IN GHT Insight into Sai through Glance, Heart and Thought

MUDDENAHALLI CAMPUS

Special Anniversary Edition

VOL 3, ISSUE 12 |FEBRUARY 2016

PUBLISHED BY MUDDENAHALLI CAMPUS

SRI SATHYA SAI INSTITUTE OF HIGHER LEARNING

SAI SAMBHASHAN

DR SAYEE MANOHAR SRI V BHASKARAN SRI S SAI MANOHAR SRI CHANDRASHEKAR SRI S MOHAN SRI VENKATRAMANA

When it is so hard to analyse and understand your entity, how can you pronounce judgment on other entities with any definiteness? What you refer to as “I” and as “You” relate to the body, the appearance; they are not real (sat). Atma is one and indivisible; dharma based on that is genuine dharma. Some ask, “You go on saying Atma, Atma. Well what is the form of this Atma?” But wherefrom is Atma to get form? It is eternal, unchanging immortal. It is immutable, unblemished. The Atma is incapable of modification; only one thing can be posited about it, viz., that it is.

- BABA

THE EDITORIAL BOARD

FEBRUARY 2016 VOLUME 03 \ ISSUE 12

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04 OUR CAMPUS

THE KID

LOVE

EDITORIAL

FEBRUARY 2016 VOLUME 03 \ ISSUE 12

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OUR BELOVED MOTHER

BUDDHISM

HIS WILL

Seven years ago, a seed was sown in the fertile red soil of Muddenahalli, the native

village of an intellectual doyen and an engineering virtuoso, Mokshagundam

Visweswaraiah. The seed that was placed in the womb of Mother Earth on the

benign morning of 14th February 2009, has today germinated into a tender sapling,

spreading its vivacious vibrancy and sweet fragrance. This sapling has been tended

by the Master gardener, and draws its nourishment from the water of love that He

sprinkles, with ever perfect care. To the residents of the campus, the past five

years have been a golden period of learning and growing together, under His

shadow.

No one could have ever imagined that a campus with latest learning tools could be

set up in a rural area. Many of the students and staff members did scarce know

that a place with this name even existed. But the magic of His love has today

drawn a family of 32 staff and 142 students to this wonderful hermitage of

learning, to have a gainful experience.

His Tender Sapling – Sai Ankur

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The campus in its infancy had just 08 teachers and around 50 students. The facilities

were bare minimal. The staff who joined the campus in the beginning recount with a

sense of nostalgia, as to how they managed to keep the campus functioning in spite of

several teething problems.

The Lord, the divine gardener will not let his creation wither away for lack of care.

Today, with His grace, the campus is independent and standing on its feet and the

students enthusiastically participate in all the University events and functions, and come

out in flying colours. The campus got a post graduate program in computer applications,

within three years of inception. It hosts the youngest group of faculty members, who

work in unison towards ensuring that the baton of Sathya Sai system of education is

carried forward. The first batch of students of the campus, are about to leave its portals

having successfully completed the Integrated MCA program. The third batch of students

of the BBM program also will follow their seniors many of whom are completing their

MBA at the parent campus in Prasanthi Nilayam, while the others are well placed in jobs

with reputed companies.

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A new hostel building with modern facilities awaits the sprout of life. The campus has

grown in all facets – cultural, sports and academics. This is also the result of the effort

of the University administration, showing special concern and hand holding the campus

during its formative years. Thanks to the administrators and all its well-wishers, the

campus is moving ahead with greater confidence.

We pray to our Lord, to protect this sapling from the vagaries of fallacious thinking, the

tempest of egotism and grand standing and the drought of conscientiousness. May the

sapling grow into a strong edifice of truthful and honest learning. The tree that it will

be, must endow all the wayfarers in this journey of life who come into its precincts,

with its luscious fruits of wisdom redolent with the fragrance of spiritualism, and

ultimately the cool shade of salvation

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- FACULTY DESK

Anoraniyan Mahato Mahiyan Atmasya Jantornihito Guhyam ||

Smaller than the smallest life, larger than the infinite Vast, The soul breathes in the secret heart of man.

