Editing Sai Baba of Shirdi (section)

== Biography ==

Most information about Shirdi Sai Baba comes from the ''Śrī Sāī Saccarita'' written by G.R. Dabholkar in Marathi (1859-1929). Dabholkar's biography was influenced by the [[Warkari|Vākarī Sampradāya]] and the Marathi ''[[Shri Guru Charitra|Gurucaritra]]'' by [[Saraswati Gangadhar|Sarasvatī Gaṅgādhar]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Rigopoulos |first=Antonio |title=Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online |publisher=Brill |year=2018 |editor-last=Jacobsen |editor-first=Knut A. |chapter=Shirdi Sai Baba |editor-last2=Basu |editor-first2=Helene |editor-last3=Malinar |editor-first3=Angelika |editor-last4=Narayanan |editor-first4=Vasudha}}</ref>

=== Early years ===
[[File:Shirdi sai2.jpg|thumb|Sai Baba sitting on a stone.]][[File:Shirdi Sai Baba and devotees2.jpg|thumb|Sai Baba with some devotees]]

Sai Baba is noted to have been born as a Hindu [[Brahmin]] before he was adopted by a [[Sufi]] fakeer. However, he himself gave no importance to the questions about his origins.<ref name="Rigopoulos1993">{{cite book | last = Rigopoulos | first = Antonio | title = The Life and Teachings of Sai Baba of Shirdi | publisher = [[State University of New York Press|SUNY]] | year=  1993 | isbn = 0791412687}}</ref>{{rp|8-9}}<ref name="Karline2016">{{cite book|last=McLain|first=Karline|title=The Afterlife of Sai Baba|publisher=University of Washington Press|date=2016-05-02|isbn=978-0-295-80651-8|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gHN7CwAAQBAJ}}</ref>{{rp|129}}<ref name="d115">{{cite web|title=Biography & Facts|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|date=2009-06-18|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shirdi-Sai-Baba|ref={{sfnref|Encyclopedia Britannica|2009}}|access-date=2024-09-23}}</ref> Baba reportedly arrived at the village of [[Shirdi]] dressed as a [[Faqir|faqīr]] in the [[Ahmednagar District]] of [[Maharashtra]], [[India]], when he was about sixteen years old. Although there is no agreement among biographers about the date of this event, it is generally accepted that Baba stayed in Shirdi for three years, disappeared for a year, and then returned permanently around 1858. This suggests a possible birth year of 1838.<ref name="Rigopoulos1993" />{{rp|45}}<ref name=":2" /> He led an ascetic life, sitting motionless under a [[neem]] tree and [[meditation|meditating]] while sitting in an [[asana]]. The Sai Satcharita recounts the reaction of the villagers.

<blockquote>The people of the village were wonder-struck to see such a young lad practicing hard penance, not minding heat or cold. By day he associated with no one, by night he was afraid of nobody.<ref name="Rigopoulos1993"/>{{rp|46}}</blockquote>

Some of the religiously-inclined villagers (Mahalsapati, Appa Jogle and Kashinatha) visited him regularly.   The village children considered him mad and threw stones at him.<ref>{{cite book | last = Parthasarathy | first = Rangaswami | title = God Who Walked on Earth: The Life and Times of Shirdi Sai Baba | publisher = [[Sterling Publishing]] | year=  1997 | pages = 15 | isbn = 81-207-1809-7}}</ref> After some time he left the village and it is unknown where he went or what happened to him. There are some indications that he met with many saints and fakirs and worked as a weaver. He is reported to have said that he fought with the army of [[Rani Lakshmibai]] of [[Jhansi]] during the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]].<ref>(To Balakrishna Upasani Shastri) "I was at the battle in which the Rani of Jhansi took part. I was then in the army." Quoted in {{cite book | last = Narasimhaswami | first = B.V. | title = Sri Sai Baba's Charters & Sayings | publisher = All-India Sai Samaj, Madras | year=  1986 | pages = 209}}</ref>

