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Posted at 2150 IST on May 22, 2010

To the mortals death comes as a big blow, for, it inflicts pain of separation from near and dear ones. Quoting an anonymous poet, Prof. N. Kasturi wrote substantiating his statement that anything, which is born and grows, declines and dies. This day, 22nd May 2010, marks the third anniversary of Sai Gita's passing. Living a life full of dedication and devotion, this living creature that lived an exemplary life devoted to Bhagawan would ever be remembered as one of the foremost of His devotees. On this occasion of the third anniversary, remembering the legendary pachyderm, Ms. Julie Chaudhary pens a tribute, Sai Gita - The True Devotee of God!

Sai Gita – The True Devotee Of God

“She has come for Me alone…”
That is how beloved Bhagawan once referred to her,
Now though three years have flown,
Her memory lives on and does the heart strings stir…

She was all of ten days old and about two feet in height,
An helpless orphan, crying away- a pitiful sight,
She had lost her mother as elephants were being trapped,
At Mudumalai forest,
The forest officials thought it best,
To hand her over to Swami,
The Lord accepted and said, “I will take care of this baby,”
Her future only He could clearly see,
In to the back seat of His car, and His divine sojourn, she fitted in snugly…

So He christened the ‘baby’ - Sai Gita,
In the divine garden she became the most fragrant flower,
He fed her milk from a bottle and honey from His finger,
As Bhagawan nurtured her, her dreadful memories began to blur,
She would listen to none other,
Sai Gita completely accepted Bhagawan as her Mother…

She would always sense His presence,
Her devotion ever so intense,
She would follow Bhagawan from room to room,
If she couldn’t, deep would be her gloom…
At times she would wait impatiently for Him on the ground,
Flapping her large ears, waiting for a sound,
She would be the first to know the Lord was on His way,
Oh, how the devotees loved to see this delightful play…

She would kneel down, her front limbs bent,
Her every gesture full of devotion and well meant,
Then she would move her trunk three times in salutation,
Garlanding the Lord in joyful adoration…

If any of her caretakers had been somewhat rough on her,
She would seek Swami out, nothing would her deter,
Whichever room He was in – dining, bhajan or interview,
Seeing Sai Gita barging in to complain was nothing new,
A liberty that was given perhaps only to her,
Swami would reprimand the boy and comfort His darling daughter…

Once when Swami was at Whitefield, Sai Gita was extremely restless,
Agitated and ever so full of stress, 
She pined, wailed aloud, refusing food,
Nothing and no one could soothe her or restore her mood,
Our compassionate Lord asked for her to be brought to Bangalore,
The news pacified her but she clearly wanted more,
She refused to eat till she was fed by Swami,
He had to put the food directly in her mouth, you see,
A privilege so rare, but she was blessed to receive His nurture and care…

So, she reached Whitefield - Brindavan and the Lord did her console,
She was in bliss for He was her soul, her sole goal,
“Why are you crying, don’t you know I am always with you?”
Sai Gita knew this statement was true,
But His omnipresence did not mean as much,
As did His physical presence and His sweet loving touch…

“Where Rama was, Hanuman was by His side,
 Where Krishna was, the great devotee Kuchela was too,
Where Sai Baba was Sai Gita was there, expressing her devotion,
She has come for Me alone, she will get her due…”
This is how Bhagawan reflected upon Sai Gita and He did continue,
“If you remember and ruminate,
On the intense love she had for Me,
And develop the same sacred and noble thoughts,
I will myself take you close to My heart, I will set you free,
If you drink a cup of her urine,
Perhaps you will get an ounce of her devotion…”
So said the Creator as regards Sai Gita – a priceless wonder of creation…

 All journeys have a beginning and an end,
Sai Gita too had to merge and ascend,
On 22nd May 2007, to the world she said good – bye,
But in reality she blissfully united with Mother Sai…

The Master, the Lord of the Universe
Had tears in His Lotus eyes?
Everything we have experienced of Him
That He has allowed us to,
This act defies…
Yet, it is so,
Emotions did flow,
And what did this tremendous flow show?
To what did it open the door?
Lessons to be learned,
So much to be discerned,
Lessons of kindness, tolerance, compassion,
Acceptance, purity, reciprocation,
And above all, a lesson saturated with love…
For Sai Gita to live, this expansive love
Was more than enough…

She was a gift from  the animal kingdom
To the Lord of the Universe in human form,
Her story unfolded to show,
Specially for Him was she born…
Her life, her focus, her core,
Her everything was Swami, Swami, Swami
And this is a lesson for the rest of humanity…
A lesson of an ideal relationship between Creator and Creation,
Of what to choose, and what to shun,
No other attraction,
And specially no distraction,
Complete absorption,
Reaching a pinnacle of devotion,
A bond so touching,
And a reciprocation so fulfilling…
What we humans couldn’t do,
This monumental example,
With matchless devotion as her clue,
This grand soul did bring glory to the animal kingdom,
And did us all stun…
For, she did win the heart of the Lord,
And, brought tears in the eyes of our Living God,
To wake us up,
A clarion call,
A supreme lesson for us all,
Her life, her love, her devotion,
A lesson for us all,
When Bhagawan came as Sri Ram,
He performed the last rites to highlight the glory of Jatayu,
And from the self-same divine hands,
Of this, His present Avataric form,
Sai Gita got her befitting due, and a divine adieu…