We the children of Sai have always been blessed to be in the Omnipresence of our Beloved Bhagawan who has been

a guiding force. Bhagawan Baba’s principal message is love. He is the embodiment of selfless love and His life is a saga of

selfless love for the humanity. Talking about the nature of Love, He says, "Love lives by giving and forgiving; self-lives by

getting and forgetting”.

Sri Sathya Sai Institutions are well known for providing a working model of education that successfully combines

spiritual and secular education, achieving both academic and character excellence in the students. As some of the most

influential role models for developing students, teachers are responsible for more than just academic enrichment. Our

children become

• Successful learners

• Confident and creative individuals, and

• Active and informed citizens.

Our Campus is slowly growing with the Blessings of our Beloved Bhagawan and with guidance from elders. Our children

have taken up an initiative of bringing a magazine called “INSAIGHT”, with the assistance from our teachers, where they

share their experiences and thoughts. On behalf of all our faculty members, I wish them all the very best and seek the

guidance and blessings of our mother Sai always and in all the ways.

Our Campus Dr. K. Sayee Manohar

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They saw him on a rampage on the 11th of Jan, 2016. Adrenaline shot up. Edge of the seat effect. They

had all along thought he is only a kid. But 11th showed bravery beyond his age. He played with the bike like

a toy. Two times he took off from the ramp and the third time he flew. They thought he will crash and yes he

did, but his WILL did not! He simply got up & dusted off, for He had landed into the safe hands of His loving

master.

They thought he will sing a rhyme on 14th. They went to applaud and encourage a kid rattling out a

memorized rhyme. And they were caught unawares in awe with a gaping mouth for he was performing like a

King. He sang, acted and danced as if he had been doing it all along. The royal court he made dropped their

jaw. And 14th showed maturity beyond his age.

But then, they wondered, maybe he was born in a really special place.

He was born and brought up in a remote village, stone's throw away from Stone Age. Even to this day,

to buy a pin, he has to travel to a town 6 kms away. His place is filled with sparrows and honey bees for that

is the only place yet unpolluted by cell phone signals. Absolutely zero connectivity to latest 4G technology

which a city boasts of just 50 kms away. Special place, really.

But then, they thought, maybe he had the best of facilities.

He practiced all his dare devilry in a desert filled with sand dunes. He bore through the cold and heat

and was tanned and tired. Yet nothing broke his will. Each time he practiced, he would be filled with dust so

much that none could identify who he was. He had let go of his identity just to offer his best for his master.

The Kid - SRI V BHASKARAN

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He practiced all his acting bending all day long. His back almost broke but his will did not.

He never had a stage to go on. And they say, when there is no stage, where is the question

of stage fear? He practiced all day long without a sigh. So many times that the dialogues

became effortless and the emotion natural. No sign of fatigue for his heart was leaping in joy

to offer his best for his master.

But then, they professed, maybe he was guided by the best of men.

None. Absolutely none. He painted a master piece alone, constructed movable living huts

and transplanted trees by immersing his mind in prayer. His fingers bled when he cut pillars

for the royal court for it was his first time. Many jeered at him for being ambitious. But he

believed in his heart than his art. No buts, only guts. Blood and sweat did not deter him in

his journey to offer his best for his master.

They walked away saying it was but natural for him to perform that way. For, he was born in a special place, had the best of facilities and was guided by the best of men. They will never know the truth. And he never bothered to reveal the truth. But can the truth be hidden from his master? He winked for a while when he performed and that filled his heart with all joy and love. Oh what grit this kid has! How come this much grit at this age? The secret is his love for his master and his master's love for him.

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ఎటుల తెలుపనో స్వామి! ఏమి పలుకను?

