Thought for the Day

Let us grow together, move and learn together, develop intelligence and attain noble goals together, without any conflict and let us live in friendship. This is the true meaning of equality. This equality gives peace. Without equality, there will be only enmity, differences, and duality. Every day you say, shanti (peace) three times! Say it with a pure heart and say it softly. When there is enmity in the heart, chanting Shanti Mantra will be of no use! Chanting it harshly also nullifies the effect of the chant! Words are not important, the feelings within your heart are important. Hence, perform all spiritual practices with purity of heart. The path of love is the noblest. It may not be possible for you to do japa(chanting of God’s Name). You may not be able to make the mind steady in meditation. You may not know the path of yoga. But you can develop love in your heart. The path of love is easy and it is a shortcut. 

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Modern friends come close to you as long as there is money in your pocket and your father has a high position. They will say, ‘hello, hello’ to you. When your pocket is empty or your father has retired, they will leave you immediately. God is not like that. God is always with you, in you, above you, and below you. He is your real friend. It is only God who will protect you in difficulties. God will always be with you. God is the embodiment of eternal bliss, wisdom absolute, beyond the pair of opposites, and expansive and pervasive like the sky. God will never forsake you. Have friendship with such a true Friend. Then only will your life as a human being become worthwhile. When you have such a friend, you will never fall short of anything. Troubles and difficulties can never bother you. You will always be blissful.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Command the mind, regulate your conduct, and keep your heart straight and clear, then you will get the grace of God

Cultivation of good thoughts is good conduct (dharma). When we protect dharma, dharma will protect us in turn (Dharmo rakshati rakshitaha). If you hurt dharma, you will be hurt in return! When our own mind generates good thoughts, it protects us. Our own mind can harm us as well. How? It harms us through its bad thoughts! Hence, our mind is responsible for all our difficulties, troubles, and miseries. So, keep your mind pure and free from bad thoughts. The moment a thought arises in your mind, use your discrimination to know: is it good or bad? When you begin such analysis, the speed of your thoughts will decrease. If on the other hand, you immediately act as per your thoughts, their speed will increase. Therefore, take the time to control the thought process through thorough enquiry. First enquire, then act. Start early, drive slowly, reach safely. If you slow down your thoughts, you will definitely arrive safely!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Worship the Lord and offer Him the eight flowers of non-violence (ahimsa), control of your senses (indriya nigraham), compassion towards all beings (sarva bhuta daya), fortitude (kshama), inner peace (shanti), austerity (tapas), meditation (dhyana) and truth (satya). Now, when other flowers are used, devotion does not last after you step out of your altar or puja room door! When one crosses that door-step, anger, hatred and anxiety possess you and degrade you. Without developing the qualities indicated by the eight flowers how can any one win the grace of God? Engaged in Asatya Narayana Vrata (the adherence to falsehood) on all 364 days, what is the good you hope to get by doing the Satyanarayana Vrata(worship of Lord Satyanarayana) on the 365th day of the year? As you claim to be Sai devotees, justify your claim by cultivating these flowers of virtue and offering them to God. 

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

There are two obstacles which prevents spiritual progress despite your valuable efforts. The first is the tendency to compare yourself with others. This is very wrong. No two individuals are identical. Even identical twins grow in distinct ways. Billions of human beings are on the earth, but which is the press which has given each of them a novel imprint? This is God’s glory. God creates every individual, with their distinct nature, quality, potentiality and destiny. How then can anyone compare themselves with another and either exult or despair? How can you be proud that you are better than others? Second obstacle is, we are in the habit of justifying our faults, rationalising our errors and avoiding the responsibility of facing them squarely and correcting them. These two attitudes thicken one’s ignorance and breed further failings. Everyone has God as the Source. Remember that all are kith and kin, through God from Whom we have come!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Arjuna became entitled to the spiritual guidance of the Geeta from the Lord Himself because he evinced the despondency, renunciation, surrender and one-pointedness (vishada, vairagya, saranagati and ekagrata) that is essential to assimilate the great message. When your yearning for liberation becomes truly intense, you earn the right to set aside all social conventions, worldly norms and codes of conduct, that do not subserve that high purpose. Then, Prahlada can give up his father, Bhishma can counter his Guru, Meera can desert her husband and Shankaracharya can play subterfuge with his mother. Ask earnestly if you have reached that stage! Develop that taste for liberation! Chanting God’s name is the best course; it can be practised at all times and places by all, irrespective of creed, gender, caste, age or economic and social status. It will keep you in constant touch with the Infinite and so, it will transmit to you the wisdom and power of the Infinite.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

