SWAMI CLARIFIES OUR COMMON DOUBTS

[Guest guest]

Om Sri Sai Ram

SWAMI CLARIFIES OUR COMMON DOUBTS

(Compiled from various meetings with Sri Sathya Sai Baba)

 The mind of man is as a blank sheet of white paper when he is born. As soon as

thinking, feeling and acting start, then the process of tarnishing the mind

also starts.

Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Q: Why are some people born more beautiful, or more intelligent, than others

are? Why does not God give everyone equal beauty, abilities and talents?

Swami: It is not God's partiality or fault. It is the human being who is

responsible. His actions, thoughts and words are responsible for all good and

bad. It is the mind that creates the differences. Pleasure is an interval

between two pains.  It is the way you look at things that matters.

There is a vast ocean of talents and qualities.  All human beings have vessels

to fill. Some people, through their actions, are able to fill the vessels to

the brim; some fill only half; others can fill only a quarter, or less. They

possess intelligence, beauty, talents, and etceteras, according to how much

they can fill their vessels.

You even judge beauty these days, as in Miss India, Miss World. But, that is all

physical beauty, which is transient. What is important is the beauty of the Atma

(Self).

Q: How are good or bad actions carried into the next birth?

Swami: Swaasha (breath) carries the actions, for the breath stops when a person

dies. The body is still there after death and we call it a corpse and burn it

as useless.  So, the body cannot carry anything with it, just as a flower

cannot carry its fragrance. It is a breeze that wafts the scent of the flower

and makes its fragrance reach you. Similarly, imagine a municipal lorry, the

breeze carries the bad odour to you again! In the same manner, good and bad

actions are carried by the breath and surround you in the next birth like an

invisible garland. The pattern of your life is then governed by what the

garland has good or bad scent.

That is why man must understand that everything he does has a reaction, a

reverberation and a reflection. It is he who writes his own destiny by his

actions. It is essential for man to live a good life with good thoughts and

good actions. Only through such a life can he realise the divinity in him. The

concept Aham Brahmasmi (I am Brahma  = God) is also incorrect, since it

indicates duality. Aham (I) and Brahma (God) become separate. The statement

ought to he Aham Aham (I am I).

Q: Many people feel that Hindus worship countless gods. How did this happen?

Swami: India has a wonderful religious tradition. It has something for everyone,

to suit everyone’s needs. Many people do not understand this excellent idea and

make derisory comments on our having too many gods. This tradition has evolved

to suit the needs of different people, just as we have shirts of varying types

and sizes to fit different people. With the ideal of One God, there is only

one shirt and, if it does not fit or if it is unsuitable, people turn away

from God. But, here, if someone likes Krishna, they can worship Krishna; others

can worship Rama, or Narayana, or Shiva, or even snakes and lions! What more do

you need to propagate the idea that God is in everything everywhere? That is

why I often say don't worship God as a

picture, but worship the picture as God. This will slowly lead to

the realisation of God in you. That is where the Hindu spiritual path

is practical and good.

Q:  Why does not God prevent cruelties in the world?

Swami:: God is  only a witness (saakshibhoota). He does not act. Man acts

according to the dictates of his intellect (Buddhi) and himself suffers

the consequences of his actions (karma). There is neither good nor bad for God.

Take the knife as an example. A murderer uses a knife to kill another man, a

slaughterer uses a knife to slay animals, a surgeon uses a knife to

amputate, and a cook uses a knife to chop vegetables. If a magnet is placed

among all these knives, it will attract them all equally and not according to

the kind of tasks they perform. God is like this magnet. All knives are the

same to Him.  However, the hands that wield the knives have to bear

the consequences of their actions, dependent on right and wrong.

Q: When we have troubles and are in difficulties and we pray to God, why does He

not take them away’?

Swami:: Troubles and difficulties are part and parcel of human  life. They are

the results of your karmas. There is no point in praying to God to wipe

away all such troubles and difficulties. The right type of prayer would be to

ask God for courage and strength to bear all the difficulties, problems and

tragedy with equanimity.

Q: What is the difference between the politics of yesterday and those of today?

Swami: The present state of affairs can be described as the state of jumps and

bumps. Now, take the example of your body and limbs. Each limb is important in

forming the composite whole. All the limbs joined together make up the body,

which is the Deha (body, person). Similarly, in the Desha (country,

nation), every aspect should be tended to, just as one takes care of every part

of the body.

Q: The view that women should not take ups Brahma vidya (spiritual knowledge),

nor chants the Omkara. Is this correct? Also, in ancient times, were spiritual

sadhanas (endeavors) forbidden to women?

Swami:: Brahma  vidya and chitta shuddhi (spiritual  knowledge and purity of 

consciousness) do not depend on whether a person is a  man or a woman. All

have an equal right to benefit from Brahma vidya provided only they are able to

take it up with discipline and dedication. At no time have there been any taboos

against women. Lord Vishnu (the Preserver) taught Bhu Devi (the Goddess Earth)

the glory of the Bhagavad- Gita. Parameswara (Shiva) taught Parvati the

Brahma tatva (divine essence) through the Guru Gita. Iswara (Shiva) initiated

Parvati into Yoga Shastras and mantra Shastras (science of yoga and science of

mantra). The Brihadaranyak Upanishad mentions Yajnavalkya teaching Maitreyi the

Brahma vidya. So, women in ancient times were not denied the pursuit

of spirituality.

The Brihadaranyak Upanishad mentions Ciargi and Maitreyi basking in the

splendour of Sanyasa (renunciation) and Brahmacharya (celibacy, chastity).

Madaalasa Chudaala and others were able to receive Brahma Jnana (divine

wisdom) while in the Grahastha (householder, i.e. married) stage of life.

Even today, there are many that belong to this vast category. It is sheer

absurdity to deny women the right to earn Brahma Jnana. But, in worldly

matters, it is necessary for them to maintain certain limitations in the

interests of dharma (righteousness) and Loka Kalyana (the good of

the people/world). For the sake of safeguarding morality and for the

social health of the world, women have to accept some restrictions. This is not

to say that there is any fundamental

inferiority in them.

Even pundits acquire their Jnana through the reverential homage they pay to the

feminine deity Saraswati. The divine patrons of learning, prosperity and wisdom

are all feminine: Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati. This should show

the reverence paid to women.

Q: Why does Swami give gifts?

Swami: Gifts of rings and pendants are an expression of Swami's love... It is

not that Swami wants to draw people to him with gifts. When you wish to show

affection to your son, or if you want to make someone happy, you make him a

sports shirt or buy him a present, do you not? Swami also wants to bring

happiness in this manner.

Q: Does a gift also act as a protective talisman?

Swami: Yes!  They are also like my visiting cards and send me instant flashes

when the person is in danger or in need of my help. Sometimes, these gifts are

made for specific reasons: for the sake of a devotee's health, or I may give

someone a gem stone so that rays from it may constantly influence him or her to

follow the right path. I want to tell you that whatever Swami does has a

purpose. He never does anything without reason.

Q: Why does Swami give vibuthi?

Swami: Flowers, leaves, fruit and other edibles have a temporary life. Even

water breeds germs if kept in a vessel for days. Only vibuthi

remains unchanged, as it is the final result of the five elements of creation.

Our desires have to be reduced to ashes and vibuthi is symbolic of this

detachment and renunciation.  One's mind has to become desireless and detached

like the ashes in which everything is burnt out. It is that kind of pure mind

that has to be offered to God.

Q: Is it necessary to perform pujas (ritual worship) and ceremonies?

Swami: Everything depends on the individual concerned. Whatever he or she does

has to be done with faith and sincere devotion. God cannot be fooled with

mere ritual.

