Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

GOD is love. Love is the form of God. The Bhagavadgita declares: Mamaivamso Jeevaloke Jeevabhuta Sanathana (the eternal Atma in all beings is a part of the Divine). Just as God, the embodiment of love, showers His love on the entire world, man too should share his love with one and all. The principle of love is beyond definition or description. As man is not able to recognise the sacredness of love, he is directing it towards worldly and ephemeral objects.

God transcends all attributes. The same can be said of love too. But man conditions and limits love by associating it with worldly relations and wastes his life. He uses the sacred word love to describe the relationship between mother and child, wife and husband, brothers, friends and relatives, etc. Prior to birth, who is mother and who is child? Similarly, prior to marriage, who is husband and who is wife? The relationship that exists between mother and child, wife and husband, brothers, sisters, friends, relatives, etc., has physical body as its basis. This physical relationship cannot be called love in the true sense of the term. There is no giving and receiving in true love. Many modern devotees pray, “O God, if you fulfil my desires, I will offer you ten coconuts.” They offer their filthy hair and pray for mighty favours. Can this be called devotion? No, not at all. A true devotee is one who only gives and does not expect anything in return. Surrender is the true sign of devotion.

Human life is a combination of physical and spiritual aspects, which are related, respectively, to the head and the heart. But man follows the head and has only the physical world in view, thereby forgetting the spiritual aspect. So long as man follows his head alone, neither he nor the society nor the country at large can attain peace and security. Peace and security will reign supreme in this world only when man gives up body attachment and follows the principle of love that originates from his heart. The dualities of righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood, merit and sin, heat and cold, etc., co-exist in this creation of God.

People want adharma (unrighteousness) to be eradicated completely from this world. They want only dharma to exist, but it is not possible. In this world, dharma cannot exist without adharma and viceversa. The world itself is a combination of dharma a n d adharma. It cannot exist if one of them is absent. Man should use his power of discrimination and lead a life dedicated to dharma. There lies the secret of man’s happiness.

Man’s dharma is different from the dharma of animals. But man is unable to differentiate between the two. Man’s dharma is to adhere to the principles of truth, non-violence and compassion. Man can never attain peace and security so long as he does not give up bestial qualities. Food, sleep, fear and procreation are common for men and animals. Then, what is man’s dharma? To think that you are a human being constitutes only half of the total truth. The other part of the truth lies in understanding that you are not an animal. You should keep reminding yourself, “I am a human being, not an animal.” Do not stop at this stage. Enquire further as to which sex you belong to and which stage of life you are in, whether you are a Brahmachari, Grihastha,Vanaprastha or Sanyasin (celibate, householder, recluse or renunciant). Follow the appropriate dharma according to the stage of your life. When you are a celibate, you should not follow the dharma of a householder. There will be decline in morals giving rise to troubles and turmoil when man fails to adhere to the dharma appropriate to his stage of life. Man today is unable to understand the principle of dharma corresponding to each of the four stages of life. The code of conduct is different for different stages of life. Never be under the mistaken notion that dharma is the same for all people irrespective of their stage of life. The cause of adharma today is that man is trying to follow dharma that is not appropriate to his age or stage of life. Each should strictly adhere to the dharma corresponding to his or her age and stage of life.

Today people do not understand the significance of different faiths and different modes of worship that are prevalent in Bharat. They feel it is the existence of different castes, communities and religions that is responsible for all the violence, unrest and conflicts in this country. Existence of different religions has nothing to do with the violence and conflicts in this country. Absence of inner purity is responsible for all this.

It is the mind of man which is responsible for conflicts and disturbances, not differences in religions and communities. It is a grave mistake to attribute unrest and disturbances in a country to the existence of different religions. For thousands of years, people in India have lived in unity and fraternity in spite of the existence of various religions and communities.

Religions are many, but goal is one, Jewels are many, but gold is one, Stars are many, but sky is one,

Cows are many, but milk is one, Beings are many, but breath is one, Nations are many, but earth is one, Flowers are many, but worship is one.

