DISTANCE DOES NOT MATTER...PROF ANIL KUMAR & BABA

[Guest guest]

Distance Does Not Matter

And further He also made another statement. It was a story. I know many of you foreigners know more about these stories than what we know. I have met some foreigners who have gone through the Bhagavad Githa and the Tripura Rahasya in depth. Most of us do not know those things, I am sorry to say that. The Sai Family is such today that distance is not a criterion. Distance does not matter. I met some of the devotees from Argentina. They have gone through all these texts. I saw one gentleman from Argentina reading Tripura Rahasya. I never read it.

I asked him, "What is this?"

"Don’t you know this?" he said.

"Well, I am sorry, I’ll find out and then meet you later. (Laughter) So, I shouldn’t doubt your scholarship."

The Prestige of the Family

This story is an illustration from the Mahabharata where the birth of Karna was not announced to the world because Karna's mother, the virgin Kunti, gave birth to him before she was married. So, it would have been a matter of insult -- it would have reduced the prestige of the family -- so she didn’t tell anybody about the birth of this boy, gifted to her by the Sun god himself. Somehow she left that baby.

That baby was taken care of and brought up by a low caste man. Karna was brought up to be the chieftain of the Kauruvas. Towards the end of the war, the Pandavas were ready to kill anyone. Karna was a major general of the opposite camp. Naturally, a mother is a mother, so Kunti went to her son Karna.

"Look here, you are my eldest son. The other five are your younger brothers. You belong to the enemy’s camp. I want you to give me a boon as your mother. Don’t kill your brothers. You may be the chief of the enemy’s' camp, but don't kill your brothers," she went on crying.

Then Karna said, "Mother, what a thing you have done! Why did you not tell them that I am their brother? Why did you not tell me earlier that I am your son? What a tragedy is going to take place now."

Karna also cried, "Look here, Mother. I am the chief of the Kauravas, and I should be loyal to my king. Just because in this last moment you tell me that I'm your son, I am not going to leave my duty. I should be loyal to the king. So, I won’t touch four of your sons. I will attack only one -- Arjuna. He is my enemy. I will only kill him, that’s all. Your other four sons, I won’t touch them. Don’t be worried."

That’s what he said. Bhagavan was explaining this.

Then immediately I said, "Swami, wasn’t it wrong on Kunti’s part not to tell the truth -- that Karna was her son, her eldest son? Was it proper of her to hide it like that?"

Bhagavan is really supreme. He will never humiliate any character. He will make every character sublime.

He said, "No, no, you are mistaken. Kunti was not wrong. She did not reveal that Karna was her son because of the prestige of the family. He was born to her when she was not married. If that truth had been revealed to everybody, the royal family would have been viewed as very cheap by the kingdom. So, for the prestige of the family, she did not reveal the truth."

That’s how He built up the nobility of her character.

And then He said, "In those days, the punishment was not capital punishment. One was not beheaded or killed. It was enough if his head was completely shaven and then he was driven out of the country. That was the punishment. One didn’t have to be killed with a sword, no. They let him go. They let him leave the country with a shaven head. Exile -- that was the punishment in those days." That’s what Bhagavan said.

Later He made reference to two people from the Mahabharata - one was Bheeshmacharya, the other was Dronacharya. Acharya means ‘professor’. According to Bhagavan, Bheeshmacharya was a real professor or acharya because he practiced what he preached, whereas the other man, Dronacharya, was only a professor by title because he did not practice what he preached. This was a first time revelation from Bhagavan.

The Parents of Rama and Sita

Then, on that same day, the 18th of October, He made a reference to the Ramayana. He spoke about Parasurama. Parasurama was trying to kill all the Kshatriyas (warrior caste). He had taken a vow to kill all the Kshatriyas. He killed all except for two, Dasaratha and Janaka. Dasaratha was the father of Rama and Janaka was the father of Sita. These two were saved.

"How, Swami? When everybody else was killed, how were those two saved?"

Swami gave the answer, "A newly-married man should not be killed. Dasaratha had three wives, and he married one after the other. Whenever Parasurama got ready to kill him, Dasaratha would have another marriage. In this way, his life was saved." (Laughter)

"And then how was Janaka, the other king, the father of Sita -- how was his life also saved? How?"

Baba replied, "Someone who is performing a yagna should not be killed. Janaka was always performing yagnas, so he was spared. Dasaratha and Janaka were spared like that, and they happened to be the parents of Rama and Sita. That is all the Divine drama."

