The Sunday Talk Given by Professor Anil Kumar
“Question and Answer Session”
June 26, 2011
OM…OM…OM…
Sai Ram
With Pranams at the Lotus Feet of Bhagavan,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Talk in Southall PARK, LONDON
From eleven in the morning until five-thirty in the evening, some nine thousand people came to Southall Park in London, where they and their families could sit and enjoy the open air and popcorn, feeling quite at home during the various presentations.
All people were given free food. Huge tents had been erected to house a medical camp, educare information, centre activities, and VIP lounge. It was all very interesting, as were the questions asked. Science and technology have advanced more than I can imagine. The people running the event told me that statistics on the number of people who attended and the number of viewers watching the live stream via the website would be available the following morning!
“You belong to the computer age, Mr. Anil Kumar,” they said.
“Well,” I replied, “I still belong to the cow dung era, an antiquated and outdated fellow, with no knowledge of the latest technological developments.”
So, the next morning they showed up with the statistics. Worldwide, how many countries viewed the website and followed the proceedings from Southall Park, which was a five hour program? People watched the program in 23 countries, with about 76,000 viewers in total!
People needed somebody to talk to them about Swami and other related topics; they were all very anxious to hear. This reflects their sensitivity, receptivity, and devotion. That was all very encouraging, so I was extremely happy and on top of the world. Since I cannot extend service in other areas, I felt I could pay my debt of gratitude to Swami by discharging my duties in this, my own humble way. There were also three or four TV stations, who also gave live telecasts of the proceedings.
Swami is helping me to emerge successfully in His own way. It’s all His grace. Swami said, “Take one step and I will walk with you ten steps.” That was literally proven in my case in Southall Park, as thoughts started appearing, prompting me from within. I wanted to share this with you, about my role in the present scenario. My role in this has given me great satisfaction and provided satisfaction to many people around the world, as the statistics show.
“Talking with people overseas is all well and good,” I thought, “but what about our own Sai family, here at the Sunday talks in Prashanthi?”
Someone had also asked, “Why don’t you have a ‘Question and Answer’ session here?”
Therefore, with all humility, with respect and prayers to Bhagavan, charity begins at home. There is no point in clearing the doubts of everybody around the world, whilst doubts are still entertained in the family right here in Prashanthi!
If you have a better answer than the ones I give, you are welcome to share it with us. Then I will relay your answer, because I am just ‘Anil Kumar Broadcasting Corporation’, ‘ABC’, working effectively in the steps of the BBC (Laughter). So I invite your questions.
Could you please tell us more about the program that you are arranging in Bangalore for next Saturday?
Next Saturday in Bangalore there is a very big meeting, where people of multi-faiths and heads of different religions will offer their prayers. This will be followed by an address by the state president of Karnataka, on the service activities in that state. Then Mr Naganand, a member of the advisory council of the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust, will give a talk. This will be followed by Mr Narasimhamurthy, the warden at Muddenahalli campus, a well-known figure. He will be speaking on the topic of, “Prevailing Sai.” I don’t know who prevailed upon Him, or whether He has prevailed all by Himself!
Incidentally, last week I was in Bangalore, where the state President Mr Dhakappa asked the alumni, the former students of Sri Sathya Sai University, “Why don’t you organise a monthly meeting, so that Brindavan will be full of devotees, because now nobody is visiting. We have a large hall, Sai Ramesh Hall, which accommodates thousands of people. Swami has not constructed it for nothing! Baba repeatedly said that He had spent about 75% of His time and energy on His students. Now these students have to express their gratitude towards Swami. They cannot simply be beneficiaries of all His love, enjoy all the chances, and only say, ‘Thank You’.”
In response, the alumni suggested having a satsang there every third Sunday. The first speaker they have invited happens to be Mr Narasimhamurthy. Later, I was invited to Brindavan, because they wanted somebody to speak about Swami, particularly when the faith is literally shaken and the people are crying, like a rudderless boat without hope. The Sai Ramesh Hall was packed! People were anxious and eager to gain more understanding, as they had so many doubts. So, as I am available to the public, why not the Sunday family? This has been the feeling among some of my friends. So I invite you to come forward with your questions.
What is Mahasamadhi? Is it applicable to Avatars, and can we use this expression with respect to Swami?
