1008 Pearls of Sayings
of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Introduction
|1-42 | 43-84 | 85-126 |
127-168 | 169-210 | 211-252|
|253-294 | 295-336 | 337-378|
379-420 | 421-462 | 463-504|
|505-546 | 547-588 | 589-630|
631-672 | 673-714 | 715-756|
|757-798 | 799-840 | 841-882|
883-924 | 925-966 | 967-1008|
From 253 - 294
253
THE serpent can be tamed and its poisonous fangs
removed, when music from the Nagaswaram
pipe is played and when it is fascinated by that
sweet melody. The poison that Vishaya exerts on
the human mind can also be eliminated and
countermanded, when man is fascinated by the
sweet melodies of NNamasmaranaor Sankeertan,
that is to say, by the repetitive chanting of the meaningful
Names of the Lord. The poison in both can
thus be transmuted into pure nectar.
254
SCRIPTURES are endless; Sadhanas are countless;
opportunities are few; time is already overstocked.
But you can easily win the battle of life, in
spite of these handicaps, provided you arm yourself
with Love, which is the essential teaching of all
Scriptures, the goal of all varieties of Sadhana, the
best use to which all opportunities can be put and
the most profitable way of utilising the precious
capital time.
255
IMAGINE the fate of the cows when a tiger enters
the manger. Can they survive the invasion? So
too, the cows of Truth, Justice, Peace and Love cannot
survive in the human heart when the "Tigers",
namely Greed, Anger and Pride enter and play
havoc. Today, the human heart, especially the
heart of the educated man, has become the lair of
wild desires and cruel habits.
256
THE day when devotees sing songs in
praise of the Lord and please the ear;
The day when sorrows of the poor recur and
men move closer as brothers born;
The day when servants of God are fed with Love
and Care in thankfulness;
The day when a Great One comes to us and relates
thrilling tales of God; these indeed are worthwhile
days. The rest are like days dedicated to obsequies for the dead.
257
DO not consider any act of service as demeaning.
Sweeping the streets, for example, is not
below your dignity. Do you not sweep the floor of
your homes? Do you not scrub and wash off dirt?
When you undertake such tasks, the villagers will
also gladly share in them. Why feel ashamed to be
good? The ridicule that may be cast on you has been
the reward of many Saints. It will soon fade away.
Mohammed was driven out of Mecca by those who
could not appreciate his teachings. Jesus was
crucified. But their names resound in reverence in
the hearts of millions.
258
ISAA Vaasym Idam Sarvam, all this is enveloped
by God; all this is soaked in God and saturated
with God. Everything is the substance of God. In
fact the best teacher is one's own heart. Time is the
best preceptor and awakener; the World is the best
scripture; God is the best friend for man. So there
is no need to wander in search of a Guru. Man is of
God, with and from God. The Cosmos is a bubble
born in the Absolute. The human essence in man is
Divine. The true Guru is not the human preceptor.
Revere the World as Divine. All that is seen or
heard is God. Revere the Universe as Guru.
259
I HAVE no sense of distinction between Bhaktas
who worship this form or that. All can come
near, all who crave for heat and light. The heat of
this splendour will destroy the chill of sensual
pleasure. The light will scatter the darkness of the
ages. Cultivate Love and Prema towards all; that is
the way to gain nearness. I do not measure distance
in terms of meters or miles. The range of Love
decides the distance for Me.
260
THE real aim of education must be to help the
student discover the Divine in every being
Saint Vemana says:
Scholars study! study! study! But the fools know
not what they are! Studying, studying, studying.
The scholar is not free from vice nor has he become
wise. Then why study these mean, mortal things?
Study only that which is deathless. The most
desirable subject for study is the Secret of the Soul
which is Immortal.
261
SEVA is the adoration of the Lord, as "Viswa-Virataswarupa",
as having the multifaceted form and immanence
in the entire Universe. The Vedas
describe Him as thousand-headed, thousand-eyed
and thousand-footed. The thousands of hands and
eyes and feet that have come here for the festivals
are all His, the Lord's. Worship Him; that is the
purpose of your Seva. And He is none else than
your own self.
