Prasanthi Bulletin, February 25th, 2006 - February 26th, 2006

[Guest guest]

and the Naadaswaram, both were being played by the students standing near the

Gopuram entrance of the Hall. Taking a full turn, the car stopped near the

interview room. Bhagawan was wheeled onto the dais. Swami first spoke to Sri

Sanjay Sahni, Principal of the Brindavan Campus of the University. Soon the

mike was arranged and Mr. C. Srinivas came forward and interacted with

Bhagawan. It was clear that some special function was about to commence. Mr.

Sanjay Sahni announced that Bhagawan was today, Blessing four very

distinguished men who had offered yeoman service in the cause of Bhagawan's

Mission. The first gentleman was Mr. A. Ramakrishna, former Vice-President of

ECC construction division of the L&T Company. Swami had entrusted to L&T under

Mr. A. Ramakrishna's guidance, the construction of most of His grand project

buildings; such as the Bangalore and Parthi Super Specialty Hospitals, The

Chaitanya Jyoti, The Water Projects at Anantapur, Medak, Mehboobnagar and

East & West Godavari tribal areas and of course the Sai Kulwant Hall. Mr. A.

Ramakrishna came forward and Swami Blessed him with the keys of the car.

Meanwhile, all the four cars were brought in front of the dais with one of

Swami's 'driving team' at the steering wheel of each car. Swami was not

satisfied with merely giving him the car key. He then got up from the chair,

came walking down the central steps to the side of the car. Standing there,

Swami commanded Mr. A. Ramakrishna to get into the car and He literally flagged

off the car and caught his hands and Blessed him as the car moved along. Prior

to this, Mr. Ramakrishna spoke a few words offering his gratitude to Bhagawan

for all the Love that He was showering on him. It was very clear to him that

Swami was doing everything and giving him the credit for all the success. He

explained how after Swami came into his life, the L&T Company has prospered

enormously. Swami continued standing there as

Mr. Sanjay Sahni called out the other names. The second distinguished gentleman

was Mr. Kondal Rao, Senior Technical Consultant to Govt. of Andhra Pradesh for

the Sri Satya Sai Water Supply Project, and also the Chief Engineer supervising

the Chennai Water Supply Project. Mr. Kondal Rao had been closely working with

L&T in the execution of these projects. Mr. Kondal Rao got into the car and

received the Blessings as earlier. The third special recipient was Mr.

Chakravarthi, the secretary of the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust and formerly

collector of Anantapur District and also the first Registrar of the Sri Sathya

Sai Institute of Higher Learning. The fourth Blessed gentleman was Prof. G.

Venkataraman, former Vice-Chancellor of the Institute, currently Director of

Prasanthi Digital Studio and Radio Sai Global Harmony. He is also actively

involved in conducting the Values Based Course called the Awareness programme

for the Post Graduate students at the Institute.

