Develop Love For God and Sanctify Your Life

One may be the master of all forms of knowledge, 
One may vanquish one’s adversaries in debate, 
One may fight with valour and courage in the battlefield, 
One may be an emperor reigning over vast kingdoms, 
One may offer cows and gold as an act of charity, 
One may count the countless stars in the sky, 
One may tell the names of different living creatures on the earth, 
One may be an expert in eight steps of yoga, 
One may reach even the moon, but is there anyone who can control the body, mind and senses, turn the vision inward 
And achieve the supreme state of equanimity of the mind?

(Telugu Poem)

Only God’s Name Will Save You From Bondage

Students!

There is no knowledge in this world that man has not acquired. Man today has mastered all types of knowledge, he enjoys all types of comforts and conveniences, he has the means to travel to any part of the world and can understand the secrets of all the natural phenomena, yet he does not know who he is. What is the use of his knowing anything when he does not know himself? Having attained human birth and having acquired various types of knowledge, man should first of all make efforts to know himself. When he knows himself, he will know everything else in the world in a moment. This is the main principle of advaita (non-dualism).

Aspects of the Principle of Advaita

There are three aspects of the principle of advaita in this world: padartha advaita, bhava advaita, and kriya advaita. This is a handkerchief. What is the principle of advaita associated with it? The handkerchief is made up of threads but the basis of the threads is cotton. In fact, cotton, threads and cloth are one and the same. They are the three different names and forms of the same thing. When you understand this, you will understand the underlying oneness of everything in this world which is changeless in three periods of time. This is called padartha advaita.

What is bhava advaita? There are thousands of people sitting here. They have different names and forms. Though they appear to be different, I can prove that all of them are one. Their joys and sorrows may be different, their desires and attachments may be different, their names and forms may be different, their situation and circumstances may also be different, but the same five elements are present in all of them. This is the underlying principle of oneness of all human beings. Even if one of the five elements is missing in man, he cannot exist. The five elements are common not only in human beings but also in all the living beings in the world.

What is kriya advaita? Every man in this world has some desires and aspirations, depending on his situation and circumstances. When desires are not fulfilled, it leads to disappointment. With limitless desires and meaningless anxiety, man craves for all that is not possible for him and ultimately becomes a victim of disappointment and frustration. Whatever work he may do, he should do it without any desire for the fruits thereof and offer it to God with the feeling, sarvakarma bhagawad preetyartham (all actions to please God). This is kriya advaita. It is only when man entertains a desire for the fruits of his actions, his desire may turn into despair and satisfaction may turn into dissatisfaction. But when you do everything as an offering to God, there will be no scope for sorrow and misery.

Four Tendencies of Man

There are four types of tendencies in man: divine, human, demonic and animal. Depending on the time, action and reason and owing to the influence of place and circumstances, one of the four tendencies becomes predominant in a person. Human beings are classified as divine, human, demonic and bestial on the basis of the predominance of one of these tendencies in them.

Who is divine among human beings? Brahma nishta paro deva (one who is always focused on brahman is a divine person). Devoid of ego and desires, he is always in a state of bliss, entertains sacred feelings and performs deeds which are beneficial to others. As he performs all actions to please God, all his good works become God’s works. He has no thoughts other than those of God and no desire except to do everything to please God. Such sacred qualities are the hallmark of a divine being. He thinks neither about himself nor about the world; he is always immersed in the contemplation of God who is true and eternal. He is human only in form, but all his actions are divine. Where do these sacred feelings come from? They come from the heart of man. Where does divinity manifest from? It manifests from the pure heart of man.

Sathya dharma rato martya, say the vedas. A true human being is one who follows the path of sathya and dharma. With total faith in the principles of sathya and dharma, he performs righteous actions and acts of charity without ignoring any of his worldly or family duties. His heart is filled with compassion and love. He has total faith in God and has no fear. Fear is an animal quality. One who causes fear is a beast. One who is fear-stricken is an animal. Having been born as humans, you should neither cause fear in others nor should you be fear-stricken. In this way, lead your life in a sacred manner always engaged in the service of society, earning a good name. Derive happiness from the practice of human values and share it with others. The human values of sathya, dharma, santhi, prema and ahimsa are interrelated and interdependent. Sathya depends on dharma, dharma on santhi, santhi on prema and prema on ahimsa. Even if you have one of the four values of sathya, dharma, santhi and prema, you will not indulge in acts of violence.

