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"LOVE ALL SERVE ALL" "HELP EVER, HURT NEVER" Sai Baba

Knowing The Changeless

Change is a must. In fact, there are always changes in our lives, within us and in the world around us. Unfortunately, we are not always conscious of these changes and have given little time to contemplating upon them.

What is changing in our lives? The biggest change that we experience is in our own self. Our body is going through lots of changes, and we experience emotional and mental changes too. Our thoughts are also changing rapidly, such that Baba says “thoughts run faster than the wind”.

Our feelings are changing regularly. Today we may like something that we may not like tomorrow. People, situations, things, our surroundings, and our feelings towards all these are changing whether we like it or not. Sometimes we are put in situations we never wanted to be in, and other times there are situations we wish never to come out of.

Changes are often beyond our control. Personal relationships change, family members grow up and start their own lives, they develop new relationships, and some depart from this world before us. Changes inevitably come to our lives.

Necessary changes are constantly taking place around us. For example, if we only had sunshine and no night we would not enjoy our sleep and would never appreciate our day. So it is good to have this daily change.

But why should we be interested in knowing about change? Since we are all looking for happiness we must reflect on where this happiness is to be found. Many of us look for happiness in the outside world. And why not! However, the truth is we cannot find lasting happiness in an impermanent world, a world full of changes.

We all know the world is the biggest stage where we all are actors. We all have different roles in life, but each one of us has to ensure that we do not get attached to any role. If we do we are bringing trouble upon ourselves as our roles keep changing. We cannot hold on to any particular role otherwise we will never progress in life. We will never evolve, we will never discover the truth.

Life must have its changes:
A baby is born, only when the baby body grows can we see the change.
Only when the baby becomes a child, can we see the change.
Only when the child becomes a teenager, can we see the change.
Only when the teenager becomes a young adult, can we see the change.
Only when the young adult becomes beautiful/handsome can we see the change.
Only when the beautiful/handsome adult becomes a parent, can we see the change.
Only when the parents become grandparents, can we see the change.

When these grandparents become old there eventually comes an even greater change called death. No matter how well we take care of our bodies with good diet and proper exercise, still the body will decay. Death is a must just like change is a must.
Whether we like it or not we have to accept change. We have to accept it but we need not get attached to the changes.

In truth, most changes that come in our lives are for our own inner growth and for our spiritual evolvement. The changes within us will eventually make us know Him, who is Not Changing.

When man gains wisdom and awareness he witnesses what is changing and what is not. Through these changes man will eventually realise the changeless. And if he holds on to that changelessness he will reach his goal, his ultimate destination.

In order to get there we have to practise a few exercises: to practise silence, to be a witness to our own thoughts and feelings, and be detached from the world around us. We have to learn to know our higher Self and this can be achieved through meditation. It is only with this knowledge of the higher Self that one gets self-realisation.

If I refer to ‘my thoughts’ that means I am not the thought but that I am different from it. When I say ‘my feelings’ I acknowledge I am different from my feelings. My thoughts, my feelings, my body, my mind … if we remove the ‘my’ then all thoughts, feelings and body have no importance.

So who is this I? In order to know this I, one must look beyond the changing and seek out the I. The CHANGELESS is none other than GOD Himself. Call Him God, Light, Atma, or whatever pleases you but just remember to constantly focus your thoughts on the CHANGELESS.

Baba says “God is One, unchanging, everlasting. A mind filled with yearning for God will see the ONE in all. It will remain unaffected by the smiles and sneers of fortune.”

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