Marxists, too, fell to Baba's spell

Retired Supreme Court judge and a former minister in the first Communist cabinet, Justice V R Krishna Iyer, still wears a green studded ring that he received from Baba some thirty years ago.

 Though Communists rarely believe in gods and godmen, Justice Iyer still wears the ring with pride. “He was a rare personality with an amazing charm. He waved his hand and produced this ring from thin air,” the judge remembered. He has visited Puttaparthy several times after that and still remains an avid devotee.

According to the judge, it was Baba’s charity work and humanitarian gestures that made him so endearing to tens of thousands of people worldwide.
 
Among Baba’s devotees who had the good fortune to meet him in Kerala during his visit was the family of K R Prakasham. “My father Ramalinga Pillai was a devotee of Shirdi Sai Baba earlier. However, after he met Sathya Sai Baba here in 1958 and later in 1967 he was convinced that both Sai Babas were one,’’ he said. Prakasham later set up a Sai ashram in Chenthitta  here and holds regular poojas.

Thousands of devotees of Sathya Sai Baba in Kerala heard the news of his death with mixed emotions ranging from deep sadness to “supreme happiness”.  While a few said that they couldn’t think about a world without Baba, others like Advocate Philip M Prasad said he was happy because Baba had completed his mission.

“The world has become a much better place to live in and Baba had done his bit to change things,” said the Naxalite-turned Baba devotee.

Saigramams and ashrams in the state which had been on prayers for the last one month could not believe that Baba had not staged a comeback. 

Among the inmates of the Sathya Sai orphanage at Thonnakkal here is Poornachandran, a nomad boy who received a fresh lease of life 12 years ago.  He was picking rags to earn a living in Kannur when one day he opened a steel ball he found on the road which exploded.

The boy lost his left arm and right eye in the incident and there was even none to take him to hospital. It was the Sathya Sai Orphanage Trust which arranged help for him and later enrolled him in its orphanage  here. He passed standard 12 recently and has also turned out to be a good singer even participating in concerts of leading playback singers.