Joy of Self Tripurari

8/10/2019 Joy of Self Tripurari

1/42

oyelfSJ of

S W A M I B . V. T R I P U R A R I


2/42

oyelfSJ of


3/42

oyelfSJ of

S W A M I B . V. T R I P U R A R I


4/42

ISBN: 978-0-9849318-0-4

Sri Caitanya Sangha 2012.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by anymeans, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other-wise, without the prior permission of Sri Caitanya Sangha.

Printed in the U.S.A.


5/42

D E D I C A T I O N

To my spiritual master and dearmost friend,Pjypda A.C. Bhaktivednta Swm Prabhupda.


6/42

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Introduction ............................................................. vii

1. In Search of Joy .................................................... 1

2. Affectionate Guardian ........................................ 53. Revealed Sound ................................................. 11

4. Conceptual Orientation .................................... 15

5. The Means .......................................................... 23

6. The Goal ............................................................. 31


7/42

We cannot say that we do not exist. We cannot ex-

perience nonexistence. Although there are those who

would argue for the joy of no self, this book was

written primarily for those who sense that our indi-

vidual existence is not something to do away with

in the name of enlightenment. Joy of Self is about our

identity in transcendence.

Recently a young man asked me about the ego. Ifthe ego is so bad, he queried, why do we have it in

the first place? I told him that the ego is not bad, forego indicates identity. We all have an identity. We areall individuals. However, our present sense of individ-uality is based on our identification with matter in theform of our bodies, minds, and the extensions of thesein all that we call ours. This identity is a false one, afalse ego.

vii

I N T R O D U C T I O N


8/42

Joy of Self

All of the major traditions of Eastern spirituality andmany traditions of the West tell us in so many wordsthat our present individual identity is based on materialmisidentification and is thereby false. What they do nottell us is what this book is about. They do not tell us thatwe have an individual identity to realize in transcen-dence once we have dissolved the false ego.

If material natures offer for lasting joy is but false

advertising, seeing through this sham is to see deeply.By moving from negative numbers to zero, we will feelthat we have progressed. The Buddhist notion of full-ness in emptiness stops at zero. There is no doubt a full-ness in realizing the emptiness of material life, but canwe progress from zero to positive numbers? If so, wewill have to look even more deeply into the mystery of

our self. So doing, devotional Vednta informs us thatwe can realize the joy of self, the pure self, free from theexploitation that is characteristic of the false self born ofmaterial identification.

This book is an introduction to the devotional Ve-dnta of r Chaitanya, Gauya Vednta. r Chait-

anya, the fifteenth-century Ka avatra who personi-fied a life of divine love, left in writing only eight San-skrit stanzas. Yet his immediate followers churned thesedrops of nectar into an ocean of literature on divine love.This introduction draws from their writings and the sa-cred literature of spiritual India such that anyone cangain a well-rounded acquaintance with the foundational

viii


9/42

Introduction ix

philosophical principles of Gauya Vednta and thuscome to know the potential for joy inherent in the self.


10/42

1

1 . I N S E A R C H O F J O Y

Gauya Vednta is a metanarrative that is deeplyphilosophical yet readily accessible to even the mostcommon person. It speaks to us of joy and a life of lovethat never ends. If we embrace it, we will experiencethis love and never lose it due to the influence of time.

All living beings are in search of joy. We pursue joydirectly and do so indirectly when we try to avoid dis-tress. Although one of the four noble truths of the Bud-dha is that life is about suffering, the Buddha himself

teaches how to end suffering, which is indirectly thepursuit of joy. So also are the masochists, sadists, andthose labeled suicidal in search of joy. In this search forjoy we are all one; we differ, however, in what our con-ception of joy is.

In another sense, we do all want the same type ofjoy: that which is everlasting. Therefore, it might be more


11/42

2 Joy of Self

accurate to say that we are looking for the same thingbut looking in different places. Yet the joy we find in thisworld is fleeting at best.

Joy derived from material objects will never be ev-erlasting. Why is this so? Material objects are transitory.Like foam on waves, material manifestations, from oursmall bodies to gigantic solar systems, appear for sometime and disappear forever. Where do they go? From

whence they came. We, on the other hand, are not thefleeting experience of material joy. We are the experienc-ers. We are consciousness and we possess consciousness,or the power of experiencing.

