Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

The human body is made up of five material elements and it has to fall sometime or other. The Atma that resides in the body, unlike the body, is permanent and sacred. This sacred aspect of Atma has neither birth nor death, nor attachment. If we think deeply and well, we will realise that God, in the form of Atma, is residing in every human body.

Any person who has an attachment to this human body cannot easily understand the unmanifested God. The human form of one’s own body will always be wanting to perceive God in a manifested form, preferably resembling his own. We generally get the opportunity to recognise the unmanifested aspect of God only through a manifested form. Bhagavatha gives you the sacred opportunity by which you can understand the unmanifested God. The purpose of Bhagavatha is to teach us the sanctity of the inner Atma. In order that we may have some vision of the inner Atma, Bhagavatha has been teaching us Upasanas in the form of three steps. These are Vishnu Upasana, Vasudeva Upasana and Narayana Upasana. The first one - Vishnu Upasana - recognises God in all people who have a form and a name. This aspect has been described to us as the “Swarupa of virat” in Bhagavad Gita. It has been referred to as the “Viswarupa Darshana” or the manifestation of God in the form of creation. The meaning of this was also taught by Bhishma to Dharmaraja when the former was lying on the bed of arrows. The Bhagavatha demonstrates that the entire creation is in fact an aspect of Vishnu. Bhagavatha tells us that Vishnu is present in all forms of creation, at all times and in all places. We may say that this path is an easy path to follow for ordinary human beings. Since God is present in all living forms, it enables us to regard every human being as some form of God.

The second step is the Upasana of Vasudeva. In this, we have to experience God, not only in all human beings, but in all our actions and work. Here, we should make an attempt to recognise the aspect of God in all our actions connected with all things which have a name and a form. This is not such an easy path, because human beings are filled with qualities like lust, anger, jealousy and hatred and they also have attachments. These qualities are such that they will not enable one to think of God. When we see an individual doing bad things, not only will we regard that individual as a bad individual but there is also a chance of bad ideas coming into ourselves. Under those circumstances, it becomes very difficult to accept such an individual and the act that he performs as sacred or divine. In order that we may not give room to such unsacred situations, we will have to develop the aspect of divinity in us. Just as a human being coiled up by a python struggles to get his hands and legs free, so also a human being caught up in qualities like anger, lust, greed and hatred has to struggle to think of God and recognise divinity in all that he sees. Thus the Vasudeva Upasana is a difficult matter to follow.

The third step is the Narayana Upasana. This step not only enables you to experience divinity in the action as well as the form of individuals, but will also enable you to see the oneness of all creation. This will lead you to get the experience of Atma. It will enable you to establish the unity that is present in all creation, through the recognition of the aspect of Atma. This will enable you to accept that there is no difference between different forms of divinity. There are three great individuals in Bhagavatha, who symbolise these three types of Upasana.