Q: What about ceremonies and rites for the dead? Is it wrong not to perform them?

Swami: This again depends on one's mental attitude. After a person leaves the

body, the soul takes birth and takes on a new body somewhere else. You must

know this.  Upto now you must have had so many lives, you must have been a

mother and a daughter so very many times.

What is required really is gratitude to one’s parents, by remembering them on

the day of their death.  Though they may shed these bodies in which they are

your parents, you still owe them the debts of having given birth to you and of

having given you their blood to give you your present form.

You can express this gratitude through the ceremonial shraddha rite, or by any

other method, even by thinking of them with sincere and loving gratitude on the

death anniversary. It is heartfelt feeling that is important.  

Q: Why doesn’t God make people suffer for their sins in the same lifetime?  Why

in other lives when they cannot know why they suffer?

Swami: Then how would you account for the Punya (good deeds) they do? They have

to enjoy the benefits of their Punya, too! All that may not always be Possible

in one lifetime....

Q: Why does Swami have more restrictions for women? They do not have easy access to Swami!

Swami: Everyone has the same kind of access to Swami. This does not depend

on their being men or women. Everyone receives the same grace, depending on his

or her devotion, his or her need, or his or her work. Swami may say so;

that nevertheless women have more hurdles to overcome when they want to

convey something to Swami.

There are times when the man who stands next to me never catches my attention,

as hard as he may try; while a devotee sitting far away in a corner amid a

crowd easily catches it. It all depends on who has to receive what and when.

Everything happens according to that will, not because of the physical form of

man or woman.

Also these differences are visible to you at your level of consciousness. For

Swami, these are not differences that count. The Atma is not different in man

or woman. The Atma is eternally   conscious, pure and self effulgent. The Atma

is neither masculine nor feminine,   nor yet neutral. It is only the body that

limits, deludes and wears names.  

Q: What is the principal cause of all troubles and sorrow?

Swami: Attachment and ego are the main causes. Jealousy is another factor.

Q: How can jealousy be conquered?

Swami: By having love for everyone, by thinking of others with love and wishing

them well. More than all, by realising that jealousy is physically most

harmful. It does damage your internal system and, later on, you will have to

suffer the karma of the bad things caused by your jealousy.  

Q: Why has God created bad traits and negative tendencies in humans?

Swami: These are results of man's own actions. God is only a witness to events.

Human beings are themselves responsible for the good and the bad in them.

Remember that the things you do not do can never hurt you.

Q: But Swami says that there is nothing good or bad!

Swami: Yes!  This is from God's point of view. For humans, this is a relative

matter, since what is good for one may be bad for another. What is good at one

time may be bad in another season. Good and bad are thus two states take

two fruits, phalam, which are good. Once they are eaten and digested, they

become excreta, malam, and that is bad.  

Q: Scientists say that something cannot he created out of nothing.

Swami: Yes, hut what they think of, as nothing is really anything. There is no

nothingness in the Universe. The scientist makes such statements because, with

his limited vision, he cannot see all things or know them.

Both science and spirituality begin as inquiry, a quest. Spirituality comes full

circle, like the letter 0, while science reaches the half circle stage,

resembling a C. Science has a lot of catching up to do, for it has only

discovered a fraction of the truth. It is like a small piece of cloth you can

see protruding from a fist: you can only conjecture about the whole, its looks

and size, for it is hidden and you cannot see it.

Q: But, science has made many advances flights to the moon and other planets, for instance.

Swami: Yes. Whatever science has done for humanity is to be welcomed, hut it is

still a growing and advancing field. Scientists used to say that you couldn’t

split the atom and today that is no longer true. The scientist learns as he

progresses

Today's investigations become old tomorrow and lead to new investigations, which

will become old the day after tomorrow. There is no end to this, and so the

truth lies in something that contains within it both the old and the new. God

alone envelops the old and the new and so the best way to advance is Godward.

*****