Sai Vichaar for Thursday , October 18, 2007

[Guest guest]

Note: forwarded message attached.

Did you know? You can CHAT without downloading messenger. Click here

Sai Vichaarwww.saibaba.org Thursday , October 18, 2007 :: Volume 10, Issue 23 (In its tenth year of publication.) Sai Vichaar is a Weekly newsletter distributed every Thursday and is devoted to the life, philosophy and teachings of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi. Feel free to forward this newsletter to your interested associates in its original form.IN THIS ISSUE:FEATURE OF THE WEEKCONTRIBUTED ARTICLEDEVOTEES SAYPRAYER CLUBEXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEESQUOTATION OF THE WEEKQUESTION OF THE WEEKSAI ACTIVITIESFROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARDFEATURE OF THE WEEK: Significance of NavaratriThe ten days are the development of the Primordial energy form of Shakti. On each day its potentiality and functional attributes increase. On the last day it becomes Durga - the highest form of power or the Shakti of Parameswar. Thereafter, creation proceeds at a faster pace after evil forces restricting the evolution are destroyed.

Some body should explain this to devotees on these days so that they understand the significance of the deity and their roles. This can be done on the 8th day that is Ashtami. The Pooja of Gayatri Mata should be done separately in accordance with this principle, as Gayatri is the mother of Bramha, Vishnu, and Maheshwar - all in one.

If Devi mantra is not known then Gayatri Mantra will do and should be recited on the 8th day. Gayatri Yagnam should be conducted in the temple. Devotees should avoid negative thoughts and negative actions during the period.

They should speak as little as possible and desist from physical contacts.

They should do as much charity as possible in terms of feeding the poor, helping the needy and serving the sick. In the temple, Naam Japa, Bhandara etc are good actions.(Message from Shri C. B. Satpathy, source - Heritage of Shirdi Sai)CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE: Mast!Mujhe duniyaa se kyaa lenaa denaa Haath Sai ka jab sar per Mukh mein mere naam Sayee kaa Seesh sadaa charanon per

(What do I have to do with earthly dealings? As long as I have your blessings Sai; I lay at your feet, always chanting your divine name) When Panduranga Dixit the renowned lyricist penned the above words, he was probably feeling that state of esoteric bliss. Sai Baba Himself lived up to this tradition. The Saintly Father of Shirdi lived His entire life in the thoughts of God. Always uttering, "God is Great", Baba gave immense importance to remembering God's name. Baba spent His entire duration in Shirdi in this God intoxicated state known as "Mast" in the Sufi tradition. When one thinks of God before every action, sensuous or spiritual, the desires for things transitory will surely wane away, so said Baba. The purpose of mind is to think. If it is given things of sensuous nature, the thoughts will be on the senses. If the object is Sadguru, the benefits are immense. Sensuous pleasures are transitory at best and will lead to the destruction at worst. On the other hand, if Sadguru is made the object of one's thoughts, it leads to a state of fulfillment that is permanent. Pursuit of things of earthly nature leads to longing that never ends while the thoughts on Sadguru leads to contentment that ever stays.Let us start this beautiful Thursday with the reminiscence of Hemadpanth: "Oh Sai Sad-guru, the wish fulfilling tree of the Bhaktas, Let us never forget and lose sight of Your Feet; we have been troubled with the ins and outs (births and deaths) in this samsar; now free us from this cycle of births and deaths. Restrain us from the outgoing of our senses to their objects and introvert us and bring us face to face with the Atma (Self). As long as this outgoing tendency of the senses and the mind is not checked, there is no prospect of self-realization. Neither son, nor wife nor friend will be of any use in the end. It is only You, Who will give us salvation and happiness. Destroy completely our tendency for discussions and other evil matters, let out tongue get a passion for chanting Your name. Drive out our thoughts, good or otherwise and make us forget our bodies and houses, and do away with our egoism. Make us ever remember Your name and forget all other things. Remove the restlessness of our mind, and make it steady and calm. If you just clasp us, the darkness of night of our ignorance will vanish and we shall live happily in Your light"(Contributed by Sai Vichaar team)DEVOTEES SAY: PriyaMy niece had to register for her articles before this month end. She had joined a company and there were some agreement formalities which many principal were unwilling to get into. I prayed to Sai telling Him I will write about the prayer being fulfilled in Sai Vichaar and what a surprise the next day phone rings up, tells that she has a principal. Thanks Sai.SireeshaI became a devotee of Sai Baba through my husband, he gave me Sai Satcharita book and from then onwards I made it a point to read Satcharita every day. By Sai Baba's grace a lot of good things have happened and are still happening. I firmly believe that without Baba's grace nothing can be achieved. About 3 months back when I was about to complete Satcharita we got a confirmation that our GC was approved and we felt so happy as we lost hopes of receiving our GC this year. This time when I was again about to complete Satcharita my pregnancy got confirmed and our happiness knew no bounds and this was possible only because of Baba's blessings. I wholeheartedly pray to Baba that my pregnancy should go smoothly and Baba please bless us with a healthy baby and make us ever remain your devotees.SandhyaDear Baba, during the past one and a half month, my family has been to the hospital for so many reasons. I want to thank you for showering Your blessings and helping us through all the problems. I had a very easy and smooth delivery. My father had a successful operation here in the US, which was totally unanticipated. My newborn son was hospitalized but came out happily a week later only due to Your grace.. As promised I am submitting this experience to the devotees club. Always have firm faith and patience and you will experience Baba's loving grace on you always.

