Sai Baba Gita - The Field of the Heart

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The Field of the Heart

Before a farmer can raise a crop in his field, he has to do a great deal of

preparation. Before the seeds can be sown, the land must be cleared of brush,

stones and weeds, and then it has to be softened by plowing and irrigation. The

farmer must determine what particular types of seeds will grow best on that

land, and what kind of nutrients would be required to fertilize the soil. When

all these preparations are completed, he finally sows the seeds. Therefore,

before a crop can be raised, the entire field has to be made ready for

cultivation. Stones and weeds have to be dug out and thrown away. Only then can

the appropriate seeds be sown to assure a good crop.

In a similar way, a spiritual aspirant must also carefully prepare the field of

his heart. The same principles of cultivation apply to that field. First, one

has to remove from the heart all undesirable thoughts and useless habits. They

have to be dug up and cleaned out. After that, you have to irrigate the entire

field of the heart with the waters of love. These waters of love make the heart

soft and cultivatable. With the help of spiritual practices, you have to plow

the field of your heart and spread the fertilizer of faith in order to make the

soil rich and nutritious for the seeds to grow well there. Only when all this

has been done will the entire field of the heart be ready for sowing. When the

heart is covered with bad weeds of base thoughts, when it is barren, hard and

dry and infertile, how can good seeds grow there and have any chance of

maturing into a bountiful crop?

It is in this connection that Krishna said to Arjuna, "Arjuna, you must

cultivate and transform the field of your heart. You must root out your

external vision. Develop a pure and strong flow of love for God. Sow the seeds

of God's name in your heart and you will raise a rich harvest of unity

consciousness there, for that is what grows best in that field. That is its

very nature. Then you will become a man of steady wisdom and attain your

spiritual goal. In the garden of your heart you will be able to enjoy the

sacred fruit of liberation. Once you have that, fear can never again trouble

you.

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Sai Baba Gita, Compiled and edited by Al Drucker - Published by Atma Press -

http://www.atmapress.com - ISBN: 0963844903Online Edition:

http://www.atmapress.com/saibabagita/index.html