Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

Any task can be accomplished in this world with proper effort. In order to achieve victory in any field of activity, one has to make necessary effort. Even a tiny ant can walk miles together if it makes effort.

On the other hand, an eagle cannot move even a step forward if it does not make effort. People cannot perform even a small task if they do not have the will or do not make effort in the proper direction.

With his strong will power, Dhruva attained the vision of God even at a tender age by performing intense penance, overcoming all difficulties and sufferings with courage and fortitude. It was because of his strong will power that he attained immortality and became shining pole star. In the same way, any person can achieve success when they perform actions with full confidence, no matter what their age, strength, or capacity is.

You must have heard the life stories of many great sages who had to ultimately face frustration and disappointment in spite of performing intense penance for a number of years because they lacked forbearance.

Viswamitra is an example in this regard. He lost all his power of penance due to his lack of forbearance and sense control. He had to restart his penance from the very beginning.

It is because of their strenuous effort and intense practice that boys are able to sing bhajans melodiously.

Though Sage Durvasa was one of great penance, he lacked self-restraint. He was full of anger and totally devoid of inner peace. That is why he could not attain any exalted status. Though he performed intense penance and attained great powers, he lost everything due to his lack of inner peace.

Along with inner peace, one should also have forbearance. Forbearance is like the very eye of man.

Love is the very life of all spiritual practices. There can be no life without love. You have to make efforts to understand this principle of love and make it a part of your life.

The boy who spoke earlier said, “Life is love, enjoy it. Life is a dream, realise it.” What is a dream? The entire life of a human is a dream.

Now it is daytime, and you are sitting here, listening to Swami’s discourse. You think it is not a dream because you are seeing it with your eyes, hearing it with your ears, reflecting on it with your mind, and experiencing it in your heart. You think that you are directly experiencing all this.

But how long will this experience last? At night, when you go to sleep after your dinner, this experience will vanish.

Similarly, you experience happiness and sorrow in your dream, but, how long does this experience of sorrow and happiness last? It lasts as long as the dream lasts. As soon as you are awake, all your dream experiences become untrue. Your night dreams do not exist during the day.

Similarly, you don’t remember your daytime experiences in your sleep. Hence, one is night dream and the other is day dream. Day dreams do not exist in the night dream, and night dreams do not exist in the day dream. But you are present in both. Therefore, you are omnipresent.

Since both your day-time and night-time experiences are just dreams, it is said, life is a dream. You have to realise it. That is true religion.

Religion means to realise. Understanding the truth is true religion.

In everything, love is most important.

Sages (rishis) do penance in dense forests where fierce beasts roam about freely. These rishis don’t have guns, swords, or any other weapons with them. Yet, they and fierce beasts live together in harmony in these forests.

The rishis are not afraid of the beasts, nor are the beasts afraid of the rishis. Why? The reason is that rishis are full of love, due to the effect of which even the wild beasts are transformed into loving animals.

Hence, whatever the type of company you have, it will have the same type of effect on you. That is why it is said, “Tell me your company, I shall tell you what you are.” When you associate with good company, you will imbibe good qualities.

In everything, love is most important. Love is the form of God. Live in love.

There lived in Italy a great violinist named Antony, who earned a great name as the maker of violins. But he used to take one year to make one violin. His friends used to tell him, “Antony! You are a householder. If you make only one violin in a year, how much income will you get out of it? How will you meet the needs of your family? How can you lead a happy life?” Antony told them, “My friends! God is the embodiment of perfection. Therefore, even a small task that one performs should be perfect. Only then can he please God. I don’t make these violins merely for the sake of my family, nor do I make them for my own pleasure. I make them to please God, who is the embodiment of perfection.” Whatever work a person undertakes, they should do it to please God. Do all actions to please God (Sarva karma Bhagavad preetyartham).

There is no use doing any spiritual practice without inner peace. Similarly, if you lack forbearance, whatever yogic practices you undertake will be mere physical exercises and will not confer peace of mind on you. If you lack inner peace and contentment, the chanting (japa) that you do will become merely artificial and will not be pleasing to God. Everything that you do, do it to please God.

Even a small task is enough if it pleases God. God sees quality, not quantity. Even a spoonful of cow’s milk is better than a barrel of donkey’s milk.

You think you are doing great spiritual exercises. You sit for meditation for one hour. But during this one hour of meditation, how long does your mind remain steady? When your mind is not steady even for a second, what is the use of wasting time in this manner?

Whatever work you do, consider it as God’s work. This is the most correct and easy path. Why do you subject yourself to so much hardship leaving this easy path?

