Talk Given by Dr. Jumsai

Sathya Sai Baba

Talk Given by Dr. Jumsai
“Education in Human Values”
March 28th, 2005

OM… OM… OM…
Shanti Shanti Shantihi

I offer my loving pranams at the Divine Lotus Feet of Bhagavan Baba. Sai Ram to all of you.

(Audience) “Sai Ram! Sai Ram!”

I think that this session can be questions and answers rather than giving a talk. So, if you have any questions or if you like to ask anything, I will try to answer.

SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION DRIVEN BY EDUCATION IN HUMAN VALUES
Question: Maybe you could talk to us about Education in Human Values, how it influences our lives, the lives of youth, and education. Maybe you could repeat the example about what you said in Barcelona about children trying and trying. There was some experiment. We would like to hear that example once again.

Answer: Education in Human Values is really the main mission of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. It is through this education that Swami has said His Message will be known all over the world. It is through this education that peace will be established in the world. In fact, Swami has started another trust called the ‘Sri Sathya Sai Trust for World Peace’, and education will be the main work of the new trust.

Thus, education is going to become more and more important in the world. The reason is because children, when they go through this system of education, are transformed. And when children are transformed, then the teachers very quickly are also transformed (although the teachers should first transform themselves before they teach children!) (Laughter) But you know, as in the Sathya Sai School in Thailand, many teachers come from many places. They are not devotees. But then, when they come close to the children who are full of love, they become transformed. And when children go back home, they transform the parents.

So, in this way, the society is getting transformed. That’s why it is very important that we work hard to set up Sathya Sai schools as model schools in every country in the world. Right now we have 57 Sathya Schools in 35 countries. 40% of all the Sathya Sai schools are in Latin America. So, there is a lot of work in Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America. We have done a lot of research in trying to find out what is happening in all the Sathya Sai schools in the world. And we have made several case studies of children studying in Sathya Sai schools. Everywhere we find that there is lot of transformation in the children. And then, it goes on to the teachers, the parents and the society. So Swami is encouraging all of us to contin ueto do this work. I just talked to Swami yesterday and He told me, “Work hard on education.”

(As if I am not working hard!) I am already working very hard. (Laughter) So He really wants to push very hard to make sure that His education, which is now changing quite a bit to what we call ‘Educare’, is going around the world.

BRINGING SATHYA SAI EDUCARE TO SAUDI ARABIA
Now it is not only in the West or in the East, but where you have the strongholds of Islam, that they are also interested in Sathya Sai Education in Human Values. For example, in Saudi Arabia, which is the headquarters where the religion of Islam is based.

A few years back, I was asked to go and give training to teachers in Saudi Arabia. The organiser was actually a medical doctor who comes from Denmark. But he is in a hospital where he treats the princes of Saudi Arabia. So he had a lot of influence.

So he asked me to go there to give a seminar. But then, they sent me a thick book like that. And in that thick book, it tells you what you cannot say in Saudi Arabia. (Laughter) They say that for a foreigner, who is not a Muslim, you cannot talk about Islam. If you do so, your head will be cut off. (Laughter) I am not allowed to talk about values. Because they have their own values, and they don’t want any more values, they say.

The medical doctor said he would arrange all the visas for me to come. But finally, they said, “we don’t need anybody to come and train our teachers.” So, they rejected the visa application.

At that time, I was Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Thailand. So I told the medical doctor, “Don’t worry. I will get my own visa.” I went to the Ambassador of Saudi Arabia in Bangkok and you know, diplomatically, you cannot refuse a visa for the Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. So they gave me a visa, as well as one to Dr. Tudo, who was my associate. We would go together to do training in those days.

So, I contacted the doctor and told him that we were coming to give this talk. They gave me a warning that when we go through immigration, they will question us as to why we want to come to this place, as it is not a tourist place and there’s nothing for us to visit once we come. And so, we were told that like that they will question you for a long, long time on entry.

So, I just sang the song, “Why fear when I am here?” (Laughter) And we walked straight through immigration! Nobody saw us. (Laughter) We were out within ten minutes. And the organisers weren’t there. They thought we would be delayed for at least an hour. We were outside waiting one hour before they came!

Well, finally, they came. They took us to our place where we are going to stay. And the next morning, we had a meeting with the leaders of education in Saudi Arabia. They were all so afraid of us being there. They said, “You got to be so careful what you say. Because here, you cannot say what you want to say. You have to be so careful.”

Then the teachers who were invited to come were also protesting. They said that they will report to the religious police everything we say. In Saudi Arabia, they have police especially for religion. They will protect their religion. So, they need a lot of police people.

Well, again I have to sing, “Why fear when I am here?” (Laughter)

So says Sathya Sai Baba, Sathya Sai Baba, Sathya Sai Baba, My Lord. The next day, we had our seminar. The Muslim teachers were all there, trying to catch any mistake that we made.

I spoke for three hours. And the Muslim teachers were in tears. They came up to me and said, “Is this what we were against? No! This is something that we really need for our country, for Saudi Arabia.” They were all so happy to hear what we presented to them, which was the essence of Sathya Sai Education.

And then in the afternoon, Dr. Tudo spoke for another three hours. But this time, there was no problem. Everybody wanted to hear! The miracle doctor, who is the Danish man, he was lying in the back of the lecture hall. He was lying down because he had terminal cancer. It was his last wish in the world that Sathya Sai Education should be heard in Saudi Arabia. And he was in tears as well, because he was so happy about the whole proceeding. Then two or three days after that, he passed away.

