Peace is the best treasure, without which power, authority, fame and fortune are all dry and burdensome

Why is peace always eluding us?

All the twenty-four hours, all the days of life, men are active in worshiping their bodies and minds, catering to the senses, submitting to the clamour of carnal desires, earning the wherewithal to feed themselves. They have no time to spare for meditation on God. How can men secure peace of mind, when they have no contact with the Vast, the Timeless, the Almighty Providence? When God is last, life is lost.

Quote from Sathya Sai

Life and Teachings of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother

Life

People have understood that a rosy path leads to a nasty place in life. If one should succeed in life, he has to face trials and tribulations. Life is a field of struggle. Accomplishments in life are awarded to those who seek adventure. Naturally, a life of adventure is a life of struggle. This is the character of life the world knows.

Mother gives another dimension to life. Struggle ensues when the effort is aimed at a possibility of two types—success or failure. Effort, when it moves towards a possibility of two types of success, is no longer a struggle but is enjoyable. Ordinarily Mother removes the possibility of failure from life and offers the alternatives of two types of success. She does not remove effort, but the struggle part of the effort is removed. This is true on a great majority of occasions. She does not eliminate failure altogether. She keeps the possibility of failure for the rare few whose destiny is for a far greater success than they are seeking for. Mother’s award of failure is the passport to greater success. Human life is full of falsehood. It is the presence of falsehood that necessitates the struggle and keeps the possibility of failure around the corner. There is no scope for falsehood when one is working in Mother’s consciousness. Therefore the struggle part is eliminated and the possibility of failure does not exist.

Mother summarises her yoga in terms of life. She says, to know God it is enough to come out of ordinary mind. The ordinary mind presides over life and pervades it. Living inside the ordinary mind, man faces struggle, the prospect of failure, and their entire brood of expectation, irritation, frustration, disappointment, pain, etc. Coming out of the ordinary mind, one would expect that he would come out of all these constrictions; but Mother says, coming out of it one knows God. It is a summary way of saying that God waits for man to turn to him, while all the time man is inextricably involved in his own ordinary mind through habits that are ingrained. The poet says the world is too much with us.

One’s karma, if not repeated, is abolished, says Mother.

The Art of Happines: By Dalai Lama

We can see that there are many ways in which we actively contribute to our own experience of mental unrest and suffering. Although, in general, mental and emotional afflictions themselves can come naturally, often it is our own reinforcement of those negative emotions that makes them so much worse. For instance when we have anger or hatred towards a person, there is less likelihood of its developing to a very intense degree if we leave it unattended. However, if we think about the projected injustices done to us, the ways in which we have been unfairly treated, and we keep on thinking about them over and over, then that feeds the hatred. It makes the hatred very powerful and intense. Of course, the same can apply to when we have an attachment towards a particular person; we can feed that by thinking about how beautiful he or she is, and as we keep thinking about the projected qualities that we see in the person, the attachment becomes more and more intense. But this shows how through constant familiarity and thinking, we ourselves can make our emotions more intense and powerful.

We also often add to our pain and suffering by being overly sensitive, overreacting to minor things, and sometimes taking things too personally. We tend to take small things too seriously and blow them up out of proportion, while at the same time we often remain indifferent to the really important things, those things which have profound effects on our lives and long-term consequences and implications.

So I think that to a large extent, whether you suffer depends on how you respond to a given situation.

The Cosmos is filled with Love. Love is righteousness; Love is Truth. The Universe is based on Love.

The basis for a righteous life.

Just as burning is the nature of fire, as coolness is the nature of ice, as fragrance is the nature of a flower in full bloom, and sweetness is the nature of sugar, so is truthfulness the nature of a human being. Truth is the very basis of Dharma. When a person recognises the innate truth which is his essential nature, then he understands his own reality. For truth, good character is the very life breath.

Quote: Sathya Sai

The 14th Dalai Lama on Compassion and The Individual

The purpose of life

ONE GREAT QUESTION underlies our experience, whether we think about it consciously or not: What is the purpose of life? I have considered this question and would like to share my thoughts in the hope that they may be of direct, practical benefit to those who read them.

I believe that the purpose of life is to be happy. From the moment of birth, every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering. Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affect this. From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment. I don’t know whether the universe, with its countless galaxies, stars and planets, has a deeper meaning or not, but at the very least, it is clear that we humans who live on this earth face the task of making a happy life for ourselves. Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.

How to achieve happiness

For a start, it is possible to divide every kind of happiness and suffering into two main categories: mental and physical. Of the two, it is the mind that exerts the greatest influence on most of us. Unless we are either gravely ill or deprived of basic necessities, our physical condition plays a secondary role in life. If the body is content, we virtually ignore it. The mind, however, registers every event, no matter how small. Hence we should devote our most serious efforts to bringing about mental peace.

