INFORMATION ABOUT SRI SATHYA SAI BABA of
by Robert Priddy
retired researcher and lecturer in philosophy and sociology, formerly of the
University of Oslo, Norway from 1967 to 1987. UK citizen, a founder member
and leader for nearly two decades of the Sathya Sai Organisation in Norway.
| DISCLAIMER One should be aware that Sathya Sai Baba has proven himself to be something quite other than what he claims to be and what one could suppose him to be from reading the following, which was written while the author was unaware of the seriousness and depth of the dark sides of Sathya Sai Baba. Everything has to be reconsidered in the light of the revelations about his activities that are easily found on the internet, and on my 'enigma' website |
| On this page below: Sathya
Sai Service Work Sai Baba's materialisations
and other miracles Sai publications and
other media |
Sri Sathya Sai Baba was
reportedly born before sunrise on
One
remarkable fact about Sai Baba is his activity from morning to night, day in and
day out, in over 5 decades for all those who have come to seek his attention,
from the needy and the suffering to spiritual seekers of every denomination. Few
persons, if any, have ever been so indefatigable. His place of residence has always
been constantly surrounded by people, now never less than in the thousands for
a single day, wherever he goes. He is ever the same, attending selflessly to the
task he has set himself, the uplift of mankind - regardless of race, belief or
background - without interruption or any kind of leisure. Whatever one may believe
about him or not, his achievements are very considerable. Thise
has been observed and confirmed by many leading persons, including the present
and several former Presidents and Prime Ministers of India and many State Governors
and Ministers, all of whom regularly visit Sai Baba in both official capacities
and for personal guidance. Such persons are supporting the mission Sai Baba has
announced, including re-Hindiuising society through
encouraging the Vedic heritage and in morally supporting the official Sathya Sai
universal-humanistic and spiritual educational programme (Education in Human Values)
as well as his colleges in
Sai
Baba remains in
Sai
Baba says that he concentrates on the good of everyone he meets. Many express
their conviction that this is so in their own instances. How many already have
visited is difficult to estimate. It is calculated that he may altogether have
given interviews of minimum one-hour to between 70 and 100 thousand individuals!
Interviews are usually given twice daily to groups of anything from a few up to
ca. 30 persons at a time and can last up to 2 hours, most often including brief
private interviews.
The summary of SS service work below is what I believed to be the case when I was still a follower of SSB. However, I have had to modify my views since so much information about misuse of funds, misappropriation of donations, and the total unaccountability of the Sai Central Trust and much else has surfaced. The Rayalaseema water project has been reported as very largely ineffective and was given by Sai Baba to the Andhra Pradesh authorities because he was unable to run or maintain it. Though the aim was laudable enough, it had publicity aspects for Sai Baba, whose luxurious buildings and cars etc. had apparently caused considerable dislike of him in the area.
With the aid of many
thousands of active service workers in his various organisations, Sathya Sai
Baba runs major projects to help poor and suffering people in
A
significant event for the population of a largish part of the poor state of Andhra
Pradesh was the inauguration on Sai Baba's 70th birthday of the extensive Rayalaseema
water project. In the presence of a crowd of about 2 to 3 hundred thousand, the
President of India officially started the turbines that opened this project, which
brings a year-round water supply to each of over 750 villages and several towns
in this dry state that were often without any water previously, which lack caused
much suffering. The project involved river dams, reservoirs, wells, boreholes
and over 2,500 kms. of pipeline.
It was completed on schedule in the amazing time of just over 8 months of work
only! It brings a year-round potable fluoride-free water supply from various new
sources to villages that were often without any water at all or whose inhabitants
were subject to the terrible illness fluorosis. This
project was financed by the publicly-registered Sri Sathya Sai Baba Central Trust
at a cost of over 25 million dollars, which finance has been provided by voluntary
donations from members of the organisation.
