Bhakti Sandarbha 188 : An Uttama-bhāgavata Sees Bhagavān in Everything
Anuccheda 188
An Uttama-bhāgavata Sees Bhagavān in Everything
तत्रोत्तरं श्रीहविरुवाच (भा. ११.२.४५)—
सर्वभूतेषु यः पश्येद्भगवद्भावमात्मनः।
भूतानि भगवत्यात्मन्येष भागवतोत्तमः॥
He is the foremost devotee of Bhagavān who sees the specific feature of Bhagavān, towards whom he is drawn as present within all living beings, and who sees all living beings as present within that very same feature of Bhagavān, who is manifest within himself. (SB 11.2.45)
तत्र तत्तदनुभवद्वारावगम्येन मानसलिङ्गेन महाभागवतं लक्षयति—सर्वभूतेष्वित्यादि। ''एवंव्रतः स्वप्रियनामकीर्त्या जातानुरागो द्रुतचित्त उच्चैः" (भा. ११.२.३८) इति श्रीकविवाक्योक्तरीत्या यश्चित्तद्रवहासरोदनाद्यनुभावकानुराग-वशत्वात् "खं वायुमग्निम्" (भा. ११.२.३९) इत्यादितदुक्तप्रकारेणैव चेतनाचेतनेषु सर्वभूतेषु आत्मनो भगवद्भावमात्माभीष्टो यो भगवदाविर्भावः, तमेवेत्यर्थः।
In this verse the sage indicates the symptoms of a mahā-bhāgavata, a great devotee, by describing his mental disposition, which is discernible through his anubhāvas, or the external expressions of his loving feelings. A few verses earlier Śrī Kavi said:
The devotee, consummately resolved to these devotional acts, is endowed with love for Bhagavān by singing the names of his beloved Bhagavān. His heart thus melts and, like a madman, he loudly laughs, weeps, screams, sings and dances, in complete disregard of public opinion and social conventions. (SB 11.2.40)
According to Kavi’s description, the devotee’s love for Bhagavān is understood by its symptoms, such as melting of the heart, laughing, crying, and so on. It is under the control of such love that the devotee acquires the vision described in the next verse:
With exclusive devotion he bows to the sky, air, fire, water, earth, heavenly bodies, living beings, the directions, trees, rivers, seas and all created beings, considering them as the body of Bhagavān Hari. (SB 11.2.41)
As a direct consequence of this type of vision, the mahā-bhāgavata sees the specific manifestation of Bhagavān, whom he cherishes within his own heart in all sentient and insentient beings.
पश्येदनुभवति। अतस्तानि च भूतानि आत्मनि स्वचित्ते तथा स्फुरति यो भगवान्, तस्मिन्नेव तदाश्रितत्वेनैव अनुभवति, एष भागवतोत्तमो भवति। इत्थमेव श्रीव्रजदेवीभिरुक्तम्—"वनलतास्तरव आत्मनि विष्णुं व्यञ्जयन्त्य इव पुष्पफलाढ्याः" (भा. १०.३५.५) इत्यादि।
The verb “sees,” means that he directly experiences this. As a result of this vision, the mahā-bhāgavata further sees all living beings as present within that very same feature of Bhagavān who is manifest within himself. In other words, he sees them as being under the shelter of his beloved Bhagavān. Such a person is the foremost of devotees. The Vrajadevīs spoke in a similar vein:
The creepers of the forest and the trees, laden with fruits and flowers, are bowing low under the weight of their boughs. As if having manifested Bhagavān Viṣṇu within their hearts, they are showering streams of honey, their frames being thrilled with the ecstasy of love. (SB 10.35.9)
यद्वा, आत्मनो यो भगवति भावः प्रेमा, तमेव चेतनाचेतनेषु भूतेषु पश्यति। शेषं पूर्ववत्। अत एव भक्तरूपतदधिष्ठानबुद्धिजातभक्त्या तानि नमस्करोतीति खं वायुमित्यादौ पूर्वमुक्तमिति भावः। तथैव चोक्तं ताभिरेव—
An alternative meaning to the first line of SB 11.2.45 is that the mahā-bhāgavata sees his or her specific attitude of love for Bhagavān in all sentient and insentient beings. The meaning of the second line is the same as explained above. Therefore, regarding all beings as devotees in whom Bhagavān resides, his own devotion is aroused and he bows down to them, as stated in the verse already quoted above [SB 11.2.41].
