1008 Pearls of Sayings
of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba

Index Introduction Pearls 1- 100 Pearls 101 - 200 Pearls 201- 300 Pearls 301- 400 Pearls 401- 500 Pearls 501 - 600 Pearls 601 - 700 Pearls 701 - 800 Pearls 801 - 900 Pearls 901 - 1008

From 401 to 500

401

FAITH has to be cultivated, first and foremost. It has to be nurtured in Love. Love is fostered by Shanti (equanimity). Shanti can be gotten only when there is full reliance on God and complete surrender to the Divine Will. If one loses wealth, he may regain it by some means or other. If he loses health, some doctor might prescribe a tonic to win it back. If one loses status and authority he may, by sheer luck, gain them back. If Virtue is lost, it is lost forever; nothing can restore the pristine purity. So one has to be ever vigilant and should never slacken.

402

THE greatest of the virtues is Love. Love is the basis of Character. You may have all other desirable things in plenty; but if you have no character, that is to say Virtue, which is all strung on Love, you cannot have genuine Peace. Money comes and... goes! But morality? It comes and grows! Morality has to be grown in the heart by feeding it with Love; then only we can have justice, security, law and order. If Love declines among the people, nations will weaken and mankind will perish.

403

THIS created Universe has two aspects. One is impermanence (Antiyam). The second one is unhappiness (Asutham). In the Gita, Krishna has said "Anityam Asukham Lokan Imam Papya Bhajaswa Maam", nothing in this World can give happiness that is, true and lasting happiness. Mistaking this World as "All" and forgetting the Atman, which alone is eternal and is the only refuge, is the greatest folly of man.

404

TODAY, man is pinning all his hopes on this slippery World and is madly running after amassing and hoarding wealth. Of course, material needs are to be taken care of, but within limits, and not at the cost of spiritual values. Money and mansions are not the only wealth. Hoard the wealth of the Spirit. Character is wealth. Good conduct is wealth. Spiritual wisdom is wealth.

405

DEVOTE your body, mind and senses to the service of others. "Paropakarartham Idam Sariram", it is said. This body is intended to do only good and service to others. The body is not gifted to you so that you hate and nurture jealousy against others and live selfishly, worse than an animal. You should devote this precious gift of the body in selfless and loving service always.

406

ANY one may blame you, but you should ignore all such blame and go forward in doing service without rancour. Serving is your sole duty. The Universe is a manifestation of God. So also is the individual. All these three are like Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara, the Trinity. Actually there are no three; they are one; it is Unified Godhead. Cherishing this thought of Oneness and serving Society is true Adyatmic or Spiritual life.

407

SHANTI has detachment as the basic quality. The sea, which likes to gather and possess, lies low; the cloud, that likes to renounce and give, is high up in the sky. Shanti endows man with an unruffled mind and steady vision. The Prayer for Shanti is usually repeated thrice: "OM Shanti, Shanti, Shanti", since peace is prayed for in the physical, mental and spiritual planes. Man should not bring his blood to boil nor should he yield to fear.

408

MAN has been enslaved by money. He lives a superficial, hollow and artificial life. This is indeed a great pity. Man should seek to possess only as much money as is most essential for his living. The quantity of riches one must own can be compared to the shoes one wears; if too small, they cause pain; if too big, they are a hindrance while walking. Money too has to be with us only just enough for a life of physical and mental comfort. When we have more, it breeds pride, sloth and contempt for others.

409

THE world is becoming more and more deeply immersed in irreverence and cruelty. Codes of decent behaviour are being ignored and laughed at. The material is receiving greater attention than the moral and spiritual. Faith in the victory of Truth, Justice and Goodness is fast disappearing; the distinction between good and bad is seldom recognised.

410

JOY is a deceptive trap; grief is the real preceptor, teaching caution, circumspection, discrimination, detachment, awareness and vigilance. Death is not the merciless that he is made out to be; he is the friend and companion, the teacher, the kindly kinsman, who takes you into his fold and clothes you with the halo of remembrance. The heart of man has to be toughened, not hardened; it has to be made soft, not slithery; this can be achieved only by the blows of loss, grief and distress. It is God's way of shaping us in the Divine mould.

411

MAYA can be recognised and driven out only when the mind is purified by Prema and the avoidance of envy and hatred, born of egoism. No act done without Love can be commended; there are many who come here, thousands in fact, year after year, sharing in the Bhajans, listening to discourses, lectures. But, they are staying exactly where they were when they first arrived. Name without "Bhava" seldom reaches the mark. The name of the Lord must be recited with awe and wonder, humility and reverence.

412

THE Sages of this land had known the mine of Ananda that lies in every human heart and they had discovered methods of developing that mine and working on that gold. They said that if "Bhoomata" (Mother Earth), "Gomata" (Mother Cow), "Nijamata" (the Mother) and "Vedamata" (Mother Scripture) were revered and fostered and used as best as they could be, happiness is certain and liberation is assured.

