Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

Students!

From time immemorial, many rishis have spent all their time in this country thinking of God. Questions like: Does God exist? How can we see God? Can we reach God? are not new. They have been with us right from the beginning of creation. Answers to these questions were sought to be found by many people making different attempts. They had sought answers to these questions with all the strength of thapas built up with unrelenting efforts. They had also tried to find answers to these questions by seeking the grace of God. The few people who found partial answers tried to spread the answers to the others in the world. They addressed the people through the Vedas and said that they had been able to get a glimpse of the strength of the great Paramapurusha who is beyond the darkness of ignorance. They described him as the effulgent shining entity. God cannot be perceived or understood by looking for him only in the external world. Although God is omnipresent, he reveals himself in the form of prajnana or knowledge within a person. The Veda has been proclaiming that the eternal God is present inside the material body which is made of matter and which is destructible. Diamonds do not drop from heaven, nor can they be got as a fruit from a tree. Such precious stones will be found only in the earth. In the same manner, the precious jewel of divinity will manifest itself in the human body, which is made up of matter. Man’s ultimate objective is to search for this basic divine aspect that is present in all living beings. Today, being unable to recognise the sacred divinity that is residing in us, we are wasting our lives like a person who uses sandalwood as firewood not knowing its worth. Truly, this divine aspect, which is present in the human body, will project itself only occasionally. Sun’s brilliance is present at all places but by using this brilliance falling on a wall, we will not be able to see ourselves as in a mirror. So also, sun’s rays falling on trees or mud will not enable us to see ourselves. Sun’s rays fall everywhere; yet we cannot use them to look at ourselves. However, when the sun’s brilliance falls on a mirror, we can use it to see our own face. In the same manner, while God is omnipresent and can be found everywhere, we can see him clearly only when we look at him with a clean mind. A pure and clean heart is the weapon with which you can remove ego. The sacred aspect of God is such that with its help, we can also remove jealousy. Using these sacred thoughts of God, the gopikas could remove their jealousy and ego. Whatever the gopikas did in their lives, they did it by surrendering their mind, thoughts and senses to Krishna and, thereby, they led a very sacred life. Whatever they did with their bodies, they thought that it was work done for, and on behalf of, Krishna. Whatever words they uttered with their tongue, they regarded them as being the leela of Krishna. Whatever work they did with their hands, they regarded that as service to Krishna. Their words were always about Krishna. Their smile was always a smile about eternity. In this manner, at all times, they enjoyed bliss and surrendered themselves to the thought of the Lord. Their births may have changed, times may have changed, yet they regarded themselves as being close to Krishna, their ultimate objective. They felt that Krishna was present in all forms, human as well as animal and living as well as non-living. They used to say, “What is it that we can surrender to you? There is nothing that we can offer you. Everything is in you and you are in everything. When the entire universe is contained in you, can we serve you any sweets? When you are present in all the waters of the world, how can we give you a bath with water? You have the brightness of a million suns and how can we use a candle to show you. When the great saints like Ajahara could not comprehend you, how can we reach you? We are able to understand the nature of the earth only, in your name - Gopala. How can anyone describe your leelas?” In this manner, they described the glory of Krishna and they spent all their lives in such thoughts. Not only this, they addressed Krishna and said, “Oh! Krishna! If you become a flower, we will become a bee and go round you; if you become a tree, we will become creepers and wind round you; if you become a mountain, we will become mountain streams and go round you. If you become the big blue sky, we will be small shining stars in that sky. If you become the ocean, we will become small rivulets and flow into you. We cannot bear separation from you at any time. We pray that we may be given the fortune to be with you at all times. Whatever form you take, we will also take the appropriate forms so that we may be with you.” This implies that between the gopikas and Krishna, there is an inseparable connection. Krishna is not distinct from his devotees. Krishna’s form depends on the ideas and thoughts of the devotees. The Lord will take a form that is determined by the ideas and thoughts of the devotees. In order that we may experience the sacredness of this divine aspect, a clean mind and a pure form are necessary. Our life should be put on the path of truth so that we may reach divinity, which is truth itself.

