Index of earlier Bulletins

August 13, 2006

The setting in the Sai Kulwant Hall had incurred no change and looked just as beautiful as day one. The day began with a short talk by the Head Priest who once again reiterated the fact that the Yagnam which was conducted according to the Shaivaagama Shastra was being performed for Loka Kalyanam. He also explained the role of Agni which acts as the mediator to the God who resides in the heavens above. Agni is the one who conveys our prayers to the Lord. But it is true that God knows everything and this is a belief only to satisfy ourselves. How true! He also reemphasized that the lingam christened "Saieeswara" is filled to the brim with Divine vibrations as it was installed by Paramashiva Himself and the Netra's power and range encircled infinity as it had come from directly from Swami.

The rest of the itinerary was same as that of yesterday. All those assembled paid their obeisance to the Sun God through the Aruna Paaraayanam and the Surya Namaskaaram. This was duly followed by the "Mahanyaasam". Today's Mahanyaasam was more full throated than yesterday since the students of the Brindavan campus, whose hostel is just adjacent to the Kulwant Hall, had come in just in time for the Paaraayanam. It really electrified the atmosphere and the hall reverberated with the chanting of Vedam in perfect harmony and rhythm. The Panchamrutha Abhishekam followed the Mahanyaasam. As usual the Lingam was worshipped with milk, honey, curds, etc. and prepared for the Rudraabhishekam. The Rudra abhishekam followed the Panchamrutha Abhishekam.

During the third iteration of the Rudram during Rudra abhishekam, Swami came out of the Yajur Mandiram (7:18AM), went around magnifying the vibrations that came out of the sacrificial altars. It was a veritable feast to watch Paramashiva spreading His infinite grace for the whole of humanity's welfare. At this moment, one ponders over the fact that the very essence of Darshan is in fact the whole purpose of this Yagnam. Time and again Swami has also mentioned that Darshan and the very thought of Him can cure the pain of aching hearts and give solace and succor to the soul. Is this not welfare of humanity? When the God Himself conducts a Yagnam of this magnitude, it is certain that the welfare of humanity is not only a logical outcome but a guaranteed and assured one.

Swami, as He came to His sofa, gave a surprised expression when He spotted the Principal of the Brindavan Campus. He called out to the Principal and enquired about when they had come and whether all were comfortable. He assured Swami that everything was fine and thanked Swami for making it possible for them to attend the Yagnam. Swami came and sat on His chair (7:31AM). He carefully watched the progress of the Abhishekam which had reached the fifth iteration. At around 7:50AM Swami retired to his interview room.

He emerged from the room at around 8:15 AM. The Abhishekam got over at around 8:55 and the Rudra Homam began. He asked for the Brindavan Vedam boys and asked them to join the chanting. Immediately they obeyed. Swami sat through the proceedings and at around 9:05 AM Swami went back to the Yajur Mandiram.

In the afternoon, Bhagawan came to Sai Kulwanth Hall at 2:45PM with the Vedic scholars performing the puja and the Nadaswaram party giving Him an auspicious welcome. But Swami in His inimitable style left the devotees in a daze when He directed the car to be driven out of the Hall towards the indoor stadium construction site. Swami came back to Sai Kulwanth Hall at 3:00PM through the East Prashanthi gate and proceeded straight to the Interview room. At 3:22PM Swami walked out to take center stage in the proceedings of the evening. After keenly observing the evening puja till 3:30, Swami called Sri.Vinay Kumar, the Karnataka State Youth coordinator and asked him about the details of the programme for the evening. Sri.Vinay Kumar then introduced the first of the two speakers; Dr.Gururaj Karjagi, an educationalist par excellence. He spoke on the topic "Lord Shiva as a symbol". Dr.Gururaj emphasized on the point that God was one and that He can be reached through many paths. He went on to expound that God had no form, and that His true nature is beyond comprehension.

The following are excerpts from his talk:

"Since God has no form, our minds need to visualize a form in order to focus our devotion and worship towards this one object or form. Hinduism says that out of His infinite mercy and Grace, God manifests in various forms..."

Dr.Gururaj's talk was peppered with many stories, both mythological and more importantly they were incidents that showed that every religion stressed that one had to go beyond the form and realize the Divine power. His instances were as varied as from Buddhism, to Christianity and even an instance of how Lord Shiva made Brahma and Vishnu realize and surrender their egos. These stories enthralled the audience and held them in rapt attention. He then posed the question "Why did Lord Shiva assume the form of the destroyer in the trinity?" He went on to explain, saying that by the title "destroyer" Shiva does not look to wipe out creation but that the inner significance was that He looks to destroy the evil impurities in man. He concluded his talk with explaining the real meaning of the Panchakshara- "Om Namah Shivaya". Dr.Gururaj revealed that this was the core of the Vedas, and that the Panchakshara has two meanings, - Om Namah Shivaya I bow to Lord Shiva, and that the word Namah also means Na-maha that is to say "Not mine"; or Nothing is mine, all is His.

