Obstacles Bhakti - Kunjeshwari Home

Obstacles in Bhakti
“Such a devotee considers his kith and kin like a dark and dangerous well,
his home like a bed of thorns, food appears as poison to him, even when
good people praise him it stings like a venomous snake-bite, and he executes
his daily duties like he is arranging his own obituary and he finds his own
body a great burden. When his well-wishers console him he thinks it is a
shower of poison and his waking hours like an ocean of lamentation and
sleep as something that destroys his life. He thinks Sri Bhagavân has turned
away (not merciful) from him - otherwise how come he is still alive?
Whatever he used to like earlier – now he finds them extremely troublesome
and he finds thoughts of Sri Bhagavân killing.”
Then please understand how a devotee feels meek and submissive in the
exalted stage. How much he burns inside! At this time if someone tells him –
“Sir, do you know, you have reached prem?” then the devotee will feel as if a
snake has bitten him. He will not feel happy at all, in stead he will get mad at
that person. There is no way you can make him believe that he has attained
prem. What to speak of the sâdhak, Sriman-Mahâprabhu is Swayam
Bhagavân; He is the intense prem personified – yet just see how humble He
is!
“nâhi krishna-prem dhan,
Daridra mor jeebon,
Dehendriya brithâ mor sob.”
Meaning - "I don’t have the precious wealth called Sri Krishna-prem and my
body and senses are all worthless.”– (C.C.)
Therefore the one who is making a fore way in bhakti – humility and pleading
are his main symptoms. Even then, if we carefully study ourselves we too
can realize whether we are progressing or not.
We can roughly divide these symptoms (that show our progress in bhakti) in
two categories –
1. internal symptoms
2. external symptoms
Let us study them in detail –
Internal symptoms of progress in bhakti
1. Eagerness in bhajan – The more we advance in bhakti the more we will
be eager for bhajan. We will not feel satisfied with the number of rounds
we used to chant earlier and we will try very hard to increase the number.
Also we will spend more time on meditation.
2. Dissatisfied with bhajan – The more we progress in bhajan the more
we feel “I am nowhere”.
3. Anxiety – When we go forward in bhajan we feel more and more
anxious. We think – “Oh really! Time is flowing – when will I get His
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