Sankranthi - a bountiful and joyful festival!

Wish everyone a wonderful time during this pongal! Happy Sankranthi!!

A normal wish goes this way for all. However, with the changing times, more urbanisation, least preference is given to this first festival of the year, which is infact, need to be celebrated with more sincerity.

Sri Sai Master in his article about Sankranthi says sharing of joy, being together, helping others within means, praying to God and serving the Guru are some of the important pointers of this festival. (Article in January 2012 Sai Baba Magazine - http://issuu.com/saibabamagazine/docs/sai_baba_magazine_january_2012)

Messaih arrives !!

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God."

On a day, when the Messaih's arrival is being celebrated across, let us ponder a bit on the verses of Sermon of the Mount, for they are the crux of HIS teachings.

Colors of fire !

"Flames are the tongues of fire"

While trying to understand more and more on fire worshipping, I have come across an interesting piece of information and it is from the book " At The Eleventh Hour" - A biography of Swami Rama.

Once Swami Rama was talking Sombari Baba, asks about the colors of flame to understand why they change from time to time. To this query, Sombari Baba says they are tongues of fire and there are seven in all with different color with specific functions. Before starting the fire ritual, the fire with all those tongues was invoked. Depending on the intention of offering and characteristics of the offering, specific tongue comes forward to accept it.

Dhuni Pooja at Sivapuri, Nagole

Fire has a special place in our religions. Praying fire, or doing a homam on all auspicious occassions is a part of our culture. There is a deeper meaning to this act.

Fire is a symbol of Guru. Every disciple who is away from the Guru, treats fire as Guru and feels the presence. This is same as what Sri Shirdi Sai Baba did. His Guru told him that he would be with Baba all the time. To reflect the same, Sri Shirdi Sai Baba performed Niratagnihotram or Dhuni in his place.

Mystic Mahatma of Undrajavaram !

He fits the role of Acharya. He is swimming against the "current" natural tide. He is a perfect Acharya!

Sri Sudheendra Babu

These were the words of Sri Sudheendra Babu about Pujya Acharya Sri Ekkirala Bharadwaja. A Mahatma, who lived for years (his age or about him are vividly known) at Undrajavaram near Tanuku, talked highly of Sri Sai Master. To understand the statement made about him are not easily understood by commoners as we use the word Acharya to any one who we think is a teacher. But the deeper meaning of Acharya, or the real meaning  or role of Acharya is beyond comprehension. (this is explained beautifully in the recent Sai Baba Magazine. Refer to Page 5 of Magazine. Those who need english translation, please send a note to blog author).

Golden opportunity for the mankind on the horizon - Arise, awake and get going !!

GOD realization is possible for all. The householders need not renounce the world, but they should pray sincerely, practice discrimination between the Eternal and the temporal and remain unattached. GOD listens to sincere prayer. Intense longing (vyakulata) is the secret of success in spiritual life - Sri Ramakrishna.

Many opportunities present themselves for the human beings to look towards GOD and to work towards the most elusive self-realization. There are very few in this world who can grab those opportunities and try crossing the ocean of samsara. Sri Ramakrishna, Pujya Acharya Sai Master are few examples of such people who went through the phases of life and still stayed untouched by the good and bad of such lives. 

Gratitude - A wonderful word ! (Part 2)

"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use." - Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)


Human beings are generally reactive. They never realise what they have till some thing hits them hard. Best example is - OWN BODY.


God has designed a wonderful machine which our scientists are working very hard to design and still not able to breathe life in to. This shows how primitive is current science when compared to the vast knowledge that is available in our ancient vedas. However, we do not realise the importance of each organ till that particular organ suffers. We not only fail to understand, but fail to educate children how lucky we are to possess all those in order. Today, we see many people suffering from various ailments. Particularly young people suffering from various body pains, sleeplessness etc.. What this tells us is - we can not buy everything in the world with the money that we are earning, particularly HEALTH.

