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FROM
SHRI C.B. SATPATHY'S MESSAGE
……“We
worship our Sadguru Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi because, even
after leaving His human form this great divine soul continues
to give us some kind of divine experience and bliss. He came
only to give and not to take. If we closely study the life
history of Shri Shirdi Sai Baba during his stay at Shirdi
for nearly sixty years it will become evident that he continues
to give the benefits to His devotees just as he used to do
when in Shirdi in a physical form. Devotees of Baba when constructing
temples or doing any work in his cause or name should not
be proud of their doer¬ship as the faith and strength
to carry on such activities are given by Baba only. The relation
of the Sadguru with His devotees is not limited to one life
but spreads over a number of lives. When a human being gets
attracted towards the Sadguru, one thing is sure that he must
have accumulated lots of merits in his previous lives. The
most important role of the Sadguru lies in his great vision
to change the whole world into a family on this earth. Experience
has shown that those people who render maximum possible help
to others and who have created Sai organizations, are the
best recipients of Baba's blessings, if they have done so
without seeking any returns.
Shri Das
Guru Maharaj spread the name of Shri Sai all over India, Kaka
Saheb Dixit contributed his best in forming the Shirdi Sai
Baba Sansthan as it is known today and brought harmony among
people through the Sai Leela magazine, which he started. Shyama
used to take part in functions arranged by many organizations/individuals
on behalf of Baba, Mhalsapati and Tatya Kote Patel rendered
immense service to Baba being with Him always, and Shri Anna
Saheb Dabholkar, spread the name of Baba throughout the globe
through his magnificent creation called “Shri Sai Satcharitra”.
The Sai devotees take the names of these people today, notwithstanding
the fact that some of them did not have any formal education
or degree. But those unfortunate souls who even when working
in Baba's temple and getting the blessings of Baba are not
able to clear the mental cobwebs of negative thinking surely
create differences among the devotees and disturb the pious
vibrations in the temples. Some of them are more demonstrative
in their Bhakti to impress others while nourishing ill feelings
towards them. They will get inner happiness only if they correctly
follow the path of Baba as reflected in “Shri Sai Satcharitra”.
I may
advise that people should focus their thoughts on Baba and
His sayings as depicted in “Shri Sai Satcharitra” instead
of running around here and there in search of God or for the
evolution of their soul. Under all conditions of happiness
and unhappiness they should always remember and depend on
Baba as advised by Him. If they continue to do so with faith
and concentration, slowly the deeper inner knowledge about
Baba will be revealed and they will receive the divine experiences.
Only then their contribution to the human welfare will be
distinctive and others will learn from them. A candle will
light many other candles.”…….
FROM
"LIFE OF SAI BABA" BY NARASIMHA SWAMI
NAMASMARANA
……“Naamno
asti yaavati scaktih paapa nirharane hareh
Taavat kartum nascaknoti paatakam paataki janah
This means,
"No sinner can commit so many or so heinous sins as to
make it impossible for God’s name to redeem him." It
is folly and ignorance of a highly self-destructive sort on
the part of a sinner to limit the power of God to redeem him.
Hence neither Sai nor Chaitanya despaired of redeeming desperate
characters. Just as Chaitanya drew Madho and Jagai from the
depths of an almost bottomless pit to the heights of saintliness,
so Baba has done in the case of Das Ganu.
The words
used in the first stanza above quoted show the power of God’s
name. It is just as well to point out that practically God's
name and God are not different. The name has a power because
it is God’s name. If it is the name of the devil or any other
person, it would not have such power. But the name is so closely
intertwined with the object that even philosophers confound
the two. There is a school of nominalist philosophers who
say that everything is only name and that there is nothing
beyond. Commonsense rebels against this view and most people
join the conceptualist or realist school saying that objects
exist apart from names and we have a conception of an object
to which name is applied as a handle. No doubt the cleverness
of songsters and poets makes them attach undue importance
to the bare fact of the name as in the following stanza:
Ninyaako
ranga ninhang yako
Nee naama bala ondu iddare sako
This
means, ‘O, Ranga (or God), what is the use of your prowess
or anything else except your name? The power of your name
is sufficient’. The songster begins to instance the cases
of Draupadi, Gajendra, Ajamila, etc., to prove that the name
was sufficient in all these cases to save them and that God
himself was not wanted for the purpose of saving. This is
obviously absurd in the case of Draupadi and Gajendra where
God himself took action or appeared and saved the devotees.
Only in the case of Ajamila, there is some degree of justification
for the poetic flair, and perhaps some basis for it in the
Bhagavata stanza which runs as follows:
Etavata
alam agha nirharanaya pumsam
sankritanam bhagavato gunakarma namnam
Aakruscya putram aghavan yat Ajamilo api
Naarayana iti Mriyamanaiyaya muktim.