413

YOU will doubtless agree when I say that Ananda is your greatest need. But you cannot order it from any shop. It has to be earned the hard way - doing good deeds, moving in good company, desisting from evil and keeping the mind attached to the Glory of God. Good and bad cannot be kept together in the same vessel; then the good also will turn bad. Night and light cannot coexist.

414

YOU are getting the great chance of partaking in a huge Sathsang from today. Thousands are coming to this place, prompted by a keen desire to see, hear and contact Divinity, and for those who have kindled desires, the chance to move about in the Sea of Spirit is indeed a sign of Grace. This is the benefit, as fairs and festivals are held in holy places, the wave of exhilaration, enthusiasm and exultation lifts men aloft into the rarefied air of Holy Beatitude.

415

ENDEAVOUR always to promote the joy and happiness of your fellow countrymen in this continent; be sharers in this joy and happiness. Bharath is so called, because the people of that country have "Rathi" (great attachment) to "Bha" (Bhagavan, the God). They are afraid of sin; they are eager to acquire "Jnana".

416

HAVE your Prema fixed on the Lord, whether your pretty wishes are fulfilled or not. Do not let the treasure slip on some silly excuse or other. When Sai Baba confers success after success on you, you are foremost in singing, "Sai Sankara, Sai Sankara", but when the shadow of disappointment falls on you, immediately you turn around and declare. "This Sai is not God".

417

PRACTICE renunciation from now on, that you may set out on the journey when the call comes, you don't know when . . Or at that moment, you will be in tears when you think of the house you have built, the property you have accumulated, the fame you have amassed and the titles you have won. Know that all this is for the fleeting moment; develop attachment for the Lord, who will be with you wherever you go. Only the years that you have lived with the Lord have to be counted as life, the rest are all out of count.

418

THE glory of Bharath, which has illumined for centuries the hearts of humanity, is awaiting the march of the Sai Movement through proper presentation and practical application by you, to have an even more brilliant future in the coming years. As the spark that causes the fire, as a driver in the engine drawing a long line of coaches along, as the designer and operator of a system of automatic lights, this Sai is here creating and fostering the World and all its various communities living and non living.

419

LEARN from childhood the recitation of the Name and Prayer and the Practice of Silence. Let children contemplate the beauties and the magnificence of God's Handiwork and be filled with mystery and awe. Do not count and calculate what the Puttaparthi Sai Baba gives. "I do not give in order to attract you to Me; I give only to fill you with Ananda. Showering Ananda, is My task. I do not want you to extol Me; I shall be satisfied if you rely on Me. The mysterious indescribable Superpower has come within reach. It will never engage Itself in any task without fruit".

420

YOU need not waste time in trying to discover Me and My nature. Understand what I teach not Who is the teacher, for I am beyond your intellect and your Shakti. You will understand Me only through My work. That is why sometimes, in order to reveal who I am, I Myself show you My "Visiting Card", something that you call a Miracle. Know the "Marma", or the mystery and carry out the "Karma", or the duty I assign you.

421

MUSIC, a vehicle of Peace, is universally popular. Men, women and children of all lands are amenable to its subtle influence. Even animals and plants are susceptible to music. The Lord has said, "Madbhakthash yathra gaayanthe, thathra thishtaami Naarad": "Where My devotees sing, there I seat Myself".

422

PEOPLE of all ages, of all states of health and wealth, of various levels of learning and intelligence come to Prasanthi Nilayam. This Prasanthi Nilayam is also the refuge for all who have no other place to go to. Do not treat any one as an alien. Remember all have Me as their guardian and support. Have no anger, malice, envy or pride against or before anyone. Be full of humility; have faith in human goodness.

423

PREMA is the motive power in Karmayoga. It is the very breath of Bhaktiyoga. It is universal and infinite in Jnana; it sees the Lord everywhere and in everything, when Vairagya has been achieved. The Bhagavata is saturated with the sweetness of Prema.

424

VEDANTA is like the roar of the lion; it gives courage and enterprise; it makes a man hero, it does not whine or howl or cry; it drives cowardice away, instills the highest types of self-confidence; it is the strongest armour against the arrows of take; it acts like a waterproof medium against the hail storms on sensual pleasure; it is a curtain keeping out the mosquitoes of worry, which would otherwise rob you of sleep. With a Vedanta- saturated heart, you are a rock on the shore, unaffected by the waves of temptation. Vedanta challenges your spirit of adventure and your own reality.

425

THE spiritual laws that the sages of India have discovered and laid down will never be overruled. They stand valid forever. Further research can only strengthen and confirm their authenticity, as further facts only render the diamond more brilliant. Bharath has contributed to the World the priceless gem of Truth; "Iswarah Darvabhutaanaam Hrddese, Arjuna, Thishtati". God is the resident motivator of all beings. Until this fact is realised by the individual he will be tainted by traces of anger, pride and hate, for he sees others as distinct and different.

426

ALL Religions teach one basic discipline - the removal of the blemish of egoism from the mind, of running after little joys. Every Religion teaches man to fill his being with the Glory of God, and evict the pettiness of conceit. It trains him in methods of detachment and discrimination, so that he may aim high and attain liberation. Believe that all hearts are motivated by the one and Only God; that all faiths glorify the One and the Only God; that all names, in all languages, and all Forms men can conceive, denote the One and Only God.

