[Guruvayur/Guruvayoor] Devoted offerings

[Guest guest]

Shri Raman, this is beautiful and heart-warming, thanks a lot.

Om Namo Narayanaya.

 

On 4/29/05, GANAPATHY RAMAN <agraman62 wrote:

>

> 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.Thearticles 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.Itis

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.Thebeaten

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.Makinggifts

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.

>

> agraman

>

> Om Namo Narayanaya:

>