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No question is asked and no brow raised by anyone who belongs to the
Saifamily, when you declare yourself to be a Hindu or a Buddhist, a
Parsi, a Christian, a Muslim or even an atheist.The only question
asked and the only thing with which Baba is concerned is how
earnest, how distressed, how compassionate, how self-controlled you
are.He created a cross for the pilot of the twin-engined aircraft
which took him from Entebbe to the wild life sanctuary at Serengetti
in East Africa. In the Bandipur forest He put one dry stalk of grass
on another and blowing upon it, converted it into a wooden cross
with a silver Christ for Dr. Hislop He gave Professor Bashiruddin
a silver locket with Allah inscribed on it in the Arabic. On
Bakrid day, He showed a group of Arab pilgrims at Prasanthi Nilayam,
the huge gathering of fellow-Muslims kneeling that very moment
before the Kaaba in Arabia. He spread His palm before their eyes
and they could see the sacred scene on it. There are many Jews
like Dr. Sandweiss, paying homage to Him thus, I believe Baba to
be an incarnation of God. It appears to me now that all those
stories in Hindu, Christian and Hebrew literature are not symbolic,
there really is a spiritual level of reality that can make itself
manifest.
Buddhist monks have built in Ceylon and Malaysia, Sai prayer halls
and centres of service. On some occasions He performed the
Navajyoti rite, and through that ceremony initiates Parsi boys into
spiritual exercises.
Baba does not try to mould men in the crucible of any cult. He does
not prescribe any single spiritual exercise or peddle any patented
panacea to cure the ills of men. "Come unto Me, all ye that labour
and are heavily-laden, and I will give you rest" is the message even
now. They come with broken hearts, damaged illusions and unfulfilled
ambitions. They bring their burden of real and imagined pain.
After meeting Him, they pray. We cannot ask Thee for aught, for Thou
knowest our needs; in fact, Thou art our only need. And having
spoken thus they stay. |
