Birthday Message

The following quotations reflect the ways in which we as spiritual aspirants can apply Sai Baba’s teachings in our life. “You will experience the fruits of celebrating the birthday only when you follow the teachings,” He says.

“All of you are embodiments of the spirit. You are all manifestations of the Divine. The indwelling Spirit is one and the same in all beings irrespective of their external differences, like the current that illumines bulbs of different wattage and color. Fill your hearts with love. Then you can experience real bliss. With a narrow mind and heart, if you indulge in magniloquent words, no one will care to listen to you. First of all Be—be good yourself. Then Do—act likewise. Then Speak—tell others (about what is good). Only thus will you be setting an ideal example.

Do not entertain bad feelings about anyone. They do you more harm than to others. As the saying goes, ‘One’s own anger is one’s enemy and one’s peace is one’s friend and kinsfolk. One’s happiness is one’s heaven and one’s sorrow is hell’ (Telegu poem). Develop sacred and pure feelings. We claim to celebrate the birthdays of people. But the birthday is truly celebrated when there is birth of pure ideas in one.

You celebrate the birthday of Bhagavan, but do you follow the teachings? You will experience the fruits of celebrating the birthday only when you follow the teachings.”

Purity and Divinity

“The body, mind and spirit constitute a human being. The three demonstrate the nature of man and enable him to grow to his true stature. They represent the three concepts of action, awareness and realization. The body is the instrument for practising dharma (righteousness). It is the means of discharging all one’s duties. The mind is the source of good and bad thoughts. The world is understood  only through the mind. It is the instrument for judging between right and wrong, the impermanent and the everlasting.  It represents awareness or understanding.  The atma (soul) represents the pure, effulgent, eternal and unchanging consciousness. It shines within man as illuminating flame. The scriptures have characterised it as Divine. The Upanishads (Hindu scriptures) have declared that God dwells in the cave of the heart. The Bible has declared that the Divine can be experienced only through purity of the heart. The Quran (Holy book of Islam) also declares that purity of heart is essential for experiencing God. Guru Nanak (founder of the Sikh religion) declared that only through good thoughts, good speech and good actions can one realise the Divine. All faiths are one in proclaiming the supreme importance of purity of heart.”

Atma-dharma and Paradharma

“Man, however, has forgotten his true divine nature and is immersed in the vain pursuit of material pleasures.  In the process he has ignored right conduct and is prey to many ills. Men regard dharma as merely ethical conduct in daily life. But this is not so. Dharma really means recognition of the universal consciousness that is in each individual and act on the basis of the unity of that consciousness.  When this consciousness in man is enveloped in the ego, it assumes the form of three gunas [qualities] (Satva, Rajas, Thamas—goodness, activity, ignorance). When the Divine nature of this consciousness is realised, it is transformed into atmadharma, the dharma of the Self. True dharma is the realization of the unity of the Omni-Self. All worldly duties and activities bear the imprint of three gunas.  Swadharma refers to atma-dharma (the dharma of the spirit)  Paradharma is dharma (duties) relating to the world. The worldly duties are ephemeral and subject to change. They have been changing all through the ages. These should not be treated on a par with atma-dharma.  Among these worldly duties, there are duties like varna-dharma (functional duties), asrama-dharma (duties relating to one’s stage in life), and others. These duties have been laid down to help man in leading his worldly life.  But beyond them is the atma-dharma, which has to be observed for Self-realisation. By solely adhering to worldly duties, man remains at the animal level. Through the discipline of the mind, man may rise to the human level. But it is only when the .physical and mental duties are linked to the spiritual discipline that atma-dharma is observed.  The body performs actions, the mind distinguishes between right and wrong. The atma functions as the witness.  Although these three appear to differ from  each other, they are interrelared. It is only when the three are integrated and harmonised that man can achieve self-fulfilment .”

God Dwells in a Pure Heart

“What is the sadhana (spiritual practice) we should undertake? You should purify your body, mind and speech. How to purify the body?  It is not enough if it is cleaned with soap and water, which amounts to only external cleanliness. It has to be cleaned with good thoughts, good words, good deeds. This signifies purity, which is very essential on the inward path. Whatever work you do, do it with sacred feelings. Divert the body from all unsacred activities; use it only for good purposes.

In what way can you purify the mind? You can purify the mind through sense control.  Use the ten senses for sacred purposes.

See no evil, see what is good
Hear no evil, hear what is good
Talk no evil, talk what is good
Do no evil, do what is good
This is the way to God.

In order to purify the senses, you should make use of them in a sacred way. Purity of the senses is purity of the mind. The mind is the master of the senses. If the mind is to be pure, the senses have also to be pure.