Even your household work is God’s work. How can we say that? God is the indweller of your heart. It is only due to the presence of God within you that you are able to perform all actions. Your eyes can see and ears can hear only because of the power of God that is within you. In fact, all your sense organs are governed by divine power.

Therefore, any work that you perform with any of your sense organs is in reality performed by God and for God.

For whose satisfaction do you perform a particular task? You may say that you are performing it for your own satisfaction, but what does ‘you’ refer to? Are you the body? No. If you are the body, how can you say, “This is my body?” If you think you are the mind, how can you say, “This is my mind?” When you say, “my body, my mind,” whom does ‘my’ refer to?

You are not the body, you are not the mind. You are the master. Body, mind, and senses are mere instruments.

It is God in the form of Atmic consciousness who makes these instruments function. This consciousness is present in everyone. There is none in this world without consciousness. Hence, God is present in everyone in the form of consciousness.

The entire world is permeated by God (Isavasyam idam jagat). The entire world is the manifestation of God. God is the indweller of all beings (Easwara sarva bhutanam).

If you ask, “In whom does God reside?” the answer is, “He resides in all.” Then why is He not visible?

You may be aware that there are many types of rosaries, such as rosaries made of basil (tulasi) seeds, rudraksha (a tree whose berries are used to make rosaries), and crystal beads. The thread is the same in all these rosaries, but it can be seen only in crystal-bead rosary, and not in those made of basil seeds or rudraksha.

Similarly, God as the principle of Brahman (Brahma Sutra) is present in all but can be seen only in those hearts that are pure and transparent like the crystal beads. Therefore, make your heart pure in order to see God. God can be realised only by those who have a pure heart.

People perform many spiritual practices like chanting and meditation. They also perform yoga postures and physical exercises. But what is the use of doing all this when you are not able to get rid of your evil qualities, wicked thoughts, and mean mentality?

The Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and the Bhagavata are the main source of teaching for mankind. What do they teach? They teach that one should not harbour the wicked qualities of desire, anger, and greed (kama, krodha. and lobha).

Ravana’s evil quality of desire was the root cause for the story of the Ramayana. Similarly, Hiranyakasipu’s anger was responsible for the Bhagavata, and Duryodhana’s greed was responsible for the Mahabharata.

Due to his anger and hatred toward God, Hiranyakasipu became bereft of the power of discrimination and lost everything. Due to his greed, Duryodhana was not prepared to give to the Pandavas the land even equal to the point of a needle. What was their ultimate fate?

What did Ravana get in the end? Though he was endowed with all types of powers, Ravana lost his kingdom as well as his entire clan because he became the victim of desire.

Hiranyakasipu harboured anger against Hari, lost his power of discrimination, and without even a trace of kindness and compassion subjected his own son to untold suffering. What happened to him ultimately?

He was endowed with all powers and could control even the five elements. In spite of that, he earned a bad name and ruined himself because of his anger. What was the use of his acquiring so many powers? In the end, he achieved nothing.

Due to his greed, Duryodhana suffered a devastating defeat and lost all his brothers. He harboured hatred toward the Pandavas, who were the very embodiments of righteousness (dharma). He pretended he had faith in Krishna but in fact he had no faith. He even developed hatred toward Krishna because He supported the righteous Pandavas.

Ravana, Hiranyakasipu, and Duryodhana bore hatred toward God.

Those who harbour such evil qualities - the doors of liberation are always closed for them. Evil qualities are the greatest obstacle in the path of liberation (moksha). What is moksha? Is it attaining Kailasa or Vaikuntha or Swarga (heaven)?

Moha kshaya is moksha, i.e. giving up of attachment is liberation. When you gradually reduce your attachment, that itself leads you to liberation.

Once upon a time, Narada asked Lord Vishnu, “I always come for Your darshan, wherever You are. But sometimes there is an emergency, and I want to meet You for an urgent work. Where is Your head office, so that in such a situation I am able to come to You immediately and convey the message? Is it heaven (Vaikuntha, Kailasa, or Swarga)?” Vishnu replied, “Narada! Write down My address. I reside where My devotees sing My glories, Narada (Mad bhakta yatra gayanti tatra tishthami, Narada). Vaikuntha, Kailasa, and Swarga are only My branch offices. But wherever My dear devotee sings My glory, I install Myself there permanently. That is My head office. In all other places, I am like an idol meant for taking out in a procession (an utsava vigraha). They are My temporary dwelling places. But you find Me installed permanently wherever My devotees sing My glory.” God is the resident of every heart. Therefore, do not be deluded to think that you are mere mortals. All are the embodiments of God.

