Loving Thoughts
When you drive a car or ride a bicycle in a busy city, you always remember where your destination is. You give way to those on your right and move aside for the car to pass. You are conscious of the motorcyclist approaching from your left and you take your foot off the accelerator when you sense danger. You are always alert. Why? Because you know that any inattentiveness on your part could result in an accident, an injury or even worse. Jagadguruttam Shri Kripalui Ji Maharaj says that we all are cautious in this scenario because we all give importance to our body, but we give no such importance to God. Hence, we are careless and inattentive when it comes to devotional practice — the practical application of spiritual philosophy.
To reap the intended benefits of your spiritual practice, devotion must be practiced from the heart and not just by using your senses. Clapping your hands, playing an instrument and even dancing is all fine; after all, the senses are our helpers and should be engaged. In fact, they have been created for this purpose. However, Saint Tukaram reminds us, sanga sajjana cha … “Do all this, but do not forget that the mind must be engaged.”
Nowadays, this critical point has been lost and people are engaging in devotion physically — they are doing kirtan, going on pilgrimage, counting beads, reciting scripture, and prostrating before idols of God. And, unfortunately, this is what is being taught by so-called babas. Chant so many rounds a day on your beads, go here and go there, read the Ramayana aloud, read the Gita, and so on. But of what use is the mere recitation of digits or letters? Shri Krishna says in the Gita,
mamekam saranam vraja (Gita 18.66)
“Surrender to Me.” To whom is He saying this? To Arjun. Why is He saying it? To convince Arjun to surrender to Him. Now, who are you saying it too? Oh, I am just reading it aloud. Are you mad? Shri Krishna told Arjun to take His shelter. Who are you telling to take shelter of you? In other words, we simply recite passages from scripture.
Devotional practice means to take your mind to God. Suppose there is a fire burning 50 metres away. You are feeling cold, so you move closer to it. Can you feel its warmth now? Yes, the cold has reduced a little. Alright, now move closer and the cold will reduce even further. Yes, that is much better. In other words, the closer you move to a fire, the warmer you feel. If you remain 50 metres away and just hold out your hands, you will soon say, “I do not feel any warmth. There is no fire here.” In the same way, we must move closer to God — we must absorb our mind in loving thoughts of Him if we want to receive the real benefit of spiritual practice.
There is nothing to be frightened about either. Do not think that you have committed too many wrongs, or done this, that and the other, and so you cannot reach out to God. Before the attainment of God, there is no one — sage, yogi, ascetic, scholar or ignoramus — who has not committed infinite wrongs over infinite past lifetimes. However, upon the attainment of God, you will be instantly forgiven of all this (and more), never to be bound to undergo the dire consequences. This is the grace of God once you attain Him. Everyone is a sinner, and everyone has committed innumerable sins. In fact, as per the definition of sin, until we attain God, whatever we do is considered sin. But fear not. God Himself says in Vaishampayan Samhita, “If one comes into My shelter, he is forgiven of all his sins, no matter how bad a sinner he may be.”
Thus, we must correctly practice devotion to God. We must love Him alone and above all else. This is the verdict of all masters and all practitioners of every religion. The important point to remember is that your love for God must come from within. Mere knowledge of spiritual theory is not enough. Devotion to God does not require that you do a particular kind of spiritual discipline nor know a particular piece of spiritual knowledge, you just have to direct all your emotions to God. He will acknowledge and reward your loving devotional sentiments.
Jagadguru Kripalu Bhaktiyoga Tattvadarshan — the essence of Vedic wisdom, spirituality and devotion in daily life.
