December 10th, 2006
“Parallels between the Teachings of Sai Baba and Jesus”
Part 2: “Golden Age”
OM…OM…OM…
Sai Ram
With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,
WHAT IS THE GOLDEN AGE?
Let us spend some time this morning on the holy teachings of the scripture known as the Bible, and the teachings of Jesus Christ. During this discussion, we will come to know how similar they are to the teachings of Bhagavan Baba.
We often hear of the Golden Age. Swami speaks of the Golden Age. Wherever I go, people ask me, “What is the Golden Age? When is it going to come? How long should we wait?” Well, here we will find an answer.
BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION OF THE GOLDEN AGE
Christians, in the Lord’s Prayer, say, “Let Thy kingdom come.” What is this kingdom? When is it going to come? Has it not been there all along? Is it anything futuristic? Is it something to be hoped for? Is it like a promise? What is this kingdom?
There are many interpretations of the holy Bible, just as we have many interpretations of the Bhagavad Gita. According to the interpretation that I have with me, what does “Thy kingdom come” mean?
“Thy kingdom” does not mean a kingdom that is geographical. The kingdom of God is not that kind of space. The kingdom of God has nothing to do with time. So God’s kingdom is beyond space and time. By “Thy kingdom come”, we understand that it is a state in which God’s guidance is carried out. It is a state — a condition — in which God’s guidance is carried out, God’s gospel is followed. If we do not interpret it that way, if we do not understand it that way, “Thy kingdom” would mean something far from reality. It would be much farther off than we could ever imagine.
So the kingdom of heaven is a state of mind, a state of life, in which we carry out God’s teachings and God’s command. That is the Golden Age Swami refers to in His talks. Everyone says, “Golden Age, Golden Age.” Golden Age is not of the metal gold. Golden Age is not that everyone will have gold in their residences, or that all residences will be built of gold. No, no, no! Golden Age means an age of total faith in the scriptures, total adherence to the path laid for us. Golden Age is constant remembrance of God.
“THY KINGDOM COME”
“Thy kingdom come, Oh God, let Thy kingdom come.” Then we will be Your true followers. Then we will be true followers of Your commandments. Then we will have all the depth of understanding of the Holy Scripture, the Bible.
“Thy kingdom” has another meaning, according to a different interpretation. Being a student, I like to go through the commentaries of all religious scriptures, because when you open the windows of knowledge, the breeze blows freely. If you close the windows, you will lose the breeze. All religions are different windows; all windows have different Holy Scriptures. Let us open the windows so that knowledge will flow freely and light will flow into us.
So “Thy kingdom”, according to another interpretation, means the prompting of the inner soul: the prompting, the guidance, the inner voice of the consciousness. The soul, or the spirit, or the consciousness guides you — that is another meaning of “Thy kingdom come.”
“Thy kingdom” is not the kingdom of rules and regulations. It is the one of the rule of the inner man, not the rules and regulations of the outer government. The rule of the inner man — what do you mean by this? It means the inner voice, God’s silent whisper, the dictates of the conscience. By “Thy kingdom come”, we follow the Divine counsel given to us in all compassion and kindness. Following this counsel is the realisation of, “Thy kingdom come” and thus, the Golden Age.
To close this particular aspect, there are two points I would like to make to you this morning. What do we mean by “Thy kingdom come?” It is broadness of mind. We should be broad-minded; we should never be narrow-minded. We should not be programmed. We should not be conditional. Broadmindedness is the kingdom of heaven. Depth of understanding is the kingdom of heaven. We usually have understanding only at the superficial level. We have misunderstandings quite often. We don’t have understanding in the true sense of the term. So, it is depth of understanding that Swami means when He says, “Know the inner significance.” Knowing the inner significance of the Holy Scriptures, trying to know the inner significance of every celebration, is the kingdom of heaven. That is paradise. It is God’s kingdom. It is the Golden Age.
