Sairam friends,

This morning, My Father gave me Coffee at 6 A.M. I drank and slept again. I had a dream as if I am inside the Engine of the train and the driver is skillfully handling the train. I see a Man with a Bullet trying to play around in the railway track not minding the fast-approaching train. The Train driver doesn’t bother it and keeps riding and the Man in the Bike takes reverse and keeps away from the track exactly when the train nears him. Both of them smile to themselves.

I realized people do things in their life without fear as one is confident that the other Man/Woman will escape from danger as everyone has their own need for survival.

The whole universe works based on this attitude. You do some work irrespective of the fact that you know somehow other Man who’s successful in the same business might have a loss. But You know for sure that the other Man will earn his living in the same or any other ways he could choose.

So most of what we do in life is not only dependent on what we do. Subconsciously, we believe, even our opponent or competitor will find his/her way to survive.

Similarly, there are girls/Guys who break up and marry someone else. The one who’s alone, writes to me asking how can someone cheat me and live happily. Is Saibaba not going to punish them. In this case, You must realize, the other person believes, You have a better life too. They wanted to hurt You but subconsciously, they believed You will live peacefully too. Though that’s not their intention, it’s better to take it this way and focus on your own life.

“Believe that You have a beautiful life ahead.”

Sai never punishes people who don’t belong to him. He punishes people who belong to him just to set them on the right path. When I do a small mistake, Sai immediately gives me a small punishment just to make sure I realize my mistake. This way, he takes rights on me because I give him total control of my life. Why would Sai hurt anyone else?

Before you read the article, here’s a Shirdi Saibaba Photo taken during Gurupurnima sent by devotee Murali Sai. I really love the way he has done the pooja at his home.

Saibaba pooja on Guru Purnima

Why I love Coimbatore?

Last evening, I was chatting with one of my friends in the U.S who suggested if I would like to marry a girl in the U.S and settle down there. I told her, I never thought about it. I wish to be in Coimbatore with my parents and somehow, I am connected to Coimbatore or probably India for that matter. She told me, Economically, Politically, and even in terms of comfort, the U.S, it’s a good place to live. I agree. I sometimes wish that I was born in the U.S because most of the setbacks in several youngsters in India is because we don’t live for ourselves here. We are living most of our lives for others or fearing for others.

Irrespective of all this, I consider Coimbatore to be a place I belong to. I neither have many friends nor I have any reason to love Coimbatore. This is simply a matter of feeling at home. You feel happy when You are in your home. Coimbatore is like my home. This is my hometown as we call it and I love this place more than the place I was born.

(Edit: I did this walking and wrote this article especially to spread the message of being active. I see many people are addicted to comfort that they don’t do even little physical work. It’s very important to keep yourself healthy. Please keep yourself active. It really helps You. After I wrote this article, I was doing some work. I slept for one hour from 4.30 and then went to Nagasai Mandir in the evening. As usual, I was coming around the holy dhuni not realizing, I had walked a lot in the morning. I came around dhuni for more than an hour. Then, I went to Saibaba colony for shopping some stuff. I suddenly got immense pain in my left leg nerves and could not bear it. I came back to Saibaba temple, got a book of Sainath Stavan Manjari, and sat in Dwarakamai during Shej Aarti. I was limping all the way home. Baba, please heal me by your grace. Please do not walk extremely like me if you are not used to it. I do have lots of practice but somehow, seems I became weak now a days. My parents are really upset with me because I have unbearable pain in my leg. I am sure Saibaba will heal me. Now, continue reading…)

I have always enjoyed Walking

One of the reasons, I never had any bad habits ( If you call Smoking/Drinking as bad habits) is because I like to roam around. I simply walk a lot. I walk without any reason to walk. Several years back, I used to walk 15 kms a day. I didn’t have much work to do then. I used to go by Bus to Race Course and walk a few hours there. I used to have lots of Tea those days. When I was in Chennai, I take liked walking from T Nagar to Kodambakkam. From K.K Nagar to Vadapalani. I never did that regularly. The best place in Chennai where I enjoyed walking is from Nungambakkam High road to Spencer Plaza. Until 2004, Max Muller Bhavan, Chennai was situated in a house like building in Nungambakkam. I liked those places a lot. I used to go there and have tea and biscuits when the whole world would come there to learn German.

OK. Now, let’s go to Mumbai. When I was in Mumbai, I hated local trains so much. Once Sai blessed me with a dream as if the whole train was empty and I was jumping from one place to another. He he….anyway, I used to walk from Borivali East to a Shirdi Saibaba temple in Borivali west. I used to get biscuits and give to Dogs on the way. And I have good memories of walking in Andheri East, Marol maroshi etc.

Now, lets come back to Coimbatore. The past 4 and half years, My walking became too less. If you are working in an IT organization, You loose most of your time sitting there. The physical work I used to do in the Saibaba temple also got reduced. My friends are taking care of Dhuni and I join them very rarely.

