BEGINNINGS OF BHAKTI MOVEMENT

         SAINTS  WILL  AID

         BEGINNINGS OF BHAKTI                      MOVEMENT

The Bhagavatam records that the Bhakti movement  originated in the Dravida Desa.

Utpanna Dravide Saaham
Vriddhim Karnatake gatha
Kwachitkwachin Maharashtre
Gurjare jeernataam gatha.       Mahatmyam, 1.48

I was born in Dravida (Tamil) Desa. I grew up in Karnataka area. I attained glory in some places in Maharashtra. I reached old age in Gurjara (Gujarat).This is recorded as revealed by Bhakti, appearing as a lady, to Narada. 

This appears to tally with the historical perspective, as it is understood. The earliest record we have of a mass movement of pure devotion to Bhagavan in historical times seems to be the phenomenon of the rise of the Nayanmars and Alwars- the devotees of Shiva and Vishnu, respectively, in Tamil land. Greek sources record the existence of the cult of Krishna-Vasudeva at the time of Alexander's invasion. But that does not appear to be a separate bhakti movement, with characteristics we associate with it later on.

The Avataars. Victoria and albert Museum, London.

We will also have to look at it from the Indian perspective of cyclical time. The four yugas, which repeat themselves, have significant internal differences within them. In the Krita or Satya yuga, the means of Liberation were meditation. People were basically good, had long life and had to engage in arduous meditation for years for Realization. We see such stories recorded in the Puranas. In the next, it was Yajna: we see various kinds of yajna. In the Dwapara, it was resort to worship of archa murtis, visit to temples, pilgrimages,etc. In the scriptures it is clearly stated that none of this will work in Kali yuga where the only means of spiritual Realisation will be remembrance of the names of God and their chanting.It is not that other forms of devotion will all disappear totally, but they will be followed as mere formalities, with the real spirit lacking. Kali yuga started with the departure of Lord Krishna from earth around 4000BC. It is significant that the Greeks noted the existence of the cult of Krishna-Vasudeva in the areas which they invaded. The Veda contains lot of prayers (Suktas) to various Deities, but it did not advocate devotion  as the main method of Realisation. This is definitely a post-Krishna phenomenon and there is some justification in the Bhakta-Bhagavata tradition claiming special kinship with Krishna worship. It is also significant that even the main Vedic ritualistic orthodoxy has incorporated Rama-Krishna factor in the performance of Vedic rituals. The Bhagavad Gita is the real source of Bhakti cult, for Bhakti in the form of total surrender to God is the ultimate message of the Gita, whatever may be the interpretation of Pundits and some Acharyas. Subsequently, other schools have risen, advocating devotion based on other Deities.

Nayanmars:
Appar :    580-650 AD
Jnanasambandha: 640-656
Sundarar : 8th Century
Manikkavachaka: 9th Century.

 The four main Nayanmars: Sambandha, Appar. Sundaramurty, Manickavachaka. 
This picture is from a temple in Helensburgh, NSW, Australia.

Images of some Nayanmaars from Tirukazhukunram.

Alwars:
Poigai Alwar: 7th Century
Boodattalvar:  7th
Tirumazhisai:  7th
Tiruppaan Alwar : 8th century
Tirumangai Alwar: 730-800
Kulasekhara Alwar: 8th
Tondaradippodi  : 8th
Nammalvar:  745-780
Periyalwar :  800-885
Andal        : Later half of 9th century
Madhurakavi: 9th Century

Care: There are many traditions about these dates, some going back to even 3000BC!

Group of the Ten alwars.

After the 9th century, there is a big vacuum, we cannot account for. But we see the bhakti cult rising in Maharashtra, North, Bengal and Orissa, and in Karnataka and Andhra , thus encircling the whole country between the 14th and 18th Centuries-but leaving Tamil area alone! Not that there were no individual practitioners of devotion; there certainly were figures like Ramanuja,Appayya Dikshita, Arunagirinatha, etc But they  (except Arunagirinatha)were primarily philosophers and theologians. Pure bhakti movement we see again only after the rise of Nama Siddhanta in the 17th Century.

