About Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Sathya Sai Baba is one of the world’s most revered spiritual teachers in the world, who passed away on April 24th, 2011. Over a period of 85 years, He dedicated His entire life to the service of others. Sathya Sai Baba initiated the most significant spiritual transformation of the world by restoring the universal human values of Truth, Right Conduct, Peace, Love and Nonviolence, into everyday living. Sathya Sai Baba brought a message of unity and love to the world, inspiring mankind to “Love All and Serve All.”
Also known as Sri Sathya Sai Baba, Sai Baba, ‘Swami’, ‘Bhagavan’, or simply as ‘Baba’, His life and universal message have inspired millions of people throughout the world to turn Godward and to lead constructive and virtuous lives. Sathya Sai Baba’s followers come from all faiths and cultures and meet regularly for devotional singing, to study His teachings and the sacred literature of all religions, and to engage in selfless service activities.
Sathya Sai Baba was born on November 23, 1926, in Puttaparthi, a remote village in South India. As a child, He demonstrated exceptional qualities of wisdom, compassion, and generosity. When He was only seven years old, He composed devotional songs that were sung in religious festivals. At the tender age of fourteen, He announced that His name was Sathya Sai Baba and proclaimed His life mission: To bring about the spiritual regeneration of humanity by demonstrating and teaching the highest principles of Truth, Right Conduct, Peace, Love and Nonviolence. With that announcement, He left His childhood home and began His mission.
From an early age, Sathya Sai Baba began demonstrating extraordinary powers and qualities, such as materializing objects, especially a holy ash called vibhuti, assisting people in distress, and letting those who came to Him for advice know that He was aware of even the most intimate details of their lives. Yet, He always maintained that His miracles were to be treated only as His calling cards. They were for the purpose of inspiring and encouraging people to begin their own spiritual journey of personal transformation.
In 1950, Sathya Sai Baba’s devotees built a temple, residential quarters and a spiritual compound to host His devotees. He named this spiritual compound (or ashram) ‘Prashanti Nilayam’ (Abode of Peace). Today, this ashram can accommodate and feed many thousands of devotees who come to visit the resting place (or Mahasamadhi) of Sathya Sai Baba and engage in spiritual activities. Under His care and guidance, Puttaparthi evolved to have outstanding schools, an accredited university and a world-class super-specialty hospital, all entirely free of cost to students and patients – including for advanced surgeries such as heart transplant procedures.
Sathya Sai Baba’s followers regard Him as an incarnation of the Divine principle in human form (an Avatar). He represents the ideal of goodness and wisdom: One who manifests all powers and all human virtues in their purity and perfection. For more information about Sathya Sai Baba, His teachings and various Sai-related resources, please visit the Resources section of this site.
