SPREAD THE MESSAGE OF LOVE - Swami’s Discourse on 25-12-1994

[Guest guest]

A recollection of Swami’s earlier Christmas day messages-5:

Om Sri Sai Ram

SPREAD THE MESSAGE OF LOVE

Swami’s Discourse on 25th December 1994 at Prashanthi Nilayam

[sai sings in Sanskrit:]

The Cosmos is controlled by the Divine; The Divine is governed by Truth; Truth

is governed by noble beings; The noble are the Divine Itself.

The entire visible cosmos is under the control of the Divine. The Divine is

governed by Truth. That Truth is subject to noble beings (Uthamaadheenam). A

noble person is the embodiment of God.

The human body, made up of the five basic elements and endowed with the five

sense organs, is not different from the mind. The mind wears the body as a

vesture. The mind, for its enjoyment, uses the body as an instrument. It is the

cause of all experiences. A body without a mind is as illusory as a p on barren

field. In ordinary life people regard the body as permanent and for the sake of

its pleasures undertake all kinds of efforts. This is a sign of ignorance. A

body without the mind is as useless as a school without a teacher and a temple

without a deity. The body should be regarded as an instrument for right living.

 

Men are developing their intellectual abilities but are using their intelligence

for wrong purposes. Knowledge without right action is useless. Mere action

without knowledge is foolishness. Hence it is necessary to combine knowledge

with cultivation of character.

The most important faculty in man is Prajna Shakti (the power of Integrated

Awareness). It is from Prajna Shakti that other powers like Ichcha Shakti (will

power), Medha Shakti (intelligence), Vaak Shakti (the power of Speech) and

Vicharana Shakti (the reasoning powers) are derived. This Integrated Awareness

is sustained by thoughts.

The most important requisite for man in the world is truth based on thoughts.

True thoughts constitute the proper wealth for Man. But, alas, modern man makes

no efforts to cultivate good thoughts. The absence of good thoughts weakens the

will power. With a weak will Man cannot accomplish even simple things. To

achieve anything worth while in life Man has to strengthen his will power.

GOOD COMPANY AND GOOD THOUGHTS

It is well known that humanness thrives on good company and good thoughts. What

good thoughts can achieve is illustrated by the life of a poor boy in Tamil

Nadu, Muthuswamy Iyer. His father died at a very young age. The forlorn widow

summoned the young man and told him that there were many poor people in the

world who were suffering many hardships because they were not able to get

justice. "Somehow you must pursue your studies so that you may one day provide

help to these unfortunate people", she said. The mother's words strengthened

the determination of the young lad. He pursued his studies diligently though he

lacked many necessities. In the evenings he used to study under street lamps, as

there was no light at home. He was solely inspired by his mother's good advice.

As a result of this hard work, he

graduated and secured a law degree. He dedicated himself to the service of the

weak and helpless. His zeal and devotion resulted in due course in his becoming

the first Indian Judge of the Madras High Court. Consider the lowliness of his

birth and what eminence he achieved! It was entirely due to the noble thoughts

he cherished and his strength of will. In many foreign countries, young men who

started their lives as dishwashers, or newspaper vendors or shoeshine boys,

achieved eminence as writers by dint of hard work and noble aspirations. Their

achievements are entirely due to the ennobling thoughts which strengthened

their will power and inspired in others confidence in their abilities. In

Britain there was a poor youth named James MacDonald who used to help school

children by writing the addresses of letters for them. As he wrote each

address, he used to tell the boy, `God bless you.' He also used to tell them,

off and on, "God is great". Often he had to go without food, but his heart was

filled with noble feelings. Such a lad one day became the Prime Minister of

Britain. Only his noble thoughts could have raised him from his poor state to

the office of the Prime Minister.

THOUGHTS AND DESTINY

Man's bad or good fortune is related to his thoughts. Sowing the seed of

thought, Man reaps the fruit known as Karma (deeds). Sowing the seed of Karma,

Man reaps the fruit called Abhyaasa (Practice). From Abhyaasa, Man reaps the

fruit of Character (Seela). From character one reaps the fruit of good fortune

(Adrishtam). Thus fortune is based on character, which is based on good

practices arising out of good deeds based in good thoughts. Thus, according to

the development of good thoughts, one's good fortune will

also grow.

