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Sri Sathya Sai Baba Teachings |
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Pearls collected from various
Discourses of Swami
There
are four types of persons: the ‘dead’, who deny the Lord and
declare that they alone exist, independent and self-directed: the
‘sick’, who call upon the Lord when some calamity befalls them or
when they feel temporarily deserted by the unusual source of
succor: the ‘dull’, who know that God is the eternal companion and
watchman, but who remember it only off and on when the idea is
potent and powerful: and lastly the ‘healthy’, who have steady
belief in the Lord and who live in His Comforting Creative
Presence always.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, Vijayadashami, 1953)
Note this also. In this Avatar, the wicked will not be destroyed,
they will be corrected, reformed and educated and led back to the
path from which they have strayed. The white ant infested tree
will not be cut: it will be saved. Again this Avathar will not
select some place other than the place where the nativity took
place for the centre of Its Leelas, Mahimas, and Upadesh. This
tree shall not be transplanted: it will grow where it rose from
the Earth. Another specialty is this: the Avatar has no affinity
or attachments in Its Career to members of the family wherein It
appeared. Unlike the appearance as Rama, Krishna etc., where the
life was played out mostly among and for the family members, this
Avatar is for the Bhaktas, the Aspirants, the Sadhus and Sadhakas
only. It has no Japa, Dhyana or Yoga: It knows no worship: It will
not pray to anything, for It is the Highest. It only teaches you
to worship and pray.
To a worldly man, a God-intoxicated person will appear mad and he
will laugh at him, But to the God-intoxicated man, the worldly
appear insane, foolish, misled, blind. Of all the insanities that
harass man, God-madness is the least harmful, the most beneficial.
The world has suffered untold damage due to its “mad guides: but
nothing but harmony, peace, brotherliness and love has come out of
the ‘God-madness’ of man.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, Maha Shivaratri, 1955).
The Lord too has to come in human form and moves about among men,
so that He could be listened to, contacted, loved, revered and
obeyed. He has to speak the language of men and behave like human
beings, as the member of the species. Otherwise, He would be
either negated and neglected or feared and avoided.
(Peddapuram, 03/09/1958).
Until about an hour ago, the organisers of this function were
nervous that I might not come. They had reconciled themselves to
the disappointment in store and they were feverishly engaged in
making alternative arrangements, for they had heard that the
Godavari was in high floods and that I was at Rajahmundry. So they
feared that I might not be able to cross the floods and come south
in time for this engagement. From the fact that I had permitted
them to announce My arrival for the function, they could well have
inferred that the floods would subside and that I would be in
their midst, for, once My word goes forth, it must happen
accordingly. Do not doubt it. The furious waves calmed before
Rama, the floods went down in time for Me.
Nothing can hold Me up or agitate Me or cast a shadow on Me, come
in this Human form : be certain of that. Forces of calumny or
distrust or ignorance can touch not even a hair, My sankalpa must
prevail. My task must be accomplished. My mission will succeed. I
have come to illumine the human heart with the Light of Divine and
to rid man of the delusion that drags him away from the path of
Shanti, the perfect equanimity born of realisation.
(Venkatagiri Town 09/09/1958)
That is My path, the path of Prema, along which I shall take you.
This I offer as my visiting card to every one of you when you come
to Me. I know your name, your degrees, your profession, your
status and your history. But you do not know Mine. I have no need
to know all about you from perusal of your cards: but I want you
to know something of My glory: and so I give you a glimpse of it,
as a Mahima. But I also give you enough of My Prema so that you
can mix a little of it with whatever you do or feel or think and
make it sweet and palatable.
(Venkatagiri, Adyantic conference, 12/04/1959).
The Lord had announced that He would come down for the restoration
of Dharma and that He would assume human form so that all might
gather around Him and feel the thrill of his companionship and
conversation. And the Lord has come as announced
(Markandeya Sanskrit College, Aukiri Palli, 22/01/1960).
I must tell you that you are luckier than men of previous
generations. The accumulated merits of many previous births must
have granted you this luck. You have got Me and it is your duty to
develop this relationship that you have achieved by sheer good
fortune. In four or five years time, you will see Yogis and
Maharishis and Munis crowding here and you may not have such
chances of asking Me questions and getting the answers, or
approaching Me and directly speaking to Me.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 27/09/1960).
As a matter of fact, Puttaparthi is a name revered and remembered
with gratitude by millions today and it will be treasured in
history as an immortal name. There have been many occasions on
which Bhaktas have pleaded with Me to move out of this miasma and
settle down in Bangalore or Madras or some such town, or if I
preferred, some other quiet rural spot. But let Me tell you here
and now: this tree has to grow at the very spot where it sprouted:
it will not be transplanted: I shall not give up this place, no,
not I. This place will be transformed into Tirupathi and those who
are little boys and girls today will surely see it in all its
magnificence.
