Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

Past is past, future is uncertain, only the present is in our hands. It is the foremost duty of man to live in the present and share his joy with his fellow beings. Truly speaking, the human being is the most fortunate one among all the living beings. Compared to the entire cosmos, man is very small, like an atom; yet he is able to comprehend the magnitude and vastness of the creation, which is very startling indeed. He attains immortality by understanding the unity between the microcosm and macrocosm. As mentioned by Me yesterday, whosoever cultivates the harvest of love in the field of his heart is a true Christian, a true Sikh, a true Hindu and a true Muslim. In fact, he is the true human being on earth.

Man cannot exist without love. This Principle of Love is Hiranyagarbha. This Hiranyagarbha is situated on the right side of the human body, with the physical heart is on the left. The physical heart on the left side has to be left one day or the other, in some circumstance or the other. Hiranyagarbha, located on the right side of the human body is always right. It is immortal, divine, eternal, and all-encompassing. It is present not only in human beings but also in birds, beasts, and all other living beings. The Vedas declare: “Eswara Sarvabhoothanam (God is present in all living beings),” “Isavasyam Idam Jagat (God pervades the entire cosmos).” Love is the reflection of Hiranyagarbha and originates from it. The three principles of reaction, resound, and reflection have also originated from Hiranyagarbha.

Unable to recognise his true identity, man is wasting his life in this pursuit of temporary, fleeting, transient, and ephemeral pleasures. As I told you yesterday, gold loses its value, brilliance, and identity when it is mixed with different metals such as silver, brass, and copper. So also, the heart, which loses its value, brilliance and identity on account of its association with the impurities of worldly desires. This is the present plight of mankind. Man is behaving like a demon, devil, and a beast because he has forgotten his divine nature. Divine love originates from Hiranyagarbha. This selfless divine love lives by giving and forgiving, whereas selfish love lives by getting and forgetting. Such divine love is essential for man.

Here is a small example to illustrate this. After Ravana was killed in the battle, Hanuman went to Sita and conveyed to her the good news. Sita was overjoyed and started extolling Hanuman thus: “O Hanuman, you are the Puravarashoura (the valiant one), who entered Lanka in the face of all dangers; you are the Bhadraparakrama (the performer of acts of valour) who crossed the ocean in a single leap, and you are the Kapirajashikamani (the crown jewel of the monkey clan) who fulfilled the command of Rama.” But Hanuman did not relish any of these titles conferred on him by Sita.

Sita then said, “O Hanuman, I have not seen a virtuous one like you. There is none equal to you in terms of physical strength in this world.” She also conferred the titles of Gunavantha (full of virtues) and Balavantha (full of prowess) on Hanuman. None of these titles pleased Hanuman.

In the end, Sita blessed Hanuman saying, “May Rama love you forever and install Himself in your heart.” Then Hanuman leapt in joy. He said, “O mother, there is nothing greater than God’s love in this world. I do not crave any title. I pray only for Rama’s love. In the absence of the love of Lord Rama, I would not be happy even if the whole world were to come under my control. My life will find fulfillment only when I am the recipient of His love.” Such a virtuous, valiant and ardent devotee like Hanuman craved only the love of Rama, nothing else. So, a sincere devotee should yearn for God’s love and love is everything. Human quality lies in kindling love within, speaking with love and acting with love. On this basis, it is said, “The proper study of mankind is man.” Controlling the senses is the highest sadhana Once, a pundit challenged Buddha to enter into a debate with him. The terms were that if he was the loser, he would follow Buddhism along with his 3000 disciples and serve Buddha lifelong. But, if Buddha was the loser, it would be obligatory on his part to become a follower of the pundit.

Buddha smilingly said, “Pundita samadarshina” (a true pundit is one who has equal-mindedness). A true Pundit makes no distinction between the dualities of life, such as pain and pleasure, joy and sorrow. A person with anger and ego is unfit to be called a pundit. In pilgrim centres such as Haridwar, Rishikesh, Badrinath, Kedarnath and Amarnath, you find pandas who give mantras that would grant liberation to the departed souls. These pandas cannot be called pundits. In this world, there are many who have gone through sacred texts. Knowledge of the Self cannot be acquired by mere scholarship or by sitting at the feet of a guru.

