Love Thyself

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Love Thyself

By H. H. Narasimha Swamiji

Love is the mighty energy that transforms man. So do not let your heart

become dry. Do not let every fool you meet convince you that love does

not exist within you. Man is unfair to himself because he is ignorant,

and when he starts believing he is a sinner and ordinary, he makes other

people feel the same.

 

I once went to bathe at the confluence of Bhima and Amaraja at

Ganigapur. As I was sitting there, a priest came up and asked me to make

a vow. I did not want to, but he would not listen and kept insisting. He

brought flowers and water, saying " Swamiji, repeat PAPOHAM - 'I am a

sinner.' "

 

" You are the sinner, not me, " I retorted, " Even at this holy place you

have not stopped making fools of the pilgrims. I shall say: PUN-YO-HAM,

PUNYA-KARMA-HAM, and SANKALPA-ROHITOHAM - I am virtuous, I am a doer of

good deeds, I am without desire. "

 

When he heard this, he went away. Through such bad company, men are led

to believe that they are without joy, that they are unreal, unhappy,

poor and subject to decay, and because they think like this, they cannot

let the inner love bloom.

 

Love turns man into an ocean of happiness, an image of peace, a temple

of wisdom. Love is man's very 'Atman', his true beauty and the glory of

his human existence. So, first love yourself, then your neighbors, and

then the whole world. This is Bhakti; this is the way to the joy of

Jnana and this is the fulfillment of your life. All other sadhanas are

contained in the sadhana of love. Sai Baba is that love. He is the

supreme bliss that is the reward of all sadhanas. He is adored through

love.

 

" What is prayer? " they asked me.

And I said:- " True prayer is the hungering and thirsting of the heart I "

- Keshub Chandar Sen

Every virtue has its place in life; but the greatest of virtues

is forgiveness.

- Rajarishi Yuddhishtra

 

(Source Shri Sai Padananda Jan 1990)