08 Aug 2024
O Learned and Devoted Servants of God
[Shri Ramakanth asked:- Swami Paada Padayoh Namaskaromi🙏🏻.]
1. What does God expect from souls and what would God do if no one loved Him?
Swami replied:- If no one loved God, He will be getting entertained like a person seeing the cinema. No role or actor loves the spectator, but still, the spectator is enjoying the cinema. God does not expect love from souls. If any soul loves God naturally without any external effort, then only God wants to enjoy such love. Even in the case of a human being in worldly life, you should love somebody based on your impression on him/her and you should not expect any love in return for your love. Similarly, God loves the souls because He is the Divine Father of all the souls (Ahaṃ bījapradaḥ pitā - Gita).
2. Is spiritual knowledge with practical devotion the ONLY way to reach God?
Swami replied:- Yes. Spiritual knowledge generates theoretical devotion and the theoretical devotion leads to practical devotion or Karma Yoga that consists of sacrifice of service and sacrifice of fruit of work. This is the only path to please God and to become very close to God, which is called Yoga. Unfortunately, Yoga is misunderstood as some exercises to improve health and enjoy the world!
3. Would liberated souls take re-birth on earth for any reason (are they human incarnations)?
Swami replied:- Liberated souls take rebirth on earth to participate in the mission of God on the will of God. If God selects one of these liberated souls and merges with that soul, such selected soul becomes the incarnation of God. The incarnation results purely on the will of God only and not by any effort of the soul.
4. Is it possible to experience our own soul? Are we getting confused with the ability to self-converse as knowing the soul?
Swami replied:- Soul is the inert energy produced by the oxidation of food in mitochondria cells. This inert energy enters the functioning nervous system to generate pure awareness and this generated pure awareness is called the pure individual soul. This pure awareness gets contaminated with thoughts and such impure awareness is called the individual soul. Here, you must identify your ‘I’ with either the inert soul or the pure individual soul or the individual soul. The first possibility is ruled out because there cannot be any experience with the inert soul. The second possibility is also ruled out because every soul is fully contaminated by qualities (strongest inherent thoughts developed through the past several births). Hence, the experiencer ‘I’ means only the individual soul.
5. Does God have a soul? What is the nature of His soul and human souls? What constitutes a ‘soul’?
Swami replied:- As I have already told, inert energy is the soul (aatman) and awareness is the pure individual soul (pure jiiva). Impure Individual soul (impure jiiva) is awareness contaminated with qualities and Jiivatma means the awareness that is generated from inert energy. Both aatma and jiiva are parts of the creation created by the unimaginable God called Parabrahman. Parabrahman gets mediated by a medium and this medium is also a part of the creation only. For Parabrahman, there is no question of any medium because Parabrahman is unimaginable to the soul. The unimaginable God can also think not with the help of awareness but due to His omnipotency. Regarding mediated God, the medium contains awareness and inert energy if the medium is an energetic body. If the medium is a materialised human body, the medium contains awareness, inert energy and matter. Of course, in the energetic body also, if you consider the rest mass as inertia representing subtle matter, then there is no difference between the energetic body and the human body. In this way, you have to understand the unmediated unimaginable God (Parabrahman) and mediated unimaginable God (energetic and human incarnations).
6. Were souls created by God or a part of God Himself?
Swami replied:- Soul is created by God. Soul is a part of imaginable creation and made of inert energy. But, the omnipotent and omniscient God is originally unimaginable and He is beyond the words, mind and intellect of any soul. Here, the word ‘soul’ is loosely used for the individual soul also since people don’t distinguish between soul and individual soul. Awareness or individual soul is the best part of the creation of God and hence, it is called as Paraa Prakruti (means best creation). To show the invisible Arundhati Star, the near most star called Vashishtha is shown (Arundhatī Vaśiṣṭha Nyāya). Similarly, to indicate the unimaginable God, the most subtle awareness or individual soul is indicated. Unimaginable God (like Arundhati) cannot be experienced whereas the awareness (like Vashishtha) is experienced. Gross object, which can also be experienced is not taken in the place of awareness because subtle nature is very close to unimaginable item than the gross nature. Since awareness is the most subtle, it is selected to be very near to the unimaginable God. By seeing the star Vashishtha, the married couple feels that they have seen the star Arundhati. Here, Vashishtha is assumed as Arundhati. Similarly, the most subtle individual soul is assumed as unimaginable God and it is told that the soul (individual soul) is the ultimate unimaginable God. Without understanding this, ignorant people have taken the individual soul to be the ultimate God.
7. Why should miracles be performed?
[Why should miracles be performed? Is it to gain trust? Aren’t miracles tantric practices? Isn’t a miracle wrong since nothing can sideline one’s karma? Should the relief from suffering entitle a person to believe God’s presence in the one, who performs the miracles?]
