Sai message for the day

[Guest guest]

Swami! We pray to you to tell us about the two aspects of God, with

form and without it?

 

Sai Baba: It is here that many are confused. Without a form, from

where do you get the formless? How is it possible for you to

visualise the formless? Since you have a form, you can only think of

God with a form. For example, if a fish is to think of God, it can

visualise God only in the form of a bigger fish. So also, if at all a

buffalo thinks of God, it can think of God only as a bigger buffalo.

In the same way, man can think of God only as existing in human form,

the form of an ideal man.

 

Even the formless aspect of God can be meditated upon basing on the

aspect of God with form. You cannot derive the formless without a

form. Here is a small example. You are all here seated in this hall

in front of Swami today in Kodaikanal. You are listening to Swami's

words. This is an experience with a form. Later, you go home and

after a few days you begin to reflect on what had happened here. You

recall the entire scenario. In fact, has Swami come to your place

physically? Would you find this room at your place? Have all of you

gone there? No. But this direct experience is pictured mentally,

which gives you the indirect experience of being here. What you see

here is the sakara and what you experience there is the nirakara. So,

the formless is based on the aspect with form. One cannot exist

without the other.

 

Another example. Here is milk. You want to drink it. How do you

drink? Don't you need a cup or a glass? Similarly to worship God

(milk) you need a form (cup).