An Ocean of Love, Compassion, Grace, and Bliss
Justice V. Balakrishna Eradi, a devotee of Bhagavan Baba, was a member of the Council of Management of the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust since its inception in 1972. He had a very illustrious career and retired from the Supreme Court of India in June 1987. Justice Eradi merged at the lotus feet of our Lord in December 2010.
In this world of today, we find only mutual suspicion, fear, conflict, and chaos at every level—domestic, national, and international; selfishness, jealousy, and greed dominate people‘s conduct, attitude, and social behavior; hypocrisy and untruth pervade every sphere of human activity, and time honored principles and basic values have all been cast to the winds. The sole source of hope for the redemption of mankind lies in the most lustrous spiritual beacon of light shining from Prasanthi Nilayam. These powerful rays reach out to every part and corner of the globe carrying the message of satya (truth), dharma (righteousness), shanti (peace), prema (purest unselfish love), and ahimsa (non-violence), offering to man hope, solace, mental peace, and spiritual upliftment for everlasting bliss.
The greatest miracle that Bhagavan Baba performs is the transformation that He brings about in the minds, hearts, and lives of hundreds of thousands of His devotees all over the globe. It is a silent revolution that is continuously taking place in the minds of millions of devotees. The animal nature is slowly and steadily replaced by the noble instincts that are true human attributes. Thence comes about a gradual evolution elevating them to that level of consciousness where there is a realization of one’s true identity with the Divine—”Aham Brahmasmi—Shivoham” [I am Brahma—I am Shiva].
Every person feels this mysterious transformation of the mind even during his first visit to Prasanthi Nilayam. Soon after one enters the sacred precincts of the ashram, there is a noticeable change in one‘s attitudes—all bad thoughts are automatically swept out of one‘s mind and virtuous and noble instincts start appearing. One develops a clear sense of detachment as is evidenced by total unconcern for what is happening in the material world and the absence of any craving for newspapers, radio, television and so forth. One learns to observe the sadhana [spiritual effort] of silence from the first day and drops the old habit of unnecessary talk and gossip.
After the first few pilgrimages to the sacred abode, faith and devotion take stronger roots in the hearts of devotees, and a firm conviction develops that the beloved Lord Sai, whom he adores, resides primarily in his own heart. Thus, his heart becomes transformed into a ‘Prasanthi Nilayam’ and all the noble qualities and sentiments experienced during his stay at the ashram become permanent attributes of his innate nature. To the true devotee, Bhagavan’s grace that he has earned is his most precious asset and he would most zealously guard that treasure without allowing the six enemies of lust, anger, envy, greed, pride, and jealousy again to gain entry into his mental system. He is ever conscious that Bhagavan is not merely guiding and protecting him but is also closely watching not merely his words and actions but also his thoughts. This prompts him to be absolutely pure in his thoughts, sweet in his words, and just and upright in his actions.
Life in the modern age has become so complicated and ridden with problems of various kinds that man has hardly the time to apply himself to a deep study of the vast body of spiritual literature embodying the precepts of the great religions. Taking note of this, Bhagavan has through the medium of His divine discourses given us the quintessence of the fundamental teachings contained in all the great religions in a simplest form understandable by even the commonest of minds. Bhagavan has told us that we can earn the love and grace of the Lord only by recognizing that prema [love] is the most important spiritual principle to be observed in our lives and that we must fill our hearts with pure unselfish love, that we should gradually expand our hearts so that our love becomes all-inclusive, and that such pure love should manifest itself in the form of service to fellow-beings, without any distinction of caste, creed, color, or religion, rendered with humility and devotion, with the firm conviction that every living being is an embodiment of the divine, and hence in serving any person in need of help of any kind, one is really serving the Lord.
Bhagavan has further taught us that once we develop universal love there will be no place at all in our hearts for ego and selfishness that are the root cause of all the other bad qualities such as anger, greed, pride, jealousy, etc. All these evil traits will automatically cease to be part of our nature. When that happens, one is transformed into a pure Satwic [pure] person filled with self-confidence, ever ready for self-sacrifice in the cause of the suffering humanity, thereby derives self-satisfaction and finally reaches the goal of self-realization as a jeevan mukta (a fully liberated person even while alive).
Bhagavan’s teachings emphasize the unity of all religions and the need for developing equal respect for all religions, treating all faiths as sacred paths leading to the same supreme goal.
The emblem of the Sathya Sai Organization contains symbols representing the five major religions of the world. Inspired by this symbol and united in their hearts by the strong bond of devotion to the Divine master, millions of Sai devotees spread over the different continents, conjointly endeavor to spread Bhagavan’s message of love and service by precept and practice and to inculcate in the younger generation, through the Bal Vikas program, a proper sense of ethical, moral, and spiritual values.
It is indeed a heartening feature that Bhagavan’s scheme of Education in Human Values has been incorporated in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools not only in several states in this country, but also in many educational institutions in different overseas countries.
Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning is the only university of its kind in the world where academic instruction of the highest standards of excellence is combined with value-based education. In refreshing contrast to the commercialization of education that one finds almost everywhere else, the education imparted in this unique university established by Bhagavan is totally free, no fees of any kind being charged to the students for their education from the lower kindergarten class up to and inclusive of the Ph.D. course.
Bhagavan has declared that His objective is to bring about a global integration of entire mankind where the whole human race will be united as one world-family, knit together by strong bonds of mutual love and respect believing in the fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man. The recent unexpected developments in the international sphere, such as the termination of the cold war, the removal of walls and barriers separating Eastern and Western Europe, and the most welcome signs of establishment of friendly relations between the “Big Super Powers”, which were hitherto ranged on opposite sides and were piling up nuclear and congenital weapons for use against each other are clear signs that the Divine sankalpa [Divine will] is fast taking concrete shape. Bhagavan has His own time schedule for completion of His programs.
To those of us who are already fairly advanced in age, we should feel jubilant over our having had the greatest good fortune of being born during the period of the advent of this Avatar and, what is even more important, having had the great blessing of coming into contact with the Divinity incarnate.
I have had the good fortune to be at Bhagavan‘s lotus feet for the past 27 years and this has been the most eventful and fruitful period in my life. Speaking from personal experience, I can say that the impact of Bhagavan‘s overflowing love and compassion is such that one’s attitude to life undergoes a total change.
Nothing happens in the life of a devotee except by His sankalpa. Each of us has come to this world with a backload of past karma [action] accumulated over many past births, and we have to face the consequences of that karma, good as well as unpleasant. Bhagavan, who knows fully the whole past record of each soul, considers at every crucial stage what would be best for the spiritual evolutionary progress of that soul and shapes His sankalpa [intention] in such a way as to promote the spiritual advancement of that soul. Bhagavan sees us not as just this body but only as the indwelling soul and concerns Himself with the progress of that soul toward attainment of the ultimate goal of total merger in His Divine lotus feet. This is not to say that Bhagavan does not pay attention to the material welfare of the devotee; far from it.
When I first went to Bhagavan I was a young practicing advocate who had built up a decent volume of private practice in the High Court of Kerala besides being Senior Government Pleader. As is well known, it is the ambition of almost every young advocate to get elevated to the High Court Bench, and to this I was no exception. But I could not legitimately aspire for such elevation at the time when I first went to Bhagavan since I was then too young in age by the standards that were in vogue during those days, when persons below 50 years of age were not ordinarily considered for High Court Judgeship. I had never mentioned to Bhagavan anything about my professional career at any time. But the all-knowing Lord decided, within a very short time of my taking refuge at His lotus feet, that I should become a High Court Judge. Only because of His sankalpa I was elevated to the Bench of the Kerala High Court at the very young age of 44 years.
Thereafter I was appointed in due time as Chief Justice of the High Court. It is not without great significance that I received the intimation conveying the news of my appointment as Chief Justice that was communicated by telegram in Prasanthi Nilayam on Bhagavan‘s Birthday in 1979. Even prior to that, on 26th January, 1976, Bhagavan had told me to get ready to go to Delhi to take my seat on the Bench of the Supreme Court.
On Guru Poornima Day in 1980 (17th July, 1980) Bhagavan announced to the devotees sitting on the veranda of the mandir (temple) in Prasanthi Nilayam, “Eradi has been appointed to the Supreme Court.” No official move of any kind had even been announced by the Government of India or by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court up till then. But on the very next day after I returned to Ernakulum i.e. on 20th July, I received a telephone call from the Chief Justice of India offering me a judgeship in the Supreme Court and asking for my consent to accept the appointment. This is how Sai sankalpa works!
In the spiritual sphere also, Bhagavan has showered His kindness by giving me very precious opportunities to serve Him through the Sai Organization and the Central Trust.
In the day-to-day family life also, we have been enjoying the constant grace and care of Bhagavan. Bhagavan has always responded to our call for help in times of distress, saving us from a serious car accident, effecting miraculous cures of serious illnesses of myself, my wife, and our two children, even by materializing for the said purpose medicines (shining globules for me, and for my son a sealed polythene packet of divine capsules). In many other diverse ways also Bhagavan has come to our aid in various difficult situations. To summarize, our existence has become meaningful only because of the mercy and grace of Bhagavan and without Him our life is absolutely empty and purposeless. “Twam Eva Sarvam Mama Deva Deva—Thou art my everything, oh my Supreme Lord.” Similar must be the experience of many other devotees.
In an article, which I contributed to the first issue of “Golden Age” in 1978, I had described Bhagavan as a “Vast Ocean of Grace and Bliss.” Twelve years later, on further deliberation in the light of added experience, I now feel that it would be more correct and appropriate to describe Bhagavan as a “Vast Ocean of Love, Compassion, Grace and Bliss.”
Source: Sai Vandana 1990 (65th Birthday Offering)
