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Re: demigod worship

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Sriram Ranganathan • August 25, 2000 


Dear Bhagavathas,

>From my personal experience, I would like to add a little to the topic.

The key to gaining a better and quicker understanding of Sri Vaishnavism is
directly proportional to the  'trust factor'. However difficult or illogical
it may appear, we have to give the 'benefit of doubt' to the teachings of
our Acharyas, up-front. And then it all makes sense, one after the other,
within a couple of months or years. You would be surprised as to why it took
you so long to understand such a simple concept.

For the logically bent, here is a simple rule of thumb, every time you
*think of* or *come across* other deities.

Ask yourself the following:

"What form or incarnation or power or compassion of Sriman Narayana does
this deity reflect? Do I not see this 'guna' or 'attribute' directly in
Sriman Narayana? Is there a reference somewhere in our epics or purAnAs that
talk about this attribute and its association with Sriman Narayana, that I
see in this deity? What am I missing here? Is there a better alternative
available in Sriman Narayana's incarnations?"

And then promptly do the follow-up. Try and get the answers.

If you do this self-introspection a handful of times, the thought process
will automatically guide you to our Perumal. From then on, you would not
even have time to think about other deities, unless you run into one
head-on.

And by the way, there is no question of 'tolerance factor' at that stage  -
for, you are way beyond that.

As always, I would be glad to hear your opinions.

Thanks,
Sriram



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