SHIVAMMA THAYEE - AN INTRODUCTION
Shivamma
Thayee is 104 year old eminent Sai devotee who has her Ashram – Sri Shirdi Sai
Baba Ashram at Ropan Agrahara, Madiwala locality of Bangalore city. She has been one of the
foremost spiritual personalities responsible for the establishment of Sri
Shirdi Sai statues and temples in Karnataka during the last several
decades. She was interviewed on 25 July, 1992 by S.P.Ruhela.
She
was born on 16 May, 1891 at Vellakinaru Village
in Coimbatore district of Madras Presidency (now
Tamil Nadu State).
At the age of 13 she was married to Sri Subramaniam Gounder, a mistry.
When she was 15 and was having a son Rajamani of one year age, with her
father’s elder brother Sanyasi Sri Thangavel Gounder. Sri Shirdi Sai Baba
materialized himself in person to address a gathering of people and the members
of the parental family of Rajamma. (Shivamma Thayee’s name at that time)
at a place Pollachi near Coimbatore
in 1906. There Sri Shirdi Sai Baba identified Rajamma saying “She is the
only girl in the whole lot who will be highly elevated soul.” She became
Baba’s ardent devotee from that time itself. In 1908 she visited Shirdi
with her husband and girl servant Thimmakka. On her way to Shirdi, she
experienced a thrilling miracle of Baba – Baba gave her fresh betel leaves and
betel nuts in the train.
She visited Shirdi several times for short
durations of a few days each time and she was a witness to a number of miracles
done by Baba. She was described those miracles such as Baba’s stirring
the boiling contents of the cooking vessel in Dwarkamai etc.
“Baba was always surrounded by devotees and
visitors. Baba sat in the Masjid in very simple yet majestic
manner. He was about six feet tall. He had very long hands.
The fingers of His hands stretched below his knees. He was having all
Raj-lakshnas (attributes of a great Majestic ruler). His colour was very
fair. He had sharp nose with big nostrils. He was neither fat nor
thin. His eyes were not black; they were blue and deep. They shone
brightly and penetratingly. People used to say that Baba’s eyes glittered
in night like the eyes of cat or tiger.”
Courtesy: “The Immortal Fakir of Shirdi – Compiled and Edited by Dr.S.P.Ruhela”
 |
