Concentration, Contemplation, Meditation

Many think that concentration is the same as meditation and take to the wrong path. Concentration is below your senses, whereas meditation is above your senses. We use concentration involuntarily in our daily, normal routine life. When concentration is part and parcel of our daily life, why then do we need to practice it? What we have to practice is that which is beyond these normal senses. We must rise from being below the senses (that is the state of concentration) to the senses (the middle position called contemplation); and from there we must rise above the senses, which is called meditation. Between concentration and meditation there is an area which covers both and that is contemplation. To be in that area of contemplation is to free yourself of routine attachments of the world. When you have completely broken away all your attachments, you break through this area of contemplation and you get into the area of meditation.

The first word in that thought for the day is many. If many think that concentration is the same as meditation, they are wrong and due to that misunderstanding they take the wrong path. And what if we don't know the difference?
He explains that we use concentration in our daily normal life, it is part of life and if it is already there, why do we need to practice? We have to get from concentration to meditation, from below the senses to above the senses, or from a state in the senses, going beyond the senses, transcending the mind.

Desire overpowering the personality

The company one keeps determines one's character; a person tries to join the group where one can freely express one's innate nature. Man, by nature, is prone to cater to the desires that arise within or the urges that are prompted from without. Very often these are deleterious. So people ruin themselves by giving them the chance to overpower their personality. Consider the influence that good association can exert. A length of string is a worthless piece - none adores it or consider it useful. But when it associates itself with a few fragrant flowers, then women decorate their hair with those flowers and devotees place the garland on idols they adore. A block of stone in a public square is neglected and abused. But when the stone receives the company of a sculptor, it is transformed into a charming statue of God and installed in a temple to receive the homage of thousands. So satsang (holy company) is very important to grow morally and spiritually.


Baba talks about the company one keeps, so we went regularly to the center, we join a group where we can freely express one's innate nature. They were singing, and so did we. If we realize that we are all the same self, it is every time when we are singing an adventure.

Man, by nature, is prone to cater to the desires that arise within or the urges that are prompted from without. Very often these are deleterious. So people ruin themselves by giving them the chance to overpower their personality.

Thou Art That and thinking it over

Ponder on a river merging in the ocean. The waters of the ocean rise up as vapour when warmed by the Sun and form clouds, which come down as drops of rain. Each drop has inside it the yearning to return to the ocean from which it has been exiled. But, the feeling of individuality overcomes the yearning. The raindrops accumulate and flow as brooks and streams which swell into tributaries of rivers, flooding the plains. At last, the river merges into the ocean and loses its name, form and attributes. In spite of all modifications undergone in the journey from ocean to ocean, water remains as water in vapour, cloud, rain and river. Names, forms and qualities do change but the core remains unchanged. Man too emerges from the ocean of Divinity and his destiny is to merge in it. This is the Truth. This is the Reality. That Thou Art. Be firm in that faith.

Even if we use quotes of Swami and we talk about his words, as soon as we speak that are our words as well. We are the same or we are not, but we cannot speak Swami's words without using our own words.

But we use his words, we know we use his words and not our words, because I had no words for it, he made me see it, therefore, that are his words and not mine, it just sounds like my words, because we are his instruments.

But we know it is the right thing to do using his words and why, because he is the Atma, in using his words, we get the insights and he is as well the following step and the answer to the insights.

He is the Atma, he is the ocean, we are the waves. He is the doer, we are the instruments, he is the knower, we are the instruments. When we use his words, we begin to understand oneness, because he is repeating it on and on, and that are his words, do you think we would talk about oneness without Swami's words?

Ponder on a river merging in the ocean.

Digest the Food we have Taken

Many of you have read many great books, including the Ramayana and the Bhagavata many times, for they are now easily available at a very low cost. But what proof can you give for having profited by the hours that you have spent with them? To digest the food you have taken, you have to engage in some physical activity. To digest the lessons that you imbue through holy company or through the study of great books, don't you have to practice them in daily life? Manana (recapitulation) is a very important spiritual practice (Sadhana); dwell in silence on the implications of the lessons you have come across. Keep up the enthusiasm that has given you the patience to sit through many spiritual satsangs for several hours. Develop it, and seeking the company of pious men and women, strengthen your satwik (serene and pure) tendencies, and progress in the spiritual path. You have My blessings.

When I began to think it over I had not idea what I was doing. There was nothing else to do. It was about insights and there were lots of them over the years and never an answer. It means with time it felt like just picture, a picture book with no text. 

