Thought for the Day

Realize that mere cleverness has no place in spiritual affairs. Artifice and artificiality are truly impediments to spiritual progress. It is when cleverness increases and chokes sincerity and straightforwardness in spiritual matters, and in the relationship between God and Man, that the Avatar comes. You may have a costly transistor or watch with you, but if you do not know how to use it efficiently they are mere lumber. Now think what a wonderful machine you yourself are! Should you not know how to operate it and get the best results out of it? Ancient Indian seers discovered the art of operating this human machine, but their descendants have allowed that art to decline. If you have the thirst to know it, you can light the lamp of your life from that of the sages and experience joy and bliss.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

A tree is justified by fragrant flowers bringing forth sweet fruits. If on the other hand, its leaves dry, flowers fade and the fruits refuse to grow, the farmer will examine the roots and discover that they are eaten up by pests. So too, if virtues do not blossom and yield sweet fruits in you, then the roots of Divinity might have been destroyed or harmed. Envy, greed, malice, etc. are the pests that rapidly destroy the roots. All of you are near and dear to the Lord; only you must have the staunch determination to realize Him. Welcome hardships, trials and sufferings. Dwell on the Name of the Lord which is dear to you, steadily and with faith. Discard all inferior sources of joy. Know that the Lord is the spring of joy in every heart. When you repeat the Name of the Lord with a pure heart, He will fill you with bliss and joy.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Krishna has said in the Geetha that ‘Om’ has to be remembered at the moment of death. But when the mind is flitting from one fancy to another, how can the production of a sound ‘Om, Om..’ by the vocal organs be of any benefit? The mere sound will not help you attain liberation. The senses have to be curbed, thoughts have to be one-pointed and the divine glory has to be apprehended. If you postpone sadhana (spiritual practices) till the last moment, you will be like the student who turns over the pages of his textbook for the first time, just before entering the examination hall! If the student has neglected to learn from the teacher, lecture-notes and books, how can anything enter his head on that morning? It will only add to the student’s despair. That is why the Lord advised that one must start early in this search for truth.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

For food to taste good, you need to add salt to it. But only when you place a morsel of the food on your tongue you get to know if it has enough salt in it or not. So too only when you have moved about in the world and participated in its activities abiding by a moral code, you discover that, without the salt of jnana (wisdom), it does not taste good; if you take it with a pinch of this salt - the knowledge that you are not the body but the Indweller; that you are but the witness of the ever-changing panorama of Nature - then you will be happy and peaceful.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.There is no scar on the sky, though clouds, stars, the sun and the moon all appear to streak across it. So too let a thousand ideas streak across the mind, ensure that your mind remains unaffected and serene. Get firm in mind; then, your reason also will not deviate. Without that equanimity or shanthi, you can get no soukhyam (happiness). Saint Kabir had no food for three days – but he thanked God for giving him the coveted chance of observing a ritual fast. The great devotee of Rama, Saint Ramadas was confined in prison – and he thanked God that he got a place where he could meditate on Him without disturbances. Such is the attitude of the saintly, those who are the beloved of the Lord. 

Bagavan Sri Sri  Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

You must use your intelligence to discover what is best under the circumstances and in the situation, considering the status and the profession which you have won. The barber should not treat all things equal and use his razor to peel vegetables, cut pencils and paper, bamboos and beards alike. Each instrument has its own special use and purpose; every individual has some skills and responsibilities. The king should be treated as a king and the farmer as a farmer. But make sure your activities leave no scar on your faith in Unity. Though in principle all is Brahmam, in dealing with them in day-to-day activity, you cannot follow the non-dual approach. There should be Bhaava-adhwaitha, not Karma-adhwaitha, that is to say, the underlying faith should be in the Unity of all, though the outer activity may be different for varied entities.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Learn to acquire bliss and peace in your life by studying the scriptures, or from sages who have won them. Stick to the path assiduously, even if you received sharp criticism or callous condemnation. Never let cynical laughter or comments bother you; they can never harm a spiritual aspirant. Can a storm shake the Himalayan range? Let not your faith in the goal or the path, quake before trouble or trial, toil or travail, distress or despair. These are but passing clouds, casting temporary shadows, hiding for a little while, the glory of the sun or the moon. Do not get distracted by doubt or despondency. Build the mansion of your life on four firm pillars – virtue, wealth, desire and liberation (Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksha) as laid down by the ancient sages, each pillar bound strong and safe with every other. Never allow these pillars to slant or tumble as some individuals, communities or nations are doing now.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

