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"This Prasanthi Nilayam
is the Nilayam of
Nithya Shanthi - of the peace that cannot be disturbed -
because it is based on deep discrimination and on unshakable
renunciation of attachment to sense objects. To be here on this
sacred day is indeed a great piece of good fortune. Thousands of
aspirants and seekers have assembled here and those who have come
into this auspicious company have to make the best use of this
chance. Instead of celebrating this Dasara festival in feasting and
catering to the frailties of the senses, I am happy that you have
determined to spend it in holy thoughts". This is a piece of Divine
Coucelling given by Bhagawan during the Dasara Festivity four
decades ago, in the year 1965 and these above lines herald the
significance of this grant festivity called Dasara or 'Devi
Navarathri'. And over the years millions of devotees have witnessed
this festivity at Prasanthi Nilayam with the Lord in His physical
frame accepting the offering of Poornahuthi
as Veda Purusha,
 rarest of the
good fortune bestowed upon by the 'Greater Heaven'.
The legend has it that Dasara signifies the victory of
Devas over Asuras,
i.e., Righteousness over the forces of evil. Vouching for this mythical
belief, thousands have gathered at Prasanthi Nilayam to celebrate the
festivity in the very Divine Presence of Bhagawan, Beloved Mother Sai. In
fact this year’s celebrations came as a fresh spiritual breeze, cooling
down the turbulent minds with His nectarine Divine Discourses that served
as ‘feast for the soul’.
The celebrations began on 6th October with "Kalasa-sthapanam"
in the Bhajan Hall of the Prasanthi Mandir followed by the beginning of
Veda Purusha Saptah Jnana Yajna in the
Poornachandra Auditorium, which was filled to capacity.
Bhagavan presided over the Yajna
as Veda Purusha while the
ritwiks lighted the sacred
homam creating fire by friction, by rubbing
two sticks from churning of two wooden pieces. The
homam was carried on by pundits chanting Vedic mantras and making
offerings of ghee to the sacred fire.
Besides the homam, there
were pundits engaged in performing Suryanamaskar,
reading holy epics, the Ramayana and the Bhagavata, worshipping thousand
lingas of Lord Siva, worship to Lord Ganesha
and the Hindu Trinity and other rituals related to the
Yajna.
While these rituals continued for a week, Prasanthi
Vidhwaan Mahasabha,
 an assembly of learned in the Divine Presence to share
spiritual knowledge was the major attraction of the evening sessions.
Senior devotees, Faculty Members and Students from the three campuses of
Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning shared their thoughts in the
Divine Presence which were followed by illuminating Divine Discourses on
five days in which Bhagawan enlightened the devotees gathered on various
spiritual topics with incidents from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and
from His Divine Visit to Rishikesh etc.
11th October was Durgashtami and Ayudha Puja
was performed on this morning in the Divine Presence at Sai Kulwant Hall.
On Vijaya Dashami day, 12th October
thousands of devotees gathered in the Poornachandra Auditorium to witness
the completion of week long Yajna with
 Poornahuti. Bhagawan who presided over the
Yajna as Yajna Purusha
blessed the occasion, the pundits and the devotees gathered by sprinkling
the water sanctified by the Yajna going round
the jam-packed Poornachandra Auditorium to the delight of one and all.
Prasadam was distributed at the end of the
programme.
In the afternoon students from Brindavan Campus of Sri
Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning staged a Drama titled “Bhakta
Surdas”. It was a moving presentation on the life of poet saint Surdas and
depicting his unflinching devotion to Lord Sri Krishna. Devotion was in
the air as the drama unfolded the mystery as to how with single-pointed
devotion one could win the heart of the Lord. Melodious songs coupled with
soul lifting music and dance sequences made the presentation nostalgic and
memorable. Indeed a fitting grand finale to the week long Dasara
festivities.
