The Consituent Units of Dharmaskhetra

Satyadeep

Satyadeep, literally meaning ‘The Lamp of Truth’, figuratively meaning ‘The Light of Divinity’, is the Abode of Baba in the city of Mumbai. It was inaugurated by Him on the auspicious Buddha Poornima Day of May 12, 1968, as the International Centre of His Mission on the eve of the First World Conference of Sri Sathya Sai Organisations. Over the next 41 years, Baba blessed these hallowed precincts with His Divine presence and stay on 42 occasions. This beautiful lotus-shaped edifice was constructed in exactly 108 days. It has 18 pillars symbolizing the 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Geeta. The 16 petals of the lotus shaped Satyadeep symbolize the 16 Kalas or attributes of the Poorna Avatar.

Divine Residence and Meditation Hall

The ground floor, which houses the Meditation Hall, has 1008 openings. One the left side of the Meditation Hall are five murals of the Pancha Bhutas (five elements)- ether, wind, fire, water, and earth. On the right side are murals that convey the five eternal human values of Satya (Truth), Dharma (Righteousness), Shanti (Peace), Prema (Love), and Ahimsa (Non-violence). The Divine Residence of Baba is on the first floor.

The lotus is considered sacred in Bharatiya culture. Surrounded by water on all sides, the lotus shape of this holy haven conveys the message of spiritual purity and the blossoming of human personality and potential.

Sarva Dharma Aikya Stupa

The 40-feet high Sarva Dharma Aikya Stupa is the tangible symbol of the message of Unity of Faiths majestically stands atop the Dharmakshetra Hill. It is the first such Stupa established anywhere in the world by Baba on May 11, 1975- as a prelude to His 50th Birthday celebrations.

Each of the symbol etched at the bottom of the stupa provides a universal message by itself:

Om (symbolizing Sanatana Dharma)

Listen to the primeval Pranava AUM resounding in your heart as well as in the heart of the Universe

Wheel (symbolizing Buddhism)

Remember the Wheel of Cause and Consequence, of Deed and Destiny and the Wheel of Dharma that rights them all

Fire (symbolizing Zoroastrianism)

Offer all bitterness in the Sacred Fire and emerge Grand, Great and Godly

Star and Crescent (symbolizing Islam)

Be like the Star which never wavers from the Crescent but is fixed in Steady Faith

Cross (symbolizing Christianity)

Cut the ‘I’ feeling clean across and let your ego die on the Cross, to endow on you Eternity

Dashavatar Murals

Right next to the Sarva Dharma Stupa are the 10 murals signifying the ten incarnations of Bhagavan Vishnu as extolled in the scriptures. While the Vedas, Puranas and Itihasas have elaborated in detail each of their lives and message, Baba has paraphrased their life’s mission into single sentences that give us a powerful message:

Matsya

Recover the Treasure of Wisdom from the Deluge of Doubt

Kurma

Live Unattached as Master of Here and Hereafter

Varaha

Carry the burden of Duty on the Twin Tusks of Discipline and Devotion

Narasimha

Do not let your Ego hide the Glory of God

Vaman

Offer yourself at the Lotus Feet of the Lord and win His Grace

Parashuram

Learn the Lesson of Surrender or Suffer

Rama

What one meets in life is Destiny and how one meets it is Self-effort

Krishna

Strive to become an Instrument in the Lord’s Hands

Buddha

Perfect yourself so that you may aid others to perfect themselves

Kalki

Build the mansion of life on Truth, Righteousness, Peace, Love and Non- violence

Anand Kutir

Adjacent to Satyadeep is Anand Kutir, a guest house that hosts senior devotees and officer bearers of the Organisation on several occasions. It has a kitchen, a dining hall and half a dozen residential rooms for short duration stay. In the by- gone decades, Baba had hosted several senior devotees for special lunch and dinner sessions on various occasions during his visits to Mumbai.

Garden, Murals, and Yajna Shala

The garden next to Anand Kutir is filled with beautiful murals and statues of great personalities from Indian culture and spirituality – savants and sages, devotees and prophets, Avatars and Acharyas, whose lives have continued to inspire humanity for several centuries and millennia. It also houses the Yajna Shala where scores of Yajnas (fire rituals) have been performed based on strict Vedic guidelines over the decades with the single objective of universal peace and wellbeing of humankind.

Manav Abhyudaya Kshetra

Inaugurated by Baba on January 26, 1985, it houses the following units

Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Mandir

Sri Sathya Sai Vidya Mandir School was inaugurated on June 19, 1970. Over the years, the Marathi medium school has been gradually upgraded. In 1975, the School was raised to secondary level. The first batch of the School appeared for the SSC examination of the Maharashtra Board in 1987.

The curriculum is broad-based, and the students have regularly performed well in several inter-school competitions. Students are prepared for arts and crafts, music and dance, plays and public speaking, games and physical education. The distinguishing feature of the School is the emphasis given to inculcation of human values. All teachers at the School have undergone an intensive course on the teaching of Sri Sathya Sai Human Values programme. The integrated ‘Experiential Learning’ curriculum encourages creativity, intuition and values inculcation among the students.

The School and its classrooms are equipped with latest technology, along with facilities of library, computer education, and co-curricular activities.In the by-gone decades, on all his visits to Dharmakshetra, Baba took keen interest in the School and would often interact with the students. They have performed plays and gymnastics and have even organised exhibitions in his physical presence.

Gyandeep

Gyandeep was inaugurated by Baba on May 11, 1995. It acts as a venue for holding meetings and training programme sessions for a variety of activities of the Trust and the Seva Organisations.

Pragnya Deep

Inaugurated on the occasion of the 80th Birthday of Baba in 2005, it is designed to house a permanent exhibition on the life and teachings of Baba.

Sri Sathya Sai Wellness Centre

It is the last major project approved by Baba. Activities commenced at the Centre from 2015, the year of Baba’s 90th Birthday Celebrations. The Centre is dedicated to holistic development and wellbeing of an individual with a focus on physical, mental, intellectual, and spiritual domains of the personality.