What is the value of mantra dikcha?

Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj teaches that you must purify your mind by doing roop dhyan (loving remembrance) of Radha Krishn. Whether you use a mantra to help you in your remembrance, or you just chant a name of God, or you listen to kirtan to help with your remembrance, the only thing that matters is that you remember Radha Krishn. So he does not give any importance to the use of mantra, and he himself does not give any mantra. He simply teaches how to do remembrance (roop dhyan).

Just because you have taken a mantra from another Guru does not mean that you are bound to keep following that for your whole life. If there is something else which is going to give you more benefit, then you can change your spiritual practice and no one is going to punish you. Some people feel a kind of psychological bondage that because they have taken mantra from someone, they cannot try anything else for their whole life. This is not correct. In fact, this is one reason that mantra dikcha is so popular, because it creates a kind of psychological bondage.

Study the teachings of Kripaluji Maharaj and understand more deeply what the path of bhakti is, what a true Guru is, and how a Guru Graces his devotees. I would recommend reading any of his books, which can be ordered online at http://shop.JKP.org. Also, his speeches come on TV Asia here in America every morning. If you are in India, the speeches are aired every day on Sahara Samay Channel (6.30 AM), Sadhana Channel (7.10 AM) and Aastha Channel (6.20 PM).

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.  

Relationship of soul to soul and soul to God

The relationship between souls is that we are all brothers and sisters in the true sense because we all have the same Divine mother and father (Radha Krishn). However, the attachment of our mind should only be for Radha and Krishn because that will result in attaining Them and going beyond maya. If we attach our mind to any of our brothers and sisters who are bound by maya, that will increase our material bondage and result in rebirth.

Like all the waves on the ocean are related eternally to the ocean. They originate from the ocean, are established in the ocean and return to the ocean. The individual waves may meet up with each other (like the individual souls on this earth), but that meeting is only temporary. The relation of the wave to the ocean is permanent (like the relation of the souls to God).

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.  

Vishnu, Shiv, and Durga - The 3 forms of Almighty God

Response to a question: In one of your lectures, you have said that there are 3 main forms of the Almighty - Vishnu, Shiva, and Durga. Isn't the third main form of the Almighty Brahma? I thought Durga was a part of Shivji. Can you kindly clarify my confusion?

This is a very good question and a common misconception. Brahma is actually a celestial god (note that it is written with a small or lower case 'g'). He is a devta, not bhagwan. Devtas or celestial gods are under maya, which means their abode is temporary and is destroyed when the universe is dissolved. Supreme God (big or upper case 'G') or Bhagwan's abode is beyond maya, Divine and eternal, so it is not affected by the dissolution of the universe. If somone worships a celestial god (like Brahma, Indra, Vayu, Agni, Varun, Kuber, etc.), they go to the abode of that celestial god. But they don't stay forever. They return to this world and take birth again. If someone worships any form of supreme God (like Krishn, Ram, Vishnu, Shiv, Durga, Ganesh, Kartikeya, Kali, Gauri, Amba, Lakchmi, Saraswati, Parvati, Hanuman, etc.) then they go to the supreme Divine abode of God which is beyond maya and they stay there forever, never to be reborn in this world under the bondage of maya.

To address your questions directly, yes Shiv and Durga (or Parvati) are one. Durga is shakti and Shiv is shaktiman (the base in which the power resides). The three main almighty forms of God are Vishnu, Shiv and Durga, because all the other almighty forms are affiliated to them. Lakchmi and Saraswati are affiliated to Vishnu; Ganesh, Kartikeya and Hanuman are affiliated to Shiv; and Kali, Gauri, Amba, etc. are affiliated forms of Durga. So all those forms are Divine and almighty, but Vishnu, Shiv and Durga are considered main. Beyond the almighty forms of God (and including Them and all Their powers) are the loving forms of God Krishn and Ram (which included Radha and Sita).

Where does Brahma come in and why do we talk about Vishnu, Shiv and Brahma? In the creation of the universe, Krishn's almighty power, Maha Vishnu of Vaikunth abode, creates the whole universe and becomes omnipresent in it. The universe is endless. In the endless universe, uncountable number of planetary systems, or brahmandas are created (a brahmand includes an earth planet with its sun and other planets, and a corresponding swarg (celestial abode) and narak (hellish abode). In every one of those brahmandas, God Vishnu and God Shiv take avatar in order to manage the affairs of that planetary system. In every brahmand there is also a Brahma who is assigned to be the creator of that brahmand. He creates with the power given to him by supreme God. Vishnu maintains the brahmand and Shiv destroys it in the end. These are the three governors of a brahmand. Both Vishnu and Shiv are avatars of God from the Divine world. Their abodes in this brahmand are also Divine, like embassies of the Divine abode, here in the material plane. Brahma's abode is the topmost celestial abode, and Brahma himself is not a form of supreme God, he is a celestial god.