=== Name ===
Sai Baba's real name is unknown. The name ''Sai'' was given to him by the temple priest Mahalsapati when he returned to Shirdi in 1858. The word ''Sai'' refers to a religious mendicant but can also mean ''God''.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Chicago |first1=The University of |last2=Libraries (CRL) |first2=Center for Research |title=Digital South Asia Library |url=https://dsal.uchicago.edu/?c.4:1:5269.platts |access-date=2017-06-24 |website=dsal.uchicago.edu |language=en}}</ref> In several Indian and Middle Eastern languages the term ''Baba'' is an honorific signifying grandfather, father, old man or sir. Thus Sai Baba denotes "holy father", "saintly father".<ref name="Rigopoulos1993" />

===Return to Shirdi===

[[File:Shirdi Sai Baba 2.jpg|thumb|left|Sai Baba in his usual attire]]

Around this time Sai Baba adopted the practice of dressing in a knee-length one-piece [[Kaftan|''kafni'' robe]] and a cloth cap, articles of typical Sufi clothing. Ramgir Bua, a devotee, testified that Sai Baba was dressed like an athlete and sported 'long hair flowing down to the end of his spine' when he arrived in Shirdi, and that he never had his head shaved. It was only after Baba forfeited a wrestling match with one Mohiddin Tamboli that he took up the ''kafni'' and cloth cap.<ref>{{cite book | last = Warren | first = Marianne | title = Unravelling the Enigma: Shirdi Sai Baba in the Light of Sufism | publisher = [[Sterling Publishing|Sterling Publishers]] | year= 1997 | page = 104 | isbn = 81-207-2147-0}}</ref> This attire contributed to Baba's identification as a Muslim fakir and was one reason for the initial hostility toward him in a predominantly Hindu village.<ref name="Rigopoulos1993" />

For four to five years, Baba lived under a neem tree, and undertook long periods of meditation. His manner was said to be withdrawn and uncommunicative, and he often wandered for long periods in the jungle around Shirdi.<ref>{{cite book | last = Warren | first = Marianne | title = Unravelling the Enigma: Shirdi Sai Baba in the Light of Sufism | publisher = [[Sterling Publishing|Sterling Publishers]] | year = 1997 | page = 45 | isbn = 81-207-2147-0}}</ref> He was eventually persuaded to take up residence in an old and dilapidated [[mosque]], where he lived a solitary life, surviving by begging for [[alms]] and receiving itinerant Hindu or Muslim visitors. In the mosque, he maintained a sacred fire (''[[dhuni]]''), and gave sacred ash ('Udi') from the fire to guests on their departure. The ash was believed to have healing and [[Apotropaism|apotropaic]] powers. He performed the function of a local [[Hakim (title)|hakim]] and treated the sick by application of ashes. He delivered spiritual teachings to his visitors, and recommended the reading of the [[Ramayana]] and [[Bhagavat Gita]] for Hindus and the [[Qur'an]] for Muslims. He insisted on the indispensability of the unbroken remembrance of God's name (''[[dhikr]]''), and often expressed himself in a cryptic manner with the use of [[parable]]s, [[symbol]]s, and [[allegory|allegories]].<ref name="Rigopoulos1993"/>{{rp|86}}

Baba is believed to have tended a garden called Lendi Baug, named after a riverlet called Lendi which flowed nearby.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lendi baug |url=http://www.shirdisaitemple.com/shirdi-article/id/89/lendi-baug |website=www.shirdisaitemple.com |publisher=Shirdi Sai Baba Temple (official website) |access-date=17 July 2018}}</ref> The garden still exists; it contains temples ([[Samadhi (shrine)|''samadhis'']]) commemorating people and animals associated with Baba's life, and continues to be visited by pilgrims.<ref>{{cite book | last = Chitluri | first = Vinny | title = Baba's Gurukul: SHIRDI | publisher = [[Sterling Publishers]] Pvt. Ltd | year = 2011 | page = 176 | isbn =  9788120790186}}</ref>

