A Devotee’s question: So I think my question is, Guru and Krishna is one, but when you're doing a roopdhyan, like which one should you pick?
Swami Nikhilanand Ji’s answer: Either or both. So, it's definitely good to always remember Guru, that with Guru's grace we're able to do this roopdhyan. So, you never want to exclude Guru from it.
But as far as, “Okay, I'm going to form this image.” You could either form the image of Radha, Krishna, or Kripaluji Maharaj, you'll get the same benefit.
A Devotee’s question: You have said that bhakti is the only means to unite yourself with the Divine soul. But for me, I have read somewhere that there are other forms of, you know, like, gyān yog or karm yog. So, the other forms of, ways to unite yourself with the divine soul.
Swami Nikhilanand Ji’s answer: Those are also infused with bhakti. So see, there's karm and there's karm yog. There's gyan and gyan yog. So, karm on its own means doing good actions, following the dharm, doing one's duty.
That on its own is rewarded with a good destiny in your next life, it doesn't result in God realization. But if the person doing all that good karma offers all their actions to God, then they've infused it with bhakti. So see, if you offer your action to God, you're remembering God. You're keeping God in your mind.
So it's really karm plus bhakti equals karm yog. The yog part means joining your mind with God. So, just karm is not enough, but karm yog means you're doing bhakti with the karm that results in God realization. Same thing with gyan, just the intellectual pursuit of understanding the theory of the scriptures and trying to understand our oneness with God. That isn't enough, we actually have to surrender our mind to God to receive His grace.
So, on one end you have a gyani who is just practicing this non-dualistic meditation, that's not enough for God realization. If the gyani does that and surrenders to God, then he becomes a gyan yogi, that results in God realization. So gyan plus bhakti equals gyān yog. So, again the bhakti is the prime ingredient. The others are secondary.
A devotee’s question: Along with the meditation, which is good for your mind, what role does being physically fit and doing meditation play a role in that one?
Swami Nikhilanand Ji’s answer: It definitely helps. Physical fitness and health help keep our mind more healthy and focused, which helps with our meditation and our devotion.
So, there's a very close relationship between the body and the mind. If we don't care for our body properly, if we don't eat sattvic food and exercise to keep our body healthy, the mind is going to be affected by that and it'll be dragged down.
A devotee’s question: So, the question I have is, other than the meditation technique that you just explained and, you know, we've been learning it for several years, we can spend like an hour in the day doing that. But then what should be our focus for the rest of the time that we have available? That will also speed up the process of purification, of the heart and mind.
Swami Nikhilanand Ji’s answer: Another simple thing is just try to remember Krishna's with you. That roopdhyan we do where we're specifically focusing on his form, you can't do that when you're engaged in worldly activities, but you can sense his presence. So just feel he's with you and try to practice that throughout the day. Like Kripalu Ji Maharaj says, when you're going somewhere then you say to yourself, okay Krishna let's go. I'm not going alone, he's coming with me. So he's sitting in the car with me or we're walking together going over here or you can say come sit in here and we're going and when you get to where you're going take him out and okay. So you keep that connection with Krishna throughout the day, that means you're thinking of him, so you're still getting more of that grace and experience.
Okay. Let's spend a few minutes doing Roopdhyan.
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