Leela:
Once Shama was bitten by a poisonous snake. The snake stung the little finger of his hand and the poison began to spread into his body. The pain was severe and Shama thought that he would pass out soon. His friends wanted to take him to the God Viroba* (a form of Lord Shiva) temple. The temple, where victims of snakebite were often taken, was about 5 kilometers from Shirdi but Shama instead ran to the Masjid, to his Viroba, Sai Baba.
When Baba saw him, He began to scold and abuse. He got enraged and said. "Oh vile Bhaturdya (priest), do not rise up. Beware if you do so", and then roared, "Go! Get away! Come down".
Seeing Baba red with wrath, Shama was greatly disappointed and dejected. He saw the Masjid as his home and Sai Baba his sole refuge, but if he was driven away like this, where would he go? He lost all hope of life and kept silent.
After some
time, when Baba calmed down, Shama went up and sat near him. Then Baba said to
him, "Don't be afraid, don't worry. The Merciful Fakir will save you. Go
and sit quietly at home; don't go out. Believe in Me and remain fearless and
have no anxiety". He was sent home, and immediately afterwards, Baba sent
Tatya Patil and Kakasaheb Dixit to him with instructions that he should eat
what he liked, should move around in the home, but should not lie down and
sleep. These instructions were carried out and Shama recovered in a short time.
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, 20th Edition 2002), p121
Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba, G. R. Dhalbokar, Translated by Indira Kher (Slovenia: Bird Publisher, 2009), p193
* Please Note: While some Gunaji versions of the Sai Satcharitra mention Vithoba (form of Lord Vishnu), the original Marathi pothi refers to Viroba (form of Lord Shiva).
Teachings
from Leela:
1) By tradition there are specific Gods for specific purposes, but you can approach your Sadguru for any of these purposes and He will take care of you
The people of Shirdi, by tradition, took snakebite victims to the Viroba temple, and so Shama’s friends and relatives wanted to do this.
However, Shama, having full faith in Baba, went to his Sadguru for help instead. Baba cured Shama of the poisonous snake bite in a very unusual way. Instead of giving him some medicine, He gave verbal commands to the poison to stop climbing up Shama’s body.
There are many Gods and Goddesses in
Hinduism. Some are associated with specific areas of life. Goddess Saraswati is
associated with learning and music, while Lord Ganesh is associated with the removal
of obstacles, etc. As per the core beliefs of Hinduism, these different Gods
are viewed as ultimately being different forms of the one One God, Brahman. Your
Sadguru, being self-realized by having already achieved moksha, is the same as
Brahman, the One God. Therefore, your Sadguru is the same as any other God.
Please see my previous blog for details, Chapter
11, Leela4: Baba's Control over the Elements – Water
2) Although it might appear outwardly that your Sadguru is upset or angry with you, actually it is never so.
Initially it seemed that Baba was ignoring Shama’s urgent problem of snakebite. Instead of helping him, Baba was unnecessarily yelling at and cursing Shama. He did not even allow Shama to climb the steps of the masjid. Baba was, in fact, saving Shama’s life, by stopping the poison from climbing up his body.
Baba has promised to help anyone who calls out to Him with complete shraddha (faith based upon knowledge and trust) during times of trouble. He has kept that promise as witnessed in this leela. Even today, devotees experience this in their calls to Baba for help.
Baba’s Anger
As described in Indira Kher’s version,
Page 88, verses 74-76. Baba never really got angry with His devotees. He has
said in His own words below:
74) "Even if I seem to be angry with someone, my heart knows no anger".
75) "Should a mother push her child away with a kick, or the ocean send the river back, only then is it possible that I will repulse you or harm you in any way".
76) "I am absolutely in the power of my devotees and stand by their side. For ever I am hungering after their love and readily answer their call in distress".
If we analyze the Sai Satcharitra, there are several instances where Baba appeared to be angry with His devotees. Looking deeper into each leela, we find that Baba’s anger was never for His own personal benefit. It was always for the welfare of His devotees that He got angry with them. Baba’s anger was an unselfish anger. The best example to experience what is unselfish anger is to observe parents getting angry with their children. You will find that it is usually for the benefit of their child, in order to protect them from some danger.
Poison as Metaphor
The poison rising in Shama’s body is a metaphor for negative tendencies which arise in human beings. By show of anger, Baba is emphasizing that, in order to make spiritual progress, we have to bring down these negative tendencies and drive them away from us.
Baba displayed mock anger to emphasize to His devotees the importance of the lesson. It was His way to help devotees understand the importance of this valuable lesson for their own spiritual growth.
Via this leela, Baba wants us to beware of these negative tendencies. By show of His mock anger He is emphasizing the importance of removing our negative tendencies. Let us all work hard to remove them from our lives.
