Sai Vichaar For 12th November 2009

Sai Vichaar www.saibaba.org Thursday, Nov 12, 2009 :: Volume 12, Issue 27 (In its twelfth year of publication.) Sai Vichaar is a Weekly newsletter distributed every Thursday and is devoted to the life, philosophy and teachings of Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi. Feel free to forward this newsletter to your interested associates in its original form. Please do not reply to this email. All replies will be ignored. To contact us please see information at the bottom of this newsletter. IN THIS ISSUE:         

FEATURE OF THE WEEK CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE DEVOTEES SAY PRAYER CLUB EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES QUOTATION OF THE WEEK QUESTION OF THE WEEK SAI ACTIVITIES FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD

FEATURE OF THE WEEK: Unseen miracles! Behind every prayer and parayan (reading of holy books) there lies a desire, the quest for a miracle. Nice are those experiences where the seeker gets what he desires. It is the experiences of several devotees to receive the good news, from seemingly nowhere, beyond the logic, at the end of a sincere prayer. What of those who do not see the light at the end of the tunnel? Did Sai not hear them? Are those prayers not sincere? A prayer is always sincere. The mere thought of surrendering our ego, even for a moment, at the feet of Sadguru and invoking His grace to the betterment of our existence is a significant step. However, not being able to receive the expected or wanted may not construe as a failure. It does help one to know why the prayers aren't answered always. Why is that Sai withholds His miracles, seemingly to a few "unfortunate" ones? A careful analysis may help our little minds to some extent. Next time, if our prayers are unanswered, let us remember those occasions carefully and move on. Let our faith be doubled and let our love to Sainath is unchanged. It will be revealed later, that the prayers that were "unanswered" were a part of a much bigger plan. It will be known that, what happened is in our best interests. It will also be known that prayers and answers are not some type of habitual covenant between Sai and the self, but a part of a grander revelation. "Seek my treasure. My coffers are open", said Sai. The best miracles are the ones that are unseen. CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE: THE JNANI AND THE SIDDHA One day, while speaking about hatha yoga and related subjects, Sri Bhagavan narrated

the following story from Prabhulingalila, a well-known Tamil work by the Sage Sivaprakasa Swamigal. Prabhulinga, The Founder of the Lingayat sect (now mostly prevalent in Karnataka State only), was touring the land for the uplift of the spiritually minded. He met the famous Yogi Gorakhnath in Gokarnam (a famous place of Hindu pilgrimage on the west coast of India). The yogi welcomed him respectfully, but was however, proudly conscious of his own extraordinary powers over the elements. He considered his guest more or less his equal, expressed pleasure at meeting him, and upon greeting him, asked who he was. Prabhulinga replied that only the One who had destroyed his ego, root and branch, and who had thereby realized himself could know who he was, and wondered what he could say to a non-entity, a person, who clung to his perishable body. Gorakhnath, who identified his body as himself, replied, "That person alone who has gained the immortality of the body, by the favor of Siva and consumption of gulikas (medicinal herbs), will never die. Therefore one who had not gained such immortality dies." Prabhulinga remarked that knowledge consists in realizing one's Self and not in immortalizing the body and went on to explain at length that the body cannot be the real Self. However, Gorakhnath could not be persuaded and would not budge an inch from his ground; he proudly challenged Prabhulinga to try cutting his body, handing him a long, bright and sharp sword. When the sword struck the body of Gorakhnath, it caused him no injury but was itself blunted. Prabhulinga feigned surprise, and asked Gorakhnath to try cutting his body. At first Gorakhnath hesitated to do so saying that Prabhulinga would die. But when Prabhulinga insisted, he took up the sword and tried to cut his body. To the great surprise of Gorakhnath, the sword passed easily through the body of Prabhulinga without affecting it in any way. It was as if the sword was passing through empty space! Only then was Gorakhnath, the Siddha, ready to acknowledge the superiority of Prabhulinga, the Jnani. Thus his pride was humbled, and he prayed to Prabhulinga, to teach him the truth. Prabhulinga then expounded Brahma vidya to Gorakhnath as follows: "Gorakhnath, do not think your body to be your Self. Seek the In-dweller (the cave-dweller) and you will once for all rid yourself of the disease of birth and death. The cave is your heart only, the In-dweller thereof is called God and I am That". (Source: "SPIRITUAL STORIES AS TOLD BY RAMANA MAHARSHI" Pub by Sri Ramanasramam, Tiruvannamalai) DEVOTEES SAY: Simi Dear Sai Baba , You always helped me when ever I am in trouble and you shower your blessing on me & my family always But now a days I am scared about my future. You know very well, why. I want every thing happens in my life it will be good, my kids become a good and successful citizen and they don't face any problem. Baba please always shower your blessings on me and my family and show me the right way how I overcome this fear. I wish good increment, stability and full respect from my job. Baba please take care my parents, my in -laws, my all dear ones. I know I am very selfish

