Issue 247 - September 26, 2021 |
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Sairam Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Swami has often reminded us that a water bubble does not exist without water; it is born in water, lives and merges in water. in the same way, the whole creation is born out of God, lives in God and merges in God. Everything is God and in God.
Swami says, “Man is born out of God, lives in God and merges in God, and his separate existence is only as long as he is filled with this identity of body, which is an illusion. Like air, the mind which thinks it is the body, makes the bubble different from water. A body filled with the mind thinks all that exists is true. As long as the mind fills the body, it makes it different from its source. The moment the mind is merged with God, the separate existence disappears immediately and it becomes one with divinity.”
The whole effort of all our seva and sadhana that we engage in daily is to turn the mind which is filled with body consciousness and goes outward…to inwards, so that it can be filled with divine consciousness.
Sairam
Bhuvana Santhanam
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ātmano mokshārtam
(Emancipation of one’s self)
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Excerpt From Divine Discourse |
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What should be our effort in life?
The Divinity is complete. Whether you add to it or remove from it, Divinity remains complete by itself. The quality of Divinity is one and the same in all. The effort is to realise this truth that we all are one and the same though we may look different from outside. The containers look different, but the content that lies within is the same. In each person, I find Myself, my own Self and therefore, it is not difficult for me to love others. When our hearts become pure, we see our reflections in every being, and everything around us.
We all have a manufacturing date, and an expiry date. Between these two dates, our prime focus should be on our efforts to realise the truth. Swami’s life is Swami’s message. There is no other message, but to follow the life of Swami which was a testimony to love and serve others. A person with ignorance, attachments, illusions cannot see this truth that everything is Divine. If one gets so much of joy looking at one’s reflection in the mirror, imagine the joy which one can get by seeing thousands and thousands of reflections all around. That joy is Divine Joy. All other joys are worldly joys.
I want to convey to all the devotees, especially the ones who have worked hard to spread the message of God in different languages by translating them in their own languages and taking it to different people. Never underestimate the effort that you are putting. We do not know in what way the message is going to bring a change in the society. If you put an effort in the spiritual path, the effort is never wasted. We all must realise that Divinity is very much our true nature. But how can we achieve this goal? It is by practising selfless love and service. This is the only way to purify our self - our intellect, our mind and realise the truth that lies deep within us. Let us develop this vision of oneness. Let the take home message be that we shall put our sincere efforts to be selfless, pure and to realise that Swami just exists everywhere and not just in one place— īśā vāsyam idaṃ sarvaṃ, He is everywhere and in every being. Let us love all and serve all.
An excerpt from Divine Discourse delivered by Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai on November 23, 2019.
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Understanding the Power of Forgiveness
Trupti S
Software Professional, USA
Going through a divorce at a young age was not easy. Starting with the decision to separate from someone you love, to going through all the legal work on your own while your family was on the other side of the world, were only some of the challenges I had to face. My biggest challenge was to overcome recurring feelings of despair, self loathe, and resentment towards my ex-partner. The timing of all this coinciding with one of the biggest pandemics of our time made it all the more difficult to cope with.
What seemed impossible to do at first, became possible only through the guidance and teachings of my beloved Guru, Swami. In His Divine discourse on cultivating forgiveness and love, Swami said: Only a person who has the attitude of kṣamā (forgiveness) can be considered to be endowed with sacred love. This quality of forbearance and forgiveness can take root only when we face problems and difficulties that cause grief and misery. When you confront your problems and difficulties, you should not get upset and become a victim of depression, which is a sign of weakness. In such a situation, you should bring fortitude and an attitude of forgiveness into play, thus giving no scope for anger, hatred, or revenge. This quality of kṣamā (forgiveness) is the greatest power for a human being.
kṣamā is śāṭhya, truth;
kṣamā is dharma, virtue;
kṣamā is yajñá, sacrifice;
kṣamā is santoṣa, happiness;
kṣamā is dayā, compassion;
kṣamā is everything in the world.
These words resonated within me over and over. It made me realise that embracing forgiveness and forbearance was the only way to bring peace in my life. The divorce was inevitable, and attempts to avoid it were futile. But having full faith in God and realising that the same God who dwells in my heart is residing in my ex-partner as well, eradicated the feeling of resentment, and enforced a disposition of love and compassion.
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To help reach Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s human values-based education to the world, and to resuscitate the humanness of humanity, the Sri Sathya Sai University for Human Excellence launched a unique, first-of-its-kind Institute of Human Values, to offer tailor-made courses totally free of any charges, curated by experts from around the world. The Vision of the Institute is to make better humans in their personal and professional spheres, by making them more sensitive towards society’s needs and exploring ways of their contribution to society in a meaningful and selfless manner, thereby creating a sense of global citizenship and responsibility.
The courses will help an individual balance the inside and outside, while progressively being a better human being, that will ultimately help him or her unravel the true meaning and purpose in life.
Learning from the heart is spiritual awakening, Baba would say. The Institute of Human Values is the first step to help lead the world into the beautiful awareness of its heart – a heart that operates from the universal human values of Sathya, Dharma, Shanti, Prema and Ahimsa.
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When one realises the true Self, at that point in time one stops making decision for oneself. One stop thinking for oneself. Brahman takes complete control over the jīvātmā and the buddhi (intellect), manas (mind) and deha (body) cease to exist.
It is this process of transcension, where the indriyās (senses) are to be merged in mind, mind to be merged into buddhi, intellect to higher cosmic intellect and finally lose the individual identity into the ultimate consciousness. This way jīvātmā becomes a mere puppet in the hands of Divine.
Surrendering to the great Divine intelligence is the only way to become a perfect instrument in the hands of Brahman wherein His will can flow without any interruptions.
In the episode 34, Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai explains about wisdom and knowledge. Under the guidance of the Divine Master, let us learn these profound teachings of vedantā and follow Him in the path of Self-Realisation.
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INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE FOR THE WEEK |
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“The highest form of human intelligence is to observe yourself without judgement.”
– Jiddu Krishnamurti
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jagat hitāya
(Welfare of the World)
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La Plata, Buenos Aires
The Sai youth from La Plata prepared and served homemade meals, milk, sugar, blankets, and clothes for needy families through two community kitchens located in one of the poor neighbourhoods. In addition to this, food packages were distributed to the homeless. A little more than 400 meals were served during the month of August. To celebrate the special occasion of Children’s Day, the youth prepared 324 toys, 300 bags with sweets, six cakes, 100 alfajores (traditional Argentine sweets) and distributed them amongst the underprivileged children.
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San Jose California Burritos Service
The Sai youth in Bay Area resumed the feeding initiative which they had started earlier. Volunteers with much love and care prepared nutritious and tasty burritos wrapped with sautéed peppers, black beans, veggies, salsa, sour-cream and cheese. Food packs were distributed to the homeless individuals, living in tents without a proper shelter, in downtown San Jose and Santa Clara. Each pack included burrito, juice, granola bar and banana.
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