EL DESPERTAR SAI: SAI BABA AND THE COSMIC CHRIST

SAI BABA AND THE COSMIC CHRIST

By Ron Laing

This is the month of December, the holy month of Christmas, when thousands gather at Prashanthi Nilayam to pay their homage to their "Father". Here is an interesting article celebrating this sacred month.

Sai Baba and Jesus - Extraordinary Identity

I had studied the life and teachings of Sathya Sai Baba for two years before going to India, and I had come to the certain conviction that once again the Word had been made flesh, that the Divine Principle had incarnated to save the world from destruction. Everything Swami said and did struck a note in the core of my being. He crystallised virtually everything I had come to believe in 65 years of search. I had come home.

What also impacted me increasingly was the extraordinary similarity in the life, teachings, miracles, and personality of Sai Baba and Jesus of Nazareth. They even seemed to express themselves in the same phraseology. Of course it is true that all world teachers basically assert the same truths, but there is an extraordinary identity between Sai Baba and Jesus which is quite unique.

In 1968 Albert Eckhart wrote,

'The difference between Sai Baba and Jesus Christ is that the first is living and his miracles are confirmed by men, whereas the miracles of Jesus are reported in the Bible only. Nevertheless, the behaviour and the deeds of both are nearly and often the same.'

The teachings of Jesus spread across half the globe. Sai Baba, in a little over 40 years, is said to have 50 million devotees and there are Centres in 64 countries of the world. (This article was written in 1984. Now there are Sai Centres in about 180 countries and correspondingly a much larger number of followers - H2H Team). Puttaparthi is rapidly becoming the Vatican of the East. At the Birthday celebration in 1980 there were 350,000 people accommodated on a campus of 100 acres.

On Swami's 50th birthday Dr Diwaker, an Indian scholar and statesman, said this:

'Once Swami was a village urchin, uncared for, untutored, unloved. Now on his 50th birthday we assemble from the four quarters of the globe and what do we find? Philosophers and politicians, educators and legislators, scientists and technologists, the learned as well as the ignorant, the rich as well as the poor, and from all nations and from all religions, if this is not a marvel and a living miracle I would like to know what is!

Sai and Jesus...Same Love

Jesus went about loving people and healing the sick. Sai Baba, too, does just that — loving people and healing the sick, serving mankind 24 hours a day. Both interpret the purpose of human life in exactly the same way. The symbolic meaning of the Cross is the eradication of the ego — the vertical stroke represents the T with which we are born, and the horizontal stroke the erasure of the ego. Baba's interpretation is identical. 'The sole purpose of your incarnation is the crucifixion of the ego on the altar of compassion.'

Both have made stupendous statements. Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. I and my father are one.'

Baba has made even more incredible statements, 'My power is immeasurable. My truth is inexplicable, unfathomable. I am beyond the reach of the most intensive enquiry and the most meticulous measurement. There is nothing I do not see, nowhere I do not know the way, no problem I cannot solve. My sufficiency is unconditional. I am the totality — all of it'

Both proclaim the brotherhood of man and the universality of the message. 'Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,' said the Christ.

'My mission is for all mankind,' says Baba, 'I have not come to collect disciples for any particular sect, creed or religion, such as the Hindu religion. I have come to light the lamp of love in the hearts of all humanity.'

Sai and Jesus - Same Teaching and Message

The teaching of both is exoteric and esoteric. Christ taught the masses in simple parables, yet astounded the scholars and theologians with the scope and insight of his knowledge. Baba also teaches the masses in parables, yet was explaining the most abstruse passages in the Vedas to India's pundits at the age of ten. Both come over as men of the people, intensely human and lovable, albeit divine, rather than as cloistered holy men. One might say 'divinely human and humanly divine'. One feels this about Jesus, at one and the same time a friend and a god-man. So too with Baba — at one moment borrowing a razor from Dr Gokak when travelling, and then suddenly performing some stupendous miracle (like 'cancelling' the cancer of a devotee).

We are told that Jesus commanded an audience of thousands, and was acclaimed by virtually the entire city on his entry into Jerusalem. Baba commands an audience of tens of thousands on a whirlwind visit to a big city. Both started their mission when children. Christ taught in the temple at the age of 12. Baba was performing miracles at 6 and started his mission at the age of 13.

The teaching on karma and reincarnation is common to both, although most of Christ's teaching on these truths were expunged from the four Gospels which were kept, at the Council of Constantinople in 553 A.D. They are, however, still intact in the Aquarian Gospel and others. 'A man reaps what he sows,' says Jesus. 'Whatsoever acts a man does, good or bad, follow him,' says Baba. 'The Kingdom of heaven is within you,' said Jesus. 'We make our worlds ourselves,'says Baba. 'God is your best Guru, and He resides in your heart.'

Christ upheld the role of women and tried to raise their status above the level of mere chattels. He was often surrounded by women. Swami, too, reveres women, and elevates them in their vital role of motherhood as being the custodians of future generations. 'The mother is the child's first guru,' He says. Three of His first six colleges are for women only (and every year November 19th is celebrated as Ladies Day in Prashanthi Nilayam and all Sai Centres).

Christ preached joy and the life abundant. 'I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.' Joy is the very essence of Baba's personality and teaching. Listen to those who know Him intimately — Howard Murphet, author of three books on Baba: 'We who struggle on through sorrow and passing joy, see in Baba the embodiment of perfect joy.' Or to Dr Sandweiss, author of The Holy Man and the Psychiatrist, 'He appears to be in a state of constant bliss. His face and body are lit with an aura of energy which I have never observed in a human being.'

Of course the cornerstone of the teaching of these two god-men can be summed up in the one word - love. No newcomer to the Gospels, unconditioned by theology, could possibly read them without gaining the over-whelming impression that the paramount message contained therein is one of love. "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God . . .' and 'Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.' Sai Baba, too, is the embodiment of love. It is the essence of all His teaching, the golden thread which runs through everything He says and does, the criterion by which He judges everything.

There is the same similarity in the detailed teaching. 'Avoid killing, theft, adultery, greed, sensuality, anger, impatience, hatred, egotism, pride.' Are not these exhortations an appeal to the Christian values? In the ten volumes of Baba's Discourses can be found every precept of the Sermon on the Mount. I give here a few of the sayings of both.

The Sermon on the Mount

Jesus : 'Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.'
Sai : 'The pure heart becomes inspired; it sees beyond intellect and reason.'
Jesus : 'Search not for the mote in your neighbour's eye but look for the beam in your own.'
Sai : 'Instead of seeing faults in others, search for those in yourself.'
Jesus : 'Judge not, that ye be not judged.'
Swami: 'Do not judge others, for when another is judged you are yourself condemned.'
Jesus : 'Cast not pearls before swine.'
Sai : 'Do not discuss devotion with those who have none; it will lessen your own.'
Jesus : 'Love your enemies.'
Sai : 'Carry on even if you are hated.'
Jesus : 'Not everyone who sayeth 'Lord, Lord' shall enter the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of the Father.'
Sai : 'The secret of liberation lies not in mystic formulas and rosaries, but in stepping out into action.' (Love and Service)
Jesus : 'For as much as you do injury to one of these, you do it to me.'
Sai : 'Do not slander or injure anyone, for you are slandering Me who is in him.'
Jesus : 'For Thine is the power and the glory.'
Sai : ' No man can claim achievement, for all are but instruments in the hands of the Lord..'
Jesus : 'Come unto me, all ye who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.'
Sai : 'Bring Me the depths of your minds, no matter how grotesque, no matter how ravaged by doubts or disappointments. I will not reject you. I am your Mother.'

Sai and Jesus - The Same Divine Charisma

As with the teachings, so with the personalities and miracles. It is clear that Christ had a radiant transparency, a divine charisma, with no trace of affectation, pride or ego; that he was motivated solely by love which radiated from him. The impact of meeting him must have been soul-shattering. How else could a man walk up to a small group of illiterate fishermen, talk to them for an hour, and then say, 'Follow me,' and have them do just that, abandoning all?

Sai Baba has a similar effect. The sight of Him changes men and women. Often souls are instantly transformed. Dr Sandweiss was an example. When Swami first looked at him he wrote: 'What was communicated in that brief moment? The world! Something broke inside me. Some of Baba's love and joy penetrated my soul and I found myself laughing like a child ... I felt somehow transformed in one dazzling, incredible minute. I was left with my mouth hanging open.'

The Christ is said to have had an aura that reached out for a mile, so that 'sensitives' who came within it were psychically aware of his presence and were uplifted. Sai Baba's aura has been described by Dr Baranowski, a clairvoyant and Kirlian photography expert from Arizona University, as almost limitless. 'The white (energy) filled the entire room, the pink (intense universal love) went beyond the walls of the building and beyond this were bands of gold and silver reaching to the horizon.'

The Christ had X-ray eyes, instantly knowing thought and character. Baba has said, 'I see into the mind and heart. I see who has an urgent problem and needs the help of an interview.' He sees the past, present and future of everyone he meets. His omniscience regarding the past and present is constantly proved.

One gets the impression that Christ preferred simple people with a good heart. He mainly chose simple men as his disciples.

Baba often rails at the scholars and pedants, with their 'desire for disputation and the laurels of victory over those preening themselves as learned'. 'Be simple and sincere,' Baba tells His devotees. Both show their dislike of the Pharisee type. Christ called them 'whited sepulchres'. Swami calls them 'dry as dust scholars exulting in their casuistry and argumentative skills.'

Both have clearly shown their love of children. Jesus rebuked the disciples who wanted to keep the children away. 'Suffer little children to come unto me' . Baba shares this love. When a large group of children from the Wellingborough Centre (UK) went to the ashram they were too excited to sleep on the first night. Baba came to their quarters and asked them if they would go to sleep if He, too, went to sleep? Whereupon He lay down on the floor and pretended to sleep. Soon the only sound was blissful breathing — and Baba crept out on tiptoe.

Both demonstrate a capacity for vehement 'righteous indignation' when necessary for a purpose, as, for example, when Jesus drove out the money-changers from the temple with a leather lash because he opposed the buying of animals for sacrifice. A friend of mine who is a close devotee told me how one day a man with a very wealthy father, who was dying, actually came to Swami to seek financial advice about his coming inheritance! Swami thundered at him, with an emotion which astonished my friend, for thinking of money when his sick father needed his care, and dismissed him — only to revert to His normal loving self in a second. The 'anger' was just a necessary 'act'. As He says, 'Sometimes I have to make a noise!'

Jesus and Sai - The Same Personality, the Same Miracles

Both also show a combination of deep humility and commanding authority. Jesus is often referred to as 'one who spoke with authority' - one envisages a tall, commanding figure. Yet he knelt down and washed the feet of his disciples. Swami might often play and joke, but should anyone take undue advantage of it, in the twinkling of an eye He resumes His authority. Once, when a devotee enquired if he might ask a favour, Baba replied, 'Of course. I am yours. I have no rights.' At one time a servant of mankind, at another the Lord.

Both, of course, have been maligned and persecuted. 'Calumny is the lot of all great souls everywhere, at any time. It would be unnatural if it were not so,' says Baba. He is oblivious to praise or blame. Christ was accused of being a wine-bibber, of mixing with publicans and sinners. Baba has been criticised for allowing 'sinners' to use the ashram. Their replies were similar: 'I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.'

Baba has said, 'Sinners have more need of me than you have.' Christ was accused of healing by the powers of Satan (Beelzebub). Baba has been called a black magician.

There is also a remarkable similarity in the miracles. Christ healed the sick. Baba heals the sick daily. Christ raised Lazarus from the dead when his body is said to have been in a state of decomposition. Baba has raised the dead on at least two occasions. The body of Mr V. Radhakrishna was also in a state of decomposition. (In fact, there are many occasions, when Swami has given the Gift of Life to chosen devotees, please go here to read our cover story on Resurrections - H2H Team).

Both multiplied food — Christ at the feeding of the five thousand, and Baba on many occasions when the food has run out. Christ changed water into wine. Baba has changed water into petrol and fuel oil. Christ could control the elements and calm the seas; likewise Baba has made a rainbow appear, and made floods recede. Christ could levitate and walk on the waters. Baba was levitating as a child to the top of the rocky hill at Puttaparthi.

The Divine Assurance of Sai

Christmas is a major festival at the ashram and celebrated with much more fervour than in the West where it has become so grossly commercialised. Baba often gives talks to small groups of Christians and points out the excisions and interpolations in the Gospels.

To those who feel a sense of disloyalty to Jesus He has on more than one occasion manifested a figure of Jesus above His head, thus identifying the two. There are also accounts of people praying before a statue of Christ and seeing it transform into an image of Sai Baba.

Finally, on Christmas Day 1972 Swami was talking to a group of Christians. He referred to a statement of Jesus which He said had been excised from the Bible. One day Jesus said to his disciples, 'He who sent me will come again. His name will be Truth. He will wear a red robe. He will be short, and have a crown (of hair).' Of course this description exactly fits Sathya Sai.

When I read about this it completely fascinated me, for I had already come to believe that Sai Baba was the great Celestial Being who had overshadowed Jesus - the One whom Jesus referred to, and prayed to, as 'the Father'.

Well, in January 1980 I plucked up courage during a private interview with only my wife present, and referred to Baba's statement on Christmas Day 1972. I said, 'Swami, does this omission in the Bible mean that it was You who sent Jesus of Nazareth into incarnation?'

'Yes,' He replied. Then came the question which lay at the very core of my soul,'In that case, are you what Western Christians call the Cosmic Christ?'

'Yes,' He said again.

It is impossible to convey in words the tone, the quiet assurance in which He affirmed these two questions. Gently, lovingly, with total conviction, with a sort of ineffable simplicity, and perhaps most of all, with a total lack of self-consciousness impossible in a human being. He looked straight into my eyes, which were no more than twelve inches from His, and just said, 'Yes'. I only know that it was impossible not to believe Him.

- From Sathya Sai Baba Magazine - Spring 1984.

SAI RAM

In Honour of Jesus Christ

by Dr Reet Priiman

The great teachers belong to mankind. It is wrong to believe that Jesus belongs only to the Christians and the Christmas is a holy festival for the West only. To accept one of them as one's own and discard the rest as belonging to others, is a sign of pettiness. Christ, Raama, Krishna - they are for all men everywhere.

The various limbs and organs together form a body; various nations and communities together form the world. The stream of love, endowed by divine grace, has to circulate in every state and community to make the world live in peace and joy. If this truth is realised, there will arise no idea of difference.

The moving water of a river has the moon in its depths; the still water of a lake has also the moon underneath; the sky has the moon up above. The moon in the flowing river is broken and fragmentary, it flows fast, apparently, with the floods. The moon in the lake is calm, unmoved, undistracted. These two are but reflections of the real moon in the sky. The real moon in the sky is the eternal witness, the absolute, the primal principle.

Christ spoke of these three, when He made, one after the other, three statements. Referring to the active individual soul, the flickering moon, he said, "I am the messenger of God;" referring to himself as the Yogi, who has risen beyond dualities, and attained balance, he said, "I am the son of God". Realising that these two are but reflections, and that the real moon is the witness in the sky, that he too is the formless, nameless absolute, he declared, towards the end of his life, "I and my father are one".

Jesus taught simple practical lessons in spiritual advancement for the good of mankind; he manifested divine powers to instil faith in the validity of his teachings; he marked out the path that can confer on men the sweet nectar of Aanandha. He exhorted people by precept and example to cultivate the virtues of charity, compassion, forbearance, love and faith. These are not separate and distinct qualities, they are only the many facets of the divine in man, which he has to recognise and develop.

Let us pay attention to the sacrifice that Jesus made while free, out of his own volition. He sacrificed his happiness, prosperity, comfort, safety and position; he braved the enmity of the powerful. He refused to yield or compromise. He renounced the 'ego', which is the toughest thing to get rid of. Honour him for these. He willingly sacrificed the desires with which the body torments man; this is sacrifice greater than the sacrifice of the body under duress. The celebration of his birthday has to be marked by your sacrificing at least a desire or two, and conquering at least the mere disastrous urges of the ego.

The lives of such personalities are lived out, in order to establish the welfare of humanity, the prosperity and peace of the world, and individual liberation from bondage to sensual desires and passions. This is illustrated by the strange phenomenons that occur at the time of their advent. It is believed that when Christ was born there were such manifestations.

Appearances of splendour, and other signs to herald the era that has dawned are natural when incarnations happen on earth. Jesus was to shatter the darkness that had enveloped the world and the aura of light was a sign that announced the event. The masters arrive in answer to man's prayer. "Thamaso Maa Jyothir Gamaya" (Lead us from darkness unto light!).

If each one does his duty, in the spirit of dedication, the light can illumine all, but, if the doors of the heart are shut against the light, how can darkness disappear? You cannot sit back, and expect the incarnation to bring peace and joy into you. The incarnation comes to warn, to guide, to awaken, to day down the path, and shed the light of love on it. But, man has to listen, learn and obey with hope and faith.

At the moment when Jesus was merging in the supreme principle of divinity, he communicated some news to his followers.

The statement itself has been manipulated and tangled into a conundrum. The statement of Christ is simple: "He who sent me among you will come again!" (By Christ's statement "He" is Swami "who will come again").

The great axioms of Bhaaratheeya culture found in the Vedhas - "God is the inner motivator of all beings. All this is Vaasudheva, the divine" - are to be in every one. This is the inner mystery of incarnation, God incarnating in all! All are one; the one is all. (Compilation and extracts from: Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourses "He Whom Christ Announced," 24 December 1972. Bangalore).

Light and Love

Miraculous world and Swami's visit cards

Merry Christmas, dear 'saibabanews' family. Let Swami's Blessing flows over our spiritual aspirations as breeze what will bring us the new experiences, duties and responsibility before the own Selves and Swami's both (Bodily and Cosmic) forms on the spiritual path to unity and eternity. Swami notes that at present time the life of His devotees is His message.
The world of Maya Reality is starry in time and space. It is believed that on Advent of Christmas, the stars are brighter and the Moon is clearer. This time is holy and still full of miracles, performed by Nature. Miracles, be they performed on ancient time or today, have always covered with mystery what humanity has tried to solve.

"There is no need to seek Truth anywhere else. Seek it in man himself: he is the miracle of miracles. Whatever is not in man cannot be anywhere outside him. What is visible outside him is but a rough reflection of what really is in him! The ancient belief was that Ishwara (God) ruled over the World, with Himself being outside it; this, the Indian seekers put to test through Sadhana and revealed that God was and is in the world and of it. This is the first contribution of Indians to the spiritual world - that God is not external to man, but his very inner core." (Sathya Sai Baba. Sathya Sai Vahini. "The Miracle Of Miracles." P.19).
What are miracles in essence? I believe that today's holistic science, in general, is too a great miracle itself. Further, the whole Universe what we percept is a great miracle, illusion by Vedas and Swami. Miracles of Christ, Krishna, other divine incarnations from past and of Swami from present are the proof for the deeper laws of Nature governing the visible and the invisible worlds guided by God as author. Miraculous power is possible when the entire life has directed into Divine Incarnation and mind has liberated from dictate of senses. Swami underlines this fact in many His Works.
At the highest level, holy miracles are the work of God. Christ said, "The Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works (miracles). I am in the Father and the Father in me ..."

The miracles of Lord Krishna may divide under seven grades.
Illumination of visions, seeing at a great distance, multiplying different material things, projecting his subtle body to several places at once, healing by touch, revive the dead, laying dooms on particularly grievous, especially dangerous sinners (1).

"Krishna had already announced His glory to the cowherd maidens by such divine miracles as the uplifting of the mountain Govardhanagiri. He had proved Himself superior to Indhra, Brahma and Varuna. He had manifested the universe in His mouth and showed that He had come on a divine mission to destroy the wicked and save the good." (Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourses "Vishaya, The Visha." 6 September 1963, Prasanthi Nilayam).

    Jesus Christ performed the same range miracles with different accents. He concentrated His miraculous power to healing, levitation over water, made himself invisible, multiplied food, he raised from the dead.
    Many saints, avatars have shown miraculous powers as levitation, bilocation, astral travel etc.
The fact that this power really (in Maya reality) exists, shows that the modern science does not know far all the laws and forces of Nature and what the science know is partially true.
    About Swami's endless miracles many books have written and infinite number of experiences have shared. Through His miracles, Swami shows the helplessness the powerful modern science and educated by rules of consumer society human mind.
    Conclusion, done by books about Swami's miracles and some indirect experiences show that His miracles cannot be explained by science what today has reached close to accepting telepathy, visions of aura and holographic Universe. Swami's miracles as surpass the border of respectable scientific facts and indicate to the power of human's mind what will heal, teleport, create objects and move objects at a distance.

"The "miracles and wonders" which cannot be explained by the categories of science, are so natural to Me that I am amused when you label them as miracles." (Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourses "Manushya And Manas, Maarkandeya," 22 January 1960. Sanskrit College, Aukiripalli).

Swami's miracles are as a call to develop to the new "spiritual-scientific" outlook of Reality. It is true, there are many "classical" scientists who shut their eyes from the evident facts and say, that miracles do not exist because they simply cannot exist by their "home-made" scientific truths.

"Incarnation is for the sake of fostering Dharma, for demarcating and directing it and to show mankind the true path of desireless activity. That is the one task I am engaged in, through various channels. Instead of reforming you without your knowledge, it is better to reform you with your own co-operation and knowledge. So, I reveal to you My glory, off and on, to a little extent, through what you call miracles. I do not engage in them for name and fame; I am miraculous by My very nature! Every moment of Mine is a Mahaathmya, a miracle!

    Those who have strayed away from Me have to return to the fold, sooner or later, for I will not allow them to be distant for long. I shall drag them towards Me. That is My basic nature, love and mercy." (Extracts from: Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourses "Birthday Sparks," 23 November 1961. Prasanthi Nilayam).
    Swami does not directly explain how he creates the miracles. How can a genetic explain to a illiterate child the structure of DNA or physicist the theory of gravitation? Here for a child the proper development and training required before to understand these theories.
    Similarly, to understand the essence of Swami's miracles the spiritual training, special, pure, selfless state of mind and experiences through Vedic wisdom and His Teaching is needed. Swami shows the importance of own spiritual will (motivation) what is possible to lead towards experience the miraculous creative powers (siddhis). Such will probably belongs to the both - Maya and Atmic realities.
   The Divine powers and forces that Swami directs are in accordance with the Divine Will and Laws of the higher type of Harmony and Order. There are no places for whatsoever evil spirits. They will disappear before the aura of vibrations of Swami's Divine Will.
    A human being through deep observation has been able to make generalizations in form of laws of Nature what are relatively true. They cannot fully explain the phenomena of miracles. As time goes on, the other hypotheses appears, more exact and closer to the partial understanding of reality. However, without fusing into spiritual oneness with God the ultimate solution remains hidden as for the seeker of truth so for the modern science.
    In present stage of spiritual development a full comprehension the essence of Swami's miracles remains, as a rule, beyond the human consciousness. Swami's Teaching is leading spiritual seekers to proper understanding the miraculous powers of Swami and hidden seeds of these powers as in every human being so in the whole Universe.

Swami explains the purpose of His miracles:

"But, those who profess to have understood Me, the scholars, the Yogis (spiritually advanced persons), the Pandiths (scholars), the Jnaanis (liberated persons), all of them are aware only of the least important, the casual, external manifestation of an infinitesimal part of that power, namely, the "miracles"! They have not desired to contact the source of all power and all wisdom. They are satisfied when they secure a chance to exhibit their book-learning and parade their scholarship in Vedhic lore, not realising that the person from whom the Vedhas (sacred scriptures of the Hindhus) emanated is in the midst, for their sake." (Extracts from: Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourse "Who is Sai," 19 June 1974. Brindavan).

"What exactly has been won by people who have struggled for a hundred years? They have hungered and eaten, slept and awakened, laughed and wept - but what is the result of it all on the personality or on the world? Nil. When humanity flows purposeless and meaningless into the sands, the Avathaar comes to warn and show the way. The one task has to be fulfilled in various ways; that is the mission of the Avathaar. Let me tell you, it is only those who know the scriptures, that can understand Me. I am determined to correct you only after informing you of My credentials. That is why I am now and then announcing My nature by means of miracles - that is, acts which are beyond human capacity and human understanding. Not that I am anxious to show off My powers. The object is to draw you closer to Me, to cement your hearts to Me." (Extracts from: Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourse "Destiny Is No Iron Cage," 24 November 1961. Prasanthi Nilayam).
"Raamaswaami Reddy said that I work many miracles and that you are all lucky to have had this opportunity of hearing Me. Well, I am like a shop-keeper whose shop is stocked with all things man needs. But like the man behind the counter, I give you only what you ask for; if the customer asks for a towel, how can I give him a Dhothi? But these material things are not important at all. Ask for Bhakthi (devotion) and for Jnaana (spiritual wisdom) and I shall be happy." (Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourses "Many Roads." Y.M.I.A., Mylapore, Madras. 24 March 1958).

Reference:
1. Krishna; a Study in the Theory of Avataras by Bhagavan Das; General Editor R.R. Diwakar & S. Ramakrishnan. Publisher: BVB, Mumbai, 1990.

Namaste - Reet