MohanSai Ram!! I am thankfull to Baba, with Baba's wishes I could pass the PMI examination. Thanks Baba for showing me the path.MaitreyiThank you very much Baba for making my visa get approved. It is only Your miracle. Otherwise, it would have taken so many months because of the query. Please help me to get a suitable job soon. Please continue to shower your blessings on us all the time and lead all of us through the right path.KaviBaba sorry for writing this article late. Baba as I promised that if my brother's report will come o.k. I will share my experience. Baba with Your grace everything is fine and my brother is doing fine. So Baba thank you for helping me and be with me. Baba my brother is trying to quit his bad habits so Baba please help him and please bless him to be Your devotee.PadmaBy the almighty Baba's grace the home pregnancy test result came out positive and I am 4 weeks pregnant now. I went for a blood test, and hope by Sainath's grace it will come out positive. Baba, thank you so much for this good news oh Lord, please help me deliver a healthy baby. My husband has psychological problems, Baba please change his mind so that he will not say any hurtful words during this pregnancy. May all of our souls rest on Your lotus feet. Please excuse for all the mistakes we made knowingly or unknowingly.RaveendraDear Sai, I have to thank you a lot for two things, Thanks a lot dear Sai for getting the Visa to my parents. Thanks a lot Baba for taking care of the minor accident that happened to my car.. The other person was so cooperative that the issue was resolved peacefully. Thanks again.PRAYER CLUB: DeviMy biggest concern is that my son who is 5 years old has been diagnosed with Autism and I am very worried about his future. My dearest Baba, I have been suffering for too long and feel very sad and lost all the time. Please show me the light through this darkness in my life.HarshBaba I am going through a tough phase in this project, please bless me so that I can complete this project succesfully. Baba I know you will make this possible, only give me strength so that I come out of this successfully.ShaliniMy mother is having an operation to remove her cancer tomorrow. She has been suffering for fours years from cancer and since it has spread, this may be one of the last chances for her to be cured(live longer). Please, be in the operating theatre with her and watch over her to ensure that everything goes well. I love my mother so much and I wish to see her happy and smiling again.PushpaBaba, why all this is happening to my both daughters.. Why my both daughters marriage matter is not solving. It has been more then 10 years but I am not seeing any door open from any side. Babas please open the door for my both daughters and provide them happy married life.SangeethaPlease let me do well in the interview and let me get the good news soon. Baba I am waiting for so long and I came so far only with Your grace otherwise I surely did not have the guts to come this far too. Please Baba bless me with a job soon and end this tension.EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES: VarunBaba many many thanks to you, Baba as you have shown us a miracle again. We are so grateful to you. Baba we were in tension and anxiety for 1 week when we heard that my sister's doctor said that she had abnormal cells in pap smear and it might develop into cancer that is it might be precancerous. We were terrified and many unwanted thoughts came in our mind, but we took refugee in you and you saved us Baba once again. My sister went for a test and by Your grace the reports turned to be normal, we are so much relieved now. Please do bless our families like this Baba, as promised I am writing this in Sai Vichaar. Baba we are very grateful to you, oh kind merciful Baba please do bless us always everyone who trusts you. Baba please forgive our mistakes always bless us, give us good thoughts and always bless us and protect us and everyone who trusts You. Sairam.BeenuJai Sai Ram, I wanted to share this experience with all the devotees in August only but perhaps it was against Baba's wishes so I am posting it now. It was my daughter's birthday on 2nd August she turned two that day. She woke up that day and I suddenly took her to the puja room and told her to say namaskar to Baba. She did that and I told her to say, "Baba today is my birthday and You please come to our house today evening" and she repeated the same to Baba. I was amazed when my neighbor's son came with a yellow color teddy bear as a gift for my daughter. It was Thursday on 2nd August. When I looked at the label on one of the legs of the teddy bear it was written Sai Baba products. I told my daughter that "See Baba has sent a gift for you through Deepu bhaiya" and she always says that this gift is given to me by Sai baba. Thank you Baba for showering Your blessings on my family and me. With Your blessing only my husband got his H1B visa approved. Baba we thank you very much for everything You are doing for us. Jai Sai Ram.AnjaliThis happened to me last month when I was diagnosed with an ovarian cyst and had to get it operated as it was dangerous. I could not submit myself as I was very scared of operation. Finally after taking opinion of two very good doctors I decided to get it done, as there was no other option. Every month I do the parayan of Sai Satcharita for 3 days so I was due for operation on Friday so I started reading on Tuesday. On Wednesday after I finished I suddenly felt like consulting another doctor and I went there in the morning and she asked me to get another scan done and wonder of wonders the cyst had disappeared completely it is a sheer miracle of great Sainath who pulled me out of this safely and I thank Him so much for all the support and help. He has been giving my family and has always protected us like his children. Thank you so much Baba.QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: "One should be honest, upright and virtuous".-Shri Sai BabaQUESTION OF THE WEEK: Q. Question of the week given below......A. by ShivpreetQ. We get to hear that whatever sufferings we undergo is due to the deeds of our previous births. To the contrary we also hear that whatever good or bad deeds we do, we have to experience the result in the same birth itself. Could anyone explain which is appropriate?

