The sacred Bharatheya Culture has survived the ravages of time and the vicissitudes of history. Sanathana Dharma (Eternal Universal Religion) is the core of this culture. It is based on ethics and character. Spirituality is its life-breath. Truth and Love were the ideals cherished by the great seers of Bharath.

Today all over the world you hear about plans to build a new society. The socialist doctrine is an important concept. But it is no less essential to recognise the reality of God as the primal source of all things in the world.

As children of the Earth, people should learn the lesson of selfless activity from Mother Earth. Without sacrifice it is difficult to sustain life itself. Some say knowledge is valuable. But, character is more valuable than knowledge.

You have to do good deeds if you want to experience good results. Nature is like a mirror, which reflects the object or action. Vision determines your view of Creation. When you see the world through coloured glasses, you will see everything in the colour of the glasses you are wearing.

You consider it hard to see unity in the diversity in the world because you do not have the proper vision. You are the "seen" Everything that you see is the seen. When the vision is concentrated on the Atma within, both are one. Then the distinction between the Divine and the mundane disappears. The difference between the object and the subject will also go. Everything then becomes 'the whole'. This is the easiest royal path to comprehend the Reality.

Dharma and Jnana (right conduct and spiritual wisdom) are two eyes given to human to discover own uniqueness and Divinity. Dharma indicates the right path which every individual, group or society should follow. Dharma destroys the one who violates it. Dharma also protects the one who protects it. The scriptures have declared, "Where there is Dharma there is victory".

Now for the progeny of Dharma (righteousness). Dharma married a great soul called Sathya (Truth). Out of the union of Sathya and Dharma, eight children were born. These are Shraddha (Earnestness), Dhaya (Compassion), Santhi (Peace), Pushti (Prosperity), Santhushti (Contentment), Vriddhi (Progress), Lajja (Modesty), Gouravam (Honour) and Mukthi (Liberation). It is now for each one to determine to which lineage one belongs. It would seem that ninety percent of the people in the world belong to the line of Mithya and Adharma.

The most noteworthy characteristic of Sanathana Dharma is its concern for the wellbeing of humanity as a whole. This concern stems from the consciousness that all are children of one mother. There may be differences among people in mental and physical prowess. There may be differences in the doctrines they profess and in the knowledge and skills they have. Even in qualities there may be variations. But in respect of one thing there is no distinction. This relates to the process of creation which is common to all. It is this which must make us accept the equality of all beings. It is on the basis of this idea that the new society should be established.

Relying on differences in physical and intellectual abilities may be illustrated by incidents in the Mahabharatha. Overthrowing arrogant and oppressive rulers, Krishna installed on the throne Yudhishtira, who was wedded to Dharma and Sathya. Although he had won the Kingdom, Krishna did not rule over it himself. Some qualifications are required for ruling a kingdom. Krishna installed as rulers only those who had those qualifications.

Compentence, confidence and other noble qualities are would be connected with pleasant manner. Below is an ancient legend as an example.

Once a king summoned an astrologer, who had acquired some reputation. The astrologer felt proud that he had been invited by the king himself. The astrologer examined the king's horoscope. Because of his conceit, he did not realise how he should speak on specific occasions.

He told the king after examining the horoscope that all his sons would die early. The king was very angry. He ordered the servants to take the astrologer to prison.

The prediction was correct, but it should have been conveyed to the king in an appropriate manner that would nor cause consternation. The king summoned another astrologer to verify whether the earlier astrologer's prediction was correct. This astrologer was a man of humility. He examined the king's horoscope and said: "Maharaja! You have a very long life. Your sons may nor live so long." This manner of conveying the prediction was more satisfying to the king.

Where there is love, there is peace; where there is peace, there is bliss; where there is bliss, there is God.

Many pray to God all over the world. They pray for the realisation of worldly desires of one kind or another. This is nor the right kind of prayer. You should pray to God for the grace of His love. God is the embodiment of bliss. Pray to God to confer that bliss on you. Worldly benefits come and go. But inspite of that, look at the world with the vision of peace, love and compassion.

There may be many paths for the same goal towards the Real Self. You get confused because many preachers say many different things. You must choose one path, one road. You should cultivate harmony in thought, word and deed, patience, perseverance, etc. Patience means being in a state of santhi (peace). Another feature of patience is not being elated by praise or depressed by calumny. Perseverance is most essential for the accomplishment of objective. (People lacking this quality cannot achieve anything. Their efforts are like trying to retain water in a pot with several holes).

Love is the only weapon by which you can attain Godliness and make your life purposeful. God is like gold, the possession of which will enable you to make any jewel you want.

There are three teachers for everyone. The first are the parents. The second teacher is the preceptor who guides the student in exercising discrimination and taking the right path towards realising the Divinity within. The third teacher is own conscience. (When anyone tries to commit a sinful act or speak an untruth, the conscience revolts and warns).

