What is Bhakti?

by Swami Sivananda

Bhakti is the slender thread of Prem or love that binds the heart of a devotee with the lotus feet of the Lord. Bhakti is intense devotion and supreme attachment to God. Bhakti is supreme love for God. It is the spontaneous outpouring of Prem towards the Beloved. It is pure, unselfish, divine love or Suddha Prem. It is love for love’s sake. There is not a bit of bargaining or expectation of anything here. This higher feeling is indescribable in words. It has to be sincerely experienced by the devotee. Bhakti is a sacred, higher emotion with sublime sentiments that unites the devotees with the Lord.

Sandilya defines Para Bhakti or preliminary devotion as supreme attachment to God. “Sa paranuraktir ishvare.” “Para Anurakti” is intense attachment or love for God. The Narada Pancharatna defines it as realisation of God alone as “mine” accompanied by deep love for Him without attachment to any other object in the world. It is undivided love for God in which He alone is felt as “mine”.

A distinction is drawn by some later devotional literature between Bhakti and Prem. Bhakti is spontaneous attachment to God. The devotee is entirely possessed by Him. He is absorbed in Him. Prem is the crowning consummation of Bhakti. It is the most concentrated love for God which is full of the most intense attachment and purifies the heart thoroughly. Love of God is the completion and perfection of devotion.

Love between husband and wife is physical, selfish and hypocritical. It is not constant. It is carnal passion only. It is sexual appetite. It is tinged with lower emotions. It is of a bestial nature. It is finite. But Divine Love is infinite, pure, all-pervading and everlasting. There is no question of divorce here. There is no internal union between husband and wife in reality in the vast majority of cases. Savitri and Satyavan, Atri and Anusuya are very, very rare in these days. As husbands and wives are extremely united only for selfish ends there is only some show of smile and external love, it is all mere show only. As there is no real union in their heart of hearts, there are always some kind of friction, rupture, wry faces and hot words in every house. If the husband does not supply his wife with the necklace and silk sari she demands and take her to the cinema, there will be regular tug-of-war and fighting in the house. Can you call this real love? It is mercenary, commercial, business. On account of lust men have lost their integrity, independence and dignity. They have become slaves of women. What a pitiable spectacle you see! The key is with the wife and even for few rupees the husband has to stretch his hands to her. Still he says under delusion and intoxication of passion: “I have a sweet, loving wife. She is really a Mira. She can be really worshipped. “

Robert J. Ingersoll, the great philosopher defines Love as follows:

“Love is the only bow on life’s dark cloud. It is the Morning and the Evening Star. It shines upon the cradle of the babe and sheds its radiance upon the quiet tomb. It is the mother of art, inspirer of poet, patriot and philosopher. It was the first to dream of immortality. It fills the world with melody, for Music is the voice of Love. It is the perfume of the wondrous flower-the heart. Without it we are less than beasts but with it earth is heaven and we are gods in embryo. “

What is Bhakti? – Devotion, Surrender, and Divine Love

What is Bhakti? It is the path of loving God with sincerity, faith, humility, and surrender. Bhakti is not only singing hymns, visiting temples, performing rituals, or expressing emotion. These may be beautiful parts of devotion, but true devotion is deeper. It is the transformation of the heart through constant remembrance, prayer, purity, service, and love for the Divine.

The human heart naturally seeks love. It loves family, friends, possessions, success, comfort, and recognition. But worldly love is often mixed with expectation, fear, attachment, and disappointment. Divine love lifts the heart beyond selfishness. It teaches the seeker to love without bargaining, to serve without pride, and to surrender without fear.

What is Bhakti? It is a living relationship between the soul and the Supreme. The devotee may look upon God as Father, Mother, Friend, Master, Beloved, or Inner Self. The form may differ according to temperament, tradition, and faith, but the essence remains the same: the heart turns toward the Divine with trust, longing, and reverence.

Devotion begins in simple ways. A person may pray during suffering, ask for protection, seek peace, or remember God during difficulty. This beginning is not wrong. Even need-based prayer can become a doorway to higher life. Gradually, as the heart becomes pure, the devotee no longer seeks only blessings from God, but seeks God Himself.

Bhakti gives the mind a higher centre. The ordinary mind runs after worries, desires, memories, plans, and fears. Through mantra repetition, prayer, worship, and remembrance, the mind is trained to return again and again to the Divine. This repeated turning purifies thought and gives inner calmness.

What is Bhakti? It is surrender of ego. The ego says, “I am the doer, I am the owner, I am superior, I control everything.” Devotion says, “All strength, wisdom, opportunity, and success come through divine grace.” This attitude does not make the devotee weak. It makes action humble, pure, and free from unnecessary pride.

A true devotee does not avoid duty. Work, family, service, study, and responsibilities can all become part of spiritual life when offered to God. The devotee performs actions sincerely, but does not cling anxiously to results. Success is accepted with gratitude, and failure is accepted with patience. This attitude brings peace in daily life.

Devotion must be supported by purity of conduct. A heart filled with jealousy, harshness, dishonesty, greed, pride, and selfishness cannot easily experience divine love. Truthfulness, kindness, forgiveness, humility, self-control, and compassion make the heart fit for devotion. The real test of devotion is seen in behavior, not only in worship.

What is Bhakti? It is love expressed through service. When the devotee sees the Divine presence in all beings, helping others becomes worship. Feeding the hungry, comforting the sorrowful, speaking kindly, caring for family, respecting elders, and doing honest work can become sacred offerings. Service expands the heart and weakens selfishness.

Prayer is one of the sweetest practices in this path. It may be simple, silent, spoken, sung, or written. The language is less important than sincerity. A true prayer may ask for purity, wisdom, patience, courage, forgiveness, and devotion. Prayer opens the heart and makes it receptive to grace.

Good company strengthens devotion. The mind is influenced by people, books, conversations, music, surroundings, and daily habits. Satsang, noble reading, mantra, devotional songs, and association with sincere seekers keep the heart inspired. Negative company, gossip, pride, and restless entertainment weaken devotion and scatter the mind.

What is Bhakti? It is also constant remembrance. The devotee tries to remember God not only during formal worship, but also while walking, eating, working, resting, and facing difficulty. When remembrance becomes steady, ordinary life becomes sacred. Every action becomes an offering, every breath becomes prayer, and every moment becomes a chance to grow closer to the Divine.

Devotion does not reject knowledge. True love and true wisdom support each other. Knowledge removes superstition and narrowness, while devotion removes dryness and pride. When the seeker understands that the same Divine reality dwells in all, love becomes broader, purer, and more compassionate.

The fruit of devotion is inner peace. As love for God deepens, fear becomes weaker, ego becomes softer, desires become moderate, and the heart becomes more forgiving. The devotee feels supported by grace even during difficulty. Life no longer feels empty, because the heart has found a higher purpose and a sacred connection.

In the end, What is Bhakti? It is the path of divine love, surrender, remembrance, purity, service, and grace. It begins with prayer and grows into selfless love. Through faith, humility, mantra, worship, good conduct, and constant remembrance, the devotee’s heart becomes a temple of the Divine and moves steadily toward peace, wisdom, and liberation.

The Mental Faculties