fwd: Devotion alone matters to God

[Guest guest]

Devotion alone matters to God

 

29-12-1997 :: Pg: 24 :: Col: c

 

Cl: Religion

 

CHENNAI, Dec. 29.

 

The path of devotion has been hailed in the

scriptures as the one which can be followed by

all. A perusal of the lives of saints shows that

great devotees of God have appeared in all walks

of life. Like the honey bee which is attracted only

to the nectar of the flowers, saints remain steady

in their devotion to God and the goal of

liberation. This is the reason that Satsangh

(company of the God-realised) has been

recommended for spiritual aspirants to develop

one-pointedness of mind.

 

For those on the spiritual path the guidance and

grace of the Guru is the turning point in spiritual

life. Even though the devotee has to follow the

spiritual practices and do his best to progress on

the spiritual path it is the Guru who can really lead

the aspirant to the summit of spiritual experience.

 

The spiritual tradition asserts that there is no

necessity to go in search of a Guru. The Guru

appears in the life of an aspirant at the right time

when his mind has become pure enough to merit

the grace of God. It is enough to abide by the

scriptural injunctions prescribed for one's station

in life which will ensure steady progress spiritually

and the Guru will appear at the appropriate

moment to guide him along the path to realisation

of God. What is most essential is absolute faith in

God and the yearning for His grace in the form of

the Guru.

 

In his discourse Sri Muralidhara Swami said that

God Himself interceded in the life of His devotee

at the right time. Kabirdas, a great devotee, was

greatly attracted to the Hindu spiritual tradition

though by birth he was not one and was drawn to

saint Ramananda, whom he recognised as his

Guru. Every day he used to stand outside the

gates of the saint's Ashram since he could not

muster enough courage to enter the premises with

the fond hope that his presence would be noticed

by his disciples who would convey the matter to

the saint.

 

Days rolled on and his wish remained unfulfilled.

At last God Himself decided to intercede. The

saint while going out for his bath overheard the

idols of Rama and Lakshmana in his worship

speaking to one another, to the effect that they

should leave the Ashram because a great devotee

had not been welcomed there.

 

The saint who was not aware of Kabir's daily

visit to his Ashram found him weeping on the

banks of the river and in the darkness of the

morning hour stumbled on him and invountarily

utterred ``Rama''. Kabir fell prostrate at his feet

in gratitude for he received this utterance as his

initiation and the touch of his Guru's feet as the

greatest blessing and became a great saint in due

course. Such was his devotion and faith.

 

--

Happy Holidays,

Shree

--------------------------

email: shree

satsangh: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/8891/

bhajans: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/4637/