This means.
‘To wipe off sins of men, it is enough if they go on with
sankirtanam, that is, good singing or recital of God's gunas,
(qualities), karma (deeds), and nama (names). (For example)
Ajamila, though a great sinner, by barely calling out the
name of his child Narayana at the moment of death obtained
mukti. This seems a basis for saying that the bare utterance
of God’s name, even though the utterance was only of the name
of the child bearing God’s name, at the moment of death, would
have the effect of saving a man.”……
ARTICLE
THE
MAGIC OF SURRENDER
During
the course of life each one of us passes through phases of
joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain, victory and defeat, and
ups and downs of various kinds. While most of us get agitated
by the so-called negative phases, an enlightened man lives
in wisdom. He is not agitated by grief nor does he hanker
after pleasure. Such a man lives free from lust, fear and
anger.
Most of
us manage to get what we want, but we are always greedy for
more. As Mahatma Gandhi once said - this planet has enough
for every one's need but not enough for a single person's
greed. In our desire for money, name, fame, power, possession
and riches, we become manipulative and vicious as we try to
keep others away from what we have obtained.
When we
keep thinking about sense objects, attachment comes. This
attachment breeds desire and the lust for possessions, which
when thwarted, burns and becomes anger. Anger clouds the judgement
and we make mistakes. We can no longer learn from past mistakes.
As a result of this we lose the power to choose between wise
and unwise and under such circumstances we make no progress
on the spiritual path. Life becomes an utter waste.
The mind
is without doubt unsteady and difficult to curb. But it can
be controlled through practice. When we surrender completely
at our Sadguru’s feet we are in a state of yoga. Yoga is difficult
unless the mind is under control and is ceaselessly striving.
This can be attained through practice.
If we
cannot meditate we cannot be at peace. When we know no peace
how can we have joy? When we let our mind heed the call of
senses they will carry away our judgement as a storm drives
a boat away from its safe chartered course to certain doom.
We must use all our powers to set the senses free from attachment
and aversion alike and live in the full wisdom of self.
A drop
of water on a hot plate takes a little time to disappear.
It makes some noise and evaporates. Gratitude in our life
seems to disappear even faster. We seem to forget how much
we have grown, how much we have received. The mind seeks more
and more. And in every wanting of more and more, it forgets
the past very easily. So today we cannot say that no one is
grateful. Everyone is grateful but for the moment and then
it is over. But GRACE is that gratitude which remains all
the time. It is like the snow in the Himalayas that always
stays.
Lord Shri
Krishna in Shrimad Bhagwat Gita describes to Arjuna the behaviour
of an enlightened man. Such a man is not fettered by selfish
attachments, he is not elated by good fortune or depressed
by bad. Such a man is a seer. He is like a tortoise who draws
in his limbs at will. An illumined man too draws his senses
within at will. He can go and live anywhere even in the midst
of any agitation. When the situation is serious he just says
"withdraw" and the gates of the senses are closed.
That man is unshaken and firmly established in Sadguru's feet.
Gradually on the path of bhakti, the Sadguru helps the aspirant
to quiet the senses and the mind.
When we
take up yoga and wish to concentrate on the divine, the ordinary
motives of the vital being are replaced by the spiritual motive,
which then enables the sadhak to work with the same force
as before, no longer for himself but for the divine. Initially
there may be difficulties but then the divine power starts
working through him and uses his capacity and vital force
for its ends.
So we
must learn to be the instrument and accept Him as the master.
Accept yourself as a divine instrument and obey absolutely.
There is no greater pride and glory than to be a perfect instrument
of the master. Meditate on Sadguru’s feet for He will take
us across the cycle of birth and death. This will deepen our
meditation, which will release more and more energy with which
we can help others. It will automatically impart us the supreme
knowledge, which is nothing but the knowledge of the Self.
It will direct us to perform selfless actions.
So there
are many paths to reach the supreme and Lord Sri Krishna has
described many such paths; but he also says that dearest to
me are those who seek me in faith and love as life's eternal
goal. They meditate on thy feet and go beyond death to immortality.
Anuradha
Mal, Gurgaon
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articles poems etc.
POEM
DEVOTION
The power
of Karma,
The soul, which is Dharma,
The knowledge of the omniscient,
Is sufficient to dispel your ignorance,
And entice your mind towards wisdom and devotion,
Devotion, which flows like Ganges,
When there is overwhelming emotion.
The Ganges purifies your thoughts and soul
And you enter the world of devotion.
