GEMS FROM THE LORD (451-500)

The optical sense cannot visualize the truth. It gives only false and barren information. For example, there are many who observe my actions and start declaring that my nature is such and such. They are unable to gauge the sanctity, the majesty and the eternal reality that is me.

Children should grow in the awareness of the brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of God. If no provision is made for this atmosphere and this teaching, we are denying them their due. Faith in man involves Faith in God; Faith in God creates Faith in man. Without faith, man is creature bereft of roots; and he dries and withers, quickly.

The friends that the child collects at School and around the house have a beneficial or deleterious effect on its growth. Comics, horror-stories, terrorism, gunmen-pictures and cinema posters degrade man into a zero. The child learns to worship money and the things which money can buy; he admires cruelty and cunning, rather than sympathy and love. So the home, the school and the society - have to arouse themselves and take up this challenge posed to the future of this great land.

Man is born with a great thirst and a deep hunger for bliss. He knows that he can get it, but he knows not from where. He has faint memories of his being the heir to the Kingdom of Ananda. But he does not know how to establish his claim to his heritage. Something in him revolts when he is condemned to die, to suffer and to hate. It whispers to him that he is the child of immortality, of Bliss and of Love. But man ignores these promptings and, as one exchanges diamonds for dirt, he runs in search of meaner pleasures and sordid comforts.

I do not care either for praise or for blame. I only pity these people who, in order to scrape together a few paise from the poor, resort to such an filthy tricks. For all who are pained by these subhuman antics, I declare "Even if all the fourteen Worlds unite together, the work for which I have come will not suffer a bit; even if Earth and Heaven combine, My truth can never be fully grasped".

Prayer and Meditation: Prayer makes you a supplicant at the Feet of God; Dhyana induces God to come down to you and inspires you to raise yourselves to Him. It tends to make you come together, not place one in a lower level and the other on a higher. Dhyana is the royal road to Liberation from bondage, though, by Prayer too, you earn the same fruit. Meditation needs concentration, after controlling the claims of the senses. You have to picture before your inner eye the Form on which you have elected to contemplate.

When you see in a house, on the walls of the shrine room, a picture of Mine, do you not feel a wave of reverence and kinship surging within you ? You may not like Him for any other reason, but this picture will bring Him closer to you, though the owner of the house may be your rival in the professional field. So, too, know that every other person has in his heart a picture of the God you revere. Recognize it and reconcile your misunderstandings; close up all gaps with the brothers in pilgrimage, encouraging and inspiring each other along the arduous road.

When the parents have no reverence for God, when the pictures of Stalin and Hitler and Churchill and Lenin adorn the walls of the home, when the child has to breathe the atmosphere of scandal, faction and greed at home, how can it grow into a happy, healthy, balanced individual ? The films that children are taken to see are full of violence and falsehood, mean tricks and conspiracies, which tarnish the springs of sympathy and love.

There are parents who are proud when their children join in card games and even in drinking and gambling; there are parents who get angry when their children read religious books, attend temple rites and sit quietly for a few minutes meditating on the awe and wonder that Creation evokes in them. How can such parents claim to be the well wishers of their progeny ? They are the greatest foes of their progress.

All the twenty-four hours are spent in attending to the care of the body, the prevention of disease, the promotion of health, the development of muscle, etc. No care is spent on the God resident in this physical tabernacle, who has to be recognized and revered. The weighing machine on which you stand to read your weight with pride laughs at you for the silly exaltation. It sneers at your conceit over physical victories; it warns you against too much concern over paltry gains. It knows that death is lying in wait to snatch you away, however, heavy you may grow. Develop 'Drishti' (vision); not 'Deha' (body). Concentrate on the Maker, not the made.

To elevate man to the level of his consciousness, He (God) has to incarnate as man. He has to speak to them in their own styles and languages. He has to teach them the methods that they can adopt and practice. Birds and beasts need no Divine Incarnation to guide them, for they have no inclination to stray away from their Dharma. Man alone forgets or ignores the goal of Life.

I have no desire to have My birthday celebrated. Such trivial thoughts can never enter Me. My only desire is to share My 'Ananda'. My mission is 'Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavanthu'. May all the worlds be happy and prosperous ! Become aware of the unity of mankind. Promote, by Love and Service, the Joy and Contentment of everyone on Earth and fill your hearts with that yearning.