We often hear that absence of experience of the soulis justification for its dismissal. For the Vedntin, how-ever, experience itself is the soul. Experience is the func-

tion of consciousness, and consciousness is that whichcannot be dismissed, since dismissal itself is a consciousact. We can dismiss all, from our own bodies to the en-tire universe, in our search for enduring joy, for all ma-terial manifestations will vanish. If, therefore, we are tobe successful in our search for joy, we must look not to

matter, but to the very consciousness of which we areconstituted. To experience joy, we must find ourselves inthe maze of matter.

The search for joy is in reality the search for self. It isonly because we project our own self into material ob-jects that we seem to derive pleasure from them. Whenwe conceive of material objects as mine, we in effect


12/42

3In Search of Joy

enter those objects and seem to derive pleasure fromthem. In reality, however, it is our self that has enteredthose objects, and it is the same self that is the basis ofthe joy we experience in relation to those objects. Thusclose scrutiny reveals that it is consciousness alone inwhich pleasure is found, and we are a unit of conscious-ness. Yet how can we find ourselves and from whencedo we come? These are the important questions for hu-

man society.As human beings, we have the capacity to reason. In

one sense the universal human language is that of rea-soning. Unfortunately, all in human dress do not speakit. If we learn the language of reasoning and are thus di-rected by intelligence, we will reach the conclusion thatlogic itself is limited. It can lead us to the self, yet it can-

not reveal the self, for intelligence is but a subtle mate-rial manifestation and is thus inferior to consciousness.Consciousness, the self, animates body, mind, and intel-ligence. It brings these gross and subtle material mani-festations to life by lending itself to them. How then canintelligence be the guide of the soul? Our guide must

possess greater knowledge than us. Thus intelligencecannot reveal the soul any more than a candle can shedlight upon the sun. Intelligence can, however, point us inthe selfs direction, just as in darkness a candle can leadus to light.

As a ray of sun is separated from the sun by acloud, we are apparently separated from our source by


13/42

4 Joy of Self

the cloud of illusion. The supreme suneternal joy andconsciousness personifiedis the source of both its ownrays and the cloud of illusion. Thus, as rays of conscious-ness now illusioned by the cloud of ignorance, we mustconnect ourselves with our source and thus overcomethe material illusion. In our search for joy we must findthe reservoir of consciousness, with whom we are oneyet at the same time different. To comprehend our in-

conceivable nature, we require help from beyond thelimits of logic. We require more than human effort. Werequire grace, divine grace.

Although it may not be popular to advocate our de-pendence on another, when we understand this principlephilosophically through the metanarrative of GauyaVednta, we will realize the extent to which true indepen-

dence is realized in divine dependence. Unlike Buddhism,monistic Vednta, and other popular Eastern paths toperfection, Gauya Vednta is a devotional path withemphasis on grace. Gauya Vednta as exemplified byr Chaitanya offers much to those who are in search ofjoy. He and his subsequent followers have presented a

doctrine of divine love well reasoned and easily accessi-ble to all. In our search for joy we would do well to con-sider its principal tenets.


14/42

5

Godhead alone can guide us in our search, yet hechooses to do so through a particular agent. God isour guru, and yet our guru is not God. Although thismay sound contradictory at first, Gauya Vedntamakes clear this apparent contradiction, revealing amost charming notion of eternal guidance that candispel all human apprehension.

In the modern world, we have seen a good numberof totalitarian regimes and less-than-spiritual religious

leaders. From politicians to popes, gestapos to gurus,we have learned to be cautious about claims of absoluteknowledge. It is no wonder then that we are hesitantwhen Gauya Vednta speaks of the necessity of andutter dependence on the guru.

Who will mediate between humanity and divinity?Dont all souls have the potential for a personal relation-

2 . A F F E C T I O N A T E G U A R D I A N


15/42

6 Joy of Self

ship with God, without the need of a chaperone? In thelanguage of love, Three is a crowd. Furthermore, de-pendence on another, it would seem, hinders one fromstanding on ones own two feet. Can we not think forourselves? Do the enlightened themselves have gurus?If they had any necessity at some point in their eternalprogress, it would seem at best that such necessity was arelative one, rendering the principle of guru dispensable

at some point. All of these doubts and misconceptionsregarding the principle of guru must be cleared up if weare to be successful in our search, for the guru is an eter-nal necessity for all souls.