and always demanding everything to you. Don't leave my hand. Sai Devotee Dear Sai ram with your blessings only I got a job and getting my salary regularly without any problem and till today I did not do any mistake which is also your blessings. Now my only fear is when ever my manager says she want to listen how I am talking to the customer that time I am really tensed and unable to talk to the customer. Now I really want Sai Baba to bless me with courage and confidence in me so that I can show my ability with baba's help. Yedu Hello, Thank you very much for all those involved in creating and maintaining this website which is of immense value in our lives Devotee Baba, thank you very much for answering my prayer to become successful. I am very happy. I am very grateful and thankful. PRAYER CLUB: Jyotsana Baba, please bless me and my husband to be able to keep both of our current jobs blessed always in USA. Baba, please bless us all with a blessed darshan in shirdi and please fulfill all our desires soon. Baba, please guide us always for success and happiness. Sai devotee Dear Sainath, bless my wife so that she gets rid of all her medical problems and lives a happy and healthy life. Sai devotee Sai Deva, please help daughter to perform well in the exam tomorrow, please bring happiness and give good health to family. Sai devotee Dear Baba, We have lot of confusions in our family. Please bless us, remove all the hardships with your grace and give us a peaceful life. My present job is shaky. Please bless me with a new job. I am facing lot of problems everywhere. EXPERIENCE OF DEVOTEES: Parthasarathy My aged parents travelled on 8th Nov 09 from Chennai to Srirangam. Both are heart enlargement patients. Mother is suffering from arthritis apart from her heart enlargement. They said we will travel u need not come. It was continuously raining from Nov 4th. I took them to the station and boarded them in train and prayed to Sainath you should accompany them. Lo! I saw four trucks which had the name Sri Sai Ram Carriers transporting some 2 wheelers. I was surprised and relieved by seeing the

