Sathya Sai Baba

The front cover of a biography of Sathya Sai Baba.

Sathya Sai Baba (born Sathya Narayana Raju with the family name Ratnakaram ^[1], November 23, 1926 or October 4, 1929 is a popular, controversial Indian guru who has millions of followers and hundreds of Sathya Sai Baba groups in many countries. In the 1940s he claimed to be the reincarnation of Shirdi Sai Baba and subsequently took the fakir's name. He says that he is an avatar (incarnation) of Shiva and Shakti and an embodiment of love with divine powers such as omniscience and omnipotence.

He is said to manifest vibuthi (holy ash) and small objects like rings and watches daily. He claims to materialize these objects out of nothing but refused to have his materializations investigated under controlled circumstances. His followers report many, sometimes spectacular miracles of many kinds that they attribute to the Baba. He preaches a foundation of five basic values: Truth, Right Conduct, Peace, Love and Non-violence. He teaches the unity of all major world religions and says that they all lead to God.

His followers and the organizations that he has founded are involved in many service projects around the world, for example schools, free healthcare provided through state-of-the-art hospitals near Baba's main ashram and in Bangalore and water projects serving thousands in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. In Puttaparthi, the place where Baba was born and still lives, that was originally a small village, one can now find a university, World Religions Museum, planetarium, a railway station, a super specialty hospital and more. High ranking Indian politicians, like the current president Dr. Abdul Kalam, Manmohan Singh (then the finance minister), and Atal Vajpayee (then the prime minister) have been official guests at the ashram in Puttaparthi.

Critics, including skeptic Basava Premanand and the former follower Welsh pianist David Bailey, claim that these materializations are done by sleight of hand and say that this can be verified with videos available on the internet. They also claim that he has inappropriate sexual relations with young men and boys. Testimonies of these sexual molestations were published in books, and magazines since 1976 and are especially since the year 2000 also available on the internet. Another point of criticism is the unresolved police shootings, of four intruders who killed two aides, in Sai Baba's private quarters in 1993. Although Sathya Sai Baba did not give a detailed reply about the 1993 shooting events, he asserted that the events that transpired that night were the result of jealousy among his followers. He has also repeatedly asserted that all avatars and saint had to face calumny. SSB did not give a detailed public rebuttal to the accusations of sexual abuse. In his Christmas 2000 discourse SSB said that people disseminate false negative stories about him because they have been bribed.

Some followers and proponents, like Gerald Joe Moreno, consider the evidence of wrongdoing, against Sathya Sai Baba, insufficient, misrepresented or outdated (many of the allegations are many years old). Several officials to the Sathya Sai Organisation have admitted that SSB oils the genitals of young men, but do not believe in the testimonies of sexual abuse. Most of these faithful young men perceive these oilings as non-sexual when they undergo them. Other followers, like Ram Das Awle, believe that Baba's actions are misunderstood and are perceived as being sexual when he believes the purposes are to awaken kundalini or for healing or spiritual purposes.

History and origins

See Main article History and origins of the Sathya Sai Baba movement

Sathya Narayana Raju Ratnakaram was born in or near the poor and isolated village Puttaparthi, Anantapur district. His mother was Easwaramma and father was Pedda Venkappa Raju who was a farmer. According to his own assertion and his official biography, by professor Narayana Kasturi that the British journalist Mick Brown of the The Telegraph called a hagiography, he stopped going to school in the town Uravakonda on October 20 1940 to start his mission. However, he is listed in the 1942 school record of the nearby village Bukkapatnam. Though the exact year on which he started his mission full-time is uncertain, it is a fact that in the 1940s he claimed to be the reincarnation of the well-respected fakir Shirdi Sai Baba and took the fakir's name. Kasturi's biography mentions several miracles by and signs of divinity of the young Sathya. He made explicit claims of divinity at the latest in 1963. ^[2] In the late 1960s he attracted Western spiritual seekers and became increasingly popular.

One of those spiritual seekers was the Hollywood screenwriter Arnold Schulman, who wrote in his 1971 book called Baba that "For any episode of Baba's childhood, there are countless contrasting versions and, at this point, the author discovered that it was no longer possible to separate the facts from the legend. "

The number of adherents is estimated between 3 million and 10 million, predominantly people of Indian ethnic origin. ^[3]In Nordic countries and the Netherlands, numbers fell after 2000 due to negative publicity about him, as also published in an article in Dutch newspaper Trouw ^{[4] [5]} Opponents claim numbers fell subsequently also in Australia after the showing there by SBS of the Danish film "Seduced by Sai Baba."

At present several hundred positive books have been published about Sathya Sai Baba. Some quarters of the Indian government consider Sai Baba to be a 'national treasure'.

SSB had several sisters, one older brother, the late Seshama Raju, and one younger brother, the late R. V. Janakiramaiah. ^[6]

Miracles, claims, and ashrams

File:Sarva Dharma Symbol.jpg

The Sarva Dharma logo (all religions symbol) that shows the unity of all religions and is the old symbol for the Sathya Sai Organisation

SSB's popularity and the donations by followers have enabled Sathya Sai Baba and his organizations to build an increasingly large ashram near the once poor and isolated village of Puttaparthi.

Sathya Sai Baba resides much of the time in his main ashram called Prashanthi Nilayam (abode of peace) at Puttaparthi. In the hot summer Baba leaves for his other ashram called Brindavan in Whitefield (sometimes called Kadugodi), a town on the outskirts of Bangalore. He regularly visited the holiday resort Kodaikanal. [7] He has left India only once for a visit to East Africa in 1968.

He is a prolific orator about religious topics in his native language Telugu and he is regarded by some as an excellent speaker. He also speaks passable Kannada. Apart from his claim to be Shirdi Sai Baba, SSB also asserts that he is an avatar of God, a reincarnation of Lord Rama, of Sri Krishna, the Kalki purna avatar (full divine incarnation), Lord Shiva, and Shakti. But he also says that everybody else is God and that the difference is that he is aware of this and others are not. ^[8] He says that he is omniscient, omnipotent, and able to create matter from mere thought. He also stresses he is free from desires. Sai Baba claims to be pure, divine love.

Sathya Sai Baba can be seen in person performing what followers believe to be miracles daily in the form of materializations of small objects, for example food, jewelry such as bracelets, rings, watches and especially vibhuti (holy ash) and kum kum (the red-colored powder used by Hindus to make the ritual mark between the eyebrows). He says that he can heal diseases of his devotees sometimes by his spiritual power and sometimes by taking on the disease himself. ^[9] There is anecdotal evidence that supports this claim. Followers attribute many miracles to him which they claim have witnessed in his presence and in their own countries, such as spontaneous vibhuti manifestations on the pictures of Baba in their homes [10], , and bilocation - the appearance of Sai Baba in their presence while he is also in another place. Followers also report that he has materialized out-of-season fruit several times. He says he performs these miracles to attract people and then to transform them spiritually. He also makes assurances of divine protection to his devotees. Followers report help from Sai Baba in difficult or dangerous situations as well as in dreams.

The Icelandic psychology professor Erlendur Haraldsson who did not get SSB’s permission to study him from nearby has investigated his miracles and clairvoyance, using the testimonies of his (former) associates. Haraldsson wrote that the biggest materialized object that he saw was about 5 inches (12.5 cm) big and according to him, some miracles attributed or performed by SSB resemble the ones described in the New Testament.^[11]

One important practice in his ashrams is darshan (spiritual sight). During darshan Sathya Sai Baba walks among his followers. He may listen to a few chosen persons, accept letters, or materialize and distribute vibhuti (sacred ash of Lord Shiva). Sathya Sai Baba claims that his darshan has spiritual benefits for those who attend it and this is consistent with Hindu beliefs regarding spiritual preceptors. Usually people wait hours to get a good place for darshan. Sathya Sai Baba sometimes invites people for a group interview with him in a room in the 'ashram's mandir' (Hindu temple). Followers consider it a great privilege to get such an interview. Sometimes a person from this group is invited for a private interview.

In 2003 SSB had an accident that injured his hip, according to the offical of the Sathya Sai Organisation, Michael Goldstein. As of 2005, SSB sometimes uses a wheelchair. ^[12]

Teachings

Main article Beliefs and practices in the Sathya Sai Organisation

Sathya Sai Baba preaches love and the unity of all world religions and assert that people who follow him do not need to give up their original religion. His teachings are sometimes seen as completely syncretic (uniting all religions) and sometimes as Hindu. [13] He teaches among others a rather traditional form of Hinduism that has come from many sects and movements including advaita, occasionally drawing from other religions like Buddhism, Sikhism, and Christianity. In spite of his claim to be a reincarnation of Shirdi Sai Baba, a spiritual leader who blended Islam and Hinduism in his teachings, he teaches no Muslim rituals. The only real Christian influence can be felt in the institution of regular Sunday School sessions for devotees. He says that he has come to restore faith in, and encourage the practice of the teachings in the Vedas. Several books and discourses by him, such as the book Ramakatha Rasavahini teach the literal interpretation of Hindu mythology and advocate the practice of Hindu dharma.

Across the globe local Sathya Sai Baba groups assemble to sing bhajans (Hindu devotional songs), study Sathya Sai Baba's teachings, do collective community service (called seva), and teach Education in Human Values (Sai Sunday School). His followers generally do not proselytize. Bhajans are sung at nearly every meeting with the names of the traditional Hindu deities occasionally replaced by Baba's name.

The Sathya Sai organisation advocates the five basic human values. These values are sathya (truth), dharma (right conduct, living in accord with natural law), ahimsa (non-violence), prema (love for God and all his creatures) and shanti (peace).

Other primary teachings are:

• Service and charity (seva) to others.
• Put a ceiling (limit) on one's desires.
• The world is maya (illusion), only God is real.
• Every person is God in form, though most do not experience this as their reality.
• Meditation - Baba teaches two techniques, so ham (Upanishadic mantra for repetition and focus) and jyoti (Light meditation).
• Inclusive acceptance of all religions as paths to realizing the One (God).
• Importance of bhakti (devotion) to God and japa and other sadhana (spiritual excercise) to foster this devotion.

Organizations

File:SSIHL.jpg

Building of the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of higher learning

Sathya Sai Baba is the figurehead to a number of educational institutions and charitable hospitals, most notably the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning and the Sri Sathya Institute of Higher Medicine, located within or near the main ashrams and Anantapur town. These organizations provide free education and health care to the public. They are private, non profit institutions and their admission criteria are not published, admissions being decided on individual merits as decided by Sai Baba or his executives. Many of the patients are devotees from India and abroad.