So, you see the power of Sathya Sai Baba, getting the education, which is His main mission, to go to every country in the world.

TRANSFORMATION OF EMIRATES MINISTER OF EDUCATION
I would just like to tell you another story in another Muslim country; this time in United Arab Emirates. We were invited there to speak at an Indian school. There they don’t mind if we to talk to an Indian school because it is for Indians only. But to make it really official, they called the Minister of Education to come and open the function. His name is Sheikh Nahayan. He came to open the conference on Sathya Sai Education in Human Values for teachers.

Well, the Sheikh, I met him at the beginning, before we started the function. He said that he is a very busy man and he has to go to another meeting. So he would like to hear me for about 15 minutes, no more. Then I have to stop so that he can make an exit, so he can go out.

So after the opening session, after everybody spoke officially, then I was asked to speak for minutes. So I went up on stage and Sheikh Nahayan was sitting in front of me, in front of the audience. I spoke for 15 minutes, and then I stopped and looked at the Sheikh. But the Sheikh would not get up. He looked at me and he said, “Go on, go on, go on…” (Laughter)

So I continued for another 15 minutes, and then I stopped and looked at him again. (Laughter) And he would not get up but said, “Go on, go on, go on…” (Laughter) So I had to stop for every 15 minutes, but he would say, “Go on, go on, go on…” This went on for over three hours! (Laughter)

Then the Sheikh asked to go on the stage, asking for the microphone. There he announced publicly that this program was such a great program that he wants all the teachers in United Arab Emirates to be trained.

True to his word, three months later, I received an official invitation from the United Arab Emirates Education Department to go there to train the teachers. I was put up in the best hotel in the world. (Laughter) They claim it is the best hotel in the world. And I have never been to such a luxurious hotel in my life. (Laughter)

And then, they arranged a big meeting in the government hall. It is really very big, and there were so many invitees and there were 1500 teachers there. 70% of all the teachers who came were Muslims. But there were about 30% who were Americans or had come from European countries and so on, to help in the teaching in United Arab Emirates.

So, I gave a talk and they were very happy. Since then, I had to go back again to talk to the teachers. During the last session I had in United Arab Emirates, not very long ago — only about three months ago, Sheikh Nahayan also came to listen. And again Sheikh Nahayan, who is the Minister of Education sat there and listened to all my presentation.

STORY OF THE KING WHO WAS AFRAID OF HIS WIVES
You know, in my presentation I told the story about the king who had five wives. You know the story, right? You don’t know the story?!!

There was a king who had five wives. And each wife would make a lot of demands: “I want this, I want that.” So they were always asking the king. And the king was afraid of his wives. He had to go and get things for the wives, as all the five wives were all very demanding. So the king was not happy. Thus he went to consult his cabinet ministers. “What can I do, so that I won’t be afraid of my wives?”

But the ministers, as they were all men said, “Sorry, Sire. We cannot advise you because we are also afraid of our wives!” (Laughter)

So they thought, “Let us try to find some man who is not afraid of his wife in this kingdom. Then we will consult him as to why he is not afraid, and he can tell us and advise us.”

So, the king invited all the male population to come for a big meeting. On that day, they planned to put up a tent for those who are afraid of their wives: Everybody who is afraid of their wife must go to that tent. Then there was to be another tent for those who were not afraid of their wives. In this way, the men were to be separated. The idea was that they would go to the tent of those who are not afraid of their wives and get advice from the men there.

So the big day came. All the male population came for the meeting, but they all went into the tent for those who are afraid of their wives. Nobody came into the other tent.

The king was getting very upset. “Are there no men in this country who are not afraid of their wives?”

But at the last minute, one man did come to the tent for those who are not afraid. Seeing this, the king rushed to see that man. The king said, “Tell me your secret. How are you not afraid of your wife?”

But the man said, “Sorry, Sire. I am also afraid of my wife.”

The king was very angry and said, “Why did you come into this tent? You have got to go to the other tent!”

The man said, “I will not go. You can punish me or you can do whatever you like; but I won’t go.”

So the king asked, “Why? Why won’t you go?”

And the man replied, “Because my wife told me to come to this tent!” (Laughter) Swami told this story to all of us in the past. It is to illustrate that we are like the king. The five senses are the five wives. When our eyes see something beautiful, the eyes create a desire: “I want this, I want that.” And we are afraid of our five senses. We don’t control our five senses. We allow them to control us. So, Swami is urging us to become the king once again, and not the slave of the five senses. Thus, the first step in our lives is to learn to control the five senses.

When I told this story to the assembly in United Arab Emirates, the Sheikh was laughing and laughing, and he was telling everybody, “In United Arab Emirates, we are only allowed four wives!” (Laughter) He was joking; he was actually very happy about it.

So you see, that is another success story in another Muslim country. And now, I am doing a lot of training in Muslim countries.

SATHYA SAI EDUCATION IN INDONESIA AND KAZAKHSTAN
In Indonesia, it is very easy as they are very open. Now I’ve got to go and do a series of training for Muslim teachers in Indonesia.

Another place where Sathya Sai Education is really spreading is Kazakhstan. The original people who lived in Kazakhstan are called Kazakhs. The Kazakhs are Muslims. And again, we were invited by the First Lady of Kazakhstan, who is a Kazakh. We started training in all the regions of the country. I’ve been there six times already.

Then last February, the First Lady came here to meet Swami. And the First Lady asked me to come, so that we could meet Swami together. So I came and we had several interviews. Swami looked at me every time He called the Kazakh people. He said, “You are not Kazakh!” (Laughter)

Then He told me, “This is only for Kazakhstan.”

