Learning Through Reading

196228 · Apr 19, 2022

People feel the fire of the soul. And the more you give, the more intensely it blazes.
Only through compassion for the world does the soul develop. It regulates the entire spectrum of deep experiences. It creates a silent prayer for the good of all who exist on earth.
Through the thickets of a gloomy path, across the barriers of rivers and rockfalls, through windthrows and the onslaught of mountain winds, through the icy deserts of peaks and the ledges of life's abysses, the soul strives upward, tearing its wounded wings on sharp rocks. It tries to free itself from the burden of earthly dirt clinging to it. Plunging into the cold darkness of gorges, it grows heavier, and its silvery radiance fades. Tired and dejected, it trudges on, dragging its sodden wings behind it, until it sees a blazing fire on the mountain. Summoning its last strength, stumbling and falling, it nevertheless climbs toward the life-giving flame, which illuminates it with the breath of hope. By the great fire, it sees other souls, chilled by earthly life, drying themselves beside the fire-breathing shrine. Gradually, the flame warms their hearts. Clumps of earthly suffering fall away. Wounds heal. And the wings become lighter and stronger. They are ready to fly and shine again, remembering the eternally blazing fire of the Great Heart of the World.
Konstantin Ustinov. "Man Existing".

1313 · Apr 20, 2022

“The sick person must take the medicine themselves. No one else can undergo the course of treatment in their place. The balm must be applied where it hurts. The cause of illness and misfortune lies in your mental outlook, because you see many where there is only One. You say, ‘my God,’ ‘their God,’ ‘your Baba,’ as though there were many Gods who would help you in your quarrels and in fighting one another. Ask the Lord to free you from earthly anxieties, and then you will not go wrong. This is far better than begging something from other people and losing your self-respect. Sometimes people literally grab everyone by the feet in order to obtain a decision favorable to themselves, but if they fell at the Lord’s feet, many more matters would be resolved in their favor—in favor of those people who prayed for God to guide them as His devoted servants.”

“SATHYA SAI SPEAKS” (Volume 4)

1313 · Apr 21, 2022

I WILL CARRY HER SUITCASES

I had heavy luggage: friends and relatives had given me packages to take to their family members in America. Then my father began scolding me: “What’s the matter? Swami says: the less luggage, the easier the journey. And you’re taking so much. You don’t follow any of Swami’s teachings.”

When we arrived in Brindavan, Swami said: “What is it—does Padmanabhan scold you as usual?” My father replied: “Swami, she pays no attention to Your instructions—she is taking three suitcases with her.” Then Swami said: “Why are you worried? They are her suitcases. Let her take whatever she wants with her.” My father replied: “Swami, they are too heavy—she won’t be able to lift them.” “She doesn’t have to lift them—I will carry her suitcases,” Swami said.

This was said as a joke, and we all laughed. I paid little attention to it. When I landed in San Francisco, just as my father had predicted, I couldn’t carry my suitcases—they really were very heavy. The main problem was getting them onto a luggage cart while my five-year-old sons ran around. I somehow managed it, but then my name was announced over the loudspeaker, asking me to come to the Singapore Airlines counter. There, a woman explained that a gentleman was waiting to help me with my luggage. I saw a nice African American gentleman. He had a name card and a company badge. I had completely forgotten what had happened in Brindavan. Instead, I thought: what a wonderful husband I have—he had thought to send someone to help me.

Since this was my first time entering the country, a great many formalities had to be dealt with, and throughout that time this tall gentleman stayed beside me. When we reached customs, he said: “Surely you aren’t going to open her suitcases? The poor woman has already spent an entire hour here.” Customs let us through without inspecting us.

My husband was there to meet us. When he turned the car around and began loading the luggage, I said: “We need to pay the porter.” We began looking for him, but couldn’t find him anywhere. While we were driving, I told my husband what had happened during my interview with Swami, how I had argued with my father beforehand, and how Swami had said He would carry my luggage. And then I understood everything.

The next morning, when my father saw Swami, He said to him: “You were right, Padmanabhan! And what did she have in those suitcases?! They were so heavy.” Since then, whenever I mentally turn to Swami with a request, I always avoid asking Him to help with my luggage. Later, when I met Swami, I said: “Swami, I made You lift my heavy suitcases.” He replied: “So what? I came to lift the burden of the whole world—what are your suitcases to me?”