Some of Shirdi Sai Baba's disciples became well-known spiritual figures and saints, most notably Mahalsapati, a priest of the [[Khandoba]] temple in Shirdi, and [[Upasani Baba Maharaj]], who himself became the teacher of [[Meher Baba]]. He was revered by other saints as well, such as Bidkar Maharaj, [[Gagangiri Maharaj]], Janakidas Maharaj and Sati Godavari Mataji.<ref>Ruhela, S. P. (ed), ''Truth in Controversies about Sri Shirdi Sai Baba'', Faridabad, Indian Publishers Distributors, 2000. {{ISBN|81-7341-121-2}}</ref><ref name="Dabholkar, Govind Raghunath 1999">Dabholkar, Govind Raghunath, ''Shri Sai Satcharita: the life and teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba'' (1999)</ref> Sai Baba referred to several saints as 'my brothers', especially the disciples of [[Swami Samarth Maharaj|Swami Samartha of Akkalkot]].<ref name="Dabholkar, Govind Raghunath 1999" />

In 1910, Shirdi Sai Baba's fame began to spread in [[Mumbai]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=06gFzl76nK8C&pg=RA2-PA1910|title=The Eternal Sai Phenomenon|last=Nanda|first=A. R.|date=2011-04-08|publisher=Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd|isbn=9788120790247|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303194030/https://books.google.com/books?id=06gFzl76nK8C&pg=RA2-PA1910|archive-date=3 March 2018}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=http://www.shreeomsainath.com/worship&devotes.html|title=Worship & Devotes|website=www.shreeomsainath.com|access-date=2017-03-13|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303194032/http://www.shreeomsainath.com/worship%26devotes.html|archive-date=3 March 2018}}</ref> Being regarded as a saint with the power of performing miracles, and even as an [[avatar]], numerous people came to visit him.<ref>{{cite book | last = Warren | first = Marianne | title = Unravelling the Enigma: Shirdi Sai Baba in the Light of Sufism | publisher = [[Sterling Publishing|Sterling Publishers]] | year= 1997 | pages = 340–341 | isbn = 81-207-2147-0}}</ref> They built his first temple at [[Bhivpuri]], [[Karjat]].<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20100501002144/http://www.saiananta.com/bhivpuri.html Sai Ananta – Kaka Saheb Dixit Trust of Shri Sai Baba]}}. saiananta.com</ref>

===Final years and death (Samadhi)===

In August 1918, Sai Baba told some of his devotees that he would soon be "leaving his mortal body".<ref>{{cite web |title=About us – Chronology of events |url=https://www.sai.org.in/en/history |website=www.sai.org.in |publisher=Shri Sai Baba Trust (Official website) |access-date=17 July 2018}}</ref> Towards the end of September, he had a high fever and stopped eating.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dabholkar |first1=Govind |title=Chapter 43 – Shri Sai Satcharitra |date=1 June 1999 |publisher=New Dawn Books |edition=2 }}</ref> As his condition deteriorated, he asked his disciples to recite holy texts to him, although he also continued to meet visitors. He died on 15 October 1918, coinciding with the [[Vijayadashami]] festival.<ref>{{cite book |author=Hemadpant |title=Sri Sai Satcharitra: The Wonderful Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba |isbn=978-1521183564 |date=16 June 2017 |publisher=Independently Published }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Dabholkar |first1=Hemandpant |title=Shri Sai Satcharitra: The Wonderful Life and Teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba |date=12 April 2016 |publisher=Enlightenment press |isbn=978-0692690833 }}</ref> His remains were interred at Buti Wada in Shirdi, which later became a place of worship that is known today as Shree Samadhi Mandir or Shirdi Sai Baba Temple.