Bhakti-Prapatti anology to marriage

[Guest guest]

Perhaps another way of looking at Bhakti and Prapatti is the instance of a

great human tradition "Weddimg."

 

Bhakti is sort of an arranged marriage. First you study hard to get a good

respectable job. Avoid all religious inclinations (this means not being true

to yourself), for eg., keep your mouth shut at Shattumorais-because

participation in those will only impress pattis and not their pothis and

would only guarntee a Shashti sappad and not your wedding to a rich, fair,

tall, slim, professional girl from a reputed family with both Eastern and

Western values.

 

Thus, after leading a delicately balanced quarter of a life, with Gods grace

will get to marry a girl of your dreams. Not so simple. After numerous teeter

tattering (Twancha-hunchas) an agreement is reached, muhurtham is fixed and

changed numerous times because some pullaikku or ponnukku relative has

aashowcham or some other ananukoolam. Worse yet some distant pullaikku mama

finds fault with the somavara muhurtham (Thinggakkilimai kalyanam koodadu)

fixed by the best of the purohits of bride side which was formally agreed by

the groom side. But this mama (who was hybernating all these years) vaakyam

thaan shruti. Still a long way to go for the wedding. All these delays will

leave only an hour after the reception to make it back to the mid-night

flight back to the USA. The three weeks time after wedding you had allowed to

get to know your heart mate was consumed in the twancha-hancha yagna. But the

important thing is everyone unconcerned including the vadyagaran, kadai

chettiar, budubudukevan and the kole Basavan. are happy.

 

After arriving in the States to an empty apartment. Life is as usual for at

least three more years, the normal time for a spousal immigrant visa. These

three years are worse than the earlier 25 or 30 years. Finally the bride

joins three years older and now the real communion interrupted by overseas

calls day in and day out. one such call brings the sad news of the demise of

your wife's almost mother like aunt or patti. She is back to India again.

Life goes on and finally you both learn to live happily for ever. This is

Bhakti marga.

 

Prapatti margha, is that punk who runs into this most beautiful girl in the

sub way and hit it on- love and marriage at first site and they remain

happily married for ever. Most people do not even know when they met, how

they met, where or how or when they got married etc. This is Prapatti

marga.

(Direct dive into an inseparable love affair at age 18, just as the charama

shloka in the chapter 18 of Gita)

 

K. Sreekrishna