We Are All One

It is very difficult to get the company of good people, while you have lots of wicked ones around the world. There are pebbles available in plenty, but precious gems and diamonds are extremely rare to get.

Human Birth, A Rare Opportunity

In this universe, there are lakhs of species of living beings, but man is the noblest and the highest species. If man loses money, he can get back, if he loses a friend, he can get another, if he loses his wife, even then he can remarry and have another wife. If he loses his share of land, he can get another. But he cannot get back the body once it is lost. Man does not realise the high value of the precious human life and is misusing it in many ways. You must realise that once a night is passed, it will not come back. When you eat a fruit, you cannot get it back in its original form. Man does not know his own value. He has several capacities and faculties. The first gift that a man possesses is mati (intellect). The second is sthiti (position) and the third one is parasthiti (circumstances) and the fourth is gati (destiny). These constitute his sampatti (possessions). All things that happen to man depend on his destiny alone. Mind is based on our own conduct and it shapes our destiny. Mati should be sound. Everything else depends on sthiti and sampatti. When one understands this, he can know his destiny. Everyone has to maintain the mental balance to act properly.

Suppose a person has a knife in hand. He or she can cut vegetables, cook food and consume it to appease hunger. On the other hand, if the person cuts the neck of another person, it will lead to disastrous consequences. You must know the proper method to use any object. You must be aware of the different types of shakti (power) that you are gifted with.

Divine Will Reigns Supreme

Human life can be compared to a big clock, containing three needles (as the clock has the hour, minute and second hands) representing years, months and days. They are moving in perfect unison and they decide your life span. In spite of having these three regulatory factors, man is not leading a good life. Thirty days make a month and 12 months make one year. You must know how to pass every day in the best possible way, without wasting the precious time. You must also know that everything happens according to the Divine will.

The Divine cannot be expected to act on the basis of your thoughts or desires. God is fully aware of the needs of the family, country and world at large, and confers the requisite benefits at the appropriate time. To cite an example of how the gifts of nature prove beneficial to some people, while it is not so for some others. Suppose, a marriage function is being celebrated in one house and the family prays for the rain to stop to facilitate the function. At the same time, a neighbor, who has cultivable but dry land, prays for the rain to continue to pour in torrents to facilitate his cultivation of the land. God is impartial and will not submit to a particular individual needs. He weighs the need of all and maintains a balance.

Ego Is Sheer Ignorance

Generally all people are suffering from an incurable disease. It may be a lesser degree in some while more severe in others. The difference is only in the severity, but all are suffering from this disease. It cannot be cured even by expert medical treatment by experienced doctors. This disease is “ego.” Where is the need to be egoistic for an ordinary mortal? When you consider your position in comparison with the world, you are just an infinitesimal speck. In the world map, India is a small country and Tamil Nadu is a part of this. In Tamil Nadu, Kodaikanal can be spotted only as a tiny dot. In this, what is your position as an individual? When you analyse in this manner, you will find you are one of no consequence at all.

If you think you are so big, inflated with ego, it is only sheer ignorance. If one identifies himself with Divinity, there will be no room for ego. All are Divine in this world and you are also one of the several billions of people. When you realise this truth, where is the scope for ego? It is due to ignorance that one feels egoistic and faces lots of problems.

Develop Good Thoughts And Vision

Thoughts lead to karma or action, and create feelings which contribute to sheelam (character) and, character makes a man deserving to be termed really human and to progress towards Divinity. So, one must develop character by breeding sacred thoughts. The term for thought in Sanskrit is “sankalpa” which means it is arising from the heart, the seat of God (sam). Salokya, sameepya, sarupya and sayujya (being in Divine realm; close to Divinity; being similar to Divinity; merging in Divinity) are all related to this “sam” which is synonymous with “sat.” Sat is changeless truth (shashvatam). When thoughts are good and based on the Divine, the sthiti or state of man will be good. “Sampatti” does not mean worldly or physical comforts. It comprises sat-vichar and sat-sankalpa (good inquiry and good thoughts). Such good thoughts based on the changeless truth will come only from merits acquired in previous lives (purva punya).

This human birth itself is attained after innumerable lives of lower species. While so, why should you venture to commit sinful deeds? It is your bad vision of the external world which makes you commit sins. So you should develop Samyak drishti – good vision. You should look upon the world as the manifestation of the Divine. (vishwam Vishnu swarupam). World is the effect, for which the cause is God. The whole universe is a phenomenon of cause and effect. It is foolish only to look at the external world considering it as mere jada or matter. You must see the reality behind the entire creation. If you see with divine vision, everything will be divine. Sarvam Vishnumayam Jagat.

Fill Your Heart With Love

Fill your heart with love. You see Anil Kumar wearing glasses. It appears to be an obstacle to his eyes but it helps him to see things clearly. Similarly, if you wear the glasses of Love, you will be able to see Divine in everything though it may appear to be obstructive, like the spectacles. The main life principle is prema or Love, without which there will be no attachment between mother and child, husband and wife or between friends. Love elevates the individual from the human level to Divinity. Now, man limits his love to his own kith and kin and other possessions, thus making it narrow. It should be expanded to cover all fellow beings. If love occupies the single seated chair of heart, there will be no room for jealousy, hatred and other such evil feelings. (Swami sang a Telugu song from Bhagavatam to describe how the Gopikas prayed for love to flow like showers of rain in the barren land of the heart to make the seeds of love sprout. They pray to Krishna to play his flute so that the downpour of love will flow into the river of life).

