Bhagavatam study 8 – 1.2.23-27 – Our worship reflects our mentality

Able to get such extraordinary blessings. So after completing the description of the worship of the Supreme through bhakti, now the Bhagavatam moves on to discuss other forms of worship. So other forms of worship is that, that means, yes, bhakti is so potent, but then unto whom should bhakti be done? In the previous section, primarily the comparisons of bhakti to other processes, to jnana, to varnashram, to viragyam, to all those processes.
But now, the Bhagavatam will focus on, okay, bhakti is to be performed to whom? In the previous text, it was said, Vasudeve Bhagwati. So why to Vasudeva alone? Why not to others? That theme will be analysed in the subsequent verse, in the NGV verses here. So, there is a parah purusha, there is one supreme person who is transcendental to this world.
And this world, which is made of the three modes, which is comprised of three modes, that parah purusha, dhatte, he manifests, sthityaadaye hari virinchi hare ti sanghya. So, sthityaadaye, sthityaadaye means for the process of creation, maintenance and destruction. Hari virinchi hare ti sanghya, that same Lord that manifests as Hari, as Vishnu, for sthiti, then there is virinchi, Brahma, for creation, srishti, which is not mentioned, adayas, sthityaadaya means it’s included all of them over here.
And hare ti, hara is, Hari is Vishnu, hara is Shiva. Hari-hara is the name often used to refer to a combined manifestation of Shiva and Vishnu. So, hari virinchi ti hare ti sanghya, they are known, shreyamsi tatra khalu sattva tano dhunamsu.
So, that’s for the maintenance of this world, which comprises three modes of material nature. The parah purusha manifests in three forms, as Vishnu, Brahma and Shiva. And among these three, shreyamsi, for attaining the ultimate gain, tatra khalu sattva tano dhunamsu, tatra khalu, certainly among these, sattva tano dhunamsu.
People should worship sattva tano, the form which is manifested in goodness, and that is referring to Vishnu. So, there are many important points in this verse. Firstly, that there is a sense of oneness among the devtas also, among the various, this is not a simplistic polytheism, where one is, there are different people who are, different cosmic deities are warring against each other.
No, it is clearly mentioned that parah purusha eka ihas chidatte, that one supreme person manifests in different forms. So, in the Shaitanjyavata Amrit, as well as in the Laghubhavavata Amrit, these manifestations have been called as the guna avataras. Sometimes if we focus excessively on the difference between the various manifestations, then we may not realise that ultimately they are manifestations of the same one God.
Yes, there is difference among the manifestations also, but there is also a oneness. So, the oneness is pointed out in terms of their source. They are all manifesting from that same one absolute truth.
That one absolute truth manifests in these forms. So, that same Lord manifests. And now it is interesting that these three are the activities which characterise the material existence.
So, creation is in passion, maintenance is in goodness, and destruction is in ignorance. Now, among these three, normally if you want to make a list of three janma-adhyasya-taha. So, janma-adhyaya, which is the first one is mentioned, and adhyaya it is said.
It should be understood, okay, remaining three. Remaining are whatever they are included. But here instead of the first, which we could say srishti, srishti-adhyaya it is not mentioned, it is srishti-adhyaya.
So, the idea is that this verse is focussing on the sattva manifestation as the most worshipable manifestation. And correspondingly, maintenance is what is stressed. And the duty of maintenance is being going to be stressed.
So, naturally, the activity of the duty of maintenance is also being stressed over here. So, sthitya-adhyaya, hari-virenchi-hareti-sanghyam. So, the same deity manifests in different names and in different forms.
And among these, shreyam, see one long-term good, there is shreyam and there is preya. Preya is short-term good, shreyam is long-term good. So, sattva-tanoor, that form which is in goodness, that is what one should worship.
So, the oneness is acknowledged in that source. But the diversity is also acknowledged in terms of the fact that there is one particular object which is especially worshipable. It is not that any and every object should be worshipped, rather one particular object is to be worshipped.
And now again, through another analytical framework, the relation between the various forms will be stressed over here. So, here is stated parthivad. Parthivad means from earth.
Daruna-dhumas, that from the earth manifests, actually, from the earth manifests firewood. Parthivad is related with the prithvi. So, from earth, daruna.
Jagannath is called a daru-brahma, the manifestation of brahma through inward. So, daruna is dhumas. So, from the earth manifests fire, sorry, from firewood, from firewood manifests smoke.
And then, from there manifests agni. And with the agni, the agni is vital for performing the rituals which are mentioned in the Vedas. So, trai can refer to the first three purushartha, dharma, artha, kama, which require agni primarily.
Or it can refer to the three Vedas. Krishna talks about trai-dharma, the threefold path of dharma. He has talked about it in three Vedas.
So, anyway, the fire is required for the performance of sacrifice. So, now, fire ultimately manifests from the earth after going through the stages of firewood and smoke. But it is fire that is the most auspicious.
When the agni is to be performed and the ahuti is to be carried to the devatas, we cannot just offer them earth or firewood or smoke. That same earth has to evolve through the stages of firewood and smoke to come to the level of fire. And then, through the fire, the ahuti, the offering, the oblations are conveyed to the higher beings, to the devatas and ultimately to the Supreme Lord.
It is said that among the devatas, the topmost is Vishnu and the lowest is agni. Lowest doesn’t mean in terms of power, it means in terms of accessibility. So, agni is accessible to us and to the extent we stay connected with him, to that extent, we move onwards towards him and we attain him.
So, just as among these various manifestations, it is fire which needs to be offered, it is fire which is considered sanctified and it is fire which is used in the process of yajna. Similarly, there are the manifestations in other modes also. So, similarly, there is tamoguna and there is ajoguna, but our consciousness has to come to the level of sattvaguna and then sattvatsanjayate jnanam, as the Bhagavad Gita says that in sattvaguna knowledge manifests.
So, here it is said that, yes, similarly, in the mode of goodness, brahma darshanam, one starts realising the absolute truth. So, correspondingly, the implication will be that, just as it is goodness that, just as fire is what is required for participation in yajna, it says goodness is what is required for perceiving the absolute truth. Similarly, it is the deity which is a goodness that should be worshipped.
So, the Bhagavatam is continuing here, the theme of which form is to be worshipped. bhejire munayo athagre bhagvantam adhokshajam sattvam vishuddham kshe maya kalpante ye na taniha. So, bhejire munayo athagre.
So, therefore, bhejire, I have rendered service, the sages, athagre, in the past, bhagvantam adhokshajam and to that lord who is adhokshaja, who is beyond us in this, sattvam vishuddham kshe maya, one whose existence sattva is vishuddham, is transcendental, is completely pure, is having no contamination of any of the modes, even not the mode of goodness, kshe maya. So, Shreyamsi was mentioned a couple of verses ago and now kshe maya is mentioned, kshe maya means for the purpose of well-being. Kalpante ye na taniha.
Kalpante, they deserve to follow taniha in this material world. So, it’s the point of the verses. Therefore, the sages, the wise people have done this in the past, that is what one should also do.
That kalpante ye tu na taniha. So, those who follow them, so with the past great sages have worshipped the manifestation who is transcendental, who is supreme bhagvantam adhokshajam and by worshipping one can, just as in the past sages have attained liberation, therefore one should also practise now in their footsteps, following their footsteps and one will attain liberation thereof, one will attain perfection thereof. So, the reasoning is given in the previous verses and the conclusion is given here, that just as fire is what is used for worship, similarly it is sattva that is what leads to brahma darshanam and therefore that supreme person who is beyond sattva, but we cannot access that person who is beyond sattva right now, so we may have, we still are at the material level of consciousness, so we should worship that manifestation which is in sattva and that bhagvantam adhokshajam, the lord is transcendental, when he manifests in sattva, we will be able to worship him and gradually attain transcendence.
26th text umukshavo ghor rupan hitvā bhūtapatiṇatha nārāyaṇa kalāśyānta bhajanteya anasūyavah So, umukshavo ghor rupan, umukshavo, those who desire liberation ghor rupan, the fearsome forms, ghor rupan, the forms which are quite fearsome umukshavo, those who seek liberation, hitvā bhūtapatiṇatha, hitvā they put aside bhūtapatiṇ, bhūtapatiṇ means they are the lords of people, bhūta can refer to ghostly beings, bhūta can refer to living beings in general, so bhūtapatiṇ means those who are, those who have the, those who are masters of some people, hitvā, giving up those forms, nārāyaṇa kalāśyānta, so nārāyaṇa, the one who is the ultimate destination of the nara, nārāyaṇa kalāśyānta, so the ghor rupan are contrasted with kalāśyānta, the forms of nārāyaṇa kalāśyānta which are peaceful, bhajantīya anasūyavah, bhajantīya, they worship who are anasūyavah, those who are non-envious, so the stress of this verse is that umukshavo ghor rupan, that those who are seeking liberation, the word starts with describing a quality and ends with describing a quality of the seekers, umukshavo, those aspiring for liberation and anasūyavah, those who are non-envious, we cannot actually seek liberation as long as we are envious of others in material existence because there can be envy only when there is desire for something that someone else has and desire for that thing that I should have it more than what they have, so and as long as we have such desire that means we are not seriously striving for liberation, if I am envious of others who have better house than me, better car than me, better pay than me, then my desires are caught in that competitive frenzy and my desires are not free from material existence, from matter and material things, now this does not mean that we have to renounce these things, yes we need financial security, we need home, we need some facilities and working to acquire them and possessing them itself is not the cause of bondage, what causes bondage is the illusion that having them will make us happy or having them more than what others have will make us happy, so possession is not the problem, disposition is the problem, the disposition towards the possession is the problem, to the extent our disposition is that oh when I get this I will become happier, when I get something of this which is better than what others have, then I will become happy, that is what will cause the problem, but if you do not have the disposition of the illusion that having these things will make me happy, then we will not become bound, so going further, so moksha, those who are seeking liberation, those who are non-envious, so what do they do? Those who, they do not worship the ghastly form, so what does ghastly form refer to? It can refer to the form of Kali for example, you know Kali, she has a garland of skulls on her neck and she sometimes is depicted as piercing a trident in the hearts of the demons, so such a form especially having that green garland and sometimes Kali is depicted in a very fierce way, she is even standing on the body of Shiva, such depictions can be very alienating, in fact when western historians came to India and when they saw, well not western historians, just western people when they came to India and when they saw how there are temples of Kali and Kali has such a ghastly form, they thought what kind of worship is this and actually when they saw Krishna and they saw Krishna playing the flute and Krishna stealing butter, you know Kali and Krishna, this is such a wild way, this is the same tradition but such a wide diversity in the form that are being worshipped in this tradition, why is this difference there, what does it signify, is it the same tradition or are they different traditions? Actually, both are true, it is the same tradition at one broad level, at another level if there are so many differences that you could say it is a different tradition since substantially, one tradition is meant for people who are meant to worship in Tamoguna, another tradition is meant for those who are going to worship in Satyoguna and in this way, the substantial difference between the two takes subjects to a much higher level of higher level for comprehension, it is not simplistic that you can put everything under one rubric of Hinduism. Bhagavatam itself talks about how serious seekers, they give up the worship of the ghastly forms and they start worshipping Narayan and manifestations which are peaceful. Bhagavatam goes on, 27th text Rajas Tamaha Prakritayaha Samashila Bhajantivai Pitrbhut Prajeshadi Shri Aishwarya Prajep Sabha So, Rajas Tamaha Prakritayaha, those who are, those whose prakriti, those whose modes, those whose mentality is of Rajas Tamoguna.
Samashila Bhajantivai, they will worship samashila, they will worship the deities who are similarly disposed, who correspond with their mentality. Pitrbhut Prajeshadi, Pitrbhut Prajeshadi. So, Pitra is forefathers, Bhut, other living beings, Prajeshadi.
Praja, Isha, Praja is people, population, Isha is the controller, Adi. Shri Aishwarya Prajep Sabha, Shri is wealth, Aishwarya is affluence, power, Prajep Sabha, Prajep Sabha is they desire children, Ip Sabha, desiring. So, Bhagavatam acknowledges the reality that our worship will correspond with our consciousness.
And even if we understand that there are various levels of worship, it is not possible for people to suddenly give up one level of worship and to take up another level. Such transitions have to be done gradually. And for doing such transitions gradually, what is required is the recognition that there is, there are different people with different mentalities and they will have to evolve through those mentalities.
So, those who are at a particular level of consciousness, I mean to understand that there can be Rajoguna which is Dharmic and there can be Rajoguna which is Adharmic. And of course, the highest or the best thing is to just go beyond Rajoguna to Sattvaguna and even go beyond Sattvaguna to Shuddha Sattva. But that they thought of evolution of consciousness will take time.
And even if a person is in Rajoguna, moving from Adharmic Rajoguna to Dharmic Rajoguna is itself a progression. So, what do we mean, we may wonder if Rajoguna is filled with uncontrollable desires, it’s filled with cravings, then can Rajoguna be Dharmic? Yes, Dharma is also of various levels. And Kshatriyas, if we see, even if we consider the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the Kshatriyas, their goal is Swarga.
