Ravi S. Iyer: Spiritual

"New Initiatives of SSS Central Trust - 2, Conversation with Mr. K. Chakravarthi - Part 04", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUQPUABTs9Q , 14 min. 20 secs, published on May 28th 2015. The latter part of the above-mentioned video has very interesting info. on the archival centre and the focus on maintaining & disseminating the MESSAGE of Swami that it will have. I think this is a VITAL, VITAL function of the Central Trust. Generations to come should have an AUTHORITATIVE and COMPREHENSIVE archive, which is easily accessible, of the MESSAGE of Swami on various topics of life, across the decades of His role as the Avatar-JagadGuru, This will be of great benefit not only to scholars of religion, spirituality, Bharatiya (Indian) culture, ethics & philosophy, but also to lay persons. [Ravi: I have given below selected comments, slightly edited, from a related Facebook post of mine here: https://www.facebook.com/ravi.s.iyer.7/posts/1623830134500224 . I have presumed tha...

Given below are the slightly edited contents of a few recent (in the past few days) Facebook posts I made on the topic of safeguarding against other spiritual group(s) unauthorisedly using the HOLY NAME of Sri Sathya Sai Baba. Ethical question of Muddenahalli subtle body/light body using name of Puttaparthi Sathya Sai Baba In a Facebook post, https://www.facebook.com/terry.reiskennedy/posts/10207002748925982 , asking questions of somebody who has recently put up a Facebook post of his miraculous experiences with Muddenahalli subtle body/light body, Mr V.R. Ganti raised the following point (and other points too): Please note that anyone can worship anyone else, including LIGHT BODY and donate as much money as one likes and no one has the right to object the same. However using SRI SATHYA SAI BABA’s name for the above purposes is what really creates the confusion, anguish and the issue that is being faced by many SAI Devotees now. --- end Mr. V.R. Ganti FB post content extract --...

Last updated on 3rd August 2015 Given below are some parts of a conversation from this Facebook post, https://www.facebook.com/urnandakumar/posts/912115322163231   [3rd August 2015: This post seems to have become unavailable/been deleted.] [3rd August 2015, Ravi: I have deleted the Facebook post content and some of the comments from the comment exchange below as I felt those post-authors & comment-authors may have concerns about it being shared on this blog post.] [---Facebook-post-content-deleted---] ----- Ravi S. Iyer wrote: My humble view on the matter (and I could be wrong) is that while Bhagavan SURELY encouraged idol worship (and photo/image worship) and CLEARLY SHOWED that it is NOT WRONG, He also said it is a stage in the spiritual journey from formful aspect of God to formless. A quotation from His discourse, Shivarathri 2002, http://www.sathyasai.org/discour/2002/d020312.html, "Every creature that takes birth in this universe has a form (murthi). Idol...

In response to a Facebook post here: https://www.facebook.com/mafalda.casascordero/posts/836951373040843 , I commented as follows: Viewing somebody whom one has grown to admire and trust as an elder Sai (spiritual) brother or sister, or even mother or father, and getting some spiritual advise from them is fine, IMHO. But going to the extent of viewing them as channels/mediums/communicators of Shiva-Shakti Swarupa, Kali Yuga Avatar, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba is WRONG as per Bhagavan's own instructions & teachings given many, many times in public discourses. Sorry, if the word WRONG sounds harsh, but it is my duty to my beloved Guru, Sathya Sai Baba, to say the truth about what He said in this matter, however disturbing and unpleasant it may seem to some who like to go to mediums & channels & communicators. In this immediate post-Mahasamadhi phase it is natural that many Sai devotees feel a deep void emotionally due to the physical absence of our beloved Lord. Thi...