So I looked sad. (Laughter) Swami looked at me and said, “Alright, alright. You can go in.” (Laughter)

So you see, God is not just Father and Mother. Sometimes, you have to treat Him as a Friend. Sometimes, you treat Him as an Elder Brother. But He is also our Father and Mother. As such, He always has a lot of compassion and a lot of love for all of us.

Another country where we are now really going into is China. China is the last stronghold of communism. But when I go in there, I see that they are becoming very quickly a capitalist country. The whole country is changing and they are moving rapidly into industrialisation. And because they moved very quickly into materialism, they have a lot of problems with their youth. So now, there is a demand for human values there as well.

I have already gone into the Guandong Province to train teachers there. And now, I have got an indication from the Nanjing local authorities to go and train teachers there as well. And you know how it happened? (Murmurs “no, no” in audience)

TRANSFORMATION OF UNESCO OFFICIAL
You remember in the year 2000, we had an international conference here. When we started arranging the conference, we were working with UNESCO and another university in Australia, Flinders University. The UNESCO man at that time was not a devotee, but I brought him here to meet Swami. And Swami called him in for an interview. I tried to follow as usual. (Laughter) But this time, Swami said, “No, you can’t go in.” No matter how sad I looked, (Laughter) He would not allow me to go in. That man came out of the interview room. He had a green ring on, and his face was changed; he was completely transformed by Swami. He came out and he embraced me, “You are now my brother.” (Laughter)

Then he asked me if I had been telling Swami about him, because Swami knew everything about him! I said that I didn’t know anything about his personal life. But Swami was talking about his personal life. So he told me what it was about, and he gave me permission to tell all these stories to everyone.

Swami told him, “You are very worried. You are unhappy because your wife is dying. She has terminal cancer.” But Swami said, “Don’t worry about it. I will cure her.” And He materialised some vibhuthi and gave it to him to give to his wife. So he was very happy, but he thought that I had told Swami all about his wife. But I didn’t know anything about this. I had never met his wife, and I didn’t know anything about all that.

So he asked me then, “How does Swami know?”

I just smiled. Anyway, he went back, and he gave the vibhuthi to his wife. A few months later, he invited me to have dinner with them because they are based in Bangkok at the regional headquarters of UNESCO. His wife was perfectly normal, completely cured.

TRANSFORMATION OF CHINESE EDUCATIONIST IN CONFERENCE
Unfortunately, he was moved to another position. He was stationed in Berlin, Germany. So a new person came to take over the work while we were preparing for the big international conference. There was only one month to go before the conference. Then the new man came and said, “I don’t know anything about this. I don’t want to have anything to do with it.” At that time, there were lot of attacks on our organisation. Many people wrote to the UNESCO headquarters that they had better cancel all this, that UNESCO should not be involved with the Sathya Sai Organisation. But UNESCO had already invited everybody from around the world, very important people, and people in the top positions in education in every country. They were all going to be coming.

Then finally, UNESCO told me, “Sorry, we are pulling out.”

But I continued, and we had our conference without UNESCO. The people came from all over the world because they had already been invited; they had got their visas, their air tickets and so on. So, they had all decided to come. Amongst these people, there were top-level people from China in education. And Swami put them right in front in the veranda for every darshan. There was this one Chinese educator, educationist. He was sitting there and he was watching Swami very carefully. After two or three days, he was so impressed when he saw Swami, and he was completely changed. He was sitting there on the veranda, doing this: he was shaking there, and I could see that he was crying. Then after the conference, he contacted me and invited me to go and train teachers there.

CALL FOR WORLD PEACE BY SWAMI’S 90th BIRTHDAY
You know, I have been trying hard to get into China, but I have been unsuccessful. I have been there. I have tried to talk to people; they are not interested in outside education. But because of that UNESCO conference, when UNESCO pulled out, we got a lot of very good contacts all over the world. Also with Hong Kong, part of mainland China, we have a big centre there and we are now helping from Hong Kong as well. China is now completely open and we are going to go there more and more and train their teachers.

So, now you see how the Sathya Sai Education in Human Values is going to all corners of the world. And close devotees of Swami are whispering into my ear that big changes are coming very, very soon. Swami also said very clearly that peace will come sooner than what you expect.

So, I don’t know if some of you were in the public lecture the other day. I told everybody that by the 90th birthday, we are going to celebrate peace in the world. I have been telling everybody that we love Swami so much, why wait for Prema Sai to have peace. Let us work during this Avatar. And things are really moving at a very fast speed now. You don’t have to change everybody in the world to have peace. You just have to have a little bit more than 50% of love, over hatred and negative thoughts — just a little bit over 50%! Then, there will be peace in the world!!

If you see all the Sathya Sai schools around the world, you will find that there is so much love there. Some of you may have seen the videos by Gene Massey. Have you seen them? He goes around the world taking videos around the world. And he has said very clearly that he has seen the beginning of the new age of peace. That’s why Swami is spending so much time with the students and with the professors.

Well, that is the story of the changes that are taking place very rapidly through Education in Human Values.

LOVE WILL REDUCE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING
In Thailand, in the Sathya Sai School, we are doing the same thing. We are promoting love. The only rule in the Sathya Sai School is the rule of love. The children grow a lot of plants. And every time we grow a plant, we send love to the plant first.

Now we are growing rice in a big way in our school. Because I told everybody we must be self-sufficient.