This same attitude of seeing one’s own feeling of love for Bhagavān in all beings was expressed by the Vrajadevīs alone:
नद्यस्तदा तदुपधार्य मुकुन्दगीतम्
आवर्तलक्षितमनोभवभग्नवेगाः॥ (भा. १०.२१.१५) इत्यादि।
When the rivers heard the music of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s flute, their flow was arrested due to an upsurge of love that manifested in the form of eddies. They clasped the feet of Śrī Kṛṣṇa with the arms of their waves as if embracing them and offering lotus flowers. (SB 10.21.15)
यद्वा, श्रीपट्टमहिषीभिरपि "कुररि विलपसि त्वम्" (भा. १०.९०.७) इत्यादि। अत्र न ब्रह्मज्ञानान्यभिधीयते, भागवतैस्तज्ज्ञानस्य तत्फलस्य च हेयत्वेन जीवभगवद्विभागाभावेन च भागवतत्वविरोधात्, "अहैतुक्यव्यवहिता" (भा. ३.२९.१०) इत्यादौ ह्यैकान्तिकभक्तिलक्षणानुसारेण सुतरामुत्तमत्वविरोधाच्च। न च निराकारेश्वरज्ञानं "प्रणयरशनया धृताङ्घ्रिपद्मः" (भा. ११.२.५३) इत्युपसंहारगतलक्षणपरमकाष्ठाविरोधादेवेति विवेचनीयम्।
This type of attitude is also exemplified in a statement made by the queens of Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa:
O Kurari, why do you wail and lament, thus staying awake the whole night while Kṛṣṇa sleeps unaware of your plight? O friend, it seems your heart has been deeply pierced, like ours, by the sweet smiles and gracious, captivating glances of the lotus-eyed Bhagavān. (SB 10.90.15)
The verse defining the characteristics of an uttama-bhāgavata [SB 11.2.45] cannot refer to a brahma-jñānī, or one situated in non-dual awareness, for several reasons. First of all, a devotee has no use for such awareness or the fruit that it brings in the form of impersonal liberation. Furthermore, brahma-jñāna is opposed to the very nature of a devotee because it negates the distinction between the living entity and Bhagavān. In addition, brahma-jñāna contradicts the nature of pure devotion, whose characteristics are mentioned in statements such as this:
Causeless and unobstructed devotion to the Supreme Person is stated to be the definition of pure bhakti, free from any influence of the material guṇas of nature. (SB 3.29.12)
Finally, this verse [SB 11.2.45] cannot refer to knowledge of the formless aspect of the Absolute, because such knowledge is opposed to the highest stage of development of a mahā-bhāgavata, which is defined in the concluding verse of the same chapter:
If Bhagavān Hari is addressed even unintentionally, He destroys all sins. One in whose heart Bhagavān Himself is unable to leave because His lotus feet are bound by the rope of love is the topmost of all devotees. (SB 11.2.55)
Commentary by Satyanarayana Dasa Babaji Maharaj
In response to king’s question, sage Havi first gives the definition of the topmost devotee, or uttama-bhāgavata by describing his state of mind. There is popular adage in Sanskrit, ātmavan manyate jagat, a person perceives the world according to his own consciousness. This is true for both materialists as well as spiritualists. Everyone sees the world around him or her differently because everyone has a different consciousness and different saṁskāras. Just as a person wearing colored spectacles sees objects as having that color; in the same way everyone perceives objects and actions through the filter of one’s consciousness.
There are two basic bhāvas or consciousness, kāma-bhāva and prema-bhāva. In the first, a person is body-centered and his or her goal to satisfy the material mind and senses. In the second, the person is God-centered. In between these two are the jñāna-mārgis who have no bhāva and thus consider the world to be imaginary. They are no-centered. They deny everything.
The word bhagavad-bhāva in verse 11.2.45 can be interpreted in various ways. The first meaning is that the pure devotee sees the specific form of his beloved Bhagavān all around him and nothing else. The implication of this meaning is that when a devotee is overwhelmed with intense love for Bhagavān and exhibits the madness described in verse 11.2.41, he does not even perceive other forms. Rather, everywhere he looks, he directly sees the manifestation of his beloved Bhagavān and hence bows to everything. This is one type of vision.
The second meaning is that he sees his beloved Bhagavān in all beings. When a devotee’s love for Bhagavān becomes somewhat calm, he sees other forms, yet within them he sees the manifestation of his beloved Bhagavān. This is the second type of vision. What the Vrajadevīs are perceiving in the creepers and trees is their own beloved Kṛṣṇa. The word bhāva here means existence. This yielded the meaning that the devotee perceives the presence of Bhagavān in all living beings.
Prahlāda is another example of this. When his father asked him, “Where is your God?” Prahlāda replied that He is everywhere. Out of anger and to disprove Prahlāda his father asked, “Is He also in this pillar?” Prahlāda replied in the affirmative because he was directly seeing Narasiṁha. When his father smashed the pillar, Narasiṁha became visible to all.
The third meaning is that the devotee sees that every living being has taken shelter of Bhagavān. Nobody is a non-devotee. Or, everybody and everything is within Bhagavān, just as Yaśodā saw the whole universe within Kṛṣṇa’s mouth.
The fourth meaning is that the devotee sees the type of love he has for Bhagavān in all beings. Here the word bhāva means love. This is how Vrajadevīs felt upon seeing the waves in the Yamunā River as though she were embracing Kṛṣṇa with her wave-like arms.
Here it is understood that the uttama-bhāgavata does not always see Bhagavān everywhere. He may have such a vision sometimes and other times desire to see Bhagavān. Otherwise it would become impossible for him to function in the world. Śrī Viśvanātha Cakravartī comments that if we do not accept this, then the definition given here would not apply to great bhāgavatas like Nārada, Vyāsa and Śuka. But we do see that these great bhāgavatas are able to function in society. The meaning is that their love undergoes surges. Sometimes their feelings of love are very intense and sometimes medium. Depending on the level of intensity, their vision also changes. If a mahā-bhāgavata like Nārada sees everybody having the same bhāva that he has for Bhagavān, he would not be able to instruct anyone in bhakti because he would not feel the need for it. But we do read about Nārada giving instruction to various people like Dhruva, Prahlāda’s mother, King Yudhiṣṭhira and so on.
Comments