The Nayanmars rose mainly in response to the challenge posed by the rise of Buddhists and Jains, who kept the Tamil Kings under their spell, by foul means and fair; these were basically advocates of Nastika (Niriswara and anti-Vedic) views which adversely affected the general belief of the common people in God, temple worship, practice of Vedic rituals, etc. So, these 4 Saivite Acharyas travelled extensively, visited almost all the temples, revived devotional worship, instilled faith in Vedic learning and rituals and also succeeded in weaning away the kings from the Nastika faiths. They sang hymns extempore in each temple or holy place, they sang in Tamil, without interfering with the established systems of worship, so that in due course, their hymns came to be recited in the temples as part of the ritual. The hymns were set to specific tunes which were based on the ancient musical traditions. The hymns were mainly paeans of praise, recalling the various puranic incidents, recounting the glory of Lord Shiva and his sports (leela) with devotees and others.As a result of their efforts, Buddhism and Jainism completely lost their hold on princes and people.

The Alwars followed a similar course based on devotion to Vishnu and His Avatars . Ramanuja especially made an effort to bring Non-brahmins into the fold of orthodoxy. He stressed the doctrine of 'Prapatti' or complete surrender as the way. 

But unfortunately, rivalry developed between the two sects and it has continued to this day.

The main body of Smarta brahmins continues to keep its distance from both these sects, though worshipping both Deities without distinction. The overwhelming majority of the common people continues to be outside these sects, worshipping mainly local gods and goddesses, and fostering folk traditions. 

Thus in the Tamil area, bhakti movement has not covered every one, even though the Nayanars and Alwars sang in Tamil! (But their Tamil cannot be understood  today even by most 'educated' Tamils without commentary or explanation! Such is the advance made in Tamil education!) Those who try to dilute our scriptures to suit the modern taste for intellectual ease and indulge in secular translation should keep this in mind. People will not take up religion only on the basis of language. And a true Hindu can never forget that all our original ideas and sources are in/from Sanskrit. No translation can be a substitute for reading the Ramayana/ Gita/ Bhagavatam in the original. We do not read the Ramayana only for or as a story. It has been summed up in one sloka, if one needs only the story. Both Saivites and Vaishnavites claim that their Acharyas have rendered Veda in Tamil (It is claimed that Sambandhar's hymns are a Tamil rendering of Rig Veda; the Vaishnavites say: 'Vedam Tamizh seida maaran Sadagopan'.) But can they be understood or allusions explained without reference to the Sanskrit original? Without Sanskrit, there is no Hindu religion.Tirumurugatruppadai, the Sangam classic of Nakkirar records that one face of Lord Muruga protects the yajnas performed by the Brahmins without deviating from the Mantra rules:"Oru mukham Mantra vidiyin marabuli vazhaa andanar velvi orkkumme".(Lines 94-96, Tirucheeralaivai) Since the Asuras usually try to interfere with the proper performance of Yajnas, two arms of the Lord are ever ready, holding the Spear and the Shield, to protect the Yajna (line 110).

The second time Bhakti movement  spread was only after the rise of the Nama siddhanta . But in spite of its popular and egalitarian elements, it was taken up only by the orthodox sections (mainly Smartas), who could no more practice their orthodox ways under the changing social and economic conditions. This shows that you can take the horse to water (or vice versa) but you cannot make it drink.

Many saints appeared in the North to combat the Muslim threat, but a similar phenomenon is not seen in the South! Here, people simply removed their Deities from temples and hid them elsewhere, fearing Muslim invasion and plunder.