There are many who go through voluminous books, but is there a person who practices at least one teaching? When you spend all your life in reading, when are you going to practice it? Scholarship bereft of practice is futile. The Bhagavad Gita declares: Kavim Puranamanushasitharam (the Supreme Being is all-knowing, Indweller and Ruler of all).

Who is a kavi (poet)? A kavi is one who knows the past, present, and future; not one who merely plays with words. This implies that God alone is kavi (poet).

What is the inner meaning of Purana? Body is pura in which divinity pervades. The divine principle that pervades from top to toe in the body is referred to as Purana. So, God Himself is Purana.

Next comes anushasithara (one who commands and controls). You may imprison a person who has committed a crime, but you cannot prevent his mind from going all over the world.

There is no judge in this world who can punish the mind. It is only God who has the power to command the mind of man. Therefore, God alone is Anushasithara.

Explaining thus, Buddha silenced the pundit and advised him to shun the pride and ego of his scholarship. He told the pundit not to get carried away by the worldly knowledge. He exhorted him to acquire and practice divine knowledge and surrender to God. Buddha said, “I undertook spiritual practice for a long time and went through various sacred texts in quest of knowledge of the Self. Ultimately, I realised that mastering the senses is essential for acquiring knowledge of the Self. The five senses are the gift of God. Make proper use of them. Only then you can realise the Self. What is the use of going through sacred texts and undertaking spiritual practices without proper utilisation of the five senses? I have controlled the five senses and put them on the right path, as a result of which I am experiencing bliss.” Nirvana is nothing but merger in bliss Buddha attained Nirvana by controlling his five senses and making proper use of them. What is Nirvana? It is nothing but merger in bliss. Water bubble is born in water, is sustained in water and ultimately merges in it; likewise, human being is born in bliss, is sustained in bliss and ultimately merges in it. Bliss can be experienced by controlling the five senses. This is the true sadhana. Mere chanting of the Lord’s name will not suffice. First and foremost, the senses have to be controlled.

At the time of attaining Nirvana, Buddha saw his cousin, Ananda, shedding tears. He called him near and said, “Ananda, true to your name, you should experience ananda (bliss). You should never shed tears of sorrow. You are the embodiment of ananda. All of us are embodiments of Brahma.” Saying so, Buddha put his hand on Ananda and attained Nirvana.

Whoever understands this truth can experience bliss and attain divinity. When attaining liberation is so easy and simple, why do you struggle hard for it? It only means that you are not making any effort to understand the inner truth. You are mixing the metals of worldly desires with the gold of your heart. As a result, the heart has become polluted and has lost its true identity, i.e. bliss. Ancients have said that bliss lies in visualising and experiencing your true form, that is, the Principle of the Atma. Proper utilisation of the senses will lead to the knowledge of the Atma.

Sage Patanjali said, Yoga Chitta Vritti Nirodha (control of senses is true yoga). No sadhana is greater than this. All spiritual practices such as japa (chanting the Lord’s name) and tapa (penance) will be of no avail if senses are not controlled. You may be under the impression that it is not possible for a human being to control the senses. Here control does not mean total cessation. Discharge your duties as a householder, student or businessman. But whatever you do, do it with a feeling that it is to please God (Sarva Karma Bhagavath Preethyartham). Once you develop this feeling, all your senses will naturally be controlled.

Embodiments of Love! You feel that arpitham (total surrender) to God is rather difficult, but according to Me, nothing is easier than this. It may be difficult to make a garland out of flowers or to pluck the petals of a flower, but total surrender to God is easier and simpler than this. You find it difficult because you do not have steady and firm faith in God. God is.

There is no place without God. There is no being without divinity. Each and every being is the embodiment of God.

If you have total faith in this truth, you will never have difficulties. When your faith is defective, you find it difficult to achieve anything. Have faith in God and love Him. Love is God. You are bound to be successful in all your endeavours if you have faith in God. Any task, however difficult it may be, can be accomplished with God’s grace.