Gurus are, in the simplest of terms, teachers. Whatdo they teach? They teach how to serve God. To do so,they themselves must be servants of the Godhead. If

they teach service to God, what have we to fear fromthem? If, on the other hand, they teach service to them-selves and take the position of being the enjoyers of allof our service, there is good cause for reservation. If theyteach that they are God, they are not gurus.

Those who posit absolute monism teach that all in-

dividuality is illusion. For such monists, all is ultimatelyone and there is no other. In place of this doctrine ofabsolute monism,Joy of Selfsuggests a more nuancedunderstanding of ultimate reality that finds room forindividuality without compromising unity. The textposits a form of devotional Vedantaa doctrine of wiselovein which the individual self unites in love with its


16/42

7Affectionate Guardian

source, experiencing a unity of will with the Absolute: aoneness in purpose but a nuanced ontological differencein identity.

The philosophy of monism posits that atomic particlesof consciousness are but an appearance, an illusion.This philosophy has been thoroughly dealt with inthe many writings of Gauya Vedntas self-realizedcryas, or spiritual masters. It would be prudent for

the serious spiritual aspirant to go through both thesecryascommentaries on sacred literature, such asBhagavad-gtand rmad Bhgavatam,as well as thebooks they themselves have authored. It should sufficeherein to underscore the tenet of the Gauya Vaiavasthat the atomic soul is not an illusion, while at the sametime in material life the soul is absorbed in an illusory

identity. Removing this illusory identity in the contextof the culture of devotional Vedanta, we realize ourlikeness to the Godhead but not that we ourselves arethe entirety of the Absolute. In the latter conception,both God and atomic soul ultimately cease to have anyrelevance, as does any means of such realization. In later

chapters these important points will be dealt with ingreater detail.Although gurus are not God, neither are they to be

considered as merely atomic souls bound in the net ofmaterial illusion. Gurus are servants of God as are allsouls, yet they are servants who have realized the truthof their eternal servanthood. With regard to service, it


17/42

8 Joy of Self

should be noted that service in itself is not a bad thing.The value of service depends on who is served. If it isindeed God whom we are taught to serve, such service isin no way demeaning, for the Godhead is the perfect ob-ject of love. Service reposed in God through the agency ofguru is the most dignified engagement for all souls. Thosewho conceive of themselves as nothing more than eter-nal servants of the Godhead represented in their own

guru are fit to serve in the capacity of guru themselves.Gurus are those souls who have emptied themselves

of all selfish considerations arising from material mis-identification. As such, they are filled with the spiri-tual akti, energy of Godhead, to do Gods work in thisworld. As the ambassador of the United States is highlyregarded in a foreign country, similarly the guru, al-

though not God himself, should nonetheless be highlyhonored, for it is God alone whom the guru represents.Moreover, gurus represent Godhead in the manner inwhich God chooses to interact with humanity. Thus inone sense gurus are more important to us than God him-self, yet they never think themselves so.

Real gurus have no disciples, though many seethemselves as such, and gurus honor their vision, in-spired as it is by the Godhead. Their own angle of visionis that they are servants of all, for all are but parts andparcels of God. They do not see others independently oftheir relationship with the Absolute. Their task is thus toshare this vision with all whom they encounter.


18/42

9Affectionate Guardian

Gurus are our bright spiritual prospect appearingbefore us to instruct us through both precept and prac-tice. Their affection for the bound souls is itself withoutbounds. They never tire of revealing the spiritual real-ity. Thus genuine spiritual aspirants are forced not byordinary law but by all reason and ultimately love andaffection to submit to the gurus instruction and to lover gurueternally, for who could have shown us greater

love?How shall we find such an affectionate guardian?

Because the path of devotion and transcendence hasbeen traversed by others, a map has been charted andleft for us to follow. On that map, first and foremost weare directed to the information counter. Sacred literaturecharts our course, and in doing so, points us in the di-

rection of r guru, the captain of our ship. From sacredliterature we can learn the qualifications of the agent ofthe Absolute, and therein we are implored to take thegurus shelter. With these two, map and guide, scriptureand guru, on the boat of our human birth, fueled by thewind of our own sincerity, we are well equipped to cross

the ocean of material suffering and reach the shore ofeternal joy.


19/42

11

3 . R E V E A L E D S O U N D

The concept of scripture is no less difficult for modernsociety to embrace than that of r guru. Yet scriptureis as inseparable from the eternal guide as the sun isinseparable from our eyes in our attempt to see. If the

guru and saint are our eyes, scripture is the sun. If allthree are in place, we can see.