An off shoot of this movement was the rise of Sampradaya Bhajan tradition., drawing largely from the Marathi example, due to the influence of the Maratha rule in Tanjore. This is really a splendid achievement, combining Nama chanting, good music, adapting hymns from all languages without distinction, and equally covering all Deities without distinction! The tradition also honours all Gurus and devotees from all areas! To listen to a good quality traditional bhajan is a moving religious experience, akin to a dip in all holy Tirthas and visit to all major temples. To go through and study their compilation of literature is such a rewarding religious, aesthetic and intellectual exercise. It will make a literate Hindu an educated one- educated in our itihasa-purana, sacred lterature, lives of saints and devotees, etc. It will make him a truly cultured  complete Indian, not a mere money-making  and bread earning  and consuming  economic machine or animal.

Sri Bodhendra who initiated the Namasiddhanta and Sankirtana tradition in the Chola Desa in the Tamil area.

But the Nama Siddhanta or Sampradaya Bhajan tradition is not a free-for-all show.It too is based on some orthodox  elements and practices. It too involves discipline. It takes for granted a certain type of family atmosphere and living tradition.  With secular education spreading like wild fire and engulfing the whole society,  with Brahmin community having lost its traditional bases of support, and having given up its self-discipline; and with each generation in need of educational qualification along secular lines to secure a livelihood, with more and more girls taking to secular education, professional career and modern living style; with decline of Brahmin neighbourhoods which lent support to common cultural practices, with the collapse of even the larger family and support to elders, with the spread of the habit of TV watching like an addiction even among the elderly,  all traditional systems are gradually declining.  Our ladies cannot even sing simple Arati songs at home functions. How many youngsters sing songs at Kolu during Navaratri? You will notice few youngsters in a bhajan or Harikatha performance. The proportion of youngsters in population is rising, but increasing numbers of them are getting alienated from our tradition-of any sort. What is it all leading to?

WHO SAVED HINDUS FROM MUSLIM EXPANSION?

        SAINTS  WILL  AID

        Who Saved Hindus From Muslim           Expansion?

History studies what happened in society.Society includes various aspects -politics, economics, social , cultural and religious developments. But in view of the narrow specialisation that has taken place, each aspect is studied separately- there is economic history, social history, religious history, cultural history, etc  but 'history' in general means just political history. Students of history are not aware of the developments in other areas.

History is written by people with vested interest. Usually it is written by victors and dominant power groups. In the case of India, our history was written by the English colonialists to suit their interest and taught through the govt-sponsored school system. And since school education was necessary for employment, the system ensured that almost every Indian going through  schooling was fully indoctrinated with the govt version of what happened in the name of history. And since education stops for most people with schooling, this version of history becomes the standard for the whole society. Aryan invasion theory is one such fabrication promoted by the British and still taught in schools, at least in Tamil Nadu, with the tenacity of a crocodile! ( Know the Tamil proverb: mudalaiyum moorkanum kondadu vidaa ie the crocodile and the idiot will not leave what they catch ?)

Mughal army under Akbar slaying Sannyasis at Thaneswar. That was how liberal Akbar was! Rascal. The source of this painting is Abul Fazl- not any Hindutva advocate!

After Independence, the govt. of Nehru (who was more an Englishman than Indian by temperament, training and mental make-up) continued with the administration, judicial and educational systems left by the British. After Nehru, one more distortion took place. The new-fangled secularists did not want the stark realities of Muslim invasion of India, and the accompanying destruction of life and property, forced conversions and massacre of Hindus and others to be known. So they undertook revision of our history to suit their agenda through  agencies such as NCERT, CBSE etc. and 'sanitised' our history, portraying the Muslim period in favourable light, with political motives.The result is that by and large, our people do not know all that happened in  India  after Muslims started invading.The Internet today makes mockery of such infantile methods of controlling information.But if you want a university degree to get a job, you have to subscribe to officially sponsored falsehood or filtered facts.