Madyapana rato rakshasa (one who is addicted to intoxicating drinks is a demon). Due to the influence of intoxicating drinks, he loses his humanness and performs evil and demonic acts. Consumption of intoxicating drinks is one of the main causes for the rise of demonic tendencies in man. When a person is drunk, he does not know what he says or does and whether he is doing good or bad. He loses his discrimination and fails to recognise even his mother, wife or children. He also loses his discrimination to recognise what is merit and what is sin. In this manner, he forgets his humanness and indulges in wicked acts unmindful of their consequences. Such demonic tendency is present in every man.

Jnanena sunyaha pasubhir samana (one who is devoid of wisdom is verily an animal). Such a person has no sense of discrimination and no knowledge whatsoever. He is interested only in enjoying worldly pleasures and spends all his time in food, fear, sleep and procreation. These are the qualities of an animal. Not only that, he is prepared to harm those who come in the way of his so-called enjoyment. Abusing and ridiculing others are also animal qualities.

Education is Meant to Develop Righteousness

Every human being has animal, demonic, human and divine tendencies in him. You acquire various types of knowledge but you are unable to get rid of your animal and demonic tendencies. There are many in this world who are highly educated. But, is there anyone who has understood the significance of human birth? Everyone is interested in power, position and wealth, but no one enquires whether he is conducting himself like a human being. In fact, nobody questions himself how he should lead his life as a human being. People have human form, they dress themselves like human beings and exercise their authority, but they do not really know what humanness is. Who is a true human being? A true human being is one who does not give room to six evil qualities of kama, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and matsarya (desire, anger, greed, delusion, pride and jealousy). What is the use of acquiring high education and accumulating wealth if one has filled his heart with raga and dwesha (desire and hatred)? In fact, all his education is useless. An educated person should always follow the path of righteousness.

Students should pursue such education which confers on them the sacred qualities like good character, adherence to truth, devotion, discipline and duty.

(Telugu Poem)

What is it that students are learning today? Do they have discipline? If they have no discipline and devotion, what is the use? They should practise human values in all their endeavours. But they spend all their time pointing out the defects of others, criticising and ridiculing them. What will be the fate of a person who always thinks of the defects of others? All the defects of others will enter his heart and will be reflected in him also. Therefore, do not look at the defects of others. If you find anybody on the wrong path, try to correct him. Why should you think of the defects of others if you think you are a good person? Man today has developed fault-finding nature; he always thinks of the defects of others, and criticises, ridicules and abuses them. These are not the qualities of an educated person; in fact, they are contrary to human nature. One who practises human values will never criticise or insult others. Criticising others is the quality of a selfish person.

Sanctify your Human Birth by Serving Others

As selfishness is on the rise today, man has become the victim of attachment and hatred. His selfishness has no limits. He does not give up his selfishness and self-interest till his last breath. How can such a person attain anything good in life? What has he attained as a human being? He is a burden on earth and does not deserve the food he eats. Having been born as a human being, you should help your fellow beings. Sage Vyasa gave the essence of eighteen puranas in two sentences: “One attains merit by serving others and commits sin by hurting them.” Therefore, Help Ever, Hurt Never. But we hardly find someone helping his fellow men. Wherever we see, people are hurting others. Right from an illiterate to an educated one, from a pauper to a millionaire, everyone indulges in hurting others. If a pauper hurts in a small way, a millionaire hurts in a big way. They have no inclination to help others. They are not prepared to perform righteous actions and acts of charity. Then what is the purpose of being born as a human being? What is the point in amassing wealth? Education has no meaning if it is not utilised to help others.

People waste a lot of time and energy in accumulating wealth. But are they able to carry anything with them when they ultimately leave this world? They are not able to take even a naya paisa with them, not even a fistful of sand. This is the lesson to be learnt from the life of Emperor Alexander. You all know the story of Alexander who set out of his country to conquer the entire world. He came to India also after crossing the Indus river. On his return from India, he became very sick. He had many doctors but none could cure him. They told him that he was about to leave his mortal coil in a short while. But Alexander had no fear. In fact, he told others also not to worry. He was prepared for his end.

The body which is made up of five elements is weak and is bound to disintegrate. Though a hundred years of life-span is prescribed, one cannot take it for granted. One may leave one’s mortal coil at any time, be it in childhood, youth or old age. Death is certain. Hence, before the body perishes, man should make efforts to know his true nature.

(Telugu Poem)

There were thousands of soldiers under his command. But none could save him from death. Then Alexander told his ministers and army commanders that they should wrap his body in a white cloth after his death, keeping both his hands out and carry his funeral procession in the streets of his native town. When the people in the street enquired why the hands of the emperor had been kept out of the hearse, they should tell them that though the emperor had carved out a huge empire, had a big army and a number of doctors, nothing could save him from death, and he was departing from the world empty-handed.

