Swami teaches... Part 2. Towards Integrated Spiritual Awareness

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Light and Love Swami teaches...

Part 2. Towards Integrated Spiritual Awareness Wear the red glasses and all things appear red. Wear the glasses of Prema and all will appear loveable and good. See all as Narayanaswarupa (embodiments of Lord Narayana) and worship all with the flower of Prema. Modern scientists declare that the Universe is made up of information what is by spiritual outlook is nothing more than Brahman, (Paramatma, the Great Oneness, Cosmic Consciousness, God, Creator). Human's duty and goal is to fuse with Him as a spark of light into sunlight with Love and Spiritual Awareness. Swami's nature can be understood when you wear the glasses of holiness; holy things can be cognized only by the holy seeker. You get what you search for; you see what your eyes crave for. It is the silence that is wanted in all gatherings where deeper spiritual disciplines are talked about. Here, obviously, only the eye and the ear need function; the tongue has no business to wag. (In silence, the worldly problems are absent). Swami's advices are not for those who are endowed with bhakthi (devotion), for they know the path and they are already marching on, nor for those who have no spring of bhakthi in them, for, speaking to them is sheer waste of time. These advices are for the wavering, the unsteady, the hesitant, who are conscious of the Higher Power and are feebly desirous of contacting it, for they are either ignorant of the technique or afraid of the consequences. (Medicine is useless for the dead as well as the sturdy. The unhealthy persons are to be nursed back to strength). Follow Swami's Teaching. Naturally, it will be a different one for every one of you; it will depend upon the nature, the age, the virulence of the disease and upon the treatment, you have already undergone to alleviate it. Swami insists on the development of the sense of unity, a bond of brotherhood, and an awareness of dignity. One should strive for unity of minds, unity of hearts, not the temporary association of the moneyed people or persons in positions of power. Unity must result in unity of thought, word, and deed. Your prayer has to be, "May all the world be happy and peaceful." Your peace and happiness are linked with the world's peace and happiness. Any act of hatred or violence committed by you will pollute the atmosphere of the world. Adore any living being; the adoration reaches God, for He is in every being. Insult any living being; the insult too reaches God. Love for the Lord should not degenerate into fanaticism and hatred of other names and forms. This type of cancer is affecting even eminent people. However, believe that all who revere the Lord and walk in fear of sin are your brothers, your nearest kith and kin. Their outer dress or language or skin-color, or even the methods they adopt to express their reverence and fear are not important at all. Prahlada knew the truth, that this world is all filled with the immanent God. He knew it by study and by experience; he knew it as an ever-present fact. Therefore, when he was asked to frame a boon to be granted by the Lord who concretized before him, he asked neither for the revival of his father nor the restoration of his kingdom, long life, wealth or fame; he asked for the chance of assuaging the pain and sorrow of all beings.

Sugar dolls are valued for the sugar, not the shapes they are given by the manufacturer. Their sweetness makes people purchase them. Elephant, dog, cat, rat, jackal, or lion, it does not matter. That is a matter of individual fancy. Each is sweet, that is the essential thing. The sweetness draws the manava (human) towards Madhava (God): the pravritti (worldly activity, deed) towards nivritti (dedication), the ananda (joy) towards Sath-Chith-Ananda (Bliss in the awareness of the Supreme Being). When the appetite for these grows, all low desires and hungers cease. The chief source of Ananda is dedication to the Lord; nothing else can give that genuine and lasting joy. Become conscious of your kinship with the Lord. That kinship is not a mere fancy or a faked theory. It has come down since ages, from the beginning of Time itself. It will persist until the very end of Time, or, in other words, until the end of Time so far as you are concerned. Ananda must be directed along useful channels of activity. The value of the eye will be known when we happen to go blind. The value of water can be known when there is scarcity, not when all the taps are pouring plenty of it into the buckets. When tanks and wells go dry, people cry out for a cup of water. So too, this Ananda. Gather it, garner it, develop it and irrigate parched heart with it, while you can. When you are immersed in the Ananda of the Lord, you are master of all the lesser anandas also. When you dive in the sea, you must seek pearls; when you go to the Kalpavriksha (the wish fulfilling tree) ask for the highest Bliss. Do not crave for the smaller when the vastest is available, for just a little more effort. When you know that nothing happens without God's Sankalpa (resolve), everything that happens has a value added to it. Just think for a moment. Are you serving God? On the other hand, is God serving you? When you offer milk to a hungry child, or a blanket to a shivering brother on the pavement, you are but placing a gift of God into the hands of another gift of God. You are reposing the gift of God in a repository of the Divine Principle. God serves; He allows you to claim that you have served. Without His Will, no single blade of grass can quiver in the breeze. A pictorial example by Gita in more detail is shared below. Krishna and Arjuna (the name Arjuna means sacredness and purity) were inseparable companions for seventy-five years. Although they had lived together for so long, Krishna had not instructed Arjuna, because during all that period Arjuna was moving with Krishna as his brother-in-law. He was conscious only of the family relationship. The moment Arjuna surrendered and accepted discipleship, Krishna stood forth as his teacher. If we really desire to acquire higher knowledge from some one, it will be possible only when there is the relationship of guru (preceptor) and sishya (disciple).