HIS LOVE... ALL MY LIFE
(Told by Gita Ram)

1313 · Apr 22, 2022

The Highest Truth About Yourself: “I Am I”

As the body, mind, or soul, you are a dream. What you truly are is Sat-Chit-Ananda (Existence-Knowledge-Bliss). You are the God of this Universe. You create it and absorb it back into yourself.

To attain universal infinity, you must renounce the wretched, small, limiting personality. Bhakti is not shedding tears or any other negative state. It is seeing the One in all that is seen. The goal is attained through the heart. Follow your heart. A pure heart rises above the intellect that inspires the heart.

Everything we do ultimately comes back to us. If we do good, we will have happiness; if evil, unhappiness. True happiness is within you. Within you is an infinite ocean of Divine Joy. Seek it within yourself. Feel it, experience it! It is here. This is your Higher Self. “I” is neither the body, nor the mind, nor the intellect, nor the brain. It is neither desire nor the desire to desire. It is not an object of desire. You are above all this. Everything else is merely manifestation. You appear as a smiling flower, as a twinkling star. What is there in the world that could make you desire anything else?

Spiritual Teachings of Sri Sathya Sai Baba

1313 · Apr 23, 2022

Broaden your outlook and cast off narrow-mindedness. Even if others trouble you and create problems for you, bear it patiently, believing that it will only benefit you. The body, composed of five elements, must sooner or later fall and perish. The indweller of the body is eternal, unborn, and immortal, and is bound by no chains of slavery! In truth, this indweller is God Himself! When a beggar asks for food, he says: “Bhavati Bhiksham Dehi”! In reality, he is asking alms from “Dehi”—the Indweller—not from you. Recognize the truth that he is praying to the God within you for alms. If you think that he is begging from you, that is your ignorance. This is tantamount to arrogance. Divinity dwells in everyone, whether prince or beggar. Worship this Divine Principle in all and love them, but love must be selfless. Love free from attachment to the body flows equally toward everyone! Body consciousness leads to narrow-mindedness.

Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, November 23, 2001

196228 · Apr 23, 2022

The knowledge of the Angelic Spheres has not been forgotten, but will return to every soul when we return to the former cycle of existence, enriched by the experience of passing through the densest worlds.
In waves of luminous matter, we comprehend that part of our existence which we call the transcendent. That is why we pass through earthly life with all the skills of humbling our instinctive nature; that is why we learn peacefulness and the realization of joy on earth—for happiness is the air of the Higher Worlds, and all the skills of nobility manifested here will become the way of life there.
We should think of the transcendent world as that dwelling where we can manifest our noblest qualities.
Konstantin Ustinov. "Man Existing".

1313 · Apr 24, 2022

APRIL 24 — THE DAY OF REMEMBRANCE OF SRI SATHYA SAI ARADHANA MAHOTSAVAM

God incarnates not for His own sake, but for the liberation of humanity. He descends to tell humanity of its divine origin and call people to return to God by following the Principle of Love. With Love, you can achieve everything. This is the message that must be understood today—the role of the Avatar is to lead humanity to Divine Life through love. Every person is an embodiment of God. God dwells in every being. Every moment marks the advent of the Lord, because human beings are born constantly. Therefore, dedicate every moment to thoughts (contemplation) of God. By doing so, in time, you will experience God. You will be freed from illusions and become divinized. A person is born to merge into the grace (mercy) of God, not to immerse themselves in worldly pleasures. Fill your life with love and surround it with love.

Sathya Sai Baba

1313 · Apr 25, 2022

You have no right to call yourselves messengers of God if your actions are bad, your thoughts are evil, and you preach wrong ideas. Such people can only be called messengers of the devil. From today onward, as “messengers of God,” you must demonstrate to the world the purity, truth, and love that symbolize the Divine. When you live in purity and morality, you have the right to consider yourselves “Sons of God.” God is the embodiment of Love, and you must not do anything that contradicts the Love represented by God. You must develop good qualities that can make you worthy of being “Sons of God.” The Bible says that Jesus washed His disciples’ feet. When they asked Him why He was doing this, Jesus replied: “I wash your feet as your servant so that you may learn to serve the world.” Every person is, first and foremost, a messenger of God. When he fulfills his duty as a messenger, he comes to realize that he is a Son of God, and then he attains unity with the Divine.

Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, December 25, 1984

1313 · Apr 26, 2022

Divine power has neither birth nor death. I do not feel elated when I am praised, nor do I become despondent when I am reviled. I remain equanimous toward these dualities of life. I am happy in pleasure and in pain. There is only love in me. My love gives, gives, and gives. It never takes. This is the difference between My love and worldly love, which accumulates and takes. And therefore My love eternally expands and multiplies. A gigantic tree grows from a tiny seed. The universe arose from the seed of love. Love is God; live in love. Develop love. Love everyone with all your heart. Only love grants self-realization. First and foremost, develop self-confidence.

Self-confidence is the foundation.
Self-satisfaction is the walls.
Self-sacrifice is the roof.
Self-realization is the palace of being.

The power of love far surpasses the power of the atomic bomb. It transforms even those who hate. Develop sacred love. Only then will there be harmony in society and no hatred.

Start the day with love.
Fill the day with love.
End the day with love.
This is the path to God.

Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. From a discourse given on November 23, 1998.

1313 · Apr 28, 2022

The sages of this land knew that the mind is an instrument that can either bind a person or liberate them from bondage. It is very important to understand how the mind works, as well as its capabilities. You need to learn to wield the mind, rather than become its instrument.
It is the mind that weaves the pattern called the “personal” self, or ego, and the process by which it strengthens this ego and supplies it with numerous traps is called “maya” (the power that causes illusion).
The mind urges the sense organs to reach out toward the external world of objects, because it forms concepts of pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow, and on their basis creates a complete set of motivations and impulses.
It stubbornly resists attempts to direct it toward the eternal, universal, and true.
The mind protests when an individual seeks to realize their identity with that which is true and eternal, but when it encounters persistent opposition to its tactics, it capitulates and leaves the stage.

Sathya Sai Baba. Your Goal Is Liberation.
Talks, 1966. Chapter 10

1313 · Apr 29, 2022

The first quality you should develop is gratitude to the Divine. People are grateful even for a small service rendered to them. Should we not be grateful to God, who constantly gives us so much through Nature and the five elements? The air you breathe, the water you drink, and the earth you walk upon—all these are gifts of God. How grateful are you to the Sun, which gives us light that cannot be matched by all the electric bulbs in the world? Can all the pumping stations in the world provide as much water as a single downpour? Can all the fans in the world provide as much cool air as you receive when the wind blows? Failing to be grateful for these Divine gifts, people chase trivial things and squander their lives. The great sages of the past, who worshipped God in various ways, regarded devotion as a means of expressing gratitude to God.

Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, January 14, 1989

1313 · Apr 30, 2022

Question: Swami! Why are some people not devoted to God? It seems that devotion has no place in their lives at all. Would You be so kind as to explain the reason to us?

Bhagavan: It is very simple. If a person turns away from God, there is only one reason—sensual pleasures. His life is filled with meaningless anxiety about the future, many unnecessary desires, and the construction of castles in the air. An ambitious striving to attain heights in life that they do not deserve, excessive attachment to family and everything worldly—all this deprives people of devotion to God. There can be no other reasons besides these.
You know how children play on a seesaw. If one end rises, the other goes down, and vice versa. If you place emphasis on the world, your love for God decreases; and if your love for God is great—that is, if it “outweighs” the other side, as on a seesaw—your attachment to the world weakens, just as the other end of the board rises in the game. Scales work the same way, don’t they?...

Question: Swami! How long does sensual pleasure last?

Bhagavan: Sensual pleasure is fleeting and short-lived. It creates problems for you and makes you weak. Think carefully and understand this clearly. You believe that you enjoy life through your senses. But in reality, this is not so. It is the senses that enjoy themselves at your expense. They have a wonderful time at your expense. How? You become weaker. You lose your strength. You grow old. If you were right in thinking that you use your senses for your own benefit, you would always be active and full of enthusiasm. But in reality, this is not so. Sensual pleasures only harm you. Therefore, remember this firmly: it is the senses that use you, making you weak, old, and sick—not you who use your senses for pleasure.

Anil Kumar Kamaraju, “Satyopanishad,” Book 2.