The first wave of Muslim invaders was Arabs  who conquered Sind (then part of India) in 711AD during the Second Caliphate, within 80 years after the death of prophet Mohammad- that is how fast Islam expanded.  From then on up to around 1000,they controlled the North West and gradually spread from there. They were somewhat tolerant, and allowed the Hindus to live as  usual, but gradually they got converts. By 1000 AD, a wave of Turks came, with Mahmud of Gazni. They were plunderers and looters, and destroyed thousands of temples and killed thousands of Hindus and Buddhist monks. Mahmud of Gazni invaded India 17 times between 1000 and 1026, destroying the famous Somnath temple on his 16th invasion in 1025, and looting its fabulous wealth. Gradually Turks established themselves in Delhi and ruled from there till 1526 when they were conquered by the third wave of Muslims- this time Mughals under Babar, a descendant of both Genghis Khan and Timur. (Popularly, we refer to Muslims as 'tulukkans' which is a corruption of the word Turk) Their rule lasted nominally, till the British captured and imprisoned Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal ruler in Mandalay, in 1858, though their glory had ended long before that.

Islam preached equality but believed in monotheism.Hinduism was stratified, but gave full freedom to its adherents to believe in any God or any number of them, any theology, any philosophy, adopting any method! This baffled and agitated the Muslims. Though there were really learned and spiritually inclined among them, and even evolved a new style of Islam like Sufism, they were generally intolerant and proselytising. All of them were expanding-some peacefully and gradually, others violently and fast, but expansion of Islam was their only goal, as it is part of their religious tenet, conferring Heavenly rewards. This is why Hindu society was under seige and constant pressure and threat under the muslims: they even had to pay a tax, Jizia, to remain Hindus, but accepting the Muslim rule! No Hindu ruler was strong enough to reconquer an area once taken by the Muslims! Only, some like Vijaynagar kings and Shivaji were able to stop further muslim expansion.

Who helped Hindus in those turbulent centuries? Though we may owe allegiance to the orthodox Mutts, we must remember that no orthodox Mutt could help the Hindus, especially the common people. Vijaynagar owed allegiance to Sringeri, and it protected the South for two centuries.Then Shivaji and his successors offered protection for another 150 years, but the Hindu Mutts did pretty little directly. They were themselves struggling for their existence.

It was only the Saints, who deviated from orthodoxy and preached Bhakti , uniting all the castes of Hindus in  common devotion to the two Avatars-Rama and Krishna - who served the Hindus and saved India.

To even look at the names of the Saints is impressive:

1.Jnaneswar 1275-1296   Mahratta. Wrote commentary on Bhagavad Gita in Marathi, which is studied reverently even today.This is considered a first- the first time a Scripture was commented upon in a language other than Sanskrit.

2.Namdev 1270-1350  Propagated reliance on Divine name as the sure way to Liberation.

3.Ramanand 1299-1410 Porpagated Bhakti cult. Was the Guru of Kabirdas.

4.Narsinh Mehta 1414-1481: Propagated Bhakti through devotional singing in Gurjara desa -Gujarat. His song 'Vaishnava jan to' was made famous by Gandhi.

By Nileshbandhiya (Own Work) CC BY-SA 3.0 Creative commons via Wikimedia Commons.HTML

5.Purandaradasa: 1484-1564: Propagated bhakti through singing divine names; considered Pitamaha of Carnatic music; his compositions, though full of divine fervour, are not structured like later kirtanas.

6.Chaitanya Mahaprabhu1486-1534: Initiator of the definite cult of devotion to Krishna as the Supreme. He popularised the group chanting and singing of the following chant as the Mahamantra to secure complete spiritual benediction: 

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.

7. Mira Bai 1498-1557 Oh, what to say of her! She is Gopi come back, this time as a princess! Pure devotion personified!

8.Tulsi Das1497-1623 Wrote Ram Charit Manas in the regional dialect Awadh, gave hope and saved thousands of Hindus from conversion.

9. Tukaram1577-1650 Continued the bhakti tradition of the earlier Mahratta saints.His Abhangs are fabulous.

10.Samarth Ramadas1609-1681 He was the force and spirit behind Shivaji to establish Swaraj of the Hindus. Effectively combated and stopped muslim expansion, and united the people in devotion to Rama, with Hanuman as the focus.