We must be able to feed everybody with rice without having to buy from outside. So, many times throughout the year, we will go into the paddy fields. The children and the teachers will go into the paddy fields, which are filled with water and mud. The children love it. And we always start with a prayer. Then we will recite the Gayatri Mantra. And then, we start to plant the rice.

Children love to play in the muddy field. But at the same time, we send love to all the plants. Well, at one time, (we don’t do it so often now), the children planted a field and there was a field next door, where the staff and people from outside planted rice. We grew them at the same time; we planted at the same time. We observed that where the children planted, the rice grew at a much faster rate. When the time of harvesting came, the rice plants were much taller and there was much more rice harvested from the children’s field.

So, love really works. If we give a lot of love, plants will grow. So that’s one thing that we really need to do in the world today: to fill the atmosphere of the world with love. Then all the plants, forests and so on will grow at a much faster rate. And this will reduce the effect of the global warming in the world. It will take away the carbon dioxide, absorb the carbon dioxide, so that the temperature will reduce in the world.

Right now, because of the warming effect, the ice in the North Pole and South Pole are melting. The other month I was in Nanjing, in China, to talk about this training of teachers. The scientists there were measuring the level of the sea water. They now see two to three millimetres increase in the level of sea water every year.

Well, this is going to be a big problem for our world. As the sea level increases, the weight of he ocean over the earth will also increase. The biggest ocean in the world is the Pacific Ocean. So the earth will become unbalanced because there is more water on one side. On the other side, we have lot of land masses like Asia, Europe and Africa.

What happens is that the world, which is rotating in space, will start to wobble a little bit. And that will speed up the earth. The earth crust is divided into plates and is floating around. So we will start to have a big movement, more and more.

By giving out a lot of love, all through the day, then we can lessen that effect. There’s no need to have a lot of disasters in the world. That’s why the Avatar is here. That’s why we have Sathya Sai schools around the world. That’s why the Sathya Sai Organisation is everywhere, in every country. That’s why we have a lot of bhajans. Because when we sing bhajans, we are filled with love. So, the whole organisation must work hard to produce a lot of love in the world.

I took an hour to answer one question! (Laughter) Any other questions or you want to stop? It’s 11:30.

PLANT THE SEED AND IT WILL GROW
Question: Is it necessary to teach Education in Human Values to children below eight years, for example, for only two months, if afterwards they are not going to continue it any more? Is it worthwhile? Is it necessary?

Dr. Jumsai: Why aren’t they continuing?

Questioner: Because the teacher will be changed.

Dr. Jumsai: In the school?

Questioner: She is not talking about a regular school. She wants to know if it is worthwhile to start the human values.

Dr. Jumsai: It is always worthwhile to plant a seed for future generations. But then we should train all the teachers of the country. We should never stop with only a few teachers and say, “Aaah, we’ve done our job.” In Thailand, we have trained over 60,000 teachers already. And now, we don’t have to train any more teachers. The reason is because they are so interested in the program that they come and study for themselves. We don’t have to go to them anymore.

We have over 200 teachers and educators who come to visit our school every week now. The Ministry of Education recommend to everybody to come and visit our school. And they are all coming; so we don’t need to go out anymore. This is what we want in every country, so that the movement will spread very quickly.

Like Victor Kanu and his Zambia school; now people are coming to see his school because the school is known as the ‘miracle’ school. You heard the students of Swami talking in the last few days about how they have been affected by what is taught in his school. And most of them came only for a two-year course. They were not devotees before that. So after two years, there’s no more education; they go out into the world. But the seed has been planted, and they grow and grow wherever they are.

SWAMI IN FIJI ISLANDS SATHYA SAI SCHOOL
So you ask, “Is it worthwhile to give them Sathya Sai Education or Human Values education?” I say, “Yes!” Always plant the seed. It will grow on its own. There was a meeting last week with eminent educationists. They came for a big meeting here. They were arguing, because most of them are not devotees. They were arguing, “Is it possible to do the same thing as what Swami has done here in other countries?”

And because they don’t know Swami, they said that it can only take place here in Puttaparthi as Swami is physically present here. So I decided to tell them that it’s not only happening in Puttaparthi. It is happening in many places. As an example, I gave the example of the Fiji Sathya Sai School in Fiji Islands. It is the only place on the Fiji Islands where there is no conflict between the Christians and the Hindus. The children, 50% of each, mix together. They are brothers and sisters. They are filled with love. I went to visit that school in the Fiji Islands.

And I saw the best, cleanest toilets in the whole world. They were burning incense sticks, and they lit candles there, and they worship in the toilet!!

So I asked them, “Why? Why worship in the toilet?”

They said that one day they saw Swami walking in the school, inspecting the school. Then, Swami walked into the toilet. They all rushed and followed him into the toilet. But Swami had already gone! And because of that, the children decided to come every morning, clean everything, light candles, light incense sticks and pray in the toilet.

So, I gave this as an example to the educators to say that Swami is everywhere and therefore, we can replicate and copy what is going on here anywhere. Then they stopped arguing. No more argument after that.

So, I hope I have answered your question.

TALKING TO EDUCATORS IN MEXICO
Question: For people outside India, how many training institutes are here?

Dr. Jumsai: Well, we have set up institutes of Sathya Sai Education. Now, we have about 30 around the world. And the institutes are set up to train teachers. In Thailand, we also accept people from all over the world to be trained at our institute. In Thailand, so far we have about 60,000 people trained. We have to do it twice a week all through the year. But in other countries, they do it maybe once a month or even less. But now, we have got to do more and more.

