Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

SICKNESS is not confined to the body. The mind and senses are equally afflicted by diseases, the chief among which is greed. All know the ill effects suffered by Duryodhana and his brothers because of their greed. Greed is one of the chief diseases afflicting mankind. I do not suffer from any kind of physical illness because there is no trace of greed in Me. Hence, bodily sickness is unknown to Me.

There is no enemy equal to anger. I have no feeling of aversion to anybody nor does anyone have adverse feelings against Me. I love all and equally everyone loves Me. The life principle in everyone is the same. The entire creation is one mansion. The relationship between members of the entire humanity is like that of various members of a single family. Hatred and anger are the source of all feelings of division. There is no trace of anger or hatred in Me and hence everyone loves Me.

There is no misery equal to poverty. I am not poor in any sense. The love in Me is My wealth. How can greed touch Me when I am so replete with wealth? There is no poverty in Me. It is essential for all people to avoid these three negative tendencies. Because of this I am in permanent bliss. Worries do not bother Me at all.

Garga was highly respected by both the Pandavas and the Kauravas. He was the Kula Guru (family preceptor) of Nanda and the Yadavas. He was a great scholar replete with knowledge and wisdom. He went to the house of Nanda and Yashoda for the naming ceremony of the two babies.

There are a few esoteric matters that are not widely known. Incarnations generally occur in three categories of Shukla (white), Aruna (orange) and Pita (yellow). But here was a baby who was black. Hence, Garga considered and found the name Krishna (black) as most appropriate. After the naming, Garga narrated several episodes that were to take place in the life of the child and, after staying on to experience and enjoy some of them, he departed.

After a while, Garga visited Nanda’s house again to see Krishna. He was a very austere person and was used to preparing his food with his own hand. He would not eat food even touched by anybody else. Yashoda therefore provided a secluded place for him to prepare his meal. He asked for a little flour, jaggery (molasses) and milk. Sugar as a sweetener was not known then. Sweets were made with jaggery. Garga put the constituents into a vessel and prepared some sweet pudding and, as was his wont, offered it to Vishnu before partaking of it. Suddenly the boy Krishna dashed into the room and started eating the sweet pudding in the vessel. Garga, who was praying, opened his eyes and found the child eating the food that he had prepared for himself.

He called Yashoda and told her, “Mother, do you see what your son Gopal is doing? I am hungry and He has eaten the food before I could. Yashoda caught hold of Krishna and admonished Him for His action, saying, “Don’t you know that the venerable Garga is the Guru of our clan and you have defiled his food. Is it not our duty to honour our guests in a befitting manner?

Krishna replied, “Mother, I have not done anything on My own. It was he himself who called Me to eat the pudding.” Yashoda then asked Garga why he called Krishna whom she had kept safely away. Garga protested that he had not called Krishna. Krishna remonstrated saying, “Oh sage, why are you uttering a falsehood? To whom did you offer the food in prayer before partaking of it? Is it not Myself to whom you prayed? How can you offer everything to Me first and then start complaining?”

Garga was perplexed for a moment, but he recognised that Krishna was none other than Vishnu Himself. He prayed to Vishnu and Krishna responded. With this realisation, Garga was happy to partake of the leftover of the pudding eaten by Krishna.

When was Krishna actually born? He was born 3228 years before the Christian era on 20 July at 3 a.m. As this is 2001 A.D., today He will be 5229 years old. In the auspicious month of Sravana, in the Bahulapaksha (darker fortnight), on Ashtami day (8th day of the phase of the moon) under the star Rohini, the holy child was born. This confluence of Ashtami and Rohini has resulted in the occurrence of many marvelous events.

At that time, there was a demoness named Balanthaki. Her real name was not known to any and she was generally known by the name Poothana. It was her practice to wander from village to village and kill infants with poisoned milk. In the course of her wanderings, she came to Repalle. She took on a beautiful form and entered Yashoda’s house and started feeding her poisoned milk to the infant Krishna. The infant Krishna sucked out along with the milk and the poison her entire lifeblood until she fell dead. Yashoda came running to Krishna as she heard the thud of Poothana falling down. Seeing the dead demoness, Yashoda questioned Krishna as to why He went to her. Krishna replied, “Mother, I did not go to her, in fact, it is she who came to Me. It is my duty to kill this cruel demoness who had come with the evil intention of killing Me.”

