Upadesa Saara - 1

Introduction

Upadesa Saara is a short text of 30 verses written by Ramana Maharishi in simple Sanskrit, which was originally written by him in Tamil under the name “Upadesa Undhiyar”. Maharishi wrote this text originally in Tamil in response to the request of his disciple Muruganar. The request was made under these circumstances. Muruganar was writing a puranic story in Tamil. There occurs a situation in the story which can be described as follows: 

In the forest known as Taruka Vanam there lived a few grihastha rishis who were staunch karma-kandis. They believed that the world and the Vedas are eternal and that karmas give karma phala by themselves.  According to them Vedic rituals give all the benefits during and after life and they by themselves are sufficient to get Moksha, the eternal, infinite Bliss of Liberation.  They did not attach any importance to Jnana Kanda portion of Vedas. But they were men of pure minds as they were focused sincerely on rituals. Once they were assembled for performing a Vedic ritual.  Lord Siva felt compassion for them. He wanted to reform their outlook and make them realise that Karma alone cannot confer the eternal infinite happiness of Moksha as mere actions do not remove ignorance of one’s own nature and it is only through Jnanam, that a person can get rid of all sorrow and sufferings. Lord Siva came to the forest as a young handsome Brahmachari seeking bhiksha. Lord Vishnu also came to His assistance as Mohini, a beautiful damsel. The assembled rishis were distracted by the Mohini and as she started moving away from them they followed her forgetting the purpose for which they had assembled. Suddenly the Mohini vanished and the rishis ashamed of their distraction went back, only to find their wives following the young Brahmachari almost in a trance. The Rishis became angry and tried to destroy the Brahmachari employing all the mantras and rituals they knew. When they failed, they realized that the young person is not an ordinary one but Lord Himself and they surrendered to Him praying that He remove their weakness. Then Lord Siva appeared in his true form, praised their devotion to rituals and then told them that the real purpose of his Leela was to make them understand the inadequacy of rituals alone to confer Moksha and the limitations of Karma and to make their Jnanam complete by imparting them the true knowledge of their Real Self, which alone can liberate them from Samsara and lead to Moksha.

Muruganar who had been writing the story felt at this stage that Maharishi is the fit person to write that portion of Lord Siva’s teaching extolling the path of Jnanam to the rishis and so made the request to Maharishi to write this portion.  First Maharishi wrote in Tamil under the title “Upadesa Undiyar” and then at the request of other devotees rewrote it himself in Sanskrit, Telugu and Malayalam. This work “Upadesa Saara” can be taken as a sequel to the study of Tattva Bodha, that was discussed in eight blogs earlier, starting from SadhanaChathushtayam. This is a book that deals with both Vedantic teaching and sadhanas and so can be be classed as a Prakarana Grantha, a descriptive text.  This work deals with Karma yoga, Bhakthiyoga including Upasana yoga, Ashtanga yoga and Jnana Yoga, but the main emphasis here is on Athma Jnanam.  In the first 15 verses, Maharishi has laid down the paths of selfless Karma, Bhakti and Yoga, while the remaining 15 verses (Verses 16 to 30) are devoted to the path of Self-Inquiry.

Here all paths, including the puja and japa part of worship to a personal God, pranayama, etc., are dealt with as they all help in purifying the mind and makes it fit to pursue Self-enquiry.   As Swami Paramathmananda usually emphasises, Karma yoga, Upasana yoga & Ashtanga yoga give Jnana yogyatha, preparing the mind for Self-knowledge and Jnana yoga enlightens a person through this knowledge. 