Swami replied:- Miracles are performed by God through incarnations to turn atheists into theists and this is the LKG class in the spiritual education system. The atheist is a beginner like a kid. The only purpose of the miracles is to establish faith or trust in the heart of the atheist about the unimaginable God. Miracles are also unimaginable events only and they prove the existence of their source, which is unimaginable God. A miracle is strictly the unimaginable power of unimaginable God only and His miracles are meant to establish the existence of unimaginable God. God gives miraculous powers to undeserving fellows also through tantric practices because such miracles are serving the basic purpose, which is to establish the existence of the ultimate God (Parabrahman). Even though miracles are very bad since people misuse the miracles to exploit the innocent public, they are granted even to demons so that the use of miracles to a large extent will bring the fundamental faith in the ultimate God. Miracles are also one of the identification marks of the incarnation, but, miracles alone cannot be taken as the full identity mark because apart from miracles (Satyakāmaḥ - Veda), true and complete spiritual knowledge (Satyaṃ Jñānam Anantaṃ Brahma) and blissful love to devotees (Raso vai saḥ, Ānando Brahma - Veda) are also the other two essential identification marks of God in incarnation. If miracles alone are the identity mark of God, demons, who can perform miracles will have to be called as God, which is ridiculous. God Krishna not only performed miracles, but also preached Gita and gave Goloka to the Gopikas. Ravana performed miracles only and hence, cannot be God.
8. How is having multiple religions justified?
[How is having multiple religions justified? Hinduism always had its doors open. Why wasn’t Jesus born in Hindu religion? Why was a new religion started? A religion need NOT be confined to a continent since it can be universal. So, why do we have many religions and one unimaginable God but not one religion and one unimaginable God?]
Swami replied:- There are different regions with different languages and different cultures on the earth. A single incarnation cannot satisfy all these different people simultaneously. It will be quite natural if God takes different human incarnations speaking different languages and suiting to different cultures. A human incarnation born in a specific region talking the language and following the culture of that region can easily mix with the devotees of that region. Unity in diversity can be realised by all the human devotees of different religions and such unity is due to the single underlying unimaginable-unmediated God. No religion can claim their mediated God as the ultimate God because the ultimate God is unmediated. This is the best talent of the divine administration of God.
9. Why is practice important?
[Why is practice (mananam) important? We lose the knowledge once we die and our next birth doesn't have this knowledge. If awareness is all that matters, why can't we cover more topics (initial smaranam) instead of mananam of the same knowledge?]
Swami replied:- If mananam (repeated revision) is done, such knowledge which becomes strong by mananam will accompany our soul even after death. This is the reason why some strong incidents come to our memory even after rebirth. After studying the knowledge, if you revise it once, it is called smaranam. If it is revised many times, it is called mananam. Mananam alone can give immense strength to the knowledge. Covering many concepts in one unit of time is also good. At the same time, repeating the revision of one concept is also good because in the next birth, we can certainly have its memory.
10. Why do we attach ourselves to the past incarnations more than the contemporary human incarnations?
Swami replied:- The contemporary (present) incarnation in human form standing before our eyes appears as a human being. We always have repulsion towards our co-human beings because of the repulsion between common human media. The past human incarnation is not before our eyes and is present only as inert statue or inert photo. Hence, we do not have any repulsion towards the past human incarnation. The Veda also says that we hate that, which is present before our eyes and we love that, which is far from our eyes (Parokṣa priyā iva hi devāḥ pratyakṣa dviṣaḥ).
11. Why is Lord Shiva said to be in His tamasic state? What is tamas here?
Swami replied:- Tamas is ignorance, which is required in destroying the world without any discrimination between bad and good souls. Tamas also indicates the rigid determination and this is required in the final stage of spiritual journey in which the devotees believe the contemporary human incarnation with full firmness just like in the case of God Krishna and Gopikas.
12. Can the Gods we worship see the unimaginable God?
Swami replied:- Unimaginable God can’t be imagined by anybody other than the unimaginable God Himself. The Gods worshipped by us are the incarnations of the unimaginable God only as said by the Veda (Brahmavit Brahmaiva bhavati). The unimaginable God or Parabrahman existing in each incarnation knows about Himself.
13. What is considered as entertainment to the unimaginable God? Does God enjoy everything in His creation?
Swami replied:- God created this world for His entertainment, which is not the cheap entertainment (reading novels or playing cards or watching movies, etc.) as in our case. God wants to taste the real love of the devotee, who does not aspire for anything in return from God. Such a situation in our lives also gives us eternal bliss. The aim of the creation of this world is to have such topmost sacred entertainment of true love of devotees by God.
14. In the case of unimaginable God taking human form, how does this fusion take place?
[In the case of the unimaginable God taking form as human incarnation, how does this fusion take place? How does interactions among these souls happen? How do they control the same body harmonically?]
Swami replied:- You will get scientific answers to these questions provided both the merging items are imaginable belonging to the imaginable world. Here, between the two merging items, one is the unimaginable (God) and the other is an imaginable item (energetic being in the case of energetic incarnation or human being in the case of human incarnation). Therefore, the merging also becomes unimaginable. We can apply scientific logic only when both the merging items are imaginable worldly items. If one of the items is unimaginable, we don’t have such example in this imaginable world. In the imaginable world, we have the process of merging between two imaginable items only like milk and water. Therefore, worldly logic doesn’t apply in the case of merging of the unimaginable God-component with an imaginable human being-component.
