Contemporary devotees of Shirdi Sai Baba.

Most that we know about the life and stories of Sai Baba is from the contemporary devotees of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi.

Those many devotees and non devotees who were graced by Shri Sat Chit Anand Sai Baba. Many of those were fortunate to spend much time with the embodied Sai Baba and witness and be part of Sai Baba's divine play.

Ganesh Shrikrishna Khaparde used to mantain a diary of daily events that occurred in his life, along with the date. His long stay in Shirdi has also been recorded and Shri G. S. Kaparde dairy has also been published by Shri Saibaba Sansthaan Shirdi. Hari Sitaram Dixit ( known as Kaka Saheb Dixit) and Langda Kaka as lovingly called by Sai Baba, also wrote a diary of many leelas (divine play) that happened with him and other devotees. The diary was published in the Sai Leela magazine in the early 1920's.

There is a wonderful book called Sai Vaani written by a dedicated devotee Vinny Chitluri. Many leelas and parables told by Saibaba recorded in 'The Dixit Diary' have been written in this book, which is a great gift to all Sai Baba devotees from the autor and the hard work she put for the same with the grace and divine love of Sai Baba.

Below are the pictures and names (Links to the name follows to the page or post containing to the stories related with that particular devotee.

Also Sai Baba lovingly called many devotees by the pet names he gave to them which had also a deep meaning. The name which were given by Baba are given in ( ). While female devotees were usually called as 'Mai' (mother) Or Tai (sister) or Bai or Mousi with respect.



Shri Abdul Baba ( Halalkar)-----Anna Babre------------------(Hemad ) Govind R. Dabholkar



-----Appa Kulkarni-------------------Baijabai Kote--------------Bala Saheb Dev (Chindi Chor )
-------Balasaheb Mirikar------------------Bhagoji Shinde------Bhau Dhumal (Bhau)

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------Bhaumaharaj Kumbhar----------Chotubhaiya Paralkar--Dadasaheb Khaparde (Bapusaheb Tapsun Dada)


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------Dadasaheb Purandare-------------Damodhar Rasne--------------------Dasganu

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Gopalrao Bapusaheb Buti (Buttyaa)----Justice Awasthi----------------Kakasaheb Mahajani


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---------Kashiram Bala Shimpi----------Laxman Mungi-------------------Laxman Nulkar

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--------Laxmibai Shinde-----------Madhavrao Aadkar----Madhavrao Deshpande - Shama (Bhatacha Shamya)


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------------Mahadev Sapatnekar---------Megh Shyam Rege------------Mhalsapati

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-----------Moreshwar Pradhan---------------Nanasaheb Chandorkar-----------Nanasaheb Kharkar

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------------------Nanasaheb Rasne----------------Nandu Marwadi--------------Parvatabai Sapatnekar

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---Pillai (Andhoji Pillai)-------------------Radhakrishna Swami------------Rajubhaiya Naik

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--------Ramakrishna Walkar---------Sadubhaiya Naik ---------Sagun Meru Naik (Naik Takki (deceiver))

- ------Sunderrao Navalkar--------------Swami Sharananand--------Tatyakote Patil (Kothayacha Godmukhya)

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------------------Trimbak Rasne--------------------Yashwant Galwankar---------------Y . R. Sukher

Sai Baba's youthful love of art and music

Om Sadguru SaiNathaya Namaha,

In His earliest days (even upto 1890), Sai Baba had youthful love of art and music.

Dance and music has been used as a powerful means to be one with divine by various Spiritual Masters. Sufi masters have been known to use music and dance as an aid to merge with the divine. The devotional songs sung by Sufi dervishes are called Qawwali.

Chaitanya Mahabrabhu and Nityananda were used the singing and dancing in love of God. Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsha also used to sing devotional songs and dance in divine frevor and created great spiritual force to drive many to spiritual interest and divine drunkness. It is also known as Bhakti movement. The way of singing and dancing to the God.

Shri Sai Baba often use to go to a place called Takia, the resting place for visiting muslims and sing devotional song with sweet and melodious tone. Sai Baba mostly sung the divine songs of Kabir. Sai Baba also sung song in Persian or Arabic, which the local people did not understood.

Sai Baba also use to tie tinklets (Gungroo) to His feet and danced in divine ectasy singing the devotional songs and bhajans.

Devotees with the knowledge of singing and music were sometimes explained the ragas or musical notes in detail by Sai Baba.


Sai Baba also encouraged and loved the singing of Bhajans Devotioanal songs in Dwaarkamaai when too many devotees started visiting Shirdi attracted by the divine magnectic and loving and caring force of Sai Baba.

You may also like to Visit blog devoted to Bhajans and devotional songs devoted to Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi.

