Does surrender mean simply leaving our fate to God – then why practice bhakti-yoga to attain him?
Surrender to the Lord: Passivity or Purposeful Action?
Question: If we are surrendered to the Lord, shouldn’t we simply leave our destiny to Him? Why should we practice Bhakti Yoga to attain Him?
Answer: This question touches on a common misconception about surrender, often leading to passivity. The essential principle of surrender in Bhakti Yoga is to cultivate a loving relationship with the Lord. This relationship is active, not passive.
Consider the notion that one simply needs to chant the holy names to achieve perfection. While chanting is undeniably important, what are we doing when we chant? We often pray, “Engage me in Your service.” If, when an opportunity for service arises, we then refuse, saying, “I’ll just chant; I won’t do the service,” are we truly developing a personal relationship with the Lord? A personal relationship fundamentally involves aligning with and doing the will of the Lord.
This is a subtle but crucial point: doing the will of the Lord does not necessarily imply passivity on our part. It’s not merely that the Lord gives instructions, and we robotically follow them. The Bhagavad-gita, for instance, concludes with Krishna urging Arjuna to surrender. If we examine a typical example of surrender, like Draupadi’s, she raises her hands in helplessness and utter dependence, crying out, “Krishna, I surrender to You.” Here, surrender means she stops trying to protect or defend herself, releasing her grip on her sari, and completely entrusting her fate to Krishna. That is undoubtedly a form of surrender.
However, at the end of the Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna doesn’t raise his hands in helpless surrender. Instead, he raises his bow, ready to fight. What does this signify? It means that surrender itself can take different forms.
In my understanding, surrender is expressed through both readiness and helplessness. In any life situation, some things are within our control, and some are not. For the things not in our control, there should be complete dependence on the Lord. For the things within our control, there should be complete diligence for the Lord—meaning dedication, application, and commitment to doing our part.
In Draupadi’s case, her surrender was primarily expressed through dependence. In Arjuna’s case, his surrender was primarily expressed through diligence; he had a war to fight. Of course, we can nuance this: Draupadi also exhibited diligence in her heartfelt cries to the Lord, and Arjuna also exhibited dependence, knowing that many events in the war (like Abhimanyu’s death or Jayadratha’s demise, for which he specifically sought Krishna’s help) were beyond his control. But overall, he manifested complete diligence.
Surrender, in this sense, is akin to a diligent lover telling their beloved, “Your wish is my command.” In romantic narratives, this phrase signifies absolute devotion. It doesn’t imply passivity; rather, it suggests an active alignment of one’s will with the beloved’s. Such surrender often inspires heroic actions—like a hero undertaking a perilous quest to fetch a rare flower for the heroine. This active alignment can lead one to accomplish great things in the Lord’s service.
When we practice Bhakti Yoga, especially as aspiring devotees, we do so for various reasons. The purest motive, however, is to become purer ourselves so that we can love the Lord better, become better instruments for Him, and allow Him to enact His will through us more effectively. While some of us may desire to return to the spiritual world, even this motive can be nuanced. One reason might be simply to escape the misery of this world (“I just want to get out of here”). A higher motive, however, is to overcome the limitations of this world that hinder our relationship with the Lord and our ability to serve Him. There, the distractions and temptations will be fewer, allowing us to serve Him better. Thus, even in the motive of returning to the spiritual world, there can be varying degrees of God-centeredness versus self-centeredness (though not in the sense of crude sense gratification). A pure devotee, or a potential pure devotee, is concerned only with service.
Therefore, surrender doesn’t just mean “I’ll leave my fate to You.” While that is one valid form of surrender, we must also understand that the Lord has a plan for this world and desires us to be instruments in that plan. Krishna says, “I descend [to establish dharma],” but the Bhagavad-gita’s ultimate mood is Krishna telling Arjuna, “You must act on My behalf to establish dharma.” Arjuna had to become a pliable instrument.
Consider Srila Prabhupada: his dependence on Krishna could have meant living happily in Vrindavan. But he didn’t just want to leave his fate to Krishna; he wanted to do Krishna’s will. And while doing Krishna’s will, he simultaneously left his fate to Krishna. For instance, when he embarked for America at an advanced age, he faced a heart attack, uncertainty about food, lack of followers, and doubts about anyone’s interest in his message. He was utterly dependent on Krishna. In many ways, he was leaving his fate to Krishna, but he was doing so while taking up the responsibility of executing Krishna’s will.
To conclude, there are two primary models of surrender:
- Surrender of Acceptance (Helplessness): This is exemplified by Draupadi or, in a broader tradition, by Jesus Christ. On the eve of his crucifixion, Jesus prayed, “Let this cup pass,” signifying his human desire to avoid suffering. But he concluded, “Nevertheless, not my will, but Yours, be done.” Here, surrender means accepting the events that are unfolding, even if painful, and aligning one’s will with divine providence (“Let Thy will be done”). Jesus did not run away from his destiny.
- Surrender of Action (Diligence): This is exemplified by Arjuna. At the end of the Gita, his mood isn’t merely “Let Thy will be done” but “I will do Your will.” This is a different form of surrender where, when we are meant to do certain things for the Lord, we actively resolve to execute His will.
So, while “let Thy will be done” is a valid and powerful form of surrender, it is not the only way. Surrender encompasses both accepting what God sends our way and actively performing what God wants us to do.