name on the trucks. The train supposed to reach by 9:15 reached by 10:05 due to rain all the way. The co passengers assured me that they will help them to get down in Srirangam. They did. My family friend from childhood came to the station to pick them up in that heavy rain. They reached home safely by 10:35 pm. Koti pranam sainath.Jai Sairam! QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: "Even if one were to give in charity the whole earth encircled by the seas it would not equal the merit of repeating the Name. By the power of the Name one will know what cannot be known, One will see what cannot be seen, One will speak what cannot be spoken, One will meet what cannot be met. Tuka says, Incalculable is the gain that comes from repeating the Name of God". - Sant Tukaram QUESTION OF THE WEEK: Q: What can be learnt from the experiences of Sai devotee Sapatnekar in Sri Sai Satcharita? A. Your answer can go here SAI ACTIVITIES: Sri C.B.Satpathy ji visits Orissa, India Nov 10th to Nov 12th, 2009 Guruji Sri Satpathyji will be on a visit to Orissa from Nov 10th to Nov 12th. The three day visit will be marked by release of Orissa Audio CD of Satpathyji's compositions followed by inauguration and Pran Praithshtha at Orissa. More details are available in Guruji's section at saibaba.org. For more information you can send mail to [email protected] with subject line "For CBS" Sri Shirdi Sai Temple of Chicago and Suburbs, Illinois, USA Sri Shirdi Sai temple is open daily from 8:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m.(Winter hours). Daily program includes Kakad Arathi at 8 a.m. followed by Abhisek. Madhayana Arathi at 12 noon, Dhoop Arathi at 6 p.m. and Shej Arathi at 9 p.m. Archana, Homams, Sahasranama and sponsored poojas continue in between the Arathis. To request a pooja for yourselves, your friends and family, please call. Devotees can request water (Abhishek Jal) from the Holy bathing of Baba by sending us an email or by phone. Temple is located 25 minutes drive west of Schaumburg on intersection of IL Route 47 and Plank Road in Hampshire, IL. For more information please call 847-931-4058 or send email to [email protected]. Sri Saibaba Mandir, Minneapolis, MN Sri Saibaba Mandir is located in Minneapolis, MN at 1835 Polk St NE, Minneapolis, MN 55418. The mandir is open 7 days a week in the evenings from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm and during morning hours from 9 am to 12:30 pm, everyday. Satsangs are conducted every Sunday mornings, 9 am to 12:30 pm. Please call 612-789-7729 for more information on mandir activities, events and other information. Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of DFW Metroplex is located at 2109 West Parker (Parker Plaza), Suite 212, Plano, TX 75023. For temple hours and activities please call the temple office at 469-467-3388. Shirdi Sai Temple of New England, Boston Area Sri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple of New England is now operational. It is located at 1827 Bridge St # 8, Dracut, MA 01824. The temple is open four days from Thursday to Sunday. For temple hours and activities please visit their website. Shirdi Sai Center in Bay Area, CA Shirdi Sai Center is located 897-B East Kifer Rd, Sunnyvale, CA 94086. For more information please call 408-705-7904 or 408-564-6704. Shirdi Saibaba temple, Los Angeles, CA Devotees in Los Angeles area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Los Angeles area. The temple is located at - 144 South 4th Street, Montebello, CA 90640. For more information please call Krishna Samantula at 949-679-9938. Saibaba Temple, Columbus, Ohio Devotees in Columbus and surrounding Ohio locations area are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Metro Columbus area. The temple is located in a leasing space at 6599 Dublin Center Drive, Dublin, OH 43017. Please attend daily Aaratis and Thursday bhajans. For more information please call 614-799-8411. Shirdi Sai bhajans every Thursday at Maitland, Florida Devotees are invited to participate in Sai study and bhajans on Thursdays between 7-8 pm at Meditation Gallery, 219 E Horatio Ave, Maitland, FL 32715. For more details please contact Bonnie at 407-830-1276. Sri Shirdi Sai Temple of Austin, TX Sri Shirdi Sai Temple of Austin, Texas opened at 601 E Whitestone Blvd (RM 1431), Cedar Park, TX. Daily 4 aarthis are performed to Sai Baba. As part of service to needy, a weekly sandwich seva is also conducted. Shirdi Sai Mandir, Dulles, VA Shirdi Sai Mandir is located at 43671 Trade Center Place #166 Dulles, VA 20166. The mandir is open through the week in the evenings from 6pm to 9 pm. Sri Satyanarayan pooja will be conducted every full moon day. Please call (703) 661-4724 for more information on activities, events and other information. Shirdi Sai Mandir, Toronto The Mandir is located at Unit 7 & 8 2721 Markham Road Toronto ON M1X 1L5 Canada. Daily services offered to Baba include abhishek and all aartis. For Mandir hours and activities, please call 647-444-4724. Shri Shirdi Sai Baba Sansthan, Canada -Toronto