From my own limited experience I have found that the greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion.

The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes. Cultivating a close, warm-hearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. This helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the ultimate source of success in life.

As long as we live in this world we are bound to encounter problems. If, at such times, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that it is not just ourselves but every one who has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and capacity to overcome troubles. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind!

Thus we can strive gradually to become more compassionate, that is we can develop both genuine sympathy for others’ suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase.

Our need for love

Ultimately, the reason why love and compassion bring the greatest happiness is simply that our nature cherishes them above all else. The need for love lies at the very foundation of human existence. It results from the profound interdependence we all share with one another. However capable and skillful an individual may be, left alone, he or she will not survive. However vigorous and independent one may feel during the most prosperous periods of life, when one is sick or very young or very old, one must depend on the support of others.

Inter-dependence, of course, is a fundamental law of nature. Not only higher forms of life but also many of the smallest insects are social beings who, without any religion, law or education, survive by mutual cooperation based on an innate recognition of their interconnectedness. The most subtle level of material phenomena is also governed by interdependence. All phenomena from the planet we inhabit to the oceans, clouds, forests and flowers that surround us, arise in dependence upon subtle patterns of energy. Without their proper interaction, they dissolve and decay.

It is because our own human existence is so dependent on the help of others that our need for love lies at the very foundation of our existence. Therefore we need a genuine sense of responsibility and a sincere concern for the welfare of others.

We have to consider what we human beings really are. We are not like machine-made objects. If we are merely mechanical entities, then machines themselves could alleviate all of our sufferings and fulfill our needs.

However, since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. Instead, we should consider our origins and nature to discover what we require.

Leaving aside the complex question of the creation and evolution of our universe, we can at least agree that each of us is the product of our own parents. In general, our conception took place not just in the context of sexual desire but from our parents’ decision to have a child. Such decisions are founded on responsibility and altruism — the parents’ compassionate commitment to care of their child until it is able to take care of itself. Thus, from the very moment of our conception, our parents’ love is directly in our creation.

Moreover, we are completely dependent upon our mothers’ care from the earliest stages of our growth. According to some scientists, a pregnant woman’s mental state, be it calm or agitated, has a direct physical effect on her unborn child.

The expression of love is also very important at the time of birth. Since the very first thing we do is suck milk from our mothers’ breast, we naturally feel close to her, and she must feel love for us in order to feed us properly; if she feels anger or resentment her milk may not flow freely.

Then there is the critical period of brain development from the time of birth up to at least the age of three or four, during which time loving physical contact is the single most important factor for the normal growth of the child. If the child is not held, hugged, cuddled, or loved, its development will be impaired and its brain will not mature properly.

Since a child cannot survive without the care of others, love is its most important nourishment. The happiness of childhood, the allaying of the child’s many fears and the healthy development of its self-confidence all depend directly upon love.

Nowadays, many children grow up in unhappy homes. If they do not receive proper affection, in later life they will rarely love their parents and, not infrequently, will find it hard to love others. This is very sad.

As children grow older and enter school, their need for support must be met by their teachers. If a teacher not only imparts academic education but also assumes responsibility for preparing students for life, his or her pupils will feel trust and respect and what has been taught will leave an indelible impression on their minds. On the other hand, subjects taught by a teacher who does not show true concern for his or her students’ overall well-being will be regarded as temporary and not retained for long.

Similarly, if one is sick and being treated in hospital by a doctor who evinces a warm human feeling, one feels at ease and the doctors’ desire to give the best possible care is itself curative, irrespective of the degree of his or her technical skill. On the other hand, if one’s doctor lacks human feeling and displays an unfriendly expression, impatience or casual disregard, one will feel anxious, even if he or she is the most highly qualified doctor and the disease has been correctly diagnosed and the right medication prescribed. Inevitably, patients’ feelings make a difference to the quality and completeness of their recovery.

Even when we engage in ordinary conversation in everyday life, if someone speaks with human feeling we enjoy listening, and respond accordingly; the whole conversation becomes interesting, however unimportant the topic may be. On the other hand, if a person speaks coldly or harshly, we feel uneasy and wish for a quick end to the interaction. From the least to the most important event, the affection and respect of others are vital for our happiness.

Recently I met a group of scientists in America who said that the rate of mental illness in their country was quite high-around twelve percent of the population. It became clear during our discussion that the main cause of depression was not a lack of material necessities but a deprivation of the affection of the others.

