TFTD: Archive October month

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Thought For The DayRelated Link: Thought for the day archive - 2003 - 2004 -

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October 31: Is it the body that derives joy from looking at a thing of beauty,

or is it the Atma (soul)? What is it that relishes the good food that is

consumed - the body or the spirit? What is it that enjoys fragrance or is moved

by beautiful music? On enquiry, it will be found that it is the Atma that is the

enjoyer, and not the physical body. The body by itself is gross and incapable of

experiencing joy. It must be realized that the spirit transcends the mind and

the intellect, and pervades the entire cosmos. The spirit is the basis for the

cognition of the external world and experiencing the inner world.

October 30:Man suffers from numerous ills because he has not understood the

purpose of life. The first thing he has to realize is that God is one, by

whatever name and in whatever form the Divine is worshipped. The One chose to

become the many. The Vedas declare, "God is one; the wise hail Him by many

names". It is the imagination of the observers which accounts for the apparent

multiplicity of the Divine. The sun is only one, but its reflection appears in

many vessels. Likewise, God is present in the hearts of different beings in

varied forms and natures.

 

October 29: Every being in the world has a name and form. But the Divinity

within has no name or form. The individual with name and form is filled with

egoism and possessiveness. These qualities are the cause of one's pleasure and

pain, happiness and sorrow. Hence, everyone must strive to curb these two

tendencies. The knowledge of the Supreme Self is associated with total freedom

from Ahamkara (egoism). Those who have no taint of ego in them are totally free

from the consequences of actions, regardless of the actions they perform.

 

October 28:The body must be regarded as the basis for spiritual activity. The

body is not meant merely to be pampered and kept in comfort. Our mental

abilities and talents should not be used only for worldly achievements. Only by

seeking Jnana (spiritual wisdom) can man rise above the level of the animal. The

animal is concerned only with the present. Man alone can realize that the

present is the product of the past and that the future will be determined by

what he does in the present. Only if you act rightly in the present can the

future be good. This requires steadfastness and determination to adhere to the

path of righteousness whatever may be the difficulties.

October 27: Some persons consider small defects in others as serious

shortcomings and criticize them, while they ignore even great drawbacks in

themselves. The right attitude is to magnify your own shortcomings, while

considering other's lacunae as being of no consequence. With this attitude, you

will be able to realize the Divine. Human love is selfish, while Divine love is

spiritual and selfless; it is pure love. The ancients described the Divine as

eternal, immortal, pure and unsullied. In order to experience the love of God,

you should give up petty-mindedness and selfishness and expand your love.

October 26: Man does not become fully human until he progresses on the spiritual

path. Body, mind and spirit - these three together constitute the man. An animal

is concerned primarily with looking after its bodily needs. Man is a superior

being, since he has been bestowed with a mind. Cultivation of the spirit will

elevate him to the Divine. The body, mind and spirit are intertwined and

interdependent. Mind and body have to subserve the spirit in achieving

awareness of the Divine Atma. October 25: The mind is subject to unsteadiness

because of desires. Desires arise due to the impressions received by the senses

from outside. The only way to avoid these external impressions is to turn the

senses inwards. To effect this change in the use of the senses, the power of

discrimination derived from the intellect should be employed. The intellect

should be used to determine what impressions should be kept out and what should

be let in. The intellect should determine what kind of company we should keep,

what kind of food we should eat, what are desirable practices and what are

undesirable. It is by the right use of their intellectual judgement that the

ancient sages achieved spiritual eminence. October 24: The teacher is like a

water storage tank. If there is clean and good water in the tank, good water

will flow through the taps. Students are like the taps and will prove to be

good only when the teachers are good. Teachers should have lofty ideals so that

these can be reflected in their students, who are the future citizens and

leaders. Teachers should first practise what they want to teach to the

students. They should have a feeling of Thyaga (sacrifice) for the sake of the

well-being of the nation, so that the students too will cultivate a similar

ideal. Before they try to correct the students, the teachers should first

correct themselves.

