A DIVINE MESSAGE
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Philosophy
Bhakti Alone Unites With GodOut of karma, gyan and bhakti, which path can lead jeev all the way to meet God?
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Kripalu Leelamritam
How Deep Should My Level of Surrender Be?Know when God will bear all our burdens
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Kids Story
Giving is ReceivingA story of sikh of how he attained everything.
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Philosophy
Each of us can relate to our desire of being “happy forever”. In fact, all jeev want to be happy and have been searching for happiness forever, yet even after expending numerous efforts over uncountable lifetimes, they have not achieved that happiness and their search continues. Possibly a thought may cross their mind that since happiness has not been attained through the attainment of material wealth, perhaps there may be another path to attain that happiness. Jagadguruttam Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj says, our scriptures show us the path for attaining that happiness.
For spiritual-upliftment, and attainment of our ultimate goal of unending divine bliss, Vedas prescribe 3 paths - karma, gyan and bhakti. Let us put karma, gyan and bhakti to test to determine which path is capable of granting us the bliss we seek.
The first criteria for evaluating whether our chosen path is right or not is called anvaya. The word anvaya means that “the goal should be achievable through this path”.
First, let us evaluate the path of karma.
If one observes to perfection, each of the prohibitively strict rules of karmakand prescribed by the Vedas, then one will earn temporary residence in heaven (swarg). After enjoying the luxuries of swarg for a finite duration, the jeev is again sent back into the lower forms of life.
For spiritual-upliftment, and attainment of our ultimate goal of unending divine bliss, Vedas prescribe 3 paths - karma, gyan and bhakti. Let us put karma, gyan and bhakti to test to determine which path is capable of granting us the bliss we seek.
The first criteria for evaluating whether our chosen path is right or not is called anvaya. The word anvaya means that “the goal should be achievable through this path”.
First, let us evaluate the path of karma.
If one observes to perfection, each of the prohibitively strict rules of karmakand prescribed by the Vedas, then one will earn temporary residence in heaven (swarg). After enjoying the luxuries of swarg for a finite duration, the jeev is again sent back into the lower forms of life.
Also, while enjoying the luxuries in swarg, one constantly suffers from agonies of material afflictions (1) such as lust, anger, greed, and attachment still plague the jeev. You might recall the incident when King Dilip was performing his hundredth ashvamedha yagya. Successful completion of 100 ashvamedha yagya entitles one to become the king of swarg. At that time, Indra, the king of swarg, assumed that Dilip wanted to be king of swarg and take his position. Consequently, he felt jealous and scared of King Dilip. So, to stop his ashvamedha yagya, Indra stole the ceremonial horse (2).
Yet another incident relates to Indra being anxious seeing a 5-year-old child Dhruv praying to God, fearful that he might take his position. Such was his level of anxiety that he sent celestial nymphs to disturb Dhruv’s meditative state. When the king of swarg is plagued with the vices of Maya (e.g. jealousy, greed, fear, passion), one can only imagine the mental state of his subjects in swarg?
Yet another incident relates to Indra being anxious seeing a 5-year-old child Dhruv praying to God, fearful that he might take his position. Such was his level of anxiety that he sent celestial nymphs to disturb Dhruv’s meditative state. When the king of swarg is plagued with the vices of Maya (e.g. jealousy, greed, fear, passion), one can only imagine the mental state of his subjects in swarg?
Veda says -
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इष्टापूर्तं मन्यमाना वरिष्ठं, नान्यच्छ्रेयो वेदयन्ते प्रमूढाः।
नाकस्य पृष्ठे ते सुकृतेनुभूत्वेमं, लोकं हीनतरं वा विशन्ति॥ |
iṣṭāpūrtaṃ manyamānā variṣṭhaṃ, nānyacchreyo vedayante pramūḍhāḥ।
nākasya pṛṣṭhe te sukṛtenubhūtvemaṃ, lokaṃ hīnataraṃ vā viśanti॥ |
“Those who follow the path of karma are extremely foolish, for after toiling so hard they attain luxuries for a brief period, thereafter the jeev might be banished into the lower life forms”.
