(His son, Govind visited Shirdi during 1934 & when he was in the masjid he heard
a distinct and audible voice, saying, “Have you come?” in a parental affectionate
voice. He immediately opened his eyes and found that there was no body else there
at that time in the masjid to utter any words except Baba's portrait. It was Baba
who spoke.)
During his early childhood, Shridhar Narayan Kharkar was groomed by his grand father
who was a pious and religious man and Kharkar listened to the religious ideas and
ideals narrated by his grandfather. Thus, Kharkar was initiated right from his childhood
into the study of religious books and the orthodox scruples.
Once it so happened that Appasaheb Kulkarni, Deputy Collector, a very pious soul
and ardent devotee of Baba, showed him the picture of Sai Baba of Shirdi towards
whom Kulkarni was devotedly attached to and whom he was praying always. Kulkarni
also told him about the saintliness of Sai Baba and about Baba’s munificence to
help people in areas, temporal and spiritual.Kharkar thus got his first contact
with Baba through Baba’s photo through Kulkarni. After a few days he also received
a picture of Baba from Dabholkar (Hemadpant) and also a number of Sai Leela Masiks
(magazines) as well as a packet of Baba’s Udhi. Kharkar told that It was surprising
to observe that when he was unwell he got the packet of Baba’s udhi and he took
the udhi mixed in water and on the second day, he became alright. Then he developed
faith in Baba and started worship of Baba and became attracted towards Baba. Subsequently
his faith in Baba increased manifold.
Prior to getting contact with Baba through the photo of Baba, he was worshipping
Akkalkot Maharaj in his puja room where photo of Akkalkot Maharaj was already there.
After he received the photo of Baba from Dabholkar, he took the photo to his puja
room and wanted to place it by the side of Akkalkot Mahara’s photo. Suddenly he
developed an impulse, implying that how could he place the photo of Baba who was
a Muslim by the side of a holy Hindu Saint, Akkalkot Maharaj. And with this type
of thinking, he kept the photo of Baba slightly apart, a little distance away from
the group of photos, including that of Akkalkot Maharaj. He then had a dream that
very night itself. In the dream, he saw a fakir robed just like Sai Baba coming
towards the veranda on which he and some one else were sitting. He then got up and
welcomed that fakir. In the dream at that time,
the person who was sitting next to him told Kharkar that the fakir was Sai Baba
and that Sai Baba was not different from Akkalkot Maharaj and that there was no
difference between both of them and then Kharkar was directed to treat Sai Baba
on the same footing as Akkalkot Maharaj. In the morning next day, though he first
forgot all about the dream but he began to recollect the details of the dream while
worshipping in the puja room. Immediately after recollecting the dream, he rearranged
the photos in such a way that he placed Baba’s photo along with Akkalkot Maharaja’s
and started worshipping Baba also in the same way as Akkalkot Maharaj as he then
knew that there was no difference between them. Thus the dream had brought about
in him a remarkable change and increased his faith in Baba several times. From that
moment onwards, he started worshipping Baba with lot of devotion and unswerving
faith.
By Baba’s munificence, his devotion to Baba had increased manifold and all his family
members also had developed faith in Baba. His interest in Baba made him collect
all the available books on Baba which he read thoroughly with utmost devotion. His
family members also read the books on Baba and developed increased faith in Baba.
Thus all the members in his family also, started performing worship to Baba. In
case, Kharkar was not available to perform puja to Baba on any day, other members
in his family were ready to take up worship to Baba.
All these experiences of Kharkar came to light when he was interviewed by B.V. Narasimhaswamiji
during 1936 when he was in Thana, aged about 57 years at that time.
He said that he had many instances of Baba’s kindness and help to him. However he
narrated only a few instances to show as to how Baba was kind to them and was helping
all his family members continuously.
His mother was living away from him for many years. But by the Grace of Baba, she
came to live with him. But initially, she was not happy to see the worship he was
doing to Baba’s photo on the ground of her feeling that Baba was a Muslim. But Baba’s
kindness towards him and his mother was most remarkable and effective in that Baba
brought about a gradual change in the mental thinking of his mother. Still she was
not in favour of visiting Shirdi and have darshan of Baba. In his next visit to
Shirdi, he took all other
members of his family with him but not his mother.
Perhaps during 1928, his daughter was in the family way and they had taken her to
their village at Khar near Thana.During those days, there were no medical facilities
in that village and the people had started blaming him for taking her to that village
for delivery instead of to Thana. His wife came and told him that the delivery became
complicated and that the child had died in the womb and that the child was not coming
out. Because of that position, his daughter had unbearable pain and due to that
situation, all the members in the family had anxious moments as to what to do next
to save his daughter. At about past midnight on the same day. when her condition
became further deteriorated, he became helpless. Suddenly, it flashed in his mind
that he should seek the help of Baba and then gave Baba’s udhi to his wife for giving
it to his daughter. His wife took the udhi and applied it to their daughter. Within
a short while, the child’s dead body was thrown out of the womb. His daughter’s
life was saved and their anxious moments disappeared. Next day in the morning a
doctor came and was surprised to know as to how the body of the dead child had come
out so easily without the help of a midwife. He was also surprised to learn that
mere Baba’s udhi without any physical interference by any lady, resulted in the
expulsion of the body of the child and everything went on smoothly.
A few days before his daughter’s delivery, his son had a dream and in the dream
Baba had appeared in his dream and enquired as to where he (Kharkar) was and that
he should not be afraid of any thing, but apply his(Baba’s) udhi.Though his son
had told him about the dream, he did not recollect it at the time of his daughter’s
serious condition and predicament due to his continuous anxiety. Thus Baba forewarned
about the on-coming danger and also indicated the way out. Thus Baba was always
watching all the members of his family and always was protecting them.
But after 2 or 3 years in 1933, his mother expressed her desire to visit Shirdi
and pay her respects to Baba’s Mahasamadhi and asked his wife and daughter to take
her to Shirdi. He was extremely happy to see the change brought about in her approach
towards Baba. She was extremely orthodox in her approach, but Baba brought about
silently a thorough change in her outlook. She set aside all her orthodox scruples
and decided firmly to visit Shirdi for Baba’s darshan. She visited Shirdi along
with all her family
members and was well impressed about the Grace of Baba and was very happy with her
visit to Shirdi where she saw Baba’s Mahasamadhi. After their return from Shirdi
and after a few days, his mother breathed her last at his residence at Thana. She
was lucky enough to have visited Shirdi and had darshan of Baba’s Mahasamadhi before
her death.
His second son, Govind, was eager and was bent upon to visit Shirdi and have darshan
of Baba’s Samadhi, and Dwarkamai at Shirdi. During the time of Ramnavami celebrations
in 1934 he and his family went to Shirdi along with his family friends G.B. Datar
and his family and at that time his son, Govind also accompanied them. When Govind
went to the masjid, he was alone before Baba’s (oil painting) photo which was so
vividly painted that Baba's eyes from the portrait appeared to pierce into every
one directly, wherever one might be standing in the hall. His son gazed with rapture
at the portrait and closed his eyes for a moment. He heard then a distinct and audible
voice, saying, “Have you come?” in a parental affectionate voice. He immediately
opened his eyes and found that there was no body else there at that time in the
masjid to utter any words. So he felt that it was Baba who spoke to him that way.