Sai Baba on Book-Learning

(A short Essay)

As a young woman, I was very impressed with intellectualism.  I would read many esoteric texts and think I was very informed.  The more obtuse, the more challenged I was to parrot the contents.  Happily, getting married and raising a family quickly revealed that book-learning could not save me from mundane reality, nor raise me to the heights of bliss.

Our Beloved Lord, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba said, “Reading is not enough, you may master all the commentaries and you may be able to argue and discuss with great scholars about these texts; but without attempting to practice what they teach, it is a waste of time.  I never approve of book-learning; practice is what I evaluate.”

When my three children were small, all born within a year of each other, I had not heard or read about Sai Baba.   Due to my increased commitments, I had little time to read.  This turned out to be a boon, however. I had to re-educate myself.

According to Puttaparthi Swami, the Embodiment of Love, “Education is no book-worm affair; the process must include the study and appreciation of all trades, professions and guilds. It must encourage the acceptance of the good and the rejection of the bad.  Spiritual education is not a distinct and separate discipline; it is part and parcel of all types and levels of education.  In fact, it is the very foundation on which a lasting edifice can be built.”

When I encountered these words, later in life, I saw the flaws in the system of education that I had been exposed to.  Everything was based on grades and grades alone.  Those with the highest scores were the winners.  But Sathya Sai Baba was teaching something entirely different.

He also noted, “There are two evil sirens that entice youth into futility and frivolity, diverting them along the paths of ruin.  One of them is called Dame Cinema and the other is named Dame Novel.  The film contaminates and corrupts; it pollutes young and innocent minds; it teaches crime, violence and greed; it destroys the basic humanness and degrades it into bestiality.  Even ochre-robed monks are steadily dragged down to sin by its insidious influence.”

And there I was, a child of Hollywood and TV star worship.  No wonder I was unprepared for the challenges of family life.  These “stars” smoked, drank, partied, indulged in endless cosmetic surgery, and dressed like dolls.

Our nearest and dearest, ever-forgiving and understanding Lord, said, “You read these great books, the Ramayana and the Bhagavata Gita many times for they are now easily available at a cheap cost.  But what proof can you give for having profited by the hours that you have spent with them?  To digest the food you have taken you have to engage in some physical activity.  To digest the lessons that you imbibe through holy company or through the study of great books, practice them in daily life.”

By the Grace of Guru Sai, my focus in maturity is practice, practice, practice…..