Thought for the day

1.The process of purifying the inner equipment of man in the crucible of single-pointed speech, feeling and activity, directed towards God is called thapas (penance). The inner consciousness will then be rid of all blemishes and defects. When the inner consciousness has been rendered pure and unsullied, God will reside therein. Finally, he will experience the vision of the Lord Himself, within him.

2.Every sense runs after external objects one after the other, one supporting the other, restlessly and miserably. One must bring under control the mind, the reasoning faculty and the senses which roam aimlessly behind objective pleasures. One must train them to take on the task of concentrating all attention on the glory and majesty of God to follow one systematic course of one-pointed discipline. Bring them all and lead them towards the Higher Path. Their unlicensed behaviour has to be curbed. They must be educated by means of japa (chanting God’s name), dhyana (meditation) or noble deeds, or some other dedicatory and elevating activity that purifies and ennobles.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Each Teacher should strive to encourage the all round development of the student

As a teacher, you must ask yourself, "Have the pupils grasped the lesson alright? Which subject has to be taught in which way, and through which method?” These problems should bother you as a teacher. Moreover you should conduct yourself just in the same manner as you advise and expect the students to behave. When they are taught the lessons through love, their reverence for the teacher will also deepen. Each teacher should strive to encourage the all-round development of the student. You must expand your heart through love, and not waste the years of your life in furthering your own interests.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Law of Nature

Of the instruments used by everyone, the body with its hands ready executes the thought which is expressed in words. The deed, the work, the labour that the hand of man is engaged in, is the source of all the happiness or misery for everyone. Man asserts that he is happy, or that he is anxious and afraid or that he is in trouble; and he attributes the cause of these conditions to some person other than himself. This belief rests on a wrong basis. Happiness and misery are due to one’s own actions. Whether one accepts this truth or not, one has to go through all the consequences of one’s actions. This is the Law of Nature.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

The teacher come down to the level of the student

The teacher must come down to the level of the student. This process is called ‘descent.’ It does not mean stepping down from the top to the ground. It only means accepting the level of the person who is to be benefited. The baby on the floor cannot jump in to the arms of the mother, when she calls upon it to come up. Iif the mother feels “I am a great person, I will not stoop”, she cannot possess the child. Stooping does not make a person small. The teacher too, is not demeaning himself when he comes down to the level of the pupil in order to teach him. It is only a laudable sign of love.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought, word and deed must be free from pride, greed and hatred.

1.Hands are not the only limbs or agents that are involved in Karma or human activity. Whatever is done, seen or heard, one should be vigilant about its purity. Thought, word and deed must be free from pride, greed and hatred. The words that one utters must be free from these faults. Things that one yearns to hear must be free from these superficially attractive qualities; the pleasures that one seeks must not be polluted by evil. You must first assimilate these mental lessons and demonstrate their effect in your speech. You must translate this lesson taught by words into action.

2.A person bound by objective desires will try in various ways to fulfil them. He becomes a slave to his senses and their pursuits. But if he withdraws the senses from the world and gets control over their master, the mind, and engages that mind in thapas (penance), then he can establish Swa-rajya or Self-mastery or independence over himself. Allowing the senses to attach themselves to objects is what causes bondage. When the mind that flows through the senses towards the outer world is turned inwards and is made to contemplate on the Atma, it attains liberation or Moksha.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

It is a matter of great bliss to be loved by many. To win over the hearts of so many is a sign of Divinity. I love everyone and all love Me. Do not hurt anyone by your harsh words and enter into any evil paths. Recognise the truth that God pervades everything from microcosm to macrocosm. With Shraddha and Vishwasa (sincerity of purpose and faith) and self-confidence, you can achieve anything in the world. Love God from the depths of your heart. Follow Swami’s commands and you will attain everything and be victorious in all your endeavours!

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Education should be used for promoting the welfare of the Nation

1.The power of the Divine Name is unparalleled. People often take it lightly. This is wrong. One should not mistake a diamond for a shining piece of glass. The real diamond is truly different. Incidentally, do you know the meaning of diamond? It is ‘Die mind’. God’s name is the real diamond. Keep it safe and secure. Do not ever be bothered by pain and suffering, losses and difficulties. They just come and pass. That is not your real nature. Your innate Self is strong, eternal and real (Sath). You should not follow the fleeting and unreal, forsaking your own true and eternal nature. Once you seek refuge in the lotus feet of God, you should never give up. Wherever you go, the Divine Feet will protect you. If you install the Divine Name firmly in your heart, your life will become sanctified. It is only for making people realise this truth that the Sadhana(spiritual exe rcise) of Akhanda Bhajan (continous singing) has been prescribed for devotees at least once in a year.

