Message For the Day….” Is there a Way to Escape from ‘karma’…” ?

Scholars say, it is impossible to escape karma. What they say is true to a certain extent. Now, you may wonder if there is a way to escape from the consequences of karma. Yes, it is possible for everyone, if they ‘earn’ the grace of God. Once you deserve and receive God’s grace, you will not be affected by karmaphala (consequences ofKarma). Hence, strive to earn divine grace. When you earn Divine grace, even if you have to experience the consequences of karma,you will not feel the pain. Consider the example of a bottle with medicine. The medicine will have an expiry date. After the expiry date, the medicine will lose its potency. Likewise, God’s grace will make the karmaphala ‘expire’, and nullify the effects of karma. The most important aspect here is to ‘deserve’ His Grace. You must cultivate necessary strength and willpower to deserve divine grace, and be free from the shackles of karma.   

Sathya Sai Baba

Message for the Day…” Scripture [ shastra] is like a Mother; She does not Giveup…”

People yield to delusion and become one with the darkness caused by false values and attachment to the unreal, the ‘me’ and ‘mine’. But the scripture (Shastra) is like a mother; she does not give up. She persists and pursues; she reminds you of your goal so that you will be saved. The scriptures are to be considered as the cause of the awareness of the incomprehensible, immeasurable and inexpressible Brahman. The scriptures are numberless, and a lifetime is too short. Aspirants are plenty; doubts and hesitations are numerous; steadfastness is meager. As a result, no one can claim full mastery. But you need not drink the entire ocean to know its taste; one drop is enough. Similarly, it is impossible to understand all the contents of the scriptures. But it is enough to grasp the important lesson that it teaches and put it into practice. The lesson is: constant remembrance of the Divine.

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day….”Value and Significance of Image Worship”

Many people slander image worship, but its basis is really one’s capacity to see the macrocosm in the microcosm. The value of image worship is testified by experience; it doesn’t depend on one’s imaginative faculty. What is found in the form of the Lord (Virat-swarupa) is also found, undiminished and unalloyed, in the image form (Swarupa). Images serve the same purpose as metaphors and similes in poetry. They illustrate, amplify, and clarify. Joy comes not through the shape of things but through the relationship established. Not any child but her child makes the mother happy. So it is with each one and all things! With each and every thing in the universe, if one establishes that kinship, that Godly love(Iswara prema), then truly an overpowering joy can be experienced! Only those who have felt it can understand.

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day…” Experience the God in His Natural Form, Natural Manner…”

God is omnipresent and is within you. The primary requisite to find Him within you is having pure and selfless love. Chant His Name with love. All living beings are bound by karma in this world. God loves the human form. Hence Avatars come in human form. You can experience His vision by following your duties (Karma marga), as declared in Bhagavad Gita. The Divine is being worshipped as a decorated idol or image, with an artificial form. You should experience the Lord in His natural form, in a natural manner. All the ornamentation a devotee resorts to does not please God. It may please the heart of other devotees, but God’s heart is not moved thereby. Only through love can God’s heart be moved and softened. Every devotee has that power. Instead of resorting to extravagant adulation of God or seeking petty favors from God, yearn for God alone and you will get everything. Endeavour to make God your intimate friend.

Sathya Sai Baba

 

Message For the Day…” I am the Doer “…Should be Rooted out From Your Heart…”

For this universal ailment of the cycle of birth and death (bhava-roga),listening to spiritual discourses (sravana) and singing God’s name(kirtana) is a mandatory prescription. God’s Name, Vedas and Puranas must be recited and listened to. Performing all these, if you do not awaken your own inner consciousness (antah-karana), you will fall into perdition. Hence, to attain God’s Grace, the feeling of ‘I-ness’ (ahamkara),which makes you say, “I am the doer”, should be rooted out from your heart. Everyone learned or illiterate, should feel an overwhelming urge to know God. God has equal affection toward all His children, for to illumine is the nature of light. So too, uttering God’s name, one can progress in the realisation of God, another may perhaps do wicked deeds! It depends on your usage of the light. Remember – the Lord’s name is without blemish, always and forever.

