Gyan & Bhakti

20th Aug 2016
After sawan has finished in the north it continues in the south right up to Amavasya so do my chronicals. I feel kind of blessed that I am able to celebrate the Shravan maas for 45 days instead of the stipulated 30 days popularly celebrated in either the north or south of the country. Given that I am currently in the southern part of the country it applies absolutely. So here is the plan to extend Shravan start on Guru Purnima and after a month has passed you can travel southwards as soon as you cross the Deccan plateau the calculation changes. :-)
 
Anyways I woke up this morning with a resolve to complete  the record of the mystical journey I have had so far. But the first thing to do was to call Shankaracharya Swamy Vidyaranya because I am only here to spend time at the mutt after the chanced meeting at Aurangabad and then subsequently in Delhi. I had to wrap up and leave immediately on his insistence, but before I left. I read a beautiful story of Himvan and Adi Shakti.

Himvan the father of Parvathi prayed to the Goddess for a long time. The goddess blessed him many times with many shaktis that manifested as daughters for Himvan. All these daughters turned into rivers to help elevate mankind including Ganga. How is it possible to have Adi Shakti manifest Herself? So he fathered many rivers (smaller shakties) and then as his tapasya grew he fathered Ganga. He continued his sadhna and finally the Goddess gave him darshan. Adi Shakti agreed to come in his household as a daughter. When the Goddess asked him what he wanted Himvan replied Bhakti and Gyaan so he would be able to take care of Adi Shakti properly. This story really moved me.

For many years since I left the corporate circle I have been praying to the Goddess for Gyan. My mind falls so short and I am enable to comprehend the magnitude and spance of Shakti.  I have no reason to complain She is a very generous and giving teacher but I am not a capable student. Over the last year or so I am constantly aware of how my faith falls so short and my practice falls even shorter with this construct even if I was to see shakti I will only end up creating a faux pas.
 
Like I remember about 4 years ago I traveled to a place called Dharamasthala one of my dear friends Naveen had taken me there. It’s a beautiful shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva the beauty of that place is that 100 Km radius of the temple the Law of the land doesn't apply. There are no courts or police. While they exist, they are redundant because all the people in that land are bound my the judgement decreed by the temple pontiff. Its considered that his word is the word of Lord Shiva Himself and everyone is obliged to follow.

Naveen’s whole family has been paying respect to the temple there for generations. So we were able to see the Pontiff. I had just started compiling books and those of you who are with me for over 3 years will remember the long A4 sized white books. These I carried everywhere including Dharamasthala, Naveen didn’t know how to introduce me so he showed that book saying she has compiled this and is very spiritually inclined. He patiently went through the book and asked I if had Hanuman Sahasranaam in it. Then he said you must verify the source of each chant. He said I have a library of ancient scriptures. I cut him short and said great then if we have access to it I can sit in the library and do it myself. He got really irritated I couldn’t understand why and he immediately dismissed me saying so be it. Open the library for them.  Naveen was so angry at me, he said why did you have to interject he would have instructed someone to find all the chants and find the differences and tell you. For a long time now I have been feeling stupid. I don’t know how to conduct myself with the pontiff how will I ever learn to conduct myself with the Gods. This question has plagued me for years now. I don’t crave Darshan or seek it or ask for it because of this realization.
 
So long meandering story, over the last months I have realized there is no point asking for asking only for gyan or knowledge because no matter how much knowledge if I don’t have the right feelings or rather that’s a poor translation right bhava. If I don’t have the right bhava then how could gyan doing the best of pujas or following the rituals help because they will be absolutely meaningless with that. It was written in the story of Himvan and Adi Shakti that as soon as Himvan asked for the two boons of Bhakti and Gyan to be able to serve the Goddess she was extremely pleased with Himvan and retold the Devi Geeta to him.
 
So this morning waking up to realizing my two demands on the Goddess are indeed dear to her made my morning very beautiful with tears of joy and I kept repeating Shree Mata .. shree maata, mother the Goddess, Adi shakti is indeed benevolent she accords the devotees with both the bhakti and gyan to be able to serve her.
 
It was a beautiful morning.

---