Bhakti ?

[Ramakrishna]

Namaste Tirisilex,

As others have said, there are many outward methods of bhakti such as japa, puja, singing bhajans and hymns, prostrating, prayer, etc. But I believe ultimately bhakti is an inward thing that is very hard to describe. Basically, it's the true love in your heart that you have for God. In another thread about puja, we talked about how it really is pointless in doing some long extended elaborate puja if there is no bhakti, or true respect and love for the deity.

The outward things are great as well and are definitely methods of bhakti, like japa and puja, but ultimately it is something in your heart and only you can know how strong it is and if it is really there.

Jai Sri Ram

[jasdir]

I should have asked this a long time ago. How do I practice Bhakti?

Truely to practice Bhakti, There is a need of one thing to know about yourself first.

• Suppose, while doing bhakti, suddenly "God" appears, then what kind of life will you demend for yourself ?

Results of knowing this will be : As there are so many kinds of bhakti's, This will show you that, to do which kind of bhakti are you applicabe for and also to know truely what is bhakti.


_/\_ Jasdir.

[saral]

Namste All,

"Moksha" is the soul reason of the Bhakti so there is no question rise what we ask from god if he appears and knowing ourself is better idea but that is not enough for Bhakti.


Saadar
Saral

[smaranam]

(from a prior conversation)
If we consider the word bhakti we know it to be defined as devotion , homage , worship , piety , faith or love. Yet there is another definition of bhakti. It is ( in the feminine gender) defined as separation or partition.

Namaste YajvanJi

I see that you have taken bhakti as 'vibhakti'. Although not directly relevant, it reminds me of Sant Dnyaneshwar describing the "such a devotee is most dear to Me" verses in chap 12 of Bhagvad Gita, in his DnyAneshwari : "This devotee partitions his heart into two compartments - to one he gives My name, and happily lives in the other half. Such a devotee is very dear to Me"

For bhakti to bloom to its fullest, one must be offering this bhakti from one's own Being, on a most pure level (śuddha&#185. That is, a person possessed of the Self, of Being, of brahman. So there is first a separation (bhakti) of what is Self and what is non-Self (ātmānātma vivekaḥ). This is on the level of ātman which is outside of activity, perfectly silent from the body-sense which is in activity and the to-and-fro of life's permutations. It is from this level of Being that bhakti is most fruitful and deserving.

Shrila PrabhupAd explains in Bhagavad Gita As it is, that the stages from self-realization (I am not this body) to God-realization go as
1. Brahman' realization
2. ParamAtmA realization
3. BhagavAn realization
in that order.

If one studies the bhāgavad gītā the notion of devotion does not come in until kṛṣṇa-ji firmly establishes knowledge, the idea of yoga, and being without the 3 guna's. Then on this foundation one then can bring in devotion. It must be on stable ground for it to take firm root.

I agree. What amazes me is, KRshNa and His YogmAyA kept me so engrossed in the technicalities of Karma, DhyAn, JnAna, Bhakti Yog so as to read and re-read the chapters again and again - especially the Bhakti Yog ones. Not once did it occur to me that one can have a personal relationship with the One who sang the Gita. It was 12 years and 4 Bh. Gitas later (read on and off, and on the train...) that KRshNa became my life. Until then i was in awe of Him but He remained simply God-the-author-of-a-book, and in the book. Little did i know He was watching me in silence.

That is why shravaNam is the first step and to the Gaudiya vaishNavs,
- Bhagvad Gita is the starting point, ABCs or Kindergarten of Bhakti Yog.
- Shrimad BhAgvat is the undergraduate stage
- Chaitanya Charitramrt (and other texts) paves the Graduate/post graduate stage.

praNAm

[yajvan]

hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~

namast� smaranam

I see that you have taken bhakti as 'vibhakti'. Although not directly relevant, it reminds me of Sant Dnyaneshwar describing the "such a devotee is most dear to Me" verses in chap 12 of Bhagvad Gita, in his DnyAneshwari : "This devotee partitions his heart into two compartments - to one he gives My name, and happily lives in the other half. Such a devotee is very dear to Me"

That is why shravaNam is the first step and to the Gaudiya vaishNavs,
- Bhagvad Gita is the starting point, ABCs or Kindergarten of Bhakti Yog.
- Shrimad BhAgvat is the undergraduate stage
- Chaitanya Charitramrt (and other texts) paves the Graduate/post graduate stage. praNAm

just brilliant ! you have captured the essence of the teaching.
I hope to read more of your posts.

praṇām