Feature of the Week: Who Am I? and A Prayer to Shri Sainath

From our birth we are taught to differentiate, discriminate, and to identify the distinguishing characteristics of various individuals, things and places. Ironically, we spend most of our lives in this Maya or mundane life, which is symbolic of modern individual-based egocentric culture and which is what our senses perceive as real. This is a powerful trap and makes it extremely hard for us to escape and work towards Self-realization. These things do not really exist. What really exists is the Real Absolute, the recognition of which is difficult because of our human senses. So, in a way, the senses that we perceive as our strengths are themselves our impediments to spirituality. A pre-requisite is to understand the fundamental question, "Who am I". Shri Sai Baba has conveyed in various ways messages that we often tend to consider as opposites or at least different from each other. Let us recall some of them, as follows:
- He treated princes and poor people alike.
- Fakir (mendicancy) was the real and Lordship (riches) was transient.
- Rama (Hindu God) and Rahim (the God of Mohammedans) were one and the same
- He was the same in prosperity and adversity
- Sant (Saint) and the Anant (God) are one and the same; there is not the least difference between them
- The two aspects of God, (1) the Unmanifested – Nirgun and (2) The Manifested Guru (Sagun) are the same
- He was unattached. Foes and friends, and kings and paupers, were the same to Him
- Baba’s tongue knew no taste, as He had acquired control over it. He mixed all the food gathered from His begging together in kundi (earthen pot) and ate it to His heart’s content. Dogs, cats and crows freely ate from the pot and the woman who swept the floor of the Masjid took some of the food home. Baba never stopped them.
- Baba, Who was Dispassion or Non-attachment Incarnate, did not care for the garlands of flowers, necklaces of jewels and other decorations; but, out of real love to His devotees, He allowed them to have their own way of worship.

As Shri Hemadpant in the Chapter VIII of Shri Sai Satcharita explains, four things are common to all the creatures, viz. food, sleep, fear and sexual union. Humans are endowed with special faculty, viz. knowledge, with the help of which one can attain God-vision, which is impossible for any other form of life. Because of this capacity to acquire knowledge, humans can think of the perishable and transitory nature of the body itself and of the world and get disgust for the sense-enjoyments and can discriminate between the unreal and the real and thus attain God-vision. So, with all earnestness and speed, we should strive to meditate on the Self and attain our end – Self-realization. The most effective way to gain our object is to approach a worthy Saint or Sage or Sadguru, like Sai Baba who Himself has attained God-vision. After Sai Baba explains the real meaning have a Sanskrit verse (shloka) from Bhagavad-Gita to Shri Nanasaheb Chandorkar, Shri Hemadpant mentions the instances of Ajnana (ignorance) of humans as follows:
· Human’s confused, but convinced opinion that “I am Jiva (that individual person as perceived by human senses)”
· Not knowing that body is not the soul
· Not knowing that God, world and Jiva are all one and the same.

“Who is this Me (or I)” was well expounded many times by Sai Baba. He said that “You need not go far or anywhere in search of Me. Barring your name and form, there exists in you, as well as in all beings, a sense of Being or Consciousness of Existence. That is Myself. Knowing this, you see Me inside yourself, as well as in all beings. If you practice this, you will realize all-pervasiveness and thus attain oneness with Me”. The crucial need is for us to get over our Ahamkara or ego, which is so subtle and therefore so difficult to get rid off. Jai Sai Ram. (A contribution by Sai devotee Krishna Alluri, Vancouver BC, Canada)

A Prayer to Sainath - continued

Sainatha….Sainatha… A tribute to Sadguru
Sainaatha Sainaatha Sainaatha Sadgurum
Yogiraaja Yugapurusha Bhaktakoti Vanditham
Kripanidhi Tapodhani Sainaatha Paahimaam
Divyateja Bhavyamoorthi Punyacharana Poojithaam

O Lord Sri Sainatha True Teacher/Sadguru, You are the King among the Yogis (Yogiraja). You are the Supreme Person of the Yuga (Yugapurusha). You are the One worthy of obeisance from the legion of Your devotees (Bhaktakoti Vanditam). I bow with all reverence to You (Pahimam). O Sainatha You are One of great penance (Tapodhani) and treasure house of grace or kindness (Kripanidhi). O Divine effulgence (Divyateja), having a magnificent personality (Bhavyamurthi) and having Holy Feet (Punyacharana) worthy of worship (Pujitam).
Sainatha…Sainatha…
Antharangaananilu Kanikarinchi O Naatha
Alamatinchu Nee Bhaktula Aadukonumu Paramapitha
Aarani Dhuniga Velige Naa Bhaktini Gaanchuma
Anuvukanna Anuvunai Ninnu Chera Neeyuma ...

