Sanatan Dharma | 9. Param Dharma Part - 3 | Sri Vinod Babaji Maharaj

 

Sanatan Dharma is not for a specific group of people. It is the universal duty of every human on Earth to follow Sanatan Dharma. Animals cannot apprehend and perform actions of Dharma but only a human can. Therefore, the superiority of humans as a species on this Earth is due to the ability to deliberate oneself into following Dharma. What is Dharma?

“Ahimsā Satyam Asteyam Saucham Indriya-nigrahah,
Etam sāmāsikam Dharmam chaturvarnye abravīn Manuh.”
(Manu Smriti 10.63)

Meaning: Non-violence, truth, abstinence from corruption, purity and sense-control – these are the essence of Dharma (duty) of all four castes, as declared by Maharaj Manu.

This is the basic form or the foundation of Dharma. Beyond this, there is Param Dharma [which we have been discussing in the last two articles].

The Jivatma must discover his relationship with God. In order to do that, he must gain Self-knowledge as well as knowledge of the tatva of God. Once he intellectually understands his relationship with God, he needs a path (or a way of worship) to realize that relationship and break free from the cycle of birth and death. Such a path is called an Upasana path. There are innumerable Upasana paths described in the scriptures.

God is infinite and unintelligible by mundane intellect. Who can know His infinite forms? Some worship the Nirguna Brahmå, some worship Shiva, others worship the Mother Goddess, and yet others worship Rāma, Krishna, etc. All worshippers worship the same God in different forms. There is only one Supreme Personality of Godhead, not hundreds. For devotees of different natures and moods, God manifests in different forms.

“Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāns tathaiva bhajāmyaham,
Mama vartmānuvartante manuṣhyāḥ pārtha sarvaśhaḥ.”
(Bhagavat Geeta 4.11)

Meaning: In whatever way people surrender unto Me, I reciprocate accordingly. Everyone follows My path, knowingly or unknowingly, O son of Pritha.

If someone wishes to go from Delhi to Mumbai, he can travel by aeroplane, train, car, bike or even on foot. The pathways and medium of transport can be different but the destination remains the same. Similarly, there are three main moods of God which make up His Godliness:

1.     Gyanamaya Prakash: When God is situated in the form of Nirguna Brahmå, He is said to be situated in Gyanamaya mood or Prakash. In this form, God pervades the whole Creation and in the heart of each creature.

2.  Aishwaryamaya Prakash: When God manifests as Saguna Brahmå and is situated as the ultimate controller of all universes; One who is ever-content in His own bliss; where there is no thirst or hunger, He is said to be situated in Aishwaryamaya mood.

3.  Madhuryamaya Prakash: When God manifests as Saguna Brahmå but forgets that He is the ultimate controller of all universes and just desires to be the most beloved of His devotee, play with him like a friend, son, partner, etc, He is said to be situated in Madhuryamaya mood.

All these moods manifest in the Supreme Personality of Godhead at the same time. Together they form the Supreme Godliness of God. During the pastimes of eternal Goloka Dham, Krishna totally forgets that He is God and becomes engrossed in the divine love of His devotees. But at the same time, He manifests as Narayan in Vaikuntha Dham where He is situated in Aishwaryamaya mood. Also at the same time, He is present as Nirguna Brahmå omnipotent in each particle and in the heart of each creature in the world.

Water is omnipresent in the entire creation but it is not visible to the naked eye. It takes up various forms in nature as vapour, rain, water in a pond, well, river, ocean, and even ice. Although each form of water has its different function in nature, it is water only. Similarly, although there are different moods and forms of God, in tatva, there is only one God.

Each and every word of the scriptures is true. Then why does it seem like every scripture calls its respective deity as the Supreme Personality of Godhead? Varaha Puran says Lord Varaha is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kurma Puran says Lord Kurma is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Shiva Puran says Shiva is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Devi Bhagavat says Mother Goddess is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and so on. So which scripture is telling the Truth and which is telling a lie? The Truth is that there is only one God who manifests in all these different forms.

Some people think worshipping Shiva or Mother Goddess as the Supreme Personality of Godhead is not right because the majority of the scriptures proclaim Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is not true. Sadā Shiva is non-different from Krishna in tatva. In Shiva Puran, He calls Vishnu as His son. The truth is that the Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests as Sadā Shiva for those devotees whose beloved form of God is Shiva.

