21. Plummeting The Depths Of Devotion

Masters teach us to fall into depths of devotion so that we can rise out of our every day drama and misery. This awareness is the first step towards eternal bliss.

How to do this? We have varied tastes and preferences. Despite this, we can all work towards enlightenment. Listen to how Ramana Maharishi related to the Divine. In one of his verse Ramana Maharishi laments before Arunachala (Siva), the Lord of Tiruvannamalai:' O! Arunachala! You are my house owner, my husband, how can you stand by and watch while thieves come in and take me away?'

Understand the verse. The five senses are referred to as thieves who come into the house to steal the Being. Arunachala is the Atman, the divine Self within everything in creation.Somebody asked Ramana Maharishi, 'Bhagavan, how can you say all these things

to God?'Bhagavan replied, ' For you, God is only a faith, just a belief. For me He is a

living Being. He is an experience.'

What a beautiful verse!

Many saints and mystics in Bharat have experienced and shown this highest type of love, the spiritual love for the Divine. The love was experienced by Meera, Chaitanya, Ramakrishna, and Ramana Maharishi.

Ramakrishna said, 'My love for the Divine is a totality of three major kinds of love - a miser's love for his money, a chaste wife's love for her husband and a mother's love for her child. Put all these together and add something more. This is my love for the

divine.'If anyone uttered the word 'Krishna' Meera went into ecstasy. When we listen to the devotional songs sung by Annamacharya on Lord Balaji, we realize that he feels the presence of the Divine. It was an actual experience for him.

The power of love, even the love that we feel, with all our imperfections, is a

Part 2: Take one a day and be in Bliss. Bliss Bytes Vol.6_English_part_2.md

great influential and inspirational force in our life. Love can do miracles in our being- not only at the mental level but even at the physical level. Love for the Divine is almost like a feeling of being in union, bring one with the other. It is almost means falling in tune with the other person. It is ecstasy, the highest expression of our being.

In the scriptures, it is said,'If tears roll down as you listen to God's name, be sure that it is your last janma (birth)'. Understand, this is the only use of this life.