Love of God, basis of spiritual life

CHENNAI, AUG. 14. Once a devotee asked Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa to teach him an easy and sure way to realise God when the saint replied that it was love of God and constant prayer to Him that would enable a person to realise Him. The devotee insisted that he should be given only one prescription as it will be difficult for him to follow both simultaneously. The saint then told him that love of God was the basis of spiritual life and started singing spontaneously comparing God to a mother who will come running to her child the moment it calls out to her. Then he remarked that He was always there though we did not pay heed to Him.

How does one develop love for God? It is by constant singing of the divine names and His glory that one's heart becomes purified enough to love Him. Initially the spiritual aspirant sings His glory so that love blossoms in the heart but as love and devotion to God take root, he revels in singing His praise. What was adopted as a means to an end becomes the end in itself. Though this enables a person to progress spiritually, one may wonder what relevance it has to worldly life. The benefit was peace of mind when discrimination and dispassion resulted as a consequence of love of God, said Swami Gautamananda in his discourse.

The human mind is the source of all the problems man faces. The mind by nature will not engage in spiritual pursuits. It is swayed by thoughts which arise due to desires. So spiritual practices are advocated with the object of realising peace of mind. Mental discrimination enables a person to understand the transient nature of worldly life which will prod him to seek that which will give him eternal joy. Dispassion is the corollary of discrimination of mind when the devotee eschews worldly desires after understanding their fleeting nature.

It is not as if human beings are unaware of the limitations of worldly life. Problems, suffering, old age and death are facts of life which stare us in the face everyday if we look around us. But it suits us not to face the reality with the misconception that they will not afflict us. This paradox has been pointed out in the famous Yakshaprasna section of the Mahabharata when Yudishtra was asked the question, ``What is the greatest wonder in the world?'' to which he replied that man entertained the misconception that he was immortal even though he confronted death all the time. Spiritual life is thus the preparation man engages in throughout his worldly life to realise God so that he is not caught unawares when it is time to leave the world.

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