The place where a physical body is laid to rest is normally called a Samadhi. Samadhi is a tomb in memory of the departed soul. Mahasamadhi is the place where the physical body of a sage, saint, seer or Avatar is laid to rest for public viewing and worship.
This we find in every religion. In the Islamic faith, Darga is where the body of a sage or saint is placed for worship. In Sri Lanka, a tooth of Buddha is preserved at Kandy. I have been there and it is a very popular place for worship. Where Buddha left His mortal body, Buddha Gaya, there is also a sizeable place of worship. A sanctum sanctorum is a place where people pay homage and receive vibrations from the Mahasamadhi. People get their desires fulfilled by visiting a Mahasamadhi, and some people even get enlightenment from a Mahasamadhi.
Mahasamadhi can be compared to a generator or an amplifier. It’s a place where you can feel vibrations, draw energy, or receive messages. In Sai’s previous incarnation as Shirdi Baba, He said, “I will speak from here. My Samadhi will speak; my bones will speak, as I am here.” That is why Shirdi is full of devotees. That is why Swami said that the very entry into Shirdi is the solution to your problems. “Don’t think I left you; I am very much alive,” said Shirdi Bhagavan.
God is everywhere, yet we go to the temple, the church or the mosque. Why do we do this when God is everywhere? Because these are all places where we can receive vibrations and where the mind can achieve equanimity.
Is the Central Trust planning a press conference, so that the media can report correctly?
I heard on this morning’s news channels that they are planning to meet the press and explain the latest position.
Sai Ram, sir. This is not a question, but my own view. We all are sad because Swami’s body is no more. I was a fighter pilot and I had a medical emergency 1500 km away from Swami’s form; but Swami saved me there. Swami is omnipresent. So why should we feel sad that we cannot see Him? Swami is the omnipresent Lord, who is not the body. Swami is the omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient Lord.
Thank you, sir. Give him a big hand! (Applause) Swami appearing in several places, people experiencing Him everywhere, and people feeling the vibrations all over the world--all this is living proof that He is beyond the body, mind, and intellect.
All of us know that Bhagavan Baba is an Avatar Purusha. To substantiate this, I will tell you about Jagadguru Adi Sankaracharya. When He was leaving the body, many disciples asked Him, “Sir, you have written much about the Geetha Bashyam, the Upanishads, and the Dharma sutrams, but this is too difficult for us to understand. Please tell us something that we can easily put into practice, such as who is to be worshipped?”
Adi Shankara answered immediately, “Bhagavan Avataraha, I cannot tell more than this. Bhagavan is an Avatar, not only omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, but He is also omni-vigilant.” He is installed as the resident and president of our heart. As long as we pray to Him and have total faith in Him, all the clouds will disappear like mist in sunlight.
Thank you very much for sharing! (Applause) This is what satsang is.
Could you please clarify one thing about Swami? When Swami left His body, what age was He?
This question has been raised in the media and has been on the minds of many devotees for an obvious reason. The reason is that Swami had said earlier that He would be in His physical body until His ninety-sixth year. But a second and less obvious reason is that people may well have postponed their sadhana, feeling that there were still ten years to go. Postponement of sadhana may well be the reason that some devotees were bothered about Swami’s age when He withdrew from the body so unexpectedly!
However, there are two calendar systems: the solar and the lunar. As per the lunar calendar, the statistics say that He was ninety-six years old when He left His body. With the lunar calendar, an average month is 27 days, not 30 days as in the solar version. So the lunar calendar is different from the solar calendar that we follow every day.
Swami said that He would be here until ninety-six, but He did not specify which calendar He was using!
As you know, He always says, “Yes” when you ask Him certain questions: “Swami, could You come to Kerala?”
“Yes, I will come.”
Or, “Come to Madras!”
Swami would say, “O Tapakka, yes, yes.”
And when I asked softly, “Swami, when are You going?” then Swami would reply, “Why do you ask?”
He always said, “I will come,” but He never said when. So similarly, with ninety-six years, He did not specify the lunar calendar!
Shirdi Baba mentioned before leaving His body that He would answer our prayers from His Samadhi! Did Sathya Sai Baba mention anything like this?
Baba is there for His devotees. This has been in His Divine agenda right from the very beginning! At the age fourteen, He made this very clear. Helping His devotees is His main job, together with the task of spreading the literature of the Vedas. He will save the pious and transform the wicked—not kill the wicked, but guide them so they will not stray from the dharmic path. This is the Divine plan that He has stuck to.