The process of living is the swinging of a pendulum from smile to tear. Childhood is too tender and innocent, youth is too full of folly and faults, middle age is muddled with problems and possible remedies, and old age is spent in regret over past failings. When can you taste some real happiness? Joys and sorrows are the results of the mind's involvement in the transient and the trivial. The inner core of each living being is God. The Sun is not tarnished by its rays falling upon anything harmful. The Self too is unaffected by the effects of the mind pursuing the senses wherever they lead it. When one becomes aware that the Self is God, there can be no fear of death haunting him. Faith is life; absence of faith is death. Only the body dies; the Divine Self (Atma) is beyond birth and death. Aware of this, one is soaked in Ananda (Divine Bliss).

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

People are bound by action (karma) and sustained by action. They can achieve anything through action. Their accomplishment lies in their skill in performing actions. The actions performed will have their appropriate consequences, and no one can escape consequences of their actions. So do good actions, develop good thoughts, and join good company to get good rewards in future. As is the seed, so is the tree and its fruits. Hence engage in good actions from an early age. What are good actions? The actions that please God. When you perform actions that please God, you will also have the reward that will please you! Hence scriptures teach us to perform all actions to please God (Sarva karma Bhagavad preethyartham). When you offer all your actions to God, your heart becomes sacred, you can then lead a peaceful life. To keep your heart sacred, with strong determination practice three P’s - Purity, Patience, and Perseverance. 

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

''வாய்ப்பு கேட்கத் தெரியலை... அதனால ஆசிரியர் வேலைக்குப் போயிட்டேன்!'' - பாடகி ஜென்ஸி

தமிழ் திரை இசையுலகில் மறக்க முடியாத பாடகி, ஜென்ஸி. இனிமையான குரலுக்குச் சொந்தக்காரர். தன் மென்மையான குரலால் நம் மனதை கொள்ளை கொண்டவர். பிரபலமாக இருந்த நேரத்தில் மியூசிக் டீச்சராக தன் வாழ்வை மாற்றிக்கொண்டவர்.

"பிறந்து வளர்ந்தது, தற்போது வசிப்பது எல்லாமே கேரளாவுலதான். சாதாரண நடுத்தரக் குடும்பம்தான். பத்தாவது வரைக்கும் படிச்சுட்டு, மியூசிக்ல லோயர், ஹையர் கோர்ஸ் முடிச்சேன். என்னோட 13 வயசுல இருந்து மேடைகள்ல பாடிட்டு இருக்கேன். ஜேசுதாஸ் அண்ணாகூட கேரளாவுல நிறைய கச்சேரிகள்ல பாடியிருக்கேன். தாஸ் அண்ணாதான், 'நீ நல்லா பாடுறே'ன்னு சொல்லி, 16 வயசுல என்னை ராஜாசார்கிட்ட கூட்டிட்டுப்போனாரு. அப்போ ராஜா சார் தன்னோட மெல்லிசையால பல ஹிட் கொடுத்துட்டு இருந்த காலம். அவரைப் பார்க்கப்போகும்போது கொஞ்சம் பயமாகத்தான் இருந்துச்சு. நான் போனது காலையில. ராஜா சார் என்கிட்ட இயல்பா பேசினார். மூணு பாட்டு பாட சொன்னார். பாடி காட்டினதும் 'வாய்ஸ் ஓகே'னு மதியமே ரிக்கார்டிங்ல பாட வைச்சார். அப்படி 1978-ம் வருஷம் திரிபுரசுந்தரி படத்துல பாடின 'வானத்துப் பூக்கள்'தான் என்னோட முதல் பாடல். அடுத்தடுத்து 'அடிப் பெண்ணே, என்னுயிர் நீதானே, ஆயிரம் மலர்களே'னு நிறைய பாடல்களை பாட வாய்ப்புக் கொடுத்தார் ராஜா சார்.

