117 - Characteristics of a Devotee | Swami Tattwamayananda

Bhagavad Gita | The Essence of Vedanta

12th chapter: verse 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15
In the 8th through 11th verses of the 12th chapter, Lord Krishna describes the spiritual journey of a seeker in descending order of evolution.
8th verse: “You fix your mind and intellect on Me. There upon, you will always live in Me.”
When we identify with a higher ideal, both mentally and intellectually, we live in that ideal and that ideal lives in us. This is the highest state of devotional evolution.
For seekers who have not reached this highest state, Lord Krishna provides alternative options in the 9th-11th verses.
9th verse: “If you cannot fix your mind and intellect on Me, then you can reach the higher goal through Abhyasa-Yoga (uniting with God through repeated practice, such as Navadha Bhakti).”
10th verse: “If you are incapable of doing Abhyasa-Yoga, then do all your work as My work.”
11th verse: “If you are unable to do your work as My work, then offer the fruits of your actions to Me.”
In the 13th and 14th verse, Lord Krishna describes eleven characteristics of an ideal devotee.
He says that the devotee who is dear to Him has the following characteristics. (1) He does not have animosity or ill-feeling towards anyone (2) He is a friend of everyone (3) He is sympathetic towards everyone (4) He is free from ideas of possession (5) He looks upon happiness and unhappiness with equanimity of mind (6) He is forgiving (7) He is contented (8) He is always connected with the divine (9) He is self-controlled (10) He is strong-willed in pursuing his ideal (11) His mind and intellect are fixed on God.
When speaking about the characteristics of a devotee, Lord Krishna does not mention rituals or going to a temple. He essentially says that all genuine devotees are good human beings.
In the Vishnu Purana, there is a verse, which says: “Those who utter God’s name mechanically, but do not practice ethical and moral values, and do not do their duties – they are deluded; they are the enemies of the Lord.”
You can be a good human being without affirming your faith in God. Swami Vivekananda said: “Live life in a way that even if you do not accept God, God will accept you.”
It is important to note that if someone has these qualities that does not necessarily make him a devotee. These verses simply say that a genuine devotee will have these characteristics.
A true devotee of God is a humanist. He has an instinctive feeling that everyone is a child of God. He instinctively feels contented – he does not crave for worldly things, as he has a sense of inner fulfillment and richness.
Several mystics had to face physical suffering. They had deep contentment which gave them inner strength and strong will to withstand the suffering and obstacles.
15th verse: “A devotee is not agitated by anyone, and nobody is agitated by him. He is free from elation, envy, fear and anxiety.”
A devotee is well-established in strong faith and inner equanimity. So, the world does not agitate him – he has no reason to be excited, envious, fearful or anxious. There is no otherness for him – he sees the whole world as one spiritual family. He does not do anything to violate the Ritm of nature.
Sri Ramakrishna explains the experience of universal oneness of humanity with a metaphor. Suppose we visit someone’s home. We see that the outside gate is made of marble. As we go inside the building and ascend various floors, we find that they are all made of marble. Finally, we reach the terrace and find that the terrace is also made of marble. We get convinced that everything is made of marble only after reaching the terrace. Similarly, in spiritual life, there is an evolution from many to one.