In plain words
Even through these, Prema is not gained. The reason is that in these rites some selfishness and self-interest, more or less, lie mixed in. So this Prema is not to be won by yajña, or by yāga, or by dhyāna, or by yoga. This Prema becomes possible only for the feeling that offers everything.
Ahaṅkāra, ostentation, selfishness and self-interest all come together and take the form of the disease of worldly existence
That is precisely why Kṛṣṇa said, ‘Sarvādharmān parityajya’. Jesus too said I am the path, so as to give this same meaning. The Buddha too said ‘Dharmaṃ śaraṇaṃ gacchāmi’, so as to give this same meaning. That is, the essence of every religion, the root of every scripture, the goal of every dharma is the feeling that offers everything! The gopīs were the ones who made such an offering of themselves. But then you may doubt, ‘Is the feeling that offers everything possible in this world of Prakṛti?’ In this world it is not possible to be without some selfishness, self-interest, Ahaṅkāra or ostentation, at least to some extent. But there is a limit to this too. ‘Na śreyo niyamaṃ vinā’: some discipline has to be kept. The heat in our body stays within a limit. This heat stays at 98.4°F or 98.6°F. That is health. But by the time it reaches 99°F, illness sets in. In just the same way, man may have selfishness. But selfishness only up to its proper limit? If it goes beyond the limit, it takes the form of a disease. Ahaṅkāra is a disease, ostentation is a disease, selfishness is a disease, self-interest is a disease. That is precisely why they put all these together and called it ‘bhavaroga’. That is to say, all these are the diseases that spread over us in the world! But then, even though God is in all, if the feeling for the good of all is not in the devotee, this is not a meaningful principle of Prema. One may believe that God is in oneself, but this belief is not the right belief.