| |
Anil Kumar's Sunday Satsang at
Prasanthi Nilayam
March 14, 2004
The Sunday Talk Given by Anil Kumar
“Drama by Students”
March 14th, 2004
OM…OM…OM…
Sai Ram
With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Welcome back to this morning’s session. In the last couple of
days, we have watched different presentations by the students.
These students are highly resourceful, having drawn their
inspiration from Bhagavan’s Divine message. It would not be
possible for young children to present a drama of the nature that
we witnessed this morning, but for Bhagavan’s blessing.
The Primary School children were speaking about the situation of
Nachiketa, a character from the Upanishads (ancient Hindhu
scriptures). A kingdom, wealth, everything was promised to the
young boy Nachiketa, by Yama, the god of death. All mundane!
Nachiketa wanted to know the secret of life and nothing else!
Ultimately, Yama had to concede to his request and tell him the
secret of life. This story was so wonderfully depicted by the
children.
They also presented one or two episodes from the life of Sri
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (19th century Bengali Saint) and
Vivekananda (his disciple who later organised the Ramakrishna
Mission).
The children used the text from Adi Sankara (a renunciant who
promulgated non-dualism) as a theme, linking each presentation of
the different episodes. This philosophy declares the Self as the
“unpolluted, pure, crystal clear, immortal Self” - “Chidananda
Roopam Shivoham” - the Truth Eternal. I am sure you must have
enjoyed it. These episodes from Vedanta (ancient Hindu
scriptures) and philosophy, are quite popular.
IMPORTANT POINTS IN VEDANTA AND PHILOSOPHY
Well, with that brief note, I would like to draw your attention to
certain important points in Vedanta nta and philosophy.
In our own capacity we do certain activities. Activities that are
personal, impersonal, selfish, selfless, general, and so on. The
body does all the activities.
As Baba said once: “Suppose this question is put to you: ‘When did
you come?’
“You say, ‘I have just come.’”
“What does it mean when you say, ‘I have just come’?”
“You mean, ‘the body.’ ‘I’ means ‘the body’. ‘I’ has been
identified with the body. Therefore, you say, ‘I have just come.’
Am I clear? A few days later, if you have a stomach problem or a
headache, leg pain, or some injury somewhere, you point to the
place, ‘here’. Thus, you separate yourself from the body.
So we function at two levels.
1. At the level of the body.
2. At the level of the mind.
That’s all. These are the two levels. One is the physical level,
and the other is the psychological level.
AT THE LEVEL OF THE BODY
At the physical level, I identify myself with the body. Therefore,
I am very conscious of my height, weight, chest, complexion,
hairstyle, dress, and so on. That is all at the physical level of
identification, ‘I’ with the body.
With this body, I do so many things, so many activities. Some of
the activities are prompted by ego such as: “when I was there as a
convenor”; “when I am the president of the centre”; “when I was in
service”, etc.
Some activities are really harmful to others, because they are
backed by jealousy. Jealous actions are harmful to others;
egoistic actions are harmful to one’s own self.
We do certain things out of anger, and these are tainted and
unsuccessful. There are so many actions that we do backed by
anger, jealousy, pride, and ego - actions identifying ourselves
with the body. This cannot be spiritual by any standard because
all these actions are backed by pride, ego, jealousy, publicity,
reputation, name, fame and so on.
So what is the real activity that could be undertaken by the body?
What is the right activity that we can do with this body?
MOKSHA OR LIBERATION
My friends, Bhagavan Baba says, “We should do activities that make
us realise that which is permanent within us.”
The body is temporary, momentary, and sure to perish. In the
perishable body is an eternal Self. In this life, the perishable
body should help us know the principle of eternity within. This is
what is called moksha or liberation or nirvana.
People say, “I want moksha.” Moksha is not coffee
powder or toothpaste to be bought. It is not a property to be
acquired or a qualification to be gained. No! In a couple of
sentences, moksha can be defined as:
“Realising and experiencing the principle of eternity while
alive in this physical body, which is perishable and momentary. In
this dying body, we try to experience the immortal Self within.”
That is what is called liberation or moksha. When I know
that there is a permanent, eternal principal Self within me, I
understand that I was never born. When I was never born, I can
never die, because the real ‘I’, Self, is eternal and immortal.
This is moksha – not the meaning that ‘a man with moksha
will never die.’
In China, some bodies are preserved for hundreds and hundreds of
years in a glass case by applying chemicals to the skin. That is
not moksha. (Laughter) I cannot say that Lenin and
Mao attained moksha because their bodies are still there. (Laughter)
No! No! The body that is artificially made permanent through
smearing chemicals on it, is certainly not in a state of moksha.
The body is sure to perish and vanish, however well we take care
of it.
Healthy exercises and yoga are not to prolong our life. Just
because a man daily jogs or swims to be slim and trim, strictly
observes dietary regulations (no pepper, chilli powder or salt),
lives only on Aqua water (Laughter)...this does not mean he
is going to be immortal, certainly not. But, at the same time, we
should do certain physical exercises - not to be deathless - but
so that we do not fall sick.
