Talk:Hypocrisy and Bhakti
By Vishal Agarwal
Some people make a great show of their Bhakti to earn praise from others around them. They undertake arduous ceremonies and practices of Bhakti, not solely with the intent of serving and loving the Bhagavān, but to make a big show externally, while harboring ignoble and unholy thoughts within. How can those who show love on the exterior but harbor malice and evil within their hearts be anything but hypocrites? Kṛṣṇa says–
Kṛṣṇa said: He who restrains his organs of action but whose mind continues to dwell on the objects of these senses is called a hypocrite (of one of false conduct) having a deluded ātman. Gītā 3.6
The whole point of practicing the externals on the path of Bhakti and Bhakti Yoga is that the mind and intellect within become pure and imbued with love for the Divine. Therefore, one who performs all external rituals and remains unclean within is a hypocrite indeed. The following story illustrates how one who is mentally devoted is superior to one who just mechanically performs ceremonies without any faith or devotion.
Story: Vṛtt and Suvṛtt[1]
Two brothers named Vṛtt and Suvṛtt wanted to visit the Kṛṣṇa temple in Vārāṇasī. They set out from their home in the evening. While they were halfway, it started pouring heavily. Suvṛtt said, “I see a dance bar ahead. I have heard that there is a beautiful woman who performs shows in that bar. I think it is too tough to travel in the dark in this downpour. I think we should just spend the night in the bar and then set out towards the temple in the morning.”
But Vṛtt said, “I do not want to visit a dance bar and look at a dancing woman. I will carry on. Meet me outside the temple tomorrow morning.” Vṛtt continued walking and reached the temple after a few hours. There in the temple, a grand religious festival was going on. But Vṛtt was not regretful that he missed the chance to spend the night in the dance bar with his brother. He kept thinking, “My brother must be enjoying watching the dance and drinking liquor. And look at me. I am missing all that pleasure.” Vṛtt did not pay any attention to the religious chanting, ceremonies, or the Mūrti of Bhagavān. All this time, he just kept thinking of the dance bar where his brother Suvṛtt had stopped en route.
Meanwhile, Suvṛtt had exactly the opposite thoughts in his mind. He said to himself, “What a fool I was. I should have just continued in the rain to attend the festival at the temple. If I had not stayed here, I would be enjoying the darśana of Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa, singing bhajan-s, performing āratī-s with the pūjārī, and listening to religious discourses. Perhaps, I can at least imagine the scene inside the Mandira in the night till I leave this place.” And so, Suvṛtt paid no attention to the dance and drank only water.
Early morning, Suvṛtt left the bar for the temple and met with his brother at the entrance of the temple. Suddenly, there was a lightning strike, and both the brothers were hit. The Yamadūta-s (messengers of Yama, the Deva of death) arrived to take their souls. Surprisingly, they started taking Suvṛtt’s soul towards heaven, and that of Vṛtt towards hell. This upset Vṛtt and he said, “It appears that you have got mixed up. I was in the Mandira whereas my brother was in the dance bar. I should be the one going to heaven.”
The Yamapuruṣa-s laughed and said, “You were present only physically in the temple, but your mind was constantly imagining the dance bar. On the other hand, Suvṛtt was present physically in the dance bar, but his mind was constantly at the feet of Kṛṣṇa in the Mandira. And therefore, he goes to heaven, and you go to hell.”
Story: The Pig inside the ‘Saint’
Sant Kabīr was a very strong critic of hypocrisy. He saw that many priests and ascetics pretended to be very pious and holy men, but were evil-minded. One day, he heard that a fake Fakīr (Muslim ascetic) was coming to visit him. To expose this fake saint, Kabīr tied a pig at the entrance of his home. When the Fakīr came to Sant Kabīr’s home, he was horrified to see the pig and shouted out loud in anger, “Don’t you know that the pig is an unclean animal? Then why have you tied one to the entrance of your home?” Kabīr replied, “My pig is outside my house, whereas your pig is inside your heart.”
The Fakīr felt so ashamed to hear these words that he went away stealthily[2].
Story: The Man who became a Sādhu for a single Day
Keśavadāsa spent a lot of time doing his worship every day. He was very meticulous about all the steps of the pūjā and demanded that his wife Kamalā had everything that he needed for the pūjā ready every day. But, Kamalā had a lot of other things to do as well – cooking, cleaning, laundry, and so on. She often made some mistakes in arranging the large number of items that Keśavadāsa used for his worship. As a result, he would yell at her.
