Sai Darshan Home <darshan.html>
Date:28 April 1999 Occasion:Divine Discourse Place:Kodaikanal

Nature of the Self

Trees bear fruit for the benefit of others
Rivers flow for the betterment of all
Cows yield milk for the benefit of others
Human body has been given to man to help others
(Sanskrit Sloka)

In this world, trees, rivers and cows help others without any trace of
selfish motive. They do not expect anything in return. Without trees,
rivers and cows, the world cannot exist. In fact, it is they which
sustain it. But, the irony is that man does not make any effort to help
and serve others. The spirit of sacrifice evident in trees, rivers and
cows is absent in man today. He spends all his time in fulfilling his
selfish desires and does not give even a moment for doing good to others
or for helping them. Sai Avatar has incarnated in this Kali Age with the
divine mission of making every individual realize his relationship with
the community, and ultimately with Divinity.

True Individuality of Man

Transformation at individual level is absolutely essential. But, today
man is wasting his time in evil practices. He indulges in unholy
activities day in and day out. He demeans himself by his evil habits. He
kills animals and eats their flesh. Instead of purifying his mind, he
debases it by taking intoxicants. He defiles time, which is the very
form of Divinity, by gambling. He nurtures evil qualities by indulging
in evil activities. In addition to this, he involves himself in
demeaning activities like stealing and denigrating others. He reads
vulgar books, which generate evil thoughts and violent feelings in him.
As he indulges more and more in wicked activities, he pollutes and
corrupts the society also. When individuals take to evil ways, the
entire society degenerates. Teaching and propagation of spirituality is
essential for the purification of the individual and the society.

What is spirituality? That which destroys man's animal nature, nurtures
humanness and finally transforms him into a Divine being is
spirituality. Worshipping, singing devotional songs and performing
rituals are acts of secondary importance. They cannot be identified with
true spirituality. The word SAI spells out to the world the significance
of transformation at three levels. The letter 'S' stands for
transformation at spiritual level, 'A' for transformation at association
(social) level and 'I' for transformation at individual level.
Individual transformation is the basis for the other two. Therefore,
this is the first step. But, these days, the word Individual is not
properly understood. You usually take only the human form into
consideration and identify it with an individual. Who is an individual?
He, who manifests his Avayakta (unmanifest) Divinity through his
conduct, is an individual (Vyakti). This latent divine principle
permeates the entire being of an individual from head to foot and is
called conscience. To manifest and demonstrate the presence of this
conscience is the characteristic of a human being. Instead of
manifesting the pure inner being, the Self, man today is manifesting
evil qualities and evil tendencies, which are related to his outer being
i.e., the body. The Chaitanya (Divine Consciousness) latent in every
human being is his true individuality. This consciousness should be put
on the right track.

Put Your Senses in Right Direction

I said the other day, "Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma" (verily all this is
Brahman). This is a Mantra. "Easwara Sarva Bhutanam" (God is the
indweller in all beings) is another Mantra. It is essential for everyone
to understand and realize the inner significance of these Mantras. Every
Mantra is pregnant with deep inner meaning. It is impossible to
understand the true meaning of the Mantras without acquiring virtues.
What are these virtues? Right vision (Samyak Drishti) is one. Humanity
will be in danger without right vision. The image of every seen object
gets imprinted in the mind. Therefore, first of all one must have right
vision. Right vision is that which is untainted by the baneful influence
of evil feelings, evil thoughts and evil deeds. See no evil, see what is
good. That which develops your insight to understand what is good,
eternal and true is right vision. Next comes right listening (Samyak
Sravanam). You should lend your ear only to good speech. Under no
circumstances should you listen to evil talk. For this you should listen
to sacred texts, Bhajans and talks about sacred acts.

Everything in this world is impermanent. The Vedas say, "Yath Drisyam
Thannasyam" (all that is seen is bound to perish). All that you see will
disappear one day or the other. For the nine-fold path of Bhakti
(devotion) good listening (Sravanam) is the beginning. Sravanam,
Keerthanam, Vishnusmaranam, Padasevanam, Archanam, Vandanam, Dasyam,
Sneham, Atmanivedanam (listening, singing the glories of the Lord,
constant remembrance of the name of Vishnu, serving the Lord's feet,
worship, salutation, servitude, friendship and self-surrender) are the
nine paths of devotion. The first step to the final act of
self-surrender (Atmanivedanam) is Sravanam (listening). Sruti (divine
sound e.g. Vedas) is derived from Sravanam only.