From the scripture we learn the qualifications ofthe guru, whose every word must be backed by scrip-tural reference for it to have spiritual standing. This is

so because the scripture is the eternal reality manifest insound to the seers and written down by them to upliftus. As such, scripture is eternal. It manifests and at timesis unmanifest, as is the world itself.

The many now interested in what has been calledEastern mysticism are wrong in construing that suchteachings are mystical rather than rational and based on


20/42

12 Joy of Self

the scripture. Christianity has been long and accuratelyportrayed as a rational, scripturally based doctrine, butno less so is the theism of the Orient. Outside of atheisticdoctrines such as Buddhism and Jainism, practically allbranches of Indian philosophy draw heavily from sacredliterature, the Vedas and Puras.

Although there is a similarity between the sacredliterature of the Orient and the Christian Bible, the Jew-

ish Torah, and the Islamic Koran, there is considerabledifference as well. The difference lies primarily in theOriental notion of the eternality of the Veda. While theBible, Torah, and Koran all have a beginning in time, theVeda is held to be beginningless. The fact that it is writtendown by human hand does not compromise its eternality.

The Veda is Brahman, the Absolute, in sound. It is

the Absolute extending itself to humanity, perfectionspeaking to the imperfect. By imperfect means, we whoare steeped in imperfection stand little chance of know-ing that which is perfect. Both our sense perception bywhich we know and the logic that extends our knowl-edge beyond that which we can perceive with the senses

are imperfect instruments.Sense perception is as flawed as are the senses them-selves. With our eyes alone we will never know the sizeand nearness of the full moon at night. Yet with the helpof reasoning we can understand that it is large, its appar-ent smallness owing to its being situated at a great dis-tance. Yet as sense perception is faulty, so is reasoning


21/42

13Revealed Sound

lacking. This is so because unless we can validate thatour reasoning is true in all circumstances, that it has uni-versal concomitance, we cannot say that it is absolutelytrue. Demonstrating this universal concomitance is vir-tually impossible for practically any logical inference.

How then can we know for certain? How can we ar-rive at perfect knowledge and thus be perfectly happy?Only if perfect knowledge cares to reveal itself to we

who are imperfect. The finite soul can never know theinfinite save and except if the infinite, out of its infinitecapacity, chooses to reveal itself to the finite. Perfectknowledge is just that, perfect, and therefore it is wor-shippable by those steeped in imperfection. We willnever be successful in attempts to arrest perfect knowl-edge and imprison it within the jail cell of our human

embodiment, for its own agenda is to liberate us fromour finite conception. It makes this agenda known to usthrough the Veda, which is etymologically derived fromthe Sanskrit root vid, which means to know as well as tomake known. The Veda is thus that which makes itselfknown and by which all can know conclusively.

The Veda does not claim that by studying itswords with our intellect we will know the truth. It doesnot attempt to establish that which is eternally self-established. It is the self-established truth imploring usto take up the means of experiencing the truth ourselves.By this alone shall we know, yet hearing from those whohave themselves seen is tantamount to seeing oneself.


22/42

14 Joy of Self

The Veda, eternal sound, is experienced by the seersbeyond the confines of time and space. Returning to timeand space, they share their vision with us, thus servingas first-hand witnesses to the truth. Without them andwithout the Veda, we will never know the truth, forfrom those who have seen we derive the necessaryinspiration to see for ourselves. They also give us aproper conceptual orientation, the systematic means

of pursuit, and information regarding the goal. Thesethree, known as sambhanda, abidheya, andprayojana,arethe essential elements of sacred literature, and a briefexplanation of these elements comprises the balance ofthis short book.


23/42

15

4 . C O N C E P T U A L O R I E N T A T I O N

The term sambandha literally means relationship.In the context of Gauya Vednta, it representsknowledge of the relationship between the world andGod, God and the atomic souls, the atomic souls andthe world, and so on. In the rmad-Bhgavatam, theessence of the Veda, all knowledge that concerns thenature of the Absolute and his energies as well as theactivities of those energies is considered sambandha-

jna.

Although the Absolute as described in the Bhgavatais one without a second, he is not without energy. Theexistence of the Absolute is a dynamic affair on accountof his being possessed of various energies. Just as weare all possessed of energy by which we conduct ouraffairs, so the Absolute is replete with energies. Theoneness of the Absolute, however, is not compromised


24/42

16 Joy of Self

by its possessing energy, for although we can speak ofenergetic and energy as different, they are at the sametime inseparable.

