Posted on: 06 Jul 2021
[Ms. Thrylokya asked: Swāmi, forgive me for asking this question. Parents practically serve the children and a Sadguru gives divine knowledge to the child which is theoretical. Why should a child vote for Sadguru against parents when practice is greater than theory?]
Swāmi Replied:- If the child is God, if Sadguru and parents are devotees, your assumption is logical. The devotion for God or Sadguru is not based on the service attained by the soul. It is based on the intensity of the attraction of the soul to God or worldly bonds. The measurement is to be done based on the attraction of the soul towards the object. You are measuring the love from the side of the object. Moreover, the Veda says that all the worldly bonds love any soul for self-happiness only and not for the happiness of the soul (Ātmanaḥ kāmāya sarvaṃ priyaṃ bhavati…- Veda). The only bond that loves the soul without any selfish aspiration is bond with God. God does not require any type of happiness from any soul since He is omnipotent. When children neglect parents in old age, we hear parents scolding the children quoting their service and sacrifice done to them. We also find parents showing partiality of love among their children. The worldly bonds are temporary confined to the present life only whereas the bond with God is permanent that comes throughout all the lives of the soul. Śaṇkara said that the love of God is far superior to the love of millions of parents. The love of God towards a soul is unimaginable and also the love of a climax devotee towards God is also unimaginable. Love means both theoretical and practical. Where there is real theoretical love, there exists real practical love and vice versa.
Real theoretical love and real practical love can’t be isolated. We shall not confine the love of Sadguru or God to only preaching the Spiritual knowledge. God helps us everywhere in our practical life also. God does not expose His practical love done to His devotees because the real love of the devotee shall not be mere gratitude. Real love is without aspiration of any fruit in return and to test the real love secrecy of practical help is necessary for God. Even the parents can help their issues practically provided they are helped by God. In the light of this truth, parents have no separate place to compete with God. The grandson misunderstands the grandfather due to the lack of the knowledge that his mother gave the biscuit packet to him which was actually purchased by God. The ultimate donor of the theoretical and practical love is God alone and every soul is the ultimate receiver only and not donor at any level and at any time. The drama played by God aims only to test the capacity of your analysis in understanding the ultimate truth. Since perfect analysis was made by Śaṇkara, He left His mother for the sake of God. For the same reason Prahlāda left His father for the sake of God. For the same reason Buddha left His wife, son and wealth for the sake of God. Remember always one point, which is that false practical love exists only with false theoretical love and true practical love exists with true theoretical love. Within the boundaries of worldly life, parents occupy the highest place among all the worldly bonds. But, if you cross these worldly boundaries and enter the boundaries of spiritual life, no worldly bond including that of parents can even dare to stand in competition with the bond with God. Such doubts arise only when the analysis of knowledge is not perfect.
Śaṇkara, Prahlāda and Buddha were not ignorant souls unable to analyse this point. The Sages born as Gopikas are also not ordinary souls to run after Kṛṣṇa leaving all the worldly bonds. Hanumān left His parents and served Rāma without aspiring any fruit in return and Hanumān is said to be the topmost intellectual (Vātātmajaṃ buddhimatāṃ variṣṭam…). The practical love of Rāma was shown by making Hanumān as the future creator! If the Sages born as Gopikas sacrificed all the worldly bonds for the sake of Kṛṣṇa, who simply gave them theoretical song on flute, the same Gopikas were given Goloka created by God above His abode so that their feet-dust continuously falls on the head of God! Can there be a better practical fruit than the fruits given to Hanumān and Gopikas? All the incarnations of Guru Datta are Sadgurus only. Every incarnation of God Datta takes the sins of His devotees on Him and suffers on behalf of the devotees to relieve them from punishments. Is there more practical love than this of God Datta?