Sai Inspires - 16-30 June 2007

July 14, 2007

Sai Inspires - 16-30 June 2007 Sai Inspires - 16th June 2007 Devotion means seeking unity with the Divine through purity in thought, word and deed, and concentrating on the Oneness of the Godhead. Devotion aims at acquiring friendship with God through this triple purity... The devotee should not be content with merely listening. He should reflect on what he has heard and put into practice the teachings. These are called manana and nididhyasa. The triple process of listening, reflection and practicing leads to God realization. - Divine Discourse, September 12th, 1989. Living for God is devotion. -

Baba Sai Inspires - 17th June 2007 The effulgence of Divinity can be seen when the six qualities of enthusiasm, dynamism, intellect, energy, courage, and valour shine in a person. Bhoga (craving

for sensual pleasures) and tyaga (the spirit of sacrifice) cannot ever co-exist...One might wonder, “Is it possible to sacrifice and yet be happy?” The answer is, “Yes, it is possible”. If ego is effaced and there are no expectations of reward for the actions performed, sacrifice itself becomes a joyous experience; happiness and sacrifice then merge into one. Happiness is not the property of any particular individual; all are entitled to it, and everyone has the right to enjoy it. To receive your share, you must sanctify your life by serving society, using the gifts God has endowed you with. - Divine Discourse, May 22nd, 2000. The spirit of sacrifice is the hallmark of true education. - Baba Sai Inspires - 18th June 2007 Suppose you want to eat a fruit. Do you want the fruit for your sake or the sake of the fruit? No. You want the fruit because you wish to enjoy it... Similarly, every desire you have is for the gratification of your own self. There is something in you that drives you, and that driving force arises because you are either consciously or unconsciously seeking satisfaction for yourself. However, in all cases, it is the lower self that is involved; that is why one describes all such actions as selfish. In spirituality, one must focus on the Higher Self; all actions must spring from the desire to satisfy this Higher or Real Self. This is true Self-satisfaction. Actions aiming at satisfying the Inner Self are not selfish in the worldly sense because they are far from worldly desires and petty expectations. - Divine Discourse, May 23nd,

2000. Man minus desire is God. - Baba Sai Inspires - 19th June 2007

Attachment and hatred - these are the greatest enemies of progress in any scheme of social service, why, in any scheme of work. If the individual is deluded into believing that he is saving others, then woe be to him, for, there is no other at all. All are One; one man's sorrow is every one's sorrow. The fundamental flaw is the ignorance of man. If only he was wise, he would have known that all individuals are waves on the surface of the self-same ocean. - Divine Discourse, September 15th, 1963. To remove the evil of egoism, service is the most efficient instrument. - Baba Sai Inspires - 20th June 2007 To gain control over unsteadiness, meditation is of great help. It is not enough if one sense is conquered; all should be mastered, from all sides. Of course, this is a very hard task; you might feel like giving up the entire struggle. But never lose heart. Be patient and persevering, and final success will be yours. Only, you should not, like some spiritual aspirants, stray from the path of discipline as soon as you feel you are not succeeding as much as you hoped. That is not the road to victory. Persevere, be patient, and earn victory in the end. - Dhyana

Vahini The God-centred person has three qualities: Purity, Perseverance and Patience. - Baba Sai Inspires - 21st June

2007 A steady mind, truthful speech and a body dedicated to service - these are the three most important requisites for life. In ancient scriptures, this is called Trikarana Suddhi - Purity of the three instruments. The scriptures define 'man' to mean “one who trusts and can be trusted”. Every person lives only on the basis of this trust or faith. From dawn to dusk, all our activities are made possible only by faith. - Summer Showers, 1995 For achieving anything in life, two things are essential: firm faith and pure love. - Baba Sai Inspires - 22nd June 2007 Worldly objects change from moment to moment. How can you claim ownership over such temporary articles? “Everything belongs to God.” With this attitude, yes, you may experience the world. There is nothing wrong with that. But while experiencing, you must inquire: “Everything belongs to God. How should the property of God be used by me?” Experience the world with your power of discrimination. If you use objects as you please, you could misuse God’s property. Use the world to engage in constructive actions, to walk the path of Truth. - Summer Showers, 1995 Devotion to the Divine will give you bliss, prosperity and peace. - Baba Inspires - 23rd June 2007 Truly speaking, it is not difficult to know what the basis of life is, and what should be the goal of life. Bliss should be the goal, and one must seek it in all earnestness. The human body is temporary; the pleasure that it can give also is fleeting. Therefore, one must seek that which is permanent, that is to say, God, or, what is the same thing, Bliss. It is meaningless to seek this Bliss by way of instruments that are

impermanent. The body can give only bodily pleasure, and the mind can at best give only mental satisfaction. But these do not represent Bliss. - Divine Discourse, May 21, 2000 The joy of giving makes life blissful. - Baba Sai Inspires - 24th

