Discourses of Sri Sathya Sai Baba - 23 November 2005 80th Birthday

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23 November 2005

80th Birthday

Prasanthi Nilayam

 

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REALISE YOUR INNATE DIVINITY TO ATTAIN PEACEby Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai BabaNote:

Discourses of Sri Sathya Sai Babaon this SBOIwebsite/group are unedited,

authentic & only sourced from the official Sai baba sites.

Bereft of truth, righteousness, love and peace the value of all your education

is zero; Bereft of truth, righteousness, love and peace the sanctity of all

your acts of charity is zero; Bereft of truth, righteousness, love and peace

the utility of the positions of power occupied is zero; Bereft of truth,

righteousness, love and peace the result of all your good deeds is zero.

(Telugu poem)

Embodiments of Love!Human birth is meant to attain peace and not for occupying

positions of authority. One may have all types of wealth and comforts but

bereft of peace life itself has no meaning. There are many in this world who

are well-to-do, highly educated and occupying positions of authority. But, in

what way is society benefited by them? They have no time or inclination to wipe

off the tears of the suffering humanity. How can we help the poor and the

downtrodden? This should be the concern of the people in power. But, nobody

seems to think on these lines. In the name of social work, people are actually

indulging in ‘show-work’! They drive away the beggars who come to their

doorstep begging for alms. Man should engage himself in acts of charity in

order to experience peace. You should understand the import of the term Manava

in the first instance. What is the goal of a human being? Is it to strive for

the fulfilment of one’s desires? Is it to come up in life in the worldly sense?

Is it to enjoy sensual pleasures? Human life is a mixture of happiness and

sorrow. It is not possible to experience one to the exclusion of the other. How

can you expect to attain happiness and peace if you are not prepared to help

your fellow human being? Everyone has to experience ups and downs in life, but

they are like passing clouds. Difficulties are a part of life. None can escape

them. Hence, one has to treat happiness and sorrow with equanimity. There is

pleasure in pain and vice-versa. One should not be elated by pleasure nor

depressed by pain. We have to develop the spirit of equanimity in order to

progress in life. Samatwa (equality) is very essential for Samaja (society) to

progress. Sukhadukhe samekruthwa labhalabhau jayajayau (one should maintain

equipoise in happiness and sorrow, gain and loss, victory and defeat). But,

man, in spite of enjoying all comforts and pleasures, is unable to bear even a

small difficulty. He is disturbed and distressed by the slightest trouble. If

you ask a well-to-do person, whether he is happy, what will be his reply? He

will say, “Sir, I have no dearth of money. My sons are well settled in life. My

home is very well furnished with all types of comforts and conveniences. I have

everything in life except peace of mind.” How can one attain peace of mind? It

is possible only when one realises his innate divinity. Why are we not able to

experience peace? Where does the mistake lie? We go on enquiring others, “Who

are you”? But, we do not make an effort to enquire into ourselves, “Who am I”?

There lies the mistake. Once we realise who we really are, we will be free from

sorrows and difficulties forever. Hence, first and foremost we should make

efforts to realise our true identity. What is the use of knowing everything

without being aware of the Self? Is it not a futile exercise to sow seeds when

there are no rains? Even when there are rains, can you reap a harvest unless

you have sown seeds? Both the positive and the negative are required for the

electric current to flow. In the same manner, both self effort and divine grace

are essential to achieve success in your endeavours. Easwara Sarva Bhutanam (God

is the indweller of all beings), Isavasyam idam sarvam (the entire universe is

permeated by God) We must realise that we are born to experience our innate

divinity and not merely to enjoy worldly pleasures. We have to take to the path

of spirituality to experience our innate divinity. If we lack in spiritual

outlook, we do not deserve to be called human beings. In fact, it amounts to

betrayal of God. God does not expect you to worship Him. He expects you to lead

an ideal and purposeful life. Once sage Narada enquired Lord Vishnu as to what

was the royal path to immortality. Then Lord Vishnu replied, “One should

realise that I am present in all beings”. The spark of divinity is present in

all. Man is not a mere mortal. He is essentially divine. Jiva (individualised

soul) and Deva (God) coexist. The former is negative and the latter positive.

Lord Vishnu told Narada, “I have to assume the form of a human in order to move

among men and protect the world. I am present in everyone in the form of Atma.

When man constantly contemplates on the principle of Atma, I manifest Myself.”

The same divine principle of Atma is present in all. One who realises this

truth experiences the all-pervasive divinity. God is in you, with you, around

you, above you and below you. However, you cannot realise this truth unless you

give up negative feelings. God is everywhere. You have not to search for Him.

