Gurustan

Gurustan is one of the most important places in Shirdi. Sai Baba spent most of his time in this place and according to him, the tomb oh his own guru is located here. There is a huge neem tree near this place where Baba used to take shelter during his stay in this place. Nobody wanted to remove it as this tree had been sanctified by Baba’s stay under it. Nobody dared to meddle with the tree. Baba some times did this when a person was in great danger, although he could not have “seen” from the mosque what was occurring at Gurusthan. Villagers linked the boy’s death with his attempt to cut the tree, and became afraid to do anything that might have been a sacrilege.

This neem tree also reminds us of how practical and down-to-earth Baba could be. In the early 1900's, after Baba had moved to the mosque, construction work on Sathe Wada was hampered by a long branch of the tree. When Baba was approached for his advice, he told the villagers, "Cut off how-ever much is interfering with the construction. But despite this clear instruction from Baba, nobody dared to hamper the tree. Finally, Baba himself climbed the up and cut off the branch.

There are several stories about Sai Baba's miraculous deeds, but his most important characteristics was that - faith and humanity was in his blood. His guru had told him that, to learn and gain knowledge you must first have faith in your guru - only this attribute of a learner can be termed as 'sadhana'. Baba's biography is the practical illustration of what guru and sishya mean, and of the principles that govern their mutual relation. A famous anecdote of his kindness was about the Sathe Wada construction site where he allowed the villagers to cut the long branch of the tree without denying for even once. It was also said that the neem tree used to taste sweet at a point of time when Baba used to stay there. Another story is in which Megha acquires the lingam, which was installed the same year in which the broken Padukas were replaced. Apart from the neem tree, there is a pair of marble padukas on a pedestal, a 'Shivalingam' and a statue of Baba. The statue, carved by the grandson of the sculptor of the Samadhi Mandhir statue, was donated by Y.D.Dave and installed in 1974. On 15 August 1912, they were duly taken in ceremonious procession from Khandoba Temple to the mosque, where Baba touched them and said they were Allah's padukas and to put them at the foot of the neem tree.

The present day Gurusthan is located just behind the Samadhi Mandir of Sri Sai. Gurusthan consists of a 'dhuni' i.e a stand in front of the shrine, which is been kindled on Thursday's and Friday as of today. They say that anyone who cleans himself/herself over here will be blessed by the almighty.

SHRI SATCHIDANANDA SADGURU SAINATH MAHARAJ KI JAI