again came out, went upto the Chowdi and thence to Guru Paduka temple muttering prayers as in the morning.
Later in life he also went to Lendi in the noon at about 2.00 p.m. in the same way as in the morning, and returned at about 3.00 or 3.30 p.m. He closed the day by going up to the Chowdi thence to Guru Paduka Mandir muttering prayers as in the morning, with this difference that returning from Guru Paduka Mandir, He would stand facing west to receive the respects of all the devotees there; and when that was over he would stand at the compound wall asking people to go with a wave of His hand. Baba took particular care to see that the holy fire he had started kept burning without a break and at times he therefore asked the devotees to provide faggots for the same.
He strictly followed the above routine without a break till almost the last day of his worldly existence. It is said that only during the last two or three days owing to his failing health he omitted going to Lendi,
Now let us ponder a while and see what this routine of His wants to teach. A person of perfect realisation as he was, he had nothing to gain or lose by carrying on these religious practices and yet he carried them on to set a lesson to others (B. Gita III-22 to 25). His Dhuni-Holy fire-that he kept ceaselessly burning reminds the Hindus of a pure Brahmin's Agnihotra and the Parsis of their Fire- temple. Both these keep the fire ever burning. He meditated prayed, offered oblations to fire, went in seclusion at Lendi for about 2 hours a day and not only that but he has asked some of His devotees to offer such oblations before taking food. This part of his routine seems to show that he wanted his devotees to adopt all the three ways of Gnan, Bhakti and Karma (Knowledge, devotion and action) for attaining Godhood or the Realisation of Soul. A fortnight before He left his body He got a devotee to read out to him Ram Vijay (a holy book of Hindus) for 12 days showing how a person should die.
It is rightly said that an ounce of action is better than tons of speeches. Shri Sainath seems to have strictly followed the truth inculcated in this adage. He made no speeches but he led a life,which in itself was a lesson to the many who had the eyes to see and study.
One Mrs. Chhotubai Pradhan once remarked, "If we minutely observe Baba we would find as if he had two personalities; the one was completely merged as it were in God ever chanting his name while the other personality at the same time seemed to be busy looking after the devotees welfare speaking to them and moving about like ordinary man." Whatever that may be his daily routine in itself was a sufficient lesson and guide to all sincere aspirants of God. His life teaches one great lesson-namely, that not a minute, nay not even a second should be allowed to pass without the remembrance of the all kind, all-powerful God.
He once said to Shri Mahlsapathi, His night attendant to keep his hand on his heart and to wake him up so soon as he ceased hearing the name of God being chanted there. Then there are accounts of how Baba, Mahlasapathi and Tatya Patil rested at the Dwarkamayi for the night and how Baba would not allow any one of them to go to sleep. What in fact he wanted to preach thereby was that sleep should be avoided as far as possible and that the time unnecessarily spent in it should be utilised in prayers and remembrance of God.
There are devotees who rightly believe that he never had any sleep at night. His daily routine was equally instructive. He left his bed of gunny bag and coarse cloth pieces with a bed sheet over it of the same cloth at about 5 a.m. After easing himself and washing his mouth, he sat leaning against a Dhuni Pillar meditating for nearly two hours. Then coming out of the Dwarkamayi with slow steps he went up to the Chowdi and thence up to the back door or Navalkar's wade (guru Paduka Temple), saying prayers; He then returned to the Dwarkamayi in the same manner muttering prayers. Occupying his usual seat for a while taking a Chillam puff with his leprous servant at about 8 a.m., He would wash his face and hands up to the elbow with tender care fearing least he should in that act displace or tear off his skin-hair and then with a Dhoti dangling down his shoulders and with a tumbler in hand he would go to the five houses. He had fixed upon for alms. He would receive the Jwari breads in his dhoti and vegetables and all, liquids in the tumbler. Returning to the Dwarkamayi he would offer a part of his bread alms to the holy fire as oblation and then have his breakfast.
After breakfast and meeting his devotees and speaking to them at times in parables he would leave for Lendi, (which later on he developed into Mr. Pradhan's garden) accompanied by his leper servant. The leper servant carried a tumber of water in his hand and in later life he had on each side a devotee holding his arms to assist Him. He spent about an hour or more there and them returned to the Dwarkamayi where till twelve noon he received all the devotees allowing them to pay their respects to him in their own way, without allowing any one else to disturb them in this-their worship. Then followed the arti-the waving of lights. After distributing the several dishes of food received from devotees, He would spend some time with the devotees and then bade them adieu giving to each his holy ashes, applying the same to their fore had and blessing them keeping his hand on the head of each. Thereafter He again came out, went upto the Chowdi and thence to Guru Paduka temple muttering prayers as in the morning.
Later in life he also went to Lendi in the noon at about 2.00 p.m. in the same way as in the morning, and returned at about 3.00 or 3.30 p.m. He closed the day by going up to the Chowdi thence to Guru Paduka Mandir muttering prayers as in the morning, with this difference that returning from Guru Paduka Mandir, He would stand facing west to receive the respects of all the devotees there; and when that was over he would stand at the compound wall asking people to go with a wave of His hand. Baba took particular care to see that the holy fire he had started kept burning without a break and at times he therefore asked the devotees to provide faggots for the same.
He strictly followed the above routine without a break till almost the last day of his worldly existence. It is said that only during the last two or three days owing to his failing health he omitted going to Lendi,
Now let us ponder a while and see what this routine of His wants to teach. A person of perfect realisation as he was, he had nothing to gain or lose by carrying on these religious practices and yet he carried them on to set a lesson to others (B. Gita III-22 to 25). His Dhuni-Holy fire-that he kept ceaselessly burning reminds the Hindus of a pure Brahmin's Agnihotra and the Parsis of their Fire- temple. Both these keep the fire ever burning. He meditated prayed, offered oblations to fire, went in seclusion at Lendi for about 2 hours a day and not only that but he has asked some of His devotees to offer such oblations before taking food. This part of his routine seems to show that he wanted his devotees to adopt all the three ways of Gnan, Bhakti and Karma (Knowledge, devotion and action) for attaining Godhood or the Realisation of Soul. A fortnight before He left his body He got a devotee to read out to him Ram Vijay (a holy book of Hindus) for 12 days showing how a person should die.
(From Shri Sai The Superman, written by Shri Sai Sharan Anand)
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