They are interested in increasing opulence, in increasing their boundaries, increasing their opulence. And we see that the kings from various places come to some kingdom where a princess is to be offered in Swayamvara. All these activities show that they are interested in worldly things, whether in this world or in the next world.
Then still, why does the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the Bhagavatam talk about them? Not at all in a negative, non-judgemental sense, because this is, they are doing all this Dharmically. They have respect for Ramanical culture, they perform Yajna, they act more or less according to the Kshatriya codes of conduct. And in this way, although they have Rajoguna, they cannot give up Rajoguna, but even while having Rajoguna, they understand that Rajoguna can be channelled through, can be channelled according to Dharma.
So, Dharmic Rajoguna is definitely better than non-Dharmic Rajoguna. And so we cannot condemn all Rajoguna as bad. Of course, from the transcendental point of view, Rajoguna is undesirable.
But even in Rajoguna, there is a huge difference between that which is Dharmic and that which is Adharmic. The Adharmic Rajoguna will lead to chaos. And Dharmic Rajoguna will at least maintain some level of order in society.
Because people, despite having their desires, are restrained to some extent in their desires by Dharma. So the Bhakti worldview is not just about Bhakti. Bhakti is the culmination.
But the Vedic worldview is inclusive and it includes, accommodates and facilitates the gradual elevation of those people who are not yet ready to pursue transcendence. And it does so by accommodating them within the broad framework of the Vedic worldview. So here it is said, That they will worship those who are of a similar disposition, similar mentality.
Certainly they will worship accordingly. So those who are Rajoguna, when they hear about say how Indra is residing in opulence and is enjoying prosperity in heavens, they feel attracted. Because these are their desires.
So those who are the Lords of Praja, those who are Rajasik, they want followers, they want adulation. They need to be honoured by others. But one can seek honour by doing honourable things which, as I said, which command respect.
Or one can become a dictator who people detest but externally show respect because of fear. That choice we all have, how we want to be, how we want to be, how we want to relate with others. Dharma, when there is a culture of Dharma, then people act honourably.
And through such honourable actions, they attract people’s respect. So here they desire opulence, they desire wealth, they desire beauty, they desire children. Children, of course, means that they also desire sexual pleasure.
So all this they desire because they want to move onwards in their journey towards material prosperity. And the Vedic culture accommodates that. So those who are of a similar disposition, those who are Rajasik, they will worship, they will adopt those forms of worship which correspond with their mentality, which facilitate their accomplishment of Rajasik goals.
And thus they will be accommodated in the house of Dharma and gradually they will become elevated. This will take time. Krishna talks about in Bhagavad Gita how this is a very gradual process.
He talks about 9.20 and 21 how So he says that they worship and they Of course, they want the heavenly pleasures. And they actually get and enjoy celestial delights which are enjoyed by those who are in heaven. But then When their punya gets over, they fall back to the earth.
So here this is a very inclusive statement where Krishna, where the Bhagavatam is talking not only about the worship of the Devatas. Here it is saying So Prajesha is the word which the Bhagavatam is using for the Devatas. Pitra is the ancestors and Bhuta is generic word to use for other living beings.
So we see in this world that people kowtow to the influential so that they can get something done. There are politicians who have their who have their flatterers, sycophants, the chanchas as they say, who are ready to do whatever these politicians tell. So that the politicians will give them what they want.
So we could see the Bhagavatam’s vision as explaining the religious worldview and also it expects extending beyond the religious worldview. So there where there is worship of the Devatas and there is worship of others who are not Devatas exactly, but who can offer things similar to what the Devatas can offer. For example, in India, people sometimes worship cricketers.
Some famous cricketer may be called as if God. What is the idea? That people are interested in sense gratification and if the Devatas can offer sense gratification, they will worship the Devatas. If a cricketer can offer sense gratification, then they will consider the cricketer as if he is God.
And this way, when we understand this principle when we understand this principle that people worship according to their mentality, then what people worship reflects not just what the teachings of their scripture are, it reflects what the consciousness of those people is. So when people are Rajasic, they will find, Rajasic or Tamasic, they will find forms of worship which are compatible. Now, of course, if somebody is worshipping the Devata, if somebody is worshipping a cricketer, there is no benefit in that.
If somebody is worshipping the Devata, at least there is some adherence to scripture at some generic level and there will be some elevation by that. But wise people who are Mokshava, who are Anasuya Vyavas, as mentioned in the previous text, they do not worship such forms. They worship the Sattva form, the Purusha Purusha, the Param Purusha is manifesting Sattva form as Vishnu.
We continue this discussion in future talks.