April 22^nd, 2007

 “The Centre of My Life”

OM…OM…OM…

Sai Ram

With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,

 Dear Brothers and Sisters,

GOD IS NOT A GOAL

God willing, we will be meeting in the month of June. Though we are not sure of specific dates, at least we are sure of a break. But, my friends, we are very grateful to God for all the opportunities that He has given us so far.

So, this morning I would like to share with you a couple of thoughts about what separates man from God. In fact, to say that God is a goal is not correct. God is not a goal, my friends, let us be sure of it.

A goal is at a distance; a goal requires time and space. To reach a goal, you need time; to reach a goal, there is some distance that you have to pass through or go through. However, God is beyond time and space. Therefore, God cannot be a goal. Furthermore, you being God, you being essentially Divine, why the question of a goal? Where is the goal? You cannot be away from yourself! Can you be away from yourself? Impossible!

If I tell you that Anil Kumar is away from me, I am sure that all of you will start remarking about me: “We met him this morning, when he was quite alright. All of a sudden, he has become insane!” No, I cannot be away from myself. It is impossible! To say that I am away from myself is something like an imagination or a hallucination. Therefore, my friends, what I would like to draw your attention to this morning is, what is it that makes me separate from God?

What is it that makes me feel distant from God? Why do I feel full of pain to be away from God? Why do I struggle to be very close to Him? Why do I desire to be near Him? These are the questions that naturally come to the mind of every seeker in all ages.

                                    WHAT IS THE CENTRE OF MY LIFE?     

When I am at the centre, I feel extremely happy. What is the centre of my life? Body is not my centre, because body is perishable, body is changeable, body is impermanent. Hence, the body cannot be the centre of my life. Shall I say that mind is the centre of my life? No! Because there are occasions when the mind is at rest, when the mind is totally passive, and sometimes even when the mind is withdrawn. 

For example, in the deep sleep state, mind is totally withdrawn. So, how can that mind be the centre of my life? Senses do not constitute the centre of my life; body is not the centre of my life; nor is mind is the centre of my life. So then, what is the centre of my life? 

THE CENTRE OF MY LIFE IS MY VERY BEING

The centre of my life, therefore, is my very being. My very being is the centre of my life. So, what is that being? What is the nature of that being? What are the qualities of that being? How to identify that being, which is the centre of my life?

I do not have to say anything about the body, because I take care of it day-in and day-out. In spite of taking care of it day-in and day-out, we fall sick. I do not have to speak of my mind, because it gets frustrated and depressed, more often when Swami conveniently ignores me! I do not have to speak of my mind, because it is full of bumps and jumps, ups and downs, lashes and slashes, elation, jubilation, humiliation, praises and blame. So, I don’t have to speak about the mind. We also do not have to speak about the senses, because we operate with the help of the senses.

So, let our mental focus here be on the nature of the being. What is my being? What is it? The centre of life is the being – not the body, not the mind, not the senses. So, just reflect upon this being for a minute or so. 

THE FIRST QUALITY OF BEING IS “EXISTENCE”

The being has three important features. The first feature of the very being is existence. Life is existential. Life is not non-existence. No! Life is existence. We all know that we exist right now. I do not think that anybody would doubt our existence.

So, existence is the first feature of being. If anyone says, “You will be no more tomorrow,” we will say, “You will be no more tomorrow, but I will continue to live!” We refuse to accept the reality that someday we have to quit the body. We cannot accept the truth that we all have to leave the body at some time, because we struggle hard all the time to maintain the body.

Even when the hair falls, we have an artificial wig ready. Now the teeth are gone, so we have dentures ready to fill their place. We refuse to age; we refuse to quit the body, accepting that reality applies to all. But, however we struggle with all the cosmetics and plastic surgery, we still have got to leave the body some day.

People say that plastic surgery will help one to look young. Oh, I see. But that plastic surgery will not be helpful at the time when one has to vacate the body. Even, perhaps, the plastic surgery may advance the date of departure, who knows? (Laughter) If life is natural, it is so beautiful. I really wonder why some old people struggle so hard to look young. Poor fellows! They don’t look younger. It is impossible! Besides, when you are old, to look young is artificial.