There is maximum amount of manifestation of Madhuryamaya Prakash in Krishna and that is why, full-fledged Godliness manifests in Krishna. But this does not mean Krishna is the only God and all else are demi-gods. Demi-Gods are only those who appear at the time of creation of the material world and disappear during annihilation like Indra, Varuna etc.  

Shiva has many forms. He is also the greatest of all Vaishnavas. In the pastimes of Krishna, Shiva requests Mother Yashoda for a glimpse of Krishna but she denies it. Krishna starts crying incessantly and ultimately, Yashoda has to call Shiva so that her son stops crying. In this way, Krishna showed the world how dear Shiva is to Him.

Rudra is one of His forms in which He accepts Tamoguna (mood of darkness and destruction) to destroy the Creation, which is a process of renewal in the cycle of Creation. Sometimes, a Jivatma begets the position of Rudra in the cycle of Creation. But this does NOT mean that Shiva is a demi-god. Rudra is a divine position required in the cycle of Creation but Sadā Shiva is equal with Krishna in tatva.

Mother Goddess is the Antarangā Shakti (potency) of Krishna. [Krishna’s Māyā Shakti consists of Bahirangā Shakti (which controls the mundane Creation), Tatasthā Shakti (the Jivatma) and Antarangā Shakti (which controls divine pastimes). Antarangā Shakti is further divided into three types: Samvit Shakti,  Sandhini Shakti and Hladini Shakti. Samvit Shakti controls the sensations or cognitive power of Krishna. Sandhini Shakti controls the manifestations of divine abodes and instruments of service to Krishna. Hladini Shakti controls the give & take of divine bliss & love between God and His devotees.]

Therefore, She is also equal in tatva with Shiva and Krishna. As Yogamāya, She controls the divine pastimes of God in divine abodes as well as earthly pastimes. As Māhāmāya, She controls and pervades the whole Creation made up of five elements.

In Padma Puran, there is an instance of a devotee of Shiva who knows no other form of God. For him, Shiva is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He devotedly worshipped Shiva day and night. Lord Āshutosh (Āshu = quick, tosh = pleased; Āshutosh = One who is quickly pleased) appeared before the devotee one day. The devotee was ecstatic to see his Lord in front of him. With eyes filled with tears of happiness, he said, “O Lord, you have appeared before me?! I have not performed any special service, pooja or devotional activities to please you. Yet, you are so merciful!” His heart was cleansed of all material desires on seeing the divine form of Lord Shiva and hence, he started crying due to pure Bhakti for his Lord.

Lord Shiva said, “I am very pleased with your Bhakti. Ask for a boon you wish.” The devotee was very happy but thought, ‘I am a simple man. How can I know what precious experiences exist in the spiritual world? How am I to know what is the best thing to ask in the divine world?’ Therefore, he bowed to Lord Shiva and said, “O Lord, I don't know what to ask of you. If you are really pleased with me, please give me the divine experience that is dearest to you.”

Lord Shiva was shocked. He disappeared without a word and returned to his abode Kailāsa Dham. The devotee could not understand why Lord Shiva disappeared and believed that he must have made some mistake. He started crying and worshipping the Shiva Lingam with water, bilva leaves and flowers.

Lord Shiva was so tensed that he started pacing around in Kailāsa Dham. Mother Pārvati saw this and was curious. “What happened, my Lord? I have never seen you so tense before! Please tell me the reason for this,” She said to Lord Shiva. “Don’t ask anything, Devi. I have been struck with a catastrophe!” He said. She asked, “I am curious to know what kind of catastrophe it can be that you are so tensed?!”. “Today, I visited a devotee of mine to give him a boon. The devotee asked for the divine experience that is dearest to me! Now, I have never given such precious divine experience to anyone before. I have never even revealed to anyone what is the dearest divine experience in my heart. How can I give such a priceless thing to anybody?” Lord Shiva said.

Mother Pārvati was even more curious now. “Did you say you have never revealed what is the dearest divine experience in your heart? That is correct! Even I don’t know about it! Please tell me what is that precious divine experience that is hidden in the depths of your heart?”. Lord Shiva was vexed beyond measure. Now even Pārvati Devi wants to know about it. Next, She would ask to let Her experience the same divine experience too. What a big mess!

