Sathya Sai Organization
The Sathya Sai Organization is the global devotional-service movement around Sathya Sai Baba (1926–2011) of Puttaparthi — the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust (1972), the Prasanthi Nilayam ashram, and the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning (deemed university, 1981).
Overview
Sai Baba’s ashram Prasanthi Nilayam (“abode of highest peace,” founded 1950 at his birthplace) grew into a global pilgrimage; the organization (registered as the Central Trust 1972; the overseas Sai Organizations from the 1970s) organized centers in 100+ countries.
Core teachings
Love all, serve all; help ever, hurt never; unity of faiths (Sai Baba’s sarva-dharma symbol); education in human values (the EHV curriculum) — the movement’s signature pedagogy.
Practice and work
Devotional singing (bhajan) as the core practice; super-specialty hospitals (Puttaparthi and Bangalore — free cardiac and general care), the drinking-water projects (the Chennai and Anantapur schemes, among India’s largest charitable water works), schools and university (free education), and the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations’ village service in India.
Modern status
After Sai Baba’s death (2011), the trust continues its institutions; debates over claims about the guru (documented by critics and devotees alike) are noted neutrally by the encyclopedia; the service institutions’ scale is uncontested.
Verification notes
- Institutional dates are documented; claims about miracles are presented as devotee belief.
- Audited against Wikipedia (September 2026).