Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 2/37

In March 1981, I was privileged to be in Brindavan, the residence of Bhagawan, along with many others. As we waited eagerly for the flash of the Red Robe, He appeared before us with the beaming smile; His eyes cast forks of Lightning (Vidyullekha) around. I waited in grateful expectancy for events to unfold themselves. In Baba's Presence the unexpected can and does happen!

Baba turned towards me and said, "So, you have been transferred to Bangalore!" This was several months after my transfer had materialised and an equal length of time after I had reported to Him before taking charge at Bangalore of my assignment! Why is Baba feigning ignorance? I used to wonder why the `Omnipresent' and the `Omniscient' One asks such questions. Now, I have discovered an answer which I believe is convincing.

Imagine Baba telling before everybody about us, what is in our mind at the moment, and what our deeds and misdeeds were until then. How many of us can muster courage to go to Him next? If He reveals all the time His Divinity by manifesting His "Omnipresence and Omniscience" few of us will dare go to Him; the facade of devotion which we maintain in His Presence, is so fragile that it will be shattered at the slightest touch. We will desert Him and give no scope for improving and transforming us. But, that is the task for which He has incarnated. So, in His mercy He gives us the impression that He is human, and envelops us with His maya, to keep us with Him until the slow process of transformation is consummated. We will have to be persuaded to give up our undesirable habits, `kramakramena', gradually.

Returning to the question He asked me, I replied, "Yes! Swami!" and I utilised the chance of nearness to volunteer some additional information. "Swami! I have only 71 days more before I retire from Government Service.” I hoped He would bless me with "Yes, Bangaroo!" and an assurance, "Time will pass; and you will join Swami's Service." Instead, He turned round and looked at me with those penetrating eyes. Out came the Sadguru's mantra, "Whether it is 71 days, 71 hours, 71 minutes or 71 seconds, quality is important," and in His characteristic style, He turned round and conveyed the message to all. "Quality of work is most important, isn't it?" He asked them, confronting them too with the Divine Dictum.

This is Baba; He uses every occasion to convey to all present lessons on how to apply spirituality in daily living, by such seminal mantras. He aims the mantra also at others who might benefit by the lesson. One will miss the Import of His statement if one thinks that it was meant only for the individual who happened to be the target of the teaching.

With the mantra Baba shook me from my stupor. He has repeatedly said that all the work we do for whomsoever it be, whatever it be and under whatever auspices, is work for Him. There is nothing like Sai Service, different from Government Service. All that you do is for Sai only; though apparently it is for yourself, really it is for Sai. I knew all this, but I must admit, that I had forgotten the lesson when I expressed relief at only a short period of 71 days remaining for me to retire from Service. The ever vigilant Sadguru gave me the lesson again at the right moment.

"Quality foremost!” What a grand formula for Ananda! I should not now attach importance to what happens after 71 days. I should not forget that it is His work which I am engaged in. I should carry out the work assigned by Him with emphasis on the highest quality I am capable of. It is His worship that is being done through the assignment. "The past is beyond recovery. Those days are gone. The future you are not sure of. The given moment is NOW! Sanctify it with holy thoughts, words and deeds." "The most important thing in life is not doing what you like, but liking what you have to do," He has told us. These are the guidelines for instilling spirituality in daily living.

Can we practise this in the office, in the factory, in the kitchen or wherever our avocation lands us? No doubt we can; we should only bear in mind some other mantras He has given us. We can sanctify our thoughts, words and deeds if they are not motivated by the six enemies which the sages have identified, Kama (passion), Krodha (anger), Moha (attachment), Lobha (greed), Mada (pride) and Matsarya (envy). Difficult? Yes, but not impossible. Read any modern book on psychology, you will learn from them too that diseases are due to these six; for they are psychosomatic in origin.

While filling every moment with "quality,” we are fully involved in the work and naturally we will be enjoying the quality of the work we do. That joy, the self satisfaction which induces self respect, itself is the "fulfillment.” In fact, the sweetness of the process is to be coveted more than the final result. The game is more important than victory or defeat. That is the real meaning of the Lord's advice in the Gita, "Work alone is thy concern; not the fruit thereof."