It is hard to have a progress in life without setting before oneself certain resolutions. Even Avatars also set certain limits to their roles. Krishna incarnated with three resolves: 1. Incarnation from age to age to establish Dharma. 2. Promotion the progress well-being of devotees. 3. Liberation those who take refuge in Krishna. Rama also had three resolves: One word, one arrow, one wife. Rama declared that whoever sought asylum from Rama, would be totally protected. Similarly all divine personalities make their advent for some definite purposes.

The three resolves which Swami is determined to fulfil. 1. When Swami have given a word to anyone, even if they turn against Him, I will not bear any ill-will towards them. Swami will stand up to His pledge fight up to the end. Some day they will return to the right path. 2. Owing to the compulsion of circumstances some changes may take place Swami will not change His course because of such happenings. 3. When Swami undertakes anything because He feels it is for the welfare of all and that it is good for society as a whole, Swami will not give it up, come what may. Even if the whole world is against Swami, He will not turn back, He will go forward.

You are going on adding to your objects of attachment from the moment you are born in the world. First, you have mother and father, then brothers, sisters, relatives and friends. After marriage, another set of relatives and friends are added through your spouse. Thus attachment goes on multiplying. Attachment relates to external objects and caused by desires and also causes desires. On the other hand, if you go on detaching yourself from various relationships one after other, your attachments get reduced. You must reduce desires to a minimum, as it may not be possible to give up desire totally. (If you analyse the difference between God and human you will find that life plus desire is human and life minus desire is God). Confine your desires to primary necessities for sustaining life and social relations.

Today, thanks to the influence of the Kali Age, two kinds of desires have grown. One is the insatiable thirst for wealth. People turn into demons in the pursuit of wealth. The second malady is the thirst for power and position.

The desire for wealth and power is not wrong as such. But wealth and power should be used for right ends. Whatever position you occupy, see that it is used worthy. A cobbler stitching shoes is pursuing as worthily an occupation as a Prime Minister governing the country. Everyone has to do the duty properly. When everyone
does his/her duty in this spirit the well-being of the whole world will be ensured.

Even when you are engaged in your daily chores, you can convert them into worship of God. Do your duty with a feeling of dedication, leaving the results in the hands of the Divine. While you are sweeping the floor, you can deem it as clearing your heart of all impurities. All work should be done with a pure heart filled with devotion, just as cooking must be done in a clean vessel. Whatever good you may do without a genuine feeling of love is of no use. It is love in a pure heart that transforms work into worship. The easiest Sadhana is to reflect on God with love that is expanding and embracing one and all.

Since ancient times among many sacred rituals people of Bharath have been observing the sacred custom of lighting a lamp at the commencement of any auspicious ceremony. They have been worshipping the jyothi as it dispels darkness and is a symbol of the effulgence of wisdom.

To earn the grace of the Divine, the other easy way is surrendering at the Feet of the Lord. The feet form the basis for not only the physical frame of the body; but also for spiritual and ethical purposes. The significance of each limb of the body is explained in Vedanta. In the Purusha Shuktha the body of the Divine is described in detail. It is the feet that support the entire body. The Vedas proclaim the unity of all classes of people by describing them as limb of one body.

All forms of worship and penance are only for control of mind. The external objects serve as symbols for beginners, just as a child learns words with the help of pictures. After that you have to concentrate on Divinity without external aids. It is logical, as human is born with the Divine qualities and is an embodiment of Sath-Chith-Ananda which are the attributes of the Divine.

If there were a vacancy in Heaven, human would surely apply for the position of God, for human believes that has all the necessary attributes. Human forgets that the real attribute for superiority is unshaken faith in one's Atmic Reality.

By ancient scriptures Narada, who had mastered the sixty-four sciences and arts, could not secure the supreme bliss that comes from peace of mind. Narada was no ordinary person. He was the result of a thought in Brahma's mind, he is known as "Brahma-manasa putra" (Brahma's mind-born son). Despite of it, he had no peace of mind.

The human predicament is similar to this situation. People claim that God is everything for them but they are not ready to abide by God's injunctions. That accounts for their lack of peace. For a human who is immersed in worldly life, chanting of God's name is undoubtedly a good medicine. But devotion to God without observing the Divine injunctions destroys peace of mind. The ancient scriptures too as long as you have not known who you really are (your real Self), you cannot get real peace, despite all your scholarship and all your pious actions. Scriptures are like a dense jungle of words. These words are capable of different interpretations. It is not easy to determine definitely which are the correct meanings without awareness and practice of the Divine injunctions

(Science must make human humble by revealing that he knows so little of what is worth knowing. By the latest scientific views mind's unconcsious part is about 95% and part of dark matter and energy together is about 96%. Some years ago it was proposed that unknown part of matter-energy is about 95%. Say, that what humanity know about the Universe through science is about 4 - 5%).

In ancient times, people used to revere elders, purify their hearts by getting rid of selfishness, seek the guidance and blessings of saintly teachers and put into practice their teachings. With the passage of time over the centuries people tended to grow more and more selfish and self-centred. For the disease of insatiable desires, the remedy is contentment. Along with contentment the spirit of sacrifice has to be developed. What we are witnessing today is a limitless growth of wants without any concern for reducing them. Its strength does not diminish, but grows from day to day. Iron chains will rust in course of time but the chains of desire grow stronger every day.

