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Date: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 THOUGHT FOR THE DAY Without the sanction of the Lord, man cannot achieve anything in the world. The Divine is the basis for everything. Man, however, is filled with conceit that he is the one who is doing everything. This pride is the cause of his ruin. It is the cause of his frustration and disappointment. Man today is basing his life on nature and is hence forgetting God. This is a grievous mistake. You must place your faith in God, the Creator of the universe, and then enjoy what nature provides. Faith in God is the primary requisite for man. |
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-BABA |
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- the official Website of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust at Prasanthi Nilayam |
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BABA'S ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS OF Sri ANIL KUMAR
Professor Anil Kumar has spent many years with Bhagavan Sai
Baba. He has rare privilegy to receive Baba's answers to many important
questions, such as some represented below. The below questions-answers are taken
from Part 10 of Anil Kumar's "Sai Pearls of Wisdom" - series: http://www.saiwisdom.com/saipearls/15.01.2003%20(E)%20central.htm
OM.. OM.. OM..
Sai Ram. With Pranams at the Lotus
Feet of Bhagavan..
The latest conversation
we had with Bhagavan was on the 12th of January 2003.. ..Certain comments made
by Bhagavan are of general interest, and serve as a message and a guideline for
all of us. So I thought of sharing them with you.
Globalization and the Standard of Living
As usual that day, after the
interviews in the evening He came out slowly, walking majestically, adjusting
His hair in a beautiful style that is unique and inimitable. He sat there
nicely and started speaking to us.
He just asked, "You had a
meeting at the college today?"
"Yes, Swami. We had a meeting
this morning."
"What was the topic?"
"Swami, an expert spoke on
globalisation."
"Oh, I see. Why globalisation?"
"Swami, globalisation is very
necessary to improve our standard of living."
Bhagavan said,
"You are wrong. The standard of living does not
need to be improved. Therefore, globalisation is not proper. It is the quality
of life, it is the standard of life, which is much more important than the
standard of living."
Standard Of Living and Danger
Then He used two words.
One word that He used was "pramana", which means standard. "If you
go by the pramana, standard of living, you will be met with
pramaada. Pramaada means danger. If you go by these standards, you'll be
met with dangers. So, see that you don't face
any pramaada or danger in life by not following the pramana or standard of
living." That's what Bhagavan said.
"Swami, we say,
"This country is great and that country is rich because of its affluence,
abundance and prosperity." Doesn't that indicate the per capita income of that
country?"
Swami said, "No.
What is the national standard of life? The national standard of life is the
integration of the entire organic world, all beings, animals, plants and
natural resources. Integration of all these together constitutes the national
standards, not simply the externals."
Then I reflected upon
what He had said. Today we have so many global problems: the greenhouse effect,
the ozone holes, the pollution, etc. All these problems exist because of the
lack of integration of natural resources. We kill the animal world; therefore,
the wildlife is suffering a lot. We kill or uproot all the big trees; hence, we
face an air pollution problem today.
Bhagavan says that integration of all living beings -- plants, animals and
birds -- living together in perfect harmony, constitutes the standard of a
nation, but not just in terms of economy, comforts, conveniences and
luxury. That's how He built the subject. These points have been bothering the
environmental biologists and ecologists all over the world.
"Modernity is Limitation"
Then I said,
"Swami, if we don't make use of all these modern amenities, can I call
myself a modern man? I think I am modern, ultramodern, by making use of all
these natural resources. If I don't tap these natural resources, how can I be
modern?"
Bhagavan said,
"No, no, no, no! Modernity is not
exploitation. Modernity is limitation. Modernity is making use of natural
resources in a limited way, without disfiguring them or without killing them
altogether. That's what modernity is."
"Swami, all right.
Somehow in this modern age, naturally the standard of living will certainly
increase. Yes, in earlier times we did not make use of toothpaste and a
toothbrush. However, modern man uses toothpaste and a toothbrush. Gas
stoves and such things like heaters weren't available in earlier times. Today,
people are making use of all these gadgets. Don't you think so? So, naturally
the standard of living goes up with modernity, without any special effort."
We should note this
next point.
Baba said, "Modern
life, or what you call "modernity", is not the latest style of living. Modernity lies in putting a ceiling on our desires. Control
of one's own desires is modernity, not leading a life of limitless desires."
What a wonderful
definition, which only He could give and which we can certainly emulate.
"How do We Control Desires?"
"Swami, it is nice to hear from You that we need to
control our desires. Why? How do we do it? Please tell me. When I see that
someone is better off than I am, then I want to be much, much better than they
are. Don't you think so? How are desires controlled? I know I have to control
them, but how? I don't know."
Then Bhagavan answered liberally, with a beautiful example.
"Don't get worried because the other man has a big
building. Be happy that you have a shelter to live in. Do not get worried that
the other man has a car. Be content that you have kaallu, your legs. Be happy
that you have legs. You don't need to spend money for petrol and, when there is
a petrol price hike, it won't bother you. Because you have God-made tires,
kaallu, the legs."
"Swami, all right. Excuse me for this question. A
luxury today may be a necessity tomorrow. A phone was a luxury; today it is a
necessity. A refrigerator was a luxury, and today it is a necessity. Swami,
what do You say about this?"
As you know, Swami's word should be the last. He does not
budge even an inch on that. Immediately He said, "Didn't you get along
without a phone earlier? Didn't you live at a time when you had no telephones?
Were you not happy in those days without a telephone? Were
you not peaceful without a phone in those days? Why do you think that you
cannot carry on without a phone? This idea is of your own making. This is one
of your own attachments. Why do you say that? You had less expenditures in
those days, and you were more comfortable." That's what He said.
