1964: Guru is the guide
Teachings to treasure, teachings that transform.
In this auspicious year 2015 commemorating the 90th birthday of Bhagwan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, we offer a compilation of key messages from the over 140 discourses in the month of July, including Guru Poornima Days between the years 1958 and 2009.
1964: Guru is the guide
"Two statements can summarise all the eighteen Puraanas
composed by Vyaasa. Do good to
others; avoid doing harm," says the hymn. Doing good is
the drug; avoiding harm is the regimen,
that must accompany the treatment. That is the cure for the
disease of suffering from joy and
grief, honour and dishonour, prosperity and adversity, and the
dual throng, that bothers man and
deprives him of equanimity.
Man is a mixture of dhaiva, dhaanava and maanava,
(god, demon and man). The wickedness of
the ogre can be overcome by dhaya (the quality of
mercy and charity), of sympathy and fellow feeling; the pride of the god can be
overcome by dhama (self-control), detachment,
renunciation;
the egoism of man can be overcome by following dharma
prescribed by the impartial sages who
have been purified by thapas (penance), and
by canalising the instincts and impulses into fruitful
fields. When these three are thus sublimated, maanava
(man) is transformed into Maadhava
(God). Each one must take up this process of purification, by
discovering his faults and failings
and realise the road to success.
Become immersed in the sweetness of the Name on your tongue.
That will render your words
also sweet and soft. By your words, will you be judged.
If you have dhaya, dhama and dharma (sympathy,
self-control and righteousness), that will take
you beyond the realm of the three gunas (qualities
of the mind); there is no need then for getting
a Naama (Name) from the Guru
and repeating it. The aajna (command) of the
Guru
or the Lord
is even more important than the Name of the Guru
or the Name of the Lord.
THE first among the nine forms of devotion is sravana
(hearing). Sravana, hearing the
voice of God, hearing about God, these are important events in life, events
that transform the individual. Bhaagavatha-sravana (listening
to Bhaagavatha) leads to Bhaagavatha-smarana
(the constant
remembrance of the Lord), and detachment from the ties of the
objective world. The grace of God descends upon the eager saadhaka,
who listens attentively to the story of that
grace. The name of God, if recited with love and faith, has
that power.
The name has much efficacy. By repeating the name, the Lord and
His attributes can be easily
identified. The tongue must be sanctified by the repetition of
the name. It has also to use sweet
expressions which will spread contentment and joy. Be very
careful about your speech. Animals
have horns, insects have stings, beasts have claws and fangs.
But, man's biggest weapon of
offence is his tongue. The wounds that his tongue inflicts can
scarce be healed; they fester in the
heart for long. They are capable of more damage than even an
atom bomb.
Points to Ponder:
·
What is sravana and why is it important?
·
How to summarize the messages
in the ancient texts?
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