That is what happened in the case of Hanuman. With Rama’s grace he leapt across the ocean, reached Lanka, and found Sita. He returned to Rama and described the untold suffering of Sita:

On hearing this, Rama and Lakshmana immediately took their bows and arrows. Rama said, “I cannot bear the suffering of Sita. Let us not waste even a moment, let us go to Lanka” Rama reacted in this manner not because of attachment toward His consort. Sita symbolises prakritti (nature). God cannot bear the suffering of nature. In order to alleviate the suffering of nature, Rama decided to go to Lanka immediately.

Dharma (righteousness), artha (wealth), kama (desire), and moksha (liberation) are considered to be the four objectives (purusharthas) of human life. In fact, these correspond to the four stages of human life: brahmacharya (student), brihastha (householder), vanaprastha (hermit) and sanyasa (renunciate).

They do not correspond to Purusharthas in the true sense of the term. Today, people are under the mistaken notion that the term purusha corresponds to man but not to woman. But actually, Purusha means Atma or Chaithanya or Prana or Jivi. For Atma, there is no gender like masculine or feminine. So, Purushartha means Atma Dharma or the dharma of the Awareness Principle or the dharma of the Life Principle. This is the true Purushartha, the prime objective of human life.

Without understanding the true meaning of the term Purushartha, people talk of one dharma for men and another for women. Sayujya (merger) is the true Atma Dharma, and that is true Purushartha.

The second objective is artha. Artha does not mean money or gold. Earning money or gold is not the objective of life. Money comes and goes. Wisdom is the true wealth. Advaita Darshanam Jnanam (vision and experience of Divinity is true wisdom). One has to earn this wealth of wisdom.

The third objective is kama (desire). This does not correspond to sensual desires. One should have desire for liberation (moksha kama). One should have the desire to understand the Atmic Principle and attain divinity.

These are the main objectives of human life. Each word in Vedanta has many meanings associated with it. Different people interpret it in different ways. Today, what people understand of the four objectives of human life corresponds to the ashrama dharma such as brahmacharya, grihastha, vanaprastha, and sanyasa. They do not correspond to Adhyatmika dharma (Spiritual dharma). Spiritual dharma is the true dharma. Only that can confer liberation.

What is liberation? It is not just reaching God, it means complete merger with the Divine. Rivers like Ganga, Godavari, and Saraswathi have different names and forms, but once they merge in the ocean, they lose their name and become one with the ocean. Similarly, once you merge in God, there will be no difference whatsoever. Experiencing such nondualism is the true objective of human life.

Embodiments of Love! Today is the sacred day of Sivaratri. Legend has it that when Siva, in order to save the world, swallowed halahala (poison), He lost consciousness and fell down. The resultant heat affected the world. In order to cool down the world, Siva created the Himalayas. Then He placed the Himalayas on His stomach. As a result, the Himalayas absorbed all the heat from His body and He got up. People celebrate this event as Sivaratri. But, this is only a worldly interpretation.

Truly speaking, the Himalayas are within you. In fact, the whole world is within you. The Divinity within you has neither birth nor death. The body may undergo change, but the Divine Principle remains the same. Love never undergoes any change. It remains love always. The quality of sugar is sweetness. It does not change whether it is added to coffee, tea, water or rice pudding.

That which remains changeless is referred to as Sath (Being). This Sath is within you. Love is its sweetness. We have to turn this love toward Visweswara (God), but not towards vishayas (sensual pleasures). Sath can be compared to sugar, Chith (Chaithanya) to water. When sugar is added to water, it becomes syrup. Likewise, when Sath and Chith come together,

what results is ananda (bliss). Sath is associated with the Atma and Chith with the body. The Atma is Purusha (Brahman) and the body is prakrti (feminine principle). The unity of Purusha and Prakriti is human life.

So, every human being is ardhanareeshwara (androgynous). The Principle of Siva (Sivathatwa) teaches the unity of Prakriti and Purusha. This is the true meaning of Sivaratri. Forgetting this principle, man considers this physical body to be made up of merely blood, flesh and fecal matter. No doubt, it has these constituents, but one should not forget the fact that divinity permeates this body. To set an ideal to this world, the body is very important.

