Praise for Wise-Love

Pranada has made a real contribution to anyone who is interested in diving deeper into a Bhakti path—the Way of Love and Devotion—offering us a gateway into the universal heart and the power of love that transforms us all, our very nature, and source of realization.

Pranada Comtois artfully connects transcendental philosophy to practical experience in a down-to-earth voice that’s sure to resonate with modern seekers. A great resource for yoga teachers and a must read for anyone who longs for a deeper understanding of devotional yoga, Wise-Love is a lucid revelation of bhakti-yoga as the science of spiritual emotions.

In her groundbreaking work Wise-Love, teacher-practitioner Pranada Comtois offers readers a rare combination of textual exegesis and common sense insights about the journey to self-awareness. In tracking consciousness—the fundamental core self that is both the subject and object of contemplative practice—too often writers gravitate to extremes, favoring either a detached analysis of source texts or an indulgent exposition of personal insights. Readers are consequently presented with bits and pieces of the spiritual journey, but no clear picture of where it leads. We can be grateful that Pranada has taken such care to ground her very readable work in a scholarly yet simple exposition of classical Vedanta. Here at last is a practical guidebook for all sincere seekers, to be savored and celebrated.

In Wise-Love, Pranada Comtois shows us that cultivating awakened consciousness and perfect joy is not only possible, but is our birthright. Claim the treasure with which the mystics of all traditions tease us: a transformational encounter between lover and Beloved, in which the individual soul melts into the luminous sea of Love.

Wise-Love is destined to be a staple in yoga teacher trainings across the world as it gives a straightforward and easy-to-understand approach to bhakti yoga. Such books can only be written by people living it, and Pranada Comtois has been practicing for more than forty years. She sheds a light for us who are trying to practically apply this path of love in our daily lives.

How refreshing to find a well-written book that presents the Bhakti path in a practical way that anyone can apply in our modern world.

Do not underestimate this book. Wise-Love delivers both wisdom and deep emotion. This is Zen Bhakti Yoga. It is bright, concise and juicy.

Pranada leads her readers on a practical journey into the deepest regions of the heart while engaging both an interreligious and nonsectarian spiritual component. This is not a sentimental book that panders to our common need for affection. In defining our true identity we’re led to discover the highest realms of spiritual love. Using eloquent and yet simple language, Pranada brings us where we need to go: into the sweet center of own being where the most profound love naturally awaits us. Highly recommended for anyone seeking to nurture their soul.

The imperative need now for us, as a species, is to move from our heads to our hearts, to learn to live differently, to love in a more profound and complete way. This beautiful and transformative book takes us from the concept of love as generally understood to the experience of love as an exalted state of being, a permanent state of ecstatic devotion and union with the Divine. Wise-Love is a priceless gift that can act as a guide in these distressed and distressing times.

We have come a long way since the “Hare Krishnas,” as they were known, sang and danced across the Western cultural landscape, drawing ridicule from mainstream culture—and often from the counterculture as well. Five decades ago, few understood that those ecstatic chanters represented a venerable spiritual tradition backed by an esteemed body of sacred literature. Now, thousands attend kirtan festivals and yoga studios host regular kirtan evenings. Still, little is known about the conceptual, philosophical and pragmatic underpinnings of the Bhakti path. Wise-Love is a much-needed corrective. Combining rigorous research and accessible prose, it is a welcome addition to the ever-expanding, ever-deepening transmission of Vedic wisdom to the West.

In her debut book, Pranada Comtois offers us a colorful cornucopia of heart exercises for the modern mystic. Creatively juxtaposing ancient, Bhakti wisdom from the East, with familiar views of Western thinkers, Pranada weaves together philosophy, psychology and her own personal insights to broaden our definition of love. Wise-Love promises to unveil the nature of awakened consciousness, inspire our spirits and nourish our hearts in the most profound ways.

Wise-Love unfolds as a sublime threshold into a new order of being—the realm of ananda, or spiritual bliss, in relationship with the Divine. It carries the reader into a most secret and confidential understanding of loving exchange that exists beyond the limited concepts available within our ordinary everyday linear ways of thinking. Practical approaches compliment the beautiful philosophical framework making this an inspiring addition to any seeker’s spiritual library.

Wise-Love is the perfect companion for someone seeking to understand the true nature of love. Love comes in many shades and degrees. With Wise-Love Pranada Comtois offers an exploration of love as devotion to something that’s beyond us and yet is us. That devotion or bhakti leads us into the eternal, true love that our hearts seek. This book is for those who may feel disillusioned by the more materialistic types of love and yearn to delve into the Divine.

Wise-Love is a beautiful journey into the wisdom of the heart by Pranada! Wise-Love effortlessly invites the reader to the path of love and surrender with supreme insight. . . . This book shall reach the hearts of many and open the hearts of even more. A gripping tale of love and light.