Even though Maharishi always emphasised the path of Self-Inquiry, which is a direct path to Self-Realization, he knew that it wasn’t an easy method and that it required maturity of understanding. This is why he talked about other paths. He clearly stated on one occasion to his disciple: “If, however, the aspirant is not temperamentally suited to Vichara Marga, he must develop bhakti to an ideal – may it be God, Guru, humanity in general, ethical laws, or even the idea of beauty. When one of these takes possession of the individual, other attachments grow weaker, i.e. dispassion  develops....  In the absence of enquiry and devotion, the natural sedative pranayama may be tried. This is known as Yoga Marga... If an aspirant be unsuited temperamentally for the first two methods --- he must try the Karma Marga. His nobler instincts become more evident and he derives impersonal pleasure. His smaller self is less assertive and has a chance of expanding its good side...” 

Upadesa Saara, was chanted before Maharishi daily together with the Vedas and continues to be chanted before his shrine even now.

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Nidhidhyasanam and Moksha

Jnana Yoga is defined as acquiring Self-knowledge through the analytical study of Scriptures, consisting of Sravanam, Mananam and Nidhidyasanam.  This can also be stated as enquiry into the real nature of one’s Self i.e. as enquiry into “Who am I’, a favourite phraseology with Sri Ramana Maharishi.  Maharishi has said “ The enquiry "Who am I?" is the Sravana. The ascertainment of the true import of `I' is the Manana. The practical application on each occasion is Nididhyasana. Being as `I' is samadhi.”  When we see it in the light of teaching of Advaita Vedanta “ Jeevo Brahmaiva na parah”; knowing one’s Brahamatvam is Sravanam, consolidating this knowledge is Mananam and constantly dwelling in this knowledge not allowing thoughts to stray into Jeevatvam is Nidhidhyasanam, which can be called as Brahmabhyasam as well.

If one had come to Jnana Yoga after preparing oneself through  Sadhana Chathushtayam  i.e. with discrimination, detatchment,  desire for Moksha and discipline of mind through six virtues, then one can dwell on the teaching informally to get established in one’s Brahmatvam.  Dwelling on the teaching informally is in the form of repeated listening, writing notes, going through the notes and writing articles on the teaching, regular Satsangh  and discussion with like-minded people,  avoiding irrelevant talks and discussions. If one has come to Jnana Yoga straight without preparing and conditioning the mind through other disciplines like Karma Yoga, Upasana Yoga or Sadhana Chathushtayam, one need to dwell on the teaching  formally in the form of Vedantic meditation as discussed by Sri Krishna in the chapter 6 of Gita. The meditation must be on the teaching in full as “Jeevo Brahmaiva na para” is only part teaching. 

The full teaching is “Brahma Satyam, Jagat Mithya, Jeevo Brahmaiva na Parah”.  The meditation has to cover the Mithyatvam of the world as well as Brahmatvam of Jeeva for whenever one sits for meditation thoughts of world and body will come to distract the attention. One has to deliberately reject these thoughts seeing the anityatvam of the world as well as of the body and fix attention on Chaitanyam, the Pure Consciousness.  The Upanishads are telling one that really speaking, one ’s Self is Brahman only (Tat Tvam Asi).  So taking oneself as Jeeva is a false notion born out of one’s ignorance – ignorance of the fact that one’s Self is Brahman only. Therefore in Nidhidhyasanam, one has to practice three exercises:

1)    claiming Brahmatvam  (Pure Consciousness) as one’s real nature

2)    negating one’s Jīvatvam (body-mind-intellect complex) as a misconception and as not one’s real nature

3)    rejecting the world with all its objects and relations involved as Mithya.

When this Jnanam is internalised one’s thoughts and views undergo a drastic change, everything else remaining the same. One realises Chaitanyam as One’s Real “I” i.e. higher “I” and ego ‘ I’, one had been employing all along, as the lower ‘I’.  The ego ‘I’ is only a combination of mind and Chidabhasa, reflected Chaitanyam. 

