How a mysterious Indian religious figure united Hindus and Muslims

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In recent years, India has seen growing tensions — and sometimes violence — between Hindus and the country’s large Muslim minority, often stoked by some of the country’s numerous political parties and extremist groups from both religions. The fraught relations between the two groups trace back centuries, from the persecution of Hindus and Sikhs by some Muslim rulers, to tensions perpetuated by the British in colonial India and the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947.

But in the past, devotion united Indians of both faiths, as the story of a late-19th century and early 20th century Indian religious leader and his followers reminds us.

Shirdi Sai Baba’s real name, birthdate and origins are unknown, but according to his Hindu and Muslim followers, he was born in the 1830s and followed an ascetic lifestyle from an early age, living under a neem tree and spending long hours in meditation. He wore Islamic garb but offered prayers at both the local mosque and temple.

Shirdi Sai Baba’s influence was monumental in shaping Indian spirituality. Sufi mystics praised how his idea of seeing divinity in all beings corresponded with their core philosophy and that of Advaita Hinduism, which preaches non-dualism between living beings and the Divine. Sai Baba influenced a Zoroastrian mystic, Meher Baba, who credited him with articulating a philosophy of looking inward for realization.

MSN

 

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I was fascinated by this series. Of course, it is TV masala, but even if 10% of the show is true it is worth watching.

 

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Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sai Baba of Shirdi (c. 1838? – 15 October 1918), also known as Shirdi Sai Baba, was an Indian spiritual master and fakir, considered to be a saint, revered by both Hindu and Muslim devotees during and after his lifetime.

According to accounts from his life, Sai Baba preached the importance of "realisation of the self" and criticised "love towards perishable things". His teachings concentrated on a moral code of love, forgiveness, helping others, charity, contentment, inner peace, and devotion to God and Guru.

Sai Baba condemned discrimination based on religion or caste. He had both Hindu and Muslim followers, but when pressed on his own religious affiliations, he refused to identify himself with one to the exclusion of the other. His teachings combined elements of Hinduism and Islam: he gave the Hindu name Dwarakamayi to the mosque in which he lived, practised both Hindu and Muslim rituals, and taught using words and figures that drew from both traditions. According to the Shri Sai Satcharita, a hagiography written shortly after his death, his Hindu devotees believed him to be an incarnation of the Hindu deity Dattatreya.

Among his favourite sayings to devotees were: "Look to me, and I shall look to you", and Allah tera bhala karega (translation: God will bless you).

Although Shirdi Sai Baba's place and date of birth are unknown, there are some indications that he was born not far from Shirdi, in a town now in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. According to some sources, he was born in the small village of Pathri in Maharashtra, to a boatman called Ganga Bhavadia and his wife Devagiriamma. Sai Baba is also claimed to have been born in Tamil Nadu. According to this version, his mother’s name was Vaishnavdevi and his father’s name was Abdul Sattar.


Sai Baba with some devotees
Baba was reluctant to give definitive answers when asked about his parentage and origins, saying the information was unimportant. He reportedly told a close follower, Mahalsapati, that he was born to Deshastha Brahmin parents in the village of Pathri and had been entrusted to the care of a Muslim fakir in his infancy. According to multiple sources, he was brought up by a Fakir in early childhood. On another occasion, Baba reportedly said that the fakir's wife had left him in the care of a Hindu guru, Venkusa of Selu, and that he had stayed with Venkusa for 12 years as his disciple.

Baba reportedly arrived at the village of Shirdi in the Ahmednagar District of Maharashtra, India, when he was about sixteen years old. Although there is no agreement among biographers about the date of this event, it is generally accepted that Baba stayed in Shirdi for three years, disappeared for a year, and then returned permanently around 1858, just after the Indian Rebellion of 1857. This suggests a possible birth year of 1838. He led an ascetic life, sitting motionless under a neem tree and meditating while sitting in an asana. The Sai Satcharita recounts the reaction of the villagers.

The people of the village were wonder-struck to see such a young lad practicing hard penance, not minding heat or cold. By day he associated with no one, by night he was afraid of nobody.

Some of the religiously-inclined villagers (Mahalsapati, Appa Jogle and Kashinatha) visited him regularly. The village children considered him mad and threw stones at him. After some time he left the village and it is unknown where he went or what happened to him. There are some indications that he met with many saints and fakirs and worked as a weaver. He is reported to have said that he fought with the army of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Sai Baba of Shirdi - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[GNANA SUNYAM]

Hindu-Muslim conflicts, clashes and disputes have been numerous after demise of Shirdi Saibaba than before his birth. More hindus flock Shirdi Sai's temple than muslims.