Chapter 13, Leela 6: Dattopant of Harada

Leela:

Dattopant, a gentleman from Harada, suffered from stomach pain for fourteen years. None of the remedies gave him any relief. Upon hearing of Baba's fame and that He was known to cure diseases by sight, he rushed to Shirdi and fell at Baba's Feet.

 

Baba looked at him kindly, placed His hand on Dattopant’s head and gave him Udi with blessings. Dattopant felt immediate relief and the stomach pain never returned.

 

In a similar situation, Madhavrao Deshpande suffered from hemorrhoids. Baba made him a decoction (a concentration of a substance created by heating or boiling it) of Sonamukhi (senna pods), which relieved him. The condition recurred two years later and Mahdavrao took the same decoction without consulting Baba. The result was that the disease was aggravated, but was cured later with Baba's grace.

 

In another case, Kaka Mahajani's elder brother, Gangadharpant, suffered from stomach pain for many years. Hearing of Baba's fame, he came to Shirdi and requested Baba to cure him. Baba touched his belly and said, "God will cure". From that moment onwards, there was no stomach pain and he was completely cured.

 

Nanasaheb Chandorkar also once suffered from intense stomach pain; he was restless the whole day and night. Doctors administered various medications which produced no effect. Then he approached Baba, who told him to eat Burfi (a kind of sweetmeat) mixed with ghee. This recipe gave him complete relief.

 

Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The wonderful life and teachings of Shri Sai Baba, Translated by Nagesh Vasudev Gunaji (Mumbai: Shri Sai Baba Sansthan, Shirdi, 20^th Edition 2002), p75

Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba, G. R. Dhalbokar, Translated by Indira Kher (Slovenia: Bird Publisher, 2009), p108

 

Teachings from Leela:

1)    The apparent remedy for disease is only a distraction for the devotee; no one escapes the law of karma (but God sometimes takes some of your suffering upon Himself)

This leela is another example where Baba took on some of the suffering in His devotee’s behalf. In chapter 7 of the Sai Satcharitra, Baba showed to all present, four fully developed buboes (swollen, inflamed lymph nodes, a symptom of Bubonic plague), as big as eggs, and said to Mrs. Kharpade,

“See how I have to suffer for My devotees. Their difficulties are Mine.”

In this leela, we see that Baba cured the diseases of several devotees in unusual ways, and when a devotee tried the same remedy for that disease on his own the next time, it did not work. This proves that the cure was not in the remedy; Baba Himself was the cure. He took the disease upon Himself and gave the appearance that the remedy was responsible for the cure.

This leela also conveys to us the devotees’ full faith in Baba, as they never questioned Him on His unusual instructions. Instead, they followed them with full shraddha, with the conviction that no harm could possibly come to them, even though they were in potentially risky circumstances.

Putting into Practice

Here are some suggestions on how we could use this leela in our daily lives.

1)    The apparent remedy for disease is only a distraction for the devotee; no one escapes the law of karma (but God sometimes takes some of your suffering upon Himself)

This section has been very well explained in a previous blog, Chapter 7, Leela 4: Baba’s All-pervasiveness and Mercy.

This is another example that everyone must face the consequences of their Karma, but when you surrender to Baba, He will protect you, by taking your suffering upon Himself. The suffering is still there, but He has diverted it to Himself.

If you happen to experience a similar miracle, consider it a gift of time given to you by Baba, so that you can focus solely on your spiritual practice, to get moksha, instead of being fully occupied with the allotted suffering due you because of your previous karma. Make the best use of this gift, by applying it towards your spiritual growth, which is the ultimate goal of life. We all owe it to our Sadguru to work on this goal and to make progress.

It also becomes your duty to keep your deeds pure, so that you do not create new bad karmas, the consequences of which Baba will have to suffer unnecessarily, as he is bound by his duty to protect you.

If you find yourself in an unhappy situation facing the advent of suffering, remind yourself that Baba will take on some of your suffering if it becomes intolerable. Remember him often.

When you find yourself in a situation where it appears you have gotten away with less harm than could potentially have happened, consider the possibility that Baba took on some of the consequences. On contemplating this, you will surely be humbled, and your shraddha in him will deepen.

 

 

 

Mantra:

Om, Sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ
Sarve santu nirāmayāḥ
Sarve bhadrāṇi paśyantu
Mā kashchit duḥkha bhāgbhavet
Oṁ Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ

Meaning:

May all be prosperous and happy
May all be free from illness
May all see what is spiritually uplifting
May no one suffer
Om peace, peace, peace

 

This above mantra is from the Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/seekingshanti/2015/09/hinduprayerforeveryone_globalgoals/

I would encourage all of you to please share your interpretations, learnings and experiences on how you have put this leela into practice.

 

 

Om Sai Ram.