A world, which is a test of your temptation and determination,
A world where Maya (illusion) lures you,
To forsake your path of righteousness,
It’s a world where only your faith and belief in your Sadguru,
Helps you to steer away from the course of embracing Maya.
The fruit relished in this world is self-realization,
Which may ultimately lead to HIS realization.
Nitesh
Shrivastava
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articles poems etc.
TOPIC
OF DISCUSSION
DENOUNCING
MAYA - NECESSARY OR NOT
"Though
I have become a Fakir, have no house or wife, and though leaving
off all cares, I have stayed at one place, the inevitable
Maya teases Me often. Though I forgot Myself I cannot forget
Her. She always envelops Me. This Maya (illusive power) of
the Lord (Shri Hari) teases God Brahma and others; then what
to speak of a poor Fakir like Me? Those who take refuge in
the Lord will be freed from Her clutches with his grace".
Baba – Chapter 13, Sai Satcharita.
“Maya”,
materialism and family is considered to be a hindrance in
the path of spiritualism, or is it really? Let us consider
the evil called Maya in light of Baba’s teachings to us through
Satcharita. From Satcharita we gather that people initially
started going to Baba for fulfillment of their personal needs,
such as begetting a child, to solve their financial problems,
increase social status, and performing marriage of children,
win court cases and relief from health problems. Baba never
shunned any of such devotees, in fact He encouraged them to
come to Him and He gladly helped them achieve their materialistic
needs. Sounds dubious? Well consider why Baba said He never
wanted His devotees to fast. A hungry person cannot think
of God. Only when the hunger is appeased then a person can
concentrate on other aspects in life. In the same way, man
is born with a purpose in life; he is endowed with responsibilities
towards his family and community. If a person cannot meet
his basic needs in life and keep his family clothed and fed
and live comfortably, such a man will always be burdened with
life’s problems and will not focus on anything other than
ways and means to get money to fulfill his family’s daily
requirements. In order to fulfill the responsibilities man
has to work and earn money and keep his family happy. How
can a person who keeps away from money and materialism keep
his family happy?
Money
materialism and family is not bad, but is essential to fulfill
our Dharma, but the strong attachment to these things makes
a person get overtaken by the 6 vicious qualities - greed,
anger, lust, desire, envy, and egotism. When a man is centered
only on money and cannot think of anything else in life other
than himself, his status in the society, and endless satisfaction
of his desires, then he is said to be enticed with the seductress
called Maya. Such a person is blinded by the materialism and
money and may not respect or love his parents, god or elders.
No amount of money or status can make such people happy. Their
world revolves only around money and such people are easy
targets to be overtaken by Maya.
Money
should be used for executing responsibilities or dharma. Take
Baba for example, He collected lots of money, but at the end
of the day He was same poor fakir as He distributed money
to the people of Shirdi who had responsibilities to fulfill.
The Samadhi Mandir, Sathe’s Wada, Dixit Wade are constructed
by devotees who were financially well off and staunch devotees
of Baba. If it were not for them we would not have had the
privilege to visit Shirdi and relive the beautiful days as
described in Satcharita. These devotees, Buty, Dixit and Sathe
were rich and influential people, but at the same time they
were humble and kind. They used their money for betterment
of the community after fulfilling their family obligations.
Another
thing to consider is that if Baba wanted people to leave off
their money, home and family why would He ask Sathe to remarry?
Why did He ask impatient Jog, who wanted to renounce everything
and be with Him, to wait, as a time would come when Jog would
be free and then he can devote his time to Baba? Baba knew
Jog’s wife would predecease him and after Jog’s responsibilities
were fulfilled then Baba advised him to turn towards spirituality.
Shri Satpathyji in his book ‘May I Answer’ also mentions that
spiritual progress is faster for a man who despite being entangled
in the mundane world and fulfilling his responsibilities towards
family, work and society focuses his thoughts towards God.
From the
above discussion what I gathered is that Money, Materialism
and family itself is not bad, but it is our attachment towards
them that creates shackles. We can keep Maya at bay when we
are not always focused on materialistic wants but consider
it as essential for well being and fulfilling our family and
community related duties. And know that God will fulfill our
wants and He gives us as much as we can handle and need in
our life. One should not be selfish and only look after the
needs of his own family, but if there is scope then help others,
share things to ease our neighbour’s pain and help him to
be happy. Let us focus our thoughts on god who will help us
denounce the strong attachment for our surroundings and will
keep our coffers filled such that we can lead a comfortable
life and fulfill our responsibilities, while progressing spiritually
as well.
