Sadana bhakti is trying to cultivate love and devotion to God through devotional practices of worship, such as sravana, kirtana, archana, Pada sevana, atma nivedana, etc. It should lead to Sadhya bhakti, the highest form, when devotion to the Lord becomes an end in itself. But at times the motive of sadana or austere disciplines gets deflected into self seeking goals as in the case of Hiranyaksha or Ravana.
It is also possible to have the Lord’s darshan through rigorous sadana, but merely seeing God without devotional fervour is not the goal. It is how one sees God that matters. To the devout who seek Him with selflessness He reveals His true nature and rewards them with the highest goal enlightenment, pointed out Sri B. Damodhara Dikshitar in a discourse. Parikshit says he is able to experience the very God in Suka’s narration. The way Tara sees Rama is not the same as how He is perceived by Vali or Sugriva. Though grief stricken at Vali’s death, it is a moment of realisation for Tara when in her inner being she experiences the very essence of the Supreme Lord behind the human form of Rama. In her spontaneous address, Rama is the ‘Aprameya,’ one who is immeasurable in point of time, space and substance. He is the one who is difficult to approach even for yogis. He is a Jitendriya, a master over senses, is the embodiment of the highest virtues ever, enjoys undying fame, and is endowed with the extraordinary forbearance on a par with the earth. When the Lord incarnates and takes a human form, not all are able to recognise His Paratva. Bhishma and Kunti realise that Krishna is the Absolute Lord while some others disrespect and dishonour Him. Kamsa is determined to kill Krishna and Duryodhana sees Him as a mere cowherd boy and also as one who easily deceives people with magic.
