A Digest of Paramacharya's Discourses on Saundaryalahari (DPDS – 0

August 2, 2003

I have read the first issue of Professorji’s Digest on Soundarya Lahiry and look

forward to further issues with great interest. I think I must express the

following after reading some of the postings on the subject.

First of all I feel Bhakti is not an action. It is an attitude that takes place

in one as a result of certain knowledge. When it is based on Self Knowledge it

is Nishkalanka Bhakti. Actually Bhakti takes place and Bhakti is not an action.

A jnani cannot be but a Bhakta, as his devotion to Gnanan itself is Bhakti as

Gnanam is nothing but the Ultimate God itself. The Ego of a Realised Person is

an enlightened ego and so long as there is body, mind and intellect for him, and

so long as the realized person also has to live till the body falls for which he

definitely needs to transact with the world that confronts him, Dwaita is there.

With the Adwaita Bhava i.e. attitude, he acts. Bhakti need not mean going to

temples, performing pujas, and even prayer, as they are all Actions. Whereas the

Real Bhakti is not an action it just takes place, and it is such a real bhakta

who is “ “most beloved to me”. While conducting worldly transactions, from such

a real bhakta, sometimes praise of Lord,

whose manifestations only are seen and unseen, pours out as beautiful Stotras,

Music, etc.

The Bhakti of person who is not a Self Realised person, is mostly conditional or

restricted, and it not be the real Bhakti.

There is no wonder such beautiful stotras, and songs, pour out of Real Gnanis as

in they are always immersed in Knowledge.

R.S.MANI

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