As He grew up, He started taking the cows for grazing every day into the forest along with other cowherd boys. One day as they were lost in playing games, the cows moved to some other forest. Suddenly there was a big surge of flames in the forest. Frightened by the fire, the gopalas started praying to Krishna to save them and their cows. Krishna dispelled their fear by saying that everything would be all right and told them to close their eyes for some time. Gopalas never disobeyed Krishna and did as He said. After some time, the raging fire was extinguished and the cows started returning safely. Amazed by this experience, the gopalas went about sharing this miracle with others in the village. They said, “Krishna is no ordinary being, He is verily God as it is not possible for anybody to perform such a miracle.”

The following day, they again went into the forest. After playing for some time, Krishna said that He was hungry. When the gopalas wanted to go to the village to fetch food, Krishna told them to go to a nearby place where a sacred Yajna was being performed and ask the Brahmins for food. The Brahmins bluntly rejected their request by saying that they would give only the remaining food after the final offerings were made and after partaking of the food themselves. Seeing the gopalas returning disappointed, Krishna said, “Only the mothers know the sufferings of children. Go and ask the wives of the Brahmins for food.”

In the spiritual path, particularly it is women who readily recognise Divinity. The gopalas went to the wives of the Brahmins and said, “Mother, our Krishna is very hungry. He wants food.” The mothers’ joy knew no bounds as Krishna Himself, who protects the entire universe, was asking them for food. They at once packed the food without even telling their husbands and went to Krishna. They served the delicacies to Krishna and gopalas and experienced bliss in His proximity. Krishna told them to go back as their husbands would be waiting for them.

They returned to their husbands and told them what had happened. Krishna’s Will transformed the minds of their husbands. They were very happy and in fact asked for the prasadam of Krishna. It was evening by the time the gopalas along with Krishna started homeward. On their way, a demon in the form of a serpent by name Agadha, was lying on the ground. Kamsa sent him. If the mighty serpent opened its mouth, even cars could get in. The demon swallowed all the cows and was ready even to swallow the gopalas. The gopalas clamoured for help from Krishna. “What would we answer if our parents asked for the cows?” Krishna pacified them and at once entered into the mouth of the demon, enlarged His body till the demon’s body tore open and rescued the cows. The gopalas, awestruck with this incident, started spreading the glories of Krishna. The gopalas experienced such miracles every moment.

As days passed on, Kamsa realised that it was impossible for him to kill Krishna. Kamsa sent his minister, Akrura, to bring Balarama and Krishna to attend the sacred yaga performed by him. Knowing very well the evil intentions behind this invitation, Akrura went to Repalle to bring Balarama and Krishna as it was his primary duty to follow the command of the king. Seeing Balarama and Krishna mounting Akrura’s chariot, the gopikas and gopalas blocked the pathway, thereby not allowing Akrura to take their Krishna away from them. They prayed, “Oh Krishna, don’t leave us. Who will be our saviour? Don’t go to that evil King, Kamsa.”

Krishna consoled the grief stricken gopikas and gopalas as with his gentle and sweet words appropriate to the moment. They reached Mathura. Kubja, a short woman with a hunchback was assigned the task of carrying perfumes to King Kamsa. On seeing her, Krishna asked, “Oh dwarf lady, what are you carrying?” She replied that she was carrying the perfumes to Kamsa, as he was very fond of them. Krishna went near her, deftly stepped on her feet and with His hands under her chin lifted up. Kubja, who was short with a hunch on her back, became straight and good-looking. These leelas (miracles) were well expounded by Thyagaraja;

The stories of Krishna’s glory and miracles started spreading in the entire village, which added fuel to the fire of hatred in Kamsa toward Krishna. As a part of his plan to kill Balarama and Krishna, he sent Akrura to invite both of them to fight with the wrestlers in his court. When they were passing through the streets, even ladies who were inside their houses came out to greet Balarama and Krishna. They whispered among themselves, “Who are these children with radiant forms? Perhaps they are sons of an emperor.”

