Reverence
When you understand the saguna nirakara aspect of the Lord, that he is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent, the creator, sustainer and dissolver of the entire universe, the totality of all jivas, then it creates a sense of great reverence. Even ordinarily, when we meet someone with extraordinary qualifications, we admire that person. If someone is jealous of that person, that jealousy is also an indirect form of admiration. When we see a beautiful painting, we also get inspired and wish that we could paint. When we hear a good musician singing, we are also spontaneously impelled to sing. These spurts of inspiration come to all of us. But when we hear about the Lord – omniscient and omnipotent – we feel immense reverence.
Gurudev was tall and had a majestic personality. In front of him, I looked quite short and humble. When he attained mahasamadhi, one person enquired, “Who is the head of the mission now?” Someone pointed me out, and said that I had taken charge. That person exclaimed, “But he is too short!”
When this incident was narrated to me, I said, “True, it is a fact. But you should have shown him the photo where Gurudev stands with me, his hand around my shoulders. I may be small, but the one I was standing with was tall!”
When you seek refuge in the Lord, His strength is your support. Sugreeva had sought refuge in Lord Rama, but Vali did not understand the implication and thought he could still kill Sugreeva.
The Lord is all-knowing and all-powerful (sarvajna, sarvashaktiman). He is my strength, and in that there is no ahamkara, no pride or arrogance. The Lord is my strength; I revere Him and dedicate my life to Him.
Relationship
When Paramatma appears in some particular form and you are in Love with the form (saguna sakara), a relationship gets established. The nature of the relationship depends upon you. Ramakrishna Paramhamsa worshipped God in the form of Mother Kali. Another person may see Him as a father. When Ramana Maharshi went to Arunachala, he said, “Father I have come now.” Similarly, one may think of the Lord as a brother, a friend, or a master. Once there is a relationship, there are different kinds of emotions. Love is manifested in different forms and various sentiments find expression. This is not so in nirguna nirakara worship, where there is only shanta rasa – peace and tranquillity.
When someone accepts only one form and not the others, there is fanaticism. One who has understood all the aspects of the Lord will not be fanatic about anything. Vedantic vision is all-embracing, there is no fanaticism. It is all-enveloping love. Many are the examples in our Guru-parampara – Veda Vyasa, Suka Deva, Narada Muni.
Revelling
In Kritajnata, a composition about Pujya Gurudev, I have written about the wonderful confluence in him of firm abidance in nirguna and spontaneous revelling in the saguna – nirgune nishchala nishtha sagune sarasa ratih, sangamo madhurashchayam deshike no mahatmani. There is great love and revelling in both. Whichever aspect of the Lord you think of, you revel in it.
If you do not believe in the existence of God, all these options are closed, but if you believe in God, there are so many possibilities. And when you come to know Him as your own Self, there are no more questions, no doubts in the mind about His existence, because one cannot have any doubt about oneself.
Even when the body, mind and senses don’t exist, the absolute Reality is. And that is what you are. The Rishi in Prashnopanishad says: This much I know about Brahman, and there is nothing more than this – na atah paramasti. What a confident assertion! This is called brahma-jnanam.
There is such joy even if you just hear or think about it. The more you understand, the more you revel. It is a lifetime of joy. Never doubt yourself or worry that you have not gained this knowledge, but continue to appreciate the various aspects and their deed implications. Learn to revel in it.
The author is the head of Chinmaya Mission worldwide.
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