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Is an advaitin's claim of love-based oneness with God justified?

[Ms. Thrylokya asked: Paadanamaskaaram Swami, suppose the Advaita philosopher says “I love Brahman (God) so much that I am unable to be separated from God. This shows only my extreme love towards God and not my ambition to attain the position of God”. Please explain the answer for this?]

Swami replied: Suppose somebody likes the king very much. The person shall say that he likes the king very much so that he wants to attain the king and live very close to him. But, if the same person says “I want to become the king”, the meaning is quite different, which shows his ambition to replace the king. In this statement, his love is for the throne of the king and not the king. Demons aspired like this. The real love for the king is related to the personality of the king and not to the kingship. If the love is on the kingship, becoming king (Kaivalyam) is the aim. If the love is on the personality of the king, the aim is close association with the king (Saayujyam). Even Gopikas desired for Saayujyam and not for Kaivalyam.

In the play of the Gopikas in the absence of Krishna, the Gopikas played several miracles done by Krishna due to the excess of love to Krishna. One Gopika said that she was Krishna and lifted a coil of saree with one hand saying that it was the Govardhana hill. This was due to pure love for Krishna as stated by Krishna Himself in the Gita “Puutaah madbhaavamaagataah”. Such induced monism is based on pure love only without any aspiration and is called Bhaava-Advaita. Hanuman was always aspiring for the eternal association with God to serve Him forever. But, God was very much pleased with Hanuman’s true love which was towards Him and not towards His position, so that God made Him as the future God along with the position! Remember that the Advaita philosopher always chants that he is God (Aham Brahmaasmi), which does not mean that he is aspiring for that close association with God!

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