October 23: Youngsters take great pains to acquire degrees for securing good

jobs. But they hardly take any trouble to develop their character and

personality. Good conduct and character are the most essential requisites for a

man. They are the basis for spiritual life. If the spiritual aspect is

neglected, man becomes an artificial, mechanical being with no genuine human

quality in him. Many people today do not understand what is meant by

spirituality. It is the knowledge of Divinity, which is the man's true nature.

Spirituality reveals the basic principle that is immanent in everything and

sustains the entire Cosmos.

October 22: The one effective way to conquer all sources of physical and mental

disease and debility is awareness of one's Atmic Reality. That will bring about

an upsurge of Love and Light, for, when one recognizes that he is the Atma, he

cognizes the same Atma in all; he shares the joy and grief of all. When one

yearns for the happiness and prosperity of all mankind, one is blessed with the

wisdom and strength to mark out the way and lead men towards it. He sees God in

everyone and every act of his will be a pure, sincere and sacred offering to

God.

October 21: When a sculptor transforms a piece of rock into a beautiful idol to

be worshipped in a shrine, what was inert and worthless became sacred. In the

same manner, everything which is petty and worldly should be transformed in

course of time into something sacred and divine. That is the real

transformation that every man must aspire for.

October 20: Sai has come in order to achieve the Supreme task of uniting as one

family all mankind, through the bond of brotherhood; of affirming and

illumining the Atmic reality of each being in order to reveal the Divine, which

is the basis on which the entire Cosmos rests; and of instructing all to

recognize the common Divine heritage that binds man to man, so that man can rid

himself of the animal in him and rise to the Divinity which is his goal. I am

the embodiment of Love; Love is My instrument. Those who have recognized My

Love and experienced that Love can assert that they have glimpsed My reality,

for the path of Love is the royal road that leads mankind to Me.

October 19: Before undertaking any action, answers should be found for the five

questions - who, when, where, what and how. People today act without concern

for these considerations. Everyone must rely on his own judgement using his

powers of observation and discretion. There is a divine power in every limb and

organ of the body. This divine potency is called Angirasa. The name is derived

from the fact that the Divine is present in every Anga (limb) as Rasa (life

sustaining essence). There is no need to search for the Divine outside

yourself. You are Divine. All your powers are Divine potencies.

October 18: God is the embodiment of love. If you wish to experience God, you

have to fill yourselves with love. Through love alone can you experience the

embodiment of love that is God. Man filled with jealousy and hatred is like a

blind man who cannot see the sun however brightly it may shine. He cannot see

God however near God may be. Blinded by ignorance, a man filled with jealousy

and hatred cannot hope to see God, like a blind man groping for something that

is near him. The man filled with good qualities like truth, love, absence of

jealousy, ego and hatred, can see God without searching for Him. He becomes a

Jnaani (a man of spiritual wisdom).

October 17: Despite aeons of evolution and considerable progress in scientific

knowledge, man is not able to make significant progress towards the Divine

because of absence of strenuous striving in the spiritual sphere. Without

spiritual practice, reading religious books and listening to spiritual

discourses have no value. Study of the Upanishads and Shaasthras (spiritual

sciences) and reciting God's names may be good acts in themselves. But, if

there is no love, which is the basis of all Sadhana (spiritual discipline),

they are of no use. Love reinforces one's physical, mental and spiritual

energies. Devotional acts without love are of no avail.

October 16: When work is undertaken with an egotistic attitude, impelled by

selfish motives and inspired by hopes of self-advancement, it feeds greed and

pride, envy and hatred. Then, it fosters the feeling of attachment to more and

more profitable ventures. It promotes ingratitude to those who lent their hands

and brains and to God Himself who endowed the person with the urge and the

skill. "I did it", one says when the work succeeds; or "Others spoiled it" one

says when it fails. Resentment, depression and despair follow when the work

results in failure. The more deeply one is attached to the fruits, the more

intense and painful is one's grief when one is disappointed. The only means,

therefore, to escape from both pride and pain is to leave the result to the

Will of God, while one is happy in the thought that one has done one's duty

with all the dedication and care that one is capable of.

