Learning Through Reading

1313 · Feb 19, 2024

How can we cultivate detachment by understanding what is the source of our attachment? Bhagawan lovingly explains this to us today with a simple illustration!

A little reflection will help us understand what is needed to develop detachment. You have a house in the city; you have lived in it for several years; you call it yours and are proud of it; you angrily protest when advertisements are pasted on its walls; you have taken great care to make it comfortable, cozy, and impressive. And then one day you sell it. It is no longer an object of your attachment! Even when lightning strikes it, you do not care. Now the fields you purchased with the proceeds from the sale become yours, and they attract all your attention! When floodwaters inundate these fields, you become very anxious and run around trying to save them from disaster! Then you sell them, and now you call the proceeds yours; you put the money in the bank and become attached to it! The money you deposited in the bank may be lent by the bank to someone you dislike, but this does not concern you. So what exactly is yours? What were you so deeply attached to? The house, the fields, the money? None of these.
You were attached to prestige, comfort, ostentation, greed: to what arose in your mind as a desire, as an impulse; that is, essentially, to the gratification of your own ego. This is what prompted you to claim these things, one after another, as yours!

- Divine Discourse, March 27, 1966.

Where there is no attachment, there is no fear.

- Baba

1313 · Feb 21, 2024

Why and how should each of us serve? Bhagawan gently and lovingly reminds us of this today.

Calm your hearts and bring them into a state of peace; share this with others; worship God in this delightful form. When you reach the level required for seva, you will understand that it is vitally important to have a pure heart—untainted by vanity, greed, envy, hatred, or rivalry; faith in God as the source of life force, virtue, and justice is also required. Seva is service that you offer to God—the spiritual heart of every person. Do not ask another person what country they are from, what caste they belong to, or what faith they profess. See your beloved form of God in this person who is “different” from you; in essence, this person is not “another” at all. They are just like you. You are not helping some “particular person”; you are serving Me in this person. I am before you in this form; where is there room here for the “cobra of the ego” to spread its hood? Duty is God; work is worship. Even the tiniest task is a flower laid at the feet of God.
- Divine Discourse, March 4, 1970.

Whatever you do as service, whoever you offer this action to, believe that it reaches God in that person.

- Baba

1313 · Feb 23, 2024

How steadfast should our love for God and our faith in Him be? Bhagavan lovingly explains this by giving us a classic example.

The green vitality of a tree is a sign of the Divine Will, which sends its roots deep into the soil. The roots protect the tree during hurricanes, keeping it from being uprooted by powerful gusts of wind. Likewise, if the roots of love in a person reach down to the Divine Source within, no storm of suffering will be able to shake them and plunge them into disbelief.
Just as a lump of sugar sweetens every drop of water in a cup, so a loving gaze sees everyone in the world as friendly and attractive.
The simple cowherd girls of Gokula saw Krishna in one another—such was their all-consuming love for the Divine Incarnation.
The “Bhagavata,” which describes their love and the love of many other devotees of the Lord, is a textbook of Divine Love, Bhakti.
The “Mahabharata,” describing Krishna’s exploits and virtues, is a textbook of Dharma, morality, and social and political life, which was corrected and guided by the Supreme Authority of Truth (Krishna, translator’s note).
Begin serving with love today, right now! Each action will inspire you to take the next, for what is engaging inspires you!
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
— Divine Discourse, May 24, 1967

Love gives rise to truth. Love gives rise to peace. When you have love, you practice nonviolence. Love is the foundation of it all.
— Baba

1313 · Feb 25, 2024

If we want to become leaders, where should we begin? How should we prepare ourselves? Today Bhagavan lovingly guides each of us.

Of all the living beings born into this world, the opportunity to be born as a human being is an exceedingly rare and great blessing. Having been born human and endowed with this special gift of intelligence, you must sanctify your human birth and existence. You must be ready to put into practice one of the ten truths you preach, rather than merely speaking ten good things.
You must be ready to serve throughout your life. Never think about becoming a leader. Unless you become one who serves, you cannot become a leader. You must first learn to follow before becoming a leader. The world is in a sorry state because today people become leaders without knowing how to be good followers. In this context, you must be ready to dedicate your entire life to serving humanity. First, you must serve your home, then your village, then your state, and then your country. If you have not acquired the ability to serve at home and achieve results in your family, how can you serve your country and hope to succeed? — Divine Discourse, May 20, 1976

If one who understands the spirit of service becomes a leader, through service they will always preserve their leadership and derive fulfillment from it.

