Peace:

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Peace Ceiling on Desires
2
Light Meditation
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Selfless Service Review

• Spend the first ten minutes to review the
  Selfless Service study circle and supplemental
  materials
• What were the techniques you used?
• Spend a few minutes to share experiences from
  last weeks Sai Challenge. Share any insights as
  well as difficulties encountered during the
  challenge.

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Introduction to Ceiling on Desires

• Before discussing Ceiling on Desires we must
  understand what desires are. Desire is
• defined as, a longing or craving, as for
  something that brings satisfaction or
• enjoyment.
• Desires tend to mislead us into believing that
• They will disappear if once fulfilled
• Satisfaction can be gained through their
  fulfillment
• Swami insists that both of these beliefs are
  false
• Men do not realise that as their desires
  increase, their happiness diminishes.
• There is no limit to desires. They multiply like
  ants in an anthill. There is no
• sense of satisfaction, however much one may
  possess or enjoy.

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Introduction to Ceiling on Desires (cont)

• Reduction of desires leads to the cultivation of
  peace, one of the core human values.
• Swami says Desires are like luggage which is a
  heavy burden in the journey of life. Less luggage
  more comfort makes travel a pleasure. Therefore,
  gradually reduce your desires. If you have less
  luggage, you will be more peaceful.
• Ceiling on Desires is a tool to help reduce
  desires by
• placing limits on the usage of four key
  resources
• Food,
• Money,
• Energy, and
• Time.

In the Sathya Sai Organization, a fourfold
program of ceiling on desires has been laid down.
This enjoins on everyone not to waste food,
money, time and energy. Avoiding waste of these
four forms of gifts from God is spiritual
saadhana. It is the means to Self-realization. T
he Ceiling on Desires Program was decided upon at
the Tenth All India Conference of Sathya Sai
Organizations in November 1982.
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What is Ceiling on Desires?

• Food
• Avoiding wastage. Swami says, Dont waste food.
  Food is God. Eat as much as it is necessary to
  eat. But do not throw away food by taking too
  much in your plate.
• Consuming less. Swami says, Mitha thindi, athi
  hayi. Moderate food gives immense ease.
• Money
• Avoiding avaricious accumulation and excessive
  expenditure. Swami advises that, A man should
  own only as much wealth as is essential. It is
  like the size of his shoes. If the shoes are too
  loose, he cannot walk if they are too tight, he
  cannot wear them. Too much money is a torture
  rich people will agree with this judgment.

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What is Ceiling on Desires cont?

• Energy
• Conserving energy. Swami says, Dont waste
  energy. Energy enters into every one of our
  actions. When you see, speak, hear, act or think
  energy is expended. In every one of these
  activities you should see that you do not waste
  your energies unnecessarily.
• Time
• Avoiding time waste. Swami exhorts, Do not waste
  time. Time wasted is life wasted. Time is God.
• Spending time in sacred activities. Swami says,
  We should try to make time our servant. It means
  spending our time in good thoughts and good
  deeds.

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Why is Ceiling on Desires important?
A short story to illustrate the point. There
lived in ancient Greece a king. One day, while
walking in his garden, he saw an elderly satyr
asleep in the flowers. Taking pity on him, the
king let him go without punishment. Hearing about
this, God Dionysus rewarded the king with one
wish. The king hastily said, I wish that
everything I touch should turn to gold." And so
it was. When the king approached and touched
the beautiful flowers in his garden they stood
rigid and golden. The king grew hungry and thin,
for whenever he tried to eat, he found that his
meal had turned to gold. His lovely daughter, at
his loving touch, turned hard and fast to gold.
His clothes, his bed, his friends, and eventually
the whole palace was gold. The king feared his
whole kingdom would turn to gold unless he did
something right away. He asked Dionysus to return
everything the way it had been and take back his
golden touch. Dionysus took pity on him and
granted his request. Instantly, the king was
poorer than before, but richer, he felt, in what
really mattered. This king was none other than
Midas.
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Why is Ceiling on Desires important (cont)?

• The moral of the Midas story is that desire
  without limits can lead to ruin.
• On an individual level, desires left unchecked
  translate to loss of peace.
• Swami says, How is peace to be secured? Only
  when desires are reduced will peace be secured.
  As desires grow, peace is lost.
• On a global level, uncontrolled desires can lead
  to natural calamities.
• Swami warns, Nature is more progressive than
  man, and to protect Nature, man has to exploit it
  within limits. When man tampers with Nature
  recklessly, it reacts adversely and trouble
  arises. In order to protect Nature, man has to
  practice ceiling on desires. He should not
  trigger the negative aspect of Nature.

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Why is Ceiling on Desires important (cont)?

• A few examples of negative global effects that
  result when desires are left unchecked
• Food
• Obesity affects 31 of US population
• that is one in three people
• Health problems diabetes, heart disease, etc
• Over-production leads to waste
• Energy
• Greenhouse gas emissions ? global warming
• Weather effects, e.g. Katrina, tsunamis, etc
• Oil crisis

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Discussion Questions

• Of the four resources mentioned (food, money,
  time, or energy), which is most challenging for
  you to place limits on?
• How has the discussion so far changed your
  perspective on desire and the need to limit
  desires?
• Discuss one situation where you applied a ceiling
  on your desires and how you felt. What was the
  result?
• Would you use organic products? Why or why not?
• How can we limit all our desires and be truly
  desire-less?

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Swami Says

• It should be realized that every organ in the
  body has a limit to what it can do. It is
  dangerous to use it beyond that limit. This
  applies to almost everything in life.
• Desire is the consequence of identification with
  the physical frame. Give that up and you are
  given up by desire.
• The mind becomes bound with attachment when it
  dwells upon an object, or desires it or dislikes
  it. To get free from such bondage, the mind
  should be trained not to dwell on any object or
  desire it or dislike it.
• You have to cut short your desires day by day.
  You are under the mistaken notion that happiness
  lies in the fulfillment of desires. But, in fact,
  happiness begins to dawn when desires are totally
  eradicated.

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Techniques for practicing Ceiling on Desires

• Food
• Eat in moderation by avoiding taking more than
  you can eat on your plate
• Offer food to Swami before you eat. Do not waste
  food offered to Swami
• Time
• Constantly inquire whether the activity you are
  engaged in is the best use of your time
• Money
• Consider ways to conserve money, e.g. preparing a
  home-made lunch instead of eating out
• Open a piggy bank with saved funds to regularly
  give to the needy (in some form)
• Energy
• Avoid unnecessary talk. Swami says, Unnecessary
  talk should be avoided as this results in waste
  of energy and reduction of memory power.
• Practice silence after bhajans

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Sai Challenges

• Challenge yourself. Take up one or more of these
  Sai Challenges and keep track of it until the
  next study circle
• Food
• Swami says we should eat such that 50 of our
  stomach is filled with food, 25 with water, and
  25 with air for digestion. Try eating according
  to this suggestion
• Reduce your portions for lunch and dinner. Eat a
  healthy breakfast
• Time
• Wake up immediately as your alarm goes off dont
  snooze
• Limit your time in the shower to ten minutes or
  less
• Money
• Identify your needs versus wants. Ask yourself if
  a purchase is a need or a want if it is a want,
  try not to buy it
• Energy
• Identify and eliminate one energy wasting
  activity in your routine each week
• Reduce, reuse or recycle instead of throwing
  things away

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Extreme Sai Challenges

• Food
• Swami says, People can live longer and more
  healthily, if only they eat the minimum, rather
  than fill themselves with maximum.
• Eat very small meals and throughout the day
• Fast once a week. Take juice and fruit if you
  cannot fast on water alone
• Time
• Time phone conversations so they do not go over a
  fixed limit, e.g. 5 minutes
• Wake up thirty minutes earlier and utilize the
  time saved for sadhana
• Money
• Keep just one credit card and recycle the rest
• Make a list of your monthly expenses and cut out
  all non-essentials
• Energy
• Speak only when absolutely necessary and avoid
  gossip
• Replace all your light bulbs with energy
  efficient bulbs. Try to be conscious of energy
  efficient appliances

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Next Steps

• Take first 10 minutes during the next study
  circle to recap Ceiling on Desires
• Practice Sense-Control, Leadership, Unity of
  Thought Word and Deed, Discrimination, Selfless
  Service, and Ceiling on Desires, building from
  previous study circles
• Share experiences on how the week(s) after this
  study circle was different by practicing Sai
  challenges ensure that a holistic picture is
  obtained by sharing both challenges and successes
  
• Try to incorporate the Selfless Service sub-value
  in your efforts to observe Ceiling on Desires and
  discover similarities between the two sub-values
• Practice Ceiling on Desires considering it an
  important step as an Ideal Sai Youth, with the
  goal of uniting with Swami and His mission

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There is some small confusion of terms, for
there is no mind as such. The mind is a web of
desires. Peace of mind is no desires, and in
that state there is no mind. - Conversations
with God, p.44
JAI SAI RAM