The trust organization has made large contributions to drinking water projects for the whole of the Anantapur district in Andhra Pradesh and Chennai.

His Educare (formerly called Education in Human Values) programme seeks to found schools in all countries with the explicit goal to educate children in the five human values and spirituality. Schools have already been founded in Toronto, Zambia, Australia, the United States, and several in India. A highly successful pre-school in New Zealand has been studied as a model for public New Zealand schools to follow. As all these operations are public, critics of these institutions and their figurehead online often use that information to e-mail nearby citizens of what they see as a danger. A projected college in Denmark was stopped by local residents who objected to the Sai Organisations as a cult, having seen the film "Seduced by Sai Baba" as broadcast repeatedly on Danish national TV.

File:Sathya Sai Organisation official logo.jpg

The new official logo of the Sathya Sai Organisation

All the local Sai Samithis (Sathya Sai Baba groups) are part of a hierarchical structure called the Sathya Sai Organisation. The chairman of the organisation is Michael Goldstein of the USA. The logo of the Sathya Sai organization is a stylized lotus flower with the text of the five human values, highly influenced by not only Hinduism but also Jainism and Buddhism, in its petals. This text version has replaced the old logo with the symbols of the 5 or 6 world religions in the petals.

The Sri Sathya Sai central trust was founded in 1972 and is mainly involved in charities such as the Rayalaseema water project. The trust has tax exempt status and is a major recipient of donations from abroad though Baba and his organizations rarely explicitly solicit donations. All donations and expenditures are recorded which are documented by the bank holding the sums.

The Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust is the official publisher of the Sathya Sai Organisation. It publishes the international monthly magazine called Sanathana Sarathi. In various nations similar publication trusts maintain in their own native language.

Opposition, controversy, and allegations

Main article Allegations against Sathya Sai Baba

Because of SSB's extraordinary claims, his popularity, and his reputation as a prolific miracle worker, he was and is one of the favorite targets of criticism by rationalists and skeptics. For example, in 1976 the physicist rationalist and then the vice chancellor of Bangalore University Dr. H. Narasimhaiah who founded and chaired The Committee to Investigate Miracles and Other Verifiable Superstitions publicly challenged Sathya Sai Baba to perform his miracles under controlled circumstances, a challenge which Sathya Sai Baba ignored. The committee exposed a boy called Sai Krishna that, according to the committee, had SSB’s endorsement as a fraud. SSB said in one of his rare interviews with the press (Blitz magazine September 1976) that he had no connection to Sai Krishna and that he found the attitude of the committee improper and that the committee did not understand spiritual life. As a result of this episode, a public debate about SSB raged for months in Indian newspapers.^[14] The Canadian skeptic Dr. Dale Beyerstein concluded in 1994 in his extensive literature study of SSB's claims and miracles that SSB's extraordinary claims needed extraordinary evidence and that SSB provided insufficient evidence to support them.^[15] The 1995 TV documentary "Guru Busters" by UK's Channel 4 accused the guru of faking his materializations. The magazine India Today published on 4 December 2000 a cover story about the Baba and the allegations of fake miracles quoting the magician P. C. Sorcar, Jr. who considered the Baba a fraud. The skeptic and amateur magician Basava Premanand asserted that he has been investigating SSB since 1968. He also asserted he was a member of the Sathya Sai Organisation between 1968 until 1974 and showed in the 2004 BBC documentary Secret Swami that he could produce some of the same acts as SSB that the latter presents as miracles, such as materializations by sleight of hand and the production of a lingam from his mouth by regurgitation. Critics such as David C. Lane and SSB’s former followers have footage of his alleged materialization on their websites that they consider at least suspicious and at most evidence of fraud. ^[16]

In 1986 Premanand and K. N. Balagopal, a rationalist advocate in the Supreme Court of India, filed a court complaint against Sathya Sai Baba for allegedly violating the now repealed Gold Control Act that imposed restrictions on the "manufacture, possession, sale and transfer of gold" since Sathya Sai Baba "materialized" gold ornaments to be given to devotees. High Court Judge Justice Y.V. Anjaneyulu, a follower of SSB, dismissed the complaint citing that an article materialized by spiritual powers cannot be said to have been manufactured, prepared or processed. [17]

On June 6, 1993 four people who were armed with knives were killed after they had intruded in Sai Baba's bedroom. The intruders had killed two aides of Sai Baba. The incident was widely published in the Indian press, but the main body of Indian journalists investigating the "ashram murders" were unable to obtain more than very sparse information on the Central Trust's accounts and dealings. SSB claimed in his 1993 Gurupurnima discourse on July 3 that jealousy among his followers was behind the incident without giving a detailed explanation of the events. [18] The former Secretary of the Home Minister of Andhra Pradesh, V.P.B. Nair who came from of a police background expressed in the BBC documentary his belief that the four assailants in 1993 had unnecessarily and illegally been shot by the police. Both Premanand and Nair wanted the case to be re-opened and believed that it had been silenced to prevent revelations about illegal practices by Sathya Sai Baba and his organizations.

