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}}</ref> Some commentators identify an early sutra by [[Panini (grammarian)|Panini]] (c. 5th century BCE) as the first appearance of the concept of ''bhakti'' (the word ''"vun"'' may refer to ''bhakti'' toward ''"Vasudevarjunabhya"'' (probably the divine [[Krishna Vasudeva|Vasudeva]])<ref name="Bryant">{{cite book|last=Bryant|first=Edwin Francis|title=Krishna: A Sourcebook|publisher=Oxford University Press US|date=2007|page=17 fn|isbn=9780195148916|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=HVDqCkW1WpUC&pg=PA17}}</ref> though this interpretation is disputed).<ref>{{cite book|last=Singh|first=Nagendra Kr|title=Encyclopaedia of Hinduism|publisher=Anmol Publications |date=1997|pages=2462|chapter=Vasudeva Worship: Panini's Evidence|isbn=9788174881687|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=dbXDocmylYgC&pg=PA2462}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Dahlaquist|first=Allan|title=Megasthenes and Indian Religion|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass|date=1996|pages=23|isbn=9788120813236|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=xp35-8gTRDkC&pg=PA23}}</ref> The [[Bhagavad Gita]] is the first text to use the word "''bhakti''" as a term for one of three possible religious approaches<ref>Prentiss, p. 5.</ref>, the [[Bhagavata Purana]] develops the idea more elaborately,<ref name="Cutler" /> while the [[Shvetashvatara Upanishad]] evidences a fully developed ''Shiva-bhakti'' (devotion to [[Shiva]]) <ref name="Klostermaier" /> in which R. Raj Singh sees signs of ''guru-bhakti''.<ref>{{citation
}}</ref> The [[Bhagavad Gita]] is the first text to explicitly use the word ''"bhakti"'' to designate a religious path, using it as a term for one of three possible religious approaches<ref>Prentiss, p. 5.</ref>. The [[Bhagavata Purana]] develops the idea more elaborately,<ref name="Cutler" /> while the [[Shvetashvatara Upanishad]] evidences a fully developed ''Shiva-bhakti'' (devotion to [[Shiva]]) <ref name="Klostermaier" /> and signs of ''guru-bhakti''.<ref>{{citation
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| format = {{dead link|date=May 2009}} &ndash; <sup>[http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=author%3ASingh+intitle%3ABhakti+and+philosophy&as_publication=&as_ylo=2006&as_yhi=2006&btnG=Search Scholar search]</sup>
| format = {{dead link|date=May 2009}} &ndash; <sup>[http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&lr=&q=author%3ASingh+intitle%3ABhakti+and+philosophy&as_publication=&as_ylo=2006&as_yhi=2006&btnG=Search Scholar search]</sup>
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}}</ref> Some commentators identify an early sutra by [[Panini (grammarian)|Panini]] (c. 5th century BCE) as the first appearance of the concept of ''bhakti'' (the word ''"vun"'' may refer to ''bhakti'' toward ''"Vasudevarjunabhya"'' (probably the divine [[Krishna Vasudeva|Vasudeva]])<ref name="Bryant">{{cite book|last=Bryant|first=Edwin Francis|title=Krishna: A Sourcebook|publisher=Oxford University Press US|date=2007|page=17 fn|isbn=9780195148916|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=HVDqCkW1WpUC&pg=PA17}}</ref> though this interpretation is disputed).<
}}</ref>


