Each one has come embodied into this world of joy and grief, of growth and decay in order to discover the way home. to get back to the source from which he has strayed into this wilderness. This has to be done within the allotted time of our life span. But, man is attracted by the phantom lights and he ignores the call of destiny. His senses lead him on and on, deeper and deeper into the maze until he dies with a moan in-stead of with a smile. The precious years between birth and death are wasted in worthless acquisitions and meaningless achievements.
Sathya Sai Baba
Inner life began for me in 1969, when I met Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba for the first time. Until then, my life, devoid of deeper purpose and meaning, was spent mainly in filling up time with mundane activities. I was acutely aware that no matter what I obtained or achieved, it did not bring me happiness. Instead, it left me with an ever-increasing sense of loss and sadness. Al-ways in the forefront of my mind was the burning question, "What is the purpose of life?" Without an answer to that question, ev-erything in life felt meaningless to me.
I saw about me a senseless world full of cruelty and injustice causing enormous suffering to humanity for no apparent rea-son. A God that presided over such a world did not seem compassionate, just, or deserving of my allegiance. By lack of under-standing, I was on the verge of becoming an atheist.
The spiritual teachers I met, who claimed to be enlightened, increased my disappointment and added confirmation to my doubts. They might have been more eloquent and charismatic than most, but their weaknesses while not immediately apparent, eventually surfaced.
When I first met Swami, I did not instantly recognize His Divinity, as some do. But I instantly recognized what He was not. I knew I was in the presence of a perfected being who was devoid of a human ego, beyond gender, exhibiting beatific, angelic, otherworldly qualities, and capable of the most exquisite self-less love not found in this world. His voice had the strength of a man, the softness of a woman and the purity of a child.
This indescribable Divine love, once experienced, renders all other pleasures and experiences insignificant. One yearns to return to its presence as true happiness can no longer be attained elsewhere. Swami's Divine love exerted a formidable pull. As a magnet draws iron to itself, my heart was drawn to India and to Sai, the source of that love.
From these early experiences with Sai Baba, I knew that self-realization was more than just a concept. Human beings could attain wondrous spiritual heights. For the first time, I believed there was a deeper purpose to life. I sensed that, from Swami, I could learn everything there was to be learned, and more than could be imagined.
The learning process began in earnest during my second trip to India. Swami gave my family a house in His ashram in Brindavan where I lived for the following five years in the early 1970's. I have written in detail about those early years with Swami in Divine Memories of Sathya Sai Baba.
Vedas (1216)
Upanishads (508)
Puranas (638)
Ramayana (764)
Mahabharata (376)
Dharmasastras (168)
Goddess (520)
Bhakti (243)
Saints (1594)
Gods (1310)
Shiva (395)
Journal (181)
Fiction (64)
Vedanta (382)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Visual Search
Manage Wishlist