Posted on: 25 Jun 2021
Ms. Bhanu Samykya asked: Pādanamaskāraṃ Swāmi, It is said that Sadguru is the mirror reflection of ourself. Does it mean that God will treat a soul in the same way how soul treats the world (God’s creation)? Will God treat the soul in the same way how soul treats the God?
Swāmi replied:- The creator and creation have different values. You must like and serve the creation because God likes His creation. This is Pravṛtti or worldly life. In Nivṛtti or spiritual life, you must like and serve the creator in the same way. But, the intensity in your liking and service to God and world must differ like sky and earth. Your liking and service to the world are not due to your personal liking of the world, but, must be due to your personal liking of the God. You like the world simply because God likes the world. Here also, the basic reason for your liking the world is your liking God only. In this way, your service to the world becomes service to God. Such God-love based world-service leads the soul to God only. If the world-service is based on world-love, it will lead the soul to temporary heaven. In this way, even in the indirect service of God, which is world-service, the love for God is the essence. If this is the true picture, what to speak of serving God directly based on God-love? Arjuna fought against injustice in the war to establish justice in the world and this is world-service. Of course, this was based on his love to Kṛṣṇa only and not based on selfish love for the kingdom because he refused to fight for the sake of getting kingdom. Rādhā and Gopikās were involved in the direct service to Kṛṣṇa based on direct love to Kṛṣṇa. Arjuna is in Pravṛtti based on indirect love to God Kṛṣṇa. Gopikās are in Nivṛtti based on direct love to God Kṛṣṇa. When the love to God is in climax, it is called Nivṛtti and when the love to God is in lesser level, it is called Pravṛtti.