VAISHNAVAISM IN INDIA
Religion is as old as human civilization
and human civilization is as old as man’s separation from animal kingdom.
Sanatana Dharma or Hinduism is the oldest religion of Hindus and is spread all
over the world. India is
heart land of Hindus. There are three major Samparadaya or sects in Hinduism mainly,
Vaishnavas, Shavites and Shakt. If one is Vaishnava, Vishnu is his or her Saguna Brahman; if one is a Shaiva,
Shiva is his or her Saguna Brahman; if
a Shakta, Devi or Bhawani is his or
her Saguna Brahman. In this way, the
same Reality became expressed by different names, approached by different
methods of worship, different rituals, and by different Puranas.
Classification of
Scriptures
The scriptures of the
Hindu’s can be classified into Nigamas (also known as the Vedas) and Agamas
(also known as the Tantras). The Nigama is divided into four Veda’s--- Rig,
Yajus, Sama, and Atharva. Agama prescribes the day to-day ritualistic life and
a practical course of self-discipline for its followers. It also prescribes the
procedures for consecrating the idols in the temples, forms of worship to be
performed in temples that follow the particular Agama, etc. The Agama has three
main divisions - Shaiva (based on Shiva as the principal Deity), Shakta (based
on worship of Shakti as the principal Deity), and Vaishnava (based Vishnu being
the principal Deity).
The term Agama primarily means tradition;
Agama is also that which helps to understand things correctly and
comprehensively. Agama Shastras are not part of the Vedas. The Agamas
do not derive their authority directly from the four Vedas. They are Vedic in
spirit and character and make use of Vedic mantras while performing the service.
The Agama Shastras are based in the belief that the divinity can be approached
in two ways. It can be viewed as Nishkala,
formless – absolute; or as Sakala
having specific aspects. Nishkala is
all-pervasive and is neither explicit nor is it visible. It is analogues, as
the Agama texts explain, to the oil in the sesame-seed, fire in the fuel,
butter in milk, and scent in flower. It is in human as Antaryamin, the inner guide. It has no form and is not apprehended
by sense organs, which includes mind. Sakala, on the other hand, is explicit
energy like the fire that has emerged out of the fuel, oil extracted out of the
seed, butter that floated to the surface after churning milk or like the
fragrance that spreads and delights all. That energy can manifest itself in
different forms and humans can approach those forms through appropriate means.
The Agamas recognize that means as the Archa,
the worship methods unique to each form of energy-manifestation or divinity. The
Vedas do not discuss about venerating the icons; though the aspects of the
thirty-three divinities were later condensed to three viz. Agni, the aspect of fire, energy and life on earth; Vayu, the aspect of space, movement and
air in the mid-region; and Surya the
universal energy and life that sustains and governs all existence, in the
heavenly region, the space. This provided the basis for the evolution of the
classic Indian trinity, the Brahma, Shiva and Vishnu.
Rig Veda at many places talks in terms of
Saguna, the Supreme. One often hears
Agama and Nigama mentioned in one breath as if one follows the other or that
both are closely related. However, Nigama stands for Vedas and Agama is
identified with Tantra. The two traditions- Veda and Tantra – hold divergent
views on matters such as God; relationship between man and God; the ways of
worship; and path to salvation etc. The Vedic concept of God is omniscient,
omnipotent, a formless absolute entity manifesting itself in phenomenal world
of names and forms. The Agama which is a part of Tantra regards God as a
personal deity with recognizable forms and attributes.
The Agamas are theological treatises and
practical manuals of divine worship. The Agamas include the Tantras, Mantras
and Yantras. These are treatises explaining the external worship of
God, in idols, temples, etc. All the Agamas are treat of (i) Jnana or
Knowledge, (ii) Yoga or Concentration, (iii) Kriya
or Esoteric Ritual and (iv) Charya or Exoteric Worship. They also
give elaborate details about ontology and cosmology, liberation, devotion, meditation,
philosophy of mantras, mystic diagrams, temple-building, image-making, domestic
observances, festivals, social rules, etc.
