The Chincholi Palace and the Divine Connection with the Sai Avatars

Sri Sathya Sai in Hyderabad, January 1949

In 1947, the two sisters Smt. Arani Rajamma and Smt. M.S. Seethamma visited Puttaparthi along with Smt. Nagamani Purnaiah. Baba gave them an interview and asked them to bring their sister Rani Lakshmi Bai, their mother Smt. Namagiriamma and the children, for the Dasera celebrations. In the first week of January 1949, Baba surprised everyone when He informed the two sisters that He would be leaving for Hyderabad very soon. Then, their mother Smt. Namagiriamma wrote a letter to her elder daughter, the Rani of Chincholi in Hyderabad, to which she received a reply from her daughter in which she said that Baba’s visit to Hyderabad would be a boon to her. Baba travelled by plane to Hyderabad from Bangalore for the first time, along with the Rani’s family. Smt. Nagamani and a few other lady devotees had preceded and reached Hyderabad by train a couple of days ahead of Baba’s arrival. 

Baba reached Hyderabad on the 9th of January 1949, and stayed at Sri Niketan, the residence of the Rani of Chincholi. During His stay at the Rani’s house, Baba told her, “I have been a visitor to your palace in my previous incarnation as Shirdi Baba. I left My Kamandala, Hookah (pipe) and Robe at Chincholi. I used your Tonga.” 

Baba told them to go and check for the described items that stood testimony of His visit. He then gave them a complete description of everything inside that house. The Rani returned to the palace at Chincholi and began searching for those items. She checked up on the repairs and renovations and found that everything Baba had said was correct to the minutest detail! Among the visitors to the Rani’s palace were some Gadhwal aristocrats and Sri Burgula Ramakrishna Rao. The latter would, in future, as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, later as the Governor of Kerala, and finally as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh, play host to Baba in the all the three States he held office in. 

Before leaving for Madras, Baba gave a Discourse on the Bhagavad Gita at around 4.00 pm in the afternoon. During the Discourse, He developed a swelling on one side of His throat and began coughing. The swelling stayed intact until the evening. After Arati, Baba began coughing yet again. There was a gurgling sound and those around saw a sudden flash emerge from His mouth. It was a silver idol of Lord Krishna that had emerged from His mouth. He then presented it to the Rani. Baba mischievously asked those around to see if the swelling was still there, but the swelling had completely disappeared. 

The Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajnam at Prasanthi Nilayam - 1960s

During the Dasara festival, (at Prasanthi Nilayam) when the Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajna was being performed in 1962, the officiating priests asked for a vessel of a specific shape and size (as prescribed in the scriptures). Baba sent word to the Rani of Chincholi to bring the Kamandala from her palace for the Yajna. When the Rani brought it, He pointed out to the Pandits the two Hindi letters engraved on the Kamandala: ‘Saa’ and ‘Baa’ indicating ‘Sai Baba’. The vessel met the Pandit’s requirements fully.

Source: Sri Sathya Sai Digvijayam Part 1 (1926 – 1985)