BODY IS A TEMPORARY WATER BUBBLE – DIVINE IS PERMANENT
The second point that Bhagavan always says is: “Body is a water bubble; mind is a mad monkey.” We often hear it. What do you mean by water bubble? A water bubble is short-lived. It is so momentary. We do not know when it will burst. So a water bubble finds its origin in water and it disappears in water; it is from water and goes back to water. Water is Divine, bubble is human.
So a human is in God and goes back to God. To think of God somewhere else is a myth. To think that I am going to return to God is imagination. You are in God. Therefore, the idea here is not to think of the bubble as permanent. The bubble is so small and can vanish in no time. So also the human body is a water bubble that will vanish, that will disappear without notice. At least the cameraman will tell you, “Sir, c’mon! Smile please, cheers, smile! I am going to click the camera now.” But the camera in the hands of the Divine will never give us any kind of signal to pose or to smile.
Therefore human life is so temporary and so fleeting that we cannot have any kind of guarantee of the future. That is the paradox of life. We see many people die, but we don’t believe it. We think, “Fools die, but I am wise man. I will be permanent. Poor people die because they cannot afford medical bills. I am a rich man, and have sufficient funds with me. Therefore, I will not die. Helpless people die because they do not have enough medical attention. As I am surrounded by doctors, I will be eternal.” This is the paradox of life. We see death day-in and day-out, but we are sure that we will not die. This is the irony of life.
HAVE CONSTANT AWARENESS OF DEATH
So my friends, a question was put to Swami Vivekananda when he attended the Parliament of Religions in Chicago. Many people asked him, “Swami, what is it that we have to remember throughout the day?” Some thought that Vivekananda would say that one has to remember God; that one has to remember their duty and their responsibilities. But Vivekananda said, “What you have to remember day-in and day-out is death.”
Day-in and day-out, you have to remember death, because constant awareness of death will not allow us to commit any mistakes. Constant reminder of death will not allow us to promote prejudices, hatred, and vindictiveness. Therefore to be free from all common ills, to be free from too many expectations, to get rid of an over-ambitious life, we need to constantly remind ourselves of death. When we do so, we will not have any kind of prejudice, any kind of hatred, any sort of preference, any special choice of our own. We will be very careful and we will be very watchful. We will be detached.
NO PROFIT CAN ONE GAIN FROM FLESH
The secret of detachment lies in understanding that life is temporary. So that’s what Baba means: Body is like a water bubble. It means don’t expect too much from life. However beautiful it is, however shining it is, don’t expect anything of it.
Therefore, what is it that is permanent? Water is permanent, but not the bubble. Water bubble is temporary, while water is permanent. That’s what is said in John, 6th chapter, verse 63: “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you are the spirit and are the life.” This means that the word of God is the life, while flesh, the body, brings no profit at all. So, “the flesh profiteth nothing” means that you will not be profited by the flesh that is the body — the water bubble.
But on the other hand, you will be profited by the word of God, your inner consciousness, your inner voice or conscience. That is the water — the Divine. That’s how I understand John’s gospel, 6th chapter, 63rd verse. So do not bother too much, do not concentrate on or pay all your attention to your body. That’s what Bhagavan Baba always tells us.
Swami also said another point — God will not accept partnership. No. Our heart is a not double sofa set. It is just a chair for God to be seated in, but not a musical chair competition — no. So similarly, we have to love God unconditionally. There is no question of anyone else as a substitute, as a partner. God and mammon will not go together, according to Holy Scripture. Therefore the holy Bible says, “Thou shalt love the Lord Thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” But we do not implement it. We do not practice it.
GOD IS IN YOU
Bhagavan said at one time, “God is closer to you than your father, and more intimate than your mother.” Father and mother, the physical parents, are away from you. You have to go and meet them; but God is in you, always with you. There is no space that separates you because God is in you. There is no time that separates you from God, as God is in you.
