Earn eternal peace with eternal truth

Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba Divine Discourse
Christmas, Prasanthi Nilayam, 25 December 2006 

The pompous person with unclear mind;
What chance has he of realising the true self?
An intellect pure alone is able to comprehend
The true principle of self;
No more is there to be said on this.
(Telugu poem)

Everything is contained in purity of consciousness. Here is a bouquet of flowers. Outwardly, it appears like a single flower. But, there are a number of flowers in this bouquet. Similarly, the world appears to be a single entity. But, it consists of many individuals with diverse names and forms. All such individuals stay together like the flowers in a bouquet. The Panchabhuthas (five elements) are the most important characteristic of the world. The world is a conglomeration of individuals. All are one. There is nothing like I am Deva (God) and you are Jiva (individual). You and I are one only. Not realising this, you perceive unity as diversity.

Embodiments of Love! 

Love is one. The same feeling of love permeates every human being. Nevertheless, depending upon the mental make-up, the state and destiny of different human beings it assumes different forms. A child is called a ‘baby’. When she grows up, she is called a ‘girl’. Later, when she is married and goes to her in-laws’ house, she is referred to as daughterin-law. The same woman after giving birth to children is called mother. She also becomes grandmother in due course.

God is beyond gunas

Is it not a fact that the lady being referred to by so many names is only one? Similarly, all human beings living in this world belong to only one category. Jesus Christ exhorted: “All are one; be alike to everyone.” We should love all. We should take everyone into our fold. In fact, that is My way. But, some people may not agree. That is due to their lack of maturity; the reflection of their inner feelings. God assumes different forms in consonance with the inner feelings of the devotees. For example, when someone calls Me ‘thatha’ (grandfather), I appear to them so. Some people call Me ‘father’ and I appear to them as ‘father’. Yet some others address Me as ‘Swami’ and I will be Swami to them. By whatever name and form the human beings contemplate on God, He will appear to them in the same name and form. in this Age of Kali even good appears to be bad. The same individual loves one and hates another. He develops enmity with one and friendship with another. This sort of friendship or enmity is not something that he has acquired from outside. Such feelings are of his own heart. When you consider someone as your ‘enemy’, he becomes so. On the other hand, when you consider someone as your ‘friend’, he becomes a friend. Supposing you come across a girl, you call her a ‘college girl’. After sometime when you marry her, you call her as ‘my wife’. Your ‘wife’ of today and the ‘college girl’ sometime ago are one and the same. Is it not a fact? Thus, man develops a number of relationships based on names and forms. In fact, it is the mind that is responsible for so many changes in the world. Man, per se is faultless. It is love that permeates all human beings. It is true that human beings exhibit qualities like anger, hatred, jealousy, pomp, etc., sometimes. But, God is not affected by them. God is beyond gunas (attributes), whereas human beings are with gunas. Those gunas may be positive or negative. Good and bad are only in a human being, not in God. We often come across people who are by nature angry, displaying feelings of intense love sometimes. In the Kali age we find several such people with such paradoxical behaviour. When you witness such changes, you think that God is bringing about such changes. No; God is only a witness. He is not responsible for these changes. God is like milk, which, when added to the decoction, becomes coffee. The same milk can become a sweet pudding too. All the changes that are taking place in the human beings are only due to their gunas.

A person called Paul was inimical towards Jesus Christ in the beginning. The same person became an ardent devotee later. The qualities in a human being bring about a lot of changes. For example, this African devotee has been devoted to Me since his childhood. He used to love Me intensely from the beginning. I advised him that he was still young and he should return to his country to pursue his vocation. Bowing to the wishes of Swami, he returned to his native land. But, there is no change whatsoever in his devotion. He has been constantly praying to Me, calling ‘Baba! Baba!’