King Parikshith, a Rajarishi, symbolises the first kind of Upasana. Sringi a great Thapasvi belongs to the second category of Upasana. Sami, the famous Brahmarishi represents the third type of Upasana. The totality of the experience of Sami, Sringi and Parikshith is the essence of Bhagavatha. These three types are truly the forms of the three gunas - Sathwa, Raja and Thamas gunas. Bhagavatha is a text that has harmonised these three aspects and demonstrated the oneness of divinity. Having received the protection of Krishna even while he was in the mother’s womb, Parikshith was a very learned person and was governing his kingdom very wisely. It is natural that we get a doubt as to how such a good and noble king could lose control over himself in a fit of anger and place a dead snake over the shoulders of Sami. However great a man may be; however great a devotee he may be, he will lose control over himself when he gets angry. Anger is the greatest enemy of man. In a fit of anger, Parikshith put a dead snake round the shoulders of Sami, but this cannot be treated as a wanton act of arrogance or carelessness. It was a genuine mistake committed in a weak moment. When Parikshith found that the rishi Sami and the other rishis did not care to receive him and attend to him, he was very agitated; and while returning from there, he picked up a dead snake and put it round the shoulder of Sami. This enraged Sringi, son of Sami, who saw this a little later and as he saw King Parikshith leaving the ashram, he cursed him saying, “Within seven days, Parikshith will be killed by a snake bite.” Here, we should recognise that what happened was a passing state of Parikshith’s anger, and there is no cruelty or evil intention in his action. However, when Sringi saw this, he became very angry and in his anger, he cursed the king. The king was not aware of this curse. Here we must carefully examine the reason for Sringi’s curse and understand how Dharma really works in such situations. If a righteous and benevolent king commits a mistake unintentionally, the consequences will affect only the king and not the people. In the king, who was a Rajarishi, there is a little of rajas left and hence he was angry in a weak moment. Sringi brought about a lot of confusion, because as a result of his curse, the people will also suffer and remain unprotected. Thus the consequences of the king’s fault were also affecting the people. In fact, Sringi had no right to curse. Here we notice that a person like Sringi, who has no right to curse, gave a curse. Indeed, this is the subtle aspect of Dharma. The fact that a good and noble king lost his temper and insulted a Brahmarishi and the fact that a rishi gave a curse though he did not have the right to do so are symbolic of the decline of the accepted norms of Dharma. Indeed, at this time was the advent of the Kali Yuga. Here we see that as a result of Kali, certain blemishes are coming into Vasudeva Upasana and Vishnu Upasana.

When Sami came out of his deep meditation, he quickly realised all that had happened; and he took steps to reprimand his son. He said, “The king is a very noble and kind man and he takes good care of all of us. Just because in a weak moment, he did something rash, you should not have cursed. By this act of yours, you have lost all the good that you have accumulated because of your thapas. Have you undertaken to do all your thapas only to misuse it in this manner? In this context, it appears natural for the king to occasionally lose his temper in this manner, but a thapasvi like you should not have lost balance and given the curse. Our kingdom will now be without a leader, it will be like a night without a moon.” After reprimanding his son in this manner, he thought it best to send word to king Parikshith and let him know the nature of the curse. He also undertook to tell king Parikshith about the evil consequences of anger. “One’s wealth and prosperity will be destroyed by anger. It will destroy whatever honour and reputation that one has. It will separate him from his own people. By pride and anger, everything will be destroyed and one who has anger will not be able to achieve anything. He will be humiliated. He will always be committing sin and everyone will admonish him. Anger will promote sin.” Having told Parikshith about the evil consequences of anger, as conveyed by Sami, the messenger further told the king as from Sami, “It is quite natural that you lost your control at a weak moment, but it was necessary for you to attempt to overcome your anger and behave in a responsible manner. Instead of overlooking your mistake and controlling himself, a sacred thapasvi like my son cursed you that you will die by a snake bite within seven days. During these seven days, think of the Lord always and promote the goodness in you.” As soon as Parikshith heard these words from Sami, his own mind was completely transformed and he conveyed his respectful pranams to Sami, the Brahmarishi, and said, “This is not a curse to me, it is a great gift. I cannot escape the consequences of my karma and what I had done. I am grateful to you for making me realise this.” From that day, Parikshith was thinking of God by giving up the responsibility of his government to his ministers. As soon as this news of the curse was known, several rishis and others came to see Parikshith. They were praying to God that king Parikshith who had a noble and sacred heart could be spared from the curse and that he should live long. But, the curse of the thapasvi could not be atoned and Parikshith was making preparations for the end. The great Brahmarishi Sami, who had considerable equanimity, was also praying for the well-being of Parikshith. Although Sami, for external purposes, had connections with the world; yet in his mind, there was no attachment at all. He merged completely with the Atma. There is no difference between such a Brahmarishi and divinity.