This owning up of Chaitanyam as higher ‘I’ gives one a new orientation giving rise  to the following five capsules of thought regarding oneself , an amended version of the five capsules regarding Pure Consciousness stated by Swami Paramarthananda, quoted in the blog on Jnana Yoga: 

1)    I am of the nature of eternal and all pervading consciousness

2)    I am the only source of permanent peace security and happiness for myself

3)    By my mere presence, I give life to this material body and experience this material universe

4)    I am never affected by any event that happens in the material world or the material body

5)    By forgetting my real nature, I find life a struggle or burden. By remembering my nature, I view the life as drama and myself as a mere spectator only.

Let us now see this new thought pattern’s influence on the concept of Moksha.  The conventional and popular notion of Moksha is liberation from the cycle of birth and death and so is referred to by the term Liberation itself.  Liberation occurs when all the karmas; Sanchita, Agami and Prarabdha, get liquidated at the death of a Jnani and it is called Videhamukthi.  In Advaita Vedanta, Liberation stands for freedom from Samsara as well which occurs in successful Jnana Yoga and this is called Jeevan Mukthi.  Both Videha Mukthi and Jivan Mukthi lose their relevance when one discovers one’s Athma-swarupam.  One then understands that as Athma, one is all the time free whether one acknowledges it or not and that “I am bound” is a misconception. Therefore the question of Liberation does not arise at all. When the idea of bondage goes away then the need for Liberation also goes away. So no bondage, no Liberation as declared in Nirvana Shatkam (ver.6) is a special feature of Nidhidhyasanam.

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Jnana Yoga

Jnana yoga can be defined as the set of disciplines that help us to acquire Self-knowledge. Self-knowledge is the knowledge of our Real Self, the sentient force behind our body-mind complex, that is called Athma. So Jnanam in Jnana Yoga stands for Athma Jnanam.  As Yoga stands for Sadhanam, means, Jnana Yoga represents a course of disciplines to acquire Athma-Jnanam.  Means of knowledge is called Pramana and in the earlier blog on “The Six Pramanas” we have seen that we employ consciously or unconsciously six pramanas to gain knowledge of various objects we come across. They are Pratyaksha, Anumana, Upamana, Arthapathi, Anupalabdhi, and Sabda.  Of these the first five pramanas can help one to gain knowledge of external objects only as these only are subject to perception by one’s five Jnanendriyas; eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin.  So one cannot employ any of these five pramanas singly or severally to gain knowledge of one’s inner Self, Athma, as Athma being the subject is not subject to objectification.  So one employs the sixth pramana, Sabda pramana in the case of Self-knowledge. 

Sabda Pramana is the verbal testimony from an authentic source, free from defects. Sastras only are such an authentic source for Athma Jnanam.  So study of Sastras becomes the process for Jnana Yoga.  Brihadharanyaka Upanishad gives the prescription for Athma Jnanam in the words of Sage Yajnavalkya to his wfe, Maitreyi (2-4-5) “Atma va are drstavyah srotavyo mantavyo nidhidhyasitavyo Maitreyi”  O! Maitreyi, Athma is to be discovered through Sravanam, Mananam, Nidhidhyasanam”.  Discovery of Athma itself constitutes Athma Jnanam as we are already experiencing Athma, without knowing its Real nature.  So when ignorance of Athma, Athma Ajjnanam, is dispelled through Sravanam, Mananam and Nidhidhyasanam, Athma Jnanam is acquired.  So these three stages in the discovery of Athma are the three stages in the study of Sastras, which constitutes the path of Jnana Yoga. So we can redefine Jnana Yoga as acquiring Self-knowledge through the analytical study of Sastras, consisting of Sravanam, Mananam and Nidhidhyasanam. 