Sairam
Anitha
Kandukuri,Australia
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your views on Topic of Discussion- Sai's Message to the
Children
DEVOTEES'
FORUM
Life is
an imagination and body is an image, millions are awake for
actions, but one in a million for effective intellectual exertion
only one in hundreds of millions to a divine life. Shirdi
Sai can be counted as one in billions who is a great dispeller
of darkness.
Mind is
slave to the body. We worship the body. Finally the body wears
away. At that time we realise the power of mind. The journey
was to discover the self, but we have been cheating ourselves
and cheating others, glorifying the self called ego. The death
of ego is the birth of divinity. It has no beginning, no end.
It is eternal. In our finite body the eternity hid, and mind
limited itself to mind body nexus of limited consciousness.
We searched the mountains, sea, everywhere, in search of the
divine. But where was divine? In the cave shaped heart. The
heart is the reality, mind is transience phase, cosmic consciousness
is the quest. Shirdi Sai the blessed had realised and made
devotees know that he was one in many and many in one, the
Best.
Jagannathan
Padmanabhan, USA
Please
forgive me for not trusting you. I always felt that you never
answered my prayers and never helped me or guided me in my
life. I was so wrong, I did not realise that you were always
with me, watching my every single move and choosing what is
best for me in life. The apology letter written to you by
Anitha Kandukuri, relates to me as well. I used to think the
same way she did, and after reading that letter I was ashamed
of myself. How could I not trust you Baba? Thank you for accepting
me as your devotee. Please continue to take care of my parents
as you know they need you the most now, and do not have anyone
to share their problems with. Please keep them happy and be
with them always. You are the only hope I have Baba.
Once again,
thank you for making me the person I am today.
Soumya
Sachin, Californaia
I feel
in today's life where everyone is struggling for power and
money Sai Satcharitra tells that we should be satisfied with
whatever we get. And that is God's wish. No matter how much
wealth we acquire we can't be satisfied unless we have internal
peace. It all depends on our internal mental condition. A
rich person can be dissatisfied and a servant can be joyful
and happy. We should be thankful to God every time every minute.
Real happiness is internal and that comes from Sai's Ashirwad...
Aarushi
Thakur, Toronto
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your feelings about Shirdi Sai in Devotees’ Forum
READER'S
REFLECTION
Thanking
you for sending me wonderful and peaceful messages at the
time I and my family are going through hard times. We wish
by the Grace of God Sai Baba to remove all the obstacles we
are at the moment experiencing. We are great devotees of God
Sai Baba and Sai Baba shall manifest in one form or the other
to help us.
Manfred,
Vimla and Meenakshi Kaiser
I am really
grateful to all those who made the magazine Heritage of Shirdi
Sai and the website www.heritageofshirdisai.org possible.
I have no words to express my feelings that arise when I read
the experiences of other devotees. Please do continue to share
such experiences with us as it guides us to lead a happy life
and reminds us to just think of our Great Baba at all times.
SAI RAM
Ashalatha
Raja Shekhar, Texas, USA
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Reader's Reflection
NEWS
OF SHIRDI SAI ACTIVITIES
SHIRDI
SAI BABA SANSTHAN, CANADA
Shirdi
Sai Baba Sansthan, Canada holds Satsang on Thursdays and third
Sunday of every month at Gur Mandir, 207 Queen’s Plate, Toronto
(Etobicoke). For other Details call 416-294-4804 or visit
http://www.shirdisainath.org/
THE
RESOURCE CENTRE
Shirdi
Sai Baba Sansthan, Canada is pleased to announce the establishment
of it's first Resource Centre in Woodbridge, Toronto. All
visits are by appointment only. Shri Sai Satcharita is available
in all languages. The Resource Centre is open Monday to Friday
between 10:00 am - 5:00 pm. Location: Maple Crest Private
School - 28 Roytech Rd. Woodbridge, On L4L 8E4 Ph: 905 - 652-6666.
For other Details call 416-294-4804 or visit http://www.shirdisainath.org/
SHIRDI
SAI MANDIR, TORONTO, CANADA
The Shirdi
Sai Mandir located at 2721 Markham Road, Toronto, Ontario,
M1X 1L5 (Intersection of Markham and Nashdene) is open through
out the day on Saturday, Sunday and holidays and in the morning
and evenings on all weekdays. Baba's Kakad Aarti, Abhishek
Puja, Madhyan Aarti, Dhoop Aarti, Satcharita Reading and Shej
Aarti are performed every day. Bhajans and Sai Naam Sankirtan
in the evening on Thursday and Saturday. For information regarding
the daily schedule, temple activities and events please visit
Mandir's website: http://www.theshirdisaimandir.com/
or send an email to info@theshirdisaimandir.com
or call 647-444-4724.
SHIRDI
SAI PARIVAR VANCOUVER
Shirdi
Sai parivar in Vancouver holds Satsang on Thursday (6.30-7.30pm)and
Sai abhishek and aarti first Sunday of every month at 8571,
118A St, Delta, V4C 6L2. For further details contact (604)
592 4182 or email, say.sai.sai@gmail.com.
SHRI
SHIRDI SAI SANSTHAN LOS ANGELES
By the
grace of our Shirdi Sai we are happy to announce the inauguration
of Shri Shirdi Sai Temple in LA region in the city of Montebello.
We need the support of all Sai Devotees. For more information
please email krishna@shirdisaila.org
SHIRDI
SAI CENTER, BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA
Location:
897-B E. Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale, CA - 94086
Daily
timings and activities:
Weekdays:
6:15 am – 7:40 am: Abhishekam and Kakad Arathi at 6:30 am
11.45 am – 12:30 pm: Madhyan Arathi at 12:00 pm
6:00 pm – 9:30 pm: Dhoop Arathi at 6:30 pm and Shej Arathi
at 8:30 pm
Weekends:
6:15 am – 7:40 am: Kakad Arathi at 6:30 am
11:00 am – 9:30 pm: Madhyan Arathi at 12:00 pm, Dhoop Arathi
at 6:30 pm and Shej Arathi at 8:30 pm
Every
Thursday:
7:30 pm – 8:30 pm: Shirdi Sai Bhajans
For more
information please call 408-705-7904 / 408-564-6704 or send
email to saibandhu@yahoo.com
or visit our website at http://www.Shirdisaiparivaar.org
SHRI
SHIRDI SAI SAMAJ MALAYSIA
No.744-1,
Tingkat 1, Jln. Sentul Selatan, Sentul, 51000 Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia
This is a new Shirdi Baba center in malaysia. We conduct weekly
prayers/arathi at the following times:
Friday - 7pm - 10.30pm
Sunday - Noon - 2.30pm
Our official
centre website is http://saisamaj.blogspot.com
For more information, please email hyperkinetix@gmail.com
PERSATUAN
SHIRDI SAI BABA SELANGOR, MALAYSIA
This is
to inform all of you that we have a Shirdi Sai Baba Temple
in Malaysia. Here we have daily prayers and special prayers
on thursday mornings 9.00am and bhajans and satsang from 8
pm onwards. Also breakfast, lunch and dinner, cooked by our
seva-group is provided to all devotees. other than that first
thursday of the month we have talk on spirituality, second
thursday on health, third thursday satsang on Sai Satcharitra,
fourth thursday talk on general topics, by experts in the
respective fields. Lot of charitable activities are conducted
by our Centre,like sponsoring immediate services to childrens\'
homes, old-folks homes, sick and needy, etc. etc.
If any
devotee, from Malaysia or Singapore likes to join our Centre,
please contact Mr.SP Kannan at Mobile -012-2739486; usha -
006122392911; Res: 03-33717540. Our Centre address is : Persatuan
Shirdi Sai Baba Selangor, No.2574, Jalan Seruling 59, Taman
Klang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia.Thank you and Sai Ram.
SHIRDI
SAI TEMPLE SINGAPORE
The dream
of having a full fledged exclusive Shirdi Sai Temple in Singapore,
will soon come true. Thanks to the efforts of a Sai devotee
in making this happen. The Shirdi Sai Baba Centre in Singapore
is now live with the 3rd floor function hall, Sri Vadapathira
Kaliamman temple, being secured and converted to a full fledged
exclusive Shirdi Sai worship centre. The Centre will be devoted
to celebrating the life & teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba
only. For more information visit our website http://www.saisansthan.com
SHIRDI
SAI BABA SANSTHAN, AUCKLAND NEW ZEALAND
Bhajans
Every Thursday
Venue Mt Roskill War Memorial Hall, 13 May Road, Mt Roskill,
Auckland
7.00
pm - 7.50 pm Sai Bhajans,
7.50 pm - 8.10 pm Pravachan and Sai Ashtotharam
8.10 pm - 8.30 pm Shej Aarthi
8.30 pm - 9.00 pm Prasad distribution.
For more details Contact us Amar Alluri(President) Mobile:
(+64) 27 230 5360 Email: President@shirdisaibaba.org.nz
or Sai Krishna Tridandapani (Secretary) Mobile: (+64) 21 239
7907 Email: Secretary@shirdisaibaba.org.nz
Address: Shri Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan of NZ, P.O. Box: 16142,
Sandringham, Auckland, New Zealand. Visit our website www.shirdisaibaba.org.nz
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