July 6, 2009 – Guru Poornima Celebration in the Divine Presence

As Prashanti Nilayam prepared itself for Guru Poornima, the stage in Sai Kulwant Hall was set for a drama by the youth from the state of Tamil Nadu. It was past 5 p.m. when Swami came for darshan. He arrived at the centre and having a look at the youth in costumes, took a detour and moved towards the stage.

. Arriving on the dais, He asked a student seated there, "Where is the chair?" The student was perplexed. "God" alone knows of the various dimensions Swami meant with that question, but on a physical plane, Swami was asking about the chairs that were now in the bhajan hall for a special event on the next day. Swami then asked for the translator's podium and His mikes to be brought. There was a great rejoicing and people sat alert and straight as Swami began His Divine Discourse:

Gurur Brahma, Gurur Vishnu, Gurur devo maheshwaraha
Gurur Sakshaath Para Brahma Tasmai Shree Gurave Namaha

Though names and forms of the Lord are different, the essence is the same. All are one. So be alike to everyone. The creator, sustainer and destroyer are all one. Brahma becomes Vishnu who in turn becomes Shiva. But God is one. To be free of doubts, have only one name - that is the Atma. The Atma (Soul/Consciousness) is the same in all. Religions are many, the path is one. Yarn is different but the cloth is one. Life forms are many but life is one. So the three prayers that one must offer are that "I am God", "I am the Jeeva (individual)" and "I am the society".

Daiva Preethi (Love for god), Papa Bheethi (fear of sin) and Sangha Neeti (morality in society) are needed. If there is love, morality comes automatically. Without morality, one cannot be man and so it is very important. Love for God expresses itself as morality. Today man has lost fear of sin. He feels he can get away with his sins. Never can you escape your sinful deeds and so, fear sin. If this fear is absent, morality can never come in society. You will just behave as you want with ego.

Reflect always on your actions. Avoid bad vision, bad talk, bad thoughts, bad hearing and bad actions since you will have to face the results of these without fail. At times you may face the consequences all at a time too. So telling lies and indulging in wicked actions does not benefit human beings. Carry on your life keeping these three principles in mind. One without Neethi (morality) is worse than a Kothi (monkey). Such a person is looked down upon, he/she is worse than a dog.

There are three paths - Bhakti (devotion), Jnana (wisdom) and Karma (Action). The body is for karma. If the body is used properly, the mind is set right. In the mind, you will see the reflection of God. You may have Bhakthi but Karma may go wrong. A fan has three blades and out of the three even if one is out of order, it is of no use.

People question, "Why should I love God?" If you desire morality is society, how else will you get it then? Have discrimination of what is good and what is bad. Be good, see good and do good. This is the way to God. No use of doing Japam and penance. In the nine fold path of devotion, the first is Shravanam. Whatever you hear, discriminate if it is good or bad. When you feel that it is bad, then how can you continue? Today you get away speaking lies, doing bad deeds and unrighteous acts. But they will get at you soon. They can come anytime, anywhere. Make you minds pure and sacred. Purity of the heart is most important.

The Atma has no qualities or attributes. It is eternal, changeless, pure, unsullied, steady and liberating. Understand the principle of the Atma. There are many pots of water and all of them reflect the moon. But the pot is bound to break one day. What happens to the moon then? There is no more water and so you are unable to see it. So too, the Atma is in all as the witness. You are the witness to your mind and character is the witness to the body. No character means no morality and that implies that one is not a human.

We have to earn respect in society. But today no one aspires for it. They view only the rich and poor. Wealth comes and goes. It is not proper to have attachment to money, position and family. You never know when you have to leave this world and so even the money under one's pillow is not secure. The Atma never comes or goes. It exists. Have faith in the Atma. Then you will have no injustice, failure or loss. But in spite of listening to devotional ideas, they just seem to go in from one ear and out of the other. Never rely upon momentary things. When you say ‘my mind, ‘my body’, ‘my intellect’, realize that you are not that. This book in my hand is mine. (Giving it to the boy seated beside Him) Now it is not mine. I have given it.

First you say that you are meditating. You sit with closed eyes. But what about the mind? All that you do is a practice of concentration. You have to pass through it and then through contemplation to get into a meditative state. I cannot believe when you say that you sat and went into meditation. In meditation, you have to forget yourself. You have to transcend the senses. Today if a father has 4 sons, each chooses a different profession. Though the paths are different, each wants to make money.

(At this point, it began to pour from the heavens and rain struck the roof in fury. After 2-3 minutes, Swami resumed)

Do not be afraid of the rains. Floods come and wash out homes. Many die. That happened in Orissa and Swami sent a message, "Do not worry. Be happy. I'll feed you and take care of your families." The people from Orissa had come in a special train and all those who came said, "No one cared for us or even gave us a naya paisa." I sent them crores! Why do I need money? All I want is your love. Be happy. Develop your morality. Love is God. If you love God, you distance yourself from all cruelty.

When there was the war in Lanka, Hanuman arrived in front of Ravana who asked him as to who had sent him there. Hanuman replied, "You fellow, the kings who chopped away your demoness sister's nose and ears, sent me here." Ravana was shocked as none had dared call him "fellow". He had Hanuman's tail set on fire. But Hanuman used that as a spark to set fire to the whole of Lanka. When Mandodari, Ravana's wife, asked Hanuman what should be done, he said, "Take care of your husband; everything else will be taken care of."

God gives what you deserve. Earn morality. Anything good done cannot be erased or removed. Who can decide what is to happen? Be ready always. The food in storage is bound to get spoilt. You cannot protect it. You cannot hide anything from God's notice however you store or keep it.

As Swami concluded the discourse, He asked for the drama to begin. It was entitled, "Sai Yugam, Swarna Yugam." The costumed actors as Krishna, Ved Vyas and two little Krishnas walked to Swami with offerings. Then, the drama began. The storyline was thus. Sage Ved Vyas is worried as to how the golden age would ever arrive in the troubled Kali Age.

His preceptor Narada guides him to Krishna who then unveils a timeline of the Kali Age. It unfolds the arrival and message of the great masters -  Zoroaster, Lao Tse, Buddha, Jesus, Prophet Mohammed, Adi Shankaracharya, Ramanujacharya, Madhwacharya followed by the times and teachings of the great devotees of the Lord, namely, Kabir, Nanak, Chaitanya, Mira Bhai, Purandara Dasa and Kanakadasa conveying their eternal messages. The various predictions from the Islamic scriptures, the Christian scriptures and others were also mentioned to give one the verbal description of the Avatar seated in front of everyone! Krishna then reveals His form as that of sweet Swami. The drama thus made a powerful impact on the unity of religions too. It was as always, interspersed with dances

Swami called the actors Krishna and Ved Vyas to the stage as the drama went on. He held their hands and asked the photographers to snap pictures. As the drama concluded with another dance, Swami said that He would move down for granting group photos. He spoke to many of the members as the pictures were taken. There He also blessed the prasadam to be distributed.

. It would be interesting to know that Guru Poornima is also called Vyasa Poornima for the sage Vyasa completed writing the eighteen puranas on this day! So it was indeed significant that Vyasa was the protagonist of the drama. Receiving aarthi, Swami went to the portico where He blessed the model for the construction of the new Institute building at Muddenahalli. He also went into the Bhajan Hall to ensure that the arrangements for the next day were in order. Swami then retired to Yajur Mandir.

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