Another critic, ex-devotee and retired researcher/lecturer in philosophy, University of Oslo, the former national coordinator of the organization in Norway, Robert Priddy, has pointed out on his homepage and also in the book End of the Dream published by Premanand that Sathya Sai Baba's assertions on many subjects exhibit basic ignorance of physics, [geology]], religious history and much more. For example, Priddy claims Sai Baba's 'teaching' on magnetism differs greatly from generally accepted science, being wholly incommensurate with many simple and basic known facts. Priddy had previously written for the Sanatana Sarathi magazine and wrote a positive book about Sai Baba claiming vibhuti had healed his cat and his mother was visited by Sai Baba which resulted in a healing of her chronic pain.

What is the most vehement criticism since the year 2000 are the accusations of inappropriate sexual relations with young men and boys among his followers. The major cause of this controversy was the appearance on the internet of a document called The Findings compiled by the Welsh concert pianist David Bailey and his wife who were well-known devotees. ^{[19] [20]} SSB is said to give "oiling" between the scrotum and anus, on the genitals, above the genitals, on the chest or on the head. The Dutch follower W.G.J. van Dijk has attempted to explain the 'oiling' phenomenon in terms of 'kundalini' arousal in a magazine for the members of the Dutch branch of the Sathya Sai Organisation.^[21] Much worse abuses are alleged by young men, all but two 18 years of age or older, in testimonies, also published widely on the Internet and backed up by filmed testimonies in films, including "Seduced by Sai Baba" by Denmark's national television, and documentary film "Secret Swami" by BBC. The India Today article referred to a signed affidavit in their possession by the German Jens Sethi who claimed to have been sexually abused as an adult by the Baba. Sethi complained in a testimony published on the internet that he was treated as a criminal by the Puttaparthi police after he was found with papers critical of the Baba in Puttaparthi. The magazine wrote that Sethi filed a criminal complaint in Munich. The TV documentary "Seduced By Sai Baba", produced by Denmark's national television and radio broadcaster Danish radio aired in Denmark, Australia and Norway. Al Rahm (then under the pseudonym Young), said in the TV documentary Seduced by Sai Baba that he talked with the highest leader in the USA (Michael Goldstein) about the sexual abuse by SSB of his son who was 18 at the time of the alleged incidents and returned for approximately 14 interviews and did public speeches extolling Baba's virtues before he made his claim. According to Rahm, the leader responded by saying that he hated the idea of having wasted 25 years of his life and that he accepted SSB's statement "Swami is pure" as the truth. Goldstein, the International Chairman of the Sri Sathya Sai Organisations, stated in the BBC documentary Secret Swami that it was against his "heart and conscience" to initiate or approve of a proper legal process to investigate the allegations against Sathya Sai Baba. Isaac Tigrett, a prominent follower and co-founder of the Hard Rock Café, stated in the documentary that his admiration for the Baba will not change even if the charges of paedophilia and murder were proved beyond all doubt. The Danish jounalist Ojvind Kyro who was involved in the production of the documentary asserts, as published in Robert Priddy's book "The End of the Dream", that he has in his possession ten signed affidavits of young men from around the globe who claim to have been seriously sexually abused by SSB. He writes that these affidavits are open to see for official investigators and accredited journalists but not for the public. According to the journalist Michelle Goldberg of salon.com the fact that the Baba has high ranking Indian politicians as his supporters and the charity works done by the various organizations associated with the Baba help to explain why he has not been brought into court. The Indian consulate website states that crime victims must file charges with the police. No alleged victims have done so to date. SSB did not give a detailed public rebuttal to the accusations of sexual abuse. In his Christmas 2000 discourse SSB said that people disseminate false negative stories about him because they have been bribed.

Several sexual abuse testimonies claim that Baba can change into a woman instantaneously. These puzzling testimonies have led some to the conclusion that Baba is a hermaphrodite. Alexandra Nagel has argued in her 1994 Dutch language article De Sai Paradox/The Sai Paradox published by the Free University Amsterdam and her 2001 article Sai Baba as Shiva-Shakti: a Created Myth? Or? published on websites of critical former followers that this alleged sex change may be related to Baba's claim to be the incarnation of both the male and female aspects of God, Shiva and Shakti respectively.

Critics, like Hari Sampath say that school records, as also published in the devotee book Love is My Form (2000), revealed several different birth dates for the boy (under his original name Sathyanarayana Raju) and suggest that he invented the 23 November, 1926 day of birth to enhance his credibility of his claim to be an avatar, because on 24 November, 1926 the famed Hindu philosopher-mystic Sri Aurobindo said that that was the day the Divine had descended on Earth.^[22] According to the Australian critical former follower Brian Steel, who has written several published positive books about SSB's life and miracles that he as of 2005 rejects on his homepage, the birth date in the school record may simply be a mistake. Moreno (a Baba proponent) published a detailed article about the Bukkapatnam school records, that gives relevant information that has been ignored by critics ^[23].

