Bhakti tradition across India : an emotional Integration

[Guest guest]

Dear Friends : Few days ago , there was a comment

about the Bhakthi traditions of South and North . I wish to

add to Sri Mani's observation that there is no big chasm

between the two traditions and there is only one tradition

that permeates the Indian thought on this important subject .

 

The Bhakthi tradition is deep and interconnected across

every corner of India . Tradition is society's memory as

Dr.S. RadhAkrishNan has pointed out and the Bhakthi

tradition in the four corners of Bharatha Varsham brings

forth a rich memory of integrative history of many saints ,

achAryAs and BhakthAs , who have contributed to

Sri VaishNavism and other religions . Let me share

a few thoughts with you to illustrate the rich concept

referred to by GeethAchAryan as " suthrE maNigaNA iva " .

 

To quote (late ) Dr. V.Raghavan , " There appeared all over the country

a succession of men (and women ) of divine grace and realization ,

who mediated between the hoary heritage and future generations ,

and who translated and intrepreted the ancient heritage from

the learned levels to the people at large , using for the mission

the local languages and the art ofmusic ( nAma sankeerthan)

---these saint-singers in the Indian languages had to appear to make

the heritage live again , gaining in the process fresh dimensions

and widening participation . " They blossomed forth and influenced

each other across India during the past thousand plus years .

 

A two fold renaissance , one adopting Sanskrit and the other

adopting the medium of the local language ( Tamil , KannadA ,

Telugu and MalayALam in the South and Hindi , Bengali ,

Gujarathi , Maratti in the east , west and the north ) arose .

These two streams are complimentary to each other over time.

>From 700 to 900 AD , a mighty tide of Bhakthi swept across

India and the waves arising from it continues even today .

The NaalAyira divya Prabhandham ( 4000 divine verses

on the Supreme being , Sriman NaarAyaNA ) arose during this

period and took its inspiration from the VedAs and

Bahgavatha PurANam .

 

A series of AchAryAs starting from Naathamuni ,

AlavandhAr , Periya nampi , RaamAnujA

and the many that followed this great AchAryA spread

the gospel of Bhakthi to the four corners of India .

 

The Daasa -kUtA of KarnaatakA ( Purandara , kanaka , Vijaya ,

Jaganaatha and Gopala dAsA ) , the fifty plus maharAshtrA

saints ( Jn~ana EvA , Namdeva , BopadEva , TukArAm , EknAth

and Samartha Raamdaas ) , two major Gujarathi/

RajasthAni saints ( Narasimha MehtA of Junagadh and

MeerAbai of MewAr ) , BengAli Saints ( RaamAnandA

and his 12 disciples including Tulasi Daas and Kabir ,

Chaithanya MahA Prabhu ) , VallabhAchAryA and GoraknAth

from the central part of India , JayadEvA in OrissA , VidhyApathi

and Sankara dEvA of Assam ( great KrishNa bhakthAs ) ,

Telegu saints ( AnnamAchAryA and BhadrAchala Ramdas ) ,

Tamil Naadu Saints ( AzhwArs , Saint ThyagarAjA , OothukAdu

Venkatasubba Iyer , a great devotee of KrishNA ) ,

KeralA saints ( NaarayaNa Bhattadhiri and other

devotees of GuruvAyUrappan ) are some of

the Bhaktha SirOnmaNis representing the four

corners of India .

 

At the end of this PradakshiNa pAda-yAthrA of Bhaaratha

Desam , one recalls the insightful observation of Sri Aurobindo:

" As the Sanskrit literature begins with the vedAs and Upanishads ,

these later literatures begin with inspired poetry of the saints and

parama Bhagavathas & BhakthAs -- it was always the poetry of

this type that was nearest ( dearest ) to the heart and mind

of the people -- the same (integrative ) culture reigns and many

variations of form in all this work of the regional people , but

each creates on the lines of its own peculiar character and temperament

and this gives a different stamp , the sources of a rich variety

in the UNITY , to each of these beautiful and vigorous

( Bhakthi ) literature " .

 

ANDAL and MeerA Bai as brides of KrishNA , the lyrical

love cycle of RadhA and KrishNA as portrayed by JayadEvA

in his Ashtapathis , the Vedanthic spirituality expressed by

the MaharAshtrA saints , the devotional outpourings of

Saint ThyagarAja , AnnamAchArya and Purandara DaasA

have all one theme in common , (Viz)., Bhakthi to Sriman

NaarAyaNA . Their voices are heard even today and will

continue to be heard across the next millenium and onwards .

 

NamO NaarAyaNAya

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan