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My Life Is “MY” Message – You Are In Me, I Am In You, You

And I Are One Research Topic: My Life Is MY Message : Sathya and Dharma: The Bases Of Life

Sai Center / Group Name: Chelmsford Sai Center

My Life Is “MY” Message

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Table of Contents

1. Theme & Topics ...................................................................................... 3

2. Questions To Ponder ............................................................................... 6

3. Center Summaries: Your Life Is His MessageError! Bookmark not defined.


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1. Theme & Topics


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2. Questions To Ponder

On the Theme My Life Is “MY” Message:

• Examine the Theme: My Life Is “MY” Message : What is the meaning of this?

• Swami said: You will be adhering to My message if you so live that your lives are evidence of the

dispassionate quiet, the courage, the confidence, the eagerness to serve those who are in distress,

that My life inspires you with. - World Conference of Bhaagavan Shri Sathya Sai Seva,

Organisations, Bombay, 17-5-1968

• In Geetha Vahini chapter XXV, Swami mentions twenty five holy qualities or Daivi Sampaththi.

What are these qualities?

• Is there a difference between spiritual life and practical life? Did Swami address this in his discourses - Sathya Sai Speaks?

• Does spiritual quest or inquiry have a place in our lives right now? Is it relevant? • What do the sub-topics a) You are in me, b) I am in You c) You and I are One mean to

you? • What do the words a) Saameepyam, b) Saaroopyam, Saalokyam c) Saayujyam mean? • In Geetha, Krishna declares: Jnaathum, Dhrashtum, Praveshtum–Three stages of

knowing, seeing, be-ing on the path to self-realization. Do they -or- How do these apply to our life?

On the Topic of “My Life Is MY Message -> You Are In Me -> Sathya and Dharma: The bases of Life:

Questions to Ponder:

1) If Sathya & Dharma are the bases of life, do they need to be achieved through practice?

2) What then do the words Sathyam Vada (speak truth) and Dharmam chara (move righteously) really mean?

3) Is there an absolutely right or wrong action? If action is based on our judgment of the situation, can it be absolutely right or wrong? What then decides if the action is right?

4) What is Swadharma?


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1. What is Sathya/ truth?

· The Unchanging Absolute Truth: God IS

“On this Guru Purnima day I do not intend to give you any Ashtakshari (eight letter) or

Panchaakshari (five-letter) mantra based on any particular deity’s name. Nor Am I

enjoining you to study any Upanishad, or the Gita or the Brahma Sutras. There is a simple

five-letter pronouncement – “God Is.” (‘Devudunnaadu’). Make this your sheet-anchor. If

you go on reciting it, thinking over it, acting up to it and conveying it to others, immersing

yourself in the bliss of this experience, you will be making the greatest contribution to the

welfare of the world. (Swami recited a poem on the glories of God’s creation to prove

“Devudunnaadu”).

Consider this mantra as the message for this Guru Purnima and proclaim it in all

circumstances and at all places with all the conviction and strength you can command. The

world can be turned into an earthly paradise if you strengthen your faith in God and

demonstrate it in your actions. You must have the courage and determination to face any

kind of problems and difficulties. By propagating this mantra you can promote the love of

God and the fear of sin among the people. The mantra “God Is” can be more powerful than

a mantra based on any particular deity’s name.” (Sathya Sai Speaks, Volume 19)

· (Excerpts from Pathways to God by Jonathan Roof)

“Truth is something that is not modified by time or space or guna (attribute). It must be the

same forever, unaffected and unchanged; then alone is it truth. It should not be proved false

by some subsequent event or knowledge.”

Sathya Sai Speaks 3, p. 116

· Ultimate truth is unchanging, pure and eternal. It is the anchor that saves the

ship tossed by high seas. It is the pole star that guides our journey in darkest night. Truth

is never far, for it is the nature of the atma. It resides within, awaiting our call. When we

recognize our divine truth, the atma, the unity and grandeur of life begin to flower before

our eyes. Truth manifests in action as dharma, spiritual obligation. It expresses itself in

being as love and purity of heart. Eternal truth knows no distinctions of culture or time.