In every discourse, you will find Swami saying very often, “God is in you, with you, above you, below you, around you. You are God.” So, when there is God in you, how do you love others who are away from you? You may love another person so long he is in front of you; but the other person may run away at any time. (Laughter) Plus you cannot be with some one all the time — impossible. But you cannot be away from the One within you! As God is within you, you can never be away from Him.
Therefore, the holy Bible says, “Love Thy God with all thy mind, with all thy heart and soul.” That’s also what Swami says. So love Him, as Love of God is most important because Love is GOD. Most devotees sing: “Prema Ishwar Hai, Ishwar Prema Hai.” ”Love is God, God is Love.” That’s what the Bible says too.
Somebody asked Swami, “Who are You?”
Then Swami asked, “Who do you think I am?”
Somebody said, “Rama!”
“No.”
Somebody said, “Krishna.”
“Certainly not.”
Somebody said, “Shiva.”
“No.”
“Jesus.”
“Why do you think so?”
“Allah?”
“What made you feel like that?”
“OK! Bhagavan, who are You?”
And Baba said, “I am I.”
I am I. He doesn’t identify with any name, any form, or any religion. He did identify, “I am I.” Further Baba explained, “If I ask you who you are, and you say, I am so-and-so — who are you? I am that, I am this. So this ‘I’ that everyone says is Divine. This ‘I’ that everyone says is God. So, I am I. That ‘I’ is Divine. That ‘I’ is God.”
FIND PARALLELS BETWEEN SAI’S TEACHINGS AND OTHER SCRIPTURES
So my friends — Infinity book 5, chapter 2 — according to Saint Augustine, says, “I am who I am.” Moses says clearly, “I am who I am.” That’s what Baba said: “I am I”. Those people who feel that Swami’s teachings are separate from the Bible, that Swami’s teachings are separate from the Koran, that Swami’s teachings are different from the holy Gita — I feel very sorry for them, because Truth is one. The Truth is explained in different ways in various scriptures. Let them comprehend; then they visualise and experience.
So we have to understand the fundamental commonality, the fundamental uniformity, of all the different scriptures. How wonderfully they agree with Swami’s teachings. As a Sai devotee, I urge all of you to read all the scriptures from this viewpoint, establishing parallels between Swami’s teachings and the other scriptures that you read. Let’s not entertain any differences; let us not have any parameters to say this is more than that, or that this is not as great as that. If so, then something is wrong with our eyesight and something is wrong with our mind. Nothing is greater than the other; nothing is less than the other, because Truth is One. Truth is One-without-a-second. Sugar is, after, all the same, no matter whatever the number of sweets you have. There may be a thousand sweets, but they are all made up of the same sugar. If you say that this sugar is different from that sugar, I don’t know what you mean. Likewise, Truth is One.
AS YOU THINK, SO YOU BECOME
Now, let us go to another statement: Saint Luke’s 17th chapter, 21st verse. Bhagavan said, “You are God.” I don’t know whether I said this earlier, but it doesn’t matter, even if I repeat it now. We say, “Bhagavan, You say that I am God, but I am not able to take it; I am not able to believe it. I am not able to digest it.”
Then Baba says, “If you are not God, all right. Think you are a buffalo.” If you are not prepared to think that you are God, as you think so you become. You are Divine. When you go thinking that you are Divine, you have a Divine life, you have Divine thoughts, you have Divine actions. As you think, so you become.
Here Luke’s gospel clearly says, “I said you are gods.” You are gods. It means you are basically, essentially Divine. Do not reduce yourself to dust. You are Divine.
The body may remain for some time, but may not be functional later. The body when it is functioning, you call ‘life’; the body when it becomes non-functional, you call ‘death’. The body when it starts, you call ‘birth’. So the commencement of the body is birth, while the ending of the body is death. The period in-between is life. But you are eternal. You are eternal because there is no birth at all for consciousness. There is no death at all to the consciousness, to the spirit, to the soul. Therefore, here we have to remember that you are God, that you are essentially Divine.
