Prapatti (surrender) lies at the core of Śrīvaiṣṇava religion. Surrender to Śriman-Nārāyaṇa is taught as the primary spiritual discipline.
In the previous post, we concluded that surrender to God implies the understanding that one belong to Viṣṇu. In the next (two-part) posts, we will explore how Prapatti has been practiced by Svāmī Rāmānuja's spiritual guide, Svāmī Yāmunācārya.
Svāmī Yāmunācārya wrote the text, Gītārtha Saṅgraha, explaining the import of Gītā in brief. In a different text, Stotra Ratna, the Ācārya gives an account of his personal religion. In similar manner, Svāmī Rāmānuja has given an account of his personal religion for the purpose of his disciples through the three Gadya-s: Śaraṇāgati Gadya, Śrīraṅga Gadya and Śrīvaikuṇṭha Gadya. Writing commentaries is important. Providing an account of all that theory translates to practical life is more important for serious followers. In this respect, we see the boundless mercy of Svāmī Yāmunācārya and Svāmī Rāmānuja in making public their religion for the welfare of all.
Some researchers become confused reading the works of these teachers. They see apparent differences between the commentary-texts and the texts which publicize personal religion. Bewildered, they conclude that there must have been two different authors: one who wrote the commentaries and another who showcased his personal religion. Thus, in their minds, there are two Svāmī Yāmunācārya-s, two Svāmī Rāmānuja-s, and so on.
Certain detractors think that the Ācārya-s wrote commentaries for the mere sake of putting up the appearance of serious Vedic teachers. But, in private, they practiced their own discipline which was at divergence with their own commentaries.
A third category comes from among the followers of Svāmī Rāmānuja who think that the personal discipline of Ācārya-s was revealed secretly only to close followers. In their commentaries, which would be read by people of all spiritual persuasions, they did not choose to reveal their personal discipline completely. They touched upon the specifics of personal religion only at some instances. They revealed a layer of religion that is more intelligible to readers coming from diverse backgrounds. But, in their non-commentary texts, they spoke directly to their followers where they revealed the secrets of religion. To such teachers, Bhakti is the superficial message of scripture. Prapatti is its core.
A fourth category considers that the commentary texts teach Bhakti as the primary message, but also mention Prapatti. Bhakti is for highly qualified people. Prapatti is universal. Those, who are unable to practice Bhakti, can practice Prapatti. Our Ācārya-s preferred Prapatti in order to show the way for all, especially the spiritually immature who cannot practice Bhakti.
Studying the texts of Ācārya-s, one finds all the four positions lacking in thoroughness. The first position comes from laziness and lack of commitment to carefully understand Ācārya-s. This is a classical example of what happens when one engages in study without śraddhā, devoted commitment. The second position belongs to the detractor who is unwilling to even spend time in understanding the truth. The detractor is looking for an excuse, even if it is false, to put down thoughts that are not deemed favorable to one's convictions.
The third and fourth come from followers. But, both have the drawback of suggesting that Bhakti and Prapatti are parallel paths. The third position, sometimes, pits Prapatti directly against Bhakti. One may feel that the first two categories exist only because of the problems in the explanations provided by the third and fourth categories. In light of these differing and mutually opposing opinions, it is necessary to clearly understand the position of Ācārya-s.
In all the commentaries, Bhakti or Upāsana is declared as the means to realize God, fully consistent with the opinions of sages and the statements in the Vedic scriptures.
The Upaniṣat-s and Brahma Sūtra-s announce that ParaBrahman is revealed only in Bhakti which is indicated by words like 'vedana', 'dhyāna' and 'upāsana'. These two texts of Vedānta also teach Karma and Jñāna Yoga-s as ways to progress into Bhakti. [Details of this will be provided in a separate post.] Prapatti also finds mentioned as Nyāsa but is not explained exhaustively.
Some spiritual teachers declared that spiritual progress stops with the knowledge / realization of the pure soul, jīva. For this vision, they advised only Jñāna Yoga which is extremely difficult to perform. Realizing this difficulty, a few of them also taught Karma Yoga to extent of inculcating the discipline of selfless action. Through selfless action, one may attain purity of mind gradually and perceive the soul clearly. However, the jīva is not God, even in its purest state as would be apparent to any committed practitioner. But, in the systems taught by these teachers, the jīva realized in its purity is identical to God. Some teachers realized that the jīva is clearly not God, however pure its state might be. After realizing the soul, they tried to meditate on God through different means. They tried to obtain the vision of God. They spent several years in meditation and did not succeed.
It is to address these faulty methods that Śrīmad-Bhagavad-Gītā was revealed by Lord Kṛṣṇa.
First, Kṛṣṇa explained that Jñāna Yoga, meditation on the soul, is impossible for almost everyone to practice all of a sudden. Karma Yoga, action with detachment, must be practiced and through Karma Yoga itself, the vision of the self is possible. This is because there is a Jñāna element in Karma Yoga itself. Our nature is to be restless and quiet meditation cannot be suddenly put to practice. Even if one controls the senses and tries hard, one is not likely to have the real vision of the soul. Likewise, to set an example, even those qualified for Jñāna Yoga should practice Karma Yoga.
Second, Kṛṣṇa clarified that the vision of soul is not final. The highest benefit is the vision of God. He declares in no uncertain terms that single-minded Bhakti is the only way to have the vision of God. Bhakti becomes possible for one who has attained the vision of the soul. The vision of soul provides purity and creates an atmosphere conducive for Bhakti. Without this preliminary siddhi of the soul, one would face numerous obstacles in the practice of Bhakti.