The second speaker of the evening was Sri. V. Srinivasan and the best possible introduction that one could give to him is that he is the All India President of the Sathya Sai Seva Organisation and that was exactly what Sri.Vinay Kumar too gave. He was to address the gathering on the topic "The role of Sai Youth in society".

Sri. Srinivasan started by expressing the munificence of Lord Shiva on all those who have come to participate in this Yagna, as this is probably the first time in the history of Mankind that the Highest form of worship to Lord Shiva has been performed in the very presence of Lord Shiva Himself. He had an exceptional example to substantiate his topic in the form of Sri.Vinay Kumar, who had coordinated with his team of Sai Youth from the State of Karnataka this Yagna with great dedication and unity. The speaker then quoted Swami that "The youth of India are the ones who are going to bring about the change". He went on to say that the Youth of today are being drawn to Swami only because Swami is the only one who does what He says. Sri. Srinivasan addressed the Youth telling them that Swami wanted nothing from them, but for them to be happy, show respect towards Elders and Parents and to serve the society around them.

The following are excerpts from his inspiring talk that was addressed more towards the Youth gathered:

"Of what use is education if we can't serve Bharathmatha? ... Serving others is not important, what that service does to you is what is more important. It is the Paramatma that has to be touched and not the Paaramatma.." "Service needs Selfless Love and dedication"...

He gave the example of Grama Seva in the villages around Puttaparthi and how it is an example that the Youth need to emulate especially in our country where a vast majority of the population is in rural areas. He made a very pertinent point that the Youth had a big advantage in understanding the nuances of technology and were using this to great effect in accomplishing these seva activities. Sri. Srinivasan went onto dismiss the rising feeling among devotees that Swami was getting inaccessible by the day, and said that on the contrary He was reaching out to more and more people in far flung places despite physically being where He was. He then narrated two recent miracles or leelas of Swami that he had recently come to know about.

After he concluded his talk with these points, at 4:20 PM Swami out of His infinite Love agreed to give his most precious Discourse.

At 4:25 PM Swami asked for the discourse table to be brought. The divine discourse is as follows:

A true day (dinam) it is when devotees gather to sing the glory of the lord That is a true day when they help the poor, needy and the forlorn It is a true day when the mystery of God is shared The rest of the days are all obituaries (tat ddinam)

Srinivasan spoke on how Vinay Kumar has led the youth in organizing this program. But whether he tells you or not, the restlessness in the world today is because of the youth. What is the use of all the knowledge when a fool is unable to realize his true nature? In spite of all his higher learning he is mean. Without acquiring the secret of knowledge why do you pride yourself with your degree? With the influence of the English language the youth (Indian) have forgotten their tradition and culture. When the traditions are forgotten culture is lost. When culture is lost the wealth of India is lost.

Today there is disturbance and restlessness in every field. The pauper and the millionaire go about begging in their own ways. In any case the pauper is better off as the millionaire is not ready to give even a naya paise(fraction of a rupee) for any good cause. For the sake of cheap popularity they are ready to advertise.

The youth have to move ahead for the country to progress. They have in them physical, mental and intellectual strength. They can do anything they decide. They must channelise their efforts for the service of the society. But they are weak in meager matters. At the age of sixteen they are emaciated, not from the lack of food but from the fatigue of senses. They do not safeguard their senses but rather misuse them. It is their parents who encourage them with money. More money will lead to more wrong being committed. Do not waste money; misuse of money is evil. Do not waste food; food is God. Do not waste time.

The sight of the youngsters is at fault. Their looks are not steady even for a moment. They are like crows that desire everything they see. We must control our sight. Netra(eye) is sacred like the sastra(divine text). Correct your dristi(looks) and see the divine in sristi(creation). Swami is only telling the truth, so do not misunderstand. Even when going on a cycle they let go of everything gaping at ladies on the road. Some even go on motorcycles and end up in accidents in this manner. Boys moving across girls colleges stare at the college unmindful of their step. What are these eyes given for? They are given to see the divine. This much for the looks what to speak of the words they utter? It is filled with badness. They talk only about beauty (of the body). They do not realize that true beauty lies in bliss. These eyes are given to see the beauty of God. We must be careful in choosing in what we see, hear, and talk. Jihve Rasagyne mathurapriyetvam (This tongue is nectarine and seeks only sweetness). Such a tongue is given to utter sweet words and not vulgar expressions. What for are the eyes given if not to see God? Today they go by the temple not to see the God therein but to stare at the ladies who are there. One must control his senses. With the senses under control one can observe anything and remain unaffected. Only then there is no defect.

