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Sathya Sai Speaks 1999 · The ephemeral and the transcendental

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  1. The ephemeral and the transcendental

    26 April 1999, Kodaikanal

    Published English.

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    What do they find here? You find love here. For the sake of experiencing Divine Love, you all embark on long and arduous journeys. But, if you make a thorough observation and investigation into the matter, you will be able to know that love is present within you only. In the , Lord declared: (the eternal in every human being is a part of My Being). Hence, Divine Love is present in every individual.
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    But the human being, unable to realize the truth that love is present within himself, thinks that it is something separate or different from him and undertakes long journeys searching for love. Know that the Divine is not different from you. (That omnipresent has His hands, feet, eyes, and mouth everywhere).
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    Our foremost task is to cultivate To have a vision of God, who is omnipresent, you have to make certain enquiries. The proclaim that is all-pervasive. (the Divine is immanent in every being). Man should cultivate good qualities if he wants to realize the truth of these statements. Without such qualities, man cannot realize even a fraction of the truth of the statement (verily all this is ). Only by means of good qualities can one recognize the Divine, who is omnipresent. Cultivating good qualities is the basic tenet of devotion. Cultivation of virtues, right attitude, adherence to truth, discipline, and sense of duty are the signs of devotion. Only those who develop these qualities can be called devotees.
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    Our foremost task is to cultivate (good qualities). The Sanskrit word stands for eternity, which is called Being. We should acquire the qualities of Being. What are these qualities? They are attributelessness, purity, steadfastness and enlightenment. It is not an easy task to acquire all these qualities. However, there is one way out. Since all the virtues are embedded in pure, selfless, and divine love, if you develop love, all the virtues will manifest in you. The true nature of love should be cultivated to experience the Divinity latent in you.
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    Several ways were enunciated in to clarify one question: “Who am I?” What is its inner significance? The “I” is all-pervasive. Question yourself, “Who am I?” A doubt may also arise as to why you should try to know “Who am I” when there are so many other things of interest in this age of information. If you find an answer to this question, you will be able to realize not only your true nature, your true identity, but also the true identity of the millions of people in the world. You will be able to recognize the true nature of every individual.
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    There is only One without a second Here is an example. Look at these bulbs and tube lights. Their colors, wattage, and shapes are different. You know that the electric current that flows through these different bulbs is one and the same. (Truth is one, but scholars refer to it by many names). Likewise, forms are different, names are different, but the divine vibration is one and the same. So, there is only One without a second. That is Divinity. If you recognize Divinity, you will be able to understand the nature of the Self immanent in all individual beings. Everything has emanated from the Divine.
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    If you realize this truth, the Vedantic axiom (one multiplies itself into many) can be understood easily. To realize this oneness as the unifying force of the multitudinous is the summum bonum of the Indian culture. But, man today is not thinking on these lines. He is dividing oneness into many. He is carried away by attachments at the physical level and is fully immersed in worldly relations like son-in-law, daughter-in-law, grandson, and the like. This attachment leads to bondage, if he realizes the truth that the nature of the Self is one and the same in every being, there will be no suffering.
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    Cultivate purity and divinity The world is like a cinema, and the is the screen. The different projections that appear on the screen are transient, whereas the screen remains as it is. That is why proclaims ( is truth, the world is an illusion). The pictures in the form of projections on the screen come and go, but the screen does not change.
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    Let us analyze this from the standpoint of the Vedantic statement (the entire universe is ). When the pictures appear on the screen, it become invisible. Where does it go? It is there within the picture, but it is invisible. But without the screen you cannot see the pictures.
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    Observation reveals the fact that the screen is not at all affected either by the innumerable visuals or by the sound effects. The fire that appears on the screen does not burn it. A tempest appears, it may even uproot the trees. The screen depicts the scenes, but it is not affected by them. Sometimes, we see floods on the screen. Rivers like the , , and may overflow, but the screen is not drenched. What is the reason? Floods, earthquakes, and tempest that appear on the screen are not real, so the screen is not affected by them. It remains as a witness. Your heart is a big screen, which is changeless. On the screen of the heart, you see sufferings, happiness and ordeals. All these are transient scenes, like passing clouds. None of the scenes is permanent. Only the screen of your heart is permanent. That is Divine. It is also called conscience which is the eternal truth.
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    Eternal values like truth, love, patience, and compassion emanate from the heart. What comes from the head is worldly and ephemeral. What comes from the heart is transcendental and eternal. That which comes from the heart leads to (inward path). But, all that comes from the head lead to (outward path). The head carries responsibility, whereas the heart is bestowed with right. Whatever is done by the head is temporary. You feel hungry. You go to canteen and eat two to satiate your hunger. But, after two hours. you feel hungry again. It is cyclic in nature. You feel hungry, you eat something, the food gets digested, and again you feel hungry. This can be compared to the cycle of birth and death.
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    said:
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    (Truth is changeless in all three periods of time). You remain the same in all the three states. So, you are the very form of Truth.
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    Divinity, like light, is the witness of everything. Its effulgence illuminates everything else. Where does it exist? We find (peace) within (unrest). In the depth of the (peace), there exists (supreme splendor). In this , one can experience (Divine Effulgence). , in the form of , (the light of the ) is within you. That is the light of nonduality and eternity. That is the light of immortality. That is the light of the Self.
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    People are not happy at home also, since they are haunted by numerous fears. They are terribly fear-stricken. What is the reason? They are unable to bear difficulties and ordeals. But, think who is facing ordeals? Who is undergoing suffering? It is the body only, which is the composition of the five elements. Reduce attachment to the body. Then you will experience eternal bliss. Reducing body attachment and increasing attachment to the Self is the true meaning of devotion. Attachment to body leads to (outward path), while attachment to the Self leads to (inward path). The combination of these is human life.
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