28 Mar 2022
[A question by Mr. S. Satti Reddy]
Swami Replied:- Advaita means that God and soul are one and the same. This is correct in the case of a human incarnation. This same concept is wrong if every soul thinks that it is God. Even in a human incarnation, the human being component shall think that it is not God and shall think that it is only a servant doing the work of God. But the devotees of the human incarnation must think that the human incarnation is God alone. If the human component in the human incarnation thinks Advaita (that it is God) God will quit the human incarnation immediately as in the case of Paraśurāma. If the human being component in the human incarnation says that it is only a human being, God will stay in that human incarnation forever and such human incarnation becomes a complete incarnation or Pūrṇāvatāra as in the case of Rama, Who always said that He is a man (Ātmānaṃ mānuṣaṃ manye). The human devotees are always jealous about the human incarnation because that one specific human being was selected by God to become an incarnation. They want to drive away God from that human incarnation. With this view, they surround the human incarnation praising Him as God so that the human component in the incarnation will become egoistic thinking that it is God and as a result, God from that human incarnation will walk out immediately! Of course, all devotees are not like that and I mean some only because any level of bad is possible in this Kaliyuga! Therefore, the human component of the human incarnation must always think that it is not God (dualism or Dvaita) and the devotees must always think sincerely that the incarnation is God (monism or Advaita).
The incarnation will represent itself to the devotees based on their percentage of ego. If the ego in the approaching devotee is 100%, the incarnation will say that it is only a servant or messenger of God (Dvaitam). If the devotee has 50% ego, the incarnation will say that it is the son of God or part of God (Vishishta Advaitam). Here, you shall understand that part of God does not mean the actual limb of God like hand, eye etc. A father says that his two sons are his two hands and that his two daughters are his two eyes. This statement shall not be taken in its literal meaning. It only means that the children are very near and dear to him (your next question is answered). When the ego in the devotee is zero percent, the incarnation will say that He is God. In this way, you can find the union of these three philosophies in the words of an incarnation.
Mr. S. Satti Reddy asked: What do you mean by the thousand headed serpent (Sesha) being a part of God Vishnu?
Swami Replied:- This is already answered in the above question.
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