Acts done between dawn and dusk are offerings into the sacred fire of Wisdom. Of such acts, those that are promoted by instinct and impulse are material; they do not arise from a mind molded by the intellect. When the mind is crossed and the outer shore reached, all acts become pure and holy. When deep sleep overpowers the senses, the mind, the intellect, and even the sense of ego disappear. The entire Cosmos disappears from awareness. That is the Truth when the Atma is alone by itself and bondage is naught.

God, or ourselves or Paramatman is praised by man when his desires are fulfilled. When they are not realized, He is blamed. But He has no prejudice or partiality. If He has Love, He must have anger. Any manifestation of these feelings is only superficial and does not rise from the core. God is the witness of the act-consequence chain. You can avoid the consequence, by dedicating the act of God and abstaining attachment.

One's action decides one's destiny. There is no use blaming others for our misfortune and misery. Nor is it right to blame God as being partial or cruelly unconcerned. When You plant a bitter seed, how can the fruit be sweet? It has become the fashion to claim all good as one's own achievement and to ascribe all the despair and disappointment to an irresponsive attitude of Divinity.

I wish to emphasize that purity of the heart, the mind and the consciousness is more important for progress than even Meditation and Prayer. Purity alone can convince you of the Divine within you of the Kshetrajna immanent in the Kshetra. Love all, adore all and serve all. That is the Sadhana of worship, to win purity and earn Grace.

The consequence of the meritorious activities of previous births can be drawn upon now; but unless you have them, no check will be honored. Moreover, only those who have the account can operate. Each must have a separate account in his own name: One brother cannot draw on the account of another brother; and the wife cannot draw on the account of the husband.

Some times, the Bank will give you overdrafts, so that you tide over temporary crisis; the extent of the overdraft is settled by the Manager with reference to your reliability and capabilities. It is like the 'Anugraha', Grace that God will confer on you when you have earned it by 'Sathkarma', 'Sathchinthana', 'Sathsanga', and 'Namasmarana' (good deeds, good thoughts, good feelings and good company), and constant repetition and reflection on the Name of God and the Glory it seeks to express.

When you have attained true wisdom, you will find that good fortune should not be gloated over, nor bad fortune grieved over. The Hero treats both with equal unconcern. They are breezes and storms that cannot affect the depths of the Ocean of Bliss in the heart of man.

People in America, Europe and Africa, Hong Kong and Australia are establishing Sathya Sai Bhaktha Mandalis and Study-Circles; they are having Telugu classes, so that they may listen to Me and learn things directly from Me. As for Me, I have no 'near' and 'far' - all are near to me except those who keep afar. Even they are close to Me, if only they dedicate themselves to God, under whatever Name and Form.

The Ramayana, the Mahabharatha and the Bhagavatha are to be mastered, not allowed to become masters. You go through them without allowing them to go through you! The volumes are bound in silk; and incense sticks are burnt - before them, while man prostrates before them in reverence. But no attention is paid to what the pages proclaim. The frills and fringes attract the mind more than the kernel provided by the text.

Cynical laughter cannot harm the Sadhaka. Can a storm shake the Himalayan range ? Let not your faith in the goal or the road quake before trouble or trial, toil or travail, distress or despair. They are but passing clouds, casting temporary shadows hiding, for a little time, the glory of the Sun or Moon. Do not get distracted by doubt of despondency. Build the mansion - of your life on four firm pillars: Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha, the Purusharthas laid down by the ancient sages, each pillar bound strong and safe with every other.

The chief characteristics of Sathya Sai are, let me tell you: equanimity and forbearance (sahana). There are many who are engaged in criticism and calumny. Many papers publish all types of writings. Many pamphlets are printed. All kinds of things happen in the world. My reply to all these are a smile. Such criticism and distortions are the inevitable accompaniments of everything good and great. Only the fruit-laden tree is hit by stones thrown by greedy people. No one casts a stone on the tree that bears no fruit.

Sankaracharya was going along the streets of Varanasi, when he saw in a small hermitage a monk poring over a book of grammar. He took pity on the aging scholar and warned him that, when the end drew near, his punditry will not save him from perdition or take him to the goal of mergence with God. So he asked him to adore God and fill himself with thoughts of the Divine. This is the proper way to deal with life, not frittering it away as a feat of fancy.