OCTOBER 16th, 2002

Divert and Direct Your Mind Towards God

I should also let you know what happened on the 16th of October, what Swami said. A few questions were asked.

One question was, "Swami, for every action, there is a reaction. For every action, there is a result. Karma is action. Karmaphala is the result of the action. So, whatever I do, I cannot escape from the consequences of my action. If my actions are good, I will have good results. If my actions are bad, there will be bad results. I have to face them. I cannot run away from the consequences. This is what You tell us. But I have one doubt, Swami."

"What is it?"

"In Adwaitha, in non-dualistic philosophy, there is neither action nor the doer. There is nothing like that. There is no action. There is no doer because all the life is a dream, as per non-dualistic philosophy. Swami, how do You explain this ‘action-reaction’ on one hand, and ‘no action whatsoever’ on the other hand. How do You correlate this non-dualistic philosophy, Shankara Adwaitha, and this action-reaction?"

Then Bhagavan immediately said, "Go to the root cause of action. What is the cause of your action? Thought. From where has this thought arisen? From the mind. So, out of the mind, thought has arisen. Thought has led to action; action has given you the consequence, the reward or result. Now, as long as you operate at the level of the mind, as long as you work at the mind level, you cannot be free from karmaphala or the consequences of your actions. You cannot escape from the reaction because you are operating at the level of the mind. But, Shankara Adwaitha says that you should transcend the mind. You should go beyond the mind."

"Oh Swami, to transcend the mind or go beyond the mind, is it possible? What’s it all about? Please let me know."

Baba said, "To transcend the mind and go beyond the mind, know the mind and what it is."

"Oh! I only say, 'Never mind,' but I don’t know what the mind is! Swami, what is the mind?"

"Ah. Look here. Mind is nothing but a bundle of thoughts. Like threads interwoven make a piece of cloth, a bundle of thoughts interwoven constitute the mind."

"So, Swami, how do I go beyond the mind?"

"Withdraw all the thoughts, then you will be thoughtless. When you are thoughtless, there is no mind. When there are no threads, then there is no cloth. Similarly, when there are no thoughts, there is no mind."

"Oh ho, Swami, how to be thoughtless? (Laughter) How to be thoughtless?"

"Yes, it is possible."

"Why? How?"

"By diverting the mind towards God. Divert and direct your mind towards God. Your mind is towards the world, now. Divert it. Direct it. Re-direct it towards God. Once the mind is directed towards God, thoughts disappear. The mind is full of Divinity. The mind is full of God. No more thoughts, no more mind, no more action, no more reaction. That is the way," He said.

So nice to hear, but I have yet to practice. (Laughter)

Positive Thinking

Then, "Swami, how do I develop positive thinking?"

"It is very easy," He said.

"Very easy? When a fellow starts blaming me, how can I take it positively? When a fellow is harming me, how can I have positive thinking towards him? When a fellow is doing so much harm, how can I have positive thinking? Is it possible?"

"Very easy."

"Swami, how? Please let me know."

"When you realize that all that is said to you and all that is done against you is for your own good, that is positive thinking. Positive thinking means taking everything that happens to you as for your own good. No matter what others say about you, no matter what others may do towards you, no matter how you are harmed, just take it as for your own good. That is positive thinking."

"I see – anything more Swami, on how to develop positive thinking? How to accept that everything is for my good? For example, if I beat someone, how can they take that to be for their own good? How?"

Then He said, "It is possible by having strong faith in God. Strong faith in God helps you to develop positive thinking."

Cosmic Mind

Then someone asked, "Swami, what is the difference between the individual mind and the Cosmic Mind?"

Swami said, "The Cosmic Mind is Universal. The Cosmic Mind is Divinity. The individual mind is an entity. It has an identity. Entity and identity have a name and a form, whereas the Cosmic Mind or Universal Mind is nameless and formless. Nameless, formless -- Universal Mind is Cosmic Mind. The one with a name and a form -- an entity, an identity -- is the individual mind."

"Oh Swami, is there any relationship between the two?"

"Yes, both are the same."

"Both are the same? One has a form and the other has no form? One has a name and the other has no name? How can they be one?"

"It is very simple."

"How Bhagavan? How is it so simple?"

"Yes, it is simple."

"Why and how?"

"When the individual forgets his identity, when he is not mindful of the name and form, when he transcends and goes beyond the name and the form, when he is not attached to name and form any longer, then he becomes the Cosmic Mind. So long as you are attached to your name and form, you are separate from the Cosmic Mind. Once the name and form are given up, then the individual mind and the Cosmic Mind are one and the same."