427

IF you have the capacity to draw the Lord to yourself, He will Himself come to you and be with you. Be like the flute - a hollow reed - straight, light, with no substance to hinder His breath. Then He will come and pick you up from the ground. He will breathe Divine music through you, playing upon you with a delicate touch. He will stick the flute into His sash. He will press His lips on it. In His hand, the Infinitesimal will be transmuted into the Infinite, the OM will be transformed into the gama.

428

THE Dharma that is the heritage of India is the stuff of life for all men. It is the backbone of morality and well-being. It is the nectar which can confer Immortality. Others may, in their ignorance, laugh at Indians for taking a stone to be God. But what they do is to realise even the stone as God. It is transformed into God, an act which is a grand victory. The highest energies of man in this land are used for conquering death, while in other countries they are misused in the diabolic attempt to make weapons of mass destruction.

429

DO not attach yourself too much to this body or to the things that bring comfort to it. You earn three friends in this life: the first is the riches you accumulate which refuse to come with you when you move out of this life. The second, Kith and kin, accompany your body to the burial ground or cremation ghat. The third, the merit and demerit that you have earned, accompany you to the last.

430

YOU complain that God is invisible, but the fault is yours not to recognise God in all His various manifestations. You are yourself "a manifestation of God". But you do not know it; you call yourself a sinner, a worm born in sin, wallowing in sin, essentially wicked. But let someone who takes you at your word call you "Hello, Sinner", you resent it. Why? Because your real nature is purity, peace, and joy.

431

MAN must earn his birthright, namely "Shanti". "Ashanti" is for him an unnatural state. His real nature is "Shanti". To recover his heritage of "Shanti", man tries various methods: accumulation of riches, maintenance of health, mastery of knowledge and cultivation of the arts. But these are not fundamental. Three basic wants still remain after all these methods have been tried: the need for Reality; for Light; and for Immortality. It is only when "Sath", "Jyothi" and "Amrutham" are won that "Shanti" will be established.

432

DO not cloud your mind with cheap desires, transitory hungers, and thirsts that need but morsels or mouthfuls. Yearn for the enthronement of your soul as the unquestioned monarch of the Universe, when you merge in the Universal. Celebrate your triumph over the foes within that hamper your march to victory. Acquire Me as your Charioteer. I shall lead you to that consummation. Earn that unfailing Grace by your sincerity, simplicity, and "Sadhana".

433

YOU have two eyes in your Consciousness, namely, "Sathya" and "Ahimsa". They are the guides which will take you to the goal, the two lights, the Sun and the Moon of the inner firmament. If you want to know the way in which you have to observe "Sathya" or Truth in speech, look into the Gita. It tells you that the best speech is "anudvegakarm Vaakyam". (Speech that does not create pain or anger or grief to others).

434

RELY on the Lord and accept whatever is your lot. He is in you, with you. He knows best what to give and when. He is full of Prema. That is My uniqueness: Prema. Prema is the special gift I bring, the special medium through which My Grace operates. That is the basis of all My acts. God is said to reside in everything. Yes. He resides as Prema. Devoid of Prema, the World becomes a cauldron of misery.

435

BEFORE pointing to the faults of others, examine yourselves and assure yourselves that you are free from faults. That alone gives you the right; but the wonder is that you discover faults in others only when you have faults in you. Once you rid yourselves of faults, all are pure and good. Whatever you touch becomes gold. That is the Divine Alchemy of Love, Divine Love, Universal Love, and Love for Love's own sake.

436

TO have faith you must dive deep into the inner mystery of the Avatars, like Rama or Krishna, and not lose your way in the tangle of the outer events and emotional conflicts, the external adventures and activities. Do not take Rama as a brother, son and husband, entangled in the personal calamity of having his wife kidnapped and heroically rescuing her. You can be moved into the adoration only by diving into the cool depths of the inner mystery. This process was specially discovered by the Sages of the inner mystery. It was specially discovered by the Sages of India, and so, India rose to the status of the whole World.

437

SINCE I move about with you, eat like you, and talk with you, you are deluded into the belief that this is but an instance of common humanity. Be warned against this mistake. I am also deluding you by My singing with you, talking with you and engaging Myself in activities with you. But any moment, My Divinity may be revealed to you. You have to be ready, prepared for that moment. Since Divinity is enveloped by humanness, you must endeavour to overcome "Maya" (Delusion) that hides it from your eyes.

438

YOU can hear adoration to Sathya Sai's Name reverberating throughout the World, even while this Body is existing - not at some future date, but when It is with you and before you. And again, you can witness very soon, the restoration of "Sanathana Dharma", to its genuine and natural status; the "Dharma" laid down in the Vedas for the good of all the peoples of the World. The revival of Vedic Dharma is the Sai Sankalpa (the resolve that Sai has), not only drawing people towards Me, attracting them by the manifestation of My "Shakti" (Power) and "Samarthya" (Capacity). This is not a "Brahmathathwa" (phenomenon of delusion). This phenomenon will sustain Truth, it will uproot untruth, and in that victory, make all of you exult in ecstasy. This is the Sai Sankalpa.