An extract from the famous book, "Man of Miracles" by Howard Murphet (first published in 1971, with this edition perhaps being dated around 1981) available as a pdf download here: http://www.saicenter.us/books/Sathya_Sai_Books1/Sai%20Baba%20Man%20of%20Miracles.pdf , from page 120: Other psychic happenings reported from here and there include automatic writing, and written messages seen by clairvoyants either in rangoli powder or on plain walls and ceilings. These messages purport to be from Sai Baba. The people closely concerned with such phenomena (at least the ones I have personally met) seem sincere and high-minded. They describe enthusiastically how the messages are used to help the sick, to give ethical training in action and habit, to assist people in distress concerning their personal relationships, their jobs, and so on. So the power at work seems to be a good, compassionate one. But there is, of course, a danger in communication phenomena. For one thing, as occu...

Last updated on 26-Apr-2017 In a facebook conversation I saw a video link to this documentary on Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). Warning: The youtube video link given below has rather graphic content related to both violence and sex. [23-Apr-2017 Update: The original video link mentioned later, seems to have been taken off youtube. Browsed for other youtube video copies of it. This seems to be a copy of that video which I found to be very informative: Shocking full documentary - narcissism / narcissistic personality disorder ( psychology ),  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sG7rvOsE2ws , 47 min. 25 secs. end-23-Apr-2017-Update] "Narcissists - Full |Documentary Full Lenght 2015", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zB2-xdDX9c , 47 min. 25 secs. It is a pretty stark documentary with a lot of disturbing case studies. However, it certainly is very informative and towards the end, does come up with quite an interesting surprise. So, if you can handle some level o...

Last updated on 20th May 2015 [At the outset, if some MDH belief folks are hurt with this post, I am very sorry about it. However, I have no option but to pursue the truth of MDH belief in the light of (physical form) Bhagavan's discourses, as MDH belief has become a MAJOR threat to the mother Sathya Sai organization that Bhagavan PERSONALLY created and nurtured with so much time, effort, emotion, love ... etc. for the benefit of Sathya Sai devotees, or to be more accurate, for mankind as a whole in the decades & centuries to come.] Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba (physical form) said in a discourse on 1st Jan. 2009, the following (rough English translation & Telugu transcript with detailed Telugu transcript, English translation and references given later on in this post): "Krishna also (after) showing many miracles/divine sport, attracting many people, at the end, gave up the body. So, this Avatar (phenomenon), for some limited amount of time, (engages in the div...

Last updated on 18th May 2015 Some comment exchanges from facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10206829857243798&set=a.1627496606106.2082337.1197289954 [Note I have presumed brother Pardha Saradhi Uppala would not mind me sharing his comments on my post as the intention is noble and there is no financial profit motive involved whatsoever. This blog is not monetized.] Pardha Saradhi Uppala wrote (slightly edited to fix a grammar error): "Truth can never be contained. By any organization. Nor any representative", but only one single person in the entire universe can see and hear God? If tomorrow another person comes and announces that he saw a dream where Swami told him that He changed His plans again, shifted His operational base to another town, and starts building even more free hospitals and schools at a much faster rate, starts conducting "Swami's Darshan" saying it is "Subtler Form" (We cannot contain Swami - He can d...

Last updated on 18th Sept. 2020 I have copy-pasted below a message by Chiran Basnet, former student of Alike, Brindavan and Puttaparthi also a former employee of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust for many years, which was put up by SaiBliss on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/saimemories/photos/a.422242711155641.89985.402496529796926/899676170078957 . BONES IN PRASANTHI NILAYAM, SPIRIT IN MUDDENAHALLI? An interesting article By Chiran Basnet, former student of Alike, Muddenahalli, Brindavan and Puttaparthi also a former employee of Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust for 10 years: Here is what he said: At the outset I simply refuse to believe that He left His Bones to us and installed His Spirit in MDH. I am Swami’s student from SSS Loka Seva Trust Alike / Muddenahalli,Brindavan and Puttaparthy. I have also served in Central Trust office for over a decade. I have pretty much seen and been in most of Swami’s institutions. Well, I refuse to accept that our dedication to The Lotus Feet ...