Role of Praise in Spirituality.

Aum Sairam

Often when we do things related to God we feel a sense of self importance. Hold on!! Let us reflect what is our aim in coming close to Sri Sai Baba? Is it to attain name and fame doing Sri Sai Baba's work? Do we follow His teachings or merely use His teachings to glorify us? While doing Sri Sai Baba's work are we conscious of Him or conscious of our contribution to His work? These things I have been thinking and today due to HIS glory I got the answer today and I am sharing it with you as inspired by Him.

Let us first remember that God does not need us to spread His Glory. He is beyond the facts of recognition. He is merely providing us an opportunity to do His work so that we can think of Him constantly work out our sins and reach to His abode. When we write let us always be conscious that it is Him alone who is guiding us always and He gets His work done. If not us, it would be somebody else. It is necessary that we always be humble in our approach. Our work is to sing His glory and learn from Shri Sai Satcharitra.

When we are praised for our work, immediately assign the glory to Sri Sai Baba and emphasize that "He provided way and means and we acted on it". It is true isn't it? Shri Hemadpant wanted to write leela's of Sri Sai Baba and Sri Sai Baba said "you are mere instrument and I shall sing my own glory". So this shows what we are and where our place is. When we acknowledge others with the quality of their work let us be simple, let us not glorify them to the height that we nurture their pride and ego. The flatterer is equally at fault as that of the ego nurturer. It is sinful to give false praises to a person, not only we give them an inflated vision of their ability but we create in them a feeling of self importance, as such they loose sight of God and then end up being "God". When we get into the habit of praising others, and do not for some reason praise them, then they get angry and relationship becomes sour.

It is like Darwin's theory of conditioning where in we wait/expect praises for every word and sentence we put in. When we read Shri Sai Satcharitra we have to follow it with heart, mind and soul only then god helps us. We are all guilty of having fanned ego in each other to some extent, it is time we cleansed ourselves and direct all the glory to HIM who is the actual doer.

Allah Malik