Talk:From Bhakti to Bhakti Yog: The Different States of Bhakti
By Vishal Agarwal
There are many other different ways of classifying the stages of Bhakti, expressions of Bhakti, type of Bhaktas, practices of Bhakti, emotions of Bhakti, stages of Bhakti, and so on[1]. This philosophy and practice of Bhakti have been examined very elaborately in the traditions of Ramanujacharya and Chaita Mahaprabhu.
According to a Vaishnava Hindu theologian Shri Jiva Goswami (1513-1598 CE) in the tradition Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Bhakti has two stages: The first stage, namely Aparä Bhakti, has two parts - Vaidhi followed by Rägănugă. After this stage, follows the last stage - Rägätmika Bhakti (or Para Bhak which corresponds to Bhakti Yog of the Bhagavad Gita.
In this first stage, the Bhakta follows the prescriptions of Dharm (do's and don'ts) according to scriptures and adheres to one or more of the following modes of Bhakti. Once the mind of the Bhakta has been purified in the Vaidhi stage, he develops a yearning in his heart (bhava or raga) for the Lord, as He/She were a parent, sibling, friend, etc. This yearning is not a permanent feeling, but an intermittent or To further develop this yearning, the Bhakta might take as an exemplar renowned Bhaktas of the past, Rishi Närada. This advanced stage of Bhakti is termed as Rägänuga, which means, following or conforming to a Raga (passion, or yearning-bhava)"[2]. In this stage, the mind of the Bhakta has become cleansed and is naturally attracted towards Bhagavan. For this reason, scriptural prescriptions or injunctions ('do this" or 'don't do that') no longer apply to him or are irrelevant. Finally, the Bhakti reaches the stage of Rägätmik Bhakti, which corresponds to Bhakti Yog in the Bhagavad Gita, or Prapatti or Sharanägati in Shrivaishnav tradition of Ramanujacharya.
Swami Sivananda says, about these two major stages:
"Bhakti is of two kinds, viz. higher Bhakti or Para-Bhakti, and lower Bhakti or ritualistic Bhakti. Ritualistic worship is Vaidhi or Gauni Bhakti. It is formal Bhakti. Vaidhi Bhakti is the lower type of devotion depending on external aids. The mind becomes purer and purer. The aspirant gradually develops a love for God through ritualistic worship. He who does ritualistic worship rings bells, adores a Pratika (symbol) or Pratima (image), does Puja with flowers and sandal paste, burns incense, waves light before the image, offers Naivedya or food for God, etc.
Mukhya Bhakti or Pară Bhakti is an advanced type of devotion. It is higher Bhakti. It transcends all conventions. A devotee of this type knows no rule. He does not perform any external worship. He beholds his Lord everywhere in every object. His heart is saturated with love for God... He radiates love, purity, and joy wherever he goes and inspires all who come in contact with him. He beholds the whole world as the Lord. The ideas of good and bad, right and wrong, etc., vanish. He sees the Lord in a rogue, dacoit, cobra, scorpion, ant, dog, tree, log of wood, block of wood, sun, moon, stars, fire, water, earth, etc.......[3]"
In this scheme, Swami Sivananda has omitted the Rägänugă Bhakti. Swami Vivekananda describes the two stages of Bhakti in the following words:
"We will have to begin as dualists in the religion of love. God is to us a separate Being and we feel ourselves to be separate beings also. Love then comes between, and man begins to approach God, and God also comes nearer and nearer to man. Man takes up all the various relationships of life such as father, mother, son, friend, master, and lover, and projects them on his ideal of love, on his God. To him, God exists as all these. And the last point of his progress is reached when he feels that he has become merged in the object of his worship."[4]"
As stated above, different schools of Bhakti within Hindu Dharm may classify Bhakti in different ways, and the above is a simplified version[5]. There is no hard and fast boundary between the three stages of Bhakti. For example, Bhaktas in the last stage may choose to continue to follow the practices of Vaidhi Bhakti. But the difference is that whereas a beginner Bhakt follows these practices consciously, an advanced Bhakta follows them naturally because they become a part of his intrinsic nature. For example, he does not have to make a conscious decision and effort to indulge in shravana (listening to the words of the Guri or the sacred texts) but does so automatically and spontaneously.
In short, the steps or stages of Bhakti presumed by different Hindu traditions may be broken down into three of which the first two stages are grouped.
References[edit]
- ↑ Sivananda, Swami. Bhakti Yoga. Shivanandanagar, District Tehri-Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India, 1986, pp. 67-94.
- ↑ Bryant, Edwin. Bhakti Yoga. North Point Press, 2017, pp. 75-76.
- ↑ Swami Sivananda. All About Hinduism. The Divine Life Society, Tehri-Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India, 1993, pp. 124-125
- ↑ Vivekananda, Swami. Quoted by Swami Adiswarananda, The Four Yogas. Skylights Paths Publishing, Woodstock, Vermont, 2006, p. 3.
- ↑ Some texts apply the term ‘Bhakti’ only to Bhakti Yog or Parā Bhakti, relegating Aparā Bhakti completely to the category of Pre-requisite or preparatory step to Bhakti proper.