Sathya Sai Baba: A balance of faith and philanthropy

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Shantanu Dutta

25 April, 2011

Sai Baba might not have called himself a philanthropist, but in a country starved of that breed, I would see him as such.

I REMEMBER many years ago, when Mother Teresa had died, she was given a state funeral in Kolkata by the government. Apparently, the old gun carriage that had once used to carry the body of Mahatma Gandhi was brought out of oblivion for the occasion.

That was perhaps the first time in post independence India, that a state funeral had been accorded too someone who had not held a public office. And now it is learnt that the late Sai Baba who passed away Sunday morning too would be given a state funeral by the Andhra Praadesh government.

Although India is a secular state, the dance between religion and the powers of the realm is a close one. Mother Teresa’s position was an interesting one. Her head quarters were in Kolkata, then (as now) governed by the Left Front government whose official position was atheistic; the Central Government, then run by the United Front and the urbane and liberal minded Inder Kumar Gujral had a lesser ideological dilemma to battle.

But of course, in spite of the immense popularity of Mother Teresa, she boasted no disciples among the ruling elite – her Christian faith would have been a road block.

Late Sathya Sai Baba was adored by the patrician and the plebian alike, and in this he had a unique stature. There are numerous gurus in India, but each has their particular niche.

Very few have been able to carve out a following that is egalitarian enough to embrace all segments of society and the fact that he used his formidable clout to collect funds that were used to initiate unparalled acts of philanthropy is commendable.

Lots of religious institutions run charitable clinics – the most common variety is the free homeopathic clinic or a step further, the weekly mobile van equipped with some basic diagnostics and medical aid.

But to run two super speciality hospitals and other hospitals, where the distinguishing feature is that there is no billing counter and to run them for years; to fund giant drinking water projects for Anantapur and Chennai takes some doing.

Lots of godmen have access to lots of funds, but how much they use these for the public good is a good question to ask.

Besides, by filling the membership of the Central Trust that oversaw trust activities by well known public figures whose credentials cannot be easily questioned, and not by family members or relatives, some measure of accountability was provided, although his lifestyle, particularly if contrasted with Mother Teresa’s, was by no means frugal by any meaning of the term.

During the day, while reading his many obituaries, I invariably ran into pieces that talk about the controversies that dogged him all through the years; the rationalists had their grouse about his producing objects out of thin air – I remember that years ago, the noted magician P.C. Sorcar challenging Sai Baba onto the stage where Sorcar agreed to produce the vibhuti and other objects that the Baba offered his disciples, but the matter was not pursued.

Then many other followers accused him of sexual improprieties, but again those charges too did not stick.

The man and his mission continued and not having any evidence for myself one way or the other, I cannot comment.

But what I do want to comment on is that in a nation where industrialists fund corporate hospitals which are expensive and temples which are free; Sai Baba managed to reverse the paradigm a bit – his ashrams and their food and accommodation are ridiculously cheap, but so are his hospitals and drinking water projects.