But Mother Pārvati insisted adamantly again and again to tell Her about the secret divine experience. Finally, Lord Shiva gave in. “Dear Devi, my dearest divine experience is the Rāsa Lila of Lord Krishna and Srimati Radharani in the divine forests of Vrindavan. These pastimes of Krishna are the manifestation of the highest order of divine taste. Therefore, it is very secret and extremely priceless even among the most precious divine experiences. I have always given boons of eight divine powers, nine divine treasures, wealth, health, etc to innumerable devotees. But I have never given this precious divine experience of Rāsa Lila to anyone before. How can I give such an extremely precious thing to anyone?” He said.

Mother Pārvati said, “No, my Lord, you must give this boon to your dear devotee. Your devotee did not ask for any material gain and is extremely devoted to you. You must not refrain from giving him this precious boon.” “Since you say so, dear Devi, I will go and give him his deserved boon,” said Lord Shiva and appeared before His devotee again. In the meantime, the devotee was constantly crying and worshipping Lord Shiva. On seeing Lord Shiva, he subdued a little and prostrated before Him. Lord Shiva smiled and took him in his divine form to the eternal Goloka Dham. He showed him the divine pastimes of Rāsa Lila and said, “This is the highest manifestation of divine taste. This is the most confidential divine experience that is dearest to my heart.”

In this instance from Padma Puran, it is very clear that Lord Shiva is God and the greatest of all Vaishnavas at the same time. The forms, moods and pastimes of God are different in Sadā Shiva Loka, Sāket Dham, Goloka Dham, Vaikuntha Dham, etc but in tatva, They are one. This is why, sadhaks must never try to proclaim their own path as the best and others as inferior, especially in front of sadhaks of other Sampradayas. One must never speak in such a way that implies the way of worship of other sadhaks is inferior to one’s own way of worship. One must always give respect to other ways of worship and encourage sadhaks of other sects to follow their respective paths. The beauty of Sanatan Dharma rests in this kind of attitude.

When Sri Rāma was aggrieved by the separation of Sita Devi during the earthly pastimes and cried incessantly for Her, Lord Shiva’s consort Devi Sati was engulfed in doubt. This man, who is crying like the most lustful man pained by the separation from his wife, can He be the Supreme Personality of Godhead? He asks each and every creature he meets on the forest path and even the creepers and trees for the whereabouts of Devi Sita. How can the omnipresent all-knowing God not know the whereabouts of Devi Sita?

She decided to test Sri Rāma. She took the appearance of Devi Sita and went before Sri Rāma. Sri Rāma folded His hands and said, “O Mother Goddess, how come you have left Kailasa Dham to roam around this forest alone? How can I serve you?” Devi Sati was shocked. She returned to Kailasa Dham without a word.

When God engages in His divine pastimes, He willingly gets engulfed by Yogamaya and forgets that He is the Supreme controller of all universes. Without this, He cannot enjoy His divine pastimes. But He can revert back to His all-knowing Aishwaryamaya mood at will too.

Once, during the same pastime of abduction of Devi Sita, Sri Rāma hugged Hanumān and started crying, saying, “O Hanumān, you are the only one who can save me from this ocean of grief. Please find out the whereabouts of Sita for me. I have no other friend like you. Please save me from this pain of separation, Hanumān!”

Hanumān is Lord Shiva Himself. Although He knows perfectly well that Sri Rāma is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Yogamāya Devi veils His consciousness in the earthly pastimes. Hence, Hanumān is disillusioned by Sri Rāma’s actions. He wonders, ‘How can this be the Supreme personality of Godhead? Isn’t He the all-knowing, all-pervading God Himself? Have I made a mistake and follow around a simple Jivatma instead of God?’ His heart became engulfed in doubt. From then on, Hanumān tries to get a glimpse of Godliness in Sri Rāma. He watches Sri Rāma’s pastimes very carefully so that He can catch even a sliver of Godliness in Sri Rāma.

But Sri Rāma does not exhibit any form of Godliness at all. He cries incessantly for Sita Devi. Tears wash down His chest while he pitifully calls, “Ha Sita! Alas, I have lost you! Where are you? O Vallike (flowering creepers)! O Yuthike (flowering bushes)! Please tell me the whereabouts of Devi Sita!” The doubt in Hanumān’s heart does not get dispelled.