அவர் பீக்ல இருந்தப்ப சுசிலா அம்மா, ஜானகி அம்மாவும் அவரோட இசையில அதிகமான பாடல்களை பாடிட்டு இருந்தாங்க. அவங்களுக்கு வாய்ப்பு கொடுக்கிறப்ப எனக்கும் வாய்ப்புக் கொடுத்தார் ராஜா சார். ஒவ்வொரு முறையும் ரெக்கார்டிங்ல எப்படி பாடணும்னு சொல்லிக்கொடுத்திடுவார். பாடி முடிச்சதும், பெருசா பாராட்டமாட்டார். 'டேக் ஓகே'ன்னு மட்டும்தான் சொல்லுவார். ஏதாச்சும் தப்பு பண்ணியிருந்தா மட்டும் சரிசெய்துக்க சொல்லுவார். பாலசுப்ரமணியம் அண்ணா, ஜேசுதாஸ் அண்ணா, ஜானகி அம்மானு எல்லாரும் எப்படி பாடல்களை பாடணும்னு எனக்கு டிப்ஸ் கொடுத்தாங்க. ரெண்டு வருஷம் பாடகியா என் கிராஃப் உயர்ந்துச்சு" என்றவர் தான் டீச்சர் வேலைக்குச் சென்ற சூழலையும் விவரித்தார்.

"சினிமாவுல என்னைத் தேடி வந்த வாய்ப்புகளை பயன்படுத்திக்க தெரிஞ்ச எனக்கு தானா போய் வாய்ப்பு கேட்கிற நுணுக்கம் தெரியல. எனக்கு உதவவும் யாரும் இல்லை. நானும் யார்கிட்டயும் வாய்ப்பு கேட்டுப் போகல. அதே சமயம் கொச்சியில இருக்கும் ஓர் அரசு உதவி பெறும் பள்ளியில டீச்சரா வேலை கிடைச்சது. 'ஒரு பாடகி டீச்சர் வேலைக்குப் போறாங்களே'ன்னு அப்போ பரபரப்பா பேசினாங்க. டீச்சரா வொர்க் பண்ணிகிட்டு இருந்தாலும், தொடர்ந்து ராஜா சார் பாடுற வாய்ப்புகளும் கொடுத்தார். அந்த சமயங்கள்ல மட்டும் சென்னைக்கு அப்பாவோட வந்து பாடிட்டுப் போவேன்.

அப்படித்தான் ஜானி படத்துல 'என் வானிலே', 'தெய்வீக ராகம்', 'காதல் ஓவியம்' மாதிரியான பெரிய ஹிட் பாடல்களைப் பாடினேன். தமிழ் அளவுக்கு இல்லாட்டியும், மலையாளத்துலயும் கொஞ்சம் பாடல்கள்ல பாடியிருந்த சமயத்துல கச்சேரிகள்ல பாடுறதையும் நிறுத்திட்டேன். 1982-ம் வருஷத்தோடு சினிமாவுல பாடும் வாய்ப்புகளும் நின்னுடுச்சு.

பாடகி ஜென்ஸி

நானும் டீச்சர் வேலையில என் முழு கவனத்தையும் செலுத்த ஆரம்பிச்சுட்டேன். சினிமாத்துறைக்கு வந்த அஞ்சு வருஷத்துல 50 பாடல்கள் மட்டுமே பாடியிருக்கேன். ஆனா, 39 வருஷமா ரசிகர்கள் என்னை மறக்காம இருக்காங்க. இதுதான் என்னோட வாழ்நாள் சாதனையா நினைக்கிறேன். எனக்கான அடையாளம் இப்ப வரைக்கும் ரசிகர்கள் மத்தியில தொடருது. ஒரு மியூசிக் டீச்சரா ஆயிரக்கணக்கான குழந்தைகளுக்கு இசையை கற்றுக்கொடுத்தேன்ங்கிற மன திருப்திதான் என் வாழ்நாள் திருப்தியா நினைக்கிறேன்" என்றவர் தன் குடும்பத்தைப் பற்றிக் கூறுகிறார்.

"கணவர் பிசினஸ் பண்ணிட்டு இருக்கார். பொண்ணு ஆஸ்திரேலியாவுல குடும்பத்தோடு வசிக்கிறாங்க. பையன் அமெரிக்காவுல எம்.எஸ் படிச்சுகிட்டு இருக்காரு. இப்பவும் 5 - 7-ம் வகுப்பு வரைக்கும் படிக்கிற குழந்தைகளுக்கான மியூசிக் டீச்சரா தொடர்ந்து வொர்க் பண்ணிட்டு இருக்கேன். குறிப்பா நல்ல நல்ல பாட்டெல்லாம் கொடுத்து எனக்கு தனி அடையாளம் தந்தது இளையராஜா சார்தான். அதனால என்னோட வாழ்க்கை முழுக்க அவருக்கு நன்றிக்கடன் பட்டிருக்கேன்" என்கிறார் நெகிழ்ச்சியாக.