2.What you should offer to God through the fruit of your Sadhana(spiritual exercise) is the essence of good qualities, noble thoughts and love. The world itself will be benefited by an individual who has good conduct. If fire starts on one tree, it will not stop after burning that particular tree. It will spread and burn the entire wood. In the same manner, if there is one individual who has bad qualities, he will spoil the whole community in addition to ruining himself. On the other hand, if there is a plant which is full of fragrant flowers, it will fill the entire area with sweetness. In the same manner, even a single person with a noble code of conduct will not only improve himself but also will better the condition of the entire society around him through his noble deeds.

3.A person driving a car concentrates on the road for he is anxious to save himself and others from accident. Fear is what induces single-mindedness in this case. Love is a greater force for achieving concentration. If you have steady and resolute love, your concentration becomes intense and unshakeable. Faith develops into love and love results in concentration. Prayer begins to yield fruit under such conditions. Pray using the Name as a symbol of the Lord, by keeping all the waves of the mind still. Let the performance of a duty be the only justification for your coming into the world. Hold fast to the Lord. The bhaktha (devotee) should never retract. Never give way to doubt or despair.

4.‘Bhagavatha’ connotes three sections of knowledge: (1) The glory and majesty of the incarnations of God, (2) The names of those who are fully devoted to God and (3) The intimate relationship between God and the godly. Wherever and whenever these three are found together, there we have the Bhagavatha. All that is visible is not beyond or outside God. To put it succinctly, everything is Bhagavatha!

5.Every concrete manifestation of God is significant. There can be no higher or lower. The story of each one of them is elevating. Each is a complete manifestation. Listening to their stories may make you feel that one incarnation is grander and more sublime than another. It would appear as if you get more inspiration from one Avatar than another. But all are equally Divine and enigmatic. Every manifestation is suited to the time, the task, the circumstance and the need. Its form is in accordance with the purpose.

6.From time immemorial, women of Bharat, by their adherence to ideals have bestowed joy on this land and hence occupy an exalted position, which is higher than that of men. Women of such exalted character have set great ideals of womanhood in Bharat. Only if the women come up in society, will the whole world turn sacred. There is nothing in this world that women cannot achieve. Recognising the nature of such women, we must encourage them and give them equal opportunities in society. However, in today's world, there is no encouragement for women to cultivate high ideals. In modern times, the ways of life have become so perverted that only evil thoughts, feelings and behaviour rule the roost.

7.For the protection of the world, for upholding Dharma (righteousness), for fulfilling the yearnings of devotees, He wills and assumes a special Form and moves in the world. He confers joy on the devotees by His Divine acts, which convince them of His Advent. They are thus confirmed in their faith and prompted to dedicate their activities to God and thus save themselves, and liberate themselves. On certain occasions, for resolving certain urgent crisis, God has incarnated with Forms embodying only a part of His Divinity, with some Divine powers and potentialities.

8.The common man is drawn by external pomp and apparent motives. So he judges the leelas (Divine sport) as common and even low. The inner meaning and purpose are not easily patent to all. But the Lord can never engage Himself in purposeless and paltry activities. His advent is for the uplift of the world from the morass of wickedness and unrighteousness, for fulfilling the needs of those devoted to Him, for the reestablishment of righteousness and morality, and for the revival of the Vedas. He has to take into account the merit acquired by each in previous lives and shower His grace accordingly. His leelas or Divine activities are so shaped that they suit the time, the person, the aspiration and the compassion which cause each shower of grace!

9.Education should be used for promoting the welfare of the nation. Knowledge gained through education should be used selflessly for promoting the well-being of humanity. What we need today areUttama-purushulu (noble and ideal men and women). The nation will prosper only when there are such persons. And people like these will emerge in society only when there is purity of mind and morality in society. Only a society with a moral foundation can foster such noble persons. Spirituality is the only means for redemption.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.It is not possible to limit the freedom of God in assuming Forms. He adopts endless Forms to manifest Himself to save the world. His incarnation is in conformity with the need of the crisis at the time. When the Earth moaned under the injustice of the demon Hiranyaksha, He had to appear as a boar, taking Form and equipped with Attributes, though in essence, He is without Form and Attribute. The will of God cannot be explained by categories or as consequences. It is according to the needs of the situation, in the Forms best suited for the destruction of the wicked and for the protection of the good and godly.

