Tattva-viveka
Assignment 19
Babhru Das - October 29, 2006 6:30 pm
Exploring the Ocean of The Nectar of Devotion
Assignment 19
Read Chapter 17 of The Nectar of Devotion, “Ecstatic Love.” The chapter covers verses 1-24 of the third wave of Bhaktirasamrita-sindhu’s Eastern Division. This chapter of Nectar of Devotion begins the discussion of bhava-bhakti, or devotional service on the platform of ecstacy. This chapter is perhaps best appreciated by attending closely to Srila Prabhupada’s language. For example, he writes early in the chapters that “in the previous chapters the symptoms of devotional service were explained along with instructions as to how we may execute devotional service with our present senses and gradually rise to the platform of ecstasy in spontaneous love. And the two kinds of devotional service—namely devotional service through regulative principles and through spontaneous love—were discussed. Within the stage of the regulative principles of devotional service there are two divisions—namely executive and effective. This effective portion of devotional service is called bhava, or ecstasy.” Here sadhana is referred to as “executive” because it involves the execution of devotional practices, and bhava as effective because it is the effect of those practices. And when Srila Prabhupada writes that both sadhana and bhava are “within the stage of the regulative principles of devotional service,” that last phrase is a translation of ceshtarupa, rather than vaidhi-sadhana. One way to analyze pure devotional service is that it has two divisions: ceshtarupa, which means devotional service executed by our endeavor, and bhavarupa, which service executed through the medium of our spiritual emotions. There are further classifications of all these divisions which will be discussed in greater detail later in Nectar of Devotion.
Srila Rupa Gosvami’s definition of bhava-bhakti:
”When devotional service is situated on the transcendental platform of pure goodness, it is like a ray of the sunlight of love for Krishna. At such a time, devotional service causes the heart to be softened by various tastes that are called bhava (spiritual emotion).”
This definition also reveals bhava-bhakti’s primary and secondary characteristics. The primary characteristic is suddha-sattva-viseshatma: it’s the stage where the Lord’s internal potency, whose function is to revive our dormant love for Krishna, enters the devotee’s heart. Srila Rupa Gosvami describes bhava as a ray of the sunlight that is love for Krishna. Just as the heat and light of the sun enable a seed to sprout and grow, the touch of suddha sattva, the mode of purified goodness, causes the dormant love for Krishna lying in seed in everyone’s heart to sprout and grow. So we may see bhava as the dawning (or budding) of prema. Srila Prabhupada also cites the tantras as calling it “the first symptom of pure love for the Personality of Godhead.”
The secondary characteristic is that bhava softens the devotee’s heart to the extent that he or she becomes easily, and often visibly moved by Krishna-conscious stimulation, by devotional desires, or by “various tastes.” Srila Jiva Gosvami explains that those “tastes” or devotional desires are the desire to achieve Krishna, the desire to please Krishna with various services, and the desire to be close at heart with Krishna.
Assignment
Think about Srila Prabhupada’s discussion of how we may attain bhava, perhaps writing in your own words the different ways (the two main classifications are by ardent spiritual practice and by mercy) and the supporting scriptural evidence. Where else have you heard the stories used as illustrations in this chapter? What do these stories have to do with our lives? What do the examples say about our prospects for being touched by the dawning ray of prema that is bhava?
Babhru Das - January 8, 2007 11:05 pm
I'm giving this a bump to see if anyone feels inclined to discuss it. ???
Margaret Dale - January 11, 2007 7:48 pm
I am confused about the two methods for obtaining prema mentioned. The first one I understood to be through following the principles and advancing by enthusiastically working under the guidance of a guru. The second one I understood to be a gift of mercy, where Krsna gives a someone prema because He wants to. My confusion is that I'm not sure if these two are entirely separate methods. My thought is that following regulations makes us more qualified to receive the gift of prema, but I don't know if it is possible for someone to obtain prema without Krsna giving it to them. And although Krsna could give prema to anyone He wants, he usually gives it to someone that is living toward this goal. Could someone address this?