The
Sathya Sai Speciality Hospitals. Director
of the Prince of Wales Institute of Architecture, Dr. Keith Crichlow,
an associate of Prince Charles, designed the most modern and spacious speciality
hospital in
During
the 4-day Sixth World Conference of Sathya Sai Seva Organisations, 8,000 delegates
partook from 138 countries of the world. At the
A second Sathya Sai Super Speciality
hospital, of greater capacity, was opened in 2000 in
SAI BABA'S MATERIALISATIONS AND OTHER MIRACLES
Unlike most of those
who have seen Baba and experienced his love and many amazing qualities, many
others lay much weight on his constant materialisations... ash (vibhuti), crystal-and-gold rosaries, crosses, lockets and
watches set with precious stones, photographs, sweets, out-of-season fruits,
Shiva-lingams and so on. Sometimes several objects are waved forth, one after
the other, while all the objects are durable and are given to fortunate persons
as talismen and for other reasons. Baba has frequently
drawn up his sleeve and shown doubters the objects as they form on his bare
palm. Among a series of other impressive manifestatons
the undersigned has witnessed, at the range of about 3 feet against a white-wall
background, was the instantaneous materialisation from nothing of a
handful of Indian sweetmeet in Sai Baba's inverted
hand.
It
is not known that any of the many tens of thousands of objects materialised by
Sai Baba have been sold at any price anywhere. These things, Baba tells us, are
only the visible manifestations of super-physical power. Partly through these
gifts, he tries to inspire people to faith in an ‘invisible reality’ and towards
acts of humanitarian care, removing anxiety and suffering, doubt and despair.
Here too I have many reservations now. I do not contest the possibility that SSB has actually transported or 'apported' (or possibly even materialised?) many objects, but I DO know that he uses sleight of hand and I am further convinced that all the large stones he says are diamonds are cheap articificial copies, for I have had the 'green diamond' and gold ring I wore from 1986 until 1999 assayed by the top royal jeweller in Denmark. Other leaders in the Sai organisation have defected, and one has told me that he watched SSB fetch rings, malas, watches etc. from a stock behind him in the fold of his chair during the last dozen or so interviews he attended. At the time he thought that since it please devotees and helped them have more faith (!!) it must be better than not giving anything... but he got too many second thoughts when the sexual molestion allegations on such a grand scale became known. Besides, that SSB fakes has been widely documented now, bot by ex-devotee writers and on numerous film clips.
A visit to Prashanti
Nilayam makes it possible to meet any number of persons who show various objects
materialised by Baba, many of which are often rather unique in character,
often of a sort found only among Sai followers. Persons of integrity and judgement
from various professions and levels of society, both in
Photographs, films and videos have
sometimes even captured the materialising object, such as a diamond ring,
as they are apparently emerging out of the palm of his waving hand. He has
repeatedly confounded and fascinated some of
A national Indian t.v. program in 1993 showed the then Prime Minister attending
Baba as he opened a large new spiritual centre (Kalyana
Mantap) in
On the basis of his personal observations
and also on thorough and painstaking investigations carried out over years
on standard social scientific interview and questionnaire models, the psychologist
Professor Erlendur Haraldsson of the Faculty of Social Science, Reykjavik, has
estimated that Baba creates and gives away an average of 30 objects daily
and has done so for many decades. (A rate of 10,000 objects
a year!). Professor H.J. Eyesenck, the well-known
British behavioural psychologist, who has not himself visited Sai Baba, has
written his conclusions on Haraldsson's book Miracles
are My Visiting Cardss (Century 1987 and 2nd
ed. Macmillan, India 1994): "At first sight, most readers with a scientific
training will dismiss all these claims as simply evidence that Sai Baba is
a clever magician. However, the details of his feats make this a very difficult
position to hold."
Notwithstanding
there are many sceptics who claim that all this is done by fakery, and have got
magicians to apparently ‘materialise’ ash (vibhuti),
rings and objects in the same manner as does Sai Baba. Some followers have reported
that they have seen Sai Baba fake materialsing a ring
or the like, even sometimes that Baba has told them not
to tell anyone. Some hold that this is Baba’s way of giving people what they want
– those who wish it should not be true, are shown a fake object or legardemain. Of those who have been with Sai Baba and have
had numerous interviews for many years, only one or two have decided that it is
all fakery. The present author is certain that fakery did not take place in at
least one dramatic manifestation he witnessed and is 95% certain in a considerable
number of other instances he witnesed.
