Sri Sathya Sai International Organization

There are three types of devotion. The bird method where, like a bird swooping down upon the ripe fruit on the tree, the devotee is too impatient and, by that very impatience, loses the fruit, which falls from their hold. The monkey method, where, like a monkey that pulls toward it one fruit after another and by sheer unsteadiness cannot decide which fruit it wants, the devotee hesitates, and changes aim much too often and thus loses all chances of success. The ant method, where like the ant that slowly but steadily proceeds toward the sweetness, the devotee moves directly, with undivided attention, toward the Lord and wins God’s grace!

Calamity, danger, and death cannot be avoided for all time; they are inevitable factors of life, and you must learn to live bravely with them. This can be accomplished only by uninterrupted prayer and not by spurts of worship caused by sudden fear. Purify your hearts and your thoughts, feelings, emotions, and speech; strengthen your nobler impulses.

Only when you are blessed with the grace of the Lord, which is earned by righteousness (dharma), can you have peace (shanti). A fish can have peace only when it has water above and below and on all sides; so, too, you must have God’s grace all around you. There is no shortcut to this grace and remembering the Lord’s name (namasmarana) is the safest route.

Immerse your mind in good thoughts, and the world will be good for you; soak it in bad thoughts, and the world will be bad for you. So, recollect only good, think, plan, and do only good, speak and act only good. Then, as a result, you will emulate God, the source of all good.

The earliest finding of the seekers was that the Sun was the most important factor in determining the daily lives of people and providing the basic requirements for living. Life would be impossible without the Sun for humans, beasts, birds, or plants. The Sun was regarded as the source of all energy and responsible for the birth, growth, and destruction of all things in creation. It was for this reason that sage Vishwamitra glorified the Sun God (Savitr) in the Gayatri mantra.

When we always fix our thoughts on the evil that others do, our mind gets polluted by the evil. When, on the contrary, we focus on the virtues or well-being of others, our mind is cleansed of wrong and entertains only good thoughts.

Delusion (maya) binds and limits you; all spiritual exercise is to conquer delusion. A bit of iron will sink in water, but if beaten and made hollow, it will float. So beat the mind and make it hollow. Then, it will float on the sea of worldly life. Above all, have discrimination, and do not be led into taking any false step.

Everyone should try to understand the highest human ideals the Avatars represent and consider how far we live up to those ideals. Real worship consists of practicing the ideals to the greatest extent possible.

This is a sacred Shivaratri, an auspicious night. From now onwards, there should not be any inauspicious feelings entering the heart. Contemplate on the auspiciousness of this sacred Shivaratri day and strive to merge in the embodiment of auspiciousness. On this day, I shall pardon all your knowingly or unknowingly made mistakes. With immense bliss, I confer grace on you so that you may sanctify your hearts.

If you want to realize God, you must be immersed in bliss. To experience bliss, you have to follow the truth. To pursue truth, you have to instill peace in your heart. To achieve peace, you have to cultivate love. It is the confidence that begets love.

The Upanishads declare God is beyond the reach of mind and speech (avang-manasa gocharaha). Devote yourselves to contemplating the glories of God on this sacred night and sanctify your lives by turning your thoughts away from mundane concerns.

The manifestation of divinity transcends the bounds of time, space, and circumstance. Hence, the first requisite is the cultivation of faith. One who has no faith can accomplish nothing. With faith, one can achieve everything.

You should always undertake service activities with a pure mind. Unity brings purity, and purity, in turn, leads to divinity. Therefore, always remember the inseparable relationship between unity, purity, and divinity and strive to achieve that. You may come together and work together in the spirit of sacrifice.

God is the embodiment of love. He is completely selfless. Those who follow Him should be selfless, too. When your hearts are filled with divine love, you will be able to pursue oneness in the whole creation. When this unity pervades our hearts, there would be no scope for hatred toward others. This eternal love will get established in our hearts with the experience of unity of all existence. Therefore, those who follow the divine and inculcate divine love are truly fortunate.