Devotees in Toronto, are invited to join in Sai Namavali, Satcharita reading, Bhajans, Aarti and Prasad every Thursday from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. at GUR MANDIR 207 Queen's Plate Dr. Etobicoke - Hwy27 South of Finch for more info call (416) 294 4804 Sai Mandir, Baldwin New York Devotees in New York and surrounding locations are informed about Sri Sai Mandir in Baldwin NY. The temple is located at 1889 Grand Avenue, Baldwin, NY 11510. Please attend daily Aaratis and Thursday Panchamruta Abhishekam and bhajans. For more information please call at 516-867-8008. Shirdi Saibaba Temple, Iselin/Edison New Jersey Devotees in New Jersey and surrounding locations are informed about Sri Shirdi Saibaba temple in Iselin NJ. The temple is located at 465 Lincoln Highway (Route 27) Iselin, NJ 08830. Please attend daily Aaratis and Thursday Panchamruta Abhishekam and bhajans. For more information please call at 732-283-1800. Shirdi Saibaba Temple, Flushing New York This temple is located near the famous Ganesh Temple, Flushing, New york. All the day-to-day rituals at the temple are being conducted in a manner similar to that in Shirdi. The temple is located at 46-16 Robinson Street Flushing,NY,USA 11355. For more information please call 718-321-9243. Sri Sai Amruta Narayana Sarveswaraalaym, Richmond, VA The temple is open from 5.15 am to 9.00 pm, everyday (no lunch break etc). We have all 4 aarthis every day and Baba's paalki seva on every Thursday after Dhoop Aarthi. Further information can be obtained by calling the temple at 804-708-0867. Shirdi Sai Jalaram Mandir, Houston TX This temple was inaugurated on August 28th 2009 with idols of both the saints Shri Sant Jalaram and Shri Shirdi Sai Baba. The temple is open for darshan and arathis all day. It is located in Sugarland and more information can be obtained by calling 281433-4706. Shirdi Sai Baba Temple Detroit, MI Sri Shirdi Sai Baba temple, Livonia welcomes everyone to visit the temple and get Baba's blessings. The temple is open for darshan and arathis. For more information please call 248-471-6474 FROM THE EDITORS KEYBOARD: Please visit the Sai activities section for details of upcoming events. To post an event in your temple, please send details by email. We are continually striving to upgrade our technical capabilities. We thank you for your patience and contiuned support. Please check your email folders before deleting to make sure Sai Vichaar is not delivered into Spam mail. It will also help greatly if you send us email to update any changes in your email accounts as that will prevent us from sending Sai Vichaar to closed or

discontinued email accounts. In the true spirit of Sai devotion, contributors are requested to remember to suit the content, language, style, and presentation, appropriate to a worldwide readership. It should also be noted that when a section from any material other than their own is quoted or referred to, it is the authors' responsibility to acknowledge the source appropriately. "Question of the week" for this week is Q. What can be learnt from the experiences of Sai devotee Sapatnekar in Sri Sai Satcharita? Humbly Yours, The Editor ABOUT THIS EMAIL: This newsletter is not sent unsolicited. This newsletter is e-mailed to you because of at least one of the following reasons: 1. You have subscribed through our on-line subscribe page, 2. You have visited our web site and shown interest in the Sai topics and asked for information, or 3. You have been gifted a subscription by a friend or a relative. To Subscribe Sai Vichaar for receipt by Email please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the subscribe option from the menu. If you are subscribing the newsletter for your friend or a relative, we request that the person concerned may be notified about receiving the newsletter and the willingness to receive the newsletter be confirmed. To Un-Subscribe receipt of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the unsubscribe option from the menu. If you have problems accessing the web page due to network problems, please send an e-mail to [email protected] with the words "Unsubscribe Sai Vichaar" in the subject line. To make a contribution to any of the sections of Sai Vichaar, please visit the URL http://www.saibaba.org/newsletter.html and select the Submit Articles to Sai Vichaar option from the menu. Back copies of HTML version of Sai Vichaar can be accessed by visting the URL http://www.saibaba.org/whatsnew.html. For any questions or more information regarding this e-mail or our web site, please send an e-mail to [email protected] and your inquiries will be attended to

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Shirdi Sai Baba Web Site Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha (A non-profit organization) Mail: 12N950 State Route 47 Hampshire, IL 60140, USA Email [email protected] Phone 847-931-4058 Fax 847-464-1567 © Copyright 1998-2009 saibaba.org, Shirdi Sai Baba Sanstha - Sai Vichaar Weekly may only be redistributed in its unedited form. Written permission must be obtained to reprint or cite the information contained within this newsletter. Sai Vichaar is devoted to the philosophy and teachings of Shri Sadguru Sai Baba of Shirdi, and will take every measure to avoid topics or themes contradicting the same. Sai Vichaar team or the Shirdi Sai Baba web site is not responsible for the opinions expressed by individual contributors.