Divisions of the Agamas
The Agamas are divided into three sections: the Vaishnava,
the Shaiva and the Shakta. The three chief sects of Hinduism
viz., Vaishnavism, Shaivism and Shaktism, base their doctrines and dogmas on
their respective Agamas. There are further sub-divisions among each of the
Agama’s. The two divisions in the Vaishnava Agama are
the Vaikhanasa and Pancaratra. The Vaishnava Agamas or Pancharatra Agamas
glorify God as Vishnu. The Shaiva Agamas glorify God as Shiva and have given
rise to an important school of philosophy known as Shaiva-Siddhanta, which
prevails in South India. The Shakta Agamas
or Tantras glorify God as the Mother of the Universe, under one of
the many names of Devi. The Agamas do not derive their authority from
the Vedas, but are not antagonistic to them. They are all Vedic in spirit
and character. That is the reason why they are regarded as authoritative.
Vaishnava Agamas
The Vaishnava Agamas are of four kinds: the
Vaikhanasa, Pancharatra, Pratishthasara and Vijnanalalita. The Brahma, Shaiva,
Kaumara, Vasishtha, Kapila, Gautamiya and the Naradiya are the seven
groups of the Pancharatras. The Naradiya section of the Santi-Parva of the
Mahabharata is the earliest source of information about the Pancharatras.
Vishnu is the Supreme Lord in the Pancharatra Agamas. The Vaishnavas regard the
Pancharatra Agamas to be the most authoritative. They believe that these Agamas
were revealed by Lord Vishnu Himself. Narada-Pancharatra says: ‘Everything from
Brahman to a blade of grass is Lord Krishna’. There are two hundred and
fifteen of these Vaishnava texts. Isvara, Ahirbudhnya,Paushkara, Parama, Sattvata,
Brihad-Brahma and Jnanamritas are Samhitas are the important ones.
Shiva Agamas
The Shaivas recognise twenty-eight Agamas, of
which the chief is Kamika. The Agamas are also the basis of Kashmir Shaivism
which is called the Pratyabhijna system. The latter works of
Pratyabhijna system show a distinct leaning to Advaitism. The Southern Shaivism, i.e., Shaiva Siddhanta, and the
Kashmir Shaivism, regard these Agamas as their, besides the Vedas. Each
Agama has Upa-Agamas. Of these, only fragmentary texts of twenty are extant.
Lord Shiva is the central God in the Shaiva Agamas. They are suitable to this
age, Kali Yuga. They are open to all
castes and both the sexes.
Shakta Agamas
There is another group of scriptures known as
the Tantras. They belong to the Shakta cult. They glorify Shakti
as the Mother Goddess. They dwell on the Shakti
(energy) aspect of God and prescribe numerous courses of ritualistic worship of
the Divine Mother in various forms. There are seventy-seven Agamas.
These are very much like the Puranas in some respects. The texts are
usually in the form of dialogues between Shiva and Parvati. In some
of these, Shiva answers the questions put by Parvati, and in
others, Parvati answers, Shiva questioning. Mahanirvana, Kularnava,
Kulasara, Prapanchasara, Tantraraja, Rudra-Yamala, Brahma-Yamala, Vishnu-Yamala
and Todala Tantra are the important works. The Agamas teach several occult
practices some of which confer powers, while the others bestow knowledge
and freedom. Shakti is the creative
power of Lord Shiva. Shaktism is really a supplement to Shaivism. Among the
existing books on the Agamas, the most famous are the Isvara-Samhita,
Ahirbudhnya-Samhita, Sanatkumara-Samhita, Narada-Pancharatra, Spanda-Pradipika
and the Mahanirvana-Tantra
Vaishnavism
Bhakti-yoga is the foundation of
Vaishnavism, or worship of Vishnu (a name of Krishna that indicates that
His consciousness pervades everything).Actually, Vaishnavism has no beginning
in time, for Vaishnavism is the expression of God's own nature and so exists
with Him since all eternity. In the spiritual realm, far beyond the limits of
material existence, every soul is by natural constitution a Vaishnava, or
devotee of Krishna.