So, as you can see from everything I have written so far, one thing seems clear to me: whether or not we are consciously aware of it, from the day we are born, the need for human affection is in our very blood. Even if the affection comes from an animal or someone we would normally consider an enemy, both children and adults will naturally gravitate towards it.

I believe that no one is born free from the need for love. And this demonstrates that, although some modern schools of thought seek to do so, human beings cannot be defined as solely physical. No material object, however beautiful or valuable, can make us feel loved, because our deeper identity and true character lie in the subjective nature of the mind.

Developing compassion

Some of my friends have told me that, while love and compassion are marvelous and good, they are not really very relevant. Our world, they say, is not a place where such beliefs have much influence or power. They claim that anger and hatred are so much a part of human nature that humanity will always be dominated by them. I do not agree.

We humans have existed in our present form for about a hundred-thousand years. I believe that if during this time the human mind had been primarily controlled by anger and hatred, our overall population would have decreased. But today, despite all our wars, we find that the human population is greater than ever. This clearly indicates to me that love and compassion predominate in the world. And this is why unpleasant events are “news”; compassionate activities are so much part of daily life that they are taken for granted and, therefore, largely ignored.

So far I have been discussing mainly the mental benefits of compassion, but it contributes to good physical health as well, According to my personal experience, mental stability and physical well-being are directly related. Without question, anger and agitation make us more susceptible to illness. On the other hand, if the mind is tranquil and occupied with positive thoughts, the body will not easily fall prey to disease.

But of course it is also true that we all have an innate self-centeredness that inhibits our love for others. So, since we desire the true happiness that is brought about by only a calm mind, and since such peace of mind is brought about by only a compassionate attitude, how can we develop this? Obviously, it is not enough for us simply to think about how nice compassion is! We need to make a concerted effort to develop it; we must use all the events of our daily life to transform our thoughts and behavior.

First of all, we must be clear about what we mean by compassion. Many forms of compassionate feeling are mixed with desire and attachment. For instance, the love parents feel of their child is often strongly associated with their own emotional needs, so it is not fully compassionate. Again, in marriage, the love between husband and wife - particularly at the beginning, when each partner still may not know the other’s deeper character very well - depends more on attachment than genuine love. Our desire can be so strong that the person to whom we are attached appears to be good, when in fact he or she is very negative. In addition, we have a tendency to exaggerate small positive qualities. Thus when one partner’s attitude changes, the other partner is often disappointed and his or her attitude changes too. This is an indication that love has been motivated more by personal need than by genuine care for the other individual.

True compassion is not just an emotional response but a firm commitment founded on reason. Therefore, a truly compassionate attitude towards others does not change even if they behave negatively.

Of course, developing this kind of compassion is not at all easy! As a start, let us consider the following facts:

Whether people are beautiful and friendly or unattractive and disruptive, ultimately they are human beings, just like oneself. Like oneself, they want happiness and do not want suffering. Furthermore, their right to overcome suffering and be happy is equal to one’s own. Now, when you recognize that all beings are equal in both their desire for happiness and their right to obtain it, you automatically feel empathy and closeness for them. Through accustoming your mind to this sense of universal altruism, you develop a feeling of responsibility for others: the wish to help them actively overcome their problems. Nor is this wish selective; it applies equally to all. As long as they are human beings experiencing pleasure and pain just as you do, there is no logical basis to discriminate between them or to alter your concern for them if they behave negatively.

Let me emphasize that it is within your power, given patience and time, to develop this kind of compassion. Of course, our self-centeredness, our distinctive attachment to the feeling of an independent, self-existent “I”, works fundamentally to inhibit our compassion. Indeed, true compassion can be experienced only when this type of self- grasping is eliminated. But this does not mean that we cannot start and make progress now.

How can we start

We should begin by removing the greatest hindrances to compassion: anger and hatred. As we all know, these are extremely powerful emotions and they can overwhelm our entire mind. Nevertheless, they can be controlled. If, however, they are not, these negative emotions will plague us - with no extra effort on their part! - and impede our quest for the happiness of a loving mind.

So as a start, it is useful to investigate whether or not anger is of value. Sometimes, when we are discouraged by a difficult situation, anger does seem helpful, appearing to bring with it more energy, confidence and determination.

Here, though, we must examine our mental state carefully. While it is true that anger brings extra energy, if we explore the nature of this energy, we discover that it is blind: we cannot be sure whether its result will be positive or negative. This is because anger eclipses the best part of our brain: its rationality. So the energy of anger is almost always unreliable. It can cause an immense amount of destructive, unfortunate behavior. Moreover, if anger increases to the extreme, one becomes like a mad person, acting in ways that are as damaging to oneself as they are to others.

It is possible, however, to develop an equally forceful but far more controlled energy with which to handle difficult situations.

This controlled energy comes not only from a compassionate attitude, but also from reason and patience. These are the most powerful antidotes to anger. Unfortunately, many people misjudge these qualities as signs of weakness. I believe the opposite to be true: that they are the true signs of inner strength. Compassion is by nature gentle, peaceful and soft, but it is very powerful. It is those who easily lose their patience who are insecure and unstable. Thus, to me, the arousal of anger is a direct sign of weakness.

So, when a problem first arises, try to remain humble and maintain a sincere attitude and be concerned that the outcome is fair. Of course, others may try to take advantage of you, and if your remaining detached only encourages unjust aggression, adopt a strong stand, This, however, should be done with compassion, and if it is necessary to express your views and take strong countermeasures, do so without anger or ill-intent.

You should realize that even though your opponents appear to be harming you, in the end, their destructive activity will damage only themselves. In order to check your own selfish impulse to retaliate, you should recall your desire to practice compassion and assume responsibility for helping prevent the other person from suffering the consequences of his or her acts.

Thus, because the measures you employ have been calmly chosen, they will be more effective, more accurate and more forceful. Retaliation based on the blind energy of anger seldom hits the target.

Friends and enemies

I must emphasize again that merely thinking that compassion and reason and patience are good will not be enough to develop them. We must wait for difficulties to arise and then attempt to practice them.

And who creates such opportunities? Not our friends, of course, but our enemies. They are the ones who give us the most trouble, So if we truly wish to learn, we should consider enemies to be our best teacher!

For a person who cherishes compassion and love, the practice of tolerance is essential, and for that, an enemy is indispensable. So we should feel grateful to our enemies, for it is they who can best help us develop a tranquil mind! Also, itis often the case in both personal and public life, that with a change in circumstances, enemies become friends.

So anger and hatred are always harmful, and unless we train our minds and work to reduce their negative force, they will continue to disturb us and disrupt our attempts to develop a calm mind. Anger and hatred are our real enemies. These are the forces we most need to confront and defeat, not the temporary “enemies” who appear intermittently throughout life.

Of course, it is natural and right that we all want friends. I often joke that if you really want to be selfish, you should be very altruistic! You should take good care of others, be concerned for their welfare, help them, serve them, make more friends, make more smiles, The result? When you yourself need help, you find plenty of helpers! If, on the other hand, you neglect the happiness of others, in the long term you will be the loser. And is friendship produced through quarrels and anger, jealousy and intense competitiveness? I do not think so. Only affection brings us genuine close friends.

In today’s materialistic society, if you have money and power, you seem to have many friends. But they are not friends of yours; they are the friends of your money and power. When you lose your wealth and influence, you will find it very difficult to track these people down.

The trouble is that when things in the world go well for us, we become confident that we can manage by ourselves and feel we do not need friends, but as our status and health decline, we quickly realize how wrong we were. That is the moment when we learn who is really helpful and who is completely useless. So to prepare for that moment, to make genuine friends who will help us when the need arises, we ourselves must cultivate altruism!

Though sometimes people laugh when I say it, I myself always want more friends. I love smiles. Because of this I have the problem of knowing how to make more friends and how to get more smiles, in particular, genuine smiles. For there are many kinds of smile, such as sarcastic, artificial or diplomatic smiles. Many smiles produce no feeling of satisfaction, and sometimes they can even create suspicion or fear, can’t they? But a genuine smile really gives us a feeling of freshness and is, I believe, unique to human beings. If these are the smiles we want, then we ourselves must create the reasons for them to appear.

Compassion and the world

In conclusion, I would like briefly to expand my thoughts beyond the topic of this short piece and make a wider point: individual happiness can contribute in a profound and effective way to the overall improvement of our entire human community.

Because we all share an identical need for love, it is possible to feel that anybody we meet, in whatever circumstances, is a brother or sister. No matter how new the face or how different the dress and behavior, there is no significant division between us and other people. It is foolish to dwell on external differences, because our basic natures are the same.

Ultimately, humanity is one and this small planet is our only home, If we are to protect this home of ours, each of us needs to experience a vivid sense of universal altruism. It is only this feeling that can remove the self-centered motives that cause people to deceive and misuse one another.

If you have a sincere and open heart, you naturally feel self- worth and confidence, and there is no need to be fearful of others.

I believe that at every level of society - familial, tribal, national and international - the key to a happier and more successful world is the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us to develop our good human qualities.

I try to treat whoever I meet as an old friend. This gives me a genuine feeling of happiness. It is the practice of compassion.

Quotes of Mother Teresa

Let us make one point, that we meet each other with a smile, when it is difficult to smile. Smile at each other, make time for each other in your family.