439

MAN is ill; but he is resorting to remedies that cannot cure. Diagnose yourself. Discover the root cause; apply the proper remedy; that is the way of the wise. Do not run after quacks or pseudo panaceas. Sow the seeds of Prema, after preparing the soil of you heart, and removing the weeds. Let them grow, watered by Faith and yield the blossoms of "Sahana" (fortitude); later you are assured of the fruit, "Shanti". This is the task; this is the duty; and this has to be the vow.

440

WHEN a Namavali extols Shiva, the next one will have to be on Krishna, the next on Rama and so on. A person whose favourite form is Rama or Shiva will feel neglected if, out of inadvertence, you stick to only one form. Let the atmosphere of Bhajan be free from competitive conceit and fanaticism. This is My advice.

441

YOU are only actors on the stage before the footlights. The Director, who knows the Play, who assigns the roles, who gives the cues, who calls you in and puts you on, is behind the curtain. You are a puppet; He holds the strings. If He must be seen, you have to be His "Sakhaa" (friend) or "Bandhu" (kinsman). Merely being an onlooker will not entitle you to approach Him and be in His holy company. Cultivate His friendship or kinship by the attitude of Love and Dedicated Service.

442

TO realise the One, the Universal Absolute, which personalizes itself into God and creation, there is no discipline more valuable and more effective than Seva. All the 1008 Names of the 1000-faced Society connote only the One God that plays in those 1000 roles. The One appears as if it is enshrined in the 1000 bodies. This is the Truth you have to realise and cherish as the most precious in life.

443

MAN cannot reap the full fruits of his life here below if he only gathers riches or collects popular votes, or loads his head with tons of tomes. He has to cultivate and practice virtues too. He has to adhere to Dharma. The Sruthis direct that man has to earn just enough for his upkeep by honest means and use the rest of his time and skill for the general good, Dharma-Artha. Earn Artha through Dharma. Then he will certainly have plenty of Divine Grace.

444

ONE gets the liberating Wisdom of the Reality through Grace, Prayer, or Prema. You cannot achieve the Goal through good works alone. In good, there is an extra "O", something that is a mere Zero; that is to say, the desire which prompts you, the fruit that entices you, the reputation that tantalizes you - these are all sheer zeros, a big 0. Leave it off and then we have God who is Zeroless, with no self intruding. That is to say, we have God. Desire plus Life is Man. Life minus Desire is God.

445

YOU have to busy yourselves with activity in order to use time and skill to the best advantage. That is your Duty and Duty is God. The dull and the inert will hesitate to be active for fear of exhaustion or failure or loss. The emotional, passionate individuals will plunge headlong and crave for quick results, and will be disappointed if they do not come in. The balanced persons will be active because it is their duty. They will not be agitated by anything - failure or success. The Godly will take up activity as a means of worshipping God; and they leave the result to God. They know that they are but instruments in the hands of God.

446

INTELLECT alone can direct man in the path of discrimination, between the true path and the false, the proper step and the improper. This is the reason why man has been praying since Ages through the Gayatri hymn; "Illumine me and prompt my intelligence so that I may walk aright".

447

MAN loses his status of humanness through acts that shame even the beasts. He does not strive towards revealing and manifesting his latent Divinity! That is not as big a failing as this sliding back into the animal from which he rose! If he keeps on with his human attributes and capacities, that will serve him well enough. A formidable list can be made of the inadequacies and defects of man but, the basic defect is greed; "Uncontrolled desire", always clamouring for more, as a result of the ceaseless prompting of the senses.

448

THE human body is a temple chariot; the Atma is installed therein; and it is dragged by emotions, impulses, passions and urges, along the streets of desire. Success and failure, joy and grief, gain and loss are the dancers who accompany this procession of Life. Here too, many pour their attention only on the chariot; its height, its decoration and its progress. Many others are concerned with the dance of duality and the pain-pleasure duet, that is part of the procession. Few pay attention to the Atma, the Crown and Consummation of human existence.

449

SAGES and Saints have known that the most noteworthy achievement of the senses of man is the glorification of the God within. "They are not eyes, they are but globules of glass, that do not earn a vision of God", says one. "They are not ears, they are but muscular protrusions that do not relish the praise of God" says another. Surdas condemns the hand that does not worship God and calls such hands "sticks of wood". The World and its attractions may appeal to your instincts and impulses but, God draws out your Love, as no worldly being can. Develop the inner vision and the habit of listening to the inner Voice; and you are assured of unshakable Peace and infinite Joy.

450

LIVE without hating others, condemning others and seeking faults in others. Vyasa, who wrote eighteen voluminous Puranas, summarised all the Puranas in one single line of a small couplet: "Doing good to others is the only meritorious act; doing evil is the most heinous sin". When you feel you cannot do good, at least desist from doing evil. That itself is meritorious service! Do not try to discover differences; discover unity. Creeds, castes and country of origin may differ; but the inner hunger is the same for all mankind.

