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2014/03

B 和 B

顶礼于薄伽梵的莲花足下。

亲爱的同胞信众，

感谢我们的主，薄伽梵斯里沙迪亚赛峇峇给我们这个机会和恩惠，使我们讨论祂所阐释的灵性主题。今天的主题，B与B，看似有点滑稽，但我慎重地选择了这个主题并祈求祂指引我，给我灵感，作好准备以便今天早上呈现于大家面前。

整个宇宙都是神的创造。丘陵和湖泊，高山与深谷，溪水与河流，大海和大洋，花圃与果园，林区和森林，飞禽与走兽 -- 都是神赐给人类的礼物。这是祂给人类的爱的一个见证和表达。维系生命的每一样必需品都是神所供应的。我们最多也只能给祂所创造的物质加以种种变更和组合以使我们的生活更加舒适和方便。例如，我们知道水的化学成分是氢和氧的结合。在实验室里，我们能分析水和制造水。但我们能否梦想去制造足够全人类饮用的水？它又能否相等于天然的资源，如井水与河水？那简直是不可能的。提供我们食水的就是神。

现在我们看看是谁供应我们呼吸的氧气？是谁灌溉森林中的树木？是谁染红鹦鹉的嘴？是谁使到孔雀的羽毛如此美丽？人人都知道因果律。一部机械，一个仪器，一件商品或任何有关之物，其背后都有一个制造者。同样，宇宙也有一个制造者。否则，诸如‘这宇宙是谁造的？’及‘谁创造这世界？’等问题，不是不具任何意义就是永远得不到答案和解决。不论达尔文（Darwin）在其进化论上如何的解释，这世界不可能无端端地演进也不可能没有‘某人’去创造。那么，这宇宙是谁的创造？谁创造这世界？谁是创造者？那么好，我们能否定祂的存在？当我们欣赏一出戏剧或一部电影时，难道我们不知道其背后有一个导演？星星和行星，月亮和太阳，它们所发出的光，所遵循不会彼此相撞的轨道运行，明显地确立了神，主宰，创造者，调整者和神圣导演的存在。

我们是有生命的生物或生命体。生命原则运作一段很长的时间。身体构造和生理学对环境有很好的适应性。动物行为科学，生态适应，环境生物的研究，揭露神圣的总计划。所有生物都找到生活情趣，由神的不可测知的意愿去操作。大自然的任何困扰或混乱都是我们自己造成的。陆地与海洋的不平衡，空气污染，土地污染，油质污染，食物污染和声音污染等都是人类不顾一切，任意开发自然资源所造成的后果。私心增加，对他人的关怀越来越衰微，心胸狭窄，缺乏眼光和毅力，缺乏爱心，不信神，这些都是导致人类不幸与悲伤的主要因素。

每一个生命体的快乐全靠每一个个体的幸福而定。教育还未对这个人类的主要层面作出一定的贡献以便提升他至他的小我之上。教育是一生之事而非一时之事。生命体或个体具有三个意识境界。每一个生命体都装配有所需的工具以改进生命的素质，诸如身体，心念，智能和官能。这是一个完整生命体的景象。生命体拥有一个机会去体验外在世界，并有能力去认识内在的真性。是故，人人都能得到对生命的觉知。缺乏两者的其中一个，内在的或外在的，都会留下一个不完整的生命或部分的体验。生命体是内外世界两者的结合体。

