Know I am verily Sai
Give up your attachments and attempts;
The old relationships are at an end.
No one, however eminent, can alter My resolve. (SSS Vol.23, p. 112)
I held the hand of Narayana Raju and asked, ‘What is this?’ He said, ‘It is my hand.’ I took out the pen from his pocket and asked, ‘What is this?’ ‘It is my pen’, he said. ‘You say, it is my hand, my pen, my body, my mind, my senses, etc. The word ‘my’ indicates that you are different from all this. Then who are you?’ I asked him. Then everyone started thinking, ‘Yes, what Raju says is correct. We say, this is mine and that is mine, but we do not know who we are.’ Everybody was silent.
They accepted that they did not know their true identity. I told them that I had come down in human form only to make people realise their true identity. It is the eye that sees and the mind that thinks. (Showing the ring and handkerchief, Bhagawan said) Your eyes can see the ring and the handkerchief. On what basis can you call this a ring? Similarly, what makes you say that it is a handkerchief? You say, mind is the basis for all this. What is mind? Whom does it belong to? You do not know. What you think you know, in reality, you do not know, that is your true Self. Make efforts to realise it.
From that day onwards, many seekers of Truth started visiting Me. They used to say, ‘Raju, what You are saying is correct. But how are we to realise our true identity?’ People quote from scriptures and talk high philosophy but do not know their real meaning. ‘You say, this is my ring, my body, my handkerchief, so on and so forth. Then who are you?’ I questioned them. They had no answer. Then I started explaining thus: ‘There are two important aspects that you have to consider, one is Drishyam (seen) and the other is Drashta (seer). Yad Drishyam Thannasyam (all that is seen is bound to perish). So, whatever you see is only an illusion. You are the Drashta, that is your true identity.’
The English lecturer, H.S. Ramana was a noble person. His house was on the way to My school. He used to sit in the front verandah of his house. As soon as he saw Me, he used to call ‘Raju!’, take Me into his house and offer Me coffee and snacks. But, I was not interested in these worldly things. Earlier, I used to address him as ‘Sir’. But, from that day onwards, the worldly relationship of teacher-student had ceased between us. I used to tell him that all that was seen by the eye is merely Drishyam which was perishable and that one had to go beyond and search for the Drashta. From that day onwards wherever I went and whomever I met, I used to teach these higher principles.
Then, one day Ramana called Seshama Raju and told him, ‘Seshama Raju! Do not trouble yourself much in trying to understand the behaviour of Sathyam. This boy is delving deeper and deeper into the mysteries of life. It is not possible for anybody to fathom His true nature. Let us wait for some time and see’, saying thus, he took Me into his house and offered snacks, coffee, meals, etc., with great love. Poor man! He did not realise that I was never interested in those worldly matters. I did not touch any of these food stuffs. In My view, they were all worldly things which underwent constant change. They were never permanent. I explained to him, ‘You brought this Upma for Me. How real is this stuff?
Only till one consumes it. What happens to it after eating? Nobody can see its shape thereafter. It just disappears. You are all considering these unreal worldly things as real.’ Thus, I started teaching them higher Vedantic concepts. H.S. Ramana was astonished at My knowledge of these higher principles. Till then, he was addressing Me as ‘Raju! Raju!’ But, from then on he started addressing Me as ‘Guruji’! Holding My feet, he pleaded with Me ‘Guruji! Please come to my house.’ Those who were witnessing the scene were amazed that this elderly gentleman who was a teacher was holding the feet of this young boy, his student.
Then Ramana declared in front of all those people, ‘Not only me; a day will come when the entire world will fall at His feet.’ The people gathered there on that occasion were all powerful, holding high positions in society. There was a neighbour by name Ramanarayana Sastri, who was an astrologer. He was called in and appraised of all those higher truths of life which I was explaining to them. Shri Sastri was amazed at My knowledge of Vedantic concepts at such a young age and shed tears of joy. One or two drops of tears fell at My feet. From then onwards, everybody in Uravakonda started addressing Me as Sathya Sai Baba. I told them that I had come only for the purpose of revealing this truth. Unable to comprehend the full truth about My revelations, some of them questioned Me, ‘How can You declare Yourself to be Sai Baba?’ I just took some flowers in My hand and threw them on the floor. Lo and behold! The flowers arranged themselves as Sathya Sai Baba in Telugu letters. On witnessing this miracle, they were wonderstruck and dumbfounded! Then, everybody started chanting in chorus ‘Sathya Sai Baba Ki Jai’, ‘Sathya Sai Baba Ki Jai’! I emphatically told them that this was a name which they themselves had ascribed to Me and, in fact, I had no name at all! I declared thus on the occasion thus:
Know that I am Sai in reality,
Cast off your worldly relationships,
Give up your efforts to restrain Me,
The worldly attachments can no longer bind Me,
None, however great he may be, can hold Me.
