"Compassionate, harmless, forgiving, firm in truth, faultless,
impartial, doing good to all, undisturbed by desires, self restrained,
mild, pure, not asking for anything, indifferent, temperate in eating
with controlled mind, steady in the performance of duties, seeking
refuge in me, given to meditation, careful, profound, patient, having
control over the six-fold waves (hunger, thirst, sorrow and delusion,
infirmity and death), not seeking respect from others, but respecting
others, able, friendly, tender-hearted, wise, such is a Sadhu. He who
knowing my injunctions and prohibitions in the performance of one's own
Dharma or duties of life, even gives them all up for my sake is the best
of all Sadhus. Those who seek me and nothing else, whether they know or
not what I am, are the best of My Bhaktas.
"To see, touch and worship My symbols and my votaries, to serve and
adore them, the humble recital of My glory and of My deeds, Faith in
hearing words about Me, constant meditation on Me, the offering up of
all gains to Me, even the offering up of self in a spirit of service,
the observance of the sacred days, rejoicings in the houses set apart
for Me (all good Hindus have a house or room set apart for divine
worship), initiation according to the Vedic and the Tantric System (one
who is initiated is to recite the Mantras a certain number of times,
every morning and evening and he can not take his meals without doing so
in the morning) to observe fasts, enthusiasm in founding My image for
worship, and in founding gardens, buildings and towns (in connection
with My worship) humility and silence about one's own good deeds, --
these are the indications of Bhakti.
"Sun, Fire, the Brahmana, the Cow, the Vaishnava, Akasa, Air, Water,
Earth, Atma, and all beings -- these are the eleven places of my
worship.
"I am to be worshipped in the Sun, by Vedic Mantras, in the fire by
sacrificial Ghee, in the Brahmana by hospitality, in the cows by the
offer of grass, in the Vaishnava by friendly treatment, in the Akasa of
the heart cavity by meditation, in the air by the contemplation of
Prana, in the water by offerings of libation and so forth, in the Earth
by secret Mantras, in Atma by experiencing (Bhoga) and in all beings by
equality.
"In all these places of worship I am to be meditated on as with four
hands, bearing conch, disc, club and lotus.
"He who worships Me as above and serves the Sadhus acquires Devotion.
Except by devotion that is acquired in the company of Sadhus, there is
hardly any other way of liberation. I am not so easily attainable by
Yoga, Sankhya, Dharma, the reading of Scriptures, Tapas, gifts,
charitable acts, fasts, Yajnas, the Vedas, resort to pilgrimage, Niyamas
or Yamas as by the company of Sadhus. Even those that are the lowest by
birth, those that have Rajas and Tamas predominant in them, the Daityas,
Asuras, and Rakshasas attain me easily by the company of Sadhus. The
Gopis in Vraja, the wives of the Vedic Brahmanas did not read the Vedas,
they did not observe fasts, they did not perform Tapas, but they
attained Me, through the company of Sadhus. Therefore O Uddhava care not
for Srutis or Smritis, for biddings and for forbiddings. Have recourse
to Me, the Atma of all beings, with all devotion, and thou shall have no
fear from any quarter."
(The following stages are to be marked: --
1. Study of Nature and self instruction.
2. Self discrimination, resuting in the separation of the conscious
Atma and the unconscious Non-Atma.
3. The understanding of what is bondage and liberation, and the
relation between Jiva Atma and Parama Atma (Ishvara.)
4. The liberating process during which the rules are to be observed,
sacrifices to be made, the duties of life to be performed and
active good done to all beings. During this process, the whole
nature of the man becomes one of universal compassion and
friendliness. Differences vanish. Good and bad become all alike.
The Jiva rests in his own Atma, which is the Atma of all beings, and
then all is calm and quiet.
5. The company of Sadhus.
6. Devotion acquired in that company.
7. When Devotion (Bhakti) becomes a part of one's nature then the
giving up of all rules, all karma, whether pertaining to the Srutis
or the Smritis.)