Bhakti Pantha

Welcome dear students! Today we are going to learn about Bhakti Pantha from Class 9 Social_Science. In this chapter, we will study the development of the Bhakti Pantha in India and Karnataka, the important Bhakti saints and their contributions, and the effects of the Bhakti Pantha. The development of the Bhakti Pantha is an important feature of medieval India. The religious reformers and philosophers of this age advocated a life of devotion. Bhakti or Devotion means pure trust in God. The reformers upheld devotion and surrender to God. They attempted to develop feelings of brotherhood and preached the philosophy of religious harmony. They used to worship God by different names like Rama, Krishna and Allah. They suggested the path of Bhakti to achieve moksha or mukti. Pure mind and complete surrender to God was the main philosophy of the reformers. The Bhakti pantha became the Sufi pantha in Islam. [CHECKPOINT] Let us begin with Ramananda, who lived from 1360 to 1470. Ramananda was born in a Brahmin family in Prayaga. He was a follower of Ramanuja’s philosophy. He established a Vaishnava religious school based on love and devotion. He travelled to several places in North India and popularized the worship of Rama and Sita. Varanasi was his headquarter. He condemned the caste system and allowed people from every caste to join his sect. Kabir was one such follower. Do you know this? Ramananda gave this unique message to people: Think of the Lord and become one with Him. [CHECKPOINT] Next, we will learn about Kabir, who lived from 1440 to 1510. He was brought up in a Muslim family of weavers called Julas of Varanasi. He was a student of Ramanand, and spent most of his time at Varanasi. He began to preach his new philosophy. He condemned the caste system and multiple idol worship, and declared that God is one, and he is the same for both Hindus and Muslims. He tried to bring about harmony and tolerance between the two communities. Kabir composed couplets in Hindi language known as Dohas. Hindus and Muslims recite these Dohas even today in North India. The followers of Kabir are known as Kabirpanthis, meaning travellers who go on the path of Kabir. Kabir was the main religious and social reformer of India. [CHECKPOINT] Now let us move on to Chaitanya, who lived from 1486 to 1533. He was born in a Brahmin family at Nadia in Bengal. He preached that differences of caste can be removed by discipline, and man becomes pure through devotion. He popularized worship of Krishna. He composed many devotional songs in praise of Krishna. He opposed the caste system and attempted to bring about a sense of brotherhood among the people. His philosophical thoughts and teachings are collected in the book called Chaitanya Charitamruta. Following this, we study Guru Nanak, who lived from 1469 to 1539. He was born at Talawandi in Pakistan. He had religious learnings right from his childhood. He preached that God was one and condemned idol worship. He emphasized on good actions, pure and moralistic life. He made his followers to sit and eat together irrespective of caste and creed. He started Langar, a community kitchen, where food is prepared and catered to all. He had both Hindu and Muslim followers. They are called as Sikhs. His preachings are compiled in the Sikh holy book Guru Granth Sahib. The sacred place of Sikhs is called Gurudwaras. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now turn our attention to Assam and the contributions of Srimantha Shankardeva and Madhavadeva. The role of Srimantha Shankaradeva in the cultural and religious history of Assam is very important. Srimantha does not mean the rich but Honorary Sri. His name is associated with bringing a newness in the culture and the music in India. The Bhagavatha of Shankaradeva is in Sanskrit, Assamese and Brijavali. The Bhakti movement started by him in Assam spread its influence over the other parts of India. The movement started by him was rightly called Ekasarana Dharma or Vaishnava movement. He says we must develop unstinted love for Krishna, sing songs on Him, and by listening to it we acquire devotion to the Lord. He must have good feelings as the servant of God. Like other Vaishnavas this movement does not worship Radhe along with Krishna. Srimantha Shankaradeva started Sarniya system, which is a system of initiation into his movement. This was a significant social revolution against the caste system. At that time, he brought