By continuously engaging in satsang (association with Truth, association with holy company), one develops a fondness, an attraction in ‘satsang,’ in repeating God’s name, in all talks related to God, and in religious texts like Bhagavad Gītā. That is the reason why people come for satsang even in heavy rains. Without this attraction or fondness, nobody can come. Out of insistence, one cannot do an activity for long. This attraction (of the mind) towards God, is the incarnation of Shriji. When Shriji will manifest herself, Lord Krishna will also appear. In case of God, there is first attraction towards Him, and then He appears.
The attractions in the world appears pleasing at first, but later it reveals its true colors. Initially one is allured by the enjoyment of sense objects but after some time the charm decreases and eventually disappears. Like when one sits to eat food then the relish he feels towards food, does not stay the same after getting the food, rather it diminishes. The enjoyment and relish of the first bite is not there in subsequent bites. Like that, with every bite of food, the relish diminishes, and, eventually the attraction towards food goes away.
On the same subject, there is a story about a sadhu (ascetic). He used to live outside the city in solitude and collect alms for survival. The attachment towards sensual pleasure is very eccentric. Even for those who have left everything and turned to God, to His worship and devotion, some attraction remains. But as the love for God increases, wisdom increases, these attractions decrease. This sadhu began to be greatly troubled by such attraction. He used to think, I get only dry bread in alms, and don’t get enough vegetables-pulses and never get any ‘kheer’ (sweets, dessert). When his desire to eat this sweet dessert increased, he went to a devotee who was also a sweets-maker. The sweets-maker used to respect the sadhu a lot, as the sadhu was a selfless hermit. The sadhu said to the sweets-maker “Brother! Today I will only take sweet dessert as alms, so you prepare only sweets for me”. The sweet-maker was very happy that the saint never takes any sweet, not even milk, only eats dry bread, so he thought that ‘today I am very lucky.’ He prepared the dessert with great enthusiasm. Added dry-fruits, cardamom and sugar and made it thick, flavorful, and fragrant and offered it to the sadhu. Sadhu said to let it cool. Once the dessert was cooled, he gave it to the sadhu in a big bowl, filled to the brim.
First the sadhu was very eager to get the ‘kheer’ (dessert) but after getting it his attraction towards it decreased. When he started eating, then slowly his fondness for the ‘kheer’ also started decreasing. But still he kept on eating. He said to himself – ‘let me eat lots of it as the desire for eating it was brewing in my mind since long.’ He started vomiting because he had stuffed himself with kheer. He vomited into the bowl and ate from it again. This time he threw up all the kheer, and thereafter developed great distaste towards ‘kheer’ (Indian dessert) for the rest of his life. Even by hearing the name of that dessert, he gets goosebumps (his pores stand up).
There is no such worldly pleasure for which one cannot develop distaste and disinterest, but the attraction in God’s love never fades. Until one has interest in worldly pleasures, he cannot develop love for God. But when one develops interest in God, then it is forever, he can never become dis-interested again. Because of affection for the world, one doesn’t develop affection for God. But when the mind gets connected with God, then it can never get dis-connected. Like a house fly sits on everything but never on fire. If she sits on fire, then she will never be able to get up. Only ashes will fly. Same way when the mind gets associated with God, then it never gets attached; because the supreme joy that one experiences can never be felt anywhere else. There is no greater benefit than that –
yaṁ labdhvā chāparaṁ lābhaṁ
manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ
(Gita 6/22)
Mirabai says –
Aab chodu to chute nahin, bhai chu nagar nat ki
Hirdaye mein veh bas gayi rana, latak mukut ki
Aab to laagi Govinda se preet Rana pehle kyo nahin aatki
It is not possible for me to leave Shyam Sunder now. Even if I want to leave, then too he doesn’t leave me. Why he doesn’t leave? Because we are a fragment of God. After gaining eternal joy, how can one leave it? In fact, only God is ours, not this world. I have said this often – Brothers! This body is not yours and this world is also not yours, because they are transitory, but you are permanent. Do me a favor and don’t consider them as a part of you, or your own. All these things like body, world that we have received, is only to serve others, only to bring joy to others. It is not our own and not for us. You are eternal, how can an insentient thing be yours? You are everlasting, then how can these temporary things stay with you forever. Neither you can stay with them, nor they can stay with you. God can never separate himself from you, and neither can you separate yourself from God. By mistake you are inclined towards this world and disinclined from God, but still you cannot separate yourself from God.
Sanmukh hoi jeev muhi jab hi |
Janam koti aagh nasahi tabhi ||
(Manas 5/43/1)
Once you are inclined towards God, all the bad karmas are burnt. Now we are getting inclined towards God – The reason is that we are getting pleasure from satsang. If one gets totally immersed in God, then he will receive the eternal love of God. Shri Radhaji is the manifestation of this love. Shri Radhaji is the incarnation of love.
There is a story that once Shriji asks the gopis – “Dear Friends! Please I want to see my Kanhaiya, I want to see my Nandanandan”. Gopis thought that she is talking absurd as she always sees Shyam Sunder. So, the gopis decided that when she meets Shyam Sunder next time, we will catch her. One day Shriji went to fill water and suddenly her eyes fell on Shyam Sunder and she forgets to fill water and just keeps standing there. When the gopis saw that today both Shriji and Shyam Sunder are staring at each other, they decided to catch Shriji. They went to Shriji and said “You always say that I want to meet Shyam Sunder then what are you doing now? Who is there in your sight?” Shriji was surprised and said ‘Friend! Have you seen Shyam Sunder?’ All the gopis started laughing and said ‘But you also saw Shyam Sunder standing next to you’. Shriji said ‘My eyes got fixated on the luster of his earring and hence I couldn’t see my beloved! You all are very lucky, very great that you can see Shyam Sundar’.
In love you get fixated to only one part of your beloved, where your eyes fall. Shriji got fixated in the earring of God and then it got difficult to focus on the face of her beloved. She got spell bounded by the aura of God’s earring. That’s why Shriji keeps on saying ‘I cannot see my Shyam Sundar, please somebody help me to see him’. Hence, this intense desire to see God, is named as Shriji. She appeared on the auspicious day of Radha Ashtami so that we all can experience this eternal joy of love.
This is a very remarkable pastime of God, where in order to explain the love element He has evolved Himself in the forms of Shri Krishna and Shriji. If God wanted, He could have incarnated as two friends, both either male or both female, but that would not have explained the eternal love. The attraction that a male has in female or a female has in male, to make that attraction pure, God has taken male form of Shri Krishna and female form as Shri Radha Rani. The attraction that exists in humans is impure, formidable, because we derive pleasure out of it and it is impermanent. But this is not true for Shriji and Shri Krishna. The somewhat interest that we have in Satsang, is a sample to make us understand this eternal love. When this interest will grow, then it will take the form of Shriji, means it will then be soaked in the nectar of love. When one is totally immersed in God, then he can experience this eternal love of God, which cannot be explained in words.
Narayan! Narayan! Narayan!
From book – For Spiritual Aspirants by Shradhey Swamiji Shri Ramsukhdasji Maharaj
Comments are closed.