Finally one day, greatly upset after getting a scolding from him, she approached her Guru Santoba Powar, a very famous saint of his times. The saint asked her to convey the message to her husband that he would accept Keśavadāsa as a disciple and make him ready to become a Sādhu like himself. Kamalā was crestfallen at the thought of losing her husband, but she could not disregard the advice of her Guru. When Keśavadāsa heard her Guru’s message, he became elated and said, “I always told you that I was destined to be a great religious leader. The famous Santoba Power had himself expressed a wish to make me his student.”
So the next day, Keśavadāsa set out to see Santoba Powar. On his way, he imagined returning after years of meditation as a famous saint in his own right. “Then, my wife and family members will understand what a spiritual person I am,” he thought.
When Keśavadāsa appeared in front of the saint, he was asked to immediately throw away his robes of silk and his ornaments and take a bath in the river. In the hope of becoming a renowned Sādhu himself, Keśavadāsa followed the command immediately. When he returned from his bath, the saint said, “I have very special clothes for you, which you will now wear henceforth as a Sādhu.” Keśavadāsa imagined that his Guru would give him a flowing saffron robe, which would make him look very saintly. But lo! The guru merely gave him a loin cloth to cover his modesty. Then, the Guru gave him a pot of ashes to smear on his body saying, “They symbolize the fact that you are now dead to the world.” Keśavadāsa’s stomach squirmed at the thought of smearing himself with these ashes and pretending to be a corpse, but he faked a smile and followed his Guru’s command.
Then the Guru said, “Now it is time to meditate. You will sit in that corner of my cave and meditate on the mantra ‘Rāma’ for 6 hours.” Keśavadāsa was aghast! He had always imagined himself as meditating on lofty Himalayan peaks, chanting mantras sonorously, and pilgrims falling at his feet with gifts. But now actually chanting these mantras in a dark cave seemed so different from his mental fantasy!” Keśavadāsa grudgingly started chanting, as directed. The six hours were torture for him, and many times, his mind wandered away to think of his comfortable home, the loving service of his wife, and the wonderful clothes and sandals that he used to wear!
Finally, he heaved a sigh of relief when the six hours of meditation were over. Then Santoba Powar called him and said, “It is time for food now. And yes, we should keep a fast today. But if you want to eat, you can take my begging bowl and request the villagers to give you some food. And while coming back, collect some firewood because it will be cold and we need to light a bonfire while sleeping.” Keśavadāsa was even more dejected. He thought, “I am a very respectable person. How can my Guru expect me to beg for food – this is just so demeaning! And then, he asks me to collect wood for the fire. Anyway, let me go through this torture too, because one day I will be a famous saint myself. And then I can have many other disciples of my own to do all this work for me!”
When Keśavadāsa returned with the firewood, his Guru said, “Now it is time to sleep.” “But where do we sleep? I see no bed,” replied Keśavadāsa. The Guru instructed, “A Sādhu sleeps on whatever is available. This rocky cave today is our bed. Now be cheerful and have a good sleep.” Keśavadāsa laid on the ground. But no matter how hard he tried, he could not sleep. Sometimes a stone pinched his back. Another time, he was woken up by the howling of wolves. Finally, Keśavadāsa lost it and woke up his Guru, “Gurudeva, I cannot take it. Perhaps, I just do not have the inner strength that it takes to be a Sādhu. I am not fit for this role that I had fantasized about all my life. I realize now that what we desire is not the same as reality. I merely imagined myself to be capable of becoming a saint and put up a good show of being a religious man. But now I know that I am just an ordinary person. Please forgive me and allow me to return to my home and my wife.”
Santoba Powar smiled and said to Keśavadāsa, “I permit you to return tomorrow morning. But do not get disheartened. All your efforts will not go in vain, because in the Bhagavad Gītā, Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa has promised to us that no good effort will get lost. But keep two things in mind in your life always. The first is that you have believed incorrectly that you can become a Saint only if you give up your family ties to your wife etc., and only if you perform grand worship every day. The truth is that it is not the external abandonment of your family and home or the external worship that makes one a saint. What makes one a saint is that your mind and heart should be pure and that they should always be directed towards Bhagavān. So go home and be a good husband. And remember that even if your wife makes a small mistake in making available all the items of your worship, they will get overcome if you have love, faith, and Bhakti in your heart.
And now the second thing – Never get disheartened. You have tried to be a Sādhu for one day but gave up so easily. This does not mean that you will never make spiritual progress. I want you to take small steps while fulfilling all your duties towards your family every day. I want you to bear all your challenges and problems in life patiently, calmly, and quietly, without making a show. And you will notice yourself that over time, you will be a changed, and a better person in whose heart Bhagavān has come to reside. Keep in mind that becoming a Sādhu is not the only way of reaching Bhagavān because He puts us in the correct circumstances after determining what is best for our soul.”