(Puttaparthi, 23/11/1960)
Can Paramatma assume human form? Well, man can derive Ananda only
through the human form: we can receive instruction, inspiration,
illumination only through human language and human communication.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, Birthday Festival, 23/11/1960).
You all are waiting to hear from Me about the journey to Badri and
what happened there. These people went to Badri and returned
Bhadram (safe). That is the story in a nutshell.
For danger lurked all the time from fire, water, wind, sky and
Earth - all the five elements in fact. Every moment these people
felt the Lord’s grace: 150 persons, mostly old men with
indifferent health, to accomplish this Yatra without a single
moment of even headache was due to Swami. Swami also went to Badri
because the Netralingam, which is the central source of Holiness
there, had to be revived with spiritual efficiency. Shankaracharya
brought five lingams from Kailas and installed one each at Dwaraka,
Sringeri, Badri and Puri and the fifth he placed at Chidambaram.
Of these, the one at Badri has the Narayan-amsam and that had to
be consecrated afresh. That was My task and these people who came
with Me saw Me doing it.
The Netralingam laid by Shankaracharya underneath the idol there,
was taken out by Me and Abhishekam was done with Gangotri water
which I fetched by the wave of My hand. It was worshipped with
golden Bilva leaves and Thumbe flowers, both created by Me on the
spot, and sent back to its original place.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 04/07/1961).
Rama, Krishna and Sai Baba appear different because of the dress
each has donned. But it is the Self-same Entity, believe Me. Do
not be misled into error and loss. The time will soon come when
this huge building or even vaster ones will be too small for the
gathering of those who are called to this place. The sky itself
will have to be the roof of the auditorium of the future: I will
have to forego the car and even the airplane when I move from
place to place, for the crowds pressing around them will be too
huge: I will have to move across the sky: yes, that too will
happen, believe Me.
You will witness this Puttaparthi becoming Mathura Nagar. No one
can stop this development or delay it. I will not give you up, nor
can anyone of you give Me up. Even if you loose faith, you will
repent and come to this refuge very soon, clamoring for admission.
I shall be in this body for 58 more years: I have assured of this
already. Your lives are intertwined with My Earthly Career. Act
always in accordance with that great privilege.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 21/10/61).
Let me tell you one more thing: Nothing can impede or halt the
work of this Avatar. When I was upstairs all these days, some
people foolishly went out saying, It is all over about Sai Baba
and they turned back many who were coming to Puttaparthi: Some
said I was in Samadhi, as if I am a Sadhaka: Some feared I was the
victim of black magic, as if anything can affect Me: The splendour
of this Avatar will go on increasing, day by day. Formerly when
the little boy raised aloft the Govardhanagiri, the Gopis and
Gopakas realised that Krishna was the Lord. Now it is not one
Govardhanagiri, a whole range will be lifted, you will see: Have
patience, have faith.
(Guru Poornima day, 06/07/1963).
You might ask Me to speak about My own mystery. It is not easy to
understand it. When you have the chance, gather all the joy that
you can. There is no use bolting the door when the thieves have
robbed and fled. Seize the chance and do not repent later that you
have missed the opportunity. Remember, you have to come to Me, if
not in this birth, at least within ten more births: strive to
acquire Grace: Grace is the reward for Sadhana: the highest
Sadhana is to follow the instructions of the Master.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 12/02/1964).
The Lord comes as Avatar when He is anxiously awaited by saints
and sages. Sadhus prayed - and I have come. My tasks are three, or
rather two, Dharmarakshana and Vedarakshana both practically the
same. The two are therefore: Vedarakshana and Bhakta rakshana:
fostering of the Vedas and fostering of Bhaktas. Now what is
Bhakti? Who are Bhaktas? It is faith, steadiness, virtue,
fearlessness, surrender, absence of egoism. Puja done however
elaborately and pompously is sheer waste of time and energy. Why
pluck flowers and hasten their death? Some of you go round this
Nilayam and satisfy yourselves that you have done so many
pradakshinas, but they can be called so only when your mind
circles this place along with your feet. I notice that while your
feet are taking you round by force of habit, your tongue blabbers
about the faults of others, or the price of the vegetables, or the
dish you propose to cook for lunch. Before you start on your
rounds, which you call Pradakshina, give your mind a Dakshina (thanksgiving
offering) to the Resident of the Temple, the Lord. That is the
first thing to do, and perhaps, the only thing to do. Pradakshina
is not to be taken for loosening the limbs or giving them some
exercise.
Be confident that you will be liberated. Know that you are saved.
Go and tell all that you had gone to Puttaparthi and got there the
secret of liberation.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 25/01/1963).