But, in spite of exercises and dietary regulations, one is sure to
die. That is for sure. Then, why do I exercise? Why do I follow
dietary regulations? It is only to see that I don’t fall sick and
be a burden either to myself or to others; and so that I will not
suffer because of illness. The body is sure to die - and all our
physical actions are prompted by evil propensities. What is it
that we can do?
SERVICE TO OTHERS
As suggested by Bhagavan, we should give service to others to the
extent possible, and make people happy to the extent possible.
Some people are capable of making others unhappy. (Laughter)
They are happy if others are unhappy. (Laughter) In a
previous life, they must have been leeches that sucked out blood,
feeling happy, or one of the mosquitoes of Prashanti Nilayam. (Laughter)
The Prashanti Nilayam mosquitoes are really quite healthy, you
know (Laughter), because they suck the blood of devotees,
which is highly nutritious with multivitamins, B complex, and
calcium sandoz. (Laughter)
So the point is, we should try to help others; we should serve
others; we should try to make others happy. In a 24-hour day, if
we serve others for at least for one hour, the whole day is
sanctified, purposeful, and well spent.
As Bhagavan said, “You can be happy only when you make others
happy.” That is all. You cannot expect everybody to make you
happy. No! If you make others happy, you will be happy. If you
serve others, you will be happy; if you make others smile, you can
laugh. This is the greatest service that we can do with this body.
Some people say that they are not able to participate in the
service activities organised by the Sai centre. They ask me, “What
is your advice?” Well, I cannot create time for you; it is not in
my hands. One thing should be very clear: service need not be
societal, and service need not be rendered as a group. It is not
necessary!
Service can be done individually. “Sir, I want to do service, but
there are not enough people to do service with me”. That is not
necessary! A good word of solace, a good word of comfort, a good
word of encouragement, a good deed of timely help is enough
service. You do not need a big gang around you, unless you want
leadership.
So, to make others happy is the greatest service that we can do
with this body. The purpose of the body is to know that, though
the body has birth and death, there is an eternal principle, which
is birth-less and deathless, within us.
This is the physical level – meaning, the ‘I’ as identified with
the body.
AT THE LEVEL OF THE MIND
Then, I come to the second area, where the ‘I’ identifies with the
mind, at the psychological level, or what we call the ‘ego’. At
the psychological level or ego, we are very very conscious of our
accomplishments, achievements, education, cadre, class, community,
caste, and nationality. These are nothing but expressions of ego.
Unfortunately, ego is spreading its dirty tentacles in
spirituality, also. The purpose of spirituality is to be egoless.
But people have become egoistic in the spiritual field also. That
is the reason why, although our backgrounds have changed, our
approach has not changed. When you travel by KLM or Lufthansa, you
travel in the worldly plane. This is the spiritual plane in which
we travel.
Whatever may be the plane, I am egoistic. That is why I am not
growing and not advancing. It is why I am not realising, and why I
am not anywhere near the spiritual goal or the spiritual
objective. What is it that I am doing? I make ego trips in sharing
that which is non-spiritual. That’s all.
LET BABA BE THE CENTRE OF OUR TALK
My friends, in Prashanti Nilayam, if we have to converse among
ourselves, our only talk should be of spiritual matters. Nobody
should ask about property or plots or the flats one can acquire,
or about the interest rates of their bank accounts, etc. This
should not be the talk, at least among the devotees; because the
thing that has brought us here is Bhagavan. That is all. If you
want to talk to me, let Baba be the centre of our talk or else,
thank you!
Some people ask, “Please, where is there a shop outside that sells
cheaper saris?” (Laughter)
“I am sorry. I do not wear saris to let you know their price.” (Laughter)
Some enquire, “When did Swami acquire this car?” (the latest car
in which He travels).
“Why does this concern you? Know about Baba, not the car.” (Laughter)
Somebody asked me, “How many cars does He have? Is He going to
give you one?” (Laughter)
Why are you interested? My friends, we are stuffing our heads with
useless, non-essential thoughts. I will give you a simple example.
An old man unfortunately fell into a well and started shouting for
help. A gentleman passing by brought some rope and said, “Come on,
here is the rope. Catch hold of it, and climb out. I want to
rescue you.”
Instead of catching hold of the rope and rescuing himself, the old
man started asking questions. “Who are you?” (Laughter)
“What is your name?” (Laughter) “Where do you come from?” (Laughter)
“What is your date of birth?” (Laughter) “What guarantee is
there that you will not rob me once you help me out?” (Laughter)
“What is your motive in trying to save me?” (Laughter) “Are
you going to get an award from the government?” “Why do you help
me?”
The man said, “Sir, please do not ask questions. Please take hold
of the rope and get out. I know you are already old and senile, (Laughter)
but I want you to live for a few more days. Come on.”
That man asked, “How long is the rope?”
THE HEAD SHOULD BE FILLED WITH SPIRITUALITY
So my friends, we are filling our heads with all these nonsensical
and non-essential thoughts. We should fill our head with answers
to searching questions and challenging situations. We should fill
our heads with statements that are eternal and things to make our
life blissful. We should have thoughts that would help us adopt
some sadhana (spiritual practices); thoughts that would
help us to ask about those things that are necessary for the head,
not the unnecessary facts and figures.