Knowing that we are all dangerously forgetful, let us pray, "Baba! Give us the wisdom to remember your mantra when it is most needed and inspire us to fill every moment with work of the highest `quality' using fully the abilities you have endowed us with."

BEACON OF LOVE

Beacon of Love - Times of India Special Supplement

A Special Times of India supplement on Bhagavan Baba that is being distributed across India in a phased manner over the next several weeks.

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 2/35

When coursing across the sea of Samsara being tossed about by the wild winds of destiny, a cry rises from the heart of man, "O, Lord! You are my only hope; I surrender to you; save me from these catastrophes"

This by no means is surrender. This thought of the Omnipotence of the Lord and the insignificance of human strength in meeting the onslaughts of fate is sudden and short-lived and is not grounded in Faith which alone can constitute the basis for Surrender or Sharanagati. The devotee endowed with such Faith has to consecrate his actions feelings and thoughts, nay his will and his life itself at the feet of the Lord, leading to the erasure of the ego. The result of such a Sadhana is nothing but Self realisation which is the goal of all Yoga, whether it is Jnana, Karma or Bhakti. In fact Surrender is a total discipline and is by itself a Yoga—the Yoga of Surrender. Surrender or Sharanagati alone can lead one to Mukti. 

"Sharanagati or unconditional surrender is the main gate to enter the mansion of Mukti", says Bhagavan Baba. It is for that surrender that Lord Krishna, the Divine Charioteer says to Arjuna when He says, "Abandoni ng all Dharma, come to me alone for shelter. Be not grieved, for I shall release thee from all evils.”

Emphasising the fact the pre requisite for surrender is resolute faith in the Supreme, Bhagavan Baba says, "To get the attitude of Surrender or dedication, you must have faith in God... Without faith, Sadhana is an empty rite.... Faith in God is the secure foundation on which hope has to be built." A question is asked whether such absolute faith in the Supreme and the surrender of one's own will is not tantamount to sacrificing self confidence and giving up faith in oneself. If the 'self' is understood as the Atma or the Divine Consciousness, such faith in the self becomes virtually faith in the Supreme; in fact, the self does not exist, distinct from the Supreme. But. If the reference is to the personality made up of the body, mind and intellect, the faith in the self is totally misplaced, and can lead us nowhere. Instead of helping the aspirant to transcend the ego such confidence can only strengthen the ego and make detachment or Va iragya more and more difficult.

Bhagavan points out that there is justification in our talking about Sharanagati or Surrender only when we are fully in control of our minds, words and body. The body, mind and intellect foster the ego and so long as the ego is in power, the control of the ego can be eliminated by subordinating it to the Omnipotence of the Lord, surrendering it at the altar of the Supreme.

We have to emulate the unique example of Arjuna. We see in the Bhagavad-Gita, how in the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Arjuna began thinking that he was using his own intelligence, his own capacity of enquiry and his own ability to distinguish right from wrong. The Arjuna of Bhagavad-Gita is the representative man who relies on his feeble intelligence for meeting the crises which confront him in life. But Arjuna fails and with full faith in the Lord he becomes a true Sadhaka. Having been cured by the Lord of his ignorance (nashto moha) and having regained the knowledge of his true nature (smritir labdhaa) he surrenders to the Lord and becomes an instrument in His Divine hands.

The Yoga of Surrender, like the Karma Yoga or the Path of Dedicated Action is indeed the path for Self realisation for the modern man. A question generally raised is whether one should not have ambition and how else can one survive in the competitive world. The Eternal Philosophy does not advocate inaction; on the other hand it calls for the employment of the maximum skill and effort in all one's actions—yogah karmasu kausalam (yoga is skill in action). The difference however is in the motivation for action. While in the normal course one expects certain results from action—expectation of continuing success in the case of one charged with ambition—for a Sadhaka on the path of surrender, the actions are offerings at the feet of the Lord. In such offerings the question of degrees in the quality of effort cannot arise. There is just one way for such a person for performing his actions and that is the best way. Having done one's best as offeri ng to the Lord, he remains unconcerned with the results. The ambitious man tries to correlate his efforts (on the basis of his own judgement) with the results and manipulates his efforts appropriately to gain his objective. The Sadhaka surrenders his actions and having done his best without thoughts about the results; he views the success or failure or any degree of either, with complete detachment. The Lord asks Arjuna, "Resigning all thy works to Me, with thy consciousness fixed in the Self, being free from desire and egoism, fight, delivered from thy fever.” In the words of Bhagawan Baba, "Have no other thought than God, no other aim than knowing His Command, no other activity than translating that Command into action. That is what is meant by surrender." The attributes of such dedicated action are again brought out in the characteristically affectionate language of Gita, "Whatever thou doest, whatever thou eatest, whatever thou offerest, whateve r thou givest away, whatever austerities thou dost practise, do that, O Son of Kunti (Arjuna) as an offering to Me.” There can be no clearer guidelines for a Sadhaka who is on the path of surrender, irrespective of whether he is householder, professional or Sanyasin. In fact the advice was directed to a Kshatriya prince who was on the battlefield, and not to one who has taken up Sanyasa.