Sri Sathya Sai Grama Seva
“If you pour spirituality
into the ears of those who are tortured by hunger, it will not be
assimilated. First satisfy the hunger. “Give them God in the form of food;
Give them God in the form of clothes; Give them food in the form of Peace
to those afflicted with anxiety; Give God in the form of medicine to those
suffering from ill-health; Give God in whatever form which will assuage
fear, pain and sorrow. It is only when this is done that spirituality can
soak into the heart”, said Bhagawan. Further, in His
discourse of 16th February in 1992 He opened His mind in unequivocal terms
that “Grama Seva is Rama Seva. You need not strive for salvation
as a separate goal. Service to village will itself ensure
mukti (liberation). Bear this truth in mind
and act upto it in your daily life.”
It was a new ‘mantra’. And He enjoined upon His
students – His sole property – to march forward in their purity as
ambassadors of peace and love to the villages with food and clothes
– the first of His lessons in Practical Vedanta, the
adwaita philosophy in practice. The programme
launched in October 2000 has come to stay as an annual feature – a
practice to be carried out throughout their life wherever they go. This
year’s Grama Seva was planned to cover 150 villages in the three Mandals
of Puttaparthi, Kothacheruvu and Bukkaptanam forming the unit that was
called earlier as Puttaparthi Taluka.
It was indeed a hectic week for the students of all the
three campuses who were ordained to carry out the task of reaching out the
villagers with His food and cloth packets of Love. This lucky lot with
minds fresh and enthused and hearts vibrant and expanded set out with
“Sairam” on their lips…went to the door steps…and conquered.
It was not the sweets, food packet or clothes that were
distributed that mattered, but the feeling behind the action, that was the
message of this Grama Seva which Bhagawan has been stressing, all through,
to reach out the needy with His Divine Love, true to His saying, Grama
Seva is Rama Seva…Jana Seva is Janardhana Seva.
Students from the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher
Learning, Anantapur Campus for women and senior girl students from Sri
Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School with faculty members and staff from
both the campuses engaged in packing the food and cloth materials while
boys from both Prasanthi Nilayam and Brindavan Campuses along with faculty
members and staff would go out everyday to various villages with
meticulous plan to carry out the task within the schedule. The last day of
the Grama Seva activities, on the Vijaya Dashami day, students from the
Anantapur Campus distributed sweets, food packets and clothes to the
inmates of Ashram.
Indeed, an act worth emulating and one would wonder
whether the Gods of highest heaven would be watching this “White Army” of
students who were immensely lucky and privileged to carry out the task at
the direct command of God walking on two feet.
Excerpts from Bhagawan’s Divine Discourses:
Talking all the day aimlessly,
eating three times a day, breathing continuously day in and day out; do
you think these are spiritual practices? Do you think being lost in deep
sleep is a spiritual practice? Is this the purpose of God’s Creation?
Divinity is present in all
beings. Elders always advise that we must think of God every morning and
night so as to make our hearts sacred. God is in everything – in mankind,
in insects, birds, - in all beings. To see God who is everywhere, does one
need to meditate?
God cannot be experienced by
merely following spiritual practices. All Sadhana that we undertake is
only for Chitta Shuddhi – cleansing the mind, purifying the mind. Purity
of heart has to be attained. We think that fasting and observing vows
takes us closer to God. This is a false notion. God is always there
everywhere. To see and experience this omnipresent God, one must have
Chitta Shuddhi.
Just as a utensil when washed
again and again becomes shining, so too by persistent spiritual practice,
the heart starts shining with Divine effulgence. Once the heart becomes
sacred, Divinity can be seen and experienced. This is the way to see God,
not by mere meditation.
We must convince ourselves that
God is in all beings. But nobody is doing that. Whomsoever we see is
verily God. I am present in everybody but not attached to anybody. Gopikas
alone understood this Truth. The Cosmic Self is Divine but is seen as the
individual self.
Whomsoever we come across, be it
a businessman or a farmer, we must consider them as God only, not as a
farmer or a businessman. God is present in all forms serving you. From
today onwards, have this strong faith and you too will see God everywhere.
Once you please God, everything
will be added on to you. You think that I am God, but you too are God. We
all are forms of God. Think like this and you will see God alone. Yad
Bhavam Tad Bhavati.
