1008 PEARLS OF SAYINGS OF BHAGAWAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA - Part IV [76 to 100]

[Guest guest]

NOTE: Please view as HTML

Om Sri Sai Ram

1008 PEARLS OF SAYINGS OF BHAGAWAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA

Part IV [76 to 100]

[A compilation of THOUGHT FOR THE DAY displayed in Prashanthi Nilayam over years prior to1992]

76.    CONSIDER for a moment how long worldly triumphs last. They are but the

play of the scintillating name and form of the Divine, which is the core of

every being. Earn the vision that sees the Divine inherent in all. We are not

troubled when something is good; only when it is bad. This is because goodness

is natural. In our evil aberration, we are worried and alarmed when we slide

into wrong or pain or sorrow. This is because Nature plans us to be right, to

be happy and ever in a state of joy. It is a pity that man has lost his

understanding of this Truth.

 

77.    VYAS sympathized with man who was caught in the coils of do's and don'ts,

of success and failure, of desire and despair. He demarcated many a path, which

leads man along to fulfillment. The fulfillment consists in uprooting the

animal that lurks in man and reaching out to the Divinity. That is his essence.

 

78.    DHYANA is not mere sitting erect and being silent nor is it the absence

of any movement. It is the merging of all your thoughts and feelings to God.

Without the mind becoming dissolved in God, Dhyana cannot succeed. The Gita

declares genuine Dhyana as "Anayaschinthayanthomaam Ye Janah Paryapasathi"

(Those persons who adore me without any other thought or feeling). Krishna has

assured such persons that He would carry their burden and be by their side,

guiding and guarding them. Persons adept in this Dhyana are very rare; most

people go through the external exercises only. So they are unable to win Grace.

 

79.    LIFE is a song, sing it. That is what Krishna taught through his life.

Arjuna heard that song in the battlefield where tensions were at their highest

and when the fate of millions was to be decided by the sword. Krishna sang the

Gita for Arjuna to listen to. Gita means "Song", and he sang because he was

"Ananda" wherever He might be, in Gokulam, on the banks of the Yamuna or at

Kurukshetra between the warring armies.

 

80.    WHY does He attract all to His Presence? To plough the heart, prepare it

for receiving the shower of Grace, to grow the seeds of Love, weed it of all

evil thoughts, which smother the crops of joy and to enable it to gather the

harvest of Wisdom. That wisdom finds its fulfillment in Krishna Himself, for

Krishna also means the pure Essence, the Supreme Principle, the

"Sath-Chith-Ananda".

 

81.    WHERE there is Dharma there Krishna is; so, think for yourself, each one

of you, how far have you deserved the Grace of the Lord? You draw Him near; you

keep Him far. You entangle yourself, bind yourself, and get caught in the trap.

No one is your foe except yourself. No one else is your friend. You are your

only friend. The Guru shows you the road and you have to trudge alone, without

fear or hesitation.

 

82.    THE word Dharmakshetra is the first word in the Gita. In the very first

verse of the Song Celestial, the Kurukshetra (field of Action), in which the

Maamakaah (my people, as the blind Dhritharashtra described them through fond

attachment and egoistic delusion), people motivated by greed and passion, and

the Pandavas (the other people, the good and righteous, the sons of the Fair

one, the Progeny of the pure), is spoken of as already transmuted into

Dharmakshetra (field of Righteousness). For victory is always for Righteousness

and not for greed and passion which blind men.

 

83.    IF you ask Me, I will say that the Gita is like a balance: scales, needle

and all. The scale on the left is the 7th Sloka of the 2nd Chapter, speaking of

"Karpanya Dosha". The fulcrum is the 22nd Sloka of the 9th Chapter, beginning

with "Anayaschinthayamshomaam"; and the scale on the right is the Sloka in the

18th chapter, speaking of "Sarvadharmaam Parithyajya". See how apt the fulcrum

Sloka is. It speaks of single-minded attention, "steady, like the needle of a

well-adjusted balance". Really, the Gita begins with two scales and a fulcrum:

the two armies of Righteousness and Unrighteousness with Krishna, the Teacher,

in the middle.

 

84.    BHAKTI is of various types according to the Damskara of the devotee and

the state of his mind and the stage of his development. There is the Shanta

Bhakti of Bhishma, the Vatsalya Bhakti of Yashoda, and the Madhura Bhakti of

the Gopikas. Of these the Dasya attitude is easiest and the best for the

majority of aspirants at this time. It means "Sharanaagathi" and "Prapathithi"

out of Shanti Bhakti.