A week back, While I was sleeping, I suddenly felt so dizzy. I felt the whole Earth is revolving ( Yes it really does but we must not feel it). I could not do anything but worry deep in me that I am slowly getting sick. I am not doing any handwork as before and I really have to do something about it.

These days, I walk from my home to Vellakinar – The 150 year old Village which were the only Women from Coimbatore who has actually seen Shirdi Saibaba lived in 1904-05. ( For Gods sake, Do not try to trace her roots now. You won’t find as it was her Husbands village and they also moved to Bangalore since he got Job there. In the below article, You can read her story. Further, When someone has become a saint, please do not trace their family because they became a saint only to get rid of selfishness, attachments, and serve humanity.

Women’s day message from Shirdi Sai Baba and Story of my Sister

Note – The same thing happened to Sivanesan swamiji too. Please do not trace where Saints belong to early in their life. Even Shirdi Saibaba never told about his childhood and even if he has said, it’s just like parables. He never wanted us to get into it.

Walking in Coimbatore

Today, I woke up at 7 o clock, told my Father that I am going for a walk and started at 7.15 A.M.

I walked and few minutes later, I thought why not walk along. Then, I walked further. I crossed Vellakinar and again felt must walk more. Then, I walked ahead of the village towards a Rice Mill. I walked further and thought Until the next flat. Then, I walked further thinking until the College and get back home. I thought I must walk really long as I used to do years back. So I walked Until the place I work. I was walking all the way of thinking about Shirdi Saibaba. Thinking what I am going to do in my life. I also did some chanting once in a while.

Then, I started walking back and got a call from my Mom. She asked why I am not home yet and that she’s worried. I told her, “I call all the way walking near office and I will come back in half an hour”. She told me ‘Why are you walking so long?”

I walked back home and suddenly saw this guy who used to come to Nagasai Temple regularly. He stopped his Two-wheeler near me and asked did you shift your home here? I said “No. I came for a walk.”.

He asked ‘Are you really walking so long? I said “Yes because I don’t do any physical work as before nowadays and I don’t like going to gym or do Yoga etc.”

He asked me about Surya Namaskar and I told him about it. I asked him at least to Bow to Lord Surya every morning because like how Lord Ganesha likes Modhakam, Surya loves Bowing.

Then, I told him, shall meet him in temple and walked ahead.

I did get pain in my legs. This is also not the right place to walk. This is not a highway but some buses and cars come very close to You when you walk. So one has to be careful if they choose to walk.

Finally, I reached home and my Mom said that she is nervous if I am not home for such a long time. It was 10 0 clock. I told her “I have to walk like this at least once every week”

She told me that she’s upset searching for me and asked me never to walk so long. I said OK. I will walk half the distance from next week. I told her, there are guys and even girls who travel from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. I told you clearly, I am going for a walk and You fear so much. She told me “Their parents also will worry like this.”

I said OK and left it.

My Father asked me to walk in residential area but I don’t like it much.

I walked especially since I wanted to experience this and spread the message of walking in StarSai.

Here’s the approximate route I took. I did not use exact location of my home and destination. Its 6.6 Kms approximately. That’s 12 Kms of walk on a Sunday Morning.

Here’s the link to Google Map ( Again, let me clarify, for privacy reasons, the Starting and destination points are only for representation)

The Bus which passes this route is very crowded during weekdays. The guys traveling to college easily hangover to the door and I have also done this in past.

The other day, I saw a student who is handicap and I could understand he could not get into such crowded bus. So I took a taxi and asked this boy to get in and dropped him on the way.

There are thousands of school children in India who don’t have access to comfortable transport. In some villages, there are kids who walk all the way to their school and I hope they don’t lose their interest in Education. I believe transportation in the Coimbatore district is better though obviously, it will always be crowded.

Walking is good for health and mind

Disclaimer – I like this route but honestly, any roads where there’s lots of traffic is not recommended for walking or cycling. My intention is not to make people walk but to have a life healthy lifestyle and stay positive living a simple life.

Shirdi Saibaba’s Simplicity

Sai devotees comes from various walks of life.

It’s Your own wish to go for walking but the message here is doing what you love to do irrespective of what others think.

Take some time for yourself and learn to enjoy life with what you have.

Lead a simple and pure life.

Work Hard, Earn honestly but lead a simple, happy life.

Take this example

Saibaba was gifted a horse. Its name is Shyam Karna. Sai took care of it with love but not once did Sai used Shyam Karna to ride where he wants to go.

During Chavadi Procession, devotees would bring palanquin and plead him to sit inside it so that they could carry him.

Sai denied it but loves their devotion.

So they carried Sai’s palanquin with a painting of Baba and Baba would walk behind them.

Such was his simplicity.

Comfort is important but does not get addicted to it. If you do, then, You will never enjoy life to the fullest.