Could Baba have communicated the same message without showing anger?
Sometimes, when you want to drive an important and urgent message home to your kids, you must do it dramatically. The urgency and importance increases manifold when it comes to our spiritual progress.
Example: If your young child leaves your hand and runs across the road, for the safety of your child, you want to send a strong message. If you react strongly, the importance and urgency of the lesson comes across to your child and he understands not to do so in the future.
If we examine the causes of our own
anger, we find that, in most cases, it is a reaction to an actual threat or an
attack to our ego, such as being threatened or attacked, or being treated with
disrespect. Never in the Sai Satcharitra was Baba ever angry for these reasons.
In every case, the anger was used to emphasize a lesson to His devotees for
their own spiritual growth. Actually, His heart knew no anger.
3) Do not expect
that, just because you have a Sadguru in your life, you are free from all
troubles that come your way as your sufferings come to you due to your past
karma.
Why did Baba not warn Shama of the snake bite?
He warned others of the danger of snakebite as seen in the following instances in the chapter 22 of Sai Satcharitra:
i. Baba prophesied the danger from snake to Balasaheb Mirikar and asked Shama to accompany him for his protection.
ii. Even though, a great astrologer prophesied danger to Bapusaheb Booty’s life and a snake did appear, Baba did assure him to not worry as no harm would come to him. The snake went away without harming Bapusaheb.
Baba being Omniscient, knows everything that will happen. However, all our sufferings are our own creations as they are due to our own karmas. We reap as we sow. Baba can only take on some of our sufferings. We must deal with the sufferings of our karmas. Your Sadguru will only intervene if the burden of the suffering gets too difficult to bear for the devotee, or if the devotee asks for help. Even then, He will only be able to divert a portion of the suffering, and will do this in keeping with what is in the best interest of His devotee’s spiritual progress in the long run.
Via this leela, Baba is teaching us that, even though Shama was a very close devotee of His, he had to face the consequences of his karmas. Baba did not warn him of the snake bite and let the snake bite him. Baba knew that being bitten by the snake, Shama would suffer terror and pain. This anguish and suffering would help him burn his past karmas, so He let the snake bite him. However, Baba took on a portion of Shama’s suffering, due to which even after being bitten, Shama did not suffer the full consequences of the poison and did not suffer any negative after-effects.
Conversely, why did He help others avoid snakebite?
It might not be necessary, in some cases, for the snake to actually bite a devotee to free him from his karmas. To suffer the terror might be enough. Baba is our spiritual guide, and knows what is required for His devotees on their spiritual path to Moksha.
Baba customises His help to suit each devotee so that they get maximum benefit from His help. Baba works hard for the best interest of each devotee, relieving them of their sufferings when needed, so that they can make spiritual progress.
Putting into Practice
Here are some suggestions on how we could use this leela in our daily lives.
1) By tradition there are specific Gods for specific purposes, but you can approach your Sadguru for any of these purposes and He will take care of you
Even though there are specific Gods and Goddesses associated with specific problems in your life, when you have a Sadguru, you may appeal to Him for all your problems. When you find yourself in a difficult situation which is beyond your control, remember Baba and seek His help. He is always ready to help you. All you need is shraddha (faith based upon knowledge and trust) and saburi (patience).
2) Although it might appear outwardly that your Sadguru is upset or angry with you, actually it is never so.
Even though it might appear that Baba is not helping you in your crisis, or if you are not getting the desired results from Him, He is working for your own welfare. You must not give up or lose faith in Baba. Do not be disheartened. Accept things as they are, as God’s plan is in the best interest for all concerned. Via this leela, Baba wants us to know that, when we call Him for help, He will always be there for us.
In chapter 40 of the Sai Satcharitra, Baba said, “to keep My word, I would sacrifice my life. I would never be untrue to My words". Even during His lifetime, though Baba never physically left Shirdi, He would manifest Himself outside Shirdi to keep His promise or to be at the service of His devotees. Even today, when Baba is not in His physical form, there are numerous instances where Baba has manifested Himself to fulfill His devotee’s cry for help and, as promised, He will continue to do so for eternity.
3) Do not expect that, just because you have a Sadguru in your life, you are free from all troubles that come your way as your sufferings come to you due to your past karma.
Throughout the Sai Satcharitra, we have witnessed that several of Baba’s close devotees suffered many troubles in their lives. Baba helped them all as much as necessary to reduce their sufferings.
Feel blessed if you have a Sadguru in your life as His presence in your life will give you the strength to deal with your sufferings. We all must go through our sufferings due to our past karmas.
Avoid doing bad karmas by always keeping in mind that Baba is standing next to you. If you constantly practice doing so, you will not be able to do anything bad. We all forget this and think that we can act without His knowledge.
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.
