Meditating (Lectures, Other)

Expressions researched:
"meditate" |"meditated" |"meditates" |"meditates" |"meditating" |"meditative"

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, January 8, 1973:

It is a mistaken idea that one has to attain mukti by bhakti. Sometimes they say that, these pañcopāsanā Māyāvādī, they say that "Ultimately, the absolute truth is nirākāra. There is no form. But because you cannot worship or meditate upon the nirākāra, so just imagine some form. Either of Viṣṇu, or Lord Śiva or Sūrya or Devī." Pañcopāsanā, it is called pañcopāsanā. Sādhakānāṁ hitārthāya brahmaṇo rūpa-kalpanaḥ. This is kalpana, he imagines. "Ultimately the Brahman has no form, but because you are accustomed to meditate on the forms, and it is very difficult for you to meditate upon the formless, so you imagine some form. This is imagine, not fact." That is their theory. And Bhagavān says in the Bhagavad-gītā, kleśo 'dhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām (BG 12.5). So that is simply troublesome. After much trouble in that way, when they come to the form of Vāsudeva, vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ (BG 7.19). That mahātmā is greater. Kṛṣṇa is not imagination. This is another offense to think of Kṛṣṇa as imagination.