It is because Swami loves you that he is explaining this to you. You may hide it from yourself but Swami will not do so. Recognize the mistake and evolve from it only then are you truly human. Parents should be careful in this regard and not pamper their children. The children too must realize that their misdemeanor will only earn their parents a bad name. The mother, father, teacher and the guest are God. Children must never forget to love their parents under any circumstance. The first and second Gods are their parents. What is the use of all other activity if they forget their parents? They must excise constraint on money(not be spendthrifts) and words. Silence will never lead to enmity. Srinivasan told you about the use of technology for seva. But the youth today are only picking up cheap tricks from technology. They are in fact converting technology to mere tricks.

Every individual must uphold his family name. The individual must uphold the prestige of the society through his actions. Hiranyakashipu asked his son Prahalada as to what is the greatest thing that he has learnt. Prahalada replied " The Character is the most important of all". Then Hiranyakashipu called a maidservant and asked Prahalada as to who she was. Prahalada replied that she was his mother. Though she was a maidservant, Prahalada considered all women elder to him as his mother. Later, when Hiranyakashipu called all the young women in the palace, Prahalada considered everyone as his sisters, both younger and elder.

A true father asks his son to go closer to God. Teachers should show the right path. Prahalada told his teachers that they were not doing the right thing and unmindful of what they said, he kept repeating God's name "Hari bol, Hari Bol". Eshwara (God) is in all. He alone is to be worshipped.

My desire is that youth should go out like Prahalada and sing the glory of God. Begin at home. Tell your parents that God is the sole refuge. The body is made of five elements and the senses and it is bound to fall anytime. So, every moment chant the glory of God. It is the duty of parents to show this path to their children. Today, teachers teach only from the textbooks. Knowledge from textbooks is like nostrils. It takes in breath and lets it out. Likewise you read and forget. This is education. But Educare is like the breath and without it one is as good as dead. If you find anyone indulging in bad talk, slap him. It does not matter if he slaps back. But you should punish him. To stare at women is a sin. If you do so, your people will be stared at. Respect and love others. I have established the 'Youth Wing' to be ideals. They should not be wayward. It is only a donkey that walks in any direction of its whim and fancy. You are not a donkey. You are in fact God Himself, but now behaving like an animal.

Some of the boys go through 'silly' books slyly. They read those books by hiding them within textbooks. They thereby deceive the teachers.

Embodiments of Love!

I love you very much and that is the reason why I am pointing out all these to you. No one can gauge My love. Even if you don't love Me, I don't bother. Many people criticize Me and write all sorts of things in newspapers. Those who don't speak the truth are worse than dogs. Be in truth. Let the dogs bark. It's their nature. Don't mind about them. When one dog barks in the street his fellow dogs also pick up. They are just jealous and try to destroy Swami's name. So many of you have come here without any invitation. None of them will be able to even gather ten people because they lack the goodness. You may be pained that I am speaking harsh things but in reality you should be happy that I am telling you all this. If you really want to know Swami, come and experience Him.

If you observe truth steadfastly it becomes your witness. Virtues like truth should be your witnesses unlike the foolishness which is the virtue of fools. Be a 'phool'(flower) and not a fool. We need today Educare which is from the heart and consists of the five values Sathya, Dharma, Shanti, Prema and Ahimsa.

All children here are like gold. Only that some of them are 14 carat gold! They should transform to 26 carat gold! (At this point Swami called a Russian student and an American student on stage and made them chant the Rudram and Sri Sukhtham) See they chant so well with synchronisation and unity. One is from Russia, one is from America. See their unity! (He materialised a chain for the Russian boy.) Today foreigners are learning the Vedas. What about Bharatiyas? They learn-
"Ding Dong Bell
Pussy's in the well" (laughter)

Recognise our culture. Morality is the mother, integrity the father, peace the sister and courage the brother. These are the true relationships. ( Swami then sat down).

I am not afraid of anyone. I am the Truth. Even if the Prime Minister comes, I will not move from the Truth. In the days to come I'll reveal so many more things.

Swami then called up the music college students to the stage. As per His command, next there was a music programme by the students of the Institute. The beauty of the programme was that Swami Himself personally introduced the singers. Omprasad, Guruprasad and Ashwath Narayan were the three singers.They sang 3 songs after which Swami called 3 more music college students on stage. They too rendered songs - extempore. After an enthralling music session, Swami blessed all on stage and gave padanamaskar to them. He also gave advice on how to improve. Then Swami received Aarthi and retired to Yajur Mandiram.

Images from 13th August are available at the Book Trust site.

During the Ati Rudra Maha Yagnam, Radio Sai will be broadcasting special half-hour capsules daily: The schedule page lists this programme as "Sounds from the Ati Rudra Maha Yagnam being conducted at Prasanthi Nilayam." We have also started a download service, with these programs forming a pilot run: these programs are available for download from http://stream.radiosai.org/ our download site.

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