Introduction of ceremonies, growth of rituals, system of religious sacrifices and ceremonial performances led to the proliferation of superstitions, exploitation of the innocent people by by religious hierarchy and forced conversions and persecution of dissenters, inquisitions, burning at the stake etc. Such tragedies became intensified where and when the state and religious orthodoxy formed together as vested interest.    

As a result every page in history is stained with blood shed in the name of God and religion. To day people are killing each other in nearly thirty four nations due to their notions of religious separatism. This includes INDIA.  

In European experiment, the  revival of Greek and Roman arts, letters and sciences led to the spirit of enquiry questioning the authority of Church as well as the State. This led to The Renaissance movement, Reformation and Counter Reformation Movements, Religious wars and persecutions, rise of despotisms, and popular revolts, political upheavals and finally resulting in the emergence of nation states, colonial empires and world wars.      

Even before the beginnings of the Renaissance and Reformation movements of Europe, India witnessed periodic religious movements aimed at liberating the popular thinking from the grip of the orthodoxy. These movements are generally described as Bhakthi movements.

Nature of Bhakthi Movement

• Peace  and  harmony, the key note of their lives and  essence of their teaching:

• Religion is a life to be lived, not a theory to be accepted, or a belief to be adhered to. They led their lives as Apostles of  Universal Love, Benevolence and Harmony.

• The Goal of life is communion with the Supreme. Self - Realization is the other term used for it. ( To be one with God in an abiding “UNION.”), stress on the value of  Religious Experience as distinguished from the “Mere knowledge of religion”  –which is but mere chaff.

• Their lives demonstrated that “ knowledge, learning, and even spiritual discipline,” all avail nothing in times of temptations and trials –but only god’s grace. This is possible only when people approach him  in “ utter humility and nakedness of spirit.”  

• They had contempt to hallow and meaningless  dogmas and rituals. True Religious life  must express itself in love and aim at the unity of mankind and not blind adherence to  rituals, ceremonies, belief systems etc

NOTE: 

They reviled at the prevailing religious abnormalities and  atrocities, and arrant  superstitions of the contemporary period.

rudraksham, thulasi-kastham,

tripundram bhasmadharanam,

yatra homas  cha  japa  va  deva  dharsanam,

na   ete  punanti  manujam

yatha  bhuta  hite  ratih. 

[ Bead  necklaces, rosaries, triple paint on forehead, or putting  on ashes pilgrimages, baths in holy rivers, meditation, or image worship do not purify a man as service of fellow creatures does. ]  

• Saint Singers of  middle ages aimed at  moral  and spiritual  regeneration, and not in  founding  religious sects, organizing  mutts or promoting schools of philosophy. they attempted to apply correctives to the fallen human conditions..

• They functioned as Prophets of  Divine Love .They were god-intoxicated men and women. they composed  devotional poetry, poems of compassion, and lyrics divine love  and  hymns of human love. . ( of bridal mysticism without the taint of eroticism.)They praised  GOD and worshipped  HIM  as a Lover, as a Friend,  a Playmate and a  Companion ( Not as Saviour, nor as a Deliverer from sins, )  

• They  detested all  man made divisions of caste, and creed.   The laboured in the  promotion of the Unity    of sympathy,  Unity of custom, and  Unity of heart..  

• They laid stress on moral sensitivity.

• Recognition of  “ Oneness of  Life, and thus kinship of all living beings—inclusive of the entire plant life.( Vallalar—Vadiya payirai  kanda  pozhudhellam  varundhinen.)

• Every proposition is true, but only from a particular stand point. ( Examples of running train and objects out side, blind men and the elephant, the mountain and  the spectators.)

• NOTE: thus  integrated  view is needed.

• They preached  against all forms of bigotry, cruelty and human inequity Thus what is needed is  going beyond mere “ toleration” to one of “acceptance”, of  the “Essence”, of all religions.   

ORIGIN  BIRTH AND  BACKGROUND

Most of them were drawn from ordinary masses of  the Indian society. ( Quote-Lincoln—God is fond of common people, that is why he made so many of them.)

EXAMPLES

• SURDAS: Poor blind bard of a village closer to Delhi.