The so-called ''[[Bhakti Movement]]'' was a rapid growth of ''bhakti'' beginning in Southern India with the Saiva [[Nayanars]] (4th-10th century CE)<ref name="Embree">{{cite book|last=Embree|first=Ainslie Thomas|coauthors=Stephen N. Hay, William Theodore De Bary|title=Sources of Indian Tradition|publisher=Columbia University Press|date=1988|pages=342|isbn=9780231066518|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=An5mD6KMiSIC&pg=PA342}}</ref> and the Vaisnava [[Alvars]] (6th-9th century CE) who spread ''bhakti'' poetry and devotion throughout India by the 12th-18th century CE.<ref name="Flood" /><ref name="Embree" /> The Alvars ("those immersed in God") were Vaishnava poet-saints who wandered from temple to temple singing the praises of Vishnu. They established many temple sites ([[Srirangam]] is one) and converted many people to Vaishnavism. Their poems were collected in the 10th century as the ''Four Thousand Divine Compositions'', which became an influential scripture for the Vaishnavas. The [[Bhagavata Purana]] was strongly influenced by Tamil Vaishnava ''bhakti''.<ref name="Flood" />
The so-called ''[[Bhakti Movement]]'' was a rapid growth of ''bhakti'' beginning in Southern India with the Saiva [[Nayanars]] (4th-10th century CE)<ref name="Embree">{{cite book|last=Embree|first=Ainslie Thomas|coauthors=Stephen N. Hay, William Theodore De Bary|title=Sources of Indian Tradition|publisher=Columbia University Press|date=1988|pages=342|isbn=9780231066518|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=An5mD6KMiSIC&pg=PA342}}</ref> and the Vaisnava [[Alvars]] (6th-9th century CE) who spread ''bhakti'' poetry and devotion throughout India by the 12th-18th century CE.<ref name="Flood" /><ref name="Embree" /> The Alvars ("those immersed in God") were Vaishnava poet-saints who wandered from temple to temple singing the praises of Vishnu. They established many temple sites ([[Srirangam]] is one) and converted many people to Vaishnavism. Their poems were collected in the 10th century as the ''Four Thousand Divine Compositions'', which became an influential scripture for the Vaishnavas. The [[Bhagavata Purana]] was strongly influenced by Tamil Vaishnava ''bhakti''.<ref name="Flood" />

Revision as of 15:38, 1 June 2009

Bhakti (Devanāgarī: भक्ति, Sanskrit: devotion, or portion)[1] in Hindu practice signifies an active involvement by the devotee in divine worship. The term is often translated as "devotion", though it has been suggested that a better rendering would be "participation".[2] One who practices bhakti is called a bhakta[3] and bhakti as a spiritual path is referred to as the bhakti way - bhakti marga.[4][5]Bhakti is an important component of many branches of Hinduism, defined differently by various sects and schools.[6]

The practice of bhakti emphasises devotion above ritual. Bhakti is commonly represented in terms of human relationships, most importantly beloved-lover, friend-friend, parent-child and master-servant.[7] It may refer to devotion to a spiritual teacher (Guru) as guru-bhakti,[8][9] or to a personal form of God[10] or a divinity without form (nirguna).[11] There are three main schools of bhakti in Hinduism: Shaivas, who worship Shiva and the gods and goddesses associated with him; Vaishnavas, who worship forms of Vishnu, his avataras, and others associated with him; Shaktas, who worship a variety of goddesses. These schools are not always exclusive of each other—a bhakti's devotion towards one form of god does not preclude worship of another form.[12]

The Bhagavad Gita is the first text to explicitly use the word "bhakti" to designate a religious path,[13] which the Bhagavata Purana develops more elaborately.[7] The so-called Bhakti Movement saw a rapid growth of bhakti beginning in Southern India with the Vaisnava Alvars (6th-9th century CE) and Saiva Nayanars (5th-10th century CE), who spread bhakti poetry and devotion throughout India by the 12th-18th century CE,[14][15] extending its influence also to Sufism,[16] Sikhism,[17] Christianity,[18] and Jainism.[19] The bhakti movement emphasised devotion above ritual. Prominent bhakti poets such as Ravidas and Kabir wrote against the hierarchy of caste.[20] Bhakti resulted in a mass of devotional literature, music, dance and art that gave India renewed spiritual impetus, one eschewing unnecessary ritual and artificial social boundaries.

Etymology

The Sanskrit noun bhakti is derived from the verb root bhaj, whose meanings include "to share in", "to belong to", and "to worship". "Devotion" as an English translation for bhakti doesn't fully convey two important aspects of bhakti. One is the sense of participation and "mutual indwelling" that is central to the relationship between the devotee and God as practiced in bhakti. The other is the intense feeling that is more typically associated with the English word "love". Bhakti is sometimes used in the broader sense of reverence toward a deity or teacher; bhaktimarga is usually used to describe a bhakti path with complete dedication to one form of God.[6]

Types and classifications

In Valmiki's Ramayana, Rama describes the path as nine-fold (nava-vidha bhakti):