1313 · May 1, 2022

THREE TYPES OF VOWS OF SILENCE

Excessive talking harms the mind.
“Fewer words—more happiness.”
To learn to control their speech, the ancients observed three types of vows of silence:
silence of the tongue (vak-maunam),
silence of the mind (mano-maunam),
and supreme silence (maha-maunam).
The first vow, verbal silence, or restraint of the tongue, implies reducing speech to the minimum necessary in a given situation. This rule helped avoid unnecessary conversation. As a result, the power of speech was preserved and strengthened.
Restraint in speech also required truthfulness, since speech free of lies purifies thoughts.
By practicing this type of austerity, the people of ancient times came to understand truth (satya-siddhi) and attained supreme wisdom (jnana-siddhi).
It follows that purity of speech is extremely important. It can be achieved by training oneself to restrain one’s speech.
The second type of silence is silence of the mind.
The mind is a tangle of thoughts and fantasies. The number of thoughts in the mind must gradually be reduced. When there are fewer thoughts, the mind naturally begins to come under control: like an unwound clock, it no longer “ticks.”
As the activity of the mind decreases, the power of Atman gradually reveals itself.
As a result, the intellect (buddhi) becomes more active than the sense organs that agitate the mind.
Once a person has learned to restrain speech and the mind, it is easy for them to reach the state of supreme silence.

Sathya Sai Baba. The Vedas—The Path of Life.
Discourses 1994. Chapter 7

1313 · May 2, 2022

Truth will never die, and falsehood will never survive. All of you must firmly believe this. What can a person say is permanent? How can they believe that anything is permanent at all? Indeed, if from birth they have witnessed everything around them changing, if their own experience has undergone various transformations, and if the atmosphere in which they grow up is also constantly changing—that is, if they grow up in an environment devoid of permanence—how can such faith arise in them? Observing all this, one can confidently proclaim that this world is unreal. For if it were Real, how could it change? Everything that undergoes change is unreal; only Reality is unchanging, stable, and permanent. The only unchanging, stable, and permanent entity is Atman; He alone is real, He alone is permanent. Atman is the Form of the Lord and the Power of the Lord.

Sathya Sai Baba
Prashanti Vahini, Chapter 16

1313 · May 3, 2022

Look upon your body as a moving temple. Wherever you go, God is with you. Do not argue about what God is or where He is. God must be realized through faith and trust. Where there is trust, there is Love. Where there is Love, there is Peace. Where there is Peace, there is Truth. Where there is Truth, there is Bliss. Where there is Bliss, there is God. Bliss is everywhere. The Bliss within you is limited by your body-consciousness. You must expand this bliss and make it all-encompassing. When a child is born, they are alone. As they grow up, they acquire a wife and children. When the children marry, the family expands. This expansion of relationships takes place within one family. You must expand your outlook to such an extent that it embraces the entire human family!

Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, February 17, 1989

1313 · May 3, 2022

THE FACE IS THE MIRROR OF THE MIND

A person constantly tries to hide his faults, like an ostrich burying its head in the sand in the hope that the hunter will not see it. However, the ostrich becomes an easy target for the hunter. In the same way, a person filled with ego and malice imagines that no one knows his thoughts. But the human mind is like a gramophone recording. His good and bad thoughts are reflected on his face, although he does not notice it. Any outside observer, however, can easily notice this. The face of a person filled with evil thoughts resembles an old clay pot. The face becomes a screen showing what is happening in the mind.
Just as thoughts lead to actions, a person's behavior, speech, and deeds influence the tendencies of the mind and contribute to good or bad impulses. A person imagines that no one can know his thoughts. Pretending that those around him are pleasant to him, he secretly harbors ill thoughts against them. But in fact, he is not deceiving others; he is deceiving himself. For by nurturing bad thoughts, he degrades himself.
The natural state of the human Heart is Purity. But by allowing the poisonous snakes of evil thoughts to crawl inside, a person lets anxiety into himself.
How can a person feel at peace in a house where a snake has taken up residence? Bad thoughts in the mind are worse than poisonous snakes in the house. There should be absolutely no room for evil thoughts.

Sathya Sai Speaks. Volume XXVI. Chapter 21

1313 · May 4, 2022

PAIN — THE HARBINGER OF THE BIRTH OF NEW LIFE

There are four types of people: the “dead”—those who deny the Lord and believe that they exist by themselves, independent, free, self-governing, and self-directing; the “sick”—those who turn to the Lord only when some misfortune befalls them or when they feel that the sources that usually support them have temporarily run dry; the “dull”—those who know that God is an eternal companion and witness, but remember this only from time to time, when the idea is strong and carries a powerful charge of energy; and, finally, the “healthy”—those whose faith in the Lord is unwavering and who always live in His Peaceful and Creative Presence.

