Sri Sathya Sai International Organization

A lamp kept on mound illumines the area; if kept in a pit, it is as if it were not. A virtue that is practiced is a lamp that shines for all; good thoughts and good deeds have a way of influencing others. The gems of wisdom, the light of intuitive experience should not be kept away from fellow-men. They have to be shared, even at the cost of one's life. That was the lesson Jesus taught and symbolized.

Love alone can reveal the Divinity latent in all. Love is God. Live in love. Love lives by giving and forgiving; self lives by getting and forgetting. Love is selflessness; selfishness is lovelessness. Do not waste your life pursuing the narrow interests of the self. Love! Love! Become what you truly are, embodiments of love.

There is nothing greater than prayer. Hence, everyone must necessarily offer their prayers to God. However, one should not pray for worldly gains. "Oh God! I want your love and nothing else." This should be your constant prayer. Once you become the recipient of God's love, you can conquer the entire world.

Whatever God does is for the welfare of the world. You must understand that world is the very form of God. The creator and the creation are not different from each other. One should not worship God for the fulfilment of worldly desires. One should pray to God to attain Him. He showers His grace on the devotee and gives the devotee everything they require.

The essence of all religions and faiths is one and the same thing. Man's primary duty is to surrender to God. "Surrender" means attaining the state in which the devotee feels he is one with God. This feeling arises out of the conviction that the same divinity is present in all.

Strive to acquire the company of the good. The company of the good takes you near to God. Spiritual practice makes you dear to the Lord. When you are near and dear you become one with God. When you have realized God, you have secured everything. 

If you want to realize God, if you wish to experience the divinity within you, if you want to know your true self, you have to develop pure, unsullied love. This binds all people. It is described as the tether of love (Prema-pasham).

Without waves, there can be no ocean. Without rays, there can be no sun. Likewise, a person without love cannot be considered a human being. Just as waves are for the ocean, rays are for the sun, so too is love for individuals. Therefore, individuals should fill their lives with love.

Any mighty task can be accomplished by prayer. Hence, pray to God silently. Do not pray for the fulfillment of your petty desires. Give up all desires and pray to God wholeheartedly with love. You will certainly find fulfilment in life.

The word God is the indication that there is God. If there was no God, the word God would not have originated and gained popularity. You may see God or you may not, but the word is proof that there is God. God is Omnipresent; He is in the past, the present, the future. 

God has neither birth nor death. He is beyond all names, forms, and attributes. God is eternal. He has no beginning, middle, or end. He is omnipresent and the eternal witness.

Human life is fulfilled by the service that one renders, without any thought of return, in an attitude of selflessness. Service rendered in this spirit sheds light in the dark interior of man, it widens the heart, it purifies the impulses, and confers lasting happiness. 

The quest for God does not mean doing bhajans, japa, worship and the like. These are merely means for achieving mental concentration and subduing desires and aversions. Why cry out, asking: "Where is God?" He resides in the heart. Offer service and receive love. Thereby experience the bliss of Self-realization.

Service is the primary means to acquire divine grace. Without being a devoted follower, you cannot become a worthy leader. Without being a kinkara (one who is ready to do any work), you cannot become a sankara (the divine). Everyone must realize this truth. Service to society is the highest good.