Babhru Das - March 10, 2007 4:50 am
Margaret, my sense of the matter is that you're right about there not really being a dichotomy between the two. Our dedication to cultivating an attitude of service toward the Lord and those dear to him attracts His attention, even makes us dear to Him. I think this is different from earning it; a gift--and mercy--can only be given freely by one in a superior position. And Krishna can indeed give it to whomever He decides, but this is a big part of how He makes such decisions. After all, this is a rare gift, and we have to really want it! Maharaja has spoken much recently about how fortunate the life of a sadhaka is because it makes one dear to Krishna. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur often made the same point: that we should not try to see Krishna but mold our lives in such a way that He would want to see us. And Srila Prabhupada advised us to behave as if our advancement depended on our dedicated effort, but remain always aware that it depends solely on Krishna's mercy.
Swami - March 10, 2007 1:17 pm
This topic has been discussed here:
http://tattvaviveka.ipbhost.com/index.php?...entry2963
and here:
Nitai Joseph - March 15, 2007 12:22 pm
I've always(meaning a few months 
)felt the same way Margaret. It's like what came first the chicken or the egg?? Ultimately I think its the mercy, which has been available to us since our non-beginning-beginning. Since we are nitya-baddha, eternally under the jurisdiction of the saguna plane, it takes some brush with the nirguna plane, in the form of devotee(directly or making a book available to us), to be able to begin our mission home. I read the links posted by Swami, but it still didn't separate the two methods in my head. The only thing I could think of to understand the kripa-bhava is maybe in a certain situation Krsna has some agenda to be fullfilled and there is not even a soul who is endeavoring so he just makes it happen. That idea dosen't even really add up for me, but other than that I can only think that Sadhana-siddha and kripa-siddha are one and the same.
A few weeks ago I was having the "fall of the jiva" talk with someone, and alot of my articulation on that topic comes from one of Swami's lectures about it, and there he only mentions(i think) nitya-siddha and sadhana-siddha. So as I was speaking the other person said, " and what about kripa-siddha ", my head went "uh-oh" I hadn't heard the term before. I knew what both words meant but I hadn't known they ever went together. So it made me think that if he only mentioned nitya-siddha and sadhana-siddha, then kripa-sidda must be inherent within sadhana-siddha. So I guess my question is: is there ever a circumstance where 100% of the process is mercy without any sadhana? But then I think even sadhana-siddha is that in a sense. Now I'm just making myself dizzy....chicken/egg?..chicken/egg?.......Sorry for all the redundancy.
One speaker who I like to listen to gives the example of modern day super-conducters: Clay, when reduced to I think 40 degrees below zero, conducts electricty with 0 resistance, making it the best conducter around. So when we have o resistance the mercy will come in full, "the transparent medium". This analogy also illustrates the principle of cultivating the "negative side" which will attract the infinite positive(RadhaKrsna).
One last thing in regard to positioning ourselves to accept the mercy. Prabhupada has always said in relation to chanting Hare Krsna, "My Dear Lord, and Energy of the Lord, please engage me in your devotional service. After praying this way for a while, I realized that this prayer was empty for me, I didn't mean it. Now I tend to more pray "Dear Lord, please enable me to sincerely desire your service, or however many steps removed I am(desire to desire to desire, etc.),just give me sincerity" I recently heard Swami say what i think is the same thing, to pray "I don't truly want these things, but I know I should" After reading some of the posts on the link, people were speaking about praying for mercy, whereas I have always felt praying for endeavor is more proper...then yet again are they the same thing?? any clarification available?
^^^^I am not sure if this added anything useful to the discussion, but I wrote it might as well post it
Babhru Das - March 16, 2007 2:01 am
I've always(meaning a few months
Nitai, I think you've not only added something to the conversation but sorted it out to some extent for yourself. I agree that mercy is the ultimate issue. As Mahaprabhu tells Sri Rupa,
After wandering all thoughout the creation, those living entities who are very fortunate receive the seed of the devotional creeper by the mercy of guru and Krishna. And how can we engage in our practice without such mercy. The guru's instruction is itself mercy. So, while it may be useful in some ways to think of sadhana and kripa as separate, I'm not sure they're really discrete in the ultimate issue.
I like the superconductor analogy. I think it may be a useful way to present the idea of saranagati.