Different religions have come into existence to lead man to Divinity, not to create conflicts and disturbances. There is nothing wrong with any religion. Mistake lies in mathi (mind), not in matha (religion). If mind is good, how can one find fault with religion? All people belong to one jathi (race), i.e., manava jathi (human race). You should understand the meaning of jathi. It is based on form.

For example, all flowers belong to the same jathi, but you cannot get mangoes when you sow a neem seed. No doubt, all trees belong to the same jathi, but their fruits and tastes of their fruits vary. There are in all 450 kinds of tastes corresponding to the fruits of various trees. You should try to understand the underlying principle of unity of each jathi. Human race is one, but human beings are different; their feelings, thoughts and behaviour patterns are different.

It is utter foolishness to think of annihilating the jathi as a whole. It may be possible to kill a few individuals, but it is not possible to annihilate the entire human race. Human race is true and eternal. It is highly sacred. It is a sign of ignorance to give room for differences and conflicts without understanding the unity of the human race. You have to recognise the divinity in man as the basis of human unity. The ancient culture of Bharat lays great emphasis on understanding this unity in diversity. This is possible only through love.

The state of non-dualism is contained in the principle of love alone. But man, being carried away by body attachment and physical relationship, fragments his love in various ways. This cannot be called love in the true sense of the term. As Swami repeatedly stresses on the need to cultivate love, some people may wonder as to what is the form of love. The answer is: Prem Easwar Hai, Easwar Prem Hai (Love is God, God is Love). Love is the fundamental basis of everything. atma, Brahma, hridaya, uniki (existence) are synonyms of love. Love is atma. Love is Brahma. Everything is suffused with love. Then how can everyone describe the form of love? The same principle of love exists in one and all. Once you understand this principle of unity, there will be no scope for hatred .

Today conflicts are on the rise because unity is forgotten. Ekatma sarvabhutantaratma (bodies are different, but the same atma dwells in all). Advaitam Brahma (Brahma is non-dual). Brahma means vastness. It indicates unity and not multiplicity. So, give up body attachment and strengthen faith in the spirit of oneness. It is only the body attachment that is responsible for evil qualities like anger, jealousy, greed, etc. Some people go to the temple of Lord Venkateswara and pray, “Swami, if You fulfil my desires, I will perform Brahmotsavam for You.” Some others pray, “Swami,if my daughters gets married, I will conduct Your Kalyanam” (marriage). Can there be a marriage for God? Does God fulfil your wish so that you may perform His marriage? With such prayers, people are trying to cheat even God. One should pray to God out of love, not with expectation of any favours from Him. Prayer born out of selfishness is no prayer at all. You should see the atma everywhere and think that you are in the company of God always.

I often address you as ‘embodiments of love’ because love is your true form, which is pure, unsullied, eternal, ancient, formless and non-dual. You love your mother because you have the confidence that she is your mother. So, confidence is the basis of love.

Where there is confidence, there is love, Where there is love, there is peace, Where there is peace, there is truth, Where there is truth, there is bliss, Where there is bliss, there is God.

Peace, truth and bliss are not elsewhere. They are in you. You are the embodiment of peace, truth and bliss. It is foolish to search for peace and bliss in the external world. Nothing exists separate from you. Everything is the reflection of the inner being. Try to visualize your reflection in everybody just as you see your reflection in a mirror. In order to propagate this truth, Lord Krishna declared in the Bhagavadgita: “All are a part of My Being.” I and you are not separate. The principle of love is one and the same in both of us. All your spiritual practices will prove futile, if you do not adhere to the principle of love.

The world is like a mirror. All that you find in this mirror is only the reflection, not the reality. Your right eye appears as left eye in the mirror. Then how can you consider it as reality? When the mirror is removed, the reflection also disappears and the reality remains. Consider yourself as embodiment of divinity. Experience your true nature of love. This is sakshatkara (vision of the Self). Some people claim to have the vision of the Self in meditation, but the vision of your reality is true sakshatkara.