"Still, I don’t understand, Swami."

Swami said, "Very simple. Imagine a balloon. There is air inside the balloon and there is also air all around it. The air all around is the Cosmic Mind. The air inside the balloon is the individual mind. When the balloon bursts, the air in the balloon merges into the air around it. There’s no difference. So, the difference is due to the size, name, and form of the balloon. There is no difference between the air in the balloon and the air around the balloon. So, the individual mind and Cosmic Mind -- they are different because of the name and the form."

That’s what Bhagavan said.

The Purpose of Life

"Swami, permit us to put another question."

"What is it?"

"Swami, what is the purpose of life?" Simple question! (Laughter) "What is the purpose of life?"

Swami said, "The purpose of life is to find unity with God, to realize Divinity within; to find unity with God means to know that you are God. That’s all. That is the purpose of life. So long as you feel that you are different from God, there is a long way to go. You will have to travel along the spiritual path until that identity, that oneness, that unity is realized and experienced."

That’s what Bhagavan said on that day, the 16th of October.

 

 

OCTOBER 9th, 2002

Mother Will Not Forget

Next, I would like to talk to you about what happened on the 9th of October. Yes, what did He say? It was the day when Swami ordered the distribution of ice cream to all students. Wow - ice cream, very nice you know. We all like it. Some students distributed ice cream cups to everybody.

Swami suddenly came and called these students, "Hey boys, have you distributed ice cream to everybody?"

"Yes, Swami."

"Everyone got it?"

"Yes."

"You are useless fellows. Those two boys did not get any. Go and give them some."

Then, He turned to everybody and said, "You call yourselves brothers. Look here, brothers will forget, but a mother will not forget. (Laughter) Brothers may forget, but a mother will not forget."

This is an indication that Bhagavan is a Mother to us all.

I Suffer On Your Behalf

Here is another ‘Pearl of Wisdom’ that was shared on the 9th of October. What was it? Bhagavan takes upon Himself the sicknesses of others. What happens when He does that? Will He suffer? Why should He accept sickness?

Swami said this: "I accept, I receive, I suffer on your behalf in response to your prayers because, if left to you, the pain would be unbearable. The pain would be unbearable, excruciating, and terrible, and you could not bear it. As you pray, I take it upon Myself."

"Swami, do You also suffer as I suffer? Will You have pain, as I have?"

"Yes, but in My case the duration is for a short time, whereas you have to suffer for a long time. When I take it upon Myself, the period of suffering is cut short -- it’s a very brief time. I do it so that you are free from that sickness, and you are free from that pain. That’s why I accept others’ pain."

That’s what Bhagavan said.

Once, Swami granted an interview to a schoolboy who was asthmatic. Many asthmatic people find it very difficult to breathe during the rainy season.

The young, innocent boy said, "Oh Swami, I suffer so much. I cannot breathe. It is unbearable, Swami."

"Oh I see. Don’t worry, My child. Don’t worry."

Immediately Swami was gasping because He had taken that asthma problem upon Himself. It lasted for a couple of minutes, and then subsided.

When Swami was normal again He said, "You won’t have an asthma attack again. Don’t worry."

This is an example of how Baba takes upon Himself the sufferings of people and gives them total relief.

Before I conclude, here is another story.

Yesterday Bhagavan came out and said, "Have you seen those two doctors?"

"Swami I did not see them because the doctors went into the interview room and came out, and I sit over on the steps, as You know. So how can I see them? Impossible! Swami, I did not see them."

Baba said, "Those doctors are from Germany. Both husband and wife are heart specialists. They are top doctors who have performed several heart transplants. They are heart transplant experts, and they have been invited by the Government of Australia to go there and serve.”

Before leaving for Australia, they wanted to have the Darshan of Baba and visit His Hospital. They knew about Baba and had heard of the work done in the Super Speciality Hospital. So, having heard about Swami, they wanted to come here, study and then go to Australia with His Inspiration and Divine Blessings.

May Bhagavan bless you.

Sai Ram!

Professor Anil closed his talk by singing the bhajan,

"Jai, Jai Prabhu Giridhari, Natavara Nandalala."

 

Om Asato Maa Sad Gamaya

Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya

Mrtyormaa Amrtam Gamaya

Om Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu

Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu

Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu

Om Shanti Shanti Shanti

Ram ChuganiKobe, Japan