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Ice cubes
Gen. Dr. M. L. Chibber
Prashanthi Nilayam, India
In a recent talk to young adults of the Mid-Atlantic region, Gen.
Dr. M. L. Chibber demonstrated Swami’s message "Why Fear when I am
here," with this simple example. To assure us that He is always
with us, Swami says: "I am always with you, wherever you are,"
"You are in me and I am in you" and lastly, "You are God." First,
Swami says, "I am always with you, wherever you are; I am on your
right, on your left, in front of you, behind, above you and below
you." I start wondering how is it possible. I am sure many of us
wonder; if Swami is in Puttaparthi, I am in America, how can he be
all around? The second statement Swami gives is, "You are in me
and I am in you" As you are all Americans, I would like to share a
story which happened in Kodaikanal in ’93. A tall guy from North
Carolina named Ted, a very good basketball player, became very
friendly. Swami made this statement and when we were walking out,
he could not restrain himself. Ted said, "General! I just cannot
get it. How is it possible? I am 7 feet tall and Swami is only 5
feet. How could he be in me and I in him?" I said, "Ted he was
talking spiritually." I had not the vaguest idea what I was trying
to put across. The third statement is the one which really shocks
us out of our wits. Swami picks up somebody, points the finger and
says, "You are God! I am God! We are one." It is difficult enough
to believe Sai Baba is God. How can we be God? Our habits, our
perceptions are so deep rooted that we cannot comprehend.
Time went on after this question was asked by Ted. It was in
August 1993. As usual, weekly we had our turns to interact with
overseas devotees. It was my turn and I thought I must address
these three statements which Swami made to everyone. And I decided
to seek and pray to Swami for some simple method to really get to
the bottomofthethree declarations. Two days before my turn came, I
got up early in the morning and prayed to Swami, to explain in
some simple manner, so that even a child will understand . Then I
sat on my bed, closed my eyes. I do not know how long I sat, I had
a very strong thought: "Ice cubes." I started wondering What are
ice cubes? From what I have learnt, if you leave matters to Him,
He shows the way and in this case He did show the way. Gen.
Chibber dropped six to seven ice cubes in a glass of water. One
could see the ice cubes floating on the water. The following is an
imaginary conversation between the ice cubes and the water.
The water says to the ice cubes, "Ice cubes! I am always with you
wherever you are." We know this to be true because the ice cubes
are melting and will finally become water. The water says again,
"Ice cubes! You are in me and I am in you". It is true too because
if we put a tray of water in the freezer it becomes ice cubes.
These ice cubes are nothing but frozen water. The water then says,
"Ice cubes! I am water, you are also water. We are the same" Is it
true? Yes, this is common knowledge. Now it is the turn of ice
cubes. Now this ice cube says, "I am not water. I am an ice cube.
I have a very special form in the universe — nothing so beautiful
and so uniform has been created. You are telling me that I am mere
water. I am not water. I am an ice cube." This other ice cube
says, "Brother! You are absolutely right. We are ice cubes. Don’t
forget I am a little more special than you, because I am an Indian
Ice cube. I know the scriptures and all the texts well by-heart."
Another one says, "Ok guys, I’ve heard it from you. I belong to
the number one country in the world. I am an American Ice Cube."
So the cacophony goes on. Everyone is special for one reason or
the other including this little guy. This little ice cube says,
"Fellas! I’ve heard enough from you. I’ve heard you are special.
But I am a very special guy, I am the sevadal in charge of darshan
lines" (laughter).
The water talking to the ice cubes is an illustration for the
strong statements which Swami makes. The ice cubes’ cacophony
explains how we live with our own opinions and perceptions even
after coming to know of the truth about who we are.
Source:
http://www.gujarati-online.com/search/regmar00.htm |