Balarama and Krishna entered Kamsa’s court, where the wrestling competition was in progress. The competition did not produce a winner as none of the wrestlers gained an upper hand over the other. Suddenly, Balarama and Krishna leapt onto the dais from where Kamsa was watching the proceedings and pulled him down. Kamsa fell on the ground. Putting His foot on Kamsa’s stomach, Krishna tore him to pieces and killed him. Kamsa had two wives, Asthi and Prasasthi. As it was not possible for them to stay there, they went back to their parents’ house. Their father too was a mighty demon. The moment he heard Kamsa’s death, he became furious and set out to kill Balarama and Krishna. He went many times to fight with them but was defeated every time and had to return humiliated. The miracles of Krishna were twofold: firstly to protect the pious and secondly to kill the wicked. This was the dharma for the Dwapara Yuga and not for the other Yugas. With sweet words and by being an ideal, man has to be set on the right path.

One day a lady brought some fruits in a cloth to sell them. In those days there were no monetary transactions, only a barter system. Fruits were bought in exchange for grains. She was lost in bliss on seeing their beautiful forms. She called them near, selected a few good fruits and gave them. Krishna said that He had to give something in return for the fruits. So, He went inside the house and with His baby palms brought a few grains of rice and even of that half He spilled on the way. The old woman received the few grains left in Krishna’s hands in her cloth. She paid little attention to the offering from the Divine child. In her daily exchange of fruit for grains, she hardly noticed the little offering from the hands of a child. Lo and behold! When she went home and opened her bundle, all the grains of rice had turned into shining diamonds. Such is the nature of the marvelous acts of the Avatar. Their significance is wondrous and is beyond the grasp of human mind. As the Upanishads say,

The Divine nature of Krishna was experienced and enjoyed by the cowherds. Living in those days was essentially sacred. People were engaged in selfless activities rather than in selfish deeds. All were always engaged in helping others and never in hurting. In this manner, they could directly recognise Divinity. Therefore, we should always direct our activities in a selfless manner and never indulge in selfishness. As I say frequently,

As the cowherds were constantly acting in this manner, many people noticed the marvelous nature of the child Krishna. The situation is not the same today. Strange news floats around at times. Someone says that Sai Baba is angry with X or Y. Sai Baba has no ill feeling toward anyone. Equally, nobody is hostile to Swami. Everyone loves and none hates Swami. Swami’s mission is well known.

You are aware what ‘educating children’ involves these days. To admit a child in a Primary School, one needs to spend something like 20,000 rupees. On the other hand, in the Sai Institutions, education is imparted from K.G. to P.G. free of cost without any kind of discrimination. Even doctoral work is done free of cost. Our Institutions do not collect even a naya paisa from any of the students here. Thousands of students have enjoyed these benefits. The whole world knows this fact.

In the same manner, in the field of health-care, you know how much a heart operation costs. Each operation may cost some two to three lakhs of rupees. Is such treatment available to the poor? Wherefrom will they get such amounts? This is not a happy state of affairs. With the aim that high level health-care should be available to all, Swami had the Super Specialty Hospital constructed at Puttaparthi. In these institutions, no aid is received even from the Government. Even the salary of the teaching staff is fully met by Swami. You know how the salary levels of educational staff have gone up these days. Swami’s Institutions are paying wages in full compliance with government regulations. Irrespective of one’s own nature or status, one should not go against rules and regulations.

The same is the case with the Super Specialty Hospital in Puttaparthi. It is ten years since the Super Specialty Hospital of Puttaparthi started functioning and already 12,000 heart operations have been performed. I leave it to your imagination to appreciate who is responsible for saving these many lives. Early this year, Bhagawan started another Super Specialty Hospital in Bangalore. Within a period of six months, 1,500 operations have been successfully performed there. Who helped the suffering there? The specialist doctors are highly paid. Some of them receive a lakh of rupees. When contrary opinions were raised, I said that no compromise should be made regarding rules and regulations. When I am looking after payments, why should anybody bother?

