28.1 In the Samvat year 1885, on Kãrtik vad 1 [22nd November 1828], Swãmi Shree Sahajãnandji Mahãrãj was sitting in the mandir of Shree Gopinãthji in Dãdã Khãchar’s darbãr in Gadhadã. He was dressed entirely in white clothes. A sabhã of paramhans, as well as haribhaktas from various places, had gathered before Him.
28.2 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj said, “There are two ways in which a person falls from the bhakti of Bhagvãn. One way is by listening to shushka-vedãnti shãstras, where he may consider the svarup of Shree Krishna Bhagvãn and other svarups to be false, just as he considers all other svarups to be false. Such a shushka-vedãnti should be considered to be extremely ignorant. The other way of falling is by believing, ‘If I worship Bhagvãn, then I will enjoy women, food, drink, and other pleasures of the panch-vishays in Golok and Vaikunth’. Then, due to the desires of those pleasures, he forgets even Bhagvãn. The fool, with his distorted mind, believes, ‘If that enjoyment was not true, then Bhagvãn would not associate with women like Rãdhã and Lakshmi, in that dhãm. So, that pleasure is also true’. However, he does not realise Bhagvãn to be absolutely satisfied and happy within His own ãtmã. In actual fact, such activities of Bhagvãn are for the purpose of giving bliss to His own bhaktas. Therefore, a person should engage in bhakti together with gnãn and vairãgya.
28.3 “A person who has understood the greatness of Bhagvãn realises that only Bhagvãn is all-blissful, whereas the pleasures derived from the panch-vishays have only a slight fraction of the bliss of Bhagvãn. Therefore, he would never become attached to any object. The Moksh-Dharma also mentions: ‘Compared to the bliss of the dhãm of Bhagvãn, the pleasures of the other loks are like Narak’. This is the understanding that a bhakta of Bhagvãn should have. If he does not have this understanding, he will fall away from Bhagvãn in the two ways mentioned.”
28.4 Then, Surã Khãchar asked Shreeji Mahãrãj, “Even after forming firm nishchay in Bhagvãn and His sant as they truly are, what is the reason for someone to suffer a setback?”
28.5 Shreeji Mahãrãj replied, “There was some deficiency in that person’s nishchay from the moment that he first established it. What was that deficiency? Well, if someone wishes to indulge in savoury food due to a desire for tasting delicious food, and if Bhagvãn or His sant criticise it, then he will suffer a setback. Or, if disturbing thoughts of kãm still remain, and they speak against it; or if lobh remains, and if they have him criticise his lobh by telling him, ‘Give away your wealth, property, land, and farm to someone’, then he will be unable to follow this ãgnã. As a result, he suffers a setback. Or, if a person has mãn and a sant criticises it and insults him, then he suffers a setback due to that as well. Therefore, a person suffers a setback due to the avgun that still remain in him, even though he has nishchay in Bhagvãn. However, if a person eradicates his avgun at the beginning, when he establishes his nishchay, then he will not suffer a setback. At present, if those who possess these avgun thoughtfully keep antar-drashti, they will be able to realise, ‘I am weak in this aspect. So, if I am asked to follow such an ãgnã I will fall back from satsang and become a vimukh’. In this way, they can understand themselves completely.”
28.6 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj asked Brahmãnand Swãmi, Shuk Muni, and Surã Khãchar a question: “What avgun do you possess which would cause you to suffer a setback?”
28.7 The three of them answered, “Mahãrãj, we have the avgun of mãn. As a result, if a sãdhu of an equal status to us insults us, we become somewhat disturbed.”
28.8 Hearing this, Shreeji Mahãrãj commented, “A person may have realised Bhagvãn with the knowledge of His greatness as mentioned in the shlok:
“If a person has realised Bhagvãn in this way, then how can he keep mãn, irshyã, or krodh towards a sãdhu of such a Bhagvãn? If he still does, then there is a flaw in his understanding. For example, if a person understands the authority of a governor – that he is the ruler of the whole world and that he is extremely powerful – then even if one of his pauper-like servants were to come, even a great king would obey his orders and act according to what he is told. This is because the king has understood, ‘He is the servant of the powerful governor’. After all, a person’s mãn does not continue in front of someone who is more powerful than himself. Similarly, if a person has understood Bhagvãn to be the master of all divine powers and wealth, then how can he retain mãn before a sant?”
28.9 Brahmãnand Swãmi agreed, “Mahãrãj, what you are saying is correct. If a person has realised Bhagvãn and the knowledge of His greatness, then he will never develop mãn, irshyã, or krodh towards a sant.”
28.10 Shreeji Mahãrãj continued, “Uddhavji was so great and so intelligent. However, because he had understood the greatness of Bhagvãn, he asked to be reborn as a vine so that he could be touched by the dust from the feet of the gopis who were greatly attached to Bhagvãn. Therefore, it is stated:
Those gopis – having abandoned the bond of their bodily relations and the path of dharma as prescribed for the nobles – attained the state of Bhagvãn, which even the Shrutis seek. May I also become any of the shrubs, vines, or herbs in Vrundãvan that are touched by the dust of their feet.
8.11 “As he had understood the greatness of Bhagvãn, even Brahmã spoke in this way. Therefore, if a person realises the greatness of Bhagvãn and His sant in this way, mãn, irshyã, or krodh can no longer persist. Moreover, he would behave as a dãs of dãs before them; and no matter however much they insult him, he would never think of leaving their company and going away. Also, he would never feel in his mind, ‘How long should I tolerate this? I will just stay at home and engage in worship there’. Therefore, if a person understands Bhagvãn’s greatness in such a way, mãn is eradicated.”
28.12 Then, Shreeji Mahãrãj explained, “If a bhakta of Bhagvãn were placed on a shuli due to some karma of his, and if at that time I were standing next to him, the bhakta would still not think, ‘It would be good if Bhagvãn would free me from the pain of this shuli’. In this way, he is not concerned about his own physical comforts. Instead, he endures the difficulties that fall upon him. As a result, Bhagvãn becomes extremely pleased with such a bhakta who is free of all expectations.”
28.13 Shreeji Mahãrãj then said, “I shall now describe who attains the bliss related to Bhagvãn. First, consider the following analogy: Water is the very life of a fish. As long as it remains in water, it is able to move, swim, and perform all its activities; but the moment it leaves the water, it loses its life and dies. Similarly, if a person believes the panch-vishays to be his lifeline and believes them to be a source of happiness, then when he is separated from them, he becomes almost like a dead person. Such a person can never attain the bliss of Bhagvãn. In fact, only a person who does not believe the panch-vishays to be his lifeline experiences Bhagvãn’s bliss; only he is able to indulge in the bliss; and only he attains that bliss.”
End of Vachanãmrut Gadhadã || 28 || 262 ||