It was declared that Rama was born of the payasam which was
brought by the Deity from out of the sacrificial fire. No Avathar
is born flesh and blood, including this Avatar. The body of the
Avatar is chit substance: it is not Jada like other materials. The
embryo of ordinary mortals is encased in ‘Jalodakasayi’ enveloped
in watery stuff; the embryo of the Avatar is encased in ‘Kshirodakasayi’,
the pure white milk of holiness. That is why in the make up of the
Avatar, there is no blemish, there is no trace of Guna. Dasaratha
wept, for he had no sons to offer ritual food when he moved out
into the next world. When all are of the form of God and of the
substance of God, who is son and who is father, who is to offer
food to whom, when that high stage of wisdom is reached? Kshama is
the father, Santham is the mother, renunciation is the wife, and
the Lord is the son, the male issue to save him from perdition.
This desire brought his spirit before Rama, when Sita was about to
enter the
fire in Lanka.
Ravana was killed and Rama asked Sugriva and Lakshmana to crown
Vibhishana as Emperor of Lanka; he pleaded that Rama Himself
should bless him on that auspicious occasion, but Rama insisted
that His vow of hermithood prevented Him from entering an
inhabited city. Rama sent Hanuman and requested him to bring Sita
to the camp in a palanquin. Vibhishana had not thought of that; he
was too immersed in other affairs. Hanuman bowed before Sita and
got a vision of Lakshmi rising out of the waves of the ocean of
milk. He felt that that vision was enough compensation for all the
births he had to undergo. While the palanquin neared the camp,
there spread everywhere a sublime splendour from it, which
astonished the varana hordes. Rama sent word that Sita may alight
and walk the remaining distance, so that they may fill their eyes
with her glory. This is not mentioned in the books.
When Sita was about ten yards away, Rama, who is butter when He
melts and steel when He hardens, said, Stop, I can accept you only
after you pass through Fire. Lakshmana swooned at this thunderbolt;
the monkeys who had to bring the fuel for the Fire bent under the
weight of seven twigs. The Fire ordeal served two purposes: to
scorch the slanderous tongues, which haunt the tracks of Avatars
at all times: and, to retrieve from the Fire the real Sita who had
entered into it, prior to abduction by Ravana.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 04/02/1963).
The airplane has to land at certain places in order to take in
those who have won the right to fly, by the tickets they have
purchased. So too, the Lord has to come down so that those who
have won the right to be liberated may be saved; incidentally,
others too will know of the Lord, of His grace and ways of winning
it, the joy of liberation. There are some who deny even today the
possibility of air travel; they curse the contrivance; they cavil
it. Similarly, there are many who cavil at the Avatar that has
come to save.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 05/02/1963).
You can call me on the phone, but I will not be available for all
those who do not have the sincere and steady yearning for the
Lord. For those who say, No, you are not my Lord, I say ‘No’ for
those who say ‘yes’. I too echo ‘Yes’. If I am available in your
heart, I will be available over the phone, but remember, I have my
own special postal and telephone systems. They operate from the
heart straight to the heart. There are rules and regulations for
the operations of that system, which the Sastras declare. You can
find them there.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 29/07/1964).
Krishna-Avatar is a Sampoorna Avatar, the Lord appearing with all
the 16 Kalas; Rama shared the Kalas with other brothers. Rama
appeared as if He was associated with gunas or qualities, or as
having qualitative behaviour, whereas Krishna was above and beyond
such. Krishna never prayed, not even in the direst crisis: But
Rama does so, to Adithya, for instance; the intent of that Avatar
was different. Krishna was unaffected by gunas, His relationship
with the Gopis was pure. A person like Dharmaraja selected Him
above all the sages and saints of the day for special worship at
the Rajasuya sacrifice.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 26/11/1964).
Some of you may imagine that it is source of joy for the Lord to
take a human form. If you are in this state, you will not feel so.
I am always aware of the future, the past as well as the present
of every one of you. So, I am not moved so much by pity. Not that
I am hard-hearted, or that I have no pity or Daya. If you bolt the
door fast, how can the rays of My grace be available to you?
Swami, you cry, I have no eyes, I am yearning to see you. Won’t
your heart melt at your plight? Of course, his pitiable condition
melts your heart; will it not melt Mine? But since I know the past,
the background, My reaction is different. If only you knew, you
too will react differently. It is the consequences of the evil,
deliberately done in the previous births, and so I have to allow
the suffering to continue, modified often by some little
compensation. I do not cause either joy or grief; you are the
designer of both the chains.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 26/11/1964).
“When people forget the One and run after the many, Dharma
declines; for, there can be no love, no sacrifice, no detachment
in human affairs then. So, the Lord takes the human form and comes
amongst men to restore his sense of values. You may ask, why
should the Lord Himself incarnate? Why can he not set about the
task of restoring Dharma through the many minor Gods He has at His
command? Akbar himself posed this question before the courtiers,
for, he laughed at the Hindu idea of the Formless adopting Form,
the descending into the world as an Avatar to save Dharma. Birbal
asked for a week’s time to furnish the answer and got it granted
by his Imperial Majesty. A few days later, when he was in the
pleasure boat of the Emperor sailing across the lake with his
family, Birbal cleverly threw overboard a doll made to look like
the Emperor’s little son, crying at the same time. “O, the prince
has fallen into the water: Hearing this, the Emperor jumped into
the lake to rescue his son:
Birbal then disclosed that it was only a doll and that the son was
safe. He allayed the anger of Akbar by explaining that he had
perforce to enact this drama in order to demonstrate the truth of
the Hindu belief why God takes human form Himself, to save Dharma,
without commissioning some other entity to carry out the task.