LET US AGE GRACEFULLY

To look old in old age is full of grace. Yes! At the age of 70 or 75, if I have all have black hair and wear jeans, yet use a stick to cross over to the other side of the road, my place is in a mental hospital! Let us be natural, my friends. Let us be natural. Let there not be any artificial attempts to be different from what we are. Let us age gracefully; there is grace in aging. There is beauty at different stages of life. An infant is beautiful in infancy, while a grandfather is so handsome at his age. Why not?

You would not expect sages like Vashista or Vishwamithra to wear jeans, would you? (Laughter) You wouldn’t. No, you wouldn’t feel like joining your hands together in respect for them. No! We expect them to have a white beard, a walking stick, and talk slowly in a balanced way, weighing every word, seeing through people, if not looking at people. At that age, we expect a different kind of behavioural tendency altogether, don’t we? Yes!

Therefore, my friends, the body has to be vacated some day. However beautiful the rented house is, however well-furnished it is, you must eventually vacate, as the house does not belong to you. It is, after all, only a rented building. You pay rent; that is all. So you have to vacate, as it is not your own. Similarly, the body is like a rented house. Like with a rental, the body is given to you to use. One day we have to leave the body, so it cannot be the centre. As you have to vacate, as you have to leave it, it cannot be the centre of your life. No!

THE MIND CANNOT BE THE CENTRE OF MY LIFE

Coming to the mind…it is not the centre for one simple reason: It is sometimes active and sometimes inactive. It is very much reflected in some people, whose faces are vibrant in the morning and castor oil in the evening -- such long faces. Why? We do not know. We go on changing our face. Sometimes it is very active, smiling and moving; sometimes it is gloomy. It moves from bloom to gloom. Why? We do not know. So, the mind is quite unpredictable.

The mind wants to have everything done according to its expectations. But life is not an expectation; life is reality. You cannot find any person, from a pauper to a millionaire, who will declare, “All that I want, I have achieved.” Impossible! If anyone says that, it means he has no ambitions or aims in this life. Suppose a fellow wants to get 35 marks. If he says, “I got it”, okay, thank you. That was your target. But you cannot reach the state of perfection. Perfection is always a distant goal; it is not possible. Therefore, the mind cannot be the centre of my life as it is imperfect, incomplete, both passive and active, and also so reflective and reactive.

THE SENSES ARE NOT THE CENTRE OF MY LIFE

The senses are not the centre of my life because, in sleep, they are non-functional. Of course, there are some people who can walk even while they are asleep. My humble salutations to them! And there are some who can sleep with their eyes opened. (Laughter) Very good! Of course, I cannot do any of this as yet!

The point is that the senses cannot be the centre of life because they are passive; while in sleep, they are inactive. They are non-participatory in sleep. So that cannot be the centre of my life.

THE CENTRE OF MY LIFE IS BEING A WITNESS, NOT A PARTICIPANT

So, the centre of my life is existence, meaning that which is constant, immortal, having neither a beginning nor an end. It is birth-less, deathless, beginning-less, endless – the one of continuity. That is the centre of my life. It is ever-vibrant; it is ever-flowing. It is a witness. So, the centre of my life is being a witness, not a participant. Participating is different from witnessing.

A simple example: I am speaking over the mike here. You can also speak, or somebody else can speak. But singing is not the nature of the mike; speaking is not the nature of the mike; cutting jokes is not the nature of the mike. A mike only amplifies the sound, that is all. That is the nature of the mike. 

It is like a witness. If I ask, “Hello, mike, are you smiling?” I do not know. “Would you cry? Let me see.” But the mike only amplifies sound, that’s all. Whatever sound I make is amplified.  Similarly, the reality of my life, the centre of my life, is being a witness, not a participant. I think I am very clear. In participation, you are affected; by being a witness, you remain unaffected.