June 2007 Do not be tempted by the low tastes of the world and the cheap regard that people bestow. Strive for the Holy Grace and love of the Lord. The affection that people shower is inconstant, for it depends on their likes and dislikes. But the Love that the Lord bears to you depends on your good qualities alone. It can also give you permanent joy. Those who are enamoured of the external will tumble into disappointment and sorrow every now and then. Beauty consists in character, not in anything else. There is nothing more charming than that. - Dhyana

Vahini Take care of your character and your reputation will take care of itself. - Baba Sai Inspires - 25th June 2007

Omnipotence belongs only to Sarveswara, the Lord of All. A person might feel elated that he has become the master of all arts, or owner of all wealth, or possessor of all knowledge or repository of all the scriptures, but from whom did he acquire all these? Deluding oneself that the little power one has acquired is one’s own, is indeed selfishness, conceit, pride and egosim. If a person is a genuine vehicle of power, he can be recognized by the characteristics of truth, kindness, love, patience, forbearance and gratefulness. Wherever these reside, Ahamkara (egoism) cannot subsist, it has no place.

Seek, therefore, to develop these. - Prema Vahini We are powerless before Time but Time’s Creator and Director can be won and attained by the wise use of Time. - Baba Sai Inspires - 26th June 2007 Love is a sacred quality. It is like nectar. A man who has tasted the immortal sweetness of Divine Love will not desire anything else in the world. Life must become a constant manifestation of love. Today love is manifested in a

constricted, selfish manner. It needs to be expressed in service to society. It has to be offered to others and shared with them. Thereby love becomes a reciprocal, ever-widening experience. - Divine Discourse, November 21st, 1987 Love is God; live in love. - Baba Sai Inspires - 27th June 2007 You may claim that you live according to dharma (righteousness). But, your basic flaw is that your acts are not done in the spirit of dedication. If so done, they get stamped with the authentic mark of dharma. Some clever people might raise a doubt and ask: “Can we then kill and injure in the name of the Lord, dedicating the act to Him?” Well, how can a person get

the attitude of dedicating all activities to the Lord without at the same time being pure in thought, word, and deed? Love, equanimity, rectitude, nonviolence - these are the attendant virtues of the servant of the Lord...To have selflessness, the spirit of self-sacrifice, and the spiritual eminence required for the dedicatory outlook, one must have first won the four characteristics of truth, peace, love, non-violence. - Dhyana Vahini Love in action is righteousness. - Baba Sai Inspires - 28th June 2007 When acts are done as offering to God, one will not be elated at success or disheartened by failure, for, He prompts, He helps, He grants joy or grief as He wills, as He cares. The doer will have no attachment to the fruit of the deed; so, he will not be bound to its consequence; it will leave no trace on his personality which will shape him beyond

death. - Divine Discourse, July 18, 1990 By surrendering to the Divine and developing a heart filled with devotion and love, one can face all the challenges of life. - Baba Sai Inspires - 29th June 2007 In spiritual matters, it is experience alone that is the deciding factor. Reason is rendered dumb before the testimony of actual experience. All the arguments of logic, all the tricks of dialectics are powerless to nullify the direct effect of that inner evidence. For example, many people laugh at those who practice image worship and condemn it as superstition. But those who do worship idols have the

faith that the Omnipresent Almighty is present in the symbol before them...It is a part of the inner mechanism of devotion and faith. Of course, all the 'Worship' carried out with the idea that the idol is life-less wood or stone or bronze, is so much waste of time. But if it is done in the full confidence that the image or idol is alive, saturated with consciousness and power, then, image worship can bestow the Realization of God-head itself. - Divine Discourse, April 6th, 1961 For achieving anything in life, two things are essential: firm faith and pure love. - Baba Sai Inspires - 30th June 2007 What man has to aspire for today is not happiness. It is not sorrow either. In fact, happiness and sorrow are only transitory in nature. Man’s duty is to realize Divinity in the unity of happiness and sorrow. Even while you feel elated at the prospect of happiness, you will encounter sorrow. Similarly even while you feel depressed on account of sorrow, happiness will beckon you. Since ancient times, several great sages made efforts to rise above the feelings of happiness and sorrow. They recognized the fact that it was only in times of sorrow that the Divine nature in a human being manifested... More than happiness, it is sorrow that is helpful to man in several ways. It is only from sorrow, that happiness springs. The main source of

happiness in man is sorrow. Just as we welcome happiness, we must welcome sorrow also. - Divine Discourse, July 23rd, 2002 Expand into universal love, unshaken equanimity and ever-active virtue. - Baba

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