I travel around a lot, but I cannot do all the training around the world. It is up to the people in each locality. I have just been recently to a Spanish-speaking country — Mexico. And I gave a big talk to about 900 educators there. You know, I was so ill when I arrived in Mexico. And I had to have some, you know, they sent me some spiritual healers to heal me. The next day, I was supposed to speak. But still, the next day I was not feeling very well. So, I could not really talk. It was very difficult to talk as my mind was not clear at all.

So I said to Swami in my mind, “You take over this body. You have to do the work. I can’t do it. You have to do it.”

And I went onto the stage. I started to speak. There was one translator who was translating into Spanish. And then, I didn’t know what I was talking at all. I talked for two hours. And you know the people there were so moved by what had been said.

One young girl came up and said she had been trying to commit suicide three or four times, but each time, she did not die. But when she listened to the talk, somehow her heart was shaking and she was moved. And she went to her parents and said, I have decided that I am not going to kill myself anymore. I am going to live; I am going to serve other people. She was completely changed.

And even the organisers of the conference and all the participants said that something was moving in their heart. Many people were so moved that they all want to do education in human values. And I didn’t even know what I was saying!!

PEACE WILL COME SOONER THAN WE EXPECT
So, you see that’s the power of Sai everywhere throughout the world. Changing people, we are going to bring about this new age of peace. There will be peace. Swami has promised that it will come sooner than what we expect.

Previously, He said there will be peace in the time of Prema Sai. We know Swami is here for another 16 years. Then, one year after that, Prema Sai will be born. So, the time of Prema Sai will start 17 years from now. So, we can expect that in 17 years, there will be peace. But Swami said that peace will come sooner than what you expect. And He kept on stressing that it will be very, very, very soon.

So, that’s why Sri Indulal Shah announced that we will celebrate the 90th birthday as the spiritual regeneration of mankind. And that’s when we expect that there will be complete peace in the world.

DEVELOP A LOVING ATTITUDE — SEND LOVE INTO THE WORLD
Question: Sir, yesterday it was said that if more people develop a more loving attitude in theworld, Swami would heal Himself. Is it true?

Dr. Jumsai: I bet! (Laughter) Swami is taking on the karma of the world. And if there are more positive thoughts, more love in the world, He does not have to take on any karma. So if all the centres in the world, if the whole organisation filled with love, always radiating love, Swami won’t need to take on any karma. The time is approaching when He will walk well again, bewell again, soon.

I will tell you a secret. (Laughter) Yesterday, without any prompting — I did not ask Swami to go anywhere — He said to me, “I am going to Thailand.” But, don’t worry, it doesn’t mean that He will go to Thailand only; He will go to many countries. So in order to do that, He has to heal Himself first.

I’ll tell you another secret. (Laughter) Yesterday, I asked Swami, “Please, Swami, walk again.” Swami said, “I am walking all the time! As soon as I get back to my room, I am walking there!” (Laughter) “But outside, the doctors won’t allow me to walk.” (Laughter) “And my students won’t allow me to walk. They are afraid that I will fall again! But I am walking in my apartment.” So He is already healing Himself. But we must send out a lot of love into the world. So, pray, and pray and pray and send out love for the whole world. He will definitely walk. Remember, it’s a secret! (Laughter)

USE LOVE AS THE BASIS FOR ALL ACTIONS
Question: You spoke in one of the meetings that while training the teachers, instead of reacting from our subconscious, we must react from our human values when relating to other people. Would you please explain about this?

Dr. Jumsai: The subconscious contains all of our past information, anything we have received, anything we have done, anything we have thought; all past experiences are stored in the subconscious. We all react because of the information, the data that has been stored in our subconscious.

So, a child could be aggressive because he uses the subconscious reaction. It is an automatic reaction, and we cannot control it normally because it will come out from the subconscious. So, the first thing we have to teach our children and all of us is to start to use discrimination. When we receive something, we start to have thoughts automatically. What should we do? The reaction will start. So train yourself and train the children to immediately ask two questions:

1. Is it good for me?
2. Is it good for everybody?

If it passes these two questions, these two tests, then by all means, react to it.

Swami tells us that this is what He calls ‘fundamental discrimination’. And it should be taught when they are really young, so that they will always use fundamental discrimination. At the same time, before reacting to anything, apply the human values. Use love. Love should be the main thing that we use for any reaction. So, love has to be the basis for all our actions and that will appear as human value till we get rid of the negativity that is in our subconscious. So, the next thing you need to do is to raise the consciousness towards God. Then we start to contact the higher consciousness, which is there in all of us. That is where we have our conscience that tells us, ‘this is good’ or ‘this is bad’. Then we don’t need to rely on our subconscious anymore because now we will get guidance from God. And our life will be transformed completely as a result.

So we have to practice and practice meditation. Practice going into the silence, because that is where God is. It should be done every day.

I am afraid it is past 12:00. I am leaving today. In the afternoon, I have my flight and I haven’t packed my bag yet, so I think it should end the session.

Thank you very much for your super attention. (Laughter and Applause) Let’s end with “Loka Samastha”. Let’s send love.

Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
Sai Ram!

Pujya Shri Pramukh Swami Maharaj Visits The Shri Sathya Sai Heart Hospital – Rajkot

Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Pujya Shri Pramukh Swami Maharaj Visits The Shri Sathya Sai Heart Hospital – Rajkot

The head of the Swaminarayan mission, Shri Pramukh Swami Maharaj visited the Shri Sathya Sai Heart Hospital at Rajkot.

