#srisathyasaibaba

[trinethramnews]

CM Revanth : పుట్టపర్తి సత్యసాయి బాబా జయంతి ఉత్సావాల్లో పాల్గొన్న తెలంగాణ సీఎం రేవంత్ రెడ్డి

CM Revanth : పుట్టపర్తి సత్యసాయి బాబా జయంతి ఉత్సావాల్లో పాల్గొన్న తెలంగాణ సీఎం రేవంత్ రెడ్డి

[trinethramnews]

President, CM : సత్యసాయి సేవలు చిరస్మరణీయం: రాష్ట్రపతి ముర్ము, సీఎం చంద్రబాబు

President, CM : సత్యసాయి సేవలు చిరస్మరణీయం: రాష్ట్రపతి ముర్ము, సీఎం చంద్రబాబు

పుట్టపర్తిలో సత్యసాయి శత జయంతి వేడుకలు ముఖ్య అతిథిగా హాజర

[vaartharavi]

Centenary Celebrations of Sri Sathya Sai Baba: Sathya Sai centenary celebrations from today

Centenary Celebrations of Sri Sathya Sai Baba : నేటి నుంచి సత్యసాయి శతజయంతి వేడుకలు

పుట్టపర్తిలో ఈరోజు నుంచి భగవాన్ శ్రీ సత్యసాయి బాబా శతజయంతి ఉత్సవాలు ఘనంగా ప్రారంభం కానున్నాయి. ప్రతి సంవత్సరం

[trinethramnews]

Sathya Sai Centenary : సత్యసాయి శత జయంతికి రూ.100 నాణెం

Sathya Sai Centenary : సత్యసాయి శత జయంతికి రూ.100 నాణెం

[priyastandon]

Bask in the Sun’s benevolence upwards and onwards

Benevolent Sankranti

Most of the festivals we celebrate are calculated in accordance with the Lunar calendar. Hence their dates are not fixed. However the Makar Sankranti festival is celebrated as per the Solar calendar and falls on January 14/15 every year. We offer obeisance to the Sun on Makar Sankranti. Why is that so? It seems that when man sought to find proof of God, he found it in the Sun. The Sun is said to be a Pratyaksh Devta because we can see it and feel its warmth and energy. We chant the Gayatri Mantra while praying on Makar Sankranti. Emulating the Sun’s benevolence towards all, we donate food, clothes, milk etc. The Sun doesn’t emit light for itself, plants don’t bear fruit for themselves … let us follow suit!

The Sun provides sustenance to all forms of life. It provides energy to plants for  photosynthesis. We get our food from the plants. So the Sun is an inexhaustible powerhouse of abundance and energy for all forms of life.

Makar Sankranti is considered most auspicious as it marks the upward movement of the Sun away from the Tropic of Capricorn; from the Southern Hemisphere, towards the Northern Hemisphere. It is also called Uttarayan i.e. the Sun moving towards Uttar Disha (North direction). It marks the entry of the Sun into Makar-Rashi i.e. Capricorn. This being the harvest festival in many states, the farmers celebrate their new crops and offer them to the Gods as thanksgiving and also share them with each other.

Makar Sankranti is also called Maghi, Bihu, Pongal, Shishur Saenkraat, Suggi Habba, etc. 

The celebrations vary slightly from state to state all over India. But they centre around prayers, feasting, dancing and singing. In the North, Makar Sankranti day is the day next after Lohri. We usually consume a lot of Til, Bhugga, Peanuts and Gacchak on Lohri as we huddle around a bonfire, sing and dance with family and friends. My mother would always make Chane ki dal ki khichdi and serve it with curd for breakfast on Maghi day. Til-Bhugga etc. generate a lot of heat in the body. And khichdi acts as a coolant thereafter!

This year being the International year of Millets, you can experiment with Bajre (pearl millet) ki khichdi which is definitely the yummiest khichdi in the world! Temper it with hot ghee and red chilli powder and have it with curd! Delicious!