Today the situation in the world is such that it is taking the wrong path in many ways. It is not giving the appropriate environment for the young people. In that context, in order to provide a good atmosphere, the culture and traditions of Bharath have to be taught to them. Students, in the world it is not as if there are no individuals who are well versed in sacred texts like Bhagavatha, Ramayana, etc. But whatever they may have learnt and whatever their scholarship be, if they cannot put into practice at least a fraction of what they have learnt, they will simply be wasting their time. All the scholarship will be useless if it is not accompanied by practice. This can be described in another manner. “If a donkey carries a fragrant material on its back, will it become an elephant? We may have the strength to teach others because we have learnt many books. However, whatever you learn will become utterly useless if it cannot be put into practice. This has been explained by saying that if the thought, word, and action are the same, that individual will be described as a Mahatma. This is also described by saying that a proper study of mankind is man. We have no right to call ourselves human beings if there is no human nature in us. The divine aspect does not exist in a foreign land or in any outside space. It exists within us and in us. Students must realise that for people who have unrelenting ambition to seek something which they cannot get, the spiritual path offers a beacon light. By following such a sacred path of truth, Harischandra has carved for himself a name among the sacred devoted people. His story tells us how, for the sake of adhering to truth, he even sold away his wife and child and finally even himself. It is very rare to see such a family in the present age of Kali. When the husband has all kinds of difficulties and several troubles, his wife was not only helping him to face the situation, but was also encouraging him. The husband and wife should conduct themselves as an object and an image. Under some conditions and at some time or other, every man is bound to face some difficulties. Every individual will always have some problems. But, in the context of such a situation, each one should help the other. Such patience and forbearance are very important for men. On one occasion, the wife Chandramati touches the feet of Harischandra and asks him why he was so troubled. Then Harischandra said that he was troubled because he could not repay the debt that he owed to Viswamithra and that he had no money with him. At one time, Harischandra was a great King and possessed a great deal of wealth. At that time, the wife, in order to help the husband, said, “As a result of bad times, all the wealth that we had, has been lost; whatever wealth is left is only in the form of my support to you and your support to me. So, please sell me to someone who can pay for me and redeem your debt.” We will not see such wives today. They will say that they are not responsible for the debts incurred by their husbands and will immediately threaten to go back to their mothers’ home. Surrendering your mind to the husband and leading a sacred life, you should attempt to establish divinity in your heart. The gopikas have shown such exemplary conduct in their life. Unfortunately, in the Bhagavatha that we read and the Bhagavatha that is depicted to us in the pictures, the gopikas are known as unsacred people with unacceptable behaviour. The gopikas showed that their conduct was exemplary even to the Devas. Simply because the gopikas were born in the families of cowherds, we are thinking poorly about them. They are really great Maharishis reborn as gopikas. Their life is dedicated to God and you should also realise that they have been born with a purpose.

It has become common, these days, to think that women’s ideas are catastrophic and harmful. The gopikas have no semblance to the women of these days. Their conduct was such that while fulfilling their daily duties, they always thought of God and surrendered themselves to God. They were looking at their husbands and children as if they, also, were in the form of Krishna. While giving food to their husbands, they used to imagine that they were offering food to the Lord. While giving bath to their children, they used to think that they were performing Abhisheka to Krishna. This was the elevating feeling they had in them. While cutting vegetables for cooking, they used to think that they were cutting their bad thoughts out of their minds, and that ego, jealousy and anger were being removed with a knife. While boiling their vegetables, they used to think that Krishna’s love was being used as water for boiling the vegetables. Whatever small task they undertook, they did it with a feeling that the work was dedicated to Krishna. As I have told you once, “If all the women go and seek employment, who will do the work at home? If the husband and wife both go to an office, where are the mothers to look after the children? If the women go to school to teach other children, who will teach their own children? If the women go about with books in their hand, who is going to look after the work in the kitchen? While you may meet the financial troubles to some extent, several new troubles will come up. The happiness that may come by getting a job will be nothing compared to the unhappiness that will accompany this.” Today, everyone wants employment. If you are able to get “Yoga” you can easily get a job. The word “Udyoga” comes from Yoga. What is Yoga? This is to fulfil your task in the correct manner. Since people, who do not have the right kind of ability are holding jobs, the situation of the country is so deplorable. We do not see people who recognise their duty. We only see the exhibitionism that goes with their positions and authority. In the very first instance, we should promote our ability and strength. We should first acquire the strength to get right our homes, our villages, and the community around us. It is, therefore, necessary for the students to read the sacred texts and follow, as examples, the lives of great and exemplary men. The strength of those days was the strength of dharma and righteousness. Today strength is the strength of wealth, money and position. Wealth and money are like passing clouds and can disappear at any moment. The position or authority that we have today may drop at any moment. On the other hand, the strength arising from dharma and the strength arising from God are permanently fixed. We should therefore develop complete faith and know what is permanent. In the earlier days, all the Vanaras made an attempt to cross the ocean in order to search for Sita. In their attempt to cross a big ocean, they did not lose their courage and ability. Because they attempted to undertake the task with divine strength and with the constant chanting of the name of the Lord, they could successfully make a bridge across even the ocean in a very short time. In which engineering colleges did these monkeys get their degrees? The only degree they had was the grace of Rama. If, in a short while, they could complete a bridge over a deep ocean, can we compare our education to the knowledge they had? All the engineers of today come and prepare a five-year plan or a ten-year plan and the bridge collapses even before it is formally opened. Without spending a single paisa, with faith in God and with divine strength, those monkeys could undertake such a task. Because we depend on material assistance, our entire life has become very artificial. Our life today is such that we cannot move an inch without money. In the earlier days, it was dharma which had the upper hand while now, money has the upper hand. Students, I am hoping that you will take this country, by working in a purposeful and fruitful manner, to its ancient pristine glory.