Upäsanä of the Omnipresent, Omniscient, Omnipotent Supreme source of Conscious-ness is said to be of fundamental importance in human life. Literally, the Sanskrit word “Upäsanä” (=Upa + äsanä ) means “sitting near….” . Its implications in the Indian Philosophy and Science of Spirituality are far more deeper… Here, the word “Upäsanä” is always used to imply—- a devotional practice, a mode of activating the linkage between the individual and the cosmic consciousness, between the soul and its eternal divine origin….. upäsanä is therefore referred as a yoga too. Upäsanä—Yoga is a core component of the Bhakti Yoga.
The meaning of “upäsanä of God” as “sitting near God” implies endowing oneself with divine virtues. As any good conductor of heat becomes hot if connected to a source of heat….; electrical devices connected with a power generator get charged by the electrical current…, similarly, a true devotee starts receiving the grace and glow of divinity by upäsanä. Swami Ram Krishna Paramhans used to advice the disciples—- “clean and shine the vessel of your life by regular upäsanä”. The practice of upäsanä as described by Gurudev Shriram Sharma is like giving a spiritual bath to the inner self. It helps refinement of the deeper domains of mind and charging the intrinsic faith and devotional sentiments by the orgulous force of afflatus.
Today, we are living in a world of terrible pollution where the world of thoughts and sentiments too has been maligned, that too in greater proportions than the external environment…. The ‘glow’ of the soul appears to be covered in the thick smog of declining moral values, the crisis of faith in divine disciplines, diminishing principles of humanity and near total disappearance of altruism…. Increasing influence of selfish passions, possessive attitude, eroticism, lust and ego…etc, has put a question mark on the very survival of the human society. No remedy, no action, no law, no system, no revolution could help reversal of the declining trends unless the original nature of humanity is brought back to life with its dignity reflected in every individual self.… A treatment at the deepest depth of the inner self thus seems to be inevitable. Devotional practices of upäsanä and spiritual refinement are therefore of significant importance today.
Does upäsanä mean only worshiping a deity or prophet, or, performing some rituals or uttering some prayers with or without meditation…? Certainly not. Rituals are only some ‘tools’ which help initial training of the ever agile mind…. These external modes of practicing upäsanä are lifeless without the driving force of internal devotion which inspires the feeling of samarpana—- total sacrifice of ego, selfish desires, self-identity—- in the limitless ocean of divine love…., in the unlimited expansion and eternal expressions of Thou….
Upäsanä cannot progress for long without the emergence of true devotion through the deep core of sentiments or intrinsic faith in the upäsya (the ‘object’ of upäsanä)….. The subtle connection between the upäsaka (devotee) and the upäsya does not get linked or activated without the feeling of samarpana. Acharya Sharma excellently illustrates the importance of samarpana as—- “when a drop of water sacrifices its existence into the ocean, it unifies with the gigantic expansion of the latter in no time….; water of a dirty drain becomes pious once it is immersed in the waters of the Ganges….; a tiny piece of wood, which could be broken by just any body…., glows bright and cannot even be touched if it burns itself and become a part of fire….”
Shraddhä—- intrinsic sentiment of pious devotion for divine ideals and Thy—love, absolute faith in moral disciplines, and serene love for the manifestation of Thou in all beings…, an internal urge of samarpana—- of the devotee is said to be the sole supporter and eternal guide along the righteous path of upäsanä..….. Prayer without shraddhä is ‘begging’, worship without shraddhä is ‘hypocrisy’, samarpana without shraddä is nonexistent—- nothing more than emotional excitement and lunatic illusion….. Shraddhä inspires courage to dedicate one self for high ideals of humanity as the latter are manifestations of divine disciplines.
In bhakti yoga or samarpana yoga one nullifies the difference between “I” and “Thou” with the help of shraddhä… “Love is God and God is love…” becomes a reality in every aspect of life for a true devotee. Love for God means love for all his creations….., for all beings…. It is the level of one’s shraddhä which is reflected in the glory of upäsanä. Godliness represents—- culmination of virtues, highest realm of humane ideals and divine potentials. In its truest sense, shraddhä in any form of Thou or in any manifestation of Thy power in the universe, indeed implies the absolute orientation of devotion for realization of Godliness in above respect.
Scriptures of Indian Philosophy state—- “Shraddhä mayoayä Purüshah, Yoyaccha- drah, Sa Eva Sa”. Implying—- the human self, his desires, deeds and character, his overall spiritual and psychological makeup is shaped by his sharddhä. One gradually adopts the characteristics of the upäsya to whom he devotes his shraddhä . The upäsya, in physical terms, could be an inanimate object such as an idol or a picture in front of which one practices regular upäsanä; it is the attribution of shraddhä which makes ‘it’ realizable by the devotee as the latter conceptualizes….
