Bhakti rests on the tripod of Guru, Bhagawan and Sadhana. One is introduced into Sadhana and Bhajana as the means to attain Bhagawan by the Guru. Unless one is sincere in one’s intentions, one cannot get Guru and unless one is sincere in Sadhana and Bhajana one cannot attain Bhagawan. This is the simple philosophy of Bhakti.
Having said that Sadhana and Bhajana is the link that connects one to the eternal kingdom, it should be noted that the area of Sadhana and Bhajana is extremely Subjective. It requires subjective intelligence to swim through the ocean of Bhakti to reach Bhagawan. The Sadhguru is the precedent to Sadhana and Bhajana. Sadhguru is the one who explains the nuances of the Sadhana and Bhajana process so that one can hold the tit-bits and set straight the arena of Sadhana which becomes the aspirant’s only ground towards the infinite. Unless one’s Sadhana is rock solid even the Sadhguru cannot do much to salvage the aspirant. The subjectivity in Bhajana may not be obvious to some but there is an attempt made in this article to highlight some of them.
There are times when the Sadhguru has given some specific instructions on chanting some Mantras in a particular order and a fixed number of time or must have introduced a specific routine suitable for the aspirant. There may be times when the aspirant gets jumbled up with the routine or the rounds or the chronology of repetition of the mantras. Here is where subjectivity plays a very important role. The aspirant may talk to the Sadhguru and he may be in for more surprise. The Sadhguru may have completely altered the routine much to the
amazement of the aspirant. The Sadhguru may have suddenly increased the number of rounds and the aspirant may get utterly confused as to what needs to be done. Here is where subjective intelligence can be applied. The purpose of the chanting process needs to be understood. One needs to understand the purpose and philosophy of certain routines than focus on the routine itself. If this is done, one can safely apply one’s own subjective intelligence and alter the routine, take the Guru’s permission and easily setup a new customized chanting routine for oneself. The Sadhguru is just a guide provided by Bhagawan to smoothen one’s journey. It is foolish to take everything that the Sadhguru speaks literally because in the world of Bhakti nothing is literal , everything is mood, feeling and emotion of the other-worldly kind. In Bhakti nothing is wrong or right. If the intention is not too good , then whatever is said correctly can be completely wrong and vice-versa. Sadhguru is a guide and His mood and intention has to be considered than the literal meaning of his words. What happens in the expanse of consciousness is more important than what is communicated in words or action. In Bhakti 2X5 may be 1 or 100 or 25 or 52 or 0. One has to cultivate one’s subjective intelligence through straight-forwardness in dealings ,non-manipulative nature and above all through Bhajana and Sadhana understanding the mood of the Sadhguru. When one directs one’s intelligence in understanding the goodness in the world, cultivating the mood of a student , one will automatically develop subjective intelligence.
An example of Subjective intelligence can be given thus. There may be a household that serves company biscuits to their deities in the evening time along with tea with great love. Some devotees from a world-renowned institution may object to this saying that an intoxicating beverage is being served to the Lord along with some products which may be contaminated because they have not been prepared exclusively at home. Here the people from the organization fail to understand using subjective intelligence that the Lord is capable of expanding Himself into numerous forms with infinite moods and tastes. Such an argument is supported even by Shastra. The Lord has the capacity to accept anything offered to Him by his beloved devotees. Thus He even becomes capable of digesting tea and biscuits. What is not to be served to him is strictly mentioned in the Shastras. They are non-vegetarian food or onion and garlic that stinks and liquor which is consumed by creatures in the mode of ignorance. It is also mentioned in the Shastras that Vishnu is worshipped even in heavens and He is offered Soma rasa which is an intoxicant consumed by the Satwika Devas.
Thus subjective intelligence is an important factor in Spiritual life and one can develop it through intense sadhana. Subjective intelligence is experienced in the form of deep realizations and always is automatically supported by the logic of Shastra.
Charan Pahari 