2.The Upanishads prescribe certain sadhanas (spiritual exercises) to achieve inner peace. One of that is engaging in Karma or beneficial activity - that is to say, service to people which will help diminish the sense of ego; this refers to acts that are good and godly. When one’s thoughts are engaged in such activities, the mind turns away from the talk it indulges in. Listening to spiritual advice, reflection on spiritual directions, and discovering ways and means of confirming faith in the Lord, recital of the names of God and withdrawing the mind from sensual pursuits have been prescribed by the scriptures for silencing the mental chatter, this inner talk, as a preparation for attaining the Supreme Lord. For it is only when the mind is cleansed and clarified that it can achieve such a profound task. Only then the lessons taught and the experiences undergo ne can be pure and unsullied.

3.The rain falling on the mountain range slides down the sides into many valleys and flows as turbid streams. The same rain falling on fresh water lakes or limpid rivers remains pure and clear. The sages who are cognizant of their Atmic reality are transformed into the purity, equanimity, and charity that it represents. They are ever in the full awareness of the Atma, their inner core. In the purified consciousness of these persons, there is the experience of identification. Likes and dislikes, sense of “I” and “mine”, anxiety and calmness, elation when praised and depression when blamed - these cannot contaminate or agitate a person who has attained that state. These opposites become balanced and are accepted with equanimity as waves on the Atmic consciousness. This is the authentic Atmic attitude, the Brahman inner-look, the unitary vision.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Look inward

Ordinary humans struggle to win material happiness and external pleasures. They do not seek the spiritual bliss (ananda) that the Atma, their inner reality, can grant. They lose the great opportunity of experiencing it, and they don’t take any steps appropriate for the purpose. All the time, their attention is directed only to the external world. It does not turn inward. Looking outward is the characteristic of animals, not of humans. The important organs of sense perception in the human body - the eye, the nose, the tongue, etc. - all open outward in order to contact external objects. The Sovereign Lord is the embodiment of indivisible sweetness (rasa), the treasure house of bliss, and can be realized only when you look inward. A wise person would gradually and steadily endeavour to look inward and acquire that victory of Bliss.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

The mind is engaged in two activities: alochana or planning, and sambhashana or dialogue. Both these follow different lines. Planning is intent on solving problems that present themselves before the mind. Dialogue multiplies the problems and confounds the solutions causing confusion and adoption of wrong and ruinous means to solve them. The inner conversation and controversial chatter continues from morning till night, until sleep overtakes the mind. It causes ill-health and the early setting in of old age. The topics on which the chatter is based are mostly the faults and failings of others and their fortunes and misfortunes. This perpetual dialogue is at the bottom of all the miseries of man. It covers the mind with thick darkness. It grows wild very quickly and suppresses one's genuine worth.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

IF THE DIFFERENCES AND DISPARITIES ARE HARMONISED WISELY, THE WORLD WILL HAVE HAPPINESS AND PEACE.

1.The Supreme Sovereign Lord manifesting Himself as Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara, through the prompting of Primal Will is engaged in creating, fostering and destroying the worlds. In what is thus created, there is always the principle of Dualism. There is difference and disparity between one and another. If these differences and disparities are harmonised wisely, the world will have happiness and peace. If, on the other hand, living beings behave wrongly, the world will be sunk in anxiety, misery and confusion. When these arise, the Lord assumes appropriate Forms and affords necessary protection and correction. He sets right the damaged world, removes the evil forces that caused the damage, and instructs mankind in the science of fostering the right and the good.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.Unfortunately, no transformation is taking place in the human beings in spite of repeating the Divine Name several times. You should chant the Name of God wholeheartedly with full faith. Faith develops love towards God and that love towards God confers Grace. No doubt, people today are repeating the holy name, but not with love and steady faith. They are more concerned with how others are singing and whether their shruthi (pitch) and raaga (melody) are in order, etc. They are doing Naamasankirtana with a wavering mind. There can be no transformation in them by such fickle minded sadhana in spite of doing it for hours together. Naamasankirtan has to be done with absolute concentration and steady faith like a yogi. It is said “Sathatham Yoginah”. One can achieve great transformation if the mind is steadily fixed on the Divine Name.

2.Bhajan is very necessary to melt the heart of God. When you do Nagar Sankirtan early in the morning, everybody will get up and listen to the Divine Name. Hearing the name of God as soon as they wake up will fill them with great bliss and enthusiasm. Constantly remember the name of God; never forget Him. This is the noblest path; the true spiritual practice. When you do this, you will be immensely blessed.

