BARTERING AND BARGAINING BANISHED

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BARTERING & BARGAINING BANISHED HERE

Let us carefully dive into the minds and hearts of numerous devotees, who

proclaim their devotion to Sai with complacency and pride. In most cases, the

devotees will be found to be a bargain, - Sai to give so much temporal benefit

and the devotee to offer his namaskarams, archanas, naivedyams etc., in return.

 

Most people frankly declare that (only) in case of the benefit being reaped, the

devotion will be confirmed and the proposed naivedyams etc., offered. This may

not be considered bhakti at all and in any case, not a bhakti of very estimable

sort. But, in the same, this is how devotion starts, is made to start or can

start in the vast majority of cases. No objection should be raised to

rudimentary bhakti being so crude. But it would be pitiable indeed if bhakti

should continue to be so crude, after the early days and stages are passed.

The child soon throws away the teething ring, trundle hoop and spring toys, one

after another. So should a bhakti soon recognise the absurdity of resorting to

God (or Godmen, who are the manifestations of God that men can easily reach to)

merely to pull out one’s earthly chestnuts from the fire.

God is not to be bargained with and God knows what is really good for a devotee

better than the devotee. Regard for God beginning with gratitude for one or

more extraordinary acts of help must turn into Love, the Love of a child to its

mother touched into sublimity by dim perception of Infinite Power, Wisdom, etc.,

in the unseen Universal Mother. Failure to advance will be not mere stagnation

but descent into lower and lower levels.

Let us note the evil effects of continuous looking to Baba earthly benefits. Our

longing for earthly benefits gets strengthened i.e., rajas and tamas get more

and more to predominate in our nature, clouding the satva and even temporarily

banishing it from us. The evils of tamas and rajas rise up at once. A bit of

disappointment makes us angry with God and saints that we have just worshipped

for earthly objects alone and we break our idols and gods, fiercely trample

upon them and gloat over our vandalism. If we but worshipped in the correct

spirit, we would ask for earthly benefits, not in a bargaining spirit, nor in

terms of dictation but with humble submission recognising the possibility that

the All-wise Mother-God might deem it better to disappoint us and make us

suffer in the present, to wipe off old karmic accounts, to develop the satwic

side of our nature and to fit

us perhaps for the position decreed by Supreme Wisdom and Mercy. The Omnipotent,

Omniscient and universal Mother provides for the present and future of

innumerable creatures with apparently conflicting interests and may make use of

us as her instruments or even as agents to carry our her high decrees. It is for

us to submit our Wills and to be receptive. If we are in this proper mood,

prayers are found to be needless assertion of ego, not promoting but retarding

our real progress.

(Written by: HH Pujyasri B V Narasimha Swamiji in Glimpses of Sai Baba)

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