A. There is a chapter 47th in Sai satchritra in which there is a story of a lady and her husband. lady was devoted to lord shiva. once lord Shiva gave her a dream. that make an offering to my temple. whatever you will spend I will give hundred fold back to you. That lady spent Rs 1000 and she died. In the next birth she got one lakh rupees with the grace of god (refer 47th chapter of Sri Saisatcharita). So this story can give some reference to the answer of this question. Rest Baba knows better then all of us.SAI ACTIVITIES: Punyatithi event 2007Shirdi Sai Temple, Chicago will be celebrating Punyatithi 2007 event for three days this weekend. To sponsor Gurupooja or any of the event online please visit www.saibaba.org and follow(click) the link to Punyatithi 2007 page. For sponsoring by phone call 847-931-4058.Sai Bhajan Sandhya by Mangala ApteMangala Apte, well known classical singer from India will be rendering Sai bhajans in Shirdi Sai Temple, Chicago on Saturday October 20th at 6:30 pm and at Shirdi Sai Mandir, Minneapolis on Sunday October 21st at 6 pm. Please participate along with family and friends on the occasion of Baba's Punyatithi. For more information please send an email to maildrop or call 847-931-4058.Sri Saibaba Mahasamadhi Celebrations, MinneapolisSri Saibaba Mandir, Minneapolis invites all to join the daylong celebration of Sri Saibaba's 89th Mahasamadhi anniversary on Sunday, October 21, 2007. The schedule includes traditional Sri Saibaba Arathis, Sree Sainaama Mahamantra Havan, Sri Sainaama Jap, and Sri Saibaba Bhajans by Smt. Mangala Apte. Please visit www.hamaresai.org for more details.Baba's Mahasamadhi Divas Celebrations in Unionville, TorontoSunday, October 21st - Mahasamadhi celebrations with Sai Abhishek, Annadaan and Satsang. For details on location and timing please visit www.shirdisainath.org. We humbly invite volunteers to share their memorable experiences with Shirdi Sai Baba. All those interested please contact us before the event. Please forward this information to other Saibandhus. Other details, please call 416-294-4804.

FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD: Some of the contributors are continuing to post multiple messages, that is, several copies of the same message. They are sincerely requested not to post multiple messages. This also happens when you repeatedly submit the same message. There is no need for this as submitting once should be enough to get to the editor's review. Kindly consider the inconvenience this will cause to the editing process. Thanks.

The Question of the week for this week is suggested by a Sai devotee as follows: Q. We get to hear that whatever sufferings we undergo is due to the deeds of our previous births. To the contrary we also hear that whatever good or bad deeds we do, we have to experience the result in the same birth itself. Could anyone explain which is appropriate?Humbly Yours,The EditorABOUT THIS EMAIL:This newsletter is not sent unsolicited. This newsletter is e-mailed to you because of at least one of the following reasons:1. You have d through our on-line page, 2. You have visited our web site and shown interest in the Sai topics and asked for information, or 3. You have been gifted a subscription by a friend or a relative.To Subscribe Sai Vichaar for receipt by Email please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the option from the menu. If you are subscribing the newsletter for your friend or a relative, we request that the person concerned may be notified about receiving the newsletter and the willingness to receive the newsletter be confirmed. To Un-Subscribe receipt of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the option from the menu. If you have problems accessing the web page due to network problems, please send an e-mail to support with the words "Un Sai Vichaar" in the subject line. To make a contribution to any of the sections of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the Submit Articles to Sai Vichaar option from the menu. Back copies of HTML version of Sai Vichaar can be accessed by visting the URL http://www.saibaba.org/whatsnew.html. For any questions or more information regarding this e-mail or our web site, please send an e-mail to maildrop and your inquiries will be attended to promptly.Thank you,The webmasterFrom and Editor:Shirdi Sai Baba Web SiteShirdi Sai Baba Sanstha(A non-profit organization)Mail:12N950 State Route 47 Hampshire, IL 60140, USAEmailmaildropPhone847-931-4058Fax847-931-4066© Copyright 1998-2006 saibaba.org, Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha - Sai Vichaar Weekly may only be redistributed in its unedited form. Written permission must be obtained to reprint or cite the information contained within this newsletter. Sai Vichaar is devoted to the philosophy and teachings of Shri Sadguru Sai Baba of Shirdi, and will take every measure to avoid topics or themes contradicting the same. Sai Vichaar team or the Shirdi Sai Baba web site is not responsible for the opinions expressed by individual contributors.