Sathya Sai Baba, was seen as a reincarnation of Shiridi Sai Baba by millions, having preached an eclectic blend of Hindu religion. The Hindu holy man was considered as a living god by millions of followers worldwide. He led a life dedicated to philanthropy marred by the occasional controversies.

Heres more in detail about the God Man... Sathya Sai was born in 1926 into an ordinary family at Puttapathi village in Andhra Pradesh. The guru was first named as Sathyanarayana Raju. He declared himself as a reincarnation, Shiridi Sai Baba in 1940. Two of his elder sisters, an elder brother Sathya Sai proclaimed himself as divinity and claimed miracles, such as producing sacred ash or 'vibhuti', vermillion, fruits, precious gems and gold items from thin air at the time of his visitations with his followers.

Puttaparthi became his base, eventually transforming the once small village into a lively pilgrimage centre, with its own railway station and air strip. Sathya Sai gained immense popularity among the people of southern India for many philanthropic endeavours such as world class specialty heart hospitals, free water schemes to cities, towns and villages and educational institutions.

Sathya Sai Baba was also credited with unveiling drinking water schemes in drought-prone Anantapur district. The Satya Sai Central Trust manages all the service activities and also runs the Satya Sai University. The spiritual guru built a temple in 1944. Four years later he founded Prasanthi Nilayam at Puttaparthi. He also opened ashrams at Whitefield on Bangalore's outskirts and at Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu.

He made it a point to tell his followers not to give up their original religion. He acquired a huge following that included political leaders, film stars and industrialists -- and millions of ordinary folk. Sceptics and rationalists considered his miracles nothing more than parlour tricks. The guru and his ashram have always denied all reports of any wrongdoing and he was never charged or convicted of any crime.

Prime Ministers, Presidents, Kings, Ambassadors and celebrities from every walk of life thronged his Aashram in Puttaparthi, seeking his blessings for over 50 years. He founded over 1500 Sathya Sai Centres in 114 countries across the globe. He was visited by record number of heads of states during his life time.

Published Date : Monday, 25/4/2011 11:46 AM IST