Pujya Pramukh Swami met the Tustees Bros. Kanubhai Patel and Manojbhai Bhimani who took him around the whole hospital including the Operation theatres, ICUs etc. He was very pleased with the latest medical equipment in the hospital for diagnosing and treating even the most difficult cases. He then visited the wards and personally blessed all the patients there.

He told all those present there that He was very impressed with the care and love showered to the patients there by the devoted team of the Doctors and the staff.

Article in Gujarti (Translation in English below)

Pujya Shri Pramukh Visits Sathya Sai Hospital

His Holiness Shri Pramukh Swami visits Sri Sathya Sai Hospital, Rajkot
Gujarat, India – Wednesday 29th June 2005

The most revered spiritual leader and head of Shri Swaminarayan Hindu Mission (BAPS), Pujya Shri Pramukh Swami Maharaj, graced Sri Sathya Sai Super Speciality Hospital, Kalawad Road, Rajkot with a visit last Sunday. The holy man saw for himself how this renowned establishment offers free facilities and services and was impressed by how it lives up to its ‘Service to Man is Service to God’ motto. He proceeded to give his personal attention to every section of the hospital and showered his blessings upon the medical staff, patients and members of the hospital trustee group.

Very expensive heart surgery and modern treatment is available at Sri Sathya Sai Hospital no cost – regardless of any ability to pay. Every patient is seen as ‘Narayana’ – God in human form.

His Holiness showed great interest in every aspect of the work being carried out and went through the administrative offices, operation theatre, Intensive Care Unit, and met those awaiting and undergoing treatment as well as those who had already been operated upon. This gave him an over all picture of the institution and its workings. He also met dignitaries and senior surgeons and showed how pleased and impressed he was with what he had seen and heard.

He then visited the Prayer Hall and offered flowers to the image of Sri Sathya Sai Baba, whose divine message has inspired the foundation of the hospital and other major social projects throughout India and, indeed, the world.

‘This auspicious visit by such a unique spiritual personality as Pramukh Swami Maharaj is truly momentous and an inspiration to do even more’ were the sentiments expressed by the Hospital Managing Trustee, Kanubhai Patel and Joint Managing Trustee, Manojbhai Bhimani.

Shri Pramukh Swami Maharaj is the inspiration behind the creation of over 650 temples worldwide and heads an organisation which promotes social awakening, education and service to the community. Bochasanvasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha is a progressive and very active movement with several million followers throughout the world.

How To Build Character That Lasts

Swami Sathya Sai Baba

HOW TO BUILD CHARACTER THAT LASTS
By Mrs. Mallika Srinivasan

Mrs. Mallika Srinivasan is the CEO of TAFE [Tractors and Farm Equipment] and is one of the most successful women CEOs in India having transformed TAFE from a 80-crore company to a 2500-crore market leader. She was awarded the Business Woman of the Year Award by the BBC, UK in 1999 and the Economic Times Business Woman of the Year in 2006. Engaged in many social service activities, she is also an active participant in the Mother and Child Care programme undertaken by the Easwaramma Women’s Welfare Trust. This is the transcript of the talk she delivered to the delegates of the Sri Sathya Sai World Youth Conference during a workshop session in Prasanthi Nilayam on July 26, 2007.

Mallika Srinivasan: I offer my most loving and humble pranams at the lotus feet of our Beloved Bhagavan. Respected elders, Sai youth, brothers and sisters, Sairam to all of you.

“Watch, observe, obey, learn and apply”

Each one of us gathered here today is truly blessed, enjoying and basking as we do in Bhagavan’s Protection, Grace and Love. To my family, as to all of you, Sathya Sai Baba has been the very centre of existence – mother, father, guru and God. All of you as Sai Youth are exceptionally privileged.

For unlike people like myself, who went through a process that began with magnetic attraction, led to intellectual curiosity, and perhaps a degree of scepticism before the spark of devotion could be lit, leading to faith and finally to total surrender, you have been brought into Swami’s fold at a time when your heart is open to receive His love instantly. Youth take to Swami like fish to water.

It is the determination of Swami to sow in the minds of young people which are like rays of the rising sun, the seeds of desire for acquiring spiritual knowledge. These seeds have already been sown in the Sai Youth gathered here today. The distinguishing feature of Sai Youth is that material gains are not the sole goal of your lives. You seek to lead holistic lives, yearn to achieve a larger purpose and strive to be better human beings.

Living in the presence of Bhagavan offers us the very best opportunity to achieve this. Swami teaches us in a variety of ways through His compassion, through disciplining, through His interactions, through the formal teaching like we had this morning, and at times through direct advice: “Watch, observe, learn, obey and apply.” Then, we will begin to comprehend the essence of what is required for a successful life, i.e., the building of character. Devotion, Duty, Discipline, Determination and Discrimination are the pillars on which the robust house of character is built. These are the few things I would like to touch upon today.

The Charismatic Charioteer
Devotion to God is fundamental to leading a virtuous life. Swami, through His Divine Love and in His own inimitable way, evokes in each of our hearts, this devotion and builds our faith. I would like to share with you, one such instance, when Swami through a simple and appealing example captured the heart of a young boy in an instant, making him a devotee for life!

During an interview, Swami asked our young son to ask Him a question.

The boy said, “Swami, which is your favourite car?”

My heart sank and I thought to myself, “Is this the question to ask Swami? Time with Swami is so precious!”

