BharatNotes Bhakti
noun (uncountable)Usage in a UPSC answer
The 15th-century Bhakti saint Kabir's dohas, composed in a deliberately demotic Hindi accessible to illiterate weavers and peasants, challenged both Brahminical ritual hierarchy and Islamic orthodoxy, making him a paradigm case in UPSC questions on medieval social reform movements.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
bhakti (noun), bhakta (agent noun — devotee), bhaktimarga (compound noun — path of devotion), bhaktiyoga (compound noun), abhikta (Sanskrit adj — without devotion), bhaktimati (adj — endowed with devotion)
Root
Sanskrit bhakti = devotion, sharing; from bhaj (to divide, to share, to partake of, to worship)
Etymology
From Sanskrit bhakti, the abstract noun of bhajati (he worships, he shares), from the root bhaj (to divide, to share out). The root's primary sense of 'sharing' evolved into the spiritual meaning of 'partaking of the divine', first systematised in the Bhagavata Purana (c. 9th–10th century CE) and philosophically grounded by Ramanuja's Vishishtadvaita. The term appears in the Bhagavad Gita (c. 2nd century BCE) as one of the three primary paths (alongside jnana and karma).
Memory Hook
BHAKTI = BHAKT (devotee) + I: 'I am a BHAKT' — it is deeply personal, first-person devotion. The root bhaj means to share a meal with God — bhakti is eating with the divine.
Seen in UPSC Question Papers
- Prelims 2013 — Medieval India
- Prelims 2010 — Medieval India
- Mains 2021 · GS1 · 10 marks — Medieval India
- Mains 2018 · GS1 · 15 marks — Indian Heritage & Culture
Real UPSC previous-year questions whose text uses “Bhakti” — proof this word earns its place on your list.
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