Baba's activities can be studied
through films or videos, of which there have been many made About a dozen
films made early on by
Richard Bock of Hollywood, clearly show materialisations, such as the flood
of vibhuti from Baba's hand within an inverted pot which lasted
unbroken on film for up to a minute during an annual ceremony that was held
for many years. The annual event resulted in many kilograms of the holy ash
each time, certainly more than the po could holdt. Critics will not accept these facts, not having been
present or questioned anyone who held the pot for Baba, as I have done. Sathya
Sai hardly ever interrupts or alters his usual routines so as to allow choreography,
posing or acting in films, cameramen simply have
to take their chance whenever and wherever they may be allowed to shoot. Videos
were until recently daily being made spontaneously by visitors, and long films
have been featured on National TV channels in
Sai
Baba says he is not concerned to publicise his own miracles, though his actually
doing them for so many persons, even with the national TV filming, surely has
an element of publicity? What is meant, however, is that he uses the material
wonders only to attract people so that he can convey his spiritual teaching, the
same messages that Hinduism has been conveying for ages. The constant presence,
even during the hottest or wettest periods, of anything from 3,000 to 8,000 persons
ever awaiting the chance of an interview, ensures that publicity is not a main
concern. Enormous festival crowds, anything from 30- to 300-thousand at a time
wait for many hours simply to see him appear.
SAI PUBLICATIONS AND OTHER MEDIA
The
discourses and writings of Sathya Sai, along with a range of books about him,
his life, his various works and programmes, his teachings and personal experiences
with him are available. The Sathya Sai Organisation in many countries have
their own publishing branches. Books and periodicals are published in all the
major languages of the world and
Baba's
activities can be studied through films or videos, of which there have been many
made About a dozen films made early on
by Richard Bock of Hollywood, clearly show materialisations, such
as the flood of vibhuti from Baba's hand within an inverted pot which lasted
unbroken on film for up to a minute during an annual ceremony that was held for
many years. The annual event resulted in many kilograms of the holy ash each time,
certainly more than the po could holdt. Critics will not accept these facts, not having been
present or questioned anyone who held the pot for Baba, as I have done. Sathya
Sai hardly ever interrupts or alters his usual routines so as to allow choreography,
posing or acting in films, cameramen simply have to take
their chance whenever and wherever they may be allowed to shoot. Videos were until
recently daily being made spontaneously by visitors, and long films have been
featured on National TV channels in
Editors
of serious Indian newspapers regularly report very positively on Sai Baba, such
as the Chief Editor of the million-selling 'Blitz' (a Marxist publication!) and
the Chief Editor of the Chandigar Tribune group of Newspapers, V. Narayanan (member
of the Indian Press Council). The ex-Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Express Group,
Sri V.K. Narasimhan, who was the long-time editor of what many regarded as the
best paper in English in India ('The Hindu'), is celebrated in the Indian press
not least for his courageous democratic resistance to the drastic Emergency enforced
by Indira Gandhi in the 1970's, for which almost single-handed
journalistic opposition he later received the Indian equivalent of the Pulitzer
Prize. Narasimhan has been the leading speaker on Indian affairs to conferences
around the globe. Among many other publications, he has written a book about Mahatma
Gandhi and Sathya Sai Baba and is now the editor of the monthly magazine "Sanathana
Sarathi" ('The Eternal Charioteer'), published at Prashanti
Nilayam and mailed to over 50,000 subscribers outside
Except
on a very few well-known occasions, Sai Baba has not given press conferences or
interviews, being completely unconcerned about spreading his teaching by the media.
He apparently gives interviews mainly to spiritual seekers as well as many persons
who are ill or suffer otherwise. From anyone who approaches him he insists on
a certain minimum of intellectual openness or personal humility and willingness
to learn.
Wholly
positive reports in the quality press on Sai Baba are far too numerous to list
but, for example, lengthy good accounts have figured in most major newspapers
in Britain, such as the Sunday Times, the Observer, the Independent, The Economist,
the Evening Standard etc. and in many of the newspapers of most European countries.
SATHYA SAI - AVATAR OF THE AGE?
Sai
Baba has told his followers that, even though God is in everyone and everything,
he is totally aware of this Divinity in a way which others are not, and has been
so even since prior to his birth. This kind of birth is called incarnation and
differs radically from human birth and rebirth.
The
breadth and depth of spirituality in
Whether
Sai Baba is the avataric incarnation of Vishnu come again to save the world
from the crisis caused by its periodic decline in righteousness is a question
of personal conviction, for no one can fully perceive and know the true nature
of such omnipresent divine incarnations, as Baba has pointed out. His closest
attendants admit that they are quite incapable of explaining him or his complete
knowledge of the life histories of any individual who meets him. The feeling of
love, holiness and genuine awe one experiences in his proximity combined with
the naturalness of his being whoever he is together with is unsurpassingly unique, which is confirmed by many who have
met the most famous or holy figures in the world. Wherever Baba goes, he becomes
the immediate centre of interest and deepest respect.
