Manasa Bhajare… With this first-ever message to humanity, He spilled out The Secret For Liberation… Now, man must remember that every recurrence of 20th Oct is a ‘SaiLent’ reminder to him to revisit His ‘first-ever’ message to make ‘’Manasa Bhajare…’ one’s life-breath and . . . beyond!!! Announcing the dismissal of Maya, announcing His True Truth, Sathya, The ‘little’ Divine at 14, bestowed upon the humanity the first blessing and in fact, the Ultimate Blessing… Prayer For Liberation, Manasa Bhajare… While revisiting the epochal happening on the 20th October 1940, man should ponder upon as to what does The Mantra entail? It is simpler than the simplest. The mind that serves as a mirror for the individual jeeva need to be purified with the everlasting presence of the Guru, The SadhGuru, Who Is nothing but the purest feeling of I Am…SAI…I Am… Bhagawan says, the ‘I’ represents The Brahmam, and He…Sathya Sai Is the very Source of this Brahmam…Para Brahmam…The True Truth, The Absolute!!! It is this Truth that the then 14 year old ‘Little Divine’ pronounced to you and me and to one and all, to His creation at large! The Mantra that becomes the essence of human life, that contains the Secret For Liberation! A recap of the epochal happening on the Annunciation Day, as penned by Prof N. Kasturi. On the 20th day of October, 1940, the day after they all returned from Hampi by special bus, Sathyanarayana started for school as usual. The Excise Inspector of the place, Sri Anjaneyulu who was very much attached to the little Baba, accompanied Him, as far as the school gate and went home, rather reluctantly. He seemed to see a superb halo, round the face of Baba that day and he could not take his eyes away from that enchantment. Within a few minutes, Baba too turned back to the house. Standing on the outer doorstep, he cast aside the books He was carrying and called out, “I Am no longer your Sathya.” “I Am Sai.” The sister-in-law came from the kitchen and peeped out; she was almost blinded by the splendour of the halo, which she saw around Baba’s head! She closed her eyes and shrieked. Baba addressed her, “I Am going; I don’t belong to you: Maya has gone; My bhaktas are calling Me; I have My Work; I can’t stay any longer.” And, so saying, He turned back and left in spite of her pleadings. The brother hurried home on hearing all this; but, Baba only told him, “Give up all your efforts to ‘cure’ Me; I Am Sai; I do not consider MySelf related to you.” Neighbour Sri Narayana Sastri heard the noise; he listened and realised that it was something serious; he ran in; he saw the splendour of the ‘halo’ and fell at Baba’s Feet. He too heard the Historic Declaration, “Maya has left; I Am going; My work is waiting.” Seshama Raju was nonplussed; he could scarce collect his wits to meet this new situation. A boy, just fourteen, talking of bhaktas, work, maya, and the philosophy of belonging! He could think of only one plan: Sathya was entrusted to him by the parents and it was therefore his task to inform them; Sathya could leave the house, only after they came to Uravakonda. But, Sathya would not step into that building again; He moved out into the garden of Excise Inspector’s Bungalow, and sat on a rock, in the midst of the trees. People came into the garden from all directions bringing flowers and fruits; the tope resounded to the voices of hundreds, singing in chorus the lines that Sathya Sai taught them. The first prayer that He taught them that day was, as many still remember, Maanasa bhajare GuruCharanamDusthara bhava saagara tharanam “Meditate in thy mind on The Feet of The Guru; that can take you across the difficult sea of samsara.” His classmates wept when they heard that Sathya will no longer attend school, that He was much beyond their reach, that His company was hereafter only for those upon whom He showers His Grace. Many came to the garden with incense and camphor, to worship Him. Some came to sympathise with the family, some to congratulate them. Some came to learn and some, alas, even to laugh! Three days passed thus in that garden; three days of bhajan and namasankirthan. A photographer came with a camera; he wanted Baba to remove a crude stone that was right in front of Him but Baba did not pay heed to that prayer. He clicked nevertheless and lo! As can be seen ‘above’, the stone had become an image of Shirdi Sai Baba! But only in the photograph, not for all assembled there. II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II

