Pushti Contrasted With Jnana and Karma

Three path, have been generally recognized as leading to moksha, viz Karma-marga, Jnana-marga, and Bhakti-marga. The several schools of the Vedanta differ from one another in laying differential emphasis on the elements of Karma, jnana, and bhakti. According to the Shuddhadvaita system, the Lord manifests Him.lf in the five forms of Kriya (Vedic sacrifice), viz, agnihotra, darsa-paurnamaso, pashuyoga, chaturmasya and somayoga, in the purva kanda, and in the form of jnana in the uttara-kanda, He who performs the Vedic rites and obtains the knowledge or Brahman as prescribed in the Upanishads, enjoys moksha in the form of divine joy, To such a man the Lord, described in the vedic literature as possessing the six forms (the five of sacrifice, and the one or jnana) manifests Himself. He goes by the path of the gods (devayana) and gradually attains moksha; but if he happens to enjoy the special grace of the Lord, he gets moksha immediately after death. He who dos not attain the knowledge of Brahman but performs the Vedic rites without any motive, please all the Gods concerned in the sacrifices and enjoys, atmananda, (the bliss of the soul). The term svarga, used in this connection in the sense of atmananda, etymologically means 'that which is perfectly earned', or the happiness of the soul which is unmixed, eternal, and inferior only to the supreme divine joy which is the privilege of those who enjoy the favour of the Lord. But he who performs different sacrifices, simply with a view to fulfilling different desires, goes to the popular soar Goloka (heaven), where he enjoys different kinds or happiness tin his merit is exhausted and then returns to the world of mortals to move again in the cycle of birth and death.

It should be further noted that he who attains the knowledge of Brahman and realizes that everything in the world is Brahman, is a real knower of Brahman. But he i absorbed in Akshara Brahman, and not in Parabrahman or Purna Purushottama, because, as already stated, he meditates upon Akshara Brahman and considers it to be the final stage of reality that has no higher. But if this knowledge of Brahman is associated with devotion, the knowing devotee is absorbed in Purna Purushottama. This stage is indeed, higher than the stage of absorption in Akshara Brahman. There is, again, another stage which may be described as the highest. When the Lord desires to favour a particular soul and be it remembered that in showing His favour He is not guided by any other consideration than His own will He brings out the soul from Himself, gives him a divine body like His own and plays with him for all time. In this play, which is called nitya-lila, the Lord, remaining subordinate to the devotee, gives him the pleasure of His company." which is generally known as bhajnananda (the bliss of devotion) or svarupananda (the bliss of the lord Himself) which is referred to in the Taittiriya Upanishad, the Bhagavata, and other Puranas.

It is most interesting to note that this divine bliss is purely a gift of the Lord and cannot be obtained by any human effort. It is this very idea of the gift of divine grace that is called Pushti in the Shuddhadvaita system.13 The best illustration of divine grace (pushti is found in the case of the gopis of Vrindavana, who are rightly described as the spiritual teachers who have opened the path of pushti to the world at large. Those who enjoy this divine grace automatically begin to love the Lord and look upon Him not only as their Lord, but as everything. The doctrine of regarding the Lord as everything called sarvatma- bhava (all-in-oneness, which should be distinguished from the sarvatmabhava (one-in-all ness) of the jnanins. In the sarvatmabhava of the jnanins, men of realization see Brahman in all thing;, while in the other case the devotees see everything in the, Lord. The gopis possessed this attitude in a remarkable manner, and Lord Krishna had therefore to remain quite obedient to them. The experience of svarupananda which is decidedly superior to that of Brahmananda, is according to Vallabha, the highest conception of moksha, the summum bonum. The Lord is full of rasa {sentiment), and out of the eight rasas (love, heroism, fury, humour, wonder, pathos, and horror), shringara (love) is the most prominent. As shringara has two aspects, viz, samyoga (union) and viprayoga (separation), there are two stages in this rasa which the devotees enjoy. In the company of the Lord the devotees enjoy the happiness of union, while in His absence they suffer the misery of separation and think of Him all the time. so much so that they cannot see or experience anything but Lord Krishna According to some, the stage of separation is therefore superior to that of union.

13. For a fuller conception of Pushti, cf. G. H. Bhatt, 'The Pushti-marga of Vallabhacharya', Indian Historical Quarterly, IX., pp. 300-336.

Pushti and Maryada

Vallabha has clearly distinguished the Pushti-marga, from the Maryada.-marga. In the latter, an individual has to follow the dictates of the Vedas, and practise the different types of bhakti, such as shravana (hearing), etc. until he begins to love the Lord, who, taking his efforts into consideration, grants him sayujya mukti (mergence in His body). In the Pushtimarga, how- ever, through the operation of divine grace only, one starts with loving the Lord and then practises shravana, etc. out of that love, and not with a view to generating it.

The Maryada-marga is open only to the males of the first three classes, viz,

Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas, while the Pushti-marga is open to all without reservation. This knows no distinction of sex, caste, creed, or nationality; it is universal religion: and this aspect is clearly borne out by literary and historical evidence. In short, whatever is done by the devotee of the Maryada-marga is done on the strength of the voice injunctions and in conformity with them, while the devotee of the Pushtimarga does everything out of his natural love and for the sake of the Lord.