More on earlier Life of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi

Ganpat Rao Kote Patil and Bayjabai

Om Sri Sadguru Sainath Maharaj Ki Jai

Sai Baba in the earlier years after being not allowed to stay in Khandoba Temple remain absorbed in divine contemplation for most of the time under the Sacred Neem tree called Gurusthan.

As all the wandering Fakirs, provision for food was left to the divine. Sai Baba would roam about in Shirdi and surrounding lands and would sit in the jungle like places. The village head Ganpat Kote Patil and his wife Bayjabai, were greatly attracted to this divine Fakir. Particularly the love of Bayjabai for this unknown and unnoticed Fakir was great. She would roam about looking for this mad Fakir with food to feed him. Only after finding Him with great difficulties and feeding Him, she would feel satisfied and would eat herself.

Sai Baba called her as her sister, and also told that she was His sister in previous life. Bayjabai through Rinanubandh was indeed very fortunate to be attracted by this divine brother and looking anxiously for Him to feed Him.

This was her bhakti or love for divine. She would think and yearn to feed Sai Baba hence her consciousness was always upon the divine and Sai Baba was Divine personified. Bayjabai was simple village woman and accidentaly was engrossed in bhakti (devotion).

People might go and visit temples, do pilgrimage, offer puja, do chanting but the most essential is Love. Love for God and divine. Yearning to feed the beloved, yearning to offer flowers or service to beloved is the right form of devotion.

And Bayjabai had that yearning. Something in her would always yearn to take care of divine Fakir called Sai Baba.

Tatya Kote Patil the son of Baijabai was equally loved by Sai Baba he loved Sai Baba. Tatya used to call Sai Baba as Maamaa (Mother's brother) and would sleep in the divine Masjid (Dwarkamai) with Sai Baba for long time. Tatya Patil just as Shama could force Sai Baba, and had a loving relationship with Sai Baba. Blessed was the Kote Patil Family, who loved Sai Baba, and thus had the love for Divine.

Om Sat Chit Anand Sadguru Sainath Maharaj Ki Jai.


More on earlier Life of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sai Baba Mhalsaapati and Khandoba Temple

There are very few incidents of Sai Baba's earlier life that have been recorded, that too from the memory of people of Shirdi. The task becomes more difficult as Sai Baba visited Shirdi as a wandering Sufi Fakir and many were found all over India.

People would hardly notice their presence Sufi Fakirs normally wander and have no single place to live. They are supposed to be dedicated to God, Allah or to the indivisible almighty, sacred and the one and only one divine energy. Not all Fakirs would have been totally dedicated to the divine and hence most would go unnoticed as just another Fakir.

None knows by which name He was called before. 'Sai Baba' were the words exclaimed by a village priest Mhalsaapati who noticed something divine in Him and welcomed him as Sai Baba. Sai is the word used for divine and Baba for Father or someone respectable, respectable from heart and love and not out of fear.

The same Mhalsaapati who noticed the divine in a wandering Fakir and later was one of the closest to Sai Baba.Who even use to sleep in Masid Mai or Dwarkamai with Sai Baba. Who considered Sai Baba as Divine manifistation and worshiped him whole heatedly. This Mhalsaapati was priest of local Khandoba temple of Hinduism. Sai Baba liked the sacred environment of the Temple and wanted to stay there. Mhalsaapati had not allowed Sai Baba to do the same as He was a Muslim Fakir and the social standards and peoples way of thinking would have created too many problems for the same.

Sai Baba moved to a margosa (Neem Neem) tree and would remain absorbed in divine contemplation for most of the time. The place called Gurusthaan is higly sacred and place for worship in Shirdi.









Pictures in this post

Top Left : Picture of face of Sai Baba's Statue in Samadhi Mandir

Right : Picture portrait of Mhalsaapati

Right bottom : One of the Original pictures of Sai Baba in which Sai Baba is seen sitting with Mhalsaapati (also splet Mahalsapati), with his son on Sai Baba's lap.

Left Bottom : picture of Khandoba temple probably taken in 1920's

More on earlier Life of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sai Baba's earlier years in Shirdi

Aum Sai Ram,

This section contains the stories of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi, when Sai Baba as a wandering Fakir use to visit Shirdi. The people of Shirdi village where interviewed and whatever they could remember about earlier days of Sai Baba in Shirdi, was noted down.

Most part were recorded by Pujyashri H. H. Narshimha Swamiji. Narshimha Swamiji was one graced devotee in whom the divine energies of Sai Baba flowed and worked through him. Narshimha Swami became Pujya (one who could be worshiped) as the divine energy has taken over his mind, body and heart. It was the divine that manifested in Him that drew the people to give the title Pujya.

Below are the topics written about the earlier years of Sai Baba of Shirdi

Sai Baba Mhalsaapati and Khandoba Temple

Ganpatrao Kote Patil and Bayjabai

Sai Baba's youthful love of art and music