He said a month before he left the body in my meditation to be ready on the 25^th of March at 3 PM. I was sitting at that time in meditation and it said only one word, 'engaged'.

The Characteristics of the Mind

 Without giving up sloth, how can Truth be known? Without giving up passion, how can devotion take root? Be serene and calm in stress and storm - that is the Satwic or pious path to win the Lord, the Truth. The mind is a wonder, its antics are even more surprising. It has no distinct form or shape. It assumes the shape or form of what it is involved in. Wandering from wish to wish, flitting from one desire to another is its nature. It causes loss and grief, elation and depression. Its effects are both positive and negative. The mind will gather experiences and store them in the memory forever. It does not know the art of giving up! As a consequence, grief, anxiety and misery continue simmering in it. It is worthwhile to know the characteristics of your mind and the ways to master it, for you will ultimately benefit! Teach it sacrifice (tyaga), and you will become spiritually wise (yogi)! 

If we see it in our own life, we wonder what is sloth, how did we experience it. And what about passion? In these words is the characteristics of the three gunas, but not just as principle, but the experience. We experience the stress and the storm and how it is to keep inside calm and in sathva to get to truth.

And we go on seeing the wandering mind and that we wonder about it and we also wonder why lots of people seem to have not even a feeling for the mind yet and the reason is, we don't listen enough, if we listen we have to get a feeling for it, because with his words it gets alive.

We can see in our inner vision the mind that it has not distinct form and shape and it takes the shape or form of our life and therefore, we always should see it in our life. It is in our life we have to face the patterns of a mind that experiences things and makes out a memory forever.

We Don't Know that we Don't Know

To divest oneself of all contacts with others, and tread a lonely path is a sign of weakness, of fear and not of courage. Lively association alone produces morality, justice, compassion, sympathy, love, tolerance, equanimity and many other qualities that toughen and train the character, and mould the personality of an individual. Culture is the consequence of the co-mingling of hearts and heads. A group of individuals, who are charged with hatred or contempt towards each other, cannot produce any beneficial effect on any in the group; Sama-chintha, that is, a common outlook or rather a common inward-vision is the essential factor. Common belief systems, opinions and attitudes is key. This Sama-chintha must result in a flood of divine bliss that envelops and brightens an entire community. The consciousness that one is Divine and that everyone else is equally so, is the best bond for a community, that bliss is the best atmosphere to nurture and sustain communities.

Here Baba tells us that we should be in company and not just on a lonely path.  Some time ago I took a Baba quote, I began to think it over and that is how I realized that by thinking it over and most of all seeing it in our own life, we get answers, not only Baba dreams, but insights. 

He said in a dream that I should use his words, it doesn't mean we repeat it, but we think it over, there is nothing wrong about repeating it, we get a feeling for it and we have to find that feeling in our own life. When we read it we think, right all understood. But that is not right. It is not absorbed. 

He is on all three levels, we are only in the mind. To be on all three levels as well we have to listen, think it over and absorb. That happens by thinking it over and in writing about it, we have a means to think it over. 

The right Conclusion; in the Light of the Self

Though humanity has achieved incalculable progress in science and technology, the mind of every individual is still polluted with greed, envy and gross selfishness. Egotism has struck deep roots in the heart and has grown to demonic proportions. People have become puppets, yielding to every pull of the string. They crave all things that confer temporary happiness on them and accumulate things that cater to their sense of power. They examine every item from their own selfish point of view. They are therefore enslaved by the monsters – envy, pride, fear and prejudice. True knowledge alone can save mankind from ruinous downfall. Sai has reiterated the four goals laid down in the Vedas. They are Truth, Righteousness, Peace and Love. Humanity must understand the importance of these four goals as foundational pillars, accept them, adore them and practice them in daily living. Only then Divinity latent within can shine forth in all its glory.

Todays's thought for the day is an example how to deepen and how to think it over to get to a right conclusion. He mentions humanity, the progress of science and technology and that the mind of the individual is still polluted - he calls it greed, envy and gross selfishness. 

We have the ego, as long ago it was a big issue that a master had said about someone that she had a big ego, that is a warning which was neglected. We have to see it in our own life to be able to understand it. And she went on course, but after that person came back we had only problems and in the light of those words we get aware how serious it was and we wonder why it was not being seen as a warning, because it had been a warning.