It is want of faith that causes one to lose temper and fly into fits of anger; it is lack of faith in oneself and in others. If you really see yourself as the undefeatable Self (Atma) and others as reflections of yourself, as scriptures declare them to be, there can be no provocation to get angry. What you must resolve today, is to manifest your inherent Divinity more and more. Whatever else you may or may not do, do at least this: know the Lord that resides in you. Recognise Him, let Him manifest Himself in and through you. Fundamentally the fault lies in not understanding that this body and all things connected with it are impermanent.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

In the Geetha, Krishna said to Arjuna, "You are able to use the weapons of offence and defence in the battle and win because you were taught the art of handling them over many years from childhood, is it not? Could you have used them with confidence, without preparation, on the spur of the moment? Similarly, whatever else one may not meet during life, one is certain to meet with death. So all must be trained to have at that time, the attitude and thought that are most beneficial to them. Will it not be wise, therefore, to strive for the end, in your own best interest? Hence, take earnest steps to secure the thought of God, from early on. Whoever in the last moment of life, thinks of Me, attains Me.” Through the discipline of constant practice, avoid other thoughts and concentrate on the Lord alone. 

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Do not waver in your determination to live in joy and peace

The second is the very basic unit of Time which we measure, in what we designate as a year. Sixty seconds, make a minute, sixty minutes make an hour, twenty four hours constitute a day and thirty days make a month; twelve months pass and we say a year has passed! When twelve months are over, we come back again to the first in the list of months, and call it the New Year Day. We go on a spree to celebrate the occasion. Really speaking, nothing new has happened on the “New Year Day” - it is not the year, but every second that follows the present that is new. Hence, do not wait for the celebration of something new in Time, until minutes, hours, days, months and years add up! Celebrate the immediately succeeding second, and every one after it, through honest effort and attain everlasting joy. Do not waver in your determination to live in joy and peace.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.Casting off the body is akin to shifting from one house occupied for some years to another. The act of shifting a home is physical, it does not affect you. So too births and deaths do not affect the eternal Paramatma (supreme soul) present within you. To escape this cycle of being born again and again, ‘Pranava’ (chanting of Aum) is a potent instrument. All the long years of life should be utilised for this final moment of consummation. Your mind should be fixed on Pranava when the body is being cast off. You belch the flavour of the food you have partaken; your last thought indicates the food you have fed on. Your Sadgathi (progress) is in accordance with your Sadhana (practice). Hence be aware of the need to fix your mind on holy thoughts when the body is got rid of. And this is possible when you im merse yourself in holy thought every moment, and practice it incessantly.

2.It is good to attend discourses on the Geetha by learned scholars. However this is of no use if you lean on a pillar in the lecture hall and doze off. That is to say, it is not the sound, but the meaning that matters. It is not the ear, but the heart that must drink the nectar of Geetha and imbibe its essence. Seek and enjoy noble company (Sathsangam); but along with that, there also needs to be self-examination. Examine yourself to see how much you have succeeded in escaping from the senses, and getting close to God. The mind is like a wild elephant which can be tamed by the repetition of the Lord’s name. Do not feed it with conceit, envy, hatred and greed. Let the name of the Lord echo ever in the ear.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba 

Thought for the Day

Being blessed with the human form, you must strive to grow beyond the physical, mental and emotional bounds. With the help of the discriminating intellect, you must bring it to perfection, just like what a sculptor does to a crude stone. Be aware of your kinship with God; of the Divinity latent in you; of the immense potentiality within you. This can be attained by the exercise of discrimination and dispassion (Viveka and Vairaagya). No living form other than the human being is capable of this exercise. When you earnestly aspire, the Lord Himself will guide you from within through illumination, or through someone He will send. Do not despair in this journey; march bravely. Fill every moment with thoughts of God, in some form or other.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

The desires that cling to the mind are the blemishes that tarnish one’s inner consciousness. Control the senses; do not yield to their insistent demands for satisfaction. When a corpse is placed on a pyre, and the fire is lit, both the corpse and the pyre are reduced to ashes. So too when the senses are negated, the mind too disappears. When the mind disappears, delusion dies and liberation is achieved. Faith in God is the best reinforcement for spiritual victory. When you revel in the contemplation of the splendour of the Lord, nothing material can attract you; all else will seem inferior and the company of the Godly and the humble alone will be relished. The Spirit can only be awakened and realized through individual discipline, and the Grace of God. These two can be won through love, purity and service to others.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Dat

In spiritual matters, faith is the very essence. Have faith in the wisdom of the ancients - do not pitch your tiny and little brain against the institutions of saints and their discoveries. For example, people question the ritual of offering food in the fire, on the death anniversary of one’s parents. They scorn and mock, "How can the food placed here reach wherever they are?", "Why are the dead given food, when the living starve?" they argue. You post a letter in the box, it goes straight to the addressee, is it not? If the address is written correctly and clearly, and if the necessary postage is paid in valid stamps, the letter is carried in bus, air, train or by people right upto the doorstep of the person and delivered. The ritual fire is the authorized post box, fire is the postal authority, manthras are the stamps. There is a science of the spirit, as there is a science of matter; it has its own modus operandi; its own experts and authoritative theses. Only by sadhana can the secrets of either matter or mind be known, grasped and used for one's benefit.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