451

CONSIDER the word "Nara", which denotes "man". Of these two syllables "ra" means decline, decay, destruction and death. "Na" means "without". Man or Nara has no decay, he is immortal as God, for he is God. It is pitiable that man is misled to believe that he is the decaying, daily dying physical frame. Whereas "Nara" means Man, "Narayana" is the name for God. Nara symbolises the five constituents of the Cosmos; the five Bhoothas (projections, elements), which emanated from God to form the Cosmos. The expression Narayana, which is used in the Scriptures, implies that Nara is Narayana.

452

THE spark of Love in you has to be cherished and fed, so that it may reach God. Then, every being will be God, every act will be Divine, every reaction you get from the outside world will be charged with Prema and sweetened with nectar. You love the God in all beings and the God in all beings responds with Love. Love God, though tribulation may be your lot. Love Him, though you are refused and rebuked. For it is only in the crucible of travail that the metal is purified and cleared of blemish. Adoration of God has to be through one name and one form; but, that should not limit your loyalty to that particular province only.

453

THE Dominion of God is without horizon. It envelops space and goes even beyond it. So do not allow the needs of worship or puja to put blinkers on your eyes. Do not have other names or other forms of the same Supra-Cosmic Magnificence, the Purushottama. For hate breeds fear. Hate is the seedbed of anxiety, scandal, and falsehood. It drains your mind of peace. You may have light without oil, fire without smoke, breeze without a bearer fanning you, a chilliness in the air of your room in the sizzling heat of summer. Unless you are at peace with yourselves and with those around you, your pulse will be quick and your blood will be racing in rage and rancour. Love alone can alleviate anxiety and allay fear.

454

PREMA, when you cultivate it, will remove the weeds of anger and malice. It will blossom into peace and calm. My teaching is Prema. My message is Prema. My activity is Prema; and My way of living is Prema. There is nothing more precious than Love within human grasp.

455

BHARATH is the birthplace of the Vedas and of the Shastras, Epics and Puranas that have elaborated the principles enunciated therein for the education of the common man. It is the nursery of music and other fine arts, inspired by the noble passion of consecrating human skills for adoring the Divine and communicating the super sensuous. It is the stuff and sustenance of the mystic and the ascetic, the intellectual and the dynamic adorer of God. It is the field where the Science of Yoga was cultivated and systematized.

456

WHO is Baba? Who am I? And the answer is: I am the reflected image of Baba. Baba is the original of which I am the reflection. That is the relationship. That is the bond, whether you know it or not. Whether the image is distorted or correct, you do "Dhyana" morning and evening; you do "Japam", you engage yourself in "Sravanam", "Kirtanam", "Padasevanam", "Vandanam", "Dasyam", "Archanam", "Sakhyam" and "Atmanivedanam" - all for realising that you are but an image to become a clean, clear image of the Lord; so clean and clear that you merge in Him.

457

ENDURANCE, with joyful resignation of the ups and downs of life, is the royal road to Peace. Everyone craves "Sukha" and "Shanti"; but there is no one to instruct Youth how to win them. The Ramayana and the Mahabharatha are reservoirs of Knowledge for the seekers of Peace. They are replete with examples and precepts which are inspiring and timely. By taking the teachings to heart, Purity can be attained. The pure heart directed towards God and reflecting His image is indeed Heaven, Vaikunta, or Kailasa.

458

LIVING under the impression that you are the body and you are destroyed with the death of the body is an illusion which is basically undesirable. Another illusion is that happiness consists in accumulating money, knowledge, comforts, or reputation. Trying to be happy through such accumulation is like getting into the Madras bus and hoping to reach Bangalore. What is happiness? It is the state of mind which is, by fortune, good or bad. By systematic education, the mind can attain the state. If activity is done as worship, then the mind can attain the state. If activity is done as worship, then the mind will be steady and free from anxiety.

459

THE word Hindu means those who keep away from the path of violence, away from inflicting injury on others, Hin (Hinsa - Injury; Violence); du (dura-away, distant) The Shastras declare that the essence of all the 18 Puranas, so highly revered in India, is: Merit is when you do good to another; Sin is when you do evil to another. When you are fixed in this path, you will welcome all Faiths and Religions as kith and kin. All Faiths attempt to train man along the path. Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Jews, Parsis, all aspire to win the same illumination, through the cleansing of the mind by means of good work.

460

WHEN a tree first shoots forth from the seed, it comes up with a stem and two incipient leaves! But later, when it grows, the trunk is one, and the branches are many! Each branch may be thick enough to be called a trunk but, one should not forget that the roots send food as sap through one single trunk. God, the same God, feeds the spiritual hunger of all nations and all faiths, through the common sustenance of truth, virtue, humility and sacrifice.

461

BRAHMA'S lotus is not the stalk that grows in mud and rises above the waters to catch the rays of the sun and blossom but, the many petalled lotus of the Heart, each petal being the direction in which a particular tendency attracts the individual. The Bull on which Siva is said to ride is not the animal called by that name but, the symbol of Dharma or Righteousness which has the four legs; "Sathya", "Dharma", "Shanthi" and "Prema". Gopala did not graze cattle but, protected and fed "Jivis", known also as "Go". In the study of the Veda, you should look for the meaning which satisfies the head.

