Gītā basics
What Is Bhakti Yoga? Devotion in the Bhagavad-gītā
Bhakti yoga is loving service to Kṛṣṇa: thinking of Him, worshiping Him and offering Him what we have. In the Gītā, Kṛṣṇa calls the devotee the highest yogī and says He can be known as He is only by devotion. Here is what bhakti means, how it works, and how anyone can begin.
Short answer: Bhakti yoga is the yoga of loving service to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa describes it in one line: "Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, offer obeisances and worship Me" BG 9.34. He calls the devotee the highest of all yogīs BG 6.47, says He can be understood as He is only by devotion BG 18.55, and accepts even a leaf, a flower, fruit or water offered with love BG 9.26. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: "The culmination of all kinds of yoga practices lies in bhakti-yoga" (purport to BG 6.47).
What does "bhakti" mean?
Bhakti comes from the Sanskrit root bhaj, which means to serve. So bhakti is not only a feeling. It is love that shows itself in service.
"The word bhajete is significant here. Bhajate has its root in the verb bhaj, which is used when there is need of service."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 6.47
"But service with love and faith is especially meant for the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 6.47
Bhakti yoga in Kṛṣṇa's own words
Kṛṣṇa gives the whole practice in two short verses:
man-manā bhava mad-bhakto
mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru
mām evaiṣyasi yuktvaivam
ātmānaṁ mat-parāyaṇaḥ
Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, offer obeisances and worship Me. Being completely absorbed in Me, surely you will come to Me.
man-manā bhava mad-bhakto
mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru
mām evaiṣyasi satyaṁ te
pratijāne priyo 'si me
Always think of Me and become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.
These verses name four simple acts:
- Think of Me — remember Kṛṣṇa.
- Become My devotee — love Him and want to please Him.
- Worship Me — serve Him in practice.
- Offer obeisances — bow down to Him with humility.
And a promise: "you will come to Me without fail" BG 18.65.
In a lecture he explained what kind of thinking Kṛṣṇa means:
"Just like a person who is serving some boss. Oh, he's always thinking of that boss: "Oh, I have to attend there at nine o'clock, or that boss will be displeased." He's thinking for some purpose. That sort of thinking will not do. Then therefore He says, bhava mad-bhaktaḥ: "You just think of Me with love.""
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, lecture on BG 9.34, New York, 26 December 1966 (transcript)
The highest yoga
The Gītā describes many kinds of yoga. At the end of Chapter 6, Kṛṣṇa says which is best.
yoginām api sarveṣāṁ
mad-gatenāntar-ātmanā
śraddhāvān bhajate yo māṁ
sa me yuktatamo mataḥ
And of all yogīs, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all.
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains the different yogas as steps on one ladder:
| Step | Path | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karma yoga | Work without selfish results |
| 2 | Jñāna yoga | Knowledge and renunciation |
| 3 | Aṣṭāṅga (dhyāna) yoga | Meditation on the Supersoul |
| 4 | Bhakti yoga | Direct loving service to Kṛṣṇa: the top |
"Yoga actually means bhakti-yoga; all other yogas are progressions toward the destination of bhakti-yoga."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 6.47
He compares it to mountains: when we speak of the Himalayas, we think of the highest peak, Mount Everest; in the same way, bhakti yoga is the summit of all yoga (purport to BG 6.47).
So simple that anyone can do it
Bhakti does not need riches, high birth or great learning. Kṛṣṇa asks for very little:
patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ
yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam
aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ
If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it.
"The important element, in preparation, in serving and in offering, is to act with love for Kṛṣṇa."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 9.26
In a lecture Śrīla Prabhupāda explained why Kṛṣṇa, who needs nothing, still likes our offering:
"So He is full. He has nothing to accept from you. But He likes that you should offer Him something. Just like a rich father: He does not like any help from the son, but if the son, after he is grown up, he is earning, and if he offers something to the father, oh, he becomes very happy. This is natural."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, lecture on BG 9.26, New York, 16 December 1966 (transcript)
The story of Nārada
Śrīla Prabhupāda tells how the great sage Nārada began. In his previous life he was the son of a maidservant.
"Nārada was actually a son of a maidservant. He had no opportunity to go to school. He was simply assisting his mother, and fortunately his mother rendered some service to the devotees."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 9.2
By serving the devotees and taking the remnants of their food, the boy became pure-hearted and later became the great devotee Nārada (purport to BG 9.2). Bhakti is open to everyone.
A joyful practice
rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyaṁ
pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakṣāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ
su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam
This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting, and it is joyfully performed.