Neti balale repati pourulu (Today's kids are tomorrow's Citizens)!! (Part 1)

One of my questions about Sai Baba is: He gives us so much things like money, clothes and houses, how come he was so  poor, he didn't even have a real home? - Srusti (from http://www.saimasterforums.org/kids-the-future/welcome-to-the-kids-section!/)

Today, there are innumerable devotees of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba. There are many who believe in GOD. But none raised a question of this type, but came from a child. This shows how inquisitive they are, how observant they are, about what we do, what they see. They imbibe every bit of those. For them, the first heroes are their parents. But, as we parents why we never bother to teach them good things in life? 

Music of the soul and Deepavali !

Deepavali - A day, on which YOU light the lamp of knowledge to remove the darkness called ignorance - Pujya Sri Acharya Ekkirala Bharadwaja.

One of the wonderful and most colorful festivals celebrated all over India, and now across the world, is Deepavali. The festival, where in the whole family celebrates by lighting lamps and firing crackers, distributing sweets and sharing the joy.

LIGHT THE SOUL TO HEAR THE MUSIC !

Deepavali is celebration of success of good over evil. TRULY. This is the festival, which reminds all the family to light the lamp within to fight the ignorance and start realising self. Light can clear the darkness to enable one to see clearly, and thus can help one to search the eternal TRUTH, which is WITHIN. When the soul is pure and ready, Master will appear to help to cross the ocean of samsara.

Sri Siddharudha Swamy

" Gajanan visited me at Oubumbur tree near Shahpur. I blessed him. Ram Maruthi Maharaj and Siddharudha were with me at that time".

These are the words spoken by Sri Shirdi Sai Baba when Nana went to him. Sri Gajanan later became a great saint by name, Sri Gajanan Maharaj. 

Sri Siddharudha Samadhi, Hubli

Sri Siddarudha was a great mahatma and a contemporary of Sri Shirdi Sai Baba. One day, Sri Sai Baba distributed sweets to all present. When asked for the reason, he said a person from a Mahatma's durbar came to see  him. Upon enquiring all the devotees present, it was found, one person came from Sri Siddharudha. 

Gratitude - A wonderful word ! (Part 1)

Thank you !

How many times, we would have used this word in our life so far? More important, how many times, we missed saying that to someone? Most often, we would have missed the people whom we need to say this to, for we have taken certain things for granted. 

The loving mother, who feeds or thinks of our hunger irrespective of our state and situations, the ever protective father inspite of us not bothering to heed him, our brothers and sisters who were always there to give us happiness whenever we feel like etc.. There are few others whom we miss completely..those who helped repairing our bicycle when it is broken, helped us get into the bus or van when we were kids, people who helped us get up when we fell, people who are always there to feed us..so many like that.

In search of a True Master

Mentorship refers to a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. A commonly used word or process in today's world.

We all know that we need a guide or a mentor to understand this world better and move towards achieving our goals in a more meaningful way. Trickiest part here is, the selection of a mentor or a guide. We generally observe this in colleges where we need to seek a guide. We typically ask a question "who is good?". This depends on our mental state defining good, on the mental state of the person who is giving the answer and his perspective on good. We do not know the impact of it till we cross quite an amount of distance and most of the times, end up repenting.

"All that glitters is not gold."

SAIBABA - a spiritual and scientific magazine to gain Knowledge and to strengthen the faith

"GOD exits. I have complete faith."

Is this enough to have faith and does not try to understand more about HIM and follow what HE said? Do we need to understand the objectives of this wonderful creation?

Having faith does not mean that we should not question with a purpose to understand more about the Lord or Eternal Truth. This is infact the right way rather than following blindly. Today, the generation does not understand the customs or the methods of prayer and such. Everyone is turning out to be a blind follower. We do not even know why we need to go to a place of worship often, what should be our mental state when we are going, what should we do when we are there. Instead of digging deeper like a true seeker, we shy away from even talking about GOD.

Desire & Fear - The Lords of every house?

Life is very interesting, if one cares to take keen interest in it. 