Unfortunately, men today are deluded by bad thoughts and are engaged in evil

deeds. They enjoy bad company and as a result come to a bad end. Every one of

you can experiment in a small way with the gradual elimination of bad thoughts.

You will discover for yourself how your will power grows with the diminution of

bad thoughts. Man has forgotten that the spiritual path alone will rescue him

from the grip of insatiable desires, endless worries and numerous troubles. He

is indulging in various malpractices. As desires multiply, the will power

weakens and vice versa. You can find out for yourselves how when addiction to

coffee, tea and smoking is reduced, the will power gets stronger. The results

can be verified with just one week of practice. By addiction to various

deleterious practices, man's will power

and other faculties decline in strength. The will power should be strengthened

by giving up bad habits and it should be directed towards social service.

JESUS AND SOCIAL SERVICE

Jesus exemplified the spirit of social service. The inspiration for this came

from His mother, Mary. From His childhood Mary taught Him such good qualities

as truth, kindness, compassion and justice. In His twelfth year, Jesus and His

parents went to Jerusalem for a festival. In the crowds the parents lost trace

of Jesus and searched for Him everywhere. Not finding Jesus anywhere, Mary sat

under a tree and prayed to God to come to her help. At that moment a thought

flashed in her mind that Jesus was perhaps in a nearby temple. And Jesus was

there sitting in a corner of the

temple and listening to the words of the priest. Mary affectionately rushed

towards Him and embraced Him. "Child! What agony I went through on your

account," she said. Jesus told her, "Mother, why should you have any fear?

Those who believe in the world will have fears. But why should anyone believing

in God fear at all? I am in the company of my Father. Why do you fear? You

taught me that God is everything for us. How, then, can you worry like this?"

JESUS'S MINISTRY

Jesus had learnt His lessons from His mother and developed His spiritual faith.

After they returned from Jerusalem, Jesus felt that service to His parents was

His foremost duty, because He owed everything to them. ln this spirit, He used

to assist His father in His carpentry work. Joseph passed away when Jesus was

thirty. He sought His mother's permission to devote Himself to the service of

the needy and the forlorn. After leaving home, Jesus had Himself baptized by

John. Then for forty days Jesus observed severe austerities without food and

drink. At first He considered

Himself as a "Messenger of God". After the penance He realised He was the Son of

God. He began His ministry with a group of fishermen as His first disciples. He

taught them that they should first seek the Kingdom of Heaven. To enter that

Kingdom they had to cultivate loving hearts. Then, their hearts would become

the Kingdom

blue; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"> of Heaven. Jesus further declared to them: "I and my Father are One".

FOSTER LOVE

What is it that men should acquire today? It is the broadening of the heart so

that it may be filled with all-embracing love. Only then the sense of spiritual

oneness of all mankind can be experienced. Out of that sense of unity will be

born the love of God. This love will generate pure bliss in the heart that is

boundless, indescribable and everlasting. For all forms of bliss, love is the

source. A heart without love is like a barren land.

Foster love in your hearts and redeem your lives. Whatever your scholarship or

wealth, they are valueless without love. Without devotion all other

accomplishments are of no avail for realising God. Men aspire for liberation.

True liberation means freedom from desires.

Today men cannot go to forests for penance or engage themselves in meditation

and other spiritual exercises. The easiest spiritual path for all people is to

dedicate all their actions to God.

ONENESS WITH GOD

Today we celebrate the birthday of Christ. It is said that when Jesus was born

in a manger, three kings were led by a star to Jesus's place of birth.  In

fact, they were not kings but three shepherds. One of them, seeing the infant

Jesus, observed: "This child will be a lover of God". A second one said: "No.

God will love him." The third one said: "Verily He is God Himself”.

The true significance of these three statements is: To love God is to be His

Messenger. To be loved by God is to be a son of God. The final state is to be

one with God. As Jesus said: "I and my Father are one". Thus all persons are

messengers of God. This means that they should divinise themselves. When can

men call themselves Sons of God? Recognize what pure actions are done by God,

selflessly for the sake of all. There is no trace of self-interest in Him:

Everything He does, says or thinks is for the good of others. On the other

side, everything men do, speak or think is born out of selfishness. Men have

become puppets in the hands of selfishness. Men can describe themselves as

"Sons of God" only when they are completely free from selfishness and become

Godly. To call yourself the "Son of God", you

have to manifest the qualities of the Father.