Vedic ‘Sai’ Renaissance… “The arrival of the Lord is anxiously awaited by saints and sages. Sadhus prayed and I have come. My main tasks are fostering of the Vedas and fostering of the devotees…”, thus declared The Avatar Of Eternity, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai. If at all mankind ever remember One Persona for the revival of the Vedas, for keeping It loose from any catchy grips, it is undoubtedly Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai. A peep into His ‘extra-ordinary’ initiatives in the field of Vedic Renaissance.  Vedahametam purusham mahantamadityavarnam tamasah parastattamevam vidvan amrita iha bhavatinanyah pantha vidyate’yanaya Thus, declare the sacred verses of the Purusha Suktham, the purport being: “I have known that great Purusha, the Supreme Being, Who Is brilliant like the Sun and Who transcends and Is beyond all darkness. One Who knows Him thus becomes immortal here. There is no other path for liberation than this.” If Atmic Knowledge is what man pursues as his Ultimate-Goal, beyond his most subtle instincts, then the Vedas are the bedrock of this Atma Vidya and thus man’s best and most reliable ally. Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai, Who in no uncertain terms made it clear by way of subtle hints that His Is The Most Unique – One Off – Avataric Phenomenon, has chosen the ‘Renaissance Of The Vedas’ as a premier objective of His mission, declaring: “The arrival of the Lord is anxiously awaited by saints and sages. Sadhus prayed and I have come. My main tasks are fostering of the Vedas and fostering of the devotees…” Where fostering of the Vedas finds a direct connotation with fostering of the devotees, the Avatar, Whose descend is to primarily help man ascend to his true nature, aims at ‘achieving His Mission’ by reviving the waning ancient treasure of the Vedas to its pristine glory. “The Vedas seek to promote good thoughts, eliminate ideas of evil, and help mankind lead the good life. Hence they have to be cherished and fostered,” proclaims Bhagawan. It certainly is the right antidote for human malady of modern days. Bhagawan continues: If the injunctions given in the Vedas and Shastras are followed by mankind, they will be freed from affliction. Most of our troubles have arisen because we have forgotten the Vedas. The Vedic sages had carried out spiritual explorations on the basis of the Vedas. Because their findings were made known in Bharat, it cannot be said that the Vedas are not to be found anywhere else. The Vedas encompass the whole world and are immanent everywhere. If one closely observes the evolution of Bhagawan’s mission ever since its epochal declaration, it is quite clear that, Bhagawan had long ago resolved to forge ahead with His mission in a ‘Divinely’ strategic manner, steadily engulfing the world with Vedic intonations, not by force but by inculcating awareness of Its sheer absolute significance. First thing He did towards ‘achieving’ this end was establishing a ‘Veda Patashala’, decades ago, training blossoming minds into the greater efficacies of Vedic learning. Later, when Bhagawan established His educational institutions, Vedic learning became an essential part of the curriculum, as a mandatory co-curricular activity. …And the grand ‘cosmically effective’ Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajnam that commenced late in the early part of the sixties, in the very Physical Presence Of The Veda Purusha HimSelf in the form of Sri Sathya Sai??? …and the allied Prasanthi Vidhwan MahaSabha, ensemble of the learned, deliberating on the ‘holy’ in the immediate Holiest Presence! Rightful initiative from the Cosmic Divine towards fixing the maladies of the world and the worldly, through His already promulgated Divine Task of Vedic Renaissance! As a customary practice, every festival and function in the Divine Presence begins with invocatory Vedic chants. As the next ‘calculative’ step, starting from the year 2003, Prasanthi started reverberating with Vedic ‘Darshan’ chants, per day, per session, accompanying ‘The Beauty Beyond Compare’ – Sri Sathya Sai Darshan. As is His Divine Sankalpa, the right fillip came yet again, when, on September 8, 2008, Bhagawan gave the Divine directive that everyone should learn and chant the Sri Rudram, in the run up to the 83rd Birthday, supposedly the year of Sahasra Poornacha Chandra Darshan of the Avatar. As per His Divine command, as three of His students commenced chanting the Rudram in stages on the microphone, the rest of the assembly of students and devotees repeated after them twice, thereby proceeding to learn it systematically, under His immediate Divine guidance and supervision, an