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The Master and the Method Like all other great Masters, our Gurudev also holds the view that with perfect love or Bhakti, the true knowledge or Gnana is bound to come even unsought, and that from perfect knowledge, true love is inseparable. Raja Yoga concerns itself with the close relationship between the centres of consciousness and psychological reactions, and thus provides the invaluable tool of discipline by which purification of psychic Prana or the vital is effected and a perfect mastery over them is acquired by the aspirant who harnesses it for his spiritual sadhana. Thus the best equipment for an aspirant will be a harmonious blending of Gnana, Bhakti and Yoga. Swami Vivekananda says: "Three things are necessary for a bird to fly- the two wings and the tail as a rudder for steering, Gnana or knowledge is the one wing Bhakti or love is the other and Yoga is the tail that keeps the balance". |
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Bhakta is one who keeps meditating on God with that deathless love which the ignorant have for the fleeting objects of senses. Such "a devotion is indeed the best amongst all the means leading to Liberation ". Bhakti floods the aspirant's heart with the divine water of the Ocean of love, which is God Himself and no place is left for little loves. Bhakta's renunciation is that Vairagya or turning away from all things that are not God, which results from his great Anurakti or love of God. With such spontaneous renunciation, the gate is thrown open for the soul to soar to the lofty heights of Para Bhakti or Supreme Love "when he stands clinging to Him, knowing Him and seeing Him as immanent in and fully pervading all beings like ghee in milk, fire and heat in wood and oil in sesame"°. This unswerving and all?absorbing love results in total self?surrender and annihilation of ego. When the stage of Para Bhakti is reached, "the Supreme reveals by itseff and this phase is known as Para Yoga or Higher Yoga` says our Sadguru. These definitions of Higher Bhakti and higher Yoga given by Him are very significant As the Bhakta is the beloved of the Lord, He Himself helps him to realise His true nature. Lord Krishna says : "To these, ever devout, worshipping Me with love, I give that devotion of Knowledge by which they come to me. Out of mere compassion for them, I, abiding in their self, destroy the darkness born of ignorance, by the luminous lamp of wisdom ". "It is only by the Grace of God, men become inclined towards Advaita". I was a Bhakta by temperament and training from boyhood. I was much inspired by a great bhakta who often used to get into Bhava Samadhi. He introduced me to the books "Lord Gauranga" by Shishir Kumar Ghose and "Sri Krishna, the Lord of Love" by Baba Premananda Bharati. When I was ordained as sannyasin by His Holiness Sri Swami Sivananda Samswathi Maharaj of Rishikesh, besides giving me mahavakyaU padesa, He initiated me to Saranagati Mantra also as preparatory sadhana. In 1957, when I joined our Gurudev at Thapovanam, He advised me to continue the Mantra japa for some more time. After a few years, the Master, working within me aroused in me a deep interest in Sankara Vedanta. His Grace brought about the propitious circumstances for Sravana or scriptural study under Sri Swami Vidyananda Girl. Manana and Nididhyasana followed. When the aspirant shows a tendency to get lost at the levels of image worship of gods, the Master out of great consideration gently warns him at the appropriate stage of his maturity, telling him "The Self alone is to be meditated upon; for, all these are unified in It". Our Gurudev lays great emphasis on adequate preparatory discipline to be undergone by the seeker before taking to the real spiritual life of contemplative meditation. He assigns a very important role to Karma Yoga or desireless action dedicated to God as the only means for attaining Chitta Suddhi or purity of mind. After joining our Sadguru, for about ten years I was placed in charge of management of the temple and editing the Ashram magazine. In 1966 when I entered the stage of Nididhyasana, I was completely relieved of all the responsibilities and given the necessary seclusion. The Sadhana prescribed by our Guredev differs from person to person as it is derermined exclusively by the latencies or Vasanas of the individual. My Gurubhai, Swami Dasagiri continued to be a Karma Yogi till the end. Our GuruMaharsj wrote to him in September 1971 thus on the glory of Karma Yoga: "To perform action at the sublimest heights of Karma Yoga, reposing in the Self and with the constant awareness of That and being one with That in the beatific state of Self?Realisation is That Matchless Transc-endental Bliss itself." It is to be mentioned here that in 1969 when Sri Swami Dasa Giri was relieved of his heavy responsibilities as the manager of the Ashram and sent with me to the contemplative centre, Sri Gnanananda Pranava Nilayam at Yercaud, with Guru Maharaj's blessings, he made very remarkable strides in meditation within a short time. Those of us who were present at the time of his Mahasamadhi on 24th December 1971, were fully convinced that he had received in an extraordinary measure the Grace of our Sadguru. Later we were told by Him that Sri Swami Dasa Giri was in the state of samadhi when he shed his body and that he reached heights not attainable even by yogis. It is only when a degree of purity of mind has been attained through Karma Yoga and the aspirant has been psychically awakened by Bhakti, he is introduced to the path of Self-inquiry consisting of Sravana or hearing the Truth, Manana or reflection and Nididhyasana or meditation. Master is particular that the seeker should have developed to a remarkable Extent Sadhana Chatushtaya or the four means of attainment viz. Viveka or discrimination between the Real and non?real; Vairagya or dispassion; the group of six virtues ? (Sama or calmness of the mind, Dama, or control of senses, Uparati or self?withdrawal. Titiksha or forbearance, Sraddha or faith and Samadhana or self-settledness) and Mumukshutva or aspiration for Liberation. Only then can he understand the higher Vedanta properly and assimilate h with profit. Sadguru is also keen that the student should get at the cream ofthe Upanishadic teaching directly relevant to his sadhana, which is indeed Para Vidya and not get misled into bylanes of metaphysical dogma and dialectics. He underlines the importance of depth of reflection and meditation on the contents of a few important books or manuals of Vedanta and discourages extensive reading for its own sake. Simple treatises most often referred to by Him in this connection are Vedanta Choodamami, Kaivalya Naveneetam and Ribhu Gita. He warns the aspirant against developing Sastra Vasana or attachment to scriptural study, an obstacle so difficult to surmount later. He sternly disapproves any study of books during the stage of Nididhyasana, except as a spiritual exercise to stimulate the mind whenever it gets sluggish.
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