Part 7 – Supreme Bliss in the path of Bhakti Yog
This article expounds the sweetness of
Bhakti Yog in comparison to other paths of spirituality, particularly Gyan Yog. Even the greatest gyani Shankracharya engaged in devotion to God because there is no
other way to relish the bliss of Divine Love.
An
incredible characteristic of God’s creation is the variety that exists in it,
and to cater to varied interests of all people God has mercifully laid down
different paths to reach Him. There is
the path of karm-kand where rituals prescribed in the Vedas
take precedence in devotion, Gyan Yog where the principle is ‘soham’ or in other words the devotees
declare their own selves to be God, and the path of Bhakti Yog in which
devotees engage in loving devotion to God.
People are free to choose their spiritual paths as they like based on
their inclinations and interests. But
for people who are engaged in Bhakti Yog and are experiencing the bliss of
sweet association with the personal form of God, other paths seem absolutely
insipid. So Shri Kripaluji Maharaj in His kirtan “jo piya ruchi mahaṁ ruchi rākhē” says
“gyānahum nāhiṁ suhāve rē”.
By Gyan
here, he doesn’t mean knowledge, He means the path of Gyan Yog. For spiritual aspirants of Bhakti Yog
the principle of Gyan Yog is tasteless and hence they are not interested in its
philosophy. These devotees have nothing
against followers of other paths and totally respect their choices, there is
however nothing in the world for them which could ever be compared with the
loving devotion for God. The principle of ‘soham’ in Gyan Yog means “I am the
God”, which is certainly utterly unacceptable to devotees of Bhakti Yog. They
only accept God as the Supreme Master and themselves as His servants.
While people who follow the path of Gyan Yog do elevate themselves to great
heights, they don’t relish the Bliss of Divine Love. The Bliss of Divine Love
requires humbling ourselves before God.
Therefore the Gyani says “Soham”
(I am God), and the devotee says “Dāsoham”
(I am the servant of God).
The devotee
says:
tvameva mata, cha pita tvameva, tvameva bandusch, cha sakha
tvameva, tvameva vidya, dravinam tvameva, tvameva sarvam, mama deva deva
“O Lord, You are my Mother, my Father, my Everything!”
And
the Gyani says that he himself is all
those things.
svameva mata, cha pita svameva, svameva bandusch, cha
sakha svameva, svameva vidya, dravinam
svameva, svameva sarvam, swayam deva deva
“I am the Deva-Dev,
the Supreme!”
Shankaracharya
himself, who propounded Gyan Yog,
once went to Kashi and offered his respects to Kashi Vishvanath Bhagawan. At that time, he started crying. He said, “My Lord, I have committed three
sins. I have written in my commentaries that Brahm (formless God) is anirvachaniyam or indescribable, and yet I have attempted to describe
Him. Secondly, I have explained that God is everywhere, and yet I am coming
here to meet You! Thirdly, I have explained that I myself am God, but yet I am
offering my obeisance to You!”
It
was necessitated by the circumstances prevailing back then that Shankaracharya
propounded Gyan Yog
philosophy. When he appeared on planet
earth, two thousand years ago, India was covered by the Buddhist philosophy
which is a 'voidist' philosophy: there is no soul or God; just practice
goodness. Therefore Shankaracharya
elevated people from there – he brought them back into the Vedas. But he did not emphasize the philosophy of
Divine Love, even though Shankaracharya was a great Rasik Saint himself. To elaborate on this point Shri Kripaluji
Maharaj has included Shankaracharya’s prayers to Shree Krishna, in the Stuti
(homage) section of His kirtan book. Shankaracharya had composed the following
prayer in his writing ‘Prabodha
Sudhakara’.
yamunā nikata tatasthita, vrindāvana kānane mahāramye,
kalpad-drumatala bhūmau, charanam charano paristhāpya
Inside a very beautiful flowery grove in Vrindavan, by the bank of River
Yamuna, Lord Krishna is seated underneath the 'kalpa' (desire-fulfilling) tree,
with one leg crossed over the other.
There
are many more verses that follow and each of these accentuate how great a
devotee Shankaracharya was himself. Thus anyone who ever wishes to taste the
bliss of Divine Love, must keep away from Gyan
Yog.
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