On one occasion, after the battle, Dharmaraja went to Krishna’s mansion to tell him about his despondency and despair. At that time, Krishna told Dharmaraja all the details about the future of Parikshith. He told him how Parikshith would acquire a great name and fame and how he would achieve far greater glory than all his predecessors. He also told him how, because of a curse from a saint, Parikshith would lose his life by a snake bite. While talking thus to Dharmaraja, Krishna suddenly lapsed into a brief silence and Dharmaraja was totally confused. After a few minutes, Dharmaraja asked why Krishna thus became silent in the middle of the narration. Krishna said that he had to go and respond to the call of Bhishma who was lying on his bed of arrows. Those who have a sacred heart will be able to get the Lord’s grace by praying sincerely. There is no difference between a sacred mind and God. A prayer from a sacred person will go straight to the Lord. Such people are embodiments of wisdom and they are forms of Adwaitha. They had enjoyed the oneness with divinity. They firmly believed that there is only one truth in the world and that there is no parallel truth. Such people are always in a state of great ecstasy and are really like children. That is why, it is said that the state of a child, of a person who is in great ecstasy, and of a mad man are alike. Because of the consequences of excitement of one’s senses, man sometimes forgets his true nature. Truly man seeks only ananda. He is also intrinsically a selfless person, but by the pressure of his sensory organs, he gets attached to material desires and he forgets God. For the benefit of such people and with great love and affection, the aspect of Krishna is being taught by Bhagavatha.

We should make an attempt to realise that all the names and forms that we see in this world are only reflections of God. We should also recognise that all creation is a part of God. We should not be led away by the differences in names and forms and forget the essential unity amongst all these. On one occasion, Narada began to doubt the sincerity of the gopikas and he asked Krishna, “The gopikas are not well educated, they do not know the Sastras or Vedas and they even appear uncivilised, how do they appreciate the aspect of God? Only people who have risen above the stature of Gunas can understand divinity. How can others who are immersed in mundane qualities and thoughts understand God?” Then Krishna said, “The nature of gopikas is very sacred. Even if their mothers-in-law are scolding them and their husbands are sharpening their knives to punish them, they will not open their mouths; and they will not be afraid. In the minds of the gopikas, Krishna’s image is printed like a print on a paper. As it is not possible to separate Krishna from the heart of the gopikas, what is the use of all the education? Can anyone escape the consequences of fate? If bad ideas enter one’s mind, there is no hope for him.” You cannot please the Lord by your education or by reciting the Vedas. He can be attracted only by sacred prema. The scholarship that you acquire is only for the head; and if you do not put it into practice, of what use is your scholarship? There is plenty of learning in the books, but all the hearts are full of dust. There is nothing that we can get from the books. You have to read these books only for eking out a livelihood and filling your belly. Only pure prema will enable you to understand the Lord. That is why our scriptures have taught us that you cannot get immortality by your wealth or by your education, and that you can get it only by your good qualities and sacrifice. By sacrifice, you can attain immortality; but if you are immersed in “Bhoga” you will only get “Roga.” Students, you should understand the true meaning of sacrifice. This is why Thyagaraja said that we should knowingly utter the name of the Lord. If we do not let out the air that we breath in, our lungs will get spoilt. If we do not let out the food that we take in, our body will get diseased. Even if our blood does not constantly flow from place to place, there will be a boil on the hand. You should understand the good that will come out of sacrifice. We should use our education only for good activities.

Every moment is passing into a new moment whether we use it well or not. If time does not move on, days will not change, life span will not reduce and there will be no change. Because time is moving on, our life is changing. If we are swimming, we must make an attempt to push back the water that is in front of us. If we do not push back the water, we cannot move forward at all. We must sacrifice in all spheres of life - moral, spiritual, ethical and political. Divya Atma Swarupas: our pains and pleasures are like passing clouds and they are momentary. We should not fill our life with such transient pleasures. When Parikshith realised that his life was going to end in seven days, he was always thinking of the Lord. Because he had such a sacred heart, Suka the great rishi came to see him. If our mind is pure, sacred Paramatma will likewise himself come to see us. It is very necessary to make your heart pure and sacred to achieve anything good.