Sravanam is consistent, systematic study of Sastras under a competent Guru.  The scriptural teaching by a competent Guru helps as a verbal mirror to discover one’s true Self removing Self-ignorance.  This is the first stage of Jnana Yoga.  This stage helps removal of ajnanam and acquisition of self-knowledge. Then comes the second stage of Jnana Yoga.  As even one is receiving the teaching, several doubts come in one’s mind and the teacher does not want the student to blindly believe what he says as this is a matter of understanding correctly using one’s intellect and not a matter of believing with one’s heart. Therefore the Guru allows the student to think rationally and until the student is intellectually convinced, the Guru is ready for any amount of discussion. This interaction and clarification of all doubts, rendering the acquired knowledge doubt-free is called Mananam. This is the second important part of Jnana Yoga.  So through Mananam all the intellectual obstacles are removed and the knowledge is converted into conviction.

Nidhidhyasanam helps internalisation or assimilation of the doubt-free knowledge, deconditioning all the negative emotions developed in the dark room of ignorant mind. This is done by constantly meditating on the teaching which is free from all doubts.  While Mananam is for removal of intellectual obstacles, Nidhidhyasanam is for removal of mental and emotional obstacles like worry, guilt, anger, fear, hurt etc.  This is called Vedantic meditation as it involves meditating upon the teachings including Mahavakhyas.  While Sravaṇam and Mananam makes one Prajna, Nidhidhyasanam converts him to Sthithaprajna,the Jeevanmuktha.

The above analysis is from the angle of Advaita Vedanta that gives primary importance to Jnana Yoga for as per Advaita Vedanta one’s Real Self is no different from Brahman, the Absolute and one gains the realization of Jeeva-Brahma Ikyam through Jnana Yoga which takes one to Jeevan Mukthi.  In Dvaita and Visishtadvaita primary importance is given to Bhakthi Yoga and Jnanam is only treated as accessory to Bhakthi and they do not subscribe to the principles of Jeevan Mukthi and Jeeva-Brahma Ikyam. Let us continue to explore Jnana Yoga from the angle of Advaita Vedanta only, a little more. 

In Gita, Lord Krishna states that Athma Jnanam, (which He calls Jnanam), is the proper understanding of anathma (called Kshetra) and of Athma (called Kshetrajna) 

क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोर्ज्ञानं यत्तज्ज्ञानं मतं मम।।13.3।। 

Kshetrakshetrajnayor jnaanam yattat jnaanam matam mama.

The knowledge of Kshetra and Kshetrajna is considered by Me as true Knowledge.

Earlier Sri Krishna has defined Kshetra as one’s body and later elaborates it to include in anathma,  the world plus the body plus the mind along with all their conditions.   Swami Paramatmananda sums up anathma  as ”achetana (insentient), saguna (with attributes), savikara (subject to change) tattvam”.  Sri Krishna also defines Kshetrajna as the one and same in-dweller of all the bodies, who is none other than Himself.   This is the principle of Pure Consciousness which is called Jevathma in body and Paramathma in the context of whole creation and which goes by the general name of Athma.  Swami Paramarthananda  gives the features of Athma tattvam i.e. Pure consciousness as:

1)    Consciousness is not a part, product or part of the body

2)    Consciousness is an independent entity that pervades and enlivens the body

3)    Consciousness pervades everywhere without boundary limitations

4)    Consciousness continues to survive the body, the manifesting medium

5)  The surviving Consciousness is not available for transactions due to demise of manifesting medium. 

Sri Krishna illustrates this with two examples as follows:

यथा सर्वगतं सौक्ष्म्यादाकाशं नोपलिप्यते।
सर्वत्रावस्थितो देहे तथाऽऽत्मा नोपलिप्यते।।13.33।।

Yathaa sarvagatam saukshmyaadaakaasham nopalipyate;

Sarvatraavasthito dehe tathaatmaa nopalipyate.

 As the all-pervading space is not defiled, because of its subtlety, similarly the Self, present everywhere in the body (The singular number is used to denote a class, i.e. all bodies.) is not defiled.

