Sai Baba decision to never leave Puttaparthi

When Sathya Sai Baba came into this world, he was the second part of what is known as the “Triple Avatar” in Hindu scriptures. He declared his first incarnation was Sai Baba of Shirdi and the third will be Prema Sai of Mysore.

 As the Puttaparthi Preceptor, his teachings reached the world, through the devotees that came to see him and receive his blessings. News of his many miracles brought sceptics to try and expose him as a charlatan. Instead, many came to believe his words, that he was God and had come on the earth in human form to serve humankind, as Rama, Krishna, Jesus, Buddha, Zoroaster, and others had done before him.

Sathya Sai explained why he chose to remain in the simple village where he had been born. He said, “When I started going to Bangalore, Easwaramma (his mother) and Venkamma (his elder sister) entreated me that I should not leave Puttaparthi. I promised them that I would never leave Puttaparthi and would stay here forever.”

He also noted, “Maharani of Mysore, coffee planter Sakamma, and Desaraj Arasu, the maternal uncle of Mysore Maharaja, were among those who used to come here (in the 1940s). One day they prayed: It is difficult for us to come here often. Hence, please come and settle in Mysore. We shall build a big mansion for you.

“I told, I don’t want palatial buildings. I want to be here.”
Coincidentally, one night, Mother Easwaramma came to him with tears in her eyes. According to Sathya, she said, “Swami, people want to take you here and there for their selfish purposes. If you leave Puttaparthi I will give up my life.”

Swami comforted her, and in order to remain in Parthi, he made plans to accommodate all who would come there. He said, “This is why I have constructed many buildings in the ashram for the comfort and convenience of devotees.”

In the early years, travel to Puttaparthi was difficult. Swami noted how the royal families had to approach in the same way as others.

He said, “Those days Chittravathi flowed for the most part of the year. Their devotion was so great that they crossed the river by improvising temporary causeways of wooden planks. As the number of my followers increased, the opposition of the local miscreants melted away. After I promised Easwaramma, I never abandoned Puttaparthi. The whole world may come here but I shall not leave Puttaparthi.”

Since his mother’s death in 1972, Sai Baba still never went very far away from home.  
The Glory of Puttaparthi proclaimed, “Generally, Avatars stay at their place of birth. If you uproot a plant from its place and plant it elsewhere, how long will it survive? A tree grows strong where it is planted first.”

After he left his body in April 2011, his ashram, Prasanthi Nilayam, continues to be the Abode of Peace for world-weary spiritual seekers. In this manner, Sathya Sai has retained his roots in Puttaparthi and has made it a place of pilgrimage.