The Concept of Bhakti in Hinduism

by Sri Ajit Halder

In Hinduism, Bhakti is an expression of love and adoration centered upon one’s personal God, Ishtadevata. Bhakti signifies the path preferred by a devotee as his/her religious act of worshipping the chosen God. Stated simply, Bhakti is the active involvement of a devotee in the worship of the divine. Two important ’Bhakti Texts’ may be cited to focus our attention on the true connotation of bhakti: sage Narada in his text ‘Narada Bhakti Sutra’ defines ‘bhakti’ as “intense love” for God and sage Shandilya in his ‘Bhakti Sutra’ defines ‘bhakti’ as intense “attraction” for God.

Bhakti emphasizes religious devotion and sentiment above ritual. As a devotional practice, it offers the convenience of gaining spiritual experience anywhere, at any time, by anyone who feels confident to receive the blessing of God. The ease with which God may be worshipped and reached following the path of bhakti may so influence the devotee to be wholly absorbed in adoring the deity, that he/she may miss out on other aspects of Bhakti. So the author attempts in this article to point out features of the Bhakti cult that makes the religious experience more rewarding.

It may be mentioned that the Bhakti movement developed in South India among the Vaishnava Alvars (3rd to 9th Century) and later on in Bengal (intensified by Sri Chaitanya in the 16th century) emphasizes the emotional attachment and love of a devotee toward his/her beloved deity. And it does not merely entail the act of worship performed by the devotee fervently wishing to receive the blessing of God (which is assured).

The Sanskrit word Bhakti is derived from the verb root bhaj, meaning "to worship". ‘Devotion’ is often used as an approximate English translation for Bhakti. However to gain a proper sense of Bhakti, the understanding of the English word Devotion should be expanded to include an important aspect of bhakti—the involvement of both the worshipper and the object of adoration, i.e. God. This sense of participation of the human and the divine is central to the relationship between the devotee and God. It stresses the direct personal experience of God to be gained by a devotee, and is typically associated with the word "love". Bhajan, or devotional singing to God, is also derived from the same verb root bhaj.

Bhakti as a fond expression is sometimes used in the broader sense of reverence toward a spiritual teacher (Guru Bhakti) as it also appears in the compound word ‘Bhakti Marga’ used to describe a way for bhaktas (devotees) to reach the deity through prayer, singing of Bhajans or Nama Kirtan (devotional chanting of the holy name of the Lord). Thus the interpretation of bhakti goes beyond the act of "devotion", as Bhakti leads to the spiritual union with one’s chosen deity. In the following paragraphs the concept of Bhakti will be elaborated with reference to the Gita, the Bhagavat Purana, and the spiritual renaissance in Bengal initiated by Sri Chaitanya.

Bhakti in the Gita:

The Bhagavad Gita is the first expression of bhakti, with its concentration on the adoration of Vishnu (who appears in the work in the person of Sri Krishna). Bhakti as designating a religious path is the central concept in the Bhagavad Gita for union with God through Devotion. The Gita introduces bhakti yoga in combination with karma yoga and gnana yoga. The Gita asserts that bhakti towards Sri Krishna is the path to reach the highest goal of life, which is to be released from the rounds of ‘rebirth’ and gain union with God.

Sri Krishna utters in Chapter 9, verse 31 of the Gita - ‘Na me bhakta pranashyati’– he who adores me, i.e. Krishna, with bhakti will never perish. This profound yet simple formula (as words of promise received direct from the Lord) thereby assures the attainment of Moksha (salvation) by following the path of bhakti. Chapter 12 of the Gita provides a discussion on the practice of Bhakti Yoga as a religious act for worshiping God. In verses 6 and 7, Chapter 12 of the Gita, Lord Krishna offers clear guidance to Arjuna (and through him, the entire humankind) on how to attain Salvation: ‘Those who, lay all their actions on Me, intent on Me, meditate on Me, worship Me with unswerving devotion and those whose thoughts are set on Me, I straightway lead them to the attainment of union with the Absolute’. This is a convincing assurance from Lord Krishna that in Bhakti lies true Mukti, i.e. Release or Salvation from the misery of re-births into this world.