THE SENSES ARE DUAL, WHILE THE SELF OR ATMA IS NON-DUAL

A simple example: The senses participate. Therefore, they are not the centre of my life. The centre of life is being the witness. All the rest of the equipment with which a human being is gifted is only contributory or participatory in its nature. 

When I look at a beautiful scene, I enjoy it.  When I look at an ugly scene, I feel like closing my eyes. But this eyesight, this vision…do you call it ugly or beautiful? My eyesight…is it ugly or beautiful? No, the sense of sight is neither ugly nor beautiful. 

The scene is ugly or the scene is beautiful, but my sight is neutral. My eyes can see both: my eyes can see a handsome man and my eyes also can see an ugly person. But the eyes, the vision, the sight is neutral; only the scene is dual. The seer is non-dual, the vision is non-dual, the sight is non-dual; but the scene is dual. The one I look at may be beautiful or ugly, but my looking is beyond and is neutral. Therefore, my friends, even for the senses, there is the centre of my life, which is neutral. 

The senses are dual, but the Self is non-dual. The centre of life is what is called the Self or consciousness or Atma. The consciousness is only a witness; it is the centre of my life. It cannot be tarnished; it is blemishless. 

A simple example: I hear. I hear all kinds of sounds. I hear music, pop-music. Why not? I hear Hindustani music, classical music. Why not? But this hearing is neither pop-music nor classical music.

If you say, “Mr. Anil Kumar, your hearing is classical”, how do you know? Hearing is not classical. How do you know? It is not Hindustani. Hearing is only your audition, the power to hear. That is all. It has no distinction; it has no discrimination. So, hearing is a witness, whereas sound is dual. The sound may be loud or soft. So, sound is dual, but hearing is non-dual. Seeing is a witness, whereas sight is dual. Seeing is dual, but the seer is non-dual.

Take another example – taste. The North Indian sweets are very nice. I like to eat as many as possible! At the same time, the bitter-gourd you cannot eat. Also, those coming from the North or the West cannot take spicy stuff.  When they put a little mango pickle on the tongue, they do not need any visa or passport to reach home! (Laughter) They go straight, that’s all!

So, the tongue can taste that which is bitter, that which is sweet, or that which is hot; but the taste sense itself is neutral. The foodstuff that you eat is of many different tastes. But the tongue is beyond. Therefore, the one who tastes is neutral, but the stuff that you eat is dual. My friends, here lies the beauty of the centre of my life.

This morning I really felt like talking to you on this subject, “The Centre of My Life” because we have lost our centres. We have lost interest in life because we are far away from the centre of life. Therefore, we are almost miserable. 

HOW DO YOU SAY YOU ARE MISERABLE?

How do you say you are miserable? A miserable man will be in the company of another miserable man. A miserable man will be happy to make another man miserable, either equally miserable or even more miserable. Therefore, we are miserable today. Why? 

We are cut off from the centre of our life, the Self, consciousness or reality. Therefore, this consciousness or Self, the reality, is the one that sees. Seer is the one that sees; hearer is the one that hears. Let us understand ourselves to be the witness. My friends, that is the centre of our lives. It is common to everybody.  

We may be different at the level of the body; we may be different at the level of the mind. So, we are different at various levels in regards to the periphery; but so far as the centre is concerned, we are all one and the same.  We all have the same centre.

A simple example: You may draw any number of circles, but the centre is one and the same. That is the being, the reality, or consciousness. Therefore, the first feature or quality of the centre, the consciousness, is “Existence.”

There is nothing like non-existence. Existence is that which is eternal, that which is present in every one of us. Some say unconsciously or when they are in a bad mood, “I would be happy if I committed suicide.” How do you know that you would be happy if you committed suicide? How do you know that? Some people say, “I will be happy in my next life.” How do you know? Are you sure? Some say, “I am fed up with this life. Let me die and be happy.” How do you know? Unconsciously, we know that there is something in the life-after-death. 