In the philosophical portion
of the Veda, called the Upanishads, Vishnu is equated with Krishna,
Who appeared in this world as the son of Vasudeva.
narayana vidmahe vasudevaya
dhimahi tan no vishnu pracodayate, (Taittiriya-aranyaka).
And in the Bhagavad-Gita, the Lord says "I am that which is to be known
through all the Vedas. Indeed, I am the compiler of Vedanta and know the
Vedas." (B.g. 15.15)
The
name Vishnu is derived from ‘Vish’
which literally means ‘to spread in all directions, or to pervade’. So ‘Vishnu’
is that deity whose existence is in the whole universe. He is the Pervader. He
is everywhere. He is also called ‘Narayan’.
It consists of two words. ‘Nara’ means water and ‘ayan’ means house or the dwelling
place. Thus, ‘Narayan’ literally
means ‘he who has water as his dwelling place’. According to our scriptures,
Lord Vishnu, is reposing on the snake coil formed over the surface of sea. So, Vishnu is where water exists.
Scienctifically, where there is water there is life and there is world. According
to Padam Purana,”Sri Hari should be worshipped in ‘Salagrama’, ‘Mani’, ‘Yantra’,
‘Mandala’ or image form.”
According to Rudra-Hrdaya Upanishad, the combination of Uma
and Sankara is known as Vishnu. In the universe, the males represent Maheshwar
and females represent Bhagavati Uma. The apparent universe is in itself the
form of Uma and non-apparent universe the form of Maheshwar. The union of
apparent –Uma and non-apparent Shanker is known as Vishnu.
There are scholars upholding the view that
Vishnu was originally a Sun god. When Surya
attained a position in the pantheon of gods, it conceived and regarded only as
a manifestation of Vishnu. As expounded by Gonda in ‘Aspects of Early Visnism’, Vishnu represented the processes in
vegetative growth and fertility at large.
Lord Rama
Lord
Vishnu appears whenever need arises to redeem the world of its woes. Lord
Krishna states in Bhagavad Gita; “Avatar
(Incarnation) appears when the world passes through some moral or spiritual
crises, the Avatar comes to uphold Dharma and protect the noble.” Lord
Vishnu incarnated as Lord Rama in His seventh and Lord Krishna in His eighth
incarnation. Both these incarnations are very potent and popular with Hindus
allover. Rama displayed what a man ought to be while Krishna
showed what a man really is. Both the
incarnations are complete or ‘Sampuran’
in their own way. Lord Rama is ‘Suraj Vamsis’, hence 12 Kalas,
whereas Lord Krishna is ‘Chander Vamsis ’
with 16 Kalas. Lord Rama is known, Maryada Purushottam for setting ideal
human conduct, as an ideal son, ideal brother, ideal husband and ideal king.
Sage Valmiki’s, Ramayan immortalized Rama’s saga of human values and has
endeared the hearts of generations of people from time immemorial. Valmiki
Ramayan consists of 24,000 Shlokas.
Goswami
Tulsidas, wrote in simple language Ramcharitmanas, which became very popular
among masses and is recited in almost every Hindu household. The doings of Lord
Rama and the role of Lord Hanuman is so varied and vast that no account of Ram-Katha is complete without the
reference to Hanuman. Lord Rama and Lord Hanuman are inseparable in the eyes of
the lover of Ram-Katha. Lord Hanuman,
a true Ram-Bakhta, is so instinct
with the Lord Rama that a mere thought of Rama conjures up Hanuman’s image. He
not only remains with Rama but also His presence on this earth is to guide Rama’s
devotees. It is believed that by His grace Saint Tulsidas had Darshan of his chosen deity Lord Rama at
Chitrakoot while uttering the following famous Doha (couplet); “Chitrakoot
ke ghat par, Bhayee Santan ki beer,
Tulsidas
Chadan ghisen, Tilak kare Raguveer.”