exercise that stretched from 9th to 27th September 2008. Often times, Bhagawan would be seated on the dais watching the session in progress. Imbibing inspiration from this Divine directive, devotees, irrespective of barriers whatsoever, have taken to this learning most religiously, thus demonstrating the universal relevance and appeal of the Vedas. Indeed, the Vedas cannot be limited to any particular denomination of humanity; it is a Divine Gift, verily the Breath Of God, a legacy to which every human being is a rightful heir. The grand legacy is on, as Prasanthi Nilayam witnesses the miracle of this Vedic transformation as a daily experience….and the Sai Centres the world over, under the auspices of International Sai Organisations, follow it in an earnest manner, meticulously taking up the Vedic learning, thus spreading the ancient glory far and wide. It is no accident that the Vedas received Bhagawan’s prime attention; it was His pure Divine Sankalpa that, the Vedas should be revived for the renaissance of man, helping him to ascend to his true self. If the Vedas are verily the Breath Of God, if the Vedas are the foremost Repository Of Truth, and if the Vedas claim that “I have known that great Purusha”, then man must ponder over, to embrace this ancient technique, optimising the same to the fullest extent, helping himself to synchronise in cosmic harmony and expansion. Every human being must revere the Vedas. It is the very foundation of life. Every act of daily life has its roots in the Vedas. Whether everyone knows this or not, the Vedas pervade everything. – Sri Sathya Sai Indeed, in time to come, in fulfillment of the cosmic process, the Vedas will flourish beyond any and every barrier, engulfing humanity, the environment and the world at large as it is the most likely outcome, a natural consequence of the Absolute and Infinite ‘Sai’ Sankalpa… The Divine Will Of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai. II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu

Love That Conquers… His Is verily The Form Most Adorable, entrancingly charming, filled with Truth, Goodness and Beauty, all the virtues that human minds can attribute, yet way beyond all attributes, transmuting everything unto verily His own!… one may simply call Him… Love!!… Love That Conquers!!! This matchless ultimate Avatar of all times, Who is verily Formless Attribute-less Para Brahman, Who Is beyond any comprehension and description, Who Is way beyond the vagaries of human mind, Who cannot be contained by even the Vedas, Upanishads and all the scriptures, can be best described and named aptly as Prema Swaroopa, Love Embodied God. As Bhagawan HimSelf has said many a time, if at all you want to call Me by some name, call Me Prema Swaroopa. Sai’s Love, the Absolute Purest form of Love that can ever be, is so perfect and blemish-less that with His Love and Love alone that He conquers the hearts of all. Every preceding Avatar has come with one weapon or insignia of Their own. For instance, Lord Sri Ramachandra had brought with Him the Kodanda, the Divine bow and arrow; Bhagawan Sri Krishna His Chakra, the Divine discus. In that accord, what weapon has Lord Sai Rama, this Sathya Sai Avatar come with? His Supreme, all-conquering Love is His only Divine weapon. Sri Sathya Sai’s Love conquers the unconquerable inner foes, which otherwise cannot be conquered so effectively and easily. The Love that flows unceasingly, like the celestial Ganga, the Sai Prema Ganga flows uninterrupted towards one and all sans any discrimination, filling all the gaps and embracing all, no matter who or what we are. Mother Sai, with His Absolute flawless unsullied Love, accepts anyone as he or she is, with all limitations and shortcomings, as Mother Sai Is verily The Universal Mother Supreme. The Supreme Divine Love of Sai inspires, motivates and encourages one and all, to transform oneself and become a better person by all means. Swami has forever been giving and forgiving. His Love is so purifying and reassuring that we are so enthused and inspired to become verily Sai ourselves. Once touched by the Divine Supreme Love of The Cosmic Mother Sai, it is impossible for anyone to resist that Love…All-encompassing. After having said ‘Yes’ to Mother Sai and Her Love That Conquers, we become powerless to resort to our old habits and practices that do not fit the new us. We pleasantly undergo the entire process of unmaking and remaking in the Divine Hands of Sai. The life experiences of every Sai devotee across the globe is a classic testimony to this Truth. Does the physical