15. Can I eat food by myself and call it Yajna?
[Where we are very hungry and God is in the form of fire in our stomach, can we have the heartful intention that the fire in me is Krishna Himself and can we eat the food we prepared with ghee and call it Yajnam?]
Swami replied:- Certainly. If you realise the reality, we can certainly feel the eating of food by us or others is divine sacrifice or yajnam. In fact, only this is yajnam and burning ghee in physical fire is the biggest sin (Mahaa Paapam) because ghee is the food of the highest quality and burning it in physical fire is the highest sin as said in the Veda (Annaṃ na paricakṣīta). Here, ghee means food mixed with ghee. The food possessing ghee is called ghee just like we call the possessor of apples “O apples! Come here”. This is called Lakshnaartha or implied meaning. Similarly, the possessor of hunger fire is called as fire (Vaiśvānaraḥ praviśatyagniḥ - Veda). God said in the Gita that the hunger fire is Himself in the name Vaishvaanara (Ahaṃ vaiśvānaro… - Gita). The first hymn of the first Veda (Rig Veda) says that the receiver (havaniiya) of ghee (ghee food) as well as the supplier (hotaa) of the same ghee food are one and the same. The priest (hotaa) is pouring the ghee and the inert fire (havaniiya) is receiving the ghee. Both the priest and the physical fire are different in this case. But, the Veda says that the supplier as well as the receiver is one and the same fire (person possessing hungry fire). The mantra stating that both hotaa and havaniiya are one and the same applies only to a hungry person eating ghee mixed food. The priests of this worst Kali age have not understood the real meaning of sacred sacrifice called Yajna till God Datta revealed now.
16. Is the Dharma Shaastra told in the Smrutis still relevant in Kali Yuga?
Swami replied:- The Dharma Shaastra changes from Yuga to Yuga. The ethical scripture written by Sage Paraashara is the authority in Kali Yuga. Dharma changes as per the circumstances in the world at that time. Dharma also changes from one region to another region. Sage Jaimini says that there can be change in Dharma (a form of action) but there will be no change in Brahman or God since God is an item and not action (Kriyāyāṃ vikalpaḥ na tu vastuni).
17. Does what we believe in apply to us or what we identify as?
Swami replied:- If we believe in the absolute reality called God, anything related to God applies to all of us. In the identification, there may be errors just like you may identify the rope as a snake. Since such an illusion is not true, it cannot apply to us. In the illusion of rope appearing as snake also, there is belief because we believe the rope appearing as the serpent. Belief and identification must not have illusion so that we receive true knowledge instead of false knowledge.
18. Swami, can the knowledge of Sadguru change the vaasana, samskaara and guna of the soul?
Swami replied:- Vaasana (like gaseous state) can be changed by your effort. Samskaara (like liquid state) can be changed by the true and complete spiritual knowledge of Sadguru. But, guna (like solid diamond state) cannot be changed as we see in the case of the Kauravas, who were advised by God Krishna for a long time but did not change at all even though God demonstrated the highest miracle called Cosmic Vision (Vishvaruupa Sandarshanam). The only way is to divert gunas (qualities) towards the worship of God irrespective of good and bad nature of the qualities. Even a thorny stick (bad quality) becomes sacred ash to be applied on the forehead when it is diverted to the powerful God-fire. Even sugar (good quality) becomes waste when it is poured (diverted) to the world like drainage. Diversion to God is the only way for the solidified qualities (gunas) and even very bad qualities when surrendered to God become pious and sacred. This is seen in the case of Gopikas, who reached the highest fruit (Goloka) through sinful dancing with God Krishna.
19. When Sudaama should not be imitated in sacrifice, can I read the Stotras written by sages since it is imitating them?
[Swami, You told that we should not imitate Sudaama by sacrificing to God by taking a loan. Can we read the Stotras written by great sages since we are imitating their words to God?]
Swami replied:- The case of praying prayers written by sages and the case of sacrifice of Sudaama are quite different. Praying prayers is theoretical devotion and the sacrifice of Sudaama is practical devotion. Theoretical devotion will have only theoretical fruits and practical devotion always gives practical fruits. God said in the Gita that your devotion and His response will be in the same phase (Ye yathā mām…). Sudaama sacrificed three handful quantities of parched rice and got the entire wealth of the pleased God Krishna. Now, one may argue that he will give three bags of parched rice to God to get the same wealth! When Sudaama sacrificed to God, there was no such pre-example as a guiding factor for Sudaama. But now, Sudaama is the guiding factor. Moreover, Sudaama never aspired for anything in return from God. But now, the person donating three bags of parched rice is aspiring for fruit in return and this point itself cancels this false devotee. The case of prayers written by sages is not at all equal to Sudaama in any angle. Both can’t be compared like day and night.
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