Maduro and his wife are said to be ardent followers of Sai Baba.

Last week, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, appearing before a New York court, declared himself 'a man of God' and stated he would gain freedom, which has sparked a discussion about his beliefs. Media reports indicate that Maduro, who has a Roman Catholic background, is a devout follower of the late Indian spiritual guru Sathya Sai Baba.

Sathya Sai Baba has become so popular in Venezuela, a predominantly Catholic country located 15,000 kilometers away from India, that not only President Maduro but also his wife Cilia Flores and acting President Delcy Rodriguez, among many other high-ranking leaders, have become followers of Sai Baba.

Maduro's wife, Cilia Flores, a lawyer and politician, was a Sai devotee even before their marriage, and in 2005, while serving as the Speaker of Parliament, Maduro visited the Prasanthi Nilayam ashram in Andhra Pradesh with her and met Baba.

When Sathya Sai Baba passed away in 2011, the government, including Maduro who was then the Foreign Minister, considered it an event of national importance and declared a one-day national mourning period. The government extending such an honor to a religious leader who was not a citizen of the country was a unique event that surprised everyone.

This spiritual movement in Venezuela began based on a dream experienced by a woman named Ana Elena Diaz-Viana when she was 25 years old. After seeing the person with an Afro hairstyle whom she saw in her dream five years later in a documentary about Jesus, she recognized him as Sathya Sai Baba.

Later, based on Baba's teachings "Love All, Serve All," she started small gatherings and service programs at her home in Caracas. By 1974, it was established as the first Sai group operating in Spanish, and it received official recognition after she, along with a group of 64 people, visited India in 1988.

Currently, this organization operates in 22 Latin American countries. It is reported that the largest number of followers and over 30 centers for Sathya Sai Baba, who was born in 1926 and is considered an avatar of Shirdi Sai Baba, are located in Venezuela.