Pure love has no barriers

Some years ago, when I went on a tour to East Africa, several Africans came to Me for darshan. Each one of them prayed, “Swami! Please spend some time with us.’’ There were a few hundred children among them. All of them had their vision glued to My form. You know the then President of Uganda, Mr. Idi Amin. He was a military officer. He was young and very energetic then. He was tall and hefty. He had a number of wives. He was very fond of Swami. He used to have the darshan of Swami both in the morning and evening. i was very short before that giant. The sight of Me beside him was like the view of a deer by the side of a camel. People were surprised at his love and devotion towards Swami. He was well educated and was the President of his country, Uganda. He was known for his stern nature. Such a person shed tears when I started on My return journey. He told Me, “Swami! I have never shed tears since my birth. Today, I am very sad and have a feeling of separation because Swami is leaving us.” He covered his face with a handkerchief so that others may not notice his feelings. His hands were very strong. He held My hands firmly, expressing thanks for My visit. He also prostrated before Me. He held My feet so tightly that it became difficult for Me later to climb the ladder for boarding the aeroplane. At the time of My departure, he pleaded with Me “Swami! I will surely come to have Your darshan shortly. Otherwise, You please visit our country again. I cannot bear the separation from You.” The situation in Uganda then was such that he could not leave the country.

During My stay in Uganda, he planned to host a dinner for Me in his house. He therefore came to the house of Dr. Patel to personally enquire about the arrangements to be made in this regard. He collected all information as to how to organise the dinner, what should be the menu, who are to be invited as guests, etc. He arranged for brand new utensils for cooking various dishes. He also arranged for new tumblers for the guests. Finally, when I visited his palace for the dinner, all his wives stood in rows on either side and greeted Me with veneration. He introduced them to Me, one by one. I stayed in Kampala, the capital of Uganda. The last day was Guru Purnima, an important occasion for Sai devotees. I had earlier promised to return to Bombay by that date. But, the Africans did not allow Me. They fell at My feet and prayed: “Bhagawan! Please spend this holy day with us”, with tears in their eyes. In answer to their prayers I stayed back to spend Guru Purnima with them. On that day, they wished to take photos with Me. I told them that they might silently pray in their hearts so that their request would be fulfilled. To their joy, each one of them found a photo with Swami standing beside them. The devotion of Africans is indescribable. Even now, I feel very happy when I think of their devotion. My next visit was to the country of Tanzania. There also, everyone who came to have My darshan felt very happy. Ladies and gents came in large numbers to welcome Me, wearing their traditional dresses. They danced in ecstasy on seeing Me. On the day of departure, just before the plane took off, all of them stood in front of the aircraft and pleaded with Me, “Swami! You should not go from here. You must be here only.” How can I accede to their request? I had to leave. The pilots and other officers in the airport counselled them saying, “You should not obstruct Swami’s aircraft like this. This is not good.” They then moved away. I was observing all this from the window of the aircraft. Finally, when the plane started to take off, many of them nearly fainted in grief. That scene was fresh in My memory till I reached Bombay. During that trip, I visited three countries — Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. They are all neighbouring countries. I was very happy and felt deeply touched at the devotion of African people. During My return journey, the aircraft was filled to the brim with the articles gifted by the African devotees. What are those gifts any way? They brought all sorts of articles like dinner sets and tea sets in gold colour. They are still with Me. We are making use of them while hosting high dignitaries like Prime Ministers and Governors.

