Book of the week - Bapu to Baba

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Bapu to Baba

By V.K. NarasimhanSai Towers Publishing; (March 1990)162 pagesISBN: 81-86822-18-6

 

Gandhi to Sai Baba - From the Editor of Bhagavan's Spiritual Journal

The title of this book is Bapu to Baba. 'Bapu' is the endearing term used for

Mahatma Gandhi. It literally means father. This book is a collection of 36

articles written by V K Narasimhan who is the editor of Sai Baba's spiritual

journal called Sanathana Sarathi. Mr. Narasimhan came to Bhagavan Baba in 1980

after nearly half a century of association with leading national dailies.

Originally published on Swami's 60th birthday, the present edition is a reprint

with a few additional articles on Bhagavan Baba and His global mission to unify

and spiritualise mankind. These articles bear testimony to the author's deep

concern for freedom, social justice and moral values.

http://www.saibooks.org/newsletters/2002/apr02.htm

 

 

Bapu to Baba

 

By V.K. Narasimhan, Published by Sai Towers Publishing, 3/497, Main Road,

Prasanthi Nilayam, 515 134, India, pp. 170

 

The first edition of Bapu to Baba was published in November 1985, as an offering

to Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba on His sixtieth birthday. The present edition is

a reprint with a few additional articles on Bhagavan Baba and His global Mission

to unify and spiritualise mankind.

 

The author is a well known journalist with more than half a century of

association with leading national dailies. At present, he is the Editor of

Bhavana’s Spiritual Journal, Sanathana Sarathi.

 

The book is a collection of 36 articles which bear testimony to the author’s

deep concern for freedom, social justice and moral virtues.

 

The first article “A Journalist’s Odyssey” is an expansion of the title. He is

fortunate to have been born in one of the stirring moments of Indian History.

In the 1920s, Gandhi became the moving spirit of the Indian National Movement.

As a young boy he was all enthusiasm for whatever Gandhi did.

As a college student, he read the collapse of the capitalist system and the

Great Depression that gripped the European countries. The Soviet experiment

sounded to be a promising alternative and he became a Marxist with the hope of

a better world to be ushered in by the socialist system, “the community of

working people enjoying the benefits of science and technology through the

social ownership of the means of production.”

 

Looked at from the Marxist angle, even Gandhiji seemed to be an economic and

social reactionary, more concerned with the moral means, than with vital

economic social goals.

 

But the course of history – Stalinist Communism with its aggressive nationalism

– did not fulfil the promises of the Marxist ideals. It was found to be more

dangerous because of its complete control over the minds and resources of the

people.

 

His critique of communism is worth quoting: “I felt, in particular, that the

Communist doctrine of the end justifying the means and their avowed faith in

violence as the means of social change were bound to prove self-defeating and

could only produce a social and political system in which moral values were

subordinate to political and personal ends. Above all, the doctrine of class

war and class hatred, on which the entire Communism Movement had been built,

seemed to me to be calculated to warp the minds of millions of people and breed

an atmosphere of hatred which could not be conducive to the development of a

healthy and harmonious social system.”

With this growing awareness, long it was not after he realised that the Gandhian

approach to National and international problems was more enduring.

 

Narasimhan’s career as a journalist – 15 years prior to Independence and 33

years after Independence of the country – made him a personal witness to the

universal collapse of morals and self-discipline that rapidly over took the

country. He felt the supreme need of the country to recover the spirit of

Gandhiji for ordering its life in every department, in Government and outside.

He identified in Bhagawan Baba the authentic spiritual leader from whom

emanated the powerful moral force to rejuvenate not only the country but the

entire world. Sri Sathya Sai Organization is the true World Body that achieves

the unity of mankind in a common goal of love and service to fellowmen.

 

Spiritual Impressions, Puttaparthi, Sai Towers, Mar-Apr. 1997, pag. 70-71

 

Contents

Foreword

Preface to First Edition

Preface to Second Edition

Preface to Third Edition

 

Part I: Bapu to Baba

1. A Journalist's Odissey

2. The Unity of Mankind

3. Lamps of Love

4. The Quest for Unity

5. Teaching Should be a Sacred Sadhana

6. Human Values for Europe

7. Schooling for Excellence

8. Of Such is the Kingdom of Sathya Sai

9. Grow them Straight

10. Liberation - The Goal and the Means

11. Jai ! Sadgurudeva !

12. The Paradox Resolved

13. Service and the three Gunas

14. Prasanthi Nilayam Becomes Jyothi Nilayam

15. Silence, Speech and Sadhana

16. Global girdle of Light and Love

17. Awareness and Sadhana

18. With Bhagavan in 'Trayee Brindavan'

19. The Akhanda Bhajan Saga

20. Unto Sai a Witness

21. Baba - The Divine Sadguru

22. The Glory of Krishna and Baba

23. Your Message is Our Life

 

Part II: Perennial Relevance of the Sai Message

24. Looking Before and After

25. Let Truth Alone Win

26. Democracy and Individual Freedom

27. Moral Quality of the I.A.S.

28. Development-The Forgotten Factor

29. God in Man's Image

30. Practising Swami's Teachings

31. The Spiritual Path

32. A New Beginning

34. The Way to Happiness

34. Living for God

35. Time is God

 

The book is available at:

 

Sai Towers Publishinghttp://puttaparthi.info/shopping/shp/bookdetail.asp?itemid=B1010

 

Sri Sathya Sai Book and Information Centre, Toronto, Canada

http://www.saibooks.org/

 

Sri Sathya Sai Books, UK

http://www.srisathyasaibooks.org.uk/

 

Sathya Sai Book Shop, Switzerland

http://beaskund.helloyou.ws/sathya/index.html

 

Jai Sai Ram Books

http://www.jaisairambooks.com/JaiSaiRamBooks.html

 

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