God Never Changes

I love miracles. I love to witness them. They make me feel happy. In the presence of a miracle, it seems there is nothing impossible in this world with God. When I see or hear of a miracle, I feel God is near at hand, before my eyes.

It is God who can perform miracles; the rest of us can at best produce magic, which is only delicious illusion; there is nothing permanent about it. The miracles of Bhagavan have an enduring value; they create faith and hope, which is something to live by. Dominated by His supreme intelligence these miracles are possible; if the universe is dominated by a Sprit that is all love, truth, and joy, then miracles are possible that are all love, truth, and joy. When that sprit descends into flesh, incarnates as the Avatar, this miracle itself would make further miracles a reality.

Throughout all the miracle-stories of Bhagavan there is the unmistakable positive note of His Divine authority. Let us not forget that He takes upon Himself the death pangs of sincere devotees those who call out to Him in despair and then He seems to suffer it. But He is as great in His suffering for others as He is oblivious and majestic in supreme unconcern about Himself.

He is and has to be His own healer; with one part He heals that part of His body that has gone numb with paralysis; the Shiva in Him cures the Parvati in Him that is prostrate with paralysis.

In India miracles after miracles have followed in the footsteps of the Divine incarnations. The pages of the Ramayana,Mahabharata, and the Bhagavata will bear eloquent testimony to the innumerable miracles wrought by the Avatars as object lessons for humanity. Let us take the case of that perfect example of a human television set that relayed happenings on the battlefield of Kurukshetra to Prince Dhritarashtra. Krishna Dwaipayana endowed Sanjaya with clairvoyance and clairaudience so that He could not only see what was going on in the battlefield but could also hear what the heroes were saying; and Sanjaya began to relate the events on the battlefield and conversations between Lord Krishna and Arjuna and out of this narration of Sanjaya was born the immortal Gita. So the birth of Gita is to be seen in a miracle and the miracle is by a Divine Personality, Veda Vyasa. Take again, how a stone produced that destructive force called Narasimha that killed Hiranyakasipu and the devotee was saved.

As we grow in the knowledge and love of Bhagavan Sathya Sai Baba, we grow in the understanding of His miracles. They are meant to emphasize the supremacy of the Divine over nature, the power of sprit over matter. Bhagavan has come to bring spiritual uplift to us, to save us from our misdeeds. He has come to convince us of the Existence of God and His Kingdom of Righteousness. He showers blessings to heal us of bodily infirmity. He has come not only to heal the body but to heal the heart that is sick, a far harder task. He has come to help us to help ourselves from our own folly, from the powers of darkness and ignorance. Some people think that mere prayers and faith can perform miracles. But only the Divine Spirit of God—the Savita—the Life Giver can manifest miracles.

There is another aspect of Bhagavan’s miracles that has not received proper emphasis. I refer to its Holiness. It is burning Holiness. It burns the dross away; the pure gold of evolved personality remains. Did not Baba’s Holiness shatter the naked Sadhu’s pretense? The Sadhu was sent from the town where he was displaying not only nudity of body but nakedness of sprit. A whole life spent in a fruitless make-believe was destroyed in a moment by Baba’s Holiness.

Notice the same holiness, which convinced Kalpagiri, whose soul was heavy with a murder that He had committed, to go to the police, surrender himself, confess His guilt and undergo the sentence. And Kalpagiri, unable to stand before that Holiness, determined to surrender himself and take the punishment and obey Baba even unto death. ‘Go, confess, and undergo cheerfully whatever punishment they give you. You will not be hanged. I promise you that your neck shall wear a Japamala (rosary), which I shall myself put around it. Come to Me after the sentence is over.’ That burning Holiness drove Kalpagiri to atone for the evil deed.

He went to the police, surrendered himself, confessed his guilt, was tried for murder, and sentenced to death in due course of law. Bhagavan’s assurance flowered into reality and the President intervened with His prerogative of mercy. Kalpagiri’s life was saved. Once again, the verse of the Gita has come to life: “My devotees can never perish”. The Lord was as true when He uttered that on the battlefield of Kurukshetra in the dim past as He is today. Then it was Lord Krishna who held out that assurance. Today it is Sathya Sai Bhagavan. God never changes; yes, He changes never.

~A. K. Das, Bar-at-Law
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, July 1969

Man has to master two foes — Kala and Kama, the ravaging tactics of Time and the undermining strategy of Desire. He must not allow Time to rob him of strength and vitality too soon; he must not allow Desire to lead him astray from the search for Shiva—who mastered both Kala and Kama. He subdued Kala or Yama in the Markandeya episode; He burnt Kama, when he dared draw Him into his bond. 

~Baba