Volume:13 Issue:16
Thursday, Aug 26, 2010
Quote:
“Baba never fasted Himself, nor did He allow others to do so. The mind of the faster is never at ease, then how could he attain his Paramartha (goal of life)? God is not attained on an empty stomach; first the soul has to be appeased. If there is no moisture of food in the stomach and nutrition, with what eyes should we see God, with what tongue should we describe His greatness and with what ears should we hear the same?”- Shri Sai Satcharitra
Announcements:
Saibaba.Org announces the start of redesign project of its website. If you are a technical person and would like to volunteer, please fill out contact form.
Upcoming Events:
The full moon day(Pournima) of Hindu Ashada month (July 25th) is desingated to serve the Guru, hence it is also referred to as Guru Pournima. Sai devotees accross the world will be celebrating Gurupournima celebrations either at home or temple. Mark your calendars for a day of prayer and service to Shri Sai. Share your story and picture with other devotees by clicking here.
Devotees Say:
Sridhar
Thank you Baba for helping me to finish the MBA program. Hopefully you will bless us with the green cards soon.
Rajneesh
Om Sai Ram, Baba Thank you so much to listen and answer to all of my Prayers. On Thursday, I received the Two most Important and wonderful news of my life. With your blessing, my Green Card application is approved on Thursday and on the same day, I was selected for another project in same company where I am working right now. I truly believe that both of this news was not possible without your blessings. About 3 weeks back I was told that my project will going to be end in August and since then I was keep praying in front of Baba to help me find another project in same city and get my Green Card approved before end of July month Visa bulletin. On the day, we received an email that our Green Card is approved, as per my promise I leave early from work and visit Shirdi Temple in (Illinois). Once again Baba Thank you so very much for everything. Please shower your blessings on us and all of your devotees.
Devotees Experience:
Sai Devotee
Sai Devotees, I want to share my experience of Baba blessings in my life. We planned to by house in NJ and we started looking for houses. One day we got call from realtor that one good house on sale. He forced us to see the house on same day. My husband and I went see the house. The house is really good and because of lot of competition, we signed the contract immediately. I left every thing to Baba because he will give the things, which gives the good results. We applied the loan to bank and we were waiting for appraisal report. Finally, appraisal came low. Bank told they do not give loan more than appraisal price. My realtor told that would try the appraisal one more time. However, seller is in hurry and he gave only 4 days time line to get the commitment. We requested new lender to do the process quickly. He did appraisal again and the value came low again. I thought Baba is doing all these things to do some good. Seller wants to cancel the contract. I left everything to Baba and sent mail to attorney cancel the contract. Again Baba did miracle and seller agreed to reduce the price. Again, we started the process to buy the house. My seller fixed the closing date and we started running towards the date. On closing day, our lender called, loan was not cleared, and they have some doubt about our status. I prayed Baba sincerely to solve the issue and understand the loan processor about our status. With Baba grace, they understand the documentation and we closed the house. We faced so many hurdles, but are always with us and gave strength to face them. He did miracles and he blessed us with our dream house. As per my Promise, I am leaving Nonveg on Thursdays for my entire life.
KK Singh
Dear All, I have been suffering a lot for last 20 years and developed faith in God slowly. I joined a Satasang in my town around 6 years ago. I was a compulsive drinker for all seven days a week until some one in my home town in India told me that I must quit drinks and non veg on Thursdays as the results to my efforts are only limited due to this. I was told that it is a day of Guru. I prayed Hanuman Ji as my Guru until this Saturday 24 July 2010, when I was having dinner with a friend and they said that it is the day for Sain Baba. I could realize that Sai had entered in my life so long ago. Just three months ago from today, some one from my Satsang advised me to read Sai SatCharitra as it has miraculous effects. I read it in two months and when completed, approached appropriate people in my organization to help me saving the life of my daughter by placing me in any medically advanced country.
However, it is not done completely, but to cut the storey short, I got some great hope and have belief in Baba that every thing would go all right. In last one month only, there are three Sai Sat Charitra in my family with different people and I have planned a trip with 18 other family and friends\' family members to visit Shirdi. Thankfully, the day we would be there is a Thursday only. Jai Sai Ram. This is my first experience to visit this site and enrolled my self and my wife as recipient of mails and my first letter as Article subscriber. If acceptable, I would share my some of the pains as well in future. I wish all Sai Baba followers a great life and pray to Sai to bless us all as he is so Merciful and loving! Please welcome me and my family as a new member in your life full of Sai\'s stories and blessings.
Manisha
I would like to share with all the devotees of Saibaba his miracle for which I am forever thankful to him. I was very keen to settle down in UK.I tried on student visa, workpermit visa and other countries visa also since long time but I believe Baba always gives me excellent things in my life. During my last year visit to Shirdi, I prayed to Baba to do needful for my one wish-- to settle in abroad. I thought in Shirdi temple in front of Saibaba, I should bring my passport that time UK immigration wants master degree and my friends told me that UK government would not change rule so I was hopeless. But I have strong "Shardha" trust on Baba that he will change rule in short time. It was Baba’s grace that the UK immigration rule changes for education from master to bachelor degree. My husband and I applied on 5 May 2010 and within 10days, we got visa.
Thank you Saibaba. I request to all Sai devotee that whatever you ask in Shirdi temple, please always keep "Shardha" and “Saburi" and surrender on Saibaba. He will do best for you. Another miracle that my younger sister got married on 9th July on blessing of Saibaba only because we have searched partner for her since 7 years.
