Abdul: was a man who cleaned the Masjid and took care of other chores for Baba. He is mentioned briefly in Chapter 22 and Chapter 34.
Alandi Swamy: A Swami from Alandi whose ear pain Baba astonishingly cured by the grace of His words, without the necessity of resorting to any operation.
Anna Chinchanikar: Damodar Ghanshyam Babare, alias Anna Chinchanikar, was a simple and committed devotee of Baba. On the outside, he seemed rough and uncompromising. However, Baba knew that he was a simple, straightforward, fair and good-natured person and thus loved him very much. Some of his experiences with Baba are mentioned in Chapter 24. A plaque with Anna and his wife Laxmibai’s name can still be found in the Chavadi. This is to honor their contribution towards initially renovating the Chavadi. Anna had won a lawsuit and Baba had indirectly inspired him to give away his entire settlement towards renovating the Chavadi.
Mrs. Aurangbadkar: Wife of Sakharam Aurangbadkar, a lady from Sholapur(Maharastra), whom Baba blessed with a child, after she had no children for 27 years. She had a stepson whom she brought with her to Shirdi when she went to meet Baba.
Bade Baba: Fakir Pir Mohamad of Malegaon, alias Bade Baba, was one Baba’s closest devotees. Baba respected him greatly and spent quite a lot of time with him. Their interaction is described in Chapter 23. The Sannyasi Vijayanand is also said to have passed away in Bade Baba’s lap, as described in Chapter 31.
Balaji Patil Nevaskar: was an ardent devotee of Baba who was selfless in his service. He meticulously cleaned all the streets through which Baba walked in Shirdi. He also had unshakable faith in Baba, as has been demonstrated by the Leelas he experienced which are described in Chapter 35.
Balasaheb Mirikar: Son of Kakasaheb Mirikar, was Mamlatdar (Revenue Officer) of Kopergaon. Baba saved him from the impending danger of a snake bite and this miraculous incident has been detailed in Chapter 22.
Balaram Mankar: Govind Balaram Mankar was rewarded with a peaceful death in Baba’s presence, as mentioned in Chapter 31. He is also mentioned in Chapter 9, where he agreed to take a Peda (sweet) to Baba on behalf of Mrs. Tarkhad.
Bapusaheb Booty: A millionaire from Nagpur who constructed a large Wada(mansion), Booty’s Wada, which later became the current Samadhi Mandir. This building is where Baba was entombed and where so many go to seek solace and comfort.
Bajayajabai: Tatya Kote Patil’s mother and an extremely resolute devotee of Baba. She is said to have faithfully roamed the jungle near Shirdi, every day at noon for several years, with food for Baba. Her sweet, simple and devout service to Baba has been detailed in Chapter 8.
Bhimaji Patil: A resident of Narayangaon in Junnar Taluq, in Pune district, who suffered from chronic tuberculosis. Baba cured him through two separate dreams. It was Bhimaji Patil who started the Sai Satya Vrata Pooja.
B.V.Deo: a Mamlatdar in Dahanu (a town in the Thana District) and an ardent devotee of Baba. A miraculous incident with regards to his mother’s Udyapan (conclusion of a fast) ceremony is detailed in Chapter 40. Baba is also said to have given him a direct order to read the sacred Jnaneshwari, after he initially unsuccessful at reading it with concentration.
Cholkar: A poor employee in the civil courts in Thane, near Mumbai. He got a permanent post, with Baba’s grace.He had vowed to go to Shirdi and distribute sugar candy if he got this position, and he did indeed fulfill this vow by secretly cutting back on all his expenses, including not taking sugar in his tea. Baba, is his omniscient way, knew about the secret determination and surprised Cholkar by saying to Bapusaheb Jog (who was Cholkar’s host), “Give your guest cups of tea fully saturated with sugar!” Needless to say, Cholkar was deeply moved.
Chand Patil: An affluent gentleman from the village of Dhoop, who recovered his lost horse, with Baba’s divine intervention. Seeing Baba’s extraordinary powers, which included things like drawing a live coal from the ground and creating a stream of water on barren earth, Chand Patil realized that Baba was indeed a divine being. He invited Baba to his home. Baba accepted Chand Patil’s hospitality for a few days and then joined a marriage party to the village of Shirdi, where He would remain till his death.
Dattopant: A gentleman from the town of Harda, who had suffered from stomach ache for 14 years and who sought Baba’s feet as his last resort. Baba miraculously cured him with His grace.