To review, Brahma is one of the three governors of a brahmand, along with Vishnu and Shiv. However, Vishnu and Shiv are forms of supreme Divine God, and Brahma is a celestial god.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.  

Remembering Radha Krishn through their Divine names

You can chant anything that helps you remember Radha and Krishn. God's name is all-powerful and all-Blissful. Any name of God is a direct connection to God. You do not need any special mantra. All you need to do is to take the name with faith (that this is the Divine name of God, not just a word) and feel God close to you. Kripaluji Maharaj says to chant either Radhey Shyam or Radhey Radhey with each breath. You can say Radhey on the inhalation and Shyam on the exhalation (silently in your heart). Or you can say 'Ra' on the inhalation and 'dhey' on the exhalation. While doing this, it is important to visualize or feel the presence of Radha Krishn very close to you (this is called roop dhyan). The effect is very deep and immediate; all you have to do is try it.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved. 

Can one accept Lord Krishn as his Guru and do sadhana?

God realization is not possible without a Guru. Shree Krishn Himself has said this in the Gita (chapter 4, verse 34); the Upnishads, Puranas and Ramayan all make similar statements. It would be like trying to get a PhD without the help of a professor. That Guru must be someone whom we can see, talk to and relate to. We should be able to ask them questions and clear our confusions. They will tell us the path so we know how to live our life for God realization.

Krishn helps us by sending a Guru into our life. The Guru helps us to purify our mind through proper bhakti. Once our mind is fully purified and we become surrendered, then Krishn comes to us. (Harihin bhave shuddh jan tohin patit bhave pyare; explanation of the difference between God and Guru from the kirtan "Jayati Guruvar" by Shree Kripaluji Maharaj). It is through the Grace of the Guru that we receive the Divine vision of Krishn (Guru mile kripa Rijhavar, Guru kripa mile sarkar; from the kirtan "Guru charan kamal balihar" by Shree Kripaluji Maharaj). So ignoring the Grace of the Saint and asking Krishn to help you is like the person who is searching for his spectacles when they are hanging on a string around his neck.

One should also know that we not only need to follow the instructions of the Saint for how to do devotions, we also need to open a channel in our heart to receive the Saint's Grace. This is done by surrendering (internally) to the Saint. This allows us to receive the Grace of the Saint, which will redeem past spiritual transgressions and open us to experience bhao in our devotion to Radha Krishn. This is the real devotion. Otherwise, it is like a dry practice of devotion, with no real feelings of affinity. Thus, we see that not only following the teachings of the Guru, but an internal feeling of surrender in order to receive his Grace is required to proceed on the path of bhakti.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.

Devotional Service to God

Devotional service means service to a Saint. Although it is our ultimate goal to be able to serve Radha Krishn personally in Their Divine abode, that is only possible when we meet Them, which happens after God realization. Until then, the true Saint who is one with Radha Krishn, and who represents Them on the earth planet, accepts the service of the souls on behalf of Radha Krishn. Thus, during the devotional period, we serve Radha Krishn by serving Their Saint.

The benefit of such service is received immediately in the form of heart purification, which brings us closer to our goal of God realization. Service to a true Saint improves the humbleness of the devotee and develops a connection between him and his Master which becomes a channel for receiving more of his Grace. This Grace takes the form of loving feelings for Radha Krishn in the heart of the devotee. One should remember that if a Saint accepts our service, it only shows his greatness, like a king accepting a gift of a few pennies from a beggar. The Saint does not benefit from our service, but nonetheless accepts our service because we benefit from getting the chance to serve.

Devotional service is said to be of three kinds: tan, man, dhan (physical, mental and financial service). Physical service means offering any service to the Saint or his mission that we perform with our physical body. Mental service is performed simply by thinking positively about the Saint. Financial service means offering any financial support for the Saint's mission. All three are considered devotional service and lead to the same benefit. Out of the three, the most important and the one that can be practiced all the time is mental service; maintaining a feeling of surrender and having positive thoughts about the Saint is the most important form of service. Physical and financial service are meant to help us improve our mental surrender. 

This is the secret of service and surrender which has been described in beautiful detail in the book "The Science of Devotion, Divine Love and Grace" which is available at http://shop.JKP.org.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved. 