 

85.    THE fire of sorrow and joy burns when the fuel of Vaasanas is fed into

the furnace of the mind. Take away the fuel and the fire dies out. Take away

the Vaasanas, the force of the impulses, promptings and urges and you become

your own master. This is done in Yoga by various physiological and

psychological exercises. But Bhakti is the easier means for this end.

Naamasmarana is enough: it is said that the name Sitarama sufficed in the

Thretha Yuga; the name Radha-Shama sufficed in the Dwapara Yuga; and in the

Kali Yuga, I tell you, all Names have that capacity.

 

86.    PRAKRUTHI is Dhara, Earth and Creation. Think of it always. Long for it.

Pine for Dhara, Dhara, Dhara and you find you are pining for Radha, Radha. So,

Radha is the Becoming and Krishna is the Being; the desire of Being becomes the

longing of the Becoming for the Being - this is the Radha-Krishna relationship,

which has been sung by seers and poets, calumniated and caricatured by ignorant

critics, appreciated and apprehended by aspirants, and analyzed and realised by

sincere scholars of spiritual lore.

 

87.    WELCOME all the blows of fate, all the misfortunes and miseries, as gold

welcomes the crucible, the hammer and the anvil in order to get shaped into a

jewel; or as the cane welcomes the chopper, the crusher, the boiler, the pan,

the sprayer and the dryer, so that its sweetness may be preserved and used as

sugar by all. The Pandavas never demurred when disasters fell thick upon them.

They were happy that they helped them to remember Krishna and call upon Him.

Bhishma was in tears on the arrow-bed, when he was about to pass away. Arjuna

asked Him "why" and he replied, "I am shedding tears because the miseries

undergone by the Pandavas pass through my mind". Then he said, this is done in

order to teach the Kaliyug a lesson; never to seek power, position or pelf but

to submit to the will

of God in a completely resigned way, so that you may be ever happy and unmoved.

 

88.    THE Gita speaks of Bhakti, Jnana, Karma, as Yogas. By Yoga is meant what

Patanjali intended it to mean "Chiththa Krishthi Nirodha", that is to say, "the

stifling of the agitations of the consciousness". Vishnu is the supreme example

of this calm, for He is "Saanthakaaram bhujaga Sayanam", the very picture of

peaceful calm, though reclining on a thousand-hooded snake; the snake being the

symbol of the objective World with its poisonous fangs. Being in the World but

not of it, not bound by it, that is the secret.

 

89.    THE Individual is Arjuna, the Universal, which inspires him, is Krishna:

Led by the Universal, the Individual has to oppose the attractions and delusion

of the Manifested, the Maya, and the Prakruthi, that is, the Kaurava hordes. The

battle depicted in the Epic is the inner battle, between the temporary and the

eternal, the particular and the universal, the sensual and the super-sensual,

the seen and the seer. The Atma is described as a streak of lightning in the

blue cloud. It is a Gita (streak in Telugu). Discover the Gita, then the

purpose of Gita study is fulfilled.

 

90.    WHEN Dharmaraja, the eldest of the Five Pandavas came to know - after the

death of Karna which they effected successfully - that Karna was his brother,

his agony knew no bounds; he was struck disconsolate and was torn by despair.

If only he had known the truth, all that grief could have been avoided. So too,

until you know that all are altars where the name God is installed and all are

moved and motivated by the Grace of the self-same God, you are afflicted by

hate and pride; once you know it and experience it, you are full of Love and

reverence to all.

 

91.    WHEN Krishna leapt down from His Chariot with the wheel-weapon in His

hand to slay Bhishma, Arjuna jumped down with Him and holding both His Feet he

prayed, "Oh Lord, you have given word that you will not wield any weapon. Let

it not be said that you broke your word to save me from Bhishma, I am prepared

to die". That was the measure of his Bhakti. Bhishma too had equal Bhakti. He

did not step forward to fight the new challenge nor did he question the Lord.

He stood silent drinking in the charm of the Lord and filling himself with the

vision of the magnificence of the Lord. That was the measure of the dedication

to His will.

 

92.    KRISHNA is slandered by ignorant, prejudice critics as "jaara" and

"chora" and extolled by  seekers and sages with the same appellations, "jaara”

and "chora". He stole the hearts and the owners were glad of it. He shed light,

awakened people and made those, whose hearts he stole, richer and happier. He

destroyed all craving for sensual pleasure and sensual knowledge and filled the

entire being with thoughts of the Divine. How then can He be referred to as

"jaara" and "chora"? When the blind leads the blind in this way, both have to

fall into the pit.