Words of Truth- Prayer by the 14th Dalai Lama

Words of Truth

A Prayer Composed by:

His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso The Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet

Honoring and Invoking the Great Compassion of the Three Jewels;
The Buddha, the Teachings and the Spiritual Community

O Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and disciples
of the past, present, and future:
Having remarkable qualities

Immeasurably vast as the ocean,

Who regard all helpless sentient beings
as your only child;
Please consider the truth of my anguished pleas.

Buddha's full teachings dispel the pain of worldly
existence and self-oriented peace;
May they flourish, spreading prosperity and happiness through-

out this spacious world.

O holders of the Dharma: scholars
and realized practitioners;
May your ten fold virtuous practice prevail.

Humble sentient beings, tormented
by sufferings without cease,
Completely suppressed by seemingly endless
and terribly intense, negative deeds,
May all their fears from unbearable war, famine,
and disease be pacified,
To freely breathe an ocean of happiness and well-being.

And particularly the pious people

of the Land of Snows who, through various means,
Are mercilessly destroyed by barbaric hordes
on the side of darkness,
Kindly let the power of your compassion arise,
To quickly stem the flow of blood and tears.

Those unrelentingly cruel ones, objects of compassion,
Maddened by delusion's evils,
wantonly destroy themselves and others;
May they achieve the eye of wisdom,
knowing what must be done and undone,
And abide in the glory of friendship and love.

May this heartfelt wish of total freedom for all Tibet,
Which has been awaited for a long time,
be spontaneously fulfilled;
Please grant soon the good fortune to enjoy
The happy celebration of spiritual with temporal rule.

O protector Chenrezig, compassionately care for
Those who have undergone myriad hardships,
Completely sacrificing their most cherished lives,
bodies, and wealth,
For the sake of the teachings, practitioners,
people, and nation.

Thus, the protector Chenrezig made vast prayers
Before the Buddhas and Bodhisativas
To fully embrace the Land of Snows;
May the good results of these prayers now quickly appear.
By the profound interdependence of emptiness
and relative forms,
Together with the force of great compassion
in the Three Jewels and their Words of Truth,
And through the power
of the infallible law of actions and their fruits,
May this truthful prayer be unhindered
and quickly fulfilled.

Human life is a combination of morality, spirituality and righteousness

How to lead a purposeful life?

Life is not mere existence. It must be lived for a purpose, an ideal. A life without ideals is utterly worthless. Only character and humility can lend meaning to life. Earning of money cannot be the sole purpose of existence.

Quote- Sathya Sai

Quote of Dalia Lama

`

"Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend -- or a meaningful day."

Thy Gurus Feet- Adi Shankaracharya

Thy body may be beautiful and glow with flawless health,

Thy fame colossal and thou mayest have won to fabulous wealth,

But if to the Guru's feet thy heart untethered still remain.

Then all thou hast achieved on earth is vain, is vain, is vain.

Thou mayest be deep-versed in all that scripture have to tell

A beacon of light, a master of prose and verse delectable,

But if to the Guru's feet thy heart untethered still remain.

Then all thou hast achieved on earth is vain, is vain, is vain.

Poem by Lord Buddha

Flowers

Who shall conquer this world
and the world of death and the gods?
Who shall find the clear path of truth,
as a skillful person finds the flower?

The wise student will conquer this world
and the world of death and the gods.
The wise student will find the clear path of truth,
as a skillful person finds the flower.

Whoever knows that this body is like foam
and has learned that its nature is a mirage,
will break the flourishing arrows of Mara
and never see the king of death.

Death carries off a person who is gathering flowers,
whose mind is distracted,
like a flood carries off a sleeping village.
Death terminates a person who is gathering flowers,
whose mind is distracted,
before one is even satiated in pleasures.

As the bee collects nectar and departs
without harming the flower or its colour or scent,
so let the sage live in a village.
Not the faults of others
nor their errors of commission or omission,
but one's own errors and omissions should the sage consider.

Like a beautiful flower, full of colour, but without scent,
are the fine but fruitless words
of those who do not act accordingly.
But like a beautiful flower, full of colour and full of scent,
are the fine and fruitful words
of those who do act accordingly.

As many kinds of garlands
can be made from a heap of flowers,
so many good works may be achieved by a mortal after birth.
The scent of flowers does not travel against the wind,
not even that of sandalwood, rose-bay or jasmine,
but the fragrance of good people
travels even against the wind.
A good person pervades everywhere.

Sandalwood or rose-bay or lotus or jasmine---
among these perfumes, the perfume of virtue is unsurpassed.
Limited is the scent of rose-bay or sandalwood;
but the perfume of the virtuous
rises up to the gods as the highest.

Mara never crosses the path of those who are virtuous,
who live without thoughtlessness,
and who are liberated by true knowledge.
Just as on a heap of rubbish thrown upon the highway

the lotus will grow sweetly fragrant, delighting the soul,
so also among those who are like rubbish
the wise student of the truly enlightened Buddha
shines brightly with wisdom above the blinded crowd.

Dalai Lama quotes on Happiness

" I believe that the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. That is clear. Whether one believes in religion or not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, we all are seeking something better in life. So, I think, the very motion of our life is towards happiness…"

Long before Truth has put on her shoes, Falsehood completes her journey round the world

What should be our attitude towards practice of truth?

The chief goal for man is to practice and propagate the principle of truth. One has to practice Truth before preaching it. Come what may, one should have the courage and conviction to tread the path of truth. Even at the cost of food, raiment and shelter, even at the cost of one’s own life, one should be prepared to practice truth and righteousness.

Sathya Sai Quotes

Habits mould character and character decides one’s destiny

What are the qualities that one should foster?

Some say knowledge is valuable, but character is more valuable than knowledge. One may be a learned scholar, one may hold high positions of authority, one may be very wealthy or be an eminent scientist but, if one has no character, all the other acquisitions are of no use at all. Sacrifice, love, compassion and forbearance are the sterling human qualities that should be fostered, shedding jealousy, hatred, ego and anger which are animal qualities.

Quotes of Sathya Sai

Quotes of Mother Teresa

It is easy to love the people far away. It is not always easy to love those close to us. It is easier to give a cup of rice to relieve hunger than to relieve the loneliness and pain of someone unloved in our home. Bring love into your home for this is where our love for each other must start.

Mother Teresa Quotes

We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.

The God-centred person has three qualities: Purity, Perseverance and Patience

The great virtue of forbearance

Forbearance is one of the most important qualities that you should possess, and it is absolutely essential on the spiritual path. It is by putting yourself under test in difficult circumstances that you can cultivate this quality of forbearance... There is nothing extraordinary about returning good for good, but doing good in return for bad, that is something great, and the practice of such a virtue requires a great deal of skill. However much other people may criticize you, however much they may comment and condemn, you should never lose your forbearance. When others admonish you, what can you possibly lose thereby? You should remain unperturbed and continue to enjoy inner peace. If by chance you should lose your patience and forbearance, then you lose everything. So, you have to learn how to use forbearance and practice it properly, whatever the circumstances.

Quotes from Sathya Sai

Keep the joy of loving God in your heart and share this joy with all you meet especially your family.Be holy, let us pray

"I once picked up a woman from a garbage dump and she was burning with fever; she was in her last days and her only lament was: ‘My son did this to me.’ I begged her: You must forgive your son. In a moment of madness, when he was not himself, he did a thing he regrets. Be a mother to him, forgive him. It took me a long time to make her say: ‘I forgive my son.’ Just before she died in my arms, she was able to say that with a real forgiveness. She was not concerned that she was dying. The breaking of the heart was that her son did not want her. This is something you and I can understand."

Quotes of Mother Teresa

There can be no sacredness in service, if good thoughts and good feelings are absent

How to practise 'Dharma'?

There is not one Dharma for the Indian and another for Westerners. Dharma is universal. Yes. There is a test that may be applied to any action and you may thereby determine if it is according to dharma. Let not that which you do harm or injure another. This flows from the recognition that the light, which is God, is the same in every form, and if you injure another you are injuring the same light that is in yourself. Dharma enables you to come to the recognition that anything that is bad for another form is also bad for you. The test of dharmic action is stated very clearly in the Christian religion. That is: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Quotes from Sathya Sai

Mother's Quotes from Prayers and Meditations

Give me Thy light, O Lord, grant that I do not fall into any error. Grant that the infinite reverence, the utter devotion, that intense and profound love I bring to Thee may be radiant, convincing, contagious and be awakened in every heart.

O Lord, Eternal master, Thou art my Light and my peace; guide my steps, open my eyes, illuminate my heart and lead me on the paths that go straight to Thee.

O Lord, Lord, grant that I may have no other will than Thine and that all my acts may be an expression of Thy divine law.

A great Light floods my whole being, and I am no longer conscious of anything but Thee....

Peace, peace, peace upon all the earth


Extracts from the Mother’s spiritual diaries

The one with noble qualities of purity, patience and perseverance is verily God

Which is the kind of love that we must cultivate?

Love is of three kinds

- Swartha or self centred, which like a bulb, illumines just a small room
- Anyonya or mutual, which like moonlight, spreads wider but is not clear
- Parartha (divine) which like the sunlight, is all pervasive and clear

Cultivate the third type of love that will save you. For all the service that you do to others, through love, is actually service done to yourself. It is not others that you help, it is yourself that is being helped.

Quotes from Sathya Sai

Body is like a water bubble, mind is like a mad monkey. Don’t follow both. Follow the conscience

What should be our outlook to life while we discharge our duties?

Live in absolute conviction that you are the Atma (spirit). That is the hardcore of eternal teaching. The Atma sees through the eyes, hears through the ears, handles through the fingers and moves through the feet. That is the basic ‘you’. That ‘You’ is not elated by praise or deflated by blame.

Quotes from Sathya Sai

No one can judge another, for, when another is judged you are yourself condemned

Practise of Discrimination is very important for our life


1. Accept good and discard bad.
2. Lets always ask ourselves, " is it good" or "is it bad"?
It is not enough that discrimination be practised only for physical objects. We should use it for our vision.

Our words, our actions, our behavior, what we listen should all show discrimination. Then the word 'discrimination' acquires its significance.

Human life is a combination of morality, spirituality and righteousness

Making mistakes- How can we avoid

We feel God should forgive our mistakes. In fact, if we are truly human, we should not commit mistakes at all. Even if we commit mistakes willingly or unwillingly, we should not repeat it again. It is grievous error to think that its natural for human being to err. We should not be weak, nor an animal, nor a demon.
And always think we are human being.

When we have such convictions, we would never commit mistakes.

Divine love is the only penance for all your troubles and miseries arising from insatiable desires and frustrated ambitions.

Chanting God's name

Repeating god's name without a feeling will never reach its peak. Instead we need to repeat God's name with wonder and awe, reverence and humility.

Feeling is a force that pulls the strings and makes the Name reach the Named, the bearer of the Name.

We should have constructive thoughts, consoling words and compassion

Lets be in happiness and peace always. How can this happen?

We do not have happiness and peace because we are busy finding faults with others and happy at others failings. Instead we should be working on our own faults and failings.
What we see in others is a reflection of our own self. They are our prejudices and preferences.

We can be in happiness and peace if we are compassionate towards all creatures. Knowlingly causing injury is bad.

So lets spread love and happiness through compassion and be filled with joy and peace.

Living without Faith is like life without breath

Life is full of storms, how can we handle them

Life is filled with happiness and sadness. How we handle them is very important?

Its like a garland full of bloomed flowers, some brings happiness and some unhappiness. We become depressed when unhappiness occur and don't cherish the happy moments. In this process, we forget the string that binds the both.

In moments of storms, we should focus on the divine principle.

Being calm and centered is very important.

The power of love is responsible for the earth to rotate

True devotion

There is nothing greater than love. Love can accomplish anything. So, we should make every effort to spread love everywhere.
True devotion consists in offering all our thoughts and actions to GOD and seek his grace. Devotion is a state of non-separation from God.

Being in the pooja room or visiting temple is just a brief spell of devotion. During that time, devotion seems to swell within us and we feel at peace but, once outside, the peace is lost and anger takes place. This is not devotion.

True devotion transcends the limitations imposed by one's daily routines and the obligations of life. Love for God should always be present in any situation.
We should strive to develop such love and experience the joy of sharing with others

Service and Love are like two eyes for human being or two wings for a bird

Spiritual practice brings in visions which are reflections of divine vibrations in the mind. These occur on the path towards our goal. But these cannot come with you till the end. We have to travel alone and overcome obstacles.

Grace is showered on us by GOD which is very important for progress in spiritual path.
But what use is it, if our hearts are filled with bad thoughts and head loaded with ego?

First, we need to make our heart pure with Love and throw out ego by doing service.

Devotion is not a uniform to be worn on certain days

Devotion is not simply the love for God but there is something more to it

Devotion should focus on the discipline for reaching the Lord. It should not stop with acquiring and the love we have for Lord.
We should be eager to know what actions and behaviour makes the Lord happy.

We sometimes forget to follow these ideals. We focus more on the love the devotee has for the Lord and forget the righteousness and work the Lord appreciates.

So lets focus our thoughts, actions towards the Lord to seek his grace. Be in acordance with the Lord's will and not be subject to our own will.

Hands that serve are holier than lips that pray

There is nothing nobler than Service.

The tendency to separate spiritual path, the path of service and path of knowledge is common. But they are not separate, in fact they are one.
Service which is spiritual knowledge is the principle means to acquire divine grace. One cannot become a worthy leader without devoted follower. One cannot attain divinity without doing work.

We have to understand this truth.

The five sustainer's of happiness is Truth, Right conduct, Peace, Love and non-violence. We should not give up on these qualities.