 

When Arjuna told Krishna, "You are my father; you are my mother; you are my.teacher; you are my wealth and my everything," surrendering himself completely to Krishna, then only did Krishna reply: "You are my disciple; you do my work; do everything for Me and I shall take care of you." Krishna as the Guru gave the Gita to the world through Arjuna because He found a worthy disciple in him. While dealing with "Sankhya Yoga" (the path of jnana) Krishna taught Arjuna how to surrender totally to His Will. "Sankhya Yoga" enables one to distinguish between the eternal and transient, Atma and anatma. Krishna freed Arjuna from the sense of identifying his body. As long as that overwhelming body-consciousness persists, we will not be able to practice any spiritual discipline of Dharma marga, Karma marga or Bhakthi marga.

Krishna could have straightaway taught "Bhakthi Yoga,Karma Yoga" and "Nishkaama Yoga," to Arjuna. He did not do so. (Still, when a patient is in great danger, the doctor has to see that he gets out of danger. Afterwards he can undertake the regular treatment. Unless the patient is saved from danger, other remedies will be futile. When a person is drowning, we have to first take him out of the water to the shore and then offer the necessary treatment). Krishna started speaking only in the second chapter. The first chapter of the Gita is devoted to the narration of the grief and anguish of Arjuna. Krishna began his teaching: from the 11th verse of the second chapter. Until then, Krishna listened with extreme patience to everything Arjuna said. Then He asked Arjuna, "Have you said all you had to say?" Arjuna was silent. Krishna told him, "The malady of weak-mindedness is afflicting you. I know how to cure it. I will do it. Your ignorance is responsible for this attachment and infatuation." Then He instructed Arjuna in "Sankhya Yoga" with the aim that Arjuna would experience this, when his mind is ready for it. Attachments pollute the heart. Without cleansing the heart of these impurities, it is not possible to fill it with holy feelings. "Arjuna," said Krishna, "You are steeped in body-consciousness. Cast off that delusion, then only will I am able to fill your heart with wisdom and bliss." Ignorance is the most important cause of sorrow. "Have you yearned for God, for Dharma? When you cry out for God and for Dharma, the yearning becomes yoga sadhana (spiritual effort). You clamor for a number of things, but when there is a decline in Dharma, you must cultivate courage. You must develop the capacity to face adverse situations. Today you should have immense courage and unshakable determination. Avoid blind and foolish courage. One should have the capacity to discriminate and behave in accordance with the time, place, and circumstance. Here and elsewhere, you should always have courage in your heart and the determination needed to accomplish the task." Thus did Krishna exhort Arjuna. So Krishna gave Arjuna at the outset a strong injection of courage to save him from sorrow and dejection. He explained, "Arjuna, with fear you will not be able to accomplish anything. Do not give way to fear; you are the fearless Atma. It is only in that state of Atmic awareness that I can make you achieve victory." Krishna continued, "I would like to explain things related to you and Me. Let us suppose that I were to become you, and you were to become Me. If I were to become you, I would also become weak-minded, but it is impossible for such weakness to enter Me. On the other hand, if you want to become Me, then you have to follow Me!" Then Arjuna said, "Swami, I will follow your command implicitly." To realize such a state of Divine consciousness, devotion is essential. Devotion aims at awakening consciousness of the Easwara (Divine) in human. All activity aimed at turning the mind towards God is a form of devotion. To think of God for attaining worldly desires and physical comforts is not devotion. The one, who is immersed in spirituality, is indifferent to the phenomenal world. Spiritual transformation calls for changing the mind from a prisoner of the three gunas (qualities) to one that is bound to God. You have to acquire the firm conviction that the Divine is the basis and sustainer of the Universe. Goodness is a synonym for God. The power of the Cosmic Consciousness consists in making the good qualities manifest in a human. Almost everyone in the world is unaware of what is true spirituality or devotion. When one is submerged in worldly desires, how can he recognize the Divine? It is only by persistent effort that this can be done. One has to endeavor to experience the presence of the Divine in every particle and at every moment. The Chataka bird endures many ordeals to secure unsullied raindrops from the clouds. The moment it espies a dark cloud in the sky, it embarks on its adventure. There is water aplenty on the Earth in lakes, ponds, and rivers. However, the Chataka bird has no use for these polluted waters. It waits for the pure raindrops in the month and does not seek any other water. It is undaunted by thunder and lightning. It seeks only the pure raindrops falling from the clouds, without fear or concern. It sings in joy as it drinks the raindrops. The Chataka bird is an example of pure love. The true devotee should perform a similar penance (to realize God). He/she must have the same determination. He/she must go through similar ordeals to experience the ultimate ecstasy. The golden human's life should be tested on the touchstone of the Lord's name. (Instead of following this easy path, human involves in multifarious troubles and wastes own precious life). Human is not merely a human being. Verily human is God. Human should utilize the pure and sacred thoughts that arise in him/her to turn away from the transient attractions of the world and to set on the path towards the Divine. Everyone knows the word God, But that does not mean they know God. The meaning of 'God' has to be known Only by serving those who have realized God.

 

Goodness is another name for God. How much of goodness is there in you? When there is no goodness, how can God be understood? For understanding, subjective experience is essential. In the fast-flowing Ganga, a small fish is able to swim freely and joyously, without fear of the depth or swift flow of the river. However, in the same river, a big elephant is likely to be swept away by the current. One should know how to keep a float in the current and protect oneself. Likewise, if a human has experienced the bliss of the Divine, will one go after worldly pleasures? This Divine Love is within human. All Divine feelings and thoughts emanate from within human. (Reet's compilation from, Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 1. "Aanandha through dedication," Chapter 13; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 6. "Love the source of love," Chapter 5; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 17. "The malaise and the cure," Chapter 18; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 18. "The Victory," Chapter 17; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 24. "Goodness is Godliness," Chapter 3). Namaste - Reet