Thought for the Day

As written at Prasanthi Nilayam

Source: Radio Sai Global Harmony

Thought for the Day Archive

April 2003

01 April 2003

True sacrifice consists in sharing with others, one's wealth, strength and other qualities, which have been derived from society. Man becomes immortal by the spirit of sacrifice and not by deeds, nor by procreation or by wealth. Man should therefore make an effort to make his life meaningful by sacrificing personal comforts for the sake of society and his fellow beings.

The Ugadi celebration is an annual reminder of man's obligations to express his gratitude to the Divine for all the benefits received from God. We hail the new year as Samvatsara because it signifies the omnipresence of the Divine. Samvatsara does not merely mean a year. Every moment is a Samvatsara, because without seconds, minutes, etc. there cannot be a year. If the year is to be sanctified, every moment is to be sanctified. Every second constitutes a year. It is not the new year that matters. Every new second is significant. Hence, you should fill every moment with sacred thoughts, pure feelings and pure actions. Every moment you should try to get rid of bad thoughts and fill the mind with good thoughts.

When you hear of a theft in your neighbourhood, you become extra cautious and every night you lock each door carefully. But when a death occurs next door, why is it that you do not examine whether you are equipped to meet it when it happens to you?! Why do you engage yourself in distractions like building houses, purchasing shares, going on picnics, contesting elections? Why don't you engage yourself in the service of the world?

Man can realise his mission on earth only when he knows himself as Divine and when he views all others as Divine. And man has to worship God in the form of man. God appears before him as a blind beggar, an idiot, a leper, a child, a despot, an old man, a criminal, or a madman. You must look behind those veils for the Divine embodiment of Love, Power and Wisdom, the Sai and worship Him through Seva.

Every life is filled with action. But together with activities associated with self-interest, every man should also take part in social service for the well-being of society. Man has been endowed with the human body for rendering service to others. Work done for the welfare of the world is true penance (Tapas), while work done for selfish purpose is useless (Tamas).

Through Seva you realise that all beings are waves in the Ocean of Divinity. No other Sadhana can bring you into incessant contemplation of the Oneness of all living beings. You feel another's pain as your own; you share another's success as your own. To see everyone else as yourself and yourself in everyone, that is the core of the Sadhana of Seva. Again, Seva makes the Ego languish. It makes you humble before the suffering of others, and when you rush to render help you do not calculate how high or low his social or economic status is.The hardest heart is slowly softened into the softness of butter, by the opportunity that the Seva Dal offers. Seva is prescribed as one among the Nine steps towards Realization.

Man is endowed with the equipment of senses, reason, feelings, passions and detachment, so that he may keep away from the enticement of pleasures and spend his life in helping, serving, sustaining and saving his fellowmen. He has to live in Seva, not Bhoga (enjoyment).

Clamour for food is being heard everywhere, though if each one worked hard, the problem would not arise at all. We talk of stomachs to be filled,but each stomach arrives in the world with two hands. Those hands, if they are kept idle or unskilled, cannot fulfill their assignment of finding food for the stomach. Work hard - that is the message. And share the gain with others. The harder you work, the greater you gain, the more you can share. Work hard and, more important still, work together with others in loving kinship.

If you cannot pray for the total welfare of the community around you in whom God lives, how is it possible for you to worship an invisible God? The first thing you have to do is look after the welfare of the living community around you. If the individual is deluded into believing that he is serving others, then woe be to him, for there is no 'other' at all. All are One; one man's sorrow is everyone's sorrow. The fundamental flaw is the ignorance of man. If only he were wise, he would have known that all individuals are waves on the surface of the Ocean of the Self.

Hanuman was ordered to discover the whereabouts of Sita and he obeyed implicitly, without questioning, and succeeded. He did not calculate the dangers of the journey and hesitate; and he did not feel proud that he was chosen for this important task. The name Ramadootha, Messenger and Servant of Rama that he earned thereby, has made him immortal. You must earn the name Sai Ramadootha. Have fortitude and self-control; use good and sweet words, and examine each act of yours on the touchstone of My preference. Above all, develop faith in the ideals of Rama. The Rama-Era will come into existence from the moment we give up ostentation, develop faith in the Self and lead a godly life.