How can you purify your speech? You can purify your speech by speaking truth, following dharma and cultivating love  and peace.

The moment the human body is born, aham (‘I’) also follows it.  The atma is the origin of aham; so, aham is the son of the atma. From aham the mind is born; so, the mind is the grandson of the atma.  And from mind speech originates, so speech is the great grandson of the atma. In short, the atma, aham , mind and speech belong to the same family. So, you should have the conviction that the ‘I’ principle in you is the dear son of God, the mind is the grandson and the speech is the great grandson. Once you understand that your aham, mind and speech belong to the divine family and act accordingly, your life will be sanctified.

Man finds it very difficult to have control over the senses. Due to the effect of modern education, high intelligence and advancement in science man has become a slave of his senses. Unable to control his mind, man is leading a life of fear and delusion. From where does this fear arise?  Where there is mistake there is fear. What is the mistake made by man? He has forgotten that the ‘I’ principle in him is the son of God.  He has forgotten that his mind is the grandson of God and he has forgotten that his speech is the great grandson of God.  Since he has forgotten his relationship with God, man is fear-stricken and gripped in anxiety.”

“Men should concentrate on their natural spiritual tendencies rather than succumbing to the allurements of worldly objects. For this purpose, association with good people is essential. Eschew totally the company of bad people. Good company does not mean participating in bhajans and religious gatherings. Sathsang (good company) truly means cultivating the company of one’s sath (conscience). It means being immersed in the contemplation of God. Carry on your daily duties with your thoughts centered on God. Deem every action as an offering to God. That is the way to perfect one’s human nature and sanctify one’s life.”

Let Conscience Rule

“There is no meaning in worshipping God as sathyaswaroopa, the embodiment of truth, and not adhering to truth in daily life. Dharma is born from truth. This righteousness emanates from the heart.  Righteousness promotes self-satisfaction. It is an expression of self-consciousness. Have faith in the promptings of this divine consciousness. No one should act against the dictates of his conscience. Acting in violation of the conscience is evil. Acting according to the conscience is righteousness. True worship  consists, therefore, in doing what is right as dictated by your conscience.  Divorce between thought and speech is ungodly. There should be complete accord between thought, word and deed.”

Embodiments of Love

God is not separate from you. You are God. Enquire and understand this truth. If the whole life is spent in research and experiments, when are you going to practice? Individuals may differ in names, forms and attitudes, but the atma remains unshanged. Water is referred to by different names in different languages. It is called neeru in Telugu, pani in Hindi, tanniin Tamil, vari in Sanskrit. Names vary, but water remains unchanged. Similarly, God has different names and forms, but the atmic principle remains the same. This atma is common in one and all, and is termed conscience, which has originated from consciousness.

‘The body can be compared to a color balloon. Ballons differ in their size and color, but air within them is one and the same. The same air is present inside as well as outside the ballon. The air within the balloon can be compared to conscience and the all-pervasive air to consciousness. When more and more air is blown into the balloon, ultimately the balloon bursts and the air within (conscience) merges with the air outside (consciousness). Similarly, expand your love so that the balloon of your body attachment bursts and the conscience within merges with the consciousness outside. The difference between conscience and consciousness is only in quantity, not in quality.”

The Three P’s

“If every person observes three things, he will be one with  Swami.  You will experience the Divine in you. As these three are in me, I can declare firmly on them. The three P’s are: purity, patience, perseverance. These three are in me and around me. Anyone with these three qualities will be unafraid wherever he may be.

The most important quality is purity. Today  everything is polluted.  Water, air and all the five elements are polluted. As a result the mind of man is also polluted. How is purity to be achieved? Fill your minds with thoughts of God, dedicate all your actions to God and consider God as the inner motivator. Contemplation of God is not a matter for derision. You need have no fear on that account. You must have full faith in God, who is the universal  sustainer. He is the protector, but not the punisher. The punishment you get is the consequence of your own actions.

Therefore, chanting the name of God, doing bhajans and performing good deeds, engage yourselves in service of your fellow-beings.  Nourish love in your hearts.  Love will drive away all bad thoughts.  It will promote the spirit of forgiveness.”

The Divine Wealth of Love

“The Lord has endowed you with all his wealth and Divine potentialities. You are inheritors of this wealth. You have to discover what that wealth  is.

Sai’s wealth is pure. Selfless and boundless Love. This is the truth.

The edifices you see here are not Sai’s wealth. It is pure, selfless love alone. You must inherit this Love, fill yourselves with it and offer it to the world. This is your supreme responsibility as Sai devotees.”