The purer and higher the level of one’s shraddhä in divinity, the greater will be the endowment of the conceptualized divine virtues in his personality…. and the stronger and more enlightened will be his inner self.
The expansion of Indian philosophy and the development of the science of spirituality revolves around the central themes of upäsanä and shraddhä . The understanding, realization and adoption of upäsanä with divinely pure shraddhä—- is the most challenging phase of any endeavor of spiritual elevation. Success of this phase ensures accomplishment of the basic purpose: progress towards spiritual transmutation and evolution of consciousness.
Deciphering the basis, implications, methods of practice and effects of upäsanä and explaining the subtle science of inculcation, realization and attribution of shraddhä—- is an arduous task which demands something higher than intellectual sagacity and erudite scholarly knowledge… Even those who have attained success in spiritual endeavors find it difficult to elucidate these aspects which may be realized in the inner cores of sentiments but cannot be expressed in words…. Acharya Sharma’s splendid contributions are truly exceptional in this regard. It appears to be some kind of extra sensory power of this great spiritual master which enabled him describe these ‘esoteric’ topics so eloquently and perfectly in this volume. His interpretations, analysis and explanations are so convincing and inspiring that the text seems to become ‘alive’ for the readers and conveys the author’s thoughts and sentiments right into their minds and hearts….
Among the methods of practicing upäsanä, the author recommends japa—- rhythmic enunciation of a mantra or a prayer with deep shraddhä; and dhyäna—- meditation with a feeling of samarpana. Japa could be performed loudly, by silent recitations—- where the lips and tongue may move but voice is not heard, or mentally by unperturbed contemplation. The Gäyatrï Mantra is supposed to be ideal for japa ; any other mantra (Vedic hymn) may also be selected as per the shraddhä of the devotee. Dhyäna is more important in upäsanä as it helps—- focusing the thoughts and sentiments and creatively attributing the devotee’s shraddhä to the upäsya…. As the feeling of samarpana becomes more real with deeper meditation, the process of ‘linkage’ and ‘communication’ between the devotee and the devatä (divine power manifested in the upäsya) becomes more active and continuous.
Details on japa – dhyäna and other methods of upäsanä are perspicuously described in this volume with adept guidance. Experiences of great saints and devotees are also cited along with references from the scriptures at several places. The topics of sonic power generated by japa, impact of sublimated voice and other scientific aspects are discussed by the author in volume no. 19 of this series. The topic of dhyäna—- as a yoga sädhanä is covered in the volume no. 20. Specific methods of japa and dhyäna of the Gäyatrï Mantra are presented in volume nos. 12 and 13. The scientific aspects of Gäyatrï Upäsanä are covered in volume nos. 14 and 15.
Prayers emanated from the heart through pure devotion are also equivalent to upäsanä based on japa and dhyäna. The warmth of sentiments generated during such a prayer melts the devotee’s ego and transmits his inner call to the cosmic centers of Thy expression…. and brings back divine blessings…. In the moments of tragedy, severe adversities and helplessness, one prays to the almighty through the deepest core of his heart; he remembers nothing accept the eternal kindness of Thou… All ego, selfish desires, ambitions, …., etc vanish in no time….. A similar state of selflessness is a prerequisite in upäsanä. If one prays in this state, for the welfare of all beings, for healthy development of the world, for collective progress and righteous evolution of intelligence….., his prayer indeed becomes so powerful that it conjugates his consciousness with the divine consciousness of the upäsya. Continuity and consistency of this samarpana yoga inculcates divine virtues in the devotee and bestows Thy blessings on him.
Cultivation of courage to fight against the ego and immerse own identity is almost impossible for most people. No scientific principle, no intellectual argument or advice of wisdom could help in this regard. It is only the power of shraddhä manifested in the inner sentiments, earnest urge and prayers, which makes it possible for a devotee to pursue a samarpana yoga. “….How does it happen? What helps inculcation of shraddhä? What are the characteristics of a true devotee? How to judge the level of one’s shraddhä?……” These and similar quests of most readers would find satisfactory solutions in the scientifically rational and eloquent deliberations of Acharya Sharma in the present volume.
The bhakti yoga, upäsanä or samarpana yoga aims at the absolute realization of—- “Jïvo Brahm Nä parah”—- eternal unity between the individual self and the cosmic Thy-self….. Transmutation of an ordinary mortal being into the absolute divine being, sublimation of all malice and selfishness into altruist compassion, immersion of ego into ultimate expansion of pure love…., spiritual elevation and unification of the individual consciousness with the omnipresent, supreme consciousness——is the eternal desire of Thou and the ultimate goal of devotional life. Upäsanä—- samarpana yoga is a blessed opportunity for all of us to achieve this goal in the present life itself….