462

THIS Nilayam is "Prasanthi Nilayam". It is the abode of the highest form of Shanti - Prasanthi. In fact, you are, each one of you, the Nilayam of Prasanthi. That is why, I very often address you as "Shanti Swarupulaara". My object is to remind you that your real nature is Shanti, equanimity, peace, unruffledness and non-attachment. You cannot draw out from within you that which is not there. Therefore, Shanthi must be deep down, at the very core of your being.

463

THIS World is full of people who suffer from insanity but, who are still outside the asylums! Suddenly, when hatred envelops a country, even ordinary sane people go mad and behave like savages. But sometimes in the Mental Hospital you will find one type of "mad man". He sits in a corner, resting without a break, watching the pranks and the wildness of the other inmates. The doctors will be thankful to him, for he needs no care; he causes no trouble. His madness may be melancholia or he may be a Jnani. The God bound man is like that. He is the only sane man in this mad world.

464

BECOME fit for the vision of God that you seek in the temples. Go humbly, with Prema in your heart for all creation. Take the "Hrudhayapushpa", full of fragrance of Prema, the "Mano-phala" uncontaminated by the pests of greed and egoism. Become sweet in word, deed and thought, so that you can dedicate yourself to the services of God's Plan.

465

YOU will have seen the announcement that you should not bring Me fruits, flowers etc. Some of you I know are sad that I have announced so. But I tell you; Come to Me with empty hands. I shall fill your hands with gifts and Grace. If your hands are full, what am I to fill them with?

466

ALL Worship and Puja is for "Bhakthi" only; for the better comfort and more luxurious consumption of the Worshipper himself. Devotion has been vulgarised into a business deal. I shall give you so much, provided you give me so much in return. If another shrine promises more, this shrine is given up. And if you do not get quick returns there or somewhere else, some other God, might be more profitable. That is the way in which worldly men wander about in their panicky rounds.

467

YOU are as distant from the Lord as you think you are, as near Him as you feel you are. Well, let me tell you this. This distance from Me to you is the same as the distance from you to Me, is it not? But, you complain that I am far from you, though you are approaching nearer and nearer. How can that be? I am as near you as you are near Me.

468

WHEN a prisoner is taken from place to place, he is accompanied by two Constables. When man, who is a prisoner in this jail, moves from one place to another, he too, is accompanied by "Ahamkaram" and "Mamakaram": Egoism and Attachment. When he moves above without these two, you can be sure he is a free man, liberated from prison.

469

DO all the household work as acts of Worship for Him. That is more fruitful than hours of Dhyana, hours gained by entrusting this precious work to paid helpers. Men too must feel that frittering away precious time, flitting from one vanity to another and seeking more and more purposeless means of spending days and nights, is detrimental to the main aim of life. Spread joy, give strength, distribute courage, console the distressed, and help the lame to walk, and the blind to see. That is the real timetable of activities of man.

470

THE wealth that you hoard is not yours. The wealth that you have shared is yours. For wealth that belongs to you need not be hidden. The wealth that you have given away is really yours. That is the reason why Vedas have declared: "Not through actions, not through progeny, not through wealth can Immortality be won; it can be won only through renunciation".

471

IF only you surrender your wish and will and your fancies and fantasies to God, He will lead you aright, and give you peace and joy. You must not run after diverse ends and fleeting pleasures. Leave everything to God. Accept whatever happens as His Will.

472

GOD is the echo of the hills, the flutter of the leaves, the whisper of men, the babble of children, and the OM that is wafted everywhere. God is present at all places but, to recognise Him Saints have had to prescribe a thousand methods. He is in everyone, yet He evades discovery by all but a few, being all powerful. He is the Giver of all Gifts, the Providence bestowing upon us all the wherewithal: "Asvrithya Thishtathi" (He remains All Encompassing).

473

THROUGH sheer ignorance, and perversity, the Shastras have been ignored and set aside, and man is misleading himself into the belief that his fancies are true, just, and beneficial. Man has thrown his "humanness" into the crater of cruelty; forgetting his best interests under the influence of hatred, envy, conceit and power. He has cast aside the expanse of his culture. As a result, Peace has flown from the heart of man, from the fold of Society, and the boundaries of Nations.

474

ONE flower cannot make a garland. All flowers must come together to make one. So you must equip yourselves with strong bodies, sacred ideals, and unselfish intentions in order to serve your country. You can achieve any high ideal provided you are cooperative, well disciplined, soaked in service and sacrifice, and fully determined to succeed.

475

DO not hope to gain Grace by looking down upon mankind and looking up at Sai. Remember that your dress, behaviour, and appearance will reveal your character and attitude towards others. Always have sweet, soft words on your tongue. Cast your eyes only on holy sights. Wear clean, simple clothes and do not imitate those who are fascinated by latest fashions in dress and style. How can you do Seva when you move so far away from the common man? I advise you to "Follow the Master". By "Master" I mean the Conscience within you, the Voice of God.