— Baba

1313 · Feb 27, 2024

My Power cannot be measured.
My true Nature is Incomprehensible, impossible to explain in words.
I proclaim My Nature because the need has arisen. However, today I am merely handing you, so to speak, My “calling card.”
Allow Me to tell you that only Krishna so clearly and unambiguously declared His Otherworldly origin…
My Will shall be done; My plans shall be brought to Life.
I am the Embodiment of Truth, and Truth does not doubt, does not fear,
does not retreat.

I have no need to express My Will, for anyone who repays Me with Devoted Love and deep Faith may count on My Grace.
Since I walk among people, speak with them, and sing for them, even the most sophisticated minds cannot comprehend My true Nature, My Power, My Glory, or the true meaning of My Mission—the Mission of an Avatar.
I can solve any, even the most difficult, problem. I am Incomprehensible, no matter how thorough the examinations and meticulous the measurements you conduct.
Only those who have accepted My Love and come to know this Love of Mine can claim that My true Being has been revealed to them.
For love is the main highway that leads people to Me.

Sathya Sai Baba came to Earth to accomplish a Great Mission: to unite all people on Earth into One family, bound by the ties of Brotherhood; to shed Light on the Spiritual nature of humanity and reveal the Truth of the Unity of all Humanity in the Spirit.
To help people ascend to the heights of the Spirit, realizing their Divine nature, and raise their level from human to Divine.

Sathya Sai Baba

1313 · Feb 29, 2024

Why should we strive to take control of our lives? Bhagavan explains this with love and clarity through a simple example!

Today, this country seeks priya (the pleasant) instead of hita (the beneficial), and this is the cause of all troubles and dissatisfaction.
Indian culture has always emphasized the difficult and beneficial path; but now people aspire to cultures that satisfy the senses—external, filled with excess, illusions, mirages, and the momentary! Indian culture advises controlling the senses rather than indulging them! A car is steered by means of a wheel located inside it; when this inner wheel turns, the outer wheels move. Likewise, in a person, the inner wheel must be turned so that they can move forward. Attempting to set the outer wheels in motion is a sign of ignorance; it is a waste of precious energy. It is necessary to develop inner concentration rather than outer distraction. Cultivate silence, simplicity, and humility instead of noise, complexity, and pride. Of the twenty-four hours that make up a day, use six for earning and spending money, six for contemplating God, six for sleep, and six for serving others. At present, you do not spend even five minutes contemplating God, and you are not ashamed. What a tragedy!

Divine Discourse, March 16, 1966

A ladder should be as high as the height you wish to reach; your sadhana, too, should continue until the goal is attained!

—BABA

1313 · Mar 1, 2024

What should we do so that the Divine Light of the Atma shines from within? Bhagawan explains today, using an example from the Mundaka Upanishad!

The universe is an instrument for revealing the glory of God. The inner sky in the human heart is also a revelation of His glory. He is the breath of man. Since He has no definite form, He cannot be described in words. His mystery cannot be grasped by the other senses either. He is beyond the reach of austerities and not subject to Vedic rituals. He can be known only by an intellect purified of all traces of attachment and hatred, egoism, and the sense of possessiveness. Only spiritual wisdom can grant self-realization. Meditation can bring about the concentration of abilities; through this concentration, spiritual wisdom can be attained even while living in the body. Brahman activates the body through the five vital energies (pranas). He condescends to manifest in this very body as soon as inner consciousness attains the necessary purity. Indeed, the Atma is inherent in the inner and outer sense organs just as heat is inherent in fuel and butter in milk. At present, individual consciousness is like raw fuel soaked in the dirt of sensual desires and disappointments. When the pool of the heart is cleared of slimy growth, the Atma shines in its pristine glory! — Ch. 4, Mundaka Upanishad, Upanishad Vahini.

If you lack purity of heart, you will not be able to understand the principle of the Atma, regardless of your level of education.

— BABA

1313 · Mar 2, 2024

Do we really consist of the senses and the mind, or should we identify ourselves with something deeper? Bhagawan lovingly explains the nature of these instruments as revealed in the Kena Upanishad.

