All glories to Śrī Śrī Guru-Gaurāṅga
By Śrī Śrīla Shyām Dās Bābā Mahārāja
In Jaiva-dharma Śrīla Saccidānanda Bhaktivinod Thakur has repeatedly identified the ahaṅkāra as the root cause of all material bondage. It is only when the jīva forgets his eternal identity as kṛṣṇa-dāsa then he has to accept a false identity given by Māyā Devī. From this false “I & My” conception, the sense of “mine” (mamatā) arises, and in this way one starts to think that everything in this material world is for my sensual enjoyment. ‘I am the doer’, ‘I am the enjoyer’—this is called Māyā. Under the spell of Māyā, the jīva forgets his true identity as an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa and so always tries to imitate the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa—who is the sole enjoyer.
When the jīva turns away from the Lord, then ahaṅkāra overpowers the citta and in this way the natural tendency to serve Bhagavān becomes covered up and the jīva starts to think in terms of “Me” and “mine.”
ahańkāre matta hoiyā, nitāi-pada pāsariyā
asatyere satya kori māni
nitāiyer koruṇā habe, braje rādhā-kṛṣṇa pābe
dharo nitāi-caraṇa du’khāni
(Kīrtana by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura — Nitāi Pada Kamala)
“Being maddened by the false prestige and identification with the body, one is thinking, oh, who is Nityānanda? What can He do for me? I don’t care. The result is that he is accepting something false to be truth. If you actually want to realise the divine mutual relationship of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, then you must first achieve the mercy of Lord Nityānanda. When He is merciful toward you, then you will be able to approach the level of highly sensitive Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa līlā-vilāsa. Therefore you should firmly grasp the lotus feet of Lord Nityānanda.”
Maya Devi has two very powerful forces which are the main factors for the bonded jiva’s illusion—
First of all the jīvas are covered up by the material energy which is called — āvaraṇātmikā-māyā, and secondly, the jī- vas are thrown out of their centre which is called vikṣepātmikā-māyā.
In this way the forgetfulness of the bonded jīvas is caused by āvaraṇātmikā-māyā, the covering potency of Bhagavan which is called material nature, which covers the soul’s eternal identity — Kṛṣṇa-dāsa. When this covering covers the citta, the jīva can no longer remember that she is an eternal servant of the Lord and, instead of that, accepts the temporary body and mind as the self. And when the original constitutional identity of the jīva is covered up by ignorance, then māyā manifests her second most powerful potency, which is called vikṣepātmikā-māyā — the power of
distraction. By this energy the conditioned soul is forcibly driven towards the external world, always searching for happiness outside.
In this bewildered condition the jīva wanders restlessly throughout the material world, seeking satisfaction whereas it can never truly be found. This condition is similar to that of a deer who is charmed by the sweet fragrance of musk and runs here and there in the forest, always trying to find out the original source. The deer cannot realize that the fragrance for which it is running after – is coming from its own body.
According to Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava siddhanta, the antaḥkaraṇa is composed of citta, buddhi, manas, and ahaṅkāra. These four functions are under the supervision of various presiding deities within this Bhagavān’s cosmic arrangement. The citta, which stores impressions and remembrance, remains under the shelter of Viṣṇu (Acyuta). The buddhi, the faculty of discrimination and determination, operates under the influence of Brahmā. The manas, which accepts or rejects sense impressions, is regulated by Candra — the moon-god. Ahaṅkāra, the principle of false ego by which the jīva identifies himself as the doer and enjoyer, is administered under Śiva–tattva.
All these devatās act solely as empowered servants of Bhagavān. When the jīva turns away from Kṛṣṇa, these internal faculties become instruments for bondage under the influence of Māyā. It is only when they are again purified through the power of bhakti and used for the absolute service of the Supreme Lord, then the same citta, buddhi, manas, and ahaṅkāra become purified and restored to their respective functions properly and can be used in devotional service.
Under the influence of ahaṅkāra, which is under the jurisdiction of Śivājī Bhagavān, who presides over this principle, especially in its tāmas aspect. The jīva repeatedly thinks, “I can enjoy this world.” Lord Śiva is the administrator over that ahankara tattva by which the soul is allowed to experience the consequences of his desire to enjoy separately from Kṛṣṇa.
Śiva alone can come in contact with prakṛti without being affected (bound) by prakṛti. As the pṛthag-bhāva-tattva (a separate distinct tattva — neither jīva-tattva nor Viṣṇu-tattva) he comes in contact with material nature, yet remains untouched, but the jīvas who are trying to imitate his Supreme position will become totally entangled by Maya.
In this way prakṛta ahaṅkāra is the root cause of the obstacle on the path of pure devotion, covering the jīva’s eternal identity and forcibly diverting him outward through āvaraṇātmikā and vikṣepātmikā-māyā. Under the administration of Śivājī Bhagavān the false ego allows the soul to experience the consequences of his desire to enjoy independently like Kṛṣṇa. It is Lord Śiva alone who can associate with prakṛti without being bound by it. All those conditioned jīvas who attempt to imitate Lord Shiva, they just become helplessly entangled in Māyā by imitating Lord Śiva. It is only by taking shelter at the lotus feet of Śrī Nityānanda-Balaram and Lord Śiva that this chain of ahaṅkāra can be cut into pieces so that ultimately the soul can come back to her natural position as the humble servant of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Unless our ahaṅkāra or vanity undergoes radical transformation, it is not possible for us to truly engage in the service of Sri Kṛṣṇa. Any service mood cultivated on the basis of one’s false ego is bound to be mundane. Until we transcend this barrier of illusion, we cannot cultivate service of the Supreme Soul (Paramātmā).
naitat samācarej jātu
manasāpi hy anīśvaraḥ
vinaśyaty ācaran mauḍhyād
yathārudro ’bdhi-jaṁ viṣam
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.33.30)
“One who is not a great controller should never imitate the behavior of ruling personalities, even mentally. If out of foolishness an ordinary person does imitate such behavior, he will simply destroy himself, just as a person who is not Rudra would destroy himself if he tried to drink an ocean of poison.”
Gaura Hari Hari Bol