Sathya Sai Baba claimed he never slept, but…
Posted by robertpriddy on January 30, 2013
A former Dutch follower of Sai Baba through many years, Bas Engelbarts, mailed me about the posting on Boys in Sai Baba’s bedroom in which SB said he had ‘woken up’ (see scan on right).
Bas wrote: “I read the article and noticed that swami said that he woke up when the boys started asking her…” and ” I do remember somehow that he said something like if he falls asleep, the whole universe ceases to be. How in the world can someone be so sick, it is true what he says, that he is beyond imagination.”
Sathya Sai Baba certainly claimed that he never slept, as can be seen from two scans of excerpts from his discourses (left) and his claims were so excessive on so many matters that it does not surprise me that he also claims the universe would cease if he slept, though I do not know when or where he may have stated before Kasturi in public that he created the entire universe, as is less widely known, and even to many devotees, than it should be. Kasturi’s besotted astoundment and wild fancy about the baby’s thoughts in the cradle cast a shadow of lacking credibility over his judgement.
An interesting aspect on this is Eileen Weed’s remark in a mail to me that his sister Venkamma (with whom she lived) and the other family knew well that Sai Baba suffered from sleeplessness for years! That would explain why, as widely reported after he was hospitalised, that he had for a long period been given sedatives by his servitors like his favourite boy Satyajit, and then pills to quicken him up again for darshan (which hardly had any effect by the time of his wooden behaviour seen on videos at his 85th birthday celebration where he also shed tears several times).
See comment to the above by Eileen Weed:- “Good point about sb claiming he never slept, then letting it slip out that he woke up! His sister Venkamma was also a chronic insomniac. I lived in the room for years with her and never knew her to sleep more than 2-4 hours a day (including at night AND afternoon naps, which were deep – wonder if sb also conked out in the afternoon?).”
Sathya Sai Baba Deceptions Exposed 
eileenweed said
Good point about sb claiming he never slept, then letting it slip out that he woke up! His sister Venkamma was also a chronic insomniac. I lived in the room for years with her and never knew her to sleep more than 2-4 hours a day (including at night AND afternoon naps, which were deep – wonder if sb also conked out in the afternoon?).