“From this moment on, begin thinking in these terms: you are the cause of your life, your world. This is the meaning of spiritual seeking: accepting complete responsibility for your own being. Suffering has no external cause—the cause is within. You are always shifting responsibility away from yourself, but the external serves only as an excuse. Yes, suffering is triggered by external circumstances, but nothing external creates it. When you are insulted, the insult comes from outside, but the anger is within you. Anger is not caused by the insult; it does not arise as a result of the insult. If there were no energy of anger within you, the insult would remain powerless. It would simply pass you by without disturbing you. There are no causes outside human consciousness; causes exist only within you. You yourself are the cause of everything in your life, and understanding this means understanding one of the most fundamental truths. Understanding this means beginning the journey of transformation.” OSHO
Only Love can reveal the Divinity that lies hidden in everything. Love is God. Live in Love. Love lives by giving and forgiving. Selfishness lives by taking and forgetting. Love is self-denial. Self-love is the absence of Love. Do not waste your life pursuing the narrow interests of your ego. Love! Love! Become what you truly are—embodiments of Love. It does not matter how others treat you or what they think of you; do not worry about it. Follow Jesus Christ. Love is for your own evolution, not for what other people say about you.
Sai Baba
“Healthy self-love is a great religious value. A person who does not love themselves will never be able to love anyone else. The first wave of love must grow in your heart. If it has not grown for yourself, it will not grow for anyone else, because everyone else is much farther from you. It is like a stone thrown into a quiet lake: the first ripple forms around the stone, and then continues spreading toward the distant shores. The first ripple of love must arise directly around you. A person must love their body, love their soul, love themselves completely. And this is natural; otherwise, you would not survive at all. And it is beautiful, because it adorns you. A person who loves themselves becomes graceful, elegant. A person who loves themselves will inevitably become quieter, more meditative, more prayerful than a person who does not love themselves.” OSHO
“And what does it mean to work with love? It means weaving garments from the threads of your heart as though your beloved were going to wear them. It means building a house with dedication as though your beloved were going to live in it. It means sowing seeds with tenderness and gathering the harvest with joy as though your beloved were going to taste the fruit. It means filling everything you do with the breath of your spirit.” Kahlil Gibran
Man is born with a strong thirst for Happiness, with a keen hunger
for Bliss.
He dimly remembers that he inherited the kingdom of Bliss, but does not
know how to claim his inheritance.
Something within him protests that he is doomed to death, suffering, and hatred.
His inner voice whispers to him that he is a Child of Immortality, Bliss, and Love.
But man ignores these impulses and, like a fool who exchanges diamonds for rubbish, chases wretched worldly pleasures
and miserable comforts.
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
“Have you ever really looked into someone’s eyes? What happens in such a case? For the most part, we are afraid to look directly into another person’s eyes; and people themselves do not want us to look at them in this way, because it frightens them. No one wants to reveal themselves; we are always on guard; we are concealed beneath various layers of sorrow, suffering, desire, and hope; so there are very few people capable of looking directly into your eyes and smiling. And smiling, being happy, is very important; you see, without a song in one’s heart, life becomes rather dull. One may go from one temple to another, from one husband or wife to another, one may find some new teacher or guru; however, in the absence of this inner joy, life has very little meaning. And finding this inner joy is not easy, because most of us feel only superficial discontent. Think about it.” Jiddu Krishnamurti
When you immerse yourself in the Ananda (Bliss) of the Lord, you will also attain all the lesser forms of ananda. When you dive into the sea, you should search for pearls; when you go to the Kalpavriksha (the wish-fulfilling tree), ask for the highest bliss. Do not seek the lesser when the highest is available; simply make a little more effort. There is a natural urge in man to merge with the Vast, the Supreme, the Boundless, because the Supreme also dwells in the depths of his heart. This is like a little calf yearning for its mother. Every calf knows its mother. You may have a thousand calves and a thousand cows. Release the calves, and each will find its mother. In the same way, you must know from whom you receive the means of livelihood and support for your loved ones—it is God, from whom you came.
Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, February 20, 1966
All your life, you have been reading newspapers. You crave news from all corners of the world, yet you show absolute indifference to what information is kept hidden in the sanctuary of your own heart. And that is the most important information of all.
This world is like a newspaper. You read one and the same issue from cover to cover only once. You would not read it over and over again. In the same way, we come into this world having already read its newspaper edition. Why strive to read it again? Today's newspaper will become nothing more than useless paper tomorrow. Trapped in the cycle of births and deaths, you make your life like yesterday's newspaper. Therefore, you should not strive to return to this world again and again. You should make every effort to draw closer to God—for that is truly a tablet for the chosen. Shankara did a great deal precisely to turn people's thoughts toward this.
*What is an effective strategy for living in peace with yourself and everyone around you? Bhagavan reminds us today.*
The tongue is the armor of the heart; it protects life. Loud speech, lengthy conversations, uncontrolled speech, and talk filled with anger and hatred—all of this affects a person's health and engenders anger and hatred in others.
Such speech wounds, excites, enrages, and divides.
Why is silence considered golden? A silent person has no enemies, although they may have no friends either. They have leisure and the opportunity to turn inward and examine their own sins and shortcomings. They are no longer inclined to dwell on the sins of others.
If your foot slips, you will suffer a fracture. If your tongue “slips,” someone else's faith or joy will be “fractured.” This fracture can never be mended; this wound will fester forever.
Therefore, use your tongue with great care. The more gently you speak, the less you speak, and the more sweetly you speak, the better it is for you and for the whole world.
Sai: Sincere repentance can wash away all sins. God will respond with mercy. If He wishes to forgive, nothing can stand in His way. All karma is annulled. At the heart of every spiritual action—an action that does not entail consequences—lies the seed of love. If this seed is nurtured, it will grow like a tree, and in due course this tree of love will bear fruit—everything of value. And even if there are sins in the past, with deep repentance and love for God they are washed away, and human nature is purified. To fear that this will not happen is weakness. God's compassion is infinite; seek His love, and you will receive forgiveness.
Hislop: But, Swami, God's mercy is “prescribed” very rarely.
Sai: People may think that God's mercy is difficult to attain. But this is not so. Nothing is easier than attaining mercy if one knows the method and applies it. This method is given in the Gita. When you learn to drive a car, you are confused at first, but once you acquire the skill, you easily perform all the necessary actions simultaneously while carrying on a relaxed conversation. Through practice, anything can be achieved. Constant dripping wears away a stone*. The Name is what will protect you and guide you through life. It is such a small thing! But to cross an ocean, you do not need a huge ship. A small raft is enough. The Name of God is the smallest of the small and the greatest of the great. The mouth is the body's main gateway, and the Name of God should be kept constantly on the tongue. Wherever and whenever you go, the Name of God, like a little lantern, should always be with you, and then you will be able to pass easily all the way through the jungle of life.
Conversations with Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba
John S. Hislop
САИ: Есть три типа кармы: прошлая, настоящая и будущая. Настоящая карма должна продолжаться. Она похожа на повозку, за которой тянется столб пыли. Если повозка остановится, пыль осядет на нее. Может возникнуть сомнение, способна ли повозка двигаться постоянно без остановки так, чтобы пыль все время оставалась позади. Однако повозка не должна обязательно ехать по пыльной дороге. Она может выехать на асфальтированное шоссе, где нет никакой пыли. Асфальтированная дорога эквивалентна милости Бога.
Существует разница между благодатью Божьей милости и благодатью бхакти-поклонения. Пациенту, у которого сильная боль, дают лекарство, успокаивающее боль. Но милость Бога — это операция, которая полностью устраняет боль. Не следует их путать. Милость Бога полностью устраняет карму. Так же, как лекарство с этикеткой «годно до 1968 г.», если его использовать в 1972 г., не будет иметь никакого действия. Тело — это пузырек, карма внутри — это лекарство. Бог ставит дату на лекарстве так, чтобы оно не имело действия.