GARUDA PURANA – A HINDU SCRIPTURE THAT PROMOTES FEAR OF SIN
Somebody asked Swami, “Is it true that there is a heaven? Is it true that there is a hell?”
There is a scripture in the Hindu religion called Garuda Purana. If you go through that Garuda Purana — either you take it seriously and won’t sleep, won’t have your food, and you will have a natural end — or, the second alternative is to brush it off as a cock-and-bull story. There is no alternative; either to die instantaneously or just brush it off as a cock-and-bull story.
There in the Garuda Purana, things are mentioned in such a way that it is so horrible and terrible. It seems the soul will be put in fire, and the spirit will be fried in a frying pan in oil (as if there is a very big canteen there)! (Laughter) A very big frying pan, like papads — (Laughter)—the description is like that. It says the fellow will be taken and put on the tips of nails. I don’t know how many nails they have! (Laughter) They may have an iron factory — or they have to walk on a razor’s edge. It may be a circus, and they will have to have a bath in a river of blood. I don’t know how much blood is collected there. Here blood is given to the blood bank, and some people survive because of it. I am not joking, my friends. Please go through that Garuda Purana. It will be full of rivers of blood, rivers of pus, swords, nails, frying pans, and it seems there will be cooks with moustaches. I don’t know how hard it is!
Don’t consider that I am an atheist, no. Do not think that I am fool to contradict the age-old scripture. I am not, as of yet, a fool. But such books are essential for those who cannot go into the depths of spirituality. Those stories are necessary for those who cannot read, who cannot contemplate, who cannot ponder over, and who cannot understand the inner significance. For them, things have to be communicated in a story form. “If you commit sin, you will be fried. Pans are ready now — hot, hot!” The frying pans there will be a hundred times more than here. Here this frying pan requires one spoon of oil; that frying pan requires rivers of oil, because so many people have to be fried there, you see. So it is all said only to keep people away from committing sins, in order to frighten them. Papabheethi, fear of sin, can be generated this way.
HAPPINESS IS HEAVEN -- MISERY IS HELL
But Baba said, “Where is heaven? Where is hell?” Heaven and hell are not different worlds. They are not different regions. The holy Bible says that the kingdom of heaven is within you. And Baba says, “The kingdom of heaven is the period of your bliss; the kingdom of heaven is the period of your joy; the kingdom of heaven is the period of your happiness; the kingdom of heaven is the period of your ecstasy.” Then, where is hell? “Hell is the period of your misery; hell is the period of your sadness; hell is the period of your self-torture; hell is the period of grief and sorrow.”
So, your misery is hell, while your bliss is heaven. They are there within you. The kingdom of heaven is within you. This is what Bhagavan and the holy Bible say, “The kingdom of heaven is within you, all of which are the results of your own actions.” When your actions are good, perfect, you will have a heavenly experience; when your actions are totally wrong, you feel miserable. That is enough of a hell.
So, how common it is! That kingdom of heaven is within you. Luke’s gospel, 71st verse also says that the kingdom of heaven is within you.
BODY IS A TEMPLE
Then Corinthians, Book 1, 3rd chapter, 16th verse also conveys a separate message to you. Baba said clearly about the temple. We consider a temple as the place of worship. Be it a Hindu temple or a church or a mosque or a gurudwara or monastery or synagogue — the place of worship is the temple, and we also feel that it is built of brick and mortar and cement; and that in the temple of worship there is an altar, there is a priest and there are devotees that offer their prayers. That is the concept of the temple that all of us have over the ages.
Then what does Baba say? That is not the temple. A temple is not made of bricks and mortar; a temple is not a building. “A pure heart is the temple of God.” A pure heart is the temple of God! On another occasion Baba said, “It is not the temple that you visit every Thursday, Sai Baba day. It is not the temple that you visit every Friday; mosque is the temple for Muslims. It is not a temple that you visit every Sunday – a church. No, it is not a day’s affair, or an hour’s entertainment or appointment or engagement.”
