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Ajata Rati Raganuga Sadhana - definition for its practices



Madhava - Fri, 14 Jun 2002 05:26:39 +0530
I was browsing through an article by Gadadhara Prana Das on the VNN entitled "Rupa Gosvami's Teachings on Raganuga Sadhana-Bhakti", and came across the following references:
In his Bhakti-sandarbha, Sri Jiva Gosvami discusses the topic of raganuga-sadhana at length, describing two different types of raganuga-bhaktas. (1) Jata-ruci --- those who have attained to the stage of relishing this form of bhajana 24 hours through continuous japa, arcana, meditation, etc... and (2) ajata-ruci --- those who have not yet attained to such a stage of attraction. Most persons will belong to this second category.

For this second class of raganuga-bhaktas Sri Jiva Gosvami recommends the following:

ajatatadrsa rucina tu sadrisesadara matradrta raganugapi vaidhi sambalitaivanustheya; tatha loka-samgrahartham pratisthena jatatadrsa rucina ca. atra misratve ca yatha yogyah raganugayaiki krtyaiva vaidhi kartavya.

"Those bhaktas who have developed some interest in the path of raganuga-bhakti- sadhana, but who do not possess such a deep hankering as the jata-ruci-raganuga-bhaktas, should combine the principles of vaidhi-bhakti with their performance of raganuga-sadhana."

In this way even the jata-ruci-bhakta, for the purpose of teaching the people in general, may perform raganuga-sadhana mixed with the principles of vaidhi-bhakti. In this regard Sri Jiva does not mean to say that a few principles of raganuga-sadhana may be added to one's performance of vaidhi-bhakti, but rather he is indicating here that raganuga-bhajana may be enhanced by following the principles of vaidhi-bhakti that are harmonious with each individual practitioner's flow of raga.

In Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu Sri Rupa also supports this version as follows:

sravanot kirtanadini vaidha-bhaktyuditani tu
yanyangani ca tanyatra vijneyani manisibhih


"In raganuga-bhakti-sadhana, the limbs of vaidhi-bhakti such as the nine processes of bhakti beginning with sravana and kirtana, accepting the shelter of a guru, performing ekadasi fasting, marking the body with Visnu tilaka, etc. are also to be accepted."
Unfortunately I couldn't locate the first quote in full from Jiva's Bhakti Sandarbha -- I only found the first line of it.

Since the external appearance of raganuga-sadhana and vaidhi-sadhana is basically the same (inasmuch as we take it to encompass the 64 limbs of bhakti in BRS), what are the principles of vaidhi-bhakti which are to be incorporated into raganuga-sadhana during the stage of ajata-rati, which would otherwise not be there or are to be renounced upon arriving to the stage of jata-rati?