In the run up to Makar Sankranti kite flying is another tradition. Besides the fun in flying kites, it compulsorily exposes us to the Sun. Having stayed indoors in the cold, foggy days of the North Indian winter, kite flying on a sunny Sankranti day is like applying balm on a wound! In the garb of culture and tradition, our health is also taken care of!

The best explanation of the word Lohri is Lo-Hari (Take Lord!), which translates to a prayer written by Sri Sathya Sai Baba, “Oh Lord! Take my Love and let it flow in fullness of devotion to Thee. Oh Lord! Take my hands and let them work incessantly for Thee. Oh Lord! Take my Soul and let it be merged in One with Thee. Oh Lord! Take my mind and thoughts, and let them be in tune with Thee. Oh Lord! Take my everything and let me be an Instrument for Thee.”

Our culture is designed such that after every few days/months there is a festival that brings an opportunity to celebrate life as well as thank God for His bounties and contemplate on the purpose of our Earthly sojourn.

The North is considered to be the direction of everything auspicious, so we celebrate the Sun journeying towards the North. Moving northwards means moving towards positive thoughts, good deeds etc. If man too starts moving towards thoughts of God, it amounts to the same thing. The real northward journey happens inside us!

What do you think? 

This article is published in Hindustan Times on 15.01.2023.

[priyastandon]

Celebrating the Song Celestial in today’s world

Did you ever ask yourself what the focus of your life is? What do you want? We may focus on and prioritise work, earnings, fun, travel, love, philanthropy, service, family, children, friends etc. Some focus on God. Their world revolves around Him.

Before the Mahabharata war, Arjuna and Duryodhana went to Krishna to seek His help.

Krishna was asleep. When He woke up, He first saw Arjuna, sitting at His feet. Arjuna got up and offered Namaskar. Duryodhana was sitting behind His head. Krishna asked Arjuna, "What do you want?" Duryodhana interrupted saying, "Krishna, I came before Arjuna." Krishna said, "I am not going to wield any weapon in the war. One of you can have my army comprising of 10 million soldiers and the other can have Me." Duryodhana opted for the army. Arjuna said, "Krishna, I do not need anything except You." Well! We all know how the Mahabharata war ended.

In one of His discourses, Sri Sathya Sai Baba said, “The Pandavas placed God first, the world next and the ‘I’ last. Hence they were successful. The Kauravas placed ‘I’ (the ego) first, the world next and God last. Hence, they lost everything!”

The Kauravas focussed their thoughts, words and deeds on themselves. Second place in their lives was given to others and God was given a poor third. The Pandavas stood firmly for Truth, Righteousness, Peace, Love and Nonviolence. They had Krishna as the focus of their lives. They kept others at the second place and themselves last. Krishna was their everything, so Krishna too stood by them like a rock.

Coming to today … What is the mindset of people today? What does the media propagate? What is the focus of our lives? All the focus is being directed to, ‘I, me and myself!’ We are encouraged to think like, “What are you doing for yourself?”, “Find time for yourself!”, “Get away and pamper yourself!” “You are the most important …” Everything is about self-gratification! Does this resonate with the Kaurava mindset or the Pandava mindset?

There can be no circle without a centre. Ask yourself this – “What/Who is the centre of your circle?”

The Bhagawad Gita was delivered by Lord Krishna to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Krishna said, “Karmanye Vadhikaraste ma phaleshu kadhachana.” Meaning- Perform your duty without any expectation. He goaded him to prioritise justice over injustice, dharma over adharma, detachment over attachment. The Lord chose Arjuna as a medium to give the message of the Gita to all of humanity. Thousands of years later, the Bhagwad Gita has still not lost its profundity. Strangely it is more relevant now, than ever before, because of rampant greed and dereliction of duties. December 3, was Gita Jayanti. It is celebrated as the day when Lord Krishna sang the Song Celestial to Arjuna.

Practically speaking, if there is any one shloka of the 700 shlokas in the 18 chapters, of the Bhagwad Gita or thought in any sacred text of your religion that appeals to you; and if you can make it your life mantra, that’s enough!