Another
Medieval Hindi poet of Ram-Khatha, Keshavdas, is also said to have Darshan of Lord Hanuman. Upanishads
state; “Just as the whole nature of the banyan tree is contained in its tiny
seed, so also the whole universe, animate or inanimates is contained in the
Name of Rama.” The very word Rama, consists of three letters; Ra, A, Ma
symbolizing the Supreme Trinity—Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu. Rama has not only
been ideal human but also Supreme Divinity. He has become both Adarsha as well as Aradhya Divinity. The word Rama derived from Ramayati which means one who pleases everyone by his mere
appearance, speech and quality.
Kamban,
a Tamil poet who wrote Ramayana, in Tamil describes that those in Mithila who
saw Rama’s feet continued to be attracted by His feet alone; those who saw His
shoulders continued to see His shoulders and nobody could see the entire figure
of Sri Rama, as they could not shift their sight from the place where their
sight fell first. Such was the enthralling form of Sri Rama. Two great
Saint-poets, Tyagaraja, who lived on the banks of Caurey was prime soul of
classical Carnatic music and Tulsidas who lived on the banks of Ganga, were great Ram-Bhakta. They had great faith in chanting
Ram- Nama, which is a great purifier of Soul and gives abundance of Ananda.
Lord Krishna
Lord
Krishna is the incarnation which showed to world how to solve problems that are
inherent part of human existence. Bhagavad Gita—the Divine Song, is perfect
knowledge that was taught by Krishna to Arjuna
on the battlefield of Kuruksetra. Gita’s message is timeless and is focus on
Indian Religion. In Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna, a Karam Yogi, is accepted as Supreme Guru. Through Gita He gives two
district messages besides other teachings.
First, though the body is perishable, but the soul is not. Secondly, one
should do his duty without asking for the reward. The significance of Krishna is His remarkable divine personality. The
scriptures define; ”The word ‘Krishna’ is composed of the root ‘krishh’ meaning ‘bhu’, the shelter of all existence and the word ‘na’ meaning ‘nivriti’ or the form of supreme bliss.
Combined, they form the word Krishna which
signifies Param Brahmn, the Supreme
Absolute Truth.”
Vedanta
defines Lord Krishna as Ananda Bramha .He
is that Rasa, Ananda or bliss. He is
both the ideal and the idol and represents the immanent and transcendent
aspects of the Supreme Reality. He is the Brahman. Lord Krishna is lord of love
and lord of sweetness!
Adharam madhuram vadanam madhuram,
Nayanam madhuram hasitam madhuram l
Hrdayam madhuram gamanam madhuram,
Madhuradhipaterakhilam
madhuram ll
Vallabhacharya
“His
lips are sweet, His face is sweet, His heart is sweet, His eyes are sweet, His smile is sweet, His
walking is sweet, every-thing of Lord of Mathura is sweet.”
’Avatars’ are of many different
categories. ‘Avatar’ literally means
descent in Sanskrit. Sometimes Lord Vishnu descends by His incarnation;
sometimes He descends as a devotee and at times as sound vibration. Caitanya Mahaprabhu, confirmed that in this
age of ‘Kali Yuga’ Sri Krishna has
descended in the form of sound vibration. It is also stated that there is no
difference between ‘Krishna’ and His Holy Name;
HARE
KRISHNA, HARE KRISHNA, KRISHNA KRISHNA, HARE
HARE,
HARE RAMA, HARE RAMA, RAMA RAMA,
HARE HARE.
This
Maha Mantra among the Mantras
mentioned in Vedic scriptures ---empowered sound vibrations---is specially
recommended by Sages also for our age (Kali-Yuga
).
Yogavasishta
Maharamayana (Rama Gita) and Srimad Bhagavad Gita (Krishna Gita) are ancient,
spiritual and philosophical two epic poems. These are gospels of Truth, Yoga
and Self- knowledge. Yogavasishta and Gita are similar in their contents and
purpose. The Gita discusses the Knowledge of the Self as the only means of
relieving the human mind from its moral and mental problems and sufferings.