Food and Sharing Experiences

Gladly share your education and wealth with your fellow human beings. God is the real owner of the wealth you acquire. Remember, the money you earn belongs to God's Trust. You are His Trustee and accordingly, make proper utilisation of your wealth. Do not hanker over money or other forms of wealth. Instead, constantly contemplate on God. You don't have to go to caves or forests or ashrams in search of Him. Wherever you are, He is with you. Develop this faith and win over your demonic qualities. Do not forget that what ultimately comes with you is not your wealth or education, but the sin or merit you have accumulated through your actions. Share at least a morsel of what you eat with others. Never forget to practice selfless love and service. Help yourself and help others, this is indeed the greatest spiritual practice (sadhana). Without following these principles, there is no peace and joy, anywhere in the world!

Swami reminds us to share everything, our education and our wealth with our fellow beings and he reminds us that God is the right owner and that everything belongs to him only and it is his trust on us and we should understand it right. 

We should make proper utilization of wealth. 

We should constantly contemplate on the divine and not hanker over money or other forms of wealth, but he as well is telling us that we don't have to go to caves or forests or ashrams in the search of Him and that is part of my experience. I was in my job working and watching and it ended with the experience of the higher self, but I went on to understand it and that was not that easy anymore in our society actually impossible to get the right answer.  

I was looking for a language or a way of understanding or thinking it over and it was a long way of finally getting to that contemplation and being able to see the experience in the light of my own experience. 
First I tried to express it with meditation and it was about truth, but it was not thinking it over and it didn't answer all the experience or insights in the dream stage and it was always about truth and even if it felt right, there was still a lot that didn't make any sense and we didn't find the answer by thinking it over. The principle about it was true, but it was not possible to use the right words and there was no thinking it over and in time the experiences didn't make any sense anymore. 

We can make the experience everywhere, we don't need to go to an ashram, but nevertheless, without the words of an enlightened master we cannot get it, we need the words and the direct experience and discrimination.

That is very clearly stated in the Patanjali sutra about correct understanding. 
He is telling us to get to correct understanding we need three things, direct perception, inference and the written or spoken words of a self realized authority. 

The Boat Across the Sea of Worldly Life

Devotion and faith are the two oars with which you can ferry the boat across the sea of worldly life. A child told its mother when it went to bed at night, "Mother! Wake me up when I am hungry." The mother answered, "There is no need child, your hunger will itself wake you up." So too, when the hunger for God comes, it will itself activate you and make you seek the food you need. God has endowed you with hunger and He supplies the food; He has endowed you with illness and He provides the medicine. Your duty is to see that you get the proper hunger and the right illness, and use the appropriate food or drug! Remember, the Lord is a Mountain of Love (Prema); any number of ants carrying away particles of sweetness cannot exhaust His plenty. He is an Ocean of Mercy without a limiting shore. Devotion is the easiest way to win His grace.

When we think it over we have to find a way to see it in our own life to understand it, we can imagine the boat that ferries us across the sea of worldly life, but we need to experience it not just imagine it and how do we get to that experience, in listening to his words and thinking it over. 

The two oars are devotion and faith. 
How do you experience those two, devotion and faith, do you remember in your life an experience when you can relate to that boat and how you got aware of the to oars of devotion and faith. We can ask ourselves, how do we get that experience? 
What do we remember and we can make a kind of brain storming, we write down what we remember and then we see if it makes any sense and when it begins to make sense and we begin to remember it in our own life, we think it over and by thinking it over we get a feeling for it and it is not just something we read or hear, but we begin to listen and listening is more than just reading or hearing, it has to go deeper and then only it is possible to absorb it and only when we have those three things we can talk about contemplation. 

When we see it in our own life and we remember a moment in the past when it began with faith. In my life I remember I was looking for self-realization and more or less all over and I couldn't find it anymore and I had the experience of it before, but it was gone and no way it was to be found again. 
I wondered how it had that experience present of it and it was during writing, at that time it had been a diary, and it was as well thinking it over, but it was just about values and ideals and getting aware of it and enjoying of writing it down. With time I somehow didn't believe that there had been a feeling of self-realization anymore, there seemed to be no way of getting aware of it again. But it had been there, I didn't need that much faith, I had the experience of it, it was just no more present and no more part of my life and my experience and it didn't feel good. it felt holy and it was very important and therefore, even if I couldn't find it, it had been there and it was not possible to forget it. More I was looking for it less I was able to find it. 