476

SERVICE is God. Why has God endowed man with a body, a mind and an intellect? Feel with the mind, plan with the intelligence and use the body to serve those who are in need of service. Offer that act of service to God; worship him with that Flower. Put into daily practice the ideals that Sathya Sai has been propagating and make them known all over the World by standing forth living examples of their greatness.

477

THE Upanishads proclaim that Thyaga alone can grant "Amrithatva" (Renunciation alone can bring about the Bliss of Immortality). One has to ignore all bonds of kinship and comradeship, give up all attachment and affection, and, in the heart thus liberated, install God in all His Glory. This is the only means to earn everlasting and undiminished Ananda.

478

WHETHER one is a renowned scholar with expert knowledge of the deepest levels of religious lore, a monarch reveling in the brilliance of palatial luxury, a hero of many battles, or a miserable victim of poverty - if one has no devotion to the Lord, one does not deserve homage, honour, or attention.

479

DO not hesitate to practice humility and obedience, discipline and compassion; Give up pride of your status, wealth, scholarship or official position. "Can I, a big Officer, a rich merchant, a great scholar, a man highly respected in Society, descend to this level of clubbing with this sorrowing man? "Do not ask such silly questions. Everyone of these qualifications of which you boast will disappear with death, or sometimes sooner. The Ananada that you give and the Love that you share will be your lasting possessions.

480

THE great axioms of Bharathiya Culture found in the Vedas - "Iswarassarvabhuthaanaam", "Isaavaayamidam Sarvam", "Vassudevassarvamidam" (God is the inner Motivator of all beings; All this is enveloped in God; All this is Vasudeva and the Divine is to be inside one). This is the inner mystery of the Incarnation: God incarnating in all! All are one; The One is All. There is only one God; He is Omnipresent! There is only one Religion, the Religion of Love. There is only one Caste, the caste of Humanity. There is only one Language, the Language of the Heart.

481

WHAT is the root of worry? Wants and the efforts to fulfill them, and the fear of not succeeding to the extent desired. Reduce wants and you reduce worry. You congregate here on the Nilayam verandah seeking a personal interview with Me, with a load of wishes in your heart; wishes, that you want me to fulfill! Why carry all the load? Carry only one load: the desire to win the Grace of God. He will confer what is best for you. Leave the rest to Him.

482

WHAT is this lifetime? Is it to struggle in the mire or march straight on to the eternal? You will get millions to tell you what is pleasing to you, but it is difficult to get one in a million who can tell you what is good for you. What is good for you is akin to Truth. Truth is hard but beneficial. It is unpleasant advice to tell a man to stick to the Truth at all costs; Truth alone pays dividends that satisfy.

483

PEOPLE think that they live on food. Then how is it that, while the wealthy who can afford all kinds of food, succumb to untimely death, while the poor still live? Man does not live by food alone. In fact he lives by the power of the Soul. Without discrimination, what is the use of physical strength?

484

TO presume that either from wealth or kith and kin you can derive mental peace, is a great error. Such peace only comes from God. In fact, there is no strength superior to Love. Where Love is, there everything is. So you must live in God; and live in Love; then everything shall be right. You must make others also live in Love.

485

WE talk of Moksha. What is it? It is only giving up the "Anatma", the Unreal. Suppose you want a tumbler of fruit juice. Unless you throw away the water already in the tumbler, you cannot pour the juice in the tumbler. Similarly, unless you give up materialism, "Atmabhava" (spirituality), cannot come to you. "Moksha" is not a distinct and different "Sadhana". It is only giving up unnecessary desires. Through anger, wisdom is lost. Disharmony is the cause of anger; of disharmony, jealousy, and of jealousy, ignorance is the cause.

486

MAKE your body and mind pure. This place is like a workshop where broken-down cars are repaired and made whole. Do not entertain bad thoughts and do bad deeds. Life is holy and sacred. Go through it with joy and happiness. Do not carry gloomy, unhappy faces. Happiness is union with God. This period of your life is sacred. If you can not derive happiness and live in Bliss at this age, can you be blissful when you grow old? Now, you have only two legs to carry; you can jump about freely. But when you marry and rear up a family, you will move like a caterpillar with many legs!

487

SO long as man is bound to the body, his God too has to be in a body like his own. It is often said disparagingly, that God is conceived as having eyes, nose, tongue and limbs. When the person who worships has these, the worshipped too must have them, in order to make the worship meaningful. Only when one is unaware of his "form", can he adore the "Formless"! It is indeed surprising that those who laugh at God being pictured as having a body, do not laugh at their being enclosed in a body! When man has to be corrected and liberated, God has to come as Man, as Narayana had to do to save Mahabali.

488

THE Vedas are the foundation of the Bharatiya Culture. If in modern Society a trace of spiritual illumination is visible, we can ascribe it to this Vedic basis and the way of life I demand. All moral codes (Dharma) have emanated from the Vedas; and all the Worlds have Dharma as their sustenance: "Vedamulam Idam Jagath".

