The Lover's Life - 9a

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"tri duHkha sahanaM dhairyamA mRteH sarvataH sadA

<br>takravad dehavad bhAvyaM jaDavat gopabhAryavat" (6)

<br><br>Chapter Five <br><br>Perseverance. <br><br>Perseverance

is to endure <br>the three types of pain until

death- <br>at all times and in all ways. <br><br>To do

this, consider the body to be like buttermilk- <br>and

understand the spiritual situation of king Bharat, <br>as

well as the divine condition of Gopis of Vrindavan.

<br><br>Reflections: <br><br>The lover endures every pain for the

Beloved. Worldly affliction comes from the body, spiritual

adversity arises from the senses, while divine distress

surges from the depths of the soul. <br><br>Sometimes,

suffering comes because of an examination, to test the

lover's fortitude, to make her stronger. At other times,

pain may come from past karmas. There is also the

divine suffering; it is a special award. It can come

because of the lover's unfulfilled desire to be with the

Beloved. It could also arrive because she desires to

present Him something that is beyond <br>her reach. These

are lila trials and well from the love-filled heart

towards Hari. <br><br><br>Whenever any of these

three-fold afflictions occur, a disturbance can arise in

either the body, senses or soul. If not contained, they

can become detrimental to the lover's seva, her

divine pleasing service, the Beloved Practice. But, in

circumstances when the lover endures, when she lives for her

Beloved's sake, she prevails. <br><br>See worldly pain in

the example buttermilk. In India, butter milk is made

from yogurt. Water is first added and then it is

churned until the butter separates from the watery yogurt

mixture. After the butter is removed, what is left is

called buttermilk. It is considered to be "with-out

essence", that is without butter. As the buttermilk does

not feel any pain or loss of pride over the

<br>butter being removed from its substance, in a similar

way, the lover never feels any deficit from any

worldly situation, regardless of how she is churned. This

balanced view is maintained in loss or gain, whether it be

in regards to wealth, wife, children, friends, or

other associates. If worldly agitations create a gulf

and distance from the Beloved, the lover remembers

how the butter milk was churned and then without any

sense of ownership, abandoned the butter and never

thought of it again. <br>If the lover is insulted,

treated unfairly, or if she is in any negative situation

that arises because of contact with samsara, the mayic

creation, she reflects upon the butter milk. The butter

milk was beaten and robbed of it essence yet felt no

pain or loss. The butter milk was happy to be fat

free. <br><br>The only butter the lover requires is

unconditional love. It is the true substance and can not be

stolen. Once tasted, it makes everything else seem

unrelated. She finds nourishment in exalted relations with

other Hari lovers. Blessed associations, satsang

enhances her relationship with the Beloved. They are found

in this world but are not worldly. She recognizes

them and welcomes their nectars of devotion. They are

cherished. Affliction can also arise from the senses, when

they are agitated or <br>when they hanker after

something without understanding the nature of impermanence.

They also become disturbed with anger and jealousy. To

deal with discursive senses that disregard the

Beloved, the story of king Bharat should be remembered. He

never forgot his Hari bhava throughout his difficult

and unusual journey.