Swami's discourse on Health, Diet and Divinity

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Swami's discourse on Health, Diet and Divinity

Fri, 9 Aug 2002 22:35:04 +0530

Om Sri Sai Ram

Health, Diet and Divinity

Bhagawan’s Divine Discourse given on 3rd of June 1995 in the Sri Sathya

Sai Hospital, at Whitefield, India. (Courtesy of "SAISPANDAN" - Journal of Sri

Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences)

Not by penance, nor by baths In sacred waters, nor by studying of scriptures, or

by Japa can the ocean of worldly existence (the cycle of birth and death) be

crossed. It can be done only by Service to good people (Sanskrit Sloka)

Man seeks to cross the ocean of Samsara by penance, pilgrimages to sacred

shrines, scriptural studies and exercises in meditation. But all these are of

no avail without service to good people. All these spiritual exercises are

comprehended by Seva (service). For the achievement of the four main goals of

life, (the Purusharthas of DHARMA-Right conduct, ARTHA- acquisition of wealth,

KAAMA - fulfillment of desires, and MOKSHA- Liberation), health is essential.

Without good health a man cannot accomplish even the most trivial thing. Hence,

health is wealth.

CAUSE OF DISEASE: However, because of the influence of the Kali age, man is a

prey to all kinds of ailments and has no peace of mind despite the possession

of every conceivable kind of wealth and comforts. There is no dearth of

doctors. Inspite of the availability of so many amenities, why is man afflicted

with disease? Indeed, more than physical ailments, mental diseases are growing

limitlessly. Mental sickness caused by tension and worry gives us so many

bodily ailments. Man today is afflicted with discontent. As one set of desires

is satisfied, other desires go on cropping up If desires are reduced.

Contentment will grow. Moreover, because of the perversions of the Kali age,

the five basic elements (ether, air, fire, water and earth) are polluted. The

water we drink is impure. The air we breathe is polluted. As a consequence the

mind gets polluted.

MATTER AND MIND: Today man has to understand the true relationship between

matter and mind. When one is asked about the mind, he says, "Don't mind". When

he is asked about matter, he answers: "It doesn’t matter". By this sort

of casualness man is failing to understand mind and matter. Only when man

understands the nature of the mind can he recognize the true nature of

humanness. What is the mind? It is not something negative. It is positive. It

represents the power of the Atma, the power of thought (Sankalpa). It can

travel any amount of distance in space. It is capable of exploring the powers

of atom. The mind is capable of recognising the truth that is valid for the

three categories of Time-the past, the present and the future. The mind is

therefore very essence of life. It is the source of all strength. Man today is

indifferent to the importance and the powers of the mind.

SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS: Man is seeking happiness from birth to death. The search

starts with education. But education does not confer happiness. He desires a

job but that does not make him happy. He then seeks marriage as the means to

happiness. Happiness eludes him because the wife claims equal rights. Then he

declares, "My life is a total darkness". It is the ego that is the cause. As a

man grows, his egoism also grows. One after another, desires go on increasing.

Their fulfillment doesn't bring him the happiness he seeks. Where is this

happiness or bliss (ananda) to be found? It does not exist in material objects.

It is not to be found in the pleasures. The truth is that man is the embodiment

of bliss. He is searching for it outside himself. This is the mark of

ignorance. When he is the embodiment of bliss, how can he secure bliss outside

himself? Today, inspite of all his wealth, man is unhappy. He is perpetually

racked by lack of peace. Devotees come here from all parts of the world. Each

of them asks: "I want peace". Here are three words "I", "want", "peace". "I"

is ego. "Want" is desire. Remove the ego and desire, you will have peace. Ego

and desire have enveloped peace when the covering is removed, peace will

manifest itself.

HEALTH AND HAPPINESS: Man can lead a blissful life only when he enjoys health.