Dharma is as the son, God loves it so dearly. Akbar could have
ordered one among the many personnel he had on board to jump in
and rescue his son; but his affection was so great and the urgency
so acute that the Emperor himself plunged into the lake to pull
out the son. The decline of Dharma is so acute a tragedy; the
intensity of affection that the Lord has for good men is so great
that He Himself comes. The Lord is love itself. He comes in human
form so that you can talk to Him, adore Him, move with Him, serve
Him and achieve Him, so that you can recognise your kinship with
Him.
(Venkatagiri Prashanthi Vidwanmahasabha, 13/12/1964).
The newspapers have a great role to play; but they are content to
cater to the vulgar tastes and become waste papers soon. I was,
during the last month, in Maharashtra state, in Bombay, where
lakhs and lakhs of people satisfied their thirst for Darshan and
while I was discoursing to the several thousands on the
fundamentals of the Vedas and Sastras and directing the members of
the Prashanthi Vidwanmahasabha (Maharashtra Branch) to resuscitate
the glorious value culture of our land. I was discussing with
ministers, judges, business magnates, doctors, lawyers, editors
and others belonging to Maharashtra, Sourashtra and Delhi about
the programme of Dharmasthapana. And here, in this part of India,
certain newspapers were wallowing in the lies that they invented
and circulated about what had happened to Me. They print without
any shame their despicable inventions displaying malice and envy
of the lowest order. Of course, such calumny is quite an ancient
experience for the eminent; this is My experience in previous
Yugas also. The successors of Sisupala cannot remain idle;
consider to what low level human weakness has descended. I do not
care either for praise or blame; I only pity these people who, in
order to scrap together a few paise from the poor, resort to such
venial tricks. For all who are pained by these subhuman antics I
declare, Even if all the fourteen worlds unite together, the work
for which I have come will not suffer a bit; even if Earth and
Heaven combine. My truth can never be fully grasped.
(Anantapur High School for Girls, School day., S.S.S,Vol.V)
It is only in Sanathana Dharma that the importance of Karma in
shaping the destiny of man, the fact of the individual undergoing
many births in his progress towards birthlessness and mighty grace
of God’s coming as man among men to gather them around Him in Holy
companionship for saving them and saving the world through them,
is so strongly and clearly laid down. If you doubt any of these
great truths, you are to suffer and grieve. Every one of you must
be saved, sooner or later, by the grace of the All Merciful. Make
it sooner than later. Keep the goal clear before the eye and march
on.
(Dasara, 1966. 17/10/1966).
I am also the target of such comments: people do not understand
the way of God. How can they know why particular event takes place
at a particular time in a particular manner? He alone can know.
But people try to sit in judgment and talk ill, when for example
one dies of illness at this place: how can anyone escape death?
Even Avatars cast off the physical form when the task for which
they have come is over. It is the height of foolishness to loose
faith in God when someone you care for dies. The sentence that he
earned is over and he is released. No one is born and allowed to
live for the sake of another. Each has his own burden to carry and
lay down. Do not therefore allow any circumstances to affect your
faith in God, who is your strength and solace.
(Mahashivarathri, Prashanthi Nilayam, 09/03/1967).
You must have noticed that I do not speak about Sai in My
Discourses, nor do I sing of Sai during the Bhajan with which I
usually conclude My discourses. And you must have wondered why.
Let me tell you the reason. I do not want the impression to gain
ground that I desire this name and this Form to be publicised. I
have not come to set a new cult. I do not want the people to be
misled on this point. I affirm that this Sai form is the Form of
all the Various Names that man uses for the adoration of the
Divine. So, I am teaching that no distinction should be made
between the names Rama, Krishna, Iswara, and Sai, for they are all
My Names.
(World conference of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisation,
Bombay, 17/05/1968) .
Since at this place, those who have devotion have gathered and
people of all nations have come, I cannot but tell you one fact.
World conferences dedicated to religion or spiritual problems have,
no doubt, been held before; also, Conference of Followers of
Spiritual Faiths. But these have been held only after the demise
of the founders and divine inspirers. This is the very first time
that a world conference is held of the persons devoted, while the
Incarnation is present before every one, with the Body assumed for
the purpose, bearing the Name that is chosen for it by itself. I
must tell you this fact, because ninety nine persons out of
hundred among you do not know my Reality. You have come here drawn
by various needs, a taste for spiritual matters, eagerness to
develop the institution to which you are attached, admiration or
affection, love or reverence or spurt of enthusiasm to join others
and share with others your own exultations.
