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126 SPIRIT AND THE MIND
Perhaps I can begin by describing the impact and meaning of my first experience of Sai love. Throughout my personal and professional life, I had been searching for peace of mind, how I might achieve this for myself, and help with its achievement by others. After treating thousands of people and going through my own treatment in the course of my education, I came to realize that basic questions still weren’t answered by Western psychology. Although many patients were brought through crises and felt better emotionally, there was still uncertainty, worry and unresolved suffering in their lives. Still unanswered were such basic spiritual questions as, “Who am I in the vastness of this infinite universe? Why am I here? What is the purpose of my life? How shall I lead it?”
I could see that Western psychiatry did not know the answers. Neither I nor my patients had the deep sense of peace and protection in our lives that one would hope to find in a close relationship with a loving, caring God. Of course, very little is said about God in Western psychology; to entertain the possibility of His existence is generally regarded as just a pipe dream.
I began to see the confusion in my field evidenced by the superabundance of therapists and the multiplicity of competing techniques and approaches. Many psychological theories developed within the past seventy-five years challenged central spiritual teachings that had survived for thousands of years. New therapies seemed to come and go like adolescent fads, and though some appeared to help in the short run, how would they stand the test of time? I began to wonder if there was a genuine authority around: someone who really knew, some safe place to put one’s trust. Was there a Master amongst psychotherapists, someone at a higher level of consciousness who could satisfy my thirst for answers about spiritual questions? Had anyone really ever seen a miracle?
“Have you ever seen a miracle?” People I asked simply scratched their heads, and I don’t doubt they thought me a bit off balance. But I was seriously looking for a concrete sign that would be more reliable than the empty theories of noted scholars.
It wasn’t long after I began asking for a miracle that I heard about Sathya Sai Baba. How sweet he is to respond to the genuine pleading of his devotees.
I came to India full steam ahead, enthusiastic and set to demand