Беседы с Бхагаваном Шри Сатья Саи Бабой
Хислоп Джон С.
Your eyes should be fixed on God,
rather than watching ungodly television programs and video films.
Let your ears listen to stories about the Lord, not gossip.
Everything you see and hear is imprinted on your Heart,
and ungodly things defile it.
When your Heart becomes impure, Life loses its Meaning.
Sathya Sai Baba
— Divine Discourse, August 22, 2000
It is best if you imprint in your heart the dual nature of the world, this mixture of pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow, victory and defeat. Practice the constant presence of God and learn to offer all your activities at the Lord’s feet as an act of worship. Then they will be cleansed of all errors. Life sustained by food is short; life sustained by the Atma is eternal. Do not lay claim to a long life; desire a Divine life. Do not strive to remain on earth longer; strive for greater goodness in your heart.
Sathya Sai Baba
When good thoughts, good feelings, and good intentions prevail, the mind becomes pure. Only with a pure mind can actions and their fruits be pure.
Today we sow the seed of thoughts—the karma—and reap the fruits of actions. From the seed of karma grows svabhava (the fruit of behavior). From the seed of behavior emerges the fruit of character. The seed of character produces the fruit of adrishtam (destiny). Thus, one can trace the stages of human progress—from thought to destiny. In this way, our successes and failures are connected with our thoughts. A mind filled with bad thoughts plunges a person into impenetrable darkness. The same mind can raise a person to unattainable heights through good thoughts. Therefore, thoughts are of immense importance to a person. They constitute their Life Breath. Without understanding this, a person allows bad tendencies such as anger, envy, hatred, and vanity to fill their mind and brings misfortune upon themselves.
A person who seeks to cause pain to others harbors many bad thoughts in their mind. But these thoughts cause them ten times more harm than they inflict on those around them. They do not know this truth. They devote themselves to offending and harming others. But there are no “others”; all are manifestations of God. Failing to understand the Divinity in other people, a person tries to harm them. But whoever raises a sword against others will die by the sword. The harm they inflict on others will return to them. Whoever offends others will themselves become a target of offense. As the thoughts, so the result. A person’s entire existence is based on thoughts and their results.
The Sun’s northward movement points to the path a person should follow in order to realize God. The Sun is the supreme example of selfless and tireless service. The world cannot exist without the Sun. Life on Earth is possible only because of sunlight. The Sun teaches every person a lesson in humble and selfless devotion, free from vanity. Performing one’s duty is the greatest yoga, as Krishna points out in the Gita. May your actions and thoughts be righteous. Then you will experience Divine Bliss. The Sankranti festival is intended to change a person’s attitude toward life so that they may bring righteousness into their life. This festival is not intended only for Bharatiyas. Its message is meaningful to people of all nationalities, faiths, and countries.
Bhagavan Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, January 15, 1992
Kama (desire) is the cause of birth; kala (time) is the cause of death. Rama is the protector of life.
Birth occurs because of desires.
Time, indifferent and tirelessly moving forward, cuts the thread of life.
Only chanting God's name will make your life meaningful.
Life is a battle; in battle, one fights until victory. The goal of this victory is to win the “crown” of the Atma and become a rightful sovereign in the kingdom of Liberation.
This victory and its fruits are possible if one follows the path indicated by Vedanta.
Vedanta is the culmination, the “final product” of the Vedas. When cream is churned, butter and buttermilk are produced; clarified and melted butter becomes ghee—this ghee is the final, ultimate stage of milk.
Likewise, the final, irreversible transformation of a person at the end of the path is liberation, moksha.
If you are ready to enter into battle with your inner enemies and passions, God will give you the strength you need.
Since you are moving toward Him, God will come toward you.
If you take ten steps toward God, He will take a hundred steps toward you.