October 15: Love for the Divine is devotion. Devotion is not something tangible;

it is an inner experience which springs from the heart. As you think, so you

become. Hence, the heart must be filled with good feelings. The senses must be

engaged in good actions. When the eyes are turned towards God, all creation

appears Divine. When you wear the right kind of spectacles, you see everything

clearly. But if the glasses are not correct, you get a distorted picture and

your eyes are spoilt. Likewise, if your heart is filled with love of God, all

your feelings are sanctified by that love. Other undesirable thoughts drop

away. Devotees should pray to the Lord to come and reside in their pure and

tranquil hearts. The devotee should look upon pain and pleasure alike as

designed for his good. He will not then be affected by troubles. He will regard

them as stages in the evolution of his consciousness.

October 14: Propagation of Dharma (righteousness) means to promote the practice

of Dharma and not to spread knowledge about it. Only those who practice Dharma

are qualified to propagate it. It is because Dharma and Sathya (truth) have not

been propagated by persons practising them that they have been eclipsed. It is

only when they are practised in daily life that their true nature and value

will be realized. Though Dharma is present everywhere, it is covered by

ignorance and pride, like fire that is covered by ashes or water by moss. These

elements that hide the true nature of Dharma have to be removed so that it may

be revealed to the world.

October 13: You have a bird in your hand, but you are wasting your time and

energy conspiring to catch the bird hiding in the bush. The sounds that make

you believe there is a bird in the bush are, you do not know, only the echoes

of the notes from the throat of the bird in your own hand! The Guru reveals the

Truth and makes you free from the trials and tribulations. In a flash, ignorance

is dispelled and you are immersed in the bliss of Knowledge. Why ignore the

'existent' and crave for the 'non-existent'? It is the pursuit for the unreal

that is the root of all the fear, the sorrow, the sickness of humanity.

October 12: Puja (ritual worship) and Yajna (sacrifice) are performed in order

to remind you of the inner yajna which every one of you has to perform to save

yourselves from fear, grief and anxiety. This is the yajna of offering in

oblation, the egoistic desires and emotions, passions, impulses and acts into

the flames of dedication and devotion. In fact, that is the real yajna, of

which these are reflections and prompters. This yajna is only the visible

symbolic representation of the underlying abstract Truth. Just as a child is

taught to pronounce words by making it associate the sounds and the letterforms

with pictures of the objects so named, through this kshara (temporary) symbol

the Akshara thathwa (the Eternal Principle) is brought before the

consciousness.

October 11: In spite of his precious birth as a human being, man leads a life

worse than that of animals. Man should get rid of Ahamkara (the feeling that he

is the doer). As long as the ego is dominant, the Atmic consciousness will not

develop. The egoist cannot recognise the Atma. It is egoism that is at the root

of all man's troubles. It is a delusion based on the misconceived notion that

the body is real and permanent. The truth is otherwise. From an early age, one

should recognise the evanescence of the body and the senses and control the

desires prompted by the sense organs. Desires are insatiable. The pursuit of

wealth, power and position can only end in misery. Instead, one should take

refuge in God and dedicate all actions to the Divine.

October 10: All are children of God. He is the sole Lord of mankind. People may

seem to differ in their names and forms and in their beliefs and practices. But

the source is the One alone. Recognition of this basic truth of oneness is

Brahmajnana (Knowledge of the Absolute). This knowledge cannot be gained by

merely studying the scriptures and holding metaphysical discussions. What has

to be recognised is the truth that every being in the universe is an embodiment

of the Supreme. Awareness of the unity that subsumes the diversity is the

highest knowledge.

October 9: The Upanishads have declared that immortality can be experienced only

through Thyaga (renunciation or sacrifice). This renunciation does not mean

giving up hearth and home, kith and kin. It means giving up the transient and

impermanent things of the world. This calls for discrimination between what is

permanent and what is perishable. This kind of discrimination is absent among

people today. Instead, they discriminate between what is convenient and what is

unpleasant and choose the former. Discrimination should be exercised objectively

to determine what is permanent and what is transient, what is good and what is

bad. Only then can man discover the Sat-Chit-Ananda (Being-Awareness-Bliss)

that is within him.

