Saints Made the Supreme Being Perceptible
Total dedication is the supreme form of devotion. While worshipping, say to yourself, "Lord, I am Your humble servant"; this will generate in you love for Him. Dedicate yourself to Him and then worship Him; there is nothing in this to be ashamed of. We slave for people, passions, and circumstances; only what remains thereafter we offer to God; this is far from total dedication. You can achieve this total dedication by mental worship, manasa-pooja, in which everything is done mentally. Offer to Him whatever you yourself like. Love is not generated by physical toil, unless this is accompanied by the utmost sincerity of heart. Do not worship only outwardly, with the mind engrossed in worldly matters, for this is feigning, which is harmful. Sagunopasana helps most in developing love for God. Do this at a fixed hour and in a fixed place. The deity we worship, albeit mentally, is saguna too, and will thus expect pooja at that hour and place. The effulgence of the idol we worship will wax in proportion to our ardency. If an idol has been worshipped by a very devout, righteous man, it will radiate a peculiar effulgence, will be useful to many others, and will last long.
Sagunopasana will alone impart to us knowledge of the creation. Real devotion must remove all anxiety from the mind, while the body passes through the cycle of prarabdha. The lustre which a true devotee radiates is really of a special kind, and is unequalled by that imparted by learning or wealth. He alone can achieve something worthwhile in this world who is backed by sincere upasana.
A certain woman would sit with closed eyes, and she would see the vision of the goddess she worshipped, who would give her guidance about many matters. Later the woman stopped meditating on the goddess, and lost her special vision and guidance. Therefore, we should not stop our upasana whereby certain supernatural powers support and guide us.
The saints have given a tangible form to the intangible Ultimate Reality, and thereby they have conferred a great boon on us. It creates in us an awareness that it is God who is the giver, the supporter, and that He will certainly look to our ultimate welfare.
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