Baba did not need to mention anything when leaving His body, because He is not the body. But as humans, we function at the level of the body. So, nearing our end, we may say something to people at our bedside about properties, a will, or something like that.
But He is Divine, functioning without body consciousness while in our midst. For all eighty-five years He was in our midst, talking to us directly, interacting face-to-face, but at the same time functioning beyond the body. He is sakara, with form, and nirakara, without form. He is Pratyaksha, the Director, but at the same time Apratyaksha, the indirect too. He talks to you directly, but at the same time He prompts you from within, via the inner voice or antharyami.
You have seen Him directly, but He can also appear in dreams. He can command or advise you directly, or will see to it that His message is conveyed one way or another: for example, by reading His books, during meditation, or through one of your friends whom you meet accidentally. Swami is functional within and without the body, with form or without a form, and in every form, perceptible and non-perceptible.
Swami used to say, “I am not the deha but the dehi.” What is the meaning of this? What is the difference between the deha and the dehi?
Bhagavan said that He is the dehi, the indweller, and not the deha, the body. But what is the relationship between the two and what are the differences?
If a light bulb represents the body, deha, then the electricity inside the bulb is the dehi, the indweller. After regular usage, the bulb may become burnt out, so you will have to replace it. But you don’t replace electricity! So like electricity, dehi is immortal, eternal and without beginning or end.
The bulb, as a body, has a functional lifespan—only for a period of time and within a certain voltage. Electricity is limitless; but when it enters into the bulb, it has got limitations like voltage.
Likewise, the body has certain limitations such as birth, growth, death and illness, and it requires regular food and rest. These are all the limitations of the body; but the indweller, the dehi, has no limitations.
In our case, the indweller enters a body, according to our karma. By karma, I mean the consequences of our past actions. These consequences will have to be faced by entering a body, which will experience the pleasure and pain that it is meant to.
In respect to God, He decides when to enter and withdraw from a body. This is in His hands, whereas for mortals, it is not in our hands. That is one of the differences between a human being and a Divine incarnation.
I want to know when the Mahasamadhi will open for public darshan, July 10th or July 15th?
It will be open for public darshan from July 15th, which is Guru Purnima day. Even though the work may be over by July 10th, it is important to choose an auspicious day to open to the public.
Baba announced that He would build a thousand-pillared temple on top of Hill View stadium. I would like to know why He said that.
I can say with all certainty that He did not say that. He made no such statement. But where did this rumour originate?
Swami did go up to the Hanuman statue in His car twice. The first time He went up, we, the master generators of rumours, (Laughter) immediately told everyone, “He has gone to inspect the site where the thousand-pillared temple is going to be built.”
Why should we keep quiet? We are very good interpreters of Divine action! (Laughter) At least we can generate or spread rumours. This is a sadhana that some people have taken up! (Laughter)
When Swami went there for a second time, we assumed that He was going to fix the date for laying the foundation stone of the thousand-pillared temple. But He never said this!
Next, this appeared as a statement in the press, and the Trust had to come out and state that it was not true.
A temple on that hilltop would be enough sadana for the liberation of people with advanced age, as we could not climb all the steps! (Laughter) We have the energy to run to the stores, but that is a different matter. (Laughter) A thousand-pillared temple? Only the priest would be there! (Laughter)
Please let us know what were the last words of Swami?
My answer to the press was that the first word was the last word, and the last word was the first word! There are not two words, as in our case. If the first word is different from the last word, it is duality. If the first word is the last word, then it is non-duality. God is non-dual, so the first and last are the same. As He is everlasting, there cannot be a last word! (Laughter)
I work in the Super Speciality Hospital. After work, we used to have a few minutes of darshan. Now, even though we feel Swami is omnipresent, sometimes we staff members are a bit down. I would like some practical advice on how to come out of it?
That is a very genuine question, so we cannot overlook it. What you said is quite true. All of us will naturally miss Him. To say that you don’t miss Him is perhaps because you own a shop outside the ashram and you may not have attended darshan every day. But as devotees, as residents, our only business is with Swami. There is no other business. We have no other interest, so we miss Him.
However, at the same time, we should also understand why we miss Him. Is it because I am more devoted than a devotee from Washington or Buenos Aires?
