Introduction to the Bhakti Sutra of Narada
If you have ever felt love for anybody or anything, in any capacity, then, you have felt God. God IS love. And the essence of all love, however worldly or misdirected, is ultimately divine. As such, Bhakti Yoga (the Path of Divine Love) is the refinement of and the conscious cultivation of our capacity to love until it reaches an all-consuming, one-pointed intensity for that which is most sacred, the self of our self, the indwelling essence of our being: God. But does love for God come so easily? Many say they love God but is it truly love? Or is it simply a superficial assent to a cultural belief system? Others, inspired by the ecstatic love of true devotees of God, very much want to want God but are honest enough to admit that such longing doesn't come naturally to them. Fortunately, there is an art and science to loving God and it is spelled out in great detail in the Bhakti Sutra of Narada. What the Yoga Sutra is to the Path of Meditation (Raja Yoga), what the Bhagavad Gita is to the Path of Selfless Action (Karma Yoga) and what the Upanishads are to the Path of Philosophy (Jnana Yoga), the Bhakti Sutra is to the Path of Devotion. These classes meet live one a week every Friday at 6pm PST here:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/7028380815We'll discuss the Bhakti Sutra of Narada for the first 30 minutes and then right after, we will pick up a verse or two from a Jnana text, like Sri Shankara's Aparoskhanubhuti for the remaining 30 minutes. It is my firm conviction that studying a Bhakti text alongside a Jnana text will bring out the best of both and ensure that we are developing holistically as spiritual practitioners!Then we have a Q&A session right after the lecture for about 30 minutes! You'll find the recordings from previous lectures and also the Q&A sessions in our Patreon lecture library:www.patreon.com/yogawithnishAnd if you feel moved to donate to support this work, you're welcome to do so here:https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/jaimakali"Mother make me mad with Thy love!" May all of this be an offering to Sri Ramakrishna.00:00:00 Opening Invocation00:02:28 How Yoga Makes Us Happy00:06:14 How Jnana Yoga Works00:11:24 How Raja Yoga Works00:13:02 How Karma Yoga Works00:15:06 The Bhakti of the Buddha00:18:40 The Tantrik Approach to Bhakti: Shiva Drsti and Shakti Dristi00:22:54 Doing Bhakti and Jnana Together00:26:35 Who is Narada?00:37:50 The Story of Dhruva: Asking God for Worldly Things00:45:40 The Bhakti of Sri Ramakrishna00:49:54 Bhava, Mahabhava and Prema: The Three States of Ecstasy00:52:50 You Can Actually See and Talk To God00:57:16 Vaidhi/Gauni Bhakti vs Para Bhakti00:58:27 How To "Read" The Bhakti SutraSupport the show