So what is a temple? “The body is a moving temple,” Baba says. Yes, and the in-dweller, your consciousness, is God. Body is a temple. Your spirit or soul or consciousness is God within. How do you explain it? Without consciousness, the body cannot move. Without consciousness, the eye cannot see. Without consciousness, the ear cannot hear. Without consciousness, the skin cannot feel . . . the sense of touch. Without consciousness, the tongue cannot taste. Without consciousness, the mind cannot think.
So consciousness is God and the whole body is the temple. That’s why Swami says, “Body is a moving temple.” So my friends, it is clearly said in Corinthians 3rd chapter, 16th verse, “You are the temple of God.”
HUMAN LIFE IS THE GREATEST GIFT
As I listen to any talk anywhere by any guru, as I read any book of any religion by any author, I find parallels, I find identities, I find uniformity, and I enjoy that oneness. Those who take to different ways, I say, “Sai Ram, thank you.” You be in your way; kindly give me freedom to follow my own way, because I love oneness; I love the non-duality. That’s why I find parallels in whatever I come across, whatever I do.
You are the temple of God and the spirit of God dwells in you. Arrey! See that, God dwells in you! Meaning, the consciousness is God and your body is the temple of God. So the body is a temple, and God dwells inside you as consciousness.
My friends, life is not worth living without experiencing that consciousness. If life is just for eating, drinking, sleeping, dancing, humour, wit, fun and frolic, it is not worth living at all. Life is not for tinsels and trash and cash. Life is much more than that. That’s why Swami often says, “Janthunaam Nara Janma Durlabham — Human life is the rarest of all of the beings in this creation.”
Human life is not just given to you like that. It is the merit that you earned in past lives. Human life is the greatest gift, please understand that. It is not some bank account, no. It is not some jewellery, no; not a big apartment, no; a few more comforts and conveniences, certainly not. What is most precious? It is human life. If this life is not there, even if you have a six-bedroom mansion, what are you going to do? Without life, even if you have billions of dollars, what are you going to do? It is life that matters. Without life, other things do not matter. Nothing matters.
So we have forgotten about life, and given importance to objects. We consider money as more important. Yes, it is important. But life comes first, then money. To a dead man, if you keep one thousand rupees on his body, you don’t get any thank you from him, no. If you keep some gold on his body, he won’t say, “Meet you there in the other world.” He won’t say that. Some people make pukka suits while alive, because after death they should be dressed in that suit. Some people get coffins ready, costly coffins and pukka suits – wedding suits, so that people will be waiting for them, other couples to receive them — just eighty year-old, seventy year-old couples! Somehow it doesn’t come into my head.
Not that I am criticising. It is one step, my friends. Nothing is bad, nothing is wrong, nothing is sinful and nothing should be condemned. We all are on the onward journey. We are all moving, and these are all different stations. These are all different steps that we come across along our onward journey. These are all the different steps in our pilgrimage towards the Divine. So we are not criticising. We have gone through that to slowly proceed, marching ahead. Therefore, Bhagavan said, “Life is most important, failing which, nothing would ever count.” This is what He said.
GOD IS A SILENT LISTENER IN EVERY CONVERSATION -- AN UNSEEN GUEST AT EVERY MEAL
You have to love your God, and then you should be prepared to sacrifice your life even, because life is God. “Greater love hath no man than this; that a man lay down his life for his friends” — John, Chapter 15, Verse 13. Here you find Jesus, who had laid down His life for the whole of humanity; Jesus Christ who laid down His life, who died on the cross for the entire humanity. Why? He loved God more than His own flesh. He loved God more than His own life; that’s what is meant.
I would like to make another point about what He said. Most Christians will have a small banner or a sign-board saying, “God is the Master of this house. He is a silent listener in every conversation. He is an unseen guest at every meal.” These things are written near the front door of many of the Christian families that I know. It is very much true — a silent listener of every conversation.
