Stagnation in the Same Class
Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba spoke on the occasion of Uttarayana [the northward journey of the Sun] and said that we should try and progress in our spiritual efforts and go further in our journey to reach the One who resides in all.
When the Sun, the deity that inspires the vision, moves north, man too must develop the northward or the Divine urge and engage himself in tasks that will take him nearer to God. That is the meaning of dividing the year into two—the southward half and the northward half. But that is just a warning and an exhortation. Man can overcome the limitations of south and north; he has always, throughout the year, the northward or the Divine urge driving him onward and upward. He need not wait for the Makarasankranti (starting of Sun’s northward journey) or stop with the Karkatakasankranti (starting of Sun’s southward journey). All spiritual endeavor aims to attract of God’s grace on us. That is why when you go to a temple and stand before the main shrine, you strike the bell hung there. The sound will draw the Lord’s attention to the supplicant who has just arrived; a sincere prayer from the heart must accompany the bell.
Spiritual effort should not become a mechanical repetition of set formulae or execution of dry formalities. A sage who lived long ago had a cat in his hermitage. Whenever he performed a homa (offering oblations to Divinity via consecrated fire), the cat frisked about the fire and gave a lot of trouble to him. So he used to catch it in advance and keep it under an inverted basket for the duration of the homa. His son who watched this operation for years thought that this catcatching and catimprisonment were vital parts of the ritual itself. So he took great trouble to seek out a cat before every homa and felt happy when he got one that he could keep under an inverted basket in the same room. That is an example of meaningless mechanization.
Maintain inner equanimity
It is maya (illusion) that makes man take the nama and rupa (the name and the form) as real. Attachment is born out of this maya only. It acts like a veil to hide the reality behind all this multiplicity. Maya is the vesture of God; he who believes it to be true is man. By sadhana [spiritual effort], a man can escape from the enticement of maya and realize that it is all false, for it does not subsist for all time. Potharaju knew that all is God: he wrote that the Bhagavad was composed by God residing in him. He is the One in all; Maam ekam—Me, the only One—as the Gita says. He surrendered fully to God. Srinatha, his brotherinlaw, himself a great poet, pleaded with Potharaju to dedicate his Bhagavad to the King, who would certainly reward him with heaps of precious gems. But Potharaju brushed him aside: How can any one have a ride in two boats at the same time? He asked Srinatha. His mind refused to wander away from Rama’s feet, where it had tasted nectar.
Gopanna, too, had no other thought than the beautification Rama’s residence, and to serve Rama at Bhadhrachalam. Tyaga (renunciation) alone can grant the immortality of merging in God. You must be unaffected, ever in calm joy, in the inner depths. It does not matter if the waves play on the top, heaving and falling, for that is but the action of wind upon water! Do not lose the inner equanimity; maintain it with all your strength.
Three classes of devotion
How long can you stagnate in the same class? Have you no wish to get promoted to the next higher class? In devotion, there are two classes, sahajabhakti and visheshabhakti. Sahajabhakti is satisfied with worship, bhajan, namasmaran, vratha (group singing, remembrance of Lord, fasting), pilgrimage, etc. Visheshabhakti craves for purity of character, suppression of impulses, practice of daya, prema, shanti, ahimsa (compassion, love, peace, and nonviolence), etc., and inquiry into the why and wherefore of man. It is a matter of shame that people stick to the same class year in and year out. Then there is another higher class named parabhakti, too. Cleverness can correct and solve external problems; concentrated sadhana alone can correct and solve internal crisis.
Four friends once started dealing in cotton. They had a warehouse for the storage of the bales. Finding that the cottonseeds attracted rats into the warehouse, they introduced a cat to scare the rodent. They tied jingles to her feet and since they loved it much, the jingles were of gold! Once, when the cat jumped from the top of the pile of bales, it started limping on one foot. So they applied some balm and tied a long strip of bandage round the injured foot. The bandage got loose and the cat, unaware of the long narrow cloth she was trailing behind her, sat near the fireplace. When the cloth began to burn, she ran helterskelter and fled into the warehouse itself, where the entire stock of cotton was reduced to ashes in a trice. The four friends had each assigned to themselves one of the feet of the jointly owned cat. Since the injured foot belonged to one of them, the other three claimed damages from him.
Six enemies threaten man
The matter went to court. After hearing arguments on both sides, the judge said, “The injured leg has no responsibility, for it was taken into the warehouse with the trail of fire by the three healthy feet. So damages have to be paid by the owners of the healthy feet to the owner of the limping foot.” What may thus appear correct at first sight might prove wrong on second thought. There is a correct viewpoint from the worldly perspective and a correct viewpoint from God’s. Find out what God’s point of view would be by associating with godly men; they can give you proper advice. You should seek and not avoid good men.
