You must focus solely on Roopdhyan - the loving remembrance of the divine form of God. Form His image in your mind just as naturally as you think of your wife, husband, son, or other dear ones. There are no rigid rules or restrictions in meditating on the form of God – choose any form you like, any name you want. Dress and decorate Him as you wish – do everything according to your heart's desire. There is no need to study the scriptures or the Vedas for this.
You can practice Roopdhyan in two ways -
- By closing your eyes and visualizing Him seated within or
- By forming a mental image of Him standing before you.
Everything is to be done by the mind – no physical idol is required. Shri Maharaj Ji does not advocate idol worship. Among the eight types of idols described in the scriptures, one is 'manomayi,' the idol is made by the mind. This idol requires no financial expense. You can mentally adorn the Lord with a beautiful necklace of Kohinoor diamonds. There is no need to purchase the various items typically used in the worship of a physical idol. Just create everything in your mind. A physical idol can be used initially as a support to help establish a form in the mind.
Now pay close attention to this important point: If, while doing Roopdhyan, your mind wanders towards your son, wife, husband, father, or anyone else, do not get angry. This is natural in the beginning - do not be afraid of it. Wherever your mind goes, place Shyamsundar there. Eventually, your mind will grow weary of wandering and settle down. Then you will be able to do Roopdhyan effortlessly. With consistent practice, everything can be achieved. In the world, people begin drinking tea, alcohol, or smoking cigarettes out of mere interest. But after a few days, these things, though inert, start to dominate the mind. In contrast, God is the very ocean of bliss. If we continuously pursue Him, He will never leave our mind. Do not lose heart thinking, "Oh! It has been half an hour, and I could do Roopdhyan only twice.” If it happened twice today, it will happen three times tomorrow, then four times - just keep practicing.
When you were born, you did not start running immediately. At that time, you did not even know how to turn over. Then came sitting, standing, walking - all of which involved falling thousands of times. It took tremendous effort. Everyone must go through this, even the son of Indra. But eventually, you began to run in races. That ability came only after immense practice. You have accomplished everything in this world through practice. Nothing is achieved without practice.
This is the very medicine God gave to Arjun when he said,
caṁcalaṁ hi manaḥ kr̥ṣṇa - The mind is very restless.
asaṁśayaṁ mahābāho mano durnigrahaṁ calam। abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gr̥hyate।
Shri Krishna responded, "You are absolutely right. The mind is indeed restless. But through practice and detachment, countless saints have controlled their minds."
They, too, were like you at first. But they made a firm resolve and committed themselves to practice. In the same way, you must practice Roopdhyan.
Create any form you like - a child, a youth, or even a thousand-year-old elder form of Shri Krishna, as per your choice.
tvaṁ strī, tvaṁ pumān tvaṁ jīrṇo daṇḍena vañcasi
God says, "I become everything. I take on whatever form you desire. I have no objection."
Such is God's compassion for human beings - He has placed no restrictions. Sit and meditate anywhere. There are no rules of time or place. It does not matter if you haven’t bathed. Bathing is for the body, not for the remembrance of God.
yaḥ smareta puṇḍarīkāṃkṣaṃ - Whoever remembers Shri Krishna, sa bāhyabhyaṃtara: śuci: - becomes purified both outwardly and inwardly, simply through remembrance.
On the path of Jnana and Karma, there are many, many rules. But in Bhakti there are none – ‘na deśa niyamastatra na kāla niyamastathā’. There is no restriction regarding place, that you must sit here or there, or that a certain place is impure. When God is present everywhere, what place can truly be impure? Prabhu vyāpaka sarvatra samānā – God is all-pervading and present everywhere in the same manner. Are the deities in temples somehow greater? The same God residing in the temple is also present in dirty places - there are no two separate Gods. Realize this truth. You have limited God in your mind to such an extent that you believe only the idol in the temple is God. But that idol is placed there merely to give you a reference point - to help you remember Him. In reality, God is equally present everywhere.
Do not think that the deity in a particular temple has some special power. The only uniqueness of the abodes of God is that He performed His pastimes there. Contemplating on that gladdens the mind and helps in meditation. Beyond that, there is no other difference.
We receive the fruits of the divine form we meditate on. So, Roopdhyan is very easy. Chant any name you like. Mother Yashoda never addressed Krishna by that name. She called Krishna 'Kanuā' and Balaram as 'Baluā'. But God ran behind her because her internal remembrance was done right. God doesn't look at external actions; He sees inner feelings. So Roopdhyan is very simple.
