Dvitīya Amṛta Vṛṣṭiḥ
The development of Bhakti as Śraddhā, Sādhu-Saṅga, and Bhajana-Kriyā, as well as the divisions of Bhajana-Kriyā
This is not a work on Māyāvāda Refutation
In this work one will not find a full dissertation on dualism and monism but, for those who expect it, they may find it in another work called Aiśvarya Kādambinī.
Rāga and Vaidhi
Pure bhakti, unmixed with karma and jñāna, is like a wish-fulfilling creeper appearing in the field of the senses.
This bhakti is the refuge of those devotees who firmly vow (dhṛta vrata) never to seek any fruits except bhakti, like bees (madhu vrata) who are obsessed with the desire to taste only nectar.
The very life of this creeper is a favorable attitude for service for the pleasure of the Lord.
Like a touchstone, the very presence of bhakti makes the heart and senses gradually lose their iron-like material qualities and acquire pure golden spiritual qualities.
As a sprouting creeper grows upwards and unfurls two leaves, in the process of sādhana bhakti, two qualities make their appearance.
The first is called kleśaghnī (relief from material distress) and the second is called śubhadā (beginning of all auspiciousness).
The smooth upper surface of the two leaves is the jurisdiction of the king called rāga (rāga-bhakti).
It is in a superior position due to spontaneous greed for everything pertaining to the Lord, and by genuine affection for the Lord in a particular relationship.
na karhicin mat-parāḥ śānta-rūpe
naṅkṣyanti no me 'nimiṣo leḍhi hetiḥ
yeṣām ahaṁ priya ātmā sutaś ca
sakhā guruḥ suhṛdo daivam iṣṭam
The devotees in the spiritual world (mat-parāḥ śānta-rūpe) are never deprived of any enjoyment (na karhicid naṅkṣyanti). My wheel of time (me animiṣo hetiḥ) does not afflict those devotees (na leḍhi), for whom I am (yeṣām ahaṁ) a lover, the ātmā (priya ātmā), son, friend (sutaḥ ca sakhā), elder, companion (guruḥ suhṛdaḥ) or worshipable deity (daivam iṣṭam).
SB 3.25.38
The lower surface of the leaves is the domain of another king called vaidha (vaidhi-bhakti), being in a comparatively lower position.
This is because its character has a tinge of roughness being generated from obedience to scriptural rules, and spontaneous deep affection for the Lord is lacking due to absence of an intimate relationship with Him.
tasmād bhārata sarvātmā
bhagavān īśvaro hariḥ
śrotavyaḥ kīrtitavyaś ca
smartavyaś cecchatābhayam
O descendant of King Bharata (bhārata), therefore (tasmād), the Lord (hariḥ) who is Paramātmā, Bhagavān and Lord of power (sarvātmā bhagavān īśvaraḥ), should be heard about, glorified and remembered (śrotavyaḥ kīrtitavyaś ca smartavyaś ca) by those desiring freedom from fear (icchatā abhayam).
However, both rāga and vaidhi-bhakti equally manifest the symptoms of kleśaghnī (relief from material distress) and śubhadā (beginning of all auspiciousness).
Five Types of Kleśa
As both rāga-bhakti and vaidhi-bhakti destroy kleśa, its five types will now be described.
The literal meaning is suffering or affliction, but here, the meaning may be taken as the causes of suffering.
These kleśas are the cause of sinful and pious activities which result in material misfortune or good fortune.
To mistake that which is impermanent to be permanent; that which is full of misery to be blissful; that which is impure to be pure; and what is not the self to be the self.
The bodily identification of I and mine; and to accept only direct sense perception as real.
The desire for material happiness and those means which will give it.
The repulsion to unhappiness or the causes of unhappiness.
Absorption in the body as the basis for sense gratification and fear of death.
The stages in the development of sin are prārabdha (fructified), aprārabdha (unfructified), rūḍha (pre-seed) and bīja (seed) are also included in kleśa.
Beginning of All Auspiciousness
When the anarthas are almost destroyed, the devotee, by the power of bhakti and association with devotees, attains qualities such as mercy, tolerance, and non-enviousness toward all living entities (sarva bhūteṣu), which are specific to the devotees.
yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiñcanā
sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ
harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇā
manorathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ
All the devas (surāḥ) with their good qualities (sarvair guṇaiḥ) remain (samāsate) with the devotee (tatra) who has unmotivated devotion (bhaktir akiñcanā) for the Supreme Personality of Godhead (yasyāsti bhagavaty). However for one who is not a devotee (harāv abhaktasya) and thus driven by the temporary material desires of his mind (manorathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ), how can there be any good qualities in him (kuto mahad-guṇā)?
SB 5.18.12
bhaktiḥ pareśānubhavo viraktir
anyatra caiṣa trika eka-kālaḥ
Devotion, taste for the Lord, and detachment from all else appear simultaneously.
SB 11.2.42
By this, one should understand that the two symptoms (i.e., destruction of suffering and appearance of all good qualities) occur simultaneously.
