Seek the Guru Within You

In His discourse on Guru Poornima Day on July 30th, 1996, Bhagavan Baba said that if we turn our mind Godward, we will experience the divine bliss. The two qualities expected from devotees are shraddha [earnestness] and bhakti [devotion]. Develop the sense of spiritual oneness by continuous practice. The primary requisite is love for God.

All the stars are Brahman;
The Sun is also Brahman;
The Moon is Brahman; Water is Brahman;
Swarga is Brahman; Vaikuntha is Brahman;
Speech is Brahman; the individual is Brahman;
Birth is Brahman; Sustenance is Brahman;
Death is Brahman;
All actions are Brahman; the body is Brahman;
The whole of nature is Brahman;
Life is Brahman. This assembly is Brahman.
The Sai proclaiming this Truth is Brahman.

The tree growing out of the soil returns to the soil;
The individual arising from Brahman returns to Brahman;
This truth is not easily perceived
That is the mystery of this marvelous creation.

Embodiments of Brahman! When a seed is sown in the earth, it sprouts as a sapling and grows in due course into a big tree. In the tree, the branches, the leaves, the flowers and the fruits all appear as distinct from each other. Moreover, each of them is used for a specific purpose. But all of them are different forms of the mud from which they have originated.

Seeing a rope at a distance, suspecting that it may be a snake, a man develops fear. Soon another person arrives and assures him that it is not a snake but a rope. The moment he realizes that what he feared was a snake was only a rope, he gets rid of his fear. During all the stages, the rope was only a rope.

Likewise, the ignorant man mistakes the phenomenal world for Brahman till a Jnani reveals to him that what he thought was Nature is in reality Brahman. All that one sees in the entire universe is a manifestation of the Brahman. Some people declare: “Where is Brahman and what are we petty human beings? How can we be equal to the all-encompassing Brahman?” This is not correct. You are that omnipotent, all-pervading Brahman. Because of your worldly attitude, you are not recognizing the Reality. You are separating yourself from the Divine. All that you see is Brahman. To search for God as something different from you is a delusion. But this truth is not easily recognized by man.

When you look at the ocean, its endless series of waves and the foam from the waves, they all appear separate from each other. But the truth is they are all one. The water in the waves and in the foam comes from the same ocean and has the same qualities.

Likewise, from the infinite ocean of Sat-Chit-Ananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss), innumerable living creatures emerge like waves. While the Divine is in the state of Sathyam-Jnanam-Anantam (Truth-Wisdom-Infinity), man is in the state of Sat-Chit-Ananda.

Fill your vision with love

Embodiments of Divine Atma! When you fill your vision with love, the whole creation will appear divine to you.

The cosmos appears to you as a manifestation of diversity, but in reality there is no diversity. No one makes any effort to discover the unity that underlies the diversity.

In every human being, both Divinity and the Maya [illusion] principle are immanent. How is this to be comprehended? Sat-Chit-Ananda represents the Divine in man. The names and forms that man perceives are expressions of the Maya principle.

On the ocean, the wind is the cause of waves; on the ocean of Sat-Chit-Ananda, the wind of Maya gives rise to the innumerable living creatures. Therefore, the individuals who have emerged from the ocean of Sat-Chit-Ananda are manifestations of the Divine. Divinity is everywhere. But because of man’s ignorance, man is a prey to numerous troubles. Here is an example: Today is described as Guru Poornima Day. This is not quite correct. The day got its name because of some gurus who wanted to have an occasion for receiving offerings from their disciples. The right name for this day is Vyasa Poornima.

Vyasa was born on this full-moon day. He completed the codification of the writing of the 18 puranas on this day. Owing to the passage of time Vyasa Poornima came to be called Guru Poornima.

The Trinity and the three gunas

The true meaning of guru is “one who dispels the darkness of ignorance.” Another meaning of the word is “one who is beyond attributes and forms, namely, the Supreme Self (The Brahman).” When this Self is within you, where is the need to search for someone to teach you? A teacher who teaches others has had a teacher himself. The one who has no guru above him is the true guru. The Sanskrit stanza that hails the guru as Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheshwara and as Parabrahman is misinterpreted. The right approach is to consider Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheshwara as the guru. These three are symbolized by the three gunas [qualities]: Brahma is Rajas, Vishnu is Satwa, and Shiva is Tamas. The whole cosmos is constituted by the three gunas. The three gunas are present in man. The Trinity are present in the form of the three gunas in every human heart.

