Feature of the Week: Man, His Own Masterpiece

The descent of God as Avatar and the ascent of man to Divine Perfection are two axioms of faith. Is the ascent of the man an outward phenomenon, an extraneous pursuit? To a question from a devotee about where one can find God, Sainath of Shirdi said, "Awaken your inner self. You will find God". It is probably worth contemplating on this comment by the Saint God. Mind, which is at times a perpetrator of myth, is also the means through which one can practice discrimination. The discrimination between myth that is transient and the truth that is eternal. This discrimination is accomplished not by any intellectual means, but by sheer insistence and honest yearning for the self-transformation. Such attributes will eventually lead one to the right master and the master will lead the seeker to his own self. Smt. Mani Sahukar writes in "Saibaba, the Saint of Shirdi", The integral and harmonious realization where the seeker rises to higher and higher level of consciousness is the ultimate goal of the Vedic and the Upanishadic teachings. This fact can well be summed up by quoting the beautiful words of Dr. Radhakrishnan, one of India’s most enlightened philosophers- "Liberation is not the isolation of the immortal spirit from the mortal human life, but transfiguration of the whole man. It is attained not by destroying but by transforming the tensions of human life; man’s life, mind and body are not dissolved but are rendered pure and man becomes his own masterpiece."
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Experiences of Devotees

S.V. Swamy, Hyderabad, India
God, the Universal Consciousness
Since I could not get sleep, I lay thinking. A few Slokas and hymns in praise of different gods and goddesses were going through my mind. I was just pondering over Who or What God is and if He, She or It should appear to me how God can convey the unlimited picture to my limited mind. At that point of time, a thought came into my mind. Just as we have a consciousness different from our physical body, God is the Universal Consciousness different from the Universe, which is his physical body. So even when the physical universe goes through its cycle of birth and death, the consciousness remains. Therefore, God is indeed eternal and indestructible.

Is my God different from your God?
Just as a pure white light will be seen as colored when passed through a colored filter, the universal consciousness will manifest in the form of the Ishta Devata of a devotee. Thus, there are innumerable forms of God. A group of islands appears separated from each other but are connected to each other through the sea bed or ocean floor, and only the water is giving us the illusion of separation. God the universal consciousness manifests in the form of several Deities, Saints etc., who to our limited vision appear separate. The Maya or our limited perception is what makes us feel that each Deity is different from the other.
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Devotees Say

Mala Gupta, Abu Dhabi, UAE
BENEFITS OF FASTING
Fasting controls passion. It checks the emotions. It controls the senses also. It is a great penance. It purifies the mind and the heart. It destroys a multitude of sins. Fasting controls the tongue in particular, which is the deadliest enemy of man. Fasting overhauls the respiratory, circulatory, digestive and urinary systems. It destroys all the impurities of the body and all sorts of poisons. It eliminates uric acid deposits. Just as impure gold is rendered pure by melting it in the crucible again and again, so also this impure mind is rendered purer by repeated fasting. The chief object of fasting is to render the system calm so that one is able to practice meditation rigorously during that period.

During fasting, one should withdraw the senses and fix the mind on God. Pray to God to guide us and to throw a flood of light on our spiritual path. Say with feeling, "O God, guide me! Protect me, Protect me! I am yours, I am yours! Forsake me not!" We will be blessed with purity, light and strength.

Fasting is one of the ten canons of YOGA. However, avoid excessive fasting. It will produce weakness. Fasting makes a man strong, both spiritually and mentally. Fasting is prescribed for the removal of the five capital sins. Fasting cures some diseases that are pronounced incurable by doctors. Occasionally, a complete fast is greatly desirable for all to keep up good health, to give adequate rest to the internal organs and maintain celibacy. All diseases have their origin in overeating and verily fasting is the only method to cure this.

Complete Fasting helps to control sleep. One should avoid all company during fasting. Try to live alone and use that time in Sadhana. When breaking fast we should have light meal and easily digestible light food. Milk or some fruit juices are beneficial.

MRK, Phoenix, AZ, USA
I saw a picture of the statue of Shirdi Sai Maharaj covered with vibhuti. The three and half inch statute at the Colusa Shrine in California is draped with holy ash. The perfumed, chalk-like substance manifests daily all over the ceramic figure of Shirdi Baba, contact 530-458-5537 or mangrus@colusanet.com or you can drop by on Thursdays or Saturdays at 7 PM, 953 Sioc street Colusa, California. Ekkirala Bharadwaj writes'' There is no avatar equal to that of Shirdi Sai. To obtain self-realization, one should be able reach at the feet of a realized soul and we should earn the full krupa of such a guru. We also should also have a way of sadhana, which is consistent with our own sanskaras obtained from our previous birth and sadhana in this life. In Poona, I met an yogi by the name SRI GUNAVATI MAHARAJ. On seeing me, he accosted me as Sa Baba ka beta. I expressed my doubt about the fully self-realized state of Baba. He told me not to have any doubts about Sri Sai. He is actually avatar of Dattatreya, repository of full absolute gnana. Even after his mahasamadhi, he appears in his physical shape and uplifts devotees.