Born as human beings, growing as human beings, people have forgotten the value of human existence. Developing religious differences, fostering demonic tendencies, they are destroying peace.

People imagine that bliss and peace in mind is to be found in jobs, marriage, property or progeny. You hope for happiness in one thing after another: education, jobs, marriage, children and so on. But happiness eludes you. The only enduring happiness is got by oneness with the Divine. The bliss within you will sprout when you water your parched heart with the rain of the Divine love.

The purpose of the Sai Avatar is different from that of Rama and Krishna because the forces of good and evil are now present in every human being and the process of transformation has to be effected in a context very different from the previous yugas. In the Kali Yuga, the process of transformation has been individualized.

"You have to save yourself. Swami is present within you as a witness." This is the Lord's message. Hence, everyone should try to reform himself. Hence, self-enquiry is essential.

The self-realised person is merged in Atmic Bliss and not bothered by external happenings; he/she has the world of inner peace all within. If you follow such a person and pray for guidance, person will not be interested in you. However, there are the Mahapurushas (the high-souled or noble persons). This persons have not reached the goal yet and is well on the way; persons know the road only as far as they have trekked and unable to give full guidance to the aspirant.

When you love Swami, you love all. By means of dhyana (meditation), you can realise that Swami is the resident in all hearts, the urge, the motive, the guide, the goal. Yearn for that vision, that awareness and make it your priceless possession.

Of course, it is hard sadhana. One has to negate and deny, deprive oneself of many expectancies, dive deep into oneself, swim upstream against the current of generations of attachment to worldly things, including the body which one bears.

The gopees (cowherd girls) were so filled with the highest type of love that they saw and experienced the Krishna Principle in every speck of dust and blade of green that they saw. Love of Krishna makes the whole world Krishna. There is only One, the integer I. Dust and blade, drop and spot - each is He, He and He alone. And, you are no exception, you are also He. Love identifies; hate separates. Love transposes the Self on to another and the two think, speak and act as one. When love takes in more and more within its fold, more and more entities are rendered as One Divine. The Divine aspect of your personality will encourage humility, adherence to truth, love and eagerness to serve, fortitude and detachment. Cherish the first; manifestation of these qualities in your life and practise them whenever you get a chance.

What is the state of human life today? The foremost thing that should exist is respect for human values. However great an intellectual may be, one has to acquire humanness. With out humanness, scholarships and intellectual eminence are of no value.

Just as a seed can sprout only when it is planted in the soil and watered, human values can grow only in a spiritual soil. If a person wants to cultivate human values he/she has to apply the manure of spirituality to heart, water it with love so that human values will grow. Human society needs essentially fellow-feeling and unity.

Human values are born along with human birth. They exist in union. Unfortunately, individual today separates from human values and yet wants to live as a human being. To recover human values, individual has to take the spiritual path. In spiritual sadhana, there are eight Yogic disciplines to be observed: Yama, Niyama, Asana, Pranayama, Prathyahara, Dhyana, Dharana and Samadhi (sense restraint, observing rules, seating posture, breath-control, withdrawal of senses from objects, meditation and Super Conscious state).

Of these, the first is Yama It is enough if this single discipline is observed. All human values are comprised in it. Yama includes the Pancha Pranas (five-breaths), Pancha Bhuthas (five elements), Pancha Koshas (five sheaths), Pancha Thathvas (five basic principles), and Pancha Ruupas (five forms). The five forms are the form of Gayathri. The five basic principles are: Ahimsa, Sathya, Brahmacharya, Astheya and Aparigraha (Non-violence, Truth, Celibacy, non-stealing and non-possessive qualities). These five constitute Yama.

The first basic principle is Ahimsa. What does Ahimsa signify? It is not merely refraining from causing harm or injury to others. It implies also refraining from causing harm to him/herself. Whoever desires to observe Ahimsa must see that he/she does not do violence to him/herself by constantly examining whether person's conduct is right or wrong. Everyone should see that he/she gives no room for bad looks, bad hearing, bad speech, bad thoughts and bad actions by consulting own conscience. The conscience is the form of the Divine within everyone. Whatever you do, the conscience tells you whether it is right or wrong. However, to ascertain the directive of the conscience you have to wait for some time. You should not be in a hurry.

You should be careful not only with regard to how you react to the five elements, but also with regard to your food. Excessive eating does violence to the body. Even in drinking water, you should observe restraints. Ahimsa is thus what confers happiness on you.

Likewise, one's entire life should be governed by the principle of Ahimsa. Many germs die when one takes a bath or walks or does any other action. Even in the process of breathing many germs die. Violence is present in all these activities. Therefore, to avoid the consequences of such involuntary violence to living creatures, one is advised to dedicate all actions to the Divine. (But there is no meaning in dedicating to the Divine conscious acts of violence. The conscience will not approve of such conduct). In Vedantic parlance, the conscience is called chith. It is also called awareness what is total understanding. This total understanding is within the capacity of every human being.