In the monistic schools of Vednta, the Absolute isportrayed as devoid of energy. Monists conceive of theGodhead as such because they cannot understand howan Absolute replete with energy can at the same time besingular. The unfortunate result of pursuing this line of

reasoning is, among other things, that all that we see andexperience, including the sense of our own individuality,is rendered an illusion. Moreover, the material experi-ence is considered an illusion that has no logical expla-nation. The material experience is false knowledge pur-ported to have no knower and no known.

Gauya Vednta can save us from this confusion.

Explaining the Absolute as presented in the Bhgavata,Gauya Vednta posits an Absolute that is singular inprinciple yet plural in terms of experience. The God-heads experience of himself is made possible by hisinherent energies. Because these energies have no in-dependent existence from the Godhead, they are in

this sense one with him. The happy result of this con-ception is that a logical explanation of the world ofour present experience follows. The material worldis understood to be the external energy of the God-head. Furthermore, our own sense of individuality isvalidated, we being an atomic particle of the Godheadsmarginal energy.


25/42

17Conceptual Orientation

In touch with the external energy, the marginal en-ergy brings about the world as we know it. While mat-ter is insentient, sentient beings bring matter to life. Theatomic souls animate the material world, which like amovie has a beginning and an end. Although the movieends, karmic reruns play endlessly with the same ac-tors in new roles. As atomic souls reincarnate life afterlife due to their misidentification with matter, they are

unaware of their predicament due to the deluding influ-ence of the external power of Godhead. Material naturerules over the atomic souls, even though her capacity todo so is initially dependent on her being animated bythem. The relationship between the marginal and exter-nal powers of Godhead can be compared to a person inthe modern world turning on the insentient television

only to have it then take over his life.In this life of material despair, we may misconstrue

that we are happy. Yet time tells us that the happier weare, based on material security, possessions, friends, andfamily, the more miserable we will be when they all slipthrough our fingers, and our own attachment to tem-

porary things forces us to remain in a temporal planein search of eternity. Birth and death are not friends ofthose in quest of the fountain of youth. Yet it is these twowhom we must contend with as long as we insist uponthe kingdom of God without God.

In conjunction with the external energy, the activitiesof the atomic souls, parts and parcels of the Godheads


26/42

18 Joy of Self

marginal energy, are illusory, however profoundly wemay speak of them. Although units of eternity and joy,conscious atomic souls such as ourselves are trappedin a network of illusion. Identifying with the externalenergy of Godhead, we repeatedly experience the trib-ulations of birth and death. The solution to our plightlies first in knowledge, not only of this predicament, buteven more so in knowledge of the Godhead himself.

The Godhead has his own primary energy by whichhe conducts his affairs aloof from the material atmo-sphere. These affairs are termed ll in the Bhgavata.They are untouched by the external energy and are thusnever subject to the misery that we experience due to theexternal energy. Because we are constituted of the mar-ginal energy, we can live either under the influence of

the external energy of Godhead or under the influence ofhis primary energy. The former is the life of misery weare now experiencing, the latter the life of joy we are insearch of.

Who is this Godhead possessed of primary, external,and marginal powers? The Bhgavatatells us that it is

Ka. Ka means all attractive, irresistible. Kais joy himself. Because he is so, he also is known in termsof his cognitive and existential features, as Brahman andParamtm respectively.

For one to exist, one need not be cognizant. If, how-ever, one is cognizant, one must exist as well. One canexist and be cognizant without being joyful. But if one is


27/42


joyful in nature, one must exist and be cognizant as well.Because Ka is nothing short of joy itself, out of neces-sity this singular, absolute person is also known in twoother features. As cognizance he is known as Brahman,and as existence, Paramtm. In his Paramtm feature,he manifests and presides over the material world andenters the heart of every atomic soul as a witness to all. Inhis Brahman feature, he brings material existence to life.

These two features of Ka are realized by thosewho tread the paths of yoga and knowledge (jna)re-spectively. Those who tread the path of devotion knowhim as Bhagavn, or he who possesses all attractiveness.These devoted transcendentalists know this ultimatefeature of the Absolute in two ways, either through de-votion steeped in awe and reverence (vaidh-bhakti)as

the majestic Godhead appearing in innumerable incar-nations or through passionate love (rgnug-bhakti)asKa, the charming humanlike lover.

