Who is the Bhagawan we worship?

This article is my humble attempt to convey the words of Acharya Viragji on this topic. – The Editor

The rational mind that comes across Vedic practices faces a fundamental question: Does God exist? If so, who is He or She or It? Faith hinges on this question.

The elements (earth, water, fire, air, space) are directly perceivable (pratyakṣa). Fire is seen; wind is felt; earth supports us; water quenches thirst. These elements, are pratyakṣa devatās (perceivable deities). So is the Sun who energizes life, and the Moon who inspires poetry.

When we see smoke, we can be certain that it is due to fire. Hence, you don’t have to perceive something directly to infer its existence! This is called anumāna (inference) and is a valid way of gaining knowledge.

Further, it does not necessarily have to be you who saw the smoke or the fire, the experience of another who is truthful, is also an equally good means of gaining knowledge. This is called āgama.

pratyakṣa, anumāna, and āgama are the three acceptable ways of gaining knowledge according to the vedic tradition.

Just as smoke is taken as proof of the fire it originated from, in the Vedic way, fire is taken to be proof of the entity or devata (deity) that exists in fire and controls it. Rishis (sages) who have had a direct experience of this force through mantras and worship wrote down the methods and the fruits of worshipping this entity. They gave it names such as Agni, Vaishvanara (when it digests food), Sapta Jihva (one with seven tongues), Havyavahana (the carrier of offerings), Jatavedas (known by (and knower of) all creatures). Further, Agni is said to be controlled by a higher entity, as, respectively, are all the other elements. The Śivapurāṇa and other texts describe Śiva’s eight cosmic forms (Aṣṭamūrti) which each govern a fundamental element or principle. Below is the traditional list of names of the form with their associated principle:

• Śarva (Earth)
• Bhava (Water)
• Rudra (Fire)
• Ugra (Wind)
• Bhīma (Space/Ether)
• Paśupati (Sacrificer/Yajamāna)
• Mahādeva (Moon)
• Īśāna (Sun)

At the highest level, Bhagawan [1] Sadashiva controls everything and their controllers, and has no controller himself.

Note that Paśupati in the above list represents the entity performing any yagya (the Yajamāna). The act of being alive, experiencing and manipulating the elements can also be considered a yagya (an act of offering). This means, the one who sits inside you and is absorbing this article is also a form of that same Sadashiva. Or in other words, he appeared in the form of the universe, and he is also the one who experiences it. Everything internal and external happens through his will.

bhūmir āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ
khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me
bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

“Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and ego—these eight together constitute my material form.”

– Bhagavad-gītā 7.4

Here we must emphasize that, when it comes to worship done to obtain material and spiritual benefit, only actions prescribed by the scripture, performed by the person who is fit to carry out those actions, can bestow the fruits stated in the scriptures.

yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya
vartate kāma-kārataḥ
na sa siddhim avāpnoti
na sukhaṁ na parāṁ gatim
tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te
kāryākārya-vyavasthitau
jñātvā śāstra-vidhānoktaṁ
karma kartum ihārhasi

“One who discards scriptural injunctions and acts according to personal fancies attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the supreme destination. Therefore, let the scriptures be your authority in determining what should be done and what should be avoided. Understanding the commandments of the scriptures, you should perform your duty here.”

– Bhagavad-gītā 16.23–24

The reader should take away two points from this:

1. if one is truly after the truth, it becomes important for them to follow a tradition of teachers after inquiring into the veracity and authenticity of their lineage. This is hard to do if you seek anything other than the truth, such as convenience, or acceptance in popular but false points of view. Also, someone’s popularity has no bearing on whether their words are true. A so-called Guru who has a huge following, may still go about teaching what comes to their mind, without the support of scripture and an unbroken lineage of teachers which are essential to obtain the fruits which are not tamasic (counter-productive).
   
2. Faith is actually the fruit of a fruitful worship. In turn, faith makes worship sweeter and sweeter. Hence, do the action that you can, attend a Puja, invite someone to do a Puja, or take the name of Bhagawan and observe what changes for you.

Questions to think on

Some questions naturally follow this article, but we leave them unanswered here and encourage the reader to think about them.

1. Why do we attribute a form to God such as Shiva and Krishna?
2. Are there demi-gods who are not that ultimate God?
3. If Shiva is also in the form of the elements of nature, and so is Krishna (according to the shloka in the Gita), then which one is true?
4. How did the Rishis know what to do so they can have the direct experience of devatas for the first time?
   

[1] The word Bhagawan means “the glorious one”. This is the name devotees use to refer to their beloved form of the Lord. Bhagawati is the feminine form.