"And actually speaking, you go to five-star hotels,
super-star hotels. Is that necessary? Not necessary. To appease your hunger, to
satiate your hunger, a simple meal is enough. Why the extravagance? Why the
luxury? It is not necessary."
That's
what Bhagavan said.
"Spiritual Things are Not Desires"
"Swami, all right, I want to see You. I want to talk to
You. These are spiritual feelings. Are these spiritual feelings also desires?
You said, "Don't have desires." I want an interview. I want to have Your
darshan. Is that also a desire?"
Let it be very clear. Bhagavan said, "No. (Laughter)
All those feelings that are spiritual are not desires."
"Why, Swami? Because You are involved, right?"
(Laughter)
He said, "No, no, no! Actually, what is a desire? A
desire is something you have developed to procure a thing or an object that you
don't have, right? You don't have a car, so you desire to have a car. You don't
have a building, so you desire to have a building, right? So, a desire is
something that is developed to possess or acquire what you do not have. Is that
clear?"
"But, in spirituality, there is no procurement or
acquisition of anything that you do not already have. It is only experiencing
what you already are and what you already have - Love. Love is not a desire.
You are the embodiment of Love. And peace -- peace is not a desire. You are the
embodiment of peace. Or Truth -- Truth is not a desire. You are the embodiment
of Truth. And God -- God is not a desire. You are God. So, how can that be a
desire?"
Then I thought it wasn't a good time to continue with this
topic.
Suddenly Swami looked at me and asked, "Do you have any
desires now?"
What should I say?
I said, "Swami, I have no desires."
I thought He might give me a compliment. He didn't!
(Laughter)
"You had a sumptuous lunch with so many sweets and
spicy items, so now you have no desires. (Laughter) You had a sumptuous,
delicious meal - well, I can understand." That's what He said.
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What else did
Swami say about Nature? Extract from Sathya Sai Speaks,
vol.4, chapter 5 ("The Mani Mantapa"): http://www.sssbpt.info/ssspeaks/volume04/sss04-05.pdf "Just as you seek
the udder of the cow for the milk it gives, seek the Lord and His Glory only in nature.
As a matter of fact, Nature
is useful only when it adds to the wonder and awe that it is able to provoke
and sustain. Everything is an image of the Lord. ...Точно
так же, как вы ищете
вымя коровы
ради молока,
которое та
даёт, ищите
Господа и
Его Величие
лишь в
Природе. По
сути,
Природа
имеет смысл
только лишь
из-за удивления
и
восхищения,
которые она
вызывает и поддерживает.
Всё есть
Образ
Господа.
Кришна,
когда был
ребёнком,
упивался
любованием собственными
отражениями
в
находящемся
в Его доме
Мани
Мантапа
(павильоне,
украшенном
драгоценными
камнями).
Подобно
тому как Господь
получает
удовольствие
от созерцания
Самого Себя
в Своем
проявлении,
именуемом
Природой,
все
испытывают
такую
радость, когда
слышат
повествование
о Господе, и о
том, как Он
зовёт к себе...
(Говорит
Сатья Саи,
том 4, глава 5:
"Мани Мантапа") You might ask Me to speak about my
own mystery. It is not easy to understand it. When you have the chance,
gather all the joy you can. There is no use of bolting the door after the
thieves have robbed and fled. Seize the chance and do not repent later that
you missed the opportunity. Remember, you have to come to Me, if not in this
birth, at least within ten more births! Strive to acquire Grace; Grace is the
reward for spiritual practice; the highest spiritual discipline is to follow
the instructions of the Master. Years of rigorous training make the
soldier, who can then stand all the rigors of warfare. The heroic fighter is
not made in a day. So too, the practicing spiritual aspirant (saadhaka) who
can win victories, is not made in a day. Restrictions and regulations, drill
and techniques have been laid down for him also. Follow them sincerely and
steadily and victory is yours. Prashaanthi Nilayam, 12-2-1964 |
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To attain the attitude of surrender, of dedication, you must have
Faith in God. This world is His play; it is not an empty dream; it has its
own purpose and use. It is the means by which one can discover God; see Him
in the beauty, the grandeur, the order, the majesty of Nature. These
are but shadows of His Glory and His Splendour. Upasana (adoration of
God), leads to the knowledge that He is all; when you experience that there
is no Second, that is Jnana (Spiritual Wisdom)! (From Baba's "Thought for the day" on 4th May 2009) |
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And now.. check out this best-best link: |
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...And this one too (frames from serial about Baba's life. Young Swami (Baba) releases captured animals)/ Кадры из кино-сериала о жизни Саи Бабы: Баба, будучи подростком, спасает животных. Кадры сопровождаются титрами на английском языке. |
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The next one is taken from
www.radiosai.org Thought for a day, August 16-th 2009: All men in all countries are pilgrims proceeding along the path to God. The progress of each is decided by the discipline adopted, the character formed, the ideal kept in view, the leadership chosen and the faith implanted. Just as trees and plants, birds and beasts differ from one region to another, the rituals, practices, disciplines and ideals may differ from community to community; each is good for that region and that stage of development. You cannot transplant one, from one human community to another. The atmosphere in which you have grown up is the most congenial for you. |
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Some talk of
calamities.. Read here what did Sri Sai Baba say about future
calamity, please |
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There is no end to Baba's statements in support
of Nature-defending activities. Even Sri Rudram - one of earliest spiritual
texts of the world - says that God is
protector of his devotees, animals, trees and all the Nature. |
Please, if you feel like reading more of Baba's comments, advises,
answers etc., proceed to official website of Sri Sathya Sai Sadhana Trust: www.sssbpt.info