262
YOU must discover your identity; then only can
you have peace. You are like a man who has
forgotten his name; his address and his mission in
life. Realise it and try to delve into yourself; so that
you may know who you are. Then you get security
and peace. Sharpen your intellect for this purpose;
and cleanse your consciousness for this purpose
through Sathsang, Japa, Dhyana, Namasmarana
etc.
263
VALMIKI was a highway-robber who waylaid
and killed hundreds without hesitation; he was
the slave of passion and emotion; but when the
seven-Sages, whom he waylaid one night, counseled
patience, forbearance and self-enquiry, he
turned heroically into the path of Ram (giving up
the lure of Kam or Lust) and achieved immortality
and immortal fame, as the narrator of Rama's story.
264
SCATTER the seeds of Love in dreary desert
hearts; then the sprouts of Love will make the
wastes green with joy; the blossom of Love will
make the air fragrant; the river of Love will murmur
along the valleys; and every bird, beast and child
will sing the song of Love.
265
PRAYER is the very breath of Religion for it
brings man and God together and with every
sigh nearer and nearer. Dhyana is the process of
listening to the Song Celestial, the Flute of Krishna,
with the mental ears alert on the melody. Yoga is
the merging of the Mind in the Bliss of self-forgetfulness
when the music fills the Consciousness.
266
THE Primal Formless Absolute wedded Desire
and the Mind was born. The Mind wedded
two wives, Inner contemplation and Outer activity.
The first gave birth to five sons; Sathya, Dharma,
Shanthi, Prema and Ahimsa, the Five Pandava
Brothers. Mind was infatuated more with the
second wife, and so, gave birth to a 100, each one
with a name indicative of badness and wickedness,
the Kauravas. God was on the side of the Pandavas
and they won.
267
THE Universe is seen; it can be learnt about; it
can be experienced and enjoyed. But God is
unseen. He has to be inferred through His handiwork.
So too, Society to which social service is
rendered, cannot be seen as such. We can contact
only individuals. But through the individual, you
infer the immanence of the Divine. All are actors on
the World Stage, in His play. Every atom is surcharged
with His Power, His Might and His Glory.
Every being is surcharged with His Bliss, His beauty
and His Goodness.
268
BE devoted to the Universal; be eager to become
that. When you pray to God for a job, a son, or a
prize, you are devoted not to God, but to the job, to
the son and to the prize. Pray to God for God.
Love, because it is your nature to Love, because you
know nothing else and because you cannot act
otherwise than Love. Expand yourself, take in all!
Grow in Love.
269
HAVING an open heart, do not relish the narrow
path of restricted love; love all, do not
develop prejudices against men in power or position.
They too are our kith and kin. We all sail
together. Be convinced of one Truth about Me;
Swami will never lay his hand on a task without
proper reason and without some profound effect
that will flow there from.
270
WHEN the Giver of Grace is here, you run after
persons who claim that they got this or other
article from Me or were blessed with this gift from
Me. When you have Kamadhenu here, why seek to
know and secure a cow? Kamadhenu can give you
all that you need. When you have Kalpatharu here,
why bother about the fruits on a tree? Kalpatharu
can give you all that you ask. When you have here
the mountain of Gold and Silver, Meru, why cringe
for silver and gold from persons who are themselves
beggars? When you have God come among
you to support and sustain you, why grovel before
crude vulgar entities?
271 MAN is
equipped with a return-ticket when he
takes birth. Holding it in his grasp, he earns
and spends, rises and falls, sings and dances, weeps
and wails, forgetting the end of the journey. But
though he forgets, the wagon of life moves towards
the cemetery which is its terminus. It brings no
glory to man if he is tied helplessly to the wheel of
birth and death. His glory and greatness consist in
disentangling himself from that revolving wheel.