489

YOU will learn that I am Prema itself; that I give only one thing, Ananda, through that Prema. My task is to distribute Solace, Courage, and Shanti. That is to say, My Characteristics are the ancient authentic ones. Only the Manifested Form is new. My desire, if I can put it in so many words, is this: "More and more should yearn for Me. The desire will be realised only if I assume this Form and come among you".

490

EVERY day, when you sleep, where are you? Who are you? Your senses are inoperative; your intelligence is in abeyance; your mind creates a World of its own and, after playing in it for some time, it lapses into inactivity. That is sleep: the nearest you reach in your journey to Samadhi. Live in the "Atmathathwam" that will ensure "Shanti". With the poison of "Raga" and "Dwesha" inside you, how can you be pronounced healthy? If you experience the "Atmathathwam", you become Bhagawan Himself.

491

ONCE Narada was asked to name the most noteworthy among the things of the World. He answered that the Earth was the biggest. But, he was told water has occupied three fourths of the Earth; it threatens to swallow up the balance too, bit by bit. So, water, he had to agree, was more powerful. However, water too was drunk up by the Sage Agasthya and the Oceans were rendered dry by him and he, in turn, is now just a star in the sky! Is the sky the biggest, then? For it was covered by one single foot of the Vamena Avatar of the Lord. And, the Lord? O, He enters the hearts of the devotees and resides there. So Narada had to conclude that the hearts of Bhaktas are the grandest things in creation.

492

SANKARACHARYA came for the work of Dharma-Sthapana, but he did not wage a war against the narrow Sectarians, or the wild Theologians who opposed him as a Pseudo Buddhist. He won them over by argument, persuasion and preaching. He spoke softly, but with conviction. He gave his opponents a fair chance to present their cases to the best of their ability and sometimes he even helped them to clarify their own points of view. Through Bodha alone, can Dharma be saved in the modern Kali age. That is why I am engaged in Bodha, this task of reconstruction through Upadesa.

493

A LIFE without character is as barren as a temple without a lamp, a coin that is counterfeit, and a kite whose string has snapped. A teacher who instructs pupils with his eye fixed on his salary, and a pupil who learns with his eye fixed on a job are born missing their vocation. The teacher has to help the pupil unfold and manifest the skills and qualities inherent in him and encourage him to rise to the fullest height he is capable of. The Divine is the Core in both the teacher and the pupil.

494

EVERYTHING in the Universe is vibrant with Sath, Chith and Ananda. We (Sath) are intelligent (Chith) and blissful (Ananda). These three are attributes of Divinity, which is our dormant but dominant force. Ignorant of the truth, structures are built up and paraded on other bases. Mankind suffers from fear and hatred on account of this fundamental defect in their search for Knowledge.

495

PRAYERS for worldly ends do not reach God. They will reach only those deities who deal with such restricted spheres. But all prayers arising from pure Love, unselfish eagerness to render service from hearts that are all inclusive, will reach God. For God is the very Embodiment of Love. We know that we can see the Moon only through the Moonlight. So too, God, who is Love, can be realised only through Love. Love is God. Live in Love.

496

THE desires that cling to the mind are the blemishes that tarnish man's inner consciousness. Control the senses. Do not yield to their insistent demands for satisfaction. When a corpse is placed on a pyre and when the pyre is lit, both the corpse and the pyre are reduced to ashes. So too, when the senses are negated, the mind too disappears. When the mind disappears, delusion dies and liberation is achieved.

497

VAAK or voice has to be rigourously trained to avoid chatter and wandering prattle. Keep the tongue under control; do not express all you are prompted to say; cut that inclination to the minimum. Silence will charge the battery and you can win through a longer period of "Dhyana". Be full of Prema and then your words will spread Prema. They will be sweet and soothing like balm to those who suffer.

498

ATTACHMENT, affection and interest will create prejudice, partiality and illusion; they hide the truth; and they dull the intelligence. Raga is Roga; attachment is a disease, so far as the inquirer is concerned. It does not become a Yogi to have Raga (affection); He must be free from favourites, fancies and fondness. Once you attach yourself to some person or habit or mannerism, it will be difficult for you to shake them off.

499

UPASANA means that all your thoughts, deeds and words on those holy days must be about God; that you should spend the day "Near Him", "in Him" and "for Him". It means that eating, sleeping and other bodily avocations have to take a secondary role and that Meditation and Japam have to take the main role. If your body wastes away as a result of these fasts, God will be blamed. So, you are only drawing down the calumny of people on the God you adore.

500

WHY must man live for years - a burden on earth, so much of rice or wheat consumed, year after year with no return in joy or peace to himself or others? The Petromax light will shine bright only when you pump air vigorously, that is to say, engage yourself in Sadhana and illumine your mind better and spread light on all who come near you.
 

Index Introduction Pearls 1- 100 Pearls 101 - 200 Pearls 201- 300 Pearls 301- 400 Pearls 401- 500 Pearls 501 - 600 Pearls 601 - 700 Pearls 701 - 800 Pearls 801 - 900 Pearls 901 - 1008