The ear, skin, eye, tongue, and nose—these five sense organs are respectively capable of knowing sound, touch, form, taste, and smell. Objects of knowledge are perceived only through these five organs. The world is understood with the help of these instruments, which occupy an intermediate position between the knower and the known. The inner capacity to understand objects is called the mind (manas). The mind goes outward through the sense organs and attaches itself to objects. At that time, by virtue of this very process, the mind assumes the form of that object; this is called a function (vritti). The mind is insentient (achetana), so its transformations and modifications (vikaras) are also insentient and lifeless. A wooden doll possesses only the quality of wood, while a sugar doll possesses the quality of sugar. The insentient mind cannot grasp the Supreme Intelligence (Chetana) that pervades the universe. Just as an insentient chariot is directed by a charioteer, so the charioteer must control the insentient mind (manas), sitting in the mind and using it only as his vehicle. The motivating force that activates the inner instruments—the indriyas of action and perception and the five vital pranas (pranas)—that force is God! — Ch. 8, Kena Upanishad, Upanishad Vahini.

You trust the driver of your car and the engineer who built your house. In the same way, trust the Inner Motivator, the Atman within, the Voice of God.

— BABA

1313 · Mar 3, 2024

What should be our final destination? How should we transform our lives into a journey leading to this destination? Bhagavan lovingly shares one valuable piece of advice with us today.

The river must reach the sea, not the desert sand; the water must merge with the sea! This is completion, Kaivalya, or Sayujya. To keep this goal in focus, one must constantly control the wavering mind! When the Sun is in the sky, the Moon disappears from view. Buddhi, the refined intellect, is the Sun; the pale satellite, waxing and waning, or the Moon, is the Mind! Therefore, give the intellect full authority; let the mind be governed by reason, not passion! Become the master of the senses, not their slave. Hrishikesha, another name for Krishna, means “Lord of the senses”; Gudakesha, another name for Arjuna, conveys the same meaning. That is why the two are companions. The senses drag you into the jungle of nature; so what benefit is there in running into the jungle when the senses are running wild with hunger? Why did the sages go into the jungle? To immerse their minds in the silent peace of the forest; to dwell forever in thoughts of God, whose voice is heard when all other voices fall silent. If you close the windows through which other voices enter, your home too can become a forest of freedom, a hermitage of penance!

- Divine Discourse, January 30, 1965

Play your role in all spheres of social life while keeping your heart pure and untainted.

- BABA

1313 · Mar 6, 2024

TRIALS

Let your faith be unwavering. Do not become a slave to others, not even to God! Test everything in the world. Examine, try, gain your own experience—and, having finally found God, claim what is rightfully yours!

But before claiming that right, you will have to come to the examination and pass it, right? The tasks that arise before you are not punishment; they do not mean at all that God enjoys seeing you in difficulty. They are meant to give you the joy of passing your examinations successfully!

Treat everything as a manifestation of God’s will. Whatever happens to you, gain or loss, pain or pleasure, have firm faith that it is for your good. Be firmly convinced that difficulties and suffering are ordained by God for your purification. There is a reason for everything God does.

God tests people in many ways. Trials are meant only to help your spiritual progress. Nothing can affect God. Why do you lose faith in Him? It is a sign of weakness. Leave no room for such despondent doubts. Strengthen your faith and realize Unity with God through your devotion.

Sri Sathya Sai Baba

1313 · Mar 7, 2024

What is most important for developing our human qualities and progressing on the path to Divinity? Bhagawan explains this to us today with complete compassion.

Good company makes you holy and divine. On the other hand, bad company gives rise to bad feelings and bad thoughts, which prompt you to perform bad actions. Therefore, you need to keep good company and develop your human qualities. Good company can elevate a person to the level of Divinity, while bad company can bring him down to the level of an animal. The animal level is below the human level, and the Divine level is above it; the human level lies between them. You must make an effort to rise above the human level. No effort is required to fall downward. It is easy to become bad. But attaining a higher level is difficult. And although it may be difficult, you must still make an effort to reach a higher level. Unfortunately, today people keep bad company, causing good feelings to turn into bad ones, good actions into bad ones, and ultimately making a person's life miserable. Your thoughts are the root cause of everything. Therefore, your thoughts should be noble, sacred, pure and meaningful only.
- Divine Discourse, 8 July 1996

Good company leads you to detachment, and through detachment you will attain self-realization.

- BABA

1313 · Mar 10, 2024

What does the principle of Shiva, whom we worship and before whom we bow, represent? The sacred festival of Shivaratri is approaching, and Bhagawan lovingly explains this through a memorable example.