Such pure devotion is expressed in nine ways, . First is satsang or association with love-intoxicated devotees. The second is to develop a taste for hearing my nectar-like stories. The third is service to the guru (...) Fourth is to sing my kirtan (communal chorus) (...) Japa or repetition of my Holy name and chanting my bhajans are the fifth expression (...) To follow scriptural injunctions always, to practice control of the senses, nobility of character and selfless service, these are expressions of the sixth mode of bhakti. Seeing me manifested everywhere in this world and worshipping my saints more than myself is the seventh mode of bhakti. To find no fault with anyone and to be contented with one's lot is the eighth mode of bhakti. Unreserved surrender with total faith in my strength is the ninth and highest stage. Shabari, anyone who practices one of these nine modes of my bhakti pleases me most and reaches me without fail.[21]

The Bhagavata Purana teaches nine similar facets of bhakti, as explained by Prahlada:[22]

(1) śravaṇa("listening" to the scriptural stories of Kṛṣṇa and his companions), (2) kīrtana ("praising," usually refers to ecstatic group singing), (3) smaraṇa ("remembering" or fixing the mind on Viṣṇu), (4) pāda-sevana (rendering service), (5) arcana (worshiping an image), (6) vandana (paying homage), (7) dāsya (servitude), (8) sākhya (friendship), and (9) ātma-nivedana (self-surrender). (from Bhagata Purana, 7.5.23-24)

Another classification is according to the five rasas or bhavas or "affective essences".[23] These are different attitudes of devotion;[24] śānta (peacefulness), dāsya (service) sakhya (friendliness) vātsalya (parental care) and madhura (sweetness, romantic love).[24] The attitude of Hanuman towards Rama exemplifies dasya bhava.[25] Arjuna's friendship with Krishna is sakhya bhava.[26][27] Yashoda, Krishna's mother, is a paragon of vatsalya bhava.[28] and Radha's love for Krishna is regarded as madhura bhava.[26]

History

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Main article: Bhakti movement

Scholarly consensus sees bhakti as a post-Vedic movement that developed primarily during the era of Indian epic poetry.[29][30] The Bhagavad Gita is the first text to explicitly use the word "bhakti" to designate a religious path, using it as a term for one of three possible religious approaches[31]. The Bhagavata Purana develops the idea more elaborately,[7] while the Shvetashvatara Upanishad evidences a fully developed Shiva-bhakti (devotion to Shiva) [4] and signs of guru-bhakti.[32] Some commentators identify an early sutra by Panini (c. 5th century BCE) as the first appearance of the concept of bhakti (the word "vun" may refer to bhakti toward "Vasudevarjunabhya" (probably the divine Vasudeva)[33] though this interpretation is disputed).<

The so-called Bhakti Movement was a rapid growth of bhakti beginning in Southern India with the Saiva Nayanars (4th-10th century CE)[15] and the Vaisnava Alvars (6th-9th century CE) who spread bhakti poetry and devotion throughout India by the 12th-18th century CE.[14][15] The Alvars ("those immersed in God") were Vaishnava poet-saints who wandered from temple to temple singing the praises of Vishnu. They established many temple sites (Srirangam is one) and converted many people to Vaishnavism. Their poems were collected in the 10th century as the Four Thousand Divine Compositions, which became an influential scripture for the Vaishnavas. The Bhagavata Purana was strongly influenced by Tamil Vaishnava bhakti.[14]

Like the Alvars the Saiva Nayanar poets softened the distinctions of caste and gender. The Tirumurai, a compilation of hymns by sixty-three Nayanar poets, is still of great importance in South India. Hymns by three of the most prominent poets, Appar (7th century CE), Campantar (7th century) and Cuntarar (9th century), were compiled into the Tevaram, the first volumes of the Tirumurai. The poets' itinerant lifestyle helped create temple and pilgrimage sites and spread devotion to Shiva.[34] Early Tamil-Siva bhakti poets quoted the Black Yajurveda specifically.[35]