Contemplation on the Divine

Devote your time to the service of the world with faith in the Lord, regardless of its fruits. Then you become blessed. Otherwise though the body may be inactive, the mind will be very busy, committing acts on its own. People with such minds fall prey to karma (consequences) in spite of their not doing anything! When a person has the mind fixed on contemplation of God and the pursuit of truth, though the body and senses do acts that are of service to the world, they won't be affected by them; though they do actions they are still non-doers of action. This is the lesson from Bhagavad Gita. The heart of the person who doesn't strive to cultivate the mind with holy thoughts is certain to be the paradise of evil and wickedness. Everyone who hopes to rise to greatness, who seeks one-pointedness and aspires for salvation must bear this in mind.

What should we do, we should take the attitude of being engaged in the service of the Lord in our activities, no matter what job, we should see it as service to society our mother land or the world. It has lots of advantages if we see it as service and not just as a job or when it is just about making money. It is a different way of seeing it and the mind is not busy in comparing ourselves with others constantly either seeing ourselves as more important or not good enough, whatever, it is just a service to the Lord and it is in that sense more important that we do our best in our present job than to compare it with others. It is as well a very different way to handle problems or conflicts, we have a more humble attitude and take it as it comes, instead of putting it constantly in question. It is a way of life and looking at it, and it is bright and more intelligent, as it is easier to be happy with whatever we get than to reach out for the impossible. But nevertheless, it is as well a realm of all possibilities, it builds character if we focus and doing the right thing and not how much we earn or don't earn in doing our job. It is as well a way to be happy with and self-content and to finding faults with everything. It is the way of self-realization, it is compared to a house, the floor is self-confidence, the walls are self-contentment, the roof is self-sacrifice and the living in the house is self-realization. If we serve in our job the world as a service to the Lord, whatever we have to do, it can be of benefit for us and our spiritual path, what matters it to do it in a spirit of service. 

Engaged in Service

You consider helping people in difficulties is service. No. It is not as simple as that. Your body should be constantly engaged in serving others. The human body consists of several limbs. All these limbs are meant to be engaged in serving your fellowmen and not for other activities. Unfortunately we are forgetting this basic fact. Every limb in the body has been granted by God for Karmopasana (worshipping God through service). Karmopasana is the only means by which the human life can be sanctified. We are building several temples. We are undertaking various spiritual practices. But all these sadhanas can give us only temporary satisfaction, not eternal joy. Our ancient sages have been able to achieve eternal joy through a conscious effort. Therefore, you must develop firm faith in the truth that nothing can provide eternal joy, except service to humanity. Undertake service to the suffering humanity. Service is not merely confined to health services. Service encompasses every possible help to fellow human beings. 

Swami is talking about service and it its not just about ashram life, but about our life in society. And that we think to help people in difficulties is not as simple as that. 
In our society everything is institutionalized and it is very difficult to go and help, if the help is not wanted we shouldn't even try to do it. 
If he mentions the body and it should be engaged to service t others, body is different from the Atma or our higher self, therefore, he calls it the body that should be engaged in service to others. It can be also of service if we just think it over and contemplate on his words. If we just read it, we think, that's it we know we have heard it before or something like that and it needs an effort getting into it seeing it in our own life and getting a feeling for it and that is what contemplation is, it is not just reading and forgetting it and next moment we don't know anymore what we have read. We must make it experience, we should feel it and when we see it in our own life, it is just about that. When we hear that a conflict should be always brought to the point otherwise it expands, we even think we know, but the next moment it is forgotten and when we have a conflict in our life, we don't know what to do about it. It is a sign that we have not absorbed the wisdom. 

Celebrate the Day

It is indeed foolishness to single out a particular day in a year and celebrate only that day with great joy. Everything in this objective world is impermanent and unreal. Hence we must contemplate on the eternal truth and reality. We should not waste our time brooding over the past or anticipating the future. It is great foolishness to worry about the future or the past, forgetting the present. The present is only real. Past is past, you cannot get it back, however much you pray for it. The future is hidden in the womb of time. Unable to internalise this truth, people worry about past and future. Hence, from now, give importance to the present. It is important that you consider every minute of your every day and celebrate it with new joy! Indeed, for a true devotee, every day is new; every day is a festival day!

Every day should be a new day to celebrate and we should do it with even great joy. What is around us is the impermanent and unreal world and we should contemplate on the eternal truth and reality. We had been living in the US and when coming back here I began to remember that I am not this and not that, it was a kind of constant contemplation on what is not real. 

