FROM PUTTAPARTHI...THE UNWANTED GUESTS !!!

[Guest guest]

Swami told a beautiful story about how our 'vasanas' keep coming back because these bad habits have been with us for lifetimes. If we think we have got rid of them, they come from somewhere, the anger, the jealousy, the desire, criticizing other people, finding faults with all except 'self' etc…

One of my friends was sharing that he had stopped watching TV and movies for so long but now he was tempted to see TV again!!! Sense attractions are so powerful; they pull us down.

Swami's humorous story to illustrate this:

There was a nice couple who had a guest. But that guest was like a pest. He didn't want to leave. At first, they treated him well for 1 or 2 weeks. Later, when they saw he wouldn't leave, instead of giving him 3 or 4 snacks, they cut it down to one snack. They used to give him 2 meals, but then cut it down to 1 meal. But he still wouldn't leave!!!

One day they got frustrated because now this guy was staying with the family for almost 1 year. They didn't know what to do to get rid of this bad guest. Then they made a plan:

The husband and wife enacted a drama that they were fighting with each other. "Either you stay in the house or I will." Finally the guest looked disgusted with their fights and left.

The wife said, "See how beautifully I acted. That's why he left." The husband said, "No, I acted better, that's why he left."

Meanwhile they heard a knock on the door. They asked, "Who is it?" The guest said, "Oh, I acted even better," and he came back!!!

SWAMI asks, "Don't you 'shoo' away those crows & pigeons in order to avoid their droppings falling on you? They keep coming back & you keep shooing them away!!! Like that keep doing the same thing with these 'vasanas'" (Even in Prasanthi Nilayam Darshan hall & just outside SWAMI's residence, you would find the volunteers shooing away pigeons!)

That is why in the Gita it says, "If we sincerely pray, 'Lord I don't want these bad qualities. I don't want this'," and only by His grace can we completely eliminate this. When that stage finally comes, then only we will see Oneness.

Transcription of a talk delivered by Dr. Narendranath Reddy in USA. Dr. Reddy is a member of the Prasanthi Council which oversees the activities of Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations the world over. (See his photo & SWAMI's in PARAMOUNT AIRWAYS-2007)

http://media.radiosai.org/Journals/Vol_04/01NOV06/Reddy.htm

GET INSPIRED: This cosmos is a vast exhibition. It is the creation of the Lord. All are entering this exhibition and taking whatever they choose. Some seek jobs, others wealth and so on. They are content to take objects of their choice. When you have entered the cosmic exhibition, you must seek the Divine. Then, the whole Universe becomes yours. You must seek that which is lasting and unchanging. There is no meaning in going after one thing after another. There is no end to that process. There is no satisfaction in that. What you acquire today loses its charm the next day and you desire something new. But once the Divine is attained, all things are obtained.