Recommended books by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj related to this topic:
Practise Powerful Meditation - English
You must focus solely on Roopdhyan - the loving remembrance of the divine form of God. Form His image in your mind just as naturally as you think of your wife, husband, son, or other dear ones. There are no rigid rules or restrictions in meditating on the form of God – choose any form you like, any name you want. Dress and decorate Him as you wish – do everything according to your heart's desire. There is no need to study the scriptures or the Vedas for this.
You can practice Roopdhyan in two ways -
Everything is to be done by the mind – no physical idol is required. Shri Maharaj Ji does not advocate idol worship. Among the eight types of idols described in the scriptures, one is 'manomayi,' the idol is made by the mind. This idol requires no financial expense. You can mentally adorn the Lord with a beautiful necklace of Kohinoor diamonds. There is no need to purchase the various items typically used in the worship of a physical idol. Just create everything in your mind. A physical idol can be used initially as a support to help establish a form in the mind.
Now pay close attention to this important point: If, while doing Roopdhyan, your mind wanders towards your son, wife, husband, father, or anyone else, do not get angry. This is natural in the beginning - do not be afraid of it. Wherever your mind goes, place Shyamsundar there. Eventually, your mind will grow weary of wandering and settle down. Then you will be able to do Roopdhyan effortlessly. With consistent practice, everything can be achieved. In the world, people begin drinking tea, alcohol, or smoking cigarettes out of mere interest. But after a few days, these things, though inert, start to dominate the mind. In contrast, God is the very ocean of bliss. If we continuously pursue Him, He will never leave our mind. Do not lose heart thinking, "Oh! It has been half an hour, and I could do Roopdhyan only twice.” If it happened twice today, it will happen three times tomorrow, then four times - just keep practicing.
When you were born, you did not start running immediately. At that time, you did not even know how to turn over. Then came sitting, standing, walking - all of which involved falling thousands of times. It took tremendous effort. Everyone must go through this, even the son of Indra. But eventually, you began to run in races. That ability came only after immense practice. You have accomplished everything in this world through practice. Nothing is achieved without practice.
This is the very medicine God gave to Arjun when he said,
caṁcalaṁ hi manaḥ kr̥ṣṇa - The mind is very restless.
asaṁśayaṁ mahābāho mano durnigrahaṁ calam। abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gr̥hyate।
Shri Krishna responded, "You are absolutely right. The mind is indeed restless. But through practice and detachment, countless saints have controlled their minds."
They, too, were like you at first. But they made a firm resolve and committed themselves to practice. In the same way, you must practice Roopdhyan.
Create any form you like - a child, a youth, or even a thousand-year-old elder form of Shri Krishna, as per your choice.
tvaṁ strī, tvaṁ pumān tvaṁ jīrṇo daṇḍena vañcasi
God says, "I become everything. I take on whatever form you desire. I have no objection."
Such is God's compassion for human beings - He has placed no restrictions. Sit and meditate anywhere. There are no rules of time or place. It does not matter if you haven’t bathed. Bathing is for the body, not for the remembrance of God.
yaḥ smareta puṇḍarīkāṃkṣaṃ - Whoever remembers Shri Krishna, sa bāhyabhyaṃtara: śuci: - becomes purified both outwardly and inwardly, simply through remembrance.
On the path of Jnana and Karma, there are many, many rules. But in Bhakti there are none – ‘na deśa niyamastatra na kāla niyamastathā’. There is no restriction regarding place, that you must sit here or there, or that a certain place is impure. When God is present everywhere, what place can truly be impure? Prabhu vyāpaka sarvatra samānā – God is all-pervading and present everywhere in the same manner. Are the deities in temples somehow greater? The same God residing in the temple is also present in dirty places - there are no two separate Gods. Realize this truth. You have limited God in your mind to such an extent that you believe only the idol in the temple is God. But that idol is placed there merely to give you a reference point - to help you remember Him. In reality, God is equally present everywhere.
Do not think that the deity in a particular temple has some special power. The only uniqueness of the abodes of God is that He performed His pastimes there. Contemplating on that gladdens the mind and helps in meditation. Beyond that, there is no other difference.
We receive the fruits of the divine form we meditate on. So, Roopdhyan is very easy. Chant any name you like. Mother Yashoda never addressed Krishna by that name. She called Krishna 'Kanuā' and Balaram as 'Baluā'. But God ran behind her because her internal remembrance was done right. God doesn't look at external actions; He sees inner feelings. So Roopdhyan is very simple.
Recommended books by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj related to this topic:
Practise Powerful Meditation - English
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