Hence, you are your own guru. You need not seek him elsewhere. The so-called gurus of today seek to impart some mantras and receive fee-offerings as guru-dakshina on Guru-Poornima day. The mantra is whispered in the ear, and the palm is stretched for an offering. This is what happens today. It is not the proper sign of a guru.

You are a guru unto yourself. All potencies are within you. This is indicated by the Gayatri Mantra. You must always feel your inherent divinity, which is also present in everyone. When you help or feed someone you must feel that the Divine in you is feeding the Divine in others.

Follow Swami to get the powers

Embodiments of Divine Atma! For many years you have been pursuing wrong paths because of the feeling of separateness. The truth is you are part of the Samashti (collective). This collective is a part of Srishti (creation). Beyond creation is Pushti (the cosmic energy). Transcending that energy is Parameshthi (the Supreme Omni Self). You are all these as an embodiment of the Divine. You must proceed from the individual to a realization of the Omni Self.

All are manifestations of the Divine. You may ask whether you can ever acquire the powers possessed by Swami. Follow me. You are bound to get that power. That power is latent in you. But you are not aware of it. You want to experience bliss. If you truly follow Swami, you will discover that bliss is within you. Nor is that all. You will find that bliss all around you, wherever you go. You cannot find that bliss in the physical world. It is wholly within you. Consider yourself as Brahman (Divine) at all times and in all situations. You will thereby become one with the Divine.

Turn your mind Godward and you will experience the bliss of the Divine. It is for this reason that Swami gives you advice from time to time as to what you should do and what you should avoid. All this is not for my sake but for your own good, to make you take to the path of God-Realization, to teach you the supreme truth about the Brahman, and to make your sacred life an ideal one.

Every man should strive to become an ideal human being. This means that everyone should testify to his Divinity. Imagine how happy everyone would be if the entire world was filled with this pure, sublime, and sacred ideal.

Recognize that God is your preceptor. He is the preceptor of preceptors. When you have such an all-pervading guru, why should you hanker after gurus of lesser breed?

Names vary but the Lord is One

All are children of God. All are embodiments of the Divine, as declared in the Gita. Vishnu is described as the Lord carrying in His four hands the conch, the discus, the mace, and the lotus. These four represent the cosmic power of sound, the wheel of time, the puissance of the Lord, and the heart in which the Lord dwells. There is a certain naivety about the way in which Vaishnavites [followers of Vishnu] and Shaivites [followers of Shiva] adore the same deity, Venkateshwara. Vaishnavites hail Him as “Venkataramana,” while Shaivites hail Him as “Venkateshwara.” The votaries of each sect derive some special satisfaction from using a particular name, though the Lord they worship is one and the same. The names vary but the Lord is one.

Shiva is called Pashupati (the Lord of cattle). Krishna is worshipped as Gopala (the Lord of cows). The emblems of Shiva and Vishnu have common characteristics. Sectarian differences are out of place in the worship of the Divine.

Students should learn a lesson from a musical instrument like the Veena. It has different strings producing different vibrations. But if the vibrations are discordant, the music jars on the ears. Just as there should be harmony in playing on the Veena, there should be harmony among people in a country professing different faiths.

Shraddha and Bhakti

Shirdi Baba used to ask for two rupees from devotees who came to him. The two rupees symbolized shraddha (earnestness) and bhakti (devotion). These are the two qualities he expected from the devotees. The combination of the two is essential for spiritual progress. Only then bliss will emerge like a plant from a seed.

From this day onward, give up all differences and concentrate on realization of the Brahman (the Omni Self). All are embodiments of Brahman. In due course all will realize this truth by eschewing narrow-minded differences. Develop the sense of spiritual oneness by continuous practice. This sense is bound to grow if you act up to Swami’s injunctions. The primary requisite is love for God.

Source: Sathya Sai Speaks, Vol. 29