Page 165 - Wisdom Unfurled

inanimate. He is against stagnation of any kind anywhere in the journey as He would say, ‘on and on is the voice of experience’. Nothing short of, ‘Nothingness’ as has been expressed by Revered. KC Narayana shall be the goal which should be like the pole star for those navigating the unchartered Ocean of the Infinite.
Grades of Devotion
We have already seen that the Master has laid great stress on devotion when the topic prayer has been discussed. The Master says in fact that devotion turns the otherwise dry abhyas (sadhana or practice) into a luscious all- absorbing engagement. Devotion is the characteristic of the 3rd knot and its finer reflections are imperienced in the higher and subtler regions coming thereafter. The fire element is rightly associated with devotion; fire has been always associated with purification and high aspiration. We talk of the upward directed ascending flame of aspiration which is quite different from desire and ambition. Aspiration is always towards upward evolution, bettering oneself, emulating the noble examples of the great elders who have walked and are walking the path towards the Supreme. Aspiration promotes will and determination to achieve the supreme aim of life at all costs. In our practice the diversion of the current towards ‘U’ by the trainer enables the abhyasi develop and sustain aspiration. The Master says that the fire of love and devotion alone burns down trivial trash and wins the gold from the dross.
He gives three different grades of the burning love the lowest in order being of the nature of suppressed fire smouldering and giving out thick smoke, the second has occasional sparks in it while the last one gives the bright burning flame capable of reducing everything to ashes in a moment’s time. The first two states are subject to their exposure to the combustible matter in the air. When the solidity which hampers combustion is removed by the effect of inner heating the final action starts with full force. The solidity refers to the obstructing matter present in the various kosas, especially the three lower ones. As relating to devotion our attachment to gross forms of worship, ideas and notions about God and His various manifestations, attachments to various acharyas of the past and their interpretations regarding nature of Reality, the ways of worship and pleasing it, addiction to repetitive and mechanical ways such as namasmarana through verbal japa and some rituals like sandhya vandana, yagas yajnas and so on constitute some of the more common obstacles which prevent our attaining to the state of steady and unshakeable faith in the Master and His method and developing single pointed orientation to the Master.
The Master refers to the electric fire which bypasses the first two stages and appears only in the final state free from smoke and vapour as the form of