Swami one day called a couple for an interview. Both of them went into the interview room. Swami closed the door and came out of the interview room. After talking to people for some time, he opened the door, entered in and said, “You are fighting at your home there, and I want to give you some time to fight even here.” So that is enough to know that He is a silent listener of every conversation, whatever you talk about.
Long ago, when I was about 34 years old, and sitting there in the Poornachandra Auditorium at the time of its construction, a man who is now 81 years old and settled in Prasanthi Nilayam, was sitting by my side. He said, “Anil Kumar, Swami may give you a chance to speak this evening.”
I said, “Sir, let it be a wish; don’t say that, because if I take it to heart, I may be disappointed. So if you wish that Swami may give me a chance to speak, it doesn’t matter.” Please believe me, that Swami, in the midst of the yagna going on there, climbed down the steps, walked all the distance to come closer to me and said, “This man is telling you that you will get a chance to speak this evening, is it not?” He is a silent listener of every conversation.
Another time, at the dining table, my former teacher by the name of Sharma — I don’t give all of his name because you may not catch it. (His name is Madhava Rama Sharma, and the family name is Jammulamadaga Madhava Rama Sharma, to further confuse you.) I said even this, because there may be some doubting Thomas's who want to establish the truth of whatever I am saying.
I have to say this much at least: He is a traditional man, a traditional Brahmin, an orthodox Brahmin, pukka orthodox. He was about to eat, and when he opened the lid, he found prints of five fingers. Five fingerprints were there on the surface of the rice bowl. He completed his lunch, and that evening came for Swami’s darshan.
Baba said, “Good, you made good food.” (Because this Sharma is so orthodox, he doesn’t eat food cooked by others. He cooks himself.)
Swami told him, “You cook well. Rice is good, boiled sufficiently.”
And he asked, “Swami, how do You know?”
Baba answered, “I know because I have tasted it.”
“Swami, You tasted it?”
“Yes, did you not see five fingerprints on the surface of the rice bowl?”
He is an unseen guest at every meal and a silent listener of every conversation, the Master of every family. This will give us courage, a feeling that God is with us always, yes. He will protect us. He will take care of us.
Here it is clearly said that you cannot deceive God. We want to do certain things without His knowledge. We want to say certain things without His knowledge. We want certain things to be loudly heard by Him, because we pray loudly. At Nagarsankirtan, we pray loudly because He will hear. At home, I shout at everybody because He cannot hear. We are highly calculative.
You cannot mock God. You cannot close His eyes. You cannot close His ears. As Baba says, “Sarvatah Paanipaadam Tat.” His feet are everywhere. His ears are everywhere. His hands are everywhere. Then these boys in the front may ask me, “If His feet are everywhere, where are they? Are they in Malaysia? You say that His hands are everywhere. Are they present in Kuala Lumpur? If you say His ears are everywhere, are they at Juhubaru?” Then you will ask, “Are they in Penang?” Why not? The answer is: All our hands are His. All our eyes are His. All our heads are His. Therefore His hands are everywhere, His legs are everywhere. So you cannot mock or deceive Him.
Therefore, Baba says, “Life centers round only three words.” What are they? “Reaction, reflection, resound.” All things come back to you in a matter of reaction. If your action is one way, you cannot expect reaction in a different style. So as is the action, so is the reaction. And here in reference to Galatians, 6th chapter, 7th verse: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked, for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” As you sow, so you reap. As is the action, so is the reaction. That’s the reason we have got to be careful in our actions. That’s what He has said. Has this bought to your attention that life is not worthwhile if we do not feel our soul, if we do not feel our consciousness, if we do not discover ourselves? If we do not identify our consciousness, life is not worth living. That’s what He has also said.
Mark’s gospel, 8th chapter, 36th verse: “For what shall it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?” When he gains the whole world and loses his own soul, what is the profit? You may have the whole world with you, but if you don’t know your own consciousness, it is not worth it.
