Divine Knowledge and Bliss through Divine Contemplation

Lord Krishna says in the Gita:
Machhita Madgatprana Bodhyantah Parasparam
Kathyantasch maa nityam tushyanti ch ramanti ch

‘With their minds fixed on Me, and their lives surrendered unto Me; enlightening one another about My greatness and speaking of Me, My devotees ever remain contented and take delight in Me.’ (10.9)

Such darling devotees of God are immersed in the Supreme Lord of the universe. They not only live happily in the world but also after death, they get liberated becoming one with Brahman, the Supreme Self, in Whom their minds are ever engrossed.

The Lord says, “My devotees, with their minds fixed on Me and their lives or prana that is a part of Prakriti surrendered unto Me… i.e. such devotees submit themselves along with their bodies made of nature to Me and on meeting one another, discuss, contemplate and recollect My divine qualities, potencies and play, besides talking about the ways and means of realizing Me. Their constant engrossment in divine contemplation and spiritual discussion gives rise to divine virtues, divine Knowledge, divine peace and divine bliss in their hearts. Then in due course of time, they realize the Divine Tattva (essence) and attain salvation becoming one with Brahman, the Supreme Self.”

It is a unique property of the mind that it can not think of two things at a time. The mode of happiness and mode of sorrow can not exist simultaneously in the mind. They are mutually exclusive. And when there is modification of mind in the form of God. Divine Opulence, Divine Knowledge and Supreme Bliss arise in our mind. When we think of the world, when we have the lowly knowledge of ‘I’ and ‘my’, ‘you’ and ‘your’; we are full of vices like attachment, hatred, worry, sorrow, greed, fear of losing what we have and then of course jealously with our superiors in worldly possession; whereas thinking of God fills our mind with divine virtues.

The cowherds and cowherdesses were enamored of the Lord. They would talk of the Lord and get filled with devotional Bhava, and at times shed tears out of love for the Lord. Thus, conversing about the Lord, their minds were always inundated with divine Knowledge, divine peace, divine bliss and divine joy.

Therefore the Lord says: Machhita Madgatprana… ‘With their minds fixed on Me, and their lives (prana) surrendered unto Me…’

The loving devotees of God live for God and do whatever they do verily for God alone. All their endeavors are for God and their only goal of life is God. The Gopis churn the curds and take out butter only for the pleasure of God. They hawk curds and butter calling out, “Curds for sale… Butter for sale…’But when they say ‘butter’ they are thinking of Govinda and under the loving influence thereof they are calling out, “Govinda for sale… Madhava for sale…” At times, while milking the cows, the memories of Sri Krishna come to their mind and they happen to have a glimpse of the Lord in the pot of milk. Thus, those enamored of the Lord, the darlings of the Lord, the loving devotees of God don’t set their minds on anything other than God. They see the Lord’s benevolent grace at play wherever they find virtue.

Land is the ground of all trees. Water is the source of all waves. The Sun is the source of all lights. Similarly, whatever virtue or power is seen, God is the source of them all. A devotee, when faced with troubles, thinks that the Lord is purifying him. When he gets facilities, he thinks that the Lord is encouraging him through His grace. Thus, the loving devotees of the Lord, His darlings, His beloved ones see divine grace behind all things and circumstances. Whatever good or bad, auspicious or inauspicious, peaceful or vicissitudes they find in life, they attribute everything to Divine grace and compassion.

You may say, ‘While it is OK to see the divine grace behind good things, but how can one see the same even in evil things?’

You light a lamp. The moths start hovering around its flame. The moths are enjoying it, but you know they are all set to get burnt and suffer pain. So you put out the lamp. The moths will however, take it wrong, though you extinguished the flame for their good only. Similarly, worldly people, like these moths, are ruining their lives in this delusive world due to their attachment to their wives and sons. SO, God creates troubles for them. There will be strained relations between spouses or clashes between father and son. Or else, He may create some problem on the business front. Whenever and wherever you get attached and set to any circumstances, know that some trouble is but imminent. This, in fact, is Lord’s compassion. The sorrows and hurdles are parts of the divine arrangement to save your life from going waste under the infatuating delusion of this world.

‘I am in the pink of health, my wife is soft-spoken; my son is obedient; my daughters are well set in life; I am very happy.’ But then, happy days will pass and the strokes of death will snatch away everything you have. The more pleasures one enjoys in life and the more attachment one has towards the world, that much more the pain does he suffer at the time of death. Thus, he will fail to make foray into the realm of spiritual experiences. But the darling devotees of the Lord make best use of the separable things and meditate upon the inseparable Atman.

If one doesn’t get elated in favorable circumstances and does not become distressed in the face of unfavorable one, considering both of them as gifts of God and remains equanimous always; he transcends happiness and sorrow and becomes one with God. In thinking of happiness and sorrow, one forgets God. Constant recollection of God makes the mind divine and the effect of happiness and sorrow is significantly reduced. If somebody walks towards the sea, at first, he gets to feel the winds of the seashore. As he goes nearer the sea, the winds become increasingly humid; and on going further ahead, his feet become wet. Then, he gradually goes on losing himself into the sea-water. Similarly, our matching towards God and contemplating and recollecting Him, makes our mind spiritualized, engrossed in God and then it slowly gets immersed and lost in the love divine. Then mental modes of happiness and sorrow, friends and foes become morror. Modes of sorrow and enmity lose their hold on the mind with mode of the Lord alone resigning supreme in the mind. Thereupon, God’s Opulence, Knowledge, Peace, Love and Bliss start growing in our mind. Worldly pleasures and opulence stand nowhere in comparison thereto.

Therefore, fill your mind with divine Knowledge and divine bliss through constant recollection of and love for the Lord to attain the blessed state of ultimate fulfillment. Accomplish the mission that you have come for.