Sai baba shirdi athiest3/15/2023 ![]() ![]() We Vaishnavas think of Vishnu as embodiment of all devatas (all devatas are present in him). That is, similar to how Vaishnavas view Sri Vishnu. His devotees look upon him as incarnation of Hanuman, and some further still, as an embodiment of all devatas possible. Saibaba of Shirdi's "Gayathri" says, "Om Sainathaaya dheemahe sarvadevaaya dheemahi thanno sai prachodayat, om sheeradi sai, srinivaasaaya dheemahe sarvadhevaaya dheemahi tanno sai prachodayat". There too, his life-size idol was present and enshrined along with Ganesha and Saraswathi idols. And Saibaba of Shirdi's murthi was enshrined along with a smaller Ganesha vigraha.Īlso there is a Saibaba of Shirdi temple next to my mother's place in Chennai. When I visited the temple recently after a long time, I noticed Saibaba of Shirdi's murthi (vigraha) had been enshrined in a separate sanctum, behind the main sanctum of Ganesha. After having migrated to the States, have not had a chance to visit this temple in all this time. There is this small Ganesha temple I used to frequent 25 years ago, when I was raised in Chennai, India. No other Hindu saint has a place like Saibaba of Shirdi enjoys. For example, if he was alive, he might well say, "Stop all this nonsensical building of statues to me." And true devotees would be obliged to listen. So you can do whatever you want, interpret the writings any way you want. Deceased Gurus are unable to give you any direct advice that might contradict your own ideas. There is also the factor of liking to have a deceased Guru in the Guru-hopping crowd. I've seen statues and shrines now to him just as there is to Ganesha or Hanuman, more traditional Gods. ![]() ![]() So it looks to me that he is slowly being deified. Another probably is that some folks have this psychological need for an avatar or prophet, and that probably comes mainly from the Muslim side of his devotees. One for sure is that it's 'cool' right now. There are probably several factors acting here. I seriously doubt that he would want that. Rarely does anyone get as much attention afterwards though. You can read books and biographies about him, and decide for yourself who he was. In my view, he was a sage that had some wisdom, like many before and after him. ![]()
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