“How long have you been coming to Puttaparthi?” Does that question
have any meaning at all? To put that question is insulting. If I
said, “I have been coming here for thirty years”, the other man
would say, “You have not changed a bit.” (Laughter) The
question of time has no relevance at all.
Suppose I say, “This is the ring given to me by Baba.”
“Which year?”
The year does not matter. This morning or last year, what does it
matter? It was given to me, so why are you bothered? When I show
you, why do you want to know the chronology? What is all this?
So my friends, the head should be filled with spirituality. The
head should be filled with religion. The head should be filled
with the essence of our Sai message. The head should be filled
with the fundamental philosophy of Sai Vedanta. The head
should be filled with the objectives of life, and not with the
non-essential. Our talk should not be based on ajnana, ignorance,
or Maya, delusion. Our talk should not reflect our ego, our
ignorance, or just pass time.
One gentleman asked. “Swami has gone into the interview room. When
He will come out?” Who can say? (Laughter) It is Swami who
has gone in; it is Swami who will come out. Who am I to give you
the time? What kind of question is that? Because you do not have
anything else to ask, you ask this question.
THE PRESENT BLESSING IS LOST
Somebody asked, “When is Swami likely to go to Bangalore?” Why?
When He is here, why don’t you enjoy Him? The mind deludes us with
thoughts of the past, with thoughts of the future, forgetting the
present. The present blessing is lost.
So, psychological identification is ambiguous, confusing,
deluding, imagining, non-creative, dull, and insipid. Therefore,
psychologically also, identification of the Self with the mind
will not help us.
THE MIND SHOULD BE CLEANED BY CHANTING GOD’S NAME
So, what should I do with my mind? By chanting God’s Name time and
again, I can cleanse my mind.
The mind is made dirty. It is something like a road that gets
dirty by automobiles, lorries, autos, cars, etc. So it should be
cleaned. Like a dining table, it should be cleaned regularly,
every time after breakfast, after lunch, after tea, after dinner.
Not once a year, as in an anniversary celebration. (Laughter)
It should be clean, as clean as possible.
Similarly, the mind should be cleansed and made as clean as a
mirror. How to clean it? With soap? No, we can clean our mind by
the repetition of God’s Name. A chemical ‘Sai Ram, Sai Ram, Sai
Ram’. Repeat it or any Name of your choice, not necessarily ‘Sai
Ram.’ It can be Allah, Jesus, or whatever.
So the activity that can be given to the mind is the constant
repetition of God’s Name to keep it clean and pure. The constant
activity that can be given to the body is to serve others wherever
possible, to the extent possible.
GOD APPEARS IN THE FORM OF A GURU
So either way, identification with the body or identification with
the mind - both are not correct. So, what is to be done? We look
forward to God. There is no point in identification with my body
because it is sure to perish. There is no point in identification
with the mind, because it is nothing but ego. God, help me.
God appears in the form of a Guru (spiritual teacher). Gone
are the days when God chose to appear in the form of kings – like
Rama and Krishna. In these modern times of democracy, we no longer
respect kings. There are no kings here today, because democracy is
the order of the society. So, in tune with the times that we live
in, God has chosen to come close to us in the form of a Guru.
THE GURU IS GOD HIMSELF
The Guru is none other than God Himself who comes to you in
a physical form in response to your prayers, who manifests Himself
in front of you to answer your spiritual needs. He is in a
physical frame to act as a guide to direct you, to make you calm
and peaceful. That is the purpose of the Guru.
When a child cries, the mother says, “Here I am.” The mother is
sure to respond and sure to help the child when the child starts
crying. Similarly, when the devotee cries in agony, be doubly sure
that God, being more than the physical mother, nearer than the
physical father, will respond in human form, in the form of a
Guru.
We have so many Gurus. I am not over-estimating any Guru;
I am not under-estimating any Guru, because I am not
competent to do that. We are not competent or qualified to judge
the quality of a Guru. First, let us judge ourselves:
"Judge not that you be not judged." For your information, I want
to bring to your attention certain important features of a Guru
collected from Sai literature.
THE ROLE OF A GURU
We do not understand the role of a Guru. We think that by going
around the Guru we will be benefited; by visiting the Guru we will
be profited. Certainly not! By saying ‘Good morning, good evening’
to a doctor, the disease is not cured. We need to take his
medicine and follow the dietary regulations. Then the disease is
cured. Therefore, repeated visits, or greetings, or an exchange of
courtesies are not required, particularly when we are with a
physician or a surgeon. We should follow what they say to be free
from any ailment or any suffering.
GET LOST IN THE PRESENCE OF THE GURU
Similarly, by visiting a Guru our problem is not solved. We should
follow Him, we should hear Him, and we should emulate Him. If
possible, swallow Him, and eat Him. Dance with Him. Forget
yourself. In front of a Guru, you do not exist. If you still
exist, it means you are not benefited by the Guru. Am I clear? I
am not benefited by the Guru, if this ‘I’-ness still remains in
front of Him.