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day….” Without Divinity there is no Bliss or Joy…”

Fix your faith firmly in the Lord and not on the things of the world. When you have strong faith in the Lord, your discrimination will be perfect. You will be guided by your Conscience, which will always lead you properly. In vedantic parlance, the Conscience is called‘Chit’. God is ‘Sat-Chit-Ananda’. Sat means Being, Chit means Awareness. When and where these two are combined, there is Bliss. This is the meaning of the divine name, BABA – Being +Awareness Bliss + Atma. All of you are aspirants of bliss. You must enjoy uninterrupted bliss. To attain that Ananda (Bliss), you must combine Sat (Being) and Chit (Awareness). Without Divinity, there is no bliss or joy. Hence always think of Him, Live in His presence.

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day…” Key to Inner Peace is Within You and Not Elsewhere…”

The Gopikas did not concern themselves with the question whether the Divine was attributeless or full of attributes. They preferred to worship the Divine in the form of Krishna and they wanted their forms to merge in the Divine. “Thereby we shall be formless,” they declared. It is when we forget our form that we can merge in the Formless. The Divine cannot be experienced through Dhyana (meditation) or Japa(recitation); this is a delusion. These practices may give momentary peace of mind. To experience permanent joy, develop your Divine nature. For this, your environment must be congenial and have pure and Divine vibrations. It is not necessary to go to a forest to concentrate on the Divine Atma dwelling within your heart. The key to inner peace is within you and not outside. In the atmosphere of a sacred divine presence, you can promote your quest for peace more effectively.

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day….” Do you Remember all the kith and kin from Your Previous Lives …” ?

Your love for God should be firm and unchanging, unaffected by trials and tribulations and the vicissitudes of life. Pandavas are supreme examples of unwavering love for Krishna. When Draupadi was being humiliated in Duryodhana’s assembly hall, when Abhimanyu was attacked and slain by the Kauravas, when Aswathama massacred the Upa-pandavas (Pandavas’ children), or when they performed the glorious Rajasuya sacrifice at the height of their power, or when they were in exile in the forest, without succumbing to the difficulties and troubles they were subjected to, they adhered firmly to the name of Krishna, with unwavering faith in Him. They relied only on Krishna’s love. Difficulties and troubles are passing clouds which come and go. Do you remember all the kith and kin from your previous lives? The only relationship that remains unchanged is the one with God. Attach yourself to Him. 

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day…” What You Should Pray and Seek from God …” ?

You should not pray to God seeking this favour or that. The reason is no one knows what immensely precious, Divine and magnificent treasures lie in the treasure-house of Divine Grace. You can never know what God intends or desires to give you, His devotee. Under such situations by asking for trivial and petty things, you are demeaning His Divine estate. Hence do not seek from God, nor desire, nor pray for petty trinkets. More precious and desirable than anything else is God’s love. Hence Mother Meera sang: “Oh heart, drink the nectar of Divine love.” If you must ask for anything from God, then pray to Him thus: “O Lord! Let me have You alone.” Once you have secured the Lord, you can get anything you want. When you can get the precious Divine love, why crave for anything else?

Sathya Sai Baba

Message For the Day…” God Maintains balance in dealing with His Devotees…”

In dealing with devotees, the Lord has to maintain a balance. Here is an example from the life of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. In olden times or the present, there are always some people who indulge in calumny against good men. Once, two of his disciples experienced some villagers abusing the noble sage in two different incidents. In response, Brahmananda, a young gentle devotee, shed tears. Vivekananda retorted and threatened the villagers. Sage Ramakrishna disagreed with both their actions! Explaining, he taught, “There are four tyres for a car. The pressure in the front tyre and rear tyres must be as prescribed. If there is excessive pressure in some tyres, it should be reduced. If some tyres have low pressure, they have to be inflated. Only then the car will run smoothly. Vivekananda suffers from excessive pressure; he requires to be deflated. Brahmananda is too weak, so he has to be inflated.”

Sathya Sai Baba