(Swami referred to the Prahlada story and the emergence of the Lord from a

pillar and pointed out the significance of the destruction of the pillar as a

prelude to the manifestation of the Lord. Swami said the illusion relating to

the body had to be destroyed for the Divine to manifest Himself.)

The body is no doubt essential up to a point. It has been given for the

performance of right actions and to discover the Secret underlying action. The

body (Kaaya), Action (Karma), the mystery (Marmam) and righteousness (Dharma)

together signify the purpose of human birth (Janma). Today men are not aware of

righteousness or the role of Karma. Of what use is human existence?

SPIRITUAL PATH IS NARROW

Do not give room for the waywardness of the mind. Purify the mind and direct it

towards the righteous path. It is a strait and narrow path. ln the spiritual

field there is no royal highway. The path is narrow because the goal is

infinitely precious. Crowds swarm a fish market but only a few go to a diamond

shop. The road to God is for the few who are genuine Sadhaks. The birthdays of

saints and prophets are being celebrated these days with feasts and

festivities. This is not the way to celebrate them. The followers should live

up to the teachings of their great Masters.

UNIQUENESS OF CHRISTMAS IN PRASANTHI NILAYAM

Christmas is celebrated today in many countries. In every country small groups

of people go to their respective churches, listen to the sermon and return to

their homes. In some places people eat, drink, and make themselves merry. But

nowhere in the world can you find Christmas being celebrated with the solemnity

and holiness obtaining in Prashanthi Nilayam. Here are gathered men and women

from all countries. There are many denominations among Christians and the

members thereof celebrate Christmas in their separate ways. Only in Prashanthi

Nilayam do Christians of all denominations and men and women of other faiths

join to celebrate Christmas. Here are devotees from

10pt">Germany, Russia, Argentina, America and many other countries. They speak

different languages. Prashanthi

Nilayam has become a mini-world. All of them work in unison. You witnessed last

night the beautiful play by children from so many countries. They conveyed the

Divine Message so effectively. Here is a concrete manifestation of the

Brotherhood of Man and the Fatherhood of God.

People talk about brotherhood, but there are often no fraternal feelings among

brothers even in one family. That is not the case here. Here you see

brotherhood in action, from heart to heart and love to love.

Holy festivals are conducted in such an ideal manner only in Prashanthi Nilayam.

Devotees should set an example of ideal living to the whole world.

MESSENGERS OF SATHYA SAI

Today, the former girl students of Sathya Sai College at Anantapur, who have

formed an association called "Messengers of Sathya Sai”,

are observing their annual day. They are doing good service. They carry out the

commands of Swami in the spirit and the letter. They are spread all over the

world - Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan and other countries.

They come to Prashanthi Nilayam from these far off places out of their devotion

to Sai. They are bringing their husbands and children also out of their deep

love for Swami. They go out to villages and do various kinds of service there.

They serve the blind and deaf and dumb children and make them self-reliant and

useful citizens. They are carrying on their work wholeheartedly.

For the expenses of their travel from far off countries they save money from

their domestic budgets. This is a sign of their dedication to God's work. In

this manner the old students of the Anantapur college are leading exemplary

lives wherever they are. In addition to all their multifarious household

duties, they carry on their social service activities.

THE MESSAGE OF UNITY

In this cosmic university all are students. Hence everyone should render social

service to the extent of one's capacity and spread Swami's ideals among all.

There is nothing selfish in Swami's message. Hence anyone can spread it

selflessly.

Sow the seed of love in your hearts and it will grow into a tree. GOD is one. Do

not entertain any differences of creed or caste. Carry the message of unity to

every home.

Embodiments of love! Regard love as your life-breath and as the sole purpose of your existence.

[swami concluded His discourse with the Bhajan: "Prema Muditha Manase Kaho: Rama, Rama, Ram!"]

Sent with Sai love

Sai brothers – ‘’

 

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