Festivals
and Events
Christmas
The birthday of Jesus Christ is celebrated
on the 25th of December every year with lot of devotion and
enthusiasm. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born on this
day to propagate the message of Love and Sacrifice. Baba says
that on this day, one should rededicate oneself to practising
the message of Jesus, mere worship or adoration is not enough.
The Christmas celebrations are characterized by choirs and
cultural programmes by the overseas devotees and students
hailing the birth of the ‘Son of God’ and recapitulating
various episodes from His glorious life and His teachings.
Excerpts from
Bhagawan’s Discourses:
“Christ determined to make the giving
and sharing of love His main objective in life. Such love
was met with many obstacles and losses. Christ considered
a true man to be one who could face obstacles and move forward
in love. Don't give in to losses and pain. Don't be carried
away with pleasure. Face everything with equanimity.
Christ could never see suffering passively.
In Jerusalem, doves were sold and killed as an offering. Christ
decried the violence committed towards the poor creatures.
He began to undertake the holy task of stopping such violence
and freeing the captive birds. Some men began to cast aspersions
on Him, and tried to punish Him….for good is always
followed by bad as a shadow. For pleasure, difficulty is a
shadow. All opposites are interrelated. Pleasure and pain,
profit and loss, co-exist. Christ went on pursuing his path
in the face of many obstacles with strength and endurance.
He dedicated His life in the service of men and propagation
of love”.
- Divine Discourse: 25 December 1995
“Where there is love, there is no room
for hatred. Do not be envious of anyone. When this evil quality
appears, love takes to flight. A pure heart is the abode of
love. Where there is purity, there is unity. Unity leads to
divinity.
Today, purity is absent. How, then, do you
realize Divinity? You must offer everything to God without
any desire. Dedicate your all to God. This was the teaching
of Jesus. He considered everything as an offering to God.
When He was being nailed on the cross, people
around were weeping. At that moment, an ethereal voice declared,
"All are one, My dear Son! Be alike to everyone."
Jesus declared, "Death is the dress
of life." Just as we change our clothes, so we change
our bodies. The bodies are vestures (for the indwelling Spirit).
Hence, bodies should be regarded as mere vestures. We should
not worry about the body.
How many heed to such sayings? You must learn
to lead ideal lives. That is the right way to observe Christ's
birthday. Few care to observe the ideals of the great teachers.
Christ was the victim of envious persons
who were opposed to His teachings and who leveled accusations
against Him. Devotees of God should not mind the criticisms
of envious persons. All good people have to face such troubles.
They should treat everything as meant for their good”.
- Divine Discourse: 25 December 1997
“Develop love of God. All other forms
of love are not love at all, but only fleeting and impermanent
attachments. Man's biggest folly is forgetting his Divinity.
All should realize that they come from God. All are children
of God. Everyone should seek to get nearer and nearer to God.
That is spiritual practice (Sadhana). You must feel that God
dwells in your heart. You must develop compassion in the heart,
because without it, the heart is only a stone.
That is the message of Jesus: The message
of love. Love is God. Live in love. Start the day with love.
Spend the day with love. End the day with love. This is the
way to God. Only the person who is filled with love will be
dear to the Lord.
Today, devotees from many countries are here.
Whatever happiness you may have experienced here, you must
sustain that when you go back to your countries. That is got
by God's grace. You can get it through love and love alone.
When you have that love, your proximity to God is ensured
forever.
- Divine Discourse: 25 December 1996
“Today, Christmas is celebrated in
many countries. In every country, small groups of people go
to their respective churches, listen to the sermon, and return
to their homes. In some places people eat, drink, and make
themselves merry. But nowhere in the world can you find Christmas
being celebrated with the solemnity and holiness found in
Prasanthi Nilayam. Here are gathered men and women from all
countries. There are many denominations among Christians,
and the members thereof celebrate Christmas in their separate
ways. Only in Prasanthi Nilayam do Christians of all denominations
and men and women of other faiths join to celebrate Christmas.
All of them work in unison. Here is a concrete manifestation
of the Brotherhood of Man and the Fatherhood of God”.
- Divine Discourse: 25 December 1994
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