Where there is confidence there is love, where there is love, there is peace

How can we remain at peace even when surroundings are hostile

when we get a registered letter from someone, we sign and accept. And then we are aware of the contents, even if we don't accept its contents. The letter goes back to the sender if we don't sign, thereby the sender's purpose is defeated.
Similarly, don't give ears to abuse. Maintain cool and remain disinterested. Then the foulness goes back to the sender and does not affect at all.
It will rather affect the sender as a resound, reaction and reflections. Instead of harming you, it will only recoil the sender.

True education is living with god, True devotion is living for God, True spirituality is living in God

How can we lead a life of fulfillment?

Our everyday life should be in trying and seeking to mould our mundane activities on spiritual values. we must have our heads in forest and hands in society. Meaning, our activities should be with spiritual ideals. This alone will bestow lasting peace on us.

All our spiritual exercises should direct towards settling ourselves in firm conviction, unwavering faith which would culminate in our life's fulfillment. All our senses should be sanctified by offering the actions performed through them to God.

To experience the Truth, follow your conscience and not the body and mind

The best Guru who can that be?

It is the Divinity in you, long to hear the voice, listen to the advice it gives.
The secret of liberation does not lie in the mystical words whispered in the ears. It lies in stepping out in action, walking forward and reaching the goal.

Trying to seek wordly gurus, we would be running from one to another.
Its like a rat caught inside a drum, which moves to the right when the drummer beats on the left and to the left when he beats on the right.

He who conquers the world is a hero, but he who conquers himself is a hero of heroes

How can we achieve our goals?

Promoting your individuality and following your ideals makes one a hero. But trying to imitate others is sheer laziness of thought.
One should aim high and not get disheartened if we miss our mark.

Its better to fall in shooting a tiger than succeeding in shooting a sparrow. Come what may, sticking to our goals or ideals is very important.

Love lives by giving and forgiving, self lives by getting and forgetting

We can perceive Divinity in ourselves and others by goodness, compassion and tolerance.

Being soft at heart is often condemned as weak, coward and want of intelligence. But if one is hard at heart , it leads to war, destruction and downfall.

Love alone confers lasting happiness and peace. We are born to share, to serve, to give and not grab. Sharing reduces grief and also multiplies joy.

Service is sacred only if one has good thoughts and feelings

Doing service in the right way is very important.

Service should be done without any expectation or returns. Any service we do should meet the needs of needy people and offer solution for problems.

While doing service, do not crave for publicity, crave for happiness and joy that shines on the faces of people we help.

The flower that is in our hearts gets its fragrance from the service we do. So any service we do should be filled with love and affection.

Prayers must come from the heart, not from lip

Dealing with the consequences of our actions

It is the mind that is the cause of bondage and liberation.

Our own actions are the cause of our sorrow or happiness. Blaming others for our situation is wrong, its a sign of weakness.

One has to bear the consequences of your actions.

If one cannot bear the troubles, surrender to GOD to get relief.

One needs pure love and firm faith to achieve anything in LIFE

Failure is a stepping stone to success, so do not allow failure to rule you. Be firm in your faith and grace automatically will shower.

Cultivate divine virtues and not comforts, riches and luxuries

To understand the nature of Divinity, take up one virtue everyday like non-violence, fearlessness, patience, tolerance, compassion and incorporate in your life.
All the education, position, wealth acquired is useless and cannot gain the grace of GOD if one does not cultivate these virtues.

If Non-violence is practised Love exists

Tips for practising Non-violence

Keep your mind, tongue and body pure, do not have ill-feelings. Speech should be sweet. All actions should be helpful to others.

The language of the heart. is the ONLY language

To have a flawless character, what qualities do you need?

When your heart is filled with love and compassion, Love spreads everywhere, Peace rules the world, no anger or hatred exists, the Universe becomes beautiful.

So keep your heart pure and sacred.

Thought for the Day

The body radiates when character is good, its charm is preserved with service of man and worship of GOD

How can we make this happen?

Bad thoughts in mind lead to both mental and physical illness. Bad company, bad thoughts and bad habits are the fertile grounds for a disease to survive.
Pure mind ALONE can keep one healthy - mentally and physically.

Cultivation of virtues is important to justify our existence.
The steady progress in virtue takes human being to divinity. Virtues give freshness, skill and long years of youthfulness.

Spirit of Love is Spirituality

Spirituality helps one to break the barriers between God and Nature, to get rid of the animal nature and develop the divine tendencies within oneself.

Its a big mistake to think, spirituality has no relation to mundane life and vice versa. Spirituality and social obligations are a combination of True Divinity.

It is the Divine that links spirituality and social existence.