Alter ego of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba?

This eternal land Bharat is unlike any other land on this planet earth inhabited by human beings. It is the only country in the world that has a religion not founded by one prophet and guided by one holy book. Its religion though identified by the name foreigners gave us as Hinduism and called the people who lived here — irrespective of their diversity in culture and plurality in race — as Hindus, the reality has always been that this is a land of Sanatana Dharma, “eternal law,” where people led a way of life that is based on righteous, call it spiritual, conduct as enjoined in its ancient scriptures like Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas and epics Ramayana and Mahabharata.

Being born in such a land as a Hindu, call it Sanatana Dharma and lived a life of Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Raja Yoga and Bhakti Yoga, consciously or unconsciously, I have come across a few spiritual persons who are unique and mystical in their own individual ways, apart from reading about those who have come and gone.

Among them I may mention here the names of Swami Chinmayananda, well-known for his Geeta Jnana Yajna discourses, Jiddu Krishnamurti, Puttaparthi Sathya Sai Baba, Osho Rajneesh of Pune, Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji of Mysuru, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev and the one I met yesterday morning Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai.

Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai is the youngest among those whom I have met. Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai was born on 26.7.1979 after the birth of Star of Mysore, 16.4.1978. He is now 44.

In the month of November 2023, I had visited an unusual kind of an educational institution housed in a magnificent, imposing building deep inside a village Maradevanahalli near Pandavapura in the neighbouring Mandya district. An Abracadabra on this institution was published on 5th November 2023 and the moving spirit behind it is this young spiritual master and social leader Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai.

On Friday 22nd December, 2023 morning, I had an opportunity to meet him personally at the residence of Prof. J. Shashidhara Prasad, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mysore, in Jayalakshmipuram. As I was waiting in the drawing room, where a designated chair was placed with a soft fender-cushion to rest his feet, Sadguru made his entry with a Namaste and a smile. Immaculately dressed in ochre robe (see picture), he occupied the chair. Prof. Shashidhara Prasad and Bhamy V. Shenoy of Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP), an NGO, who had accompanied me, were also there. I thought it would be my time. But Bhamy Shenoy being into educational concerns as an NGO fired the first salvo at the Sadguru and then there was no stopping him nor the Sadguru, who spoke impeccable english. Alas! I was left with very little time to interview Sadguru. But I have no regret because, myself being the Chairman of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan (BVB), Mysore Kendra and its schools, there was much for me to learn on various aspects of serving the cause of education by way of reclaiming what was lost in the past years of only secular education for Hindus.

When Sadguru’s assistant announced that the pilot of the helicopter had come, I knew I had very little time. But Sadguru was cool and condescending. A soft spoken person, eloquent and articulate in speech, a Sthitaprajna, a person who is calm and firm, with a mind of equanimity. I seek Bhamy Shenoy’s indulgence and ask my first question with a prelude:

“I ask you as a representative of my readers, majority of whom are laymen but deeply religious in their belief. There is a perception among people that there was Shirdi Sai Baba, then his reincarnation as Puttaparthi Sathya Sai Baba and now yourself. Is it a correct perception?”

Sadguru: I do not know about Shirdi Sai Baba and Puttaparthi Sai Baba and of the reincarnation. Yes, as for me I am the chosen one by Sathya Sai Baba of Puttaparthi.

KBG: Can you tell me how it came about?

Here let me deviate to explain what manner of a man I found him to be. He was not overly orthodox or conservative as a spiritual person. He was quite transparent in his looks and speech. There was hardly any modulation in his speech but there was a steady flow. His age and the attire seemed to bring in a veil of spiritual aura to his fair visage making him a magnetic person attracting devotees.

I had asked him about his journey from Chhattisgarh in Central India (where recently the BJP won the Assembly election) to his present destination and he narrated his journey, despite my interlocution in between, at length, sans any rigmarole that I have found in other spiritual persons, more with neophytes.

Thus spake Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai to me which I record here from memory  since I did not make notes nor did I record.

Born as Madhusudan Naidu, his parents were employed and belonged to a middle class family. As education at Sri Sathya Sai Institute in Puttaparthi and Whitefield in Bengaluru was cheaper than in Chhattisgarh, he chose to travel to Puttaparthi and to Whitefield. A brilliant student with gold medals, he studied Master’s degree in Chemistry and MBA. At the instance  of Sri Sathya Sai Baba, he took up a job in the HDFC Bank in Bengaluru for about six years, though he was inclined to join the Prasanthi Nilayam in Puttaparthi and serve his Master Sai Baba.

However, the call came from Baba after his passing away in April 2011 and began to work from the year 2012 in the assigned area of education, health and nutrition, of course, as a service, free of salary.

[To be continued]

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