Sai Baba's Teachings
Global Warming, Climate Change
Man, Divinity and Illusion
Many predictions in the Sai Baba Dictum mention loss of land and inundation by water. The Sai Dictum attributes these changes to global cataclysm, comets and asteroids striking the planet and nuclear accidents. All these changes are attributed to external events. The author of the Sai Dictum paints humanity as victim of events beyond human agency. Is this true of Nature as a whole?
Sai Baba teaches that the seen reflects the seer. What we see in our world is a reflection of our own self, and is the result of our thoughts, our feelings, our deeds, over many lifetimes. We have created this world as it is, today. In truth, this world is illusion, an illusion of our own making.
We are divine in origin, and all around us is but that divinity. Sai Baba describes our origin and the arising illusion in this way:
In the beginningless beginning God was one and the thought arose in Him, "I am One, let me become many". Sai Baba elaborates, "I separated myself from myself so that I may love myself. Beloved Ones, you are my own Self."
So we see that man is not a weak, miserable creature, but of divine origin, and has the spark of divinity within. Man must rise to his heights, master the senses, master his desires, and be master of his own destiny, not a weak victim to the vissicitudes of life.
Man, Karma and Nature
Then we may ask, why do we experience suffering, why is the world the way it is? Why are there problems in Nature, why are there tsunami, earthquake, cyclones, floods and storms? What is the cause of all this if we are divine in nature?
In every act, Man, the embodied soul, has to involve the body, the senses like the ear, etc., the vital airs that operate in the body. All these coexist with the Divine in the individual. Just as the activities in this life are determined by the nature of the activities in previous lives, the activities of this life do determine the activities of the next life. Man is bound by the fruits of his or her karma.
Well, can't God fix this up?
God has the power to shape the Nature of man, but He does not exercise that power and mould it differently. He leaves it to the free will of the individual, which has to learn the lesson by experience.
So, this world and our own lives, are of our own making.
Man is the builder of his world.
Among men, each one is himself the cause of his fortune, good or bad. He is himself the builder, the architect. Fate, destiny, predetermination, the Will of God—every one of these explanations is toppled by the principle of Karma. God and man can be reconciled and affiliated only on the basis of this Sutra or principle of Karma. When man realises that God has no share in causing his suffering and that he is himself the sole cause, that no blame attaches to any other person, that he is the initiator as well as the beneficiary—the cause and the effect—of his acts, that he is free to shape his future, then he approaches God with a firmer step and a clearer mind.
If at the present time, a man is afflicted by misfortune, it is assuredly the result of acts done by him. Accordingly, man has to believe that happiness and good fortune also lie in his own hands. If he decides, happiness and good fortune can be gained by him.
Global Warming and Climate Change
Global warming is the fruit of the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which trap heat in our atmosphere. Over the last 200 years (and especially during recent decades) due to human activities such as burning coal and oil, land clearing and agriculture, more and more of these gases have been trapped in our atmosphere, leading to measurable changes in our environment.
Other changes in climate observed in the 20th Century include decrease in snow cover and ice cap melt, and an increase in global ocean content of water. There have been increases in rain in the northern hemisphere, and a decrease in the southern hemisphere leading to drought conditions in many places. Species are becoming extinct, trees are flowering earlier, and changes to egg-laying in insects and birds.
All kingdoms of existence, mineral, plant, animal and human life are affected by both global warming and climate change.
What Sai Baba has said about Global Warming and Climate Change
Have full faith in. God and surrender to God. Do serve with a spirit of dedication as an offering to God. Spread the message of the glory of God in every village by chanting the name of God. Then the atmosphere and climate of the world will change for the better and become sacred. Discourse during the World Youth Conference on 17- 7-1997 in Sai Kulwant Hall.
How must we respond to Global Warming and Climate Change?
There may be fire accidents and earthquakes. These are incidental to Nature. They have to be turned into proper account by right response. Heat and cold are natural phenomena. They should be treated according to their nature and not considered as good or bad. In the month of March, the weather will be hot in Rayalaseema; it will be cool in Ooty and Kodaikanal. These differences in climate are natural to the places concerned and should be treated on that basis. If a person has a woollen coat and a muslin shirt, he must use the coat during the cold weather and the shirt in summer. Skill is needed for adjusting oneself to the climate. Discourse in Prashanthi Nilayam on 17-3-1991
Integration must become a way of life
Science has been making remarkable progress in the recent decades. The world undoubtedly needs the discoveries of science. But if it forgets the base and is preoccupied only with the superstructure, it will be the source of much disorder and trouble. It may cause all kinds of diseases. Science has been divorced from spirituality and faith in the Divine. Many imagine that science can create a heaven on earth. But what is the kind of heaven that is envisaged? Is it the enjoyment of material and sensuous pleasures? This hedonistic attitude is undermining all human values.
Research is going on endlessly. Science is continually seeking answers to various questions. But how many of the answers are correct and satisfying? Progressively, the climate of peace is being destroyed by science. If peace is to be ensured, science has to be promoted on the right lines. This calls for unity among the people. Service to society must become the fundamental purpose. Everybody talks about the need for world unity. But real unity must begin with the individual and the family. From the home, it must spread to the village, nation and the world. National integration comes to the fore whenever there is an attack from outside by China or Pakistan. But when the external threat passes, integration is forgotten; integration should become an essential part of our being. It must become a way of life and cherished as an important value. It is vital to perceive the unity that underlies the apparent diversity.
Bodies are many, but life is one.
Beings are many, but Bliss is one.
Religions are many, but Truth is one.
This is the kind of oneness that has to be experienced in the depths of our heart. Prajnana (integral, higher wisdom) subsumes Vijnana (secular knowledge) and embraces also Sujnana (right knowledge). Prajnana, Vijnana and Sujnana together contribute to the fullness of man. Address at the National Symposium on Value Orientation, at Sri Sathya Sai Institute Auditorium on 24-9-1987.
Science and spirituality should go together
Everyone should feel proud about India's ancient culture and its spiritual heritage. Spiritual knowledge and scientific knowledge should go together. There should be no dichotomy between science and spirituality. True bliss can be experienced only when science and spirituality are combined. Development of science and technology alone will not help people to get rid of bad thoughts, bad desires and bad deeds, because science by itself is not competent to sublimate life.
Only spirituality can promote ethical values, the spirit of tolerance and equal-mindedness. The science of spirit is essential for developing human values. Devotion to God is the first stage in the spiritual journey. Instead of developing devotion men are immersed in the "deep ocean" of worldly life. When the Ocean of Milk was churned, the first thing that emerged was. the Halahala, fuming poison. Amrita (nectar) came later. When the ocean of worldly existence is churned, Vairagya (renunciation) will emerge first. The nectar of bliss will come later. Vairagya is renunciation of attachment to the physical and the material. Address at the National Symposium on Value Orientation, at Sri Sathya Sai Institute Auditorium on 24-9-1987.
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