However, as there is some difference in the rate of unfurling of two leaves, there is a distinction in the pace of the disappearance of the undesirable qualities (aśubha) and the appearance of the auspicious qualities (śubha).
The progress of bhakti will be distinguished in this way.
Though this is very subtle and difficult to note, the intelligent men have ascertained this through scrutiny of the various effects.
Development of Faith
First, the prospective devotee develops śraddhā or faith.
Śraddhā means to have firm trust in the import of the scriptures dealing with bhakti.
It also means to have a genuine desire to enthusiastically undertake the activities (sādhana) described in those scriptures.
These two types of faith may be either natural (svābhāvikī) or being convinced by the preaching of another (balotpāditā).
Association with Devotees
However it develops, faith leads him to take shelter of the lotus feet of the guru, and enquire from him about proper conduct (sadācāra).
By following his instructions, that person obtains the good fortune of relations with affectionate like-minded devotees and the association of realized devotees (sādhu-saṅga).
Practice of Devotional Activities
Next comes bhajana-kriyā, he begins to practice different types of devotional activities.
This also is of two varieties: unsteady (aniṣṭhitā) and steady (niṣṭhitā).
Detailed Descriptions
A brāhmaṇa child, having just begun study of the scriptures, thinks he has immediately become a learned scholar worthy of everyone's praise.
Similarly, a person just beginning devotional service may develop the audacity to think that he has mastered everything.
He is called utsāha-mayī, or filled (puffed-up) with enthusiasm.
The same child sometimes becomes diligently engaged in his studies and yet, at other times, because of inability to understand the scriptures and lack of real taste, becomes negligent.
In the same way, a new devotee will sometimes practice the different activities of devotional service and sometimes neglect them.
Being sometimes assiduous and at other times negligent, his endeavor is called ghana-taralā (condensed-dilute, thick-thin).
"Shall I just spend my life happily in family life, making my wife and children Kṛṣṇa conscious and worshipping the Lord?
Or should I give them all up and go to Vṛndāvana and perfect myself by engaging full time in hearing and chanting with no distractions?
Shall I wait until the last stage, after enjoying all sorts of pleasures, when I have finally understood that the whole material world is simply a forest fire of affliction?
Or should I renounce right now?
Consider the following verses:
yopayāti śanair māyā
yoṣid deva-vinirmitā
tām īkṣetātmano mṛtyuṁ
tṛṇaiḥ kūpam ivāvṛtam
Māyā in the form of a woman (māyā yoṣid), created by the Lord (deva-vinirmitā), approaches the man gently (upayāti śanaiḥ). One should see her as death (tām īkṣeta ātmano mṛtyuṁ), like a well covered with grass (tṛṇaiḥ āvṛtam kūpam iva).
SB 3.31.40
yo dustyajān dāra-sutān
suhṛd rājyaṁ hṛdi-spṛśaḥ
jahau yuvaiva malavad
uttamaśloka-lālasaḥ
Bharata, who longed to serve the Lord (yaḥ uttamaśloka-lālasaḥ), gave up wife, sons, friends and kingdom (jahau dāra-sutān suhṛd rājyaṁ) as if they were stool (malavad), though they were touching to the heart (hṛdi-spṛśaḥ) and thus difficult to give up at a young age (yuvaiva dustyajān).
SB 5.14.43
"Should I thus give up unreliable family life while still young? On the other hand, it is not proper to renounce immediately."
Shouldn't I wait until the death of my old parents before renouncing?
aho me pitarau vṛddhau
bhāryā bālātmajātmajāḥ
anāthā mām ṛte dīnāḥ
kathaṁ jīvanti duḥkhitāḥ
O my poor elderly parents (aho me pitarau vṛddhau), and my wife with a mere infant in her arms (bhāryā bālātmajā), and my other young children (ātmajāḥ)! Without me they have absolutely no one to protect them (anāthā mām ṛte) and will suffer unbearably (duḥkhitāḥ). How can my poor relatives possibly live without me (kathaṁ jīvanti dīnāḥ)?
SB 11.17.57
Moreover, the scripture says:
evaṁ gṛhāśayākṣipta-
hṛdayo mūḍha-dhīr ayam
atṛptas tān anudhyāyan
mṛto'ndhaṁ viśate tamaḥ
Thus, because of his foolish mentality (evaṁ mūḍha-dhīḥ), a householder whose heart is overwhelmed by family attachment (ayam gṛha āśaya ākṣipta-hṛdayaḥ) is never satisfied (atṛptaḥ). Constantly meditating on his relatives (tān anudhyāyan), he dies (mṛtaḥ) and enters into the darkness of ignorance (andhaṁ tamaḥ viśate).