Thought for the Day

There are two things that draw one’s mind: hitha(the beneficial) and priya (the pleasant). Prefer the beneficial to the pleasant, for the pleasant might lead you down the sliding path into the bottomless pit. Vibhishana spoke hitha to Ravana, but he lent his ear to the priya that his sycophantic ministers spoke. He sealed his fate by this preference of pleasant over beneficial. The true doctor is interested in curing you of all illness and so, he advises hitha to restore your health; the Guru is such a doctor. Obey him even when his prescription is unpalatable, for, you will be cured! People suffer from the fever of the senses and they try the quack remedies of recreations, pleasures, picnics, banquets, dances, etc., only to find that the fever does not subside. The fever can subside only when the hidden virus is rendered ineffective. That virus will die only when the rays of jnana (wisdom) fall upon it.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the day

Life is a campaign against foes; a battle with obstacles, temptations, hardships, and hesitations. These foes are within and so, the battle has to be incessant and perpetual. Like the virus that thrives in the bloodstream, the vices of lust, greed, hate, malice, pride and envy sap the energy and faith of every being and reduce them to untimely fall. You must strive to diagnose your own character and discover the faults that are infesting it; do not try to analyse the character of others and seek to spot their defects. This self-examination is very necessary to bring to light the defects that might undermine one's spiritual career. People buy clothes with deep colour, so that they may not reveal dust or dirt; they do not prefer white clothes, for they show plainly their soiled condition. But, do not try to hide your dirt in darkness; be ashamed of soiled natures and endeavour to cleanse them fast.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Most people engage in bhajan singing, puja and dhyana (ritualistic worship and meditation) but these are mere physical exercises! Ask yourself sincerely - is your mind elevated as a result of these? Does your heart pour through during your worship? No! Hence you continue to remain at the human level and do not rise to the Divine. “Can a lake be filled when there is only a sprinkle of rain? Can thirst be relieved, with a few drops of water? Can the belly be full, if breathing is held tight? Can live cinders be secured by the burning of blades of grass?" asks a famous poet. Logs have to be burned if charcoal is needed. Only sheets of rain can fill a lake to the brim. A glass of cold water alone can cure a person of thirst, nothing less. The heart has to be offered in full. Devotion has to fill and overflow the heart, for you to rise into Divinity!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Most people engage in bhajan singing, puja and dhyana (ritualistic worship and meditation) but these are mere physical exercises! Ask yourself sincerely - is your mind elevated as a result of these? Does your heart pour through during your worship? No! Hence you continue to remain at the human level and do not rise to the Divine. “Can a lake be filled when there is only a sprinkle of rain? Can thirst be relieved, with a few drops of water? Can the belly be full, if breathing is held tight? Can live cinders be secured by the burning of blades of grass?" asks a famous poet. Logs have to be burned if charcoal is needed. Only sheets of rain can fill a lake to the brim. A glass of cold water alone can cure a person of thirst, nothing less. The heart has to be offered in full. Devotion has to fill and overflow the heart, for you to rise into Divinity!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

God is the source of all Love. Love cures pettiness, hate and grief. Love loosens bonds; it saves you from the torment of birth and death. Love binds all hearts in a soft silken symphony. Seen through the eyes of Love, all beings are beautiful, all deeds are dedicated, and all thoughts are innocent. Love God and Love the world as the vesture of God, no more, no less. The world is one vast kin. If you pay attention to the individual, differences thrust themselves on you. Fix your attention on the samasthi (the collective), then points of identity will be more apparent. If you concentrate on the outer labels - Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Parsi, Buddhist - then, you will develop pride or contempt or hatred! But if you focus on the struggle that man undergoes to raise himself from the flesh to reach the level of Divinity, you will find all labels insignificant. Then it is all love, co-operation, mutual encouragement and appreciation.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