 

93.    IN the Mahabharatha, the most noteworthy theme is Dharmasthapana. When

the Pandavas were called into the forest, it was as if the Five Pranas of

Dharma, the sustaining forces of Dharma, were exiled. Dharmaraja is the Prana

of the Right Conduct, Bhima, of the protective Might of Dharma; Arjuna, of the

Faith and Devotion needed as its Foundation, Nakula and Sahadeva, of the

shraddha essential for the Practice of Dharma. When the Pandavas went to the

forest, Hasthinapura was reduced to Astinapura, a city of bones, without flesh

and blood.

 

94.    KRISHNA was the Purushothama, Arjuna the Narrothama; It was a friendship

between The Embodiment of the Highest and the Embodiment of the Best. Krishna

was the Avataric Person. Arjuna was the anandic person; it was a coming

together of the Avathramurthi and the Anandamurthi. Arjuna was often addressed

by Krishna as Kurunandana. This name has a deep significance. "Kuru" means

"act, activity, Karma"; Nandana means "happy, delighted". Kurunandana therefore

means "he who is delighted while engaged in activity". Throughout the eighteen

chapters of the Githa, Arjuna is alert and active, participating vigilantly in

every turn of argument.

 

95.    PRACTICE the constant presence of God and, learn to offer all your

activities at the Feet of the Lord as an act of worship. Then they will be free

from fault. Krishna advised Arjuna to enter the fight and, at the same time,

told him not to have "hatred" towards "enemies". These may appear to be two

irreconcilable attitudes, for war is rage (passion, attachment) and

renunciation of hatred is Vairagya (absence of raga). Arjuna asked Krishna how

he was to reconcile these two attitudes. Krishna said, "Maamnusmara yudhyacha"

(keep Me ever in thy mind, and fight. Do not cultivate the egotistic feeling

that it is you who is fighting. I am using you as My instrument).

 

96.    THE Pandava brothers were highly fortunate. The eldest, Dharmaraja, rose

to be the emperor. The second was the Indomitable Bhima, armed with the

terrible mace. The third was Arjuna, son of the Lord of the Gods, Indra. The

lord poured His Grace on Arjuna and deigned to serve him in battle as his

charioteer! In spite of all these advantages, they were subjected to the

severest tragedies in life. What is the lesson that their lives teach? No one

can predict what calamity will overtake one and at what time. Every thing

depends on the will of Providence; it all happens according to the Divine Plan.

 

97.    THE question on the battlefield was not who was the Kin of whom, but who

was right and who was wrong; fight for justice, fight for truth, fight for

these as akshatriyu is in duty bound, and leave the result to the Dispenser of

all. Krishna told Arjuna: "I am surprised that you should weep, for you are

Gudakesa, the conqueror of sleep and ignorance. You do not kill, so don't be so

conceited; nor do they die. They have many more things to do; and so they are

real deathless". "The sentence of death has been already pronounced on their

bodies by Me, and you have but to carry out My Orders", Krishna said.

 

98.    KRISHNA felt that it was time to reveal His Truth and so He just showed

all creation in His Mouth when His mother asked Him to show her His tongue,

when she suspected He had eaten sand. He made even the longest rope too short

to bind Him. It became the talk of the place and every one felt he had all the

fourteen Worlds in Him! Avathars choose the time and the mode of announcement

of their Advent and Their Glory. Even in this Avathara such miracles had to be

done when I decided that the time was opportune for taking the people into My

Secret.

 

99.    WHEN the righteous Pandavas were harassed by wicked Kauravas, the

beauteous Krishna appeared and saved them. The lord can never design violence

and blood shed. Love is His instrument, non-violence His Message. He achieves

the correction of the evil-minded through education and example. But it may be

asked, why did Kurukshetra happen? It was a surgical operation and therefore

cannot be described as an act of violence. The Surgeon saves life through the

beneficial use of  His Knife.

 

100.  CONSIDER the Name Krishna which the Avathar bore; what a significant Name?

Krishna is derived from the root "krish" which means (1) to attract (2) to

plough and cultivate and (3) the Divine Principle beyond time, space and

causation. Krishna, like all Avathars, attracts not only seekers, Saints and

Sages but the simple, the innocent and the good. He draws also the curious, the

critics, the Skeptics and those who suffer from atheism. He draws them towards

Himself by the irresistible charm of His Person, by His invincible Look, His

Voice, His Flute, His counsel and His undaunted Heroism! He is ever in a State

of Bliss, spreading Harmony, Melody and beauty around Him; He sings everywhere

in the peaceful Pasture lands of Brindavan and in the blood soaked battle field

of Kurukshetra.

 

With Sai love,

Sai brothers – ‘’

TO BE CONTINUED