Ka, the charming humanlike Godhead, is theultimate object of love, depicted by the Gauya Vedn-tins as an eternal youth, the rural cowherder of dark

complexion resembling a rain cloud. As the cloud ispregnant with rain, Ka is full in himself yet showeringlove in all directions and celebrating his fullness, and inthis way nourishing all. Ka is the God of the Ved-nta of aesthetics, not a dry philosophical principle butthe ultimate personinfinitely beautiful, charming,soft-hearted, yet strong willed. He has innumerable


28/42

20 Joy of Self

transcendental qualities and engages in pastimes with hiseternal retinue. Flute-bearing, he charms his devoteeswith passionate spiritual love free from material con-tamination.

He is the perfect object of love because all potentialfor love in transcendence can be realized in him. WhenKa becomes the object of ones love, one can realizenot only love steeped in a reverence that is appropriate

for the greatest of persons, but love in friendship, thefilial love one feels for ones child, and, in the optimum,passionate love for God. Ka is thus the supreme God-head, the acme of theism and transcendental realization,in that it is love that we all seek in eternity. Being theperfect object of love, Ka is thus objectively supremethrough an analysis of love.

Ka is surrounded by his primary energy appear-ing as his own family, friends, abode, and paraphernalia.This primary energy ultimately personifies the potencyof pleasure, hldin. Known also as Rdh, Kas eter-nal consort, she is the shelter of ultimate love. The ob-ject of love, r Ka, and the shelter of love, r Rdh,

together constitute the Godhead as complimentary fea-tures of the Absolute. There is no meaning to Ka with-out Rdh and no meaning to Rdh without Ka. Inthe eternal drama of their transcendental lives, we canplay a small yet infinitely important part.

The conceptual orientation presented in the Bhga-vataoffers great hope to suffering humanity. It tells us


29/42


that we can experience eternal love in relation to Ka,the object of perfect love. Love for Ka stands as a per-fect example of the highest love. The reality of Rdh-Ka speaks sweetly, assuring us of all that we aspirefor, should we but turn in the right direction. To live inperfect love and joy is possible when we repose our lov-ing propensity in Rdh-Ka. All other attempts forlove are futile, for they are off-center at best. Time tells

us that nothing belongs to us. Gauya Vednta tells usthat everything belongs to Ka. Loving Ka enablesus to transcend the false proprietorship that has impris-oned us within time and space, leaving self-centeredmaterial consciousness forever and entering the landof love.


30/42

23

5 . T H E M E A N S

In accordance with our conceptual orientation, sam-bandha, we will act. This action is the means, abhid-heya, by which we can achieve our goal. All that theBhgavata deals with in terms of achieving its stated

goal, as well as that activity which inhibits us fromdoing so, falls under the category of abhidheya. The

goal is love of Ka, which constitutes the highestjoy, and the means is devotion to Ka. Acts adverseto devotion are those to be avoided.

The Bhgavatadefines the best means as that whichcompletely satisfies the Supreme Self. If God is pleased,so will we, his parts and parcels, be satisfied. Devotionto Ka that is free from ulterior motive and uninter-rupted is that which satisfies Ka. Devotion in whichsomething other than the pleasure of the Supreme isdesired is called mixed devotion (mir bhakti). Devotion


31/42

24 Joy of Self

can be mixed with worldly desires (karma-mir bhakti),the desire for liberation (jna-mir bhakti), or the de-sire for mystic perfection (yoga-mir bhakti). All of thesetypes of bhaktiare not pure, or unmotivated. They bringresults to their respective practitioners in the form ofgood karma, liberation, and mystic perfection. They donot, however, afford their practitioners love of Godhead.

The path of karmafocuses on material betterment,

the path of knowledge upon liberation. The path of yogais concerned with liberation, as well as acquiring mysticpower. The path of pure devotion, however, is not aboutacquiring anything other than devotion itself. It is thusto be executed for its own improvement. It is a spiritualand thus eternal means to a spiritual end.

The Bhgavataspeaks of the socio-religious system ofvarrama-dharma. This is the religious way of life alsoknown as the path of karma, whereby we can prosper inthis life and the next. It organizes society in consider-ation of karmicpropensities, both in terms of occupationas well as spiritual pursuit. This conception of dharmaisonly successfully executed if as a result of ones obser-

vance of its tenets one enters the path of pure devotion(uddha-bhakti).

