Sanctity of the Teacher-Taught Relationship

Discourse of Sathya Sai Baba during the Summer Course in Spirituality and Indian Culture
held for College Students at Brindavan, Whitefield, Bangalore District in May 1973
Published by Sri Sathya Sai Books and Publications Trust
Web posted at Apr 25, 2002

The world that we see is only a transient one. It is not a permanent one. This world is also full of things which are not quite good and quite important.

Young students!

Indian culture is based on non-dual thought and non-dual philosophy. This special feature of Indian philosophy is known to many people. There are differences between the other philosophies of the world and the Advaita or non-dual philosophy which is prevalent in this country. In most western religions, importance is given to the body, mind and intelligence. Amongst these, intelligence is regarded as the highest human faculty, representing man's self or Atma. This is the angle from which western religion looks at various aspects of life. Indian thought, on the other hand, considers body, mind and intelligence as distinct and additional to one's own Chitta and Antahkarana or the inner heart. Indian culture gives importance to co-ordinating the Atma itself with the highest notion of the Paramatma recognising the oneness thereof in the ultimate analysis. This is the angle from which Indian religion looks at various aspects of life.

However, even in India, many religions have come up, flourished and thereby made an attempt at co-ordinating these things with the self or the Atma. All the religions that have come up in this country have given the injunctions that one should speak the truth, that one should not indulge in intrigue, that one should respect one's mother and father and that one should respect one's teacher. No religion of this country has ever told anyone not to give respect to the teacher and not to care for the mother and father. All religions have always asked the people to keep away from intrigues. They have never taught us to speak falsehood. Different religions have some differences and some different ideas about the unknowable God but they have not differed in essence about things which can be understood and practised with some effort, such as speaking the truth and doing good.

Today, whatever has been taught in the name of religion and truth, has been forgotten. Things which have not been taught by our traditions and in our scriptures are occupying the minds of people and they are giving them prominence. It is clear that we have no faith in these religions because we are forgetting what the religions have taught us as their essence and we are paying heed to things which do not have religious thought as their basis. It is only when we have complete faith in what has been given as the injunction for man's conduct by various religions and put it into practice, that we would be described as proper followers of these religions. On the other hand, if we only talk about what has been told to us in various religions and Sastras and do not put it into practice, we would be described as persons who have no faith in the injunctions given by the religions.

Great many people who are educated, who are in charge of education and who are in responsible positions are asking questions like what religion means, what Indian culture is, what ethics stands for and what morality is. By asking such questions and by displaying ignorance of the basic tenets of our religion, they are confusing the minds of the young students. It is clear from their questions that their knowledge has been derived only from books and can be described as book-knowledge. They do not seem to have had any divine experience at all in their lives. Such is the state of our guardians. I hope that the students will conduct themselves in a manner that will open the eyes of those who are in charge of education. All my hopes and aspirations rest on the conduct of young people. Young people of today have a great chance and a unique opportunity of setting right the future of this country. Thus, by giving you the opportunity during these summer classes of revitalising the Dharma and sacred culture of this country, which have their origin in the Vedas and which have lived through very ancient times, we will help you to put back the reputation of this country in its original place, bringing glory to yourselves and to your country. This is my determination.

The world which we see around us has been referred to as the Mithya Loka. If we think that the world is truth, it will quickly disappear, change form and tell us that it is false. On the other hand, if we think it to be false, we see things around us causing the feeling that it is real. Therefore, it is neither true nor false. The world is somewhere between truth and falsehood. It sometimes appears to you as true and at other times it does not appear to you as true. That is the reason why it is sometimes called Sath - Asath, because it is both seen and unseen. In this context, we recollect that what we see during the day, we do not see in the dreams of our sleep. What we see in our dreams during the night, we do not see during the day. What is truth and what is falsehood? Our own minds are getting confused. We are unable to see the difference between truth and falsehood. Our ideas and desires keep changing, appearing and disappearing. Therefore, these ideas, desires and our own body itself are false. They are not permanent and therefore not true.

