Believe in the Lord but not in the little things.

[Guest guest]

There was a good-natured millionaire in the town. Three beggars thought of

approaching him for help. The first went to the millionaire and said: "O Lord!

Please give five rupees." The millionaire was taken aback at this man's

impudence and said, "What!

You demand five rupees from me as though I owe you the money! How dare you?

Here, take these two rupees and get away". The Second went to the millionaire

and said: " Maharaj! I have not taken a square meal for the past ten days.

Please help me". The millionaire said, "take this ten rupee note. You can have

nice food for at least three days". The third beggar came and said: "Maharaj! I

have heard about your noble qualities. Therefore, I have come to have your

Darshan. Men of such charitable disposition are verily the manifestations of

God on earth". The millionaire was happy and offered him place to sit and

decent food to fill his stomach. Later, The millionaire requested beggar to

remain with him, built a decent house for him in his compound and looked after

him for the rest of his life.

God is like this good millionaire. Three classes of people approach him with

three different desires and prayers. The first approach with full of vanity,

arrogance, desires and demands objects of worldly enjoyment. The Lord grants

him some part of the desired objects. The second approach the Lord for relief

from the sufferings of the world but he is ready to abide by Lord's will. The

Lord grants him full relief from suffering and bestows much wealth and

property. The third

(Jnani) approaches and praises Lord but expects nothing. But the Lord is highly

pleased with his spirit of renunciation, desirelessness and of self-surrender.

Therefore, he grants him supreme devotion and make him to live in his own

house(Vaikuntha). Afterwards, This jnani- Bhaktha dwells in Lord's abode as a

Liberated Sage. There is no limit for Universal Mother's(Lord) Love.

Love is of three kinds - First, The love that is concentrated on oneself is like

a bulb that illuminates the room without shedding light outside the four walls.

It is confined to the senses and never opens out to others. Second, The Love

that is larger and deeper which expands into the members of one's family. It is

like a moonlight not strong enough to make things clear but enough to move

about. It undergoes rise and fall, increase and decrease. Third, This is the

most desirable type of Love which is like Sunlight that always engages in

purifying, activating, illumining and knows no distinction. This love will make

man act ever in the spirit of dedication to the Lord. The One who attains the

third kind of Love will perform acts that would be elevating and holy.

Man is miserable only due to his perverseness and stupidity. He should know that

the illness that is torturing him is due to not giving up greed and lust; not

giving up the habit of catering to the senses; not giving up the belief that he

is just this body.

Assimilate the virtues of sathya, dharma, shaanthi and prema (truth,

righteousness, peace and divine love) into your character so that you will

shine with fine mental and physical health. "Uddhareth aathma-naathmaanam":

"Save yourself by yourself". University degrees will not give, riches cannot

buy, kinsmen cannot hand over and teachers cannot confer the pre-requisites for

Shaanthi. Shanthi is attained by only Faith and Devotion.The cause of the most

chronic discease of man is Ajnana(i.e., Ignorance of the undying Athma within

him) is due to infatuation for the objective world, subservience of senses, the

undue prominence given to the body and imagining body to be

touchstone of value. The body is like a temporary shelter where you reside for a

short while on your jouney to your goal i.e.,kaivalyam (Liberation) which gives

the highest bliss. Be a true bhaktha and become so small that you wriggle out

of the shackles of the senses or be a true jnaani and become huge so that you

escape by breaking the shackles.

Believe in the Lord but not in the little things. Do not keep your trust in

little men, wicked men and in men who are vicious and greedy. Instead, develop

faith and keep trust in the Lord who is more merciful than any father, more

loving than any mother, more powerful than any earthly authority and more

considerate than any kinsman. One has to remember the Name of God and deepen

faith in God to cultivate the attitude of dedication. Dwell on the Naama so

that its sweetness will saturate your tongue and improve your taste. The Lord

will respond if you call him atleast once from the depths of feeling. He will

be deaf even if you call him a million times automatically, artificially.

You cannot offer full heart to the Lord if it has leaks of Egoism, pride, thirst

for fame because sweetness will be drained away through the leaks.May the

Merciful Sri Sai Baba always shower His grace on us and our families and remove

our problems and anxieties by giving us all - strength , goodluck, success and

happiness with peace of mind.Sai bhakt,Deepa Hdebu7366