Urgent Communication from National Devotion Wing, thru Central Council on Mahashivaratri Festival OM SAI RAM

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1 OM SAI RAM To: Copy to: All Devotion Coordinators of Regional Coordinating Committees, All Chairpersons of Regional Coordinating Committees Urgent Communication from National Devotion Wing, thru Central Council ICW the Dear Brothers & Sisters, Loving Sai Ram to all of you. 1. Kindly acknowledge receipt of this & 2. Kindly pass it to ALL Devotion Coordinators of the Sathya Sai Centres & Sathya Sai Devotional Groups in your Region, with copy to their Chairpersons. God has incarnated on earth many times. But so far, He has incarnated as a Purna Avatar (with all His powers manifested) only twice and that is in the Forms of Shri Krishna and Bhagavan Shri Sathya Sai Baba. Of the billions of people who were on earth during the Advent of Bhagavan Baba, only a few have been chosen to be aware of His Divine Presence, to be part of His Divine Mission, to be able to have His Darshan (visual Blessing), Sparshan (Divine Touch) and Sambhashan (Divine Speech). Shri Krishna gave the Bhagavad Gita (Song Celestial) only to Arjuna whereas Bhagavan Baba gave His Divine Discourses in public for one and all. He spoke in Telegu but got it translated on the spot and under his own correction for the benefit of all mankind and to ensure that there are no misinterpretations later on. How fortunate and blessed indeed are we, not only to have been contemporaries of the Purna Avatar on earth, but also to be a member of the Sathya Sai Organisation which has as its head, founder and Guru, GOD Himself! This is not a matter of coincidence or hazard, even if in some cases it may appear to be so. Swami has Himself said that He has prepared us for many births so that we may be with Him in this birth. Page 1

2 Now, dear brothers and sisters, it is indeed our great responsibility, as members of the SSIOM, to put His Teachings into practice in our daily life and as office bearers, we must have implicit faith in His Teachings and do our level best to implement them in our Sathya Sai Centres and DGs, for the benefit of all. The is fast approaching. Unfortunately, most Hindus in Mauritius associate this festival mainly with the pilgrimage to Grand Bassin, missing the essence of the festival itself. Swami has clearly explained in His Divine Discourses that on the Great Night of Shiva (Maha Shivaratri), one must keep awake as, in a whole year, it is only on this night that one can have full control on the mind. Attached is a compilation of short extracts of Divine Discourses on Mahashivaratri, where Swami has clearly described the importance of keeping awake on the night of Mahashivaratri, reciting the Lord s Name. In this connection, the National Devotion Wing, along with the Central Council, is encouraging all Sathya Sai Centres &Sathya Sai Devotional Groups of Mauritius to celebrate the Mahashivaratri night as recommended by Sai Shiva Himself. All Devotion Coordinators and Chairpersons must read this compilation and explain its content to all the office bearers and members of their respective Centres and DGs, motivating and inspiring them to follow Bhagavan s words with explicit faith, for the benefit of all. All the Regional Devotion Coordinators are very kindly requested to: 1. Pass this communication to all the Sathya Sai Centres & Sathya Sai Devotional Groups in their regions. 2. Ensure that they have well received it. 3. Do a follow-up of action that will be taken by each Centre/ DG. 4. Report about the above (no.3) to the National devotion Coordinator on this address :jayajit99@intnet.mu, by the 12 th February at latest. Page 2

3 IMPLEMENTATION Duration Ideally it would be most beneficial if eachcenter / DG could do a 12-hour programme, i.e., from Friday 24 th ebruary 6 pm to Saturday 25 th February 6 am. However, if this is not possible, then Either 2 3 Centres and / or DGs join hands and do it together at one venue, Or Each Centre and DG must do at least 2 3 hours of Bhajan singing (commonly called Kirtan in Mauritius) on the Great Night of Shiva, as recommended by our Lord Himself. Please kindly note that it is strongly recommended to avoid mixing with or having joint programmes with any Shiwala, Mandiram, Kovil, Temples, or any other religious group as sooner or later problems will arise (as it has happened in the past) as, while we will want to stick to Swami s teachings, they will not, at some point of time. Proposed Pogramme for the Night of Mahashivaratri It is highly recommended to do Bhajan singing for 12 hours, as used to be done when Bhagavan Baba was in His physical Form and as is still the practice even today at PrashanthiNilayam. Centres and DGs may also vary the programme slightly as follows: 6 pm : Vedic Chanting GanapathiPrarthana, - Rudram (Namakam&Chamakam), - SwastiVachakam 6.45 pm : Puja * 7.30 pm to 5.30 am : Bhajan Singing Page 3