Additionally, Brian Steel asserted, on his homepage, that he has documented strong indications that the original Telugu discourses by Baba have been heavily edited to improve them. Followers were given the impression, if not explicitly told, that the discourses published in the Sathya Sai Speaks series were the literal translation of what Baba said. ^[24] However, Moreno (a Baba proponent) critiqued Steel for his contradictory positions, regarding the English translations to Baba's Telugu discourses, in which Steel argued that the English translations were "highly edited" and "inaccurate" but then referenced these same English translations as inerrant references to what the Guru actually and literally said in Telugu. ^[25]

Steel also wrote that many authors who wrote or still write positive books about Baba did not fulfil their responsibility of adherence to basic intellectual, journalistic and scholarly standards and hence may unintentionally misguide both followers and the general public. He contends that the claims of Baba about himself fluctuate and are inconsistent. He asserted that has recently discovered a trend to tone down the extraordinary claims that Baba makes about himself which Steel thinks is done to avoid embarrassment and loss of credibility.

According to David Bailey, the results of the drinking water projects were claimed, but its results are exaggerated and have largely failed to function. The Rayalaseema project was taken over by the Andhra Pradesh State government. According to the American-Iranian Said Khorramshahgol ex-follower, SSB's assertion that betel is healthful contradicts scientific findings.

Additional criticisms made by critical former followers are quackery ^[26], broken promises ^{[27] [28]}, and giving worthless materialized trinkets to devotees that SSB claims are talismans of protections and symbol of the bond between followers and him (Blitz interview 1976), while presenting them as something valuable. ^[29]

In the years 1999 and 2000 SSB has repeatedly belittled the internet and discouraged its use. According to the former follower Alexandra Nagel, this was because he must have felt threatened by the internet.

According to Donald Taylor in his 1987 article Charismatic authority in the Sathya Sai Baba movement in Hinduism in Great Britain, SSB made extraordinary declarations to be God to keep his authority at the center of the movement and he made his claim to get reincarnated as Prema Sai Baba in 1963 to maintain his authority and to prevent a struggle about his succession as long as he lives. [30]

Some ex-followers believe in the truth of the allegations but at the same time refuse to retract the stories of miracles that they claim to have experienced directly. For example answers to prayers which they attribute to him or clairvoyance during an interview. Hence some ex-followers believe that while he has siddhis (psychic abilities) it is only because he is a powerful rakshasa or demon, while some claim he is simply a fraud and now totally deny they ever had any paranormal experiences they can attribute to SSB.

Other ex-followers such as David Bailey and Hari Sampath consider Baba a cheat and believe that some of the miracles are real but are mistakenly attributed to Sathya Sai Baba. They believe that when a follower prays to Baba while having faith that he is God, God will listen to his prayer, in spite of his mistaken belief.

Sceptics such as Premanand believe him to be an out-and-out cheater and charlatan while his followers are but gullible at worst, naive at best, and according to skeptic Robert Todd Carroll suffering from the true-believer syndrome (belief in supernatural explanations for events caused by wishful thinking in spite of proof of natural explanations).

Tal Brooke, an American evangelical Christian wrote in his 1976 book Avatar of the Night that SSB is a false prophet and an Antichrist, as predicted in the Bible. Brooke spent a lot of time as a close disciple of Sai Baba, as described in the book. As a young man he packed up all of his belongings and left America for India on a spiritual search.

Some ex-devotees including the American, Glen Meloy accuse him of being a cult leader who uses mind control, and propaganda and who has created a personality cult.

In 2006 followers of Shirdi Sai Baba in the Ahmadnagar district sued followers of Sathya Sai Baba for use of the name Sai Baba in the court of Rahata. The case is as of January 2006 pending. ^[31]

Stances by devotees and proponents

There are some followers who believe that the allegations are just "passing clouds" that have accompanied the lives of all avatars, and are part of the leelas of his life. Some followers say that the allegations have been made by people who are criminals themselves and who try to distract people from that fact by accusing Sathya Sai Baba of being a criminal.

Some devotees and proponents of Sathya Sai Baba remain doubtful about ex-devotee and critic's claims. In contrast, the follower Isaac Tigrett stated, that in his opinion, there was "probably" truth to the rumors against the Swami. Gerald Joe Moreno, a Sathya Sai Baba proponent, contended (on his homepage) that the sexual abuse allegations against Sathya Sai Baba (which are many years old) are made despite no court cases ever being filed, first-hand, in a court of law in India. Although Jens Sethi filed a complaint in Munich, neither he nor any other alleged victim have utilized free, "world class legal resources" to bring Sathya Sai Baba to justice. Although Journalists for the Danish state TV station Danish Radio and India Today claim to be in the possession of affidavits, not even one single affidavit has ever been made public (despite numerous claims to "20", "scores" and "over a hundred" affidavits being in existence and published on the internet).

Bill Aitken (a Sai Devotee, expert in comparative religion and author of the book "Sathya Sai Baba: A life") stated that Sathya Sai Baba's reputation has only increased despite negative stories being published against the Guru, by rationalists, critics and skeptics, for at least a generation. Aitken contended that critics are so distemperate in their dislike that their vituperation comes across as near comical. Aitken also argued that the BBC's programme, Secret Swami, had an advantage for discrediting Sathya Sai Baba because the Anglican Church would not object to programmes that weaken perceived threats, such as Sai Movement. [32]

Critical former followers created an online petition to have Baba and his affiliated organizations investigated by law enforcement agencies. According to Moreno, the petition signatures have never been independently verified and the petition administrators refuse to have an independent organization verify them. Moreno also contends that there are numerous problems with the online petition that include added, deleted and modified submissions as well as fake signatures ^[33].