S.V.Swamy

Om Sai Ram. Congratulations for the good service which you are rendering to Sai Devotees through Sai Vichar. Thanks to Sri RAVADA GOPALA RAO garu, I got the latest issue of Sai Vichar, which included the article "Why do we give Arati?"

I read with interest the feature article on IDOL WORSHIP sent by the SAI DEVOTEE from UAE. Since her e-mail address is not given, I am offering my comments to you so that you can if found fit include them in your next issue of Sai Vichar.

I agree with the theme that idol worship is not an idle practice followed by uneducated, ill-cultured savages as made out by some misguided people. It is just a means of focussing your mind on the SAGUNA form of the formless GOD. It gives a lot of pleasure and mental relaxation to many people, especially those whose spiritual evolution has just begun. For those who can't chant the name of the God constantly or meditate on his formless infinite attributes, IDOL WORSHIP is a good daily routine. Just as the body needs regular exercise, nourishment and rest, mind too needs regular activity. Idle mind becomes a devil's workshop i.e. negativities start building up.

There is one saying in Telugu. IT translates roughly as follows " Once you tie a little piece of Asafoetida in a cloth, it will smell long after you remove the Asafoetida piece " Russians with their Chirlian Photography have proved that a leaf has an energy field which persists for quite some time in space and time. Thus a leaf from which one half has been cut off continues to show the energy pattern of a full leaf for quite some time.

Thus if you imagine that God is residing in a particular form in an idol, photograph or a similar sacred object, the positive vibrations of your mind will be held in the object for quite some time. So if you do daily puja you will reinforce the vibrations and slowly the object of worship gets a life of its own. Thesophists have seen thought forms exist in space for quite some time.

The above form of Prana Pratishta i.e. creating a God in an initially inert object is a little informal and depends mainly on the extent of the faith of the devotee. Since it is made of his vibrations, it is predominantly tuned to him and those who are near to him spiritually.

In a temple, on the other hand, the idol is bigger, and with the help of suitable Yantras and Mantras, PRANA PRATISHTA is done in a formal way by soem holy saint. Here a pujari performs all the pujas prescribed in the AGAMA Sastras and the idol gets a life independent of any individual devotee. Also the vibrations are more powerful and are capable of tuning many individuals.

I hope the above will be found to be of interest to SAI Devotees.
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Prayer Club

Radha.
Thank you very much for enabling me to write this letter to you. Your grace has seen me alive, given me a wonderful daughter and supportive parents. You have been with me through and through the ordeals I have encountered. But, I am now in a position where I am afraid I cannot take more of this.

The difficulties I have been suffering mentally and physically are growing every day. Every minute, I face threat from my ex-husband - not just for myself, but to the very existence of my mother, my father and my daughter. My mother's health condition is pretty bad - We do not have any refuge, but Thee. Pray give her good health and comfort and put an end to this suffering from my ex-husband and his family. Give us a peaceful life in thy shelter.

Dear fellow Brothers and Sisters, Please pray that we get relief and live in peace. Thanks

Madhu
Om Sai Ram. Here I am again. Asking you for something again. You're the only one I can turn to when I need help and I know I always get the help I need.

Please Saibaba I need your help with finding a job. As my company is closing soon I am looking for another job and I need your assistance in finding something that is suitable for me. As I have two children a half day job would be very suitable for me so that I can look after my children as well. Please I need your assistance here. Many Thanks

Another request - how can I get my husband to believe more in God as he never seems to ever pay or have the desire to even try. I know that if he starts prayers the door will open up for a better future for us. I constantly worry about this as we never seem to progress. Thank you once again.

S.K.T
Would like to request all of you to pray for my sister's marriage. She is of a mariageable age and things are not working in a right way. Please pray to our Sai that my parents can perform her Kanya Daan soon and feel content. Sai, Bless all with shradha and saburi. Thank you.

JITENDRA NARAN, JOHANNESBURG , SOUTH AFRICA.
OM SAI RAM,
I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SEND OUT AN APPEAL TO ALL SAI DEVOTEE TO PLEASE PRAY FOR MY BROTHER IN LAW WHO WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT ON 25 JAN 2000 AND LOST HIS FIANCEE. THEY WERE TO BE MARRIED NEXT YEAR JANUARY. I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SEND A PRAYER TO BABA THAT HE GIVES THE FAMILIES STRENGTH IN THIS TIME OF SADNESS AND PRAY THAT BABA WILL RESTORE MY BROTHER IN LAW 'S HEALTH AND GIVE HIM STRENGTH TO ACCEPT THE SITUATION AND GUIDE HIM.
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Sai Activities

Peace Yagna, Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, Pittsburgh will host Peace Yagna from February 20 to March 9, 2000 at Pittsburg Shirdi Sai Baba temple. Various spiritual activities in connection with Peace Yagna include 360 Siva Linga Archana, 108 Jyoti Arati, Laksha Kumkuma Pooja, Vedaparayan, Homam, Ekadasi Rudra Abhishekam, Pitru Puja, Go (Cow) Puja, and Sai Sathyanarayana Vratam. For sponsoring any of the above Pujas, please contact Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple, Pittsburgh at (412) 374-9244. Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple in Pittaburg is located at 1449 and 1551 Abers Creek Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15146.
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