Love is the Force behind Compassion
Our Lord Sai is the most compassionate one. To illustrate this, I would like to narrate an instance.
On the 7th of September, 2005, a man had a severe heart problem and was admitted to the hospital. He asked his nephew who was a student at the Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School to pray to Swami. September being a festival time in Puttaparthi the nephew forgot about his uncle. Soon after darshan [sight of a holy person] the boy received a call stating that his uncle had been admitted to the ICU [Intensive Care Unit]. The boy felt really bad for not having prayed to Swami.
The next day was a special day indeed as the boy saw Swami Himself distributing clothes and other items. Taken away by the love and compassion the boy hardly prayed to Swami to take care of his uncle.
When Bhagavan was about to go back, he suddenly recollected what his mother had told him. He immediately joined his hands and prayed in his mind, “Swami please help.” Bhagavan with a smiling face looked at him and the boy felt assured. On the 10th of September the boy was assured that his uncle was out of danger.
We often feel that our prayers are being answered, but so intricate is His web that we often tend to lose track and get disconnected from Him. The ever-compassionate Sai’s life is His message, and it’s our duty having received the bounty of His proximity to follow His message.
One day as I was going to the mandir [temple], I saw a very poor and helpless woman with her child. The mother went on asking for alms from a man besides her and to give her something to eat from what he was eating. The man gave her a frustrated look. This touched me. It is quite easy to blame God for not having given us the riches, but I said to myself think of the ones who did not have a morsel of food to eat.
The day was quite bad as I had scored very badly in physics. This fact soon overpowered me, and I forgot about the mother and her child. In the mandir my whole attention was riveted to a drama that portrayed the need to serve the poor and needy. After the program was over, I received the coconut sweet that I used to cherish a lot and given an opportunity could eat even three pieces at a time. That day I thought that I should give the prasadam [blessed food] to the crying mother. So I controlled all my senses and began walking out of the mandir fighting the rising desire to eat that sweet. I saw that poor lady, went to her, and called out, “Amma.” She immediately spread out her hand and I placed the packet of the prasadam in her hand. The child smiled seeing this, the mother, too, gave a beautiful smile and suddenly I felt light at heart.
Well, being from a scientific background that demands rational thinking, I am clueless and conclude my reverie regarding this incident with the following statement, “Giving away is not only good for the spirit but it is also a beneficial heart stimulant. Health is to a great extent conditioned and controlled by the circulation of blood. That important little circulatory heart, I believe, is influenced to a greater degree than we realize by the other heart, the seat of affections, the seat of beloved Mother Sai.”
Swami often says that we must love everyone and be compassionate toward everyone, not so that we are acknowledged but importantly that he on whom we pour our compassion feels that he has been acknowledged.
Swami loves people who perform selfless acts. In the old mandir an eye camp was conducted. Soon after the camp was concluded, an old man came to the doctors and pleaded to examine his eyes. Two of the doctors said that the examination was not possible as they had packed their instruments. The old man went to the third doctor and pleaded to him to check his eyes. The doctor took pity on the patient, examined his eyes, and gave him medicines. He also asked the patient to chant, “Sairam.”
The next day all the doctors and assistants were seated together. Swami came directly to the three doctors. He asked them what they had told the old man who had come for the treatment. Two of them said that they had sent the old man away without examination as their instruments had already been packed. The third doctor said that he had examined the old man and had given him the necessary medicines. Swami added, “You also told him to repeat ‘Sairam’, is it not?” Swami asked the doctor to take padanamaskar [touching the feet]. He materialized Vibhuti [holy ash] and applied it on the doctor’s forehead. He also materialized a ring and put it on the doctor’s finger. Swami then asked the doctors, “Who do you think that old man was? It was me!”
Swami appreciates those who really love people and give away everything. In one of His discourses, while speaking about sacrifice Swami said that sacrifice is giving away something that both the giver and the acceptor need.
Einstein once stated that a human being is part of the whole world we call the universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts, and feelings as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical illusion of his consciousness. This illusion is a prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and showing affection to the people who are nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison, widening our circle of compassion, embracing all living beings and all of nature.
Compassion is the attitude of the heart, and this must be learnt from within. Loving our fellowmen takes us closer to God and makes us dearer to him.
~B. Shashank Kumar, Alumnus, Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School
Source: Sai Chandana 2010 (85th Birthday Offering)