Moreno argued, on his homepage, that "evidence" is cited from mostly anonymous sources or people using a first name or a pseudonym. Moreno asserted that the testimonies of those using real names have startling contradictions which are dismissed or trivialized by critics. Moreno's criticism evoked a reply from Al Rahm (the father of Alaya, an alleged victim), who argued that the contradictions in his son's testimonies were due to heavy editing in the BBC programme. ^[34] However, Moreno considers the contents to two transcripts, in which Alaya Rahm spoke positively about Sathya Sai Baba at USA retreats (shortly after he received many interviews in which, years later, he claimed he was molested dozens of times), reason to question his story. ^{[35] [36]} The Rahm Family has not addressed Moreno's comments about these two transcripts.

Moreno also believes that antagonists to the Guru willfully misrepresent and suppress facts about Sathya Sai Baba, which have been documented on his homepage. An example is when critics call Baba a "pedophile" and a molester of "boys" and "children". The youngest alleged (non-anonymous) victim, was the American Jed Geyerhahn, who wrote, in an e-mail to Dr. David C. Lane (as published on Lane's website), that he was 16 years old on his second trip when SSB allegedly rubbed vibuthi on his genitals. ^[37] However, on the T.V. "Seduced" documentary. ^[38] Jed Geyerhahn stated he was 15 years old on his first trip when SSB allegedly rubbed oil on his genitals. According to Moreno, Jed Geyerhahn completely contradicted himself about the age and time when he received his first oil/vibuthi application on his genitals. ^[39] Geyerhahn perceived the oil/vibuthi application, at that time, to be non-sexual. All other non-anonymous victims were 18 years of age or older when they were alleged molested.

Moreno also contends that there are Christian, White Supremacist, Rationalist and Atheistic movements against the Indian Guru ^[40].

M. Alan Kazlev, who holds a somewhat favorable view about the Guru, wrote on his website that ex-devotees are such a diverse assemblage that they cannot be called a movement; they are a collection of very different people who have either experienced sexual abuse first hand or, more often, hearing stories of such and as a result undergone a crisis of faith and rejected Sai Baba. [41]

Parliamentary, governmental and political issues and responses

The Indian President Abdul Kalam and the former Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee visit the ashram and pay respect to Baba. Vajpayee has written a letter when he was still the PM which is published on the internet, also signed by two former Supreme Court Justices, expressing that Sathya Sai Baba is innocent of sexual molestations and that the accusations are concocted and malicious. [42][43] Sceptics are confused as to whether Vajpayee's signed statement is based on government information not made available to the public. But it was made clear during the 2004 BBC documentary, "Secret Swami" that some prominent Indian politicians (e.g. Murli Manohar Joshi) have taken the position that the allegations against Sai Baba are false.

In the year 2000 UNESCO withdrew its co-sponsorship of an educational conference at Puttaparthi and stated the reasons, in a press release issued on 15 September, as "Certain decisions were taken by the ISSE without consultation, such as plans to hold some of the sessions at the Ashram of the Sathya Sai movement in Puttaparthi, and the inclusion of some speakers in the conference programme without their previous consent. Furthermore, the Organization is deeply concerned about widely-reported allegations of sexual abuse involving youths and children that have been levelled at the leader of the movement in question, Sathya Sai Baba." [44] In the year 2005, Barry Pittard, an anti-SSB activist, criticized the UNESCO for removing the press release from their site [45].

MP Tony Colman of the Parliament of the United Kingdom asked, in the parliament in 2002, whether a travel warning was appropriate due to the reports of sexual abuse. [46] Since 2002, neither Tony Blair nor the Parliament ever issued a travel warning against Sathya Sai Baba. Nor has the British Government released any official statement regarding this matter.

Tom Sackville, a former Home Office Under-Secretary of State and current chairman of the anti-cult organisation Family Action Information and Resource (FAIR), has expressed concern about the alleged indoctrination of children by devotees who volunteer at public schools and propagate the Educare/Education in Human Values teachings and asserted that this should be forbidden by law. [47]

The European Commission answered a question from a member of the European Parliament about no EU funding going to organizations associated with Sathya Sai Baba, due to allegations of sexual abuse. October 1, 2001. [48] The Commission answered that the Sathya Sai Trust never received, and was not receiving, any funding from the European Commission.

The United States Department of State has issued a travel warning that states "U.S. citizens should be aware that there have been unconfirmed reports of inappropriate sexual behavior by a prominent local religious leader at an ashram or religious retreat located in Andhra Pradesh. Most of the reports indicate that the subjects of these approaches have been young male devotees, including a number of U.S. citizens.".[49]

Sathya Sai Baba's Presence in Popular Culture

Sathya Sai Baba's name is mentioned on the popular incense Nag Champa.

Bibliography

Books by Sai Baba

(Note: His many discourses are published in the Sathya Sai Speaks series and often available online)

Many of his books are available online here and here

Note: The year of publication is often not mentioned.