यथा प्रकाशयत्येकः कृत्स्नं लोकमिमं रविः।
क्षेत्रं क्षेत्री तथा कृत्स्नं प्रकाशयति भारत।।13.34।।

Yathaa prakaashayatyekah kritsnam lokamimam ravih;

Kshetram kshetree tathaa kritsnam prakaashayati bhaarata

As the single sun illumines this whole world, similarly, O Arjuna, Kshetrajna  illumines the whole Kshetra

Realisation of this Athma as one’s Real Self is called Self-Realisation, the goal of Jnana Yoga. For knowledge of Self is acquired as Self-realisation only.  Because all other questions may be understood intellectually, but not the final question: Who or what is the Self?   The answer to Who/What is the Self? must be from the Self by It-Self and it can come through realisation only. 

Sri Krishna also affirms this later:

क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोरेवमन्तरं ज्ञानचक्षुषा।
भूतप्रकृतिमोक्षं च ये विदुर्यान्ति ते परम्।।13.35।

Kshetrakshetrajnayor evam antaram jnaanachakshushaa;

Bhootaprakritimoksham cha ye vidur yaanti te param

Those who know thus through the (discerning) eye of wisdom (opened through Jnana Yoga) the distinction between the Kshetra (anathma) and the Kshetrajna (Athma) and of the liberation from cause, of the beings and bhuthas (elements), they attain the Supreme.

For all the beings and bhuthas, cause of being is Prakrithi or Maya and liberation from cause denotes Mithyathvam.  So the above statement is to be interpreted as “Those whose discerning eye of wisdom is opened through the process of Sravanam, Mananam and Nidhidhyasanam to the true knowledge of Athma and anathma and to the Mithyatvam of Nature and Universe (anathma) attain the Supreme Bliss of Paramathma (becoming Jeevan Muktha).”

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Upasana Yoga

The word “Upasana” literally means “staying or sitting near”.  It should be understood as staying near God, referred to as Iswara. This proximity is mental proximity, which is achieved through meditation and also through manasa puja, mental worship.  So Upasana is translated as meditation and worship, depending on the context and we shall see it in both these meanings.  The practice of Upsana is called “Upasana Yoga”.  Like Bhakthi in Bhakti Yoga, Upasana of Upasana Yoga is the path of pure, unselfish love and devotion and cosmic love is its essence.   Upasana is approaching the chosen ideal or object of worship by meditating on it, in accordance with the teachings of the sastras and guru. The fundamental aim of Upasakas as of Bhakthas is union with the Lord, whatever the name or form, for all are worshipping one higher reality, Iswara, only in various forms and names.  As Kanchi Periyaval had observed of Bhakthi, the main aim of Upasana is to quell all desires and get attracted to that Infinite source of Bliss, Iswara.

A great example for manasa Puja is Pusalar Nayanar. Pusalar was a great devotee of Lord Siva. He tried to build a temple for Lord Siva in his mind using his imagination, observing all  the rituals of temple-building, like sanctifying the ground and laying  the first stone on an auspicious day etc., mentally.  Over course of time he completed his mind-temple and selected an auspicious time for the Kumbhabhishekam ceremony.  The same time and day the Pallava king had  selected  for consecration of the temple he was building in the capital city.  Lord Siva appeared in the king's dream and instructed him to postpone the date of consecration as He would be present at that time in Thiruninravur for the consecration of His devotee Pusalar's temple.. The king postponed the date as per the divine decree and journeyed to see the temple of Pusalar, which Lord had  favoured over his own. However, on reaching Thiruninravur, the king could not find any new temple visible in the town and was perplexed. He reached Pusalar's house and informed Pusalar about his dream. The saint was overwhelmed by Lord’s words in king’s dream and told him that he had built the temple in his heart.  The king felt humble before Pusalar's devotion and bowed down to him and stayed with him as  Pusalar consecrated the temple mentally and took his blessings and left.  Pusalar continued his manasa puja in his mental temple until his death and on his death he attained liberation. 