Develop firm faith that He is in you. God has no specific form. He transcends

all names and forms. Having been born as a human being you should strive for

the welfare of the society. You are a member of the society and your welfare

depends on the welfare of the society. Hence, undertake activities which are

beneficial to the society.Embodiments of Love! Do not identify yourself with

the body. You are the embodiments of the Atma. The body is made up of five

elements and is bound to perish sooner or later, but the indweller has neither

birth nor death. The indweller has no attachment whatsoever and is the eternal

witness. (Telugu poem) Can anyone say “My Atma is dead”? The physical body

perishes with the passage of time but the Atma is eternal. One can see the

reflection of the sun in a well, in a water tank, in the river and also in the

ocean. Without water, there can be no reflection. Each human being can be

compared to a flow in which the reflection of the same Atma is seen. The sun is

one, but appears as though there exists a separate sun for each country. When it

is daytime in India, it is night-time in America and vice-versa. The sun may

appear at different times in different countries, but it is one and the same.

We cannot call it as Indian sun, American sun so on and so forth. Similarly,

God is one. Truth is one. Love is one. Live in love. When you adhere to the

twin principles of truth and love, you will experience the manifestation of

divinity in everything. Who is God? In fact, you yourself are God. Hence,

everyone should develop the firm conviction, “I am God”. When you develop such

firm conviction, there will be no room for ego and hatred. You are God and your

fellow human being is also God. Develop such principle of oneness and equality.

When you harm others, you actually harm yourself. Victory and loss are a part

of the game of life. One should not criticise or blame the other. When someone

meets with failure in his endeavour, empathise with him. When you do not

identify yourself with others, differences are bound to crop up. Who are you?

You think you are the body. But, you are neither the body nor the mind. The

human body is like a water bubble. How can you identify yourself with such an

ephemeral body? You may say “I am the mind”. Mind is nothing but a bundle of

desires. One day or the other you have to give up all desires. Hence, do not

identify yourself with the mind. Today’s man has limitless desires. His mind

wavers from moment to moment and hence is called a monkey mind. Do not allow

your mind to behave like a monkey. You belong to mankind and hence keep your

mind always steady. Constantly remind yourself that you are a human being.

Daivam manusha rupena (God is in the form of human). Give up body consciousness

and live in the constant awareness that you are God. We construct temples to

consecrate idols and worship them. Where does the idol come from? It is your

own creation. You offer worship to the man-made idols but you are not prepared

to worship the God in man. There is no point in merely worshipping idols if you

do not realise your innate divinity. Everyone must respect and revere the

principle of the Atma within. Consider Atmaviswasa (faith in the Self) as your

very life-breath. Faith in the idols is temporary. When you go to Tirupathi,

you worship God in the form of Lord Venkateswara. You extol Him saying, “Lord

Venkateswara is our family deity”. When you make a pilgrimage to Brindavan, you

worship God in the form of Krishna. In Ayodhya, you worship Him in the form of

Lord Rama. Depending on the place and circumstances, different names and forms

have been attributed to God. But, in reality Lord Venkateswara, Krishna, Rama,

Sai Baba, all are one and the same. Call Him by any name, He will respond. He

has no differences. You should not be deluded by differences in name and form.

Develop firm faith in the oneness of the Atma. “Religions are many but the goal

is one”. Embodiments of Love!Having come here after spending a lot of money and

putting up with inconveniences, you should make proper use of your stay here.

Ask yourself, whether you have spent your time in a purposeful manner. What is

the use of coming here if you do not practise Swami’s teachings? Develop

unwavering faith in the oneness of divinity. Only then can you experience

peace. So long as you do not contemplate on the oneness of God, your mind will

continue to play its tricks. You may criticise someone as a bad person today

and extol him as a good person tomorrow. Good and bad are your own thinking.

Your mind is the cause for both. In reality, man is always good by nature.

Human life is highly sacred. That is why it is said, Daivam manusha rupena. Do

not belittle yourself thinking that you are a mere mortal. You are verily God

Himself. The very fact that you portray God in a human form and worship Him

proves that human being is essentially divine. Do not attach undue importance

to names and forms. Understand the inherent principle of divinity. What is the

use of taking birth as a human being if you conduct yourself like an animal?

