Short Summary, Chapter-5, Baba’s Return with Chand Patil’s Marriage party (Shri Sai Satcharita)..

Chand Patil, a noble Muslim of Dhup village of Aurangabad district while walking back to his village sadly after having lost his costly mare, saw a young Fakir sitting under a mango tree. T he fakir on hearing his loss told him to search the mare in the nearby groove and to his joy found it right there. By then the Fakir made things ready for smoking the Chillam. He tapped the ground with his Chatka (small stick Baba used to carry) and water flowed to wet the chillum’s cloth. Patil escorted the Fakir to his house. A few days later Patil’s family came to Shirdi for the marriage of Patil’s brother-in-law as the bride was from Shirdi. The Fakir also came with Patil but stayed back permanently in Shirdi. As the fakir alighted from the bullock cart near the Kandoba temple at Shirdi, Mahalsapathi exclaimed ‘Ya! Sai (Aao SAI) ’. He was our Sai Baba. Initially Baba spent most of His time with Saints Devakidas and Janakidas. Saint Gangajir who came from Puntambi said: “Shirdi is blessed; it has with it the priceless gem (Baba).” A nanthanath of Yevala Mutt, the disciple of Saint Akkalkot Maharaj declared to the Shirdi villagers: “This person (Baba) is a priceless diamond. You got it because you deserve it. Shortly you will realize.”

In commemoration of Baba’s first visit to Shirdi and the glory of the neem tree, some devotees wanted in 1912 to install the replica of the sacred feet (Paduka) of  Baba. Upasini Baba gave precious suggestion. The Padukas in marble were chiseled at Bombay and was brought to Shirdi. Baba said that they should be installed on Shravan Poornima day. He touched and blessed them saying that they were the ‘feet of Lord’. Kaka Dixit carried them over his head in procession on the said day at 11 AM for installation. Upasini Maharaj Baba composed the following famous sloka on the padukas:

Sadha Nim Bavrukshasya Moolathi Vasaath 
Sudhasravinam Dhiktham Apya Priyam Tham
Tharum Kalpavrikshathigam Sadhayantham
Namami Eeswaram Sadhgurum Sai Natham

Wrestling: Once Baba clashed with a wrestler by name Thamboli at Shirdi and lost to him. Since then he wore a kafni and closed his head with a piece of cloth. He used a piece of sack to sit over. He slept in an old and dilapidated Masjid. His only possessions were a hookah, tobacco, small tin container, chatka, a brick, a towel and a long kafni. He constantly kept burning a fire called Dhuni. He was always proclaiming ‘Allah Maalik’ (God is the only Master). On some days he wore tinkles on his legs and danced in a place called Thagia.

Converting Water into Oil: Baba used to keep many lamps lit throughout the night in the Dwarkamai with the oil supplied by the oil merchants of Shirdi. One day all the merchants joined together and refused him oil. Baba went back to the masjid, took the tin container which had a few drops of oil, mixed water in it and drank it. Then he filled the container with water, poured it in the lamps and then lit them. The lamps burned throughout that night. Baba told the frightened merchants to be more truthful in future.

Pseudo Guru Jawar Ali:  A fakir by name Jawar Ali came to Shirdi. By his glib tongue he made a deceptive show that he was the Guru and Baba his disciple and took the latter to Rahata. This was not acceptable to Mahalsapathi and other like minded persons. They went to Rahata and brought both of them back to Shirdi. The deception that Ali was Guru and Baba the disciple remained only for a short duration. Ali lost the debate on theology to Gangajir and ran away from Shirdi. Years later he came back and prostrated at the feet of Baba.