Let me be very clear, my friends. Unconsciously, we know that there is life-after-death. In fact, that is why we don’t expect death. Because there is a life-after-death, we won’t accept death. “That fellow died because of the non-availability of doctors. That other fellow died because he did not take care of his health properly.  But I am going to be eternal because I do some yoga.” Oh! Oh! Yoga will never make you immortal. It may make you healthy, so that you don’t fall sick, so that you don’t need anybody’s help to walk around. That’s all. Therefore, my friends, the centre of life can be identified by this unconscious awareness of existence, because the Self or consciousness is the existential reality. 

THE SECOND QUALITY IS “LIFE IS CHOICELESS”

The second quality of the Self is a sense of awareness, that awakening, that alertness, a quality of choicelessness. Life is choiceless. The more we understand that, the happier we will be. We exercise our choice, but we are sad because life will not go according to our choice. Who can say, “My life is going according to my choice”? If they do, they are bluff-master #1. Life will never go as per our choices, because life is choiceless. Life is choiceless!

That feeling of choicelessness, or what you call “choiceless awareness”, is the second quality of the centre of my being. The centre of my being, consciousness, is choiceless as it is a witness. So, the centre of my being is choiceless, and the centre of my being is existence. The centre of my being is eternal consciousness.

THE THIRD QUALITY IS “BLISS”

The third quality of the centre of my life is bliss. Self is always blissful, always enjoying. But unfortunately, we do not allow ourselves to be happy. Somebody was saying, “Mr. Anil Kumar, don’t smile too much.” I said, “Why?” “Because people will be ready to make you cry. They don’t want to see you smile. They can’t bear that smile, the sight of a happy man. So be happy inside, but appear to be unhappy outside.” That is what someone said.  I said, “I can’t do that.” That is to behave with a split-personality; it is called schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a disease, a split-personality, the one within being different from one without.

Therefore, we are basically happy; we are basically blissful. Let us be convinced of that. Let us be sure of it, every one of us. If we just reflect upon our lives, there will be very few moments of unhappiness, very few days of sickness. There will be very few days of misery; most of the days we are happy.  But unfortunately, we think of the days when we were unhappy, and thereby make the present unhappy also. 

Suddenly, in the company of some persons, if they go on talking, we say, “How is Swami? How do you enjoy being here?” Suddenly they will say, “Last year, you know, I fell sick.” “When you fell sick last year, why do you want me to fall sick now? (Laughter) You are well today, so why do you think of last year when you were sick? Why do you think of ten years ago?”

We remember the unhappy moments in life, which is really very sad. Let us be grateful to God for most of the time, when we are happy; for most of the days, which are blessed. We are really blessed!

BABA GIVES AN EXAMPLE

In rice, sometimes you find small white stones or pebbles. As we eat rice, one or two stones may be there. They can disturb you a lot. So the husband shouts at his wife, “Why don’t you take proper care to clean it!” This fellow has been eating bags of rice for a long time. (Laughter) Then suddenly, because of one small stone, he shows his anger and fury. It is not necessary.  After all, it is just a small stone in a bag of rice. 

Therefore, in this life of bliss, in this life of happiness, in this life of joy, in this life of fun and frolic, in this life of enjoyment, the moments of misery, the moments of sadness, are very few. . . very few. Therefore, life in general, life by-and-large is blissful. That is the third point or quality of the centre of my life, the eternal witness, the Self.

The quintessence of what I have said till now would boil down to three points: Existence, choiceless awareness, and the blissful nature are the three qualities of the centre of life, which you call consciousness, or which is the witness. Then, why don’t we know that?

Somebody was asking this morning, “What is self-realisation?” Someone was asking me, “Is God a goal?” Well, my answer is this: “God is not a goal. No!” as I said in the beginning itself.  Therefore, it is said that self-realisation is the experience of the Self, the experience of consciousness. Or rather, the purpose of religion is to be at the centre of your life, or to identify yourself with the centre.

RELIGION HAS A PURPOSE – LIFE HAS NO PURPOSE

Life has no purpose, while religion has a purpose. You may be wondering what I mean. “Sir, my life has a purpose because I want to earn one lakh salary per month.” Money is not the purpose of life! Somebody else says, “I want to be very intelligent; that is the purpose of my life.”  Computers are more intelligent than you! That cannot be the purpose of life. 

The purpose of life is learnt, known, practised, and experienced by the methods and techniques suggested by religion. Religion suggests methods and techniques to realise the purpose of life. There is only one purpose, which is to be one with the centre of life. When I am one with the centre of life, what will happen? I will be blissful and non-dual. With the feeling of eternity, with the feeling of immortality, with the feeling of eternal joy, life is wonderful and interesting.

To some people, life is disgusting. To some people, life is disinteresting and vexing. They consider life a torture, burdensome, heavy. Why? Because they are cut-off from the centre.

THE CENTRE WILL KEEP YOU SAFE AND SECURE

A simple example: Shirdi Baba has shown this. He has demonstrated this in his life.  He used to grind rice in the grinder – that old type of grinder. There is one stone on the top, and there is one stone below. There will be one handle to turn, and so He will be grinding. What do we have to learn from that example? Those grains that are close to the centre are not ground, whereas the grains around the outside are well-ground and turned into powder. So, the centre will keep you safe and secure, while those around the outside are totally powdered (as most of us are)! Therefore, to be at the centre of being is a matter of safety, security and joy.

Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa has given another example: A fisherman stands near the shore and spreads his net. All the fish around will be caught in his net. But the fish very close to his feet are never caught, because net is not there. It is further out. 

Similarly, if I am at the centre, I am safe; if I am at a distance, I will be caught in the net of the world. I will be caught in the net of sensual pleasure. I will be caught in the net of delusion. I will be caught in the net of illusion; I will be caught in the net of false identification. Therefore, to be in the centre of life is to be away from imagination, away from hallucination, away from delusion, to be one with consciousness. Therefore my friends, it is absolutely necessary for any religious man or any spiritual person to be one with the Self or consciousness, which is the reality.

LET US NOT ENJOY GOD MERELY THROUGH THE SENSES

Since we are cut off from our Self or centre, we say, “I am still waiting for Bhagavan. I want Bhagavan to look at me. I want Bhagavan to talk to me.” My friends, this is the point: Alright, we had darshan at 7.40 this morning or 9.00 o’clock, whatever it may be. Can you have darshan all 24 hours? Impossible!

We have darshan for a couple of minutes. How about the rest of the day? “I want to hear Him.”  Okay, you heard His discourse. What about the rest of the year? “I want to touch His Feet.” Alright, you had a chance now. How about the rest of the life? So the point is, even if you want to enjoy Bhagavan in the human form through the senses, it gives only temporary happiness. 

Seeing Bhagavan, you are happy.  Later, it is gone. Listening to Him, you will enjoy the melody of His voice, the depth and the profundity in His talk, full of humour, full of wit. There is so much material in His talk that it appeals to everybody. You appreciate it. But after the discourse, the enjoyment is gone!

Therefore my friends, my second point is this: Let us not experience or enjoy God or any incarnation or Avatar merely through the senses. By seeing Him, I am happy; by hearing Him, I am happy; by touching Him, I am happy. Correct! I am not denying it. But then there comes the reminiscences of the moment when I touched His Feet. I think of that, and I am still very happy. That is what is called “contemplation” or “penance” or “meditation”.

CONTINUOUS RECOLLECTION OF CONVERSATIONS WITH SWAMI IS MEDITATION

Penance, contemplation, or meditation is the one of your association with the Self or consciousness, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba.  If I go on thinking of the conversation I had with Swami ten years ago, it makes me very happy even now.

When you talk to devotees – you talk to any devotee – suddenly he will say, “In an interview, Swami said to me. . .” as if he had it this morning. In fact, he had the interview ten years ago, but he tells you about the interview in all its freshness, with all zeal and bubbling enthusiasm, as though it has just happened. Why? 