You need not give up everything and become a Sannyasi. See God in man. God is

all-pervasive. You cannot say that God is confined to a particular place. There

is no place where God does not exist.Sarvatah panipadam tat sarvathokshi

siromukham, sarvatah sruthimalloke sarvamavruthya tishthati (with hands, feet,

eyes, head, mouth and ears pervading everything, He permeates the entire

universe).We cultivate paddy. However, we do not consume it in its raw form. We

remove the husk covering the grain and transform it into rice. So long as there

is husk, it is obliged to have ‘rebirth’. Our desires are like the husk

covering the rice grain. We will be free from the cycle of birth and death once

we give up all desires. Paddy becomes suitable for consumption only after it

undergoes the process of refinement and becomes rice. Rice is used for making

various preparations such as Pulihora, Chitraannam, Chakkera Pongali, Paayasam,

etc. Rice flour is used for preparing Idlis and Dosas. The names of these food

items may vary, but the essential ingredient of rice is the same in all. Just

as paddy is transformed into rice, our mind should also be purified through the

process of refinement, termed as Samskara. You are deluded because of your

materialistic outlook. You have to change your vision. Do not expect God to

change the creation. He has given you everything in its pristine form. But, you

are polluting it because of your selfish desires. The mind is the root cause for

all this. Hence, annihilate the mind and everything will be clear to you.

Embodiments of Love!Your heart is pure and sacred but you are deluded by the

clouds of desires. Just as the sun and the moon are not visible to us when they

are covered by the clouds, we are unable to visualise our reality because of our

desires. Childhood passes in trivial play with other childrenYouth passes in

amorous sportMiddle age absorbs time and effort in amassing wealthCome dotage,

time crawls in futile longing for worldly desires, yet there is no time for

contemplation of God.Thus is wasted the precious human birth, deeply entangled

in the net of Karma (Telugu poem) Man feels proud of his youth and falls into

the trap of Maya (delusion). As the end approaches he regrets for not having

attained peace of mind in spite of enjoying all comforts and pleasures. Man

passes through various stages in life such as childhood, youth, middle age and

old age. However, there is no transformation in him with the advancement of

age. Instead of trying to change the Srishti (creation), man should change his

Drishti (outlook). We can see the reality only when we change our Drishti.