There are several devotees in foreign countries who love Swami. Their love towards Swami is incomparable. The devotees of East Africa enjoyed a lot during My visit to their places. I had decided then itself that I would make no further visits abroad. Since then, I never visited any foreign country. Even for My visit to East Africa, there was a reason. Dr. Patel prayed to Me from the depth of his heart that I should pay a visit to Africa. He prayed “Swami! Your visit is not exclusively for us. There were several wild animals in these parts. Kindly confer the good fortune of Your darshan to these animals and bless them too.” When I went to that place, he arranged for some small aircrafts for our journey through the wild life habitats. He saw to it that only two people sat in each aircraft, with plenty of space to move about in it. Sitting in those small aeroplanes, we saw a number of places abounding in scenic beauty. The huge Lake Victoria is spread over a vast area. It took us one and half hours to cross that lake by those aeroplanes. There are several crocodiles in that lake of extraordinary size. Unable to find enough space to move about in the lake, they were falling on one another. Later, we had a boat ride in the lake. The crocodiles were looking at us with jaws wide open while we were moving in the lake. We threw apples towards them. Surprisingly they did not eat those apples, till we completed our boat ride. They were holding the apples in their mouth and gazing at us. There were several Hippopotamuses in that lake. Some of them were suckling their babies. It was a charming sight of wild animals in their natural habitat. The beautiful scenery was a feast to our eyes. The animals also have desires like human beings. But, their love towards us was unparalleled. By the time we reached the shore of that lake, we could see big herds of elephants moving about. The African elephants have enormous fan like ears. The wind caused by a quick swaif of their ears was enough to make people fall down. I went into their midst in a car. On seeing Me sitting in the car, they raised their trunks in veneration and paid obeisance to Me. The noble qualities in those wild animals are not to be found even in human beings. There is no feeling of hatred at all in those animals! All those animals are living together happily. Normally, an elephant fears a lion. But, the lions and elephants are living together happily in those forests. We went to a small hillock, where there was a group of ten lions. The elephants were moving about in their presence without any fear. We went near them and took photographs. There may be fear and anxiety in the human beings now and then. But, not even one wild animal displayed any fear on seeing us. There were some lions relaxing there. Our jeep passed over their tails. But, they were not bothered. On the other hand, they drew their tails near their mouths and kissed them. I was really moved by their love and affection. I could not come out of that place. Such intense feeling of love is not to be found even among the human beings today. The humans hate one another. Even the mother and child hate each other. The husband and wife hate each other. But, we could not find even a trace of hatred in those wild animals. I could witness an unparalleled and intense feeling of love and equality in those wild animals.

The agony and the ecstasy

It was time for us to leave that wonderful place and people. The agony of separation suffered by the people, especially the devotees living in those countries at the fine of our return journey is indescribable. In fact, I also felt sad to leave those loving devotees. Our plane reached Bombay very late. Sri K.M. Munshi was waiting there for our arrival. You know, who Munshi was? He was the chairman of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. He was suffering from a paralytic attack of his right side and his mouth. The moment he had My darshan on alighting from the plane, he could raise his hand. With boundless joy, he shouted, “Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Babaji Ki Jai”! The people around were surprised that Munshi could raise his hand and speak. Munshi took Me to the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, straight from the airport. The world conference of the Sathya Sai Organisations was to be held there. A large number of devotees and public had gathered there. Munshi addressed that gathering without any difficulty. He declared: “The invisible Lord is standing right in front of us and speaking to us today.” He made a small request that I should stay in his house for three days. Acceding to his request, I stayed in his house for three days. Those three days passed like three seconds to him. He was very happy.

After My return from the East African tour, I tried to explain the intense love and devotion of the African people and the wild animals residing there, to the people in these parts. If the animals could develop such intense love, why not the human beings? The animals have no prajnana (divine wisdom), vijnana (discriminatory intellect) and sujnana (higher level of consciousness). But, human beings who are endowed with all these noble qualities and read a number of texts are bereft of even an iota of love. Hence, oh! human beings! I wish that all of you should lead a life of mutual love. “Love all! Serve all!” — this is My exhortation to you. If only there is love, you can achieve anything. Love is everything. “Love is life; life is love”. Life is associated with love, not hatred. Today, wherever you see there is hatred, hatred, hatred! This is not a good sign. Having been born as human beings, it is not proper to possess animal qualities, throwing to wind the human qualities. Sometimes, the animals seem better than human beings in this regard. The animals seem to possess human qualities. Today, the animals are transforming themselves into humans and the humans degenerating into animals. This is not proper. The human beings should lead the life of human beings. They should strengthen their human qualities.

