To make this chatroom function 24 hours a day around the year, we need
volunteers who can dedicate some time to be chat hosts at different times of
the day. These hosts will monitor and facilitate the proceedings in the
chatroom. Those who can spend time on the chatroom are urged to email
saibaba@value.com.au with following details Your name, country and time span
available (please convert your local time to Sydney time Australia before
mailing) and the days of the week you can spend on the chatroom.

Hope our new service will be helpful to meet each other and spread the glory
of Bhagawan to the globe.

NOW WE HAVE A GLOBAL WEB SITE FOR OUR MISSION

Visit:

Sai Baba Global Education in Human Values

http://www.sathyasaionline.com

If you want to register your self as an EHV participant(existing or future)
or your center in this site please email us at saibaba@value.com.au with
your details. Jai Sai Ram

Jai Sai Ram

TOPIC FOR THE WEEK – RELIGION, SPIRITUALITY AND EDUCARE

It is surprising to me to note that you have been unable to recognize the
relationship among religion, spirituality and educare. First and foremost,
understand what religion is - 'Religion is realization.' Only when you
realize the truth about yourself, will you understand what religion is.
Spirituality is not merely singing bhajans, performing worship, going to
temples or on pilgrimages or undertaking any other good activity.
Spirituality is recognizing oneness of all beings. Here is an example. When
we close our eyes we cannot see anybody. But the moment we open them we can
see thousands of heads in this hall. Where have these heads come from? If
you enquire into the truth, you will recognize that your eyes notice all
heads. They have not come from anywhere outside.

To recognize unity in diversity is spirituality. The basic truth to be
recognized is that there is only one Atma in all beings. The questions and
doubts arise when you see multiplicity in unity. The entire creation has
emerged from love. Therefore, there is no difference among religion,
spirituality and educare.

Religion is realization of your Self. Spirituality also is discovering who
you really are. For example you say, "This is my handkerchief, this is my
plate, this is my hand and this is my body." Then who are you? There must be
someone to say that he owns the tumbler, plate, hand and the body. When you
enquire into this truth you will realize that you are separate from all
these and in fact, you are the master of all these. That master is the
Atma.

The next aspect is educare. How can you call yourselves educated if you do
not understand what educare is? The word 'education ' is derived from the
Latin root 'educare'. While education refers to collection of worldly facts,
educare is to bring out from within. Education is for a living while educare
is for life. Education is for 'Jeevana Upadhi' (livelihood). Educare is for
'Jeevitha Paramavadhi' (the ultimate goal of life). It is easy for us to
recognize things outside us and difficult to look within.
There are many things inside us, which are not manifest. When you join the
three letters G, O, D, we get the word GOD. When you look at the letters
individually they have no meaning of their own. Our effort lies in putting
together these letters to get the meaning. This is educare. Educare means to
bring out from within. The Atma is our innermost reality. That is what
educare should bring out. Therefore, there is actually no difference among
the three - religion, spirituality and educare.

BHAGAVAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA

GOOD CHARACTER

This section will be focussing on implanting a good character in
individuals, as Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba says, Education is for a good
character. Jai Sai Ram

GOOD CHARACTER 14

SELF CONFIDENCE
When Lincoln was young, he led a poor life. He could not afford even proper
clothes. His affluent friends in school teased and ridiculed him over his
poverty. One day, unable to bear the ridicule, he poured out his heart to
his mother and explained to her how he was being insulted and humiliated.
His mother consoled him saying, "My dear son, all this will do you good.
This should not deter you from developing self-respect. Self respect is your
treasure and God!" These words of encouragement inspired Lincoln and gave
him strength to face the ups and downs of life with equanimity. After he
passed out of the university, his admirers and well-wishers who had
recognised the strength of his character enthused him to contest the
elections. Lincoln, being a man of great humility, hesitated initially. But
he remembered the words of encouragement tendered to him by his mother when
he was young. Finally, he contested the elections, emerged victorious and
became the President of America. Self-confidence and self-respect in him,
developed by his mother, were responsible for his rise to the highest
position of authority in the country. A person without self-confidence, even
if thrust into exalted position, is bound to slip down.

BHAGAVAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA

ADVICE FOR THE WEEK

This section will give Sathya Sai Baba’s advice to parents, students and
teachers every week.