The next virtue is right speech (Samyak Vak). Right vision and right
listening lead to right speech. Your speech should be good. Never utter
harsh words. Speak softly and sweetly. That is why I tell you often,
"You cannot always oblige, but you can always speak obligingly." Say
what you have to say without harshness. Speak softly so that only the
person for whom your words are intended may hear you. Such soft and
sweet speech should be developed. Good vision, good listening and good
speech lead to good thoughts. "Yad Bhavam That Bhavathi" (as are your
thoughts, so is the result). Right thoughts lead to right action (Samyak
karma). Without good thoughts it is not possible to perform good actions.

Buddha performed Tapas (penance) for many years to put his five senses
on the sacred path. Mere bookish knowledge is of no consequence. It is
related to art, and is in fact artificial. Mere textual knowledge will
not lead you to right vision. Similarly, your sense of hearing does not
become holy by listening to the expositions of a teacher. Good thoughts
cannot be acquired by reading scriptures or by listening to the
teachings of the preceptor. By self-effort you should put your senses of
Sabda (sound), Sparsa (touch), Rupa (form), Rasa (taste) and Gandha
(smell) to right use. That alone leads you to proper Sadhana (spiritual
practice). When you put your senses in the right direction, your life
too will enter the right path. For the wrong attitude of man today,
senses are the cause. As the senses become impure, the entire life too
becomes impure and unsacred. It you want to make your life sacred, you
have to first sanctify your senses. So, Buddha who did penance for
several years understood that all ritualistic practices were useless. He
declared that right vision, right listening, right speech, right
thoughts and right acts as the five primordial principles for the
guidance of man.

These five principles are the Pancha Pranas (five life forces) and five
Koshas (life sheaths) of man. Physical body is Annamaya Kosha (food
sheath). Body is transient. But you should nourish it, because only a
properly nourished healthy body can support the Pranamaya Kosha (life
sheath) and Manomaya Kosha (mind sheath). Pranamaya Kosha helps in the
balanced flow of Prana (life force) in the body. Human beings limit
themselves up to these three Koshas. Nobody attempts to reach fourth
sheath, Vijnanamaya Kosha (wisdom sheath) which is beyond food sheath,
life sheath and mind sheath. This sheath is reached only after
transcending the first three sheaths. What is the nature of these three
sheaths? The one you think you are is the food sheath (physical body).
What others think you are is the mind sheath. The one you really are is
the life sheath. When the human being enters the wisdom sheath, only
then he experiences true bliss. So, man has to maintain sound body. But,
he should know that as the body is associated with the senses, he should
channelise them into the right path. When the senses follow the right
path only then the life force vibrates in the body properly. This
vibration is Divine in nature.

In the Gayathri Mantra, the word 'Bhur' refers to the body. Body is
composed of gross materials such as water, lime, lead, iron, etc. All
these materials may not cost more than one rupee. But, the value of the
body is not one rupee. Its value is immeasurable. 'Bhur' also stands for
the earth. The earth is made up of matter, which is transient. The word
'Bhuvah' in the Mantra stands for vibration. The body is made up of
gross matter, which cannot have any movement without the life force of
vibration. In the absence of this vibration, the body is mere lifeless
matter. What is the source of this vibration? This vibration originates
from radiation (Suvaha) which is related with spiritual knowledge.

Purity in Thought, Word and Deed

This spiritual knowledge comes from the Vedas. The four Mahavakyas
(profound statements) of the Vedas which give this knowledge are
Prajnanam Brahma (knowledge is Brahman), Ayamatma Brahma (Atma is
Brahman), Aham Brahmasmi (I am Brahman) and Tatthwamasi (That you are).
Life force (Prana) or vibration works only through radiation. Without
the radiation of Prajnana, vibration cannot have any movement. It
becomes inert. True humanness lies in harmonizing these three
principles. Man should therefore achieve the unity of materialization,
vibration and radiation. Harmony in thought, word and deed, is referred
to as Trikarana Suddhi.