Take the water project in Anantapur. Even now there are some areas where there is scarcity of water. I have spent 300 crores of rupees and made water available to the extent possible. Take Mahboobnagar; it is another water-starved area in Telangana. I asked the Chief Engineer Kondal Rao, what it would cost to arrange for water supply there. He gave an estimate of about 60 crores of Rupees. I told him not to bother about crores but to go ahead and carry out the project. There is no point in putting up a project from a depleting source like bore wells and pumps and so I arranged for water to be brought from the Krishna river at a cost of about 110 crores of Rupees. Now we have gone to Medak district and the project for water supply there is in progress.

Many other similar projects are coming up and will be dealt with in a similar manner. These hands are forever engaged in helping not in hurting. There are some jealous and petty minds that spread false and imaginary propaganda. I take no note of this. I am only concerned with My functioning and not with the comments of others. I am aware that all love Me as much as I love them. In the single family of humankind, where is the room for jealousy or hatred? These are all imaginary. Whatever is anyone’s imagination, My truth is unwavering.

There is nothing greater than truth in this universe.

I have been spending all this time in the same state of joy and all My actions are fruitful. All I do is for the good and good actions should not be criticised. Good actions always succeed.

All may not be aware of the state of affairs. The Bangalore Hospital involves an expenditure of 3 crores of rupees per month. Special medicines, artificial heart valves, etc., have to be imported from America. Similarly, the Prasanthi Nilayam Hospital costs about 2 crores of rupees per month. I do not desire any assistance or support from the government nor are they giving any. Again, there are educational institutions in Prasanthi Nilayam, Anantapur, Bangalore, Muddenahalli and Rajahmundry. These cost about 1 crore of rupees a month. In this manner roughly the expenses come to 6 crores of rupees per month. Wherefrom does it all come? However, I am giving it. It would require a corpus of 600 crores rupees in deposit, which will yield an interest sufficient to run the Hospitals and Educational Institutions. If this is done, this level of free health-care and education can be maintained.

There are thousands of you here and I have never asked any for assistance. My hand is always above (giving) and never below (receiving). My hand is stretched only for love, but none realises this fully. What I needed was 600 crores rupees and only today I have received the news that a sum of 600 crores of rupees is arriving from the U.S. If this amount is apportioned as 300 crores for Bangalore Hospital, 200 crores for Puttaparthi, and 100 crores for the educational institutions and invested, the interest accruing will take care of the running expenses. I have no personal desires. My entire being is selfless. There is no selfishness in Me at all nor have I asked anybody. Will any body simply give a 100 crores of rupees as gift for the mere asking? None. But a single individual has come forward to give 600 crores. I have no direct contact with that person. The message says, “Swami, you will receive the amount on Monday noon. Please deposit 300 crores on Bangalore Hospital account and 200 crores on Puttaparthi Hospital account as fixed deposit as soon as the amount is received”.

It may be hard to find entirely selfless people, but if you undertake selfless work, resources flow of their own accord. Bharat is a land of Thyaga (sacrifice), Yoga (spirituality) and not of Bhoga (sensual enjoyment).

It is this spirit of sacrifice that makes such achievements possible. I have many other projects in mind.

First thing in the morning, you look at the newspaper; it is full of obscene pictures and news totally opposed to our culture. How sacred is the code of conduct of the women of Bharat! From ancient times, how highly have women been held in our tradition. All energy emanates from the female principle. This sacred feminine principle is grossly perverted in unsightly and immoral forms by the films and magazines. Such vulgar exhibitionism is destructive of Bharatiya culture. We have to protect our culture and restore proper status of the feminine behaviour.

We have to seek some suitable method for achieving this. Swami desires to fund a few lakhs rupees for those who can come forward with appropriate activities for the restoration and upholding of true feminine values and traditions in the media. With money, you should achieve worthy objectives like this. In this world, much is achieved by money, and there is no harm in using money in the work of upholding righteousness. All manner of obscenity must be eliminated from the newspapers and the other media. Exposure of young people to such images affects their minds adversely and even ruins their lives. To work against this trend and to strengthen Bharatiya culture, I am prepared to help to any extent. Truth must be expressed, righteousness extolled, injustice and evil opposed, obscenity expunged, and honour and respect of womanhood upheld. The respect of Bharatiya culture is based on the high regard it bestows on women. Welfare of women is the true welfare of Bharat. We are converting the goddesses of welfare into objects of vice.

