Tribute to Bhagwan Shri Sathya Sai Baba in the context of His 80th Birthday

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been organizing various activities. Actually who is He? Bhagwan Shri Sathya

Sai Baba has become known throughout the world. He was born on 23 November 1926

in a small village called Puttaparthi. In May 1940 at the age of 14 Sathya

Narayana Raju as He was called disclosed that He was the incarnation of Shirdi

Sai Baba and he was leaving His parents as His devotees were waiting for Him.

When he was asked how he could prove that He was Sai Baba, He asked for some

flowers and He threw them up in the air. When they fell on the ground they

formed the letters SAI RAM. He had confirmed what Shirdi Sai Baba had said –

that HE would come back in eight years after His death. His mission had begun.

Millions of people have

become His devotees. To those who believe in Him, Sai Baba is the descent of the

divine principle in human form, a human form with normal physical limitations

(one example is that lately He had His hip fractured and he had to undergo a

surgical operation) but manifesting within Himself the totality of Divine

Powers. Devotees of Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba are very often faced with the

question: what are the teachings of Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba? Sathya Sai Baba,

as He says Himself, has not come to create a new religion, promote any one

religion to the detriment of other religions or exclude anyone religion. On the

contrary He has come to consolidate the foundation of all religions. He says

that if one is a Hindu one should become a better

Hindu, if one is a Christian one should become a better Christian and so on.

Baba’s teachings are so many and so varied (65 years of speeches and

exhortations) that it is difficult or well-nigh impossible to speak about them

in a nutshell. Still if we are to give the very essence of His Teachings the

following could be a summary though inadequate. First He has laid down nine

codes of conduct for the spiritual development of His devotees. He would like

His devotees to observe also 10 Principles to ensure a life full of prosperity

in society. The codes of conduct: (1) Daily meditation and prayer 2)

Devotional singing/prayer with family members once a week (3) Participation in

Sathya Sai Spiritual Education Programmes organised by the centres for children

of Sai devotees

(4) Participation in community work and other programmes of the organisation

(5) Attendance at least once a month at group devotional singing organised by

the centre (6) Regular study of Sai literature (7) speak softly and lovingly

to everyone (8) not to talk ill of others in their absence (9) To put into

practice “ceiling on desires” and to utilize savings thus generated for the

service of mankind. The ten principles: Treat as sacred the land in

which you are born. Have patriotism to your nation but do not criticise other

nations Respect all religions equally Recognise the brotherhood of man

Keep your environment clean

Practise charity Never give a bribe or take a bribe. Do not yield to

corruption Curb envy and jealousy

EN-US">Do as much as possible by yourself though wealthy and having servants. Do

service to society in person. Have and cultivate love for God and fear sin.

Abhor sin. Never go against the law of the land. Besides as

Sathya Sai Baba Himself says He has come to revive the spiritual fervour of

humanity through five basic pillars of Truth, Righteousness, Love, Peace and

Non Violence. The teachings of Sathya Sai Baba, as we see, are for all people

of all lands and of all times. He is on a universal mission. He has declared «I

carry no labels assigning a country of origin or residence for myself. The

entire mankind is My family. There is no one in the world who does not belong

to me. All are mine. They may not call out my name but they are mine. I have

come for all: * there is only one caste the caste of Humanity * there is

only one religion, the religion of Love * there is only one language, the

language of the heart * There is only one God and He is omnipresent.