Wealth can offer comforts but not peace. Wealth can provide a multi-storeyed

mansion but not sound sleep. Wealth can provide bodily comforts, but physical

comforts do not produce bliss. Air conditioners and mattresses may give

comfort to the body. But when there is no peace of mind, of what use are these

comforts? The body is like a water bubble, the mind is like a monkey, don't

follow the body or the mind, and follow the conscience. Man today is not

following the conscience. He is sticking to the body and mind, which are

useless. He must enquire into the problem, "Who am I?" He will discover that

the body, the senses and the mind are all the instruments and he is their

master. The master has today become a slave of his body and mind, which should

be his servants. You are the soul. Maker it the basis for all your actions.

HUMAN VALUES: Today man is forgetting his essential humanness. The first

requisite is for man to realise Human Values Truth, Righteousness, Peace and

Love. For a bulb to light, you need a connecting wire, a switch and electric

current. For man, that current is Truth or God. It is energy. This divine

energy has to flow through the wire of Dharma (Righteousness), reach the bulb

of Peace (Shanthi) and produce the light of Love. Love is God. Live in Love.

Love is everything. Without Love, Life is a living death for man. Love

expresses itself in many forms in relation to different persons, but is

essentially one. Today Love is tainted by selfishness, whether in relation to

mother, the spouse or the children or others. Man's selfishness is polluting

the entire society. Attachment to others is natural. But there should be a

limit to it. When this limit is exceeded, it becomes a disease. This is true in

every case. Because of man's excessive desires, he is prone to diseases of every

kind.

HEAD AND FOOD: The most common source of illness amongst people today is

"Tension". What is the cause of tension? It is indulgence in excess of various

kinds. Men must learn to moderate the hectic pace of living. Hurry causes worry

and worry causes disease. "Hurry, worry and curry (fatty food)" are the causes

of heart diseases. Therefore the first requirement is control of food and head

(the mind). When you control these two, there will be no room for illness.

IMPORTANCE OF THE EYE: Today the new operation theatre has been inaugurated in

our hospital. Doctors know that in the eye there are millions of cells that

react to light rays. If any of these cells are affected, the vision is

affected. For man the eye is the most important organ for comprehending the

Universe. Hence the eye has to be regarded as a sacred instrument. You cannot

change creation, but by changing your vision you can get the proper view of

creation. Here is an illustration. Once there was a king, who developed an

acute stomach trouble. All the medicines administered by doctors were of no

avail. He then approached a great yogi, who told him that for his stomach

ailment he had to treat the sight. He should see nothing but green everywhere.

The Yogi left and the king ordered that all places in his kingdom should be

painted green. Some time later, the yogi returned and found that people were

engaged in splashing green everywhere. When asked for the reason, they told him

that they were carrying out the king’s orders. The yogi went to the king

and told him that to see everything green, all that was needed for him was to

wear green glasses. It was absurd to attempt to paint everything green.

THE VISION OF LOVE: Similarly if we change our vision, we will experience peace.

When people view the world with the vision of love, they will have peace. All

diseases will be cured. Most diseases have their origin in the mind. Everything

has a psychological basis. When a person feels that something is wrong with him,

he develops an illness. Healthy mind is needed for a healthy body. But it is

not enough to be physically healthy. Man needs God's grace also

(Daivaanugraham). To acquire God’s grace you have to cultivate the love

of God. Love has become today a kind of show. Genuine love should emanate from

the heart. Start the day with love, spend the day with love, and end the day

with love, that is the way to God. If you develop love disease will not come

near you.

AVOID EXCESSES: I am 70 years now. I can see even an ant that is far away. It is

not due to divine power. It is physical power. What is the reason? Diet

control. My weight has remained the same for nearly sixty years - 108 lbs only.

Proper balance must be maintained throughout life. There must balance in

respect of knowledge and several other things. Students pollute their

knowledge by seeing bad things, listening bad things, and by bad thoughts.

Their minds are perverted by addiction to films. They should learn to lead pure

lives. Only then they will experience bliss and health. Embodiments of the

Divine! Realise the values of health. Self-restraint is essential to maintain

health. Regulate your habits. Develop good manners, which are the mark of a

true man. Similarly, the good devotee is one who does his duty. Duty is God.