3.Surrender does not mean offering your body to God. Real surrender is the chanting of the Divine Name and making it the basis of your life. It is for the same reason that Guru Nanak, the first Guru of the Sikhs, started community singing. He told his followers that they should seek fulfillment in life by chanting the Divine Name. Consider the chanting of the Name of God as the most important spiritual practice. You may spend any amount of money in charity and in doing acts of service, but these practices will give you only temporary mental satisfaction at the most if they are not complemented with the chanting of the Divine Name.

4. Today the country is facing a lot of problems because people are not doing enough Naamasmarana (remembering the divine name). Let each and every street reverberate with the singing of divine glory. Let each and every cell of your body be filled with divine name. Nothing else can give you the bliss, courage and strength that you derive from Naamasmarana. Even if some people make fun of you, do not bother about it. Do Naamasmarana with total concentration and dedication. Do not be afraid of anyone. Sing the glory of God wholeheartedly without any inhibition. Only then can you experience divine bliss.

5.There are many snakes of wicked qualities in the anthill of your heart. When you do Naamasmarana (remembering the divine name) all the ‘snakes’ of bad qualities will come out. Naamasmarana is like the musical wind instrument (Nadaswaram) which attracts snakes and brings them out of anthills. This Nadaswaram is your Jeevana swaram (music of your life) and Prana swaram (breath of your life). One has to repeat God’s name in order to get rid of evil qualities. Today there are many who do not attach any importance to Naamasmarana. It is a great mistake. In this Age of Kali only chanting of the divine name can redeem your lives. There is no other refuge. Singing the glory of the Lord is highly sacred!

6.Fill the reservoir when it rains, so that in times of drought, you can feed the fields. Do intense Sadhana (spiritual exercises) now, when you are young and strong so that you can be in peace and joy for the rest of your life. Make the most profitable use of this present period of your lives. Do not waste the hours in irrelevance and irreverence. Do not indulge in the condemnation of others or in self-disapprobation. Let your hearts rejoice, clothed in fresh ideals, feelings and resolutions. Mould your lives into sweet songs of Love.

7.The farmer, intent on cultivation, ignores even food and sleep, for he is too busy ploughing, levelling, scattering seeds, watering, weeding, guarding and fostering the crop. He knows that his family will have to subsist on the harvest that he brings home and that if he fritters away the precious season in idle pursuits, his family will be confronted with hunger and ill-health. So, he sets aside or postpones other pursuits and focuses all his attention on farming alone. He puts up with difficulties and deprivations, toils day and night, watches over the growing crops and garners the grain. As a consequence, he is able to spend the months ahead, in peace and joy, with his happy family. Students and spiritual seekers have to learn important lessons from the farmer. The stage of youth is the season for mental and intellectual culture. These years should be intensively and intelligently cult ivated irrespective of difficulties and obstacles. The clamour of the senses has to be silenced; hunger and thirst have to be controlled; the urge to sleep and relax has to be curbed.

8.Deepavali has to be observed as a day for getting rid of all the bad qualities in us, symbolised by the demon Narakasura. The inner meaning underlying the festival should be rightly understood. A whole array of lamps is lit by the light from one lamp. That one lamp symbolises the Supreme Effulgent Lord. The others represent the light in individual selves. The truth of the Vedic saying, "The One willed to become the many" is exemplified by the lighting of many lamps by the flame of one. Deepavali festival thus bears out the profoundest spiritual truth. The lamp also points to another significant fact. Wherever it may be placed, the flame rises only upwards and never moves down. Likewise, the flame of Jnana (Spiritual Wisdom) leads one to a sublime level through the path of Righteousness.

9.When the person who is bound relies on the one who is not bound, he can get rid of his bonds and move about freely. The person who is deep in grief must seek refuge in the one who is floating on spiritual bliss (ananda) filled with joy. Bondage plunges one into sorrow; the Lord is Total Bliss Personified. Therefore, one can be completely cured of grief only by resorting to the inexhaustible spring of delight, the Lord. And what exactly is liberation (moksha)? It is release from grief, the absence of sorrow, and attainment of spiritual bliss (ananda-praapti). The supreme Self, the sovereign Lord, is the embodiment of indivisible sweetness (rasa), the treasure house of bliss (ananda nilaya). Hence, those who seek and secure His grace gain eternity itself

10.Teachers who teach with the salary paid to them in their minds, and students who learn with the jobs they may procure as their focus are both pursuing wrong paths. In fact, the task of the teacher is to discharge his duty of instructing and inspiring the students so that they develop their latent talents and advance in the perfection of their skills. The task of the student is to unfold the Divine in him and equip himself for serving society with his skill and knowledge.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai baba