 Ingredients:Be active, welcome activity, that is the message that God gives human at birth. The breath teaches 'Soham' all the time, 'so' when it goes in and 'ham,' when it is exhaled. Activity is the very sine qua non of life. You will have to select that activity which is conducive to your spiritual progress, judging the stage in which you are at present.
There is no high and low, in the activity.
The eye sees stars that are billions of miles away, but, they do not see the ears, which are a few finger-breadths afar. The eye must see, the ear must hear, the hand must hold. That is their Dharma (duty).
Each must manage its own Dharma.
Married life and being a householder will not bar your way to Self-realisation. Look upon the wife/husband and the children as a sacred trust, and serve them in that spirit. Prepare yourselves for a celibate and spiritual discipline from the age of fifty; the five senses have to be mastered, by the time five decades of your life are over.
The conclusion of six decades means that you have conquered the six foes: lust, anger, greed, attachment, pride and hate. When you are seventy, you must have become ready to merge with the seven sages, the seven seas and the seven colours of the solar ray; that is to say, you must be far, far above mundane desires and ideals, and as near the point of mergence as possible, through sadhana (spiritual discipline or exercise; self effort).
Eighty must see you in line with the deities that preside over the eight cardinal points, more or less Divine, in attributes and characteristics. Ninety takes you, or rather should take you to the realm of the Nine Planets, into the realm of the Super. When human reaches the hundred mark, living out the ten decades, he/she must have mastered the ten senses, the five senses of action and the five senses of knowledge and become Wisdom incarnate, with no trace of action or the consequence thereof or the desire for it. An individual and the Absolute are One and Indivisible.
Each one will come in own good time, at own pace, through own inner urge, along the path God will reveal as his/her own.
Divinity is inherent, immanent in every jivi (individual soul with ego) and the process of reminding human of that fact began with the very dawn of human history. All are holy, pure, parts of eternity. But these things shine in each in proportion to the sadhana, just as bulbs spread illumination according to the wattage. There is no body which is not sustained by the Absolute; there is no name that does not indicate the Universal.
Unless knowledge is transformed into wisdom, and wisdom is expressed in character, education
is a wasteful process. If education confers the gift of transformation, then surely life will become
peaceful, happy, and full of mutual help and co-operation. But mainly education today has
degenerated into the acquisition of certain skills and intellectual tricks. It provides the educated
with food, clothing and shelter and considers that its task is over with that achievement.
The sages who laid down the goals of education have declared, "That is true education which helps to liberate" - liberate human from greed, hatred, unrest, narrow loyalties and ego impulses. Education today, adds to the unrest already in the heart of human; it does not liberate from the prison house of desire. Human builds rest-houses where is possible to cool tired brain and revive exhausted nerves, but human has yet to build shanthi mandirs (temples of peace) where he/she can unconcernedly learn to witness the happenings of the world, aware of the level of the world, aware of the level of their relative importance. That will give him/her equanimity. Faith in God will render free to watch with interest the ups and downs of history.
A life of sadhana involves the dedication of all acts to God, the offering of whatever one does or thinks or speaks. You can do this only when you are aware always of the presence of God, in and around you.
The Gita says, practice is the crux of the problem. Through that, victory can be won. Concentration can be mastered in dhyana (meditation) and this will lead to disinterestedness in the results of one's actions, for the actions are not one's own, but God's. The results too are not one's; they are God's and you attain peace of mind and the Grace of God.
Thyagaraja,(18th and 19th century mystic singer/ composer. Leader in Karnatak tradition of classical Indian music) prayed that the screen hiding the Light that was inside him might be moved aside by the Lord's Grace. (Saint Thyagaraja was as Valmiki himself come to the south of India to sing the glow of Rama. As the bee in search of honey wanders in search of the flowers, as the rill runs to the river and the river rushes to the sea, Thyagaraja pined for Rama; his songs are pure fragrant blossoms of bhakthi and therefore, immortal. They are not mere songs, they are bundles of precious stones; they take you along the roads to God).
Another examples:
Krishna advised Arjuna to enter 'the fight,' and at the same time told him not to have hatred towards the 'enemies.' He said. Arjuna asked Krishna how he was to reconcile these two attitudes. Krishna said, "Maamanusmara, yudhyacha" (Keep Me ever in thy mind, and fight). "Do not cultivate the egoistic feeling that it is you who is fighting. I am-using you as My Instrument."
Arjuna had the privilege of having Krishna as his charioteer during the battle of Kurukshethra. But, he did not realise that Krishna was his charioteer every moment of his life. Krishna commissioned the great bowman Arjuna to escort the women of the Yadhava clan to a safe place of refuge, when He decided to end His earthly career; on the way, some wild tribals attacked the convoy, and Arjuna rose to destroy them, with the Gandiva (his famous bow and the divine arrow) he had won by severe austerity.
But, the charioteer had gone; the strength had ebbed away. He had forgotten even the formulae
for invoking the deities who directed the arrows. He could not even string the Gandiva bow, he
had wielded in a hundred encounters with the mightiest heroes of the age. Then, he realised that
Krishna was the power behind the wheel of His life, that without Him, he was a spent force. The
tribals overpowered the group and kidnapped the women whose wails pierced the heart of Arjuna.
