What needs to be done now, needs to be done only now. When the doors of space are open and you get a chance, you need to use it because fate can change and tomorrow it will be impossible to do what seems easy today.
Everyone must come to an understanding of where he aspires to be and what he does in life. One of the questions that Sathya Sai Baba sometimes asked during personal communication was: “what do you want?” Sometimes he would say: “state your goal!” Hearing the soft voice of Sathya Sai Baba, people were immersed in long reflections. Sathya Sai Baba was omnipresent and clairvoyant. Naturally, people had a desire to find the answers to their many questions from him and to consult him about how to act in various situations.
People are accustomed to shifting the responsibility for what is happening in life to someone else, and Sathya Sai Baba was the ideal candidate whom to shift the responsibility to when making an important decision. Sathya Sai Baba never dictated what to do in life or offered ready-made answers. He did not deprive people of the right to free choice; on the contrary, he inspired them to make independent decisions. Each person must come to an understanding of where he aspires to be and what he does in life.
47. To understand your purpose
A person performs an action, and he has the right to possess the results of his action. Nobody can deny it. It is important to free yourself from attachment to the fruits of your labors, successful or unsuccessful. The Vedic texts say that one should act, but not identify with the fruits of one's actions. It is not right to emotionally depend on the successful or unsuccessful results of one's actions, but it is also wrong to refuse to work. You need to do what needs to be done, understanding that at the right time the result will come, but you do not need to be attached to the result, then your actions will be perfect.
(Sathya Sai Baba – Gita Vahini, Chapter 5)
Sathya Sai Baba often said that the ideal example of a harmonious life for modern man is the ancient Indian emperor, Janaka. Since ancient times, there has been a wonderful tradition in India, according to which the rulers also received spiritual education.
Of course, one can receive a formal religious and philosophical education, but at the same time there is little interest in deep spiritual searches. Janaka was a true spiritual seeker. For many years he seriously studied philosophical texts and invited mystics and yogis to his palace in order to receive instructions on meditation practices.
Spiritual self-knowledge and meditation practices in no way conflict with a happy and successful social life. In ancient civilizations, it could not have occurred to anyone to share the path of divine knowledge of one's soul and material well-being. The question is not to avoid being active in society, but to correctly perceive the work that you are doing.
It is very important to realize your purpose in life and strive to fully embody it. Happiness and satisfaction largely arise when a person realizes his destiny along with the tasks of the current incarnation.
For some people it is clearly understood what exactly their business in life is, yet for others it can be quite difficult to understand. In order to understand your destiny, you must discard all the artificial restrictions that exist in your mind. Forget about all the seeming limitations and multiple conditionings imposed by the environment.
Imagine you have no financial restrictions, and you have a lot of free time along with all the other possibilities. How would you live your life? What would you do? Feel what brings you joy and happiness.
Meditation and contemplation of the True Self most fully reveals the answers to all questions of life. The more clearly you feel the eternal essence of your "I", the more clearly you realize what exactly your purpose in life is. But it is not enough to understand what your soul wants. It is just as important to organize your life in such a way that all circumstances develop so that you can realize your plans.
It is important to act without attachment to the result, although no one says that the result should not rightfully belong to you. You may own ideas, useful information, a firm or company, products, and much more. Yes, it's all yours, but once you are free from attachment, you can turn your business into a process of meditation.
You came into this world empty-handed, and you will leave this world also empty-handed. The only thing that will always be yours is the richest, spiritual experience accumulated in the process of life.
Jesus talked about building up treasures in heaven. Heaven is a symbol of the soul, and treasures are a spiritual experience. These treasures are always yours and no one can take them away or steal them from you; moreover, the more you share these treasures, i.e., your spiritual experience, the more enriched you are. Conversely, material treasures are subject, according to Jesus, to impermanence, corruption, and thieves.
Let's be clear once again, Sathya Sai Baba, Krishna and Jesus did not say that nothing should be done or everything should be divided equally in a communistic way, no, and again no. Everything that is rightfully yours should be yours, but without attachment. Only then can you fully fulfill your spiritual task in life and be happy under any circumstances.
Let's go back to one of the examples that Sathya Sai Baba often pointed out – the life of Emperor Janaka. Emperor Janaka lived five or six thousand years before the new era. He was a sage and an enlightened yogi who studied philosophy and practiced meditation. He was an enlightened emperor.
Janaka was a physically strong and healthy man, and he was happy in his family life. He justly ruled his city and participated in battles. He was fabulously rich, lived in the palace and his robes were decorated with precious stones. At the same time, Janaka was the greatest mystic and philosopher of ancient India. Emperor Janaka, using the example of his life, showed the path of integral development of the personality.
In the inner world of every person there is a hierarchy of positive images. Much is said about this in modern esotericism and psychology, but in fact it was already well known in the ancient Vedic tradition.
Sometimes it is difficult to understand why in life something works, and yet, something else does not. Of course, there are many reasons for success and failure, but an important factor in the outcome is the quality of the positive images invisibly present in the depths of your consciousness.
Positive images can be real people you know personally: relatives, friends, teachers, and they can be historical figures: saints, national heroes, political leaders, great scientists, and artists. A positive image builds the circumstances of life and determines the direction of your energy.
You unconsciously begin to imitate those positive images and begin to build the circumstances of life. It is important to consciously build positive images because it is the positive images that subsequently direct the circumstances of your life in an upward trajectory.
The positive image of Emperor Janaka shown in Indian history reveals that a person who practices meditation and reflects on the eternal issues of being can at the same time be harmonious and successful in their material life. Emperor Janaka is an excellent example of the unity of Spirit and Matter.
A yogi is not one who avoids family life and is afraid to touch money, naively assuming to achieve holiness by denying material existence. A true yogi is one who has gained self-realization: he is in harmony with himself and everyone around him, and lives life joyfully and happily in the awareness of absolute unity.
48. Sathya Sai Baba blessings manifest on all levels of human existence
Sathya Sai Baba is the greatest miracle worker. He often organized large Vedic ceremonies in his ashram, despite the fact that he himself was not a follower of any one of the world religions; nevertheless, he still paid great attention to the development of the Vedic tradition. During such programs, a large number of clergymen would come, as well as many devotees. The program always lasted for several days. Vedic Mantras were repeated from morning to evening along with worship.