Mantra japam and Upasana

What is the difference between doing mantra jebam and doing ubasanai ?

Kalidas

Mumbai

----

Upasana is different and mantra japam is different....

There are actually three steps.... 

1. Japasheela

2. Japayagna

3. Upasaka

A person who chants a particular mantra for a specific benefit (like a job, family issue, business development, child etc) is a person who is doing japam... By the grace of the Lord on whom he is doing the japam.. he may sucees his mission for which the japam was done.... if he is so sincere and vigorous in this he may be termed japa sheela.

Whereas an upasaka is a person who worships the Lord - to attain a state of complete merger with the Lord. He lives in a stage where his total life revolves around his Ishta Devata... Round the clock his thinking will be around his Lord. 

If a japasheela has Guru Krupa, over a period of time he may realize the divine force and also understand that the divinity is not only for material benefits, he may destroy his ignorance and raise one level and become a japayagna

At this stage, if the japayagna is still fortunate and if he a is wise person, he may focus his japam procedurally towards the Lord and he may raise to the level of an Upasaka

So one is doing a japam, he must be sincere and may start as a japasheela, become a japayagna and then raise to an upasaka.

A true upasaka's mind, action and thought will always be on his Lord...  When one reaches this level he is sure to reach the ultimate... But this is possible only with sheer compassion called Guru Krupa...