Hanumān brought the news of Devi Sita and the war between Sri Rāma and Rāvana started. Rāvana’s son Indrajeet bound Sri Rāma in Nāga Pāsha (chain of divine serpents). Rāma seems to be unable to free Himself from Nāga Pāsha. Hanumān gets disillusioned even more. How can mere serpents bind the Supreme Personality of Godhead?

Sri Rāma calls for Garuda, His divine mount. Garuda arrives and starts killing the serpents with His beak and talons. Some serpents escape out of fear. Finally, Sri Rāma is able to be free from Nāga Pāsha. He thanks Garuda and says, “O Garuda, I am very pleased with you. You have saved me from such a fatal situation. Please ask for a boon.”

Hanumān saw that an enormous bird came to free the person who is said to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead! Now the bird is bowing to Him and praying something. Since He wanted to catch any glimpse of Godliness in Sri Rāma, He quickly and quietly climbed up a tree so that He was positioned exactly above Sri Rāma and Garuda. From there, He saw that Garuda prays, “O Lord, if you are really pleased with me, please show me the highest manifestation of Madhuryamaya mood, that is, your sweet Krishna form of Vrindavan. I do not want anything else from you.” Sri Rāma said, “Garuda! How is that possible? I am performing the pastimes of Sri Rāma here at this time. This is Tretā Yuga. There are people, monkeys and demons present around us. How can I show you such a secret in front of everyone?”

“O Lord, I will encircle you in my huge wings so that nobody can see you. Please show me your Madhuryamaya Krishna form. I want nothing else from you,” requested Garuda, humbly. Hence, Garuda enclosed Sri Rāma in His huge wings and Sri Rāma appeared before Him as Krishna. He was holding His divine flute and was adorned with peacock feathers on His head. Not only Garuda, Hanumān too was ecstatic to see this sweet and divine form of Krishna from atop the tree. His doubts were dispelled at once. ‘Aha! So, this is the trickster Krishna (slang spoken out of pure love)! He deceives the whole world and also deceived me! I am really grateful for this glimpse of Godliness today,’ rejoiced Hanumān in his heart.

There are many similar instances in our scriptures where the oneness of all forms of God has been exhibited. When Tulsidasji (author of Sri Ramcharitmanas) came to Vrindavan, he prayed to Krishna, “Prabhu, my heart is attached to the Maryada Purushottam (one who is the best example of personal and societal boundaries that a man must abide by) Sri Rāma form. Please give me darshan in that form only.” So, Krishna appeared before him as Sri Rāma.

This is Sanatan Dharma. We do not worship many Gods and Goddesses. We worship one God in various forms and moods. Followers of Sanatan Dharma need to dispel narrow-mindedness and embrace everyone as servants of the same God. His forms, names, moods and pastimes are infinite. And the most important thing is that He resides in the hearts of all creatures. A sadhak who wants to please God must never pain the heart of another person by belittling their way of worship or the form of God he believes in.

Some Questions and Answers

Q: Our Param Gurudev Sri Tinkodi Goswami Maharaj was once visited by Sri Vallabhācharya ji. He wanted to give him a Tulasi bead necklace. On another occasion, Sri Vitthalnāth ji also visited him with the same offer. But Sri Tinkodi Goswami Maharaj refused it both times. Why is it so?

A: Of course, he refused it! Sri Vallabhācharya ji and Sri Vitthalnāth ji were testing him to see his Guru Nishtha. Accepting a Tulasi bead necklace from an Acharya of another Sampradaya would mean a change of Guru. Gurudev folded his hands and humbly said, “I already have Tulasi bead necklace given by my Gurudev. Please give me your blessings so that I can progress in my Bhakti path.” Both of them were actually pleased to see his Guru Nishtha. They gave their heartfelt blessings upon him and disappeared.

Q: Can any Sadhu or Acharya of any Sampradaya bless the sadhak of any Sampradaya to progress in Bhakti and Bhajan?

A: Absolutely yes! Not only they can, but when a sadhak diligently engages in bhajan, many Sadhus and Acharyas appear or even secretly bless him to progress in bhajan. Only, there should be no narrow-mindedness in the sadhak. Otherwise, he will be left devoid of such mercy. If the sadhak has faith in the mercy of Sadhus irrespective of their sect, then Sadhus who are present on earth as well as those who are present only in divine form come to bless the sadhak and help him.