Kanchi Maha-swamigal's Discourses on Advaita Saadhanaa (KDAS-65)

[Guest guest]

Namaste.

 

For a Table of Contents of these Discourses, see

advaitin/message/27766

For the previous post, see

advaitin/message/33245

 

 

SECTION 49: BHAKTI OF THE PATH OF JNANA SUPERIOR TO

BHAKTI OF THE PATH OF BHAKTI (Continued)

Tamil Original: http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/dk6-123.htm

 

 

On the other hand what about saguNa-bhakti? There is a tremendous scope

in it for branching off into new and newer types of tastes and methods of

exhibitions according to the attitudes that spring up towards the

saguNa-mUrti who keeps performing ever-new miracles and leelAs.

 

Over and above all, it is here that the relationship of love shows its

exhuberance. A relationship of Love of the Jiva with the nirguNa brahman is

like setting up a rapport with one who is in the samAdhi-nishhTA, who is

unaware of even the strike of lightning on him! On the other hand with a

saguNa-mUrti it is possible to direct our bhakti through a relationship with

Him in several ways as the Lord, as a Son, as a Mother, as a Friend, as a

Husband. And that attitude shows up in multifarious actions like dancing,

singing, bhajans, sankirtana, pilgrimage, festivities, discourses etc. The

lifeline of this path is to do bhakti and so all this is done very

consciously.

 

As the crowning glory of it all, the recipient of this bhakti, namely, the

Lord Himself, does react to it. Maybe He does not do it to all devotees.

But to those who have reached some peaks of excellence, He gives darshan, He

performs varied miracles and reciprocates with a Relationship of divine

love towards them that is million times richer than their own bhakti

towards Him. Sometimes He makes them cry in despair, He scolds them to the

extreme and among all this crying and faulting, He showers His nectar of

Love through His divine play! Just to hear stories and songs of such LeelAs

of His towards these devotees - that itself gives a great bliss, to all

others, of companionship with Him. Even to all of them He keeps pouring His

Grace, rather subtly, but certainly in a way that imprints itself in their

minds and reminds them of His proximity to them.

 

Thus the bhakti-bhAva shines explicitly even when one is only having a

dualistic relationship with the saguNa brahman and this is the reason for

this being called a bhakti path and the one doing this being called a

bhakta.Accordingly the two are distinguished from a jnAni and the jnAna

path.

 

However when it comes to a self-effacing offering to the Absolute it is the

jnAna-pathfinder that soars higher than the bhakta of the bhakti path.! The

bhakti path-finder certainly has extinguished for himself the ego as far as

the worldly matters are concerned. Even within himself his own mental

inclinations have mellowed his ego. However, deep within himself, there is

the ego which is the taproot for the existence of the Jiva; he has not

willed to extinguish that. For doing bhakti, for enjoying that experience of

the blessed qualities of the Divine, for the bliss of tasting that

relationship, he thinks he has to have that individuality of his Jiva-ego.

Earlier we distinguished between ahamkAra and aham-bhAva. Of these only the

latter has been sacrificed by him, but not the former.

 

Therefore, though it is in the bhakti literature that surrender has been

emphasized, the bhakti pathfinder, instead of making a total self-effacing

surrender, he surrenders only part of his self and has kept the remaining

ego of the JivAtmA for the purpose of experiencing the paramAtmA. It is not

a total surrender. It is the jnAna-path-finder, who does not use such words,

but who has offered his JivAtmA as a camphor in the Fire of the Absolute.

This is the true and complete Atma-nivedanaM, SharaNAgati, Bhakti , Prapatti

etc.

 

Bhakti is thus the most internal accessory for the achievement of advaita.

And the Acharya has chosen the words pregnant with this meaning, when he

says: *mokSha-kAraNa-sAmagryAm bhaktireva garIyasI*.

 

 

 

(To be Continued)

PraNAms to all students of advaita.

PraNAms to the Maha-Swamigal.

profvk

 

 

 

 

 

 

Latest on my website is an article on Kanchi Mahaswamigal. Go to

http://www.geocities.com/profvk/VK2/Jivanmukta.html

[Guest guest]

Pranams Prof-ji

Thank you for your wonderful series on the

MahaAcharyals work.(Thank you also for bringing to us

Swami Paramarthananda-jis words from the T.Up)

 

May we never forget Acharyals words:

 

"Bhakti is thus the most internal accessory for the

achievement of advaita.

And the Acharya has chosen the words pregnant with

this meaning, when he

says: *mokSha-kAraNa- sAmagryAm bhaktireva garIyasI*."