• Bhagavatha Vahini - The story of God and his Devotees
• Ramakatha Rasavahini. Part 1 - The Rama story, Stream of Sacred Sweetness
• Ramakatha Rasavahini. Part 2 - The Rama story, Stream of Sacred Sweetness
• Gîtâ Vahini: The Divine Gospel
• Dhyana Vahini: Practice of Meditation
• Dharma Vahini: The Path of Virtue
• Jnana Vahini: The Stream of Eternal Wisdom
• Leela Kaivalya Vahini: The Cosmic Play of God
• Prashanthi Vahini: The Bliss of Supreme Peace
• Prasnotthara Vahini: Answers to Spiritual Questions
• Prema Vahini: The Stream of Divine Love
• Sandeha Nivarini: Clearance of Spiritual Doubts
• Sathya Sai Vahini: Spiritual Message of Sathya Sai
• Sutra Vahini: Analytical Aphorisms on Supreme Reality
• Upanishad Vahini: Essence of Vedic Knowledge
• Vidya Vahini: Flow of Spiritual Education
• Bhagavatha Vahini - The Story of God and His Devotees
• Dharma Vahini - The Path of Virtue Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Dhyana Vahini - Practice of Meditation Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Geetha Vahini - The Divine Gospel Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Jnana Vahini - The Stream of Eternal Wisdom
• Leela Kaivalya Vahini - The Cosmic Play of God
• Prashanthi Vahini - The Bliss of Supreme Peace
• Prasnottara Vahini - Answers to Spiritual Questions
• Prema Vahini - The Stream of Divine Love
• Sandeha Nivarini - Clearance of Spiritual Doubts
• Sathya Sai Vahini - Spiritual Message of Sathya Sai Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Sutra Vahini - Analytical Aphorisms on Supreme Reality Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Upanishad Vahini - Essence of Vedic Knowledge Essence of Vedic Knowledge - Translated from the Original Telugu - Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
• Vidya Vahini - Flow of Spiritual Education Translated from the Original Telugu Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust

Selected books by his followers

(Note: Hundreds of English language book titles have been written by his followers)

• Goldthwait, John “Purifying the Heart” (2002) ISBN 81-7208-339-4
• Guillemin, Madeleine “Who is in the Driving Seat?” (2000) ISBN 0-9583617-0-3
• Hislop, John My Baba and I ISBN 81-7208-050-6
• Kasturi, Narayana Sathyam Sivam Sundaran' part I (first published in 1961), II, III, IV available online in Microsoft Word format
• Krystal, Phyllis “The Ultimate Experience” ISBN 81-7208-038-7
• Mazzoleni Don Mario A Catholic Priest Encounters Sai Baba
• Murphet, Howard Man of Miracles (1971) 0333-91770-7
• Padmanaban, Ranganathan Love is My Form Sai Towers (2000) ISBN 81-86822-76-3
• Priddy, Robert “'Source of the Dream'” (1998) ISBN 1-57863-028-2
• Maa, Sai "Pedals of Grace"
• Sandweiss, Samuel H. The holy man ..... and the psychiatrist (1975) ISBN 0-9600958-1-0
• Sandweiss, Samuel H “Spirit and the Mind” (1985) ISBN 81-7208-056-5
• Steel, Brian The Powers of Sathya Sai Baba (1999) ISBN 81-7646-080-X
• Steel, Brian The Satya Sai Baba Compendium: A Guide to the First Seventy Years (Paperback) Weiser Books (February, 1997) ISBN: 0877288844
• Thomas, Joy “Life is a Game – Play it” ISBN 81-7208-175-8
• Schulman, Arnold Baba (1971) Out of print but available in some public libraries

Books by sceptics and critics

• Beyerstein, Dale Dr. (1994) Sai Baba's miracles: an overview available online
• Brooke, Tal Avatar of the Night available online
• Premanand, Basava The Murders in Sai Baba's bedroom
• Priddy, Robert The End of the Dream published and edited by Basava Premanand

Other books

• Brown, Mick The Spiritual Tourist (1998), chapter 4 In The House of God ISBN 1-58234-034-X Bloomsbury Publishing
• Haraldsson, Erlendur PhD Miracles are my visiting cards - An investigative inquiry on Sathya Sai Baba, an Indian mystic with the gift of foresight believed to perform modern miracles (first published in 1987, 1997 revised and updated edition) ISBN 81-86822-32-1
• Annotated research bibliography in three parts collected by Brian Steel, available online.
  • part 1, Items of a scholarly or academic nature or provenance
  • part 2, Work Critical of SSB and his Mission by non-devotees (including ex-devotees)
  • part 3, A Basic Bibliography of Works about Sathya Sai Baba by the SSO and his Devotees

