Steps of Devotion in Bhagavad Gita

In this talk, Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha says that devotion is a bhava or an attitude of the mind. It is not thoughts, it is not reason, it is an attitude of piety and devotion one develops in the mind and expresses it. Mind should have a devotional attitude, should be besmeared with devotional bhava or emotion.

Bhagavad Gita clearly says that a devotee must progress from physical or oral worship to mental worship. He/she has to expand the mind and make it grow to the universal level. The devotion must become constant, not time-bound. When the devotion becomes constant, wholesome, then everything becomes worship–all thoughts, all actions. Then, all the activities performed become an offering to the Lord.

In the final level, there are no materials for worship. The devotee should seek refuge under the indwelling presence alone, with the emotions and attitudes that he has– Love, hatred, jealousy, competition, infatuation, everything! In this state everything physical vanishes and one seeks refuge in the indwelling presence. The devotee sees everything as the Divine. With the blessings of the indwelling presence, one can attain eternal peacefulness.

Shlokas chanted in the Track:

पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति ।
तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः ।।

Bhagavad Gita 9.26

यतः प्रवृत्तिर्भूतानां येन सर्वमिदं ततम् ।
स्वकर्मणा तमभ्यर्च्य सिद्धिं विन्दति मानवः ॥
Bhagavad Gita 18.46

ईश्वरः सर्वभूतानां हृद्देशेऽर्जुन तिष्ठति ।
भ्रामयन्सर्वभूतानि यन्त्रारूढानि मायया ॥
तमेव शरणं गच्छ सर्वभावेन भारत ।
तत्प्रसादात्परां शान्तिं स्थानं प्राप्स्यसि शाश्वतम् ॥
Bhagavad Gita 18.61 & 62

PR 30 Jan 2017