अपि चेत्सुदुराचारो भजते मामनन्यभाक् |
साधुरेव स मन्तव्य: सम्यग्व्यवसितो हि स: || 30||
api chet su-durāchāro bhajate mām ananya-bhāk
sādhur eva sa mantavyaḥ samyag vyavasito hi saḥ
api—even; chet—if; su-durāchāraḥ—the vilest sinners; bhajate—worship; mām—Me; ananya-bhāk—exclusive devotion; sādhuḥ—righteous; eva—certainly; saḥ—that person; mantavyaḥ—is to be considered; samyak—properly; vyavasitaḥ—resolve; hi—certainly; saḥ—that person
Translation:
Even the most sinful man, if he worships Me with unswerving devotion, must be regarded as righteous; for he has formed the right resolution.
Commentary:
Though the most wicked of men, if he takes refuge in the Lord with faith and devotion, striving to give up his wickedness, he should be regarded as a righteous and holy person. The Lord uses the superlative term (sudurucharah) to indicate the worst forms of sin and evil. Even such a person should be known as holy by virtue of his absolute self-surrender to the Lord. The reason is that he has come to the right decision that Paramatma is the only Reality and he has obtained a glimpse of this ultimate truth. He has realised the illusory nature of the world, and so he has taken final refuge in the only Reality-Paramatma. His decision is right and his salvation is then assured by the Lord.
He is ceaselessly contemplating the Lord and does not touch anything other than Atma. The evil pertaining to such a person is burnt up in the flame of knowledge. A heap of straw lying for several years be reduced to ashes by fire. So the accumulated evil of past births is destroyed by the fire of knowledge. The darkness existing in a remote mountain-cave for thousands of years is destroyed immediately when a match is lighted. So the evil in man however ancient it might be is destroyed by the flash of knowledge. The asadhu becomes a sadhu, the demon becomes a God. What brings about this wonderful transformation? Pure devotion and the right knowledge.
Therefore, let no sinner be disheartened that the weight of sin is too much for him to bear. Let him decide right. Let him take refuge in the Lord, with faith and devotion. He is freed from all sin. He is then a righteous man (sadhu). Instead of condemning people as sinners, it is necessary to rouse the divinity in them and this is the greatest act of goodness which the realised man can do for humanity.
The point to remember is that nothing good can come out of dull contemplation of one’s own weaknesses, past and present. He should act positively and try to understand d what is true and what is false. He should surrender himself to God, and that very moment he transcends all evil.
Whatever evil clings to man in the state of ignorance, that is cleared off by right decision, and determination.
The path of God is the right path. The path of the world (drisya) is the wrong path.
The word ‘sadhu‘ refers to the righteous man who is leading a truly spiritual life.
Disciple: “What about those who think I have seen the Master or I have seen the Holy Mother, I need not undergo any spiritual practice’?”
Swami Turiyananda: “How can I say anything about them? They best know their affairs.”
Another Disciple: “Perhaps he means that there are some who believe that since the Holy Mother has taken their entire responsibility, they need not make any effort themselves. They say that since she is holding them by the hand, they can do whatever they like with the other hand their salvation is assured.”
Swami Turiyananda: “He who truly has this faith, has already reached the goal. But is it easy to have that faith? One must beware of self-delusion. Those who have absolute trust in God will be at once purified through His grace, though they might have committed heinous sins before. Just apply a little spark of fire to a mountain-high heap of cotton. The whole mass will be consumed in no time. If you bring light into a room which has been dark for a thousand years, will the darkness go gradually or all at once? The Lord says in the Gitâ, Even if a very wicked man worships Me, with devotion to none else, he should be regarded as good, for he has rightly resolved. Soon he becomes righteous, and attains to eternal peace.. O son of Kunti, boldly canst thou proclaim that My devotee is never destroyed. Even if the greatest villain resigns himself entirely to Him, he must be considered a devotee. And ‘soon he becomes righteous’. Through His grace he no longer remains a villain but becomes a pious man. An expert dancer never takes a wrong step. No sin can possibly be committed by him who surrenders himself to God, although he might have committed many misdeeds before. There was no sin which Girish Babu did not indulge in. He once said to us, I have drunk so much wine in my life that if the wine-bottles were placed one upon another, they would stand as high as Mount Everest.’ He was a poet, so he spoke thus poetically. Really he drank much. When he was asked by the Master to repeat the name of God morning and evening he refused to do so. He said, ‘I am not sure I can do it. I do not know in what condition or where I may be at those hours.’ Then Shri Ramakrishna asked him to remember God before meal-time. That also I cannot promise you,’ replied Girish Babu, ‘I am often engrossed in law-suits and have to attend to all sorts of things. I cannot do even that. At that Shri Ramakrishna said, “Then give me the “power of attorney” Referring to this, Girish Babu afterwards said to us, ‘I readily agreed to give him the “power of attorney”, but later on I have realized what a difficult task it is to give the “power of attorney”. I had said that I would not be able to repeat the name of God even once in the evening, but afterwards I found that I could not do the least bit of work without remembering Him every moment.’ In one day Girish Bâbu gave up his fifteen years’ habit of taking opium. He said that the first three days he had to suffer much, his whole body became inert. On the fourth day he was all right. Later in life he did not even smoke.” (Source: Spiritual Talks by the First Disciples of Sri Ramakrishna)
Question: How can the wicked man become a sadhu?
Answer: By single-minded devotion to God.
Question: What is the right decision?
Answer: To have faith in the Lord as the only Reality is the correct decision.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 9 🔻 (34 Verses)