Swami gave a lovely smile and answered, “Morris Minor” and went on to tell stories of how He used to drive to Madras and how He obtained a license.

“You used to drive it yourself Swami?” Exclaimed the boy, stars in His eyes!

Swami had woven a bit of magic and our son looked at Swami transfixed.

Swami went on to say, “I will give you a big car. Will you take it? You mustn’t say no!”

And the boy, a bit overawed by now, said, “OK!”

Swami then asked, “Will you give me your car?”

Prompt came the answer, “Sure Swami!”

“Shall I drive it?”

And the boy again said, “Sure, Swami.”

Swami then smilingly placed His hand on our son’s heart and said, “Your heart is the car and I am the driver.”

One of the most profound lessons in devotion had been taught by Swami in the simplest possible manner! Swami says, “Have faith in Him” and “Be free from fear, anxiety and agitation. Surrender to God; His Grace can save you. His wisdom can enlighten you. His power can overcome all obstacles. Faith and surrender are the manifestations of devotion.”

The Right Attitude
Duty without expectation of reward is the essence of the Bhagavad Gita. Let us cast a glimpse of what is actually happening around us in the world today, especially in the lives of younger people. There is, if you permit me to say, an obsession with being remunerated; with obtaining greater and greater power and authority. There is a constant measurement of work versus reward and a continuous comparison with other family members, friends, colleagues and peers. Opportunities and temptations abound in a growing economy and this is fuelling these trends.

Frequency of job change has reached new heights and as the search continues for something elusive, our inner peace is destroyed. If, on the other hand, we enjoy doing what we are doing, do our very best, excel at it, going beyond what is commonly termed “the call of duty,” do our tasks with devotion and love, without fear of failure, leaving the rewards to Swami, not only will we achieve inner peace, but we will exceed our own expectations of performance.

Surrender, the Best Strategy!
In our professional lives, we may have the illusion that we control outcomes. That it is only an illusion becomes quite clear, when we are faced with a personal crisis.

For example, let us take the illness of a loved one. My mother, a very healthy person, was recently diagnosed with having an ailment, for which the prognosis was indeed poor. Only God could save her. It is in situations like this, that faith and surrender make us witness Swami’s magic. His Grace fills us with a sense of calm. He directs and guides us to do our duty taking appropriate decisions and leaving the rest to Him.

It was raining heavily and the hospital room began to leak. And a fungus infection would be disastrous for my mother. The Hospital administration and doctors out of concern were urging me to move her immediately to another Hospital where the care would not be of the same order, but the room would not leak. We seemed to be moving her for all the wrong reasons. Couldn’t we move her to the smaller room or to the intensive care? A quiet prayer to Swami seeking His guidance and the answer was clear. “Do not move her.”

It is Bhagavan’s infinite grace that she is today completely well, truly Swami’s walking miracle. Faith enables us to carry out our duties calmly, even under extraordinarily extenuating circumstances, surrendering the problem at His feet. Our duty, however, extends beyond our jobs and serving our families to serving humanity at large.

Inspiring Examples
Speaking at the Harvard Commencement in June 2007, Bill Gates said:

“When you consider what those of us here have been given in talent, privilege and opportunity, there is almost no limit to what the world has a right to expect from us.”

We gathered here today, are even more privileged than those in Harvard. For, we have in our midst, Bhagavan, to teach and guide us as we strive to give back to society, what society has given to us! “We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give,” said Winston Churchill.

While our ancient texts have laid down the way wealth should be distributed, a quarter for personal use, a quarter for charitable purposes, a quarter on other living beings, and a quarter in support of state, even in this materialistic world, there are a handful of the richest of men, who have set outstanding examples of giving back to serve the larger cause of humanity. Many of you would probably have read Warren Buffet’s recent announcement that he would donate 85% of his 44 billion dollar empire to charity to serve communities across the world and most importantly, without heed to religion, caste or community.

Inspired by such examples, Sai Youth, having imbibed Swami’s teachings of “Service to man is service to God” can play a prominent role in the establishment of a new world order. Participating actively in Swami’s Seva Organization and programs, be they providing water, food or medical care, gives Sai Youth a unique opportunity to serve with love under Divine Guidance.

How Can ‘I’ Start Service?
Opportunities to serve are everywhere; one does not have to search for them. They are in your neighbourhood and in your work place. As Swami says, you may not get a chance to participate in some gigantic scheme of service through which millions may be benefited, but you can lift a lame lamb over the side, or lead a blind child across a busy road. That too is an act of worship. If you look around you with love, service to others will come spontaneously and become an intrinsic part of our daily lives.

In the words of Bhagavan, the real value of seva and its most visible result is that it transforms and reshapes you. Devotion must be directed along the lines of duty and tested in the crucible of discipline, says Bhagavan.

Discipline – Indispensable for Success
“Why do we need discipline?” Swami’s analogy comparing life to a football game, gives us the answer. If any player can do anything with the ball, and there is neither foul nor out, neither offside nor goal, neither throw nor penalty, then it be a meaningless game incapable of giving joy. It is these rules and restrictions that give charm to the game of life. It is disciplined societies that emerge victorious.

Japan was decimated during World War II and Korea sank into poverty after the Korean War. It is discipline that has enabled the resurgence of both Japan and South Korea that has enabled both these countries and propelled them into being economic power houses. Discipline pervades every aspect of life in their society. Their daily routine, their work habits, their interaction with each other, and everything is done in a particular way at a particular time and with no deviations. In Japan, even the tea ceremony is a much disciplined affair. Quality, efficiency and excellence in everything they do are the hallmarks of these societies. It is individual discipline that translates into this kind of societal discipline and ensures success.