Everyone has to develop the manners required in daily life. The manners should

be such that they confer self-satisfaction. You should conduct yourself

properly not for the sake of others but for your own sake. When there is

self-satisfaction there will be self-realization. For all these you must have

self-confidence. Most people today have no confidence in themselves and are

perpetually racked doubts. In Jesus’ time there was one doubting Thomas.

But today all are doubting Thomases. Everyone doubts every other.

HEALTH AND BLISS: For every man two things are essential: Good health (Arogya)

and happiness (Ananda). Health for the body and bliss for the spirit. With

these two wings you can soar to any height. You need both the things, for which

you must secure God' s grace. To get Gods grace, you have to engage yourself in

sacred action. Bear in mind the three P’s: PURITY, PATIENCE, and

PERSEVERANCE. With these three you are bound to acquire good health and bliss.

BHAGAVAN’S EXAMPLE: You may believe it or not, but the truth is that these

three are responsible for my Arogya (health) and Ananda (bliss). I am always

happy. I should like to run but there is no place where I can do so. I can lift

anybody at this age. This strength is present potentially in everyone. But it is

being wasted. If the energy in everyone is properly conserved he can do

anything.

THE WHITEFIELD HOSPITAL: The Hospital here began in a small way with a single

room. Over the years it was expanded. Dr. Rajeshwari, mother of Srinivas,

(former Warden of Brindavan Hostel) work hard to develop the hospital. She

devoted all her earnings to the expansion of the hospital. She worked

ceaselessly day and night. Ultimately she passed away in the hospital itself.

The hospital was her home. Thereafter, Dr. Savithri has been carrying on the

work. Savithri has been working tirelessly. She attends to everything herself.

By her work for patients she is becoming a patient herself. She must take care

of her health. Only the doctor is healthy, the patients can be well taken care

of. As is the doctor so is the patient. Hence Savithri must take care of her

own health. This is all the more necessary because the hospital is growing day

by day. Srinivas is rendering every help for the hospital. There are others who

are also serving the hospital in various ways.

FREE MEDICAL AID: The doctors have to meet the growing demands on their

services. The number of patients coming to the hospital is growing all the

time. All services are totally free. Not a paisa is collected from the

patients. This applies to Super Specialty Hospital in Prashanthi gram. Such

free medical treatment is not given anywhere in the world. Elsewhere hospitals

have become big business. In fact, in every sphere commercialisation is

rampant. Education a business. Music is a business, health is a business. The

whole world has become a market place. Welfare services should be free for all.

There are numerous people who cannot afford the cost of medical treatment.

Doctor should render free treatment to such persons. My words should not be

misunderstood. Even in the earning of incomes, there should be a limit. Many

doctors lack determination. They join a hospital on a good salary. But after a

month or so, when another hospital offers a higher salary they go over to the

new hospital. How long are you likely to stay in the other hospital? When you

go like this, you forfeit the confidence of hospital management. Even workers

behave in this way. They shift from place to place. The right thing is to

stick to a job for three to four years. Then your work will secure automatic

recognition.

DOCTORS AND PATIENTS: Doctors are obsessed with salaries. They should be more

concerned about patients. When they concentrate on their patients, they will

develop into excellent doctors. Inspire confidence in the patients. Then any

medicine you give will work wonders. The patients will hail such a doctor as a

"good doctor". A "good doctor" in due course becomes a "God doctor". "Vaidyo

Narayano Harih", it is said. The doctor is Divinity himself. Doctors should

render service in this spirit. Service is God. Very good work is being done in

our hospital as well as elsewhere. Bharat would not be what it is without good

people. Without meritorious people, can the world experience light? There are

good and bad people in the world. All should become good and develop into Godly

men. The same Atma is present in everyone. Doctors should look after the

patients with the same care they would show to their kith and kin. Then all

would experience equal happiness.

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