References

1. ^ Haraldsson, Erlendur PhD Miracles are my visiting cards - An investigative inquiry on Sathya Sai Baba, an Indian mystic with the gift of foresight believed to perform modern miracles (1997 revised and updated edition) ISBN 81-86822-32-1
2. ^ Adherents
3. ^ Trouw article 6 Sept. 2000.
4. ^ Sathya Sai Baba's brother dies
5. ^ Dutch language article Alexandra Nagel writes in an article as part of her curriculum of religious studies for the University of Amsterdam that the prominent Dutch follower W.G.J. van Dijk seeks an explanation for the massage by SSB of genitals in a magazine for the members of the Dutch Sathya Sai Organisation, called Op de Hoogte, issue October 2000 "Van Dijk zoekt nog altijd een uitleg voor Sai Baba’s massage handelingen in de ‘kundalini’-verklaring. Sai Baba zou door het betasten het eerste chakra, dat zich bevindt tussen het scrotum en de anus, de kundalini-energie activeren.", translation: "Van Dijk still seeks an explanation for Sai Baba's massage acts in the 'kundalini' explanation. Sai Baba would activate the kundalini energy by touching the first chakra that is located between scrotum and anus."
6. ^ Sai Baba's miracles: an overview Dr. Dale Beyerstein, Web version by Ted Powell (click on download)
7. ^ Interview with Sai Baba in the magazine Blitz 1976
8. ^ Public discourse by Sathya Sai Baba on 29 June 1963
9. ^ movies of materializations
10. ^ The Findings compiled by Faye and David Bailey (2000)
11. ^ For and against Sathya Sai Baba on the internet by Alexandra Nagel (2001)
12. ^ Criminal Complaint against SSB by Hari Sampath
13. ^ A Guru Accused article by Alexandra Nagel
14. ^ Sharon Purcell
15. ^ Robert Priddy about the ring The investigation was shown on Danish TV
16. ^ SSB in wheelchair
17. ^ Jed Geyerhahn’s e-mails to David C. Lane see David C. Lane
18. ^ Jed Geyerhahn’s contradictory testimonies
19. ^ Photograph of Sathya Sai Baba's school record
20. ^ Transcript of the Danish documentary "Seduced"
21. ^ Mumbay mirror 11 Jan. 2006
22. ^ Moreno's list of problems with online petition against Sathya Sai Baba
23. ^ Moreno's page about the Christian and Rationalist Anti-Sai movements
24. ^ Full information about the Bukkapatnam School Records
25. ^ The Rahm's Response to Moreno's complaints about contradictions in Alaya's testimonies
26. ^ Transcript to the USA Sai Regional Conference August-30/31-1997, in which Alaya was glorifying SSB after allegedly being sexually molested dozens of times about 3 weeks earlier.
27. ^ Transcript to the 21st North & Mid Central Region Conference: May 24th 1998 where Alaya was still glorifying SSB 6 months prior to his defection from the Sai Movement.
28. ^ Brian Steel: Dossier 3: The Packaging of Sathya Sai Baba's Telugu Discourses. A Stronger Case
29. ^ Moreno: An Open Critique Of Brian Steel: A Stronger Case

External links

Official Sathya Sai Websites

• The Official Website of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, Prasanthi Nilayam, India
• The Official Web Site of the International Sri Sathya Seva Organisations (has Baba's discourses, Baba's voice singing Gayatri and bhajans)
• The Official Website of Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust, Prasanthi Nilayam, India
• The Official Website of Radio Sai Global Harmony - the digital radio channel from Prasanthi Nilayam, India
• The Official Website of Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (Deemed university), Prasanthi Nilayam, India

Websites of critical former followers, skeptics and other critics

• Concerned former Dutch devotees of Sathya Sai Baba Extensive website that contains scholarly studies and videos of alleged materializations, webmaster Reinier van der Sandt.
• Robert Priddy's extensive website about the Sathya Sai Baba and the Sathya Sai organisation
• Brian Steel's website about Sathya Sai Baba
• Allegations concerning Sathya Sai Baba Multi-lingual, critical website of ex-followers, webmaster Lionel Fernandez.
• Sai Baba Exposé: revealing hidden facts about India's biggest guru and his worldwide cult Conny Larsson's English section on the Scandinavian website of critical former followers. Contains writings by Basava Premanand

Websites to Devotees and Proponents

• Allegations Against Sathya Sai Baba Examined An extensive, Pro-Sai website by Gerald Joe Moreno that addresses the Anti-Sai campaign.
• A Clear View A Pro-Sai website by Ram Das Awle that attempts to explain the sexual abuse allegations against Sathya Sai Baba.
• The Sai Critic A Pro-Sai website that discusses the controversy surrounding Sathya Sai Baba.

Other websites

• Guru, Miracle Worker, Religious Founder: Sathya Sai Baba long article by Reinhart Hummel on the website of the Dialog Center (1984)
• Anti-Sai Baba Deceptions? article on the disagreement and antagonism between apologists and critics on the website of M. Alan Kazlev.
• Love is my form biographical overview of the early years from the book Love is my Form

Media articles

• Divine Downfall Mick Brown's article about the sexual abuse allegations in The Telegraph newspaper UK (28 Oct. 2000)
• A God Accused front page article in India Today 4 December 2000
• Untouchable? Sai Baba: Pedophile or God incarnate? Michelle Golberg's major article in salon.com online magazine (2001)
• Three die after putting faith in guru [50] (27 August 2001) The Times by Dominic Kennedy (first of three stories)
  • 'I sought peace and couldn't find it' [51]
  • Suicide, sex and the guru [52]
• Sai Baba could be put on UK blacklist [53] The Hindustan Times
• A Friend in India to All the World article in the New York Times by journalist Keith Bradsher December 1, 2002
• "I lost the desire to live" B. N. was a follower of Sai Baba for 17 years article by Bettina Vilmun, translated from the Danish daily national newspaper B.T. (tabloid) (January 312002)
• Sri Sathya Sai 80th year of Advent A collection of various articles about Sathya Sai baba on the The Hindu news website (23 November 2005). Note: According to Indian customs a person is considered one year old when born.
• Miracle of Welfare The Week's article about Sathya Sai Baba and the controversy surrounding the Guru. (27 November 2005)