Guest guest Posted September 17, 2008 Report Share Posted September 17, 2008 Sai Vichaar www.saibaba.org Thursday , September 18, 2008 :: Volume 11, Issue 19 (In its eleventh 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 WEEK CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE DEVOTEES SAY PRAYER CLUB EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES QUOTATION OF THE WEEK QUESTION OF THE WEEK SAI ACTIVITIES FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD FEATURE OF THE WEEK: Mast! Mujhe duniyaa se kyaa lenaa denaa Haath Sai ka jab sar per Mukh mein mere naam Sayee kaaSeesh 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 ARTICLE: The Sadguru the Destroyer of Ignorance The akarma, the "non-deeds" (the things done, but not claimed by the doer as having been done by him) of the one who faithfully adheres to the advice of the Master, turn into good deeds. His deeds themselves are converted into Brahman. He is full of purity. He is so pure that whatever the actions (karma), nothing affects him. The image of the Master should be perpetually borne in your heart. The sunlight is unbearably scorching because when the sun rises, once again, the daily life, along with all its day to day transactions begins, and with it comes back all the tensions, worries and anxieties. These anxieties bring about a burning (scorching) of the mind. During the night, while you sleep, there are no anxieties. In the sleeping state, the king and the beggar are both alike. The Sadguru is compared to the Sun. The transactions of the mind are carried out in both the waking and the dreaming states. The light of the Sun, in the form of the teachings of the Sadguru, destroys the darkness of Ignorance and brings about the dawn of Knowledge. When the Sun in the form of the Sadguru arises, it destroys the night of Ignorance and with it vanishes all of the sorrows generated by Ignorance. When the Sadguru accepts you as His disciple, He convinces you that the delusion of the worldly life is untrue. Such a Master should be offered a salute (namaskar). Why? Because we need Him, as He is the Sun, in the form of Knowledge. The Sadguru penetrates the night of Avidya (Ignorance), the objective knowledge and brings about the dawn of a "Golden Day" in the form of advice (teachings). Night means the Ignorance regarding our, "True Nature," Swaroopa, and regarding "Who am I?" True Knowledge cannot be realized unless worldly knowledge is proved to be untrue. The bird in the form of the individual (Jiva) is given the "Eyes of Knowledge" and is divested of the feeling of "I am the body" by the Master. He becomes convinced that He is the Self. The Sadguru convinces you that you are the Self by advising the intellect. He also destroys the duality that has seeped into the intellect. He eliminates the discriminating viewpoint (duality) which taints the sight of the traveler treading the path of Self-Realization. When the inspiration "Soham,I Am He" is generated deep within, the Sun in the form of Knowledge is at its zenith. The delusion, which has obscured the Self, thus far vanishes. How then, can the dream in the form of this world persist? Now, He who is the King of the land in the form of our house, the Self (Atman) has dawned. He destroys both, the apparent and the non-apparent. There are two types of delusions, one is the delusion of the Maya (Illusion), and the other is the delusion of the Vedanta. The world is made apparent by the delusion of Maya. The delusion "I do not know the Self" is the Vedantic delusion. The Sadguru is always beyond these delusions. He may not be physically glowing but it is as if He, that Nivrittinath, (Nivrittti-devoid of concepts, nath-the Lord, the Lord who is devoid of concepts) has undertaken the venture of illuminating everything. I offer my namaskara (salute) to Him. When we come to know the greatness of the Lord, we can praise Him. How do we praise the Sadguru? If we please God, he will grant us a boon or a gift by virtue of which we will get, even more entangled in the delusion of Maya. Vedanta is a marvelous invention. For the sake of the ignorant, the Saints and Sages of the old days have written down their direct experience as Vedanta. There are fourteen sciences and sixty-four arts. The "Science of Brahman" is the fourteenth science. Supremacy can be achieved with the aid of this Science. This Science which can be owned even by an individual (Jiva) is called the "Science of Brahman" and it can be achieved only by the teachings of the Sadguru. Therefore, it should be learned from the One who Knows Brahman and is proficient in the "Knowledge of Brahman." (Contributed by Source: Teachings of Siddharameshwar Maharaj) DEVOTEES SAY: LaxmanShe delivered(normal delivery) a baby boy yesterday(Thursday).You know what the Doctor