Sathya
Sai Baba is often and convincingly seen to possess the various superhuman attributes
that a Divine Incarnation shall exhibit according to ancient Puranic
texts. Amazing as this is, it is also inexplicable that such an avatar is not
so easily found or recognised. Yet all those who attain closer contact with him
confirm experiencing such aspects of his nature. He also speaks of his Divinity
in a straightforward way, explaining that - if he were not to point out and explain
it to us - we would have no way of knowing and benefitting
from that knowledge.
Baba's
entrancing personality and the outpouring of love, wisdom and spiritual power
have made him loved in millions of homes in countries to which he has never travelled.
His only journey outside
According
to learned interpreters of Indian and other scriptures, some of the acts of Sai
Baba are unparalleled in the history of world religion and the events of his life
exactly fulfil predictions found in certain ancient writings of
Sathya
Sai Baba has now and again informed people that he is not destined to leave his
present body until he reaches the age of 93. He gave the length of his remaining
life as 59 and 58 years in two early discourses in 1960 and 1961 respectively.
(see Sathya Sai Speaks - p. 198 of Vol
1 of New Indian Ed. & p. 92 in Vol. 2 of New Indian ed.). It is widely reported, however, that Baba has said his life would last 95
years, though no reliably documented source for this statement can be found. Thus,
many persons alive today will be in a position to witness the fulfilment of this
prediction. He has further proclaimed on several occasions that the mission he
has come to fulfil cannot be hindered by any earthly powers and will not fail.
So far this has certainly held true, witnessed by such facts as the predictions
he made in youth that have steadily been coming true and also, for example, by
the incomparable speed and efficiency of the key construction programmes he has
directed.
Further,
Sai Baba has said that, after leaving the present body, he will soon reincarnate
as Prema Sai Baba in a village near
From
time to time reports have circulated that Sai Baba has predicted some great world
catastrophes. These reports are false. He forcefully disavowed all rumours of
his having predicted major global floods etc. stating: "These are the fancies
of idle minds. Do not give any credence to them" and "No disaster is
immanent for the world. Over the vast globe there may be some mishaps here and
there, from time to time." (Discourse on Feb. 13, 1991)
In
the 21'st century,
The
author of the above is a retired teacher of philosophy and social science at
Go to second page
© The
materials on this website are copyright, Robert Priddy,
|
The book "Source of the Dream
- My Way to Sathya Sai Baba", by Robert Priddy. New revised
ed. The
above book was personally approved by Sathya Sai Baba for publication,
signed by him on The following
review of the book was sent to the publishers by Sri V.K. Narasimhan of
Prashanthi Nilayam, editor of Sanathana Sarathi (The Timeless Charioteer),
also former Editor-in-Chief of the Indian Express Newspaper Group and winner of
the prestigious Goenka Prize for journalism in "I found [Robert] Priddy's book an excellent study of Sri Sai Baba's life and teachings and a superb guide to an understanding of life in the Ashram. In my view Source of the Dream is the most comprehensive and insightful study of Baba that has been published in recent years. Above all, Priddy has brought out very well Sri Sai Baba's role as a world teacher. The insightful glimpses which he has given of his experiences with Swami make an extremely valuable addition to the literature on Sathya Sai Baba." - V.K. Narasimhan. Note on the price: this book has 8 pages of colour photos
and covers many questions and topics in 27 chapters and 300 compact pages. Among
the chapter titles are: AT PRASHANTI NILAYAM - ENIGMAS OF SUFFERING AND HEALING
- LIVING AND LEARNING AT THE ASHRAM - LEELAS AND PEACE OF MIND - THE UNIVERSAL
WORLD TEACHER - UNDERSTANDING BABA'S TEACHINGS - SCIENCE AND SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE
- EDUCATION AND TRANSFORMATION - THE UNFATHOMABLE NATURE OF THE AVATAR - LIBERATION:
THE GREATEST MYSTERY. |
| Review of the book by one of |
Source
of the Dream is published in USA by Samuel
Weiser, Inc. (ISBN 1-57863-028.2).