The chief means to detach your mind from distractions and attach yourselves to the search of God are communion with God (Yoga) and sacrifice (Tyaga). Kama (desire) has to be got rid of by Tyaga, and Rama (God) has to be secured by Yoga. Desire discolours the intelligence, perverts judgement, sharpens the appetites of the senses, and leads to a false attraction of the objective world. When desire disappears or is concentrated on God, intelligence becomes self-luminous, and shines in its pristine splendour. That splendour reveals the God within and in the world outside. That is true realisation of the Self (Atma Sakshatkara). I bless you that you succeed in your sadhana(spiritual practices). If you are not practicing any now, I advise you to take up simple namasmarana (reciting the divine name), along with reverence towards parents, elders and teachers, and rendering service to the poor and the sick.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Everyone craves for security, peace, joy and happiness. But most believe that these can be extracted from the world! The result is, people waste their years in eating and drinking, playing and resting, earning and spending. They rush from cradle to grave ad nauseam, drifting along, knowing neither the origin of their journey nor its destination, through the ages. Man has won unique qualities of head and heart through a series of effort-filled lives as members of inferior species; that victory is now reduced to ashes, by this supine sloth. You must have the skill to swim across the waves of joy and grief, of pain and profit. You must be a master of the art of being fully at ease, perfectly calm and unaffected, whatever may happen to your body, senses or mind! Learn the skill of achieving and maintaining inner peace, the art of being ever aware of your own inner Reality (Atma), then you can safely gyrate in the world!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Service rendered without egoism, however small, can be highly beneficial. It must emanate from a tender heart which responds to every sob and groan, and is ready to renounce and suffer gladly. One must have the eagerness to get involved with others and feel their pain. One must cultivate forbearance and inner strength, in order to avoid resentment at criticism and ridicule, while one is engaged in joyful service. The wise use their money, strength, intelligence, skills, aptitudes and opportunities to help others and make their lives happier. Thus they win divine grace; for seva is the highest form of worship. There are millions who are hungry, desperate and miserable. I ask that you limit your intake of food to your actual need, so that you can share your resources with the needy. Never waste food. Do not fritter away money for harmful purposes; use it to help others. Do not waste time and energy; allow others to benefit from your skills!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

True love is the sweet fruit that grows out of the fragrant flower of good deeds. Today, when any difficulty arises or when some trouble crops up, love turns into hatred. Whatever be the vicissitudes one may face, whatever be the personal sorrows and privations one may undergo, a person with true love should remain unaffected. Love rules without recourse to the sword. It binds without laws. Like the glow of the flame in a fire or the rays of the sun or the waves in the ocean, divine love is the basic quality of every true human being. True Love is practising pure and unselfish love towards all living beings, who are all embodiments of the Divine, with no expectation of reward! A genuine loving person will be free from dislike or hatred, and is friendly and compassionate towards all beings (Adweshta sarva bhutanam, maitrah, karuna evacha). Only those with this attitude are worthy of being called human beings!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

When your heart is filled with good thoughts and feelings, all that comes out of your senses - your speech, your vision, your action - will all be pure

There is no evil in money, scholarship, knowledge or intelligence. But evil arises from activities that one performs using them. Pure water has no colour. Poured into a black bottle, it appears black. Poured into a red bottle, it appears red. Water has not become red or black; colour of the bottle makes the difference. When money, scholarship, cleverness and intelligence are possessed by persons in whom rajas(passion, emotion, outgoing nature) is dominant, they promote hatred, ambition and lust. When possessed by persons in whom tamas (sloth, dullness, conceit) is dominant, they promote miserliness, greed and envy. When possessed by persons in whom Satwa (equanimity, balance, purity) is dominant, they promote love, compassion, urge to serve, the unity of all mankind and world peace. The sublimation of your character to Satwa is the duty that everyone owes to themselves. This is the path, the real goal. You must ceaselessly tread the path and reach the goal.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Islam means dedication, surrender, peace and tranquility.

Islam means dedication, surrender, peace and tranquility. The Ramzan month is set apart for the holy task of bringing into memory and practicing the teachings that Hazrat Muhammad conveyed, and progressing spiritually to attain unity and purity. Islam teaches that God's grace can be won through justice and righteous living; wealth, scholarship and power cannot earn it. Pure Love alone can please the Lord. Muslim seers emphasise that we must inquire into the validity of the 'I' which feels it is the body and the 'I' which feels it is the mind, and reach the conclusion that the real 'I' is the Self that is yearning for the Omniself, God. The Ramzan month, fast and prayers are designed to awaken and manifest this realisation. All religions emphasise on unity, harmony, and equal-mindedness. Therefore, cultivate love, tolerance and compassion, and demonstrate the Truth in every daily activity. This is the Message I give you with My Blessings!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