said about a fortnight ago and there was a complete silence in the house since then. What I can say about our Doctor of Doctors. SaiBaba just completed 13 weeks, please be with us, and bless us with a healthy full term baby... Please Baba by then make us worthy of having Sai child deva... GeetaThank You very much for making the package reach my nephew safely. Thank You for all that You have done for us. Please guide us in the right path and make me chant Your name always. SubramanianWe were bit tensed last week, as my mother (72 years old) had to undergo Eye Cataract surgery, which was already over-due. My mother was very fearful about this. With Lord Sai Maa's Grace, the operation went on well. Doctor has given good report during his post-operation check-up. We are giving eye drops regularly. Thanks to Sai Maa for having showered affection and HIS blessings on my mother. Please take care of her and be with her always. Om Sai Sri Sai Jai Jai Sai. AlkaFromfebruary2007 I am in a mess, I am not able to concentrate on anything. I am in this house from last 17 years, my husband has left me and there is no alimony from him. SAI has helped him always and the current problem will be solved by him like always. Only Lord help me more now because I wish to do something properly now By September end 2008 all should fall in proper place. Thank you God. PRAYER CLUB: UhaWe started treatment on a Thursday and that itself is giving me a lot of confidence. Please be with us Baba. You are my father and my guru. Please help us. PreetiBaba I want to marry a person of different caste but my parents will never agree. I do not want to hurt my parents. However, I know he is the best person for me. Please help me Baba. I do not know what to do. We are getting married in December without my parents' knowledge. Baba please take care of my parents. PriyaPlease take my burden, show me the right path, and safeguard your blessed children always. They need proper attention. Please bless them and be with them always. SavithriGive my husband a good thinking and open his eyes about the finance matter and he is still not worried about money and I am finding it very difficult to make him understand about the reality of the life. You see that he is going to Vizag, and Chennai and avoid to come to Hyderabad due to financial problem, because this month I will have problem in getting my salary and I have to support my husband. So please Baba bless my husband accordingly and rest I am leaving it to you. Make my husband a responsible person. If you help me in giving more money, I can send to my husband. Finance is the problem for me. So decision I am leaving to you Baba. DevoteeI really want to thank you for your blessings. My sons first doctor's appointment was good, he is responding well with the medicines. Please be with him throughout the treatment and give my son quick relief. My humble request to you Deva that in November when the second tests are being done please bless him and cure him completely. I want to visit your holy shrine with my son please make our wish possible. Also another humble request is that to bless my daughter with a healthy baby. I have full faith in you baba. Please bless my family EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES: DevoteeFor the past so many days, we were expecting some payment from the customer though we have completed our project as per the commitment, and customer was not satisfied though we have given all our support to him. I was praying regularly for this payment and today morning also I was praying Sai Baba that we have to receive this payment at least by today. Baba has done to this to me. I am not having any words to express my thanks and when I received the payment, I was in tears and was saying in myself " BABA IS GREAT". PujaIts very small but still a great fact to support the presence of Baba with his devotees. I went to Shirdi and bought a Baba's calendar size picture which was unframed. So until this Thursday it was kept in my puja unframed. From all along i have been thinking of taking it for framing but some how it did not click. Yesterday I went to Baba's mandir and thought of framing it but could not see any shop on my way. I had an urge to get the picture frame on this Thursday only for some reason. So when I was prostrating before Baba , I said " Baba please find me a frame for it." and I came home. It was 8.30 and after putting the one of my daughters to sleep, i opened the loft to keep my mobile box and was just amazed to find two old frames which I completely forgot about. When I took one out and checked the size, it was exactly the size of Baba' picture and I was so moved that I was garbled . Though the glass of the frame was missing, I was able to fix Baba's picture in it and hung it in my puja room on the same Thursday as desired by me. Hey Baba thank you so much even though I some times so lost, you come to my rescue and keep upgrading my faith in you. I love you Baba. QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: "All our senses, organs, and mind should co-operate in worshipping and serving Baba. It is no use in engaging some organs in the worship and deflecting others. If a thing like worship or meditation is to be done, it ought to be done with all our mind and soul".