In front of Him, I am gone! I am not there. Only the Guru exists
because I got immersed, I got dissolved, I am brought to
nothingness. I am void. I am in bliss. I am in a deep valley. I am
no more in front of the Guru. That is the purpose.
I AM NOBODY IN FRONT OF THE GURU
I am nobody in front of Him because the Guru is already
non-existent. Out of nowhere, or out of everywhere, He has come
here. In fact, He is everywhere. So He is non-existent, and as an
individual in front of Him, I am non-existent as a person. The
meaning is: It is a meeting of two empty spaces. I am empty - He
is empty.
That is the conscious merging into Consciousness. It may be a very
strong dose to swallow, but it is a fact. It is a meeting of two
empty spaces, like a balloon that bursts so that the air in the
balloon merges with the air all around. The individual conscious
merges with the Infinity, the Cosmic Consciousness around. That is
what is happening in front of the Guru.
Therefore, you are nobody in front of a Guru. The Guru is also
non-existent. The Guru Himself is non-existence. This may be
another idea; it may sound foolish to you. Please be sure, I am
not yet insane. No! The Guru is non-existent. Why? God is present
everywhere.
GOD IN THE FORM OF A GURU
God, who is present everywhere, takes human form for your sake in
the form of a Guru. In fact, He is formless; He is everywhere. In
reality, He is nameless, formless, birthless, deathless energy.
The cosmic principle has taken a physical frame in the name of a
Guru to guide you. That’s all.
Sometimes we speak exhibiting our ignorance, and the intensity of
our foolishness. I said, “Swami, what a wonderful thing it is for
You to be in human form. It is an extraordinary thing You have
done. Extraordinary!” Then everybody smiled. I thought I had made
a good comment. (Laughter) I complimented myself.
But Baba turned back and said, “What did you say?” (Laughter)
“Swami, I said it is extraordinary.”
Then Baba said, “So, until now you considered this Body as
ordinary. (Laughter) Now you say ‘extraordinary’. It only
means that you have been thinking it to be ordinary. How foolish
you are.”
Therefore my friends, we should not take Baba just as a physical
form. Baba is cosmic energy. Baba is Divinity. Baba is everywhere.
He has taken a human form just in response to our prayers.
So, the first point relating to the Guru is this: The Guru is God,
and out of His infinite compassion, He has taken a physical form
to answer our spiritual needs.
GOD IS FORMLESS AND NAMELESS
As long as I have this body identification, as long as I think I
am the body, I need God in a human form. He cannot be anybody; He
has to be somebody. So, that somebody, God in a body, is the Guru,
because I have body consciousness.
My friends, we should qualify ourselves every time. What if
somebody says, “Mr. Anil Kumar said, ‘God has no form, God has no
name.’ Then why do we worship?” (Laughter)
Correct! You are correct! God has no name. Right! But, you have a
name. If you can forget your name, then you can forget God’s Name.
God has no form. Hundred percent correct. But, you have a form.
You have not yet come out of your form. You have not yet come out
of that formful idea. You have not come out of that formful
personality.
So, when you cease from identification with your physical frame,
when you consider that you are no longer the body, yes, then you
can see God in the formless aspect. When you are beyond your name,
you can call God nameless.
GOD HAS COME WITH A FORM AND WITH A NAME
Suppose you say, “Mr. David, how are you?”
I must tell you, “Sir, I am not David. I am Anil Kumar.”
Then you say,”Hi Daniel, how are you?”
“I am not Daniel. I am Anil Kumar.” I have this conscious
attachment to my name. You are attached to your name. You respond,
you answer when your name is called; but yet you say God is
nameless. This does not satisfy my logic or rationale.
Similarly, I have a form. If someone says, “You are very dark, Mr.
Anil Kumar,” I can say, “Sir, that is unfair; I am not dark. (Laughter)
I may not be white and bright, but I am average. Be merciful. You
cannot call me totally dark.” (Laughter) So, I am
identifying my body.
If someone says that I am ugly, I say, “I am not that ugly. I may
not be very handsome, but tolerable. I may not be very handsome
like a film star in Hollywood or Bollywood. (Laughter) Just
tolerable - you can stand my sight at least.”
So I have this body attachment, but say, “God has no form.”
Nonsense! You are still within the body consciousness, so how can
you understand ‘God beyond the body’? You have a name, so how can
you know God who is nameless?
Unless I transcend and go to a higher level beyond the body and
the name, I cannot think of God without a name and without a form.
Therefore, to raise our consciousness, God has come with a form
and with a name. That is what Baba said about the Avatar!
GOD IS HERE TO BRIGHTEN YOU, NOT TO FRIGHTEN YOU
The Guru moves amidst us, talks, jokes, commands, consoles,
schedules, ridicules, reprimands, tickles. In this human body,
Bhagavan jokes and sometimes corrects. Why? It is all to be very
close to us. If Swami doesn’t talk and just sits on a throne, and
then retires - that is not the job of a Guru. (Laughter)
He is no Guru.
The purpose of the Guru is to be so close to you, to make
you feel the nearness, closeness, familiarity, and intimacy, to be
near and dear to you. That is the purpose of a Guru.
To be near you, He jokes with you.
