According to Wikipedia, Sathya Sai Baba was admitted to the super-specialty hospital at Prashantigram at Puttaparthi on March 28, 2011 following respiration-related problems. After many days of hospitalization where his condition progressively deteriorated, he passed away on April 24, 2011 at 7.40 am (IST).
I remember a former colleague made a trip to one of his temples in India. She and many others waited for days in order just to get a glimpse of the great guru. Not sure if she ever saw him.
More from Wikipedia, born as Sathyanarayana Raju (23 November 1926 – 24 April 2011, Sai Baba was a popular Indian guru, spiritual figure and educator.
On 8 March 1940, while living with his elder brother Seshama Raju in Uravakonda, Sathya was apparently stung by a scorpion. He lost consciousness for several hours. Within the next few days there was a noticeable change in Sathya's behavior. There were "symptoms of laughing and weeping, eloquence and silence." "He began to sing Sanskrit verses, a language of which he had no prior knowledge." Doctors believed his behavior to be hysteria. His parents brought Sathya home to Puttaparthi. Concerned, they took him to many priests, "doctors" and exorcists.
On 23 May 1940, Sathya called household members and materialized sugar candy and other items. His father became furious upon seeing this, thinking his son was bewitched. He took a stick and asked him who he was. To this Sathya announced calmly and firmly "I am Sai Baba," a reference to Sai Baba of Shirdi. He proclaimed himself to be a reincarnation of Sai Baba of Shirdi — a saint who became famous in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in Maharashtra, and who had died eight years before Sathya was born.
May he rest in peace..
Related article:
Thousands gather in India for Hindu guru's funeral
Image source: The Star
Om Sairam
ReplyDeleteshocking news, may he rest in peace, and i always remember his hairstyle and the orange outfit..
ReplyDeleteMay god bless his soul….I respect Sri. Sathyanarayana Raju ji…in the terms of his social work he has done…but we can’t say that he was god…please it’s hard to digest….he was kind and wonderful person.May his soul rest in peace.
ReplyDeleteI guess Sai Baba had completed his mission here on Earth. Wonder whether he will reincarnate.
ReplyDeleteBananaz, Om Sairam - I hope I got it right.
ReplyDeleteSK, yeah, orange is a holy color in Hinduism. Probably in Buddhism too, I think.
Hello Atlanta Roofing, thank you for stopping by and for sharing your thoughts. Yes, may his soul rest in peace.
ReplyDeleteFoong, that's a rational way of looking at it that he has finished his mission on Earth.
I read on Wikipedia that he announced that he would be reborn as Prema Sai Baba in the state of Karnataka.