Develop Unitary Divine Consciousness

The great queen Madalasa used to sing lullaby to her children inspiring them to realise atma which was their reality and cast off attachment to the body. Even while the children were in the cradle, she taught them atma jnana. She sent her three children to the forest, when they came of age to learn scriptures. By the time she was about to send her fourth son also, her husband intervened and prevented her from doing so, pleading that if he was also sent away there would be no heir to the throne. She pleaded with her husband that she was only teaching them the principle of atma based on Omkaar, the primordial sound, in order to make them aware of its greatness and which is hailed by the people of all the seven worlds. She said she was singing not the lullaby of the world which was negative, but the truth related to God which is positive.

You have to stick to “daivatvam” Divine consciousness, even while you are engaged in worldly activities. In spite of a lapse of millions of years, man is not yet able to understand his reality. How can he realise Divinity? If you develop human qualities you can easily realise Divinity. Veda teaches “Satyam vada, speak the truth; Dharmam chara, practise righteousness.” Now people kill truth and ignore righteousness. In fact instead of “chara” they put Dharma in “chara” meaning prison. Shanti (peace) and prema, must be put in unison for the world and humanity to thrive well. If you study how the lights here are functioning, you will find that the electric current passes through the wire and illuminates the bulb. Satya (Truth) is the current, dharma (Righteousness) is wire, and shanti (Peace) is the bulb. When the current flows to the bulb it shines brightly. This light is prema (Love). You will see that satya, dharma, shanti together form the constituents of prema.

Unity Of Thought, Word And Deed

In ancient days, they used to say before taking food, “Annam brahma (Food is God), Raso Vishnu (Water is God) and Shakti is Ishvara (Energy is God). They used to offer such prayers considering food, water and energy as the three aspects of God. Brahma, Vishnu and Eashwara.

The gross portion of the food nourishes the body (kayam), the subtle portion nourishes the mind (manas) and the more subtle portion nourishes the power of speech (vak). Thus all the three constituents manas, vak and kayam, viz., mind, speech and body are sustained by food. All these three combine to make the full personality of man. Harmony in these three, thought, word and deed makes a man truly human.

Love Is Selflessness And Self Is Lovelessness

Manasyekam vachasyekam karmanyekam 
mahätmänäm
Manasyanyam vachasyanyam karmanyanyam 
durätmänäm

The harmony in thought, word and deed makes one a Mahatma (a great soul); difference in all the three makes a man duratma (a wicked person). In the latter, the current of Satya is absent and so, the bulb will not shine. When there is harmony, the current will not fail. You have the main switch in the house which controls all other switches. If it is put off, all lights will go off. In the body, the main switch is the heart. When one has love in the heart, all his thoughts, words and actions will shine brightly with love. Therefore, you should fill the heart with love and share with others. When you fill the tank of the heart with truth and righteousness, all limbs of the body and sense organs functioning as taps will radiate the same truth and righteousness. Love is selflessness and self is lovelessness. Love gives and forgives, self gets and forgets. When love is underlining your activity, everything will be perfect.

Develop love in the main switch of heart. That is real sadhana (spiritual practice). This Prema shakti (Power of Love) will achieve anything. Love is the essential basis for spiritual path. The other sadhana(s) like meditation, tapas (penance) etc., are all good karmas (actions), but without love, they are of no use. What is meditation? It is required in every action, walking, talking, working, reading and even sleeping. You should have concentration for everything.

Sacrifice The Fruits Of Action

Life is a race. The saying is “slow and steady wins the race.” This is quite apt for the race of life. Haste makes waste and waste makes worry. So you should go slow and steady without faltering or wavering. Whatever you do, and even when you talk to someone consider it as doing God’s work. If you practise this way, you can have peace. You do sadhana, till you gain wisdom. That is why in the Gita Lord Krishna says:

“Shreyohi Jnanam abhyasat, Jnanat dhyanam vishishyate, dhyanat karma phala tyagah, tyagat shantih anantaram.”

(“Knowledge is superior to practice; meditation surpasses knowledge; renunciation of the results of works excels meditation. Peace follows thereafter.”)

Sacrifice of the fruits of action is the way to attain peace. People talk of Yoga. Pathanjali has defined Yoga as the control of mind and senses. Water has the nature to flow down, while fire in a pit goes upwards. Worldly desires are like water, they pull you down. They are negative.

Positive wisdom is that of atma (the true Self) which is like fire. If you understand this truth, you will not go after worldly desires. The body is given to do karma and thereby realise God. By subjecting the body to pain, by fasting etc., you cannot gain anything. You have to keep the body trim, to realise the Divine.

Realise The Beings As Divine And Practise Love

You must practise the sadhana of unification of thought, word and deed. If you achieve this with love in your heart, it is in itself a penance. Do everything as an offering to God. God is infinite and vast. Do not limit Him to a small frame. Widen your vision. Make your love expand to cover the whole of humanity. Realise all beings as divine. Then you realise all are one.

Go on adding I plus you, I plus you and it will become We. Then go on adding We plus We, then We are all one. All are children of God. This is the brotherhood of man and fatherhood of God. The Gita says “All beings of the world are fragments of my eternal Self.” All beings are therefore eternal. All are manifestations of the Divine. Though forms are different. Atma is one. The Prematattva or Principle of Love should be developed. God is Trigunatita (beyond all the triple qualities). Why attribute qualities to God? Love is the most essential nature of the Lord. It is not an attribute. Practise love in speech, feeling and action. If everyone practises love, there will be no agitation in the world. Hatred will be eliminated.

Bhagawan concluded His discourse with bhajan “Bhavabhaya Harana” (Destroyer of the fear of worldly illusion!)

(From Divine Discourse on 21st April, 1998 at “Sai
Sruti”, Kodaikanal)