In truth, you cannot understand the nature of My Reality either
today, or even a thousand years of steady austerity or ardent
enquiry even if all the mankind joins in that effort. But, in a
short time, you will become cognizant of the Bliss showered by the
Divine Principle, which has taken upon Himself its Sacred Body and
this sacred Name. Your good fortune, which will provide you this
chance, is greater than what was available for Anchorites, monks,
sages, saints and even personalities embodying facets of Divine
Glory.
Since I move about with you, eat like you, and talk with you, you
are deluded in the belief that this is but an instance of common
humanity. Be warned against this mistake. I am also deluding you
by My singing with you, talking with you, and engaging Myself in
activities with you. But, any movement, My Divinity may be
revealed to you; you have to be ready, prepared for that moment.
Since Divinity is enveloped by humanness you must endeavor to
overcome the Maya (delusion) that hides it from your eyes.
This is a human form in which every Divine Entity, every Divine
Principle, that is to say, all the names and forms ascribed by man
to God, are manifest. (Sarvadaivathwa Sarvaroopaalanu dharinchina
maanavaakaarame ee aakaaram). Do not allow doubt to distract you;
if you only install, in the altar of your heart, steady Faith in
My Divinity, you can win My vision of My Reality. Instead, if you
swing like a pendulum of a clock, one moment devotion, other
moment disbelief, you can never succeed in comprehending the Truth
and win the Bliss. You are very fortunate that you have a chance
to experience the Bliss of the Vision of the Sarvadaivathwa
swaroopam (The Form which is the all Forms of all God) now in this
life itself.
Let me draw your attention to another fact. On previous occasion
when God incarnated on Earth the Bliss of recognising Him in the
incarnation was vouchsafed only after the physical Embodiment had
left the world, despite plenty of patent evidences of His Grace.
And the loyalty and devotion they commanded from men arose through
fear and awe, at the superhuman powers and skills, or at the
imperial and panel authority. But, ponder a moment on this Sathya
Sai Manifestation; in this age of rampant materialism, aggressive
disbelief and irreverence, what is it that brings to it the
adoration of millions from all over the world? You will be
convinced that the basic reason for this is the fact that this is
the supra-worldly Divinity in Human Form.
Again, how fortunate you are that you can witness all the
countries of the world paying homage to Bharat; you can hear
adoration to Sathya Sai’s Name reverberating throughout the world,
even while this body is existing - not at some future date, but
when it is with you, before you. And again, you can witness very
soon the restoration of Sanathana Dharma to its genuine and
natural status, the Dharma laid down in Vedas for the good of all
the people of the world. The revival of Vedic Dharma is the Sai
Sankalpa (the resolve that Sai has) not only drawing people
towards Me, attracting them by the manifestation of My Shakti
(Power) and Samartya (capability). This is not a Bhramatatwam (phenomenon
of delusion). This phenomenon (Tattwam) will sustain truth, it
will uproot untruth, and in that victory may all of you exult in
ecstasy. This is the Sai Sankalpa.
(World Conference of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisation,
Bombay, 17/05/1968).
Then we have this programme of Nagarsankirtan. It is nothing new,
for Jayadeva, Gouranga, Tukaram and Kabir used this type of
Naamasmarana as a means of self- improvement and mass spiritual
awakening. Gather in the early hours before dawn, say about 4.30
A.M or 5.00 A.M., and proceed slowly along the streets, singing
Bhajan songs glorifying God. Carry the name of God to every door:
wake the sleeping with it, purify the atmosphere of the streets,
rendered unclean by angry shouts of hate or greed, faction or
fight. Let the day dawn for you and others with thought of the
Almighty, the Compassionate, and the Omnipresent self-knowing God.
What greater service can you do to yourself and others? This will
give you health and happiness. Your egoism will be shattered when
you sing in the streets in full view of your neighbours. You will
forget in your enthusiasm all pride and self-esteem. Thus, this
Nagarsankirtan is a great Sadhana, a great piece of social service.
Another point too was raised yesterday, a small one about Prasadam
(the edible that is usually offered to the Lord after Bhajan and
distributed as consecrated food for the participants). Well, the
edible offering is to be avoided; the Name itself is the best
consecrated offering to be shared. You can give Vibuthi as
Prasadam; that is enough. That is the most precious and effective
Prasad.).
(World conference of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Organisation, Bombay
evening of 18/05/1968).
Another point; you desire that I should come to your houses: you
pray to Me to do so, you grieve when I do not come, you start
reviling yourself that you are poorer than others, that you are
spiritually underdeveloped perhaps, and so on. Now, all this is
irrelevant. I have no place in My heart for such distinctions and
differences. You may believe this or disbelieve. But, I must
reveal the real response of My heart. I have no enthusiasm to
visit the houses of the people; nor have I any disinclination to
do the same. I do not care for the brick and mortar structures in
which you live; I care to visit and reside in your hearts. This
Prashanthi Nilayam is not My residence. When your hearts are
transformed as Prashanthi Nilayam, they are My residence. When you
pray that I should visit your village, I think of the facilities
it has - not for Me. I need only standing space - for the sake of
thousand, the tens of thousands, the hundreds of thousands that
gather to have My Darshan. How can
I tolerate the slightest inconvenience to them, the women, the
children, the sick, the aged, the blind, the decrepit, that come
for counsel, consolation, courage and cure?