SB 11.17.58
By such statements, the Lord depreciates such renunciation. Therefore, for the time being, I will just work to keep my body alive. Later, after satisfying all my desires, I will enter Vṛndāvana and engage in worship of the Lord twenty-four hours a day. After all, the scriptures points out:
tasmān mad-bhakti-yuktasya
yogino vai mad-ātmanaḥ
na jñānaṁ na ca vairāgyaṁ
prāyaḥ śreyo bhaved iha
Therefore (tasmād), for a devotee engaged in My loving service (mad-bhakti-yuktasya yoginaḥ), with mind fixed on Me (mad-ātmanaḥ), the cultivation of knowledge and renunciation (jñānaṁ ca vairāgyaṁ) is generally not the means of achieving the highest perfection (na prāyaḥ śreyo bhaved) within this world (iha).
SB 11.20.31
According to this text, renunciation is a fault for the culture of bhakti. If it arises from bhakti itself, however, that renunciation is not a fault but an effect (anubhava) of bhakti and subordinate to it. Of course, then there is the famous logic:
yad yad asramamagat
sa bhiksukas tat tad
anna paripurnam aiksat
In whatever ashram the sannyasi stayed, they always gave him more than enough to eat.
In the life of renunciation there is no worry for maintenance, so maybe I should renounce. But on the other hand:
tāvad rāgādayaḥ stenās
tāvat kārā-gṛhaṁ gṛham
tāvan moho'ṅghri-nigaḍo
yāvat kṛṣṇa na te janāḥ
My dear Lord Kṛṣṇa (kṛṣṇa), until people become Your devotees (yāvat na te janāḥ), their material attachments and desires remain thieves (tāvad rāgādayaḥ stenāḥ), their homes remain prisons (tāvat kārā-gṛhaṁ gṛham), and their affectionate feelings for their family members remain foot-shackles (tāvad moho aṅghri-nigaḍo).
SB 10.14.36
Household life is a prison only for those who are attached, for a devotee, there is no harm in household life.
Thus shall I remain at home and engage in chanting or rather in hearing, or shall I engage in service?
Rather, as Ambarīṣa Mahārāja remained in household life and performed all the aṅgas of bhakti, I shall do likewise.
In this way, the mind spends time vacillating between household life and renunciation.
When one imagines in this way all types of options, it is called vyūḍha-vikalpā, or extensive speculation.
viṣayāviṣṭa-cittānāṁ viṣṇv-āveśaḥ sudūrataḥ
vāruṇī-dig-gataṁ vastu vrajann aindrīṁ kim āpnuyāt
One whose heart is absorbed in materialism is far from obtaining devotion to Viṣṇu. Can a man by going east obtain something which is in the west?
Understanding that material enjoyment is forcibly carrying him away and impairing his steadiness in serving Kṛṣṇa, the devotee resolves to renounce his addictions and take shelter of the Holy Name.
But many times, his attempts at renunciation often end in enjoying what he is trying to renounce.
Such a person is described in the Bhāgavatam:
jāta-śraddho mat-kathāsu
nirviṇṇaḥ sarva-karmasu
veda duḥkhātmakaṁ kāmān
parityāge 'py anīśvaraḥ
tato bhajeta māṁ prītaḥ
śraddhālur dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
juṣamāṇaś ca tān kāmān
duḥkhodarkāṁś ca garhayan
Having awakened faith in the narrations of My glories (jāta-śraddho mat-kathāsu), being disgusted with all prescribed activities (nirviṇṇaḥ sarva-karmasu), knowing that all sense gratification leads to misery (veda duḥkhātmakaṁ kāmān), but still being unable to renounce all sense enjoyment (parityāge 'py anīśvaraḥ), My devotee should remain happy (tato prītaḥ) and worship Me (māṁ bhajeta) with great faith and conviction (śraddhālur dṛḍha-niścayaḥ). Even though he is sometimes engaged in sense enjoyment (juṣamāṇaś ca tān kāmān), My devotee knows that all sense gratification leads to a miserable result (duḥkha udarkāṁś), and he sincerely repents such activities (ca garhayan).
SB 11.20.27-28
This on-going battle with his previously acquired desires for sense pleasure, in which he sometimes meets with victory and sometimes with defeat is called viṣaya-saṅgarā or struggle with sense pleasure.
Then the devotee will resolve, "From today I will chant such and such number of rounds of japa and will pay so many obeisances.
I will also perform services for the devotees.
I will not talk on any subject except the Lord and I will give up all association with people who talk on material matters."
Though he makes such resolutions every day, he is not always able to execute them.
This is called niyamākṣamā or inability to follow rules.
Viṣaya-saṅgarā is the inability to give up material enjoyment, whereas, niyamākṣamā is the inability to improve his devotional service.
Finally, it is well-known that the very nature of bhakti is to be attractive, so all types of people become attracted to the devotee, the abode of bhakti.
And, as the old adage goes, "By the attraction of the populace one becomes wealthy."
Bhakti produces much opportunity for material gain, worship and position (lābha, pūjā, pratiṣṭhā).
These are weeds around the creeper of bhakti.
Performing activities, or seeking one's pleasure (raṅga) amidst these weed-like facilities, which are but small waves (taraṅga) in the ocean of bhakti, is called taraṅga-raṅgiṇī, delighting in material facilities.