Posted on: 08 Oct 2006
[Message on Dasara, Day-7] Today, Goddess Saraswati, who is always associated with Brahma, is worshipped. Saraswati is different from Brahma but is constantly associated with Brahma. Saraswati represents the special divine knowledge (Prajnanam) and Brahma represents God in human form. This means that the divine knowledge is separate and is an associated sign of God but can be treated as an inherent sign due to its constant association.
Any state in the spiritual path is to be appreciated relatively with respect to the lower step, but it is criticized relatively with respect to the higher step. You are encouraged by showing the lower steps, but you are inspired to become active by seeing the upper step. If you become lazy assuming that the step attained by you is final, the upper step is to be shown to you. If you are discouraged by seeing the higher steps, you are encouraged by showing lower steps. A theist, who worships formless God, is better than an atheist. Such a theist is lower than the theist, who worships statues and pictures because God with some form is easy for concentration. Again, the theist worshipping statues is inferior to the theist, who worships God in human form or at least the best devotees. This is the ladder of the spiritual path. The devotee worshipping the living human incarnation cannot be criticized because there is no higher step than that. Hanuman and Gopikas, who worshipped living human incarnations of their times, were the highest devotees. Similarly, the lowest step is atheism below which there is no other lower step. Hence, an atheist can never be appreciated. Thus, the highest step has no criticism and the lowest step has no appreciation. In between these two extreme ends, all the other steps have both criticism and appreciation according to the requirement of the situation of the devotee.
Therefore, in My divine knowledge, rituals and the worship of idols have both appreciation and criticism with respect to the state of devotee. If you are on the ground, I will appreciate the first step before you. But, if you have climbed the first step, I will appreciate the second step and criticize the first step with respect to its higher step. Therefore, My appreciation and criticism vary from one level of devotees to the other level of devotees. You should not misunderstand that My criticism means condemning that stage totally in all directions for all levels of human beings. Sacrifice (Yajna) should be performed and I do not condemn Yajna as the followers of Jnana do. I only condemn the misinterpreted practice of Yajna [burning of food in fire]. If Yajna is performed in the right sense [cooking food and serving to human incarnation or devotees], it is far far greater than Jnana (knowledge) and Bhakti (theoretical devotion). The sacrifice is practical devotion or service to deserving human beings like the human incarnation, devotees, poor people etc.
Perform Yajna As per Scripture
Yajna does not mean burning food in the fire which is criticized by Lord Kapila in the Bhagavatam. The fire is only a means to cook the food (Yajna Sadhanam). Fire is not the deity (upasya) of the Yajna. The Sadguru is the deity of Yajna, who acts as the priest and is the fire personified (Yajnasya Devamritvijam—Veda) due to the radiant light on His face and hunger-heat in His stomach. Fire is characterized by light and heat. Today, in the Yajna, the priest, who does not know the meaning of the Vedas, is acting as the Sadguru. In olden days, Sadguru, who knew the meaning and essence of the Vedas acted as the priest. Everything is reversed today. Here again I am not condemning the priests. I am only criticizing them. Due to their lack of knowledge, they are giving food to the physical fire. I only advise them to learn the Sanskrit language in which the Vedas are composed. They should study the Shastras to give the right interpretations. For example, in Yajna, the knowledge of figures of speech (Alankara Shastra) is required to understand the personification of fire as Sadguru. Sadguru is indicated by the word ‘fire’ through a metaphor (Rupaka). These priests do not even know the language; the knowledge of the Shastras is far beyond expectation. This Yajna which is looked upon as a very inferior path of karma, now becomes the highest state of the spiritual path, which is the practical sacrifice and service to Sadguru or to devotees or at least to poor people. Such Yajna according to the correct interpretation is greater than knowledge and theoretical devotion.
The scholar and devotee without service are useless. When the fate of the scholar of the Vedas without practice is this useless state, what is the fate of the present priest, who does not have even the basic knowledge of the Vedas? Only a scholar of the Vedas should be called as a Veda Pandita [scholar of the Veda]. The present priest who simply recites the Veda without knowing its meaning should be called as Veda Pathaka [reciter of the Veda]. Ignorant people call the present priest as a Veda Pandita, since they do not know the difference between these two words. The present priests may be angry with Me misunderstanding that I am spoiling their livelihood. No no. I only increase their status both financially as well as in terms of their honor. The Sadguru will be paid much more by the public and will be honored equal to God.