272 THE mind is the architect of your progress or
decline. For the fool, the mind is a formidable
dinosaur; for the intelligent, the mind is an angel.
The trained mind is torn by fear; the pure elevated
mind is placid and unruffled, like that of a homeless
Sage. The Vedas teach how to purify the mind and
render it into a useful tool.
273 INTELLECT alone can direct man in the path of
discrimination, between the true path and the
false; the proper and the improper. This is the
reason why man has been praying since Ages,
through the Gayathri "hymn" "Illumine me, prompt
my intelligence, so that I may walk aright".
274 SANKARA wrote a verse summarizing the advice
he gave the poor struggling Brahmin
house holder at Varanasi (Benares city):
"Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam,
Moodha Mathe, Samprapthe Sannihithe Kaale
Nahi Rakshathi Duakru Karane", Praise
God, Praise God, Praise God, you fool,
when death knocks at your door, rules of grammar
cannot save you. 275 OF what avail is a car, a bank deposit, a bungalow
in a posh extension of a city? If you
have all these but no love in your heart, the heart
becomes a dark deserted temple, where the bats of
lust and anger breed in the everlasting night. Such
hearts are foul, diseased with terror and error!
276 BIRDS, beasts and trees have not deviated from
their nature; they are still holding it valid. Man
alone has disfigured it, in his crude attempt to improve
upon it. So, the Avatar has to come as Man
among men, and move as friend, well-wisher,
kinsman, guide, teacher, healer and participant
among men. He has come to restore Dharma and
when man follows Dharma, He is pleased and content.
277 GET up, place the rosary in its bag and engage
yourselves in relieving distress; that is the true
spiritual path. Do not waste all your years with
stone images, pictures or idols, learn to see in every
living vital active person the embodiment of all
energy, all beauty, all beneficence, namely God.
God is subtler than ether filling the smallest crevice
with His Majesty. Know this and serve His manifestations,
wherever you meet them.
278 CONTENTMENT is heaven; grief is hell; anger is
the foe; calmness is the armour; and compassion
is the comrade. You repeat Shanti three times,
don't you? It is to encourage peace in the human,
Godly and natural milieu in which you have to live;
also to develop peace, in the body, mind and intellect.
279 ALL men have two constables ever with them;
they are the symbols of his sentence of imprisonment.
They are "Abhiman" (sense of I) over
"Mamakar" (sense of Mine), the egoistic feeling and
the pride of possession. Man is a prisoner of his
senses so long as these two keep him under guard.
Man strays away into misery and pain, because he
loses the sense of value and runs after the temporary
and the trivial. He ignores the voice of God
which warns and guides from within; and he
pays the penalty for the transgression.
280 AN act dedicated as an offering to the God, resident
in all, becomes as sacred as the highest
Seva, that is why Avatars happen; hence, when you
offer Seva to mankind, the Avatar will naturally be
pleased and you can win Grace.
281 THE individual born in the lake of Society must
swim and float in the calm waters, and joining
the River of Progress, merge in the Ocean of Grace.
Man has to move from the stance of "I" to the position
of "We". This day we see only the wild dance of
ego-stricken individuals, who hate Society and behave
most unsocially. 282 THE call of the Divine echoes in every heart; it
provokes the reaction of awe, reverence, affection,
love and sacrifice all ingredients of Bhakti.
It translates itself into acts of worship, of praise, of
adoration and of rituals symbolizing the Majesty of
God. Thus, the Mind gets saturated with Divine
thoughts. It is recast in the Divine Mould until the
flow of "Ananda" becomes unabated.
283 GOD first; the World next, myself last! That is
the legitimate sequence for the Sadhaka; and
who is not a Sadhaka? You have to be one, now or
later, so that you can be liberated from this cycle of
birth-death! Now, man in his callousness towards
his own welfare, has turned it topsy-turvy! It is
myself first, the world next, and God is last. So,
God is lost too! Hold fast to God; then you will be
safe. 284 MY activities are not for publicity or propaganda
or even to confer joy on others! They are
for conferring joy primarily on me! I have no need to
please others and to earn approval or appreciation.