4 At 9 pm, midnight, 3 am and 5.30 am, we may sing the LingaAshtakam, BilwaAshtakam (1 or 2 other Ashtakams on Shiva) [Kindly note that same will be taught at National level on sat. 04 and 11 Feb. at 3.30pm and on Sun 05 Feb at 11.10am at Wootun], while doing Abhishek on the Lingam (i.e. each person places a Bilwa leaf on the Shiva Lingam, while pouring some water on it. Each one can do it preferably only once, not at all four times.) 5.30 am : Sing Ashtakams on Shiva and do Abhishek 5.45 am : Om Tat Sat, 1 minute silence, AsatoMaa Prayer 5.50 am : Short Pravachan (Spiritual Talk) or a short Video of Swami s Divine Discourse on the occasion of Maha Shivaratri (available on demand) 5.55 am : MangalaAarathi 5.59 am : Vibhuti Prayer 6.00 am : Instrumental Music (All leave in silence, carrying the vibrations along with them) Puja * - Kindly note that we may AT MOST do only one Puja only, IF we wish to. We should minimize rituals nad avoid doing the char Peher Puja in our centres/groups as far as possible, for the following reasons:- 1. Rituals should be minimized in the Sathya Sai International Organisation. 2. When one person does Puja (or Hawan or Yajna), he alone is reciting the prayers, but the mind of most of the people present, is roaming around, unable to concentrate with undivided attention. Whereas when one person leads a Bhajan, all are repeating the Name of God in chorus and this creates lots of positive energy. Even if we do so mechanically, the good vibrations are created. 3. As swami Himself had said, "The recitation of the Names of the Lord will help to purify the atmosphere as a result of the sacred sound waves getting absorbed in the atmosphere. The power of the sound waves is evident from the way radio Waves are transmitted and received over long distances. The atmosphere that has been polluted by impure sound waves can be purified by chanting the Page 4

5 Divine Name. Likewise, sacred thoughts, pure speech and pure actions will purify other polluted elements. There is no better purifying agent than this." Sai Baba. SS. 4/92. p. 71 Let us also remember how the thief Ratnakar had become the great sage Valmiki (and wrote the Ramayana even before the Advent of Lord Rama on earth) by the mere repetition of the word mara (to kill), and which eventually became Rama (ma ra ma ra ma ). Venue Please kindly avoid Shiwalas, Mandirams, Kovils, Temples or any place associated with any particular religion, as far as possible. In the Sathya Sai International Organisation of Mauritius : Centre Activity Manual, it is clearly mentioned that Sai activities should usually be held in venues not associated in the public s mind with a particular religion as the SSIO is a spiritual Organisation open to all spiritual aspirants who have faith in the teachings of Bhagavan Baba (Charter of the SSIO). So, if your Sai Centre / DG is found in a Shiwala, etc. and that you have no other venue, then let it be so for the time being, until concrete action is taken with regards to the ideal venue of Sai Centres/ DGs. So, dear Brothers and Sisters let us all, 1. With full conviction in the efficacy of the Name of the Lord, 2. With full faith in Bhagavan Baba s words 3. With full determination and dedication, do our utmost best to organize and spend the Great Night of Shiva, the Maha Shivaratri Festival, singing the Glory and Names of our beloved Sai Shiva. Page 5

6 If you have any doubt, problem, queries, etc, please kindly do not hesitate to contact us (details given below). We shall indeed be glad to clear any possible misunderstanding, misinterpretation or confusion. Thanking you for your cooperation. In Loving Service of our Lord, Sister Jaya Koonjul, National Devotion Coordinator Brother Vishnu Ramdin, National Chairman, Central Council Brother Rajendranath Sham, Vice Chairman, Central Council Brother Vinay Gunnasya, National Secretary, Central Council You may contact us as follows: Sister Jaya Mob. No. / WhatsApp / Viber : Tel. : jayajit99@intnet.mu Brother Vikesh Mob. No. / WhatsApp : Brother Sham Mob. No. / WhatsApp : shamrs@intnet.mu Brother Vinay Mob. No. / WhatsApp : g_hemmant@yahoo.co.uk Page 6