No, there are great devotees, who spend all of their time in constant integrated awareness, in the thought of Swami. There are men of sacrifice who always do Swami’s work. I met a great many people abroad who are very well-versed with Sai literature.
The problem for those who have settled here is that we go by His physical presence. We got used to seeing the physical body, so we became attached. This attachment now causes our misery, which is quite understandable.
Another thing is this: I go to the college for my classes. But at 5:30 pm, I leave for Swami’s darshan. At 5:30 pm, I will see God. It means He is the ‘5:30 pm God’ to me. (Laughter) So, I work there in the college, teaching theory in the morning and doing practicals in the afternoon. But 5:30 pm is God time. I can go and sit. My seat is guaranteed.
This happens with every Avatar, not just with Swami and us. Throughout history, those who are close to Avatars, prophets or saints will be the worst-hit because of attachment to their Master’s physical form.
Here is a practical tip: I read His literature more than ever before. Throughout the day, whenever I find the time, I read His literature. I also sing bhajans to myself—not loudly, because my voice is not that good. So I sing to myself or listen to cassettes, DVDs or Sai bhajans.
‘Constant integrated awareness’ means that your mind is mentally engaged in Swami. “If your mind is not totally identified with Me, even if I stand before you, you will not be benefited,” Swami said.
Swami gave this example in Kodaikanal when He was talking to the boys. Swami left to visit a devotee’s house. He returned later to talk to everybody. Swami asked, “What were you doing when I was not here? If there was a sound such as a car door closing, the thought arose, ‘Swami’s car might have come.’ You see, you are thinking more of Me when I am not here. The moment that I come and you are looking at Me, that is the moment you stop thinking about Me! You are in constant thought of Me when I am not here. When I am here and you look at Me, you begin thinking about college, your parents, and your friends,” He said.
Swami gave another example: your son in America tells you on the phone that he is suffering from a temperature. What can you do from Puttaparthi? But you don’t feel like having your lunch because your son in America is suffering from a fever! Even if you don’t eat, your son will not be cured. But you love him so much that even when you are away from him, you think only of him.
On the other hand, if your neighbour is on his deathbed, that is no big worry to you! But your son in America is a matter of great worry—even though it is your neighbour who is in the most danger, chalta hai duniya.
Swami says, “More than physical nearness, you have mental (psychological) dearness.” This is possible by reading Sai literature, when time permits. And you can listen to bhajans all the time. Especially here, in the hospitals and workplaces, they play Swami bhajans throughout the day. Also we can just think of those bhajans! Certainly, the moment you listen to a Sai bhajan, you will experience Swami!
When the boys start to sing, “Rama Rama Ram, Rama Rama Ram, Rama Rama Ram, Sri Rama Rama Ram,” I see thousands crying. Why? They are imagining Swami while singing His bhajan, Prema Mudhita Manase Kaho. When the boys sing popular Baba bhajans, we feel that Swami is singing , so we start crying. The mind has gone to that day, that moment when Swami sang this bhajan Himself. That is how we feel Him.
I am satisfied that I was here when Swami’s physical body was with us. Now I am still here even when His physical body is no longer here. But now I experience Him beyond His physical body. I want to understand that God is beyond the body. I want to evolve spiritually. When I think of Baba beyond the body, I experience my own real Self, which is consciousness, present everywhere. Therefore, personal sadana is an evolution from individual to cosmic consciousness.
Swami usually gives us Abhayahasta (hands blessing). But why did we see Him with palms together at the end, in salutation, which is something we have never seen Him do before?
During the Last Supper, before leaving the body, Jesus washed the feet of His devotees. You know that. He wiped their feet with a towel. It was a demonstration of His gratitude, of His appreciation, thereby recognising His own Self in them.
Jesus experienced His own Self in His disciples by serving them, by washing their feet. Similarly, when Baba performed Namaskar, He did not do it to you. He did Namaskar to His own Self in you! The One in you is very much the same as Baba Himself.
Om . . . Om . . .Om
Asato Maa Sadgamaya
Tamaso Maa Jyotirgamaya
Mrityormaa Amrithamgamaya
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
Om Samastha Loka Sukhino Bhavantu
Samastha Loka Sukhino Bhavantu
Samastha Loka Sukhino Bhavantu
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!
Jai Bolo Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji ki Jai!
© Copyright Prof. Anil Kumar Kamaraju – Puttaparthi. All rights reserved.