I shall relate to you an example from the Mahabharata to illustrate
this. Dharmaraja, the eldest brother of the Pandavas, was an embodiment
of Sathya, Dharma, Santhi, Prema and Ahimsa. Draupadi, born out of fire,
represented Prana. Bhima, the son of the wind God, symbolized Chaitanya
Shakti (power of awareness). You know that life without awareness is
Jada (inert). Arjuna symbolized the Antahkarna Shakti (power of the
inner motivator). Nakula and Sahadeva represented the Jnanendriyas
(organs of perception) and karmendriyas (organs of action) respectively.
Truth, righteousness, peace and love join the senses of action and
cognition, enter the Antahkarna (seat of thought and feeling) with the
help of life force called vibration and live there. So, Divinity which
exists in every individual is associated with the five cognitive senses
- sound, touch, vision, taste and smell. To recognize the nature of this
truth, man should first attain the unity of thought, word and deed and
bring about complete harmony in them. This is the real spiritual
practice. Today, the typical individual thinks something, speaks
something else and acts in altogether a different way. "Manasyanyath
Vachasyanyath Karmanyanyath Duratmanam" Such a manner of functioning is
typical of a wicked person.

Arjuna was the epitome of Trikarana Suddhi (purity of the triad -
thought, word and deed). Nakula and Sahadeva, who symbolized the senses
of cognition and action provided the right sources. Bhima, the son of
the wind God, stood by the side of Dharmaraja. His presence was as vital
as the presence of oxygen in the environment. Draupadi symbolized life
force. With the help of this life force only, Dharmaraja could foster
truth, righteousness, peace and love. The Pandavas thus represent the
proper use of all the powers in the body in purity and harmony.

Idealism of Draupadi

Epics like the Mahabharata and the Bhagavata and other Bharatiya
scriptures expound these spiritual realities. Though Bhima and Arjuna
were seethed with anger and revenge when their sons were killed by
Aswatthama, Draupadi pacified them. Though she was grief-stricken at the
loss of her children, she maintained a perfect state of equanimity. When
Arjuna, in a fit of anger, was ready to kill Aswatthama, she quoted the
scriptures and changed his mind. Draupadi was known for her immaculate
character. She was also called Panchali. This word is often
misinterpreted as a woman married to five men. No, it is not correct.
She was able to co-ordinate the functions of the five cognitive
senses-sound, touch, vision, taste and smell in an impeccable manner.
When Arjuna was about to kill Aswatthama, she advised him in the
following manner:

"Oh Arjuna, it is an unrighteous act to kill the one who is
fear-stricken, the one who is in distress, the one who is asleep, the
one who is unaware, the one who has surrendered himself, the one who is
helpless, the one who is unarmed, and the one who is a female." (Telugu
Poem)

"Your speech is full of anger. It is a dangerous trait. No human being
should possess anger The one who is filled with anger achieves nothing
but disgrace. Anger motivates one to do evil deeds. Such an individual
is despised by everyone." (Telugu Poem)

Bhima was also furious. Draupadi spoke to him thus: "Anger destroys
one's riches. It destroys one's respect. It distances one from
relatives. It causes loss of everything." (Telugu Poem)

Aswatthama had killed all her five sons. One can imagine the state of
her mind. She would have been justified to use the harshest language.
But, she did not have harsh feelings. She ran and fell at the feet of
Aswatthama and questioned his ruthlessness in a gentle way:

"They didn't wear weapons and rage against you. They were not in the
battlefield They didn't cause even the least harm to, you. They were not
adept in fighting. How did you feel like killing such innocent children
who were asleep!" (Telugu Poem)

Draupadi spoke in such a gentle manner. She never used harsh words. Even
in moments of extreme distress, Draupadi could speak softly and
graciously. In fact every individual should speak softly.

What should a man learn today? He should utilize his senses in the right
way and thereby make an endeavor to attain Divinity.

Purpose of the Avatar

In this human life, the most significant thing to know is devotion.
Jnana (wisdom) is the root of the tree of love. Its fruit contains sweet
juice. It is the juice of devotion. The juice or essence (Raso) is the
very form of the Divine. Raso Vai Sah (He is sweet essence). So, Bhakti
is the very essence of Divinity. Sweetness of Bhakti should reflect in
your speech. Hence, every word uttered by you should be sweet. Only then
do you deserve to be called a human being. When can you speak sweetly?
When you contemplate on the Divine, your speech becomes sweet. However,
it may sometimes necessary to use harsh words to correct some people who
act and behave in evil ways. Though the words may appear to be harsh,
the feelings behind them should be saturated with love. Sometimes when
it rains, hailstones too fall along with the gentle raindrops. They too
are nothing but water in frozen form. In this context, I shall give you
an example.