Swami tells an episode from Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great was shouting at a person, a yogi. This man was simply laughing, and Alexander got more furious. You can also experiment. If a man is shouting, keep quiet. He will shout more. Laugh and he will shout still more, and get himself admitted in the hospital! Silence is the best retaliation. Be silent. Shout as much as you can, “Hari Om Tat Sat” and finished! The whole cylinder of reactions will be exhausted. Just remain silent.
So this yogi remained silent, giving a smile to Alexander. Alexander was about to kill him. “Arrey, useless fellow! Why do you smile? Don’t you know that I am the king? Don’t you know that I am the emperor?”
The yogi smiled and said, “You could not conquer your own anger. What if you conquer the whole world? You have not conquered yourself. What is the use of conquering the whole world? It is useless.”
WE SHOULD BE PERFECT
Baba is very particular that we have got to be perfect in every matter, in every task, in every assignment given to us. If you say, “Swami, I got 60 marks.” “Chi! 40 marks you have lost.” If the whole place is neat and yet there is some dust in the corner, He will not tolerate a fraction of a mistake.
Swami gave the example of a master, Dakshinamurthi. A blade of grass was thrown out by the waves, towards the shore. This master was very much upset: “Useless fellow! Ocean god, you are so mighty and infinite. Why do you throw out a grass blade?” The ocean god appeared, and said, “Master, I am not angry with the grass blade. I don’t want any blemish; so I am driving it out towards the shore.”
Therefore, we should be perfect, as Baba says. This point is emphasised by Matthew in chapter 5, 48th verse: “Be you therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
BLESSED ARE THE POOR
What is it that matters, even if we are poor? Swami thinks of poor people. He is always with them. He wants to alleviate their suffering. The hospital was built with the resources of rich people, for the poor. The stadium was built by a rich man for the boys to play in. Therefore, Swami is always for the poor — not only materially, but also spiritually.
Spiritually, all of us are poor, though some of us do not know it. We are impoverished, we are bankrupt; we are even beggars. Spiritually, if we are rich, our faces, our thoughts and our actions would be totally different. If we are honest, we would accept that we are poor. We are happy to be poor. Why? Because God is in our midst.
This gospel of Matthew clearly says, “Blessed are the poor in heart.” It means the heart that is prayerful, the heart that is worshipful, the heart that is yearning, the heart that is pining, the heart that is seeking and suffering — for want of the nectar of God, for want of the ambrosia of God – the heart that is crying for the grace of God is ‘poor’. “Blessed are the poor. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
HIS DIVINE NATURE CAN BE CLEARLY SEEN
Believe me or not, personally I’m very excited to know about Christ, His gospel and His teachings. In fact I requested a friend to get me an international edition of the holy Bible, because the letters in the Bible I had are smaller than an ant. Christ, in His infinite mercy, sent me His disciple with an international edition. Now I have got that. All these are on my table: Gita, Bible, and Koran. They are there on my table. You can verify any time. Because I find that all are the same. Those who say that these scriptures are separate and different, thank you and goodbye for a lifetime. Don’t see me and argue with me. Allow me to be peaceful. Allow me to enjoy my own life.
Therefore, here it is clearly said about His eternal power — Romans, 1st chapter, 20th verse: “His eternal power and His Divine nature can be clearly seen. They are perceived in the things God has made.” What a statement — they are perceived in the things God has made.
Baba said, “Nature is the best teacher, life is the best preacher. The world is the mansion of God; every compartment is one country, and the engine is God.” Therefore, the beauty of a flower, the beauty of a river, the smile of a baby, the goodness of man — they are all sufficient evidence to know the power of God. That is sufficient proof to know and enjoy the Love of God.
There will be more next Sunday. Thank you very much. Let’s have one song from a friend and then go. I will be happy to sing some Christian songs, you see. Thank you very much, Sai Ram.
The program concluded with a song sung in English by Western devotees.
OM…OM…OM…
Asato Maa Sad Gamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotir Gamaya
Mrtyormaa Amrtam Gamaya
Om Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Ji Ki Jai