Leelas of God

(Reply to a question on why Bhagwan Ram killed Sambuca)
There are some very important points to keep in mind when reading or listening to any leela of God. The first is that all of God's leelas are Divine. What does it mean that they are Divine? It means that since God has no personal reason to do anything, whatever He does is because of His unconditional kindness. Whereas, before God realization, a soul can only perform actions for the fulfillment of his own happiness, so all of his actions are material. Once he finds that happiness by attaining God, he becomes a Saint, and then that Saint also performs all of his actions for the benefit of others. So all the actions of God and God realized Saints are done for the benefit of others, because they do not need anything for themselves, and they are also beyond anger, greed, desire, etc. So their actions are considered Divine. They are already whole and complete and do not have any reason to do any action, but they still perform actions just to Grace the souls.

The second thing to remember is that we cannot understand all of the reasons behind every Divine action of God and the Saints. It is similar to how a 5 year old cannot understand all of his parents' actions, even if they try to explain them to him. When his intellect reaches the level of his parents' intellect, then he can understand all of their actions. So when we become God realized and we get a Divine intellect, then only will we be able to understand all the actions of God and the Saints.

For these two reasons, it is best not to allow our mind to indulge in asking 'why' when it comes to God's actions. We should assume that whatever Ram or Krishn did was all out of Grace and kindness, even if we can't understand how it is so. When we get to His level, with His Grace, we will understand. Regarding the specific instance to which you refer, the individual whom Ram "killed" was sent directly to Ram's Divine abode. This is true for all instances of "killing" in God's Divine leelas. When Ram killed Ravan, Ravan went back to Ram's abode, as did any other demon or person who was killed by Ram or Krishn or any other form of God. So the act of God "killing" someone is in fact just the act of God sending that person from this material world to His Divine abode. What greater Grace could there be?

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.

Effect of the Divine name

A feeling of happiness, peace and well-being are all good signs that you are receiving the effect of the Divine name in your heart. That is the beginning of sattvic bhao. They will continue to manifest in a progressive way as you continue to do devotion and purify your heart.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.

Food for mind, body and soul

All foods have an energetic quality: they are classified as sattvic, rajas, or tamas. Since our mind also has these 3 qualities, the food we eat encourages the development of the corresponding quality. Fresh and healthy vegetarian food is considered sattvic. This includes fruit, vegetables, milk, grain, dal, nuts, etc. Even vegetarian food is considered rajas if it is over-spiced, over-cooked, or has too much chili or oil.

Garlic and onion is considered by some to be rajas, so they choose not to eat it. We do not cook with garlic or onions in any of our ashrams, so that any person who comes will be able to eat the food. However, Kripaluji Maharaj has not forbidden the consumption of garlic and onions in one's personal food for those following the path of raganuga bhakti.

Although we do not force people to become vegetarian, but I would like to make it clear that in order to really follow the path of bhakti a person would eventually have to become vegetarian. If someone consumes meat, eggs, alcohol or drugs, then the tamas effect on the mind would counteract the purification achieved through doing bhakti. So the end result would be that even if they purify their mind somewhat doing bhakti, they don't progress very far because of the negative effect on the mind of consuming tamas things. 

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.  

God realization is not possible without a Guru

God realization is not possible without a Guru. Shree Krishn Himself has said this in the Gita (chapter 4, verse 34); the Upnishads, Puranas and Ramayan all make similar statements. It would be like trying to get a PhD without the help of a professor. That Guru must be someone whom we can see, talk to and relate to. We should be able to ask them questions and clear our confusions. They will tell us the path so we know how to live our life for God realization.

Krishn helps us by sending a Guru into our life. The Guru helps us to purify our mind through proper bhakti. Once our mind is fully purified and we become surrendered, then Krishn comes to us. (Harihin bhave shuddh jan tohin patit bhave pyare; explanation of the difference between God and Guru from the kirtan "Jayati Guruvar" by Shree Kripaluji Maharaj). It is through the Grace of the Guru that we receive the Divine vision of Krishn (Guru mile kripa Rijhavar, Guru kripa mile sarkar; from the kirtan "Guru charan kamal balihar" by Shree Kripaluji Maharaj). So ignoring the Grace of the Saint and asking Krishn to help you is like the person who is searching for his spectacles when they are hanging on a string around his neck.

One should also know that we not only need to follow the instructions of the Saint for how to do devotions, we also need to open a channel in our heart to receive the Saint's Grace. This is done by surrendering (internally) to the Saint. This allows us to receive the Grace of the Saint, which will redeem past spiritual transgressions and open us to experience bhao in our devotion to Radha Krishn. This is the real devotion. Otherwise, it is like a dry practice of devotion, with no real feelings of affinity. Thus, we see that not only following the teachings of the Guru, but an internal feeling of surrender in order to receive his Grace is required to proceed on the path of bhakti.

Swami Nikhilanand, JKP Radha Madhav Dham. © 2011. All rights reserved.