It is ever-unchanging, unmoved, unaffected.

· Truth is not merely telling the facts about what you see or hear or know. These

are temporal truths. Facts relate to momentary appearances. Truth relates to

unchanging reality. In its full sense Truth is what comes out of your heart in its pure and

unsullied form as the voice of conscience. It is true for all time – past, present and the

future. It is not affected by changes in time or place. Time does not transform it, creation

does not increase it, Pralaya (Destruction) does not reduce it. History does not stain it.

Truth lives eternally in full. The ancient seers called it “Ritham”. It is unchanging and

cannot be suppressed. The material world is ever-changing. Illusion causes the unity of

God to appear diverse and mutable. It causes Oneness to appear as many. Unchanging

truth is experienced only in the purified consciousness.


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· “Nothing is absolutely true, really real. The waking experience is as unreal as the

dream experience. When you are in deep sleep, there is no world at all. When you attain

the super conscious fourth stage, the “I” alone remains, the universal “I” which was

mistaken even in the sleeping stage as limited and particular.”

Sathya Sai Speaks 4, p. 97

• Sathya is second of the yamas of Patanjali Yoga. It means a whole lot more than ‘not

telling lies’. The word ‘sat’ literally translates as ‘true essence’ or ‘true nature’. ‘Sat’

also holds the meanings; ‘unchangeable’, ‘that which has no distortion’, ‘that which is

beyond distinctions of time, space and person’, and ‘reality’. “To one established in

truthfulness, actions and their results become subservient”- Patanjali Yoga Sutra

• Sathya Sai Baba: God wears Truth, the good seek Truth and the bad are rescued by

Truth; Truth liberates; Truth is power; Truth is freedom. It is the lamp that illuminates

the heart and dispels doubt and darkness. The effulgence of God is Truth.

2. Can We Know Truth? How can we know it?

• Truth: More Fundamental Than the Atom

• Sathya Sai Baba: It is folly to think that you have to search for Truth somewhere. To

know one’s Self is Truth. How can man realize the Truth? He can do this only when he

experiences non-dualism. As long as he is steeped in dualism (that he and divine are

different) he is bound to be racked by the opposites, joy and sorrow, the real and unreal.

• (Excerpts from Pathways to God by Jonathan Roof)

Sathya Sai Baba tells us that the search for truth is the purpose of human life. Yes, truth can

be found. Its signs are everywhere; in our eyes, in our ears, in our hearts. When we drink

from the wellspring of the heart, we taste its nectar straight from the source. Through

spiritual search, God’s grace is procured and the goal is achieved.

• “The chief duty of man is investigation into truth. Truth can be won only through

dedication and devotion, and they are dependent on the grace of God, which is showered

on hearts saturated with love.”Sathya Sai Speaks 6, p.1


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• Sathya Sai Baba: The discovery of Truth is the unique mission of man. Man is a mixture

of Maya (illusion) and Madhava (God); the Maya throws a mist which hides the

Madhava, but through the action of the healthy impulses inherited from acts performed

while in previous bodies or through the cleansing done by austerities in this body or

through the Grace of the Lord Himself, Maya melts away; for it is just a mist which flees

before the Sun. Then Nara (man) is transformed into Narayana (God) and this Bhuloka is

elevated into a Prasanthinilayam.

• “To discover this truth, the classic texts have laid down two codes of discipline, one

external and the other internal – the outer and the inner. The outer is nishkama-karma

(activity that is engaged in as dedication and worship; activity that is gladly carried out

from a sense of duty regardless of the benefit that may accrue, with no attachment to the

fruits thereof). The inner is dhyana (meditation on the splendor of which one is but a

spark). Karma or activity has to be regulated by dharma (righteousness), then it will lead

one to Brahman (the basic truth of the universe, including Oneself).” Sathya Sai Speaks

6, p.189

(Excerpts from Jonathan Roof’s Pathways to God)

• Divine truth is like a flame. When it contacts the dry tinder of a person’s life, it spreads

and grows strong. When it touches the green wood of doubt and desire, it only hisses and

smokes. To experience universal truth, we must start by lighting the small flame of

relative truth. If we begin by practicing truthfulness of speech, we initiate transformation.

