Meeting Him

I had a dream few weeks ago. It was a short dream. Sathya Sai Baba appeared in my dream. He was standing a few metres away from me, in a long flowing white robe and omniscent afro hair. He was smiling widely at me. Then his hand beckoned me towards him. Then he blessed my head with his both hands. Exactly the same way which the lamas would have done. And then I woke up. It was about 3am.

It was a very clear and vivid dream, as if he was there at that moment. I was confused and mystified. I know nothing more about Sai Baba beyond recognising his face. I know him as a certain God or sage whom many Hindus worship. I wondered about the meaning of this dream. Why him? I don't know him. I am a Buddhist. He is from a "different" religion. My Master told me: "You are very blessed, my dear. Buddha can come to you in any Form. You get the meaning?"

I scrambled online to read about him. I learnt that Sathya Sai Baba is a popular, controversial Indian guru who has millions of followers in many countries. He is an avatar (incarnation) and an embodiment of love with divine powers such as omniscience and omnipotence. He is said to manifest vibuthi (white holy ash) from his palm and materialise small objects like rings and watches daily. Even his pictures can grow holy ash. His followers reported many spectacular miracles of many kinds that they attribute to Sai Baba. He preaches the unity of all major world religions and says that they all lead to God. I also read that we can only dream of Sai Baba only if he willed it.

He was the reincarnation of Shirdi Sai Baba, another popular sage. His next incarnation will be Prema Sai Baba, who will be the manifestation of the future God/Buddha/Messiah, Maitreya. When God incarnates in a human form, He always comes cloaked in an illusion-based disguise which prevents immature souls from recognizing Him as an Avatar. Buddha, Krishna and Jesus also had their disguises.

On hindsight, prior to this dream, before meeting Sai Baba that night, I could not sleep, so I was listening to the Sanghata Sutra. Buddha has said that wherever the Sanghata Sutra is established, all the Buddhas are also present. So perhaps I had indeed met Budhha, through Sai Baba that night.



"As the bee collects nectar and departs without injuring the flower, or its color or fragrance, so let the sage dwell on earth." - Buddha

The Ultimate Romance

Love is a choice,

which means I don't have to wait for a chemical reaction

or years of bonding to give myself that feeling.

I can choose to love you right NOW.

-Barry Neil Kaufman

Note:

Bodhisattvas are those who choose to love ALL beings NOW- without attachment. For those of us who can't love all NOW, may we first choose to love those close to us NOW - for the growth from a simple love to great unbounded Bodhicitta love has to begin from NOW. There is no better time, no other time.

生老病死

Today was a weird day. In a matter of 24 hours, I heard news of birth, old age, sickness and death (生老病死).

Today was the 2nd birthday of my friend, Veggie's son. They came back for a visit a few weeks ago and just went back to Dubai. Her husband was posted there. I saw through my friend, the joy of having a baby and treating him as the ever precious gem she has ever possessed. As she experienced the joy of motherhood, we marvel at how a little gentle human being can bring with him so much hope and happiness of the future for his parents and to those who dote on him.

Today my mom's leg was in pain again. She is suffering from Osteoarthritis, also known as a degenerative joint disease or "wear and tear" arthritis. Almost everyone is affected by it to some extent as they grow older. And often the No.1 symptom is deep and aching pain. My mom has had knee cap surgery on her left leg about 2 years ago on her left leg. Now the right leg is also in pain. She will be going for the second surgery in Jan 2006. As I observed my Mom's slight limping and her face screwed up in agony at any slight movement, it pains me to see that she is indeed getting on in age. I often think when can I ever afford to give my Mom the luxuries in life.

Today I heard that my niece's babysitter has to undergo surgery. There was a tumour in her womb, which must be removed as soon as possible. We don't know if it was benign or not. And she is barely 50 yet. And her own younger brother who is only 40 has been diagnosed with brain cancer and he was undergoing treatment. He has been given 6 months to live. Why must human beings always suffer from some illness some time or another in life? When can we escape from the suffering of this samsaric existence?

Today, my aunt's mother passed away at the grand old age of 90. Seeing her lying there in the coffin, she looked calm and beautiful. She passed away peacefully. Just the day before, my aunt visited her at the Home. She had refused to eat her favourite fish porridge. Someone quipped: "Her spirit is not willing." However after some time, she pointed to the porridge, and she took 2 spoonfuls of it and stopped. She also sucked on her favourite Menthol sweet. Then my aunt wheeled her to the prayer room. She said her prayers and did the cross sign. My aunt said it was the first time she saw her mom do that. Normally she would just say her prayers. Her mom was a born-again Catholic. It was as if she knew her time had come.

Karma

If people suffer because of their own negative actions, does that mean that we cannot or should not do anything to help them?

Not at all! We know what it is like to feel miserable, and that is exactly how another person who is experiencing the results of his own destructive actions feel. Out of empathy and compassion we should definitely help! That person's present predicament was caused by his/her own actions, but that does not mean that we stand by and relax and says "Oh that's too bad. You poor thing."

Do not think karma in an inflexible way. Yes, that person created the cause to experience that diffculty by his own actions, but maybe he also created the cause to receive help from us! It does not matter whose pain or problem it is, it should be removed. We should not try to rationalise our own laziness or apathy by misinterpreting cause and effect. A sense of compassion and universal responsibility are important for our own spiritual development and for world peace.

Adapted from "I Wonder Why" by Thubten Chondron