The tree will grow with branches on all sides; countless flowers will bloom; it will provide and promote peace and security to the world. In order to realize this result, students must do as roots do: remain firm and provide sustenance. I know that the roots have to be watered so that flowers and fruits may emerge. Students are my all. If you ask Me, what is My property, many expect the answer to be, "Oh ! All this buildings; all this vast areas of land" But, My answer is "My entire property consists of My students". I have offered Myself to them. But many are not aware of this fact. Some unfortunate people cannot believe the Reality of this Love: the Love of a thousand mothers.

The situation in India and in the World today is "Evaniki Vaare, Yamuna theere" (Each for each on the Yamuna beach). There is no togetherness. How happy can man be if he develops togetherness! Can you eat a meal with a single finger? When the five fingers work in unison, the stomach is filled in five minutes ! So, no attachment should be developed; no wish is to be welcomed, nothing is to be sought for; and no defeat is to be taken to heart, without solving deep into the consequences.

Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam
Bhaja Govindam Moodha Mathe
Sampraapthe Sannihithe Kaale
Nahi Nahi Rakshathi Dukrun Karane.

One can understand the spirit of renunciation and the depth of tolerance that is inherent in India's noble response. Whoever is afflicted with calamity, at whatever time, under whatever condition, your heart must react without delay in sympathy shown in same practical manner. No one should be condemned as trash; even a little stick can serve as a tooth-pick ! God has not made any man, wholly bad or wholly good; your likes and dislikes are inducing you to label them as such.

The SanyasiSanyasa still clinging to their long-established practices and habits. Instead they must completely break with the past. That is why, in the Gita, Karma Sanyasa and not any other types of Sanyas is prescribed.

Guru Nanak said that, without faith in God, man is blind; Without it, you are a moving corpse - your life might be as grand, beautiful and rich as the Taj Mahal but remember the Taj is but a tomb ! Whatever the method of worship and whichever the Name or Form, it is faith that matters; it is that which gives life and energy for higher things.

I like Puja that is done not for the sake of the individual but for the sake of humanity. By all means, do Puja in order to promote the happiness and peace of living beings. Develop that love for men everywhere. That is My Mission too, My Resolution, My Sankalpa and My Deeksha - the planting of Love in every human heart.

It becomes essential to cleanse the mind through regular Sadhana, to tune the little will to the infinite will of God, so that it becomes merged in His Glory. Scholarship or skill, however deep and varied, have no cleansing power. They only add the alloys of pride and competition. Learned men are not necessarily good, nor are men with spiritual powers over nature above pride, envy and greed. Sathya, Dharma, Shanthi and Prema are the hallmarks of a purified heart, where God is enshrined and is manifest.

Work is for the physical level. Worship for the mental and wisdom for the spiritual. You have to pass through the three stages, each one of you. When I say, you, there are three of you ! The one you think you are - namely the body, the physical person; the one the others think you are, the mental you, your passions, emotions, impulses, attitudes, and beliefs; and the one you really are, namely, the Atma, the Spirit, the real Reality of your Personality.

Instead of transforming his heart, his home, his village, his state, and this world into a Prasanthinilayam, the abode of the peace that passeth understanding, man has made the world an arena for the wild passions of anger, hate and greed. Instead of making the senses (which are, after all, very poor guides and informants) his servants, he has made them his masters; he has become a slave of external beauty, evanescent melody, exterior softness, tickling taste of fragile fragrance. He spends all his energies and the fruits of all his toil in the satisfaction of the trivial demands of these untamed underlings.

Individual efforts and Divine Grace are both interdependent, without effort there will be no conferment of grace. Without Grace, there can be no taste in the effort. To win that Grace, you need to have faith and virtue. You need not praise Him in order to win His Favor.

The character of the children must be made strong and pure. Give them all the confidence and courage they need to become good, honest and self-reliant children. It is not enough if they learn something by which they can make a living. The manner of living is more important than the standard of living. The children must also have reverence towards their religion, their culture, their educational attainments and their country. They must learn well their mother-tongue, so that they can appreciate the great poetical works and epics written by the Seers of their land. This will give them valuable guidance in the stormy days ahead.

