Friends Event: Emotions in Hinduism: The Bhakti Traditions

A talk by Dr Kiyokazu Okita of the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies and The Hakubi Center for Advanced Research, Kyoto University, Japan

Have you ever fallen in love? Or have you become angry with someone? Strong emotions are often seen negatively since they can paralyse us and make us lose self-control. This is why detachment from worldly emotions and disciplining the mind are so important in the religious traditions of South Asia. However, emotions are so fundamental to our being that it seems impossible to do away with them completely. However, the Bhakti traditions within Hinduism, that emphasise devotion to God, teach that emotions can be transformed and used for spiritual elevation by directing emotions towards God rather than towards matter.