Our Krishna Kant (the Vice President of India) is here. His mother is a very pious lady. She is constantly God-minded. In fact, it is his mother’s influence that is responsible for the exalted position occupied by Krishna Kant today. Many great men of this country owe their greatness to the influence of their mothers. I am very happy to see such persons. Even now she advises her son in the right path as if he were a little child. Krishna Kant is also a model son and respects his mother highly and abides by her desires with great humility.

Today’s need is for more such mothers and children. If mothers are good, children are also good. To ensure proper mother and childcare, I am proposing to construct a mother and child health centre in Bangalore. The relationship between parents and children is far from the ideal today. While the parents are abusive, the children are disobedient. This is a very unhappy situation.

Parents spend their entire lives for the welfare of their children, who should realise this and behave appropriately in return. Krishna Kant is affectionate to his mother and has been obedient and has lived with great happiness in her love. Such examples must be widely emulated in our country.

Unfortunately, today in this country, there are many fatherless and motherless children in great distress. My resolve is to identity such children and provide them with proper amenities by way of residence, studies and other facilities so that they become ideal citizens. I have spoken about this to the local district Collector. He has agreed to help and has allocated some land for this purpose. The construction has to be commenced shortly. There is no matter of hide and seek in My actions. All I do is transparent. Bring to My attention any such deserving orphans or children without fathers and I shall arrange to allocate to them one lakh of rupees per child to be kept in fixed deposit for their upbringing until they are able to support themselves. All I do has a great ideal behind it. I have already instructed the Chair of Nagarjuna Constructions, who recited his compositions just now, to take up the construction of the building and complete it expeditiously. He has assented. The project is to construct one house per fatherless family, provide the wherewithal for livelihood and schooling until the children are educated and made capable of discrimination. Today educated children abound, but many lack discrimination. Education should always lead to discrimination. My firm resolve is to disseminate such disrimination widely. What others say is of no concern to Me, for what I am proposing is good. I have no ill will against anybody and I love everybody equally. Love all equally, and everyone will love you in return. Love for love and from heart to heart. Disregard every manner of adverse comments. Hold firm to your resolve.

Pursue your resolve without concern for yourself and make Me yield by your sheer perseverance. This should be the relationship between you and Me. Be active in good deeds, act righteously, respect womanhood. The welfare of women is an index of the welfare of the country. The history of Bharat is replete with the stories of great women such as Savitri who brought back her husband from the jaws of death and Sumathi who could make the sun stand still. We are treating such womanhood with utter disregard, treating them as worthless. This is a very wrong attitude. The country’s welfare is closely linked to the welfare of women. Therefore, we have to uphold the respect of womanhood. This is the highest of education. Take to heart this lesson.

Going abroad and acquiring some foreign qualification and earning a lot of money is not a sign of greatness. You have to stand firm in Bharatiya culture and uphold the honour of your country. Engage in good works. Love those who even abuse you. I am a standing example for this.

The good runs into several impediments. Trees bearing fruits have stones thrown at them. Similarly, good people receive brickbats. This should not make us waver. Rough diamond acquires value as it is cut and polished. In the same way, abuses turn into ornaments. Hence, we should disregard abuse and hold to our righteous ideals firmly. The cowherds surrounding Krishna and Balarama became ideal persons. In the same manner, I want all students here to become ideals. Serve your parents, respect them, and obey them implicitly. That indeed is the essence of Bharatiya culture.

This is our goal. Don’t seek your own happiness; crave for the welfare of the entire universe. Abandon selfishness and pursue the welfare of others and attain Paramartha (supreme goal). That is true education.

Your education is not merely to earn wealth, but for the acquirement of good qualities. You desire wealth, health and friendship; but without character, they are of little consequence. Therefore, you should build up your character. You must emblazon the greatness of Bharat all over the world. With this the whole world will be one with Bharat.

On this sacred Krishnashtami day, I affirm to you that soon the entire world, be it Pakistan, China, Germany, Russia or any other country big or small of this world, will be our friend. This shall be our resolve. Our natural goodness is an assisting factor for this. That is the root cause of this hope for unity. Unity contains purity and purity leads to Divinity. You should strive to achieve the triad of unity, purity and divinity.