A Sadhaka who surrenders all actions at the feet of the Lord has obviously no cause for fear. Fear arises from desire; desire begets anger and anger brings in its trail other consequences which ultimately result in self destruction. Having surrendered oneself, the results of one's actions are also surrendered and the question of Raga (desire) and Krodha (anger) do not arise and there is no consequent Bhaya (fear) also. There is the assurance of the Lord in his words to Arjuna that "those who, laying all actions in Me, intent on Me, worship, meditating on Me with unswerving devotion, these I straightaway deliver from the ocean of death bound existence". Surrender has to be complete without any reservations. "Your minds are wayward like monkeys that skip and jump from bough to branch. Give them to me," says Bhagavan Baba "I can make them steady and harmless… But it must be a complete handing over, no reservations.”

The stricken soul which thinks of surrender, perhaps seeks only the alleviation of the suffering; it should seek release from the bondage of Samsara, of Ignorance, which is the prime cause of all suffering. The pain cannot be removed unless the cause of the pain is removed. The suffering cannot be removed by substituting it by pleasure since that also will be short lived. The mind that is the source of all pleasure and pain has to be conquered, the ego which is the sufferer or enjoyer has to be eliminated. This conquest, this elimination is achieved by surrendering them at the feet of the Lord without any reservation. Even if a trace of these is left, the Sadhaka continues to be the subject of the onslaughts of the results of Karma.

Not only Hinduism, but all religions emphasise the need for complete surrender. In `Imitation of Christ' of Thomas a Kempis, the Lord asks the disciple to surrender his all. Some people surrender themselves, but keep something back. They do not trust God utterly, but try to provide for themselves. "Some at first offer all they have, but later when temptations buffet them, they take it back and that is why they make no progress in goodness… Give your all for the one who is all; expect nothing, want nothing back; leave yourself with Me wholly and without regrets and you will possess Me.”

The path of surrender is therefore a perfect Yoga. With steady faith in His Omnipotence, with no thought other than the Lord, with all actions done as offerings to Him the Sadhaka progresses on the path of surrender to become Yoga Yukta (Firm in Yoga)

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 2/34

While addressing the Fourth All India Conference of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organisations at Prasanthi Nilayam on November 21, I preferred to share with the delegates some of my experiences, rather than bore them with a lengthy report of the activities of the Sai Family in California where we have several centers, the Sathya Sai Society of America, the Sathya Sai Book Center, and the recently formed Sai Foundation (in place of the Indra Devi Yoga Foundation) which maintains a Center on 2720 Sunset Boulevard, and Sai Nilayam, a retreat in Tecate, California, especially popular with long haired and big bearded youngsters, who are prevented from crossing the border into Tecate, Mexico, the home of our main center.

A recent fire, the biggest ever in that area, had destroyed 3000 homes and thousands of acres of forest. It was threatening to burn down both our branches on the Mexican and USA sides. The devotees in Sai Nilayam (the American Retreat) had no time even to save their belongings from a tent pitched near the house; the fire was spreading so fast. They all fled in cars to the top of Mount Chuchuma, where they had to spend our hours, between life and death in a small cement building, praying to BABA. The entire mountain caught fire and was engulfed in a blaze of flame. After the fire subsided and when they were able to come down, they found, to their amazement, that though the truck was destroyed by the fire, the house had remained intact! Inside, it was covered by a thick layer of soot except for the Meditation Room which had the picture of Bhagawan! In that room, the carpet had remained white! Baba must have been here, protecting the place, some one suggested.

