The Hindu : God rescues refuge seekers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2003

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous - Religion

God rescues refuge seekers

CHENNAI SEPT. 17 . A simple procedure, advocated by saints and preceptors, followed in a man's life, just adopted once, through the guidance of a spiritual leader, will ensure that he be given a place in the Lord's kingdom, to remain there forever without the fear of return to the world and getting caught in the trammel of daily routine. Called by different names, this refers to the act of "surrender", which forms the core message of the Visishtadwaita philosophy. This doctrine springs from the categorical assurance given by the Lord in His Gita to the troubled individual: "Take shelter in Me alone as the highest Divinity. I shall then deliver you from all sorts of sins and crimes, arising from the non-performance of the duties enjoined by scriptures."

What else can man expect from God when He had made it clear about His readiness to rescue anyone who seeks refuge in Him? Of course this does not mean that he can keep off from doing his ordained duties. The religious guides who are qualified to lead him to the Lord's home have explained how he should conduct himself. The man who has so surrendered, should, till the last day of his stay in the world, be engaged in doing service to God. He need not fear the arrival of the God of Death. What more, this act is available for all men and women, according to Sri Vaishnavism.

In a discourse, the Jeeyar Swami of the Ahobila Math said Azhwars and Acharyas have extolled the efficacy of this simple way to get rid of worldly problems. Some say that they will wait to resort to this, forgetting the limitations at that stage. Those who fail to take advantage will be akin to men who had amassed wealth but left it without registering a will. Thirumangai Azhwar has described how man is pulled by two factors, pride about his own merits and the claim that he can achieve anything. After portraying the prosperity of Srirangam (of his days) he refers to a stork sitting in a field waiting for a prey. A crab that knew the stork's intentions rapidly crawled and hid itself in the thick stalk of a plant. The beaks of the former (bird) can be compared to the attitude of ego and sense of vanity, which are ready to devour a man represented by the crab. How even scholars fall victims to ego can be illustrated by a well-read man boasting about his excellent credentials when a rich man offered a gift to him and a similar one to a commoner. "How can I be compared with my erudition with the other", he boasted, repeating the letters "I" and "Mine".

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