All the worldly relationships are temporary like passing clouds. They are subject to change with the passage of time, but the reality is absolutely changeless. That is the principle of love. Worldly love may turn into hatred with the change of time. What is liked today may not be liked tomorrow. But love has no likes and dislikes. God is no different from love. You may adore Him as Jesus, Zoroastra, Allah, Rama, Krishna, Buddha or Guru Nanak. You may call Him by any name. All these are pettina perlu (names given by somebody). Love alone is puttina peru (natural name). The names given are bound to change, but love is changeless. You should aspire for that love. That is true bhakti (devotion). bhakti confers on you yukti (discrimination), virakti (detachment) and mukti (liberation).

Lord Krishna was the embodiment of love. His name consists of five letters - K, R, S, N, A, which represent pancha bhutas (five elements), pancha pranas (five life forces), pancha koshas (five life sheaths). Krishna is interpreted as Karshati Iti Krishna (because he attracts, he is Krishna), Krishiti Iti Krishna (Krishna is the plougher). That is, Krishna is one who ploughs the field of your heart and sows the seed of love in it. Krushyati Iti Krishna (because he imparts bliss, he is called Krishna), Thus divinity of Krishna can be perceived in every place and activity.

In this world, everything is suffused with divinity. Other than divinity nothing exists. Even this cloth (handkerchief) is divine, this flower is divine, everything is divine. If there is no divinity in this cloth, one will not desire for it. Love pervades everything. You should make every effort to understand this. Human heart is full of love. Many students write to Me, “Swami, I love You.” They use the symbol of hridaya to denote love. This means hridaya is that which is filled with love and compassion. hridaya is the very form of God. Easwara Sarva Bhutanam (God dwells in all beings). Isavasyam Idam Jagat (God permeates the entire universe). Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma (verily all this is Brahman). Share your love not only with your fellow beings, but also with birds and beasts. Stand united. Consider the entire universe as a single family.

Today you find disturbance and unrest all over the world. The reason is that man lacks broadmindedness. There is no expansion of love in him, there is only contraction of love. Narrow-mindedness is man’s own creation. You are trying to limit the infinite atmic principle.

Today we are celebrating the festival of Guru Purnima. Who is Guru? ‘Gu’ stands for Gunateeta (attributeless). ‘Ru’ signifies Rupavarjita (formless). There is another interpretation of the word Guru. Gukaro Andhakarasyat, Rukarasthannirodhaka (“Gu’ signifies darkness and ‘Ru’ denotes that which dispels darkness). So, God, who is attributeless and formless, is the true Guru. In the word ‘Bhagawan,’ (God) the letter ‘Bha’ stands for effulgence. An ordinary electric bulb illuminates only a limited area, but God who is all-pervasive illumines the entire creation. Divinity shines in everybody. So, do not hate anybody. In this world, people are driven by hatred and narrow feelings. They go even to the extent of killing each other. What a heinous crime it is! Hurting others amounts to hurting God Himself. Our hatred will certainly rebound on us. Today people derive demonic pleasure in causing harm to others without understanding the truth that one day or the other they will have to reap the consequences of their actions. Make others happy and you will certainly be happy. Today violence and murders have become the order of the day. Greatness does not lie in killing others; even an insect is capable of doing that. Greatness lies in saving lives.

You are bound to face the consequences of your actions. So, do good and you will certainly reap good results. Do not get disheartened if there is no immediate reward. Wait for a while, you will certainly be rewarded. Your suffering is nothing but the consequence of bad deeds in the past. Prayer alone can alleviate your suffering to some extent. Prayer is a way of expressing your gratitude to God. The sun is extolled as Kritaghnaghnaya Namah, (salutations to the destroyer of the ungrateful). It means that it will withdraw itself from the eyes of those who have no sense of gratitude.

As Venkataraman has pointed out (in his speech made earlier), the quality of K s h a m a (forbearance) is the most essential for one and all.

Forgive those who have harmed you and criticized you. Have faith that whatever happens is for your own good. If someone hurls abuses on you, do not retaliate. Enquire within yourself whether he has criticized the body or the atma.If he has criticized the body, indirectly he has done a favour to you because body is nothing but a heap of flesh, blood, bones and faecal matter. On the other hand if he has criticized the atma, it amounts to criticizing his own self because the same atma exists in both of you. One should cultivate this kind of forgiveness and broad-mindedness.