together people from all religion and castes with this movement. He says follow religious worship, have faith in Krishna. His disciple Sri Madhavadeva belonged to Shakta movement was a multi-faceted personality. Madhavadeva was very popular in the Bhakti movement. The contributions of the two saints in Vaishnava movement, its spread and popularity is great. [CHECKPOINT] Now we will learn about Meerabai, who lived from 1498 to 1569. She was the princess of Mewad. She renounced a life of luxury and became the most devoted follower of Lord Krishna. She composed songs of devotion towards Krishna. These are called Bhajans and they are very popular. Even today, these bhajans are sung throughout India. Vitthoba temple at Pandharapur on the banks of the river Bhima in Maharashtra, was the centre of the Bhakti movement. Gnaneshwar and Namdev, Eknath, Tukaram and Ramdas were the famous saints of the new sect. [CHECKPOINT] Let us study the great saint Purandaradasa, who lived from 1484 to 1564. Purandaradasa was praised by Vysaraya as a Dasa among the Dasas. He has contributed immensely to the tradition of Bhakti poetry with his Vaishnava influenced Bhakti poems. He is called as the founding father of Carnatic Music. Purandaradasa apart from expressing the importance of devotion as per Vaishnava sect, expressed his concern over false worship and philosophies of life. He criticized caste and creed based discrimination. He rejected false Bhakthi and insisted on inner reflections. He declared without inner purity, external purity is of no use. He said, What is the use of cleaning the external filth without cleansing the internal filth. He also said without faith, the mere dipping in a river is of no use. He said, One has to stay alive and emerge victorious, and Human birth is great. Never spoil it, oh fools. Like this, he sowed the seeds of faith in human life and its worthiness and became the beacon for a life of satisfaction. All his considerable knowledge has become the upanishad of Purandaradasa and earned the fame Dasa means Purandaradasa. [CHECKPOINT] Next is Kanakadasa, who lived from 1509 to 1609. Kanaka was the local chieftain of Bada and Bankapura and was well versed in war techniques. Once he was mortally wounded in war and this led him to question the very existence of life and its meaning. It is said that this incident made him to follow Dasa path and he became Kanakadasa. Kanakadasa put efforts to remove discrimination based on caste and creed as Bakthi saint. He criticized mere show off bhakthi. He preached that people could attain moksha through Bhakthi. He broke the belief propagated by the priestly class that in order to attain moksha one has to be born in higher caste through his Keertanas. Kanakadasa was a poet, has created literature along with his meaningful Keertanas. He wrote Mohanatharangini, Nalacharithre, Ramadhanya Charithre and Haribhakthasaara. [CHECKPOINT] Let us now learn about Shishunala Sharif, who lived from 1819 to 1889. Imam and Hujuma were his parents. He was born in Shishunala of present Shiggavi taluk of Haveri district in 1819. Imam named his son Muhammed Sharif as per the suggestion of a Khaji. Sharif is a Parsee word. It means a man who has ideal goals or a man of worth and respected by all. Sharif grew up a worthy man just like his name. Sharif was influenced by Islam, Veerashaiva and Vedic philosophies from a young age. Govindabhat, a knowledgeable person, became his Guru. He opened a school for the children of Shishunala to provide education to them. His education provided a holistic vision of life for his students. Sharif who was always interested to move around with people, participated in all the fairs, drama shows and various other religious festivals that were arranged around Shishunala. He became the harbinger of Riyawath literature, which is part of Muharram celebration. [CHECKPOINT] Now we will discuss the Sufi Saints. The Sufi saints arrived from Persia and settled in different parts of India. Some important Sufi saints include Mohin-Ud-Din chisti, Baba Farid, Nizam-Ud-Din Oulia, Malik Mohammed and Kwajha Bande Nawaz. They are called Peer, which means teacher. Since they wore coarse woolen clothing called suf, these Muslim saints were called Sufis. They preached that it was possible to reach God or Allah through love and devotion. They emphasised the importance of respecting people of all classes. They believed that dance and music filled with devotion take us