Posted on: 24 Jun 2017
Note: This article is meant for intellectuals only
Shri Balaji asked: Namaste Swamiji. Kindly clarify the Gita verse
(ye 'py anya-devata-bhakta yajante sraddhayanvitah
te 'pi mam eva kaunteya yajanty avidhi-purvakam)
By anyadevataa, does Lord Krishna mean even energetic incarnations of God like Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva? Or is He referring only to angels like Indra etc.
It is confusing in this verse whether by 'maam', He means Lord Krishna (human body) or Lord Vishnu (energetic body). In a few verses back in the same chapter, He says 'Avajaanantimaam…manusheem…' where He clearly means human body. Can we extend the understanding to this verse also and say that by anyadevataa, He also includes energetic forms of God?
Sincerely, Balaji
Swami replied: The word ‘devataa’ means energetic form or body since the root word “div” stands for light or energy whether the energetic body is of Indra or Lord Vishnu (or Lord Shiva), it means the same because in both cases the body is made of inert energy and awareness (awareness is also a specific work form of inert energy only). As far as the medium is concerned, there is no difference. Similarly, as far as the human body of Vaasudeva (Krishna) and an ordinary human being is concerned, both bodies are one and the same constituted by matter, inert energy and awareness. In the case of Indra or ordinary human being, the inner Datta containing unimaginable God is absent whereas in the case of Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva or Lord Krishna, Datta containing unimaginable God exists inside the body. The similarity is in the external medium and the difference is in the presence or absence of Datta inside the medium.
I always told that you should fix the concept first analyzed by sharp analysis and then apply the scripture to the concept. Without arriving at the right concept through sharp and scientific analysis, if you read the scripture, confusion will certainly come because you don’t have already established true concept with you. The foolproof concept established by sharp logic is more important than the scripture since the scripture may be wrong due to insertions. After hearing the lesson from the teacher if you read the text book, you will understand it very easily. If you try to read the book before hearing the lesson, you will get confusion. The scripture gets straightly and naturally correlated with the concept, if the concept is already well established (truth) through sharp analysis. If the concept is wrongly established in your mind by a false preacher, the correlation of the scripture becomes inconvenient and difficult and force has to be applied in such wrong correlation of the scripture. This itself is a test to know whether the concept established in your mind is true or false.
Apply the scripture (Gita) to the above true concept. The correlation is straight and very simple. If you worship Indra as Indra only or a human being (like a teacher of worldly subject) as human being only, you will reach only Indra or the human being, but, not God. This is told in the Gita that devotees of souls in energetic bodies will reach them only (Devaan devayajo yaanti). If you worship Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva or Lord Krishna as God, you will reach that God only (Yaanti mat yaajinopimaam… Gita), who is Datta, containing unimaginable God and is called as Narayana or Sada Shiva. Now, you must ask about the faith of devotee, who worships Indra or ordinary human being as God. The answer is that this is worship of a representative model of God (Pratika upaasanam) though it is not direct worship of God (Saakshaat upasanam). Worship of Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva or Lord Krishna is only the direct worship of God. The worship of the representative model of God has also partial benefit that it increases your theoretical devotion on God. Theory is also the mother of practice. Hence, worship of representative model has a great fruitful advantage in developing theoretical phase of devotion. Worship of representative model is inevitable in the case of majority of souls. An angel gets repelled by energetic incarnation and a human being gets repelled by human incarnation due to repulsion between common media and hence, direct worship is very difficult due to ego and jealousy towards common media.
The meaning of the verse (Yepyanyadevataa…) quoted by you means this:- Even if you worship the energetic body of Lord Vishnu or Lord Shiva or human body of Lord Krishna with faith (Shraddhayaanvitaah) that such energetic or human body is God (Lord Datta) only, it becomes worship of Datta (God) only. Here, you are not worshipping Lord Datta directly (Avidhipurvakam), but since such body itself has become Lord Datta through total identity, such worship becomes directly the worship of Lord Datta only. In the representative worship, you are assuming the object as God whereas in the worship of incarnation, the object is truly God due to total identity of God with medium (Tepi Maameva… yajanti). All these concepts can be interpreted very easily by the same verse. God (Datta) is like the true concept established already by sharp analysis. The four dogs are the four Vedas (Primary scriptures) following God Datta. God Datta is not following the dogs. Hence, the first step is to establish the true concept by sharp analysis and the second step is application of the scripture to this true concept in the natural way in which force never exists. If the established concept is a misinterpretation captured by you, the scripture has to be forcibly bent to correlate with false concept and this leads to confusion.
If Any Sentence/ Tradition Followed Blindly You Are Against God’s Commandment
[Shri Guna Darsana asked: Hari Om, Dear Swami, in Balinese Hindu tradition, almost all ceremony in every temple using animal. Of course there are killing proces in this case, How to see the truth in this consept.
Parama suksma Sadguru, Nyoman Guna darsana]
Swami replied: Existing system is different and the truth is different in the existing traditions (religious practices). Which is correct and which is wrong? - shall be analyzed by you followed by discussions with intellectuals. If you assume that all the existing systems are true and correct (without doing sharp analysis and subsequent debates with intellectual scholars), you may reach the right goal or may reach wrong goal. Without the proof of analysis you shall not blindly believe any system. The system may be right or wrong since there is every possibility of insertions of wrong concepts anywhere in the scripture or tradition. A blind conservative follows either old or new trend believing blindly that all old is gold or all the latest is the best (Puraanamityeva…). Such a blind fool drinks the salt water of a well only saying that the well was dug by his great great grandfather (Kshaaram jalam…)! People apply terrible analysis in worldly issues (Pravrutti), but, become blind followers in spiritual issues (Nivrutti)! Sharp analysis is essential in both Pravrutti and Nivrutti. If you blindly follow some misinterpretation, there is every chance to miss the correct goal either in Pravrutti or Nivrutti. Misinterpretations always attack the true concepts like the virus in the atmosphere attacking the healthy living beings. The miracles of God are certainly above the logic and analysis. The false egoistic middle aged so called scholars have introduced certain foolish things into the religion based on their ignorance and propagated that these foolish traditions are wishes of God, which must not be analyzed! This is the reason for the blind following of these wrong traditions even by the intellectuals. Be always brave to analyze every tradition and every sentence of the scripture. If the tradition or the sentence is from God, it will safely pass through the test of the analysis. In such case, why should you fear even to analyze the statement of God? God Himself advised you to analyze whatever was told by Him in the Gita before accepting it (Vimrushyaitadesheshena). If you blindly follow any sentence or any tradition without analysis, you are going against the final commandment of God!