The following
is a transliteration by Sri Ramen Basu of excerpts from Pariciti (pages 38
& 39).
On love Sri Sri Babathakur says: By ‘Prema
= Pra +E+ Ma’ is meant the best form of Maa,
Madhab, Mahesh, Mahat. That is Absolute Brahman Atman. This is Love of the non-dual. Love of the non-dual is two in One, One in
two, One in One and One beyond One. Everywhere One Absolute Brahman Atman or verily Maa, that is, Self Conscious Realizer is
graciously present everywhere. By this Maa Revered He has indicated as eternal,
everlasting, Consciousness Existence or Being - Saccidananda Itself. She/He
may be addressed by any name namely Brahman,
Atman, Ishwara, Guru, Ishta, Maa, or Siva Rama, Hari, Krishna, Durga,
Kaali, Mahalakshmi, Mahasaraswati etc.
Having realized the Self in ‘A-bhedabhed’ with this
Consciousness Existence Revered He sometimes out of intensity of Bhakti in a candid way has sung His/Her Glory and the True nature, sometimes in the
idea and Consciousness of Mother, sometimes in the idea and Consciousness
of Shiva, sometimes in the idea and
Consciousness of Guru, sometimes in
the idea and Consciousness of Rama,
sometimes in the idea and Consciousness of Hari, sometimes in the idea
and Consciousness of Divine pair . Again, sometimes experiencing Bliss, Love
and Wit of the unity and identity of Consciousness of Brahman Atman, that is, being Absolute in experiencing Bliss of
homogeneous Bliss, Love and Wit of all-even Reality has wandered in the intoxicated state of Love and Bliss.
Then the identity of the Absolute –I or all Conscious Self has been expressed
in magnanimous and noble tone in the ever-revealing spontaneous flow. There is
none or nothing apart from this Absolute One and also without anybody or
anything the existence of this Absolute One is possible. Verily this is indicative of the Highest
Realization.
Furthermore, Revered He says: ‘That same ultimate state which can be
attained by spiritual discrimination of Knowledge and Yoga of meditation is also possible to attain in and through
self-surrender of Bhakti-Yoga.
The realization and manifestation of I-Reality in and through the means
for sadhana of spiritual
discrimination of Knowledge can also be realized and manifested in and through
Thou-Reality by the means for sadhana of
Love and Devotion. Fundamentally Absolute-I and Absolute-Thou is One Absolute
Reality. According to the mood and sentiments and knack of the mind the sadhana of either Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga
are practiced. Therefore, Thou-Reality
is within the range of capability of Bhakti
and I-Reality is within the range of capability of Jnana. Ultimately
fundamental Reality is One and Jnana
and Bhakti also are fundamentally One
Reality. In general, the means for sadhana
of attributeful Reality Ishwara,
that is, the means for sadhana of Vijnanamoy Brahman –Atman and the
realization thereof depends on Bhakti
and the means for sadhana of
attributeless Reality without any specialty Param
Ishwara or inspissated Wisdom Absolute Atman
and the realization thereof depends on Jnana. Par excellence of Bhakti is Jnana and the
Science or Right use of Jnana is Bhakti.
By Devotion or Bhakti is meant
sincere intent, destination, stability and delight towards the eternal,
undeviated undivided Absolute and by Knowledge or Jnana is meant the undivided Absolute One Consciousness True nature of Self
Conscious Awareness – This is Spiritual Light of Intuition i.e. Prajna Jyoti and the stability in Brahman or Brahmisthiti.’ * *
One of His subject-matter under discussion is Supreme Pure
Consciousness. Revered He says: ‘Verily
Supreme Pure Consciousness is worthy of being worshipped only. Verily this is
the Ultimate Reality. The essence of all
sadhana is to adapt, adjust and
accommodate to reach (mene maniye chola) this Consciousness as one’s Own in
life; that means to use everything in the Consciousness of the Knower (the
Witness and Seer). This results in reducing
the combined influence of Consciousness and the mind and objects (knot of
Consciousness and matter) and in developing Pure Consciousness easily. With the
growth of this Consciousness, Self-Knowledge or Love for the Self or
Self-Delight dawns. Verily the Self is the Highest object of Love. Verily this Atman is Ishwara, the Self. This Ishwara
as the Self is graciously present in all beings. Verily this Self is the Ishwara of all; therefore, this Delight for the Self becomes
spontaneous as Love and Devotion. This Love and Devotion is the Philosophy and
Science of Realization of Ishwara as
the Self in all beings. Hence on attaining Self-Knowledge Love for Ishwara becomes Absolute. Again, when love for Ishwara is Absolute in and through sadhana Self-Knowledge is attained.
Both aspects are true. Before attaining Knowledge bhakti is the means for sadhana.
It is not permanent then. Bhakti
becomes permanent after Self Knowledge is attained. Hence Pure Devotion and
Pure Knowledge are eternal companion. Fundamentally both are One and the same.
The right use of Pure Knowledge is Love and Devotion and its stability is
Condensed Wisdom Absolute (Prajnana Ghana)
Knowledge Itself.’
It is true that we get acquainted with all sorts of Reality such as Karma, Yoga, Jnana and Bhakti in His revealed songs, but the fundamental
essence of His Realization of life is love, that is, to give away the Self for the benefit of all and to adapt, adjust,
and accommodate everything in the entire creation (mene maniye chola) in one’s Own Consciousness. Now one may ask – why
should one give away oneself for the benefit of all? His answer in the language
of Self Conscious Awareness: ‘Love occurs in even Consciousness, in one’s Own
Consciousness, in supreme equalization or in One Consciousness. One exists in many, again many exist in
One.’ Revered He says: ‘The divine
sports of Love occurs in One, the play happens between two and there is
carnival in many. Many are the manifestations of One and One is the substratum
of many. In spite of remaining in many the divine sports of Love is experienced
from the outlook of One’. To experience the divine sports of Love is the
Ultimate and Supreme success in life or Supreme end of life Purushartha – that is His opinion. Unless there is standing in the One without a
second Consciousness this divine sports ofLove is not experienced. The divine
sports of Love is one’s Own Leela with Itself on the bosom of the Self. This is
not the love of dual Consciousness. The
delight for the Self is the innate natue of the Self. This delight for the Self is called the union
of Brahman with Atman. Revered He has expressed as to Yoga wittily in various fashion as the Eternal Yoga, Mahayoga,Swabhavayoga, the amorous divine sports of Saccidananda, Yoga of Self Conscious Awareness etc. Compiling all His words on this subject
matter we would like to publish them later. But that depends on the mercy/
grace of Ishwara. ***
Submitted at
the lotus feet of Sri Sri Babathakur