For those, who pass time, calling it living, many things escape our "beautiful" closed eyes. Or we let them pass-by thinking they are irrelevant. But again, we run to seek peace and happiness, while just by opening eyes would tell us where they are.

Irony of life is - whenever one thinks " I want....", what follows this is - "what if I lose...?". The follower is always humble and never raising its voice, however, present always like a shadow. At certain critical times in life, the humble servant becomes our master and controls our destiny. 

The Way of Sai Master

What does one want in life?

Peace and happiness.

And to continuously be in that state. However, majority of mankind does not understand those two words, otherwise, they would be seeking answers for those. Even though we live in a society, as an individual we need to think about attaining that state. Then only, collectively, the society can gain that state. Otherwise, chaos prevails in the society.

A Great day on the horizon - October 30, 2011

As we are moving towards historically important year, 2013, named as " Sri Bharadwaja Prabhanjana samvatsaram", to commemorate the most important milestones of every follower of Sai Master, the 75th birthday of Pujya Acharya Sri Ekkirala Bharadwaja, that date will also start becoming a major milestone in everybody's life, spiritually, from now on. Divyajanani Ammagaru has given a parayana method to all Sai Master devotees to ensure they stay spiritually focused to celebrate this historic day and if possible to enable few to awaken spiritually. (page 30 of http://saibharadwaja.org/magazines/saibaba201105May.pdf). In an effort to support the big cause, and to enable people to get in to the groove, from this year, few simple dikshas are being given for short bursts of time. 

Sai Master – a rare persona !

The thought that rises in the mind of one who has Sri Sai in every breath and is immersed in HIS bhakti can turn the universal power in its favour to implement it successfully. That thought does not need any other blessings – Sri Swami Purnananda.

Anyone who had the fortune of meeting Sai Master, will remember his energy and his single minded focus on explaining about Sri Shirdi Sai Baba. On a single day, multiple times, he spoke on Sai Baba with the same freshness says Ammagaru.

Understanding the supranatural force – the science way

A continuous debate ensues between atheists and theists. Due to the individual's inability to understand the totality of creation, this chasm continues to widen and it has turned in to a fad to say - I do not believe in GOD. Aside from true atheists like Sai Master - before he attained Siddhi through the grace of Shirdi Sai Baba, there is no one who can prove the non-existence of a Supranatural force, which many call by various names, viz., GOD, Almighty, Eternal Truth etc..

Pujya Acharya Sri Ekkirala Bharadwaja, in his search for eternal truth, penned one fine book, named VIGNANA VEECHIKALU (Breezes of Knowledge).

Panacea to diminishing humanity – Sri Sai Leelamrutam

“Don’t just read. Understand, contemplate and follow”.

While Shirdi Sai Baba said this while talking to V H Thakur about holy book “Vichara Sagaram”, the same holds true about Sri Sai Leelamrutam. On the occasion of Vijayadasami, the day Sri Sai Baba took Mahasamadhi, it is appropriate to think of this holy book.

At a time, when human values are being questioned, generations are searching for the meaning and purpose of life, this holy book appears as the only panacea.

Importance of "Sri Gurucharitra - the holy book"

Ours is a wonderful creation. It is still being explored and understood using science which is rapidly progressing. Yet we are encountering more questions than answers in every sense as we dig deeper. Across the world, if one observes closely, there is the only other way of understanding this vast and mysterious creation- the Occidental way i.e.,  the scriptures and teachings of Great Souls help us to understand thees most fundamental questions:

1)      Nature of Creation and human being

2)      Nature of the ETERNAL TRUTH which can be called in many ways, which I will refer to as ALL PERVADING or GOD.

The human being, endowed with a beautiful instrument called “Buddhi” or “power to think”, has time and again tried to use it to gain supremacy over all other beings, objects and the way this nature functions, but has failed miserably. There are many proofs which show that some supranatural force acts decisively, whenever this buddi deviates beyond a threshold causing destruction to the society.