Question from a Devotee: What should be our daily medication for a divine life?

Swami: Medication or meditation? You need both.  Be good, do good, see good…don’t fight, stick to the discipline of Sadhana (spiritual practice), sing the Name of God always; love all, serve all…accept everything that happens to you as the will of God done for your own good…then no worry, no pain.  But first, always act with dignity… that you are God, not animal, not animal.

Sai Interview with New Zealanders

***

Practice what you learn

A STUDY circle does not mean only just reading and discussing and taking information into the head, but also putting into practice what is learnt. If knowledge is stored in the mind, it causes confusion and confusion leads to blowing of the fuse. How will real jnaana (knowledge) develop if there is too much confusion? For instance, if you go on eating all the 24 hours, it will result in indigestion. This will lead to disease. What is eaten should be digested and then only you should eat again. In the same way, you should listen (eat) in the Study Circle and put into practice (digest) what you have learnt. Again you can have another round of listening in the Study Circle. Now what you are doing is only loading and loading and no unloading. How much can you sustain like that? So, you should go on loading and unloading, listening and practicing. You have to practice whatever you have learnt. Then only it becomes a real Study Circle.

It is important to learn your true nature

In the Study Circle, whatever we listen and assimilate in the mind should be distributed to others. In that way we show gratitude for what we have receded. We should not listen and keep it to ourselves only for our benefit. Whatever we hear and practice should also be distributed to society at large. Such gratitude is very important for man. If one does not have gratitude, he leads the life of an animal. Even a dog shows gratitude if you give a little rice. In the Sathya Sai Organization, keeping this in mind, we should maintain unity and help the world. Other organizations may not know the inner meaning of this, but in our organization we should know the inner meaning and we should practice it, otherwise it is of no use. You should therefore be an ideal to others.

In the Study Circle you can learn a lot of things, but the most important thing to be learnt is your own true nature–your Atma-tatwa. Learning all about external things without knowing your real self is like studying the branches of a tree, ignoring its roots. There are many fruits on the tree. We can see the fruits. What happens if you water those fruits? They will fall down. But if you water the roots down below, the tree flourishes and will give fruits which can be enjoyed. You have to develop self-knowledge and self-confidence and then only you can help others.

Address to the Study Circle for industrial workers at Dharmakshetra, Bombay on 1-30-1985.

***

Constant Practice Enables You To Reach The Goal

If you wish to attain Atma Tattwa, you have to constantly contemplate upon Atma. Once you experience Atma Tattwa, you will yourself become Brahman. In order to get that experience, there should be regular practice.

One does a lot of practice even for attaining simple things in daily life. Without practice, nothing can be achieved in life; you will commit mistakes. First and foremost, learn to live like real human beings, constantly reminding yourself, “I am a human being, I am not an animal, I am not a cruel beast.” From humanness, you have to rise to the level of Divinity. You should not degenerate to the level of an animal or beast. In fact, all Avatars come only to raise the level of consciousness of human beings to that of Divinity, only to transform humans into Divine beings. When you follow God’s instructions meticulously and undertake activities that would please Him, you will surely become God, verily. It is not a difficult task. Constant practice would enable you to reach your goal. On the other hand, if you follow bad people, you will also become bad. “Tell me your company, I shall tell you what you are”, is the saying. As is your company, so you shall become.

Discourse at Prasanthi Nilayam, 7-20-2009 SATHYA SAI SPEAKS, Volume 42 p. 144.

***

STREAM OF COSMIC SPORT DIVINE

Spiritual exercises like worship (puja), and adoration (bhajan), meditation (dhyana) are activities prompted by devotion (bhakthi) to higher powers. Controversy about their efficacy should not be indulged in by those who are unaware of the depths and heights to which they can lead.

These can be gained and judged only through actual practice.

The proof lies in one’s personal experience only. […]

The world is enchanting, because it is a tantalizing appearance, though it is fundamentally untrue. It is a phenomenon that is fading out. When this Truth is realized, one becomes aware of the Cosmic Sport of God and the Eternal Universal Being.

This state of Consciousness cannot be won through the piling of wealth or of worldly power or the acquisition of knowledge and skill. It can be won through the purification of one’s consciousness in all its facets and the earnestness with which the search is pursued. During that search, there naturally arise various obstacles like doubts and dogmas, purposeless arguments and flimsy fancies.

From the coming Yugadi (New Year) Festival Day, this series under the name, Leela Kaivalya Vahini, will dissolve all such obstacles and fill you with Ananda (bliss). It will lead you to the path of spiritual progress.

Leela Kaivalya Vahini

***

Let practice prevail

EMBODIMENTS of Divine love!

[…] Devotion consists in expressing love towards all. You cannot effect a change of heart by

speeches. They often lead to confusion and conflict. Better than speeches is practice of love, with

faith in the Divine. Follow the path of love and redeem your lives.

Discourse at “Sivam,” Hyderabad, on 3-24-1989.

Do not use the study of sastras and scriptures for increasing your egoism; let it make you humble, though at the same time, more resistant to temptation. Your nature is divine; what has happened

is that delusion has covered it with dirt. The washer man does not make your clothes white; it is white already; what he does is to manifest its whiteness by removing the dirt that has hidden the genuine native color, white.

SATHYA SAI SPEAKS, Volume 22, Chapter 7

***

Practice what you learn

The saint had also told the king, “You may be a man of wisdom, but if you don’t practice, you will be like a donkey carrying dirty clothes.” You should not become like that. Try to practice at least one or two good principles in life. Not merely that, we should help others to put into practice what little they know.

Education that is not put into practice, becomes unsacred. What is the use of receiving degrees if they are not helpful to society. Serve society, and share your knowledge with others.

The best way to love God is to “Love All and Serve All.”

Discourse at Prasanthi Nilayam 9-11-1988