Caution! Danger Ahead

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Caution!

Danger Ahead

Devotees worship the Lord variously - as the Infinite

or Heavenly Father or Divine Mother, or as Divine Friend (like the relationship

between Krishna and Arjuna), or as

Divine Lover, Divine Beloved, Divine Master, Divine Child. God responds to the

devotee in whatever aspect he holds dear. To the true monist He reveals Himself

as the Infinite; to the sincere dualist He appears in the desired finite

form......

 

I is full of pitfalls. But

the most hazardous is the influence of bad company. Even a fleeting association

with such bad company leads virtuous people to be deflected from their noble

path. Conversely, good company can instill noble qualities in even the most

hardened sinner.

 

While contemplating the life of Sai Baba, my mind

ruminated as to how ‘Satsang’ among Sai

devotees elevates them. But somehow I was wondering as to how Prahlad became a great devotee of Vishnu even though he was

born to Hiranyakashipu, who had hatred for God.

 

It so happened that Sai

brother S.P. Ruhela came down to Nagpur in one of his Sai-missions. In our Satsang, I expressed this doubt and he gave me a scholarly

exposition, which I would like to share with my Sai-bandhus.

 

Once, while King Hiranyakashipu

was out on a war, the Chief of Devas, Indra decided to kidnap queen Kayadhu,

the King's wife. She was pregnant and Indra thought

that if the child is born, he will grow upto be just

as villainous as his father. For this reason, he kidnapped Kayadhu

with the intention of killing the unborn child. On the way to his palace, he

came across sage Narada.

 

" Say Indra! Where are

you taking the queen?”

 

" To my palace to kill her unborn

child. Because when he grows up he will be as just villainous as his

father! "

 

" You know Indra; it is

not always true that only a villain is born in a villain's family. And if you

kill this child, you will be committing murder. "

 

'But revered sage! What can I do? His father is harassing us

terribly and this child will do the same when he grows up. That is why it is

better to get rid of him now. "

 

" Have faith Indra, I

will take care of the queen and ensure that the child does not become a replica

of his father. "

 

Indra, trusting the wise words of the sage, handed

the queen over to him. Narad gave refuge to the queen

in his hermitage and told her she could stay until her husband the King returns

from his battles.

Now, being a sage, everyday there were spiritual

discourses going on in his hermitage. The queen listened to these discourses and

simultaneously the child in her womb also listened. Thus, when this child Prahlad was born, he was a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu.

The constant spiritual discourses in Narada's

hermitage had an effect on him. Because the unborn child had the company of Narada who was attached to God, Prahlad

too developed an attachment to God. From this incident one can see that the

type of company a person keeps has a profound effect on one's development.

 

Sai Baba, Sri Narasimha Swamiji

and Sri Radhakrishna Swamiji

stressed the need for ‘Satsang’, bhajans, reading scriptures, visiting temples etc., as

means of God-realisation. Let us follow this dictum

and attain spiritual upliftment.

(Source Shri

Sai Padananda Jan 1999)