Truth is One. Now the question
may arise that if the individual self is verily the Cosmic Self, then why
do we die? It is because we have not yet realized our Cosmic Self. I am
You – You am I. Tat Tvam Asi.
Ekam Eva Adviteeyam Brahma. God
is Only One, Not Two. Recognition of this Truth will give you the
experience. Strongly hold on to the Truth that you and God are one.
Differences arise only in our mind. God is not separate from us. He is in
you. I am ONE, without the second! No Two. This Truth is made apparent
gradually to seekers. Once you strongly hold on to the Truth that God and
you are one, He will manifest in you.
Ten ones make ten. Therefore,
‘one’ is most important. ‘Ten’ is not the reality. ‘ONE’ is the reality.
You can add any number of zeroes to ‘One’ and increase the number value,
but zeroes by themselves have no value. ‘ONE’ is the Hero!!
All forms are Sai Baba only. Go
by this Oneness alone. Whatever Bhagawan is telling is the Truth of Truth.
Have full faith in this Truth. All scriptures talk of this same Truth.
Once this Truth is known, there will be no doubts. Do not accuse anybody
or blame anybody. Never entertain any doubts. Doubt means duality. There
is no ‘He’ and ‘I’. All is ‘I’ only.
Oneness is the Truth of Truths.
If you cannot experience this, give it up but never argue that God is two.
Ekatvam Sama Jeevatvam. Never have the view of separateness. For worldly
purpose we may consider many numbers but in essence we are one. Today you
may not understand this clearly, but slowly it will become clear. Truth is
One and not Two! Look at this kerchief, there may be many yarns / threads
but the cloth is one.
God has no desires, no mistakes.
All that we perceive is in our own mind. Enta Maatrame Evvaru Teluchino
Anta Maatrame Neevu. God manifests only to the extent to which each one
perceives Him.
We can transform anything in this
world but not the mind. God alone can change the mind. One may be able to
bend and straighten a tree but never the mind. Therefore, surrender to
Him. Mano Moolam Idam Jagath. Strong faith in God is very necessary.
God is not a specific Form. It is
a power. This power can bring about any type of change. Atma is one and
the same in all, just like the current which remains the same whether it
is A/C or D/C. Mind cannot be changed either by Mantra, Yantra or Tantra.
God's Will alone can change the mind.
God is only One. He can do
anything, anytime anywhere. He can go anywhere. Ekam Eva Adviteeyam
Brahma. God is changeless – Only One – whether you call Him Rama, Krishna
or Sai Baba.
God's Will is most powerful. If
He Wills anything can happen. God’s Mind is steady and strong. We may
sometimes think that we have changed God's Mind but this can never be
true. The Universal Mind can Will anything and bring about any change. The
Lord if He wishes can give His Darshan at one instant to everybody,
simultaneously.
Today, you all have known the
secrets of Divinity. Once you know these secrets, you will be able to know
the whole world.
After this Swami went on to
narrate the story of His visit to Rishikesh and how He had met
Purushottamananda and Sivananda over there. He spent the next half an hour
or so on this topic and gave a graphic description of the yearning of
these great saints for Bhagawan. He concluded with the passing away of
Purushottamananda in the cave and mentioned that at that time, the whole
cave was full of Vibhuti.
Later, the disciples of
Purushottamananda came to Parthi to visit Bhagawan and witness their Guru
in Swami as they had the firm conviction that their Guru had merged in
Bhagawan to which Swami also agreed.
In conclusion, Swami said that
was the yearning that these sages and saints have for Bhagawan; and you
have this type of yearning.
Was it a caution to remind us of
His True Reality and our great opportunity and intensify our yearning for
Him?
source: sssbpt.org
Latest Photos I-II:
Images from Ayudha Pooja at Prasanthi Nilayam
& photographs from GRAMA SEVA 2005
Latest Photos III -IV:
Images from Dasara 2005 - Poornahuthi
&
Images from Dasara Jnana Saptaha Yajnam 2005
source:sssbpt.org
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