Dadasaheb Khaparde: Was the wealthiest and most famous advocate of Amraoti, and was a member of the Council of State, Delhi. Khaparde was well-known throughout the country and was a prominent member of India’s struggle for Independence. He was an extremely well-spoken, accomplished and educated man. However, in Baba’s presence he remained quiet and humble. He first came into contact with Baba in the year 1910, when he was in exile and avoiding arrest by the British Goverment, which was looking to imprison members of the Indian Independence movement. During his time in exile in Shirdi, he maintained a rather detailed diary of his stay and his contact with Baba. Baba cured Khaparde’s son’s plague by taking the suffering and symptoms upon himself.
Das Ganu Maharaj: a police officer who turned into an ardent devotee of Baba. A vendantin and Haridas (person who sings the praise of the Lord), he spoke about the life, teachings, message and miracles of Sai Baba throughout the Mumbai presidency. He was also the author of the books, Bhakta Vijaya, Santa Vijaya, Bhakta Leelamrit and Santa Kathamrit. When Das Ganu once wanted to bathe in Prayag, Baba blessed him with a miracle described in Chapter 4.
Damu Anna Kasar: a businessman from Ahmednagar, initially child-less, who was blessed with children by Baba’s grace. Many astrologers had told Damu Anna he would never have children and yet as soon as Baba blessed him, he had children. Baba also saved Damu Anna from severe losses in business transactions on multiple occasions.
Hemadpant: Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar, alias Hemadpant, a retired government servant who authored the Marathi version of the Sai Satcharitra and was actively involved in the management of the early days of the Shirdi Sansthan. Hemadpant was a man who had risen from very humble beginnings to retire as a well-regarded civil servant. However, when he retired, his pension wasn’t sufficient to support his family and that caused him a great deal of anxiety. Baba providentially assured him that he need not worry about this and said, “He should turn all his attention towards Me and avoid the company of atheists, irreligious and wicked people. He should be meek and humble towards everyone and worship Me heart and soul. If he does this, he will get eternal happiness” . Baba also bestowed upon him the prophetic title Hemadpant.
Harishchandra Pitale: A wealthy man who brought his epileptic son to Baba. Initially it seemed as if his son’s illness had worsened in Baba’s presence. However, instead of worsening the disease was completely cured by Baba’s grace.
Hari Vinayak Sathe: Rao Bahadur Hari Vinayak Sathe was a Deputy Collector and a Settlement Officer in the Bombay Presidency. He was a staunch devotee of Baba and had several experiences with Baba throughout his lifetime. He built a Wada (mansion) in Shirdi and also married Dada Kelkar’s (Ganesh Damodar’s) daughter. He also initiated Megha into various religious rites and forcibly sent him to Shirdi to receive Baba’s darshan, as mentioned in Chapter 28.
Kakasaheb Dixit: a London-returned advocate who turned to Baba to cure both his leg, which was hurt in an accident, and the lameness of his mind. He was so powerfully affected by Baba’s darshan that he built a mansion in Shirdi and spent the rest of his life there. As his experiences with Baba increased, so did his faith in Baba. In fact, later in life he chose to leave everything in life entirely unto Baba. He had an unshakable belief that Baba would take care of him no matter what happened. Thus, he left all his worries and issues to Baba and clasped His divine feet firmly. The story of how Dixit became a devotee of Baba, his time in Shirdi and his eventual peaceful death is detailed in Chapter 50.
Kakaji Vaidya: He was the priest in the Temple of the Goddess Sapta-Shringi, in a place called Vani, in the district of Nasik. In Chapter 30, there is a story of Kakaji being overwhelmed with adverse circumstances and desperately seeking the Goddess Sapta-Sringi’s aid. The Goddess then directs Kakaji to seek Sai Baba. Moved by Kakaji’s piety and devotion, the omniscient Baba himself skillfully arranges for Shama to travel to Vani to bring Kakaji to Shirdi.
Mavsibai: Venubai Koujalgi, alias Mavsibai, was committed and simple-hearted devotee of Baba who also had a keen sense of humor. Her experiences with Baba have been described in Chapter 24.
Moolay Shastri: a great scholar and astrologist from Nasik to whom Baba miraculously appeared as his late Guru Gholap Swami.
