In the Vedas it is said that the universe is truly the Divine person. Therefore, it subsists on Him, the self-effulgent Divine Being, Who has many heads and many eyes, Who is the producer of joy for the universe, Who exists in the form of the universe, Who is the master and the cause of humanity, Whose forms are the various Gods, Who is imperishable, Who is endless, Who is the goal of humanity, Who is the destroyer of sin and ignorance, Who is the protector of the universe and ruler of individual souls, Who is permanent, supremely auspicious and unchanging, Who has embodied Himself in man as his support (being the indwelling spirit), Who is supremely worthy of being known by the creatures, and Who is the supreme goal. Thus Swami is our universal mother and father.
Even the Vedas fail to describe His glory completely. He is omnipresent, omniscient and omnipotent. Swami showers abundant love on His devotees. This divine love is all pervasive and all encompassing. In order to see the moon, does one need a torch? You see it because of its own light. In the same way, if one wishes to see God, it is by love, which is the light of God, that one may see Him. There are two paths to merge with the Lord. One is the path of intellect and other is the path of devotion. Swami has compared these two paths to the life of a little kitten and to the life of a little monkey. A little kitten needs no forethought because the mother cat picks it and takes it with her wherever she goes. But the little monkey must start to fend for itself right away. If it is not to be left behind by its mother, it has to jump on to its mother’s back and hold on for dear life. The responsibility for the child’s safety and growth rests on itself. Similarly in the path devotion, God grasps him (devotee) and takes him safely to the final destination, whereas on the path of wisdom, one must struggle for oneself. In the Mahabharata, Arjuna asks Krishna, “Of those who love You as the Lord of love, ever-present in all and those who seek You as a nameless, formless reality, which way is swift and sure, love or knowledge?” Krishna said, “For those who have their heart set on Me and worship Me with unfailing devotion and faith, the path of love leads sure and swift to Me. Also those who seek the transcendental without name or form, beyond the reach of feeling and thought with their senses subdued and minds serene and striving for good of all beings, they too will come to Me!” Thus if we pray to Baba with a pure heart and unflinching faith in Him, He will surely protect us in times of distress.
A miracle happened in the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital of Bombay. A lady of one Dikshit family developed a malignant tumour in her left breas¬t and the hospital fixed a date for her operation. The lady went to Baba with her brother to get His blessings. Baba produced Vibhuti and gave it to her to eat. Interestingly He rubbed Vibhuti on the left chest of her brother. The night before the operation, from the left nostril of the lady’s brother, plenty of dirty plain liquid began to pour down for no reason. He tried to forget it till his sister’s surgery. On the day sister’s operation, the amazed surgeons discovered no trace of cancer on her breast. All the previous symptoms of the disease vanished completely. The surprised brother then realised why Baba had rubbed the holy ash on his left chest.
Once some people asked Ramana Maharshi, “Maharshi, is it true that all life is painful, all life is misery?” The Maharshi replied, “Why else this constant endless search for pleasure? Why else?” If we do the actions, we must suffer the consequences. There is the art of liberation to avoid that. The art is not to be the doer. If every action is dedicated to Swami, then we have stepped out of the cycle of Karma, birth and rebirth to embrace the light, the beauty and endless joy of our real nature, which is the liberated state. The only reality is Swami and He resides in every person’s heart. So when we look at any person, we should not pay attention to the beauty of the physical body. We should directly look through to the transient personality in him. Swami says, “I am in you and you are in Me. I am God, but so are you. The only difference is that I know it and you do not.” If somebody asks you what your name is, what is the right answer? Is the answer, “My name is Jack”? No, the answer should be, “I am God playing the part of Jack.”
The sheath of Maya or illusion envelops human beings in this universe. Baba says, “Maya is like a fierce dog that will not allow anyone to approach the master. You can manage to by-pass it, only by assuming the Rupam (form) of the master, which is called ‘Sarupyam’, or calling out for the master so loudly that he comes down and accompanies you into the house, that is to say, by winning his grace, ‘Samipyam’ (proximity). Illusion is God’s pet and so, it will not harm you if orders it to desist from harming you.”
The quickest way to realise God is to have Swami in mind at all times. Do you remember the stories from the Indian scriptures about the two guardians of gate of heaven who committed a mistake and were banished? God gave an option to them to take eighteen births as devotees of God or two births as enemies of God. They were allowed to return to heaven once their prescribed number of was over. They chose the two births as enemies of God. Swami said in a discourse, “My devotees think of God once in a while, but my enemies think of Me all the time.” Namasmarana is one of the most powerful ways to keep God in mind at all times. It means we have to choose a name acceptable to us and that which we love and we have to recite that name all the time. The name can be Vishnu, Rama, Allah etc. Visualize Swami all the time. Namasmarana can wipe away all delusion. Swami often says, “Why fear when I am here?” In order to cross the ocean of worldly life, we have to come across huge obstacles. Neglecting these, we have to march forward with courage and faith in God. We should develop self-confidence. Swami says, “Whoever has the enthusiasm, the steadfastness and determination to reach the goal will certainly succeed. Cultivate that faith in ultimate success; never despair or fault or doubt.” We must sacrifice everything to attain the ultimate spiritual goal, which is the real purpose of life. Life is actually a pilgrimage where man drags his feet along the rough and thorny road. With the name of God on his lips, he will have no thirst; with the form of God in his heart, he will feel no exhaustion. The company of the holy will inspire him to travel in hope and faith. The assurance that God is within all, that He is ever near will give strength to his limbs and courage to his eye. We must have forbearance or patience, which is the greatest Tapas (penance) in this Bharat. We must give up our thirst for worldly things.
In the Bhagavad Gita, it is said:
“For a person thinking of the sense objects there grows an attachment to them, from attachment arises desire, desire results in anger, from anger results delusion, from delusion comes confusion of memory, confusion of memory results destruction of intelligence, due to destruction of intelligence, he perishes.”
We can love Swami with all our hearts, but how can we draw God’s love to us? Swami says that Dharma is the answer. Those who protect Dharma, Dharma in turn will protect them. Dharma means righteous behaviour. Baba, the embodiment of Dharma says, “Love all as you love yourself. This is true Dharma.”
Source: Sai Nandana 2005 (80th Birthday Offering)
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