• NARSI MEHTA: Poor Nagar Brahmin in Saurashtra.

• MIRA: Rathod family of Ranas of Marwar.

• KANAKA DASA: poor Shepherd community.

• RAHIM was an humble Pathan migrant.

• MALIK MUHAMMAD JAYASI: A poor rural Muslim family, born blind and ugly .

• They preached SIMPLE  ETHICS based on COMMON SENSE  to promote PEACE and  HARMONY in every day life. (and less on Salvation.)    The never  formulated a distinct theology nor indulged in metaphysical   subtelities – on  Atman- Jivatman-Paramat,man, Concept of Sin, Ritualism to liberate souls etc

EXAMPLES

• NARSIMEHTA. : Who is a vaishnava?  

Who  speaks ill of none,

Whose speech, senses and mind are kept firm under discipline,

To whom all women are mothers,

Whose tongue slips not to utter untruth,

Whose hand does not stretch forth to touch what is not his own,

He is a vaishnava,

In his pure self are all the places of pilgrimages.

• NARAHARI  TIRTHA:

In giving in charity a pie has been a thousand,

In improper expenditure, a crore  has been a pie,

• PURANDHARADASA:  

Failure in the world is  not a failure in the highest  purpose of life.

If men will not have you, they may be merely turning  you on to God.

Knowledge which does not improve life are worthless,

what is one’s knowledge if one does not know oneself?

I fear not fire nor prison,

I fear not snake or scorpion

Nor edge of the sword,

Two things only I fear,

Other’s money, other’s woman-these two I fear.   

• SAMARTHA  RAMADAS:  Advice to Shivaji:  

Excess should be avoided,

One should not be too haughty,

One should be reasonable,

Trust in God, ( On Goddess Bhavani,)

Yet rely on your own intelligence.

WHAT WAS THEIR SIGNIFICANCE

• Their  SIGNIFICANCE:In fact they created, enriched and even  founded new in regional languages and literature with soul-stirring contributions. ( Thus, Gujarathi, Brja Bhasha and Rajasthani and Sindhi surfaced with their first eve compositions and contributions by the Saint-Singers and Poets who advocated a true Universal and Secular approach to Religious issues..)

• They preferred the common usages,  and  distinguished with their devastating  wit and  humour, in attacking common religious  superstitions

• The turned effectively their poetic gifts using with  anger and outrage at all forms of religious  hypocrisies of the orthodoxy. Thus their compositions made them popular and  lovable to all classes and categories of people, irrespective of their cultural, social, economic  and political backgrounds. They were admired, followed and  venerated  as Saints.

• They handled Legendary characters as Romantic Characters of  fiction and Historic  personalities with love and  respect. They treated   their  Divine Characters as personalities  of fiction found in every day social  life and  not as  Legendary  Figures. Even to the  historical figures narrated in their poetical works,  they never  gave  Divine and  Legendary  attributes.

• They advocated  not renunciation but leading normal house.

 EXAMPLES:

• Samardha Ramadas does not preach renunciation and running away from the world. (Though himself ran away from the Marriage function,)

• Married though he never had married life.

• Thayumanavar , Shah Abdul Latif, Rahim led normal house holders life. Even till was widowed.

• Preached reverence towards all forms of life

EXAMPLES

• Kanakadasa. Food to the street dog.

• Ramalinga at the sight of  beatings  borne by bullocks on duty.

• On withering crops,  

They believed in the unity of  all  philosophical systems

 EXAMPLES: 

• Thus SHA ABDUL LATIF remained in the  company of wandering YOGIS. He saw striking similarities in the ADVAITA 

• RAHIM, MALIK MUHAMMAD JAYSI AND RAS KHAN composed songs on   SRI NATHJI and their nmes are included in the  bhaktha Mala and among the  Devout Vaishnava Saints. Shankara and   in the  WAHDAH  AL-WUJUD of the  SUFI SAINTS ( in their  metaphysical ques.)  

NOTE: 

Thus  they ADVOCATED

• UNIVERSAL BROTHER HOOD-

• RELIGIOUS

• TOLERANCE  AND

• CELESTIAL LOVE.