Meaning and Commentary: O my Protector (Natha) take pity on me and dwell in my consciousness or inner consciousness (Antharangana Nilu Kanikarinchi). O Supreme Father (Panamapitha) give succor to Your yearning devotees (Alamatinchu Nee Bhaktula Aadukonuma). My Lord notice my devotion, which is alit like an inextinguishable Sacred Fire (Aarani Dhuniga Velige Naa Bhaktini Ganchuma). My Sadguru Lord Sainatha, I wish to be transformed into a particle smaller than an atom and merge in You (Anuvukanna Anuvunai Ninnu Cheraneeyuma). Unless man foregoes his ego, he cannot get the anubhava and anubhooti of Lord. So, the qualification to become a true devotee is to shed ego. But, there are innumerable types of egos, which we do not know and cannot distinguish. One has to be on the watch out and with discrimination keep on removing one after another from us and be careful that they are not reentered into us. The last line Anuvukanna Anuvunai Ninnu Cheraneeyuma explains this. Once it is achieved, then the path is very easy and the Bhakti, which should keep burning all the time like the Sacred Dhuni in Baba's temples, will pave way for realization of HIM by the devotee. This is the meaning of the third line Aarani Dhuniga Velige Naa Bhaktini Ganchuma. Of course, the karma of earlier births will also effect and some times become hurdle in our path, but we should not lose nerve, as HE is there by our side to help us out always.
Sainatha … Sainatha…
Naadu Mora Aalakinchi Nannuchera Vachchithiva
Sainatha Sadguru Sakala Srishti Rakshaka
Kanulu Chemmagillenu Manasu Naatyamaadenu
Groli Nee Karunaamrithamu Saranaagatha Vatchala ...

Meaning and Commentary: O Sainatha, having heard my entreaty or responding to my supplication, have you come to keep me company (Naadumora Aalakinchi Nannu Cheravachchitiva). O Sadguru Sainatha, You are the Protector of the Shrishti (both chara and achara, or animate and inanimate beings) (Sainatha Sadguru Sakala Srishti Rakshaka). O Protector of those who seek Your refuge (Saranagatha Vatchala). My eyes have become wet or there are tears in my eyes (Kanulu Chemmagillenu). Mind is gamboling (Manasu Natyamaadenu). Having drunk the nectar of Your magnanimity (Groli Nee Karunaamruthamu). Once we succeed in shedding our ego. HE comes to give us company in any form, which HE thinks right. What will happen then to us? I think one has to experience it to understand, mere words are not at all sufficient to describe that experience or feeling. The words turn pale and the meaning insipid. When one is in that state, the tears start rolling down the cheeks without one's knowledge and the inner-consciousness starts dancing. Such is the mercy or Daya of Lord Sainath.

(A contribution by Sai devotees GopiKrishna, New Delhi, and PN Murthy, Hyderabad, India)
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Devotees Say

MRK, Phoenix, AZ, USA
I sent Sai Vichar to a Jewish rabbi who works with youth who are on evil path. The following is his reply. I thought you will like to see it – MRK "this is wonderful reading...please forward to me issues that you think I might like...and thank you for coming last nite......warmest, - Yehudah"

Alhad Sathe
This is for devotee MR Ramchander. Do not loose your patience. The difficult times in life are testing times. Our Baba tests us and makes us strong. This is time to purify your mind. Take Baba's name and do all deeds. These days will be over. Remember that after every storm, the beautiful sun comes out and clears the sky. Material things will come back but not your life. May you be blessed by Baba.

Vaishali S. Dode, Annandale VA, USA.
Sairam to all Baba's devotees & all the readers of Sai Vichaar. I humbly request Veena Gupta from New Delhi to mail me some of Baba's udi. We desperately need this udi because we are facing lot of health problems. we cannot afford to pay any insurance as we just earn the minimum. I would appreciate if you send me some of Baba's udi. my address is as follows: 3318 Woodburn village drive Apt # 31, Annandale, VA 22003, USA.

Pinky Garg, USA
This is in response to Brother Ramachander's situation. You should never be depressed or think about committing suicide as you have done nothing wrong but did what our Lord Sai wants all of us to do. You must think positive as your conscious is clear. Secondly money comes and goes, but remember one thing if we do good our Lord always protects us and Loves us. Good people always give and forgive, therefore just forgive those people and move on. We have gone through worse situation than you may be. We were framed by the same very relatives we once thought they were like our father and mother and we went out of our way to help them to settle in US. In return we got into heavy debts, long court battle as those people forge my signatures and we were accused for forgery. But My Loving Lord Sai knew everything, He was ever present with us and we never felt any remorse for our attitude, it was very stressful, very expensive mistake, but Lord Sai helped us and let the truth prevail. We are back again on the path of prosperity and to Lord's service with His Grace. Now we are just more careful. So My Sai brother, have firm faith in our Lord Sai, He will never let you down. Be Happy and contented, whatever happens always happens for our own good. I would be happy to share my experiences in details if they can help you to overcome your depression. My e:mail is pinkydg@aol.com Jai Sai Ram

Vrinda Kumar, Sydney, Australia
The features in the last few newsletters are really inspiring contributions. And it does make me sad when I read about the various problems being faced by the devotees all over the world. I sincerely believe that we should continue having faith in our Mother Sai as that seems to be the only solution. A word for our Sai sister Jamuna. Your son's problem seems to be due to your mental condition during Pregnancy. he appears to be extremely insecure. You should take extra care now, showering plenty of love and affection on him in a demonstrative way. He will certainly improve with time. Please don’t make him too conscious of his problems in an obvious way. Above all be patient with him and do not lose heart. Pray to Sai and I am sure he will help. Try reading from Satcharitra or playing bhajans in front of your son even if he cannot understand, It will certainly help by creating good vibes. Above all remember it is not his fault and we should try and not make him too conscious of his problem. If you are in the USA then some help can be had in the form of exercises to strengthen his fingers. Some Child Psychologist should be able t guide . Meanwhile we pray for Vignesh . May Baba give him a feeling of security. For Devotee Darshan In my humble opinion , prayers can never harm us , whether we pray for ourselves or for others. In fact it is my experience that praying sincerely for others is always more fruitful than when we pray for ourselves. A selfless act can never harm. In fact I agree with you that it makes a better person out of us, if at all it will improve our Karmas. Besides praying for others. a prayer club also helps one to share our problems and sharing always reduces the pain. Please do not stop praying, simply because you feel your prayers were not answered. Remember only Sai can decide what is good for us. May be in your case the particular outcome was for your ultimate good. May be your dear father is better off wherever he is now. Your prayers may have helped him get sadgati. You should have faith in Baba and remember only He knows what is best for us. With time your hurt will heal and you will get back to your prayers. Meanwhile keep trying. May Baba bless us all. Om Sri SAI.
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Prayer Club

Divya Singh
Dear Friends, please help if possible. This is important to me...so I am asking you to please forward it. Please send this to all your contacts. If anyone you know has survived NON SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER, please contact me at the address given below. My husband has it and I would like to know what treatment was used. Please forward to everyone on your contact list. From the bottom of my heart I thank you. Please Contact: SIEMENS Siemens Information System Limited, #84, Keonics Electronics City, Hosur Road, Bangalore-561229 India

Gayathri Nagarajan
I want to request all Sai Devotees to pray to our Dear Sai to bless me with a child. I am sure my Sai Baba will not disappoint me. He has always been with me through out My life, since I became the devotee of him. He helped me to come out of all my problems and He blessed me with a fantastic husband named Nagarajan. May Sai please bless him with all happiness and long life. Baba please blesses us with a kid. I know you are just testing our patience. all ways you have helped and taken me out of all my problems. Baba will never leave a True devotee. Please bless us with a kid. Let everybody be blessed with happiness. Om SaiRam
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Sai Activities

Sai Utsav 2000
Shirdi Sai Baba web site organization would like to bring to your attention that the Sai festival, Sai Utsav 2000 in November 2000 in Chicago is getting closer to the reality by Sai Baba’s grace. Arrangements are being made to make this event a grand success. The registration for this event will commence in September 2000. Current list of participants include Sai apostles from India and abroad. Please watch for the final program soon.

