The devotional traditions of Hinduism teach liberation by God’s grace received through surrender, which is the closest Hindu parallel to the gospel and the best place to begin a conversation.

Alongside the paths of knowledge and effort, Hinduism has a strong tradition of bhakti, loving devotion to a personal God, and within it a doctrine of grace. In the Sri Vaishnava tradition following Ramanuja, prapatti means self-surrender to God, who saves not because the devotee has earned it but out of grace. The Bhagavad Gita has Krishna say to abandon all duties and take refuge in him alone. Schools even debated how much the devotee contributes, pictured as the cat that carries its kitten versus the monkey whose baby holds on. A Christian speaking with a bhakti Hindu is not meeting someone who believes in salvation by effort, but someone who may already believe grace is the way.