(Telugu Poem)
I got up and started walking away. In the meanwhile, all those assembled there including Ramana and Sastri tried to follow Me. I advised them not to be after Me, but, to strive for self-introspection and mental transformation. Since I am not the body, none can hold Me. Therefore, I advised them to follow My ideals. Only then can they realise My true nature. In this vast expanse of the universe, right from the minutest atom to the mightiest, everything is permeated by the Atmic reality. It appears as the minutest of the minute and mightiest of the mighty. In fact, the principle of oneness that pervades microcosm and macrocosm is the fundamental reality which you have to enquire into. That is why Ramana Maharishi used to say, ‘Enquire, who you really are?’
You are not a single entity. You are, in fact, three-in-one,
The one you think you are, (body)
The one others think you are (mind) and
The one you really are (Atma).
The Atma is known as conscience and the body which consists of the senses is called conscious. The Chaitanya (consciousness) which is present in all, transcends the senses. There is yet another principle that is beyond consciousness. It is called Super Consciousness.
In the earlier days, not many people knew who Sai Baba was. He was considered a Muslim saint. When I first returned to Puttaparthi declaring Myself as Sai Baba, people thought that I had taken a Muslim name. But, no one can bind Me to a particular religion like Hinduism or Islam.
The Vaishnavites say that Lord Vishnu is the greatest while the
Shaivites declare that Lord Shiva is the greatest of all. Gaanapatyas
(the worshippers of Ganapati) declare that Ganapati is the
greatest. The educated say Goddess Sarada is the greatest.
Shaktas (worshippers of Shakti) proclaim that Goddess Shakti is
the greatest. My devotees say I am the greatest. Some others say
all are one. People may speak on the basis of their feelings but in
truth, there is only one GOD and the rest are names.
(Telugu Poem)
Different people may ascribe different names to the Atmic Reality and try to define it in different ways. But, the underlying Atma-tattva is one and the same. This truth has to be explained to the people in an understandable language. You can see that there are some houses beyond. In the front portion of the house, you will find a veranda; then a living room and then a kitchen. Thereafter, you will find a bathroom and a toilet. Thus, there are different names for different utilities. How did they acquire these names? It is only because they are so divided by walls, for different purposes. But, the truth is they are all parts of the same house. Similarly, different people have different names and they establish different relationships with people like mother, father, brother, etc. From where did you acquire these relationships? Everything is your own making. Remove these barriers. What remains is a vast expanse of oneness. One person refers to Divinity as Atma, another refers to it as Brahman and the third one calls it as Vishnu. These are only names ascribed by human beings to the nameless, formless, attributeless Divinity. The Brahma tattva is one that has no names ascribed to it.
Where did the Brahman come from? The Atmic consciousness that permeates every living being is referred to as Brahman. When it is individualised, it is called conscience. It is also referred to as Jiva. When the Atma-tattva is encased in a body, it becomes an individual. The individual, the Atma and consciousness - all the three are one and the same. People think they are different because they are given different names. Remove the names. There is only one Atma-tattva in every individual. It has no form. It assumes different forms by joining different individuals. Supposing you name this object (showing a handkerchief) as Atma. It is a handkerchief in common parlance. But, when you look at it from a spiritual angle, it is an object. I call it as thread. Again, after some time I refer to it as cotton; whether we call it as handkerchief or thread or cotton, it refers to only one object. Only different names are given to the object. Take for instance the names of Rama and Krishna. Rama was not born with that particular name. He was christened Rama only after His birth. No. Similarly, the name Krishna. Since He was an embodiment of bliss, He was referred to as Krishna. Akarshati Iti Krishna (because He attracts, He is Krishna). But, His real nature is Ananda. He is Ananda Swarupa (embodiment of bliss). The same principle of Ananda has taken different names. This one single principle of Ananda is:
Brahmanandam Parama Sukhadam Kevalam Jnana murtim
Dvandva atitam Gagan asadrisham Tatvamsyadi Lakshyam,
Ekam Nityam Vimalam achalam Sarvadhee Sakshibhutam
Bhavatitam Trigunarahitam Sad Gurum Tam Namami.
(God is the embodiment of supreme bliss, He is wisdom absolute, the One
without a second, beyond the pair of opposites, expansive and pervasive
like the sky, the goal indicated by the Mahavakya, Tat Tvam Asi, the
eternal, pure, unchanging, the witness of all functions of the intellect,
beyond all mental conditions and the three Gunas of Sattva, Rajas and
Tamas).
Divinity has no attributes. How can one give a name to it? Since it is not possible to assign any particular name to this principle, they named it as Atma. This Atma-tattva is permeating every individual. It has no specific form. Explaining thus, I told those people that it is only for making them realise this principle that I have come. Then, Seshama Raju put a big question. He was a Telugu Pandit. Whatever question he put, had certain value. He questioned, ‘Who are You?’ I answered, ‘Since you are calling Me as Sathya, I am Sathya. Since you are referring to Me as your brother, I am your brother. Since you call Me as a student, I am a student. By whatever name and form you refer to Me, I assume that name and form.
In fact, no one is able to realise the truth. No one has any relationship whatsoever with Me. Call Me by any name, I will answer. If you call Me ‘Sai’, I will answer. If you call Me ‘Baba’, I will respond. By whatever name you call Me, it is the same for Me. All these names are only names ascribed to Me. I have, in fact, come to make you realise this truth.’ (SSS Vol.36, pp. 128-132)