10. Bhakti (Devotion-Worship)

Bhadreśadāsa declares:

“kimapi sādhanaṃ bhaktiṃ vinā naiva prasiddhyati”^[1]

“No endeavor is successful without bhakti.”

The word ‘bhakti’ is derived from the Saṃskṛta root ‘bhaj’, meaning to ‘to worship’ ‘to seek refuge’, ‘to serve’, and ‘to love’.

Since the word ' bhakti' suggests the intellectual and emotional act of seeking refuge with love and dedication, the path of bhakti is described as the most important means to please Parabrahman.

māhātmyajñānayuksnehaḥ sudṛḍhaḥ sarvatodhikaḥ |
bhaktirityucyate mātaḥ śāstreṣu paramātmani ||^[2]

“Intense and centered love towards Parabrahman coupled with the knowledge of his greatness identified as bhakti in the scriptures.”

Simply, bhakti is described as an elite attachment to Parabrahman with intense love.^[3] Bhakti consists of constant remembrance of Parabrahman similar to an uninterrupted flow of oil from one vessel into another.^[4]

Svāminārāyaṇa defines:

“Bhakti, an intense affection for Parabrahman which is devoid of all desires for fruits, and which is escorted with an understanding of Parabrahman’s magnitude.” (Vacanāmṛta Gadhadā I/21, p.60)

Bhakti, assisted by the knowledge of Parabrahman's glory (māhātmyajñāna) remains ever blooming both in its intensity and extensity. However, it is bhakti only when it is unprovoked and desireless.^[5]

Bhadreśadāsa explains:

bhaktirnānāvidhā proktā śravaṇakīrtanādikā |
bhaktābhirucibhedād hi tatra vaividhyadarśanam ||^[6]

“Bhakti (devotion) implies nine-fold forms of worship (navadhābhakti); actually, the nine types of differences are due to worshiper’s interest or preferences.”

This bhakti is described as ‘sādhana-bhakti’ i.e. bhakti as a means. Prahlādajī states:

śravaṇaṃ kīrtanaṃ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṃ pādasevanam |
arcanaṃ vandanaṃ dāsyaṃ sakhyamātmanivedanam ||^[7]

“Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, actions, and pastimes of Parabrahman, remembering them, serving the lotus feet of Parabrahman, offering Him respectful worship with sixteen types of accessories, offering prayers to Parabrahman, becoming His servant, believing Parabrahman one’s best friend, and submitting everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him by the deed, mind, and speech)—these nine processes are acknowledged as pure devotional service.”

In addition to this, in the Svāminārāyaṇa Vedanta, the Guruparampara explains that beyond this nine-fold form of bhakti, there is 'parā-bhakti, ' i.e. 'devotion-par-excellence'. Which is described as 'phala-rupā' i.e. ' bhakti as the climax'. It is described as 'prema-laksaṇā-bhakti' in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam;^[8] while as ‘ekāntiki-bhakti' in the Svāminārāyaṇa School.^[9] This bhakti is characterized by complete Parabrahman-oriented intense love and the awareness that he chants ‘I am Brahman’, “Akṣaram aham Puruṣottama dasosmi”.^[10] Means my actual form is Akṣara and I am a servant of Parabrahman. It is the highest devotion, love, and servitude unto Parabrahman after transcending the gamut of three guṇas of māyā-prakṛti. In the Bhagavad-Gītā, ‘ananyā bhaktyā’ is described where Bhadreśadāsa defines it as unfaltered brāhmic devotion to Parabrahman. Thus, the word ‘bhakti' finds a new dimension in the Svāminārāyaṇa School, for it advocates, nirguṇa, brahmarūpa, ātmic prīti for Parabrahman.^[11] 292

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Svāminārāyaṇa Siddhāntasudhā Kārikā 386

[2]:

APM 1/38/2

[3]:

Shandilyasūtra 1/2

[4]:

Nārada bhaktisūtra 1/2

[5]:

Vacanāmṛta Sārangpur 5

[6]:

Svāminārāyaṇa Siddhāntasudhā Kārikā 410

[7]:

Śrīmad Bhagavatam -7/5/23

[8]:

Śrīmad Bhāgavatam-11/3/31-32

[9]:

Vacanāmṛta Gadhadā I/21, 3/21

[10]:

Satsangdiksha 57

[11]:

Bhagavad-Gītā 8/22, p.194