Sai Vichaar Vol 13, Issue 15
Feature: Shake the Fear!
Fear is one of the qualities that could drive a person to the level of insanity. Fear manifests in different ways and forms and may lead to other vicissitudes such as anger, greed, lust, etc. Freeing oneself of the fear that lies deep within becoming the cause of various unwanted traits is a must for any serious spiritual seeker. Fear of the unknown is the biggest cause of misery. People make their lives miserable because of fear. Fear can be fought with Faith and Patience. With Faith that all that will happen will be for one's own good and patience that it will happen when the time comes for the event to happen will go a long way to lessen the agony and pain that one harbors in their lives.
Shri Sainath gave the lesson of Faith and Patience not as mere words to be remembered once a while or read in books, but to continuously put them into practice. Though very easy to read and understand the dictionary meaning, they are the most difficult to practice in one's life. As one tries to practice these two qualities, they discover that the harder it gets to deal with them. At times it goes to such an extent that Baba's dictum seems more philosophical than practical. It is for this reason that Baba left a series of stories to serve as an example to inspire his followers.
Patience is merely not just waiting but also actively believing that God is with them and will help them against all odds. Keeping faith alive against all odds in prayer and experiencing all difficulties that may come is Patience. As Baba says, Faith and Patience are like twin sisters, one cannot live without the other. Where there is no faith there is no patience and vice versa. The difficulties that do come in our lives are a result of our own past actions and the results of those have to borne as explained by Baba in Satcharita. So there is no point in arguing why difficulties or unhappiness comes, it is a fact of life as any other fact. Dealing with it in the way prescribed by Baba is the key to burden and live it when sorrow knocks on the door.
When one walks on the path laid by Baba, it is invariably noted that slowly but surely the fear that was lurking behind slowly disappears and one starts becoming free of the burden and sing joyously in honor of the master who is ever ready to lead all those who approach Him.
Contributed Article: Bhakthi and Jnana
It seems then that the Sage of Shirdi did favor the path of bhakti for attaining salvation. Once when comparing gnan and bhakti, the Master likened the former to Ramphal and the latter to Sitaphal. The pulp of ramphal is difficult to comb out, but the sitaphal is sweet and its pulp is easily accessible. If the gnani falls, there is a danger of his remaining in that state, since he may not be able to help himself, but the bhakta always has the compassionate succor of his master to support and reinstate him. Perhaps Sai Baba felt that the crying urgency of this Kali Yuga was bhakti. The first and most fundamental requisite is of course a strong desire for moksha, a hunger and thirst for the Divine, which no material conditions can ever assuage. Wealth, kith and kin are all transient. So long as the material attachments occupy a vital part of man's thoughts he cannot go far. Equipped with this burning desire for a union with the Lord, if a devotee has complete faith in His mercy and surrenders all to His wisdom, then his task becomes less arduous and his ultimate success is assured. Not only this, but bhakti even when practiced not too thoroughly is nevertheless a powerful weapon of purification, in that it gradually leads the bhakta to greater and greater concentration of worship; that is to say, if one may so express it, even a casual bhakta is transformed into an ardent one sooner or later. Only a beginning has to be made, the rest is taken care of. How reassuring this thought is. We cannot take the wrong path if we keep conscious of the Light. Baba, therefore gave great importance to all those practices that aid concentration in the Divine. He greatly favored the use of Japam i.e. repetition of the Guru-god's name either audibly, or mentally.
Such repetition, Baba said, may seem mechanical at first, but it slowly draws the mind into the vortex of a one-pointed concentration. From a practical aspect its aim is to cultivate emotional and mental stability, and thus prepare the soil for the realization of Brahman. It is important at this stage to make clear distinction between the kind of bhakti that Sai Baba enjoined on his followers, and the undisciplined emotionalism that sometimes goes by the name of bhakti. Baba gave bhakti the highest place in any sadhana, but he wanted that this emotion should also be purified. The emotion must not be allowed to degenerate into mere sentimentalism which has not the same poise and balance of disciplined bhakti. True Bhakti can be easily distinguished from mere hysterical emotionalism. For in the latter there is ultimately a feeling of incompleteness and exhaustion. This lower type of bhakti is a kind of deluded extension of self-love. It has its roots in the ego, that is why it is impatient of returns. But the bhakti that Baba enjoined is bhakti plus yoga -- bhakti that is discipline. In the giving of such devotion there is a feeling of completeness and fulfillment and a total conserving of one's energies, so that the true bhakta never has a sense of frustration, nor is he ever exhausted.
There is no doubt that Shri Sai Baba was the apostle of love and that his predictions lay more in the direction of the bhakti way to salvation. Not once, but several times did he emphasize the great value he attached to devotion and surrender. "I am the bond slave of my devotees. I love devotion. If one ever dwells on me in his mind and will not even taste food before offering it to me, I become his slave -- so also if he hungers and thirsts after me and treats all else as unimportant." Such was the illuminating language in which the sage gave predominance to the function of love. Shri Sai Baba's followers, therefore, have so to elevate their understanding as will enable them to realize the living beauty of love, its divine energies, its health-giving properties, and its power to demonstrate immortality.
(Source: “Saibaba: Saint of Shirdi” by Mani Sahukar)