Narada Bhakti Sutra - Post 9

Sutra 3. Amruthaswaroopaa cha. 

Amrita swaroopaa : Of the nature of nectar

Cha                          : and.

Amrita: “A” means “not” and “Mrita” means death. Amrita is that which bestows immortality. God, Immortality (Amrutham), peace (Santi), Absolute, Infinite (ananta) Intelligence, Consciousness (chit), Eternity, bliss (ananda). Nirvana, freedom (Mukti), perfection (Siddhi), are synonymous terms.

Devotion is real nectar. It secures freedom from the wheel of births and deaths. Lord Yama cannot come near a devotee. The devotee attains immortality. He lives constantly in the presence of God.

Devotion gives Immortality. Bhakti is an embodiment of Amrita or nectar. Nitya Sukha (eternal bliss), Immortality, Param Santi (supreme peace), Nitya Tripti (eternal satisfaction), Akhanda Sukha (unbroken joy) can be had only in God. That is the reason why aspirants attempt for God-realisation.

Worldly pleasure is not constant. He who smiles and laughs for five minutes weeps bitterly for hours together. No man in this world is perfectly happy. A multi-millionaire is full of cares, worries, anxieties and fear. He is afraid of enemies. He is guarded by sepoys. He has to take injections for getting sleep, as he is always worried. He is worse than a prisoner.

  

In Brahdaranyaka Upanishad, Maitreyi puts a question to her husband, Yajnavalkya, 

“0 My Lord ! can the wealth of the three worlds give me immortality?” 

Yajnavalkya replied, “Certainly not, my beloved.”

In Kenopanishad, Yama also says to Nachiketas : “Wealthy people on account of delusion and pride lose their memory, intellect and understanding, and go round and round in this impermanent and unhappy world and come again and again in my clutches. 

Wealth and woman are the two snares to entrap the worldly-minded persons whose minds are filled with lust and greed. You are above these things. You have shunned all my temptations. You have selected the “Sreya Marga.”

This is a world of diversity. Intellects are different. Faces are different . Religions are different. Sounds are different. Faiths are different. Tastes and temperaments are different. But one thing is common in all. Every one of us wants Nitya Sukha (eternal happiness), infinite knowledge, Immortality, freedom and independence. These things can be obtained by God-realization alone.

Another Interpretation of Amrita

In the  above interpretation, we read thus:- 

Amrita: “A” means “not” and

Mrita” means death. 

Thus, Amrita is that which bestows immortality.

A curious disciple asks his acharya,  

" O Master, I have understood the above explanation but I have a question to make"

Acharya : Go on, Ask what you want to ask

Disciple: Having understood the meaning of Amrita, How is it possible to experience real Amrita??? What has to die in our life even when we are alive, so that we can experience Bliss beyond any Mrita/ Death??

Acharya :  That is a perfect question. While we are alive, in our Parama Prema /Self less devotion to God, the devil in us, the subtlest Ego, the "I", the identification with our BMI ( Body, Mind, Intellect) must die. 

Upon the death of the Ego, we can experience Amrita- Bliss/ Ananda/ Love/ Peace all together to infinite, immeasurable extent.

Disciple : Prostrations to you master, that is crystal clear to me now. The EGO has to Die for me to experience the Immortal, Deathless Bliss/ Experience of SELF!!!

Love.