Shivaratri enables us to realize that the same Divinity is all-pervasive and omnipresent. In our daily experience, there are many examples that testify to the existence of Divinity in every person. Take cinema, for example: on the screen, we see that when a river overflows, its waters engulf the nearby land. Although the scene is flooded, there is not a drop of water on the screen. At another moment, on the same screen, we see volcanoes erupting with flames, but the screen does not burn. The screen that serves as the basis for all these images is unaffected by any of them. Similarly, in human life, good or bad, joy or sorrow, birth or death come and go, but they do not affect the Atma! In the cinema of life, the screen is the Atma; it is Shiva, it is Shankara, it is Divinity. When a person understands this principle, he can understand, enjoy and find fulfillment in life!
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
- Divine Discourse, 17 February 1985

Ultimately, all forms merge into the Formless. Shiva is the principle that destroys all names and forms, all entities and personalities.
- BABA

1313 · Mar 11, 2024

What exercise should we practice constantly in order to spiritualize our lives? Bhagavan explains and also gives valuable advice on where to begin.

Separate the real from the apparent. Seek the essence, the meaning, within an event. Abide in your Atmic reality: you are pure, indestructible, unaffected by either the ups or downs of life; you are the true, eternal, unchanging Brahman, the essence that is all this. Just a five-minute inquiry will convince you that you are neither the body nor the sense organs, neither the mind nor the intellect, neither the name nor the form, but that you are the Atma itself—the very Atma that manifests as all this diversity. Once you gain an understanding of this truth, hold on to it; do not allow it to slip away. Make it your constant possession. As the first step toward attaining this Viveka (wisdom) and Vairagya (detachment), from this moment onward adopt the discipline of Namasmarana—constant remembrance of God through the Lord’s Name.

— Divine Discourse, January 30, 1965

Namasmarana is a practice that can be undertaken at any time and in any place by everyone, regardless of religion, caste, gender, age, economic or social status.

— BABA

1313 · Mar 13, 2024

How natural are our actions? Bhagavan lovingly and tenderly gives us a tool to assess ourselves, discern, and set out on the path of Love in our daily lives.

If love is part of your nature, then Sathya, or Truth, will also be with you. When your thoughts arise from a mind purified by love, they lead to Dharma (right action). When love becomes part of your experience, thoughts, and actions, you attain Shanti ("peace"). When we know Love with complete clarity, Ahimsa, or nonviolence, arises of itself. Thus, love is the unseen undercurrent connecting all four values. This can be summarized as follows: Love plus thoughts is Sathya; Love plus feelings is Shanti; Love plus actions is Dharma; and Love plus understanding is Ahimsa. Love is the common denominator of all these values. It is the form of God, for God is Love. One who gives love is human, while one who does not nurture this love is a beast. Love or its absence makes a person an animal, a human being, or God. Cultivating love is possible only in a tender heart. Because of attachment to worldly objects, this tenderness is lost. —
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, January 25, 1985

Nurturing love is the goal of all spiritual efforts.
—Baba

1313 · Mar 15, 2024

What role do temples and places of worship play in our lives? Bhagavan lovingly explains this to us so that we can make the best use of them.

Temples play a vital role in awakening spiritual aspiration in a person and guiding them toward realizing their inherent divinity. A person's true temple is their heart, and forgetting this, they seek external temples. Temples are built to remind people of God, but the Divine dwells in the heart, and that is where one should seek Him. People go through all kinds of difficulties, hardships, trials, and misfortunes in life, but only a few try to understand the divinity inherent in them, which should be the main goal of their lives. People devote much attention and effort to preserving the perishable body. But they do not cultivate good thoughts within themselves or perform good deeds through which they can attain everlasting bliss. Temples serve to create a society of good and pious people, and they should be used to sustain such a society and attain peace of mind. It is not enough simply to visit temples as a traditional ritual. -
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Divine Discourse, January 25, 1985

The purpose of temples is to awaken Divinity in humanity by encouraging people to believe that the physical sheaths in which they live are themselves the abode of God.
- BABA

1313 · Mar 17, 2024

"SHIVA SAI — SHIVA'S THIRD EYE"

When Sathya Sai Baba was in his early twenties, a restless young man who was an incorrigible cricket fanatic was assigned to accompany Baba.

To delight the young man, Baba announced the score of a match being played in distant Madras! Even after that, the young man continued asking questions, especially about Shiva's third eye. Swami gazed intently at the young man, and from the cleft in the middle of Swami's forehead between his eyebrows, a powerful stream of vibhuti burst forth, forceful enough to send the young man flying to the other end of the hall!"

This story was told in Howard Murphet's book *Man of Miracles*, and was also retold recently by that same man, who had been a young man at the time. Shiva is worshipped as Trayambaka—the One with three eyes; in the well-known liberation hymn, it is sung: "Trayambakam Yaja Mahe (O Three-Eyed One, we sing Your praise)," and Sai Baba is also Trayambaka, the One with three eyes. His Jnana Netra, the third eye of wisdom, is always open.

