We are told time and again, that once we surrender to Lord Narayana, moksha is assured. But even after we surrender, we are troubled by doubts. That is because we lack jnana. If we keep in mind the fact that He is glad to grant us moksha, then we will have no doubts. In order to dispel doubts, we must read sacred literature. We must study the words of sages and of our Acharyas, said M.K. Srinivasan, in a discourse. Sage Parasara says that jnana is bright like a precious gem. Sometimes the lustre of a gem is hidden by the dirt that has accumulated on the gem. If this dirt is removed, then the lustre is restored. Likewise, ignorance obscures jnana. If this ignorance is removed, then one sees the path to His feet clearly.
The following are also characteristic traits of the Lord: His mercy, His grace, His proximity to us; His relationship to us; His immeasurable Nitya Vibhuti and Leela Vibhuti; His tasks of creating, protecting and destroying; His Consort is always with Him. In his Adaikalapathu, Vedanta Desika gives in ten verses, the essence of the concept of surrender. He says that he has reached the feet of the Lord just as an arrow reaches its target.
Here Desika’s words are similar to the words of the Mundaka Upanishad, which says that the atma is like an arrow, the Pranava Mantra is like the bow, and the Supreme One is the target. Just as an arrow shot from a bow reaches its target, so does a person reach Him, if he submits his atma to Him, using the Pranava Mantra.
Visishtadvaita teaches that He is the goal, and also the means to the goal. Without His blessing, we cannot attain Him. And we should seek no other goal except being at His lotus feet.