There is nothing wrong with Srishti. God’s creation is perfect and none can

alter it. In this creation God can make anything happen by His divine Will. So

long as one is endowed with physical strength and vigour, one may enjoy himself

by participating in Aatalu and Paatalu (play and song). However, one should not

indulge oneself in any activity beyond a certain limit. As the age advances,

the physical body undergoes certain changes. All of you are aware what a great

singer M.S. Subbulakshmi was. However, her voice refused to cooperate with her

in the old age. When she mentioned this to Me, I told her that she had used her

voice in excess and that was the reason for her predicament. Your voice and

vision are bound to change with the passage of time. You suffer from unrest and

anxiety because you rely on your physical body. Instead, rely on the changeless

and eternal principle of the Atma. Man is ruining his life because of his

habits. He should lead a life of righteousness. Do not give undue importance to

food and drink. Consider character as your very life-breath. If you lack

character, you will have to face innumerable difficulties in life. Divinity is

referred to as ‘Sath’, which means changeless and eternal principle. People of

different religions call it by different names. The Muslims extol God saying,

“Allah Ho Akbar”. They consider God as their sole refuge. Whether one is a

Muslim or a Hindu, God is the only refuge for all! You should emphatically

declare to yourself, “I want God”. You should get immersed in the divine, not

in deep wine! Once you accept Rama as your God, you should spend your entire

life in the contemplation of Rama. But, these days man has become

fickle-minded. One day he keeps the picture of Lord Rama in his altar and

starts worshipping Him by chanting His name; but, the very next day he replaces

Rama’s picture with that of Krishna’s, if his wishes are not fulfilled. Once

there lived a devotee of Lord Shiva. He used to worship Shiva every day and

chant the sacred Panchakshari Mantra “Om Namah Shivaya”. But, after some time

he felt that Lord Shiva had not done him any favour. Hence he put aside Shiva’s

picture in the almirah and kept Rama’s picture on the altar. Initially, he could

experience some peace. However, his desires remained unfulfilled and he became

restless. He kept Rama’s picture also in the same almirah and started

worshipping Krishna, on the advice of his guru. He chanted the divine name

“Gopala Krishna” incessantly. After some time, he felt that even Krishna had

not done him any good. One day a lady devotee came to him and said, “What is

the use of worshipping Rama and Krishna? Better you do Devi Puja (worship).” As

per her advice, he kept a picture of Devi on the altar and started worshipping

it. As the Puja was in progress, he noticed that the fragrance from the incense

sticks was wafting towards the almirah where the pictures of other deities were

kept. He therefore decided to remove those pictures from the almirah thinking

that the incense sticks were meant for the goddess and that the other deities

had no right to enjoy the fragrance. Immediately, the Divine Mother manifested

herself before him and said, “Oh simpleton! You worshipped Shiva for a few

days, and then you switched over to Rama and later on to Krishna. What is the

guarantee that you will not discard My picture also tomorrow? This is not true

devotion. You should contemplate on one name and one form till your last

breath. You should remain unperturbed by difficulties and lead a spiritual

life. Fill your heart with sacred feelings. Only then will your life be

redeemed.” If you want to progress in life never forget the name of God. Do not

divert your mind from one name to another. Let your mind be focused on one name

and one form. Manah eva manushyanam karanam bandhamokshayo (mind is the cause

for bondage and liberation of man). The mind wavers because of the desires you

entertain. Hence, you will attain peace only when you give up desires. Mere

performance of acts of charity will not confer nobility on you. Offer yourself

to God with single-minded devotion. Only then can you attain peace and

happiness. Control your desires. Control your thoughts. Then everything will

come under your control. Embodiments of Love! You are endowed with the eternal

principles of truth and love. Sathyannasti paro Dharma (There is no Dharma

greater than adherence to truth) Consider Sathya as the basis of your life.

Follow the path of Dharma. Only then will the principle of Love manifest in

you. When you have love, you will be successful in all your endeavours.

Embodiments of Atma!You are not the body which is bound to perish. You are the

indweller which has neither birth nor death. It has no attachment whatsoever.

You will attain immortality once you realise your true identity. You will be

free from all worries and desires. You may ask “Is there anyone without worries

and desires?” I am Myself the living example in this regard. I have absolutely

no desires whatsoever. Everything is in My hand. I can give you whatever you

ask for. However, do not crave for materialistic things from Me. They are

transient like passing clouds. Ask for that which is eternal. The entire world

is sustained by the twin principles of truth and love. They are present in

everyone. I am the truth that is present in all. I am the love that is present

in all. Truth and love are all-pervasive. However, you are not making efforts

to experience truth and love. Embodiments of Love!Today you may be occupying

positions of power, but how long can you remain in power? It is only temporary.

Only divinity is everlasting. You have chosen the path of truth. Never deviate

from it. Never forget the principle of truth you have experienced. You may

forget anything in life but not truth and love. Truth is Bahirvahini (manifest

flux) and love is Antarvahini (undercurrent). Both of them have to be protected

and sustained. That is the duty of a human being. Bereft of truth and love one

does not deserve to be called a human being at all!Embodiments of Love!Let your

life be filled with love. Do not confine your love to your family and friends.

Share it with one and all. Whomsoever you come across, consider everyone as the

embodiment of divinity. Share your love with your fellow human being and become

the recipient of his love. Follow the path of truth. I always teach the

principles of truth and love. Congregations as this are meant only to exhort

you to adhere to the path of truth and love. All of you have gathered here out

of your love for Me. Having come here and listened to My message, you should

practise truth and love in your daily life. Only that will make Me very happy.

Let your love be not tainted with worldly feelings. Let it flow incessantly

towards God. This was the ideal demonstrated by Radha. She was the kind of

person who was always in the thought of Krishna and her name itself conveys her

greatness and sacredness. If you start with ‘R’ you get ‘Radha’, if you start

with ‘A’ you get ‘Adhar’ (basis), if you start with ‘D’ you get ‘Dhara’

(incessant flow), and if you start with ‘A’ you get ‘Aradh’ (worship). This

means that the very basis of Radha’s life was incessant Aradhana (worship) of

Lord Krishna. Radha symbolised Dhara (Prakriti or Nature). Krishna is Paramatma

(God). Radha knew only Krishna and none else. She was totally immersed in the

love of Krishna. It is because of such one-pointed devotion that she could

attain liberation. One who aspires to attain liberation should follow the path

of love as demonstrated by Radha. Embodiments of Love!I do not want to cause

inconvenience to you by speaking at length. Hence, I bring My Discourse to a

close. Consider whatever work you do as God’s work. See God everywhere. I will

be happy when you develop such divine feelings. So many people have assembled

here. I confer on you the sacred wealth of My love and bliss. May all of you

lead a long, happy, healthy and peaceful life! (Divine Discourse delivered on

the occasion of 80th Birthday at Santhi Vedika in Hill View Stadium on 23rd

November 2005).

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