(Galwankar heard Baba saying that Baba was not a person having the 3½ cubits height
of body, but he was present everywhere and that the devotees should see him in every
place. He said that Baba had an unaccountable and marvellous knowledge of things
and events far removed from him in terms of time and space and a remarkable power
to foretell coming events or to force events to come to pass in accordance with
his Supreme Will.)
Rao Sahib Yeshwant Janardhan Galwankar was one of the prominent members of the Sai
Baba Sansthan Committee and Editor of the Sai Lila Masik for some years.
Yeshwant Janardhan. Galwankar was the son-in-law of Anna Saheb Dabholkar or Hemad
Pant (author of Sri Sai Satcharitra). He was working as a Superintendent in the
Home department of the Bombay Secretariat. He was taken by his father-in-law four
or five times to Shirdi for darshan of Baba. In his first visit he did not get any
strong impression about Baba and this might be due to his young age. Dabholkar’s
contacts with Baba also made him visit Shirdi subsequently and in course of time
in the subsequent visits, he developed more interest in Baba.
Once Baba appeared in his dream and asked for Rs.2 as dakshina. After he woke up,
he decided to send Rs.2 by money order to Shirdi and sent it. Baba in the dream
asked him to follow two directions, the first one--behave with honesty and integrity,
(relating to his official position) and second one-- be chaste and sexually pure.
Galwankar said that he had followed those two directions without fail and with great
care.
However, his visit to Shirdi in 1917 had created a great impression on him. When
he went to the masjid for Baba’s darshan, Baba placed his palm over his head and
this had a strong impact on him and at that time, he went into an ecstatic trance
and he forgot himself about the surroundings during that trance-situation. Later
he understood that Baba spoke about him and told the people in the masjid that Galwankar
had integrity and purity already in previous births, that Baba placed Galwankar
in his present mother’s womb and that Galwankar continued the same integrity and
purity even in his present birth. Subsequently his faith in Baba increased manifold
and then he went to Baba with full faith during Christmas and other vacations. Baba
did not give him any Upadesh except what he told him in the dream.
He heard Baba saying that Baba was not a person having the 3 ½ cubits height of
body, but he was present everywhere and that the devotees should see him in every
place. It was Galwankar’s firm belief that through Baba’s indirect inspiration only
that he could be able to read the Gita, the Bhagavata and Eknath.
As he was totally involved in his official duties and work and also being comparatively
young, he was not in a position to develop closer contact with Baba before 1918.
But after Baba’s Mahasamadhi, he became more serious in life and got attracted towards
Baba.
In 1921, he went on a pilgrimage with his family and visited Prayag and Kasi. In
Baradwajashram at Prayag, he prayed to Baba to arrange darshan of any saint. After
leaving the Baradwajashram, after some time, they saw a saint on the roadside. The
accompanying guide said that this particular saint would visit Prayag once in seven
years or so and that he would not allow any one to approach him and that he would
also not accept any money. But, he picked up courage by Baba’s Grace, he approached
the saint. And the saint, instead of becoming angry, welcomed him with raised arms
saying, “Come child”. He, his wife, mother and other ladies had darshan of the saint
and paid their respects to the saint. They were all blessed by the saint. At that
time, he was having three annas only in his pocket, he then gave that small amount
to the saint who received it. In this way, Baba answered his prayer immediately
in that year. In this fashion, he developed his religious bent and started paying
more attention towards his spiritual development.
Later in 1932, he had a dream in which Baba appeared and asked him, “What do you
want?” His reply was, “I want prem (love) and only prem,” Then. Baba blessed him
saying, “You will have prem”, and disappeared. After that dream, he had spells of
prem gushing through him while meditating, while reading and even on other occasions.
Thus after Baba’s Mahasamadhi, his devotion towards Baba made his life nobler and
more spiritual.
He was interviewed in 1936 by B.V.Narasimhaswamiji and in the interview he expressed
his experiences with Baba. He also wrote in 1943 a Preface to the second edition
of the book, “Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi—A Glimpse of Indian Spirituality” written
by Rao Bahadur M.W.Pradhan, an ankita bhakta
of Baba. In that preface, Galwankar mentioned that “Baba had an unaccountable and
marvellous knowledge of things and events far removed from him in the sense of time
and space and a remarkable power to foretell coming events or to force events to
come to pass in accordance with His Supreme Will.” He passed away in September,
1945. His was a blessed soul.