It is in the nature of contemplation to feel freshness. Freshness is the nature of meditation. To feel fresh is the quality of contemplation. When I think of Swami on that day He spoke to me, on that day when I addressed the gathering in His presence, on that day when I could touch His Feet…as I think of it repeatedly and share it with others, those experiences remain ever-fresh. And thinking of that is penance, contemplation, meditation.

But if it is merely according to the senses, “I saw Swami. It is okay.” So what? There are some people who come and go. If you just ask them. “Have you seen Swami?” “Yes. I remember . . .  you should have seen him back in nineteen sixty-four!” I see! It is one of history to them. But to those who re-live and re-live, live and live and live, again and again, to them it is all fresh. That is meditation. Therefore, we move from the senses to the state-beyond-senses.

SENSES ARE ONLY GATES

I see Swami with my eyes; later, close the eyes and see Him inside. I hear Swami’s speech; later, I hear His voice from within, what we call “inner voice”. The voice that you heard outside will be the inner voice later. The Swami whom you have seen on the outside will be the vision from within. Therefore, the senses are only windows; the reality is inside. 

When I visit anybody, I don’t only stand at their door, do I? Only beggars stand outside. Guests can go inside. Relatives also go into the kitchen. So you should go in. You don’t just stand at the compound wall or at the door, do we? We do not.

So similarly, senses are only gateways; senses are only gates. Senses are only the doors, so that the experience will sink inward, deeper and deeper. Therefore, let us understand that there is a connecting link between the outer and the inner.

INVITE THE DIVINITY WITHIN AND INNER JOY WILL BE MUCH MORE

I don’t deny the senses; I don’t deny the body. The body and the senses should invite the Divinity, should absorb the Divinity, so that the inner experience or inner joy will be much more. Therefore, we move from the senses to the state beyond the senses. See Him, then close the eyes and feel Him; hear Him and then listen to the inner voice. Think about Him deeply. This is meditation. Mere outward contact through the senses cannot be for long; it will be for a short time only.

Some say, “Array! Array! Swami just left like that. We got but a mere glimpse.” So what! Life is a glimpse. Life passes in a flash. So what? Let us accept instead the reality. That reality is inside.

A simple example: The brake is inside, but the tyres are outside. The switch is inside, but the bulbs are outside. The accelerator is inside, but the tyres, which will speed up, are located on the outside. So, inside parts control the outside parts. The tyres don’t control the brakes! If tyres controlled the brakes, we would have the Super Specialty Hospital with advanced technology in orthopaedics! Here, orthopaedics is advanced now – up to international standards. Those people whose tyres control naturally will have their berth reserved!  

So, it is the inner brakes that control the outer tyres. It is the inner switch that will make the bulb illumine. They don’t simply flash and the switch starts working from inside; there is something wrong with it if they do. Therefore, my friends, both work in perfect harmony, in unison. Even if I apply the brakes and the car does not stop, there ends my life. If the lights don’t switch on, in spite of my switch inside, then you cannot travel in the night. Therefore the outer and the inner should harmonise, something like an orchestra. In an orchestra, all instruments play in perfect harmony and unison.

LIFE IS AN ORCHESTRA

Life is an orchestra, the senses a harmonium, and the mouth a tabla (an Indian drum). Why not? The mind is a sruthi, which will set the tune for the whole thing. Therefore, life is an orchestra and, in this life, if there is the slightest trace of disharmony,  if the orchestra is out of tune or off beat, apasruthi, people will close their ears. They cannot follow your music because there is no melody. If music is to be successful, it should be perfectly orchestrated. Therefore, life is a melody. The orchestra of life is in perfect harmony.

If the orchestra of life is in perfect tune with the rhythm and the beat, then you can enjoy the melody of life. Therefore, the centre of life can be experienced initially through the senses; thereafter, the total experience is inward. The totality of the reality is within. What you see outside is fragmented or segmented or piece-meal. The reality is total, holistic, within.

OUR LIFE IS MORE BLISSFUL WHEN WE CONTEMPLATE ON THE CENTRE OF LIFE

Therefore, to come back to my original question which I posed this morning, we are miserable because we are cut off from the very centre of our life. We have distanced ourselves from the centre of our life. We are carried away by the periphery of our life. Therefore, we are miserable.

