Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

MAN yearns to spend his days in the Divine Presence, in service to God, in the contemplation of Divine Glory for that is the atmosphere which is the breath of his life. Without it, he is but an animal, one among so many. From birth, his activities have to be directed to moral purification and spiritual attainment. These alone lead one to lasting happiness. The most direct method of spiritual success is Nishkama karma (desireless action), action without any attention or attachment to the fruit therefrom, action as duty, action as dedication, action as worship. But, action and the fruit thereof are not two separate entities, the fruit is the action itself, in its final stage, the climax, the conclusion. The flower is the fruit; the fruit is the flower; one is the beginning, the other is the legitimate end. The flower becomes the fruit. The action becomes the consequence. One's duty is to act; act well, act in fear of God; act within the bounds of morality; act in love; continue acting; the consequences will naturally follow as the fruit follows the flower One need not worry or exult. Act enthusiastically, with faith - success is yours. Arjuna acted so.

Arjuna never lost heart, once the Geetha was taught to him. He revived the drooping spirits of others. He engaged in battle, as dedicated in a yajna (sacrificial rite). But, Karna his great rival, had as charioteer a person called Shalya. While the charioteer of Arjuna filled him with the highest wisdom and the deepest peace, Shalya filled Karna with despondency and doubt. Shalya means "dart, arrow." His charioteer Shalya became a thorn on his side, a weapon of death for Karna. Have the Lord as your charioteer; you can win through. Never select a Shalya as your guide and preceptor.

Discriminate; discover which is good, which is beneficial, which is harmful, then stick to the good, whatever the obstacle. Look at Dasaratha. He is the symbol for the individual, having the ten chariots (senses - five for action, five for knowledge). He listened to the charming voice of delusion, and engineered his own destruction. Kaikeyi, his youngest queen, enticed him into the path of grief. Pravrtthi (worldly activity) must result from nivrtthi (spiritual detachment); activity must result from the awareness of detachment. That is the secret of a happy life! The controversy about the adequacy of one or other of the four Yogas - Bhakthi, Jnana, Karmaand Raja - is needless waste of breath, for, all four are needed, and all four contribute to the ultimate victory. Karma yoga is the earthen lamp; Bhakthi yoga is the oil in it; Raja yoga is the wick; Jnana yoga is the light! Good karma will lead to the attitude of devotion and dedication, seeing God in all beings, witnessing the hand of God in all happenings, and this leads to worship; as a result of worship, breathing of the vital airs, the process of concentration - all set themselves right; and, as the climax of all this sadhana (spiritual practice), the Reality is revealed in its full splendour.

Egotism is the mightiest enemy that has to be overpowered and destroyed. When Rama was proceeding from one hermitage to another in the forest, the rishis (sages) who were expecting Him to visit them made elaborate preparations to receive Him; they prepared lists of grievances to be presented to Him, and hoped to win His Grace by competitive pomp and adulation, by exhibition of superior asceticism! The old woman, Shabari, who was the attendant of the sage Mathanga, was told by her dying master that Rama will be passing that way and so, she longed in sincere anguish that she must be spared until she could wash the Lotus Feet of Rama with her tears. The sages sneered at her audacity and laughed at her foolish hope. Rama visited the hermitage of the egotistic ascetics on his way; they read out the verses of welcome they had composed; they presented a petition in which they had listed the atrocities committed by the Rakshasas (demons); they complained that the river water which was their only source of supply was contaminated and had become undrinkable. Rama told them in His reply that the water will be rendered pure and potable as soon as they stop reviling Sabari and start appreciating her simple, sincere yearning for God. Shabari had strong and steady faith; that was enough to bring Rama to her lowly hut. Austerity, scholarship, power, authority, experience, riches - these are handicaps that obstruct the acquisition of that simple, sincere Faith that God will accept.

Resist the temptation to satisfy the senses, to acquire what the world can give, to accumulate material gains. Set limits to your wants. There was a pupil once, in the kingdom of Raghu, who asked his preceptor at the conclusion of his studies what Dakshina (thanksgiving offering) he will accept from him. Dakshina means offerings made in gratitude for service rendered. The Guru told him that he needed no other dakshina than his gratitude; it was enough if he lived according to his teachings and brought honour to his preceptor thereby. But the pupil insisted that he must indicate his need and tell him some sum of money or gifts that he would accept. So, just to ward him off and get rid of him, the Guru named an impossible sum of money; "You learnt sixteen Vidhyas (branches of knowledge) from me; well, bring me sixteen lakhs of gold nishkas (coins)." At this, the pupil went off, to collect the sum. The disciple went to Emperor Raghu, and got from him the promise that he will fulfil his every desire; then he placed his petition for sixteen lakhs of gold nishkas before him. Raghu was rendered desperate by the vast sum needed; though Emperor, he was too deep in austerity to have the sum on hand. Still, in order to keep his plighted word, he invaded the realm of Kubera (the God of wealth), and brought back as loot enormous stocks of gold. "Take all this and give your preceptor what he has asked for; keep the balance for yourself" the king said. The pupil refused to take a coin more than what he had to offer as Dakshina to his Guru. "I have brought them for you; it is all yours, take them," insisted Raghu. But the young man resisted the temptation and stood his ground. That is real heroism. Asanthushtah dhwijo nashtah - "the discontented man is as bad as lost." Rely on the Lord and accept whatever is your lot. He is in you, with you. He knows best what to give and when. He is full of Prema (Love).

That is My uniqueness: Prema. Prema is the special gift I bring, the special medium through which My Grace operates. That is the basis of all My acts. God is said to reside in every being. Yes; He resides as Prema. Devoid of Prema, the world becomes a cauldron of misery. It is as water to the fish. Keep a fish in a golden bowl, set with gems; it will struggle in mortal agony to leap back into water.

Lakshmana as a child raised such a long and loud wailing, one night, that Sumithra feared that an evil spirit had possessed him. She hurried to Sage Vasishta and asked him to apply some vibhoothi (sacred ash) to the fore head of the child so that the spirit might leave. Vasishta knew why Lakshmana was weeping so pathetically. He said, "Take the child and put him next to Rama; he will stop wailing." Lakshmana could not bear even as a child a moment's separation from Rama. For each one, the place he needs most is the natural habitat. That is the reason why Lakshmana accompanied Rama, when Vishwamithra led him into his hermitage. Sadhana is only one-fourth of the process; vichara (enquiry) is the other three-fourth. Insulin injections are but a fourth for the diabetic; the other three-fourths are: dietary restrictions, physical exercises and other such disciplines. So too, in the sadhana of Namasmarana (continuous remembrance of Lord's name), which I prescribe, two other complementary processes are included: along with the recollection of the Name, the fixation of the mind on the Name, there must also be acquired bhava shuddhi (purity of feeling) and artha vicharana (dwelling on the meaning of the Name). That combination will ensure success.