He calls a gentleman for an interview and says, “Where is your
wife?” (Laughter)
“Wife?”
“Yes, she is in your pocket.”
“My wife is in my pocket?”
“Yes!”
Then the man starts laughing and picks up courage to be near God.
On the other hand, if He comes close and is serious, (Laughter)
we get frightened; (Laughter) we may die of a heart attack.
(Laughter) God is not here to frighten you. God is here to
brighten you, not to frighten you. He jokes so that you can be
very near to Him.
Then comes the treatment. (Laughter) The treatment will be
later. (Laughter) Before the doctors give an injection,
they talk to you. “How many children do you have?” “When did you
come? Kasak!” In the meantime, the needle goes in. (Applause)
(Laughter)
So, God jokes and makes it enjoyable, because the treatment is
waiting later on. (Laughter) The doctor should smile. If he
is serious, he will not have any patients at all. So, he should
not put on a serious face, as if the patient is going to collapse.
He should smile, even when he is sure the patient will collapse.
At least he will get his bill paid, and dying comes later! (Laughter)
Therefore, my friends, the Guru is close to you and talks
to you. He sustains the intimacy and friendship, that nearness and
dearness, so that you will dance to His tune. Or else you won’t.
He starts joking, so you will walk along with Him.
When He gives a family interview, He tells the husband, “See how
hard she works? You would not have advanced in life, but for her.
She is so sincere and loyal; she takes care of the whole family,
all your responsibilities. You fellow, you are so busy with your
business and public contacts that she is the one taking care of
family responsibilities.”
Now she starts flying high. (Laughter) Aah, Aah! Up in the
air. Because Swami is praising her. She looks at her husband, “See
that! You would have been burned to ashes without me.” Poor
fellow, he is down now.
Towards the close of the interview, He catches hold of the
husband’s hand and looks at the wife and says, “He is a good man,
(Laughter) don’t shout at him. (Laughter) He is so
busy with business, you know, so many contacts. There is so much
pressure in the office, he is exhausted. Therefore he shouts, but
his heart is so nice.” (Laughter)
The Divine Master maintains perfect balance. Ladies first. He will
raise them to the sky, and then ultimately says that the husband
is also a good and very sincere man.
Why all this drama? To be near you and close to you, to teach you
something spiritual, to make you religious, to make you to take up
some sadhana. Or else why is He interested in somebody’s
wife; why is He interested in somebody’s husband? This is only to
take you on to the spiritual path - sadhana. That is the
role the Guru has taken upon himself.
THE GURU WILL MAKE YOU FEEL HIS PRESENCE
The Guru will make you feel His presence by taking care of
you, just like an eyelid protects the eye. Just as the eyelid
takes care of the eyeball, the Guru will make you feel that
He is taking care of you.
Somebody said, “Swami, You took care of me in those days. I know
how You protected me.”
Baba immediately said, “I was taking care of you then? Stop! I am
taking care of you now also. It is not past tense; it is present
tense. You may not know; you may forget it; you may forget My
presence, but I am always with you, in you, above you, below you,
around you.”
So the job of the Guru is to make you feel His physical
presence. In a hotel, a Holiday Inn, or cafeteria, or just a
social get-together, suddenly you smell vibuthi. (the
sacred ash manifested by Bhagavan). Am I not right? While shopping
at Sears or in tennis company, suddenly you smell vibuthi.
Why?
“I (Bhagavan) am chasing you. (Laughter) I am haunting
you.” It is not a physical romance. No! This is the Divine
Romance, a lifetime contract (Laughter) with no divorce! (Laughter)
“I won’t leave you, even if you leave Me.” Understand that! That’s
why you suddenly smell vibuthi.
At a cocktail party when you want to have a drink, a little, not
too much, suddenly a fellow says, “Sai Ram, I think the bhajan
singing is tomorrow at your residence.” Why is he there? (Laughter)
This is not the place I am supposed to meet him. (Laughter)
That means Baba is cautioning you not to take the drink.
Because He follows you wherever you go, you cannot do just
anything, even if you want to. If you want to go to a casino for a
break to see how things are going on, somebody comes along and
says, “We have satsang (spiritual gathering) at home. I will come
and pick you up.” He said he would come and pick you up! (Laughter)
You have to wait for him.
He will not allow you, my friends, to stray because you are on the
Divine track and under Divine custody, take it from me. Even
prisoners can go on parole, (Laughter) move about, and
return. (Laughter) But not spiritual captives, because God
is always by your side, taking care of everything. That is the job
of the Divine Master. That is the job of the Guru. You
cannot escape from Him. No! He is always with you, taking care of
you.
Fire is always hot. Being hot is not the quality of the fire; it
is the nature of the fire. Quality is different from nature.
Qualities may change – kind today, unkind tomorrow. I am balanced
today, full of temper tomorrow. Qualities may change, but nature
won’t change. Being hot is the nature of the fire; kindness and
mercy is the nature of the Guru. It is the nature of the
Guru, not the quality of the Guru. God is so
compassionate, Baba is so loving. He is always with you. Unseen,
He makes you feel His presence.