The second principle is Sathya (Truth). Truth is not merely telling the facts about what you see or hear or know. These are temporal truths. In its full sense Truth can be applied only to what comes out of your heart in its pure and unsullied form as the voice of conscience. This Sathya is also called Ritham. It is not affected by changes in time or place. It is unchanging and cannot be suppressed. Truth is its own proof. It is the form of the Divine as declared in the Vedic saying: Sathyam, Jnanam, Anantham Brahma (Truth, the highest Wisdom and Infinite - that is the Absolute Self).

The third principle is Astheyam (non-stealing). Astheyam means not stealing the properties of others. Property should not be confined to physical objects like a book. To take or use any object without such permission amounts to stealing. Even to criticize someone in a way that harms him/her also amounts to theft of good name.

The fourth principle Brahmacharya is interpreted in many ways. One meaning is remaining unmarried. This is not the correct meaning. The true meaning of the term is "moving in Brahman." Brahmacharya means ceaseless contemplation of God. A married man is called Girhastha (house-holder). There is Brahmacharya even in a householder's life. This consists in his leading the conjugal life with the wife alone. If a married man leads a promiscuous life he is not observing Brahmacharya. Even in thoughts and looks one should observe continence. Unconsciously or otherwise people tend to waste their energies. All these are lapses from Brahmacharya. Sense control is vital in practising continence. It is easier to conquer Indra (the Lord of gods) than to subdue the Indriyas (senses).

The fifth principle is Aparigraha. This means not accepting things from others. You have every right to receive gifts or other things from your parents. You are the product of your parents and hence you can accept from them whatever they give. Aparigraha has certain subtle implications. For instance, it is not proper to accept gifts even from one's uncles or in-laws or even from one's brothers. When any gifts are received from these relatives you have to requite them by equivalent presents.

Today the Aparigraha role is blatantly violated. For instance, in India, boys receive dowries at the time of marriage. This is very wrong. It even amounts to a sin. A girl who has been brought up well is offered to a young man in marriage. That itself is a great gift. Why should one ask for money along with the bride? The parents of the girl may give her whatever they choose. But the bridegroom should not expect or accept anything. This is the attitude one should have towards gifts from others.

Gifts can be accepted from parents, the preceptor and God. These are the exceptions to the rule of Aparigraha. From these four, you can receive anything. But even from the parents you should not seek to get anything by compulsion or litigations. What is offered by the parents with love should be received with love.

These five life basic principles human values are the foundation for the Bala Vikas (organizational wing for children's development) - the great movement to restore dharma (righteousness) in the world. Young generation has to be led into good ways of living, into simplicity, humility and discipline. The ideal of the Bala Vikas is to raise a generation of boys and girls who have a clean and clear conscience. The actual syllabus is not so important as the creation of an atmosphere where noble habits and ideals can grow and fructify. Below are some Swami's directions for educare of young generation.

In the Bala Vikas classes must try to have students from various faiths. Bala Vikas teachers would not talk about differences between religions in the beginning; rather stress the obvious similarities. Tell to students stories from the scriptures of all religions so that they can realise that the saints and seers of all lands are equally great. Let the students realise that prayer is universal and that prayer in any language addressed to any name reaches the same God. Let them understand that God can be invoked through a picture or an idol to fulfil human's sincere desire, provided it is helpful to others as well as to oneself.

Certainly there are problems of all sorts. Teachers would solve them with discrimination and deep love. Meet these problems with a desire to serve the students better and they will be overcome easily. Love can bind all students together for they have not yet learned to hate. Love can, similarly, unite all humanity, provided human is cured of greed, envy, desire, and attachment.

Realise that the Bala Vikas is devised not merely for the education of the students but also of the teachers. The Bala Vikas chores are bound to elevate and sublimate the thoughts and emotions of the teachers far better than any other sadhana (spiritual discipline) can.

The home must feel the change in the student's behaviour. It may be advisable to gather the mothers of the students once a month, or even more frequently, and give them guidelines on their children care and on the higher ideals of family and social life.

Through pictorial story tellings students will reach easier to awareness that God is the echo of eternity, the flutter of the leaves, the whisper of people, the babble of children, the Gita of Om (Pranava) that is wafted everywhere. (But to recognise Him, saints have had to prescribe a thousand methods).

However, what does Gita mean? Literally the word means 'song.' Since God is Omnipresent, the Song of God, too, must be Omnipresent. Om is the Gita of God. Om is Universal, eternal, full of the essence of all spiritual significance. Om can have no birthday that human should celebrate, having itself arisen before time began.

Om is the sound caused by the vibrations of creation through the Emergent Will of the formless and attributeless and is referred to as Sabdhabrahman (divine transcendental sound). The Pranava (Om) recital is one form of spiritual effort. It is laid down at Prasanthi Nilayam that the early dawn recital of Om should be done twenty one times. The explanation to this is the following. We have the five karmendhriyas (senses of action) and the five jnanendhriyas (senses of perception); we have also pranas (the five vital energies or airs) to sustain us. Then we have the five koshas (sheaths), enclosing the Divine Spark that is the Reality. These total up to twenty. Hence the recitation of Om twenty one times purifies and clarifies all these twenty components and makes human the twenty-first entity, ready for the final merger with Reality.

