Why the Desire to Become One with the Supreme Is Considered Material
In spiritual circles, the goal of merging into the Absolute is often regarded as the peak of enlightenment. However, Śrīla Prabhupāda offers a different perspective, identifying the desire to "become one" with the Supreme as a subtle extension of the material mentality. While it appears more advanced than gross physical indulgence, it remains rooted in the same self-centered interest that characterizes material life. This article explores why the ambition for impersonal oneness is considered a hurdle to pure devotional service and why it is ultimately categorized as materialism.
A Reaction to Material Failure
The desire for monistic liberation often stems from a sense of exhaustion. After trying and failing to dominate material nature, the frustrated living entity decides that the world is an illusion and seeks to merge into the Spirit. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that this is simply the "other side of the coin" of materialism. If one cannot be the master of the material world, they try to become the master of everything by becoming the Supreme. This reactive philosophy, known as māyāvāda, is born of disappointment rather than a positive attraction to the Lord’s person.
- When he fails to lord it over the material world, he says: "Oh, this material world is false. Now I shall become one with the Supreme." Brahma satyam jagan mithya.
- Everyone wants to elevate himself to a higher status of existence or, out of frustration, become one with the Supreme. All these desires are different types of materialism; they are not favorable for devotional service.
- Mukti refers to being disgusted with material advancement and thus desiring to become one with the Supreme.
Oneness as Spiritual Lust
True bhakti, or devotional service, is defined as being free from all other desires (anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam). This includes the desire for mukti, or liberation. Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that as long as a person wants to "become one," they are still making a demand for their own happiness or relief from suffering. Because this focus remains on the "self" rather than on the service of Kṛṣṇa, it is technically considered kāma, or lust—a desire for personal sense gratification on a refined, spiritual plane.
- As long as there is the desire to enjoy sensually or to become one with the Supreme or to possess the mystic powers, there is no question of attaining the stage of pure devotional service.
- If someone has desire for material enjoyment or for becoming one with the supreme, these are both considered material concepts.
- To try to stop desires is impossible. One has to desire the Supreme in order not to be entangled in inferior desires. Jnanis maintain a desire to become one with the Supreme, but such desire is also considered to be kama, lust.
Devotee’s Higher Taste
For those who have experienced the "ocean of devotional service," the goal of becoming one with the Supreme appears "hellish" (kaivalyaṁ narakāyate). This is because merging terminates the variety and relationship required for enjoyment. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that variety is the mother of enjoyment, and the devotee finds infinite variety in Kṛṣṇa’s company. A devotee does not want to lose their identity; they want to keep their body and senses to use them eternally in the Lord’s service.
- For the devotee of the Lord, the highest perfection of the Mayavadis, kaivalya, or becoming one with the Supreme, is considered hellish to say nothing of the karmis' aspiration to be promoted to the heavenly planets.
- Srila Rupa Gosvami says that if brahmananda, or the happiness of becoming one with the Supreme, is multiplied by one trillionfold, still it cannot be compared with an atomic fraction of the happiness derived from the ocean of devotional service.
- A devotee does not think like yogis and jnanis, who want to refuse a material body and become one with the impersonal Brahman effulgence. A devotee does not like this idea. On the contrary, he will accept any body, material or spiritual, for he wants to serve.
Conclusion
The attempt to become one with the Supreme is an "unrealizable ambition" that starts the cycle of conditional life anew. As Śrīla Prabhupāda concludes, real self-realization (brahma-bhūta) means knowing that we are eternally part and parcel of the Lord. Instead of trying to merge into the spirit whole, a sane person engages in the mahā-mantra and the service of the Personality of Godhead. In this way, they attain a state of oneness that is far superior to merging—a oneness of love, interest, and eternal association.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Becoming One with The Supreme. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.