Sharanagati

(from a lecture of Swami Tirtha, 06.05.2018, Sofia)

(continues from the previous Monday)

It is very simple to understand: in order to exchange something, like this small little ball, we need two partners. And if you give and receive, everybody is happy. You are happy to give, the other side is happy to receive. This is a much higher philosophy than ‘nothing exists’. Sorry, there is a ball at least. If we don’t believe that we exist, the ball is there, right? And it makes us happy.

If we don’t forget about ourselves, if we find our real identity, then we will find God as well. Therefore it is said: self-reflection, to understand yourself, is necessary to understand the Supreme. If you see Him, you will see yourself. And if you understand yourself, you will conclude that there must be a source, there must be something higher.

“There are channels by which the Infinite descends. He is all power, glory, beauty, knowledge, wealth and renunciation. He is dominant, all-extending, free and autocratic. The Infinite cannot be contained in a limited sphere, but if He is really Infinite, then He has the power of making Himself known in all His fullness to the finite mind. When, out of His own prerogative, He takes the initiative and reveals Himself to the devotee, there is actual perception of Godhead, self-realization, transcendental revelation. By the channel of transcendental sound He comes, by vibrating the spiritual tongue of the pure devotee, representing Him to the world. The spiritual element vibrates the spiritual tongue of the sadguru’s audience, which have hitherto never been vibrated.”[1]

You see, it goes side by side – the self-realization and to realize our connection to the Supreme. And as Krishna and krishna-nam are fully free, nothing limits them, they can show themselves, reveal themselves to us, even to the limited human being. Shridhar Maharaj says many times that all rights are reserved by Krishna. You know, in the business world people think that they can reserve any rights – like intellectual property or how is it called? Copyrights and trademarks… All rights reserved by Krishna. He comes on His own initiative, when He wants. Not when you want. ‘My dear God, now it is seven in the morning, please come. Because I meditate over You, so You please come.’ Maybe He will come, maybe not. All rights reserved by Him.

Now you laugh. But if you have spent one whole lifetime in deep meditation and He doesn’t come, will you laugh, will you be happy about that? All rights reserved by Him. It is a very serious thing. We cannot force divine mercy. And sometimes you see that your brother or sister is not very serious about his or her spiritual practices. Yet Krishna comes and embraces him or her. And then you complain: “Hey, hey! But I was always cooking, not him! Why him? Why not me? I was doing the service and he was enjoying.”

We can never know. It comes by its own desire. Rather, it is said, if you want to chase Radhika forcefully, She will escape. The more you chase Her, the more She will run. Because this is again the ascending method – ‘I want to achieve’. So then what do you do? Invite Them, pray. And then it is not the material tongue and it is not the material ear that will chant and listen to the holy name. The spiritual element will vibrate the spiritual tongue.

(to be continued)

[1] The quotations are from The descent of the holy name by Shridhara Maharaj