Shirdi Sai Satcharitra Chapters 16 and 17 - English Audiobook You can also read this chapter here: https://www.shirdibooks.com/sai-satcharitra-chapter-16-and-17/ These chapters cover the following: A rich gentleman who wanted Brahma-Jnana quickly from Sai Baba. The Qualifications for attaining Brahma-Jnana(Self-Realization) Baba’s Special Characteristic Preliminary The last Chapter described how Mr. Cholkar’s vow of a small offering was completed and accepted. In that story, Sai Baba showed that He would accept, with appreciation, any small thing offered with love and devotion. But if the same thing was offered with pride and haughtiness, He would reject it. Being Himself full of Sat-Chit-Anand (Existence, Knowledge and Bliss) He did not care much for mere outward formalities. But if an offering was made in a meek and humble spirit, the same was welcomed and He accepted it with pleasure and enthusiasm. In fact, there is no one more liberal and benevolent than the Sadguru. He cannot be compared to the Chintamani jewel (the Philosopher’s stone which satisfies desires), the Kalpataru (the Celestial Tree which fulfills our desires) or the Kamadhenu (the Celestial Cow which yields what we desire), for they give us only what we desire. The Sadguru gives us the most precious thing that is inconceivable and inscrutable: reality. Now let us hear how Sai Baba disposed of a rich man, who came to Him and implored Baba to give him Brahma-Jnana. There was a rich gentleman (unfortunately his name and whereabouts are not mentioned) who was very prosperous in his life. He had amassed a large quantity of wealth, houses, fields and land, and had many servants and dependents. When Baba’s fame reached his ears, he said to a friend of his, that he was not in want of anything else and so he would go to Shirdi and ask Baba to give him Brahma-Jnana. If he got this, it would certainly make him happier. His friend dissuaded him saying, “It is not easy to know the Brahman and especially so for an avaricious man like you, who is always engrossed in wealth, wife and children. Why would anyone satisfy your quest for Brahma-Jnana, when you won’t even give away a rupee in charity?” Not heeding his friend’s advice, the fellow hired a tanga(small horse-drawn carriage) and came to Shirdi. He went to the Masjid, saw Sai Baba, fell at His Feet and said, “Baba, hearing that You show the Brahman instantly to all those who come here, I have come from a distant place. I am fatigued by the journey and if I get the Brahman from You, my troubles will be rewarded.” Baba then replied, “Oh, My dear friend, do not be anxious; I shall immediately show you the Brahman. All My dealings are in cash and never on credit. So many people come to Me and ask for wealth, health, power, honor, position, cure of diseases and other temporal matters; Rare is the person who comes here and asks Me for Brahma-Jnana. There is no dearth of people asking for worldly things, but as persons interested in spiritual matters are very rare, I think it is a lucky and auspicious moment when persons like you come and press Me for Brahma-Jnana. So I show to you with pleasure, the Brahman with all its accompaniments and complications.” Saying this, Baba started to show him the Brahman; He made him sit there and engaged him in some other talk or affair and thus made him forget his question for the time being. Then He called a boy and told him to go to Nandu Marwari and get from him a loan of five rupees. The boy left and returned immediately, saying that Nandu was absent and that his house was locked. Then Baba asked him to go to Bala the grocer and get from him the said loan. Again, the boy was unsuccessful. This experiment was repeated twice or thrice, with the same result. Sai Baba, as we know, was the living and moving Brahman Incarnate. Then someone may ask, “Why did He want the paltry sum of five rupees and why did He try so hard to get it on loan?” In fact, He did not want that sum at all. He omnisciently knew that Nandu and Bala were absent and he seemed to........ Bow to Shri Sai - Peace be to all