absence of Sai make any difference at all when it comes to experiencing His Love? No doubt we miss our Beloved Bhagawan’s most beatific form and the utmost enthralling blissful experience of ‘The Beauty Beyond Compare’ – His Divine Darshans, what can be best termed as Sri Sathya Sai Darshana Mahotsavam!!! Nevertheless, we have been immensely blessed by our Beloved Bhagawan with His priceless legacy of His Pure Love. With the greatest treasure of boundless Sai Love, we have absolutely no reason to fear or worry about being lost in this temporary, transient world of dualities, for our Ever-Living, OmniScient, OmniPotent and OmniPresent Sai Is ever around us, ready to wrap us within His orbit of Supreme Love. So long as we hold on to The Divine Lotus Feet, cherishing Sai in every single thought, dedicating every microsecond to our Beloved Mother Sai and being fully functional in the Name of Sai, offering every single thought word and deed to Him, thereby transforming mundane Karma into Karma Yoga, we can breeze through this purification process without any difficulty. It is the Love of Sai that burns, that purifies, breaks our Ego Empire brick by brick, in the meantime unmaking us completely, just to be remade all anew in the likes of Sai. We gain so much fortitude, forbearance, courage and self-confidence that illusion and disillusionment become a thing of the past. With the Supreme Ultimate Wisdom of Oneness, gained in the Light of Love of Sai, we begin to see this Creation through the Sai Lens. So all and everything appears clearly as the mirror reflection of The Absolute One, Para Brahman – Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai. There is no more duality and distraction of me and others. All that exists is the Absolute One. The flame of Love burning within our hearts and souls help us and all around us to tread the path of perfection, embracing The Oneness, which essentially is Liberation. As Swami becomes our sole, soul motto, there are no more petty desires and dualities. The one and only desire is to continue to experience the self-same Oneness all through and become one with the Very Source of Ever Shining Brilliant Light and All-Abiding Love, Prema Swaroopa Sai and eventually transmute into That, The Eternal Para Brahma Sai, from Whom Is our origin and unto Whom do we return. His Was The Love That Ever Was… The Love That Ever Is… And The Love That Ever Will Be… Love That Conquers!!! II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II

Sai Vani Is Sathya Vani…Sathya Vani Is Sai Vani… Love Is My Form, Truth Is My Breath…thus pronounced Bhagawan defining HimSelf long ago. When Sathya becomes the Sustaining Force for the Form, and Sai becomes His Name, Sathya Sai truly stands for The True Truth, the Ultimate Source of all wisdom. Unfathomable Divinity He Is that human kind can never successfully perceive His True Truth, but can only to follow the path to Become & Be! How often we speak about Him, extolling His ‘Beauty Beyond Compare’ True Truth at a level of human understanding?!? Truly, all that He speaks become Truth, for He Is verily Truth in human form… Who can fathom the mysterious mystery of The Master Supreme, Who plays His cards at an all-encompassing… supra-conscious level, far…far…way far…beyond any human imagination??? For an earnest seeker, every single moment with Him is a revealing moment… revealing His endless mystery… that is often done in His most inimitable style. A flashback into a beautiful December evening in 1995, with Swami and His students, wherein the last but one batch of Masters in English Literature students at SSSIHL, Prasanthi Nilayam, had this profound Sai-tale of experience. “Name the book, SAI VANI”, Swami told the students on 28th of December, 1995. But that is not the complete story. The students had assembled in the Mandir that evening with a photograph of Bhagawan and the list of contents of the book. They had sent a letter to Swami that afternoon regarding the book. On seeing the boys carrying the paraphernalia in a tray, Bhagawan gave a curious and mischievous smile. The occasional glances and smiles continued till some of the boys started wondering if Swami would come near them at all. At last, Swami came, asking, “What is that?” The students told about the book and pleaded Swami to suggest a name. “Peru Enduku?” (Why Name?) Then Swami asked, “Did you think of any name?” “No, Swami”, the boys replied in a chorus, “You have to give the name” Graciously, Swami said, “Sai Vani Pettandi” (Name it Sai Vani). “Please write it with Your Own Hands Swami”, pleaded the students. “No, No” said Bhagawan and moved away. He would have gone a few steps before He paused. Sensing that Swami may agree to bless the book by writing down the name, a few students went up to Swami and gave Him the photograph and the list of contents. Swami gently wrote: “Sathya Vani”, and after a moment’s pause, He said, “Oh I have written ‘Sathya Vani’ instead of ‘Sai Vani’. Well, Sai Vani is better. Name the book Sai Vani”…. and thus the christening of the book left a mirthful impression on the students assembled there. II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II

