Sai BAba of Shirdi

excerpt from chapter 5 

 The photograph of Shirdi Sai Baba hung by the entrance to an "old dhaba" a hole in the wall restaurant  in the town of puttaparthy.  The photograph struck me before I saw it the moment I passed in front of  it. Whern I turned to what had struck my heart it was this photograph.

I asked the proprietor if I could take a photograph of the photograph, which prompted the ancient proprietor to laugh  out loud.  He gave his permission,   but prefaced it with the words “no one has ever successfully taken a photograph of that Photograph”  They always turn out grey”  or blank.   As. I stood in front of the photograph  the story of its history and rarity was retold.

 The specialness,  so the proprietor told me is the depiction of the Linga at the heart centre. That it is an original photograph taken by the original photographer when Shirdi Sai Baba was alive. The story was, as he excitedly told me, his family, who were long time devotees who lived in Shirdi, were very close with the photographer who they received the original photograph from. That it was one of a kind. Not many originals exist as it was taken and developed by one of the 1st cameras around the turn of the century.  

This photograph answered many questions about my inner experiences..in the years previous  of lingams appearing in my mind's eye and often striking my spiritual heart centre during the toughest realizations of nothingness.  It was the hardest and most humbling experiences that lead to ....the silent seva i was involved in.  The experiences were spirit destroying to do with policies for the disabled disenfranchised and impoverished...without the constant dreams of both Satya Sai Baba and Sai Baba of Shirdi and the dreams of photographs of Satya Sai Baba that appeared I would not have survived them.  As anyone can imagine when I received this photograph and the inner experience that resulted..but also the divine gift of being the 1st one (so the proprietor told me to ever successfully take a photograph of that photograph..I kept silent on the hardships endured that resulted in that gift..the retelling of the stories of how the photographs were received were seeded in that moment and gift of the 1st incarnation of the Divine avatars and why they have come.

His true image His true energy..cannot emit or create, inflict or exacerbate a wound it can only soothe it dissolve it heal it and honour it. The current is between Himself and the person viewing the photograph.  

now I have my say, with His Blessing  to reveal the depth of the betrayals  that lead to the gifts of megapixel healing that now exists in many devotees hearts the goal is to soothe those wounds. 

 I received this reflective photograph of Satya Sai Baba immediately upon returning to puttaparthy from Shirdi India..