In the Samvat year 1876, on the fourth day of the bright half of the month of Magh in the evening, Shreeji Maharaj was seated on a wooden bedstead laid on the platform under the neem tree near the temple of Shree Vasudev Narayan in the Durbar of Dada Khachar in Gadhada. He had put a white upper garment over His shoulder and covered His body with a white cotton shawl. He had put a white turban on His head. A tassel of yellow flowers was hanging from His turban and a garland of yellow flowers adorned His neck. Saints and devotees from various places had gathered before Him in
an assembly.
Then Muktanand Swami said, “Maharaj, please explain to us what is savikalp samadhi [trance with self-consciousness and what is nirvikalp samadhi [trance without self-consciousness].
Shreeji Maharaj replied, “Vicious thoughts will not arise in the mind of one who has fixed his mind on the divine image of God. His mind will always be full of auspicious thoughts such as : ‘I would like to be like Narad and Sanak and Shuk, or I
would like to go to the hermitage of Shree Nar Narayan, stay there in the company of the sages, and perform penance, or I would like to go to Shwetdeep and perform penance there and assume the form of a shwet mukta [redeemed soul] like others.’ If one’s mind is full of such thoughts he can be called a man of ‘Savikalp Samadhi [trance with self consciousness]. If no such thoughts arise in one’s mind, and if he identifies himself with Akshar Brahm in every way and if one remains engrossed only in thoughts of the divine image of God. then he can be called a man of ‘nirvikalp samadhi [trance without self consciousness]”.
Then Muktanand Swami asked another question “Maharaj what is the difference between bhakti[devotion] and upasana [worship with the firm conviction that God Is having a divine form] ? Shreeji Maharaj replied, “bhakti is of nine kinds such as
[1. listening to holy scriptures and talks in praise of God, 2. singing devotional songs, 3. remembering and reciting names of God, 4. serving at the feet of God, 5. worshipping God, 6. paying homage to God, 7. serving God like an attendant, 8. cultivating comradeship with God, 9. complete surrender of one’s self unto God.]
To try to please God in any one or more of these ways is called bhakti, i.e. devotion. When a person firmly believes that God is always sakar, God has a divine form and never falters from his belief even if he becomes one with Brahm, he can be called a man of upasana. Though he may come across scriptures establishing God as nirakar [formless] he will remain firm in his belief that God has a divine form. Whatever he may
read in the scriptures he will always establish the divine form of God. He will never let his upasana to be changed. Such a man with a firm conviction is said to be a man of upasana.
