In the Sanskrit language, the word nára has many meanings. One meaning is “water”. Another meaning is Paramá Prakrti – the Causal Matrix or Supreme Operative Cosmic Principle. The third meaning is “devotion”.

The main and inevitable aim of every sádhaka is not to enjoy the nectar of devotion by himself or herself, but to distribute it all around. Sádhakas are eager to share with others the bliss which they enjoy.

In ancient times there was one such devotee who used to go from place to place distributing the bliss of devotion. His name was Narada. Once he said to Parama Puruśa: “O Lord, all the scholars and philosophers say that You are omniscient, but people do not feel Your presence everywhere. Where, therefore, is the place where Your presence can most be felt? Or which place do You consider as dearest to You?”

The Lord replied, “It is true that I am everywhere; there is no action, no thought, no feeling, in which I am not present. All actions take place before My eyes, within My mind. Nothing [should] be done or thought which is meant to be hidden from Me. Still, I do not live in the seventh heaven as people think. Minds which are free from narrowness, limitations, and isms are the places dear to me.

“The true meaning of the word yoga is ‘to unify’. But those who do ásanas, práńáyáma, etc., without devotion are cultivating the desert. Without the water of devotion, their effort will not succeed. I am not in the hearts of such dry yogis.”

The meaning of the word bhakti is “attraction to the Supreme”. When the attraction is to something limited, it is called ásakti, and when the attraction is to the Supreme, it is devotion, bhakti. There is no compromise, no meeting point, between ásakti and bhakti, between attraction to the Supreme and attraction to the objects of the world. In ásakti, the feeling is that I get the object. In bhakti, the feeling is that I merge myself in Him. Where there is no desire, there the Lord lives. The Lord and the desire for the world, like the sun and the night, cannot coexist.

For devotees, all other enjoyments are insipid. They are like saltless food. Hence the Lord says, “Where My devotees sing My praise, do kiirtana, there I go – I cannot help going there.”

One person is scholarly, another is rich; but they may or may not be devotees. The only thing that the devotee needs is love for the Lord. When all feelings, all attachments, are directed towards Him, then it is devotion. The only qualification is a sincere heart. If your heart is pure, you need nothing else.

Nothing is gained by becoming a jiṋánii. [Jiṋána] has use only so far as devotion has not been born. When you eat tasty food, the paper on which you place this food is jiṋána. The food itself is karma, and the taste of the food is bhakti.⁽¹⁾ If you have absorbed the food and got its taste, the dirty paper of jiṋána has to be thrown in the dustbin. This alone is wisdom. Be wise!