When driving to work in the bus not matter what was coming up I was just thinking, 'not that' and with time I began to notice that I forgot it and I noticed when I forgot it, it was really forgotten. It felt nearly like becoming invisible, I was not present when I thought, 'not that' or I was present, but it was not the mind, not the body and a different level. And with time I began to enjoy it. 

Every Action has Consequences

You should realise that for every action there is a consequence. The results of each action depend on the nature of the action, just as the nature of the tree depends on the seed which is sowed. The consequences of one's actions are inescapable and it is for this reason that the Emperor Manu laid down that all should observe Dharma. The consequences of actions may appear sooner or later but they are bound to occur. When you constantly think of God and perform all actions with Divine feelings, you will experience the full blossoming of the human qualities. Consider every action as dedicated to God. You cannot avoid actions. You must transform work into worship. You have to perform work in this spirit. You cannot substitute prayer for work. You have to combine both work and worship.

Swami speaks here about action and that every action has an effect and the result of action depends on seedling being planted, just the nature of the tree depends on the seed which is sowed. 
The consequences are inescapable. We can get aware of it in thinking it over. 

The Quality of Love

Develop the quality of love. Do not hate anyone. Develop the faith that whatever happens to you is good for you. Think that whenever you encounter any difficulty or suffering, you alone are responsible for it. On the other hand, if you insult anyone knowingly or unknowingly, that someone else may punish you some day. Pleasure and pain are the products of your own making. The merit or sin you commit, follows you like a shadow always. Many today give sermons to others, without they themselves following what they advice. What value will your advice have? Whenever you read or listen to a noble thought, it is of no value to you until you practice it assiduously. Help your fellow human beings at least in a small measure. You will be helped in return when you need it most. Never blame others for the difficulties you face. Never abuse anyone. Love all and treat everyone as your brothers and sisters.

If we develop the quality of love, we get aware that whatever happens to us is good for us or we think it is Karma and therefore, there is a reason for it. That is what I usually thought when things didn't feel right and there was no way of questioning it. If it didn't feel right, it was not a problem, but only my problem and that is what I had learnt when I was still a teenager and my mother didn't wanted to be bothered about it. 

But that way of thinking made me get into inquiry, even if I didn't wanted to. First we began to meditate and by regular meditation hoped everything would get okay and answered and no problem and for a while it really looked like that, if we don't ask question, we don't need to get an answer, but it didn't change the situation in the parent's house that things were avoided. 

Mother is God

Mother is not just an ordinary woman; she is verily God. Scriptures give mothers an exalted position in the Universe. Worship her and attain her grace. Once you have the blessings of your mother, you can achieve anything in this world. Never disobey or displease her. Never cause displeasure to your mother. Never hurt her feelings. Then God will help you in all your endeavours. Even today, there is no dearth of noble mothers. They feel pained to see their children straying away from the right path. They leave no stone unturned to correct them. A woman's prayer is more powerful than a thousand prayers of men because women are pure and tender-hearted. Never look down upon women. Treat all elderly women as your mother and the younger ones as your sisters. The world will remain safe and secure only when men have such noble feelings.

It was that ideal of mother is God in holy scriptures or books that got me on that path, at that time years ago it seemed easier to idealize mother than to find faults and to always be pushed back by her way of seeing it and the impossibility of reaching that what had been the mother once in her. As a teenager at a certain point my life went nuts, and I didn't know what it was. I had been in a relationship with a neighbor and everything seemed fine until that was over and no matter what I said, it resulted in explosion and it never got okay again. I went abroad and after coming back, it was never the same gain, my mother or my parent's house were no more a home, it was just disturbing the way I felt and as I didn't like it I began to look for the reason, but it was impossible of talking to them.  

Difficulties are no Hindrance

The more you grind the sandalwood, the more it yields sandal paste. The more you crush the sugarcane, the more it yields sweet juice. As the gold is heated more and more, it becomes purer and shines with added brilliance. Likewise, the good qualities in a noble person blossom more and more as one passes through the vicissitudes of life. Embodiments of Love! The difficulties of life do not cause any hindrance to a person pursuing a noble course of life. In spite of these, he always remains at peace and contemplates on God constantly. Of all the living beings, to be born a human being is the rarest occurrence (Jantunam Narajanma Durlabham), so this life that you are gifted with is indeed a great good fortune. Having been blessed with such a human birth, you should develop noble thoughts and experience bliss within. Only then will you be truly fortunate.