Shirdi Sai Sansthan, Sydney, Australia
By Baba's grace the Shirdi Sai Sansthan Sydney had a very successful fundraising event on the 8th July. It was indeed a miracle how so many people turned up for our function. A substantial amount was raised on our very first effort. This has really given a boost to the morale of the Shirdi Sai devotees of Sydney. A huge thanks to everyone for coming together in a big way to help. Hope we will continue to work together so that our temple will materialize soon. The Sansthan celebrated the Guru Poornnima on the 16th evening with Aarti, bhajans and reading , followed by prasad.

Sai Mandir, El Paso, Texas, USA Contact: Sandeep
We are seeking help of Sai Devotees everywhere! We are in the process of building a Sai Baba Temple and are in need of funds! You may visit us at http://www.SaiBabaofShirdi.org for information. We beg you in the name of Sai Baba for your help in this matter. Your Servant

Guru Purnima Celebrations, Saidarbar, Hyderabad, USA
Guru Purnima was celebrated at Saidarbar on July, 16, 2000, to revive and dedicate our selves to the age-old tradition of GURU PARAMPARA . On this important and memorable day, the seeker totally surrenders and resorts to the holy feet of the GURU for acquiring knowledge. The celebrations were marked by the inauguration of Viswa Saidarbar. The entire program was hosted by Saibandhu Shri. Vijay Anand K.P. from U.A.E. May Lord Sainath bless him and all Saibandhus on this auspicious occasion. PS Please visit for more information, photographs and other particulars http://www.saidarbar.com/viswa_saidarbar.htm Reported by Raghu Raman Satulury, Hyderabad, India.
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Experiences of Devotees

S.V. Swamy, Hyderabad, India
On the auspicious occasion of Guru Purnima, I attended the Guru Puja and Inauguration of Viswa Saidarbar at Saidarbar (Hyderabad Headquarters). I happened to read 2 interesting, useful stories. I thought I would share them with you. The first story is about Sri Narada and is published in the Hindi section of Sai Leela the official magazine of Shirdisamsthan. The story goes like this. Sage Narada visits the abode of Sri Vishnu. Vishnu Bhagavan worships the rishi and asks him for the reason for his visit. Narada replies: "Bhagavan, While travelling on earth, I came across a Satsang where the main speaker was praising the benefits of Darshan of Sadhus, but I could not get the actual benefit. So kindly tell me what is the benefit of darshan of Sadhus." Sri Vishnu told Sage Narada, "Rishivar! Your question can be answered only by an ant (Chiti in Hindi, I don't know whether it translates as ant), which is residing in so and so tree in such and such a place." Narada goes to the ant (for our moral, it does not matter what the actual creature was) and asks the ant the same question. The ant, instead of replying to him, dies in his hands. The rishi is grieved and goes to Vaikuntham with the dead ant in his hand and narrates the whole episode to Sri Vishnu. Lord tells Rishi, to go to Kailas mountain and the Mansarovar lake, where he can get the answer to his question from a Rajhans (Swan). The rishi goes to the Mansarovar lake and seeing the bird at the other side sits down and waits for the Swan to come to this side of the lake. He closes his eyes and is immersed in meditation on God. Suddenly, he feels something heavy in his lap. Opening his eyes, he is agitated to see the Rajhans, dead in his lap. He rushes to Vaikuntham with this dead bird and tells Vishnu the whole story. Vishnu tells him that now only a small, newly born child in Varanasi can clarify his doubt. Narada is horrified at the suggestion and says, "Oh No! The last two times, I went near some living thing to ask, it died. I don't want to carry the guilt of being responsible for the death of another life, that too a human child!" Sri Vishnu assured Sage Narada that this time, he need not worry and he will not have to take any guilt. With a lot of trepidation, Sri Narada approaches the 3-day old child. Seeing the Rishi, the child claps its hands in joy and addresses him thus: "Pl. come Oh! Rishivar! I am the ant. By the grace of your darshan, I became the Rajhans and again I had the benefit of your darshan in that life, because of which I got this human birth. Now with your darshan, I will..." Rishi Narada did not wait there even a moment to hear the child further but vanished. Mother Lakshmi asked Sri Mahavishnu why Sage Narada did not come back. He replied with a laugh, "Devi! Probably he got his answer about the benefits of Sadhu Darshan from the ant etc." (to be continued)
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Question of the Week

"Can we have faith in only one God and in one form?"

Quotation of the Week

People wrongly think they are different from one another. I am inside you and you are inside me. You continue to think in this way. Then you will realize it - Sai Baba of Shirdi (as cited in Sai Baba the Master by Acharya E. Bharadwaja.)
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