[Advaita-l] Naivedya question

[Venkata sriram P]

Namaste,
 
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Patram Pushpam phalam toyam shloka was in my mind also
 
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Yes true.  But the same sloka is followed by the word "yO mE bhaktyA". And one must sincerely introspect oneself whether it is offered with the above bhAva or not.
 
tattvAs are fine but all this vEdAntA and tarka vanish in thin air when these people don't get their monthly salaries in time, doesn't get tea/coffee in the morning, snacks & breakfasts, evening snacks :))
 
In Andhra Pradesh, there lived a great dEvi upAsaka who shed his mortal coil just 15 years ago. His name was Brahmasri Tadepalli Raghavanarayana Sastry, whom we admire as *chandavolu maharishi*.  He used to be in antarmukha avastha while performing navAvaraNa archana and used to be in commune with bAlA tripurasundari.  
 
Owing to abject poverty, for some months, the couple suffered lack of food and starved with hunger.  Even to get a single day meal was very difficult for them due to poverty.  It was the testing time for them and Devi was testing their bhakti.  Even during those hard times also, he used to offer the rice starch as naivEdya to his personal sriyantra.  The same starch, both he and his wife sridevamma garu used to consume.  
 
To add to their poverty, they got the news that Kanchi Mahaperiyaval was arriving their house to have bhiksha.  All the necessary arrangements were made for Paramacharya's stay in Chandolu village at Tenali which is in Guntur dist. of AP.  Paramacharya arrived in the afternoon after anuSTAna, accepted their bhiksha of rice starch and blessed them saying *Mother Kamakshi is satisfied today*.  Saying so, left that village.  
 
After a week, the attendants from Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam arrived their house with several quintals of rice bags and golden mangalasUtra of Kamakshi for Sastrigal's wife. After this incident, there was no poverty and lack of food in Sastrigal's house.
 
This is called bhakti.  Swerving not from one's own sAdhana even during the times of distress and agony in life is what is needed.  
 
Everybody can speak advaita but only a few abide in it and stand to the tests of Mother Nature.