Morality

How do we know what’s right or wrong? Is there an absolute standard of morality?

Faith

Getting Perfect Knowledge

Dharma vs. Religion

Bhakti is not the dogma or belief of a particular religion. Bhakti is more accurately defined using the Sanskrit word dharma.

Dharma means the inseparable quality that makes a thing what it is. A stone’s dharma is to be hard, water’s is to be wet, fire’s to be hot, sugar’s to be sweet.

The living being’s dharma is Bhakti. We exist to exchange in reciprocal love with God and to serve Him with devotion. Any scripture of any religion that teaches that principle is promoting Bhakti.

Other Paths

The Vedas explain that all human endeavor, material or spiritual, falls within four categories:

Activities and Attitudes Unfavorable for Bhakti

Unfavorable Activities

• To eat more than required or accumulate more than necessary.
• To work too hard for temporary things.
• To speak unnecessarily or speak about material things that have no connection to a life of Bhakti.
• To follow scriptural rules and regulations blindly.
• To neglect to follow scriptural rules and regulations.
• To keep the intimate company of persons who have no interest in Bhakti.

Unfavorable Attitudes

Activities and Attitudes Favorable for Bhakti

Favorable Activities

Four Pillars of Spiritual Life

Srimad-Bhagavatam tells us that four qualities are essential for spiritual growth:

• mercy
• cleanliness
• self-discipline
• truthfulness

Successful evolution of consciousness and purity of heart take root in fertile ground when we live by these qualities and sincerely chant Krishna’s names.

Four activities oppose these uplifting qualities:

Bhakti Worldview

The Bhakti worldview rests upon the principle that God revealed Vedic knowledge to guide human civilization, with the ultimate goal being love of God. The Vedas can clear our vision and allow us to see the things of this world from the perspective of the highest truth.

Bhakti: The Means and the Goal