What are the inner meanings of the name Rama? The letter 'R' (symbolising the fire) has the power to destroy all the sins committed by man. The letter 'Aa' (symbolising the moon) has the powers of cooling the fevers man suffers from and of conferring peace on him. 'Ma' represents the sun that dispels the darkness of ignorance and confers the illumination of wisdom. Hence, the word Rama, has the triple power of destroying sins, conferring peace and dispelling ignorance. When you utter the word 'Ram', you first open the mouth with the sound 'Ra'. All your sins go out when your mouth is open. When you utter 'M' by closing the mouth, the entry is barred against the sins that have gone out. Everyone should recognise the sweetness, the sacredness, and the divinity enshrined in the name Rama.

God will not ask you, when and where did you do service? He will ask with what motive did you do it. You may boast of its quantity. But God seeks quality, the quality of the heart, the purity of the mind, the holiness of the motive. The Lord is pleased only when you do the things the Lord desires. How else can you win His grace, but by nursing and nourishing His children. You must not merely have the enthusiasm to serve, but also the intelligence and the skill; only then can you be efficient and useful. Enthusiasm without efficiency is often a source of loss and grief.

You should believe that service is a path to God-realization. Service activities have to be taken up not for the sake of Sathya Sai Organization, nor for the sake of the society. They are purely for your own sake in order to transform your own lives and redeem yourselves. Service to man will help your divinity to blossom, for it will gladden your heart and make you feel that life has been worthwhile. Service to man is service to God, for God is in every man, every living being and in every stone and stump.

Life is a symphony of joy and sorrow, a mixture of pleasure and pain. Man cannot decide for himself the difference between joy and sorrow. It is not possible for us to have joy without sorrow or sorrow without joy. We must develop the attitude that all sorrow leads to happiness and that all happiness leads to sorrow because man cannot choose for himself only joy or only sorrow. He must cultivate an attitude of synthesis of joy and sorrow and develop equanimity. He should not be exhilarated by pleasure and he should not be depressed by pain. Pleasure and pain always follow each other and no one can separate one from the other. A synthesis of these two can be obtained only through the spiritual path and not through any other path.

Seva brings out all that is great in man. It broadens the heart and widens one's vision. It fills one with joy. It promotes unity. It proclaims the truth of the spirit. It drives out all the evil qualities in man. It must be regarded as a great spiritual discipline. You are born to serve, not to dominate. Everyone in the world is a servant and not a master. All relationships of husband and wife, mother and child, employer and the employee are based on mutual service. The world is progressing because of such mutual service. If the principle of service did not operate, the world would come to a halt. It is only when man is filled with the spirit of service that his divine nature is recalled. He then experiences the peace the passeth all understanding.

In a world torn by factions based on the flimsy ground of caste, creed and colour, you have to prove that it is possible to have faith in Sai being the motivator of every living being, and get inspiration for genuine service from that faith. Service to Sai in the other person must be your daily act of worship. Of all sadhanas, this is the most effective. Seek out the slum dwellers, the poor, neglected dwellers in hamlets, and take Love and Light to them in plenty. "God is the refuge of those who have no place to rest", says a proverb. Go to places where you can find such people, and carry the message of hope and strength into their hearts. Be grateful to them when they welcome you and provide chances to serve them.

The body has to be exercised to keep it trim as a tool for serving your fellowmen. The body has not been granted by God in order to be fed and well-clothed and to be paraded in pride. Plunge into the problems of society, take up the burden of the family and advance the interests of your country. Shine as examples of Loving Service.

Love must be manifested as Service or Seva. Seva must take the form of food for the hungry, solace for the forlorn, consolation for the sick and the suffering. Jesus was himself involved in such Seva. The heart full of compassion is the temple of God. Jesus is worshipped, but his teachings are neglected. Sai is being worshipped but His teachings are neglected. Everywhere pomp, pageantry, hollow exhibitionism and lectures! No activity, no love and Seva. Heroes while lecturing are zeros while putting what is said into practice. Develop Compassion. Live in Love. Be Good, Do Good and See Good. This is the way to God.

What is the immortal part of man? Is it the wealth he has accumulated, the residences he has built, the physique he has developed, the wealth he has acquired and the family he has reared? No. All that he has done, developed or earned are destroyed. He has to leave them all to the ravages of time. He cannot take with him even a handful of earth; if he could, the earth would have become so scarce that it should have been rationed by now! Discover the Immortal 'I' and know that it is the spark of God in you; live in the companionship of that vast measureless Supreme and you will be rendered vast and measureless. Consider all objects that you collect here as given on trust to be used in this caravanserai, during your pilgrimage in this Karunakshetra.

