12 Sep 2021
[Prof. JSR Prasad asked:- You said that the seven sages while praying God Shiva told that there is no necessity of expression of love to God because He is omniscient (Yā naḥ prītiḥ virūpākṣa!, tvadanudhyānasambhavā, sā kimāvedyate tubhyam, antarātmā''si dehinām— Kumārasambhavam). You also told on some other occasion that the love in mind shall be also expressed as prayer because God will be pleased by expression through words. How to reconcile both these concepts?]
Swami replied:- The aim of the seven sages is to say us that since God is omniscient, He knows whether our love to Him is real or false and hence, we shall not say lies expressing our false love as true love. The reason is that since God is omniscient, there is no use of such lie and moreover due to such lie, God will start hating us. In this way, the concept of seven sages is useful for us so that we can be careful in not telling lies to God because God is not an ordinary human being with little external knowledge only. Once the love is true in the heart, it shall be also expressed in words as prayer because the second instrument called ‘word’ also participates in the service of God. Mind, word and action by body are the three instruments to serve God (Manovākkāyakarmāṇi). God also is pleased because prayer to God is always speaking truth only and not speaking false praise. This point is also told by the same seven sages while praying God Shiva (Yathārthavyāhṛtiḥ Sā hi, na stutiḥ Parameṣṭinaḥ). Even these seven sages prayed God Shiva through words and they cannot condemn expression of devotion through words. If it is so, sage Vyaasa would not have written so many prayers on God. Hence, the idea of the verse quoted by you is only to say that God is omniscient and that we shall not tell lies in our prayers thinking that we can fool God by telling lies.
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