Yogavasishta too exposes clearly, though in greater detail about Self-Knowledge
and Brahman, the Supreme Reality of the Universe.
The
magnificent dialogue of Yogavasista, is between the young prince Sri Rama, the
seeker, hardly 16 years old and Sage Vasista. The original text, is called Brihat (meaning big) Yogavasishta,
consists of 32000 Sanskrit verses, divided into six prakar-anaas (broad sections).Sage Valmiki, renowed as the Adi Kavi, the first poet of our land, is
the great author of Valmiki Ramayana Or the Life Story of Sri Rama and of
Yogavasista as well. This text records the dialogue which lasted for 18 days,
beginning daily in the morning and terminating at dusk. Subjects like; Vairagya, Prakarana, Utpatti, Sititi, Upasama Prakarana and Nirvana have come up for discussion and
have been dealt by the author.
The dialogue
between Arjuna and the great Yoga Teacher, Sri Krishna has perhaps taken two
hours only, in Kurukshetra battlefield. This battle lasted for 18 days and was
fought from dawn to dusk. This was recorded in 18 chapters of Mahabharata. The
well known Bhagavad Gita of Mahabharata, the 700 verses discourse of the Lord
of Yoga , is an exposition of Vedanta philosophy---the deep and sacred science
of Self (Atman). The ‘Divine Song of
Gita’ has 18 chapters and the main theme is Yoga----Yoga of knowledge, Yoga of
Action, Yoga of Devotion (Jnana, Karma and Bhakti).
10thcentury
saint, philosopher of Kashmir, Abhinavagupta
made illuminating commentary on Bhagavad Gita known as its Kashmiri version,
which has been translated by renowned Swami Laksman Joo during 1975AD. In the
words of Sri RamaKrishna; “It is fried in the butter of Jnana and soaked in the syrup of Bhakti”.
The
last message of Sri Krishna to His friend, beloved devotee and follower,
Uddhava, is known as Uddhava Gita, appears in the concluding chapters of Srimad
Bhagavatam, which was taught by Sage Vyasa to his illustrious son Sage Shuka.
The Lord on the eve of His exit from the arena of the world gives His parting
instructions to Uddhava. On the enquiry of Uddhava, chapter xxiv, verse
40&43,44;
”Salutations to thee, O great Yogi! Please
instruct me, who have taken refuge in Thee, how l may acquire an undying
devotion to Thy lotus feet.” “….averse to pleasures, patient under all
hardships, calm and well behaved, with your senses under control and mind
concentrated, possessed of knowledge and realization, reflecting on what I have
taught you and what you have already considered, with your mind and speech
attached to Me---practice the religion concerning Me. Thereby you will
transcend the range of three Gunas
and attain Me, the Supreme.”
Some western authors have the notion that
Vaishnavism or Krishna worship was an outgrowth of Christianity, which is said
to have reached India
within the first century after Christ. However, this is not supported by
historical or archeological evidence. The Greeks who settled India's
northwestern provinces in the wake of Alexander's conquest have mentioned in
their annals that the Indians of their time (300 B.C.) were devout worshippers
of Lord Krishna. There is also other evidence in inscriptions, architecture,
sculpture, coins and so forth to validate the widespread existence of
Vaishnavism in India
long before Christianity. Secondly, there has been no colour bias in Hindu
religion as some foreign authors have painted, that Aryans were white Indians
and Dravidians were black Indians, two different races. But in reality Hindus
worship Sri Rama and Sri Krishna who were black. Another name for Sri Krishna
is Shyam Sunder, which means He is blackish like a cloud but very beautiful.
Ramayan describes Sri Rama as black. There is no barrier or bias between white
and black in India.
