|| Shri Hari ||
(Sant aur unki Seva)
continued....
(2) In reality, God is God and a saint is a saint. A saint is not equivalent to God. God is greater than a saint. Saint's knowledge, capabilities, power etc is limited and everything of God's is unlimited and infinite. Granted that a saint realizes God and can make another person realize God, but he cannot become God. From the perspective of justice too this appears to be correct. Just as when we meet a saint, then we say - "Maharajji! make me behold God." From this it is self-evident that on meeting a saint we are not entirely fulfilled; there continues to be the longing for the one thing that is greater than a saint - God. From this it is natural and self-evident that God is superior and the saints always regard God as superior.
(3) However, Goswami Tulasidasji says that Saints are even greater than God
Ram sindhu dhan sajjan dheeraa । chandan taru hari sant sameeraa ॥
More man prabhu as biswaasaa । Ram tein adhik Ram kar daasa ॥
Lord also says to Durvaasa -
Aham bhakt paradheeno hayaswatantra iva davij ।
Saadhurbhigrasthrdayo bhaktairbhaktjanpriyah ॥
Saints have considered God as great and God regards the saints as great ! At no time is it seen God saying that He is greater than the saints. From this perspective the saint is greater, and if we think about our welfare, then too saint is greater; because even though God resides in all beings in the form of Existence, Consciousness and Bliss (Sat-Chit-Anand), but without the grace of a saint and without satsang (association with Truth, holy company), being deprived of the realization of that eternal blissful form of God, a being remains unhappy. Beholding of God takes place only by devotion and love, and one gets this out of God's grace and satsang -
Bhakti taat anupam sukh moola । Milayi ho hoyhin sant anukoolaa ॥
Bhagati swatantra sakal guna khaani। Binu satsang na paavahi praani ॥
Therefore for us, only the saint is greater. According to man's deeds and spiritual practices, the fruit of this human body attained by God's grace, can be heaven, hell or liberation. It can be anything. However, the fruit of satsang that one gets by the grace of saints is only the eternal post. God reforms the evil-doers, He destroys them, but saints rescue the evil doers by improving their tendencies. God is bound by the laws He has established. But saints yield to their compassion. From this perspective too a saint is greater than God. God can be attained everywhere, but saints are only at certain places. Therefore they are more scarce than God -
Hari durlabh nahin jagat mein, Harijan durlabh hoi ।
hari heryaan sab jag milai, Harijan kahin ek hoi ।
The saint alone is greater for our reform. Therefore we must regard the saint as greater.
Seeing from the perspective of the Essence, the saint and God are one and the same; because the saints do not have attachments, interests, sense of mine-ness etc. that is separate from God. Therefore they are a form of God only.
Bhakti bhakt bagavant guru chatur naam, bapu ek ।
In ke pad bandan kiye naasat bighna anek ।
(to be continue)
From book in Hindi "Jeevan ka Kartavya" by Swami Ramsukhdasji.
FOR MESSAGE IN HINDI PLEASE VISIT -
(Sant aur unki Seva)
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