Because senses deviate, mind perverts and diverts…that is the reason why we are far off from the centre of our life. Therefore, my friends, let us concentrate, let us contemplate, let us meditate on the very centre of our life, on our very being, what we call Self or consciousness. That makes our life enjoyable and really blissful. 

THE ONENESS OR IDENTITY WITH THE SELF IS BEYOND DOUBT

That state of the real bliss is beyond doubt. It is beyond doubt. Some people come and ask me, “Mr. Anil Kumar, I had a dream last night.” “Oh! Good.” And then they say, “In the dream, Swami appeared and gave me vibhuthi. What does it mean?” When He gave you vibhuthi in your dream, how can I interpret?

Suppose you eat something sweet. If you come and ask me how sweet it is, please tell me what I am so say. You ate it, so how can I say what it tastes like? (Laughter) So, asking somebody about the dreams that you had is something like this. I finish my dinner and ask you, “How nice are the items!” How can you tell?

So similarly, my friends, never doubt the experience of the Self. Please take it from me. The experience of the Self, the experience of the reality, the oneness or identity with the Self is beyond doubt. Only mind doubts.

If anything is soft to the sense of touch, whether it is cotton, the skin of a rat or a cushion, all of them are soft. So you may doubt what it is. When you look through the window while travelling by flight, you cannot identify the human beings as they are so small when you travel at that height. 

So, your sight can be doubted, your hearing can be doubted, your taste can be doubted. Is it glucose or sugar? Let me verify. The problem is both are sweet. So, the experiences of the senses will always give you scope to doubt. But the experience of the reality is beyond doubt.

The experience of the consciousness is beyond doubt because it is the witness, because it is non-dual. The experiences or the thoughts also can be doubted. “Will Swami give darshan this morning or not? Will He look at me or not? It happens, while going in the car, He turns His head only to that side. Does He look at me or not? Does He know that I exist? Or, am I a mosquito or bacteria to be simply ignored?” Suppose He looks at me, I doubt again. “Did He look at me or you?” (Laughter) That is again a doubt. So, thoughts and the mind are full of doubts. The thought process is given to doubt. In fact, mind is the other name of doubt!

MIND IS THE OTHER NAME OF DOUBT

Doubt and mind go together. No mind is stable. If there is anybody who says that his mind is stable, perhaps he has no mind at all! It is not the nature of the mind to be stable. Can you say that leaves are steady? Maybe, artificial or plastic or iron leaves are steady, but leaves on the tree must flutter with the touch of the wind.

Similarly, the mind wavers, the mind doubts, the mind deludes, the mind imagines, the mind explains, the mind expresses, the mind is dual. Therefore, the mind is given to doubt. Body doubts in that the senses give ample scope for doubts, but the reality never will give such scope.

I may doubt the several things that I see, but I don’t doubt my capacity to see. Can you see? Yes. Can you see that I am not sure whether it is that or this? You don’t doubt your capacity to see; you doubt what you see. You don’t doubt your hearing, though you may doubt whether you heard properly or not.

“Swami spoke to you?” “Yes, sir.” “What did He say? I think He said such-and-such.” Array! Why do you think, when He spoke to the other man? Ah! There lies the point. So, my friends, you don’t doubt your hearing, but what you heard you doubt. You don’t doubt your sight, but what you have seen you doubt.

THE CENTRE OF LIFE, OUR VERY BEING, IS DOUBTLESS

Therefore, that which is doubtless is consciousness. That which is doubtless is the centre of our life. That which is not imagination is our very being. So, this identity, this kind of oneness with our very being, will make us doubtless and will make our lives really blissful. 

This is possible to know, first of all, for myself, before I speak of others. We are capable of speaking about everybody, but no one is capable of knowing his own Self. I know you are good or I know you are bad. But I don’t know whether I am good or bad. I think I am good, though all of you know that I am sufficiently bad. Or, I think I am bad, while all of you think that I am good. So this kind of a feeling is always there.