 

Humble prostrations to the Sage of Kanchi.

May His Grace ever bless us all.

 

Shyam

 

--- "V. Krishnamurthy" <profvk > wrote:

 

> Namaste.

>

> For a Table of Contents of these Discourses, see

> advaitin/message/27766

> For the previous post, see

> advaitin/message/33245

>

>

> SECTION 49: BHAKTI OF THE PATH OF JNANA SUPERIOR TO

> BHAKTI OF THE PATH OF BHAKTI (Continued)

> Tamil Original:

> http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/dk6-123.htm

>

>

> On the other hand what about saguNa-bhakti?

> There is a tremendous scope

> in it for branching off into new and newer types of

> tastes and methods of

> exhibitions according to the attitudes that spring

> up towards the

> saguNa-mUrti who keeps performing ever-new miracles

> and leelAs.

>

> Over and above all, it is here that the relationship

> of love shows its

> exhuberance. A relationship of Love of the Jiva

> with the nirguNa brahman is

> like setting up a rapport with one who is in the

> samAdhi-nishhTA, who is

> unaware of even the strike of lightning on him! On

> the other hand with a

> saguNa-mUrti it is possible to direct our bhakti

> through a relationship with

> Him in several ways as the Lord, as a Son, as a

> Mother, as a Friend, as a

> Husband. And that attitude shows up in multifarious

> actions like dancing,

> singing, bhajans, sankirtana, pilgrimage,

> festivities, discourses etc. The

> lifeline of this path is to do bhakti and so all

> this is done very

> consciously.

>

> As the crowning glory of it all, the recipient of

> this bhakti, namely, the

> Lord Himself, does react to it. Maybe He does not do

> it to all devotees.

> But to those who have reached some peaks of

> excellence, He gives darshan, He

> performs varied miracles and reciprocates with a

> Relationship of divine

> love towards them that is million times richer

> than their own bhakti

> towards Him. Sometimes He makes them cry in despair,

> He scolds them to the

> extreme and among all this crying and faulting, He

> showers His nectar of

> Love through His divine play! Just to hear stories

> and songs of such LeelAs

> of His towards these devotees - that itself gives a

> great bliss, to all

> others, of companionship with Him. Even to all of

> them He keeps pouring His

> Grace, rather subtly, but certainly in a way that

> imprints itself in their

> minds and reminds them of His proximity to them.

>

> Thus the bhakti-bhAva shines explicitly even when

> one is only having a

> dualistic relationship with the saguNa brahman and

> this is the reason for

> this being called a bhakti path and the one doing

> this being called a

> bhakta.Accordingly the two are distinguished from a

> jnAni and the jnAna

> path.

>

> However when it comes to a self-effacing offering to

> the Absolute it is the

> jnAna-pathfinder that soars higher than the bhakta

> of the bhakti path.! The

> bhakti path-finder certainly has extinguished for

> himself the ego as far as

> the worldly matters are concerned. Even within

> himself his own mental

> inclinations have mellowed his ego. However, deep

> within himself, there is

> the ego which is the taproot for the existence of

> the Jiva; he has not

> willed to extinguish that. For doing bhakti, for

> enjoying that experience of

> the blessed qualities of the Divine, for the bliss

> of tasting that

> relationship, he thinks he has to have that

> individuality of his Jiva-ego.

> Earlier we distinguished between ahamkAra and

> aham-bhAva. Of these only the

> latter has been sacrificed by him, but not the

> former.

>

> Therefore, though it is in the bhakti literature

> that surrender has been

> emphasized, the bhakti pathfinder, instead of making

> a total self-effacing

> surrender, he surrenders only part of his self and

> has kept the remaining

> ego of the JivAtmA for the purpose of experiencing

> the paramAtmA. It is not

> a total surrender. It is the jnAna-path-finder, who

> does not use such words,

> but who has offered his JivAtmA as a camphor in the

> Fire of the Absolute.

> This is the true and complete Atma-nivedanaM,

> SharaNAgati, Bhakti , Prapatti

> etc.

>

> Bhakti is thus the most internal accessory for the

> achievement of advaita.

> And the Acharya has chosen the words pregnant with

> this meaning, when he

> says: *mokSha-kAraNa-sAmagryAm bhaktireva garIyasI*.

>

>

>

> (To be Continued)

> PraNAms to all students of advaita.

> PraNAms to the Maha-Swamigal.

> profvk

>

>

>

>

>

>

> Latest on my website is an article on Kanchi

> Mahaswamigal. Go to

> http://www.geocities.com/profvk/VK2/Jivanmukta.html

>

>

>