You progress from “death” to “life” and from “sickness” to “health” by experiencing the blows inflicted by this world. The world is a very important part of a person’s curriculum; through the torments of seeking, the child of wisdom is born. The value of suffering is that it is a sign of the birth of new life. From anxiety (Ashanti), you come to complete peace (Prashanti); from complete peace, to spiritual illumination (Prakanti); and from spiritual illumination, to the Eternal Divine Light (Paramjyoti). The alternation of joy and sorrow is like the alternation of day and night. Night and day are twin sisters, and both are necessary for the fertility of the soil, for the growth of activity, and for the renewal of Life. They are like summer and winter. Some people ask, “Baba! Make this summer less hot!” But during the summer heat, the earth absorbs the solar energy it needs so that, when the rains come, it can yield a bountiful harvest.

Prashanti Nilayam, Vijayadashami (1953)

1313 · May 5, 2022

Human beings are called nara in Sanskrit. But nara means Atman (the Self, the true Self). The word nara has two syllables, na and ra. Ra (rah) means that which is subject to destruction. Na-ra (“not-ra”) means that which is indestructible and imperishable. The meaning is that nara (a human being), while existing in bodily form, is subject to change but is essentially immortal. He is filled with bliss.
Today, the true nature of human beings has been forgotten. Human values have also been forgotten. People behave like animals or demons. Only when people realize their human nature and turn to human values will their divinity be revealed to them.
For this to happen, devotion to God is needed first and foremost. What is devotion? Could it be meditation, repetition of the Name, or observing vows and fasts? Not at all. Everything done in anticipation of a reward becomes tainted by the desire for its fruits and cannot be regarded as true devotion. Devotion can be defined as love for the Lord, unburdened by a single desire. No prayer to God asking Him to fulfill a desire has anything to do with devotion. God should be loved solely for His own sake. Love should be cherished for the sake of love itself.
True devotion is a combination of love and selfless service.

Sathya Sai Baba
14-04-1995, Brindavan

1313 · May 6, 2022

“For the sake of bodily pleasures, a person works with all their might—persistently and continuously, day and night. One who realizes that the Atma (Spirit) is distinct from the body will not be subject to any anxiety. Indeed, if every person realizes the nature and purpose of human existence, these difficulties will not arise. The Upanishads state: if one who is born human and grows up in human society does not know the meaning of the word manava (human being), such a person is worse than birds and animals.

Human birth is a wonderful thing. It opens up boundless possibilities. It is of the utmost importance. The word “human” refers not only to the physical body. A human being is a combination of body, mind, and Atma. Acting through the body, gaining knowledge through the mind, and having the Atma as the observer of these two—this constitutes manavatvam (human existence). Action, knowledge, and awareness—these three stages express the inner meaning of human life. It is utter ignorance to equate human life solely with the body…. From the very beginning, one must understand that a person should know the nature and purpose of human existence and lead a meaningful life.

First and foremost, one must attend to the mind. Only one whose mind is perfect can be called a human being. “As a person thinks, so they become.”

----— Sathya Sai Baba

Brindavan, 05.20.1993

1313 · May 7, 2022

Time has passed. Human relationships with God, between people and God, between people and society, and between people and angels have been defiled by anger and hatred. People mistake falsehood for truth and reject truth as untrue. They blindly wander along the roads of falsehood. And they are proud of it, believing that they are progressing.
In an atmosphere of godlessness, it is difficult to kindle the lamp of faith in one’s heart and keep its flame steady and strong, without wavering or flickering. Today, a wife has no trust in her husband, a husband has no trust in his wife, sons doubt their father, a father suspects his sons, students do not trust their teachers, and teachers cannot rely on their students. So how can faith grow in the single field of religion? This calamity has come about because people allow passions and prejudices to cloud their minds. The intellect is the instrument through which the mind must be corrected and governed. The intellect must not submit to the whims of the mind and senses.
When a person is sinking in the mire of desires, they cannot clearly distinguish between “good” and “bad.” To achieve this, the intellect must be pure and clear, sharp and straightforward. There must not be the slightest trace of selfishness, envy, or greed in one’s thoughts, for these will lead the intellect away from its goal. A wavering mind and restless eyes do not help the intellect reach a decision.

Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, 23.11.1973