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Source: The Hindu (http://www.the-hindu.com)

 

Devotion, easiest way to please God

 

CHENNAI, AUG. 14. The sincere display of exclusive and unwavering

devotion is the most effective and the easiest way to please God

and to obtain His grace. The highest goal reached through this

path cannot be the monopoly of a caste, or of a particular group,

or of sex or rank or station in life. Nor is this route

restricted to age. Uneducated persons going through the narrow

avenue of toil for their daily bread, can, through this medium,

storm the gates of heaven.

 

Devotion results in the development and perfection of humility

and shedding of one's ego and getting detached from worldly

desires. Such a man's whole joy is to carry out the Almighty's

will, fully realising that he is but a tool in His hands and that

he cannot function independently without His guidance. The

Bhagavad Gita points out how a sincere devotee will remain

unconcerned about mundane affairs.

 

Instances of various persons from different strata clinging to

God's feet without any vacillation are contained in the

thanksgiving prayers of a child devotee in the Bhagavatham.

Prahlada's categorisation of several beneficiaries of the Lord

and the essence of his outpouring has been presented in the

Narayaneeyam verse. The first was that of a butcher, who neither

had scholastic distinctions nor was a strict follower of the

spiritual directives or austerities. But he was absolutely

dedicated to his parents on whom he attended with affection

before taking up his daily sales at the meat shop. He had no

status but practised what is commanded in the Divine revelations.

 

Sri M. R. Nagasubramaniam, in a discourse, next referred to the

child-devotee Dhruva who, even when he was about five years,

``forced'' the Lord to appear before him by his sustaining

efforts. Age was thus of no consequence in his case. The elephant

king, Gajendra, had no education but was able to praise the Lord.

``Let me get rid of the worldly bonds'' said he, presenting the

Lord with a flower in spite of his agony. Vidhura (in the

Mahabharatam) hailed from a lower caste, though he was a minister

and appreciating his sentiments, the Lord visited only his house

when others were waiting to welcome Him to their mansions. A

deformed woman offered sandalwood paste to Lord Krishna for which

He rewarded her by removing her defect. Beauty was of no

significance. Kuchela was a poor scholar and the Lord lavished

wealth on his family. Guha, the hunter chieftain, who was

unlettered and Vibhishana, from a demon race, who discarded all

comforts and surrendered himself to Rama were some among the

others who represented motiveless devotion and God saved them.

 

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