Nirgun Bhakti is the devotion towards a formless, all-encompassing God. The word ‘nirgun’ means ‘devoid of qualities,’ referring to the lack of physical attributes in God. It is one of the two forms of devotion prevalent in Hinduism, the other one being Sagun Bhakti which sees God in a physical form. These two forms of worship are given equal prominence in the
Bhagavad Gita.
The system of Nirgun Bhakti believes in the worship of an unseen God, who cannot be confined in the realms of a physical form. This form of worship strongly detests the belief that God abides in the heaven above, it rather sees God as an inner guiding force residing inside the body of a devotee. The followers of this form of worship do not believe in the concept of reincarnation. Neither do they believe in the caste system. A prominent preacher of Nirgun Bhakti was Saint Kabir, one of the pioneers of the Bhakti movement.