This is from the angle of Upasana as Bhakthi.  We shall see briefly Upasana as meditation.  Upasana is defined as a flow of thoughts centred on Ishta Devata, standing for Iswara, undistracted by other thoughts.  Ramana Maharishi compares the flow of thoughts to the continuous flow of viscous liquid like oil or ghee from one vessel to another and to the flow of water in a perennial river where the flow is effortless and continuous. The support which helps in keeping the mind fixed on one particular thought is known as ‘Alambana’.  Alambana is a symbol to worship the invisible Devata.  Alambana is taken as the Lord Himself even though it may be a symbol or image.  The Alambana can be the image/form of Ishta Devata, when it is called Prathima Upasana,  In Prathima Upasana Alambana has clear features. Prathima Upasana is Saguna Devata Upasana.  If Alambana is a symbol without clear features like Saligramam or flame of a lamp or a lump of turmeric, on which Ishta Devata is invoked it is called Pratheeka Upasana.  Pratheeka upasana can be either Saguna Devata Upasana or Nirguna Brahma Upasana.  In the latter case the Alambana will be like the sound of Om or Prana etc.  Ahamgrahopasana is a higher form of Pratheeka Upasana in which Iswara is invoked on oneself and this is also called Abedha Upasana.  Nidhidhyasanam is a special Upasana coming under Jnana Yoga where the meditation is on a Mahavakhya that proclaims Jeeva-Brahma identity. 

Sri Krishna talks about certain disciplines one must follow for success in meditation. We shall see a few of them selectively. For the practice of meditation a distraction-free place is to be chosen and one should also ensure body-mind control at the time of meditation.  Further:

प्रशान्तात्मा विगतभीर्ब्रह्मचारिव्रते स्थितः।
मनः संयम्य मच्चित्तो युक्त आसीत मत्परः।।6.14।।

Prashaantaatmaa vigatabheer brahmachaarivrate sthitah;

Manah samyamya macchitto yukta aaseeta matparah

He should remain seated with a serenely quiet mind, free from fear, firm in the vow of a Brahmachari, and with the mind controlled and fixed on Me (Ishta Devata), having Me as the supreme Goal.

Keeping the mind controlled and fixed on a subject, be it Prathima or Pratheeka is a difficult one.  But it can be achieved through constant practice and detachment, as success in Upasana cannot be achieved without control of mind.  So Sri.Krishna also states:

असंयतात्मना योगो दुष्प्राप इति मे मतिः।
वश्यात्मना तु यतता शक्योऽवाप्तुमुपायतः।।6.36।।

Asamyataatmanaa yogo dushpraapa iti me matih;

Vashyaatmanaa tu yatataa shakyo’vaaptumupaayatah.

My conviction is that Yoga is difficult to be attained by one of uncontrolled mind. But it is possible to be attained by one who strives and has a controlled mind.

Sri Krishna prescribes perseverance in effort as the only means of striving for control of mind. 

यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम्।
ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत्।।6.26।।

Yato yato nishcharati manashchanchalamasthiram;

Tatastato niyamyaitad aatmanyeva vasham nayet.

From whatever cause the restless, unsteady mind wanders away, from that let him restrain it and bring it under the control of the Self alone.

Sri Krishna also spells out the fruits of such meditation as liberation.

युञ्जन्नेवं सदाऽऽत्मानं योगी नियतमानसः।
शान्तिं निर्वाणपरमां मत्संस्थामधिगच्छति।।6.15।।

Yunjannevam sadaa’tmaanam yogee niyatamaanasah;

Shaantim nirvaanaparamaam matsamsthaamadhigacchati.

Engaging the mind thus always(in meditation), the yogi of controlled mind achieves the Peace abiding in Me, which culminates in Liberation. 