Seva is the very essence of Bhakti, the very breath of the Bhakta, his very nature. It springs from the actual experience of the Bhakta….. An experience that convinces him that all beings are God's Children, that all bodies are altars where God is installed, that all places are His residences.

Employ yourself usefully, earn, but do not possess the riches with fanatic zeal. Be like a headmaster who, when he is transferred, goes to the new place unconcerned and carefree, leaving behind him all the furniture and equipment of the school, for he knows that he has only held them on trust for some time. Your yearning to do Seva and your enthusiasm while doing Seva are rescuing you from harm. God is the witness. God has no desire to bless, no anger to induce Him to punish. You get blessed and punished as a result of your own feelings.

Through activity man attains purity of consciousness. Why strive for a pure consciousness? If a well has muddy water, then its bottom cannot be seen. Similarly, within man's heart, deep down in his consciousness, we have the Atman. But it can be cognized only when the consciousness is clarified. Your imagination, your inferences, your judgements and prejudices, your passions and emotions plus egoistic desires muddy the consciousness and make it opaque.

To remove the chaos and violence prevailing in society, you have to become Karmayogis and devote all your knowledge, ability and energies to the transformation of society. It is not wealth that is important. Character alone counts. Sensual pleasures (Bhoga) can only lead to (Roga), Sacrifice (Thyaga) leads to Yoga (Communion with the Divine). Discipline is vital. Avoid unnecessary talk and purposeless association with anyone.

Look about for chances to relive, rescue or resuscitate. Train yourselves that you may render help quickly and well. Seva is the most paying form of austerity, the most satisfying, and the most pleasurable! It springs out of love and it scatters love in profusion. It plants a seed on stone and is delighted to see it sprout! Plant it with love and the seed will discover love inside the stone and draw sustenance therefrom.

It is the inner joy, the love that you radiate, that is important. Mere sentiment and sympathy are of no use; they must be regulated by intelligence. Shower cheer on the sad; soothe those who have lost the way; close your eyes to the faults of others, but, keep them open to discover your own. All these are hard jobs. Practice alone can make you perfect - practice, not only in items of service, but in meditation on the Divine. Prayer, worship and meditation will render you more and more efficient in the field of service.

The distressed, the poverty stricken and those who suffer have no one to serve them. Go to such people and be their friend, their kith and kin and their closest well wishers. Give them God in the form of food. Give them God in the form of clothes. Give God in the form of peace to those who are afflicted by anxiety. Give God in the form of medicine to those who are suffering from ill-health. Give God in whatever form that assuages fear, pain and sorrow. It is only after this is done that spirituality can soak into the heart. If you act contrariwise, instead of spiritual feelings, you will be promoting atheism.

I recommend some items of service, like nursing the sick. Visit patients in the hospitals, read nice storybooks sitting beside the patients, write letters for them, and generally be kind and friendly to them in their loneliness and pain. Go to the slum areas, move like lighted lamps full of love and sympathy, and help the people there get things done which will improve their health, add to their income and advance their education.

Can one be happy by merely eating four good meals daily or by riding in prestigious cars or by living in many-roomed air-conditioned bungalows? No. Happiness consists in helping others. It is brought about by giving up, not by hoarding. Catering to the senses makes man bestial. They will drag him into dirt and disgrace.

Wherever there is a vacuum in any heart, love flows into it and is glad that it can fill the emptiness. It is never held back; it is offered in abundance without guile or deceit. It does not wear the cloak of falsehood, flattery or fear. The tendrils of love aspire to cling only to the garments of God. It senses that God resides in His splendour in every heart. To discover that seat of God is real devotion.

As a child, man seeks toys to have fun and joy. As a boy he demands a cycle for the same purpose. When he becomes a young man, he demands a car to have fun and joy, a good position with a pretty girl as his wife. Then in middle age, he learns to shoulder more responsibility. The Samskaras (actions) of his previous birth have by now moulded his mind fully, his ideas have become set, whether it be for good or evil. But, the desire for ananda is as strong as ever. Now his quest for happiness follows different paths depending upon three Gunas (influences) on his mind.
 

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