“For the protection of the virtuous, the destruction of evil-doers, and the establishment of righteousness on a firm footing, I incarnate from age to age “ – Sathya Sai Baba 23 Nov 1968

Bhagwan Sri Sathya Bai, left His Physical Frame on April 24 2011 at 7:40 am leaving millions of His devotees in deep distress. Former President Dr. Abdul Kalam referred to Him as the Divine Legend. For people whose lives He touched, He was a change agent who taught us the true meaning of the words of the Gita by actually living the message. “My life is my message”, said Baba. 

The story of His life itself is quite incredible. Swami was born as Sathyanarayana Raju on 23 November 1926 to Pedda Venkappa Raju and Easwarammaa very simple rural family in a village called Puttaparthi. Many interesting miracles were seen right from a young age that convinced all that this was no ordinary child.   While man miracles have been attributed to Him the transformation He brought to Puttaparthi is unbelievable. This small town that was called “ant hill” now has an international airport, leading universities and the finest of hospitals. Most importantly it gives solace to millions. He instilled the concept of Educare. His emphasis on value-based education has been transformational.

Most of the water sources were in the northern part of Anantapur district and the terrain to the south sloped upwards. Hence, bringing water to the southern region needed creation of large number of pumping stations to pump water against gravity. This called for extensive civil and engineering work. In spite of all the difficulties, the water was made available to Anantapur district in 18 months. After a year of regular operation, the entire water works was handed over to the people of the state as a gift. The scheme covers 750 villages and provides water to over one million people.

 I have not had the honor of having any personal contact with Swami while He was in His Physical Frame. I have seen Him at Puttaparthi once. Yet I would attribute anything good in me directly to His influence. â€œHelp Ever Hurt Never” - is a motto that He instilled in me.  â€œAll that you see is the reflection of what is inside you. If you call a person bad, it is the bad in you being reflected in him. It has got nothing to do with him. Good and bad are but reflections of your inner being” is a statement that has profoundly influenced me. While of course His dictums are not easy to follow , I am grateful that I have at least made aware of His dictums and have had an opportunity to think about following them to the best of my ability.

Like Millions of His devotees I will have to re-adjust to a world where Swami does not exist in His Physical Frame. Perhaps in some sense all His devotees are now equal for we all have equal access to Him.

I am grateful that He came into my life. I pray with fellow devotees that we are able to carry His work forward and try to create a world that is filled with Sathya and Prema – Truth and Love.

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