Chapter XI
Bhakti – Devotion
Spiritual Discipline – Mental
Devotion is an age-old and innate quality of dedication, religious fervour and ardent attachment in man. It is described in many places in the Ved Mantras and the Upanishads. The Bhagwad Gita, Bhagwat Puran and other scriptures also comment on devotion at considerable length.
Guru Nanak also pointed out that the Vedas and other religious books have always extolled the value of devotion.
The life-night is dark, while the Divine Light is immaculate. Those who lack the Naam, the Name of the Lord, are false, filthy and untouchable. The Vedas preach sermons of devotional worship. Listening, hearing and believing, one beholds the Divine Light. The Shastras and Smritis lay stress on the Naam.
Adi Granth, Belaval M9, 831
In the religious books of the Hindus two methods have been specified for attaining communion with God:
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The path of (spiritual) knowledge – (Gyan Marg).
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The path of love or devotion – (Bhakti-Marg or Rah-i-ishq).
Lord Krishna clearly states in the Gita:
The Yogi is greater than the ascetics; he is thougt to be greater than even the wise; the Yogi is greater than the men of action; therefore become thou a Yogi, oh Arjuna.
And of all yogis, I consider the one who, full of faith, abides in me with the inner self, dedicates himself to me deeply and renders devoted service to me as the most superior of all.
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 6, Verse 46,47
The path of knowledge is also described in the Gita, but at the same time it is very clearly asserted that the path of knowledge cannot be followed successfully without faith and devotion.
Men without faith in this knowledge, oh Parantapa, not reaching me, return to the path of this world of death.
Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 9, Verse 3
God cannot be known through the sense organs. Neither can He be known through the intellect nor by reasoning. And austerities and incarnations without devotion are of no avail. He can be realized only by devotion.
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