Cultivate Noble Thoughts

Everybody has to go empty-handed from this world. You will not be able to carry your bank balance or even a small piece of paper with you. Can you leave behind the address of your destination when you leave this world? You do not bring with you even a small piece of cloth at the time of your birth nor can you give your address at the time of death. Why were you born and where are you going? Your conscience is the witness of all your good or bad deeds and reveals to you whether you are going to heaven or hell. Both heaven and hell are the results of your actions, and your actions depend upon your thoughts. Therefore, first of all cultivate noble thoughts. Develop the spirit of sacrifice and human qualities and earn a good reputation in society. Do not get a bad name as a sinner. Do only good. That is the only thing that will go with you. All your friends and relatives can follow you only up to the place of cremation. When a millionaire dies, hundreds of cars will follow him up to the cremation ground. But what will all the people do after going there? They will all return home empty-handed. It is only the Name of God that will save you from bondage and be with you always. God will always be with you, in you, around you, above you and below you looking after you always. Ignoring the Divine Name, man makes his life miserable by craving for ephemeral and transient worldly objects.

Howsoever highly educated one may be, one is unable to realise the truth of one’s Self. What is the reason? The reason is attachment. Man should develop detachment to realise his true nature. What does attachment mean? When you insert the key into the lock and turn it to the right side, it opens. If you turn the key to the left side, it closes. It is the same lock and the same key; the difference lies only in the direction of turning. Your heart is the lock and mind is the key. When you turn your mind towards God, you get detachment which leads to liberation. When you turn it towards the world, you develop attachment which results in bondage and misery. You may have money and all comforts, yet you will be always restless. You will be drowned in misery day and night. What is the way to attain peace of mind? The only way is to develop the spirit of sacrifice as propounded in the vedas: na karmana na prajaya dhanena thyagenaike amrutatthwamanasu (immortality is not attained through action, progeny or wealth; it is attained only by sacrifice). Perform good actions and spend your money on noble causes. Help the villagers who are leading a hard life. Provide education, healthcare and water to the needy people in villages. Education is for the head, healthcare is for the heart and water is for the sustenance of the body. Health is very important for the body; it is not meant to lead a life of ease and enjoyment. Health is required for performing seva (service). In fact, it is very necessary to keep your body healthy so that you can serve society. What is the use of their good health if people do not perform any type of service? They are like living corpses.

What for has God provided head for man? Is it to think ill of others, abuse and criticise them? No, it has been provided to think of God. You should understand the intimate relationship between food, head and God. What is food required for? It is not merely for your physical health; it is for developing virtues. Why is it necessary to develop virtues? It is necessary to develop virtues to take part in service of society, help others and earn a good name. Therefore, look after the welfare of society and strengthen its unity. This is the purpose of your birth. You are born and brought up in society. If you do not think of the welfare of society, there can be no greater betrayal and ingratitude than this. Having been born in society, you should serve society. Your well-being is linked to the well-being of society. Otherwise, how can you be happy? Therefore, it is essential that everybody should work for the welfare of society and look after its well-being. Only then is your well-being assured.

Develop Love for God

Embodiments of Love!

What does a man require to serve society? It is only love. There is nothing greater than love. When you have love, you can have everything. What is the use of reading a number of books if you do not have love? Mere acquisition of bookish knowledge will change your mastaka (head) also into a pustaka (book). What is the use of bookish knowledge which is not translated into practical knowledge? A man without practical knowledge is totally useless to society. Therefore, do not go on reading books endlessly. You will only be spoiling your head in the process. Put into practice at least one principle of truth that you have learnt. What you require today is practical knowledge, not bookish knowledge. Put your knowledge into practice, experience happiness and share it with others. Do not be worried about your own life. Be prepared to sacrifice even your life for a noble cause. Having attained this human birth, it is enough if you earn a good name.

Hastasya Bhushanam Danam 
S_athyam Kanthasya Bhushanam_ 
S_rotrasya Bhushanam Sastram._

(Charity is the true ornament of the hand, truth is the true necklace and listening to the sacred texts is the true ornament of the ears.)

(Sanskrit Verse)

Why do you require any other ornaments? If you wear diamond necklaces and diamond earrings, you will be afraid of thieves. These are not your real ornaments. The real ornament is love for God. Therefore, develop love for God and sanctify your life.

(Bhagawan concluded His Discourse with the Bhajan, “Prema Mudita Manase Kaho…”)

-From Bhagawan's Discourse in Sai Kulwant Hall, Prasanthi Nilayam on 28th July 1996.