1313 · Mar 18, 2024

What is the esoteric significance of the eleven Rudras? What should we rely on to attain spiritual wisdom? Today, Bhagavan lovingly guides us!

According to numerology, the first three syllables of the word Shivaratri—Shi, va, and ra—represent the numbers 5, 4, and 2, while the fourth syllable, tri, means “three.” The numbers 5, 4, and 2 form a unified whole, a complete picture of the eleven Rudras. Rudra means “He Who makes one weep.” The eleven Rudras are the five organs of perception, the five organs of action, and the mind. They lead a person astray in pursuit of trivial and fleeting pleasures, ruin them, and make them weep. But when the Atman is sought and relied upon, it radiates its rays upon all eleven Rudras and makes them meaningful partners in a person’s progress toward self-realization. The rays of the Atman illumine the intellect. An illumined intellect awakens the mind, and an awakened mind gains control over the senses, guiding a person through knowledge to wisdom.
- Divine Discourse, March 7, 1978.

When the mind longs to know the Lord, all other base desires fade and disappear. Then a person realizes the Atman.

- BABA

1313 · Mar 20, 2024

What is the fundamental essence of Vedantic wisdom that we must not lose sight of? Bhagavan reminds us of this so that we may understand the true inner meaning of the scriptures.

At present, when education has spread everywhere and learning means merely memorizing books, people have become cynical. They doubt even the simplest statements and revel in heated debates. Representatives of our culture speak of God as One and Only, of His omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence. At the same time, they argue about rivalry among the various aspects of the Divine. Thus, they sow seeds of doubt in people’s hearts. The principle of Brahman, the cosmic Atma, is known by different names and depicted in different forms, like gold in various jewelry settings. All is Brahman, Atma, OM.
Ayam Atma Brahma (this Atma is the Divine Principle), declares the Veda. God is omnipotent. To attribute human weaknesses to Him is sacrilege. Myths and legends about the mystery of God contain symbolic meanings that are ignored. They reveal their inner truth only to those who seek.
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
- Divine Discourse, January 4, 1987.

Along with studying the scriptures, it is also necessary to care for the well-being of the entire world.
- Baba

1313 · Mar 21, 2024

How can one attain true knowledge and Divine Grace? Today, Bhagavan guides us with love through His play on words.

To attain Divine Grace, there is no need to strive for knowledge, wealth, power, or status. Only purity of mind is required. Every cell of the body will be filled with the Divine when God is worshipped with sincere and boundless devotion. For a selfless devotee, the Divine will become Omnipresent. The Lord is always ready to answer the prayers of devotees. But what is presented today as “devotional service” is merely a “deep immersion” in the ocean of worldly life. People speak about Divinity, but are interested in pomp and ceremony. They call for compassion toward everyone, but have only desires on their minds. They utter the word “cooperation,” but engage only in “exploitation.” Devotion has been reduced to an ostentatious show. True knowledge can come only when a person faces a profound moral crisis. Arjuna encountered precisely such a situation when he found himself between two opposing armies. Parikshit experienced a similar crisis when he learned that he had only one week left to live. It is at such turning points that a person remembers God and seeks Divine help!
- Divine Discourse, December 31, 1983

The Divine is present in everyone. But there is only one way to realize this: to cultivate deep love for God within oneself.

- BABA

1313 · Mar 24, 2024

How should the value system be changed to create a just and respectful society? Bhagavan lovingly guides us today.

Everyone should regard other people as their own relatives, possessing the same Divine Spark and the same Divine nature. Then there will be efficient production, economical consumption, and fair distribution, leading to peace and the spread of love. Today, love founded on inner Divinity is absent, and therefore exploitation, deceit, greed, and cruelty exist. If a person realizes that all people are “cells” in the Divine body, there will no longer be any devaluation of human beings. A human being is a diamond, but now both the person themselves and others treat them as a piece of glass! A person can fulfill their mission on earth only when they realize that they are Divine and regard everyone else as Divine. A person should worship God in human form. God appears before them as a blind beggar, an ignorant person, a leper, a child, a decrepit old man, a criminal, or a madman. You must see behind these outer coverings the Divine embodiment of love, power, and wisdom—Sai—and worship Him through seva (selfless service).
Sri Sathya Sai Baba
- Divine Discourse, April 1, 1975

When the winds of love and faith blow, the clouds of doubt and egoism disperse, and God reveals Himself.
- BABA