You can have this Pranava sadhana (practice of the transcendental sound) by watching the breath as it goes in and out, and listening in silence to the Soham ('so' - the 'silent' sound audible when the breath goes in and, 'ham' -the 'silent' sound audible when it goes out).

Do not worry about the past, its mistakes and its failures. Do not follow the whims and fancies of the mind any longer. Follow the call of the Divine arising from the hearts of all living beings. Serve them in an attitude of worship, not expecting something in return. Do not accept even gratitude, having dedicated all your acts to the
indwelling God. This will purify you so that you shall be able to listen to the Soham that your breath repeats every moment. Soham transmutes itself into Om when the distinction between He and I has dissolved in the process of samadhi.

The forest fire can reduce to ashes the greenest of trees, for its heat is beyond calculation. So too the Divine in the Incarnation is inexplicable, incredible, impenetrable. It is the Fire of Love plus the Fire of Enlightenment, the Fire of Cosmic Creation as well as the Fire of Cosmic Destruction.

All things in creation are subject to the law of change and human too is subject to his law. In this world which is impermanent and ever transforming, the Immanent Power of the Lord is the only permanent and fixed entity. In order to realise the eternal and the true, one has perforce to attach oneself to that Source and Sustenance. There is no escape from this path. It is the destiny of one and all, irrespective of age or scholarship, clime or caste, sex or status.

Human should use the law for progress, and not for sliding lower in the scale. Dharma (righteousness) is the norm, which human must adhere to, so that changes from good to better and from better to the best.

This Atma vichara is best found in the Upanishads. Just as a river's flow is regulated by bunds and the flood waters are directed to the sea, so too the Upanishads regulate and restrict the senses, the mind and the intellect and help one to reach the sea and merge individuality in the Absolute. Study the Upanishads with a view to act accordingly, to put the advice into practice.

You need not even read the Gita or the Upanishads. You will hear a Gita specially designed for you if you call upon the Lord in your own heart. He is there, installed as your own charioteer. Ask Him and He will answer. Have the Form of the Lord before you when you sit quietly in a place for meditation and have His Name, that is, any Divine Name when you do japam (repetition of holy name). Do not be under the impression that Swami will be angry with you if you do not accept His as the dhyana Ruupam (Form for meditation). You have perfect freedom to select the Name and Form that give you necessary encouragement.

If you do japam, without that picture or form before you, who is to give the answer? The Ruupam (Form) will hear and the Ruupam will respond. The imaginary picture you have drawn will get transmuted into the emotional picture, dear to the heart and fixed in the memory.

(Japam and dhyanam are means by which you can compel even the concretisation of the Divine Grace, in the Form and with the Name you yearn for. The Lord has to assume the Form you choose, the Name you fancy; in fact, you shape Him so). But Krishna in the Gita declared against the worship of low forces. He said, "Fill your mind with Me, be devoted to Me, renounce for My sake, surrender to Me." Do not have low desires and seek low deities that cater to the fulfilment of these. Yearn for the highest wisdom, the highest Bliss, the highest Power, the Atma. Yearn for nothing less than the highest; pray to the Sovereign Giver.

This sadhana (spiritual practice) is called japa sahitha dhyana (meditation on the Lord's Name and Form); it is the best for beginners.

The first step in sadhana is the adherence to Dharma (righteousness) in every individual and social act. The Dharma which is followed in relation to Prakrithi (objective world) will automatically lead on to Dharma in the spiritual field also; only you must stick to it through thick and thin.

The greatest obstacle on the path of spiritual practice is egoism and possessiveness. It is something that has been inhering to your personality since ages, sending its tentacles deeper and deeper with the experience of every succeeding life.

First, when you sit for meditation, recite a few shlokas on the glow of God, so that the thoughts that are scattered could be collected. Then gradually, while doing japam, draw before the mind's eye the Form which that Name represents. When your mind wanders away from the recital of the Name, take it on to the picture of the Form. When it wanders away from the picture, lead it on to the Name. Let it dwell either on that sweetness or this. Treated thus it can be easily tamed.

Of course, it is only at the end of a long and systematic process of sadhana that you will get fixed in the truth; until then, you are apt to identify yourself with this body and forget that the body which casts a shadow is itself a shadow. (The slow and the steady will surely win this race; walking is the safest method of travel, though it may be condemned as slow. Quicker means of travel mean disaster; the quicker the means, the greater the risk of disaster). So proceed step by step in sadhana; making sure of one step before you take another. Do not slide back two paces when you go one pace forward. But even the first step will be unsteady, if you have no faith.

Be careful always about your physical health. Otherwise, your head might reel and your eyes might get blurred through sheer exhaustion; how can thoughts of the Lord be stabilised in a weak frame? Only, do not forget the purpose of this body when you are tending it. Remember that you have come embodied, so that you might realise the end of this cycle of birth and death. For that sake, use the body as an instrument.

