VIRODHI BHAKTI AND SAI BABA – BY B.V.N.SWAMI

[Guest guest]

VIRODHI BHAKTI AND SAI BABA – BY B.V.N.SWAMI

 

Srimad Bhagavata VII Skanda, Chapter 1verse 25,26 & c.

run as follows: -

 

 

 

(25) Therefore let the mind be swayed (towards God) by

hatred, or devotion, or fear or by friendship or even

by lust. Somehow it must be directed (Godward) so as

not to be diverted to other things.

 

 

 

(26) My firm belief is that man cannot so surely

attain the Divine state through devotion as through

(violent and continued) hatred.

 

 

 

(27) The worm shut up in the bee’s closed earthen cell

constantly thinks of the bee in terror and turns there

by into a bee.

 

 

 

(28) Thus persons have by (persistent) hatred of the

Lord Sri Krishna who masquerades as a man purified

themselves of Sin and attained Him.

 

 

 

VII (6)

 

(29) Many persons have reached His state by fixing

their minds on Him through Lust, Hatred, Fear,

Friendship or Devotions and thus getting rid of their

sins.

 

 

 

(30) By Lust, the gopis reached Him; by fear, kamsa;

by hatred, Sisupala; by kinship, the Vrishnis; by

friendship you; and by devotion, we O; Lord!

 

 

 

The term Virodhi Bhakti is not used in any of these

passages. What is used is Vyra anubhanda or Vyra Yoga,

and this is contrasted with Bhakti. Evidently the

author in the last stanza feels the absurdity of

calling Hatred by the name Bhakthi. If even the name

hatred is so repulsive, one may ask how does hatred

serve to take the soul to God. The answer given is,

that it does not matter for what reason the mind is

turned to God. Let it turn to God in violent anger or

hatred or out of lust, it will still be in contact

with God. And God is such a wonderful dynamo that it

will absorb into itself all sorts of objects and

convert them into itself. The hatred serves the

purpose of intense concentration- a process that goes

on intensifying itself and preventing any

forgetfulness of God. It is forgetting God that forms

the real danger. That is apathy, a barren stage. If

the mind is fired with hatred or lust for or anger

with God, it is fascinated by God and has soon to

surrender itself. Its fangs of hatred are soon steeped

in Divine Love become Love. It is like tender gallnut

steeped in syrup or in limejuice, which retains its

form but loses its taste entirely. The old flavour, if

slightly retained gives a variety and piquancy to the

taste an increases its utility or attention. So the

secret of this so-called Vyree Bhakti is its being

directed towards God with persistent and great

violence carried to the point of fascination and

surrender.

 

 

 

Now is there any difference noticeable between this

sort of hatred or irreverence for God and the ordinary

forms of ungodliness or scoffing and disregard for

God. The latter tend to degrade and may go on

degrading the scoffer or sinner for a very increasing

violence must soon come to a stop. It is like the

locust rushing at and getting destroyed in the flame.

The hating ego rushes likewise into the divine flame

and it is burnt up. It becomes part of the flame. The

ego is purified of its hatred and becomes part and

parcel of God. That is the real point, the distinction

between ordinary hatred and what is termed Vyree

Bhakti. The Vyra or hatred like lust etc., directed to

other objects than God degrades. The slow, dead alive

scoffing or hatred even of God produces no

satisfactory results. It is the extraordinary results.

It is the extraordinary vehemence of Vyree Bhakti and

its direction to God that enable us to distinguish

Vyra Bhakti from other forms taken by the sins of

Hatred, Lust etc., Hence, in theory, it ought to be

easy to distinguish the Vyree Bhakti from mere Vyra.

In practice however, it may be very difficult for the

person entertaining the hatred or his well wishers to

make a correct diagnosis. In all cases of doubt, one

must play his trump card of increasing one’s vehemence

in creature and when he proposes to put an end to the

intolerable situation. Or if one has a metaphysical or

introverted turn of mind, let him very earnestly

examine what it is that he terms “God” what his “self”

and what “other selves or things”. Even this

observation and analysis must be conducted with great

persistence and earnestness and not in a half heated

way. Then sooner or later, (according to the degree of

his earnestness and his poorva piney it may be), he

will perceive that there is only one substratum or

essence underlying these three entities- God, Self and

Universe, which may be termed Parameswar, Paramatman

or Para Brahman.

 

 

 

The advise thus to be given in cases of inquiries into

doubtful cases os such Bhakti and Jnana is to heighten

intensify the case, whatever the attitude may be and

if possible to turn the inquiry in ward. Inquiry or

Vicharamarga will suit only a few direction, let us

not worry so long as the emotion is directed to God,

and when it is so directed, low aim low level are the

crimes or sources of danger. “Audacity, Audacity,

Audacity”- this maxim of Danton is the recipe –or if

that alternative is possible: Through submission” If

some advise as by rule of thumb is wanted, it is

this:- “ Seek the company of real saints and good

people.” however distasteful such company may be,-

especially in times when one’s bhakti has been upset.

That advice, i.e. Satsang gives relief when other

measures are not available or found useless.

 

(Adopted from Sai Sudha March 1944, This magazine can

be read at the

magazines

section of www.saileelas.org)

 

(On Behalf of Mr.Leeladhar Ji).

 

MAY SAI BLESS US ALL!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Music Unlimited

Access over 1 million songs. Try it free.

http://music./unlimited/