• “Have faith that truth will save you in the long run. Stick to it regardless of what might

befall.” Sathya Sai Speaks 1, p. 48

• Truth should be a constant motivator of all our actions. Through correct action, we

remove karmic obstacles and gain the Lord’s grace. We must also pursue inner truth in

meditation. A broad and unfettered mind is required for self-realization, a mind open and

without preconceptions.

4. Love, the Highest Truth

• The wave cannot be separated from the ocean. The sun cannot be removed from its heat

and light. Neither can love be separated from truth. They are eternal companions. Truth

without love is a scorching light. Love without truth is a dangerous dream.

• “The experience of truth alone can foster love, for truth is so all-embracing and

integrating that it sees no distinction. Truth is the current and love is the bulb it has to


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illumine. Through truth, you can experience love; through love, you can visualize

truth.”Sathya Sai Speaks 6, p. 190

• It is our nature to seek love and truth, for they are springs of our atmic origin. We have

come from God and ever after seek to return. In the ever-changing world, we catch

glimpses and clues to guide us homeward. Piecing together the puzzle, we find that we

are ourselves one with God, all love and all truth.

• “There is in everyone a spark of truth; no one can live without that spark. There is in

everyone a flame of love; life becomes a dark void without it. That spark, that flame is

God, for he is the source of all truth and all love. Man seeks truth. He seeks to know the

reality because his very nature is derived from God, who is truth. He seeks love, to give it

and share it, for his nature is of God and God is love.” Sathya Sai Speaks 1, pp 78-79

Dharma and Duty: The Right Action at the Right Time

(Excerpts from Jonathan Roof’s Pathways to God)

1. Dharma: What is it & what is it not?

o How is the word dharma derived? It comes from the root ‘dhrit’, which means to

uphold or sustain. Dharayati iti dharma (that which sustains is dharma). Dharma

is therefore that which supports everything. The entire world is sustained by

dharma. Dharma binds the entire universe into a unified whole and rules it.-

Prasanthi Nilayam 24 July 1996

o Sathya, the first value, is like the head and one who fails to follow Truth will be a

headless torso. Dharma is like the shoulder and one without this will not be able

to do anything having become handicapped. (He loses Bhuja-balam). -From

Bhagavan's Discourses at Sai Shruti, Kodaikanal, April 1998

o Dharma is generally interpreted as spiritual duty, but it is more than that. It is a

sense of religious obligation that combines concepts of both duty and reason. It

entails responsibility to self, others, and God. It is not a set of restrictive laws; it

is the liberating concept of doing the right thing at the right time.

o “The word dharma does not mean duty; in duty there is no freedom. In reason

there is freedom, and in religious obligation there is the union between duty and


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reason. Dharma then refers to religious obligation, and in that word are the

concepts of both duty and reason." Conversations, p. 15

o When think of the term ‘Dharma’ the ordinary person takes it to mean: giving

alms, feeding and providing lodging to pilgrims, adherence to one’s traditional

profession or craft, law-abiding nature, discrimination between right and wrong,

the pursuit of one’s innate nature over the freaks of one’s own mind, the fruition

of one’s fondest desires, and so on.-Dharma Vahini

o "Satyamiti yathasastrarthata sa eva anusthiya manah dharmanama bhavati.“ Sri

Sankara. Satyam means speaking the truth and dharmah means translating it

(satyam) into action.

o "Dharma" means harmony in thought, word and deed. People equate charity with

"Dharma". That is not correct. Dharma calls for sacrificing your bad thoughts,

feelings and actions.- Sanathana Sarathi , Jan 1998

o Sathya Sai Baba: Dharma trains you to be calm, level headed, secure in

equanimity. You know the transitory nature of success or failure, riches or

poverty, joy or grief. You are not elated or deflated. You are serene, unmoved.

