Abdul Baba

Abdul was born in Nanded and as a young man served Fakir Amiruddin, a Sufi saint of that town. In 1889 Baba appeared to Amiruddin in a dream and gave him two mangoes, asking him to send Abdul to Shirdi. Abdul arrived soon after, and from that day he never left Baba's side.

For nearly thirty years Abdul served Baba with complete devotion. He swept the Dwarakamai, the Chavadi and the lanes Baba walked through. He fetched water, filled and lit the lamps at the Masjid and at Lendi Baug, and looked after the flowers that Baba planted. Baba often asked him to read the Quran aloud and would speak to him while he read. Abdul wrote down these sayings and the answers Baba gave in a notebook, which devotees still consult for guidance today.

Abdul lived very simply, eating what Baba gave him and sleeping little. Baba sometimes tested him sternly, but Abdul never complained. After the Mahasamadhi in 1918 he continued to serve at the Samadhi Mandir, reading the Quran and answering devotees' questions by opening his notebook at random. He passed away in Shirdi in 1954, and his tomb stands near Lendi Baug, close to the place where he served his Master.