Guru is one who dispels the darkness of ignorance arising out of body attachment. Body is but an instrument. God has given you the body to take to the path of action. It is God’s gift. Deho Devalaya Prokto Jeevo Deva Sanathana (body is the temple and the indweller is God). Consider all bodies as temples of God and offer your salutations. Salute even your enemies.Sarva Jeeva Namaskaram Kesavam Pratigachchhati and likewise Sarva Jeeva Tiraskaram Kesavam Pratigachchhati (whomsoever you salute, it reaches God and whomsoever you censure, it also reaches God).

I often address you as bangaru (gold) because you are the embodiment of Hiranyagarbha. The principle of hiranyagarbha is present in your heart. You may change the shape of the jewel, but gold remains changeless. The value of gold decreases when it is mixed with various metals like copper, brass, etc.

Likewise, man by birth is highly pure and most valuable. But on account of his association with evil desires and bad company, he loses his value.

Thyaja Durjana Samsargam, Bhaja Sadhu Samagamam, Kuru Punyam Ahorathram,

Smara Nityamanithyatham.

(Discard bad company, join good company, perform meritorious deeds day and night and enquire into that which is permanent and that which is ephemeral). This is your dharma.

It is said, Janthunam Narajanma Durlabham (birth as human being is the rarest of all beings). So, sanctify your life by making proper use of your senses. Do not talk as you please. Talk softly and sweetly. Have proper control over your vision. You all know what happened to Keechaka when he looked at Droupadi with evil intentions. Bhima smashed his head into pieces. That is why Buddha exhorted mankind to cultivate samyak drishti (sacred vision). Buddha attained enlightenment only after he cultivated sacred vision. Consider all that you see as the form of God. Think what is good, see what is good, hear what is good, talk what is good and do what is good. Only then can you attain divinity.

This body is approaching its 75th birthday. All these years, I have remained blissful because I am aware of the principle of unity. You too can experience bliss if you understand this truth. I do not hate anybody; nor do I have any enemies. I have absolutely no fear because everything is My own form; the same atma exists in all. When an innocent child smiles at you, you too smile at it. Likewise, when I smile blissfully, all of you do the same. Have a sacred heart.

Cultivate sacred feelings. Then the result also will be sacred. Have faith that God is everywhere. You may have to undergo trials and tribulations, but never lose faith in God. Consider faith as your very life-breath. Each one of you is an embodiment of love, but because of improper food and habits, evil qualities like jealousy and anger arise in you. As is the food, so is the head; as is the head, so is God. So, consume only sathwic food. Then you will have only sacred feelings and your speech will also become sacred.

In order to put you on the right path, I sometimes pretend to be angry, but in reality I am never angry. The only harsh word that I use is dunnapota (he-buffalo). You are truly a buffalo if you do not undertake good actions. You can become a good fellow only when you do good. When there is a heavy downpour, the cow and calf may run away to safety, but the he-buffalo remains where it is because of its sloth and inertia. You should not become inactive like a he-buffalo; try to transform yourself. Human life is highly sacred. Do not put it to disuse. I love everybody. Love is My true form. All of you are the sparks of My Divinity. So, share your love with your fellow beings, just as I share My love with you all.

Then you too will become divine. When all follow the sacred path, the world will undoubtedly attain peace and prosperity.

Give up ignorance, light the lamp of wisdom within you and ultimately merge with the divine. This is Swami’s message for you today. Develop love. Through love alone can you annihilate the mind and through love alone can you get cured of any disease. Only love can eradicate the evil qualities in you. So, love all. Love the hridaya, not the physical body. Love the divinity that is installed in your heart. Body, mind, intellect and senses are merely instruments, you are the master. So, master the mind and be a mastermind. Never become a slave of your mind. Contemplate on the divine day in and day out. You may chant any name, contemplate on any form; but understand the truth that God is one and only one.