Anything that helps you to maintain this unruffled stability is Dharma. To

summarize: sensual life is Adharma; the spiritual life is Dharma.

o Sathya Sai Baba: Dharma is not a matter of time and space to be modified and

adjusted to the needs and pressures of the moment. It means a number of

fundamental principles that should guide mankind in its progress towards inner

harmony and outer peace. When man stays away from Dharma, he meets with

greater harm than even physical slavery. These principles are called Sanathana

because their origins are not dated, their author is not identifiable; they are the

revelations made in the clarified intellects of impartial sages. They are basic and

eternal.

o The Vedas taught two kinds of Dharma (codes of right conduct). One is termed

"Pravritti" and the other is termed "Nivritti". "Pravritti" (the outward path) is

related to worldly activities. It prescribes the qualities needed for leading the life

in the mundane world. "Nivritti" (the inward path) teaches knowledge of the Self

(Atma jnana)- Discourse in Brindavan, 4/ 5/1998


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2. How Do We Carry Out Our Dharma?

• The aim of dharma is to make the individual (jiva) give up attachment to external nature

and the illusion that it causes and to make it realise its reality or rather, unrealise what it

has now taken as real so that it may stand revealed in its genuine identity. (Dharma

Vahini)

• Dharma requires adherence to truth, nonviolence and universal love. It may be further

summarized as the path of virtue. All people know generally what is right and what is

wrong. If they do not act on that knowledge, they deny their spiritual obligation.“Dharma

is characterized by holiness, peace, truth, and fortitude. Dharma is yoga, union, merger;

it is sathya (truth). Its attributes are justice, sense control, sense of honor, love, dignity,

goodness, meditation, sympathy, nonviolence; such is dharma that persists through the

ages. It leads one on to universal love and unity.” Dharma Vahini, p. 21

• Prof. Anil Kumar: Swami! We do not have a precise idea of what dharma is and we are

not able to conduct ourselves according to the little knowledge we have. Scholars

expound dharma in a variety of ways: they designate one thing as dharma in one context

and quite another in a different context. This adds to our confusion. Swami! Kindly

explain dharma to us.

Bhagavan: What our elders and scholars had taught about dharma needs to be understood

correctly. You should not hastily conclude that their views are contradictory. Take for

example the dictum, Satyannasti paro dharmah. What is to be chiefly noted here? The dictum

means, ‘There is no dharma higher than satyam,’ and more too. The deeper meaning is, ‘the

foundation of dharma is satyam.’ Now consider another dictum, ahimsa paramo dharmah.

What does this mean? Earlier it is satyam which is said to be the foundation of dharma. Now,

ahimsa, absence from violence, is called the highest dharma. Now ahimsa does not mean

only refraining from violence. One who is rooted in satyam, cannot undertake violence.

Rather he considers ahimsa as his dharma.

The dharmas of the four stages of life - brahmacharya, grahastya, vanaprastha, and sanyasa

are to be viewed as four kinds of steps, four processes of sadhana to reach Brahman, after

performing the deeds enjoined as one's duty. Thus, dharma is very subtle. The life force of

satyam resides in utterance as does that of dharma in practice or action.

-SATYOPANISHAD - PART 26 CH:7

• Sathya Sai Baba: How are you to decide in any particular case what is Dharma and what

is not? That which does not inflict pain on you and others – that is Dharma. This follows

from the recognition that same God resides in everyone and if you injure another, you

are hurting the same God who is in you. Dharma enables you to come to the recognition

that anything that is bad for another is also bad for you. So act in such a way that you get

joy and others too get joy. Or take another standard for your actions: Make the mind, the

speech and body agree in harmony. Act as you speak, speak as you feel, do not play false

to your conscience. That is the Dharmic way of life.