We had an interview together with people from the same country. In one of those interviews he said, 'follow the master, fight to the end, finish the game'. Even when he spoke individually to people in the room, we usually remember only what was for us. After the interview I began to wonder, how I could follow the master and how to fight to the end and how to finish the game.
When something came was there and it was not clear or for some reason or for some reason it seemed it had been avoided in that past, now it began to come and it following the master I began to address it usually it was by some unknown reason in the dream.
After I went to Swami I was staying at the ashram as long as possible, without that I had to go against the rule, it was limited by the visa and by the time we were allowed to stay at the ashram. Swami moved always from time to time to Whitefield and his other ashram near Bangalore and when coming back it was possible to start new again.


There was a reason why I wanted to leave on the spot again when coming back here, because it usually didn't feel good, it was like I had not roots in my county and I didn't know what I was doing here. As long as he was near and in Swami's presence, things felt great and okay, but when coming back I didn't know what I was doing here, it was like cut off and a few times it said in my dream, when we don't know the source, we cannot understand it. The question was, what was that source, it was unknown and why. The source is as well mentioned when it is about the divine, with him we were at the source, the question was rather, what else we didn't know?

Masters and the Great Ideals

You are unnecessarily struggling and planning several schemes, thinking about them day and night. In spite of all your struggles, what has to go out of your hands will go. The body is like a water bubble. The mind is like a mad monkey. If you follow this mad monkey, you will get into trouble. In the same manner, if you believe in the body, you do not know when this body, which is like a water bubble, will burst. Nothing is permanent. Only the Atma (Self) is eternal and immortal. 'I', 'Self', 'God' are all different names by which the Atmaswarupa is called. God incarnated as Rama, Krishna, and the like, and underwent several difficulties to demonstrate great ideals. Finally, they too left the mortal coil. The physical bodies of the Avatars undergo changes, but the Divine Atma in their bodies remains the same. It is omnipresent, eternal and changeless. Divinity in all the human beings is one and the same.

In this quote Swami talks about things we plan and think about non-stop and what keeps us busy, and he is telling that everything that has to go will go. Even though we are fighting for it and even if we are day and night busy thinking about it, when the moment comes, we will have to let go. The body is perishable. It is like a water bubble and the mind compares Swami with a crazy monkey, which we can hardly control and if we follow the monkey mind, we will inevitably get into trouble. And the same with the body, which is like a water-bubble, when we believe in the body, one day it will burst, and it will be gone. In the relative world nothing is permanent.

Only the Self is eternal and immortal. We know it as' I ',' Self ', God', the different names we give to the Atmaswarupa, the embodied Atma. God incarnated as Rama and Krishna and others, and they had to face lots difficulties to demonstrate the great ideals, and they also left the mortal coils. The body is not lasting; there is no difference for an avatar. Also the bodies of the avatars change, but the divine Atma is always the same, it does not change and it is as well in every human being, we all have the same potential, the question is if we are able to realize it. It consists of omnipresent, eternal, and unchanging consciousness. The Divine is one and the same in all human beings.

We are One

You may install idols and worship them. But do not forget the inner significance of all that worship. All external activities are necessary only to help you to get the spirit of non-duality and experience unity in diversity. Love and sacrifice are very important. Where there is pure, unsullied, selfless, sacred and sublime love there is no fear at all. Giving and not getting is the underlying principle of spiritual sadhana. Your heart is full of love, but you are using it only for selfish purposes instead of diverting it towards God. God is in the heart and not in the head. The heart is full of love. Every day, remind yourself that God is one; all religions uphold the same principle of 'One God, who is omnipresent.' Do not have contempt for any religion, as each is a pathway to God. Fostering love towards your fellow-beings, receive the blessings of the Divine. This is the goal of life.

Swami mentions here the worship of idols, and it is a help to remember the divine, but he is as well telling us that it is only okay as long as we do not

forget the inner meaning. What is the difference, how do we know if the inner meaning is present and when it is not present? It is important for us to be able to make that difference. Swami mentions that external actions are necessary to make the experience of non-duality and to experience unity in diversity, therefore, no matter what; the goal is unity, the experience of non-duality.

Today is the day when Swami left the body. He is as well telling us that the highest and pure love does not know any fear, and it is the basic principle of giving and not taking as our spiritual exercise or sadhana and it is said that the heart is full of love, but we use it for selfish purposes instead of focus on God. The question is what is selfish and how do we know the difference?

He reminds us that God is in the heart and not in the head, with other words; he is inside and not outside or in our imagination. The head imagines things, but the heart feels love.