For I and you are not distinct entities; you are I; and
I am you. I am the current that flows into every
bulk and illumines it. Those who see me as separate
are seeing falsehood. I am in your hearts; you are in
Mine. Don't be misled into doubt and distress.
Dogs may bark and jackals howl; but Truth moves
majestically forward.
285 THERE is only one God and He is Omnipresent, True.
But to concentrate on the Omnipresent, some fixed
point or preliminary form
is needed. And to conceive of the Divine as present
everywhere at all times, the mind of man is to be
clarified and purified by means of a certain
psychological process called Sadhana.
286 REMEMBER, God is your guardian, when you
sleep; when you are helpless; even when you
have forgotten or neglected or discarded Him. He
has no need for the things you offer or promise to
offer. He is ever content, ever blissful, ever full and
ever free. Do your duty to yourself - that is enough
offering for Him. 287 MAN must first decide, after vigorous self-examination
and continuous discrimination, the path that he wishes to traverse. Moksha or Liberation
means the removal of the bonds of Ignorance
that could hide the Truth and create a mirage of the
Truth. In fact, living is only another name of the
process of achieving alternate misery and happiness,
hunger and contentment, illness and health,
desires and fulfillment.
288 THE Sai Religion is the harmonious blending
though Love of all Religions, though some
followers of other Faiths feel that the Sai Religion is
contrary to theirs. We should not entertain similar
feelings. Ours is the Totality, the Sum; we should
not limit or restrict our Vision.
289 YOU may have vast scholarship, fame and fortune.
But the bee can give you a lesson on how
to be free from torment. The tree can teach you forbearance
and tolerance. It offers a shade to all, irrespective
of age, sex or religion, nationality or
status. It helps with fruit and shade even to the foe
who lays his ax on its trunk! The dog can teach you
a lesson in Faith, Selfless Service and the process of
Dedication.
290 FORM small Sathsangas and meet regularly for
Bhajans and mutual consultation about spiritual
matters. Read some fine spiritual classics like
Bhagavatha. Fill your eyes with the Beauty of His
form, your ears with the story of His Leelas, and
your hearts with the sweetness of His Glory; inspire
yourselves by seeing Him everywhere. Think of His
Immanence in every hill and dale, every man and
beast, every tree, bird and insect. You will be really
thrilled by the joy of that Vision.
291
MAN is daily growing more and more greedy
to know more about the lives of others, more
extrovert in fact. He wants to escape from himself
by interesting himself in others. He does not want to
worry about the details of his own life or the
problems of his own rehabilitation. Of what benefit
is all this burden of information that you seek to
carry in your head, this knowledge of the various
regions of the world without a knowledge of the
region of your own self, the centre of all the interest
that you evince?
292
REMEMBER, you cannot have the "Anubhava"
and the "Ananda" first. And you cannot
postpone Faith until you get them. You cannot bargain:
Give me Ananda and then I shall have Faith;
See the Purushothama in all Purushas. Purusha
means: he who lives in the rural or port-city or
town. Each one of us is the resident and the sole
resident of a distinct house of God. But, the
Purushothama, the Supreme Resident in all the
cities, is God. You can recognise the Purushothama,
if you educate yourselves properly.
293
EVERYDAY, when you take food you are offering
eatables to the fire that God has put in you
to digest food. You have to eat in a prayerful mode,
in profound gratitude. The Gita says that the fire
which cooked the meal is God; the meal is God; the
eater is God; the purpose of eating is to carry on the
work entrusted by God or pleasing to God; and the
fruit of that work is progress towards God.
294
PREMA must grow with every moment of Sadhana.
It must sweeten every word, deed and
thought of yours. Emerge from Dhyana as a person
more charged with Love! Emerge from Bhajan with
a greater measure of Love! Return from Nagarsankirtan
with a firmer conviction that everything is
surcharged with the same Divinity that is behind all
your activity.
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