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• Who is in the path of dharma?

Whoever subdues egotism, conquers selfish desires, destroys bestial feelings and

impulses, and gives up the natural tendency to regard the body as the self that person is

surely on the path of dharma; that person knows that the goal of dharma is the merging

of the wave in the sea, the merging of the self in the Over-self.

3. A Role for Everyone

• Each one of us must follow his or her own path. It is better to do our own duty poorly that

to perform another’s duty well. The duties we are called to perform may be determined

by circumstances or factors beyond our control. Each of us has personal duties and

opportunities resulting from our past actions.

• Sathya Sai Baba: The task of everyone is to do the duty that has come upon him, with a

full sense of responsibility to the utmost of his capacity. There should be complete

coordination between what one feels, says and does. Then work becomes worship.

• Dhruva, a six-year-old child, took his mother's blessings, set out to the forest to perform

penance and realised the vision of the Divine. Arjuna prostrated before his mother to get

her blessings prior to his leaving for the battlefield. The mother told him, "May victory be

yours.” Duryodhana also went to his mother prostrated before his mother and sought her

blessings for victory in the war. The mother told him, "Where there is Dharma, there will

be victory.” This was Duryodhana's mother's blessing for her son. Duryodhana then went

to his preceptor and sought his blessings. The preceptor said, "Where there is Krishna,

there is Dharma. Where there is Dharma, there will be victory.” Therefore, victory can

be ensured only where Dharma and the Divine are present according to the mother and

the preceptor. - Brindavan on May 6, 1 998

• Dharma is in the same position as one’s mother is. We have no choice and we cannot

transform dharma.” Summer Showers 1974, p. 293

4. Like What You Have to Do

• True happiness in life results from performing our duty well. Hard work done to fulfill

our obligations, yields the greatest satisfaction. “The secret of happiness is not in doing

what one likes, but in liking what one has to do. Whatever work you have to do, you

should do it with pleasure and liking.”Summer Showers 1977, p. 100


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5. Your Heart Will Be Your Guide

• The way to determine our unique duty is to listen to the voice within. It directs us to our

spiritual destination. That inner voice is the voice of God. When we follow its direction,

we draw closer to God. It helps us to be mindful of our dharma.

• “Your conscience knows the real source of joy; it will prod you towards the right path.

Your business is to take it as a “guide” and not disobey it every time it contradicts your

fancy.” Sathya Sai Speaks 1, p. 91

6. Remember the Director of the Play

• God’s grace is earned in common tasks if they are dedicated to Him. The Lord does not

separate tasks into categories of his work and other work. He is everywhere and is

worshipped in the performance of all duties.

• “Veda has told us that it is a sin to divide our work into two parts and to say that

something is your work and something is God’s work. In all the work that we have to do

in our life, there is nothing that you can call your own work. Everything is God’s work.

You should do all your work believing that it is God’s work and then the omnipresent

Lord will take care of the results. Summer Showers 1974, p. 216

• The results of our actions are less important than the manner in which we perform them.

We must work to the best of our ability; the results are decided by God. If we act on good

motivation and follow our hearts, the results will take care of themselves.

7. Duty to the Divine Self

• Each of us has within the potential for realizing our divinity. Divinity manifests when we

listen to our hearts and act according to our duty. Our highest duty is to realize our

divinity. Humans alone have the capacity and duty to discover the residence of God

within.

• “To be free is your birthright, not to be bound. It is only when you guide your steps along

the path illumined by the universal unbound dharma that you are really free. Dharma

Vahini, p. 10

• Discoursing on the subject during another occasion Bhagawan averred thus: “You feel

that arpitham (total surrender) to God is rather difficult, but according to Me, nothing is

easier than this. It may be difficult to make a garland out of flowers or to pluck the petals

of a flower, but total surrender to God is easier and simpler than this. You find it difficult

because you do not have steady and firm faith in God. GOD ‘I S’.” (Sathya Sai Speaks,

Volume 32)


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8. Examples & Stories on Sathya & Dharma

• Ramo Vigrahavaan Dharmah (Rama is the embodiment of Dharma)

Satya and Dharma (Truth and Righteousness) are the most important concepts in the Ramayana.