This fire broke out, when I was away in Chicago, lecturing on Bhagawan. So, when i saw it on television, and read in the papers that it was raging 200 feet away from the Indra Devi Yoga Foundation, to my own surprise, the news didn't touch me in the least bit. To the suggestion that i should fly home immediately, I answered, "What for? It is Bhagawan's place. If He wants to protect it, He will. If He thinks it should be destroyed, let it be". They asked, "What! So much faith you have in Him?" I answered, "Yes. I do".

I then told the delegates to the Conference that there were many more things happening to me, but, I didn't want to take up their time. But, a "PARVA NAI” (does not matter) from BABA encouraged me. So, I told another miraculous happening that occurred several months ago, when I was driving alone at midnight, from Los Angeles to San Diego, where I was to give a lecture at the University the next morning.

It was raining heavily and I was tired. So I must have dozed off at the wheel for a moment, when suddenly my car skidded, and making a swift turn, swerved across to the other side of the Freeway, where cars were dashing into the opposite direction at a speed of 65 -70 miles per hour! The Freeways have eight lanes four on each side, and no traffic (except motor vehicles) is allowed on them. Having lost control of the steering wheel, I was awaiting the unavoidable crash, as the car kept on circling from one side of the Freeway to the other, like a merry go-round!

Luckily there was a narrow strip of grass there, as the dividing line between the two halves of the Freeway, instead of the usual iron grilles. "Stop, Stop, Stop!" I finally pleaded with the car, in despair. At that moment, my eyes, fell on Bhagawan's photograph. I realised only then that my right foot was still on the gas pedal!

Afterwards, when the police came to my rescue, (I had a flat tire), and told the officers what had happened, they simply could not understand how I did not meet with a fatal accident. "You must have a special guardian angel", one of them said. "A very special one", I answered, without mentioning Bhagawan, lest they would take me for treatment against hallucinations into a mental hospital!

Once on this subject of car accidents, I briefly described to the audience another incident which took place when I was about to get on the Freeway from a lower road and make a turn, when a passenger bus speeded by in front of me (!) like a hurricane, narrowly missing the nose of my car! Completely flabbergasted, I stopped with an open mouth in the middle of `Govinda Krishna Jai' and after a deep breath, I continued `Gopala Krishna jai' singing to Bhagawan a praise of gratitude for saving me from being run over by that flying giant of a bus (which I did not see coming behind a parked lorry that had obstructed it when I looked whether the highway was clear.)

I ended my talk, saying that many miraculous things were happening to me during this past year which was a very trying one for me. I said, if it were not for Bhagawan's help and guidance, I don't know how I could get through it safe and sane, since the most incredible situations were involved, including the use of witchcraft and black magic, to do away with me.

"Tell them about the ring!" urged Bhagawan, as soon as I concluded the talk.

So, I resumed and told about the ring which Bhagawan had given to me about three years ago, pleased with the Yogasanas I had been teaching the boys of the Sanskrit Patasala at Prasanthi Nilayam. Actually, He had first given me a different one He created. "Sadguna!" He said "Rays of Virtue!" He explained, while He gave it to me. When I came to my room I didn’t feel too happy about it, because it didn't have His image and I had given up wearing jewels ever since starting to teach Yoga in 1939.

The next morning, when we were all called back into the `interview room' the first thing Bhagawan told, turning to me was, "Give me the ring: Accha nahi hai (it is not good)" Then, taking it by the hand, He merely, blew on it, there by transforming it into a ring set with a single diamond. "You wanted to see My image in it?" He smiled, knowing my thoughts. "You will see it whenever you want, but, no one else will". With these words, He placed the ring on my finger. "Wear it, especially when going out", Bhagawan instructed, "it will let me know when you are in danger so that I can protect you."