The breath itself is constantly saying “So-ham.” The practice consists of saying “So” with each inhalation and “Ham” with each exhalation. Say it mentally. The purpose of this repetition is to keep the mind steady and calm. After some time, saying “So-ham” throughout the day becomes automatic. At night, during sleep, the sound naturally changes to “OM.”
Sathya Sai Baba
An account by Gisela, the director of the Christmas choir, at a rehearsal for the Christmas programme on the morning of December 19, 2012.
Gisela: I want to read out Swami’s words that have never been published anywhere—His message to all of us. I made an audio recording of His Divine discourse because I had a tape recorder with me, and then wrote it down on paper. Later, I saw that very important parts of this discourse had not been published either in Sanathana Sarathi or anywhere else. And this had already happened many times: when Swami said something, not everything was subsequently published. I had the feeling that these words were intended only for the particular people who heard them at the moment He said them. Swami gave this very important message to people in 1982.
Swami said:
“I have decided that very soon I will develop a very large programme for all people in all countries to restore the ancient traditions, so that the truths spoken of in the Holy Scriptures, the ancient values and treasures, may come alive again. You must have no doubts that there will be success. Victory will be ours. Do not doubt, do not doubt! Very soon we will sound all the trumpets, proclaiming victory. It will certainly happen, it will certainly happen! The future will be beyond your ability to see it now! But I can see what the future will be like. I will lead the whole world to the point where everyone will understand My True Nature and see My Genuine Divinity. I will make a very great effort. All My Glory will spread not only among you, but throughout the whole world. The world is not able to accept this at present. But be assured that the day will come when the whole world, people throughout the world, will realise who Swami is, and all His glory, all His power, and millions of people will rush here. Listen to My words!
Listen to Swami, gain the direct experience of contact with all His bliss, which is now so truly your own! And this golden opportunity will not pass or come to an end. Soon the whole world will become one great Prashanti Nilayam!
The whole world is Sai’s home! You all belong to Sai. All people are Sai’s people. Everyone is one. You must make every effort to prove the truth of this principle in this Kali Yuga, in this age; and I will fulfil all your hopes and aspirations. Now fulfil this My fervent aspiration, and you will have a constant state of happiness and well-being, and there will be prosperity, peace and tranquillity within you and throughout the world. You will do things that will influence those who are near you, and this will make your life sacred.”
Gisela: Sai Ram. Swami said this with such power, with such enthusiasm. I had never seen Him like that. Imagine God standing before you and promising that all this will happen!”
(From a Divine Discourse by Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba in 1982)
“Om” is divided into “A,” “U,” and “M.” “A” signifies the waking state, “U” dream sleep, and “M” the state of deep sleep. And “Om” as a whole symbolizes the fourth state, which transcends the three preceding ones. The rhythm of repeating “Om” brings about stillness of the mind. By repeating “Om” aloud or silently and meditating on “Om,” you evoke harmonious vibrations in the mind and subtle body, elevating the mind to the noble heights of divine grandeur. By regularly repeating the “Om” mantra, one can purify consciousness and thus attain union with the Supreme Soul.
God has endowed human beings with all powers.
The human body is connected with the senses, which are responsible for both good and evil.
Therefore, the proper use of the sense organs is a person’s foremost duty....
One who cannot control the senses is worse than an animal. Even animals develop the ability to control their sense organs. But human beings, despite being endowed with all kinds of wisdom—vijnana, prajnana and sujnana—make no effort to control their sense organs.
Desire, anger, greed, passion, pride and jealousy (kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya) are all animal qualities.
Today, such animal qualities have appeared in human beings, and people themselves are becoming animals.
A human being is neither an animal nor a mass of inert matter. In reality, a human being is an embodiment of consciousness and bliss.
Indulging in animal qualities is a disgrace for a human being.
First and foremost, one must learn to control the senses. There are spiritual practices prescribed for controlling the senses...
What is the purpose of human life? It is not merely to eat, drink and have fun. “The human body is meant to do good to others.” A person should dedicate themselves to serving society.
Sathya Sai Baba. God Is Born in a Pure Heart.
Discourses 2003. Chapter 5