During the Mahabharata war, one day Aswatthama vowed that he would
behead the Pandavas before the sun sets. Draupadi came to know of this
vow. She prayed to Krishna, "I don't want anything. I don't want the
kingdom. Save the Pandavas" Krishna said, "That is not in my hands. The
vow cannot be changed?" Draupadi pleaded with Krishna, "There is nothing
in this world which is beyond Your capacity. Everything is in Your
hands. If You will, You can do anything." So saying, she fell at His feet.

Lord Krishna blessed her and immediately chalked out a plan. In the
darkness of night, He went to sage Durvasa. The Pandavas who accompanied
the Lord waited outside as instructed by Krishna. To protect His
devotees, the Lord has to enact many roles. If He does not act, the play
simply loses its significance and it becomes uninteresting. Durvasa gave
an ecstatic welcome to Krishna.

Krishna said, "I have come here with a purpose. It is a very difficult
task. You have to help me." Durvasa said, "I am ready to do any task
except telling a lie." Krishna said, "Uttering lies is not acceptable to
Me also. I am Divine Myself. I always adhere to truth. How can I tell
you to utter a lie? I have made a plan. Please act according to it. That
will fulfil My desire."

"Lord, do You have a desire?" asked Durvasa. "I have desires for the
sake of others. I have no desires for My own sake. Whatever I do,
whatever I speak, it is for the welfare of others. I never seek My own
welfare", Krishna replied.

"Lord! what should I do?" asked Durvasa. Krishna said, "Dig a big pit.
Put a strong plank over it and place your throne on it. Then sit on the
throne. The Pandavas will hide in the pit. When Aswatthama comes here
along with his accomplices and asks the whereabouts of the Pandavas,
tell him that the Pandavas are under you. But say this in a harsh tone."

Durvasa was known for his temper. Aswatthama searched everywhere and at
last came to Durvasa. He offered salutations to Durvasa and enquired
about the Pandavas. Durvasa said in an angry tone, "Pandavas are under
me" He spoke truth but changed the intonation. Fearing that the sage
would curse him, Aswatthama ran away from that place.

In this way, God has to contrive some situations for the protection of
the world. His attempts are not only to protect the holy people, but to
protect the holiness itself. This sacredness is present in every being.
To protect this sacredness the Lord incarnates. "Paritranaya Sadhunam
Vinashay Cha Dushkritam Dharma Sansthapanarthaya Sambhavami Yuge Yuge,"
(to protect the righteous and destroy the wicked I incarnate from time
to time to establish Dharma). Righteousness can never be annihilated. It
is ever present in every age. But occasions arise when its very
existence is threatened. The Lord incarnates to re-establish Dharma and
to accord proper place to it. If Dharma is vulnerable to destruction,
how can we call it Dharma? So, Dharma can never be vanquished. But, it
becomes obscure. To make Dharma more manifest is the purpose of the Avatar.

Saturate Your Life with Love

The question arises, "Who is God?" You are all the forms of God. The
Atmatathwa (Self) present in every being is in fact God. It is Divinity
in its true sense. "Mamaivamso Jeevaloke Jeevabhuta Sanathana," (an
aspect of My Divinity is resident in each being). Do not search for God.
Look within. Divine will manifest in you. Spiritual texts may be many,
the teachings of spirituality may be different, but the Atma is the
same. In any country, at any time, in any surroundings, the Atma is the
same. There is no such thing as a Japanese Atma or American Atma or Atma
of any other country. It transcends all divisions of creeds and castes.
It has no distinctions like man and woman. It is beyond all
distinctions. Nirgunam, Niranjanam, Sanathanam, Niketanam, Nithya Buddha
Mukta Nirmala Swarupinam (The nature of the Self is described as
attributeless, pure, eternal, free from bondage, unsullied and
immortal). This eternal Atma is present in every human being.

At one time, someone questioned Shirdi Sai Baba, "Are you God?" What was
His reply? "All are the forms of the Divine. I am not only Divine, but
also the Divinity that is present in the Divine," said Baba. So, the
same Divinity is present in every being as all are the forms of the
Divine. But, people are not able to realize the Divine because they
drink intoxicating wine of worldly desires. Wine leads to ignorance but
not to the Divine. So, you should consume something that promotes
Divinity. What is it? It is love. If you taste the fruit of love, you
need no other nourishment. Love is the essence of all fruits. It is the
goal of all goals. It is the end of all spiritual practices. You should
cultivate such love with pure and steady mind. For this, you should keep
the body, mind and senses on the right track.

