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Down
the devotional lane By Dr. Pradipta Samantray, M.B.B.S. (Cuttack) Om Vishnupad 108 Tridandi Swami Sri Srimat Bhakti Sravan Tirtha Goswami Maharaj ki Jai !!
The path of devotion which Mahaprabhu preached and practiced is the easiest way to attain the Lotus Feet of the Lord. The only requirement is incessant chanting of Hari Naam. The supreme and most intense attachment to God is called devotion; where the heart and mind become completely absorbed and ecstatic in the bliss of love.
1.
How can we attain devotion? 2.
How can the grace of God be attained? 3.
How can the flower of devotion blossom in the heart? i) Recitation of the Name of the Lord: the Name and the Named are not different from each other. While chanting japa, imagine that the ‘named’ or the Lord Himself is dancing on the floor of the tongue. Since the tongue is an organ of action all that has to be done is to train and utilize it to sing the glories of the Lord. ii) Meditation: is a continuous flow of thought in one direction. The eye is the organ of perception and can be used for meditation by visualizing or concentrating on a picture, deity of the Lord or object of devotion. iii) Observation: expounded in the 10th chapter of Sri Bhagawat Gita as Vibhuti Yoga. iv) Logical mind: think about God in everything you know v) Quality analysis: the material world is a manifestation of the combination of the three gunas, Satwa, Rajas and Tamas. All the three gunas (attributes or stages) are controlled by God. vi) Emotional analysis: all emotions and feelings such as kindness, harshness, etc., are manifestations of God’s exposition, hence should be directed towards Him. vii) Realized soul. 4. Who is fit to accept devotion? What are the requirements? When an individual’s heart-felt feelings flow towards the Lord (Sri Krishna), devotion appears by His Grace. There are no requirements except for a strong desire to know about the Lord. There is no specific time or place pertaining to devotion, the Lord can be prayed to or remembered any time, place or by anybody. Psychology underlying devotion: devotion is self-illumined, causeless and does not appear due to fate or karma. Neither yoga, sankhya, charity, penance nor practice of religious rituals can make it appear. It can only be attained by the grace of God or Vaishnava. Devotion is both the process and the goal. It dispels obstacles, fruitless knowledge, ego, attachment and wasteful indulgence. Simultaneously it instils virtues such as truthfulness, simplicity, equality, forgiveness, kindness, patience, humility and detachment.
In
the first stage: Duality
of emotions: In the first stage, there are conflicting dualities
in emotions which may appear in the form of: Obstacles
in the first stage of devotion: There are four basic impediments
in the path of devotion: - Availability
and attachment to worldly enjoyments and expectation of fruits of good
deeds or karma 5.
How can the obstacles be removed? - Constant
and regular recitation of naam The second stage of devotion Once the obstacles have subsided by continuous effort in chanting naam, a steady state of devotion or ‘nishtha’ is reached. In this stage there is a lack of interest for self-honour. Virtues such as friendship, kindness, respect for all etc., manifest. The devotee indulges in singing, dancing in kirtan and hearing Krishna lila. Third stage of devotion The third stage is ‘ruchi’ or taste. Gradual practice of devotion results in attachment to recitation of naam and lilas of Sri Krishna. In this stage, there are two types of devotees: a) Dull devotees: who give importance to sweetness and rhythm of singing of kirtan. Devotion manifests in the form of: offering of Prasad, dressing the deity with beautiful clothes and ornaments; observance of rituals, construction of temples and shrines. b) Intense devotees: like a hungry person who grabs whatever he can get to eat, similarly an intense devotee becomes elated even at a tiny glimpse of the Lord or anything related to Him. H/She is completely engrossed in meditating on the divine ‘lilas’. They feel such pure joy that outside pleasures do not hold any attraction for them anymore. Fourth stage of devotion ‘Asakti’ or deep attachment is the fourth stage of devotion. This is the beginning of the blossoming of the creeper of devotion. In this stage, the mind gets attached and can effortlessly concentrate on the Lord unlike in the first stage, where the mind would easily get distracted by worldly affairs. One understands that everything that takes place is in accordance to the Lord’s will. Fifth stage of devotion ‘Rati’ – this is the state of flowering of innate Godliness. Here the devotee surpasses the state of God realization (mukti) of other disciplines. He begins to experience the divine bliss of association with the Lord. The devotee can hear the sound of the flute, tinkling of anklets and rustling of the clothes of the Lord. His whole being gets submerged in the ocean of love. He believes that all his efforts and existence is only for the Lord. As this stage progresses, blossoms of devotion mature into fruits of love or prema. One becomes completely detached from worldly existence. Love transforms his entire being and the desire to meet Him intensifies. This love and desire draws the Lord to the devotee. Friends, family and daily work seem burdensome. As the intensity in the desire to interact with the Lord increases, the Lord appears before the devotee’s eyes. His beauty cools the devotee’s thirsty eyes, tears flow incessantly, the body starts trembling and the hair on one’s body stands on end. The devotee can hear the Lord calling and is completely engulfed in ecstasy when the Lord embraces him. This is the supreme state to be achieved in the long sojourn of the ‘jiva’ through millions of lives. All the above experiences do not appear serially, but simultaneously. As the full moon rose to acme over our heads as if to shower divine blessings on us, we realised that in our relentless journey through many lives, it is our devotion to the Lord or to the Guru that can lead us to the ultimate goal of life – prema bhakti. We paid obeisance to Baba and prayed to Him that by His Grace, we are able to begin our humble journey down the devotional lane.
Jai Guru !!
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