So, be convinced that whatever achievement you make, is caused by the Grace of the Lord. Pray to the Lord for strength, wisdom, humility, detachment, light and love.
The true education has to clarify the goal of life to the rising generation and indicate the ways and means of accomplishing it.
Earning money is not the end all of education. It is the greed to earn money by any means, as fast as possible, that has led to the evils that we see in society today. Money can breed pride, pride fosters hatred. Money is one of the purposes why today practically no one has the golden quality of contentment.
People worry about their possessions, positions and associates, but not about their virtues. The discontented human is as bad as lost. Human seeks happiness by trying to satisfy desires and if a desire is fulfilled, one feels joy and when it is not, one feels grief. But the trouble is, desire is a bonfire that burns with greater fury, asking for more fuel. One desire leads to ten. Every person desires wielding power over others and yearns to rise higher and higher and exercise more and more influence, but no one attempts a rigorous examination of him/herself. Those who contentedly carry out the duties commensurate to the positions they hold, are very few.
Especially the youth today, in India as well as in other lands, are afflicted with deep discontent
which manifests itself in revolt against rules, regulations, curricula and social norms, and an
agitational approach to every little problem that affects them. They are imitating undesirable and fanatic norms of behaviour and are addicted to a code of disbelief, having no roots anywhere.
One of the reason for the prevalent overwhelming dissatisfaction of the youth - the chronic hypocrisy of elders. The very people who proclaim the efficacy of sathya (truth) from platforms, the very preachers who dilate on dharma (righteousness) and shanthi (peace), live without any regard to sathya, dharma or shanthi. The determination that one must act according to one's profession has disappeared. The moral strength and virtues of the teachers and parents will be reflected in the students/children under their care. The elders must practise what they preach, show how Divine life can confer joy, mental poise, contentment and real happiness. The responsibility of any person who holds forth an ideal is great, for person has to attempt to reach it him/herself while advising others to adopt it.
The elders must set an example of viveka and vairagya (discrimination and detachment). If they run after sensory pleasures with feverish excitement, how can the younger generation be blamed for their selfishness and greed? How can students cultivate humility and the habit of self-examination?
The most fundamental teaching of the ancient culture of India is Love. The science of spiritual culture and of the control of the mind has been developed and practised in this country for thousands of years. For generations, the youth of this land have been exhorted, encouraged and taught, by precept and example, to love the poor, the helpless, the handicapped, the illiterate and the disabled, for the same spark of Divinity that is in us is also equally evident and active in them.
Modern education must follow the ancient traditions, must endow human with this compassion and spirit of service. The true sign of education is humility and discipline (which are the hall-mark of humanness*); for there is much more to be investigated and learnt.
Discipline is important in order to progress in learning, and even more so in dealing with others. An indisciplined person is a danger to society; any moment person may run amuck. Human must recognise what limits, regulations and do's and don'ts are laid down by the sages of the past in order to ensure social security and individual advancement.
Along with the University degree, student has also to acquire some general knowledge which is essential for householders and others. (Otherwise, though the husband and the wife may both be degree-holders, they would be helpless and desperate even if the baby caught a slight cold).
Students have to be conversant with some spiritual discipline like namasmarana (remembering God's name), dhyana (meditation) and yoga (divine communion), so that you may not be carried away by every changing breeze.
But, sadhana is a uniquely precious activity, which will be vulgarised by public gaze. This is the reason for spiritual aspirants retiring into lonely mountain caves, or into solitary temples in inaccessible regions of the Himalayas, or in the depths of jungles. But, you need not imitate them; you can create enough privacy in your own home, screening off a portion of some room. There you can sink into yourself and discover the Inner Reality as the Reality of the Universe Itself.
By dhyana you develop jnana (spiritual wisdom) and by japam (recitation of God's Name) you develop bhakthi (devotion) and by both, you cleanse your heart of the canker of ego. You can link yourselves with God, by a chain of love, through the recitation of the name, in silence and with full awareness of the meaning and its nuances.
Whatever whatever yagas and japas one may do, without using the body in the service of others, no one can achieve liberation. Every one should be prepared to serve and be served. Service is the supreme aim in life. Render service to the extent of your capacity.
Through the body alone can Dharma be achieved, declares the scripture. The body is given to carry out the duties in life. There is in human an immortal spirit, whose presence should be realised.
The mind is the most important organ in the body. Human's life is based on the mind. Just as the body needs rest, the mind too needs quiet. Faith is the best guarantee of mental quiet. Students as teachers and parents have to follow the path of virtue, practise spiritual disciplines and take an enthusiastic part in social service. These three have to be accepted, adored and assimilated into daily life.
Life is essentially transient. Hence while life lasts, one must earn the esteem and regard of one's fellowmen. However, God alone is an unfailing friend, who is with you at all times and protects you. When you cultivate such an attitude you can face any situation in the pilgrimage of life.
*Humanness means harmony in thought, word and deed.
(Reet's compilation from, Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 1. "Gunas and Money," Chapter 17 and Vol. 1. "The screen within," Chapter 22; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 11. "Link by link," Chapter 3 and Vol. 11. "Step by step," Chapter 9; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 14. "Learning and liberation," Chapter 11; Sathya Sai Speaks. Vol. 28. "Earn the esteem of society by service," Chapter 25).
Namaste - Reet
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