Narada Bhakti Sutras

Monday, December 04, 2006

Chapter 2, Sutra 3 and 4

HARI AUM

Prostrations to all.

Sutra 3 –

Ishwarasya api abhimaana dveshitvaat dainya priyatvaat cha

Word meaning
Ishwarasya api abhimaana dveshitvaat – since Ishwara doesn’t like Egoism
Dainya priyatvaat cha – and likes humility
(therefore bhakthi is superior)

Sutra meaning
Since Ishwara doesn’t like Egoism and likes humility, therefore bhakthi is superior to other paths.

In the previous sutra, we learned that bhakthi is superior to other paths because of the fruit of bhakthi being eternal. Here Narada gives another reason to show that bhakthi is superior to other paths.

Ishwara doesn’t like ego and likes humility. Here Ishwara need not mean the God who creates, protects and destroys but the ultimate reality of Brahman itself at the empirical level. Ishwara can be realized only when the ego is vanquished. So long as individuality remains, there cannot be realization of the totality of the non-dual reality of Brahman. Scriptures thus proclaim in many ways that a seeker has to get rid of ego attitude. The Lord himself mentions in Gita in many places that a person should get rid of the notion of “I” and “Mine”. This notion of “I” and “Mine” is what is termed as ego or ahamkaara. When there is ego, there is the sense of limitedness caused by the limitations of body and mind. Thus the seeker will consider himself as attached and associated with the body mind complex. When there is attachment and association with the body-mind complex, the sorrows and sufferings of the body will be superimposed on the Self. Thereby the blissful nature of the Self will be forgotten and sorrowful nature of the body will be identified as “my” sorrow. This is what Vedanta calls as bandha and Sankara terms as adhyaasa or superimposition. This bandha can be removed only when the seeker detaches himself from the body-mind complex. This detachment leads a person to either kill the ego or detach himself from the Ego and identify himself with the witness of Self.

Thus since ego has to negated for realization, Ishwara doesn’t like Ego. Here “doesn’t like” only means that he who has ego cannot go near the Lord. Cannot go near the Lord means that he cannot realize the ultimate reality of Lord. Thus one who has Ego will never achieve perfection, infinite state and unlimited bliss.

Since bhakthi leads a person to all these, therefore bhakthi doesn’t involve Ego. The other paths of karma, jnaana and yoga require the doer-ship which is a form of Ego. Bhakthi doesn’t involve Ego because the devotee offers all actions unto the Lord and considers himself as a mere instrument in the hands of the Lord. Thus there is no doership in bhakthi whereas in the other paths there is the doer. Karma has the doer of Kartha whereas jnaana has the doer of jnaani. Yoga also has the doer of the person who tries to achieve samaadhi. As bhakthi doesn’t involve ego and other paths involve ego, bhakthi is superior to the other paths.

Wherever there is ego, there will be no humility. Since bhakthi doesn’t have ego, therefore it has humility as well. Ishwara doesn’t like egoism and hence likes humility. Since bhakthi alone qualifies as having humility and not having ego, therefore bhakthi is superior than the other paths.


Sutra 4 –
Tasyaah jnanameva saadhanam ithi eke

Word meaning
Tasyaah – for bhakthi
Jnaanam eva saadhanam – jnaana alone is the means
Ithi – thus
Eke – say a few

Sutra meaning
A few opine that for bhakthi, jnaana alone is the means.

Explanation along with next sutra..


Prostrations to all.

HARI AUM

Thanks
Hariram
Let a moment not pass by without remembering God

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