Offer God real flowers grown in the garden of your heart ~ Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba
"Every spiritual seeker should strive for peace (shanti). Peace is the fragrant flower which is born out of pure love. It is the fragrance which is derived as a result of one's good deeds. If one loses this noble and fragrant quality of peace, then one has lost everything."
~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~
(December 9, 1985)
“We ruminate on suffering, regret, and sorrow. We chew on them, swallow them, bring them back up, and eat them again and again. If we’re feeding our suffering while we’re walking, working, eating, or talking, we are making ourselves victims of the ghosts of the past, of the future, or our worries in the present. We’re not living our lives.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh ~
"We often say that we have no Shanti. Why? Because you are multiplying your desires. One who is bereft of desires is peaceful. Desires are like the luggage we carry during the journey. If we have less luggage, the travel will be more comfortable. So also in your life's journey, you should restrict your desires that burden you."
~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~
(Food for Thought No. 2687)
Why and how should festivals like Vinayaka Chaturthi be celebrated as occasions for spiritual transformation?
"The Lord's family is an ideal one, maintaining harmony and peace in spite of the antagonistic elements present amongst them. The vehicle of Shiva (the bull), Parvati (the lion), Ganesha (the mouse) and Subrahmanya (the peacock) are, in their natural state, inimical to each other. But living in the presence of the Lord, they shed their enmity and live at peace.
Harmony in the Divine family shows that where there is divinity, there is peace and amity. Hatred and jealousy arise when the Omnipresence of the Divine is forgotten or ignored.
Holy days like Vinayaka Chaturthi should be celebrated only to remind ourselves of such sacred truths and to sanctify our minds and lives accordingly. They should not be treated as holidays for feasting and merry-making.
Ganapati should be worshipped so that all the Ganas (spirits) become friendly and helpful to us. Tyagaraja sang that if he has the daivanugraham (Lord's grace), all the grahas (planets) will be in his grasp. We must purify our hearts so that the Lord may shower His grace on us."
~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~
(Divine Discourse - Sept 10, 1984)
Ganapati can make even inauspicious occasions auspicious. He is always engaged in conferring boons on all. With His grace, any desire can be realised. – BABA
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| 14 September 2026 |
"What is that you have to offer to Vinayaka on this day of Vinayaka Chaturthi? Today people spend lot of money in offering various fruits to God. All these offerings are made only as a ritual. Ultimately people themselves consume them! No benefit accrues from making these offerings.
Pathram, Pushpam, Phalam and Thoyam - these are the four things that you should offer God. Here Pathram (leaf) means body. This body may wither away at any moment. So never develop attachment towards the body, instead offer it to God. Pushpam (flower} means Hridaya. This flower will never fade away. Mind can be compared to Phalam (fruit) and Thoyam stands for tears of joy. All these four should be offered to God. This is the offering that God expects."
~ Sri Sathya Sai Baba ~
(Divine Discourse: September 13, 1999)
Ego and lust are battles fought silently within, yet their outcomes shape everything you are.
Letting go of ego isn't weakness, it's a quiet victory that opens space for clarity and growth. But giving in to lust is a surrender that steals your sense of self, leaving only desire without direction.
Life teaches that control over impulses defines freedom more than external victories ever could.
Mastery over what moves you internally is the truest measure of strength. Because the wars worth fighting are never with others, but within yourself.
Which inner battle are you fighting today, and which one could define who you become?
Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavanthu
