Bhakti Saints

1. Shankaracharya :

  1. He was born at Kaladi in Kerala and became a saint at the age of 5
  2. He was the disciple of Govindacharya
  3. He is credited with the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta
  4. In order to preach and protect the dharma, he founded Ashramas/mathas at Sringeri in Karnataka, Dwarak in Gujarat, Puri in Odisha and Badrinath in UP
  5. He wrote commentaries on Brahmasutras. His popular works include- Vivekachudamani, Saundaryalahari, Bhajagovindam, Shivananda Lahari
  6. The followers of Shankaracharya are called as Smratas
What does Advaita Vedanta mean?

    • This doctrine is based on the concept that the higher or true Self is identical to Brahman, the Absolute Reality.
    • In Advaita Vedanta, Jnana yogais the path of knowledge to Moksha, or liberation from the cycle of life, death and rebirth.
    • This doctrine also believes that Moksha can be achieved in this life (Jivanmukthi) in contrast to other Indian philosophies that emphasize videhamukti, or Moksha after death
    • Advaita influenced and was influenced by various traditions and texts of Hindu philosophies such as Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, other sub-schools of Vedanta, Vaishnavism, Shaivism, the Puranas, the Agamas

2. Ramanujacharya (1017- 1137 AD)

  1. He was born at Sriperumbudur.
  2. He was the disciple of Yamuna Muni and Vedprakash
  3. He founded the philosophy called Vishishta Advaita and preached Vaishnavism
  4. Kulottanga Chola who was a Shaivite banished Ramanujacharya for preaching Vaishnavism
  5. He wrote Sri Bashyaand was the head of Srirangam Vaishnava Math
  6. Ramanujacharyapreached Shudras and outcastes could also attain salvation by completely surrendering to the will of the guru.
  7. He was also referred to as Ilaya Perumalwhich means the radiant one.
What is Vishishta Advaita?This school grew out of worship of Lord Vishnu

    • It is a non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy. It is non-dualism of the qualified whole, in which Brahman alone exists, but is characterized by multiplicity.
    •  Unlike some Hindu philosophies, Visishtadvaitadoesn’t see the world as simply illusion, which would make it separate from Brahman. The material world is a part of Brahman’s nature.
    • Moksha, or spiritual liberation, is seen as the joy of contemplating Brahman (rather than release from the life-death-rebirth cycle), and that joy is the result of devotion, praise, worship and contemplating the divine perfection.

 

3. Nimbaraka

  1. He was the disciple of Ramanujacharya
  2. He was the first to introduce Radhamadhav cult which was centered n the worship of Radha and Madhav
  3. He founded the philosophy called Dwita Advaita. It was centered on the balance between Advaita and Visishtadvaita.
  4. He wrote Dashasloki and Vedanta
  5. He was also a prominent astronomer
  6. Its philosophy held that men were trapped in physical bodies constricted by prakrti(matter) and that only by surrender to Radha-Krishna (not through their own efforts) could they attain the grace necessary for liberation from rebirth; then, at death, the physical body would drop away.

 

4. Madhavacharya

  1. Shri Madhvacharya was born to Narayana Bhatta and Vedavatiin Pajaka, a small place near Udupi. He was born in 1238, on the auspicious day of Vijayadashami, and he was named Vasudeva.
  2. He was the third of the trinity of philosophers who influenced Indian thoughts after the ages of the Vedas and Puranas (the other two being Shankaracharya and Ramanujacharya)
  3. He propounded the philosophy of Dwaita or Dualism.
  4. He was initiated into sanyasttva by Achyutapreksha
  5. At the time of initiation, he was given the name Purnaprajna. It was also Achyutaprekshawho gave him the title ‘Madhva’ by which he was more famously known.
  6. Madhvacharya wrote commentaries on several important Hindu holy texts, including the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutra.
  7. He wrote various texts that detailed his philosophy which he called Tattvavada, or as it is more popularly known, Dvaita. Some of his works were the Gita Bhashya, Brahma Sutra Bhashya, Anu Bhashya, Karma Nirnaya, and Vishnu Tattva Nirnaya.
About Dvaita philosophy

    • The basic tenet of Dvaita philosophy is the refutation of the Mayavada of Sri Shankara. Dvaitha emphasizes that the world is real and not just an illusion.
    • The soul is bound to this world through ignorance
    • The way for the soul to release itself from this bondage is to seek the grace of Sri Hari
    • To reach Sri Hari, one has to practice Bhakthi, there is no other way
    • To practice Bhakthi, one needs to meditate
    • To meditate, one needs to clear the mind and attain detachment by studying the sacred texts

 

4. Vallabhacharya

  • He was also known as ‘Achinitabhadra’
  • He was the first to promote Krishna Bhakthi on the basis of Maha Bhagvad Purana
  • He founded the philosophy of Shuddha Advaita which believed in absolute union.
  • He prescribed Pushtimarga as the means for salvation (extreme devotion to God)

 

5. Basavanna 

  1. He was a 12th century administrator, philosopher, poet, Lingayat saint in the Shiva-focused Bhakti movement.
  2. He raised social awareness through his poetry, popularly known as Vachanaas.
  3. He introduced new public institutions such as the Anubhava Mantapa (or, the “hall of spiritual experience”), which welcomed men and women from all socio-economic backgrounds to discuss spiritual and mundane questions of life, in open.
  4. He was a propagator of Visishtadvaita
  5. Basavanna literary works include the Vachana Sahitya in Kannada Language. He is also known as Bhaktibhandari, Basavanna or Basaveswara.

 

6. Ramananda

  1. He was a 14thcentury Vaishnava devotional poet saint
  2. He developed his philosophy and devotional themes inspired by
  3. Evidence also suggests that Ramananda was influenced by Nathpanthi asceticsof the Yoga school of Hindu philosophy.
  4. An early social reformer, Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating anyone by gender, class, caste or religion. His disciples included- Kabir, Ravidas, Bhagat Pipa and others.
  5. His verse is mentioned in the Sikh scripture Adi Granth.
  6. Some of his works include- Gyan-lila and Yog-cintamani (Hindi), Vaishnava Mata Bhajabhaskara and Ramarcana paddhati (Sanskrit).

 

7. Kabir (1440-1510 AD)

  1. He was a 15th century Indian mystic poet and saint, whose writings influenced Hinduism’s Bhakti movement and his verses are found in Sikhism’s scripture Guru Granth Sahib. 
  2. He was a disciple of Ramananda
  3. He mounted a spirited attack against the superficial religious practices followed by both Hindus and Muslims
  4. Kabir suggested that Truth is with the person who is on the path of righteousness, considered all creatures on earth as his own self, and who is passively detached from the affairs of the world.
  5. He was the first to reconcile Hinduism and Islam.
  6. He believed in formless God.
  7. Kabir’s legacy survives and continues through the Kabir panth(“Path of Kabir”), a religious community that recognizes him as its founder and is one of the Sant Mat sects. Its members are known as Kabir panthis.
  8. He wrote- Sabad, Bijak, Doha, Holi, and Rekhtal. He propagated Ram Bhakti. 

 

8. Guru Nanak (1469- 1538)

  1. He was born in Talvandi near Lahore
  2. Guru Nanak’s birth anniversary is celebrated as Guru Nanak Gurpurab by Sikhs all over the world.
  3. In 1496, although married and having a family, Nanak set out on a set of spiritual journeys through India, Tibet and Arabia that lasted nearly 30 years.
  4. The last part of his life was spent at Kartarpur in the Punjab, where he was joined by many disciples attracted by his teachings.
  5. The most famous teachings attributed to Guru Nanak are that there is only one God, and that all human beings can have direct access to God with no need of ritualsor priests. His most radical social teachings denounced the caste system and taught that everyone is equal, regardless of caste or gender.
  6. He introduced the concept of god- that is ‘Vahiguru’, an entity that is shapeless, timeless, omnipresent and invisible. Other names for God in the Sikh faith are Akaal Purkh and Nirankar.
  7. Guru Granth Sahib, the holiest book of the Sikhs, contains 974 poetic hymns composed by Guru Nanak.

 

9. Mirabai

  1. She was the most popular Bhakthi reformer
  2. She was born in Rajasthan
  3. She became the wife of Rana Bhojraj, one of the royal families in Rajasthan
  4. She was the first to introduce Giridhara Gopala cult of Brindavan and also the first to introduce Bhajan in Bhakthi movement
  5. Her bhajans were composed in the language of Vraj Bhasha 

 

10. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

  • He was the most popular Bhakthi reformer from Bengal
  • He was born at Nabadwip (Bengal)
  • He was the disciple of Keshav Bharti.
  • He was also known as Gouranga and Vishwambar
  • He preached Vaishnavism in Bengal and Odisha
  • Puri became the main centre of his activities
  • He was also the first to introduce Kirtans in Bhakthi movement
  • The form of Vaishnavism that he preached came to be called as ‘Gudik Vaishnavism’

 

11. Tulsidas

  1. He was a contemporary of Akbar.
  2. He wrote ‘RamcharitManas’ in the language of Avadi
  3. He founded the Sankatmochan Templededicated to Lord Hanuman in Varanasi, believed to stand at the place where he had the sight of the deity
  4. Tulsidas started the Ramlilaplays, a folk-theatre adaption of the Ramayana
  5. Other works of Tulsidas include: Dohavali, Sahitya ratna or Ratna Ramayan, Gitavali , Krishna Gitavali or Krishnavali  and Vinaya Patrika 

 

12 Dadu Dayal

  • He was born into the community of weavers at Ahmedabad
  • He preached Nirgunabhakthi
  • His teachings were compiled in the form of ‘Dadu Dayaram ki Bani’

13. Shankar Dev

  1. He was the first to preach Vaishnavism in Brahmaputra valley
  2. He was the founder of Eka Saranadharma and Veerapurushamarga
  3. He is widely credited with building on past cultural relics and devising new forms of music (Borgeet), theatrical performance (Ankia Naat, Bhaona), and dance (Sattriya), literary language (Brajavali).

 

14. Purandaradasa

  • He was a Haridasa philosopher from Karnataka
  • He is considered as the father of Carnatic music
  • One of his most notable works is Dasa Sahithya
  • He introduced the RagaMayamalavagowla as the first scale to be learnt by beginners in the field – a practice that is still followed today.
  • Most of his keertanas deal with social reform and pinpoint the defects in society

 

15. Ganeshwar

  1. He was one of the earliest Marathareformers
  2. He wrote commentary on Bhagvad Gita called as Gnaneswari, popular known as Maratha Bhagvad Gita
  3. His followers are known as Varkaris.
  4. They believe in attaining the presence of God through religious songs or Bhajans and prayers.
  5. They worship Lord Vithoba whom they believe to be the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. 

 

16. Eknath

  • He was one of the first reformers to emphasize the growth of Marathi language
  • He preached that one could devote oneself to God by leading a family life and discharging all functions of a householder.
  • His works include numerous religious songs called Abhangas, Owees, and Bharuds.

 

17. Namdev

  • He was a tailor by profession
  • He emphasized on cultural unity of the Marathas by introducing a tradition called MahapurushaSampradaya
  • He believed in equality of all men and women
  • He advocated the practice of devotion to realize god
  • Some of his devotional songs are found in the Guru Granth Sahib

 

18. Tukaram

  • He was contemporary of Shivaji
  • He is considered as the greatest Maratha Bhakthi reformer
  • He made popular the Vithoba cult
  • He composed devotional songs on Vithalswamycalled as Abhangs
  • He preached the message of equality and universal brotherhood

 

19. Samard Ramdas

  • He was guru of Shivaji
  • He inspired Shivaji for founding Swaraj
  • The message were compiled in the form of the text called ‘Dasabodha’
  • He was a devotee of Lord Rama.  He established Ashramas all over India.