Early Years

Historians and devotees 

        agree that there is no reliable evidence for a particular birthplace or date of birth. Communities have claimed that he belongs to them, but nothing has been substantiated. It is known that he spent considerable periods with Muslim fakirs, and his attire resembled that of a fakir. He did not discriminate based on religion and respected all forms of worship to God.
Little has been officially documented on the early life of Shirdi Sai Baba. An account of Shirdi Sai's missing childhood years has been reconstructed by his disciple Das Ganu, after researching in the area around the village of Pathri. He collected this story in four chapters on Sai Baba, later also called the Sri Sai Gurucharitra. Das Ganu states that Sai Baba grew up in Pathri, with a fakir . At the age of five, says Das Ganu, the fakir's wife put him in the care of the saintly desmukh Venkusha, where the boy stayed several years. Dasganu calls the young Sai Baba the reincarnation of Kabir. Because Das Ganu was known to take poetic liberties when telling stories about Sai Baba, and as there are no other sources to corroborate this story, it usually is left out of biographies of Sai Baba of Shirdi.


Sai Baba's biographer Narasimha Swamiji states that Sai Baba was born as the child of Brahmin parents:
"On one momentous occasion, very late in his life, he revealed to Mahlsapathy the interesting fact that his parents were Brahmins of Patri in the Nizam's State. Patri is part of Parvani taluk, near Manwath. Sai Baba added, in explanation of the fact that he was living in a Mosque, that while still a tender child his Brahmin parents handed him over to the care of a fakir who brought him up. This is fairly indisputable testimony, as Mahlsapathy was a person of sterling character noted for his integrity, truthfulness and vairagya." —Narasimha Swamiji, Life of Sai Baba
According to the book Sai Satcharita, Sai Baba arrived at the village of Shirdi in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, British India, when he was about 16 years old. He led an ascetic life, sitting motionless under a neem tree and meditating while sitting in an asana. The Shri 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.

His presence attracted the curiosity of the villagers, and he was regularly visited by the religiously inclined, including Mahalsapati, Appa Jogle and Kashinatha. Some considered him mad and threw stones at him. Sai Baba left the village, and little is known about him after that. However, there are some indications that he met with many saints and fakirs, and worked as a weaver. He claimed to have been with the army of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It is generally accepted that Sai Baba stayed in Shirdi for three years, disappeared for a year, and returned permanently around 1858, which suggests a birth year of 1838.

Shree Sai Baba Photo Collection

The original Samadhi Mandir

New Samadhi Mandir

Sai Baba at Samadhi Mandir

Lord Ganesha's idol which was presented by Baba to Shyama

Abdul Baba's Chimta

Sai Baba's khadau ( Slippers )

Sai Babaji Aarti

Shree Sai Baba Ji Ki Aarti

   

Shri Sai Baba Aarti

Oh Sai Baba, we wave lights before You, the bestower of happiness to the Jivas. Give us – Your servants and devotees rest under the dust of Your feet. Burning (destroying) desire, You remain absorbed in Your Self and show the Lord (God) to the aspirants. As one feels intently, You give him experiences or realizations accordingly. Oh kind-hearted, Your power is such! Meditation on Your name removes our fear of the samsar. Your method of work is really unfathomable as You always help the poor and helpless. In this Kali age, You – the all-pervasive Datta, have really incarnated as Saguna Brahma. Ward off the fear of samsar of the devotees who come to You every Thursday so as to enable them to see the feet of the Lord. Oh! God of Gods, I pray that let my treasure be the service of Your feet. Feed Madhav and (you should utter your name here) with happiness as the cloud feeds the Chatak bird with pure water and thus keep up Your Word.

Saibaba...!!!

Agnaani main janmon se Sayee.... Eswar ko naheen jaan paatha
Tere karuna ki ek jhalak se... Khudaa ko maine pahli baar dekhaa 

"Being ignorant since many births, Oh Sai, I haven't known God!
By the flash of your mercy, I see the God for the first time!"