Be courteous and loving

The person who spoke a little while ago is an African. He is engaged in propagating the human values. The world is full of such people. But, persons imbued with human values are very rare. In fact, some people do not know how to talk courteously. Even if you enquire with love, “Sir! Where did you come from?” They will give a curt reply, “I came from somewhere.” Whatever they talk, will be discourteous and harsh. This is not correct. A human being should talk sweetly and softly. The words must be suffused with love. Only then will you experience peace. When your behaviour and talk is bad, how can you expect peace to reign in your heart? Peace is not in the outside world. It is very much in your own heart. There are only pieces outside, not peace. You say “I want peace”. Let your behaviour be good and courteous. Then, peace will flow from you. Wherefrom do you get truth? Can you obtain Truth from the text books you read? No! Truth is very much in you. Truth, righteousness, peace, love and non-violence are the innate qualities of a human being. Love is the very form of God! We can experience God’s love only with love from our side. Love and peace are the most essential qualities for a human being. A millionaire may build several residences, purchase a number of cars and have several conveniences. But, whomever you come across, they say that they have no peace. Of what use is all this wealth and comforts and conveniences, if there is no peace within?

Give up attachment

Nowadays, there is a real estate boom all over the country. How much land does a human being require? Only six feet! Nothing more. There was a rich landlord who went in search of some land. He wanted to purchase an additional piece of land. Having come to know of this man’s efforts, a person came to him and advised, “Sir! You may please go to the Himalayan region where plenty of land is available free of cost.” This man went to the Himalayas and contacted the king of that region. The king told him: “I promise to give you all that land which you cover by walking from sunrise to sunset.” The landlord was very happy. Next morning, he set out on his expedition, enthusiastically. In fact, he began to run greedily with a view to acquire more land. He was thus running continuously from morning till evening. It was sunset. He was very tired and weak. Yet, he did not give up his greed. Just when he was at a distance of six feet before his final goal, he swooned and fell down. The king came to that spot, saw his condition and commented: “Alas! What this man requires now is only six feet land!” In fact, what every human being requires is only that much land!

King Alexander conquered several countries and finally set his foot in Bharat. As he was crossing a river, he had a heart attack. The doctors who examined him confirmed that he was nearing his end and any medicines will be of no use. King Alexander then lamented, “I am the king of such a vast kingdom. I acquired gold in plenty. I have a great army by my side. Is there no one who can save me from the clutches of death?” Immediately, he called his ministers and told them, “Oh, ministers! After my death, you take my dead body to my native country. Wrap it with a white cloth keeping my hands in a raised position and take it in a procession through every street.” As per the king’s wish, his dead body was taken in a procession through the streets. The people were rather surprised at this strange act and enquired, “Why are you taking the dead body of the king in procession, with his hands raised?” The ministers replied, “Alexander the Great, who was rolling in great wealth left this world empty-handed. It is only to make this fact known to the people as per the king’s last wish, his dead body is being taken in procession like this.” Not only Alexander, but every human being has to ultimately depart from this world empty-handed. One may acquire a vast kingdom; one may have a great army behind him; one may have a number of friends and relatives; but, none will accompany one during one’s last journey.

Several kings and great souls spread this truth in those days and exhorted people to give up attachment to the body. Unfortunately, you are not reading the stories of such great people. What you are learning now is not ‘history’, but ‘hysteria’. No one reads history. What is history in the real sense? His story is History!” Man today is pursuing high education. He is learning science and technology. But, today’s ‘technology’ is mere ‘trick-nology’. What you read may not remain in your brain. Only what you have actually put into practice lasts long. It is enough if you put into practice at least one aspect of what you have read. That will help you in every way.

Embodiments of Love! Dear students! 

You may pursue any type of education, but do not forget the human values. Truth, righteousness, peace, love and non-violence are the five human values to be cultivated by a human being. You learn these five human values and put them into action. Then your life will go on smoothly. This is what I wish to communicate to you today as an important message. Truth is eternal. It is only when you follow this eternal truth that your name will remain in the annals of history forever. Eternal truth will earn eternal peace for you. If you succumb to bad qualities like anger, jealousy, envy, and arrogance your entire life will become miserable with unrest and agitation.