By: Sri Narasimha Swamiji
A fakir of Afghan origin used to beg outside the Dwarakamai masjid at Shirdi. One day, a millionaire from Nagpur, Bapu Saheb Booty, approached him and offered to buy his begging bowl for ₹100. The beggar refused. The man then offered ₹200. The beggar was not interested. After a few days, Booty convinced the beggar to sell it for a princely sum of ₹1000. The beggar was happy as he would not have to beg anymore. Booty was ecstatic. He had obtained an antique bowl worth millions. He gave it to Sai Maharaj, who told him that it was of ‘Paras Mani,’ which would bring wealth forever. Sai Maharaj gave the bowl to his Treasurer, Nana Saheb Nimonkar, for safe custody. This bowl has made Shirdi acquire assets worth thousands of crores, even though Baba left behind sixteen rupees at the time of ‘Maha Samadhi’
We are like the beggar, oblivious of our real worth. We waste our lives in petty, insignificant preoccupations when we are sitting on a goldmine. We find pleasure in little acquisitions, unaware that we are heir to infinite bliss. We are content with incremental progress. We need to take that mighty leap and commit ourselves to exponential growth.
When your mind is focused on the body, you experience the lowest quality of joy. You can enjoy sensing objects only when there is contact with them. When the focus shifts to emotional thrills, physical inconveniences no longer matter. A sportsperson dedicated to tennis celebrates an opponent’s brilliance as if it were his own. And when you identify with the Spirit of Sai Parabrahman within, you attain infinite Bliss.
Begin by expanding your mind. Rise above paltry issues and espouse a higher cause. Think big. Become a giver, not a taker. A textile carding unit and producer of yarn at Salem decided to improve the quality of their products and obtained huge profits. The following year, they helped eight others to improve their quality by using the profit as a soft loan through Salem Co-operative Bank. It was wonderful. Selfishness leads to failure. Rise above the thought of self, and excellence flows from you. It is Baba’s dictum that all takers are unhappy. Givers are the happy ones, and you grow into a towering personality.
Enlarge your circle of love. Go beyond the narrow confines of your family to accommodate your community, country, and the world. The whole world becomes your family – Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. The higher you go, the more successful you become. Oneness makes for astounding results. Cooperation yields much better results than competition, leading to increased happiness.
Understand the futility of worldly pursuits. Then you develop mumukshattva, the desire for liberation. Plato describes people living in a dark cave. One day, a young man told his peers that there had to be something beyond the cave. The elders said there was nothing beyond their little world. He decided to explore and walked away. He reached a point where he was in pitch darkness. His conviction helped him continue. Finally, he came out into the open. He saw the sun, moon, and stars, breathed ethereal air, and was delighted!
We are trapped in the world, ignorant of the Beyond. Do you visualize an exhilarating life beyond the boredom of your daily grind? The Sai Satcharita and the Bhagavad Gita speak to you. They take you methodically from mediocrity to excellence, from drudgery to revelry, and from mortality to immortality. Break free from your self-imposed prison and take off into the world of the Sai Parabrahman.
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