-Sri Sai Satcharitha QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Q. Purification of mind is absolute necessity for the spiritual growth- comment A. by Sadashiv Kavthankar The Shruti (Taittiriya Upanishad) exhorts us to honor and worship mother, father and preceptor, and to study (learn and teach) the sacred scriptures. These are the means of purifying our minds and unless this purification is effected, self-realization is not possible. Neither the senses, nor the mind and intellect reach the Self. Modes of proof, such as Perception and Inference will not help us in the matter. It is the grace of the Guru that counts. The objects of our life such as Dharma, Artha and Kama are attainable with our effort, but the fourth object, Moksha (liberation) can only be had with the help of the Guru. Q. Purification of mind is absolute necessity for the spiritual growth -comment A. by Raghu Baba's inspiration prompted me to write about this valuable topic. Purification of mind as it sounds is not that simple and at the same time not hard to achieve. One can achieve the state with Baba's blessings, spiritual practise and by reading Vedas and scriptures, by chanting our Lord's Sainath's name, by engulfing his multi-fold form in our mind and thoughts through constant Sadhana (Practise). Once a devotee Ramdas came to Shirdi. He was a great devotee of Lord Rama. He stayed at Shirdi for some days. Every day sitting in the front side of the mosque, he read Vishnu Sahasranamam and Aadyatmika Ramayana. He made this Parayan several times. One day, while he was reading the Vishnu Sahasranaman, Baba sent him out on an errand. He obeyed Baba and stopped the Parayana in the middle. After Ramdas left, Baba took the Vishnu Sahasranamam book of Ramdas and gave it to Shama, saying, "Shama, this Vishnu Sahasranamam book is very valuable, which gives good results. I am presenting this to you. You read this sincerely with devotion. Once when my heart was beating rapidly, I suffered a lot and thought that my life was in danger. Under such difficult conditions, I put this book on my heart. It did a lot good and the suffering reduced. I thought Allah had come personally and cured my ailment. I am giving such a powerful book to you. If you read daily one Namam also, a lot of good will happen to you." But Shama hesitated to take the book as it belonged to Ramdas, who was an angry and quarrelsome person and a quarrel might take place when Ramdas returned. But he failed to understand that Baba's aim was to do him good. Q. continued.. A. by continued.. On his return, Ramdas learnt about this and created a scene even though Shama narrated the facts. Then Baba called Ramdas and said to him, "Ramdas, why are you in an angry and quarrelsome mood? Shama had nothing to do in the matter. I gave the book to him. Is he not our man? Why are you quarreling with him unnecessarily ? Always talk softly and with love. Even though you read sacred religious books daily, your mind still is not purified. A real Rama bhakta should practice equality and detachment and not attachment. With money you can purchase any number of books but not persons. Think well and act intelligently . You know this book "by heart" . Let Shama also read this and be benefitted . If you desire, you can have some other book from Shama in exchange for your book." Hearing this loving advice from Baba, Ramdas cooled down and took the book Pancharatna Gita from Shama, in exchange for his book. The above speech of Baba was not only intended for Ramdas but to all of us . Even though we read a lot of religious books or spend our time in the worship of God, there will not be any benefit unless our hearts get purified. Shyama was not a scholar professionally, neither he held any positions that raise his social status, unlike other devotees of Baba. But Baba's ardent love for shyama was unflinching. Shyama was so fortunate that baba cared him like a mother and looked after him through all the turmoils in his life. This is just because his mind was so pure and his love for Baba was unfathomable. SAI ACTIVITIES: Navarathri and Punyatithi Celebrations in Chicago - Oct 7th to Oct 9thShirdi Sai Temple Chicago will celebrate Navarathri from Sep 29th and Dasherrah and punyatithi celebrations from Oct 7th to Oct 9th. For event details please visit www.saibaba.us and follow the links to the event page. Please send email to maildrop for more information or call the temple line at 847-931-4058 for sponsorship and volunteer details. Sri Saibaba Mandir, Minneapolis, MNSri Saibaba Mandir is located in Minneapolis, MN at 1835 Polk St NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418. The mandir is open 7 days a week in the evenings from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm and during morning hours from 9 am to 12:30 pm, everyday. Satsangs are conducted every Sunday mornings, 9 am to 12:30 pm. Please visit the mandir website www.hamaresai.org or call 612-789-7729 for more information on mandir activities, events and other information. Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of Dallas/Fort Worth, TexasSri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of DFW Metroplex is located at 2109 West Parker (Parker Plaza), Suite 212, Plano, TX 75023. For temple hours and activities please call the temple office at 469-467-3388 or visit the website www.shirdisaidallas.org. Shirdi Sai Temple of New England, Boston AreaSri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of New England is now operational. It is located at 1827 Bridge St # 8, Dracut, MA 01824. The temple is open every Thursday from 7.00 pm to 9.00 pm and Saturday's from 4.00 pm to 7.00 pm. For temple hours and activities please visit the website www.nessp.org or send mail to maildrop. Shirdi Sai Center in Bay Area, CAShirdi Sai Center is located 897-B East Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale, CA 94086. For more information please call 408-705-7904 or 408-564-6704 or send email to saibandhu. You can also visit our website is www.Shirdisaiparivaar.org. Shirdi Saibaba temple, Los Angeles, CADevotees in Los Angeles area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Los Angeles area. The temple is located at - 144 South 4th Street, Montebello, CA 90640. For more information please call Krishna Samantula at 949-679-9938 or visit www.shirdisaila.org. Saibaba Temple, Columbus, OhioDevotees in Columbus and surrounding Ohio locations area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Metro Columbus area. The temple is located in a leasing space at 7674 Sawmill Rd, Dublin, OH 43016. Please attend daily Aaratis and Thursday bhajans. For more information please call Panditjee at 614-799-8411 or visit www.saibaba.cc. Shirdi Sai bhajans every Thursday at Maitland, FloridaDevotees are invited to participate in Sai study and bhajans on Thursdays between 7-8 pm at Meditation Gallery, 219 E Horatio Ave, Maitland, FL 32715. For more details please contact Bonnie at 407-830-1276. Sri Shirdi Sai Temple of Austin, TXSri Shirdi Sai Temple of Austin, Texas opened at 601 E Whitestone Blvd (RM 1431), Cedar Park, TX. Daily 4 aarthis are performed to Sai Baba. As part of service to needy, a weekly sandwich seva is also conducted. For more information, please visit www.saiaustin.org. Shirdi Sai Mandir, Dulles, VAShirdi Sai Mandir is located at 43671 Trade Center Place #166 Dulles, VA 20166. The mandir is open through the week in the evenings from 6pm to 9 pm. Sri Satyanarayan pooja will be conducted every full moon day. Please visit the mandir website www.shirdisaimandir.org or call (703) 661-4724 for more information on activities, events and other information. Shirdi Sai Mandir, TorontoShirdi Sai Mandir Toronto is open from 7am to 9pm for darshan. Extended hours on thursdays and saturdays. For more information, program schedule or directions please call 647-444-4724 FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD: In the true spirit of Sai devotion, contributors are requested to remember the global nature of Sai Vichaar readership. Therefore, the content, language, style, and presentation, appropriate to a worldwide readership will be more rewarding and fulfilling. It should also be noted that when a section from any material other than their own is quoted or referred to, it is the authors' responsibility to acknowledge the source appropriately The "Question of the week" for this week is Sri Saibaba said, "Purification of mind is absolute necessity for the spiritual growth, without this all sadhanas are of no use" - Comment? Humbly Yours,The Editor ABOUT 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, or3. 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 webmaster From and Editor: Shirdi Sai Baba Web Site Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha (A non-profit organization) Mail: 12N950 State Route 47 Hampshire, IL 60140, USA Email maildrop Phone 847-931-4058 Fax 847-931-4066 © Copyright 1998-2008 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. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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