GOAL of
DEVOTIONAL SERVICE
All of us are
all like bullocks in the field with a rope through our noses. We move only as
He decides who holds the end of the rope in His hands. This life is not ours
but His. Protect is therefore as His and
never forget this. Under Maya’s spell the spiritual spark is almost
extinguished but by devotional service can it be revived. Bhakti is eternally
existing within everyone. It simply has to be evoked by hearing, chanting etc.
The Jivas are in truth the Lord, the master of bodies and all things. We
imagine that we exercise free will, but only God decides every moment of our
life.Even Devas are eager to be born as humans in Bharata. It is in such a
birth that all Purusharthas are realized, which even Gods find difficult to
attain, for in Bharata Varsha, the land of sacred rites ,more than in any other
realm the Lord blesses those who worship Him. It is only in a human body that
Jnana and Bhakti can evolve. The cause of our resent misery is the lack of
knowledge about our true everlasting internal joy, the want of constantly
feeling His Nearness. To experience it is supremely pleasant, causing highest
bliss and supreme joy. He is the indweller and true friend. Making offerings to
Him amounts in watering all branches, leaves of a great tree.He always protects His Bhaktas wherever
they are.We have always eternal ecstasy in our hearts but chase after unreal,
slight pleasures and bind ourselves in births after births. Those who try to
harm His Bhaktas will themselves perish. (Example is Jada Bharata whom He
protected from Rakshasas who wanted to sacrifice him).
Until we realize our unity with the Lord our
devotion and love will not be supreme.”Cast off all desires of the mind, be
satisfied in the Self by the Self.” ( Bhagavad Gita 2. Disc. V. 55) Life, death
and what comes after are determined only by each beings Karma. No one causes
anothers joy or sorrow but only he
himself and his Karma. To hear about the
Lord, to imbibe His message and follow it is the unloosening of the Karma-screw.The
Lord alone is performing all actions. We are mere spectators.
Reality is that we are always near our
beloved Lord, but as long as we identify ourselves with the body and live in
the illusion of holding the body for the Self we are very far from Him. His
love is our birthright. Never forget
Him,not even for a moment. Always try your utmost never to remain without Him. Remembrance of
Him within our heart is the goal of devotional service. But alas, the Jivas
of Kali are so much under Maya that it is almost impossible to do any Sadhana
without Kripa. We always run after material objects and fleeting pleasures, bind ourselves into
births and births. Undying joy is our natural inheritance. One who has true
knowledge does not live in the body although he has it, like unto one
awakening after a dream. Lord Yama explained to the Kinkaras Bhagavatam):”The
Lord transcends all. No Jiva can comprehend Him or even remotely imagine Him although
He dwells in their very hearts, rules their lives and every breath they take.”
The highest Dharma is Bhakti and Bhakti alone, and the greatest is enshrined in
His Name. His grace is upon those who take His Name. His Kaumodaki protects
them. He makes His nearness felt in diverse ways: sometimes He manifests
Himself but we take it for a dream or something else. His Name builds up a
transcendental sheath for the soul to retain the thinnest possible Ego. Those
who do Kirtan or Japa of the Lord’s Names derive the merits of all austerities,
all sacrifices of baths in sacred waters and study of Vedas. Who totally surrenders becomes entirely under His
influence and protection. Maya can’t affect him, all differences are wiped out.
When a Jiva sincerely surrenders and says “from this day I am yours” he gets at
once out of Her clutches. Just as rivers lose their name and form after
entering the ocean so a devotee his individuality when he merges himself in the
Lord. Even an atom of desire or egoism should not be there. The Self unfolds when the
Ego disappears. Once Self-realization is attained the Ego loses all its
significance, the world of diversity is transformed into perfect oneness. Our
surrender must be perfect and unreserved to evoke Lord’s grace. A mind which
constantly thinks of the Lord dissolves into Him. From Him all beings have
sprung, in Him they live and eventually enter. BhaKtas see all beings as equal,
part of themselves. They renounce attachments, hate none, are celibate, keep
silence, see God in all things everywhere.
It is His desire
to see us all in real bliss. From eternal
Bliss we came and to that we must return (vide Divinity of Haranath the
crazy)””.Joy is to be had only from Atma whose very nature is blissful. One
must be passive, inward and abstain from all Karma to have the Atman emerge
into one’s life and consciousness. Man
always has the eternal ecstasy of his
soul in his heart but chases after unreal, slight pleasures which bind him into
birth after birth. What he seeks within him is nearer to him than himself.
(This the Avadhuta Dattatreya told Prahlada).His will prevails, our wishes
don’t count in the least. Why should we worry? He, whose work it is will do the
thinking. Nobody can stay here when ordered to leave nor can any one go without His permission. His will is
unfettered, men and all creation are under His orders.Our comings and goings
are depending on His will. Let us always
remember that we do not exist for our own sake but for His sake. No garb is
ours. As soon as the play here is finished we are back to the womb, weep
bitterly and beg for forgiveness, for our forgetfulness . When we get a little
worldly advancement we may even forget the Lord. None can stay when ordered to
leave nor can anyone go without His permission. His will is unfettered. Never
forget Him, the owner and prime cause of
everything. Absolute surrender to His Name and faith in its unlimited power can
solve all problems relating to the spiritual world. What then about trifling
problems of this world?Calling any of His Names is the highest penance, the
final expiation for a sinner. No Tapasya, Yagna, purifies a criminal’s heart
like uttering His Name fervently, the effect of which lasts long after Nama
Japa. Repeating His Name is like the most potent herb for a sick man –
it cures. It is as good as associating with God Himself. The Ego loses all its
significance once self-realisation is attained. The world of diversity is
transformed into perfect oneness. This happens within, not externally. Once we go beyond the body we are egoless, become consciousness,
formless. What greater penance is there but Name? The more we progress the more
the sense of I and Mine will be effaced.Devotional Service is the eternal life of us Jivas. It is
lying dormant in everyone’s heart and
simply has to be evoked by the process of hearing and chanting.We are the
Lord’s eternal servitors, devotional Service is the only path. Highly elevated
devotees see the Lord in everything, they are always anxious to do something
for Him, everything must be connected to Him. They are always confident and
keep themselves busy to achieve the highest goal. Bhakti generates nectar which
drops from the palate. It is intoxicating. A few drops stop hunger and thirst
for 6-7 days and keep the body greasy and strong. It makes one unaware of the
external world but fully aware of the internal. If once Prema is generated in
the heart of a Jiva he swims in an ocean of unfathomable bliss which never goes away.He said to
Uddhava: “Surrender body, heart, mind and soul, your very being for I am the
eternal essence in every embodied being. Surrender and you shall find my Grace
and pass beyond fear forever.
13th May 2018
Ruth Baur
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