11.Bhadrachala Ramdas1620-1680. Famous for his renovation of Rama temple at Bhadrachalam using the Sultan's funds, for which he suffered imprisonment for 14 years. Rescued by Rama and Lakshmana personally at the end, the Sultan,Tani Shah also had the Darshan of Rama! He was the ideal of Sri Tyagaraja whom he calls "dhirudau"- the heroic.

Saints of the Cauvery Delta

12.Sadhashiva Brahmendra: 17th century. Active in the Cauvery delta area( Chola Desa) Great advocate of bhakti.His kirtans are the essence of Vedanta and bhakti and a great favourite of bhajan practitioners.

13.Bodhendra d.1692  59th Pontiff of Kanchi Mutt, but the Initiator of NAMA SIDHANTA , with emphasis on Taraka nama as the way to Liberation in our age.

It is not clear to what extent he acted individually and not as the Pontiff. It is to be noted that the Kanchi Mutt has not accepted his line, but continued to follow orthodoxy, which Bodhendra established as being unsuitable for our times on the basis of Sastric injunctions. 

14.Sridhara Ayyaval 1635-1720  Contemporary of Bodhendra,great advocate of Nama Siddhanta, emphasising Siva Nama, but advocating Siva-Rama abhedam.

15.Narayana Tirtha1650-1745 Advocate of Nama Siddhanta, devotional singing and the author of Krishna Lila Tarangini, an important item in Sampradaya bhajans.

16.Sadguru Swami 1776-1817 Continued Nama Siddhanta and initiated numberless devotees in Mantra japa.

17.Sri Tyagaraja 1767-1847 Formalised singing divine names and glories through classical music; performed Rama Nama Japa 96 crore times after taking proper inititation as laid down in the Upanishad and completed it in 21 years. Had Darshan of Rama. Lived by unchavritti, shunning all wealth, and name and fame.

Tyagaraja is usually portrayed with a grim face, as if he has swallowed some bitter medicine. Face is the index of the mind. "Sukhi evvaro Rama summukhi evvaro " , sang Tyagaraja. One who has enjoyed the bliss of the divine name ought to be portrayed with a face showing Ananda! 

There are others like Vemana, Potana, Jayadeva who are great devotees individually but whose social role is not clearly known.

They appeared in all the troubled areas and most of them travelled around and spread the message. To this list, we must include Arunagirinatha also, who lived in the 15th century and advocated devotion, without Siva-Vishnu-Shakti difference.None of them advocated any definite philosophy!

 Just look at the caste of some of the leading figures celebrated in the bhakti movement:

Jnanadev, Tyagaraja, Bodhendra, Sridhara Ayyaval, Sadashiva Brahmendra, Narsinh Mehta, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Ramdas - were all brahmins.
Namdev- Tailor
Gora Kumbar- Potter
Tukaram- Trader
Savata- Gardener
Narahari- Goldsmith
Chokha Mela- Untouchable
Janabai- maidservant
Sena - Barber
Mirabai- Rajput princess
Kabirdas-weaver-muslim.

We are bound to ask: in the comparative period, how many personalities sprang from the orthodox Mutts to save the common people from falling into the hands of muslims? Even today, what are they doing in that direction? The very fact that they are Hindu mutts has prevented them from speaking on the subject openly. Such is the state of our secularism.

I am not decrying orthodoxy. I am only pointing out the historical fact of how Hindus were saved.

Dr.V.Raghavan  wrote on the Saint-Singer Integrators, a book published by the NBT in the 70s. Sadly, it is no more available.

Dr.V.Raghavan-eminent scholar and exemplar of Hindu culture.
This picture is taken from "Sruti" magazine.
Copyright position not known. I gratefully acknowledge. It was Bhakti- and not Philosophy-which saved Hindus.

NOTE:
I like to provide pictures of the great people I write about as I want our friends to know them- this is the way we convey our respect. It is so difficult to get the photos without copyright hassles. I resort to postage stamps wherever available.
All pictures here taken from the Net and gratefully acknowledged. Used here without any commercial motive, purely for educational purposes.