To get joy and peace, you must develop a pure mind, unsullied by egoism and its children - lust, greed, envy, anger, hatred and the rest. This will be easy when you seek satsanga (good company) and perform good deeds, entertain noble thoughts and read inspiring books. More important than all of these is to put into practise, at least one good thought. If you don’t practise, the blemishes in the mirror of your heart will not be wiped off and the Lord cannot be reflected therein. Constant practise with full faith will transmute nara (human) to Narayana (Divinity), for you are in essence Divine.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the day

I ask you to fix your mind on any Name that brings up into your consciousness the glory and grace of the Lord. Also train your hands to do acts that serve the Lord Who is shining in every being. All men and women are Him. He shaves as the barber, makes clay as the potter, and washes, starches and irons clothes as the washerman. Know that He prompts, He inspires, He devises and He fulfils. Play your role as a puppet does; the unseen Director will unfold the drama that He has already willed. You take a sheet of paper on which My Form, as I am now, is printed; you fall to the ground before it as an act of reverence. Why cannot you then, revere all human beings, believing that I am in each of them, in an even clearer form?

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Work hard to clear your mind from of all its likes and dislikes

1.The epic Ramayana was sparked off by two little incidents involving two minor characters – the resentment of Kaikeyi’s maid Manthara and the lust of Ravana’s sister, Surpanakha. Be aware that a tiny spark of these two inimical qualities desire and anger (kama and krodha), is sufficient to destroy peace and joy in your life. Weed them out before they destroy you. Work hard to clear your mind from of all its likes and dislikes. If you succeed in restraining their flow towards the objective world, your senses will be rendered ineffective. Once you accomplish the extinction of the mind, these evil qualities cannot harm you and you will remain in joy and peace. Sensory activity is the warp as well as the woof of the mind. When that ceases, the mind vanishes – it starves and dies.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.The Sanathana Dharma (ancient Indian culture) calls upon you to revere the Acharya (Guru or preceptor), for the Guru is seeking to save you from disaster, from the floods of birth and death into which you are slipping, out of ignorance. Noble and venerable sages have struggled with and elevated themselves into the purer regions of thought, to discover their own inner reality. They felt the thrill and discovery and sang the freedom they gained. These songs and teachings serve as signposts and all who derive benefit therefrom must acknowledge the debt. The best way to do that is by studying, reflecting upon what is studied, practising the truths taught by them and proving them right, by your own experience. This is the best way to repay the Rishi Rna (debt to the sages).

2.Human beings, according to ancient Indian teachings, are not simply a coordinated collection of limbs, senses and sensations; they are all these put together, governed by the intelligence, that is sharpened by the modes and memories earned through many births. Intelligence and skills, by themselves are instruments with a limited range of efficiency; there are many goals which they cannot achieve. Those goals can most certainly be attained by the Grace of the Divine Power. Complete surrender of the ego to the Divine Will brings Grace upon you and fills you with bliss. In the epic Ramayana, Vibheeshana was capable of that surrender and so he was accepted very quickly and attained the joy from the Divine. On the other hand, Sugreeva took quite a while to reach that stage, as he doubted the prowess of Lord Rama and only when his doubts were cleared, he truly surrendered to the Lord.

3.Dive deep into your own Divinity. The crocodile is happy, unharmed and undefeatable, when it is in the depths of a lake or river. Once it sprawls on land, it becomes a plaything and an easy target. Remember this – the depths: they are your refuge, the source of your strength. Stay put there. Do not let your thoughts stray onto the shallows or the sands. Repetition of the Gayathri Manthra develops the dhee sakthi (Power of discrimination) and so its results will be giving up of evil company and the seeking of the company of noble souls. If satsang (good company) is not available, you can keep company with your own higher impulses and noble thoughts. When you establish yourself in the Divine Light, no worry, grief or pride can harm you.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba  

Thought for the Day

1.Forsaking the various attractions and distractions of this beautiful universe, you go to a spiritual place, drawn by the call of the spirit. This attitude is to be commended because the Light of the Spirit is truly the Beacon for those struggling in the darkness of worldly affairs. Darkness creates confusion and makes you take one thing for another. In the dark, even the stump of a tree appears to be a thief, lying in wait to rob you. Knowledge of the Self is the light which will disperse the darkness as well as doubts and diversities that it creates. Without this knowledge, people wander in the wilderness. They behave as if they have lost all memory of themselves and their origin and destination, evoking pity amongst the wise. Awareness of one’s identity as the Atma, is the sign of wisdom, the lighting of the lamp which scatters darkness.