Divine Pastime… When God Supreme is credited with the creation of the very visible and all invisible realms of existence, He and He alone can authentically speak of His mysterious creation. Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai has often made profound revelations about His projected creation and His role as the Master Creator. God initiates man into innocent, tender, loveable and loving childhood, and what does he do in turn… Read on Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai… Creation has emerged from God, Who Is free from desire. It is a spontaneous unfolding, beyond human understanding. No one can unravel the Divine Mystery. Human activity, however spontaneous it may seem, can be explained to originate from some patent or latent wish or other. But, God’s activity can never yield an answer to human enquiry about its why or whence or wherefore. God is omniscient. He Is the source of supreme delight, of extreme ecstasy. The joy flashes as sport, as prank and purposeless play, leela. God needs neither helper nor material for the process of Creation. His serene, stable, sovereign Fullness can become movement, rotation and vibration, when He Wills. And, all the living and non-living entities God projects are led towards acquisition of the very Ecstasy Whose overflow they are. God is the paramount principle of Bliss that is not affected by time or materiality, for He Is the basis for the material world of time and matter. His Bliss pervades all Creation. That is the way His leela works. But, created beings are diverse and entangled in duality. If they emerge from the Bliss of the One, how could some be so fearful and anxious and some calm and peaceful? An inference such as this is very wrong; it is unwarranted and unjustified. The Rain God showers His gift on all things on earth, edible crops as well as thorny weeds. The seeds of both sprout and grow in accordance with their different natures. Likewise, the Divine Bliss, Love and Light are the sustenance for all nature. The qualities of head and heart, either virtuous or vicious, decide whether life is happy or miserable, praiseworthy or blameworthy. Good deeds mould men into saints; bad deeds shape them as sinners. God initiates men into innocent, tender, loveable and loving childhood. But men relish envy, greed and hatred and cast off the gift of softness and sweetness. They cultivate instead the thorny weeds. Men seek joy in this Cause Consequence duo. God has no gain to achieve, no need to project the Cosmos. He has everything; He Is everything. He plays motiveless and unattached out of sheer elan. II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II

Cheppinattu Chestara??? Decades ago, as young Sathya, Bhagawan staged a drama of value-oriented message titled ‘Cheppinattu Chestara’, asking the ‘worldly’ around, as to whether they follow their words with appropriate deeds, practising Trikarana Suddhi, unity in thought, word and deed. Time and again during His sojourn on earth Bhagawan would send timely reminders for the man to follow suit. Every human being has a heart. This heart is filled with love. With how many are you sharing the love in your hearts? …With none at all. What, then, is the use of that love if it is not shared? You must share with all the love in your hearts, not with humans alone, but with all beings in creation. Love, which is the gift of God, has to be shared with everyone in the world. All human troubles arise out of the failure to share this love with one and all because of selfishness. Everyone repeats the benediction: “Lokaas-Samasthaas-Sukhino Bhavanthu!” (Let all the people of the world be happy). To how many are you giving happiness? You are repeating the words mechanically, but are you praying from your hearts for the well-being of the world? …No, not at all. You are concerned only with your selfish interests. The day you root out selfishness from within you, Divinity will blossom in your heart. People talk about Sakshatkaram. What