Jagat

This verse is the conclusion of the series on the  Uttama Bhāgavata, which covered BhP 11.2.48-55. It includes a further analysis of the characteristics delineated in this section. This verse " conveys the essence of all the definitions of a superlative devotee given previously" (Shridhar Swami).  There is a second part to this lengthy anuccheda that specifically addresses a different set of characteristics taken from  the Pa ñcarātra literature. These are more in keeping with the spirit of vaidhi bhakti and not as important as those given in the Bhagavatam. Anuccheda 198 Bhagavān is Bound to the Heart of an Uttama Bhāgavata तथा (भा. ११.२.५५)— विसृजति हृदयं न यस्य साक्षाद् धरिरवशाभिहितोऽप्यघौघनाशः। प्रणयरशनया धृताङ्घ्रिपद्मः स भवति भागवतप्रधान उक्तः॥ And here is the concluding verse in this series describing the superlative devotee: If Bhagavān Hari is addressed even unintentionally, He destroys all sins. One in whose heart such a Bhagavān...

I was asked by my friend Gustavo Plaza, the editor of Sadhana , a Spanish language magazine on yoga published from Ecuador, to answer some questions for their next edition, which will focus on Bhakti Yoga. Answers were requested to be short. 1. In your words, what is Bhakti Yoga? Bhakti yoga is the application of the principles of yoga, i.e., single-pointed concentration, to the art of love. It is the path of achieving union with God through the art of love. 2. What is the relation, connection and similarities of Bhakti Yoga with the traditional paths of Classical Yoga (Raja, Dhyana) and its practices? And what are the main differences of Bhakti Yoga to these other yogas? All yoga systems follow the fundamental outline of the Yoga Sutra, proceeding from external practices to internal transformation. As one becomes purified by the external practices of Bhakti-yoga, one enters into subtler realms of consciousness. The principal difference in bhakti yoga is the emphasis on God as...

  II. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Our second “great man,” Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, was a charismatic figure who acted as a reformer of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition and, according to some, broke with it. Though the extent of his influence on Bengali society as a whole was nowhere near that of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he must nevertheless be included among the many Bengali reformers in the 19th and early 20th centuries who contributed to the revitalization of Hindu pride in its own traditions. His role in inspiring others to carry the Chaitanya Vaishnava message beyond Bengali society alone makes him worthy of examination. Unlike Chaitanya, Saraswati was not an ecstatic, but an ascetic and intellectual, who was driven by a vision of the potential glory of Chaitanya Vaishnavism and by the desire to overcome the restraints placed on it by contemporary conditions. He saw himself as continuing his father Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s attempts to rationalize Gaudiya Vaishnavism and bri...