Bhakti-yoga - an essential subject

The bhakti-yoga process means acting according to the order of the supreme authority. When we act under the direction of supreme authority, we do not become entangled by fruitive results. Bhakti-yoga is when we fully dedicate ourselves in doing activities that are pleasing to the Lord. Not only dedicating our life to Kṛṣṇa but also to serve the Vaiṣṇavas, tat-puruṣa. Tat-puruṣa means to serve a person who has dedicated his life to Kṛṣṇa. Two things: dedication to Kṛṣṇa and dedication to the devotee of Kṛṣṇa. So in this way if we advance, then it is very easy to become free from this material contamination.

As far as devotional service is concerned, even hearing and chanting is as good as acting with our body, mind and senses. Actually, hearing and chanting are also activities of the senses. When the senses are utilized for one's own sense gratification, they entangle one in karma, but when they are used for the satisfaction of the Lord, they establish one in bhakti-yoga.

Srila Prabhupada's books, lectures, conversations and letters offer a comprehensive presentation of this essential subject as seen in the Vaniquotes Bhakti-yoga category. An introduction from his books is given below in the following 10 quotes.

Quotes from Srila Prabhupada's books


vanipedia.org 		As long as the material body exists, one has to meet the demands of the body, namely eating, sleeping, defending and mating. But a person who is in pure bhakti-yoga, or in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, does not arouse the senses while meeting the demands of the body. Rather, he accepts the bare necessities of life, making the best use of a bad bargain, and enjoys transcendental happiness in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. (Bhagavad-gītā 6.20-23)



vanipedia.org 		When devotional service is executed with some material purpose, involving fruitive activities, mental speculations or mystic yoga, it is called mixed or adulterated devotional service. Besides bhakti-yoga, the Bhagavad-gītā also describes karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga and dhyāna-yoga. Yoga means linking with the Supreme Lord, which is possible only through devotion. Fruitive activities ending in devotional service, philosophical speculation ending in devotional service, and the practice of mysticism ending in devotional service are known respectively as karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga and dhyāna-yoga. But such devotional service is adulterated by the three kinds of material activities. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 4.21-22)



vanipedia.org 		This bhakti-yoga begins if a person has the firm conviction that simply discharging devotional service to the Lord in full transcendental love can elevate him to the highest perfectional stage of life. Brahmājī believed in this art of bhakti-yoga; he believed in the instruction of the Lord to execute tapa, and he discharged the function with great penance and thus achieved the great success of seeing the Vaikuṇṭhalokas and the Lord also by personal experience. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.9.18)



vanipedia.org 		The important point is that as long as we are in the material modes of nature, we are always in darkness. This darkness cannot be dissipated without the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, which is invoked by the practice of bhakti-yoga. Bhakti-yoga creates a transcendental situation with no tinges of material contamination. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.8.24)



vanipedia.org 		The general and popular notion is that by discharging fruitive work in terms of the direction of the scriptures one becomes perfectly able to acquire transcendental knowledge for spiritual realization. Bhakti-yoga is considered by some to be another form of karma. But factually bhakti-yoga is above both karma and jñāna. Bhakti-yoga is independent of jñāna or karma; on the other hand, jñāna and karma are dependent on bhakti-yoga. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.5.35)



vanipedia.org 		Bhakti-yoga itself is so powerful that even an impious man with no assets in karma-yoga or an illiterate with no assets in jñāna-yoga can undoubtedly be elevated to the spiritual world if he simply adheres to bhakti-yoga. Mām evaiṣyasy asaṁśayaḥ. Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (8.7) that by the process of bhakti-yoga one undoubtedly goes back to Godhead, back home to the spiritual world. Yogīs, however, instead of going directly to the spiritual world, sometimes want to see other planetary systems, and therefore they ascend to the planetary system where Lord Brahmā lives, as indicated here by the word brahmaṇā. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.1.1)



vanipedia.org 		Kṛṣṇa activities are known as bhakti-yoga—always acting for Kṛṣṇa. This includes not only Kṛṣṇa, but His different plenary expansions such as Rāma and Nārāyaṇa. He has innumerable expansions. One who is engaged in the service of any of the forms of Kṛṣṇa, or of His plenary expansions, is considered to be transcendentally situated. One should also note that all the forms of Kṛṣṇa are fully transcendental, blissful, full of knowledge and eternal. (Bhagavad-gītā 14.26)



vanipedia.org 		Lord Kṛṣṇa made an analytical description of the soul just to bring Arjuna to the point of buddhi-yoga, or bhakti-yoga. Therefore, Lord Kṛṣṇa's Sāṅkhya and Lord Kapila's Sāṅkhya, as described in the Bhāgavatam, are one and the same. They are all bhakti-yoga. Lord Kṛṣṇa said, therefore, that only the less intelligent class of men make a distinction between sāṅkhya-yoga and bhakti-yoga (sāṅkhya-yogau pṛthag bālāḥ pravadanti na paṇḍitāḥ). (Bhagavad-gītā 2.39)



vanipedia.org 		Less intelligent men also take shelter of demigods and only derive benefits which endure for a limited period. Thus their religious principles and the benefits derived therefrom are only temporary. The intelligent man, however, abandons all engagements in the name of religion and takes shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus receives absolute protection from the Almighty Father. Sanātana-dharma is therefore the process of bhakti-yoga, by which one can come to know the sanātana Lord and His sanātana abode. By this process only can one return to the spiritual universe, the sanātana-dhāma, to take part in the sanātana enjoyment prevailing there. (Easy Journey to Other Planets, Chapter 1)



vanipedia.org 		The words dharmeṇobhaya-cihnena mean that the bhakti-yoga process contains two symptoms, namely attachment for the Supreme Lord and detachment from all material affinities. There are two symptoms of advancement in the process of devotional service, just as there are two processes taking place while eating. A hungry man feels strength and satisfaction from eating, and at the same time he gradually becomes detached from eating any more. Similarly, with the execution of devotional service, real knowledge develops, and one becomes detached from all material activities. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.32.34-36)


Bhakti-yoga - explore more within this category.

Vanipedia has now over 903 introductory articles compiled from Srila Prabhupada's books under the series titled Essential Subjects. All these articles can be seen in the Table of Content on the right side of this article and also here in this Umbrella Category. Browse through them to relish the breadth and depth of Srila Prabhupada's teachings - There is a subject for everyone.


   
 

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