Baba Culture-pulling India back?

India chained

The recent event that lingers in my mind and just refuses to fade away is the smiling , fuzzy haired Sai Baba. He was indeed quite a character who courted controversy although the presence of Sonia Gandhi and Man Mohan Singh at his funeral does give a glimpse of what kind of political clout he wielded when alive.
It is always difficult for anyone to accept humans as Gods. Kind of weird that the guy next door could possibly proclaim to be a God, albeit supposedly in an Avtar! It is certainly possible to accept one as a holy fellow who connects better with his creator and displays more human values than an average person. And then comes the final clincher. A picture of the thronging devotees praying for the Sai Baba! Asking for health! Asking for his Life! A plethora of questions flashed upon my mind: are they praying for their God….their God NEEDS the prayers of the devotees? To whom are these devotees of Sai Baba praying??? Are we to suppose that there is a bigger God who can cure the smaller god? Gods can get sick? Gods need the prayers of humans?
Let’s take a quick flash into the past. We must remember that as a child, Sai Baba was described as "unusually intelligent". And what is more relevant is that the young Baba was exceptionally talented in drama, music, dance and writing, and was an avid composer of poems and plays. He was said to be capable of materialising objects such as food and sweets out of thin air, but alas! He could not escape death by using his own vibhuti! The power of the vighuti vanished when he needed it most! By the way, the glass casket in which the body of the Baba was on display, was air conditioned ! An over zealous devotee felt that reincarnation occurs better under more pleasant conditions!
Sachin Tendulkar was seen crying sitting besides the body of Baba. Was he crying at what would be Baba’s fate in the herafter or was it because he realized that humans die, Gods do not. I am still guessing……And the news that is going around is that the Baba will reincarnate in about a decade. Whatever be the truth of the matter, at least this gives us hope that the world will not finish as predicted by the calculating priest, Harold Camping, a preacher from Oakland, California or the other doomsday theory of the world coming to an end in 2012!

That brings me to the other bigger issue. The issue of Rs 45,000 crores. What crores? As I understand, the value of Baba’s Trusts could be touching a whopping 45,000 crores! And will this issue be ever investigated? What taxes have been paid by the Baba or the trust? What has been the source of this humoungous income? I know that many charitable pursuits have been initiated by the Baba. Why not? If peanuts can fetch you Gold, then why not! Simple logic.
And then I thought of the other living soul who has been in the news. Anna Hazare. And I wondered to myself , can this living Gandhian ensure that the Jan Lok Pal bill will be passed and implemented? If he can, then I am sure that the late Baba can be brought under it’s ambit. After all, movement against corruption does not begin by seeing the colour of the dress that one wears or by the volume of ones hair? Or does it?
Before I digress into more worldly matters, let me continue with the Godman who was, as I understand, an avatar of the Shirdee kay Sai Baba. Quite a contrast, I must confess. The original Sai baba was a “fakir” when he passed away, probably not possessing even Rs 400 at the time of his death! Well, it is all a matter of modern economics. Demand and Supply. Probably the “kalyug” can be seen when economics determines rebirth! The idea of an Avatar , as I understand, was to improve the society and rid it of it’s evils. Now it seems that Avatars rids the society of their money!
And now let me come to the worldly matters. India is huge nation sitting on the brink of glory and greatness. What stops us from achieving greatness are such avatars. India as a nation is like South Africa in cricket. Chokers.
India’s step into the world of greatness is choked due to it’s gullible ,highly emotional and immature masses. They are pulling us back. Anna Hazare can continue his fasts till as long as he likes. India will be like a cat catching it’s own tail. Corruption, as it appears, will never be weeded out because corruption cares about colour of the dress and the volume of the hair that dons the head that weaves a magic spell on those who matter. Masses as well as classes fall prey.