నీదు చూపు మరలి కరుణ తరలి

మా మదిని తరచి చూచు రీతి

||ఎటుల||

కనుల మ ుందు నీ చూపు మెరిస ిమాయమౌనుగవ కనుక మనసులోన విరిసి నిలచి ఉుండ ిచూడుమా దృష్ిి అుంత నీవ ైతే సృష్ిి అుంత నీవ గవ అది నీ వశమో పరవశమో మరి దరిని చేరుు నీ మహిమో!

||ఎటుల||

తెరిప ిలేక నీ నాముం తలచుకుుందమనుకునాా,

తెలియరవని తెరలేవో గ రిని లేక మరిపిుంచే కోరియ ుంటి నీ చరణుం, మరువ నీకు నీ సమరణుం

అది మా తరమో, నీ వరమో మరి పూరా జనమ పుణయ ఫలమో!

||ఎటుల||

-SRI PRASAD RAYAPROLU

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He may be the master of all scriptures. All texts and doctrines enunciated by the Vedas; He may be a grand monarch, Living in luxury and pomp in magnificent mansions, He may be an unconquerable Hero in the battle field; He may be the one whose fortunes have declined, And living in utter poverty. But he is utterly of no use if he is bereft of love. Even the slave endowed with love is more worthy of adoration Than the grand monarch, devoid of love. We always hear before discourses our dear Bhagawan emphasizing on the word “Prema Swarupulara” which means Embodiments of Love. What is Love? It is the fruit of life. The fruit has three components: the skin, the juicy kernel and the seeds. To experience the fruit we have to remove the skin .The skin represents egoism (the ‘I’ feeling). The seeds represents selfishness (the ‘mine’ feeling), the principle of possessiveness and greediness. When all of this is discarded only the sweet juice that can be termed as love remains.

- DIWAKAR PRADHAN (II BCA)

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The greatest of all virtues is love. It is the basis of character, a solvent for the hardest of hearts. Love can confer peace, joy and wisdom. It neither has birth nor death. Only blossoms and shines more over time. Love is the unseen undercurrent binding all the four values- Sathya (Love in thought), Dharma (Love in action), Shanti (Love in feeling), Ahimsa (Love in understanding). There is a lady in every house who gets up earlier and sleeps later than the rest. She doesn’t have casual leave, privilege leave or sick leave. She neither has holidays nor rest days. What does she expect in return? Nothing. She just makes us happy, and in our happiness lies hers. Such is the selfless love of a mother. Man’s heart is becoming a desert these days, completely devoid of love. They are motivated by selfish considerations with no compassion in their hearts. They are behaving worse than animals. In today’s world we see brothers fighting amongst themselves. When was the last we observed brothers living together peacefully like the five Pandavas, or the four brothers Rama, Laxmana, Bharata and Shatrughna. For the Pandavas God came first, the world next and themselves last. The entire world is filled with love. It is only love that binds one person to another. Every being needs love, they inhale and exhale love. Love in itself is reward. It is only love that can successfully carry out schemes for service and progress.

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There are many paths to attain God - the path of friendship, love, and affection. In all these paths there is selfishness to some extent, but in the path of pure love there is no selfishness at all. This is the royal path in which all paths merge. Swami says, “Under any circumstances, we should not get angry with any one. We should not hate or be jealous of others. We should consider everyone as embodiments of love. Everyone has a heart that is filled with love. We should develop that love day by day and share it with others. Then there is no scope for hatred. Grow more in love and share your love with whomever you meet all throughout the day. If you do that, your life will be redeemed. That is what a human being should do.” The shastras define four kinds of love. 1) Swartha Prema – It is like lamp kept in a room. The lamp illumines only the room. This kind of selfish love is confined to a limited group and does not extend to others. 2) Samanjasa Prema – It may be compared to the light from the moon. The light from the moon. The moon light is visible both outside and inside. It is however not very effulgent. The light is dim. This kind of love extends to a little larger area.

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3) Parartha Prema – It is like the sunlight. It illumines both inside as well as outside with brilliance. But it is not continuous in the scene that it is not visible at night. 4) Yathartha Prema – This love is present always, inside and outside, in all places and at all times in all circumstances. This is divine love. It is imperishable and eternal and is immanent in everyone. Swami says to cultivate the fourth type of love that will save you, for all the service that you do to others, through love which is actually service done to yourself. Once mother Yashodha went in search of Krishna and couldn’t find him anywhere. She met Radha and asked her whether she has seen Krishna. Radha closed her eyes and meditated intensely on Krishna. That very moment Krishna appeared there. Mother Yashodha realised that the love of a devotee like Radha for Krishna was infinitely greater than her own maternal love for him. This is how God reveals himself to his devotees. Krishna appeared instantaneously before Radha because of her pure and selfless love. Similarly, we all should develop selfless love for the Lord.

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God had sent yet another

For his loving ones, to be looked after

Whose heart is as lite as feather

And who nurtures us in her shelter

She had been our first mentor

Teaching us to be equal in all weather

We think, from god we are farther

But, if she is with us, it is neither

This life is not enough either

Nor her love can be explained further

She is none but

…Our Beloved Mother

Our Beloved Mother - SAI KIRAN V (I BBA)

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Buddhism comprises the teachings of the three vehicles of Buddhism: the Foundational Vehicle, Mahayana and Vajrayana. The Mahayana goal of spiritual development is to achieve the enlightenment of Buddhahood in order to most efficiently help all other sentient beings attain this state. The motivation in it is the bodhicitta - mind of enlightenment — an altruistic intention to become enlightened for the sake of all sentient beings. Bodhisattvas are revered beings who have conceived the will and vow to dedicate their lives with bodhicitta for the sake of all beings. Tibetan Buddhism teaches methods for achieving Buddhahood more quickly by including the Vajrayana path in Mahayana. Buddhahood is defined as a state free of the obstructions to liberation as well as those to omniscience. When one is freed from all mental obscuration, one is said to attain a state of continuous bliss mixed with a simultaneous cognition of emptiness, the true nature of reality. In this state, all limitations on one's ability to help other living beings are removed. The basic purpose of Buddhism is to purify our mind of the ‘three poisons’ of greed, hatred, and ignorance. This is much easier said than done. The focus of Buddhism has always been on how to actually accomplish this in our daily life. As it is said, “merely talking about food will not make one full.”

A Brief Introduction to Buddhism - GIGME WANGCHEN LEPCHA (III BBM)

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The waves of our mind, dream-thinking, for one who has ‘awakened’ are seen to be without any reality. However, all beings who are still dreaming take this realm of appearances, this ‘I’ and ‘World’, to be quite real. Therefore, those who have awakened,

out of an unconditional great compassion for all beings, make the great vow to continuously return to the world and help all of living beings awaken from the dream. This is known as the magnificent vow of the Bodhisattva. The Four Noble Truths The first sermon that the Buddha preached after his enlightenment was about the four noble truths. The first noble truth is that life is frustrating and painful. In fact, if we are honest with ourselves, there are times when it is downright miserable. Things may be fine with us, at the moment, but, if we look around, we see other people in the most appalling condition, children starving, terrorism, hatred, wars, intolerance, people being tortured and we get a sort of queasy

feeling whenever we think about the world situation in even the most casual way. We, ourselves, will some day grow old, get sick and eventually die. No matter how hard we try to avoid it, some day we are going to die. Even though we try to avoid thinking about it, there are constant reminders that it is true. The second noble truth is that suffering has a cause. We suffer because we are constantly struggling to survive. We are constantly trying to prove our existence. We may be extremely humble and self- deprecating, but even that is an attempt to define ourselves. We are defined by our humility. The harder we struggle to establish ourselves and our relationships, the more painful our experience becomes. The third noble truth is that the cause of suffering can be ended. Our struggle to survive, our effort to prove ourselves and solidify our relationships is unnecessary. We, and the world, can get along quite comfortably without all our unnecessary posturing.

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The Eightfold Path The path to liberation from these miserable states of being, as taught by the Buddha, has eight points and is known as the eightfold path. The first point is called right view the right way to view the world. Wrong view occurs when we impose our expectations onto things; expectations about how we hope things will be, or about how we are afraid things might be. Right view occurs when we see things simply, as they are. It is an open and accommodating attitude. The second point of the path is called right intention. It proceeds from right view. If we are able to abandon our expectations, our hopes and fears, we no longer need to be manipulative. We don't have to try to con situations into our preconceived notions of how they should be. We work with what is. Our intentions are pure. The third aspect of the path is right speech. Once our intentions are pure, we no longer have to be embarrassed about our speech. Since we aren't trying to manipulate people, we don't have to be hesitant about what we say.

We could just be a simple, direct and straight-forward person. We could form a simple relationship with our world, our coffee, spouse and friend. We do this by abandoning our expectations about how we think things should be. This is the fourth noble truth: the way, or path to end the cause of suffering. The central theme of this way is meditation. Meditation, here, means the practice of mindfulness/ awareness, shamata/ vipashyana in Sanskrit. We practice being mindful of all the things that we use to torture ourselves with. We become mindful by abandoning our expectations about the way we think things should be and, out of our mindfulness, we begin to develop awareness about the way things really are. We begin to develop the insight that things are really quite simple, that we can handle ourselves and our relationships, very well as soon as we stop being so manipulative and complex. 15

The fourth point on the path, right discipline, involves a kind of renunciation. We need to give up our tendency to complicate issues. We practice simplicity. We have a simple straight-

forward relationship with our dinner, our job, our house , our family. Right livelihood is the fifth step on the path. It is only natural and right that we should earn our living. we should be glad of our job, whatever it is. We should form a simple relationship with it. We need to perform it properly, with attention to detail. The sixth aspect of the path is right effort. Wrong effort is struggle. We often approach a spiritual discipline as though we need to conquer our evil side and promote our good side. We are locked in combat with ourselves and try to obliterate the tiniest negative tendency. Right effort doesn't involve struggle at all. When we see things as they are, we can work with them, gently and without any kind of aggression whatsoever.

Right mindfulness, the seventh step, involves precision and clarity. We are mindful of the tiniest details of our experience. We are mindful of the way we talk, , our posture, our attitude toward our friends and family, every detail. Right mindfulness, the seventh step, involves precision and clarity. We are mindful of the tiniest details of our experience. We are mindful of the way we talk, , our posture, our attitude toward our friends and family, every detail.

Right concentration, or absorption is the eighth point of the path. Usually we are absorbed in absentmindedness. Our minds are completely captivated by all sorts of entertainment and speculations. Right absorption means that we are completely absorbed in nowness, in things as they are. This can only happen if we have some sort of discipline, such as sitting meditation. We might even say that without the discipline of sitting meditation, we can't walk the eightfold path at all. Sitting meditation cuts through our absentmindedness. It provides a space or gap in our preoccupation with ourselves. 16

Like all other Religions Buddhism also shows the path of oneness with God and yourself.

Paths are different but the Goal is the same.

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When I stand on the roof:

What a place He chose !

Surrounded by legendary mountains,

Like a wall protecting the palace.

When I stand on the roof:

I See a place away from noise,

A place full of mesmerizing scenery,

Where you can feel true nature.

When I look at a more closer view,

I notice Anandam,

Standing tall like an Eiffel Tower,

Showering its blessings to the devotees around.

His Will -SHISHIR RANA (I BBA)

When I turn my head,

The eyes glance at Prem Deep,

Looking as enthralling as the home of God,

Calling His devotees for spreading bliss.

How lucky am I to be in such a serene place

Its all His will

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THE TALLEST OF THE BUILDINGS STAND UPON THEIR INVISIBLE FOUNDATIONS.

DEAR SWAMI,

When You Remain Within Us As Our Foundation,

We Not Only Stand, We Fly !

IN SAI GHT

INSIGHT INTO SAI BY GLANCE HEART

&

THOUGHT

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