Bhakti Yoga: Lasting Happiness Through Bhakti Yoga

By Yogacharya Kundan Kumar

To attain jitendriyata is to achieve full control over ones senses. This leads to what is called God-realisation. In this controlled state all pain and suffering cease permanently. Achievement of this bliss is the sole aim of human life.

There are different paths to achieve this height as there are different routes leading to, for instance, Mount Everest. Gyan yoga, karma yoga, bhakti yoga, raja yoga, hatha yoga, swara yoga, nada yoga, astanga yoga; all of these lead to the same goal of achieving communion with God.

Just as the time taken by different routes to reach a particular destination varies, each path of yoga takes its own time. The shortest and most suitable path ordained in this Kali Yuga is bhakti yoga . This form of yoga and all other forms of yoga come under astanga yoga or the eight-fold yoga which comprises the following:

1. Yama or ahimsa, satya, asteya, brahmacharya and aparigraha , meaning non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, continuous meditation or remembrance by salutation to God and non-accumulation of non-essential things.

2. Niyama or sauch, santosh, tapas, swadhyaya and ishwara pranidhana , meaning cleanliness, both internal as well as external, contentment, rightful penance, self-study and self-surrender to God.

3. Asana or body postures in the yogic tradition.

4. Pranayama or control of prana .

5. Pratyahara or withdrawal of sense organs within.

6. Dharana or contemplation.

7. Dhyana or meditation.

8. Samadhi or total union with God.

A practical thing to opt for is a practice of the eight-fold yoga with a special stress on bhakti yoga.

The importance of bhakti and the resultant cessation of dukh or sorrow has been recorded in the scriptures. Saints and also ordinary people who have practised bhakti yoga in their day-to-day life vouch for its efficacy. Bhakti yoga stands for intense love of God.

Practitioners of bhakti yoga do not ask for anything in return from God; they believe that God, as the mother and father of all, understands his children. Sometimes God does not fulfil the immediate desires of His bhakta s. However, the bhakti yogi continues to nurture his devotion and love for God as he is convinced that whatever God gives, He gives for the ultimate good of the bhakta .

Two shlokas in the Bhagavad Gita extol the virtues of bhakti ( 9:34 and 18:65). Krishna emphasises that bhakti is the theme which is the secret of all secrets (18:64) and Krishna cautions Arjuna and through him, cautions entire humanity, to pay special heed to it.

Bhakti yoga acquires greater potency when it combines with some kriya s of astanga yoga like trataka, neti and its various forms, according to the needs of the practitioner. However, all yogic kriyas should be learnt and performed under competent guidance to avoid unpleasant results.

Another kriya which is very powerful for yogic accomplishments and all-round happiness is the sabd brahm kriya of nada yoga. In special yogic posture the anahat nada Ñ the sound which is produced in our body without any external effort Ñ is meditated upon. This anahat nada is the divine sound and is experienced by the sadhaka in the form of ghosha, kanshya, sringa, ghanta, veena, banshuri, dundubhi, sankha and megha garjana .

The practitioner of nada yoga under the guidance of a siddha nada yogi avoids falling into the trap of self-destructive human weaknesses and ultimately achieves communion with God. Having done so, nothing remains but bliss.