While discipline is a prerequisite in every endeavour, be it social, economic or material, it is even more vital for Sai youth aspiring to pursue the spiritual path. Swami expects the highest levels of discipline from his students and the youth, for it is this discipline that builds credibility, the foundation stone for leadership.

When a new employee joins a firm, both his seniors and his subordinates are watching him closely. Does he come to work on time? Does he do what he says he will? Does he deliver his assigned tasks on schedule? Is there unison in what he thinks, says and does? Is he willing to shoulder additional responsibilities? No one can succeed in his or her mission alone, and success depends upon the support we are able to garner from others and this support is garnered only through credibility established by the practice of personal discipline. People may not believe what you say. But they will surely believe what they see you do. Emerson, the American author had this to say. “What you are shouts so loudly in my ears that I cannot hear what you say.” It is character that communicates most eloquently.

Discrimination – The Most Vital Tenet
All of you gathered here are aspiring to be leaders in your own respective spheres of life. Besides demonstration by personal example, two key differentiators between leaders and others are determination and what Swami referred to this morning in His inaugural address as “The Power of Discrimination.”

Determination is widely acclaimed as the king of faculties and as the one that succeeds when everything else fails. Nothing can take the place of persistence. Talent will not. Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with great talent. Genius will not. Nothing is more common than unrewarded genius! It is now almost like a proverb. Education will not. The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.

A distinction however may be made, between determination and obstinacy. An obstinate man is not open to suggestions and course corrections become impossible. In sharp contrast, a determined man has a flexible approach, keeps his eye on the goal post and freely takes inputs that help to further progress towards the goal. Obstinate people are filled with ego. Determination without a trace of ego or self-interest empowers the individual with a sharper sense of discrimination.

Discrimination is the ability to distinguish between good and bad, right and wrong, and take the correct decision, given a specific set of circumstances. What is right in one situation may not be right in another and leaders are often faced with difficult choices. But in every situation, discrimination implies applying the principle of dharma, the righteousness that upholds the universe.

A couple of examples. Each one of us has different roles that we play in life. The father at home is many times the boss at work, be it a small, medium, or large business. The factors that he takes when taking a decision vis-à-vis his son in his role as a father will be distinctively different from those that he uses when taking decisions at the work place. At the work place, he cannot take decisions based only on his son’s individual interest. For, these affect the larger good of the Organization. Therefore, necessarily, it has to be above self-interest. He needs to give up on mine and thine.

Hitler was a determined man. Why was he destroyed? His determination was filled with ego and megalomaniac tendencies. The larger good was not in sight. He lost his discrimination for his decisions were not based on the principles of Dharma.

While the Dharma for each person may be different, depending upon the role he plays, the basic principles of dharma, based on which discrimination is applied remain unchanged, namely, truth, love, fortitude and non-violence. These are the cornerstones of the practice of Dharma and upholding Dharma is the insignia of a true leader.

When there is Dharma, there is victory. And the protector of Dharma, will always be protected by Bhagavan. Devotion, Duty, Discipline, Determination and Discrimination are integral parts of the whole and need to come together in perfect balance to form the character of an ideal Sai Youth.

Each of these attributes cannot be viewed in isolation and when closely intertwined, make for a successful and holistic life. All of you, young delegates are filled with idealism, dreams and aspirations. In conclusion, I would like to share with you the words of Swami, that to me have been through the years, a joyous source of inspiration.

“Life is a Game, Play It! Life is a Challenge, Meet it! Life is Love, Enjoy it! Life is a Dream, Realize it!”

Jai Sri Sai Ram!

RadioSai Reference

Cataract Sufferers Benefit From Free Eye Surgery Campaign

Cataract Sufferers Benefit From Free Eye Surgery Campaign

A Durban ophthalmologist and his team performed 21 cataract operations in one day at no cost as part of a religious organisation’s medical programme.

Dr Mohammed Nasser Khan, a private ophthalmologist, teamed up with the Sri Sathya Sai Sudha Trust and St Aidan’s Hospital last week to perform the surgery free of charge to the needy.

A cataract is a clouding that develops in the crystalline lens of the eye, obstructing the passage of light.

The surgery — which costs at least R6500 in a state hospital and up to R15000 in a private institution — was funded by Khan and the trust.

The programme is part of the trust’s cele- bration of the 83rd birthday of Sri Sathya Sai Baba today.

Khan said that he was “happy and willing” to support the cause.

“These types of programmes are rewarding and are making inroads into the huge cataract backlog throughout the country,” he said.

He believed it was “divine intervention” that led him to the programme.

“At the end of the day, we are all working for God. This type of seva (selfless service) is all God’s work, irrespective of caste, colour and creed.”

The programme, which is supported by department heads and staff at St Aidan’s Hospital, was launched last Saturday and will be held at least three times every year.

“We make use of the hospital’s facilities and are assisted by other doctors, medical consultants and staff, including a private anaesthetist,” said Khan.

“The best part of it all is to see the appreciation shown by the patients. It is something priceless to see the smiles on their faces.”

A medical co-ordinator of the Sai Trust, John Gengan, said that the patients were carefully screened before the procedure to ensure that they qualified for the free surgery.

“It is so fulfilling when you are able to take a person out of darkness and show him or her the light, and the best part of it is the fact that it is done out of pure love,” said Gengan.

Reference