THE GUARDIAN OF DEVOTION (2)

(8) Saranagati

(By Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj)

We must try to cast ourselves at the divine feet of the Lord saying, “I am the lowest of the low. I am willing to believe that I am the most helpless. I want the shelter of Your lotus feet. Please take charge of me. I am unfit to take any responsibility for my own good.” This should be our humble attitude. We should feel that, “I can’t tolerate this life of independence any longer. I can’t go on. I am disgusted with my life of independence. I want slavery. Jivera svarupa haya krsnera nitya dasa. Others may think themselves fit, but I do not think myself sufficiently developed to take responsibility for myself. I am the most reckless, mean, worthless and useless. Please accept me and give me any service at Your feet. I can no longer rely on myself. I have come to take shelter of Your holy feet. You are my Guardian.” This is saranagati, to accept Krishna as one’s absolute Guardian.

No Perfection Without It

No process of service can be perfect without saranagati, and certainly there can be no entrance into the higher domain. As such, saranagati is the very life and essence of devotion. It must be present in every form of service. Without saranagati our devotion will only be an imitation of service, not devotion proper. It will only be a lifeless activity. Therefore saranagati is the first condition.

Give Yourself Fully

If one is unable or does not have the opportunity to perform different types of service in the beginning, but he has only saranagati, he will get everything in the near future. Saranagati will give us everything. It is the most basic and fundamental substance in the devotional world. The whole structure of devotional service is based on saranagati. Prahlad Maharaj says that the whole of Vedic knowledge is based on atma nivedanam. You must give yourself wholly.

Foundation of Bhakti

You must give yourself to the Lord. The substance of all devotional activity is to give yourself in surrender. In his commentary about sravanam kirtanam visnu smaranam, Sridhar Swami said that if everything is dedicated to Him then all these things can be recognized as bhakti, otherwise it is all bogus. If I hear, chant, etc. to fulfill my own purposes then it is no longer bhakti. Whatever I shall do, it is for Him. Then whatever will be done will be accepted as bhakti. It is the foundation on which bhakti stands.

Slave to the Lord

Without saranagati all karma, jnana, yoga will not be bhakti. Bhakti means that the result will go to the Lord. I am a slave to my Lord. I have got no independent personality to keep any independent property. I am wholly His servant. Whatever I shall acquire, everything I own is His. He has got the right to do anything with me that He likes, according to His sweet will. With this feeling, whenever we perform kirtan, or smaranam, etc. that will be devotional activity. When that is withdrawn, everything will go to hell. Just as when the stage where the dancing is performed is drawn away, then the whole thing comes down.

No Separate Interest

Saranagati means self-dedication, then the activity of the dedicated self will be bhakti. He must do everything on behalf of Krishna, keeping Krishna in sight, having no separate interest. Consciousness of separate interest has made us separate from Krishna. Only when the common interest of everything is with Krishna, then it will be bhakti. Sravanam, kirtanam, etc. are mere forms, not life. In order to have a living devotion saranagati must be there.

Self-Abnegation to the Extreme

Exclusive connection with Krishna means exclusive identification with the interest of Krishna. Since Krishna is not seen there must be connection with guru and Vaishnav. First there must be self-abnegation to the extreme and then, according to the degree of surrender one will be benefitted. There are particular characteristics of each level of surrender according to the different rasas such as santa, dasya, sakhya, etc. And in each of these there will also be subdivisions. But without saranagati all are mere formal activities, devoid of the very life therein, and they will be something other than bhakti, other than self-dedication. The land of dedication is what we want, not the plane of exploitation or renunciation.

Sun, Lotus and Water

The criterion is found in the sastra that if we satisfy our gurudeva we will satisfy Krishna. And if gurudeva is dissatisfied with me, then Krishna is surely dissatisfied. In the Puranas we find a good example written there. Lord Krishna is the sun, the lotus is the disciple, and the guru is the water around the lotus. If the guru withdraws then the sun will dry and burn the lotus. The lotus will be happy as long as the water is supporting and protecting the lotus. The sun’s rays will cheer the lotus, help it grow and give vitality to it. So the position of gurudeva has been depicted nicely here.

The guru may be seen in different rasas of different types, but not much should be made of the differentiations. According to the situation of my heart his infinite potency may be seen in changing moods, figures, etc. The guru is always there, my guide to the absolute.

One and Different

Krishna is there within Narayan, but there is a difference in Their functions. Similarly the guru is there but with a different function. Thus in Narayan, Lakshmi, gopis, etc. we find distinction and non-distinction. When they are in the form of Lakshmi, the gopis serve Narayan. And Lakshmi, in her inner heart, has got the position of the gopis who are serving Krishna in a particular way. So there is a continual connection between them all, distinction and non-distinction. Both should be maintained simultaneously. We should have respect for the differences, but we must not ignore the inner substance. The relative and the absolute must be taken together. In this way we always have to harmonize both these great teachings—sarva dharman parityajya and sva dharma nidhanam sreya.

CONTENTS

(1) The Appearance of Sri Gaurasundar
(2) Perfect Conclusions of the Scriptures
(3) Universal Conception of Guru
(4) Vaishnava Siddhanta: Serving the Vaishnavas
(5) Exploitation, Renunciation, Dedication
(6) Faith in the Absolute
(7) The Spiritual Master and the Disciple
(8) Saranagati
(9) The Central Importance of Sadhu-Sanga
(10) The Magnanimous Nature of Sri Nityananda Prabhu
(11) The Worship of Sri Murti
(12) The Significance of Mahaprasad

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