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Bhakthi Yoga

Bhakthi Yoga is a combination of two words Bhakthi and Yoga. Bhakthi comes from the root Bhaj , which means to serve with attachment, here the attachment is to God.  Those who follow the path of Bhakthi are called Bhakthas.  Bhakthi can be broadly divided into two groups; Sakama Bhakthi and Nishkama Bhakthi.   In Sakama Bhakthi God is considered a wish-fulfiller and so these Bhakthas pray to God for the fulfillment of their desires or for the achievement of their goals or relief from their problems i.e. Dukha nivritti and Sukha prapthi. This Bhakthi is also called Sadhana Bhakthi. Here we have three divisions; God, Goal or desire and Bhaktha. For the Bhaktha, God is only a means to attain his goal or to fulfil his desires and so God ranks less in importance to the goal/desires. 

Sakama Bhakthas are broadly divided into two groups; Aartha Bhakthas and Artharthi Bhakthas.  Aartha Bhakthas are seasonal  Bhakthas who remember God only in times of trouble or crisis i.e. mainly for Dukha Nivritti.   At that time they intensely engage in prayer and other acts of devotion, only to forget Him when the crisis is over.  Artharthi Bhakthas are regular Bhakthas who remember God and pray to Him regularly because they think of God not only as a wish-fulfiller but also as a well-wisher.  So they continue to be devoted to God even if their wishes are not fulfilled, but their prayers are always with an application for personal gains or for relief from personal problems i.e. for Sukha  Prapthi and Dukha Nivritti.  Sakama Bhaktha’s attachment to God is motivated more by fear of God and their attachment to worldly relations and things and less by love of God. A Sakama Bhaktha worships God in many forms, depending upon Bhaktha’s moods and needs and gives much importance to rituals.  He may be a religious person, but not necessarily a Dharmic person in view of his worldly attachments and material goals.

In Nishkama Bhakthi God is the end as well as means and these Bhakthas do not have a material goal.  Here in attachment to God there is no element of fear but only sheer love of God. The Nishkama Bhakthas consider God not as means but as the end itself and they also can be broadly divided into two groups; Jijnasu Bhakthas and Jnani Bhakthas. Jijnasu means desire for the knowledge of God.  His unqualified love arises from his knowledge that God is the only source of security and happiness which everyone seeks in life.  His knowledge of God feeds his love for God and his love of God stimulates his thirst for knowledge of God.  As is given In sutra 29 of Narada Bhakthi Sutras there is the relationship of Anyonyasrayitvam (mutual dependence) between the two.  His is still Sadhana Bhakthi only as God is his goal and Bhakthi is the path. As knowledge grows and ripens into Jnanam with God’s Grace, he blossoms into Jnani Bhaktha of whom Sri Krishna says in Gita:

-----ज्ञानी त्वात्मैव मे मतम्। आस्थितः स हि युक्तात्मा मामेवानुत्तमां गतिम्।।(7.18)

(----jnaanee twaatmaiva me matam;| Aasthitah sa hi yuktaatmaa maamevaanuttamaam gatim.) 

In my opinion Jnani Bhaktha is my very Self.  For, he is set on the path leading to Me alone, with a steadfast mind and I am his highest goal.

Jnani Bhakthas have tuned themselves to the extent that they have become one with God, who is their Supreme goal. Their prayer is not in terms of asking anything but  only an expression of the Bliss they experience. Their Bhakthi is out of fulfillment and Bliss of fulfilment and this is called Sadhya Bhakthi.  Whatever be the experiences good, bad, pleasant, unpleasant, joyous or sad, and whatever be the results, through them all, they remain poised and peaceful with their trust in God and love for God unshaken.  If reverential love is the hallmark of Bhakthi, unconditional reverential love with total trust in God and constant remembrance of Him at all times is the hallmark of Jnani’s love. That is why Narada Bhaktha Sutras calls it परमप्रेमरूपा (paramapremarupa), nature of highest love. It also describes it as अनिर्वचनीयं (anirvachaneeyam), inexpressible in words and terms efforts to describe it as मूकास्वादनवत् (mookasvadhanavat), like a dumb person’s effort to describe a dish he has tasted. 