What is the most important thing one could get from Sadguru Sainath?
He Himself said that although He is willing to give from His open coffers, most are not inclined to seek it. After every desire is answered and the truce between needs and wants established, Sadguru begins His work on the chosen ones. The most competent Sainath has innumerable ways that he chooses according to the nature of the devotee.
God vision, the realization of the supreme, the purpose to any quest, realization of the self, knowledge of the absolute, these are some of the descriptors of the dormant quest one might have in the spiritual path. The satsang with Sadguru is never passive! It is not a choice!
Is Saibaba a mere Guru or God himself? This is a stale question as any reader of books on Saibaba can say that Baba appears to those in whatever form they chose. Stories abound where Saibaba appeared as Vitthal, Shiva, Dattatreya, Jesus and other forms of divinity. In spite of this, is there a question whether Saibaba is just a siddha purusha, someone who acquired supernatural powers due to saadhana or He the absolute beyond all siddhis? Is He the God? What is God? What are God's attributes? None is able to describe this. Hence, even the question whether Baba is God or not, is not completely legitimate and at the best can only be a relative rhetoric! To make this simple, if one would choose any form of God within one's confine, describe the attributes of such a form, Rama, Shiva, Jesus, Krishna, Vishnu, Allah or Buddha, all those attributes can be found in the perfect master of Shirdi. If God is defined as an object of faith, the faith will reveal God's form.

Where is Shirdi and How to get there

Shirdi is located approximately 296 Kilometers from Mumbai (Bombay) City in India. The nearest railway station is Kopargaon 15 kilometers on Manmad-Daund section of Central Railways.

To get to Shirdi from outside India:

First, you have to travel to India. (Check with the Office of Consulate General of India in your region for visa and travel requirements.). You could either go by Sea or by Air. Presuming that you want to go by Air, the first choice of landing airport should be Mumbai (Bombay) . Alternatively you could land in any other city which has an international airport. After reaching India, you have many options to travel to Shirdi.(see below).

To get to Shirdi from within India:

1. From Mumbai (Bombay):

a. You could take a Cab, hire a private taxi or drive. (If you are an international tourist you may want to check the requirements for Driver's licence and road regulations with the Maharashtra State Road Transport department.)

b. You could take a Maharashtra State Transport Bus.

c. You could take a Bus operated by Private operators.

d. You could take a Central Railway train of the Indian Railways from Mumbai (Bombay) V.T. station to 

Manmad station and then take a bus to Shirdi. State transport buses are available from Manmad to Shirdi.

For Fares, Schedules and other details contact your local travel agent, the Government of India Tourism Office, the Maharashtra State Tourism Board Office, the Central Railway booking office or the Maharashtra State Transport booking office.

2. From any other City within India:

a. You could first go to Mumbai by train, bus or an airplane and then follow the steps listed above.

b. You could take a train from the city of origin to Manmad. Not all trains go directly from point to point. You have to check if the train goes directly to Manmad or if you have to break your journey and change over trains. From Manmad you have to take a bus or cab to Shirdi.

c. You could drive, hire a cab or private taxi to take you directly to Shirdi. (If you are an international tourist  you may want to check the requirements for Driver's licence and road regulations with the Maharashtra State Road Transport department.)

For Fares, Schedules and other details contact your local travel agent, the Government of India Tourism Office, the Maharashtra State Tourism Board Office, the Central Railway booking office or the Maharashtra State Transport booking office.

Sai Baba's Assurance to his Devotees

•     No harm shall befall him who sets his foot on the soil of Shirdi.
•     He who cometh to My Samadhi, his sorrow and suffering shall cease.
•     Though I be no more in flesh and blood, I shall ever protect My devotees.
•     Trust in Me and your prayer shall be answered.
•     Know that My Spirit is immortal. Know this for yourself.
•     Show unto Me he who sought refuge and been turned away.
•     In whatever faith men worship Me, even so do I render to them.
•     Not in vain is My Promise that I shall ever lighten your burden.
•     Knock, and the door shall open. Ask and ye shall be granted.
•    To him who surrenders unto Me totally I shall be ever indebted.
•    Blessed is he who has become one with Me.