Way to Spend Money of God – Temple Management
Similarly, I do not condemn the worship of idols. I am only requesting all of you to know the right aspect in such worship. All the idols are in the human form. Such worship is a training to serve the human form of Lord. Since you have repulsion to worshipping a co-human being as God, such training is given to minimize your repulsion. You must know the point behind such worship. It is said that Brahma has no worship. This means that the absolute God can never be worshiped directly since God is unimaginable. The next step is worship of Shiva in the form of a stone without human form. This step is for such egoistic demons, who do not like to worship even a stone if it is in human form. This is the reason why demons worship only Shiva in the form of a wave but not in human form. The wave represents energy or power. Demons worship God only for power since they want to become God in human form through the exhibition of superpowers. The third state is Vishnu in the human form represented by any statue in human form.
Let not the followers of Vishnu condemn Lord Shiva to be the God of demons. Shiva exists in human form also represented by such statue, which becomes the third state of Vishnu. The Veda says that Shiva and Vishnu are one and the same. Demons are also serving the divine mission by exhibiting the superpowers since superpowers alone can turn the atheist into a theist. It is a service at the basic level. God is not foolish to give boons (superpowers) to demons. The fourth state of the spiritual path is Datta. Datta means Sadguru, who is the living human form of God. Service to Datta is the final stage.
The statues can be used to develop theoretical devotion by inspiration. But, the statues are useless for practical devotion, which is practical service that is confined only to living beings. It should not be extended to inert objects. Innocent people are fooled by the priests who say that God is receiving the practical service through statues. This is an utter lie! The priest hiding behind the statue receives your service. If the priest is a real devotee or at least a poor fellow, your service to the statue is meaningful. In that case, your sacrifice goes practically and directly to the priest according to the degree of his deservingness. The statue is only a drama of undeserving people to extract more service from you. Another drama is to put money in the hundi [donation box] kept before the statue. Such money is again monitored by the management of temple. You may have the satisfaction that the undeserving priest is avoided. But, the management also does not spend the money in right path. Though the management is not personally enjoying the money like the undeserving priest, your money is wasted in the constructions in the temple in the name of service to visitors.
The devotee, who goes to temples, should not enjoy the facilities. In olden days the temples were on hills and forests so that the devotee faced a lot of stress to reach God represented by statue. The facilities hinder spiritual progress like the superpowers. Such money should be spent on scholars and talented devotees to spread divine knowledge and devotion to God. Such money can also be spent to help beggars but such service to beggars should be associated with preaching spiritual knowledge and devotion to them. I do not criticize the management of temples stating that they are enjoying God’s money. But, I criticize them for not spending the divine money in the correct way. The divine money should not be touched by the government for social service. Only the money collected by tax is meant for social welfare. The management of temples should be constituted of perfect scholars of divine knowledge and not of mere administrators (officers) of social welfare. Saints, scholars and devotees should constitute the management of temples and not ordinary people having worldly education (I.A.S. degrees). The whole system is going in the wrong direction and should be rectified so that the grace of God will shower upon humanity and the government will also get good name and success.
The uneducated and undeserving priest stealing your service and the innocent management wasting the money is one extreme end. The Advaitin, who eats the food offering it to himself assuming that he is God is another extreme end, which is selfish greediness in disguise. In between these two extreme ends, which are totally unreal, the middle golden path of truth is serving deserving beggars, the deserving devotees and Sadguru in increasing order of importance. Sadguru is God in human form directly and is more pleased if His real devotees, who participate practically in His divine mission are served. God likes such real devotees (having practical devotion) more than Himself. Between God and real devotees, the real devotees are more important for Him. God will tolerate if He is insulted (Bhagavatapachara), but will never tolerate if His real devotee is insulted (Bhaagavataapachara). Ramanuja left His wife since she insulted real devotees. Lord Vishnu did not react when Hiranyakashipu scolded Him, but He reacted vehemently when His real devotee, Prahlada was insulted. Between beggars and God, God should be more important. Jesus supported His personal service of applying perfume to His feet over serving beggars. He said that beggars are always present, but the chance to meet Him was very rare. A hungry person should be fed immediately as an emergent service. Even if he is an atheist, human life should be saved because there is a chance of change in him in the future if his life is saved. Social service involving helping the poor is always appreciable provided such service is followed up by the divine service i.e., propagation of knowledge and devotion.