By the 7th century Bhakti movement had further developed in the south as intense devotion for Vishnu and Shiva, expressed through poetry, music, temple icons and narrative traditions. The poetry of the Vaisnava Alvars and the Saiva Nayanars was influential in the spread of bhakti throughout India.[14] By the 12th to 18th centuries, the bhakti movement had spread to all regions and languages of India. Bhakti poetry and attitudes began to color many aspects of Hindu culture, religious and secular, and became an integral part of Indian society.[15] Prominent bhakti poets such as Ravidas and Kabir wrote against the hierarchy of caste.[36] Bhakti resulted in a mass of devotional literature, music, dance and art that gave India renewed spiritual impetus, eschewing unnecessary ritual and artificial social boundaries. It extended its influence to Sufism,[37] Sikhism,[38] Christianity,[39] and Jainism.[40] . Bhakti offered the possibility of religious experience by anyone, anywhere, at any time.[41]

Bhakti Yoga

The Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana explains bhakti as a form of yoga together with karma yoga and jnana yoga,[42][43].[7] Bhakti Yoga is described by Swami Vivekananda as "the path of systematized devotion for the attainment of union with the Absolute",[44] In the twelfth chapter of the Gita Krishna describes bhakti yoga as a path to the highest spiritual attainments.[45] In the ninth chapter, he says,

Whoever with devotion offers Me a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water, that I accept—the devout gift of the pure-minded."(9.26)[46]

Fill thy mind with Me, be My devotee, sacrifice unto Me, bow down to Me; thus having made thy heart steadfast in Me, taking Me as the Supreme Goal, thou shalt come to Me. (B-Gita 9.34)[46]

By devotion he knows Me in reality, what and who I am; then having known Me in reality, he forthwith enters into Me. (B-Gita 18.55) [46]

Shandilya and Narada produced two important Bhakti texts, the Shandilya Bhakti Sutra and Narada Bhakti Sutra.[47][48] They define devotion, emphasize its importance and superiority, and classify its forms.[49]