In the months of Shravana and Bhadhrapada [the rainy months], the crops are thirsty in the fields. But man is ever afflicted with thirst of a different kind, to drink the poisonous water of sensual pleasure. Each one is entitled to a crown after the surrender, the total surrender, of the six enemies that threaten his domain: kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada, and matsarya (lust, anger, greed, delusion, pride, and envy). He wears a crown with these foes still formidable inside him and carries not gems on his brow, but stones. He is coolly carrying stone. The real coronation is that of Vibhishana, performed under the auspices of Rama, a status won through surrender and sacrifice.
Nails on the track puncture a tube in the bicycle tire; “I” and “mine” are two nails that puncture the progress of man. Discrimination and detachment are the two aidesdecamp of man. Keep them strong and give them full facility; for they help man to live unharmed and joyful. There was a son who, when asked by his father what course he would like to take after his school certificate, replied, “the Race Course.” That is the consequence of not having these bodyguards.
Feel the presence of God
When Krishna leapt down from His chariot with Chakrayuda (the wheelweapon) in His hand to slay Bhishma [the grand sire of Mahabharata], Arjuna jumped down with Him, and holding both His feet, he prayed, “Oh Lord, You have given word that You will not wield any weapon. Let it not be said that You broke Your word to save me from Bhishma; I am prepared to die.” That was the measure of his devotion. Bhishma, too, had equal devotion. He did not step forward to fight the new challenge, nor did he question the Lord. He stood silent, drinking in the charm of the Lord and filling himself with the vision of the magnificence of God. That was the measure of his dedication to His will.
Become attached to God. Feel His presence and revel in His glory. Do not cause Him ‘disappointment’ or ‘distress’ by any act or word that He does not approve. Do not give Him the slightest ‘bother’ or ‘worry.’ He has none, but if you love Him deeply, you will be concerned about Him, just as if He is your Lord and love. Jatayu had an unremitting stream of Rama-thoughts and Rama rewarded him. Rama came to him in his last moments and Himself performed his last rites, a duty He did not carry out directly even for His father!
When Krishna returned from the court of Duryodhana after His mission for peace on behalf of the Pandava brothers, Sahadeva told Him, “Pardon us, Oh Lord. I knew the rogues would not pay heed; I would have stopped You from proceeding to their den, but You were so kind.” God will serve you; He will save you and be by your side ever—only you have to cultivate your character and polish your interior so that He might be reflected therein.
God likes sweetness as an offering
Let His will be done—this should be your guide-line. The Emperor of the Cholas [an ancient Indian dynasty] sought to visit the Srirangam Gopuram temple, of which he had heard much. He got his chariot ready and moved forward many times in six months; but every time a recluse in ochre robes with a rosary round his neck and a halo around his head intercepted the vehicle. When the emperor alighted to honor him, he kept him engaged in conversation that was so enchanting that he forgot his journey and its goal.
One day, when he lamented over his failure to fill his eyes with the glory of Srirangam, the Lord appeared before him and said, “Why do you lament? I am the Master who came to you so often as soon as you set out for Srirangam; recognize Me in all, that is the genuine pilgrimage to Srirangam.” Consider all whom you meet as the Lord of Srirangam, your Master. Show untarnished love toward all who come to you. What is the service that the ocean with all its mass of water does? It cannot slake the thirst of a single human being. What is the profit if a miser lives a hundred years? This is My message to you this day: Do not exhibit anger or grief or pain. Be happy, spread happiness around you. Sweetness alone is the offering that God likes.
There was a man once who hired an aged elephant for the bridal procession on the occasion of his daughter’s marriage. After the ceremony, when the procession returned home, the bride descended from the howdah and at that very moment the elephant crumpled and died. The owner of the elephant was shocked at the news; he refused to take it as an unavoidable misfortune. He insisted that the identical animal had to be returned to him alive. He went to court on this issue. The judge had some mud pots kept at the back of the door that the greedy owner had to open for passing through. When he opened it, the whole lot was broken. The judge insisted that he had to restore those very pots! Thus was sense driven into that fellow’s brain.
Do not have this type of stupid fanaticism; modify its rigor by a little discrimination. Be reasonable, considerate, sympathetic, and full of toleration of the other points of view. Improve yourselves day by day in these matters. That is My blessing for you today.
Source: Sathya Sai Speaks, Vol. 7
