Whereas karma yoga is the yoga of action, bhakti yoga is the yoga of love, but not necessarily the love we think of most readily. The practices behind bhakti yoga resemble what we might at the surface call worship, but just so that we are all clear; What is worship?

Devoting ourselves to something? To hold in esteem.

Adoration.

Cherish.

The purpose behind worship, as it is expressed in bhakti yoga, is not the pleasure of the divinity being worshipped. They don’t believe the divine needs nor even wants any such supplication. The follower of bhakti yoga engages in their “worship” practices as a way of living with and in the presence of the divine.

Even the word worship comes from an old English phrase which was two words. I can’t type them here as I find old English hard to follow, but the words roughly translate as worth ship, giving worth to. Another way of saying that would be to make place for. So the acts themselves are to create an experiential place in our daily lives that builds our sense of connection with the divine.

Using specific divine beings or do they also use other objects of worship? Well, just as with other paths of yoga, there are multiple schools of bhakti yoga. One of which has what we might consider a more complex view of divinity than the others.

Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.

Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~