is it? It is not something external. Sakshatkaram is contemplation of the Divine at all times and in all states within one’s self. “Sarvadhaa Sarvakaleshu Sarvathra Hari Chinthanam” (Thinking of God at all times, in all places continuously). People do recite the Name of Rama incessantly. But will liberation be got by this repetition? To gain liberation, to win Rama’s grace, it is not enough to repeat His Name; you have to act up to Rama’s principles. Rama sacrifised everything for the sake of Dharma. You have to make a similar sacrifice. Keep Dharma as your ideal. Engage yourself in righteous activities. Only then will Rama shower His grace upon you. If, on the contrary, you perform no Dharmik acts but only repeat Rama’s Name, it is tantamount to abusing Rama. Likewise, there is no meaning in repeating Krishna’s Name. What the devotee should do is to experience the ecstasy of Krishna Consciousness. …Nor is that all. You should develop the equal-mindedness of Krishna. Krishna maintained the same serenity of mind whether He was in a Yoga- Bhumi, or a Yuddha-Bhumi (battlefield) or Smashana-Bhumi (a cemetery). He was always in a state of bliss. You should aspire to experience such bliss; only then can you be said to experience Krishna Consciousness. Whatever deity you may worship, you should experience the lessons of the deity within you. II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II

The Tiger Skin Story From Prasanthi Nilayam When He walked the Earth as Sri Sathya Sai, every moment with Him turned out to be a lesson, lesson in watching Him ‘walking His talk’, making His Life His Message for everyone to follow. Long ago during His teen days, Bhagawan encountered an English hunter at Uravakonda, who sought after Him for His magical help in starting his stranded vehicle in the forest. …And Bhagawan left him ‘enlightened’ asking him not to shoot any more wild beasts, advising him to shoot them with his camera. …And thus the story of Bhagawan’s tiger mat in the bhajan hall in Prasanthi Nilayam, as narrated by Prof Kasturi in ‘Sathyam Sivam Sundaram’. While reading this, one need to understand the inner significance of the tiger skin in spirituality. Tiger skin is symbolic of conquering animal, beastial tendecies or vasanas in man.  One day a jeep-driver crossed the river bed and walked the streets of Puttaparthi, trying to locate Swami. His master, a young English sub-divisional officer, had gone for Shikar (hunting) to the forest on the other side of the Chitravathi, and while returning to Anantapur the vehicle had stopped right opposite Puttaparthi village. The driver did his best, as did the officer, to get the vehicle moving, but failed. The driver suggested that there was a ‘Boy’ at Puttaparthi who could materialise Vibhuti (sacred ash). Yes, “create, by a circular movement of His palm, the very panacea for all ills, even for the jeep!” Stranded halfway, the Englishman agreed and let the driver go to the village, while he himself sat in the jeep. The driver bumped into the Boy at last, but was astounded to hear Baba say, “I Am coming, myself, to the jeep.” He walked across the sandy bed, and on reaching the road, peeped into the vehicle and saw the carcass of a tiger that the officer had shot barely two hours ago. Swami’s deep love for all beings could not tolerate animals being killed or tortured. He said, “I stopped the jeep at this place, for it is a mother, whose three small cubs are at this very time loudly wailing and calling out to her, that you are carrying. Go back! Recover those cubs and gift them to some zoo where they will be well looked after. And do not shoot wild beasts again, for they have caused you no harm. Why do you kill them, surround them and lay traps to catch them. Shoot them instead with a more superior weapon, your camera. That won’t maim or kill them.” The Englishman was at once enlightened, and he never carried a firearm again. Shooting wild beasts armed with a camera, he discovered, was far more adventurous and sathwic (pure). He presented the orphaned cubs to the zoo, and when the tiger skin came back from the taxidermist, he brought it to Puttaparthi. Prasanthi Mandir was then under construction. He met Baba and placed the skin at His Feet. Sakamma of Coorg pleaded with Him to sit on it in Yogic fashion, with a rosary between His fingers. She had a photographer ready. And Baba obliged, though He has never sat in Dhyana (meditation) or held a rosary! (PS: Tiger skin in Indian spirituality signifies overcoming animal, beastial tendencies, vasanas.) II Samastha Lokah Sukhino Bhavantu II