Kṛṣṇa calls this knowledge "joyfully performed". Śrīla Prabhupāda explains why:
"In every state devotional service is joyful. One can execute devotional service even in the most poverty-stricken condition."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 9.2
In a lecture he explained how bhakti proves itself:
"If you are hungry and if you are given very nice, nutritious, palatable food, you haven't got to take any certificate from others. You'll understand yourself, "Yes, I am now feeling strength. I am now feeling energy." This is called pratyakṣāvagamaṁ dharmyam. Similarly, if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness—that is the process—then you'll feel automatically how you are satisfied."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, lecture on BG 9.2, Melbourne, 20 April 1976 (transcript)
The nine ways of bhakti
Śrīla Prabhupāda lists the activities of a devotee: "hearing, chanting, remembering, offering prayers, worshiping, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, rendering other services, cultivating friendship and surrendering fully to the Lord" (purport to BG 9.22). Of these, hearing comes first, because by hearing about Kṛṣṇa the heart is cleaned (purport to BG 7.1).
Why is hearing so powerful? Śrīla Prabhupāda quotes the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:
"To hear about Kṛṣṇa from Vedic literatures, or to hear from Him directly through the Bhagavad-gītā, is itself righteous activity. And for one who hears about Kṛṣṇa, Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is dwelling in everyone's heart, acts as a best-wishing friend and purifies the devotee who constantly engages in hearing of Him."
— Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.2.17–21, quoted by Śrīla Prabhupāda in the purport to BG 7.1
Faith in Kṛṣṇa and in the spiritual teacher go together. Śrīla Prabhupāda quotes the Vedic verse yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau:
"Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically revealed."
— Vedic verse quoted by Śrīla Prabhupāda in the purport to BG 6.47
How Kṛṣṇa responds to bhakti
Bhakti is not one-sided. Kṛṣṇa answers love with love.
ananyāś cintayanto māṁ
ye janāḥ paryupāsate
teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ
yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham
But those who worship Me with devotion, meditating on My transcendental form—to them I carry what they lack and preserve what they have.
teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ
bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam
dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ
yena mām upayānti te
To those who are constantly devoted and worship Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me.
He looks after the devotee's needs, and from within the heart He gives the understanding needed to reach Him.
"If one is sincere and devoted to the activities of devotional service, the Lord gives him a chance to make progress and ultimately attain to Him."
— Śrīla Prabhupāda, purport to BG 10.10
How to begin bhakti yoga at home
- Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes that one who chants the holy names in course of time feels transcendental pleasure and becomes purified (purport to BG 9.2).
- Hear the Gītā. Read a few verses daily with the purports; hearing is the first practice (purport to BG 7.1).
- Offer your food. Cook simple vegetarian food, offer it to Kṛṣṇa with love, then eat it as prasādam BG 9.26.
- Offer your work. Whatever you do, do it for Him BG 9.27.
- Keep good company. Spend time with devotees and a genuine spiritual teacher; their association is important (purport to BG 10.10).
- Remember Him through the day. "Always think of Me" BG 18.65.
Frequently asked questions
What is bhakti yoga in simple words?
Bhakti yoga is loving service to Kṛṣṇa: thinking of Him, worshiping Him, bowing to Him and offering Him our work, food and life (9.34, 18.65).
Why is bhakti called the highest yoga?
Kṛṣṇa says that of all yogīs, the one who worships Him with faith in loving service is the highest (6.47). Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that all other yogas are steps toward bhakti yoga (purport to 6.47).
Is bhakti only emotion, without knowledge?
No. Kṛṣṇa says He gives His devotees the understanding by which they come to Him (10.10). Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that action in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the highest intelligence (purport to 10.10), and that only by devotional service can one understand Kṛṣṇa as He is (18.55).
Do I need special qualifications to practise bhakti?
No. Kṛṣṇa accepts a leaf, a flower, fruit or water offered with love (9.26). Śrīla Prabhupāda writes that advancement in spiritual life "does not depend on any kind of previous education or qualification" (purport to 9.2).
Does bhakti stop after liberation?
No. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that devotional service continues even after liberation; in the spiritual world the devotee keeps his individuality and serves the Lord (purports to 9.2 and 18.55).
What is the difference between bhakti yoga and karma yoga?
Karma yoga is work without attachment to its results, offered to the Lord; it is the first step. Bhakti yoga is direct loving service to Kṛṣṇa; it is the goal (purport to 6.47).
Read next
Verses cited
BG 9.34BG 6.47BG 18.55BG 9.26BG 18.65BG 9.2BG 9.22BG 7.1BG 10.10BG 9.27