It is not enough if you are born a human being with all faculties working well - physical, mental and emotional. You must bring it to perfection using the discriminating intellect, just as a sculptor does, after the stone is brought to a crude shape. Everyone of you must be aware of your kinship with God, the Divinity latent in you and your immense potentiality. You can know this through the exercise of your discrimination and dispassion (viveka and vairagya). Only a human being among all animal creation is capable of this. The royal road to this awareness is shown by the Guru; not every one of the several lakh ‘gurus’ claiming their status are entitled to it. For, the word Gu-ru means, the one who has no darkness in him! When you are earnest, the Lord Himself will guide you. Do not despair; march bravely on. Try to fill every moment with thoughts of God, in some form or the other.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Stay away from impure listening, impure acts, impure words and impure thoughts

Live with prema (love), in prema, for prema. Then the Lord who is Premaswarupa (Divine Love personified) will grant you all that you need in spite of your not asking for anything. He knows; He is the Mother who does not wait to hear the moan of the child to feed it. His prema is so vast and deep; He anticipates every need and rushes with the required help. You are all waiting anxiously to know when will I restart granting you 'interviews', so that you can place before Me the long lists of korikas (wishes or desires), which you have brought. These wishes go on multiplying; they never end. The fulfilment of one leads to a new series. Strive to arrive at the stage when His wish alone will count and you are an instrument in His Hands. When you fill yourselves with love for God, you achieve Sarupya and Sayujya  b(likeness of form and absorption in God). Strive for that consummation, not for lesser victories.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Forms of worship, or the phraseology of adoration, or the style of address may vary, but all religions are directed towards the same consummation. The same bloodstream circulates in all the limbs of the body. The same divine stream activates the entire Universe. Visualise that supreme Architect, that incomprehensible Designer, that unseen Lifegiver. This is spoken of as the realisation of the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man. Do not get entangled in the business of living. In your struggle for survival and success, do not forget the God that made life possible. Sow the seeds of love, after preparing the soil of your heart by removing the weeds. Watered by faith, let them grow and yield the blossoms of fortitude (sahana). Then you are assured of the fruit - Shanti or peace. This is the task, this is the duty - this has to be your vow!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

All that you are, you owe to society and you must show your gratitude to society by rendering service

You may be from many countries, and wedded to different cultures and traditions, languages and styles of dress, food, etc. But, this variety should not hide from our vision, the unity of Divinity inherent in all of you. The world today is afflicted with formidable problems and fast-spreading fear - fear of war, famine, and of demonic terrorists, problems of racial, religious and regional conflicts, of economic recuperation and survival, of student indiscipline, of credal clashes, of frenzy and fanaticism, of power-grabbing and extreme egoism. The only remedy for this creeping fear is an attitude of Vairagyam (non-attachment). When one is attached to the body-mind complex and the I-and-Mine limitation, fear is inescapable. The Advaitic (non-dual) awareness that what we witness is but a super-imposition of our own mind on Reality, is the best cure, and service is the most effective sadhana.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

If you have a fully equipped car in good running condition, would you keep it in the garage? The car is primarily for going on a journey; won’t you get into it and drive? So it is with your human body. The human birth has been given to you for a grand purpose - realising the Lord within. Proceed towards the goal. Learn how to use the faculties of the body, the senses, the intellect and the mind, for achieving the goal and march on. To achieve this great consummation, you must take one step after another. Good deeds like ritual worship, repetition of holy names, meditation, observance of vows, etc., are the 'steps'; good thoughts like prayer for greater discrimination and more chances to serve others also help. Slowly and steadily cleanse the mind, sharpen the intellect, purify the senses, and win the Lord’s grace. You have come, prompted by Divine Love; cultivate and share that selfless divine love with all.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

The best way to win Grace is to obey instructions, follow the advice, and submit to the control exercised with lot of Love.

Observe Me; what benefit can I derive from all My activity, I who assigns all benefits to all activities according to what they deserve? But yet, you will find Me busy from dawn to dusk, from dusk to dawn. I finish My lunch or dinner within minutes so that I can teach you the value of time; I attend to the smallest detail of all the various items of work, for I try to set an example for you, in meticulous attention to, and careful anticipation of, all contingencies. I know many of you idle away hours on end, wasting precious hours in idle gossip, purposeless talk and debate. When you practise the attitude that God is everywhere as the witness of every act of yours, that God is in every being you meet and serve, then, you will certainly be rewarded by a Vision of the Lord. When you have this brilliant chance, do not let it go through ignorance or negligence. The best way to win Grace is to obey instructions, follow the advice, and submit to the control exercised with lot of Love.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Reduce your wants, minimize your desires. That’s the key to happiness!

