Satya Sai Baba

The article “The phenomenon of Satya Sai Baba” (Open Page, May 15) was an elixir for rationalists who, time and again, stand up for their convictions without fear. Sai Baba was, no doubt, a great philanthropist and, more so, a good human being. But making him an ‘avatar' of god is certainly ridiculous.

In this context, I would like to mention Periyar EVR's saga against superstition and blind faith. Abraham Kovoor virtually threw a challenge to all godmen to perform miracles in public and materialised sacred ash and articles like chains and tiny lingas in a meeting at IIT, Madras, four decades ago. In the same meeting, he exposed the myth of ‘makara jyothi' in Sabarimala.

P.A.K. Murthy,

Chennai

I would have genuinely appreciated Satya Sai Baba's welfare activities had he done them without much public ado. Nobody would mind spending money on welfare work if people believe that he or she is god. Sai Baba's claim that he was a reincarnation of god is unacceptable. He should have clarified that he was a social worker, not god.

Ch. Aditya,Visakhapatnam

Satya Sai Baba began as a common magician. As people started believing him and regarded him as a godman and began to donate money, he had no option other than behaving like a spiritual leader. As money kept pouring in and the number of his devotees increased worldwide, he had no option but to establish service institutions.

Let me narrate a joke. A young boy fell into a well and cried for help. Many people gathered around the well watching the boy but did nothing. Suddenly, a man jumped into the well and rescued the boy. The crowd started appreciating him. The man looked around and asked the crowd: “Who pushed me into the well?” Such is the case of Sai Baba. That said, he deserves to be lauded for his service to society.

M. Firozama,Visakhapatnam

Pushpa M. Bhargava assumes that the performance of miracles is a pre-requisite for being accepted as god. Many mortals have been spiritual gurus and have performed miracles. Sai Baba never attributed his divinity to miracles.

Divinity is something that needs to be experienced. It is beyond the grasp of scientific laws. His followers, including foreigners, follow him only because they get peace and find solutions to their problems.

N.R. Sathyamurty,Chennai

A magician creates objects from existing objects whereas Sai Baba could create anything as per his wish. He lived his life based on human values. And all that he did was meant for the betterment of society. This was the reason he could attract so many devotees all around the world.

C.A. Krishna Murthy,Koovappady

Is it possible to analyse universal consciousness by negating a few instances? Attempts were made by many to analyse Satya Sai Baba when he was alive. One such person was Samuel H. Sandweiss, an American psychiatrist. He wrote the book The Holy Man and the Psychiatrist in which he expressed his inability to analyse the phenomenon of Satya Sai Baba. As for Baba's miracles (like materialising objects), he himself asked people not to attach much importance to them. They were perhaps meant for certain types of believers, as his love and compassion extended to all sections.

K. Prabhakar Rao,Hyderabad

I am not a Satya Sai devotee. I saw Sai Baba only once when my friend took me to Whitefield. I never sought his darshan or blessings. I have seen videos and read reports decrying his “miracles.” Let us say, for the moment, that his “miracles” were all a farce.

So what? Did he harm anyone? Did he ask the poor to fund his activities? For all the clout he enjoyed, he remained a silent preacher, providing mental peace to people through his bhajans. He never took sides in politics or religion. He kept a low profile, though immensely popular among his countless devotees.

V. Vedagiri,Chennai