The don’ts of bhakti, Part 1
Limbs eleven to twenty are prohibitions or the dont’s of bhakti. They are as important 1 as the previous ten prescriptions. Here are the first […]
Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu
The first ten limbs of bhakti are prescriptions
We now examine the rest of the limbs of bhakti. Rupa Goswami writes about these: eṣām atra daśāṅgānāṁ bhavet prārambha-rupatā: these ten limbs are the […]
Why take dīkṣā from a guru?
Of the 64 limbs of bhakti ennumerated by Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami comments that the first twenty are doors that give entry into bhakti (अस्याः […]
The limbs of bhakti help us relate with Kṛṣṇa
Rupa Goswami lists 64 limbs of bhakti in the Bhakti rasamrta sindhu. We will examine these limbs one by one. This preamble examines the significance […]
Uttama bhaktas are very rare among both muktas and siddhas
Rupa Goswami quotes the following verse from the sixth canto of the भागवतम् in भक्तिरसामृत सिंधु 1.2.52: मुक्तानाम् अपि सिद्धानां नारायणपरायणः| सुदुर्लभः प्रशान्तात्मा कोटीषु अपि […]
Three types of eligible beginners of vaidhī uttamā bhakti
In discussing the eligibility for beginners on the path of vaidhī bhakti, Rupa Goswami writes: uttamo madhyamaś ca syāt kaniṣṭhaś ceti sa tridhā || There are […]
The qualification for vaidhī sādhanā bhakti
In kārikā 1.2.9, Rupa Goswami writes that vaidhī bhakti is the duty of everyone in varṇāśrama : इति असौ स्याद् विधिर् नित्यौ सर्व-वर्णाश्रमादिषु| नित्यत्वेSपि अस्य […]
The definition of vaidhī uttamā sādhanā bhakti
Having defined uttamā sādhanā bhakti, Rupa Goswami lists its two divisions: वैधी रागानुगा चेति सा द्विधा साधनाभिधा| vaidhī rāganugā ceti sā dvidhā sādhanābhidhā That sādhanā bhakti […]
Is the sādhya, bhāva or prema?
Rupa Goswami in his भक्तिरसामृत सिंधु has presented three divisions of उत्तमा भक्ति (uttamā bhakti): sādhanā, bhāva and prema. sādhya and sādhana are only two. Jiva Goswami and […]
sādhanā purifies the citta for the manifestation of bhāva
We have seen that साधना (sādhanā) is the activities of the senses (इंद्रिय-व्यापार) that result in भाव (bhāva). Someone who has bhāva will also serve […]
bhāva: dormant or absent?
There are two opposing views on where bhāva, the sādhya of sādhanā bhakti1, exists before it manifests in the heart (heart refers to the unconscious mind). […]
Śrī Rūpa defines sādhanā bhakti, Part II
The second line of the definition of साधना भक्ति given by Śrī Rūpa Goswami is as follows: नित्य सिद्धस्य भावस्य प्राकट्यम् हृदि साध्यता| nitya siddhasya bhāvasya […]