Devoted offerings

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Hare Krishna

 

Devotees everywhere pray Lord for something material benefits,cure of

illness,begetting children,marriage etc etc. and vow to offer in case their

wishes are fulfilled.

 

In Guruvayur Tulabharam is a common vow.In this devotee is weighed against

bananas,coconuts,sandalwood,sugar or any other article of daily use.The

articles are weighed and gifted to the temple.There are lot of incidents in

which the devotees are tested by the Lord.One such instance is that a devotee

vowed to hv weighed himself against plantains before the Lord.At the time of

weighing ceremony however he had a costly silk dhoti on.His mother

thinking that it might get soiled,asked him to remove it and wear instead an

ordinary cotton cloth which he did.He squatted on one pan of the scales and

plantains were loaded on to the other pan.All were amazed to see that no amount

of bananas could match the mans weight.A priest who happened to witness this

suggested that the silk cloth also be placed on the devotees pan.When this was

done the scales became even.A word about the real significance of making

offerings to God would be appropriate.It would be wrong to regard it as a bribe

given to the deity for a favour.It is actually a surrender of atleast a part of

our possessions.Renunciation,that is self denial or giving up things is the real

test of a true devotee.It is said in Kaivalya Upanishad :

 

Na karmana na prajaya dhanena tyagenaikena Amrtatvamanasuh:

(Not by work,not by offspring nor wealth --only by renunciation does one attain

immortality.)

It shuld again be remembered that the Lord accepts whatever is given in devotion

and rejects everything,however expensive,offered without devotion.This idea has

been proclaimed by the Lord Homself in the Gita:

 

Patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati

Tadam bhaktyupahrtam asnami prayatatmanah

( I accept and enjoy whatever is offered in devotion-leaf,flower,fruit or

water.while what is given without devotion,however costly it does not

induce to my joy.)

The gruel offered by Vidura was accepted with delight by Sri Krishna.The beaten

rice hesitatingly brought by Sudama(Kuchela) was pulled out from the folds of

his garment and partaken of with relish by Him.So too was He satisfied with the

bit of leaf sticking to the utensil of Draupati.In her anxiety to offer the best

to Sri Rama Sabari bit each fruit and gave it to the Lord after being satisfied

that it was good.Lord Siva accepted the tongue-tainted venison and mouthful of

water offered by the hunter Kannappa.

There are more examples like this.The Lord along with Nanda and others was

encamping at Mathura on the eve of destruction of King Kamsa.When He went about

sight-seeing ,a tailor presented garments befitting Krishna and Balarama--to the

former a yellow garment and to the latter a blue-coloured one.As a result the

tailor was able to attain salvation as the clothes were presented with utmost

devotion.Later the Lord blessed the garland maker Sudama who had joyfully

presented Him with garlands and a bouquet and praised Him with hymns.At the

instance of the Lord he chose two boons viz. devotion and wealth which seldom

exist together in one.Yet the Lord of Goddess Lakshmy readily granted both the

boons as requested by His devotee.There was the woman Kubja the hunchback who

used to prepare the toilet for Kamsa.On her way to the kings palace she met

Krishna and presented Him with scented ointment.To reveal the uprightness in her

body that was in her mind.Krishna removed her hunch and made her

a beautiful woman.Her love towards the Lord was but another form of devotion.

 

What matters to the Lord therefore is bhakti.Material abundance is of no avail

to gain access to the Lord.It is disinterested devotion to which the Lord

submits Himself.The Lord further elaborates:

 

Yatkaroshi Yadashnasi yajjuhoshi dadasi yet

Yattapasyasi Kaunteya tatkurshva madarpanam

(Whatever you do,whatever you eat,whatever you offer in sacrifice,whatever you

gift away,whatever austerity you practice, O Kaunteya(Arjuna),do it as an

offering to Me.)

The panacea for all the evils of earthly life is prescribed here.Making gifts is

often for self-advertisement.Practicing austerity with self interest may bring

in spiritual vanity.But when all these good deeds are done for the glory of the

Lord,the doer emerges as the divine.The turning point in life comes in

dedicating everything to God instead of petitioning to Him for things here and

hereafter.It is with this understanding that we shuld offer to Lord whatever we

can, but with devotion.

Suddhe manasi Govinda swayameva prakasathey.

May the Lord of Guruvayur cleanse our minds from all impurities and inculcate an

unswerving devotion and bhakti to Him.

 

Hare Krishna,Sri Guruvvayoorappa.

 

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