Notable proponents of Bhakti

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary". University of Cologne. pp. bh. Retrieved 2009-04-19.
  2. ^ Pechilis Prentiss, Karen (1999). The Embodiement of Bhakti. US: Oxford University Press. p. cover. ISBN 9780195128130.
  3. ^ Prentiss, p. 3.
  4. ^ a b Klostermaier, Klaus (1989). A survey of Hinduism. SUNY Press. pp. 210–212. ISBN 9780887068072.
  5. ^ Prentiss, p. 23.
  6. ^ a b Lindsay Jones, ed. (2005). Gale Encyclopedia of Religion. Vol. Volume 2. Thompson Gale. pp. 856–857. ISBN ISBN 0-02-865735-7. {{cite book}}: |volume= has extra text (help); Check |isbn= value: invalid character (help)
  7. ^ a b c d Cutler, Norman (1987). Songs of Experience. Indiana University Press. p. 1. ISBN 9780253353344.
  8. ^ Sivananda, Swami (2004). Guru Bhakti Yoga. Divine Life Society. ISBN 8170521688.
  9. ^ Vivekananda, Swami (1970). The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda. Advaita Ashrama. p. 62.
  10. ^ Neusner, Jacob (2003). World religions in America: an introduction. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 128. ISBN 0-664-22475-X.
  11. ^ Prentiss, p. 21.
  12. ^ Rinehart, Robin (2004). Contemporary Hinduism: ritual, culture, and practice. ABC-CLIO. p. 45. ISBN 9781576079058.
  13. ^ Prentiss, p. 5,
  14. ^ a b c d Flood, Gavin (1996). An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 131. ISBN 9780521438780.
  15. ^ a b c d Embree, Ainslie Thomas (1988). Sources of Indian Tradition. Columbia University Press. p. 342. ISBN 9780231066518. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ Flood, Gavin D. (2003). The Blackwell companion to Hinduism. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 185. ISBN 9780631215356.
  17. ^ Neusner, p. 135.
  18. ^ Neill, Stephen (2002). A history of Christianity in India, 1707-1858. Cambridge University Press. p. 412. ISBN 9780521893329.
  19. ^ Kelting, Mary Whitney (2001). Singing to the Jinas: Jain laywomen, Maṇḍaḷ singing, and the negotiations of Jain devotion. Oxford University Press. p. 87. ISBN 9780195140118.
  20. ^ Rinehart, p. 257.
  21. ^ Keshavadas, Sadguru Sant (1988). "Aranya Kanda". Ramayana at a Glance. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 124.
  22. ^ Haberman, David L. (2001). Acting as a Way of Salvation. Motilal Banarsidass Publ. pp. 133–134. ISBN 9788120817944.
  23. ^ Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty (December 28, 2007). Other Asias. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 197.
  24. ^ a b Allport, Gordon W. (1999). "Its meaning for the West". Hindu Psychology. Routledge. p. 180. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ Sarma, Subrahmanya (1971). Essence of Hinduism. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. p. 68.
  26. ^ a b Isherwood, Christopher (1980). Ramakrishna and his disciples. Vedanta Press. pp. 111–112. ISBN 9780874810370.
  27. ^ Sharma, Hari Dutt (1999). Glory of Spiritual India. Pustak Mahal. pp. 95–96. ISBN 9788122304398.
  28. ^ Devanand, G.K. Teaching of Yoga. APH Publishing. p. 74.
  29. ^ "Scholarly consensus today tends to view bhakti as a post-Vedic development that took place primarily in the watershed years of the epics and Puranas." Prentiss, p. 17.
  30. ^ Monier Monier-Williams; Ernst Leumann (1899). A Sanskrit-English dictionary, etymologically and philologically arranged : with special reference to cognate Indo-European languages (new ed.). Oxford: Clarendon. OCLC 152275976.
  31. ^ Prentiss, p. 5.
  32. ^ Singh, R. Raj (2006), Bhakti and philosophy ([dead link] – Scholar search), Lexington Books, p. 28, ISBN 0739114247 {{citation}}: External link in |format= (help); Unknown parameter |unused_data= ignored (help)
  33. ^ Bryant, Edwin Francis (2007). Krishna: A Sourcebook. Oxford University Press US. p. 17 fn. ISBN 9780195148916.
  34. ^ Olson, Carl (2007). The many colors of Hinduism: a thematic-historical introduction. Rutgers University Press. p. 231. ISBN 9780813540689.
  35. ^ Prentiss, pp. 17-18.
  36. ^ Rinehart, p. 257.
  37. ^ Flood, Gavin D. (2003). The Blackwell companion to Hinduism. Wiley-Blackwell. p. 185. ISBN 9780631215356.
  38. ^ Neusner, p. 135.
  39. ^ Neill, Stephen (2002). A history of Christianity in India, 1707-1858. Cambridge University Press. p. 412. ISBN 9780521893329.
  40. ^ Kelting, Mary Whitney (2001). Singing to the Jinas: Jain laywomen, Maṇḍaḷ singing, and the negotiations of Jain devotion. Oxford University Press. p. 87. ISBN 9780195140118.
  41. ^ Prentiss, p. 19.
  42. ^ Minor, Robert Neil (1986). Modern Indian Interpreters of the Bhagavadgita. SUNY Press. p. 3. ISBN 9780887062971.
  43. ^ Glucklich, Ariel (2008). The Strides of Vishnu. Oxford University Press. p. 104. ISBN 9780195314052.
  44. ^ Sundararajan, K. R. (2003). Hindu Spirituality. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 306. ISBN 9788120819375. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  45. ^ Jacobsen, Knut A. (Editor) (2005). Theory And Practice of Yoga: Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson. Brill Academic Publishers. p. 351. ISBN 9004147578. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  46. ^ a b c Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita
  47. ^ Georg Feuerstein (2002). The Yoga Tradition. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 55. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  48. ^ Swami Vivekananda (2006). "Bhakti Yoga". In Amiya P Sen (ed.). The indispensable Vivekananda. Orient Blackswan. p. 212.
  49. ^ Bary, William Theodore De (1988). "Hinduism". Sources of Indian Tradition. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 330. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)

Further reading

  • Swami Chinmayananda, Love Divine – Narada Bhakti Sutra, Chinmaya Publications Trust, Madras, 1970
  • Swami Tapasyananda, Bhakti Schools of Vedanta, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Madras, 1990
  • A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Srimad Bhagavatam (12 Cantos), The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust,2004
  • Steven J. Rosen, The Yoga of Kirtan: conversations on the Sacred Art of Chanting (New York: FOLK Books, 2008)
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