Whether it is an idol or based on our imagination in the mind or whether we pretend to see it, it is still a form. It is for us important to get aware of it, because there are people taking advantage of it, telling us that they see Swami as a light form.

The principle of the Divine is 'I am that'; it is alive in all of us and transcends the form, but it needs to be realized. How can we get aware of the difference?

Two Wings are Needed if we Want to Fly

Do not engage yourself in the cultivation of or the promotion of wants and desires. That is a never ending process of sowing and reaping; you will never reach contentment and one desire when satisfied, will fan the thirst for ten more. Do not run after devious desires or crooked satisfactions. All roads leading to the realm of the senses are tortuous and blind, only the road that leads to the path of the Lord is straight. Cultivate righteousness in every action, that will reveal the Divine Self. Straightforwardness will enable you to overcome the three gunas (qualities). No single Guna should dominate; all must be tamed to fill the lake of bliss. It is your internal bliss that matters, not the external, the sensory, the objective and the worldly. If the inner poise or inner equilibrium is undisturbed by external ups and downs, that is a sure sign of spiritual success.

We have twenty quotes to contemplate in this months as it is the time before Baba left the body. That means I am quite busy and it is a very good exercise in sharing it with others we get aware of it. 
Just today he mentioned the two wings we need to fly or the two wheels we need to be able of pulling the cart.
Getting aware of it and contemplating the words of Baba is the other wing, all we do in the Sai centers is the wing of practice, people are singing a lot and like to sing and are great singers and other are doing practice in some service activities, but what I notice often is that something seems missing and it is that basic wisdom. To make it more clear that with contemplation we are not talking about the same wing as we do with practice, I put the picture, I have already in my blog. 

Thinking it over is a great exercise to get aware of it. When we listen to his words, it is about real and unreal, it is about right action and being aware of the difference between what is right and what is not right action and as he is telling us we have to overcome to three gunas, but that means with other words, we have to know the difference between them and that is already challenging our mind to know what is sathva, purity and what is rajas, passion and what is tamas, ignorance. 

Sathva is the path, rajas, passion we have to transform and tamas, inertia we have to give up. He is telling us they must be tamed to be in bliss, but without wisdom it is just impossible to tame the gunas, we need to know the difference between them to be able to tame them and that means we usually start to live a sathvic life style to get aware of it when it is not sathva, but something else. 

18 Service

Jeder muss den Geist des Opfers (thyaga) entwickeln. Du musst den Leuten mit deinem Körper dienen. Du musst gute und edle Gedanken in deinem Geist schätzen. Sie müssen Ihren Reichtum für die Unterstützung von Bildungs-und anderen Institutionen, um die Menschen zu helfen. Gib dem Verhungern Essen. Dies ist der Weg, um ein zielgerichtetes und erhabenes Leben zu führen. Das Leben ist dir gegeben worden, um dich nicht selbst zu fetten. Der Körper ist das Grundinstrument für die Praxis der Gerechtigkeit (Dharma). Dedicated Ihre gesamte Zeit zum Service und für die ordnungsgemäße Entlastung Ihrer Aufgaben. Gott allein kann deine spirituellen Anstrengungen in eine transzendentale Erfahrung verwandeln. Gott ist allgegenwärtig; Er ist überall und in dir. Du bist göttlich! Stellen Sie sicher, dass Ihre spirituellen Praktiken (Sadhana) nicht für irgendeinen egoistischen Grund sind. Es muss das Gute der anderen fördern. Selbstsucht aufgeben, selbstlose Liebe für andere kultivieren und dein Leben heiligen Dann wirst du Sakshatkara erleben, die Vision des Göttlichen aus dir.

18. Everyone must develop the spirit of sacrifice (thyaga). You must serve the people with your body. You have to cherish good and noble thoughts in your mind. You must use your wealth for supporting educational and other institutions to help the people. Give food to the starving. This is the way to lead a purposeful and sublime life. Life has been given to you not to become fat yourself. The body is the basic instrument for the practice of righteousness (Dharma). Dedicate your entire time to service and for the proper discharge of your duties. God alone can transform your spiritual efforts into a transcendental experience. God is omnipresent; He is everywhere and within you. You are Divine! Ensure your spiritual practices (Sadhana) are not for any selfish reason. It must promote the good of others. Giving up selfishness, cultivating selfless love for others, and sanctify your lives. Then you will experience Sakshatkara, the vision of the Divine from within you. 