Today in the world, we often hear news about some disturbance being caused in some part of the world, or some harm being done to people somewhere. There is no news which causes happiness, heartens you and tells you things more pleasant and permanent. The world itself is a drama of two days. This generation of yours is like a drama lasting for two hours. This individual body of yours is just a water bubble which will last for only a few minutes. How can we regard any of these things as of any value? Our body is a conglomeration of diseases. Our life itself is like a bed full of bugs. This world is full of sorrow. Where are we going to get any happiness in these surroundings? Thus, neither the desire relating to the body nor the desires relating to worldly pleasures and sensuous enjoyments are going to give us any happiness or bliss. The diseases, the troubles and various other things of that kind that cause harm to you are putting on the garb of deceit so that they may look outwardly as pleasures. They are chasing you towards all kinds of difficulties. As in the normal course of events, the dress you put on will be changed when it has to be changed, so also the dress of pleasure and happiness is only worn temporarily and will be changed to give you trouble as soon as it is all over.

Truly, if you can find an individual in this world, who is spending his life in peace and happiness, it will be a matter of great amazement. He may be very rich and an affluent person, he may be a highly educated and respected person, he may be in a position of great power and authority and yet he will only appear outwardly as if he has some happiness; but in fact he is worried by many problems within himself. These problems are bringing so much pressure on him that he is continually unhappy. If you really want to have unbroken bliss and happiness, this age of yours is very appropriate for you to think of the essence of non-dualism or Advaita philosophy. There are many people who do not think either of this life or the life after death. Such people are very many in numbers. Even if they think sometimes about these matters, the people who understand what it is to sacrifice, to give up even small things in the performance of their duty and think of doing good so as to improve their lives, are very few in number. When we look at such people, we make the mistake of regarding them as great people. Looking at people who spend all their time and wealth in deriving pleasure for themselves and in decorating and beautifying their own bodies, we again make the mistake of thinking that they are very intelligent people. As time goes on and as bodies grow older in respect of people who spend their lives and money in fulfilling their sensory desires, we still consider them as men worthy of emulation. These feelings are all wrong.

Even though death is staring in the face of an individual every moment, we see him celebrating his birth anniversary, unmindful of the fact that he may meet his death any moment. How are we to interpret the minds and attitudes of such people who do not seem to bother about what happens to them the next moment? The frog that has been swallowed by the snake and is shortly to die will itself try to swallow some worms, not realising that death is ready at hand to snatch it. The snake in its turn does not know when it will be swallowed by the peacock. Unmindful of the fact that the peacock can swallow it any moment, the snake feels proud that it is swallowing the frog. In the same context, the peacock does not know what is going to happen to its own life the next moment. A hunter may be chasing it and the peacock does not know what the hunter will do, but in its turn it is very proud that it is swallowing a snake. In this world, one person is swallowing another and the other person is swallowing yet another. Each person thinks that he is swallowing another and does not know that yet another person is ready to swallow him.

Further, man thinks that he is swallowing time, while time is there to swallow man at one moment or another. This is great ignorance on man's part. Because you are so much entangled with the aspects of the body, mind and intelligence, you feel that you are subordinate to time and that time will swallow you. However, if you can develop an aspect by which you can feel above the aspects of body, mind and intelligence, it will be possible for you to get control over death and regard it as a part and parcel of the evolution of the immortal element in you. We have come into this world with our body as a part of ourselves. So long as you remain a part of this world, it is the duty of the young people to enquire and understand the truth behind all this. What is this body and what is its relationship to the world? It is the determination of Sai to sow in the minds of the young people, which are like the rays of the rising sun, the seeds of desire for acquiring spiritual knowledge. Your age is the appropriate age at which you can hope to become the future pillars of this country. There is no use preaching such things to elderly people whose minds are like the evening rays of the sun. During this one month, you young people will be told various things about Indian traditions and Indian culture. You will also be told what is good in western tradition and western culture. In fact, you will be told about all the great religions of the world. This is the purpose of constituting the various components of this summer school.

During this one month, there may be inconveniences that will come your way, you may feel uncomfortable physically, but despite these inconveniences and lack of comforts, you should consider yourselves as lucky to be given a chance of understanding the glory of India and the value of Indian culture. You should be proud to be citizens of our great country. This truth must get into your mind and you should be able to get it firmly implanted in you without wavering and without letting your mind wander away from it. My country is India. My religion is the religion of India. My ideals and traditions have been born in India. You must develop such thoughts in your mind. You must develop great respect and attachment to the culture that has flourished in this country from time immemorial. Our culture is ancient and immortal. You will have to dedicate your life for the future of this country.

