Sai Madhuryam

Seeking liberation, if man worships

A myriad deities, he will not get

Freedom from affliction.

If he destroys the ego in him,

He has no need to seek liberation.

He will be Liberation itself!

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

Spiritual Practices

 "Austere spiritual practice (tapas) does not mean going to the forest or standing upside down and doing some meditation or the other.  Keep your word, adhere to truth, show gratitude where due and stay firm in your self-confidence.  These are the true qualities of a good individual.  If you adhere to these tenets, you will easily overcome any obstacle that may come your way."

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Divine Discourse - 23.11.2000)

Baba's Storytime - Devotional Singing

 

Naaradha once asked Sriman Naaraayana what was His permanent address. Naaraayana replied: "Wherever my Bhaktha (devotee) sings my name, I am present there". 

Then Naaradha asked: "There are innumerable places in which the devotees sing your name, how can you be present in all those places at the same time?" (Bhagavan explained that it was not any kind of singing that appealed to the Lord). In singing there are some who indulge in gymnastics and do not reveal genuine devotional feeling. When songs are sung in that manner, how can the Lord be present there.'? (Bhagavan illustrated it by reciting merely the musical notation Sa, Ri, Ga)

Where the singers merely emphasise the Raaga and the Thaala (tune and rhythm), He will not be present. It is only when the song is melodious combining Raaga, Thaala and Bhaava (the tune, the rhythm and the feeling) only there will He be present. The singing must be full of feeling. The Lord is moved only by the feeling that is expressed, not by musical talent as such. It does not matter if the raaga is not perfect and the thaala is not perfect. Those appeal only at the worldly level. The Lord loves only the sincerity of feeling. 

There was a great musician in Akbar's Court known as Thansen. He used to sing night and day and the music was mellifluous. It was perfect music but there was no deep feeling in his singing. One day Akbar and Thansen were going round the city. Akbar found an old man singing to himself songs in praise of God. Akbar stopped his chariot and went on listening to the song of the devotee and even without his knowing it, tears started flowing from his eyes. His heart was deeply moved. 

He went some distance and told Thansen: "You have been singing for a long time before me and I have always found your music very sweet to the ears but it has never moved my heart, but the music of this devotee has melted my heart. I wish to know the difference between your singing and the singing of this devotee!" 

Thansen replied: "Haaraaja! I have been singing to please you, but this devotee is singing to please God, that is the difference." 

So something which is sung to please a man cannot move the heart. Only that which is addressed to God can have that effect. What pleases the Lord alone can change the mind of man. Both the devotee and the great musician Thansen were singing well, but only the song filled with devotional feeling could appeal to God. 

(From Bhagawan's Divine Discourse at Ooty, South India, April 1984)

God's Way

 

For God to Hear our Call

What is most essential if we wish that God hears our call? 

"While we live in the normal world taking things as they come, we must take great care of spiritual aspects as well. We cannot forget them. Whatever work you may undertake, if you have your attention on Divinity, then God will take care of you. One example: A mother puts her baby to sleep. After the baby is asleep, she goes to the first floor and attends to her work. All the while, her attention will be on the baby, and her thoughts are always about when the baby will get up. Even if she is engaged in urgent and pressing work, her attention will be on the baby and as soon as she hears the cry of baby, she will come running. She will not stop to consider what tune and beat the baby is crying in. 

Just as a mother runs from her work as soon as she hears the baby cry, so also, if man cries to the Lord from the depths of his heart, even if the Lord is busy, He will come and help the devotee. God does not ask what path the devotee is adopting or what bhajans are being sung by him, etc. He will only look at the sincerity with which the devotee has cried out."

 ~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Ch. 7, Summer Showers 1976)

When you look at others with love, God will also look at you with love. – BABA

The Universe

"The Universe is the manifestation of God.  Divinity, subtle and invisible, exists in every human being.  Association with good people and spiritual discipline (sadhana) are essential for discovering the Divinity that is latent in the individual."

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Divine Discourse - 23.11.1980) 

Karma

 *Why is karma (actions we do daily), very powerful in influencing our future?*

"Can the bodies of people, their conditions, ups and downs people meet in life, can they not be the accumulated result of hereditary impacts and tendencies? 

Two things stand like parallel lines before us when we consider this subject: mental and material. If satisfactory solutions can be found in materialism for problems relating to human nature and its special qualities, then there can be no basis for believing that there is a factor called Atma or Divine! But it’s impossible to demonstrate that the capacity to think, for example, has evolved out of physical matter. 

When an item of work is done, again and again, it becomes a habit, a skill; doesn’t it? Therefore, skills or habits that a newborn exhibits must be due to constant repetition indulged in long ago. Of course, it must have taken place in many previous lives. 

So, it is necessary to posit the validity of this belief in past and future lives for all living beings! The conditions in which we must spend the future are determined by what we are doing now. Between one life and another, one death and the next, the individual either progresses or regresses, expands or shrinks."

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Sathya Sai Vahini, Ch. 3)

Roots of Wisdom - The Human Mind

 

"The human mind is originally quiet but is usually clouded by thoughts and desires.  Once such mental obstructions are removed, then the clear mind will naturally manifest itself."

(From the book "Roots of Wisdom" written by Hong Yingming)

Food for Thought - Dhyana

"Train yourself to wake up during the Brahmamuhurtam, that is to say at 3 a.m.  You may require an alarm clock at first for the job but soon, the urge for Dhyana will rouse you.  Do not take a bath before you sit for Dhyana, for the ritual of the bath will arouse the senses and you will be pulled in too many directions for the process of Dhyana to succeed.  Regularity sincerity and steadiness will help you to achieve success."

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Food for Thought No. 1972)

The Way to Pray

"With a mountain of desires in their heart, a devotee offers a petty coconut to the Lord!  This is not the way to pray to the Lord.  This is not Devotion.  This is not Love.  To seek a favour is not prayer at all.  Only a selfless person can engage in service to society.  Only such a person is entitled to serve God.  The first prerequisite is the spirit of sacrifice, which can be developed only through love.  A person filled with love is ready to make any sacrifice."

~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~

(Divine Discourse - 9.10.1989)