The three great
commentators of the Vedantic school of thought in India are Sankaracharya,
Ramanujacharya and Madhvacharya. All of them acknowledged the infallibility of
the Upanishads, but
differed in their interpretation of the same. Gaudapada preceded Sankara, and
there were earlier teachers too of the school who preceded Gaudapada. But it is
supposed that they did not give prominence to Mayavada as Sankara did. Ramanuja came after Sankara. His school of
thought called Vishishtadvaitavada can also be traced commencing from
Bodhayana, not far from the days of Vyasa, the author of the Vedanta Sutras. It
owed its origin from the ancient Bhagavata
school, that was in existence even some centuries before the
Christian era. Pancaratra Tantra by Narada, and Bhagavadgita are the
foundation of the Bhagavata school.
Vaishnavaism
in South India
The seed of Vaishnavism in South India
was sown by the Alwars, who were the earliest Brahmin messengers to the South.
They gave prominence to the emotional side of Vaishnavism and used the language
of the people in their songs and hymns. From the 9th century down to the
end of the 15th century, an unbroken line of Vaishnavite reformers
existed in Southern India. This cult
flourished there from the early years of the Christian era under the impetus
given by the Alwars, who preached bhakti and devotion to Krishna
in the local Tamil, and songs composed in that language were very well understood
by the mass. Vishnu with
all His Avatars, and particularly the Krishna Avatar, was the object of
their deep veneration. They used to adore idols of Vishnu of different forms,
although the mode of worship was mainly confined to recitation of His Names and
contemplation of His forms. Satagopa
among the later Alwars was very famous, and Andal, daughter of a Pariah devotee, was also included in the list
of Alwars. It is evident that the
earlier Alwars owed their origin to Northern Vaishnavites
or Bhagavata sects. Their teachings and works were based on the Bhagavadgita
and the Bhagavata. They represented the devotional and emotional
side of the Vaishnava faith, unlike the Brahmin Acharyas who came after
them representing the intellectual and philosophical side.
Ramanujacharya, the practical founder of the Visishtadvaita
school, on whom the mantle of Yamunacharya fell, was born about the year
1017 AD. Under Yamunacharya the Visishtadvaita had greatly developed and took a
strong footing in Srirangapattam and other places. But Ramanuja, by composing
philosophical works and committing to writing the special views that were being
developed orally by Yamunacharya and his predecessors, gave the system a solid
foundation and made it more prominent. After this he wrote the Sri-bhasya on
the Vedanta-Sutra, the great work on which the great school of Visishtadvaitavada
stands.
Vaishnavaism
in North India
In Northern India, Ramananda,
Vallabhacharya, Nimbaditya, Sankaradeva and Chaitanya were the Vaishnava reformers of great repute.
Ramananda is said to have been the fifth in apostolic succession from Ramanuja,
and he lived towards the end of the fourteenth century AD. It is generally said
that there are four main sampradayas or sects of Vaishnavism, viz.,
Ramanuja, Vishnuswami, Madhvacharya and Nimbaditya. All other current minor
sects are said to have been included in theses four main sampradayas. It is also said that Lakshmi acknowledged Ramanuja;
Brahma Madhvacharya; Rudra Vishnuswami; and Sanak, Sananda, Sanatan and
Sanatkumara Nimbaditya respectively. Ramanuja
wrote his books in Sanskrit. Ramananda had 12 disciples
from various lower classes like Ruidas ,
Pipa , Dhanna ,Nabhaji, Kabir and
Sen. Some of these disciples
founded separate sects of great celebrity; and as regards the mode of religious
worship, divergence of views with the main system of Ramananda are very marked.
Ramananda worshipped Rama and asserted the supreme efficacy of the chanting and
meditating of Rama-Nama, and
practically discarded social distinctions. The Bhaktamal, a book written
by Nabhaji, a pupil of Ramananda and one of his successors, is
practically the scripture of the Ramanandis. Ramananda and his followers wrote
their books in the current language of the people and these books, therefore,
became accessible to everyone – a fact that made easy for even the people of
upper castes to aspire for the status of a guru. The famous Tulsidas who was
seventh in descent from Ramananda wrote,
Ramcharitmansa, which
is a religious book looked upon with veneration by millions of people in India.