If the body is afflicted with disease, you point the finger to the person for wrong eating habits, evil habits, evil company, damaging types of recreation, etc. If the mind of person is agitated and heavy, with sadness and anxiety, you have to blame the person for neglecting the ways that can ensure peace and perpetual calm. The question must be asked, of everyone who is caring for the body; "For what purpose are you caring for this body? What is it that you hope to achieve?" The body is the sheath, the scabbard for the sword, the Jivi, the "I" that is within it, but not of it. The purpose of the scabbard is to discover the Unity of the Universe. You feel you are One though you are an Organisation of many limbs and instruments of knowledge, hands, feet, head, muscle, nerve, eye, tongue, teeth, etc. So also, the Universe is but One, though you may be able to distinguish stars and planets, rock, tree and bird and birch, ant and antler in it.

Flying hither and thither, higher and higher, the bird has at last to perch on a tree for rest. So too, even the richest and the most powerful person seeks rest, shanthi. Peace can be got only in one shop, in inner reality. The senses will drag you along into a mire, which submerges you deeper and deeper in alternate joy and grief, that is to say, prolonged discontent. Only the contemplation of unity can remove fear, rivalry, envy, greed, desire... Every other avenue can give only pseudo contentment; a day will come when you will throw away all these play-things and toys and cry, "Lord! grant Me unruffled peace." The confirmed atheist too has one day to pray for peace and rest.

There is no use arguing and quarrelling among yourselves; examine, experience; then you will know the truth. Do not proclaim before you are convinced; be silent while you are still undecided or engaged in evaluating. Of course, you must discard all evil in you before you can attempt to evaluate the mystery. And, when faith dawns, fence it around with discipline and self-control, so that the tender shoot might be guarded against the goats and cattle, the motley crowd of cynics and unbelievers. When your faith grows into a big tree, those very cattle can lie down in the shade that it will spread.

Kranthi (change) and Shanthi (peace) both reside in the heart. Discover them within you and dedicating all your actions to God. Genuineness consists in being true to the deepest core. That is to say, you can rely on human's behaviour being always true; one will speak out only what one feels to be sincere; one will act according to one's words; one's thought, word and action will be consistent and complementary. If in any one case, this concordance is absent, then, the person is a human only in outer form.

When you feel you cannot do good, at least desist from doing evil. That itself is meritorious service. Do not try to discover differences; discover unity. The Spark of Life, the Jivi (individual being) in each is the same.

What exactly is the cause of all sorrow and grief? It is the attachment to the body that produces grief as well as its immediate precursors: affection and hate. These two are the results of the intellect considering some things and conditions as beneficial, and some other things and conditions as harmful. But, from the highest point of view, there is neither. To see two where there is only one, that is delusion or ignorance.

From the other point of view God is the goal of every prayer, in whatever language or dialect it is spoken. You may see people kneeling or prostrating, with folded palms or arms extended, in church or mosque or temple but they are all asking for help, succour, strength, wisdom, security or happiness from the inexhaustible reservoir of happiness, wisdom and power, God. But, people in their pettiness, do not recognise the basic truth, they pride themselves on their holiness and disparage the others, as having gone astray. They do not have mental peace themselves, nor do they allow others to live in peace. Such is the stupidity of the fanatics.

Human does not delve deep into the significance of all that happens around him. Siddhartha, who became the Buddha, had that urge to know and inquire.

"The many-voiced song of the river echoed softly. Siddhartha looked into the river and saw many pictures in the flowing water. The river's voice was sorrowful. It sang with yearning and sadness, flowing towards its goal. Siddhartha was now listening intently to this song of a thousand voices. The great song of a thousand voices consisted of one word: Om - perfection... From that hour Siddhartha ceased to fight against his destiny. " (By Hermann Hesse, "Siddhartha," 1951). Faith in God is to be translated into action. It is an imperative act of worship to discharge faithfully all one's duties and responsibilities.

Human being is a lover of the beautiful. He/she rejoices at the sight of good food. It may be asked whether this joy, which human experiences is related solely to physical things or has it an inner spiritual basis? It is not the body that experiences joy. It is the Atma (the indwelling Spirit).

Do not forget that your freedom is restricted by the freedoms you have to grant to other members of the society in which you live and thrive. Your station in life, your position of authority, your account, your kinship with others, your status as father or son, husband or wife, master or servant, teacher or pupil, each has its own Swadharma (individual morality and duty) - both of duties and responsibilities. Bharath's Culture has emphasised this in every scripture and every epic.

However, if there was no other person, you have no duties at all. Duty arises when you have another person to deal with. You have a duty so far as the other person is concerned and has the responsibility to see that he/she deserves that duty which you feel bound to fulfil towards that person.

Duty must be deserved by the other; it must be done with skill and sincerity and love. This is easy if you feel that your duty is part of your worship, that you are offering it to Swami, the pinpointer of Atmic Reality in the other person.

Swami declares that the precious message of the Vedas is being forgotten: usually human is busy with so many trivialities that has ignored the essential purpose of own sojourn here. Humanity, is struggling in despair, to squeeze a little joy out of the objective world which is subject to change and chaos.

Human is the most valuable being in the Universe. Human is also the creator of all values. There is nothing that human cannot achieve, but before attempting anything one must recognise own powers, role and purpose in life. There is a mystery, search for the secret, and unravel it for yourself.

