Leela:
Blessed are the people of Shirdi, in front of whose houses Baba stood, as a beggar, and called out, Oh daughter, give Me a piece of bread". In one hand, He carried a Tumrel (tinpot), and in the other, a jholi, a piece of cloth. Everyday, He went from door to door of certain houses. Liquid or semi-liquid things such as soup, vegetables, milk or butter-milk were received in the tinpot, while cooked rice, bread, and such solid things were collected in the jholi. Baba's tongue knew no taste, as He had mastered control over it. Whatever He got in His jholi and in the tinpot was mixed together and partaken by Baba to His heart's content. Whether particular things were tasty or otherwise was never noticed by Baba. It was as if His tongue was totally devoid of the sense of taste. Sometimes Baba visited the same homes more than once and some days as many as twelve times.
The food thus collected was put into a wide earthen jar. Dog, cats and crows freely ate from it and Baba never drove them away. The woman who swept the floor of the Masjid took some 10 or 12 pieces of bread to her house, and nobody prevented her from doing so. How could, He, who even in dreams never warded off cats and dogs by harsh words and signs, refuse food to poor helpless people?
Blessed indeed is the life of such a noble person! People in Shirdi took Him in the beginning for a mad Fakir. He was known in the village by this name. How could one who lived on alms, by begging a few crumbs of bread, be revered and respected? But this Fakir was very liberal of heart and hand, detached yet charitable. Though He looked fickle and restless from the outside, He was firm and steady inside. His way was inscrutable. Yet even in that small village, there were a few kind and blessed people, who recognized and regarded Him as a Great Soul.
Based on Shri Sai Satcharita, The wonderful life and teachings of Shri Sai Baba, Translated by Nagesh Vasudev Gunaji (Mumbai: Shri Sai Baba Sansthan, Shirdi, 20th Edition 2002), p48
Teachings from Leela:
1) Take care of the hunger and thirst of all creatures around you, before you feed yourself
Baba said that if you do not want to give charity, you can politely refuse. However, giving of food and water to creatures in immediate need is not something you should refuse. The feeling of hunger is universal amongst all beings, and each of us must be able to have compassion based on this need. If you sincerely believe that the other creatures are just like yourself how could you possibly deny them? It is important to feed the hungry around you before you feed yourself.
In this leela, Baba wanted to teach us compassion for all beings. There is no point in worshipping God while ignoring the basic needs of the other beings around you.
Contemplating upon this leela, we can both broaden and deepen our compassion and love for other beings. In fact, Baba instructs us here to put others’ needs before our own: “First give bread to the hungry, and then eat yourself”.
2) Love all beings equally
Baba loved all beings equally, including animals. Most of us would be hesitant to eat food which was first eaten by an animal. He let the dogs, cats and crows eat freely from the food he collected as alms and later ate the left overs.
Via this leela, Baba showed us that we must love all creatures equally. We might be comfortable eating left overs from our own kid’s plate, but we still have a long journey to reach that level of love for all, including animals.
3) Pleasures of the senses are temporary and we must eventually learn to detach from them
Baba demonstrated that He had freed himself from attachment to pleasurable taste. Instead of relishing the flavour of each item separately He mixed them altogether. Enjoyment of worldly pleasures increases your attachment to them. Via this leela Baba is showing us the path of detachment which we will have to eventually follow.
Putting into Practice
Here are some suggestions on how we could use this leela in our daily lives.
1) Take care of the hunger and thirst of all creatures around you, before you feed yourself
My Dad used to say, “Where there is daya (compassion), there is dharma (righteousness), and where there is dharma, there is God”.
In this leela, Baba has already provided practical instruction on how to apply the teaching to your own day-to-day life. Use your understanding of your own basic needs as a guide on how to relate to the needs of others. Contemplate on this, from the point of view of other creatures in need, to deepen your compassion. Look for opportunities to put this into practice.
Following this teaching does not mean that you must subject yourself to manipulation by others, or over-extend yourself beyond your capacity. Develop wisdom to tell when the need is genuine, and is a basic need for survival, not a frivolous want. Understand the limitations of your resources and capabilities. (Note 1)
2) Love all beings equally
Practice extending the boundary of your love through bhakti, which is intense spiritual love and devotion towards God. This bhakti for God will eventually lead you to find divinity in all beings and will increase your love for them.
3) Pleasures of the senses are temporary and we must eventually learn to detach from them
Realise the difference between what is permanent and temporary. When we attach ourselves to tastes, likes and dislikes we stay attached to this Maya world which is temporary. First detach yourself from temporary pleasures in life that will help you to attach to the permanent divine God.
Mantra:
Om, Sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ
Sarve santu nirāmayāḥ
Sarve bhadrāṇi paśyantu
Mā kashchit duḥkha bhāgbhavet
Oṁ Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ, Shāntiḥ
Meaning:
May all be prosperous and happy
May all be free from illness
May all see what is spiritually uplifting
May no one suffer
Om peace, peace, peace
This above mantra is from the Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/seekingshanti/2015/09/hinduprayerforeveryone_globalgoals/
I would encourage all of you to please share your interpretations, learnings and experiences on how you have put this leela into practice.
Om Sai Ram.
Note
1) Also see leela 9.5 https://at-the-feet-of-baba.blogspot.ca/2017/04/chapter-9-leela-5-baba-fed-sumptuously.html
No comments:
Post a Comment