Learn to share with others their grief and their joy, do not get jealous when others are happier or when others win prizes or credits in examinations. Emulate their industry, pray for a higher share of intelligence or a sharper memory, but do not give room in your hearts to envy and malice. Envy is a deadly poison, it will contaminate character, ruin health and rob you of peace. Be Anasuyas, unaffected by envy, and you can subdue the Gods of Creation, Protection and Destruction. Like a pest that destroys growing crops, envy enters slyly and spreads quickly. So even in small matters, be vigilant to ensure that you do not fall a prey to envy.

The selfishness fouling your love is veiling divinity from your vision. What is the reason for the selfishness which is veiling divinity from us ? It is simply our attachment to the body; it is the weakness of our mind and our enslavement to our senses.

Use the eyes to watch wholesome things, the feet to proceed to the Home of God, the hands to serve the embodiments of God moving around you as men and the tongue to soothe pain, praise virtue, and glorify God. Do not use your eye to vulgarize your brain and the feet to stand in queue for deleterious movie-shows.

Though the world has become a very small globe, as a result of fast means of communication and transport, man has not yet learnt the art of living together in close proximity as brothers and as children of One God. The closer men are brought, the larger the differences that appear. Thus, the little world is now riddled with problems of conflicting cultures, competing creeds and contesting ambitions. The sorrows of one state spread fast into all its neighbors and infect the whole world. The world has become one vast battle-field.

Most of you are leading a double or triple life: Yogam in the morning; Bhogam the rest of the day; and Rogam at night. You seek Ananda outside you and suffer from the ulcer of desire inside you. You utter one thing with the tongue and carry out the opposite with the hand. You claim to be the seekers of Jnana but you are attached to the delusion that you have cultivated. You have a ticket for Calcutta but you are traveling in the train headed for Bombay. With the body, which is your ticket and Vigna and Vairagya your luggage, you are traveling not in the train which goes Godward but in the train leading to Prakrithi. This is a pity.

The Atma has an eternal festival. It is Anandaswarupa. It is beyond time and so does not calculate the passage of time. How can man celebrate a festival, let Me ask, while he is afflicted by Dehabhranthi, Manabhranthi, Indriyabhranthi and Lokabhranthi? He believes the falsehoods that are called the body, the senses, the mind and the world. He pursues them and tastes joy and grief, and when a certain number of years is passed in the past time, he celebrates a festival.

India is the abode of Sathya, Santhi and Prema; and she has been holding forth these ideals and emphasizing their practice since centuries. Bharath means the land that has 'rathi' or attachment to 'bha' or Bhagavan; it means that the people here are God-loving, not so much God-fearing. If you love God, you have to love man also. This teaching that Sathya is the basis of Dharma which lays down individual and social duties and obligations and that Sathya is also the root of Prema and Santhi - this is the unique feature of Bharath. Sathya is enough, no other God needs to be worshipped.

The task now is install Dharma in every heart, to shed light on every road, through the revival of Vedanta. The world is like a famished person, waiting for a feast; it is like the parched land waiting for rain. I have seen and felt the atmosphere of this land surcharged with discontent and dishonesty. I have seen it from Kanyakumari to the Himalayas: that is the reason why thousands like you seek Darshan, Sparsan and Sambhasan. I am only surprised that thousands are denying themselves that chance.

It is best you stay away from companions who drag you to such distractions that weaken and worry you; spend a few minutes every morning and evening in the silence of your own home, spend them with the highest of all powers that you know of; be in His elevating and inspiring company; worship Him mentally: offer unto Him all the work you do; and you will come out of the silence, nobler and more heroic than when you went in.

There are certain dire possibilities which I want all social workers to guard against. First cleanse your own minds and then start advising others. Earn mental peace and strength for yourself and then try to secure them for others. Learn the secret of lasting happiness yourself and then endeavor to make others happy. Seek the real limb not the artificial limb. Get the doctor who would assure: "hereafter you will not fall ill" and not the doctor who gives some relief only for the present attack.

The greatest instrument by which success can be ensured for all your efforts is Bhakti. That will give health, wealth and prosperity too, for it will eliminate hatred and faction and give more power to your elbow when you plough the land. A man with Bhakti will do every act as worship of the Lord and so the act will be done better and more efficiently, without any maligning and insincerity. It will also win the Grace of the Lord, and so, a Bhakta will be able to raise more crops and enjoy greater health and mental happiness.