In our daily experiences, there are a number of instances which reveal the existence of Divinity in every person. Consider a cinema; on the screen we see rivers in flood, engulfing all the surrounding land. Even though the scene is filled with flood waters the screen does not get wet by even a drop of water. The screen which provides the basis for all these pictures is not affected by any of them. Likewise in the life of human, good or bad, joy or sorrow, birth or death, will be coming and going, but they do not affect the Atma. In the cinema of life, the screen is the Atma.

The entire phenomenal world is made up of Easwara, Supreme God, identical to Atma - the primal source and ultimate goal of all beings and objects. This has also been described as Sathaamaatra Chaitanya (Pure Consciousness). This principle of Chaitanya cannot be directly seen; it exists unseen. It is eternal, it is permanent, it is all-pervasive.

This is the very embodiment of Easwara itself that permeates and fills this world. For this principle of Easwara there are two aspects. One is Saguna (attributeful) and Sakara (formful) and the other is Nirguna (attributeless) and Nirakara (formless).

Associated with the mind and thoughts, and responding to the joys and sorrows, the pain and sufferings of human beings, various forms of Divinity have been visualized. These are the Saguna and Sakara aspects of Easwara. In this context we have the Trinity - Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. These are associated with the three gunas or attributes - rajas, satva and tamas. Rajas is associated with Brahma, satva with Vishnu and tamas with Shiva. The rajasic attribute, associated with Brahma, is represented by the sound 'A'. The sound 'U' is the manifested form of Vishnu. And 'M' is the form of the Shiva principle. These three forms, composing the Trinity, are not permanent as they have taken form.

In the worship of the Divine the Trinity exist in each individual as auspicious witnesses. But there is one syllable consisting of 'A', 'U' and 'M', which is the One underlying all the three forms; that is the Omkara. It is an expression of the Nirguna Akara the attributeless Divine Principle. (About gunas and 'Om' has been described in previous serial's "Swami teaches... " However, here is another angle concern to Saguna and Nirguna aspects).

Whatever number of births we may take and however long we may go on worshipping these three forms, we will never be able to free ourselves from the cycle of birth and death. If one wants to get rid of birth forever, one has to worship the Nirguna Nirakara, the formless and attributeless principle, which is represented by the Omkara. This may also be described as Paramatma, the transcendent principle within us. As long as we have the mind and the tendencies, we can only be described as Jivatma. The One appears to the split vision as two. Look outward, it is Jivi. Look inward, it is God. The outer vision makes you forget; the inner makes you remember. (If the mind is turned towards God and freed from the thought process, it tends to merge with the Nirguna Nirakara and thus become liberated).

Jivatma and Paramatma are not two different entities. The characteristic of Jivatma is to waste the entire life in worldly things and associate the mind with this phenomenal world. This is the externalised vision, which is full of illusion and delusion. If you turn your mind inwards, it will be free from delusion. When it is free from delusion and illusion, then it is one with the principle of Paramatma.

The attributeless Divine assumes certain qualities as Its nature and becomes Saguna. The individual thus formed seeks to know and experience the variety of names and forms that are exposed to Its senses of perception and its mind. This is, in short, the process of living, the project of "knowing", of expanding one's awareness. The process has a beginning and an end, it involves success and failure, good and evil.

The Jivi is the Divine Consciousness, installed in a chariot. It is not a bundle of inert stuff moulded into a form and labelled with a name. There is only One all-pervading Consciousness but human experiences It in fragments and, mistaking It as many, human gropes in the confusion caused by own ignorance.

Many scriptures instruct people the truth that God dwells in the body along with the Jivi, God inducing individual to aspire for the heights and the self advising him/her to be content with the low. The Jivi has faith in the reality of the world and of itself. The Divine principle, on the other hand, asserts that It is present, both close to human as well as far from him. The fact is, people feel It is far, because they are not aware of Its being near, nay, in their own hearts. The truth that the scriptures teach is, that God is everywhere, near and far, above and below, inside and outside.

In order to awaken to this truth, one has to attain higher four levels of wakefulness. Vedanta reveals four categories of wakefulness: the fully awake, the wakefulness of mind only - as while dreaming, the wakefulness of the self alone - as in deep sleep, and the illumination of the self awakening into the Over-self. These are named Sthoola Sookshma, Kaarana and Maha Kaarana (The Gross, the Subtle, the Causal and the Super-cause).

The awareness that survives these three passing stages (the Gross, the Subtle, the Causal) is the Maha Kaarana, the Super conscious. The Super or Supreme Consciousness is the Thought that became all this - the Hiranyagarbha the Golden Womb, the primal urge, the first concretisation, Easwara. When Being "thought," it became the Many, or rather, it put on the appearance of Many. The Maha Kaarana, is beyond Consciousness; the Sthoola, Sookshma and the Kaarana bodies into which it proliferated are beneath Consciousness. The former is true knowledge (eruka in Telugu). The latter is illusory experience (marupu in Telugu). God is the Lord of eruka, the Jivi is the slave of marupu (forgetting).