closer to God. They composed many songs in Urdu and Hindi to proclaim the importance of devotion. The poetic works of Mrigavati of Kutuban and Padmavat of Mallik Mohammed Jaisi uphold Sufi philosophy. Many socio-religious reformers tried to bridge the gap between Hindus and Muslims in different parts of India. [CHECKPOINT] Let us examine the effects of the Bhakti movement. Reform of the Hindu practices and bringing about harmony between Hindus and Muslims were the two main purposes of the Bhakti movement. The reformers were successful in removing many weaknesses in the Hindu society. The regional languages of India flourished since the reformers wrote in these languages. This enabled development of Indian culture. Do you know this? The saints of the Bhakti movement composed keertans and bhajans in the languages they spoke. As a result, all these Indian languages flourished. In Hindi, Surdas composed Sursagar and Tulsidas composed Ramacharitamanas. Abhangs and Gnaneswari were written in Marathi by Gnanadeva. [CHECKPOINT] Now, dear students, let us move on to the exercises to prepare for your exams. I will read each question and provide the complete answer. First, Exercise One: Fill in the blanks with suitable words. Question one: Bhakti means pure trust to God. Question two: The famous follower of Ramanand was Kabir. Question three: Kabir’s followers are called Kabirpanthis. Question four: The collection of Chaitanya’s philosophical thoughts is called Chaitanya Charitamruta. Question five: The poetic work Ramadhanya Charitre was written by Kanakadasa. [CHECKPOINT] Next, Exercise Two: Answer the following questions by discussing with your group. Question six: Who popularized worship of Rama and Sita? What are his services to society? Answer: Ramananda popularized the worship of Rama and Sita. His services to society include establishing a Vaishnava religious school based on love and devotion, travelling across North India to spread his teachings, condemning the caste system, and allowing people from every caste to join his sect, thus promoting social equality. Question seven: Who are Sikhs? Which is their holy book? Answer: Sikhs are the followers of Guru Nanak who had both Hindu and Muslim followers. Their holy book is the Guru Granth Sahib, which compiles his preachings. [CHECKPOINT] Question eight: The role of Srimantha Shankardeva is prominent in cultural and religious history of Assam. How? Explain. Answer: Srimantha Shankardeva brought newness to the culture and music in India. He composed the Bhagavatha in Sanskrit, Assamese and Brijavali. He started the Ekasarana Dharma or Vaishnava movement in Assam, which spread across India. He promoted unstinted love for Krishna, started the Sarniya system of initiation which was a social revolution against the caste system, and united people of all religions and castes. His disciple Madhavadeva also greatly contributed to the spread and popularity of this movement. Question nine: Explain the concept of Bhakti by Purandaradasa. Answer: Purandaradasa emphasized true devotion over false worship. He criticized caste and creed discrimination, rejected false Bhakti, and insisted on inner reflections. He declared that without inner purity, external purity is useless, and that mere ritualistic dipping in a river is of no use without faith. He taught that human birth is great and should not be spoiled, sowing seeds of faith in human life and worthiness. [CHECKPOINT] Question ten: What are the effects of the Bhakti movement? Answer: The main effects were the reform of Hindu practices and bringing harmony between Hindus and Muslims. The reformers successfully removed many weaknesses in Hindu society. Regional languages flourished because the saints wrote and composed in local languages, which greatly contributed to the development of Indian culture. Now, Exercise Three covers activities. You are instructed to read the life histories of the Bhakti panth reformers and collect more information about them from your teachers. Exercise Four covers projects. You should prepare a detailed project about one reformer covering his life, work and achievements. You should also divide into groups to prepare projects on each reformer, discuss the values in the keertanas of Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa with your teachers, and practise and sing their keertanas. [CHECKPOINT] Thank you for listening! Keep revising and practicing. Goodbye! [CHAPTER_COMPLETE]