Dharma Vahini - Post 25

Sairam All,

Another intuitive article which rose to be shared with the humanity at large is reproduced for your benefit. Immerse, soak into this to feel the essence within and everywhere around.

FORM WORSHIP AFTER REALIZATION

We were all immersed in the worship of our beloved Lord Sai in various forms, as Sai, Rama, Krishna, Devi, Allah, Jesus, Zorashtra, Mahavir and various other forms today during the recently concluded bhajan session.

A question arises during the session: - “WHAT MAKES A SELF REALIZED SOUL, A SPIRITUAL MASTER CONTINUE TO WORSHIP GOD IN FORM, EVEN AFTER REALIZING THE DIVINITY   AS SELF/AS ATMAN, THE JAGAT AS BRAHMAN AND THE UNIVERSAL CONSCIOUSNESS AS PARAMATMAN.”

The question is posed by Jiva to Easwara, “God, tell me why should I continue to worship you, even after attaining the state of objectless, eternal bliss, having turned my inner equipments towards the infinite Brahman??. 

You showered your grace to get this awareness of SELF. Now, you only answer this question as well.

After months of contemplation on this question, the Lord reveals the answers to the bhaktha, not in one stroke, but through a gradual process.

1) The sadhaka, even after realizing the formless SELF and after realizing that God and “I” are the same, still continues to worship God, to set an example for the world. What best example can a human give to this than the God Himself?? 

Our Lord Sai sings Bhajans in the glory of Rama, Krishna, Shiva, Subramanian etc. Does He have to sing these songs??? 

When He sings, He is the song, He is the God on whom the song is sung and He is the singer as well. 

He does this, to drive the message clear to all His devotees that they also must reach the stage of becoming the Song, the one on whom it is sung besides being singer themselves. 

Similarly, a realized soul continues to do form worship to set an example to the world that beginning with worship of form with total devotion only, one can reach the stage of realizing the formless “SELF” within.

2)  Now, coming back to the human form in which a realized seer continues to lead the life sojourn, do we not bow down to our old school / college time  teacher even when we see them after several decades, in gratitude to what they taught us when we were young???

If that be so, then what about the GOD, without whose grace, it would have been impossible to get to the flight to reach the destination of “SELF”!

If the spiritual journey can be compared to our travel along the 18 steps to have the glimpse of Lord Ayyappa in Sabari mala, believe me, even if, through intense sadhana, we are able to climb up 16 or even 17 steps, it is only with the Lord’s WILL and GRACE that we are able to move to the last 18^th step and then get the immense joy of having the divine darshan of Lord!!!.

In our cases, to a sadhaka  who has taken a wow to take the spiritual journey SERIOUSLY and to attain the height of heights, the Lord has taken the form of SADGURU and has helped that sadhaka  reach that height. 

All the spiritual masters of our glorious Bharath have time and again stressed the need for a GURU for a dashiki to attain realization.

Swami Sivananda wrote an entire book on the need of a Guru, titled “GURU BHAKTI YOGA” and in one of the poem on Guru, He wrote,

“Guru’s Grace is boundless  He held me by the arm and saved me

The Guru blessed me

He filled my heart with bliss

He showed me the path

He removed many pitfalls and snares

He elevated and inspired me

He released me

From the bondage of the wheel of birth and death.”

To a chosen few, SAI has assumed the role of such a Guru and has played the  role of both Guru and God in their lives. Why will I not shed tears of joy at thy feet, o Lord, even after I have realized that “I” am the absolute existence, absolute knowledge and absolute bliss - SAT CHIT ANANDA!!!. 3) Again, coming back to the world, as a human being, though ever immersed in the infinite Brahman, the realized seer contemplates on the Lord with form and thinks. “It is absolute truth that I have realized that there is no difference between me and you, i.e., The Jiva and the Easwara.     I have realized the same identity in  both. But to think of it, O Lord, how many thousands  of births would I have taken to attain this level of realization whereas, from the moment you decided to enter the womb of mother Easwaramba (pravesha), every step, every move of Yours is predetermined and you are perfection absolute and absolutely blemish less. Why would I not surrender to the holy feet of Lord, singing “Sri Rama charanam…”

4) All the above factors being result of contemplation, the last reason which I am going to give is absolutely natural and it needs no thinking, no contemplation, no deep meditation, but this can be realized only out of subjective experience.

At the realized stage, a sadhaka / a realized seer is filled with “Brahmananda rasa” or the essence of infinite bliss, 24/7. Just as He is able to see the glorious “SELF” within Him shining brilliantly, just as He is filled with Love with bliss, He sees through the Tatwa of Sai as nothing but only LOVE, LOVE and LOVE…

The devotee is LOVE and the Lord is LOVE and this union of LOVE, manifests as worship. The world thinks he is worshipping, the seer knows He is only LOVING THE LORD.

HERE, THE TRUE AND INDEPTH MEANING OF LORDS GOSPEL “LOVE IS GOD, LIVE IN LOVE” is understood, realized and lived upon by the sadhaka!!!!

Thus, the devotee turned Seer, exists verily AS the last verse in Nirvana shatakam.

अहं निर्विकल्पो निराकाररूपो
विभुत्वाच्च सर्वत्र सर्वेन्द्रियाणाम् ।
न चासङ्गतं नैव मुक्तिर्न मेयः
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम्

I AM ALL PERVASIVE.

I AM WITHOUT ANY ATTRIBUTES,

AND WITHOUT ANY FORM.

I HAVE NEITHER ATTACHMENT TO THE

WORLD NOR EVEN DESIRE FOR LIBERATION .

I HAVE NO WISHES FOR ANYTHING

BECAUSE 

I AM EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE, EVERY TIME,

ALWAYS IN SUPREME EQUANIMITY.

I AM INDEED,

EXISTANCE ABSOLUTE, KNOWLEDGE ABSOLUTE, BLISS ABSOUTE,

I AM EVER, THE SUPREME, EVER AUSPICIOUS CONSCIOUSNESS”

Love.