2.Many now are not spending even five minutes of their time on the contemplation on God. Of the 24 hours which comprise a day, use six for earning and spending, six for the contemplation on God, six for sleep and six for service to others. Cultivate quietness, simplicity and humility instead of clamor, complexity and conceit. To develop the taste for liberation, repeat the Name of the Lord on the tongue and saturate your mind with the sweetness of His splendor. This is the best exercise that can be practiced at all times, by all, irrespective of creed, caste, gender, age, economic or social status. This practice will keep you in constant touch with the Infinite and so it will transmit to you, some part of the wisdom and power of that Infinite.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba 

The primary aim for you should be to become Masters of yourselves.

1.Let the petty wishes for which you now approach God be realized or not; let the plans for promotion and progress which you place before God, be fulfilled or not - these are not important in this journey of life. The primary aim for you should be to become Masters of yourselves. You must progress to hold intimate and constant communion with the Divine who is within you, as well as in the Universe you live in. Welcome disappointments and tests, for they toughen you and test your fortitude. For all who seek to cleanse the mind and climb upwards to the realm of spiritual bliss where 'this' and 'that' are discovered as one, the uninterrupted remembrance of the Divine Name is the most effective spiritual exercise.



Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

While avoiding pain from others, be vigilant not to cause pain to others too

1.Lord Rama strove to uphold truth as the main plank of dharma. Whatever the trial, however hard the travail, He did not give up Truth. Mother Sita too kept up the Dharma of a chaste woman at all times. But now women and men are tempted to yield to the convenience of the moment. They do not attach importance to the deeper springs of righteousness. Can the results justify the means? Fair ends through foul means can never be right. The one who installs Rama (God) in the heart should never shelter a beast therein. Rama, during his Avatar was happy when others were happy. He grieved when others were in grief. That is the trait that Lord Rama wanted everyone to learn. If you practise this, you will most certainly attract the grace of the Lord. So while avoiding pain from others, be vigilant not to cause pain to others too.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

Do not merely boast of your knowledge of the scriptures and that you have read it a hundred times over and learnt by heart the commentaries so far written upon them. Reflect upon this fact - of all the millions that lived, why is it that Arjuna alone had the Vishwarupa Darshana (Vision of the Cosmic form)? It is because he had reached the highest stage of surrender. At the appropriate time, Krishna started the lessons on Bhagavad Gita and progressively, Arjuna’s surrender, yearning and unexcelled concentration grew. And then Arjuna was blessed with the universal manifestation of the Lord. Unless one attains that same degree of surrender and yearning, how can that result be expected? The cycle of birth and death cannot be got rid of by scholarship. Hence start with this first lesson. Cleanse your mind and journey to that realm where you see God in everyone, everywhere, at all times, through uninterrupted remembrance of your chosen Lord. This is the most effective spiritual practice.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Darkness and Light cannot exist at the same time and in the same place

1.Take time to introspect. The grief you cause to others will suffocate you after getting hardened to hatred. It will recoil on your own head with tenfold force. So avoid causing pain to others and be vigilant to not allow pain to yourself as well. Then you will attract the grace of God. You cannot be successful in your pursuit for Divinity if you contrive by tricks to cause harm to others, or revel in the misery of others, or concentrate only on your own happiness and progress, unmindful of the injury you cause to others. Dhanam (riches) and Daivam (Divinity) cannot be joint ideals. Darkness and Light cannot exist at the same time and in the same place.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Thought for the Day

1.As far as it lies in your power, do good to others. Do not sow fear or inflict pain on others or promote anxiety or grief. If you take pleasure in the pain of others, you only scotch the divinity in you and bring to light the demonic natures in man. The Lord resides in all – "Ishwara sarva bhoothaanam” - He is in you, as much as in the other, whom you are harming. Know this and give up all efforts to ruin others. You cannot help another – you can only help yourself by that act. You do not harm another; you only harm yourself by any wicked action. The outer attachments and nature may be different, but the inner reality in you is the same as in the 'other'.

2.In the epic Ramayana, Ravana lent his ear to the pleasant eulogies from his ministers than the beneficial advice from his brother, Vibeeshana. By exiling his brother and honouring his courtiers, he sealed his own fate. Now many people are pursuing the pleasant over the beneficial and that is the reason for all distress and discontent. Indian Culture has always emphasised the hard and beneficial way; it has always advised the control of one’s senses. However people today follow cultures that cater to the senses and go after momentary and external frills and pleasures. Realize that the car is driven by steering the wheel inside, when this is turned, the outer wheels automatically move. Similarly when you turn the inner wheel, you can progress.

Bagavan Sri Sri Sri Sathya Sai Baba