BLISS BLOSSOM - DETACH WORLDLY ATTACHMENTS

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Baba said, "The function of the mind is to think, it cannot remain

without thinking for a minute. If you give it a sense-object, it will

think about it. If you give it Guru, it will think about Guru" in Sri

Sai Satcharitra Chapter X.

 

Always examine your heart lest it may be possessed by enemies like

lust, anger, malice, jealousy, hatred, violence, pride and arrogance;

the moment you notice any of these evils there, drive it away by use

of violence. But watch carefully with a keen and vigilant eye;

stealing into the heart these evils hide themselves, and reveal their

hideous forms only when a favourable opportunity presents itself.

 

Never judge anyone to be a sinner only from his external conduct. It

may be that he is being falsely accused of guilt, and that the

circumstances are such that he cannot prove his innocence. Or, it is

possible that he committed the guilt under pressure of circumstances

against his inclination, while he is purer in heart than yourself.

 

Suppose a house belongs to me, my sense of possession permeates every

particle of brick and mortar used in its construction; but eventually

I sell it away, the draft or cheque representing its value comes to

my possession, and after this the house catches fire, I congratulate

myself on my having got the money before the accident! As soon as my

sense of possession is lifted from the house, I am no longer troubled

by its destruction. Now that my sense of possession centres round the

draft or cheque, the sense, which once extended over a spacious

building, is now confined to a scrap of paper. I do not allow anyone

even to look at this piece of paper! I cash the draft or cheque and

receive its equivalent in money. Since I am in possession of hard

cash, I do not feel the least worried if the piece of paper gets torn

or burnt. Now all the attachment is transferred to the jingling gold

and silver, and I begin to devote all my attention and care to these

coins. Later on, I deposit the money with some banker. If the money

is stolen, I do not care. Only the amount should stand to my credit

in the books of the firm and the firm should continue to exist. My

only concern now is to see that the firm does not get insolvent. In

this manner the anxiety of an individual centres round the object of

attachment. And in this attachment lies the root of sorrow. In

reality, nothing in this world belongs to me. Had anything belonging

to me it would have accompanied me even to the otherworld. Even this

body does not accompany me there. We burden ourselves with sorrows

through a false sense of possession. Deliver all your possessions to

Him to whom they really belong. Withdrawing your attachment from all

other objects of the world, make the Lord the sole object of your

attachment. Then all your sorrow will disappear lock, stock and

barrel!

 

Courtesy: Sri Hanumanprasad Poddar in Wavelets of Bliss.

(Shri Vasuki Mahal Shirdi Sai Baba Trust, Coimbatore=641025, India)