Although participation in the socio-religious sys-tem requires many prerequisites, this is not the case onthe path of pure devotion. Similarly, other paths aimedat transcendence of birth and death, such as the paths ofyoga and knowledge, also require that participants meet


32/42

25The Means

various prerequisites. To practice yoga properly, onemust observe celibacy. The path of knowledge requirespurity of heart, renunciation, and equal vision. These arenot easy things to achieve. Pure devotion, however, canbe cultivated from the time one has awakened faith inKa.

It is noteworthy that efficacy in any of these pathsrequires a mixture of devotion. Without devotion, the

practitioners in these systems will not achieve their de-sired goals. It is devotion, therefore, that is the means inall respects.

The paths of karma, yoga, and knowledge are nothelpful to pure devotion. Before pure devotion hasawakened in the heart, practice borrowed from thesepaths may be helpful in the same way that pushing a car

whose battery has died will help to start the car. Oncethe car is started, however, of what use will pushing be?Similarly, once pure devotion has awakened in the heart,it cannot be helped by anything else. Moreover, onlywhen devotion is free from the tendencies born of karma,knowledge, and yoga can it be said to be pure.

Devotional service to Ka can be practiced in allcircumstances, at all times, and by all living entities. Thisfurther attests to its spiritual nature. The Bhgavatamisripe with examples of persons engaging in devotionalservice to Ka in even the most adverse circumstances.Prahlda Mahrja, for example, performed bhaktiin hismothers womb.


33/42

26 Joy of Self

With regard to time, the Bhgavatamalso gives ex-amples of persons engaging in devotional service fromthe beginning to the end of time, from creation to an-nihilation. Devotional service is even engaged in afterliberation by those who have perfected their devotionalculture. Devotional service, although primarily the pre-rogative of human society, also overflows into animaland plant society. When devotees engage in devotional

service, animals such as cows, whose milk is offered tothe deity of Ka, also participate in bhakti, as do plantswhen offered to the deity. Such animals and plants,however, cannot practice yoga or culture knowledge ofthe Absolute. One cannot perform yoga at all times, suchas during sleep, nor does the practice of yoga continueafter liberation. Similarly, the culture of knowledge in-

sists on many prerequisites and cannot be performed inall circumstances.

Devotional service to Ka has three divisions: de-votional service in practice (sadhana-bhakti), devotionalservice in ecstasy (bhva-bhakti), and devotional servicein love of God (prema-bhakti). Devotion to Ka is also

divided into devotion guided by scriptural injunction(vaidh-bhakti)and spontaneous devotion (rgnug-bhakti).

r Chaitanya has emphasized spontaneous de-votion. His disciples, the legendary sixgoswmsofVndvana, have demonstrated in their writings basedon the Bhgavatahow spiritual aspirants can cultivate


34/42


35/42

28 Joy of Self

be used, yet one must be careful to distinguish betweena musical presentation and that which is spiritual. Toomuch emphasis on the musical and instrumental accom-paniment may shift the focus of the chanting from themantrato the instruments and melody, thus rendering itless than spiritual. To avoid this problem, the chantingshould be performed under the auspices of a pure devo-tee of Ka.

The pure devotee is the guru who initiates the dis-ciple. At that time the disciple is given a rosary of 108beads and is instructed to chant the Ka mantraon therosary a prescribed number of times daily. The discipleis also engaged in ritualistic devotion in the temple ofKa. In this way the disciple engages throughout theday in hearing and chanting about Ka and carrying

out the instruction of the guru. This may find a discipleengaged in a wide variety of services all for the pleasureof Ka. As the disciples consciousness is purified, heor she learns to meditate internally upon Ka twenty-four hours a day.

Many persons interested in devotional service are

not able to take up the life of devotion described above.They can, however, accept initiation from the guru. Theycan learn to chant Kas name in their homes and sac-rifice what time and energy they can for the mission ofr Chaitanya. The guru will give them guidelines to fol-low in their home life. As they consciously make sacri-fices for Ka in the form of time and financial support


36/42

29The Means

for his mission, their hearts become gradually purifiedof the false notion of proprietorship. As they realize thateverything belongs to Ka, they too can take up thelife of devotion and eventually attain love of Ka.