Your life can be peaceful only when you can control your excitement of the body and the mind. These are harmful. If you are not able to control the excitement of your body and mind while you are young, you will not be able to do so when you grow older. When you are young, you have the strength of body, mind and spirit; and if you are not able to control your excitements at this age, you will not be able to do so when you grow older. Education has the proper meaning only if you are able to control your sense organs, set your ideas on the right path and keep your mind clean. One notices lightning in the sky only when clouds gather. In that manner, as lightning follows clouds, wisdom must follow education. One who seeks such wisdom which follows education is a true seeker of education or a Vidyarthi. You must forget the foolish idea that education is only for acquiring a degree. Do not seek education for the sake of serving some one else. Have in your mind as the objectives of your education, the prosperity and good of yourself, your country and your society.

Make an effort to sacrifice your life. Do not take the path of selling your education for earning a pittance of a salary. From the time you wake up till the time you go to sleep, you do many things and even struggle hard for the purpose of getting little money. For the sake of one rupee, people tell a lie and do all kinds of things throughout the day. For the sake of money, you adopt many deceitful plans and intrigues and involve God Himself in your meaningless actions. Such people who are after money are all the time pretending to repeat the name of the Lord but are in fact intriguing and trying to deceive the Lord Himself. Even if others who listen to these things do not understand, does not God understand what you really mean when you make such fake offerings? You will ultimately get what you deserve. Your intrigues may succeed with various people whom you want to deceive but it is not possible to deceive God. God lives in your heart.

You might have heard the name of Chitragupta in Indian mythology. Chitragupta is the name of the private secretary of Yama, the Lord of death. This means that this Chitragupta keeps an unerring account of the good and the bad which the individuals do in their lives. You may be amused at this and wonder if there is really a Yama, the Lord of death and if he has a private secretary with the name Chitragupta. All this may give you the feeling that Yama is being described in terms of an office and thus your faith may be shaken a little. In Indian culture, every word that is used has an inner meaning. We neglect the significance of these stories of our mythology by interpreting them superficially. Time itself is called Yama. The birth of a body, the growth of a body, the changes that are brought about in a body and the death of a body are all caused by the passage of time. If there is no passage of time, there is no birth and there is no death. Because time is responsible for bringing about all these changes, and even the destruction and death of the human body, time itself has been called the Lord of death. Time is also called the spring of the sun. Again we may get a doubt whether the sun God has a family, a wife and a child. The notion of time has come to us because of the phenomena of sunrise and sunset. That is why time is regarded as the child of the sun. This Chitragupta is inside the body itself. The mind is hiding inside the human body and this hidden mind is called Chitragupta.

All the thoughts that arise in one's mind are imprinted upon one's heart. If someone asks something, you may hesitate and give an answer which is not the right one, but if the question is asked in one's own heart, one cannot give a false reply. Even a thief, who has entered another's house and committed a theft, may say that he has not committed a theft when confronted by the police. This is only for external appearance. His heart knows fully well the truth that he has committed a theft. That which has been so imprinted on your heart is called Ruta. The truth about the ideas which generate in you, when imprinted on your heart, is called Ruta. The utterance with your mouth, of the idea that has been imprinted on your heart, is called the truth. Putting the words that have been uttered with your mouth into practice is called Dharma. The meaning of Dharma or right conduct will therefore be evident and correct only when there is complete co-ordination and an inseparable association between the idea that has arisen in your heart, the word that you have spoken with your mouth and the action that you have undertaken with your body. Thus, if there is complete co-ordination between thought, word and deed, one would call it right conduct. Today we have not understood properly this sacred word Dharma and its full meaning. We have been giving various interpretations to suit ourselves. This is the unfortunate predicament prevalent today.

Divyatma Swarupas! Young students, the teacher-taught relationship has been very sacred in our traditional way of life. In that context, the verses that go under the name of Bhaja Govinda have a very special significance. Adi Sankara wrote thirty odd verses under this name and handed them over to the world through himself and his disciples. Because of their importance, I wish to take each one of these verses on each day of the next thirty days and tell you how Sankara's disciples propagated the contents and the sacredness of those verses in the world. The essence of all the Vedas, all the Sastras and all the Puranas is contained in an explicit manner in these verses. Preserve them in your heart. Regard your stay as a Tapas - disciplined spiritual practice. Consider this place as an ashram and sanctify your lives. This is my hope and I bless you all.