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And even when enjoying the fruits of karma also, the jeev is not blissful. Thus the goal of attaining unlimited, everlasting bliss cannot be achieved by karma as it bestows the bliss of sansaar and does not take the jeev to aim of life. So the karma does not live up to this criterion.
Now, let us put gyan to test on this criterion. The final stage of the path of gyan is self-knowledge (not knowledge of Nirakar Brahma ). As long as the soul does not attain Brahmanand, there will be no mukti from Maya, so there is no question of attaining bliss. You might counter this by saying gyan yoga does grant mukti from Maya. Only if gyan is mixed with bhakti, then it is called gyan yoga. And yes, gyan yog can grant freedom from Maya. But gyan alone can destroy the ignorance that “I am this body” and enable self-realization (the knowledge that “I am soul”) (3). Beyond taking the Jeev to the state of self-realization, Gyan cannot help any further. The attainment of the Nirakar Brahma (impersonal form of God) is not achievable by the path of Gyan. Without having Brahma Gyan, one cannot get rid of Maya and therefore one cannot dream of attaining that everlasting divine bliss. Lord Shri Krishna has said in Gita - |
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ज्ञानयज्ञेन चाप्यन्ये यजन्तो मामुपासते।
एकत्वेन पृथक्त्वेन बहुधा विश्वतो मुखम् ॥ गीता ९. १५ |
jñānayajñena cāpyanye yajanto māmupāsate।
ekatvena pṛthaktvena bahudhā viśvato mukham ॥ gītā 9. 15 |
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भक्त्यात्मामभिजानाति यावान् यश्चास्मि तत्वतः। ततो मां तत्त्वतो ज्ञात्वा विशते तदनन्तरम् ॥
गीता १८.५५ |
bhaktyātmāmabhijānāti yāvān yaścāsmi tatvataḥ। tato māṃ tattvato jñātvā viśate tadanantaram ॥
gītā 18.55 |
“Only by devotion can I be known or seen. One can be absorbed in Me only by bhakti.”
Shri Krishna did not say one can see Me, know Me by gyan or by karma !
Therefore, out of the three paths, only the path of bhakti meets the criterion of anvaya.
Bhakti alone can unite the jeev with Brahma-Supreme God.
Shri Krishna did not say one can see Me, know Me by gyan or by karma !
Therefore, out of the three paths, only the path of bhakti meets the criterion of anvaya.
Bhakti alone can unite the jeev with Brahma-Supreme God.
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Kripalu Leelamritam
A glimpse into the ever delightful pastimes of our beloved Gurudev, Jagadguru Swami Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj:
This leela transpired much before the time, when Shri Maharaj Ji was honoured with the title of Jagadguruttam. During this early phase of His divine descension, Shri Maharaj Ji was ever absorbed in the divine nectar of Shri Radha Krishna and would drench everyone in the same nectar of divine love bliss. Also, unlike recent times when Shri Maharaj Ji was always surrounded by thousands of devotees, at that time Shri Maharaj Ji had revealed himself only to a handful of deserving souls, with whom he lived and behaved more like a family member or a friend rather than a Guru. The devotees at that time were also very close to Him and did not necessarily follow any formal etiquette while communicating with Him. This leela is a depiction of His loving pastimes at that time.
This incident took place at the time of Holi in the house of Mr. Mahabani in Pratapgarh. Mr Mahabani’s youngest daughter, Shakti, was 5 years old at that time. On the day of Holi, Shakti woke up early in the morning and was all set to play Holi. But to her disappointment, Shri Maharaj Ji was leading a satsang session with the devotees who had come to Pratapgarh to celebrate Holi with Him. And as per the tradition, Holi was always played with water color in the open. Much against her wish, Shakti was not allowed to play with color while satsang was in progress inside the satsang-hall.