37/42

31

6 . T H E G O A L

The fruit of devotional service is love of Ka. Assuch, all sections of the Bhgavatam that deal di-rectly with the experience of love of God, as well asthose sections that deal with the fruits of religion(dharma), economic development (artha), sense enjoy-ment (kma), and liberation (moka), constitute di-rect and indirect descriptions of the goal (prayojana).

In describing the fruits of activities other than puredevotion, the Bhgavatamseeks to point out indirectly

the glory of love of Ka, for the fruits of religion, eco-nomic development, sense gratification, and even libera-tion from the cycle of birth and death are paltry in com-parison.

Joy is our stated or unstated goal of life. The joyderived from love of Ka is the highest kind of joy.It is joy that is derived from making the perfect object


38/42

32 Joy of Self

of love ones loving repose. This joy is the oppositeof material joy, in which one makes ones own joy thegoal, misconstruing oneself to be the body and mind.In transcendental love, the satisfaction of Kastranscendental senses is the only thought of the perfectdevotees. They do not seek joy independent of the joyof the Absolute. While material joy is selfish and self-centered, the joy derived from love of Ka is based on

sacrifice, giving, and the self-forgetfulness that true lovecalls for, and thus it constitutes the highest love.

The question arises, however, as to how it is that theAbsolute is in need of anything. How does r Ka de-rive pleasure from those who love him? Is he not full inhimself to begin with? He is indeed, yet as we have seen,he is surrounded by his own inner energy (svarpa-akti),

with whom he eternally consorts. His inner power mani-fests as eternal associates in five primary moods withwhom he eternally enjoys the bliss of his own nature.The five primary moods are known as bhakti-rasa, aes-thetic rapture in transcendence.

The Bhgavatamdescribes the Absolute philosophi-

cally as well as through aesthetic analysis. According tothe Indian discipline of aesthetics, the soul of aestheticexperience is termed rasa. In the Upaniads the Absoluteis also described by this term,raso vai sa , The Absoluteis aesthetic experience. The Bhgavatamdevelops thisconcept. It is thus both a book of Vednta philosophyand one concerned with aesthetics. It is a philosophy of


39/42

33The Goal

beauty, the truth that is beauty. It directs us to Ka andthe possibility of entering a transcendental relationshipwith the Absolute, the possibility of experiencing rasa.

Bhakti rasadevelops in the atomic soul in the courseof cultivating one of five primary emotions directed tothe perfect object of love, Ka. These primary Ka-centered emotions are the essence of Kas eternalassociates (pradas),who are constituted of his inner

power. Thus atomic souls can enter into the eternal loveaffair of the Absolute by taking shelter of r Kas in-ner power, manifest as his eternal associates.

The five primary rasasare neutrality (nta),servitor-ship (dsya),friendship (sakhya), parental love (vtsalya),and conjugal love (mdhurya).Thus one can love Kain neutrality, as a servant, as a friend, as his well-wisher,

and as his lover. r Chaitanya has revealed that con-jugal love for Ka is the best amongst transcendentalachievements.

Kas consorts thus exemplify to the fullestextent the life of transcendental love. All of the othertranscendental rasasin effect serve as a necessary

background for the eternal drama of conjugal loveof Godhead enacted between Rdh and Ka. Thisdrama takes place in the guise of humanity, as rKa, the Supreme Truth, comes so close to his partand parcels that the affair at a glance seems no morethan the love of a young village boy and girl. However,it is much more than this and is certainly free from


40/42

34 Joy of Self

all material inebriety. The land, water, trees, animals,birds, and people in this transcendental drama (ll)are all supra-mundane. Nothing there is touched bymaterial illusion, and one can realize this dimension ofconsciousness and experience the highest joy only whenone is free from the selfishness that makes for a materiallife of unhappiness. While selfishness is the basis of thematerial plane of consciousness, selflessness forms the

basis of the spiritual dimension of consciousnessKaconsciousness. This is our highest prospect, withinwhich lies the joy of self.


41/42

ABOUT THE AUT HOR :

Swm B. V. Tripurri is arenowned writer, speaker,

and spiritual teacher. Amonk in the renouncedorder of life since 1972,he received his trainingfrom some of the mostaccomplished masters in

the Gauya tradition. He is the founder of r CaitanyaSangha, which has monasteries in Northern California,North Carolina, and Costa Rica.


42/42

Joy of Self Tripurari

Documents

Transcript of Joy of Self Tripurari