Vedas, which are the very life-breath of Bharatiyas, proclaim: “Satyam Vada; Dharmam Chara

(Speak the Truth; Act Righteously)”. To honour the plighted word of his father, Rama elected to go to

the forest leaving Ayodhya. Truth is the foundation for all righteousness. There is no greater religion

than truth. Rama stood out as an upholder of Truth to fulfil the promise of his father, to maintain the

traditions of his Ikshvaku dynasty, to protect his country and for the sake of the welfare of the world.

Everyone who calls themselves a human being should stand up for truth in the same manner.

Mahatmas (noble ones) are those whose actions, thoughts and words are in perfect accord. Wicked

people are those whose thoughts, words and deeds are at a variance with each other. ~ Divine Discourse, Apr 14, 1989

• One day a person met the great philosopher Socrates and asked, "Do you know what I just heard

about your friend?“Socrates replied, "Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good

idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. It is the triple filter test.

The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?

(Satyam?) "No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..." "All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or not. Now let's try the second

filter. The filter of goodness. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?

(Priyam?)” "No, on the contrary..." "So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain

it's true. You may still pass the test though, because there's one more filter left- the filter of

usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?" (Hitam?) "No, not really.“

"Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful,

why tell it to me at all?"

To find out what is righteous (dharma) and what is unrighteous, apply this one test: If it goes

counter to Truth and Love, it is unrighteous. If it promotes Truth and Love or is full of both, it is

righteous. -Sathya Sai Baba 9. Swami’s Song Sathya Dharmamu Shanti Premalato – Complete Guide on how to lead

life with Sathya & Dharma

Sathya Dharmamu Shanti Premalato Nee Nithya Jeevana Saaginchu Jeeva

Yatna Prayatnamul Maanava Dharmamu Jayaapajayamulu Daivaadheenamu


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Bhakti thoda Bhagavantuni Talalchuchu Nithya Dharmamulu Nirvartinchina Atti Janakunaku Raja Yogamulo antharaani Mokshammu pondene

Hrudaya bhoomulu saagu cheyandi Manasu madakaka Gunamule Yaddul Vivekamanu Chalakolanu deesi Vishalamagu mee hrudayamu dunnudu

Manava dhairyame manchi yeruvuga Prema dharale panta vittuluga Bhakte varshamu Bhavame kalupulu Brahmanandame pandedi panta

Sathya Dharmamu Shanti Premalato Nee Nithya Jeevana Yatra Saaginchu

Few Links to more material: MUSINGS ON DHARMA VAHINI - 01 by Prof. G Venkataraman http://media.radiosai.org/journals/vol_13/01SEPT15/Sathya-Sai-Speaks-Sanctify-Human-Life-Through-the-Pursuit-of-Sathya-and-Dharma.htm

https://www.sathyasai.org/discour/2007/d071021.pdf Please feel free to add more Qs to this list that may be beneficial to the Center members.

http://media.radiosai.org/journals/vol_13/01MAR15/MUSINGS-ON-DHARMA-VAHINI-01-01.htm

http://media.radiosai.org/journals/vol_13/01SEPT15/Sathya-Sai-Speaks-Sanctify-Human-Life-Through-the-Pursuit-of-Sathya-and-Dharma.htm

http://media.radiosai.org/journals/vol_13/01SEPT15/Sathya-Sai-Speaks-Sanctify-Human-Life-Through-the-Pursuit-of-Sathya-and-Dharma.htm


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1. Center Summaries: My Life Is MY Message

Please capture summaries of discussions from study-circles and your own understanding / suggestions / scenarios or situations / activities to help put these learnings into practice in daily life.

template for study material preparation · a mantra based on any particular deity’s name.”...

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