Embodiments of Love! The body is Parvati, and the Atma is Eswara. There was a spiritual aspirant who used to repeat the mantra Sivoham, as commanded by his guru. One day, someone asked him the meaning of the mantra. He said Sivoham meant, “I an Siva.” But when questioned what his relationship with Parvati was, he slapped his own cheeks and said with a tone of having committed a great sin, Aparadham (blasphemy)! If he really had faith in the mantra he was chanting, he would have surely said, “Parvati is a part of my own being.” He could not say so because he was attached to his body. Attachment to the body leads to dualities, because of which man is suffering.

Eswara and Parvati are present in every individual. The combination of these two aspects constitutes Manavatwam (mankind). Manava refers to human being. Ma means ‘not’, nava means ‘new’. So, mankind is not new, it is ancient and eternal. But you are not able to understand this truth.

Here there are three letters: ma na – va. Ma means maya (illusion), na means without, va means varthinchuta (to conduct oneself). He is a true human being who conducts himself without being under illusion. But today, man is acting in a contradictory manner. At least from today try to understand the truth. Your deha (body) and desha (country) can be compared to object and reflection. Just as you safeguard your body, keep in mind the welfare of the country too.

Understand the true meaning and inner significance of Sivaratri. Hiranyagarbha Lingam is present in everybody’s hridaya (spiritual heart) and is on the right side of the body. The principle of Hiranyagarbha permeates My whole body. It assumes a form when I will it. Whoever has seen this Lingam at the time of its emergence will not have rebirth. One should see its form as it emerges. In order to sanctify your lives, such sacred manifestations have to be shown to you every now and then. Only then can you understand the divinity in humanity. This Lingam will not break even if it is dropped from a height with force. This is amruthatwam (symbol of immortality). It is changeless. You cannot see such a manifestation anywhere else in the world. It is possible only with Divinity. This is the manifestation of changeless Divinity.

For the past twenty years, devotees did not get the opportunity to witness Lingodbhava. The reason was that lakhs of devotees used to gather in the Poornachandra Hall to witness this grand spectacle. Since the Poornachandra Hall cannot accommodate large gatherings, there used to be stampedes. As a result, devotees were put to a lot of inconvenience. In order to avoid this, Lingodbhava was discontinued.

Not only this; three types of Lingams emerge. They are bhur, bhuvah, and suvaha. Bhur refers to materialisation (body), bhuvah to vibration (prana), and suvaha to radiation (Atma). I often say, you are not one, but three: The one you think you are (physical body), the one others think you are (mental body), the one you really are (Atma). On every Sivaratri, all the three Lingams used to emerge. Even now, the other Lingams had started to emerge, but I prevented them, because there are many things to be told to you. In the future, you will be a witness to many more manifestations of Divinity. Understand that this bliss can be experienced only in the proximity of the Divine and nowhere else.

Don’t get deluded just because I talk, laugh, walk, and eat like you. Don’t get deluded by the body feeling. All My actions are selfless, selfless, selfless. There is no trace of selfishness in Me. Have firm faith in this truth. If you have total faith, wherever you are, all your desires will be fulfilled without your asking. Only those who don’t have total faith suffer. Develop self-confidence. That is the first sadhana you have to undertake.

Truly you are all most fortunate. Today is Somavar (Monday), very endearing to Somasekhara (Eswara). That is why Siva is extolled as Someshwara and Somasekhara. This body was also born on Monday. In every Siva temple, special prayers are offered on Mondays.

Hanuman is worshipped on Mangalavar (Tuesday). When Ravana was killed in the battlefield, Hanuman rushed to Sita to convey the good news. Sita was overjoyed and blessed Hanuman profusely saying, “Hanuman, I don’t know what day it is, but since you have conveyed the much awaited mangalakara vartha (auspicious news), this day shall be called Mangalavar (Tuesday), and may you be worshipped on this day!” In the Treta Yuga, names of the days such as Monday and Tuesday were not in existence; they are of recent origin. Therefore, in the culture of Bharat each term has an inner significance. But, the Bharatiyas themselves are not making any effort to understand them and are going along the wrong path. Culture is important, not caste. We have to uphold the culture.

Embodiments of Love! Understand the truth that love is the Atma and the Atma is love.