After Blessing all of them profusely, Swami walked back to the dais and then

Blessed Mr. Ramakrishna and Mr. Kondal Rao with a photograph. Both of them sat

beside Swami and Swami holding their hands kept praising them for a long time

telling about their achievements to the boys seated in front. Next He Blessed

Mr. Chakravarthy and Prof. G. Venkataraman with a photograph and also praised

them for a long time. By now it was 9:05 AM. Swami gave permission for the

Stotram chanting to commence. This morning, the presentation was organised very

well. We had brief commentary preceding every song, both in Telugu and English

rendered by two students very well. The Stotrams chanted included the

following: Chidananda Rupah Sivoham SivohamBilvashtakamLingashtakamGanga

Taranga Ramaneeya JataakalaapamNeela Kantara Devaa Deena Bandhava Ra RaSada

Sivam Bhajaamyaham Sakala Loka NaayakamSiva Siva Siva Siva Anaraada Shiva

Shankari Shivananda Lahari -

SoloOm Namah Shiyava -- Om Namah Shivaya - SoloThe last two were solo songs very

well by the Mandir Bhajan singers. Others were all group songs. Swami was very

involved throughout the presentation and especially appreciated the last two

performances. It was 9:55 AM when Bhagawan asked them to stop. After this

Prasadam was distributed to all (Mysore Pak sweet in a neat plastic box). At

10:30 AM, Swami went near the interview room and Blessed the special cake baked

for the occasion. At 10:40 AM, Bhagawan retired to Poornachandra. The Evening

Session It was 4:00 PM, when Bhagawan made His entry into the Kulwant Hall. He

took a full round in the car as He usually does and then went into the

interview room. After a while a number of trays with blue coloured boxes

started coming outside in the hands of students. All these were placed on the

dais, ready for distribution. Meanwhile, another team of students who

had rushed to Poornachandra Auditorium just before Bhagawan's arrival returned

with big carton boxes full of white safari cloth for students. All the cloth

pieces were placed on the dais. A few minutes later Swami came out and was

wheeled onto the centre of the dais. Swami immediately instructed the students

to go ahead and distribute the safaris to all the students. Both college and

school students were the lucky recipients of this Blessing from Bhagawan. After

a while the blue coloured boxes were also distributed to the students. This

contained a small calculator that made some sort of music when started. This we

came to know since all boys started opening their boxes and switching on the

calculators! All the while Swami sat and kept watching the distribution. Now

and then, He called the boys and gave them some guidelines for distribution. By

4:35 PM, He was wheeled in again. After around 10 minutes, very surprisingly, we

found Swami getting into the car and

driving away to PC. We all were eagerly waiting for His Divine Message but here

was Swami leaving us in suspense. After some time, Swami again came out into

the car and went somewhere outside for a short while. Once again, He was back

to PC. Then at 5:15 PM, Bhagawan returned to the Sai Kulwant Hall. He was

wheeled onto the dais for a few minutes and then in again. But after a few

minutes we saw Him walking on the inner VIP Portico adjacent to the Bhajan

Hall, talking to a number of devotees. He then went again towards the interview

room and finally at 5:25 PM, Swami came onto the dais walking. He stood holding

the railings for some time giving joy to one and all. For a moment He raised

His right Hand and gave Abhaya Hasta Blessings to all. Immediately there was

loud applause. At 5:30 PM, Swami was seated on His Chair. Mr. A.V.S. Raju,

Founder-Chairman of Nagarjuna Construction Company Limited, was also wheeled in

and made to sit next to Swami. Swami spoke to him and

we knew that he was about to read his poems to us. The Vedic hymn Mantra Pushpam

was being chanted and to our joy, Swami also started chanting along with the

students. Around 5:45 PM, Swami gave some instructions to brother Nitin. A few

minutes later the famous playback singer P. Susheela came onto the scene. Swami

spoke to the Music boys giving them some instructions. We thought that it was

going to be some musical programme by her. But who can understand Swami's ways?

Swami asked the boys to start with a Ganesha Bhajan followed by some other

Bhajan. Then, Swami asked Smt. P. Susheela to sing two Bhajans. She sang

Esawramba Priya Tanaya Sai Narayana and Manasa Bhajare Guru Charanam. After

these two Bhajans the boys continued the Bhajans. But Swami had other plans. At

6:10 PM, suddenly, Swami asked them to stop singing Bhajans. He instructed Mr.

A.V.S. Raju to share some of his poems with the audience. This went on till

6:35 PM when he was asked to conclude.

Subsequently, we were almost sure that Swami would ask us to continue singing

Bhajans but instead Swami asked for the Discourse mikes to be arranged.

Bhagawan stood up and to the delight of all, commenced His Sivaratri Divine

Message at 6:30 PM. The whole Universe is in Him. Can you build a temple for

Him? When He resides in all beings, what name can you give Him? When all the

oceans find refuge in Him, can you give Him a bath? He is not merely Iswara; He

is the Iswara of the whole Universe. Prapancha is a combination of the five

elements. 'Pra' means expression or manifestation or blossoming. 'Pancha'

stands for the five elements. There are the five elements - earth, water, fire,

air and ether. There are also the five senses - Shabda (sound), Sparsha (touch),

Rupa (sight), Rasa (taste) and Gandha (smell). The five life breaths are Prana,

Apana, Vyana, Udana and Samana. The Lord is the basis for the expression of all

these. Is any among these

permanent? No, only Brahma Tatva is eternal. What is Brahma - that which

represents these five. Man worships a specific form. This is not permanent. We

worship with narrow feelings and forget the Cosmic Principle. The Universe is

the form of God. Anda, Pinda and Brahmanda. Anda consists of the material

world, Pinda consists of the fulfilment of one's birth and both these occur in

Brahmanda. Love is the foundation of the Universe. There can exist neither

Nature nor world without Love. The world is sustained by the Love that is

distributed in the five elements. Forgetting Love, following any mode of

worship is in vain. The five elements express their power through the human

life. Prana (life) - why is it given? Human birth is the rarest of all. Man is

Divine but running after Kama (desire). God created all - wife, children and

friends. It is the duty of man to respect each one accordingly. The wife should

be considered as Divine. Children also represent

Divinity. Enemies are also Brahmaswarupa. Even those who fought with God were

finally given mergence in the almighty. There is no place where there is no

God. All eyes and ears are His. Nobody recognizes this Truth. People wonder how

God can hear - where are His ears? We must understand that sound itself is God,

light itself is God. Therefore, there is nothing that God does not know. God's

creation is highly sacred. Human delusion is on account of attachment to one's

body. Manava - 'Ma' stands for Maya, 'Na' stands for no or not and 'Va' stands

for living or conducting oneself. Therefore, we must conduct ourselves such

that we do not allow Maya to overpower us. Good and bad are all in your

thoughts. Correct your thoughts. If there is any element of hatred, feel

ashamed of it. If you are attracted by anybody, it is because of attachment.

Understand that it is God who attracts. All forms are His. You have none but

one true enemy and that is your own mind.

You are the origin of everything. You are all Embodiments of Love. None of you

is separate. There is no second at all. Nothing like a 6th element. Your Love

represents the Divine Form. Brahma is not away from you. To think that He is

away is Brama. Action (Karma) is also Divine. Never accuse or criticize God.

All is God. It was 7.10 p.m. and Swami sat down on the sofa and continued. All

is Sivam, all is Vishnu, all is Divine. This is the Sivaratri message for all.

>From a tiny granule to a gigantic tree, Divinity resides in all. There is no

need to search for God. You are verily God. You are verily Vishnu and Shiva. It

is only your feelings that create a difference. Sometimes you get angry. The

same anger gets transformed into love later. Yesterday's anger becomes today's

love. They are not different. 1 + 1 = 2, 2 + 2 = 4, 4 + 4 = 8 but 5 + 5 is not

equal to 10. 5 + 5 = 1 only. The rest are all zeroes. Ekam Sat Viprah

Bahuda Vadanti. There is no second at all. This unity is God. Know this Truth.

Jeeva and Deva are not different. Your shadow is not different from you. Bliss

is your own reflection. Only when we understand this oneness, can we experience

Divinity. 1&0 = 10, add a 0 = 100, add another 0 = 1000, add another 0 = 10000,

add yet one more 0 = 100000 If you remove the One, nothing is left. Just

zeroes. So too in life, we say: My wife, my child, my land, my house... 'My' is

like 1 and all the rest are like zeroes. Nothing remains at the end. The whole

world is a zero that comes out from God who is the Hero. Doubts and

imaginations rob us of our Bliss. Never entertain any doubts. It is like

poison. You get doubts about your wife, children..... all this is useless. Why

don't you doubt yourself? Then you will feel so ashamed. Even if doubts come,

brush them aside. You can develop strong faith only when you remove all doubts.

Doubts can be dangerous

and can sometimes prove fatal. A car can ride well only if all the four tyres

are in good condition. Even if one tyre gets punctured you can meet with an

accident. In our life, Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha are the four tyres. None

of them should get punctured. Students, body is the chariot. Mind is the

steering. You must control the steering. Until the mind is annihilated, you

need to control it very well. This will lead you to Moksha and your life will

be fulfilled. When you ride a bicycle, balance is very important. So too in

life, balance is very important. Being born as a human being, if you slip into

the existence of an animal, it would be so embarrassing. This is the teaching

of Shiva. You are a human being. You are not an insect, not a bird or an

animal. You can never deny the Atma. Do not claim everything as yours. Ma in

Manava stands for mine. Get rid of this Ma Ma Ma - mine, mine, mine. Your goal

is to attain Divinity. For this you need Sanmati

(good mind). Unity leads to purity, purity leads to Divinity. All must have this

unity. We all are humans; brothers and sisters. Students of Satya Sai College

must always be united. Only if you are united, you deserve to be called Sai

Devotees, else there will be no purity of Sai in you. Love God and it will

transform your hate towards others also into love. Therefore, develop Love. It

was 7:30 PM. Bhagawan concluded His Divine Sivaratri Message with the Bhajan,

Prema Mudita Mana Se Kaho.... After the Bhajan, He once again continued... The

name of Rama has been helping humanity since ages. This is the power of Rama

Nama. Everybody chants the name of Rama. Be it in a village or a city, valley

or the mountain top. People of all religions should begin with chanting the

name of Rama. Rama means that which attracts - Ra Ra - come,come... Then Swami

narrated the story of King Krishna Devaraya and his minister Tenali

Ramakrishna. Once Tenali Ramakrishna constructed a sentence containing five

words which meant the same but in different languages. It was 'Ye Aao Ra Ba

Va?' Actually it was a question asked of Ramakrishna, 'Which cow is it,

brother-in-law?' in Telugu. But when split up it could also mean 'Ye' -come- in

Marathi, 'Aao' -come- in Hindi, 'Ra' -come- in Telugu, 'Ba' -come- in Kannada,

'Va' -come- in Tamil. The lesson from the story was that words should be used

very carefully. Understand small things and then you will be able to understand

the bigger things too. All students should develop good qualities, and live an

ideal life. Then, Swami will be very happy. Those who make Me happy, I will

make them very happy. Get a good name wherever you go. Conduct yourself as

befits a Sai student. This is the message of Sivaratri. When all of you enjoy

supreme Bliss, it is Sivaratri for Me. My Blessings to all of you?. Sing the

glory of God all night. Do Naama

Smarana whole heartedly. Then you will attain Divinity. Am I giving you trouble?

(Boys immediately replied - No Swami.) It was 7:50 PM and Bhajans began. Just

two lines were over and Swami again stopped them. He said: Do not sing the word

'Digambara' in the Bhajans. Laymen understand this word to mean 'naked'. But the

true meaning is that God has His attire as the eight directions 'Diks'. Thus He

is called Digambara. But avoid this while singing. Bhajans continued. At 8:00

PM, Bhagawan retired for the day. It was such a hectic day for Swami. Morning

to evening, He kept giving and giving tirelessly! The mikes for Bhajans were on

till 9:30 PM. Later an announcement was made as per instructions of Bhagawan by

Prof. Anil Kumar. He announced that Aarti would be at 7:00 AM tomorrow and

Prasadam (Puliyora and Sakarpongal) would be distributed thereafter. February

25th, 2006 This

evening, Swami came out for Darshan at 3:45 PM. After the usual round, Swami

came walking onto the dais. As soon as He reached the centre of the dais, He

signalled to the students at the rear end to move. We were not clear what Swami

wanted, but soon Mr. Chakravarthi received instructions from Swami and he came

and passed on the same to the boys. The entire group of boys seated at the rear

end got up and marched towards Poornachandra Auditorium. We were wondering what

the task could be. A few minutes later, all the boys returned in a line,

marching in with huge watermelons in their hands. Swami asked them to

distribute to all the students and staff - each one receiving a huge water

melon! This went on for quite some time with boys marching back and forth

between the Poornachandra and Sai Ramesh Hall. Subsequently, Swami asked the

Lady Sevadals to collect the water melons and serve the devotees on the ladies

side. It was 4:20 PM when the entire drill was over. The

next programme was poem recital by Sri A.V.S. Raju Garu, the Founder-Chairman of

Nagarajuna Construction Company Private Limited. We have heard him so often

sharing his poems in the Divine Presence on earlier occasions. His chair was

wheeled in and placed next to Swami's. Sitting there, he read out a number of

poems for several minutes. At 4:45 PM, Sri Ajit Popat (devotee speaker from UK)

was summoned and he thrilled the audience with his electrifying speech till 5:25

PM. This was followed by a few Bhajans and finally Swami retired at 6:15 PM.

You can see an illustrated version of happenings at Prasanthi Nilayam in the

Prasanthi Diary of our monthly e-Journal Heart to Heart. The previous issue

of Prasanthi Bulletin is available here. The Photo album contains photos of

events of past Prasanthi Bulletins. Index of past Prasanthi Bulletins...

Source: Radio Sai Websitehttp://www.radiosai.org/pages/PB.htm