Concentration

Aum Sairam

Concentration is the open secret of focusing all one's attention on a particular object or person in order to enter into and have one's identification with that object or person. The final stage of concentration is to discover and reveal the hidden ultimate Truth in the object of concentration. What concentration can do in our day-to-day life is unimaginable.

Concentration depends on the individual. Some people find it easier to look at the flame of a candle and concentrate, while others find it easier to look at a beautiful flower. Still others prefer to look at the rising sun and concentrate. So if the individual gets a kind of inner joy when concentrating on a particular object, he should concentrate on that object in order to achieve his goal.

Concentration can be done at any moment, at any place, in any position, it need not be done only while sitting. When the inner being compels us to concentrate, we concentrate. There is no hard and fast rule that one has to concentrate only while standing or while seated in the lotus position. When the inner being inspires us, we aspire, and this aspiration can be expressed either in the form of concentration or meditation.

Allah Malik

All is Bliss

Aum Sairam

Look out into the universe and contemplate the glory of Sri Sai Baba. Observe the stars, millions of them, twinkling in the night sky, all with a message of unity, part of the very nature of Sri Sai Baba. You can see the moon, which orbits the earth on a perfect path, a path which can be calculated by scientists for centuries ahead.

What about your own path? Here, you are the scientist for your own life and you alone can plot the path that will take you into the future. You are plotting that path, day by day, with every thought and every act. All action results from thought, so it is thoughts that matter.

When you know the truth, you cannot blame others for the misfortunes of the moment; those misfortunes are of your own creation. What matters is to live in the present, live now, for every moment is now. It is your thoughts and acts of the moment that create your future. The outline of your future path already exists, for you created its pattern by your past. But even that outline can change, and will change, depending on your own thoughts and actions as each new day dawns and then dies away again.

This is the lesson for all. Do not be misled by what you see around you, or be influenced by what you see. You live in a world which is a playground of illusion, full of false paths, false values and false ideals, But you are not part of that world.

You must live in the world while you are there, but do not become part of it, for you are part of Sri Sai Baba and do not belong to the world. The life ahead can only be glorious if you learn to live in total harmony with Sri Sai Baba. He is there always, but it is for you to take His hand and proceed through life, hand in hand with Him in all that you do and think.

You will never find peace and happiness in isolation, separated from the omnipresent Sri Sai Baba. And yet this is how most people live their lives, such lives are shallow and without foundation or direction, like a rudderless ship floundering at sea.

Sri Sai Baba says take My hand and secure your freedom while I am here to help you. Leave behind all the past and forget it. Live in the present, in perfect union and enjoy the peace of mind, which it brings. Once you live in complete harmony with Me, all problems and difficulties cease to exist.

Allah Malik

Positive and Negative Thinking

Aum Sairam

For some reason, most people find it easier to think in a negative way than in a positive manner. It seems that some effort is needed to think positive thoughts, whereas negative thoughts come easily and uninvited. This has much to do with education and the environment one has been living in.

In order to understand how positive thinking works, and how to use it efficiently, it is important to understand the power of negative thinking.

If you have been brought up in a happy and positive atmosphere, where people value success and self-improvement, then it will be easier for you to think positively and expect success. If you have been brought up under poor or difficult situations, you will probably go on expecting difficulties and failure.

Allah Malik

The Spark Of God

Aum Sairam

God is Omnipresent Omnipotent and Omniscient in our conscience, with wisdom, judgment and knowledge, as these are His qualities. He is in our hearts with so much love. If you distribute your love all over the world, still it will be infinite. You have so much love within you that you need never feel lonely...

To remain in tune with your conscience you have to meditate the quality of your Mediator... Then you have to be tuned with his spirit, the spirit of love, the spirit of wisdom, the spirit of the power of control, the spirit of all his qualities, which you also have.

You have to be tuned with Mother Nature working in and around us as a healer, as a protector. We are given so much energy, courage and strength to fight against our various weaknesses and to fight against all evil.

Then you have to meditate and pray for the good of all your friends and associates. Pray for the good of others, not for your own material needs. God is praying through you. Pray for the comfort of others, and then you will become a wonderful person tomorrow.

You have to meditate and have self-introspection. Ask yourself, "Where am I going wrong, what makes others unhappy with me? Is the fault in my words, behavior or actions?" When you have seen what is wrong, decide to correct it, to be alert and not commit the same mistake. Cultivate your own self with all the wonderful qualities in your spiritual life, which help you in your day-to-day life.

Actually, churches or temples came into existence when man lost his way, forgetting how to treat others or how to live together in peace. Teachings were given to try to bring man back to his original nature, to teach him how to follow his good instincts. Therefore, you should follow any good teaching you find.

When any good thoughts or ideas come, immediately follow them, because that is the dictation of God. If you feel angry, do not talk, keep quiet. The anger will leave you. If you talk at that time, your words will be so hasty they will hurt someone. Try to assimilate your anger. You will find all these teachings in the holy books. Read the holy messages and follow them.

You also have to meditate on what is wrong with the world and try to help. Religion means to help yourself and others to grow. Religion means some principles of life and growth that are to be followed and by which you can grow along with your environment.

You cannot grow alone. We support each other, we help each other. The environment is so important. The more you can help others and your environment, the more you will feel happy. If you clean your house, you feel satisfied. If you clean yourself and your life andhelp your friends, you will feel satisfied and happy. If you are not useful to others, what will you do with your own Salvation?

Salvation is the condition of mind that attains the wisdom to understand the oneness that is common in every existence. Salvation is the condition of your consciousness whereby you understand what the soul is; understand that you are the soul, the spark of God. Salvation is the condition of your own self, which has been trained in such a way that no illusions or the world of attraction and repulsion can ever disturb it anymore.

