Meditations on Transcendence

 In Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.1.2 , it is declared: "dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ vedyaṁ vāstavam atra vastu śivadaṁ tāpa-trayonmūlanam śrīmad-bhāgavate mahā-muni-kṛte kim vā paraiḥ īśvaraḥ sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate ‘tra kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhis tat-kṣaṇāt" Here, "sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate" reveals a divine mystery — the Lord becomes confined, enshrined, lovingly captured in the heart . But by whom? Not scholars or ascetics, but by "kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhiḥ" — those who hear with eagerness and service . How does this happen? When one listens to the caura-līlā — the sweet robber pastime of the Lord, the cora-agragaṇya , who steals butter and hearts alike — one unknowingly receives a rope of prema . This śravaṇa acts like the rope of Yashodā, who bound Him as Dāmodara , not with force, but with love . Thus, sva-caurya-doṣocitaṁ eva daṇḍam — the only punishment befitting this divine thief is to be bound in the heart of the devote...

 In the realm of divine devotion, each name of Bhagavan binds with a unique energy that, together, inspires a powerful response of mercy. Deva , the shining Lord, brings light to the soul, while Damodara —the One bound by love—suggests a molecule tied by invisible, unbreakable bonds. Ananta , the Infinite, represents the endless, expanding nature of His being, while Vishnu , the All-pervading, permeates every cell, like oxygen reaching all parts of the body. Prabhu , our guiding Master, directs the flow of life’s energy, and Isha , the Supreme Controller, governs with wisdom. This chain reaction calls forth a shower of divine grace, nourishing the soul’s growth

An improved perfect self already exists Purification is needed to manifest the improved self Uncovering layers is our focus When there is a mixture only one needs purification Where there is required and not required substance, entity, to separate one needs purification Identification, separation and elimination are various steps in purification Knowledge and awareness is needed to identify unwanted things in heart Otherwise there is no regulation of unwanted things Wanton kingdom of unwanted things in the heart Unwanted is well integrated with wanted making the process difficult The wanted in dormant and unwanted is active Daman is complete supression of the unwanted with help of Lord Damodara One can catch, group and tie the unwanted - desires and ahankara Destroy and eliminate them Meditation is the culmination of the entire curriculum of the Gita which aims at removing the three main defects of our personality: mala, vikshepa and aavarana. tatrekaagram manaha kritvaa yatachittendri...

 Verse 6 नमो देव दामोदरानन्त विष्णो प्रभो दुःख-जालाब्धि-मग्नम् कृपा-दृष्टि-वृष्ट्याति-दीनं बतानु गृहाणेष मामज्ञमेध्यक्षिदृश्यः ॥ ६॥ namo deva dāmodarānanta viṣṇo prasīda prabho duḥkha-jālābdhi-magnam kṛpā-dṛṣṭi-vṛṣṭyāti-dīnam batānu gṛhāṇeṣa mām ajñam edhy akṣi-dṛśyaḥ The above verse has -> Humility, prayer, Nama sankirtana, prayojana Seeing from the perspective of Sambandha, Abhideya and Prayojana: Sambandha Jnana - we are all part of ananta, since meaning of ananta means everything is included and nothing in the cosmos can be outside All inclusiveness with perfect awareness is Vishnu. To this when we add Prabhu and isa, it becomes a perfect definition of God and belonging to him Abhideya - Namah, dinam, ajna Prayojana - akshi drsyah Humility is manifested when one declares complete lack of knowledge before the Lord (mam ajnam) and also complete helplessness(dinam bata) being struck in the ocean of miseries (dukha jalabdhi) The request for mercy krpa should always be backed up ...