Sathya Sai Baba works incessantly for the uplift of humanity. He has

created many high schools and colleges, the most prominent being the Sathya Sai

Institute of Higher learning at Prasanthi Nilayam. He is also concerned for the

sick and Sai Hospitals have been built at Prashanti Nilaylam and Whitefield in

Bangalore. He has started a programme of providing water to 700 villages in

India. His task of spiritualising humanity is undertaken through Sathya Sai

centres all over the world. There is one World Sathya Sai Organisation. (It’s

good to mention here that in Mauritius too there is a national council which is

working in close collaboration with and implementing all the plans and policies

promulgated by the World council). Sathya Sai Baba’s mission is to lead

mankind to an era of peace and plenty through transformation and love. Some of

His aphorisms are: * Love all, serve all. * Help ever, hurt never. *

Start the day with love, fill the day with love, end the day with love, that’s

the way to God. * Start early, drive slowly and reach safely. Sathya Sai

Baba has said He would not fail. After eventually leaving His present body He

would return through the process of human birth and continue His work under the

name of Prema

Sai. May we wish Baghwan Shri Sathya Sai Baba a «Happy Birthday». V. Bissoon

Putting Courtesy FirstSpeak gently; it is better farTo rule by love than fear.

-- Lewis J. BatesA "Speak Softly and Lovingly" week is being launched from

Sunday 20 November 2005 by the Satya Sai Service Organisation. The "Week" is

being launched with the aim of sensitising our fellow brothers and sisters

to the need for speaking softly and lovingly on all occasions. We are living in

a world where violence is rampant in all spheres of life. Almost every dispute

has as its root verbal violence. Some people lose their temper too easily. They

may be justified to show their displeasure or disagreement over something but

this should be no reason for losing one's temper, for getting excited and for

raising the voice and speaking words that shock, words that offend and hurt. We

fail to realize that the 3-inch tongue can be more powerful than a bullet for

indeed it can kill a 6-foot tall muscular giant. Unbecoming words turn friends

into enemies; cause members of the same family to stop talking to one another;

lead members of the same organisation to part company and has resulted in

innumerable broken homes and suicides. Sai Baba says: "You cannot always oblige

but you can always speak obligingly." Soft speech adds

sweetness to life. It adds beauty to our own life while bringing happiness

around. Language is God's greatest gift to man hence words used must be full of

love; they should perfume the environment instead of polluting it. "It's easier

to recover from a slip of the foot than a slip of the tongue.'' God has, in His

wisdom, given man one mouth but two ears. So, let's talk less and listen more

for speech is silver, silence golden. Jesus says we can have no peace without

constant war against such evils as greed, anger, jealousy, envy and pride that

are obstacles on the path of friendship. So, let's control our mind. Thoughts,

words and actions all emanate from the mind and follow one another. What we say

and do spring from a thought wave. If the mind does not generate bad thoughts,

the tongue won't speak harsh words. The widely

acknowledged preacher of positive values, Robert H. Shuller advises us to use

creative words that generate energy, that inspire, that encourage, that create

confidence, that redeem, instead of negative words that drain energy and

demotivate. If sticks and stones can break bones, words can destroy a person.

God has gifted us with language so that we can build a beautiful, civilized,

cultured and healthy society. Schuller further adds, "When language is used to

insult, ridicule, embarrass, demean, belittle, humiliate or dishonour another

member of the family, we put real stress on our precious relationships. In the

end, God's name as head of the family and the name of every other member of the

human family are disgraced." One single word (wonderful) can turn a person on

while another one (stupid) can turn him off. However, practice is better than

precept. Stick a "Speak Softly and Lovingly" poster in your room,

tell the members of your family and colleagues at the place of work or friends

at school about your decision; when you go to bed at night and wake up in the

morning, tell yourself you are going to keep the smile on your face and are

going to speak softly and lovingly to everyone. Excuse yourself if ever there

is a lapse.You cannot change others but you can definitely change yourself if

you have the will. So, stick to your promise, be courteous with words. Make

speaking softly and lovingly a way of life, perfume your environment with nice,

positive words. Make people appreciate your company. In so doing you will help

make the world a better place to live in. Remember: "Every time you give a bit

of yourself, you plant a seed of future happiness."Leckram Gunnasaya

FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'"> 2005 Mauritius Times. Links to

articles from newspapers, journals, magazines related to Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai

Baba:http://www.saibabalinks.org/saibabainthemedia.htm