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Right Action, Dharma, the Code of Conduct and the Ideal

Dharma (Righteousness) is the code of conduct that will promote the ideals of each stage of a per­son: student, householder, earner, master, servant, spiritual aspirant, ascetic (sanyasi), etc. When the code is distorted and mankind undermines its earthly career, forgetting the high purpose for which one has come, the Lord incarnates and leads people along the correct path. Lord Rama was one such incarnation. He truly is the Embodiment of Virtue (Dharma-swarupam) shrouded in an illusory human form; He stuck to dharma in daily practice, even from His infancy. He is the personification of dharma. There is no trace of vice (a-dharma) in Him. His Divine Nature is revealed in His calm temperament and feeling of love and affection. Meditate on Him and you are filled with love for all beings; dwell on His story and you find all the agitations of your minds quietening in perfect calm.

We can ask ourselves, what is our position in life? This question gets us to the basic question, ‘who am I?’

We have to live in the West and we don’t have usually a feeling about Dharma. It is a code of conduct, therefore, how are we going to benefit from it and how do we understand it? How do we get in the West a feeling about it? Swami talks about the Atma and as he said shortly, listening and contemplation is a spiritual discipline in three steps, first we need to listen, second we have to think it over and we usually have to somehow see it in our life to be able to absorb that means to understand it enough to be able to practice. If we just read, we are in the mind as it is only hearing it, when we think it over to be able to absorb, only then we are able to even get close to the reality of the Atma. Therefore, it is a spiritual discipline in three steps; we never get there if we are only hearing it.

Dharma (Righteousness) is the code of conduct that will promote the ideals of each stage   of a per­son: student, householder, earner, master, servant, spiritual aspirant, ascetic (sanyasi), etc.

Blend Truth and Right Action and there will be Peace

Once, a person in great distress clamoured for a reservation at the booking office of a railway station, but the clerk there was helpless for the person did not know where he wanted to go. He was anxious only to get away, he had had enough of that place. How can anyone help him? All, sooner or later, behave like this. Life is no unmixed good. No one is happy by being immersed in worldly life. Every individual is tossed about by the waves of joy and grief; buffeted by fortune, good or bad; a target of brickbats and bouquets. The evil around affects one's peace and anxiety, and robs one of sleep and quiet. One therefore tries to escape from all this, but one is not sure to where! The spiritual teacher (Guru) can guide you where to go, which place to seek; but, even a Guru cannot make you reach it. You have to trudge along the road yourself.

Swami is telling us that we all get to that moment in life when we want to get away from that place, but we don't know where to go. 
That was a constant issue in my life, when I went for a visit to my parent's place, as soon as I arrived I wanted to leave again. It was that strong that I had a feeling of longing to travel and going somewhere else and what was the worst about it, I didn't know why. 

It was not clear what it was and why and that was kind of troublesome, because when we don't know the source, we cannot understand it. 

When listening to Swami's words we get aware that on one point or another everybody feels like that and that is kind of good getting aware of it. 

How can anyone help us when we just want to get away and we have enough, but we don't really know where to go? 

He explains to us that life is no unmixed good and no one can be happy only being immersed in worldly life, but the master can help, but even then we have to go the road by ourselves. 

The Inner Eye of Wisdom

Since I moved freely among people, talking and singing with them, even intellectuals were unable to grasp My truth, My power, My glory, or My real task as Avatar. I can solve any problem however knotty. I am beyond the reach of the most intensive enquiry and the most meticulous measurement. Only those who have recognised My love and experienced it can assert that they have glimpsed My reality. Do not attempt to know Me through the external eyes. When you go to a temple and stand before the image of God, you pray with closed eyes, don't you? Why? Because you feel that the inner eye of wisdom alone can reveal Him to you. Therefore, do not crave from Me trivial material objects; but, crave for Me from within, and you will be rewarded. The path of Love is the royal road that leads mankind to Me. My grace is ever available to devotees who have steady love and faith.

In this Swami quote he talks in the first person as Godhead and that reality we have to get the insight first and see it to get a feeling for it. We tend to think that he talks about him in the form, but he is not the form, he is the Atma. He is bigger than the biggest and smaller than the smallest. 

If we contemplate his words, we don't see with the external eyes we see with the inner eye. He was in the dream as  insight and as the following step and in the insight he was one night present as, 'I am the One'. In the dream that is totally different reality than in the waking state where we question everything. When it is in the dream we know it is him and we know it is God, if in the dream someone is telling, 'I am the One' there is no doubt that it is Swami and that there is only one and no second one.