These Angels and Minstrels of Grace never attempted at Miracles. Yet several miraculous   events are associated  with their careers and achievements.  

EXAMPLES OF MIRACLES.

• Narsi Mehta receiving the Garland  thus saved from King Mandalik’s persecution.

• His Hundi Cheque drawn on the Dwaraka Deity, at the first pregnancy ceremony of Narsi’s daughter honoured.

• The serpent sent to MIRA under the cover of garlands by Rana. Deadly poison in to harmless potion.

• Male voice in MIRA”S chamber, Rana forced open sword in hand and found mpty.

• Mira’s physical frame absorbed in the Idol, when forced by Brahmin devotees  who  resorted to fasting  for her return  
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• Purandara Dasa and the miraculous disappearance of  trinket given to beggar by his wife

• Kanakadasa’ refused entry in to the Udipi Temple and the Idol inside the Sanctum turned its face backwards facing the saint behind the wall.

• Rahim  entry in to Temple denied and The Priest seeing the vision of Sri Nathji repents and admits.

• Raskhan similarly refused permission to enter temple at Brindavan.

• Tukaram’ compositions thrown in to the river Indrayani.

• Samardha Ramadas receiving a miraculous letter to dedicate his life for Divine Service.

• Tanisha (in the life history of Bhadrachala Rama Dasa,) received dues paid by Rama and Lakshman despite tight security inside the  Royal Palace-Golconda Fort.

• Thayumanavar protect kingdom from the attacks of the Portuguese. The drought and his prayers instantly answered at Rameswaram.  .

• The many miracles performed by Saint Rama Linga Adigalar. His powers of healing including lepers and those haunted by ghosts.

They founded a literature and some LANGUAGES ENRICHED

• Mira’s role –3 languages, Rajasthani, Gujarathi, Vraj-Hindi.  

Their ideas on God  and  His Nature were simple and easily understood by massaes

• God is One.

• He is the Merciful and Effulgent Light of all.

• No other minor deities need be worshipped...  

• PURANDARA DASA.

He has no feet but makes all move.

He has no hands but makes all hoold,

He has no teeth but makes all chew,

He has nno stomach but makes all eat,

He has no ears but makes all hear,

Unseen, He pervades with in , without.

Rom Him comes all,

He is all that men have thought He is.

He can be form, He can be formless,

He can be formless form etc.

• THAYUMANAVAR:

God has neither caste nor family,

God has neither birth nor death,

God has neither bondage nor release,

Neither form, formlessness nor any name.

He is timeless,

He is without any distinction of day or night.

There is no limitation or defect in Him.

So He is the INTEGRAL- Purnam.

(In Porul Vanakkam, stanza-5) 

ATTACKS  ON  SUPERSTITIONS. (Astrology-Horoscope etc.)

• HARIDASA (P- 45.)  “ Trust in God  is the real Astrology and Horoscopy.”

• He had no use for  denominational or sectarian divisions of religious faith.  He owed allegiance to no camp and asked none to follow him.Utterly unconscious of self,without fear and without ambition, asking nothing of  the world and with holding nothingfrom God,

• TUKARAM: On  Bogus Yogis:Like pipes carved  out of carrots are these new Yogis,They cram a lot but they only accumulate Ego.
  Knowledge little, pride great,Tuka says such hypocrites should be beaten and shoed.

BREAKING THE BARRIERS

• Rahim, Muhammad Jayasi, Shah Ahmad Latif, Raskhan with thier philosophy of sheerecstasy of Love of KRISHNA.

• Renounce nonvegetarian food and stop killing animals

• Identify self with all living organisms and kinship with all human beings.

• Feed the hungry and be merciful with also who seek help.

• Bury and do not cremate the dead.

• Do not observe death ceremonies and the anniversaries of the dead persons.

• Puranas and Itihasas do not reveal the absolute Truth.

• Be Liberal and Broad minded in all the affairs of Life.

• Worship of Idols and Icons are best suited to those common people engaged in karma marga.

• He preached One God, One Religion, One Faith and One Humanity.

THEIR  PRAYERFUL REQUESTS
Purandara Dasa .
Oh Lord of all that is good, grant me but this: “That I shall ever live the inner life in you”.