BABA IS AN UNSEEN GUEST, MASTER AND LISTENER OF EVERY HOUSE
Baba is an unseen guest at every meal. He is the unseen master of
every house. He is a silent listener of every conversation. Two
people were arguing at Prashanti Nilayam. Swami said, “Is it good
on your part to shout like that?” How does He know? We shouted in
the hotel, how does He know? He is the silent listener of every
conversation, the unseen master of every house, the unseen guest
at every meal. That is the job of the Divine Master and Guru.
THE GURU IS OUTSIDE TO MAKE YOU SEE HIM INSIDE
Baba is in a human form. Why is the Guru in a human form?
To make you see Him within. He is outside to help you see Him
inside.
Somebody said, “Baba, I want one flat here in Prashanti Nilayam.
So many North buildings seem to be vacant, why don’t You give me
one or two flats. How much does it cost? I will sign a check.”
Swami said, “Why do you need a flat here? You already have a flat
here. Why do you need one again?“
“Swami, I do not have a flat. Every time I go to the accommodation
counter, I have to wait there desperately, not sure of my
accommodation. Why do you say I have a flat here?”
Baba said, “Remember you have a flat here in the heart of Sai and
you have an apartment in the heart of Sai, so why do you need the
other?”
Similarly, my friends, the Guru is outside to make you see
Him inside - to have the ‘in...sight’, He is present outside. That
is the purpose of the Guru.
THE GURU’S JOB IS TO MAKE YOU EXPERIENCE YOUR TRUE SELF
Sometimes people say, “Swami, when I am in Your presence, I do not
know what happens to me? What is happening to me?”
Nothing is happening to you. You are safe and secure. It is not a
threat or danger, and not one of risk. What is happening is, you
are beyond the body, beyond the mind, and you are in ecstasy. You
are in ecstasy; you are in a state of bliss. So the Guru’s
job is to make you feel your true Self, to make you experience
your true Self.
What is happening to most of the people who come out of the
interview room? Or when Swami’s car suddenly parks by your side,
what is happening to you? A person observes the faces of people,
suddenly expanding like soufflés. (Laughter) A face that
was so dispirited starts smiling, bubbling with enthusiasm, and
becomes like a thousand watt light bulb. Why? What is happening?
Has He given you some Cadbury chocolate or Joy ice cream?
In front of Him, you are dynamite. In front of Him, you are a
thousand watt light bulb. Why? What is happening? He is making you
experience your true reality. He is making you experience your
true Self. That is why you are so happy. The moment the car
leaves, you are normal again - the same castor oil faces. (Laughter)
That is the difference.
Examine yourself. How are you in front of Swami, and how are you
just after? The job of a Guru is to make you experience
your true Self. He will make your mind pure, full of Love, calm,
balanced and equanimous.
THINKING IS GONE – FEELING STARTS
That is why during an interview sometimes we forget to ask Him
things.
After the interview, the wife or husband or children or friends
will ask you, “Did you ask Swami this?”
“I did not ask anything!” Once you are in front of Him, the fuse
is taken away. (Laughter) A power cut! (Laughter) No
candle can help. (Laughter) You want to ask so many things,
but you forget. Why? You have to be very apologetic at home (Laughter).
She had so many demands, and she said, “I will take care of the
house, you go and have Baba’s darshan and get clearance for these
things.” The next time, she won’t send you here. (Laughter)
First, He will say, “Sit down.” He will then give you a nice
smile. That is the end of the matter. (Laughter) When He
smiles, no more questions, finished! (Laughter) The
question is out of the question! (Laughter)
‘What is happening to me? I get lost in my Self. I am the true
Self.’ That’s what happens to you in front of a Guru. Why?
Your mind is withdrawn; your mind is pushed into your heart; thus
the mind becomes functionless.
It is something like a sword kept in a sheath. Once the sword is
taken out, you can see it; but when the sword is in the sheath,
you do not see it. Similarly, the mind is pushed into the heart.
Now you feel Sai, you do not think Sai. Thinking is gone; feeling
starts. That is the job of the Guru.
ACCEPT EVERYTHING AS GOD’S WILL
The purpose of a Guru is also this: To give you the
strength to face all the odds, difficulties and challenges in
life.
I will give you one example. I will not mention the name as a
matter of courtesy.
I met a gentleman, a top official. He has two daughters -- one did
her MBA and the other is an engineer - beautiful girls, very
beautiful, very smart. Both of them were gold medallists. The
gentleman introduced me to his daughters. They were in
wheelchairs, their legs paralysed. All sorts of treatment had
failed. Their faces were brilliant.
Both of them were already in service when suddenly one of the legs
of the older daughter became paralysed. After some time, the other
leg, too. She had to be in a wheelchair, and the same thing
troubled the second daughter.
They sent me a note.
“Uncle, could you please come to our residence? We want to talk to
you.”
I went there and I started crying, but they were all smiles. They
were smiling.
I said, “My dear child, why are you happy?”
They said, “This is God’s plan, Uncle. We are happy that He has
sent you to talk to us. But for Baba’s Grace, it would not have
been possible for you to be here with us. We are happy; we are
able to manage. We listen to Baba’s cassettes; we watch Baba’s
video cassettes; we read Baba’s literature; we do Sai bhajans.
