Satya Sai Baba

[Guest guest]

The Unwanted Guests !!!

 

Swami told a beautiful story about how our 'vasanas' keep coming back

because these bad habits have been with us for lifetimes. If we think

we have got rid of them, they come from somewhere, the anger, the

jealousy, the desire, criticizing other people, finding faults with

all except 'self' etc…

 

One of my friends was sharing that he had stopped watching TV and

movies for so long but now he was tempted to see TV again!!! Sense

attractions are so powerful; they pull us down.

 

Swami's humorous story to illustrate this:

 

There was a nice couple who had a guest. But that guest was like a

pest. He didn't want to leave. At first, they treated him well for 1

or 2 weeks. Later, when they saw he wouldn't leave, instead of giving

him 3 or 4 snacks, they cut it down to one snack. They used to give

him 2 meals, but then cut it down to 1 meal. But he still wouldn't

leave!!!

 

One day they got frustrated because now this guy was staying with the

family for almost 1 year. They didn't know what to do to get rid of

this bad guest. Then they made a plan:

 

The husband and wife enacted a drama that they were fighting with each

other. " Either you stay in the house or I will. " Finally the guest

looked disgusted with their fights and left.

 

The wife said, " See how beautifully I acted. That's why he left. " The

husband said, " No, I acted better, that's why he left. "

 

Meanwhile they heard a knock on the door. They asked, " Who is it? " The

guest said, " Oh, I acted even better, " and he came back!!!

 

SWAMI asks, " Don't you 'shoo' away those crows & pigeons in order to

avoid their droppings falling on you? They keep coming back & you

keep shooing them away!!! Like that keep doing the same thing with

these 'vasanas' " (Even in Prasanthi Nilayam Darshan hall & just

outside SWAMI's residence, you would find the volunteers shooing away

pigeons!)

 

That is why in the Gita it says, " If we sincerely pray, 'Lord I don't

want these bad qualities. I don't want this', " and only by His grace

can we completely eliminate this. When that stage finally comes, then

only we will see Oneness.