I told you yesterday the three ways, which would help you to streamline
your life: "Bend the body mend the senses and end the mind." What does
the maxim, 'bend the body' stand for? Is it bending the body to carry
out some task? No. You should bend your body with humility, respect and
love when you see elders and your parents. In olden days in town and
country, the entrances to the houses were a bit low. Visitors had to
bend their heads to enter the houses. To highlight the significance of
the maxim, 'bend the body,' the ancients used to keep the height of the
entrances low deliberately.

Mend the senses. Through right vision, right listening, right speech,
right thoughts and right actions you have to control your senses. That
is the end of the mind. Here is an example. This is a piece of cloth.
You call it cloth as long as the threads are intact. If you remove the
threads one by one there will be no cloth. The threads symbolize your
desires. It is said, "Less luggage more comfort, make travel a
pleasure." You are increasing your luggage day after day. This burden
has become a great hindrance to your progress and happiness. You should
remove this hurdle and move closer to Divinity. Salokya is closeness to
Divinity. Sarupya is to attain the form of Divinity. How is this
possible? The Vedas say, "Brahmavid Brahmaiva Bhavati" (the knower of
Brahman becomes Brahman). Prahlada, who contemplated on Lord Narayana,
became Narayana himself. The dacoit Ratnakara recited the name of Lord
Rama and transformed himself into sage Valmiki. Hanuman contemplated on
the name of Lord Rama. He is worshipped by the devotees of Rama. Sayujya
is complete integration or merger with the Lord. This is the end of all
Sadhanas.

Several ways of spirituality are enunciated in the Vedas, the epics and
the Puranas, but love is the essence of all these ways. Love is
changeless. There should not be any change in love. You should cultivate
this changeless love and redeem your life.

Start the day with love,
Fill the day with love,
Spend the day with love,
End the day with love,
This is the way to God.

You should saturate your life with love and end your life with Divine
love. All other thoughts will disturb your equanimity.

Gifts of God

Man possesses all types of wealth except two. These two are possessed by
God. You can attain them by praying to God. These two are Santhi (peace)
and Ananda (bliss). You may feel happy otherwise too, but know that such
happiness is transient. Eternal peace and eternal happiness are the
gifts of the Divine. So, you should pray for these gifts. Your prayer
should be like this: "My Lord, I do not want anything that can be found
in this world. Please grant me that which is with you alone, Santhi and
Ananda (peace and bliss). I want nothing else other than these two."
Pleasure and happiness obtained from objects of this world are
short-lived. "Anithyam Asukham Lokam, Imam Prapya Bhajasva Maam," says
the Gita. Let not your prayer to God be for these impermanent things.
Pray to God for Santhi and Ananda. With such prayer you can win God's
love and grace. Once God's love is obtained, you can win the whole
world. When you pray to God for His love, your worldly desires also get
fulfilled automatically.

Once a king did penance. He had no children. God manifested before him
and asked him to tell his wish. The king said, "Lord, I want to see my
great grandson ruling the kingdom." How many desires are contained in
one desire! He should have children. His children should also beget
children. The kingdom should be under his control till his great
grandson grows up and rules over it. His eyesight should be intact to
watch this progress. This single desire expressed by him contains all
the other desires. Likewise, if you pray to God for love, all your
worldly desires too will be fulfilled.

"Man is seated under a tree bearing twelve worries. Birth is a worry,
life is a worry, family is a worry, death is a worry, childhood is a
worry, old age is a worry, success is a worry, failure is a worry,
action is a worry, obstacles are a worry, joy itself is a worry, all
uncertainties are a worry. Oh ye, all come and carry away this gift. All
your worries will end." (Telugu Poem)

This tamarind tree of worries is not a fit tree for shade. If you
receive God's love, all these worries will vanish. This is your only
need. This should be your only desire. All other spiritual practices are
of no use. Love cannot be acquired by these practices. Prayer and Bhakti
with intense yearning for Gods love and grace will fill your heart with
love. Chant the Lord's name ceaselessly to attain that love.

[Bhagavan concluded His Discourse with the Bhajan, "Pibare Rama Rasam..."]

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