Let me tell you another point also. Do not delay any more; take
hold of this unique chance, even while you can. Ask me about the
Sadhana you should adopt about your liberation; begin practicing
from this day. Later it may be difficult to approach Me and ask
Me. For, people are coming towards Me in full unending streams,
and you may have to take Darshan of Me from miles away: This is
bound to grow into a Viswa-vriksha, a World-tree that sheds shade
and shelter on all. This has come down in this Form with that very
purpose. It knows no halting, no hesitation. My name is Sathya (Truth).
My teaching is Truth; My path is Truth; I am Truth.
In each Yuga, the Divine has incorporated itself as an Avatar for
some particular task. This Incarnation is different in that it had
to deal with the crisis, which is worldwide and World-shaking.
Intellectual conceit has grown so wild that men have become
foolish enough to ask, What and where is God? Immortality has put
of the garb of mortality and is enticing man into the morass of
sin. Truth is condemned as a trap; justice is jeered at; saints
are harassed as social enemies. Hence this Incarnation has come to
uphold the Truth and suppress the False. I behave like you, moving,
singing, laughing, journeying, but watch out for the blow I
inflict all of a sudden, to chastise and to warn. I shall scorch
the wrong doer for his wrong and soothe the virtuous for his
righteousness. Justice shall be meted out to all.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 18/08/1968)
I shall not change my course even by a hair’s breadth, as a result
of what people may say about Me. I am not afraid of any one or
thing. Truth has no fear; untruth shivers at every shadow. This
body of Mine is named Truth (Sathya); the principle that is in
this body is also Truth. Truth enclosed in Truth has been rendered
the Truth of Truths (Sathyasaya Sathyam). This form has been
assumed, in order to lead mankind from untruth to truth.
I eat as you do, move about as you do, talk in your language, and
behave as you can recognise and understand, for YOUR sake - not
for My sake:. I turn you towards Divine, winning your confidence,
your love, your submission, by being among you, as one of
yourselves, one whom you can see, listen to, speak to, touch and
treat with reverence and devotion. My plan is to transmute you
into seekers of Truth (Sathya-anveshakas). I am present everywhere
at all times; My will must prevail over every obstacle; I am aware
of the past, present and future, of your innermost thoughts and
carefully guarded secrets. I am Sarvaantharyami, Sarva Saktha and
Sarvajna. Nevertheless I do not manifest these powers in any
capricious manner or merely for display. For, I am an example and
as inspiration, whatever I do or omit to do. My life is a
commentary on my message.
For example, you must have noticed that I never call a woman alone
for interview. I call women only into group of ten or fifteen. I
want that you should note this and infer that one has to be
extremely cautious in dealing with the other sex, for, though I am
above and beyond, the Gunas, since this body is obviously
masculine, I want to teach both men and women how they have to
regulate their social behavior and be above the slightest tinge of
suspicion, or of small talk.
Again, I am active and busy all the twenty-four hours of the day.
Everyday, the mail brings the thousands of letters, and you hand
over to Me personally hundreds more. Yet, I do not take the help
of anyone else, even to open the envelopes. For, you write to me
intimate details of your personal problems, believing that I alone
will read them and having implicit confidence in Me. You write,
each one only a single letter, that makes for Me a huge bundle a
day; and I have to go through all of them. You may ask how I
manage it? Well I do not waste a single moment.
And, all this I do, not for personal gain, but only because I have
come for your sake. I never seek another’s help, never receive it.
My hand always gives; it never takes. Conclude from this that this
must be Divine, not human power.
Some of you may be wondering, ‘How does Swami arrange these
elaborate festivals and functions? Who does He charge with the
various items of work?’ I do not allot work to this person or that,
or consult anyone for ideas and suggestions. The Divine Will,
operating through the force of love, does all this. For example,
though there are thousands gathered here, absolute silence
prevails. Under what compulsion? Only the compulsion of love. In
other places, where a hundred people collect, a hundred and fifty
constables are present to keep them quiet: Here there is no need
for any one to see that silence is maintained. For, here God is
the Master, and Creation dances in joy. There is no third entity
here. Only Purusha and Prakriti are here. A glance from the corner
of the eye is enough to get things done towards successful
conclusion. Love activates, love fulfils.
When the Giver of Grace is here, you run after persons who claim
that they got this or the other article from Me or were blessed
with this gift from Me: When you have Kamadhenu here, why seek to
know and secure a cow? Kamadhenu can give you all that you need.
When you have Kalpataru here, why bother about fruits on a tree?