And by the way, do you know what the essence of the Gita is? The first stanza of the Gita says, ‘dharma-kṣhetre kuru-kṣhetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāśhchaiva kimakurvata sañjaya’

The last stanza of the Gita says, ‘yatra yogeśhvaraḥ kṛiṣhṇo yatra pārtho dhanur-dharaḥ tatra śhrīr vijayo bhūtir dhruvā nītir matir mama’

When you combine the last word of the last stanza, with the first word of the first stanza, what do you get? Mama Dharma! Mama Dharma is the real essence of the Gita! Leading our life while feeling God’s presence and performing our Dharma, wherever and whatever we may be, without any expectation of returns, is performing Mama Dharma. And that is what the Gita is all about. So put God in the centre of the circle of your life and see the magic unfurl!

Look forward to your views on this in the comments section below. 

(A slightly concise version of this article is published in Hindustan Times today 4.12.2022.)

[priyastandon]

The Transformation of the Human Heart

The purpose of life is to find your purpose and then live it. At some time or the other, every human wonders, “Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going? Why am I here?” Questions such like, were answered simply, by Bhagwan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. He explained that every human is an infinitesimal part of God. Each Atma (soul) is a part of the Supreme soul (Param Atma). Someone asked Baba, “Are you God?” He replied, “Yes! And so are you! The difference is that I know it, but you don’t.”

Baba said, “When the sun rises and shines, Not all the lotus buds in the lakes and ponds bloom, Only those that are ready, do. The rest have to bide their time, But all are destined to bloom, All have to fulfill that destiny. There is no need to despair.”

Just as our children came from us; we came from our parents; our parents came from our grandparents; who came from our great grandparents … and so on till the family tree traces back to the first man created by God. So, we are children of God! The realisation is overwhelming, empowering yet humbling at the same time.

Baba explained the purpose of creation as, Ekohumbahushyaam! (I am one; I will be many!) God separated Himself, from Himself; so that He could love Himself! The Lord created man in His own likeness, so that He could love him!

Isn’t this exactly why we procreate? We have children and we love them. When they learn to walk, we feel like a part of us is walking outside our body. And that is how God feels too. He made us, we are His children; we are a part of Him! When our children do something nice, we feel happy and proud. So too, knowing that I am the child of God, I yearn to make Him proud of me, so I strive to be the best version of myself.

Humans are the jewel in the crown of God’s creation. Humans are blessed with the faculties of knowledge and the power of discrimination between right and wrong. Baba explained that life is a journey from me to Him. He explained that devotion is not a uniform worn on festivals or special occasions. Devotion is a way of life that happens only with the transformation of the human heart.

One of the most powerful teachings of Baba that is very dear to my heart is, ‘If you do everything with the awareness that God is listening to me, watching me all the time; He is privy to my innermost thoughts, then you shall never do anything wrong!’ This is not just living in the awareness of God; this is living with God!

The Sri Sathya Sai University at Puttaparthi offers free education, from school to post-grad level. Our children studied there for two years each. Two State of the Art Hospitals, offer free treatment to the underprivileged, who Baba referred to as Daridra-Narayans. These hospitals do not have a billing section! Some of the best doctors of the world, offer seva here. The Sai Ganga water project supplies clean drinking water to a few hundred villages.

Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Vahini is creating value based educational content for school children and sharing it on the PM’s DIKSHA portal free of cost. We have 1500+ professionals the world over, including myself, offering seva in this project. We have uploaded 7700+ assets on DIKSHA and have 40,000 assets on our website. All volunteers contributing are highly qualified professionals, educators, technologists, trainers and experts from different fields who feel blessed to serve. Baba inspired them to render free service; selflessly for the lesser fortunate.

As we gear up for Baba’s birthday on November 23, let’s appreciate His biggest miracle… the transformation of the human heart! I would love to know your thoughts about this. Do leave a message for me in the comments section below!

A slightly concise version of this article is published in Hindustan Times, HT Chandigarh on 20.11.2022.

[cp-foundation]

We are Treating Covid19 patients at our mini covid care facility with beliefs & faith in Bhagwan Sathya Sai Baba ji, on the farewell of each person after thier recovery we present them Picture of Sri Sathya Sai Baba ji to bring positivity in mind & soul.