THE FOLLOWING EXCERPT IS FROM "SHARANAGATI AS DEPICTED IN THE MAHABHARATA" BY DR. S.G. PANDIT:
"In the Narayaniyopakhyana, which is narrated in the Santiparva of the Mahabharata, it is said that sage Narada had to perform great penance and devote himself thoroughly and intensely and then only through the Grace of Lord Narayana Himself that he could have the Lord’s Darsana.
Here the Supreme Lord himself states that He could be seen by an excellent devotee only with "Ananya-bhakti" (single minded devotion).
Lord Narayana is the Supreme Purusha; there is no one equal to Him or
higher than Him. He is eternal, imperishable, Nirguna as well as Saguna, Akshaya and Aprameya.
He manifests Himself in 4 Forms - Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha.
The liberated souls dwell in His Abode (Vaikuntha, ShvetaDwipa) and they possess divine, lustrous forms.
In this Upakhyna, Narayana who propounds Sattvata-Dharma, creates Rudra for conducting the destruction of the entire creation and proclaims that there is no distinction between Him and Rudra. He is identical with Rudra who has arisen from His anger.
I wish to emphasize the fact that God Narayana cannot be realized without "Ananya-Bhakti". These devotees are also called "Ekanta-bhaktas' - those who are constantly absorbed in Lord Hari.
Caturvidha mama jana bhakta evam hi te shrutam.
Tesu cekantinah shresthaste caivanya-devatah [Mahabharata, 12.328.30]
Thus the Ekanta devotees are dear to the Lord and are regarded as best among the four kinds of bhaktas.
Thus, it appears that the eternal souls living in the divine world have achieved their objective through single-minded devotion that appears to be very close to Saranagati or Dasya-Bhakti.
Lord Narayana is being worshipped by those eternal souls who are devoid of body and sense organs in His abode and the Lord, to whom devotees are very dear, delights in their company.
Nara and Narayana (two Rsis) who are the forms of the Highest Lord, tell Narada that he (Narada) could get the divine perception of the Lord directly, because Lord Narayana indeed, loves his devotees:
Nasya bhaktaih priyataro loke kashcana vidyate [Mahabharata, 12.332.3]
This Sattvata Dharma propounded by Hari is also alternatively called as PanchaRatra and it is mentioned here in this Upakhyana, that this particular doctrine has been taught in the "Hari-Gita" by the Lord Himself [Mahabharata, 12.336.49].
This reference makes it very clear that the Sattvata Dharma is equivalent to what is taught in the Gita by Hari (Lord Krishna) Himself".
Cited from
[Ananthacharya Indological Research Institute]
