You alone are mine
Verse explanation.
"Mere paachhe Maya kyon lagaaya Nandanandan" - Tu hi tu hi tu hi to hai mera Nandanandan
(Braj Ras Madhuri, part 2, page no.65, kirtan no. 25)
["Why have You set Maya after me, O Nandanandan?"]
In this kīrtan, false accusations are made against God. This is because a devotee's words and actions are so peculiar that even great paramahamsas cannot fully comprehend them. In other words, what a devotee expresses outwardly may be entirely different from what they feel within.
A snake always moves in a crooked manner. Yet when it enters the burrow of a rat or another small animal, it immediately straightens itself and slips inside. This shows that the snake does know how to move straight; otherwise, it could never enter the narrow burrow.
Similarly, a saint's outward behaviour may appear unusual, contradictory, or even awkward, but inwardly their heart is pure. A saint realises God's infinite grace from within, yet outwardly may speak in ways that seem irreverent. For example, the Gopis would even scold Shri Krishna, while loving Him deeply within. Surdas Ji says -
Prīti kari kāhū sukha na lahyo -
"O Shri Krishna, loving You is a mistake."
Yet Surdas Ji himself loved God completely.
In the same way, Shri Maharaj Ji (expressing a question that sometimes arises in the mind of a sādhak) appears to accuse God in this kīrtan, asking,
"Why have You set Maya after me?"
In reality, God did not place Maya behind us on some particular day. Maya has held the soul under her influence since beginningless time. And once God is attained, Maya can never again come near the soul. This is the Vedas' own declaration.
The entire issue comes down to just one letter in Hindi. One is 'ह' (hi - "only") and the other is 'भ' (bhi - "also"). Since beginningless time, the conflict between God and the soul has been over these two words. It is our own stubbornness that has kept this conflict going.
God says, "Love Me only."
māmeva ye prapadyante, māmekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja.
In other words, God's condition is: "Attach your mind 'only' to Me."
But we reply -
"No, make a small correction. You are 'also' mine, and the world is 'also' mine. I will love my mother, father, son, daughter, and everyone else, and I will also love You and my Guru."
God says, "This will not work."
And we reply, "No, it will."
That is the entire conflict.
The entire Gita conveys only one message - to surrender unto Me alone - Mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja.
The reason is simple. Our mind has become extremely impure due to countless sins committed over innumerable lifetimes. Therefore, it thinks impurely everywhere. It even develops false arguments and impure thoughts about God's descensions and saints. In its pursuit of worldly objects, it commits sin repeatedly.
Therefore, if the mind is to become pure, we must bring God alone into it. We have heard and studied the scriptures through innumerable births, but we have never accepted the word 'only.'
God 'alone' is everything to us. He alone is the father, mother, and every other relationship of the soul. Therefore, we must practice saying 'only.'
This 'only' will not become firmly established in a single moment. Mother, father, son, daughter, wife, husband, wealth, worldly attachments, prestige, and ego are all powerful enemies that have occupied the heart for a very long time. Removing them requires great effort.
Therefore, keep practising 'only.' Then 'also' will arise again. Once again, replace it with 'only.' Again, 'also' will return. This change comes only through repeated practice.
When you were born, you did not even know how to turn over. Even after thousands of attempts, you could not do it. But one day you finally succeeded, and what joy you experienced! In the same way, through repeated effort, you learned to sit. You fell thousands of times before learning to stand. Then one day you began to walk with ease. Today, you can even drive a car while carrying on a conversation. None of this happened automatically. It was all the result of continuous practice.
That is why saints constantly urge us to practice again and again. Do not become discouraged. Do not lose heart by thinking, "I can never do this."
Even great sinners - far worse than us- who could not even utter the name "Ram," attained God in that very lifetime through persistent practice.
Therefore, through constant practice, we must replace 'also' with 'only.' That is the essence of this teaching.
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