Hinduism...What is the importance of Saranagati?

Question

Why do all the different thoughts of Hinduism...Vedanta, Bhakti, Tantra etc agree in common to the path of total surrender ~ Saranagati !! What is the importance of Saranagati and how is man benefited by it? your inputs please.

Answer 1

An insightful, to the point, and exceedingly important question, indeed.



- Saranagati -

It is the "Wisdom" that has been filtered out, subtly refined, and brought forth from within all of the various traditions within hinduism.

It is the essential essence contained within all of the traditions contained within Hinduism.

It is the "Unseen Truth" that has been cleverly hidden, disguised, and withheld from the masses.

Few so-called devotees have acquired the patience that is necessary to pursue 'surrender'.

~~~~~

When one surrenders the temporal self, to the Godhead, it denotes the state of "pure devotion".

Surrender will eventually allow one to transcend all of the four primary religions, and observe all religions as but one common religion.

Contrary to popular belief, that which you speak of (Saranagati), is the final stage of "Self-realization".



Surrender is necessary for one to understand 'contentment'.

"Inner peace" can only be found within 'contentment'.

If one cannot find contentment, one will never truly experience "Inner peace".

If one discovers 'contentment' everything becomes of benefit, to such a human being.

The one that surrenders totally, will be totally supported.

It is as simple as that, but human beings work endlessly trying to make it more difficult.



"A human being that has become a slave to God,

God will then have become a slave to such a human being."



There will have been created a special bonding.

A unique relationship will have developed.

A permanent and loving relationship will have become manifest.



That is the 'benefit' that awaits a human being.

That is the 'state of awareness' that would often be spoken of, especially if one were to encounter, such a one that has 'totally surrendered'.

That is the inner mystery within "Total Surrender".

~~~~~

A very wise old "Sufi" once shared such information, with his devoted students.

Information possibly filled with much "Wisdom".



Peace be always with you.

Shanti,

Answer 2

saranagati or prapatti means absolute surrender of body and soul. the ethics of warfare of olden days declares that if a man surrenders, he must not be attacked and should be protected even by giving up his own life. In ramayana vibhishana surrendered to rama and rama protected him though he was the brother of his arch enemy. of all the types of devotion to god , saranagati is the best at once the easiest. I n ramayana there are 31 surrenders described and if the asker solicits i will later post them here itself- rama declares if a man surrenders even once and says that you are alone the protector, i will protect any living being doing so and it is my unflinching vow. the sloka goes like this sakruth eva prapannaya thavasmithi cha yachate, abayam sarvaboothebyo dadam yetut vratham mama

Answer 3

THIS CAN BE UNDER STAND following CHRISTIAN faith:

It is crucially important that we understand repentance is not a work we do to earn salvation. No one can repent and come to God unless God pulls that person to Himself (John 6:44). Acts 5:31 and 11:18 indicate that repentance is something God gives—it is only possible because of His grace. No one can repent unless God grants repentance. All of salvation, including repentance and faith, is a result of God drawing us, opening our eyes, and changing our hearts. God's longsuffering leads us to repentance (2 Peter 3:9), as does His kindness (Romans 2:4).

Answer 4

Surrender to God to be free from worries &tension.He will definitely take care of you.That is the concept.

Answer 5

Keeping full confidence on him is the importance.

Answer 6

Hindus recognize three possible paths to moksha, or salvation. The first is the way of works or karma yoga. This is a very popular way of salvation and lays emphasis on the idea that liberation may be obtained by fulfilling one's familial and social duties thereby overcoming the weight of bad karma one has accrued. Most important among them are certain rituals conducted at various stages of life.



The second way of salvation is the way of knowledge or jnana yoga. The basic premise of the way of knowledge is that the cause of our bondage to the cycle of rebirths in this world is ignorance or avidya. It is this ignorance that gives rise to our bad actions which result in bad karma. Salvation is achieved through attaining a state of consciousness in which we realize our identity with Brahman. This is achieved through deep meditation, often as a part of the discipline of yoga.



The third salvation is the way of devotion or bhakti yoga. This is most important. This is the way for surrender alias saranagari. This is the way most favored by the common people of India; it satisfies the longing for a more emotional and personal approach to religion. It is self-surrender to one of the many personal gods and goddesses of Hinduism. Such devotion is expressed through acts of worship, puja, at the temple, in the home, through participation in the many festivals in honor of such gods, and through pilgrimages to one of the numerous holy sites in India. In the way of devotion, the focus is one obtaining the mercy and help of a god in finding release from the cycle of reincarnation. Some Hindus conceive of ultimate salvation as absorption into the one divine reality, with all loss of individual existence. Others conceive of it as heavenly existence in adoration of the personal God.



"Faith in God shields you against worries and helps you tackle life’s uncertainties. As per the report, those who trusted in God were found to have lower levels of worry and more tolerance of uncertainty than those who doubted God’s help."



In "Bhagwat Gita", Lord Krishna Says that if a person is devoted to God only then God rescues that person from all the miseries of life. If you have strong faith in God then God shall keep you away from all harm and shall watch over your life. He shall guard you from every evil & shall protect you always in life. Lord says:



"ye tu sarvani karmani

mayi sannyasya mat-parah

ananyenaiva yogena

mam dhyayanta upasate"



"tesam aham samuddharta

mrityu-samsara-sagarat

bhavami na cirat partha

mayy avesita-cetasam" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Twelve verse 6-7)



"Those people, who worship Me by surrendering all their activities unto Me, are always devoted to Me, always meditate upon Me, Having always fixing their minds upon Me, O Parth - to them, I swiftly rescue from the miseries of life & also from the cycle of birth and death i.e always protect that devotee."



"ananyas cintayanto mam

ye janah paryupasate

tesham nityabhiyuktanam

yoga-ksemam vahamy aham" (Bhagwat Gita: Chapter Nine verse 22)



"Sri Krishna said: But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form—to them I provide what they lack, and I protect what they have."



So let's move towards God & always worship Him. By doing this He shall take away all the sufferings & miseries from our life & shall show us the true light. In that way God shall protect us against worries & fears of life.



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Trisha

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Answer 7

Everyone accepts the statements of the Bhagavad Gita as the ultimate, because it is the essence of all the Vedas as is seen in the Gita Mahatmya.



sarvopaniṣado gāvo



dogdhā gopāla-nandanaḥ



pārtho vatsaḥ su-dhīr bhoktā



dugdhaḿ gītāmṛtaḿ mahat



"This Gītopaniṣad, Bhagavad-gītā, the essence of all the Upaniṣads, is just like a cow, and Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is famous as a cowherd boy, is milking this cow. Arjuna is just like a calf, and learned scholars and pure devotees are to drink the nectarean milk of Bhagavad-gītā." (Gītā-māhātmya 6)



ekaḿ śāstraḿ devakī-putra-gītam



eko devo devakī-putra eva



eko mantras tasya nāmāni yāni



karmāpy ekaḿ tasya devasya sevā



(Gītā-māhātmya 7)



In this present day, people are very much eager to have one scripture, one God, one religion, and one occupation. Therefore, ekaḿ śāstraḿ devakÄ«-putra-gÄ«tam: let there be one scripture only, one common scripture for the whole world — Bhagavad-gÄ«tā. Eko devo devakÄ«-putra eva: let there be one God for the whole world — ŚrÄ« KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a. Eko mantras tasya nāmāni: and one hymn, one mantra, one prayer — the chanting of His name: Hare KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a, Hare KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a, KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Karmāpy ekaḿ tasya devasya sevā: and let there be one work only — the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.



http://vedabase.net/bg/introduction/en



And in the Bhagavad Gita, the ultimate verse is the saranagati verse and thus it is of utmost important.

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is 18.66



sarva-dharmān parityajya



mām ekaḿ śaraṇaḿ vraja



ahaḿ tvāḿ sarva-pāpebhyo



mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ



SYNONYMS



sarva-dharmān — all varieties of religion; parityajya — abandoning; mām — unto Me; ekam — only; śaranÌ£am — for surrender; vraja — go; aham — I; tvām — you; sarva — all; pāpebhyahÌ£ — from sinful reactions; moksÌ£ayisÌ£yāmi — will deliver; mā — do not; śucahÌ£ — worry.



TRANSLATION



Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.



PURPORT



The Lord has described various kinds of knowledge and processes of religion — knowledge of the Supreme Brahman, knowledge of the Supersoul, knowledge of the different types of orders and statuses of social life, knowledge of the renounced order of life, knowledge of nonattachment, sense and mind control, meditation, etc. He has described in so many ways different types of religion. Now, in summarizing Bhagavad-gÄ«tā, the Lord says that Arjuna should give up all the processes that have been explained to him; he should simply surrender to KrÌ£sÌ£nÌ£a. That surrender will save him from all kinds of sinful reactions, for the Lord personally promises to protect him.

http://vedabase.net/bg/18/66/