We go on feeling that I am something different from what I am. But this sort of judging others should go. Let me not judge anybody, because what do you know about anybody? People say, “He is a bad fellow.” How do you know? Unless you are bad, you cannot identify anything bad outside. The bad outside is identified only because of what is inside.

Suppose I drink this. I say, “This is water.” How do I know the taste of water? I must have tasted water sometime back. Therefore, I could identify this as water. “No, sir, this is liquor.” How do you know? You drink it every night, therefore you could identify it! (Laughter) If he does not know what liquor is, how does one know it is liquor?

If he doesn’t know laddu, a sweet, if he never saw that before, how can he say that it is a laddu. If you know it, you must have eaten it sometime before. Or, you might have heard that name. Therefore, my friends, let us not judge anybody. All the bad in others is nothing but a reflection of our inner being.

JUDGING OTHERS IS VERY UNCHARITABLE

So, one should not be judgemental. It is mental to judge others. After all, you know only a little about a person, but you judge him for a lifetime! You must have seen him in a funny way, at one moment, and so you give him a “conduct certificate” – you pass your judgement. It is very uncharitable to judge others. It is silly to judge others. We condemn others with the idea that we are superior to them. Only someone with feelings of superiority judges. But a truly superior man will never judge.

Lord Buddha never judged; Christ never judged. Baba never judges; therefore, we are here. If He went on judging people according to good and bad, the whole of Prashanti Nilayam would have been emptied long ago! (Laughter) He does not do that. So, let us not judge because, at the centre of life, we are the most blessed people ever possible. 

There are some people who say, “I am a bad fellow, I am a bad fellow.” You may continue to be bad, but don’t let me know about that; don’t condemn yourself. Self-condemnation is the worst sin ever possible. No one is totally bad and no one is totally good. It is impossible! If anyone says he is totally good, we have to find out from him what goodness is to him, or we may have to redefine goodness itself! So, there is nothing like that. 

Just like with a shadow, if someone were to say, “Sir, if I walk, there is no shadow”, perhaps you don’t exist! “Sir, there is a place where there is no night at all.” “Oh! Oh! I see. There must be something wrong with you.” Something like Dhritharashtra, who was blind. Day and night, light and dark, the object and its shadow, good and bad, they all go together. That makes a total life.

ACCEPTANCE IS REALITY

Total life is a combination of positive and negative. Acceptance is reality. Acceptance is confession. Therefore, my friends, to be one with the Self, let us accept the reality that life is a combination of both.

I know that some of you may be planning to join Bhagavan wherever He goes. Well, lucky are you, who will be able to realise your dreams and make your plans come true. There are those who can feel Him mentally. That is what is called meditation. Physical proximity should lead to contemplative meditation. Mere physical proximity, if it is limited to the physical presence, well…it is not spiritual.

Sometimes somebody comes and tells me, “Mr. Anil Kumar, you are very close to Swami, so you are very lucky.” I do not know what to say to them and what to tell them. So I simply smile and keep quiet.

But if the other person is very close to me, if I am very much interested in him, I will tell him, “There are many, many people who are close to Him.” There are security people who are very close to Him; that does not mean they are angels. There are two cooks inside; that does not mean they are angels from heaven. So, it is not physical. The driver is always there; Swami sits by his side. So, shall I fall at the feet of the driver now?  “Please let me stop looking at Swami. Let me look at the driver instead because he is so very close to Swami.”

It is all foolishness, my friends. It is all foolishness. It is not that I am denying that privilege, or that I am criticising close proximity. I am not against that closeness. No! But I want all of us to rise above that physical closeness; I want all of us to rise above that physical proximity. Physical proximity gives us joy, while inner nearness gives us bliss. The physical proximity gives us temporary joy and merriment; but that is fleeting. Inner bliss is constant and permanent.

May Bhagavan grant us that permanent bliss, which is within, forever!

Thank you for being with us this morning. Thank you very much.

Anil Kumar finished his satsang by chanting “Sai Narayana Narayana.”

                  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