Sharing Sanjivani -Part 4

Chapter-(509) What are the characteristics of a Siddha devotee?

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What are the characteristics of a Siddha devotee?

मेरो तो गिरिधर गोपाल दुसरो न कोई।

जाके सरपे मोर मुकुट मेरो पति सोई ।।

A devotee like Mira who surrenders to Paramatma and ready to sacrifice everything on the path of devotion is a Siddha Bhakt. Siddha Bhakt knows that it is better to abandon all the desires and surrender to Shri Krishna than to do effort to understand Shastras through studies of Vedas and acquires knowledge or do meditations for hours and days and years after years because our body is like a tree in which two birds, a couple lives. One is Bhakt jiv and the other is witness who is Paramatma -our soul is not affected by any pain or gain ,cold and heat, good and bad, respect or rejection .Just as we with our body and mind feels every ups and downs in our life but our Shadow remains unaffected in the same way, the soul as a witness does not get affected by anything as it is said;

देहेन्द्रियमनोधर्मा नैवात्मानं स्पृशन्त्यहो ।

Our body, senses and mind have their activities and dharma to be followed but Atma remains detached but just as काल KAL –time is invisible and it has no shape, no organs still we think KAL in terms of Kalpa कल्प , Ayanअयन Dakshinayan दक्षिणायन and Uttarayan उत्तरायन ,six seasons and spring. In the same way we think various Bhav of soul , but it is a wrong conception. Vivek Chudamani says;

स्थूलादिभावा मयि कल्पिता भ्रमादारोपिता नु स्फुरणेन लोकैः।

काले यथा कल्पकवत्सरायनर्त्वादयो निष्कलनिर्विकल्पे ।। ( विवेक चूडामणि-४९८)

Soul has no Kalas it is NIRVIKLP निर्विकल्प but under the illusion of Maya माया, a person thinks that all the sthula and Sukshma Bhav affects him. Sthula Bhav स्थूल भाव are related with Sthula Sharir स्थूल शरीर as pain and gain, health or diseases, injuries or bruises on the physical body that can hurt and harm any part or organ of the body while Sukshma Bhav is related with Sukshma Sharir that feels joy and sorrow in meeting and the parting of desired things and persons, feel jealousy, envy revenge, love or hatred and friendliness, feelings like an enemy toward various persons. It is because of the corrupted Buddhi of a person but the soul is beyond corruption or VIKAR and hence just as a mirage could not wet the path as it is an illusion of water in the sunlight, just as cloud has no relation with the sky, the soul has no real relation with various bodies that HE changes birth after birth.

Hence when a devotee decides not to do any formidable action or karma those are denied by Shastra, he has been left with two alternative choices either he would do formidable karma or he would abandon all the dharma and try to act as NIVRUT निवृतः.When a devotee does all the acceptable karma as a Gruhasth devotee or as a Sadhu, his heart remains as pure as the water of Ganga and if he abandons all his karma both as a Sansari or as a Sadhak, his entire attention would remain steady in Paramatma when he chooses NIVRUTI निवृतिः । It means he is free from all kinds of desires but it never means that he is not doing any activities and becomes dependent either on society or on the members of family and friends. It does not mean that everybody has to support his laziness because not to do karma which is essential for your own survival or existence or for the society is also considered as forbidden karma by VEDA वेद and Shastras. A person should try to live hundred years while doing karma for others is the message of our Shastra.

Hence, Paramatma has shown us four instruments through Arjun to follow; for our own well-being and for the welfare of society as they are described in Bhagavad Gita . They are Samarpan Yoga-ABHY YOGA, ANUSTHAN, and KARMA YOGA to serve Paramatma and abandoning all the desires of fruits of karma and surrender to HIM only and then a devotee could attain Brahmakar VRUTI वृतिः as described in APAROKSHANUBHUTI अपरोक्षानुभूति by Shri Shankaracharyaji

भाववृत्या हि भावत्वं शून्यवृत्या हि शून्यता ।

ब्रह्मवृत्या हि पूर्णत्वं तथा पूर्णत्वमभ्यसेत् ।। (१२९)

When a person has felt Sansar as real or Paramatma as real his feelings create feelings in PADARTH पदार्थ too as when he worships a stone as Shaligram it becomes Swaroop of Narayan and Lingam as Aadi yogi Shiv. When a Sadhak feels nothing about Sansar or about Paramatma, he becomes like a stone - a nonliving element and when a Bhavak or a Sadhak has abandoned all his desires and surrender to Brahma in Sakar or Nirakar Swaroop, he would be able to feel fulfillment; spiritually and materially as a part of eternity. The rest persons live like animals. For the saints with virtues, the world is like an entire family but there are people with vices who felt jealousy and envy for them and think of them as enemy BHATRUHARIJI भर्तुहरि in his NITISHATAK नीतिशतक says that,

मृगमीनसज्जनानां तृणजलसंतोषविहितवृतीनाम्।

लुब्धकधीवरपिशुना निष्कारणवैरिणो जगति।। (६१)

A deer, a fish, and a good person respectively live on dry grass, water, and contentment and never hurt or harm anybody but cruel animals like tigers, fishermen and bad people think of them as enemies and try to harass than with no reason. We have saints in our world with contended people but all devotees have to suffer from bad people, undesirable events, and kriya. A devotee though suffers through his body, mind, and senses or because of jealousy of others or bad intentions of greedy people but they are so inclined to the love of Paramatma that they see desires of Paramatma in everything, in every event, and in every person. Secondly, a person faces destruction by being envious or jealous when something opposite to his own desire, beliefs, conceptions, or meditations happens but a devotee has no desire for self. He has contended totally hence there is no reason for him to be destructed.

Siddha Bhakt remains detached from jealousy and envy as he is not getting disturbed by the richness, wealth, or success of anybody. His pleasure is not dependent on materialist worldly achievements. He has no fear of death. We felt fear because of wild animals or from people having cruel intentions towards us as snakes, tiger robbers,s or a thief. Secondly, we are afraid because we inwardly felt fear of theft, lying, cheating , VYABHICHAR or whatever we do opposites to the order of Shastra . While a Siddha Bhakt thinks of his death as a new entry, a new birth into another body. Hence he is not attached to his perishable body. Patanjali Yoga sutra says; स्वरसवाही विदुषोहपि तथारुढोङभिनिवेशः। Even a conscious devotee feels fear of death but a Siddha Bhakt never feels fear because a devotee who is free from desires, free from comforts and uncomfortable situations, behaving equally with friends and enemies, who is thinking about praise and insult, happiness and sorrow equally and remains detached to the worldly accomplishment; is loved by Paramatma.NARAD BHAKTI SUTRA नारद भक्ति सुत्र says that joy and sorrow attachment and envy creates Dwand. But a Siddha Bhakt is free from Dwand

यत्प्राप्य न किञ्चिद्वाञ्छति न शोचति न द्वेष्टि न रमते नोत्साही भवति।।

(नारद भक्ति ५) ।।

A devotee who attains me desires nothing never feels joy and sorrow never remain addicted to anything never get attached to anybody or never feel joy in getting something or sorrow on losing anything.

Then how does a Siddha Bhakt loved by Paramatma?

Let us understand from our great God and Jagat Guru Shri Krishna..