Once when I was in far-off California, I looked at the ring and clearly saw in it Baba sitting in a white car! "He must be going somewhere", I figured and wrote down the date in the calendar. On another occasion, I saw Him addressing a crowd that was sitting in a semicircle. It did not look like Prasanthi Nilayam. Again, I made a note of the date and on my next pilgrimage to Prasanthi Nilayam, I checked the dates with Brother Kasturi. He attested that on the first occasion, Bhagawan had gone on tour on the date I saw Him. "I saw Him in a white car, whereas His car is a dark one". I argued! "He has now a white one", replied Brother. He also verified that on the second occasion Bhagavan was addressing a gathering in Kerala, where people sat in a semicircle!

"Are you spying on Him?" Brother Kasturi asked me, jokingly! When I quoted this remark of Brother Kasturi, Bhagawan and with Him, the entire audience broke into laughter. I felt that that was the best time for me to end my talk.

Sai Spiritual Showers - Issue 2/33

Horsley Hills in Chittoor district provide a summer resort with a salubrious climate, for, they take us to an elevation of 4000 feet above sea level; they are also easily accessible, being on the highroad between Kadiri and Madanapalle. At the request of the devotees in the Madanapalle and Voyalpad Taluks in Chittoor District, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba spent ten days on these hills, between the 5th and 15th June - days which were filled with experiences that would never be wiped from their memory. Hundreds from the villages and towns around travelled by car and bus to the quiet Bungalow where Baba stayed and received from His Hand the Divine Prasad which they craved for. They had the rare privilege of joining in the Bhajan Sessions, which Baba held every day, and they could hear Baba Himself teaching inspiring Namavalis to the earnest participants. Baba was kind enough to address the staff and students of the School at the Hills, at the request of the Educational Officer, of the Tirupati Tirumalai Devasthanams who have established it under their auspices. Devotees who were with Baba had the unique opportunity of learning from Him during the long discussions He had with them, solutions for all their spiritual problems and the steps they had to take in Spiritual Sadhana. Howard Murphet of the Theosophical Society, and Mrs. Murphet were among the group and they had many opportunities of witnessing Bhagawan's Divine Powers, His Grace and His Omniscience. The poem from Howard Murphet's pen has emanated from the heart of the poet, a heart filled with thanksgiving for all the awe reverence and wisdom that were provided by Baba during those days of intimate association—gifts that supplemented the experiences of previous months and that were continued later, at Prasanthi Nilayam itself. There were others too at Horsley Hills from all the States of India, who used the opportunity for the elucidation and solution of the manifold problems, in spiritual practice, that were harassing them. Bhagawan moved in the company of the devotees among the hills and dales of this delightful place, and during these hours, He gave them glimpses of His Omnipotence and Omnipresence. Plucking a jasmine flower from a creeper, He breathed on it and made it into a diamond,of exceeding brilliance. Picking up a piece of granite, He gave it to a member of the party, but, it was not the stone that he received, it was the stone turned sugar-candy! Those among the group of devotees who had not received from His Hand the Amrita on Vaikuntha Ekadasi Day in previous years had the satisfaction of getting it from His Hand at Horsley Hills, when He materialised a silver vessel full of the precious nectar and gave each one the coveted sign of Grace. This incident must be the basis for the lines in the poem of Murphet: But, we shall drink Amrita And eat the Moksha fruit for the Amrita is but a reminder of man and his inner reality, his ever-present destiny. The fruit that Baba creates and gives to us for eating is just a reminder of the Moksha fruit which the Tree of Life should yield to every man and bird and beast. Another day, He created Japamalas, for those who deserved that Gift; others got other sacred articles, created by that Divine Hand, which will be treasured as inspirations and instructions. While exhorting the devotees seated around Him one day to Reach beyond the portals To where the Part is whole Beyond all thought, all feeling, Beyond the stars and sun, Beyond the cosmic zero To where all things are One Bhagawan created a picture of the Cosmic Purusha, the Personified Universe, the Viraat Swarupa, and, the person to whom it was given as well as others were overwhelmed with joy, when they found in the picture, representations of Bhagawan in His Present Incarnated Form as Sathya Sai Baba and also, in His Previous Form, as the Sai Baba of Shirdi. The fortnight on the Hills provided precious chances for thousands of people, from high government officers to the simple farmers and woodcutters to receive His Blessings and to listen to His voice—the voice that teaches so lovingly, that wards so endearingly, that thrills so sweetly. When He left for the Plains, even the forest trees were sad for, He has come for all beings that breathe, the vital airs He has prescribed for life.