Brindavan
In the journey of life, youth travels farthest; the middle aged and the old have but a few miles to go. Youth have a crucial and significant role in the mission of Lord Sai. Therefore, Bhagavan pays special attention to the education and reconstruction of the Youth of the country. He affords Youth more opportunities of sharing His company and counsel.
A couple of hundred boys of this vast land have spent the last five years or so and had the good fortune of coming under His Divine care, at Brindavan where they have resided in the Hostel attached to the Campus, for the students of the Sri Sathya Sai College also situated within the same campus. Had the Rishis of old ever known that life in the Brindavan Hostel would be so happy and fruitful, they would have done years of hard penance for winning this boon. For, the boys sit for hours at the Lotus Feet of the Lord; they follow Him wherever He moves, drawn by the Love He bestows upon them; they sing of Him for Him and with Him. They are even privileged some days to serve the Lord at mealtimes and to partake of the Divine Prasadam. When they are unable to be with Him at places other than Brindavan, they receive from Him Divine messages conveying His concern, His encouraging counsel, and His Blessings.
Academically, the College offers Degree Courses in Humanities, Science and Commerce, besides a two-year Pre-University Course of Instruction. But we have morning-prayers every day, a daily noontime bhajan session for half an hour, and a weekly lesson on moral principles and practice. The discipline maintained in the College and the teacher-student relationship prevalent therein are uniquely spiritual and spontaneous. The College has won laurels year after year among all the Colleges of the University for outstanding successes of its alumni in University Examinations.
But the all-important feature of the College is the Hostel, which is unique because it has among the inmates, boys from all parts of India (and even some places beyond the seas), from Lucknow to Trivandrum and from Baroda to Manipur. In the Hostel, we are shaped into self-less servants of the motherland and votaries of the Culture that the Rishis of old have established. Here, hearts are purified, lives are fortified and prejudices and angularities are nullified. It is in Brindavan that minds broaden, visions widen, and the roots of virtue deepen. Brindavan can be named the “Divine Chitta-Shuddhi School”.
It stands unique, even when compared to the gurukuls of which we read, as having existed in ancient India. For, never has the Lord come in human form to teach Atmavidya to so many for so long, and with so much love. Here, Darshan, Sparshan and Sambhashan are vouchsafed by the Lord in abundant measure.
Bhagavan’s Love is annihilating, for, it slays the deadly foes that lurk in the hearts of the recipients. His Love is transforming. As He has said often, His Love and Grace have transformed many a vagrant youth loafing in the streets fascinated by trivialities into earnest, humble, steady sadhakas eager to help themselves, their parents and society, and thus win His appreciation. “Street dogs have to be transformed into streetlights”, He says, for, light spreads joy! His Love is inspiring. He draws out the best in each and prepares them for confronting with courage any test that life might offer. His Love radiates and expands, so that the recipients are messengers of that Love wherever they go. It knows no season; it is above any reason. It is Love for Love’s sake. And we too imbibe that pure Love; we Love because it is our nature to Love, and not succumb to hate, jealousy, or pride.
If Arjuna was the instrument for Sri Krishna to give the immortal Bhagavad-Gita to posterity, we, the boys of Baba’s College at Brindavan, feel that we are destined to exemplify the message of the Gita that Bhagavan confers on us through our lives. That message lays special stress on the true meaning and purpose of the years we spend at college. Sacrifice and dedication are, we are told to remember, the criteria of a true life. The body is but an instrument for the achievement of the Divine qualities that will consummate in our becoming Divine ourselves. Conquer the ego and be the master of the senses that are its minions, He directs.
Bhagavan guides us even in the details of behavior, manners and mannerisms, ideals and ideas. He is a hard taskmaster, who does not condone or excuse misdemeanors, however small. Bhagavan is, for us, the ever-present Exemplar and Teacher. He teaches mostly by example the lessons of perfection in work, economy, liberality in giving, and open heartedness in service. He encourages self-reliance and simplicity; we love to help in the kitchen either making chapattisor in cutting vegetables, besides the usual help in managing the purchases and management, under the guidance of resident wardens. We serve at mealtimes by turns; we clean the rooms. We are glad we can go, on nagarsankirtan, into the neighboring villages on Sundays and on most Thursdays. We look forward to the Bhajan sessions in the hostel and at college.
Devotion, Discipline and Duty are the mottos that direct our daily lives. The atmosphere is one of quiet sanctity and the air is saturated with love and the spirit of service. Physical inconveniences pale into insignificance, before the advantages of mental peace and the spiritual satisfaction that we experience. In fact, the only occasion when Brindavan appears a little gloomy is when Bhagavan’s car drives away.
As a graduate from the Hostel, presently studying in a Post-graduate Institution in Bangalore City wistfully remarked recently, “Life in Brindavan is beyond compare; if there is Paradise on Earth, it is this, it is this, it is this!”
~A Student
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, April 1976