Vallabha saw that his own times were most unfavourable to karma, jnana, and Vedic or Shastriya bhakti, and that people in general, and women and shudras in particular, had no chance of ameliorating their status from the spiritual viewpoint. The duties of the different varnas (classes) and ashramas (orders of life).could not be satisfactorily discharged; and the Vedas, though, most effective in the past. had ceased to be so, not because they were useless, but because the people could not put the Vedic teaching into practice and perform sacrifices. The Acharya has tried to show that over and above the paths of karma, jnana, and Vedic bhakti, there is one more path that of divine grace which if once enjoyed makes our life divine. The doctrine of grace is clearly referred to in the Upanishads, the Gita, and the Bhagavata; and although Ramanuja and others admit it to b an all-saving factor, it must be said to the credit of Vallabha that the way in which he has dealt with this question is unique. The followers of the other Vaishnava school also believe in the power of divine grace, but their mod of worship is maryadika, as they look upon the Lord as the great awe-inspiring God, endowed with infinite qualities and possessing great powers. Their worship is not prompted by love, which is possible only through the grace of the Lord. The followers of the Pushtimarga however, worship the Lord, not because He is the Paramatman or the highest Entity, but because they ardently love him. The worship of these devotees is therefore snehatmaka (consisting of love) and the Lord who is thus loved and worshipped is called Gopijanvallabha (the beloved of the gopis), a term which is very significant in the system. The gopis are the pioneers in this line, and others who follow them enjoy the same divine bliss the mode of worship that has been followed in this system up to the present day is based on the spirit of the gopis. One who follows the Pushtimarga aspires to be a gopi and worships the Lord with that attitude. In fact, all souls represent the feminine Principle and have the Lord as their spiritual husband.

Spiritual Discipline, As regards the daily life of a devotee of this type, the Acharya tells us that he should first of all dedicate his own self and all his belongings, all the members of his family, to Lord Krishna, which appeared in the world for the uplift of people of all classes and particularly those who are not in a position to attain moksha by their own efforts. There is a samskara (sacrament) called Brahma-sambandha which has to be performed by the jiva (soul) to re-establish the lost contact with the Lord to remove thereby the weaknesses of his nature, and to qualify, himself fully for worship. The devotee, after performing this sacrament worships the Lord, making an unreserved use of his own body and property, and thereby destroys samsara, which is of the form of 'I' and 'mine' (i.e. ego-centric).This sacrament can he performed by all persons irrespective of caste and creed. The unreal Samsara is thus removed by the dedication of the body and wealth to the cause of the Lord and not by the renunciation of the world. We are told by the Acharya that in the Kaliyuga formal sanyasa (monasticism) without the spirit of renunciation detrimental to spiritual progress, and that it is justifiable only when one is unable to hear the pangs of separation from the lord. The acharya himself took sanyasa in his last days, when he felt that he could not live in the Lord and that family life was an impediment to the highest bliss, which he wished to enjoy in the company of the Lord. The worship or the Lord requires the services of all the members of the family, and they are promised the highest bliss that always results from worship or seva (service). This mode of service makes the whole family free from worldly lies even when leading a householder's life, and their whole life becomes divine The head of the family finds that some of the members or his family are not supporting him in this, he advised to leave them and pas his time in seva quite alone. The highest form of seva is mental; in this stage the devotee thinks of the Lord alone.

The duties of four varnas and ashramas cannot be satisfactorily performed in modern ties and if they are carried out mechanically, they fail to give any reward. When there is a conflict between the

Bhagavad-dharma (the service m the Lord) and the varnashrama-dharma, a devotee or the Pushti-marga must choose the former he may perform the duties of varnashrama when he finds leisure from his seva but under no circumstance' at the cost of the service of the Lord. This is the real atma-dharma, duty relating to the soul, while the duties of the varnas and ashramas are simply duties relating to the Atman and the body, the former is decidedly the superior.

It is thus obvious that a follower of the Pushti-marga devotes his own self and all his belongings to the Lord, passes his, whole time in His service. He completely loses his independent existence in the world and cannot therefore possess any property. Whatever he requires for personal use he first dedicates to the Lord and then makes use of it with His permission, - Since everything is dedicated to the Lord, the devotee cannot in any way exercise the right of ownership over anything. It is also impossible for a follower of tile Pushti-marga to be immoral for this path is blessed on renunciation, not enjoyment. Although its doors are open to all-men and women, people of the upper three castes and shudras, and even those who are morally fallen (patita) and seem to have lost all chances of spiritual uplift, it does not encourage immorality. It should not be looked upon as a licence for doing immoral actions without responsibility it simply promises safety to all who would follow its doctrines. The essence of the Pushtimarga is to establish connection between the soul and the Lord, and this is possible in many ways. One may be constantly angry with the Lord and still get sayujya. It is immaterial whether it is anger or jealousy or devotion or passion that serves as the connecting link that is required is connection, it should, however, be noted that those who are connected with the Lord through love (sneha) enjoy the privilege of participating in the nitya lila of the Lord while others simply get sayujya. If for any reason this kind of seva is not possible, one should not be disappointed. The Acharya tells us that such a man should throw himself at the feet of the Lord and remain at His mercy. This method is called prapatti or self-surrender.