Attainment of Divine Love
There appear to be two statements that seem to contradict each other:
- God's love can be attained only by His grace, because it is divine. Whatever spiritual practice we perform, we do so using our material senses, mind, and intellect. No matter how great that practice may be, it is still performed with material instruments. Therefore, neither God's love nor anything related to God can be attained solely through our own spiritual efforts.
This much is easy to understand.
- Then why do the Vedas and scriptures declare that "God is subservient to devotion"? They repeatedly instruct, "O human beings! Practice devotion. Without devotional practice, the goal cannot be attained. Those who practiced devotion attained divine love. They became God-realized saints, and even today more continue to do so."
How are these two statements reconciled?
The answer is this:
Devotional practice does not directly grant divine love; it purifies the mind. Sādhana Bhakti (preparatory devotion) is the first stage on the path to attaining divine love. It is incorrect to expect God's grace merely because one has begun practicing devotion.
Ultimately, divine love is received only through God's grace. But to receive that love, you must make your mind divine. You cannot make your eyes, ears, nose, mind, or intellect divine by your own efforts. That transformation is beyond your capacity. But what you can do is purify your mind through devotion.
What happens when the mind becomes purified?
i) The impurities accumulated from worldly attachments are gradually removed. Every material attachment comes to an end.
ii) Dehābhimān - Dehābhimān - the false identification with the body and the pride arising from it - is destroyed.
iii) You firmly realize: "I am the soul, and I am the servant of God."
iv) Whatever happens in the world - whether someone lives or dies, whether circumstances are favorable or unfavorable - your mind remains undisturbed.
This much must be accomplished through devotion. There is no other means to achieve it.
śuddhyati hi nāntarātmā kṛṣṇapadāmbhoja bhaktimṛte
Shankaracharya instructed his mother that without devotion to Shri Krishna, the mind cannot be purified.
kathaṁ vinā romaharṣaṁ dravatā cetasā vinā | vinānandāśrukalayā śuddhyed bhaktyā vināśayaḥ|| (Vedavyasa)
Even if one strives for millions of kalpas, without devotion neither karma, nor dharma, nor yoga, nor knowledge can completely purify the mind.
Other spiritual paths do purify the mind to some extent. However, the Vedas and scriptures declare that only devotion can purify it completely.
Therefore, purifying the mind through devotion is your responsibility. After this purification, your part is complete.
Then God says:
"You have cleaned the vessel; now I shall do the rest. You are My child. You have recognized your mistake—you had identified yourself with the body. Now you know that you are the soul, and through devotion you have purified your mind. Therefore, I shall now make the vessel divine."
At that stage, the God-realized Guru bestows divine grace. He infuses our mind and senses with svarūpa shakti, God's own personal divine power, thereby making them divine. This divine transformation can never be achieved through spiritual practice alone. It takes place only through grace.
Only then does God reveal Himself.
Now you can directly see Him, touch Him, and interact with Him just as naturally as you interact with your worldly mother, father, son, or spouse.
Such love does not exist in the material world.
In worldly relationships, self-interest always remains. Since we ourselves have not attained perfect bliss, our love is mixed with the desire for our own happiness.
A wife cannot truly do anything for the sake of her husband's happiness alone, nor can a husband love solely for his wife's happiness. Everyone seeks their own pleasure. That is why conflicts arise. When one's self-interest is not fulfilled, people who once claimed to love each other may even go to the extent of committing murder.
However, the relationship between God and His devotee is completely opposite to the relationships in the material worlds.
Neither seeks anything for themselves.
The devotee desires only God's happiness, and God desires only the devotee's happiness. Therefore, there can never be any conflict between them. There is perfect harmony.
Therefore, there cannot be any conflict there. The devotee desires only God's happiness, and God desires only the devotee's happiness - this is the beauty of it; there is perfect harmony.
That alone is true love.
The word love applies only to the relationship between God and His saints. We, on the other hand, are still motivated by self-interest.
Therefore, practicing devotion is your foremost duty. Without devotion, the vessel cannot be purified. And if the vessel is not ready, where will God pour His grace? How can He bestow divine love?
Thus, both statements are true:
- Divine love is attained only through God's grace.
- Yet God's grace is received through devotional practice, which purifies the mind and makes one fit to receive that grace.
Just as seeing an object requires both healthy eyes and light, attaining divine love requires both devotional practice and God's grace. Neither alone is sufficient; both are absolutely essential.
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