During the break, a vendor came to sell dholak (Drum) at Shri Mahabani’s house. Mr. Mahabani selected one dholak and requested Maharaj Ji to come out and examine if it was good for Him. As Shri Maharaj Ji came out of the satsang hall, Shakti got very excited, as in her innocent wisdom, it was now time to start playing Holi. She ran to fill her pichkari (Water Gun) with water color and threw it on Maharaj Ji, catching Him unawares. By this time, all other satsangis had also come out and assembled in the courtyard.
After spraying water color on Shri Maharaj Ji, she ran out into the courtyard to refill her pichkari with color water. She went out from one door and came inside from another, thinking that she will outsmart Maharaj Ji and again catch Him unawares, as he would be expecting her to come in from the same door from where she went out. But, Shri Maharaj Ji was not to be fooled. He also decided to come out from the same door as she had decided to come in from. As Shri Maharaj Ji and her paths crossed, He picked her up and dropped her in the large container full of colored water. Hearing her screams, some satsangis rushed forward and pulled her out. Shri Maharaj Ji threw her back inside the drum. The satsangis took her out yet again. This is how the Holi play started that year.
Shakti received her first lesson in discipline and never took liberties with Shri Maharaj Ji in the game of Holi. That 5 year old child grew up to be a meritorious student and after having worked as a Sanskrit lecturer in a degree college for couple of years, was chosen by Shri Maharaj Ji to become a preacher and spread His divine teachings. Shri Maharaj Ji gave her the name Braj Banchary and inspired her to take His teachings and philosophy to the western world. Lovingly known as Didi Ji, she is currently based in Canada and is one of the most senior preachers of Shri Maharaj Ji.
Maharaj Ji had a very enigmatic, yet child-like nature in His young age. Every year in Holi play, He’d play all alone against the entire group of satsangis. His speed was spectacular. Nobody could ever defeat Him in this play. Whoever tried to defeat Maharaj Ji, could be assured of being thrown into murk. Sometimes Shri Maharaj Ji would throw colored water on satsangis with so much pressure that they would not even get a chance to open their eyes. And at other times, he would run with a Gujhiya (a homemade sweet specially prepared for holi-occasion) in His hand and would be chased by all the young boys, striving hard to snatch it from His hand or mouth. Sometimes, he would plunder the Gujhiyas.
Thus, the festival of Holi used to be the most fun filled festival with Shri Maharaj, giving His devotees a vivid glimpse of the leelas of Natkhat Shyamsundar.
This leela transpired much before the time, when Shri Maharaj Ji was honoured with the title of Jagadguruttam. During this early phase of His divine descension, Shri Maharaj Ji was ever absorbed in the divine nectar of Shri Radha Krishna and would drench everyone in the same nectar of divine love bliss. Also, unlike recent times when Shri Maharaj Ji was always surrounded by thousands of devotees, at that time Shri Maharaj Ji had revealed himself only to a handful of deserving souls, with whom he lived and behaved more like a family member or a friend rather than a Guru. The devotees at that time were also very close to Him and did not necessarily follow any formal etiquette while communicating with Him. This leela is a depiction of His loving pastimes at that time.
This incident took place at the time of Holi in the house of Mr. Mahabani in Pratapgarh. Mr Mahabani’s youngest daughter, Shakti, was 5 years old at that time. On the day of Holi, Shakti woke up early in the morning and was all set to play Holi. But to her disappointment, Shri Maharaj Ji was leading a satsang session with the devotees who had come to Pratapgarh to celebrate Holi with Him. And as per the tradition, Holi was always played with water color in the open. Much against her wish, Shakti was not allowed to play with color while satsang was in progress inside the satsang-hall.
During the break, a vendor came to sell dholak (Drum) at Shri Mahabani’s house. Mr. Mahabani selected one dholak and requested Maharaj Ji to come out and examine if it was good for Him. As Shri Maharaj Ji came out of the satsang hall, Shakti got very excited, as in her innocent wisdom, it was now time to start playing Holi. She ran to fill her pichkari (Water Gun) with water color and threw it on Maharaj Ji, catching Him unawares. By this time, all other satsangis had also come out and assembled in the courtyard.
After spraying water color on Shri Maharaj Ji, she ran out into the courtyard to refill her pichkari with color water. She went out from one door and came inside from another, thinking that she will outsmart Maharaj Ji and again catch Him unawares, as he would be expecting her to come in from the same door from where she went out. But, Shri Maharaj Ji was not to be fooled. He also decided to come out from the same door as she had decided to come in from. As Shri Maharaj Ji and her paths crossed, He picked her up and dropped her in the large container full of colored water. Hearing her screams, some satsangis rushed forward and pulled her out. Shri Maharaj Ji threw her back inside the drum. The satsangis took her out yet again. This is how the Holi play started that year.
Shakti received her first lesson in discipline and never took liberties with Shri Maharaj Ji in the game of Holi. That 5 year old child grew up to be a meritorious student and after having worked as a Sanskrit lecturer in a degree college for couple of years, was chosen by Shri Maharaj Ji to become a preacher and spread His divine teachings. Shri Maharaj Ji gave her the name Braj Banchary and inspired her to take His teachings and philosophy to the western world. Lovingly known as Didi Ji, she is currently based in Canada and is one of the most senior preachers of Shri Maharaj Ji.
Maharaj Ji had a very enigmatic, yet child-like nature in His young age. Every year in Holi play, He’d play all alone against the entire group of satsangis. His speed was spectacular. Nobody could ever defeat Him in this play. Whoever tried to defeat Maharaj Ji, could be assured of being thrown into murk. Sometimes Shri Maharaj Ji would throw colored water on satsangis with so much pressure that they would not even get a chance to open their eyes. And at other times, he would run with a Gujhiya (a homemade sweet specially prepared for holi-occasion) in His hand and would be chased by all the young boys, striving hard to snatch it from His hand or mouth. Sometimes, he would plunder the Gujhiyas.
Thus, the festival of Holi used to be the most fun filled festival with Shri Maharaj, giving His devotees a vivid glimpse of the leelas of Natkhat Shyamsundar.
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Kid's Story
A young widower, who was very much attached to his five year old son, was away on business trip when bandits came and burned down the whole village and abducted his son. When the man returned, he saw the ruins and became very disturbed. He took the scorched corpse of a child, thinking it to be his own son and cried uncontrollably. He organized a cremation ceremony, collected the ashes and put them in a beautiful little bag which he always kept with him.
Soon afterwards, his real son escaped from the bandits and found his way home. He arrived at his father's new cottage at midnight and knocked on the door. The father, still grieving asked: "Who is it?" The child answered, "It's me papa, open the door!" But in his agitated state of mind he was fully convinced that his son was dead. The father thought that some young boy was making fun of him. He asked him to leave and continued to cry. After some time, his dejected child left. Father and son didn’t see each other ever again.
After narrating this story, Buddha said: "Sometime you take something to be true. If you cling onto it too much, then when the real truth comes and knocks on your door, you will not open it."
Moral: We keep searching for happiness in this world. We have so firmly convinced ourselves of illusory happiness in this world that when God, veritable Happiness incarnate, descends on earth we shun Him away and continue to be unhappy.
Soon afterwards, his real son escaped from the bandits and found his way home. He arrived at his father's new cottage at midnight and knocked on the door. The father, still grieving asked: "Who is it?" The child answered, "It's me papa, open the door!" But in his agitated state of mind he was fully convinced that his son was dead. The father thought that some young boy was making fun of him. He asked him to leave and continued to cry. After some time, his dejected child left. Father and son didn’t see each other ever again.
After narrating this story, Buddha said: "Sometime you take something to be true. If you cling onto it too much, then when the real truth comes and knocks on your door, you will not open it."
Moral: We keep searching for happiness in this world. We have so firmly convinced ourselves of illusory happiness in this world that when God, veritable Happiness incarnate, descends on earth we shun Him away and continue to be unhappy.
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