Kalpataru can give you all that you ask. When you have the
mountain of gold and silver, Meru, why cringe for silver and gold
from persons who are themselves beggars? When you have God come
amongst you to support and sustain you, why grovel through crude
vulgar entities? Avoid places where they bargain in terms of gifts,
donations, for Spiritual guidance and Transmission.
(Dasara, Prashanthi Nilayam, 11/10/1970).
Once Hislop asked me a question whether inanimate things too had
emotions and feelings of disappointment and despair? The occasion
was at Dharmakshetra: I asked that about a hundred sarees he
bought, so that I could select some, for distribution to the women
workers at Anantapur who are helping to build a Sathya Sai College
there: I selected 96 and asked them to return 4 to the shop. I
kept the 4 aside and the 96 were placed in my room. Later, when I
passed the table on which the four discarded sarees were kept (Hislop
was standing by the side of the table), it was noticed that the
card board box which contained the four was dripping tears: The
sarees were weeping; that they could not get appreciation from Me
and were declared unfit. Yes: They had shed tears. You may ask
whether this is ever possible. I answer, there is nothing in this
world which has no heart, which is incapable of feeling joy or
grief: Only you must have the eye to see, the ear to listen, the
heart to respond.
(Prashanthi Nilayam, 14/01/1971).
But those who profess to have understood me, the Scholars, the
Yogis, the Pundits, the Jnanis, all of them are aware only of the
least important the casual external manifestation part of that
power, namely the Miracles : they have not desired to contact the
source of all Power and all Wisdom, that is available here at
Brindavan. They are satisfied when they secure a chance to exhibit
their book learning and parade their scholarship in Vedic lore,
not realising that the person from whom the Vedas emanated is in
the midst, for their sake. They even ask, in their pride, for a
few more chances.
This has been the case, in all ages. People may be very near (physically)
to the Avatar, but, they live out their lives unaware of their
fortune: they exaggerate the role of miracles, which are trivial,
when compared to My Glory and Majesty, as a mosquito is in size
and strength to the elephant upon whom it squats. Therefore, when
you speak about these miracles, I laugh within Myself out of pity,
that you allow yourself so easily to loose the precious awareness
of My Reality.
My power is immeasurable; My Truth is inexplicable, unfathomable.
I am announcing this about Me, for, the need has arisen. But, what
I am doing now is only a gift of a visiting card: Let Me tell you
that emphatic declarations of the truth by Avatars were made so
clearly and so unmistakably only by Krishna. In spite of the
declarations, you will notice in the career of the same Krishna
that He underwent defeat in His efforts or endeavors, on a few
occasions you must have also noted that those defeats too, were
part of the drama, which He had planned, and He Himself directed.
For example, when many kings pleaded with Him to avert the war
with the Kauravas, He confessed that His mission to the Kauravas
court for ensuring peace had failed: But He had willed that it
should not succeed: He had decided that the war would be waged:
His mission was intended to publicise the greed and envy of the
Kauravas and to condemn them before the whole world.
Now, I must tell you that during this Sai Avatar, there is no
place for even such ‘drama’ with scenes of failure and defeats:
What I Will must take place; what I plan must succeed. I am Truth;
and Truth has no need to hesitate, or fear or bend.
‘Willing’ is superfluous for Me. For grace is ever available to
devotees who have steady love and faith. Since I move freely with
them, talking and singing, even intellectuals are unable to grasp
My Truth, My power, My glory or My real task as Avatar. I can
solve any problem however knotty; I am beyond the reach of the
most intensive enquiry and the most meticulous measurement. Only
those who have recognised My love and experienced My love can
assert that they have glimpsed My reality. For, the path of love
is the royal road that leads mankind to Me.
Do not attempt to know Me through the external eyes. When you go
to a temple and stand before the image of the God, you pray with
closed eyes, don’t you? Why? Because you feel that the inner eye
of wisdom can alone reveal Him to you. Therefore, do not crave for
from Me trivial material objects; but, crave for Me. And you will
be rewarded. Not that you should not receive whatever object I
give as sign of grace out of fulness of love.
I shall tell you why I give these things, talismans, rosaries etc.,
it is to signalise the bond between Me and to those whom they are
given. When calamity befalls them, that articles come to Me in a
flash and return in flash taking from Me the remedial Grace of
protection. The Grace is available to all who call on Me in any
name or form, not merely to those who wear these gifts. Love is
the bond that wins that Grace.
Consider the meaning of my name, Sai Baba. Sa means ‘Divine’; aye
means ‘mother’ and Baba means ‘father’, just as Saambasiva, which
also means the divine mother and father. Your physical parents
exhibit love with a dose of selfishness; but this Sai ‘ Mother and
Father’ showers affection or reprimands only for leading you
towards victory in the struggle for self-realisation.