The Bhagavat Purana:

Aside from Bhagavad Gita, the other equally important text presenting bhakti beliefs is the Bhagavat Purana. This text expands on bhakti yoga, offering nine specific activities of a bhakti yogi.

These are: (1) shravana (‘listening’ to the scriptural stories of Krishna and his associates, (2) kirtana (chanting songs in praise of the Lord), (3) smarana (remembering or fixing the mind on Vishnu), (4) pada-sevana (rendering caring service), (5) archana (worshipping an image); (6) vandana (paying homage), (7) daasya (servitude), (8) saakhya (friendship) and (9) atma-nivedana (self-surrender). These nine facets of bhakti describe the path of systematized devotion to attain the highest spiritual goal, i.e. union with God. More on this will be found in the following discussion on Sri Chaitanya’s contributions to promote the cult of bhakti in Bengal

Sri Chaitanya – Chetana, Consciousness of Bengal:

Sri Chaitanya’s religion, bhakti and sweetness are relished as rasamrita, i.e. holy nectar. Our joy of tasting that nectar however will only be complete upon gaining an appreciation and understanding of Sri Chaitanya’s contributions to the rise of Vaishnavism in Bengal.

Sri Chaitanya was born as Bishambhar, the son of Jagannath Mishra and Sachi Devi of Navadvip, Bengal. Bishambhar grew up to be a great scholar of Nyaya Shastra, becoming known as Nemai Pandit and opening his own Tol (i.e. a school to learn the Shastras). Nemai’s fame as a learned man spread beyond the boundaries of Navadvip and attracted many students to his Tol. But a great change came to Nemai’s life during a trip he made to Gaya at the age of twenty-two. He went there to perform the ceremonial offering to the spirit of his departed father at Lord Vishnu’s temple, There he met Iswar Puri, accepted him as his Guru and became a Vaishnava – a man devoted in heart and life to the service of Krishna. At the place of Lord Vishnu in Gaya, there arose a great Vaishnava through a transformed Nemai.

Following his return to Navadvip, Nemai became the central figure of the local Vaishnava group and devoted himself wholeheartedly to chorus singing in praise of Krishna with the accompaniment of Khol (a type of percussion instrument) and Kartal (an instrument similar to a cymbal). Notice that the words Krishna, Kirtan, Khol and Kartal, all four ingredients of nama-kirtan, begin with the first two consonant sounds Ka and Kha of the Bengali alphabets. Does not this imply that nama-kirtan should be our first and foremost religious offering when worshipping Krishna with bhakti?

Through the introduction of nagar-sankirtan, Nemai created a new religious wave that swayed and almost submerged Shantipur, while the whole of Nadia was completely swept over by this religious current – ‘Shantipur Dubu Dubu Nadey Bhese Jaai’.

When Nemai was twenty-four years of age, he was initiated into sanyas by Madhava Puri in Katwa and assigned the new name of Krishna Chaitanya. – one who is full of Krishna consciousness. The Vaishnava community of Navadvip overwhelmed by Chaitanya’s bhakti and love for Krishna accepted him as their Mahaaprabhu - the great religious master. Chaitanya’s personality, his burning devotion to Krishna added much vitality to the bhakti cult and to Vaishnavism in Bengal and made it into a living movement which is still felt in the eastern part of India.

Sri Chaitanya restored religious, spiritual and social consciousness during the 15-16th century, a period of great religious decline in Bengal. By virtue of his personality and character, he revived the bhakti movement and introduced Harinam-samkirtan as a devotional act. Harinama-kirtan soothes the heart and purifies the soul, and the constant chanting of the Lord’s name creates a divine bond between the devotee (bhakta) and Lord Krishna. Singing Harinam with devotion enables the Bhakta to perceive Lord Krishna before him/her.

It is sincerely hoped that this article will inspire devotees to worship deities with bhakti, receive the bliss of God and feel spiritually uplifted.