Bhava: The Sustained Emotional State as Spiritual Practice

Bhava in bhakti refers to a sustained emotional and spiritual state that one cultivates through practice—not a fleeting feeling but a way of being. Mirabai's entire life was structured around cultivating bhava, maintaining a state of loving devotion even amid external chaos and rejection. For creative grieving, bhava suggests that rather than trying to 'process' and move through grief quickly, we might treat it as a sustained practice—a way of being that we explore deeply over time. This doesn't mean wallowing or refusing to heal; it means taking grief seriously as a legitimate state of consciousness with its own wisdom. By sustaining our attention on grief—through journaling, art-making, meditation, or movement—we discover layers of meaning and insight that quick resolution would miss. Our creative work becomes richer because we've allowed ourselves to dwell in and explore the territory rather than rushing through it.