Third, even if one has somehow obtained some sort of soul-vision, as long as there is body, there will be obstacles due to past karma / sins. This is the reason for Arjuna's dejection. He felt that nothing is possible: Karma Yoga, Jñāna Yoga or Bhakti Yoga. As long as one has sins and latent impressions, there is always the danger of faltering from discipline. Anyone who has gone beyond theory and engaged in practice can attest to this. It is in this light that Kṛṣṇa taught Prapatti.
Pre-Gītā, there was also a view held that only a small number of males, who were qualified to read Veda-s, are fit for liberation. Since the way to liberation was taught in Veda-s, and only a few were deemed qualified (all of them men), the rest had no way of liberation. They had to spend several births gaining merit and attaining the birth of men qualified for Veda-s.
Kṛṣṇa demolishes this strange view as well. The Veda-s do teach the means to liberation. But, only a person who can understand it benefits. Merely belonging to certain varṇa-s does not guarantee either knowledge or liberation. Even a person, who comes from a background of sins and misconduct, can resort to God and attain liberation. Kṛṣṇa not only clarified the truth of Veda-s, He revealed it to all. He revealed Himself as the refuge for all. (Chapter 9)
Selfless action in Karma Yoga is not performed ritualistically. The vision of soul is not required as a bland rule. Karma Yoga is mandated only because in truth, the soul is an accessory (śeṣa) of God and exists only for His purpose. The vision of soul only leads one to realize that the śeṣatva of soul towards God clearly. This knowledge is the trigger for Bhakti. In alignment with one's true state, one becomes desirous of serving the Lord alone for His pleasure losing interest in everything else. Such an exalted Bhakta is a Paramaikāntin. The experience of God becomes joy and its absence becomes sorrow.
Prapatti is the realization that one belongs to God. It is closely associated with the selfless action prescribed in Karma Yoga. But, with Prapatti, everything becomes meaningful, not a blind rule. It is after all the duty of the master to save one's possession. In the same way, a Prapanna (one who has surrendered), abandons fear of one's success in spiritual discipline to God.
Kṛṣṇa assures Arjuna, "To one who resorts to Me, I will destroy all sins. Don't worry." When sins mature, they become obstacles in the way of spiritual discipline. God is not an passive, inert entity. If we are reading Gītā, it is due to His grace. The moment we stop obstructing His grace with our nonsense and surrender to Him, His causeless mercy begins to work. It nurtures us along the path of single-pointed Bhakti in which God is revealed. Remember that Narasimha destroyed the obstacles to the Bhakti of Prahlāda.
A Prapanna abandons the views, "I am a Karma Yogī", "I am a Bhakti Yogī", etc. Even the title of Prapanna is misleading and used only for the sake of instruction. Such a person knows that the soul belongs to God, exists only for His purpose, and has the experience and service of God as its end. This realization also becomes possible due to the causeless mercy of God. Any goodness found in oneself is due to the mercy of God which worked its way through all the barriers we try to put in its way. Without Prapatti, spiritual discipline becomes a personal effort to which one can become attached. This would collapse the basis of Karma Yoga which advocated detached action. Some people may follow a rule to offer their discipline ritualistically to God. But following rules or rituals is inferior to actual realization, and acting in accordance with that realization.
With this background, it should be obvious that Prapatti is in no way opposed to Bhakti. In fact, Prapatti makes the grace of God purposeful, leads one in the performance of actions as service to God, in the realization of the soul's subservience to God, in the knowledge of God through loving meditation, and in the acts of direct service performed with love nurtured by the experience of God. To a Prapanna, God's grace destroys all obstacles coming from sins, leading to full spiritual maturity. The highest maturity of Bhakti is available only to a Prapanna.
This is why Ācārya-s showed Prapatti in their personal discipline, fully consistent with the import of scriptures and their own words in commentaries.
Why did the Ācārya-s then speak of Bhakti in the commentaries?
It is important to understand that Bhakti is the ultimate message of the Vedānta and is the only means to the vision of Śriman-Nārāyaṇa. There are no two opinions about that. Our Ācārya-s only recognized the practice of Bhakti which has Prapatti at its core. They did not consider Prapatti and Bhakti as independent paths. This is why both in the Stotra Ratna as well as the Gadya-s, Prapatti is immediately followed by a prayer for nurturing Bhakti.
By resorting to Śriman-Nārāyaṇa, by surrendering to the action of His grace, we perform actions as service to Him because it is really so and not because the rule book of Karma Yoga says so. We understand the nature of soul as subservient to Him. When the mind becomes peaceful in the vision of the self, love for God sprouts. This Bhakti also is nurtured by His grace and one attains the vision of God here, and in the after. One attains eternal and pure experience of God in ŚrīVaikuṇṭha. This experience creates the desire to serve Him. In ŚrīVaikuṇṭha, the desire to serve is instantly realized and one serves in every possible way causing the pleasure of God. The favorable appraisal of God causes endless delight and bliss. In this path of Bhakti, all obstacles are destroyed by God's grace to the Prapanna. The entire process is one of transforming (a) the soul who serves God with the theoretical knowledge that one is subservient to Him to (b) a stage where the soul serves God with the realization of this truth to (c) a stage where the soul realizes God in love, and serves Him out of love.
The Śrīvaiṣṇava religion does not consider that proper existence is possible only if the soul is ripped out of the body or by becoming passive and inert. Staying true to the word of Kṛṣṇa, it recognizes a Higher Love that emerges upon true vision of the soul. It views that this Higher Love sustained in meditation is capable of comprehending God. The Higher Love and the service of God are present even in the state of liberation. Liberation is not cessation or disappearance. It is the full-fledged manifestation of our true nature in the service of God.
[The details of Prapatti in Stotra Ratna will be dealt with in the next part of this series.]
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