ADVICE TO TEACHERS

The teacher must first have a thorough understanding of his own mind before
trying to understand the minds of the students. If the teacher's mind is
good, the students will reflect it in their behavior. Since the teacher
cannot see the student's mind, he has to understand it only by observing the
student's behavior. The teacher should observe and analyze the student's
behavior with that of his parents, his friends and his fellow students.
Basing on this, he will be able to lead the student on to the right path.

Sometimes, parents give too much freedom to the children and children in
turn misuse this freedom to interact with their friends with laxity in
behavior. At school his freedom is curtailed. He must be taught to strike a
balance between freedom and discipline. The teacher cannot interfere in the
student's family affairs, for, parents give freedom to their children out of
their love. Nevertheless, the teachers must keep in touch with the
student's activities at home. But the sad plight of the modern age is that
the parents are ninety-nine percent responsible for their children getting
into bad ways, by providing them with excess of money and freedom. The
parents are misguided by imagining that their children would be hurt if
their freedom is curtailed. But they feel dejected if the child gets
perverted and runs into bad ways.

The child must be groomed well right from the beginning itself. Just as
speed-breakers control the speed of vehicles on the road to ensure safety,
so too restrictions must be enforced upon children's freedom for their
safety. The child should be given freedom in areas related to right conduct
and must be punished when it errs. When the parents give freedom to their
children, they should watch carefully as to how the children behave. It is
then that the child will tread the right path. The first responsibility
rests with the mother for the child to tread on the right path. Generally,
if the daughter in the family is spoiled, mother is
responsible and if the son goes astray, father is responsible for it.

It is in order to ensure that unlimited freedom is not given to children
that the institution called school has come into existence. It is here that
teachers should strike a balance between freedom and restriction in
student's life. The teacher must advise the student regularly that his
conduct will be responsible for the name he earns for his parents and the
school in which he studies.

In some countries the concept of kindness and respect for elders is not
stressed upon. The teachers of Sathya Sai schools must advise the students
in the right way. The teacher must advise the student that he is born as a
human, and that he is neither a 'wild animal' to strike terror in the hearts
of people nor is he a 'domestic animal' (docile person) to be afraid of
others. He has no cause to fear nor should he cause fear in others. In this
manner, the teacher must lead the students on the right path. Life is a long
journey and must not be dismissed in a trivial manner. It must be spent in
the most auspicious manner possible. We should
aspire for a divine life and not long life. It is possible to bring about a
change in students by such good advice.

You are 'Acharya' and not merely a teacher. Acharya is one who first
practises and then teaches the same to his students. So when you want to
teach good principles to students, first you practise and then set an
example. For example, if you smoke in the class, students will also emulate
you and start smoking. If you try to correct them by saying, smoking is bad
for health, the students will in turn ask you, "Sir, then why are you
smoking?" The true characteristic of good education is good teaching. Good
teaching brings about transformation in students. It will make students
confess their mistakes before the teacher. I know this very well. Sometimes
I punish My students for their mistakes and be strict towards them. Yet, I
love them and give them what they need. This transforms their hearts. They
come and pray to Me, "Swami please forgive us. It is our mistake that we did
not conduct ourselves according to Your words. Now we have realized it.
Swami, we will never repeat such mistakes again". Words that come out of
true repentance melt Swami's heart and Swami forgives them by saying, "My
dear son, whatever I do is for your
good." All teachers can learn to emulate this example.

BHAGAWAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA

LOVE FOR ALL EDUCATION

This section will lift education to its highest as Baba says end of
knowledge is Love, and will give messages on love.

If Sai has attained such fame and reputation, what is responsible for it? It
is His Love Principle alone. This Love is My real property and treasure. You
should also set ideals in the society by developing self-confidence and by
sharing your love with others.

BHAGAVAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA

Sai Ram

EDUCATION IN HUMAN VALUES OF BHAGAVAN SRI SATHYA SAI BABA TEACHERS DATA BASE

Jai Sai Ram

We have a database of EHV teachers at http://www.sathyasaionline.com Please
continue to send us the following details if possible to be included in the
database.

Name:
Position:
Address: (all possible contact information with state and country listed)
Experience:
Goals in life:

YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO OM JAI SRI SATHYA SAI SATHGURU NEWS LETTER

We will like to have your contribution in the form of

Personal experiences,
Resource information for EHV teachers
People contact in different countries to implement EHV

Send us your information and contribution to saibaba@value.com.au

This service is dedicated to his sweet lotus feet of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai
Baba and is free and has no obligations.
Jai Sai Ram