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with each other more like dots on a three-dimensional sphere. Any one or a number of them can be most prominent at a given time and interrelate in a variety of ways.
Part 1 of this book describes how Sai Baba awakens us to the spiritual path and the possibility of our own divinity. It speaks of his ability to guide us to the realization of our oneness with God. Part 2 broadens our understanding of the nine elements through personal experiences and stories. Part 3 shows how to apply these nine elements to our daily life and work, which in my case is that of psychiatry. It shows how a spiritual approach can be applied to problems of the mind and to our suffering. Part 4 describes how we grow so close to a sacred form of God that our love actually merges into His love and becomes boundless.
I have wanted to write a devotional book about Sai Baba for some time because of my love for him and my awareness of his importance to the world community. An Avatar is the highest expression of divinity in man and a devotional relationship with him, like that with Jesus, Rama, Krishna, or Buddha, can grant protection and boons in the physical world. More importantly, we can aain mental peace and a spiritually meaningful life full of love. He is an embodiment of love, and a relationship with him profoundly heightens our devotional experience, providing a stepping stone to loving relationships with each other and with formless God. By virtue of his omnipresence2 and love, we can find him in everyone and everywhere if we look closely enough. Seeing him in everyone is a way to stop seeing separateness and recognize the underlying oneness of all creation. When divinity lives in a human with this degree of purity and potency, it is man’s greatest good fortune and a time of celebration.
Writing about insights gleaned from my relationship with Sai Baba allows me a framework in which I can express my love for him. I am using the Bhagavatha Vahini3 as a model. In the telling of experiences with and about Sai Baba, my aim is
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