 Yoga has many meanings.  Here it is used in the meaning of ‘To connect or to unite’; here it is connecting to God through love.  This is possible in Nishkama Bhakthi only where God is the only Goal.  Jijnasu Bhaktha is on the path of Bhakthi Yoga while Jnani Bhaktha is a Bhakthi Yogi.  Now let us see Sri Krishna’s prescription for success in Bhakthi Yoga  addressed to Jijnasu Bhaktha.

यत्करोषि यदश्नासि यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत्।
यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम्।।9.27।।

Yatkaroshi yadashnaasi yajjuhoshi dadaasi yat;

Yattapasyasi kaunteya tatkurushva madarpanam.

O Arjuna, whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer as a sacrifice, whatever you give and whatever austerities you undertake, (all) that you offer to Me

To such a Bhaktha He promises that his welfare is His concern

अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पर्युपासते।
तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम्।।9.22।।.

Ananyaashchintayanto maam ye janaah paryupaasate;

Teshaam nityaabhiyuktaanaam yogakshemam vahaamyaham. 

To those persons who worship Me alone, having no other thoughts, who are ever attached (to Me), I arrange for securing what they lack and preserving what they have (Yogakshema).

Sri Krishna also assures them that they will reach their desired goal through such Bhakthi

मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु।
मामेवैष्यसि युक्त्वैवमात्मानं मत्परायणः।।9.34।।

Manmanaa bhava madbhakto madyaajee maam namaskuru;

Maamevaishyasi yuktwaivamaatmaanam matparaayanah.

Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, sacrifice to Me, and bow down to Me. having thus united your  whole self with Me, and accepting Me as the supreme Goal, you shall surely attain Me

As Jijnasu Bhaktha’s knowledge of God grows and matures, his understanding grows that Universe is not only created by God but is also pervaded by God and God indwells all objects of Universe.  This brings about a feeling of love for all objects of creation and he bears no hatred or ill will for any living being.  About such a Bhaktha Sri Krishna says

मत्कर्मकृन्मत्परमो मद्भक्तः सङ्गवर्जितः।
निर्वैरः सर्वभूतेषु यः स मामेति पाण्डव।।11.55।।

Matkarmakrinmatparamo madbhaktah sangavarjitah;

Nirvairah sarvabhooteshu yah sa maameti paandava.

O Arjuna, The Bhaktha  who works for Me, holds Me as the supreme Goal, is free from attachment and bears no enmity towards any living being, attains Me.

Sri Krishna gives the fruits of Bhakthi Yoga in the following verses.

मां च योऽव्यभिचारेण भक्तियोगेन सेवते।
स गुणान्समतीत्यैतान् ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते।।14.26।।

Maam cha yo’vyabhichaarena bhaktiyogena sevate;

Sa gunaan samateetyaitaan brahmabhooyaaya kalpate

He who serves Me through the unswerving Bhakthi Yoga, having transcended the Gunas (Satvam, Rajas and Tamas), qualifies for becoming one with Brahman.

भक्त्या मामभिजानाति यावान्यश्चास्मि तत्त्वतः।
ततो मां तत्त्वतो ज्ञात्वा विशते तदनन्तरम्।।18.55।।

Bhaktyaa maamabhijaanaati yaavaanyashchaasmi tattwatah;

Tato maam tattwato jnaatwaa vishate tadanantaram.

Through Bhakthi he knows Me in reality, as to what and who I am. Then, having known Me in truth, he enters (into Me) immediately after that (Jnanam).

In short in Bhakthi Yoga, one -

1)    Cultivates unconditional  reverential love and faith in God.

2)    Surrenders one’s will to God, dedicating  all  the work to God. 

3)    Keeps God as one’s  Supreme and only goal, freeing oneself from all material attachments and worldly associations.

4)    Has no sense of enmity towards any living being, loving all as one loves oneself.

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