The Maha Kaarana i.e. the Cosmic Consciousness, is often denoted as "Param" (beyond) in Vedanta; since the concept is obviously contentless, it does not arise and fade; nor does it originate and disappear. It has no name and form, for it cannot be defined or limited or identified as separate. It is understood as Brahman - the unmoving, immovable Totality (Poorna), the Eternal, the True, the Pure, the Attributeless. Just as the unmoving road enables the car to move along it, the Brahma principle is the basis for the existence and activities of Jivi.

The Vedas have three sections Karma, Upasana and Jnana. Karma is the section dealing with the activities that strengthen and purify faith and devotion; Upasana is the section dealing with worship of the personal God, the dedication of all acts to the Highest, the Inner Witness, the surrender of all skills and experiences unto the Immanent Power - these two endow human with one-pointedness. As a result of these two, consciousness is able to recognize in a flash jnana (knowledge) as the fact of its being Divinity itself.

The Bhagavata and the Gita have made clear that our destination is the source from which we came. As long as the individual is caught up in the Prakrithi (phenomenal world), the mind will be unsteady and vacillating. As long as there is life in the body it is Shivam (sacred). Once life goes out, it is nothing. The Vedhic declaration, "So-ham" ("He is I") is demonstrated by the inhaling done during breathing. "So-ham" proclaims the identity of the individual and the Divine ('I am He'). This identity will not be understood as long as one is caught up in the tentacles of the material world.

Water flows from a higher, level to the lower levels. God's Grace too is like that. It flows down to those who are bent with humility. How can human be truly at peace without the Grace of God? While trying to get the best out of Nature's Gifts, you must first be equipped with humility and simplicity; otherwise, you will only be dragged through many unfulfilled desires.

There are no short-cuts in the spiritual field. Bhakthi (reverent adoration, devotion) is even more difficult than jnana (spiritual knowledge, wisdom); for, to get the attitude of "Thou" not "I" one has to surrender completely to the Higher Power, personified as the Lord. The ego has to be fully curbed. Erase sensual desire; clear the heart of all blemish; then, the Divine will be reflected therein as in a mirror). The effulgent Sun can be seen only with own light. Similarly, only by the Grace of the Divine can one obtain a vision of the Divine. Sadhana (spiritual discipline) is the royal road to reach the Divine.

The clearness of vision of the Divine also depend on the consequences of acts done in previous births which cannot be easily brushed away; no, they can be destroyed, as a heap of cotton is burnt by a spark of fire. The spark of jnana or bhakthi will destroy the effect of karma, in a trice.

These consequences are like the cloud of dust that follows a bus, when it runs on a fair-weather road; when the bus reaches the gravel road or the metalled road, the dust is less, but it is still there. When at last it enters the tarred road there is no dust. The mud track is karma; the metalled road is upasana (worshiping, devotion for God) ; the tarred dust-free road is jnana. By human skill and effort it is possible to reduce the burden of past karma. But, why it is so difficult to practice?

One reason is that the tongue is the armour of the heart; it guards one's life. Loud talk, long talk, wild talk, talk full of anger and hate - all these affect the human's health. They breed anger and hate in others; they wound, they excite, they enrage, they estrange. Why is silence said to be golden? The silent human has no enemies, though he/she may not have friends. The silent human has the leisure and the chance to dive within and examine own faults and failings. If your foot slips, you earn a fracture; if your tongue slips, you fracture some one's faith or joy. That fracture can never be set right; that wound will fester for ever.

Life is like a tangled skein of yarn. The more you try to unravel it, the more tangled it becomes. Life is like a tank infested with crocodiles. It is difficult to cross it avoiding the crocodiles. But it has to be done. Life is like a block of ice that is continually melting away. Before it melts completely, the truth has to be realised.

The world is one vast Society. Every individual in it is part of this Society, bound to it by the love that draws human to human, to be kith and kin. This love is there, deep in the heart of human. It is the secret source of all sympathy, and service; it creates the urge to live in and for society.

Father might be sitting at a table, before his plate on which dinner has been served; if some one rushes in to tell him that his child has been injured in an accident on the road, he runs out of the room and on to the road, without caring for the hunger and the plate. The call of the one he is attached to is louder and stronger than any call from within.

The family is essential for the blossoming of human personality; how can the helpless baby grow and learn, talk and move forward without the home? The home needs the community around it to keep it safe and happy. Even a bird in the bush cannot survive isolation from its kind.

Loyalty to society is essential for human. The individual's fulfilment, in the joy of liberation, is undoubtedly, the fruit of the tree of humanity. But, when you yearn for the fruit, you cannot neglect the roots, the trunk, the branches, the leaves, the buds and the blossoms of the tree; they all help the fruit to manifest and to be filled with sweetness. All are mutually interdependent. Human life can be truly understood in the context of harmony and co-operation.

The individual born in the lake of society must swim and float in the calm waters, and joining the river of progress, merge in the Ocean of Grace. Human has to move from the stance of "I" to the position of "We." By the other words our journey is from the individual to the universal from 'Swam' (mine) to 'So-ham' (oneness with God).