What is Bhakti Yoga - How to practice bhakti yoga

Bhakti yoga is the real search for the divine through love and devotion. Bhakti is the key to open the treasures of wisdom (Jnana). It is a spiritual form of yoga.

 

What is Bhakti? What is bhakti yoga?

 Meerabai - Krishna devotee

Mirabai, who followed bhakti yoga

  Bhakti is the love for the Divine. Bhakti is seeing the diving presence in all the creation.

The word bhakti comes from the Sanskrit language verb 'bhaj' which means to worship or to be attached to. There are other terms too which mean bhakti or love such as prem, priti, anurag, bhajan etc.

The one who does bhakti is called bhakta, a devotee. Bhakti means love, devotion. The devotee( bhakta) wants god only. He/ she feel intense devotion to god. Bhakti is pure, unselfish love of god/ threes no expectation of anything from god.

This pure love is really indescribable. It is a sacred feeling. This is the supreme love of god. Bhakti is to love god with your mind, heart and soul it is selfless love, humility and the extreme desire to be one with god.

Bhakti is another way to reach salvation, which is the aim of yoga.

 

How to practice bhakti yoga?

There are nine ways to express bhakti. They are,

Shravana - Shravana means listening. Listening to God's stories from wise, enlightened persons or saints. Listening to stories connected to the god’s name and form.

While listening to them, bhakta concentrates only on the divine form and forgets the entire world. His mind merges with the divine. He can experience bliss. When he listens to the stories from the wise men, he can ask and clear any doubts he has.

Kirtana - Kirtana means singing. Singing god's glories. While singing gods praises, he may dance. He may also do this singing and dancing with a group of similar minded devotees.

Smarana - smarana means remembering. Remembering god's name all the time and getting merged with that name. Whatever the devotee is doing physically, he is chanting, remembering the god.

Padasevana - 'Pada' means 'feet' and 'sevana' means 'service'. so padasevana means the of god's feet. This service of god can be done by serving the whole humanity. By serving the world, the devotee serves the god.

Archana - means worship of God. This worship can be done of a god's image, metal form etc. This worship may be done by offering material things or by internal feeling of love and devotion. The purpose is to please the lord by surrendering to him completely.

Vandana - vandana means bowing down or prostration to Lord. Vandana done with faith and reverence helps in becoming humble. It helps in effacing ego or Ahamkara.

Dasya - having a servile attitude towards God. Imagining yourself to be god's servant and serving him and his creation. Serving and being associated with the saints and the sages, serving poor and needy and sick people, serving the other devotees can be considered as dasya bhakti. And doing this service all the time while keeping your mind steady on the god's form and the words of scriptures can help a man attain 'Nirvana'.

Sakhya - 'Sakhya' means friendship. This way of bhakti is done by thinking of god as a friend. To be always wanting to be with your friend, to tell him about all your thoughts and feelings, loving him as you do a dear friend or a relative, that changes love to spiritual love.

Atmanivedana - It is complete surrender of self to god. The devotee offers his body, mind, soul to god. He has no separate existence away from god. God takes care of him. All experiences, happy or sad, painful or pleasant are accepted as god's gifts and there is no attachment to them. Just acceptance of everything that happens in life.

A devotee can express his devotion with any of the methods mentioned above that he finds suitable for himself. These nine ways help the devotee reach the supreme, the divine life. These paths of bhakti can be used in accordance to the human inclinations. By following them, progressive realization of god is possible.