You think, you are mere mortals and observe differences on the basis of name and form due to your attachment to physical body, which is made up of five elements. Forget all differences of names and forms and realise the truth. Contemplate on the eternal principle of Divinity. Do not waste your life in the pursuit of mundane, physical, and worldly endeavours.

God is love personified. Everything is the manifestation of His love. One who has a form has attributes. But God has no form and hence no attributes.

Love is God, God is Love. Love has no form. Love is love, that is all. The ocean has a limit, the sky has a limit, but love has no limit.

There was a devotee by name Mallamma in Karnataka. In one of her compositions, she sang, “Oh Lord! Lotus is the ornament of a lake. Without a lotus in it, the lake has no beauty. Similarly, houses are the ornaments of a village. Moon is the ornament of the sky. Waves are the ornaments of the ocean. Likewise, love is the ornament of Your devotees. There is no greater ornament than Your love.” Just as the ocean without waves, the sky without the moon, and the lake without lotus have no beauty, likewise life bereft of love has no meaning.

Love is the greatest ornament of humanity. Love is God, Live in Love. Love all. Even if the other person lacks love, share your love with them.

As I told you earlier, love is like the needle of a mariner’s compass. Wherever you place it, the needle of a mariner’s compass always points toward the north only. Similarly, direct all that you think, all that you desire, and all that you do toward God. Just as you earn money by doing business or undertaking a job, earn the wealth of love in each and every activity that you perform in your daily life. Love represents fullness.

That is full, this is full.When the full is taken out of the full, What remains is again the full.

Love always maintains this quality of fullness. It neither increases nor decreases. It is from the fullness of love that Divinity manifests. Where there is total love, God will manifest then and there.

You do not know how easy it is to attain God. It may be a little difficult to crush the petal of a flower or press a ball of butter, but attaining God is much more easy than this.

However, you do not follow this easy path. The reason is your wrong notion. You think that God is very difficult to attain because He is somewhere far away, and one has to perform intense penance and conduct spiritual enquiry to attain Him. This wrong notion is the cause of your delusion.

God is not far away from you. Wherever you look, God is there. With hands, feet, eyes, head,

mouth, and ears pervading everything, He permeates the entire universe (Sarvatah panipadam tat sarvathokshi siromukham, sarvatah sruthimalloke sarvamavruthya tishthati). Where is the need to search for someone who is everywhere? There is no such need.

You see the world with your physical eyes. This world itself is the manifestation of God. He is a fool who sees yet does not recognise the reality (Pashyannapicha na pashyati moodho). All that you see is the form of God. All heads that you see belong to the cosmic form of God.

You see only the external names and forms and consider them as mere mortals. When you change your outlook, you will realise that all are divine. The defect lies in your vision, not in the creation.

Whatever the colour of your glasses, the world will appear to be of the same colour. If you see the world with hatred, you will find hatred everywhere. On the other hand, if you see the world with love, you will find love everywhere. Therefore, as are the feelings, so is the result (Yad bhavam tad bhavathi). What you see outside is the reflection of your own feelings.

All are the embodiments of God. Develop this feeling of oneness. Nothing in this world has more power than love. Love is more powerful than even an atom bomb, a hydrogen bomb or any other bomb. If you have only love, you can achieve everything.

So many of you have gathered here. What is the reason? It is love. It is because of Swami’s love for you and your love for Swami that so many of you have come here. Did anyone send you an invitation? No. Love is the greatest binding force.

Therefore, develop love, talk to each other with love, perform all actions with love, and always contemplate on the principle of love. There is no easier path than this.

Many people close their eyes, tell the beads of their rosary, and think that they are doing japa. They hold the rosary in their hand, but their mind wanders to the house of a washerman or a barber. They sit for meditation but their mind goes to the kitchen when they get the smell of an overfried curry.

Can you call this repetition of the name or meditation (japa or dhyana)? What is the meaning of japa? Real japa is when you think that God is in you and you are God. Then, what is meditation? Thinking I am Brahman, I am Brahman (Aham Brahmasmi, Aham Brahmasmi) is real meditation.

No Veda teaches any easier path than this. All the Vedas declare, I am Brahman, That Thou Art (Thattwamasi), Brahman is Supreme Consciousness (Prajnanam Brahma), and This Self is Brahman (Ayam Atma Brahma).

The consciousness present in you is Brahman. Therefore, everything is in you. The great aphorism Ayam Atma Brahma signifies that I am Atma and Brahman. These words convey the truth.

But scholars create confusion in you and destroy your faith by misinterpreting these words. Do not give room to this confusion. Do not spoil your mind by the jugglery of words. Follow the path of love. The easiest, sweetest, most sublime, and blissful path is love, love, and love alone.