Jnana comes in many ways. Jnana for the Buddha came through the contemplation of sufferings of others. In the case of Sankara, the great saint it came with the longing to understand. For others it comes through the art, or sacred songs or chants. It can come through the sound of the silence within.

The spirit of God touches the soul and guides the speaker on the path that stretches from the life of the world to the fulness of life in the eternal. The path is only one and it goes through various stages. The stages are karma, jnana and bhakti. They are interconnected. Bhakti involves anurukti (affection) which arises after anu which means gaining knowledge of the Lord.

What is bhakti?

Bhakti is not a belief, it is not mere faith, it is not devotion or meditation. It is a blend of renunciation and joy. It is a merging of the most fragrant perfumes. It is not renunciation of the material world; it is the inner renunciation. It is a renunciation of our senses. Bhakti enables one to see the divinity everywhere, in nature and all sentient beings. Bhakti makes one free of desires but one is not without emotions. The heart overflows with compassion and empathy.

One aspires for the Divinity and desire is converted into bhakti. The ancient scriptures speak of these desires as Hrdaya Granthi (knots of the heart). These knots symbolize the fundamental bondages and mental blockages caused by ignorance, desires and karmas. These knots are only opened when one transcends the limitations of the ego, and becomes liberated through spiritual realization.

What is not heard but heard and that which is not seen is seen. What is not understood is understood. This called Brahmajnan. A Brahmajnani is an individual, who has attained the knowledge of Brahman—the ultimate, formless reality or universal consciousness. This leads to self-realization and a state of true existence. One has attained victory over Maya (illusions) and connected with the divinity.

Extracted from discourse of Sadhu Vasvani.

Aim Hrim Klim