Alike am I to all beings; hated or beloved there is none to
Me. But those who worship Me with devotion, they are in Me and I am in them. (Bhagavad
Gita Chapter 9 Verse 29)
The Lord says that He is alike to all beings. He neither
hates nor loves anyone in the sense that we human beings love and hate. Still
there is a difference in His relationship to men. Some men live in Him and He
in them.
We cannot say that fire is partial, that it hates one person and loves another. Still to some it does great harm and to others great good. It gives heat to those who draw near. And so God’s love is felt by those who draw near to Him. The heat of the fire is for all and so is God’s love for all who desire it.
We cannot say that fire is partial, that it hates one person and loves another. Still to some it does great harm and to others great good. It gives heat to those who draw near. And so God’s love is felt by those who draw near to Him. The heat of the fire is for all and so is God’s love for all who desire it.
God’s grace falls upon all, but not all open their hearts to
let His grace shine there. The wind
blows for all alike, but only those who unfurl the sails of their boats will
speed on their way. The others will lag behind; the wind will not benefit them.
Sun and rain are alike for all, but only the field that is worked and prepared will be benefited by the rain and the sunshine. God’s grace works in the heart of the bhakta, but not owing to any attachment on His part, but because the bhakta has prepared his heart to receive and to be benefited by that grace.
Sun and rain are alike for all, but only the field that is worked and prepared will be benefited by the rain and the sunshine. God’s grace works in the heart of the bhakta, but not owing to any attachment on His part, but because the bhakta has prepared his heart to receive and to be benefited by that grace.
The sun is reflected in the clear mirror, but not in the
mirror that is covered with dust. So the divine Light of God shines in the
heart of only those who have cleansed their minds of all the dirt of ignorance
through the practice of devotion, the minds of the bhaktas rendered fit to
reflect God’s light. So the Lord dwells in those clean hearts as a matter of course.
The difference is in us, not in God, just as the difference
is in the mirror and not in the sun. The just and the good know how to receive
the sunlight and the rain of grace, but the evil and the unjust close their hearts
to God’s influence. It is our own fault. How can God be partial? Has he not
created us all? Are we not all, every one of us, His manifestation? What does
He care for our good or evil deeds? A mother loves even her sinful son. And
should God be less than His creatures? No, the difference is in us. We put up barriers
that prevent the light from shining through.
Love, devotion to the Lord, removes all obstacles.
Source – Reflections on the Bhagavadgita Swami Atulananda