The eight ultimate offerings in bhakti, or path of devotion, at the feet of God are ahimsha (the avoidance of harm to others), indriya vigraha (sovereignty over the senses), sarvabhutadaya (benevolence to all beings), Kshama (forgiveness), jnana (knowledge), tapas (austerity), dhyana (meditation) and satya (truthfulness).
The mumukshu as a philosopher/devotee trains his intellect
in all its eight aspects and offers the eight flowers of bhakti to Bhagavan.
Buddhi is disciplined in eight ways which are –
- Grahasa – quick grasp of Vedantic truth
- Dharana – retention in the mind
- Samarana – recollection
- Pratipadana – lucid exposition to others
- Uha – inferring the unknown from the known, apperception and application in new contexts
- Vijnana – discrimination
- Tattvajnana – the knowledge of first principles.