Serious Sadhana for Sai Devotees by H.H.Narasimha Swamiji

Serious Sadhana for Sai Devotees
By H. H. Narasimha Swamiji
"Do not be idle. Work. Utter God's name. Read
Scriptures."
"Life is lived in vain, if no Yoga, Yaga, Tapas and
Jnana be achieved."
"Will you sit idle (merely) eating your food? Have
Saburi (patience and courage)."
"Our end will get so bitter or wretched. Once or twice
I will warn. The end will be hard indeed if one does
not heed the advice given. Even the child in the womb
we will cut to pieces and throw away if it falls athwart."
- SAI BABA

A religious journal or any other literature devoted to
religion generally presupposes that the readers are
serious minded. In some cases no doubt there may
not be sufficient seriousness at the beginning. But
seriousness is developed as days pass on and the
literature is therefore rendered more useful and
effective. As those without such seriousness form the
majority of the reading public and several of them
wish to become and might well be expected to become
serious minded, we might briefly advert to the process
by which people are involuntarily or voluntarily
made serious.

As stated in the Gita Ch. VII, 16, four classes of persons
develop seriousness enough to run up to God that is to
become really religious. The first class is the arta, i.e.,
the sufferers. When one has a serious loss of health,
wealth, progeny, kinsmen, necessaries, comforts, etc.
life suddenly presents a doleful appearance and the
sufferer not knowing any other way to obtain relief runs
to the Almighty for relief. This is humorously referred
to in the Canarese aphorism Sankata Bandare
Venkataramana which means when a man is in trouble
he turns to God. Another category of seekers after God
or religion is jijnasu that is one with a metaphysical
turn of mind anxious to know the why of all things.
God being the ultimate cause of every thing naturally
attracts such a person. The third category consists of
arta aartis that is those who are very ambitious —
wanting to get lots of wealth and other desired objects,
etc. and who do not find it easy to achieve their
ambition except by divine aid. The last category is
the Jnani - the person with fullest realization of
divinity in the self—which is of course very rare (one
perhaps in a million may have such realization).
Hence what makes a man serious minded and
religious is either, (1) present or impending trouble,
or (2) an excessive craving for the world's good or
(3) a highly metaphysical and introverted turn of
mind. It is not our desire that any body should be
subjected to serious trouble or should entertain
inordinate hankering for the world's goods.
As far a metaphysical and introverted turn of mind,
that comes to very few indeed naturally and cannot
be easily cultivated. Yet we might give some answer
to the question of a devotee with budding earnestness
how to develop such earnestness and seriousness.

• The great panacea for all defects, shortcomings and
ills is Satsang, that is, association with holy ones, pure
minded persons — of course in the flesh, if available,
or in easily approachable spirit form as in the case of
Sai Baba or failing these, through reading of holy and
inspiring literature, such as scriptures, saintly
biography, etc. When a person is very anxious to get
serious, he has already started the development of
seriousness.

In any case a constant repetition of prayer — that is an
attempt to form a habit of prayer - whether for temporal
or spiritual benefits is an excellent means for
developing seriousness as a strong and permanent
trait in one's character. More things are done in heaven
and earth by prayer than the scientist will readily allow.

Everything grows by exercise. One desiring to develop
love in himself towards God or any other being, must
watch and observe how persons filled with love behaves
and then must do likewise. So also a person desirous of
becoming serious must in the beginning artificially put
on seriousness, observe what serious minded people
that command his approval and admiration do, and then
he must go and do likewise. One of the things that may
be confidentially recommended to any Sai Bhakta who
wishes to attain more seriousness is to make a daily
program himself to maintain a diary and to note therein,
his programmes, resolves, Sadhanas attempted and the
degree or number of successes or failures in respect of
each Sadhana. Let him pick up and peruse the diary
both at the starting and the close of the day to note the
above facts. A daily repetition of some slokas from
Sainath Manana or the Ashtottara Namavali or the
reading of not less than five to ten pages of Sai
literature such as "Charters & Sayings" may all be
prescribed or recommended.

The oral or written japa of Sai Ram will form an
excellent coping stone to all the above edifice of
instruction.

It is to be hoped that some of those who read this
article will take our advice seriously, begin the
habit of seriousness from this very moment and
make a resolve to adopt all or as many as possible
of the measures above, recommended for their
development.