我们对我们的存有或存在（being or existence）深具信心。甚至我们感到惊讶，我们对我们的存有的信念是那么的强以致倾向于忽视生命的基本事实。例如，我们看到并知道许多人因某种原因而生命垂危。死亡是肯定的；然而没有人甚至会想到死或抱持有一天他会死亡的想法。这就是我们‘存有’或存在的力量。梵文里，它被称为‘sath’（译注：存有，真）。如果我说，我们很多人认为我们是永恒的，它似乎显得荒谬。如果它并非真实，那你又怎么对当今非常普遍的恶行，谎言，错误，背叛，欺诈，贪腐，偏心等加以说明？如果我们确信这个事实，有一天我们也会与其余的人一起归西，那时我们还会贪恋权势，地位和财产？所以，毋庸置疑，在我们之内存有一种永生的感觉而使我们认为我们是永恒的，并据之而行而拒绝接受死亡一直在门口等着的事实。这就是‘存有’或存在的精神。但事实上，这‘存有’是一个神圣的素质。神是永恒的；我们也是永恒的。肉身会死亡，但灵 / 阿特玛是永恒的。‘存有’只改变服装（upadhi）或肉身。这是‘存有’或存在的真正意思。永恒的和永垂不朽的是‘存有’。那无瑕疵的，纯净的，不二的，不污染的，自由自在的就是‘存有’的特征。

当我们睡时，我们或会作梦。在梦中，我们体验于一个不同的方式中，与醒时状况完全不相干。所以薄伽梵说，“存有丧失于梦中。”薄伽梵谈到，醒时状况是一个‘白日梦’，而另一种在睡中的状况是‘夜梦’。梦中的体验是心念的创造。在醒时状况，除了心念外，身体也得以分享。然后，产生了“梦消失于存有之中”，以至于，在我们进入一个状况时，另一个状况即消失。这里，我记得薄伽梵叙述的一则故事。一天，者纳竭（Janaka）国王坐在宫殿里，忽然在王座上睡着了。他做了个梦，梦见他狩猎时，他在浓密的森林中迷失了方向。他饿极了，而最后一个住在茅屋的穷人给他一点食物。正当他要吃的时候，突然来了一只狗把食物给夺了去。他沮丧地叫喊，从而把自己给叫醒了，并发觉自己在光天化日下坐在王座上。者纳竭国王感到好奇并想知道这两种境况的意思和内在意义。他召唤家庭教师，婆喜史多（Vasishta）并问他，“导师，那（梦境）是真的还是这（醒境）是真的？”家庭导师回答，“噢！国王！两者都是真的。在梦中，那是真的。在醒境，这也是真的。但你，体验者则永远是真的和不变的。”因此，现在应该是很清楚了，意识的境界或会改变，但你，体验者是一个，同样的一个。他是见证者，不二的和不朽的。这觉知是‘成为’（becoming，转化而成）。

只要你融入一个境况之中并视之为真，在你体验的那一刻，你仅是一个‘存有’。但对同样的‘存有’视之为永恒的，不朽的，纯净的真实或意识就是‘成为’。所以‘是为’和‘形成’这两者，是步上探索（mimamsa）之道的求道者务必清楚地了解的。只有这样，“存有消失于成为”的这句箴言才会落实。

让我们从薄伽梵的神圣讲道中拿几个实例来说明。这里有一个银制的杯子。若你想到银，你就不重视杯子。这里有一张木制的桌子。若你想到木，桌子就不会博你眼球。这里有一个花环。若你专注于串起花朵的线，你就不在意于花朵。因此，若你根据名和相来作判断，实在的基本原则就会被忽略。但若你专注于基本原则，具有一个名和相的物体或东西就变成其次或不值得考虑了。一个杯子，一张桌子，一个花环或任何东西，都是具有一个名和相的物体或东西。但如果你诉诸总体的层次或物质或这些物体的组合，那么，这些名和相就变得肤浅或无意义了。所以‘存有’亦即名和相消失于‘成为’（转化过程）之中。这是“存有消失于成为之中”这句话的意思。

我们也可以从《摩诃婆罗多》（Mahabharata）中找些实例。教师爷德罗纳（Dronacharya）决定测试其学生（高罗瓦Kauravas族人与般达瓦Pandavas族人）的射艺。他要他们射击栖息于树枝上的一只鸟。当他问每一个人看到什么时，每一个人回答他所看到的周遭的事物。但阿周那（Arjuna）说，除了标的，鸟，之外，他什么都看不到。这就是‘成为’（转化过程）的境界。同样，牧女们（Gopikas）能在葡匐植物中，遮荫棚中和花卉中看到基士拿（Krishna）。钵罗赫拉德（Prahlada）能感到那罗延那（Narayana）出现在盛着毒药的杯子里，在深海里，在烈火中，在野兽中，他也能给喜兰尼耶卡西布（Hiranyakasipu）展示那罗延那于柱子中。这就是‘成为’的境界。

当一只水牛挨打时，在舍尔地赛的背上却留下伤痕。这表示祂的神性在于一只水牛之内。在舍尔地赛峇峇的一生，我们找到很多这种例子，可以清楚地证明和体验祂的神性。这意味着舍尔地赛不单纯是一个跟常人一样的‘存有’。祂的‘存有’是跟每一个人成为（转化为）一的境界，这说明在众生之内的神性是一个，同样的一个。

耶稣间接地说，不论我们为什么人服务，那服务都会抵达祂那儿。当问及为何他们有些人被宣判有罪而下地狱时，基督说当祂挨饿时，他们并没有给祂食物；当祂口渴时，他们并没有给祂水喝；当祂需要衣服时，他们并没有提供衣服给祂等等。他们问，“主啊！你是什么时候来的？我们是什么时候对你说‘不’的？”然后祂令他们知道，向他们求取施舍的那些人不是别人而是祂自己。所以，基督并非一个单纯的‘存有’。祂的‘存有’是跟众生‘成为’一的生命，树立起这样的一个事实，就是单一的圣灵操作于不同的层次。薄伽梵斯里沙迪亚赛峇峇，黄金期的神化身，通过奇迹传达祂的全知，全能和全在。唯一而无二的圣灵（神性）让祂的信徒通过体验很清晰地感受到。这是阿特玛或薄伽梵或成为（转化）的境界，而不是单纯的一个‘存有’的境界。

我们所知道的在这‘存有’和‘成为’的过程中的最终目标就是：这两者不是两个层次或境界，而它们基本上是一个，同样的一个。在这‘存有’和‘成为’的过程中的最终目标就是，这两者并非两个层次或境界。建立‘存有’意识的是身体感受而当我们超越这个局限时，它什么都不是，仅是‘成为’神。在此必须注意的是，‘成为’不是一个新境界或什么特别之物。你是Tath（神）而已。使你感到你是一个存有或一个分开的实体的就是名和相。身为一个存有，你有极限。但在你跟真性的内在核心成为一体时，你就是神。因此，‘存有’和‘成为’是一个铜板的两个面。那肉体的，世俗的，二元的，短暂的以及由五大元素组成的一切都是‘存有’。认同‘内在自性’或‘真性’是‘成为’（转化为）神。在这方面，‘成为’是被用于一个受限制的意识里，因为你不会成为或转化为你本来就不是的。这不是什么新的东西也不是一个成就。它不是天赋的，也不是传授的和制造出来的。你是神。可是你并不这么想。

对真我的觉知或对阿特玛的体认或对神圣原则的体会，是与之成为一体或成为非二元。薄伽梵峇峇在讲道时称呼大家为‘爱的化身’，‘神圣阿特玛的化身’，这意指你并非单纯是‘存有’；你是真理的化身，平和的化身，爱和圣灵的化身。对这真理的认识就是成圣（成为或转化为神）。

吠陀说Tathwamasi - 汝即彼。你仅是彼而已。彼与你为一。薄伽梵给了一些恰当的例子以说明这真理（真相）。有一个圆石，用一支鑿子和锤子将它雕刻成一尊美丽的基士拿雕像。在这过程中，一些石头的碎片掉落在地上。那么，雕像（Tath / 神 / 成为）和地上的碎片（Thwam / 你 / 存有）都出自同样的圆石（Tathwamasi）。这是非二元性，于此，‘存有’与‘成为’为一，同样的一个，只是一个是明显的而另一个则是力量 / 精神 / 神圣的原则于其背后。一滴水是构成大海的‘存有’，当掉入大海中时，它立即‘成为’。一点火花（存有）远离火源（成为 / 圣灵）时可被区别。一旦回到火中，它就找到自己的身份了。蔗糖可以制造多种糖果，照你所选择的形状，大小和颜色。但蔗糖（Tath）是一而糖果（thwam）众多。这种知识使你确信和协助你去体验神性，而这神性是不二的或一而无二的或‘Ekameva Advitiyam Brahma’。

愿赛祝福你！Sai Ram。

取自《薄伽梵斯里沙迪亚赛峇峇普及和实用的教导》第13章

B & B

With pranams at the lotus feet of Bhagavan.

Dear fellow devotees,

We thank our Lord, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba for this opportunity He has so generously and graciously granted us to discuss spiritual topics as explained by Him. The topic of the day, B & B may look funny but I have deliberately chosen this topic with a prayer to Him to guide me as I gather my thoughts and present them before you this morning.

The whole universe is the creation of God. Hills and lakes, mountains and valleys, streams and rivers, seas and oceans, gardens and orchards, woodlands and forests, birds and beasts – are all God’s gifts to mankind. It is an evidence and expression of His love for humanity. Everything essential for the sustenance of life is provided by God. At the most we make various permutations and combinations of the material created by Him to make our life more comfortable and convenient. For example, we know the chemistry of water, as the combination of hydrogen and oxygen. In the laboratory we can analyse and also make water. But can we ever dream to manufacture water enough for human consumption? Will it ever equal natural resources such as our wells and rivers? It is simply an impossibility. It is God who has given us drinking water.

Now who supplies oxygen which we breathe? Who waters the plants in forests? Who painted in red the beak of a parrot? Who made the feathers of a peacock look so beautiful? Everyone knows the famous cause and effect theory. A machine, an instrument, an article or anything for that matter, has a maker, a manufacturer, behind it. So also, there is a maker of the universe. Otherwise, the question such as ‘Whose creation is this Universe?’, and ‘Who made the world?’, either carry no sense or shall ever remain unanswered and unresolved. Whatever Darwin had to say on his theory of evolution, this world could not have evolved out of nothing and without ‘someone’ to create. So also, whose creation is this universe? Who made this world? Who is the maker? Well, can we deny His existence? As we see a drama or witness a film show, do we not know that there is a director behind? The stars and the planets, the moon and the sun, the light they shed, their movement in specific orbits without any collision establish clearly the existence of God, the master, the creator, the regulator and the Divine Director.

We are the living creatures or beings. The principle of life operates over a period of time. The body anatomy and the physiology are well adapted to the environment. The animal behavioural sciences, ecological adaptations, the studies of environmental biology reveal the Divine Master plan. All beings find life interesting, operated by the inscrutable Will of God. Any confusion or chaos in nature is our own making. The imbalance both on land and sea, air pollution, soil pollution, oil pollution, food pollution and noise pollution are the results of man’s worst exploitation of nature. Increased selfishness, less and less of concern for others, narrow-mindedness, lack of vision and fortitude, absence of love, disbelief in God, are some of the main factors that are responsible for man’s misery and sadness.

The happiness of every living being depends upon the well-being of everybody. Education has yet to contribute to this vital aspect of man so as to raise him above his petty self. Education is for the being and not for the time-being. Being or an individual has three states of consciousness. Every being is equipped with the needed instruments to improve the quality of life, such as body, mind, intellect and senses. This is the picture of a total being. The being is given a chance to experience the outer world, besides a scope to know the inner reality. Thus everyone can have awareness of life. Absence of either of the two, outer or inner, leaves one with incomplete life or partial experience. Being is a combination of both inner and outer worlds.

We have full faith in our being or existence. It is even odd that our belief in our being is so strong that we tend to ignore the basic fact of life. For instance, we see and come to know many dying for some reason or the other. Death is certain; yet no one even thinks of death or entertains the idea that he would die some day. This is the strength of our ‘being’ or existence. In Sanskrit it is called ‘sath’. It may sound silly, if I say that many of us think that we are permanent. If it is not true how do you account for the misdeeds, lies, mistakes, treachery, roguery, corruption, favouritism prevalent now? If we are really convinced of the fact that we shall also die along with the rest some day, would we then hanker after power, position, and possessions? So, undoubtedly there is a feeling of permanence within us that makes us think and behave as though we are permanent, and refuse to accept the fact of death waiting always at the doorstep. This is the spirit of ‘being’ or existence. But actually, this ‘being’ is a divine quality. God is permanent; we are also permanent. The body may die, but the Spirit/Atma is permanent. The ‘being’ only changes its vesture or upadhi or body. This is the true meaning of ‘being’ or existence. The eternal and immortal is the ‘being’. The unsullied, pure, non-dual, unpolluted, free are the features of the ‘being’.

When we sleep, we may dream. In the dream we experience in a different way that has nothing to do with the waking state. So Bhagavan says, “Being is lost in dreaming.” Bhagavan remarks that the waking state is a ‘day dream’, while the other in the sleep is a ‘night dream’. The dreaming experience is the creation of the mind. In the waking state the experience is also shared by the body besides the mind. Then what happens is “dreaming is lost in being”, so much so, one state is lost as we enter into the next state. Here I am reminded of a story narrated by Bhagavan. One day, King Janaka sitting in his court suddenly slept on the throne. He dreamt as if he had lost his way in a dense forest, while hunting. He was very hungry and ultimately a poor man living in a hut gave him a morsel of food. While he was about to eat a dog suddenly came and snatched it away. He shouted in despair and as he did so he woke up and found himself sitting on the throne in broad daylight in an open court. King Janaka was curious to know the implications and the inner significance of these two states. He called the family preceptor Vasishta and asked him, “Guruji, is that (dream) true or is this (waking state) true?” He went on repeating the same question, “Is that true or is this true?” The preceptor replied, “O! King! Both are true. That is the truth in the dream. This is also true in the waking state. But you, the experiencer are eternally true and changeless.” Therefore, it would have been clear by now that the states of consciousness may change, but you, the experiencer is one and the same. He is the witness, non-dual and immortal. This awareness is ‘becoming’.

So long you identify yourself with a state, taking it as true, at the moment of experience, you are only a ‘being’. But the recognition of the very same ‘being’ as an eternal, immortal, pure truth or consciousness is ‘becoming’. So these two ‘to be’ and ‘to become’ must well be understood clearly by the seeker treading along the path of enquiry or mimamsa. Only then the maxim that “being is lost in becoming” will come true.

Let us take a few illustrations from the Divine discourses of Bhagavan Baba. Here is a silver tumbler. When you think of silver, you do not give importance to the tumbler. Here is a wooden table. When you think of wood, the table is out of your observation. Here is a garland of flowers. When you concentrate your attention on the thread you do not bother about the flowers. Therefore, when you go by the name and form the actual basis is ignored. But when you concentrate on the primal basis, objects or things with a name and form become secondary or out of question. A tumbler, a table, a garland or whatever it might be, are all the things or objects with a name and form. But when you go to the gross level or the material or the composition of these objects, these names and forms become superficial or irrelevant. So ‘being’ viz., name and form are lost in ‘becoming’. This is the meaning of the statement “being is lost in becoming”.

We can also take a few illustrations from the Mahabharata. Dronacharya, the preceptor decided to test the ability of his students (both the Kauravas and the Pandavas) in archery. He wanted them to shoot at a bird perched on the branch of a tree. When he asked each one of them to tell him what they saw, each one replied describing all they found in the vicinity. But Arjuna said that he did not see anything else other than the bird, the target. This is the state of ‘becoming’. Similarly, the Gopikas could see Krishna in all creepers, bowers and flowers. Prahlada could feel Narayana in a cup of poison, in deep sea, in fire, in wild animals and could show Him to Hiranyakasipu even in a pillar. This is the state of ‘becoming’.

When a buffalo was beaten, scars were found on the back of Shirdi Sai which shows His divinity in a buffalo. In the life of Shirdi Sai Baba, we have many instances where His Divinity is clearly proved and experienced. This means, Shirdi Sai is not simply a ‘being’ like anyone. His is the state of ‘becoming’ one with everyone, which explains the divinity, which is one and the same in all.

Jesus Christ indirectly said that whomsoever we serve, it reaches him. When asked why some of them were condemned to hell, Christ said they did not feed him when he was hungry, did not supply water when he was thirsty, did not give him clothes when he needed them and so on. They asked, “Lord! When did you come? When did we say ‘No’ to you?” Then he made them know that all those who approached them with these demands were none other than Himself. So Christ was or is not simply a ‘being’. His is the life of ‘becoming’ one with all, establishing the fact that the single divinity operates at different levels. Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, the Avatar of the Golden Age, through miracles conveys His omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence. Divinity, the only one without the second is clearly felt by His devotees through innumerable experiences. This is the state of Atma or Bhagavan or becoming and not simply a ‘being’.

What we know as the final goal in this process of ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ is that these two are not two levels or states, and that they are basically one and the same. The final goal in this process of ‘being’ and ‘becoming’, is that these two are not two levels or states. It is the body feeling that creates a sense of ‘being’ and when we cross this limitation it is nothing but ‘becoming’ Divine. Here it is to be noted that ‘becoming’ is not a new state or anything special. You are Tath (Divine) only. It is the name and form that make you feel that you are a being or a separate entity. As a being you are limited or finite. But in becoming one with the inner core of reality, you are Divine. Therefore, ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ are the two sides of the same coin. That which is physical, worldly, dual, ephemeral, and made up of the five elements is ‘being’. Identifying with the Inner Self or Reality is ‘becoming’ Divine. ‘Becoming’ here in this context is used in a limited sense, since you are not going to become that you are not. It is not anything new, nor an achievement. It is not gifted nor taught nor manufactured. You are Divine. But you do not think so.

Awareness of the true Self or recognition of Atma or experiencing the Divine principle is becoming one with it or becoming non-dual. Bhagavan Baba addresses the gathering whenever He gives a discourse as ‘Embodiments of Love’, ‘Embodiments of Divine Atma’, which imply that you are not simply ‘beings’; but the Embodiments of Truth, Embodiments of Peace, Embodiments of Love and Divinity. Knowledge of this truth is ‘becoming’ Divine.

The Veda says Tathwamasi – That thou art. You are that only. That and you are one. Bhagavan has given a few appropriate examples to illustrate this truth. There is a boulder. With a chisel and a hammer it is carved into a beautiful Krishna idol. In the process a few chips of stone fall on the ground. Now, the idol (Tath/Divine/Becoming) and the chips on the ground (Thwam/You/Being) are out of the same boulder (Tathwamasi). This is non-dualism where the ‘being’ and ‘becoming’ are one and the same, excepting that one is apparent, while the other is the force/ spirit/ divine principle behind it. A drop of water is the ‘being’ that becomes an ocean, ‘Becoming’ when dropped into it. A spark (Being) is distinguished when it is away from fire (Becoming/Divinity). It finds its identity once it is back into the fire. Sugar can be used to make any type of sweet of your choice of any size and colour. But the sugar (Tath) is one, but sweets (thwam) are many. Knowledge of this convinces you and helps you to experience the divinity, which is non-dual or one without the second or ‘Ekameva Advitiyam Brahma’.

May Sai bless you!

Sai Ram.

Universal & Practical Teachings of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, Chapter 13