Madhav Rao Deshpande (Shama): a close devotee of Baba who resigned his job as a school teacher at Shirdi and dedicated himself to the service of his Guru Sainath Maharaj. Shama was once saved miraculously from a snake bite by Baba.
Mhalsapathi: Bhagat Mhalsapathi, the priest of the Khandoba Temple in Shirdi. He was the person who first called Baba by the name “Sai”. He also spent most of his time with Baba and was very close to Him. Mhalsapathi and Tatya Kote Patil also spent the night with Baba for several years, as has been described in Chapter 8. Another miraculous incident in which Mhalsapati lovingly and faithfully guarded Baba’s body for 72 hours, when Baba decided to go into temporary samadhi, is detailed in Chapters 43 and 44 and is definitely worth reading.
Narayanrao: After His Mahasamadhi (leaving the mortal form), Baba promised to cure Narayanrao’s illness by appearing in his dreams. As promised, Narayanrao recovered;
Nanasaheb Chandorkar: A mamlatdar (revenue officer) at Jamner and one of Baba’s earliest devotees. Nanasaheb Dixit was largely responsible for spreading the word of Baba’s greatness in the Bombay presidency. His daughter Mainatai was miraculously saved by Baba’s timely intervention. This story is detailed in Chapter 33 and is called the Jamner Miracle.
Nanasaheb Nimonkar: Watandar of Nimon, an Honorary Magistrate and an ardent devotee of Baba who was present when Baba passed away. A story about Baba overruling Nanasaheb’s directions to his wife can be found in Chapter 12.
Nanasaheb Dengale: A great astrologer whose prophecy about the death of Bapusaheb Booty, proved incorrect, thanks to Baba’s intervention.
Radha Krishna Mai: A very devoted female devotee of Baba who was instrumental in organizing the activities in Shirdi, which eventually became the Shirdi Sansthan. She was deeply committed to Baba and was involved in logistically arranging all the various aspects related to the religious ceremonies in Shirdi, centered around Baba. She is known to have personally cleaned out and whitewashed the Masjid in which Baba sat, during the Ram Navami Festival and started a Nama Saptah (singing the glory of God’s name continuously day and night for seven days). Some of her activities have been detailed in Chapter 6.
Ruttonji Shapurji Wadia: a wealthy, generous mill contractor from Nanded who, initially was child-less, was blessed by Baba with children.
Ramgirbuva: A gentleman from Shirdi, who was a native of Khandesh, was instructed by Baba to deliver Udi (sacred ashes from the fire Baba kept burning) and an Arti to Nanasaheb Chandorkar, whose daughter at that time was going through critical difficulties during childbirth. He delivered these with great difficulty but had Baba’s help all along the way. His touching story is detailed in Chapter 33 and is entitled the Jamner Miracle.
Sardar Kakasaheb Mirikar: Balasaheb Mirikar’s father and a devotee of Baba is mentioned in Chapter 50 in connection with Kakasaheb Dixit’s first visit to Shirdi.
Tatyakote Patil(Tatya Patil): Had the privilege of spending most of his life with Baba. Baba is said to have sacrificed his life to save Tatya from the clutches of death. His mother Bayajabai was also an ardent devotee of Baba. Tatya his nights in the Masjid, with Baba, for a period of 14 years.
Tatyasaheb Noolkar: A sub-judge from Pandharpur is mentioned briefly in a few Chapters in the Satcharitra. A brief excerpt about his life and death in Shirdi is provided in Chapter 31. Hemadpant also refers to him as a “great devotee” of Baba in Chapter 2.
Mr. Tarkhad: Ramachandra Atmaram, alias Babasaheb Tarkhad, lived in Bandra, a suburb of Mumbai. He was also formerly a Prarthana Samajist who did not believe much in formal worship and rituals.
Mrs. Tarkhad: a simple, devout woman who offered Baba several different things to eat, with a pure mind. Baba accepted her offerings through several different miraculous events.
The Tendulkar Family: While all the members of the Tendulkar family were devoted to Baba, Mrs. Savithribhai Tendulkar was most engrossed in Baba’s divine luster. She eventually wrote a book entitled, “Shri Sainath Bhajana Mala“. The Tendulkars were blessed by Baba with several moving experiences, detailed in Chapter 29.
*Inspired and informed by the book, “A Solemn Pledge from The True Tales of Shirdi Sai Baba” by Prof. B.H Biz-Kishore, F.I.E