What are we missing? Nothing! We are not able to walk, that’s all!
We are fine, Uncle, why do you cry?”
This is spirituality - the state of mind ready to take any shock
in life, ready to take any odds or difficulties in life happily,
ungrudgingly. Accepting God’s Will is the hallmark of a devotee.
But most of us are not of that quality.
If my son gets a medical position, I am devotee Number One. If he
doesn’t, please tell me the address of another God, so that I can
contact Him. (Laughter) I keep shifting from place to place
because another may respond to my prayer.
This is not spirituality. This kind of shifting loyalty is
business. In spirituality, business will ruin our life. Business
in the world will make you lead a comfortable, luxurious life.
Yes, business in life is very good for prosperity, very desirable,
because it adds to the wealth of the nation, which is very
necessary.
But, in the spiritual field, we have to accept everything as God’s
Will. I saw those girls and I was wonderstruck. Where am I in
front of them?
THE STRENGTH IS GIVEN BY THE GURU
Therefore my friends, the strength to face the situation, the
strength to face testing moments, troubles, turmoil, calamity, is
given by the Guru only. No one else!
You might have heard of Charles Penn from United States. On the
3rd day following his demise, his wife came to see Swami when we
were in Kodaikanal. The third day! Is it possible? Impossible!
A lady’s mother died in the morning. In the evening she did her
seva dal work (selfless service in ashram). Can you
imagine?
Another lady, who is very important, comes here for her seva dal
duty, the day after the funeral of her husband. Is it possible?
From a worldly point of view, death is the worst thing,
inconsolable grief, irreconcilable sadness that can happen in
anybody’s life. People keep crying and cannot be consoled until
another body also reaches heaven. But the lady could take it. Why?
Because of the blessing of the Guru.
Let us not think that by coming to the Guru, we will win a
lottery jackpot. Not necessary! He gives you the strength to bear.
By being near the Guru, we begin to wonder if we were ever
peaceful like this before. Were we ever blissful like this? You
begin to wonder at your own self. Was I this happy before? Was I
this blissful before? Was I this child-like before? No. You begin
to wonder. As Bhagavan says, “That is the effect of a Guru.”
THE COMPASSION OF A GURU
I will give you one episode from the life of Ramana Maharshi.
Ramana Maharshi had one disciple called Perumal. This disciple
comes to Guru Ramana and says, “Oh! Guruji, I have
committed many sins, I am extremely sorry; I may have to go to
hell. I am sorry.”
Divine Master Ramana says, “Perumal, my dear child, if you go to
hell, I will also follow you to hell. I shall not leave you until
you attain moksha or liberation. I shall come to heaven or
hell, wherever you go, until you are liberated. I am not going to
leave you, my son.” That is the compassion of a Guru in a
human form. The Guru will run after you, until you know
your true Self.
‘Swami, how long are You going to pester me like this? (Laughter)
How long will You run after me like this? (v) When are You going
to leave me?”
“Until you know your Reality, I am not going to leave you. Until
you know that you are the Self, I am not going to forsake you. You
cannot get out of My grip.” That is His Mercy. That is His
Compassion.
THE GURU WILL BE WATCHING YOUR MISTAKES OR LAPSES
In the meantime, the Guru will be watching your mistakes
and lapses.
A simple example: If someone suddenly gets up and goes close to
Him, do you know what He says? “Sure, sure, you want everybody to
see you, that is why you got up.” (Laughter)
Suppose He asks you to speak. In the speech, you say, “I visited
Baba fifty times during the year. (Laughter) I had so many
experiences.”
Swami will say, “Manchidi - sit down. (Laughter) Your talk
is full of ego.”
Do you think that you have come to Swami? No! He made you come
here. Do you think you have so many experiences? No! He made you
experience. Do you think that this is your achievement? No! He has
conferred success on you. Things are conferred; they are not
achieved. He will watch very carefully.
Another simple example: Swami came on a visit to our college when
I was in Bangalore as the principal of the campus.
Swami said, “Anil Kumar, how is it? How is the campus?”
This being my honeymoon period, the fresh period of my service
there, I was given a wide margin for my lapses. (Laughter)
So I said, “Swami, everything is spick and span. Perfectly clean.”
(Laughter)
“Oh! I see! Let Me go inside.” He started visiting every room,
including the toilet. (Laughter) It was in very, very bad
shape. (Laughter)
He came out. “Abbah!” He blasted me! The missiles on Iraq
and Afghanistan are less powerful than His words! I wanted to just
take some poison and put it in my mouth. (Laughter) “Kaa
Kaa Kaa --- Bak Bak Bak.”
Then, after sometime, He smiled. He thought that since this was
the early period of my appointment, I would run away. (Laughter)
That is the test dose He gave.
When He smiled, I went close to him and said, “Swami, you
appointed me as a principal, right?”
He said, “Yes.”
