When my book ‘Sai Aatm-Chintan’, in Hindi, came out in August 2009, I was very apprehensive whether a book of this sort which talked of neither the life and leelas of Sai nor devotee’s experiences, nor Baba’s miracles but contained only the outpourings of a devoted heart would find any readership at all? My fears were soon allayed when several devotee readers from far off places rang me up and in choked voices expressed their sentiments pertaining to the book. The stimulus to bring out a similar book in English was provided by a telephone call from a lady Doctor from Chennai (Tamilnadu) who told me that she had read my book, “Scribblings of a Shirdi Sai Devotee” and would like to read more of my books in English. A little later, one Professor Mishra from Bhuvneshwar (Orrisa) also made a similar request.
With considerable labour by an old man that I am, whose body wouldn’t support his mind and the constant fear lurking in his mind whether or not he would be able to complete the work, by Baba’s ever raining ‘Kripa’, the book has reached in your hands. It has been given the little “Fragrance of Sai Bhakti”. I am confident that every reader shall have the feel of fragrance of Sai bhakti oozing out from the pages of this book. The under-mentioned devotees, to whom I owe heartfelt gratitude, have contributed tremendously in making this book take its present shape:
- Shri Vijay Raghvan of ‘Sai Security Printers Pvt. Ltd.’ for the printing and publishing of the book absolutely free of all charges.
- Shri Pradeep Mehrotra for digging out and providing the material in the chapter on Bhakti from ‘Sree Sai Samartha Satcharita’ of Smt. Zarine Taraporewala.
- A devotee, who does not wish to reveal his identity, but whose contribution in giving the book a proper shape for publication has been tremendous. I have no hesitation in accepting that, without his selfless help it would have been extremely difficult for the book to have seen the light of the day. In typing, he also received help from a lady devotee from Baroda (Gujarat) – Ms. Hetal Patil, which I acknowledge thankfully.
I consider myself blessed for having received the support of the above named devotees. I pray to my Baba to continue to shower His Grace on these devotees and provide them the will and the strength to serve Him and continue treading miles and miles onto the path of Sai Bhakti.
I shall fail in my duty as a humble devotee of Baba, if I do not mention the name of my co-devotee – friend, philosopher and guide, Shri Kewal Krishan, who has stood by me constantly in the thick and thin of my ‘Bhakti’ ever since he came into contact with me in 1972. May Baba bless him and his family.
Related: Scribblings of A Shirdi Sai Devotee by Suresh Chandra Gupta
It is for the readers to judge, if this book has helped them in anyway in nurturing their Bhakti and bringing them closer to their Baba. There would seem to be repetition of an idea in certain thoughts. It is so, I agree. But each thought has been scribbled in a different mental state and should, therefore, have a different impact on the mind of the readers. The book carries a number of poems. Every poem, in my view, conveys a feeling and a purport which must touch the heart of the readers and take them nearer Baba.
I humbly request my readers not to seek in my writing and thinking the wisdom of a seer, the depth of knowledge of the scriptures or the language, its flow and usage of a well-read person. I am merely a struggler on the path of Sai bhakti and whatever I have written or attempted to convey are my deep feelings arising at that particular moment in my heart and which are being shared with my fellow devotees solely with the aim of enabling them to make them enjoy the Grace of Baba.
May the Fragrance of Sai bhakti spread to every nook and corner of the universe and Baba’s devotees continue to stick to the ‘Pure’ and ‘Satvik’ path of Sai bhakti!
At the Lotus Feet of Sai,
1st July 2010
(Suresh Chandra Gupta)
‘Sai Sadan’
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New Delhi – 110 016
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Below are the links to the chapters of the book
© Author – Late Shri. Suresh Chandra Gupta – Explicit Rights To Publish To Shirdi Sai Baba Books.com (Member of SaiYugNetwork.com)