Hi Adi,
Bhakti is, as you know a type of yoga. All yogas will have to dip into the bhakti side of it... else there is no yoga. If it is karma yoga, if you don't have bhakti, it will become a chore, if it is jnana, if you don't have bhakti, it will become a gathering of knowledge, but no knowing.
Meditation is required to make all these yogas effective. Meditation helps us go beyond the mind into stillness and in case of karma yoga, helps the divine serve through us rather than us impose our ego on others... in jnana yoga helps us experience the knowing of the truth rather than gather a lot of knowledge... in bhakti yoga, it helps us become one with our ishta rather than stay caught up in the form of our ishta.
When bhakti is burning you up within, you want nothing but to become one with god, you move inward to find him. This moving inward is meditation.
![[:)]](http://www.aypsite.com/plus-forum/Smileys/akyhne/icon_smile.gif "Smile")
I am a Ma Kali devotee, but love Krishna. In fact I am doing a painting of him right now, and he sure is guiding me through it.
He has visited me a couple of times, once gave me some written directions to find my way back home...
. Don't remember the words really, but I know that I know them from within. The mind does not need to know it all, all is known in the stillness.
Well, Krishna is known for his lilla... and you sure seem to experience loads of it. You can stay amused by this lilla, caught up in the maya of the beauty or awesomeness of the lilla of Sri Krishna, or you can go inward and find him and become one with him.
Meditation is a technique to go inward and find him, to become him. As you dip into the stillness of meditation, more and more of this stillness (which is Krishna) will flow out into your world. It will get rid of blocks/vasanas gathered through many lifetimes and soon it will flow into the world through you.
When you are blessed with the visions of the divine, you need to purify your nervous system so the divine can flow out into the world through you.(not as in a dirty/sinful person needing to purify, but as in getting rid of impurities/blocks that are blocking the divine flow into this world).
In Krishna's words (
BHAGAVAD GITA, chapter 6):
Let the yogi -- seated in solitude and alone -- having mind and senses under control and free from desires and attachments for possessions, try constantly to contemplate on the Supreme Self. (6.10)
Sitting (in a comfortable position) and concentrating the mind on a single object (In case of AYP deep meditation the "i am" mantra), controlling the thoughts and the activities of the senses, let the yogi practice meditation for self-purification. (6.12)
With serene and fearless mind; practicing celibacy; having the mind under control and thinking of Me; let the yogi sit and have Me as the supreme goal. (6.14)
Thus, by always keeping the mind fixed on the Self, the yogi whose mind is subdued attains peace of the Supreme nirvana by uniting with Me. (6.15)
A person is said to have achieved yoga, the union with the Self, when the perfectly disciplined mind gets freedom from all desires, and becomes absorbed in the Self alone. (6.18)
As a lamp in a spot sheltered (by Brahman) from the wind (of desires) does not flicker, this simile is used for the subdued mind of a yogi practicing meditation on Brahman. (6.19)
When the mind disciplined by the practice of meditation becomes steady, one becomes content in the Self by beholding Him with (purified) intellect. (6.20)
One feels infinite bliss that is perceivable only through the intellect, and is beyond the reach of the senses. After realizing Brahman, one is never separated from absolute reality. (6.21)
After Self-Realization (SR), one does not regard any other gain superior to SR. Established in SR, one is not moved even by the greatest calamity. (6.22)
One gradually attains tranquillity of mind by keeping the mind fully absorbed in the Self by means of a well-trained (and purified) intellect, and thinking of nothing else. (6.25)
Arjuna said: O Krishna, You have said that yoga of meditation is characterized by the equanimity (of mind), but, due to restlessness of mind I do not perceive the steady state of mind. (6.33)
Because the mind, indeed, is very unsteady, turbulent, powerful, and obstinate, O Krishna. I think restraining the mind is as difficult as restraining the wind. (6.34)
The Supreme Lord said: Undoubtedly, O Arjuna, the mind is restless and difficult to restrain, but it is subdued by Abhyaasa (or constant spiritual practice with perseverance), and Vairaagya (or detachment), O Arjuna. (6.35)
In My opinion, yoga is difficult for the one whose mind is not subdued. However, yoga is attainable by the person of subdued mind by striving through proper means. (6.36)
The beauty is, our ishta is so very loving that s/he gives us the freedom to do what we want. S/he sends lilla our way to show us there is more, it is our choice to remain caught up in it or go beyond it. S/he will give us all the tools (like AYP coming our way at this point in our lives) and give us the freedom to chose what we want to do with it.
It is your choice Adi, you can get into a consistent structured practice (I would suggest AYP, but you can chose any structured practice that you resonate with, anything that will cover meditation and pranayama
(BHAGAVAD GITA : 5.27 Shutting out (all) external contacts and fixing the gaze between the eyebrows, equalising the outgoing and incoming breaths moving within the nostrils)) and go beyond the mind to merge with Krishna and live from there or go with what feels right to the mind and stay with his lilla.
Thank you for asking this and reading this.
_/\\_
Wish you all the best in your chosen path.
