Srimanta Sankardev was an Assamese polymath of the 15th–16th centuries who was a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist, social-religious reformer, and significant figure in the cultural and religious history of Assam, India.
Sankardev (1449 – 1568)
- According to traditional accounts, Sankardev, then known as Sankara, was born in 1449 CE in Alipukhuri near Bordowa in the present-day Nagaon region of Assam.
- His father, Kusumvar Bhuyan, was the Shiromani (head) of the region’s Baro-Bhuyans clans (the Baro-Bhuyans were independent landlords in Assam).
- He is largely recognized for inventing new types of music (Borgeet), theatrical performance (Ankia Naat, Bhaona), dance (Sattriya), and literary language (Brajavali).
- In addition, he left a large literary corpus that included trans-created scriptures, poetry, and theological writings written in Sanskrit, Assamese, and Brajavali.
- The Bhagavatic religious movement he founded, Ekasarana Dharma, is also known as the Neo-Vaishnavite movement.
- Influenced two medieval kingdoms – Koch and the Ahom kingdoms and the assembly of devotees he founded, evolved over time into monastic centers known as Sattras, which remain important socio-religious institutions in Assam and, to a lesser extent, North Bengal.
- Sankardev influenced the Bhakti movement in Assam in the same way as Guru Nanak, Ramananda, Namdev, Kabir, Basava, and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu inspired it throughout the Indian subcontinent.
- His ideas were approved by the Matak Kingdom, which was formed by Bharat Singha and consolidated by Sarbananda Singha in the late 18th century.