“Is it the duty of the principal to take care of the toilets? (Laughter)
In the other colleges that I served, the principal never went near
the toilets. Is the principal responsible for the state of the
toilet?” (Laughter)
Swami said, “There is nothing like a classroom principal, an
auditorium principal, a bathroom principal. The principal is the
principal for the whole campus. (Laughter) It is your
duty.” (Laughter and applause)
Then He asked me to follow Him. He went into the library. (Laughter)
There is another restroom in the library. Unfortunately, that was
also in a bad shape. (Laughter) I ran away from there as I
would have to face the music again. (Laughter)
He came out, full of anger, ready to shout at me, but I was not
available. (Laughter) Swami could not help Himself. He
started laughing. “Where is this fellow? This fellow ran away? (Laughter)
This fellow ran away because he knew I would shout at him?” (Laughter)
“You are so happy, because you are enjoying at my cost, right?” (Laughter)
(Anil Kumar is talking to the audience.)
So my friends, the Guru will be watching your lapses, the
Guru will be watching your negligence of duty, the Guru
will be watching your ego, The Guru will be watching your
pride and will correct you.
THE GURU WILL CORRECT YOU
A very top doctor, let me not mention his name, started giving
a speech every day to the assembly. Swami gave him the opportunity
to do this, and the man took it for granted that he would be a
regular guest speaker.
On the third day, he said, “Swami, I want to speak today on my
experiences in Belgium.”
Do you know what Baba said? “Keep it to yourself, Bangaru (Golden
One), sit down. (Laughter) Keep it to yourself. Be happy
sitting with the others. Sit down.” (Laughter) He will not
allow any pride.
This Avatar may tolerate anything, but not ego. Even if we have a
few milligrams of ego, we have to pay heavily for that. Heavily!
Therefore, out of His compassion, the Guru will be watching
your lapses and weaknesses so you can be freed from them. Not out
of any anger, but to see that all these impurities are washed out,
so that you are gold now - refined, polished, shining, an ornament
ready to wear round the neck of the Divine. So that is the purpose
of the Guru.
Here is the last point. During a trip to Kodaikanal, one time
Bhagavan rode in front in the boys’ bus, along with them. The
people started saying, “Sai Ram, Sai Ram” to His car, which went
ahead of the bus.
Baba looked at us and said, “Because I normally sit in that car,
this car is receiving ‘Sai Ram’s’ from everybody. (Laughter)
As I am sitting in your company; nobody is saying ‘Sai Ram’ to Me.
(Laughter) People say ‘hello’ to My car, not to Me, because
of bad company.” (Laughter)
So my friends, you can understand. We need His company; He does
not need our company. We need His friendship; He doesn’t need our
friendship. He frees us from all kinds of pollutants, so that we
are made into precious gold.
Thank you for your time, being with us this morning. I have just
two questions to answer, which I will do in as short a time as
possible.
The second question is full of compliments, speaking in praise of
me. That question doesn’t need any kind of response. I want
comments, not compliments. Please come forward freely with your
comments and suggestions for further improvement, because we are
reaching the world. People have been watching, and people have
been carefully following our Sunday morning talk deliberations.
So, all suggestions towards improvement are quite welcome. I
welcome it.
Thank you, anyway, for your compliments: “I feel very encouraged.
I really enjoy your audio talks. Your talks are so inspirational
that we have become addicted to them.”
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
THEY ARE NOT OBSTACLES - THEY ARE TESTS
Q: Every time I try to do some seva or join in some good
deeds, there are always obstacles that prevent me from doing so.
How can you explain this?
A: They are not obstacles. They are tests. Suppose you know that
you are going to get a promotion tomorrow, and $500 extra. You
also have an appointment with your friend at the same time. Which
do you prefer? Your friend will be there tomorrow, or is the $500
more important? (Laughter) So, you go there.
Your priorities are indicated. On occasions like this when you
have to make a choice between the two, what is the priority?
Should I spend a week in Las Vegas or should I spend a week in New
York doing a service activity.
These are not obstacles; they are tests. They are there to
indicate your priorities. If you emerge successfully, it naturally
speaks of your Love for Bhagavan. So don’t consider them as
obstacles. No! They are indicators, symbols, and signs.
A simple example: On Shivaratri Day (a celebration in honour of
Lord Shiva), your relative is being married at your place. At
Puttaparthi, on Shivaratri Day, there is the emergence of the
lingam, an elliptical stone manifested by Bhagavan, which is
the symbolic form of Godhead. Which one do you want to attend?
Lingodhbhava or the wedding at home? Is it a test? No! It is
not a test. It speaks of the priorities in your life, that’s all.
Your yardstick in judging priorities should be: God first, others
next, ‘I’ at the end.
“JOY”
J -- Jesus first
O -- Others next
Y --You last
Thank you very much. May Sai bless you.
OM…OM…OM…
Asato Maa Sad Gamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya
Mrtyormaa Amrtam Gamaya
Om Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Om Shanthi Shanthi Shanthi
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ji Ki Jai
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ji Ki Jai
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ji Ki Jai
Thank you!
Source:
http://www.internety.com/anilk2004/14.03.04(E)central.htm
© Anil Kumar Kamaraju 2004 - Here
reproduced for personal use of the devotees for the purpose of
seva.
Anil Kumar website:
http://www.internety.com/anilkhome/ -
http://www.internety.com/saipearls/
|