Everyone is eager to be happy; everyone wants to work less and gain more, give little and get amply, but nobody experiments with wanting less and giving more! Every want is a shackle that hinders movement - it is a drag on your feet. A young college student roams free on his two legs; when he marries, he becomes four-footed! A child makes him six-footed; thus, further restricting the range of his movements. The more the feet, the less the speed, the tighter his grip on the ground – Remember, centipedes can only crawl! More objects means more hurdles and handicaps! Reduce wants, live simply - that is the way to happiness. Attachment brings sorrow in its wake; at last, when death demands that everything be left behind and everybody be deserted, you are overpowered with grief! Be like the lotus on water; on it, not in it. Water is necessary for the lotus to grow, but lotus will not allow even a drop to wet it.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

God's grace is just like the shower of rain and the sunlight. You must do some sadhana (spiritual practice) to acquire it; like keeping a pot upright to receive the rain, or the sadhana of opening the door of your heart, so that Sun may illumine it. Pray for grace and do little sadhana. Grace will set everything right. Its main consequence is Self-realisation (Atma sakshatkara); but there are other incidental benefits too like a happy contented life, and a cool courageous temper, established in unruffled peace (shanti). The main benefit from a jewel is personal joy but when one has come to the last coin in the purse, one can sell it and start life again! That is an incidental advantage. The plantain tree has bunch of fruits as its main gift! But its leaves, soft core of its trunk, flower bud, etc. are subsidiary items with profitable use. This is the nature of grace. It fulfils a variety of wants.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

The universe, including the house within which you dwell, namely the body, is composed of the five elements: earth, water, fire, wind and ether - elements that act upon the senses as smell, taste, colour, touch and sound. Since elements are 'divine emanations’, each of them has to be treated with reverence and circumspection. For example: take the earth. If you scatter seeds on the soil, or plant them too deep in the soil, they may not throw up their shoots! Pouring water down your throat can very well become torture, if the limit is crossed. You cannot breathe comfortably in a typhoon, nor can your eardrums stand the pressure of an explosion within earshot! Any use of the elements, over and above legitimate bounds, is a sacrilege. So too, each element must be used under some limitations, not as and how you like. Treat the elements as a vesture of the Almighty.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Attachment and hatred are the greatest enemies of progress in any scheme of social service, why, in any scheme of work. If a man 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 person’s sorrow is everyone’s sorrow. The fundamental flaw is the ignorance of humanity. If only one is wise, one would know that all individuals are waves on the surface of the self-same ocean. Selfless action is the ideal to be aimed at. But now, everything is measured by the result, the gain that accrues. Study is also for the salary one can get on the basis of the degree earned. If the act is done without selfish desire (in the nishkama way); there is no aim to seek gain. The desire for gain is like the poison fangs; when they are pulled out, the snake of karma (action and reaction cycle) is rendered harmless.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Welcome all the blows of fate, the misfortunes and miseries, just as gold welcomes the crucible, hammer and the anvil, to transform into a beautiful jewel. Or as the cane welcomes the chopper, crusher, boiler, pan, sprayer and dryer, so that its sweetness may be preserved and used as sugar by all. The Pandavas never demurred when disasters fell thick upon them. They were happy that disasters helped them to remember Krishna and call upon Him. Submit to the will of God. Never seek power or position but submit to His Will so that you may be ever happy and unmoved. The Lord rushes toward the devotee faster than the devotee rushes to Him. If you take one step toward Him, He takes a hundred steps toward you! He will be more than a mother or father. He will foster you from within you, just as He has saved and fostered so many saints who have placed faith in Him!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

There is iron and there is also the magnet. The magnet will draw the iron to itself; that is the destiny of both. But if the iron is covered with the rust, the grace of the magnet may not operate strong enough to draw the iron near. Greed for sensual pleasure will certainly act as rust! It acts as dust, which induces rust; the rust will ultimately burst the iron itself and change its innate nature. So iron has to be tested constantly and dusted. Then, when it contacts the magnet, it too earns the magnetic quality and finally gets rest from its quest. That achievement is the best, for both magnet and iron. The dust of sensual greed can be prevented by keeping good company (satsang), and putting into practice the principles of good conduct that one must imbibe from holy scriptures!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba