Sathya Sai Baba. Supernatural Experiences and Divine Transformation. Book Three

44. Unity of Self and God

The essence of the teachings of Jesus Christ is love for one's neighbor. In the famous words of Jesus Christ about the need to love your neighbor as yourself, there is an important detail, which consists in the fact you should first accept and love yourself. Only the person who can first love himself can show love for others.

In order to love yourself, you need to see God not somewhere far away in heaven, but in your spiritual heart. Hating yourself means hating the God that is within your heart. To hate your neighbor is to hate the God in his heart.

A person who hates himself cannot show love to others. That is why it is first necessary to reveal God in your own heart and love yourself; only then is it possible to take the path of service and truly show love to others.

The highest part of the teaching of Jesus Christ is the realization of unity. Jesus Christ said that not only was he able to gain unity with the Heavenly Father, but absolutely every person who follows the spiritual path can have this experience.

Only he who follows the teachings of Jesus Christ and who embodies the principle of direct communication between himself and God and who loves himself and shows love to others is a true Christian.

The highest manifestation of a true Christian is the realization of God in one's own heart. Jesus Christ told his disciples: “you will know that "I" am in my Heavenly Father, and you are in me, and "I" am in you” (paraphrase John 14:20). In these words, he once again confirmed that as a result of passing through the spiritual path, each person will discover the greatest treasure, which is unity with God.

45. Sathya Sai Baba on the three stages of the spiritual path of Jesus Christ

Sathya Sai Baba said that only a few were able to realize the most important part of the spiritual message of Jesus Christ, which he preached to all mankind. The most important part of the teaching of Jesus Christ is that God is the original nature of the soul of every person – God is the True Self of every person.

Sathya Sai Baba also said that people should accept Jesus Christ as their spiritual guide, follow his example, and go through the same stages of the spiritual path that Jesus Christ went through.

Passive worship of the Savior, following the formalities of church tradition, or using outward symbolism is not enough to be a genuine Christian. Jesus Christ himself told his disciples that they should follow him.

Sathya Sai Baba explained that in the beginning Jesus Christ realized he was "the messenger of God." After that, he realized he was "the son of God." At the highest stage of his path, he realized his oneness with God. These three stages of the spiritual path are universal; every spiritual seeker passes through them.

Sathya Sai Baba advised people to stop perceiving Jesus Christ as the greatest object of worship and accept him as their spiritual guide and example on the spiritual path. It may seem that this is too strong a statement. We are accustomed to think that Jesus Christ is the greatest world teacher, the only son of God, originally perfect and divine.

How can we accept him as an example for our spiritual path? The philosophy that Sathya Sai Baba expounded may be difficult for some Christians to accept. Quite a lot of people tend to perceive Jesus Christ as the originally perfect Godman.

Sathya Sai Baba pointed out that Jesus Christ was a truly unique person, and that he was born with a special divine mission. However, Sathya Sai Baba showed that initially Jesus Christ did not have the fullness of self-realization; he gained it as a result of the path of meditation and prayer.

Having gained the highest spiritual realizations as a result of intense spiritual practice, Jesus Christ set a great example for everyone by showing with his life that in order to gain spiritual experience intensive spiritual practice of meditation and prayer is necessary.

In order to uncover the greatest treasure of the spiritual heart, it is important to practice, and not just philosophize on spiritual topics. Jesus Christ said that the Kingdom of God is taken by force. This famous phrase signifies the need for intense spiritual practice. He also proclaimed that the kingdom of God is in the hearts of people. This means that the vector of spiritual movement is directed exclusively to the inner world.

46. The real Jesus Christ who walked the earth

In our time, "Biblical Science," which studies the life of Jesus Christ and the first Christian communities from the point of view of historical science and archaeology is actively developing. This is a truly unique and interesting topic. Who was the real Jesus Christ and who were the first Christians?

In many ways, the image of Jesus Christ, and the information about him that we have now, was formed under the influence of the development of church tradition. The important question is: what were Jesus Christ and the early Christians of the early centuries really like?

It is very important for modern people to know about the real life of Jesus Christ, and to collect as much information as possible about his life and teachings, as well as about the spiritual life of early Christians. The ideas we have about Christianity today took shape several centuries after the life of the historical Jesus Christ. In a later era, churches began to form, which sometimes created their own concepts about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

What was the real Jesus Christ like? What was his life, spiritual path, and true philosophy?

In modern Christianity, there is no knowledge of reincarnation, while in the early centuries, Christians knew perfectly well about the process of reincarnation of the soul. Another important fact in the life of Jesus Christ was that he lived part of his life in India, where he studied philosophy and meditation, but later this invaluable information was hidden from people.

Now we know quite well about the male disciples of Jesus Christ, but among his disciples there were also women, in particular Mary Magdalene. What role did she play in the community of disciples? Was she a chief disciple, or perhaps even the wife of Jesus Christ?

What difference does it make for us as Christians to assume the family life of Jesus Christ? Is his mission diminished if it turns out he was married and perhaps even had children? Of course not. The great spiritual message of Jesus Christ about love and searching for God in one's own heart does not change in any way, even if we can find evidence about his family life.

Another big topic is the relatives and especially the brothers of Jesus Christ. Perhaps his main student was his older brother, James, whose life and work was later silenced. After all, it was Jacob, the brother of Jesus Christ, who led the Jerusalem church and the first community of disciples.

47. Jesus Prayer

In his lectures, Sathya Sai Baba often spoke about the spiritual power of the practice of chanting the holy name of Jesus Christ. During one of the Christmas lectures, Sathya Sai Baba quoted wonderful words from the Apostolic Letters, which say that everyone who prays with the name of Jesus Christ will be heard and saved.

Sathya Sai Baba said there is a wonderful and simple way to practice the prayer of Jesus Christ, which is the constant repetition of his name: "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus."

Sathya Sai Baba said at the very beginning of the spiritual path, it is difficult for a person to repeat a short prayer, i.e., just the name of Jesus, because the mind requires something more complex. Therefore, you can practice a longer version of this prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me."

Sathya Sai Baba said if any other words of the Jesus Prayer appear in your heart, then trust your feeling, for God will guide you along the right path through intuition. The prayer that is more suitable for you can resound in your heart.

There are various assumptions about what the prayer to Jesus Christ looked like at the very beginning of the development of the Christian tradition. There is an assumption that the first generation of Christians prayed to Jesus Christ by saying his holy name: "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus," or "Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ."

This original form of prayer and meditation in the name of Jesus Christ is identical to that which Sathya Sai Baba spoke about. It is this simplest form of meditation that invokes presence and blessing in the strongest way. In this version of the prayer, you do not ask for anything, you simply chant the holy names.

In later times, a prayer arose that sounded like this: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me." Much later, the last words: "Have mercy on me a sinner," were added to this great prayer. This completely absurd phrase that speaks of "sinfulness" is contrary to the teachings of Jesus Christ himself, who preached the divinity of every person.

Of course, on the path of life we all make mistakes, but fixing our attention on sin is extremely wrong. We make mistakes, which we learn from, and then we move on in our spiritual development. All possible mistakes made on the path of life are experiences from which lessons are learned with gratitude. If you fix your attention on the fact that you are allegedly sinful, then by doing so you direct your energy there and create an even greater opportunity for aggravating sin, thus forgetting about your original divinity.

One of the greatest spiritual teachers of India in the 19th century, Ramakrishna, said the greatest sin is to consider a person a sinner, because every person is divine.

Sathya Sai Baba also preached that every person is divine and can discover his nature as a son or daughter of God and even reach the same level of union with God as himself.

48. Simultaneously God and Man

Some people ask, why in the Jesus Prayer do we say, "Lord Jesus Christ" and then add "son of God?" Some see this as a contradiction. But there is no contradiction here because this phrase points to the dual nature of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was a man, but at the same time he is God. He is a historical figure, but at the same time a symbol. That is why his name consists of two parts, Jesus and Christ. Jesus is a symbol of human nature, and Christ is divine nature.

It is important to understand these two natures: human and divine, are present not only in Jesus Christ, but absolutely in every person. Everyone carries in his mind the divine and human nature.

The practice of repeating the names of God is very ancient and is used in both the Vedic and Biblical traditions. All the power of God is contained in His Holy Names. That is why the Lord's Prayer says: "Hallowed be Thy Name."

In the science of Kabbalah, there is a practice of repeating seventy-two names of God, and in the Vedic tradition, the practice of repeating one hundred and eight, as well as one thousand and eight names of God. The name of Jesus Christ has great spiritual power, as do the names of the other greatest teachers of the world, such as Krishna and Buddha.

I pay great attention to the practice of lucid dreaming, as it is an important source of spiritual information and experiences. Sathya Sai Baba came to me many times in my dreams and gave me various spiritual instructions and blessings. These experiences are extremely vivid and they profoundly transform the spiritual state. I know many people get the opportunity to meet Sathya Sai Baba in dreams and receive blessings and answers to important questions from him.

During one of my mystical dreams, I heard a prayer to Jesus Christ, which was different from how this prayer is written in prayer books. This prayer began to resound in my dreams more and more often, so I began to practice it during the day: "Lord Jesus Christ Son of God, I am grateful to You for Your Grace.”

In this prayer we turn to Jesus Christ both as God and as the Son of God. It is important to realize that within each of us there is simultaneously a divine and human nature.

This wonderful prayer is in gratitude to Jesus Christ for the personal experience of receiving Divine Grace, which he bestows on every person. What you thank God for happens fast. This prayer is not a request for Divine Grace, but gratitude that we have already received the greatest gift of Divine Grace. We thank God for already blessing us.

This prayer is just my personal, mystical experience. Everything I say on the pages of my books about the spiritual path, all my stories and thoughts are my personal experiences and opinions. I share only my observations, experiences, and insights. If any of my discoveries and realizations seem useful to you, use them. If something seems doubtful and unnecessary, just leave it.

The practice of this prayer has transformed my spiritual state and changed my energy. By repeating this prayer, I feel the presence of the Christ Consciousness, both in the depths of my heart and in every person with whom I come into contact in life. The Christ Consciousness is impersonal and present in the hearts of all, shining in the eyes of every person.

49. Sathya Sai Baba had breakfast at Robin's house

This story was told to me by Robin, an American whom I met at the ashram. By that time, he and his family had long been devotees of Sathya Sai Baba and had visited India several times. In America, in his homestead, Robin decided to make a meditation hall. When friends who were also devotees of Sathya Sai Baba came to him, they practiced meditations and mantras together.