October 8: Man can achieve Shanti (Peace) only through Love. Shanti is the fruit

of the tree of life without which the tree is a barren stump; it has no value or

validity. The fruit is encased in a bitter skin so that the sweet juice may be

preserved and guarded against marauders. One has to remove the skin before

tasting the sweetness within. The thick rind is symbolic of the six evil

qualities that enshroud the loving heart of man: lust, anger, greed,

attachment, pride and hate. Those who can remove the rind and experience the

sweetness within through rigorous and consistent discipline, attain everlasting

peace that everyone aspires for.

October 7: God has four qualities and it is only when you develop them that you

can understand Him. They are: Love, Beauty, Sweetness and Splendour. The

cultivation of Love is enough to add unto you the other three. When you are

full of Love for the Divine immanent in all creation, that stage is Beauty;

when you are immersed in the sea of Universal Love, you reach the acme of

Sweetness; when your mind loses its identity and merges with the Universal

Mind, then there is Splendour indescribable.

October 6: The Vedas teach that man should adore and worship God in gratitude

for His benedictions. The Bible teaches that he should pray for peace and

practise charity. The Koran would have man show mercy to the suffering and to

surrender his will to the Almighty. All religions have taught what is good, and

everyone should lead a righteous life based on this knowledge. If the minds are

pure, how can any religion be bad? All the religions are different paths

leading to one and the same destination. All devotees should experience this

truth and live up to it in their daily lives. They should lead righteous lives

and thereby experience enduring bliss. Only then will their spiritual effort be

fruitful. Listen to the words of the wise, purify your thoughts and concentrate

your mind on God. God can be installed only in a pure heart. The aim of all

Sadhana (spiritual practices) should be to purify the heart.

October 5: Of what use are wealth and position if one has no peace of mind? A

quiet conscience is man's most precious possession. To achieve inner peace,

desires have to be subdued and all thoughts should be centered on God. Engage

yourselves in service activities in a spirit of dedication. True service

consists in helping the poor and the forlorn in the society with humility and

dedication. This is service to the Divine. Practise the saying - "Dil me Ram,

Hath me Kaam." (Serve with you hands having installed God in the heart). Do not

hanker after power and pelf.

October 4: Love is inherent in man, but like a seed that has to be nourished by

water, love in man has to be fostered by dedicated service. Love is a sacred

quality. Love is like nectar. A man who has tasted the sweetness of Divine Love

will not desire anything else in the world. Life must be a constant

manifestation of love. Nowadays, love is expressed in a constricted, selfish

manner. It needs to be expressed in the form of service to society. Thereby

love becomes a reciprocal, ever-widening experience.

October 3: It is always preferable to approach God for the fulfillment of one's

wants, rather than cringe before men, who themselves are mere mortals. In his

own silent way, God will transform the mind and turn it towards Sadhana

(spiritual endeavour) and ensure a successful spiritual journey. He cannot

allow his children to lose their way and suffer in the wilderness of the

material world. When you approach God and seek his help and guidance, you have

taken the first step to save yourself. You are then led to accept His will as

your own. Thus, you achieve Shanti (Peace).

October 2: Man has been engaged in exploring the infinite, wonderful secrets of

nature in this marvellous creation in all possible ways. But, due to the

vagaries of his mind, intellect and ego, man has failed to understand the true,

eternal and spiritual basis underlying everything in the Universe and has lost

himself in the pursuit of the external phenomenal world as if it were the only

reality. In the process, he has failed to realize his own true nature and has

totally perverted his mind. The simple truth that everything is permeated by

the One has been lost sight of.

October 1: Live in the constant contemplation of your kinship with others and

with the Universe. Do good to others, treat all nature kindly, speak soft and

sweet words, become like a child devoid of envy, hate and greed; when your love

crosses the boundaries of your family or community and expands to those beyond,

you have taken the first step to cross the threshold of Maya (delusion).

TFTD: Archive 2003- 2004 -2005 - http://www..com/thought_for_the_day_archive.htm

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