For, this Sai has come in order to achieve the supreme task of
uniting the entire mankind as one family, through the bond of
brotherhood, of affirming and illumining the Atmic Reality of each
being in order to reveal the Divine, which is the basis on which
the entire cosmos rests, and of instructing all to recognise the
common Divine Heritage that binds man to man, so that man can rid
himself of the animal, and rise into the Divine which is his goal.
I am the embodiment of Love; Love is my instrument. There is no
creature without Love; the lowest loves itself, at least. And its
self is God. So, there are no atheists, though some might dislike
Him or refuse Him, as malaria patients dislike sweets or diabetic
patients refuse to have anything to do with sweets: those who
present themselves as atheists will one day, when their illness is
gone, relish God and revere Him.
I had to tell you so much about my truth, for, I desire that you
should contemplate on this and derive joy and reform so that you
may be inspired to observe the disciplines laid down by Me and
progress towards the Goal of Self-realisation, the Realisation of
the Sai that shines in your heart.
(Brindavan, 19/06/1974).
Swami declared, Why is it that so many lakhs of people have
gathered here today? There must be some compelling reason for it.
You must be seeking something, which you have not found in your
native place. Here there is Divine Love; It is this powerful
magnet of Divine Love that has been attracting all the iron
filings in the form of human beings. Not a single invitation was
sent to anyone. No one was asked to come. What has drawn all the
people here is power of Divine Love, the bond uniting hearts. At
the root of all this is purity. Where there is purity there love
grows. When purity and love come together, there is bliss (Ananda).
Whatever work we do, whatever sacrifices we perform, they are not
of much use in the absence of love.
NEW HOSPITAL PROJECT: With this object in view (Providing free
medical facilities), we decided to establish a big hospital here.
Many persons appealed to Me to set up the hospital in an urban
centre. There are many medical institutions run as business in
several cities. When any educational or medical institution is
established, the sole aim is to make a business out of it. There
are only a few who are ready to set up such institutions to
provide free facilities for the poor. Therefore from the start we
decided to set up a hundred crore hospital near Prashanthi Nilayam
itself. Even as higher education is free here ‘higher medicine’
also is free. People spend some lakhs to get heart surgery done in
the U.S. What is the plight of the poor? Who looks after them? If
they go to the cities, they will not get even coloured water (Mixture).
Recognising this fact, we have launched this big hospital project,
whether it is heart by-pass operation, or a kidney transplant, or
a lung operation or
brain surgery, everything will be free here. THE HOSPITAL WILL BE
OPENED ON NOVEMBER 22,1991. No one can understand Sai Sankalpa
(working of the mind) Thought and action are simultaneous, like
the light and sound that come out when a gun is fired. Hence it is
not easy for every one to understand Sai’s resolve.
In the case of earlier Avatars their fame grew only after their
passing. In the case of the present Avatar, in His own life time a
UNIVERSITY, BIG HOSPITAL, AN AERODROME, AND MANY OTHER THINGS,
have been established, for the benefit of the villagers, and many
more will follow in the years ahead. Many persons have doubts as
to how all these things are being accomplished. The ADVENT (OF
THIS AVATAR) took place 64 years ago. All these years this hand
has not been stretched, at any time, to seek anything from anyone.
I will never ask anyone and there will never be an occasion for
it. How then are these things happening? For any good work, there
is not any impediment in Bharat. When you want to do any good work
whole-heartedly, money flows in torrents.
The narrow-minded who undertake any work will never be satisfied.
They cannot understand the actions of those who are large hearted
and broad-minded.
(65th Birthday Celebrations, Hill View Stadium, 23/11/1990)
Today I have just made a beginning with the exposition of Vedanta.
Every Mantra in the Vedanta is pregnant with meaning. I shall take
up every day one Mantra and explain its meaning in simple and
easily intelligible terms. The essence of the Vedanta can be
compressed in a small message, but that small message is composed
of 15000 Mantras. I shall reveal to you the meaning of these
Mantras. This cannot be done by anyone except the Divine.
You have not known even a fragment of My reality. The full nature
of this reality can never be understood by anyone. I am a man
amongst men, when they see Me, I appear as a man. Amongst woman, I
am a woman. Amongst children I am a child. When alone, I am God.
This is the truth about Me. The reason is I have to act towards
each section at their level.
You must realise that all this is coming to you because of your
extreme good fortune. Any previous Avatar has not given this kind
of blessing to anyone.
Your good fortune will fructify immensely if you make good use of
this opportunity to learn and benefit from Swami’s teachings.
You will see in the due course that even the blind declare, "Swami
is God".
In the human condition, occasionally Maya enters and subjects
people to various tests. Do not submit to Maya in any way.
Succeed in all tests. Then you will become tasty for Bhagawan.
Immerse yourself in the love principle. Its true nature is beyond
description.
Give up all bad qualities in you, banish the ego and develop the
spirit of surrender. You will then experience Bliss.
(Sai Kulwant Hall, 31/07/1996)
Posted on 29/08/2003 by M Palaniswamy of saidevotees_worldnet
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