Allah Malik

Purify Yourself

Aum Sairam

May This Thursday [Baba's Day] Bring You Strength, Goodluck, Success, HappinessAnd Joy.

Jealousy often disturbs peace of mind. Are you jealous of somebody? Jealousy is a canker. It is incorrect to imagine that A has blocked your promotion in office or that B has ruined you by competing in the same business. Again and again remember: no one can make or mar your career. Your career and your life are shaped by your previous Karma. If you are destined to rise, not all the world can stop it. If you are not so destined, not all the world can help you to come up either. Each man is governed by his own destiny. Each man's life is independent, though seemingly interdependent with the lives of others. Remember this. Understand this point well. Never again be jealous of others or blame others for your misfortune.

May be, you are fed up with your environment which disturbs your peace. Instead of trying to change the environment--the chances are you may fail--change yourself for the better. Purify yourself. As you do this, even the environment that has remained bad for you, may be for years, will mysteriously begin to dance and change for the better. The more you grow in purity, the more congenial and harmonious the environment will become. Do not ask. "How?". Try and experience.

Put up with things. What cannot be cured has to be endured. Endure cheerfully. Learn to live on this Beautiful Thursday [Baba's Day] with a hundred inconveniences, annoyances, and irritations from morning till midnight. You will gain in patience, in inner strength, in will power. You will turn disadvantage into an advantage.

Allah Malik

Recognize

Aum Sairam

As human beings, we all want to be happy. And one of the ways to be happy is to feel that everything is okay. The world is okay, and I am okay. But the trouble is, the world doesn't seem to be okay, nor do we seem to be okay. Therefore, in order to be happy, most people live in some form of state of denial or escape.

The same applies to almost everything around us. Suffering is caused by birth, death, sickness, old age and pain according to the philosophers, but the real suffering is caused by our attitude. If we see birth, death, sickness, old age and pain as natural phenomena, there is a minimum of suffering. If we have a different attitude, it can cause great suffering.

Fundamentally if we look at our inner self, we will discover that it is what we think about ourselves that determines how much suffering we're undergoing. That frequently causes a state of anxiety; perhaps anger is always there, perhaps jealousy, perhaps greed, perhaps sadness. Something is there that is our real suffering and determines how we meet life. It is not the outer things that are the cause of our suffering, but how we react to them. What is left over when there is no outer stimulus is what is important.

The key to solving the problem is to recognize that these inner negative states, which seem to be at the core of our being, really are not at the core. There is something within us that is more fundamental, that is aware of all these states. It has the ability, not necessarily to get rid of these states, but to objectify them rather than identify with them.

Normally we do this by offering everything to Sri Sai Baba, by surrendering, by repeating Sri Sai Baba's name or through introspection. The objective is to not tackle these things directly, but rather to identify with that which is aware of them. This is the purpose of all our spiritual practices. And the more we go to this deeper depth of ourselves, the less power these negative states will have over us.

So, we can say that life is fundamentally suffering, but at a deeper level it is all-divine. And the scriptures tell us that not only is Divinity beyond all suffering, but also that is what we are. So our solution is not so much at the physical and mental level as it is at the level of our identity: Believe the scriptures and the gurus when they tell us that we are That. Recognize that we are the witness of all these states, and allow the healing to take place.

Allah Malik

The Sources Of Knowledge

Aum Sairam

Inspiration, revelation, insight, intuition, ecstasy, divine sight and the supreme, blissful state are the seven planes of knowledge. There are four sources of knowledge: instinct, reason, intuition, and direct knowledge of Brahman [God] or Brahma-Jnana [knowledge of God].

InstinctWhen an ant crawls on your right arm, the left hand automatically moves towards the right arm to drive the ant away. The mind does not reason here. When you see a scorpion near your leg, you withdraw the leg automatically. This is called instinctive or automatic movement. As you cross a street, how instinctively you move your body to save yourself from the cars! There is no thought during such kind of mechanical movement.

Instinct is found in animals and birds also. In birds, the ego does not interfere with the free, divine flow and play. Hence the work done by them through their instinct is more perfect than that done by human beings. Have you ever noticed the intricate and exquisite work done by birds in the building of their beautiful nests?

ReasonReason is higher than instinct and is found only in human beings. It collects facts, generalizes, and reasons out from cause to effect, from effect to cause, from premises to conclusions, from propositions to proofs. It concludes, decides and comes to final judgment. It takes you safely to the door of intuition and leaves you there.

Belief, reason, knowledge and faith are the four important psychic processes. First you have belief in a doctor. You go to him for diagnosis and treatment. The doctor makes a thorough examination of you and prescribes certain medicines. You take them. You reason out: "Such and such is the disease. The doctor has given me some iron and iodide. Iron will improve my blood. The iodide will stimulate the lymphatic and absorb the exudation and growth in the liver. So I should take it."

Then, by a regular and systematic course of these drugs, the disease is cured in a month. You then get knowledge and have perfect faith in the efficacy of the medicine and the proficiency of the doctor. You recommend this doctor and his drugs to your friends so that they too might benefit from his treatment.

IntuitionIntuition is personal spiritual experience. The knowledge obtained through the functioning of the causal body is intuition. There is direct perception of truth, or immediate knowledge through Samadhi or the Super conscious State. You know things in a flash.

In intuition there is no reasoning process at all. It is direct perception. Intuition transcends reason but does not contradict it. Intellect takes a man to the door of intuition and returns. Intuition is Divine vision; it is the eye of wisdom. Spiritual flashes and glimpses of truth, inspiration, revelation and spiritual insight come through intuition.

The mind has to be pure for one to know that it is the intuition that is functioning at a particular moment.

Brahma-Jnana [knowledge of God] is above intuition. It transcends the causal body and is the highest form of knowledge. It is the only

Allah Malik