Minor sub-sects like Khaki, Molukdasi, Dadupanthi, also owed their
origin to Ramanandis. They worshipped Rama and Sita, and the method is to
contemplate and chant Rama-Nama. The
chanting of religious hymns is their chief method of upasana or worship
of God. There are many sub-sects belonging to Dadupanthis, and the Nagas are
one of them. Ruidas, one of the 12 disciples of Ramananda, had also founded a
separate sect. From Sen, the barber disciple of Ramananda, another sect came
into existence.
Brahma-sampradaya is the second main Vaishnava sampradaya. Madhvacharya was the founder
of this sect and the sampradaya is
called Madhvi after his name. This sect is of a later date than the Sri-sampradaya of Ramanuja. Madhvacharya was
born in 1121AD at Sakabda in Tulab in Deccan.
Except Sannyasis and Brahmins no other people have any right to become a
diksha-guru in this sampradaya.. Madhvacharis are Dvaitavadis.
They acknowledge the separate entities of jiva and Brahman. They,
therefore, differ from the philosophical conceptions of both Sankara and
Ramanuja.
Jayadeva
the renowned author of the Gita-Govinda flourished in the 12th century.
Radha and Krishna were his objects of worship.
His Gita-Govinda gave a great impetus to Chaitanya during his life and cult in
the beginning of the 16th century.
The
third main sampradaya is the Rudra-sampradaya, of which Vallabhacharya was the founder.
He was born about 1749 AD in Telangana and settled at Muttra.
Balagopala or the Child Krishna is the object of worship for the
devotees of this sect. The sampradaya of Vallabhacharya traces its
origin from Vishnuswami, the
commentator of Vedas. Vishnuswami made disciples from Sannyasashramis and
Brahmins only. It is said that Vallabhacharya, stepping into the shoes of the
successors of Vishnuswami, devoted himself to the expounding of his cult. Barta
is the name of the chief grantha or scripture of the
Vallabhacharyas. Expositions in the Barta go to establish a kind of
oneness of jiva and Brahman. Vallabhacharya’s teachings contain certain
unique doctrines quite unusual in the Hindu religion. He says, in God’s upasana,
no fasting, no tiresome methods, no tapasya are necessary. Without
discarding delicacies of food, luxuries of the world such as riches and other
amenities of life, worship of God is possible. This led the Vaishnavas of this
sect to extreme luxury and the hankering after worldly pleasures. The Goswamis
or spiritual heads of this sect are married men. Gopala Krishna with Radha and images of his
different incarnations are worshipped in their temples. The commentary which
Vallabha wrote on the Bhagavata is
their chief book for the conduct of their life and faith. He wrote several
other books also in Sanskrit, and also one or two in the current language of
the people. In several parts of India,
particularly in Gujarat and Malwa, many rich and very well-to-do people are
followers of the Vallabhacharya Vaishnavism. In Muttra
and Vrindavan as well as in Puri, Dvaraka and Ajmere they have got several maths
or temples. A small sect of Vaishnavism originated with Mira Bai. She was married to the Rana
of Udaipur. She was a staunch Vaishnava. After roaming over many places she
passed the rest of her life meditating and chanting the name of her Ista
Devata, Ranchhod, an image of Sri Krishna.
The founder of the fourth main sampradaya was
Nimbaditya. He lived near
Vrindavana. His original name was Bhaskaracharya. He was called Nimbaditya
later on, and people belonging to his sect is called Nimat. Krishan with
Radha is their God of worship, and the Srimad Bhagavata is their main scripture. Nimbaditya
had two distinguished disciples, named Kesava Bhatta and Harivyasa. Two
separate sub-sects owe their origin from these two. There are many Nimats in
Western India and particularly, in places near Muttra.
In Maharashtra, there is a sect called Vithal-bhaktas.
In Gujrat, Karnat and Central India also
disciples of this sect are to be seen. Their another name is Vaishnava-vir. Their
God of worship is Pandurang, Vithal or Vithoba. They consider him as the
ninth incarnation of Vishnu, i.e, Buddhadeva and are called Bauddha-Vaishnavas.
They have got a celebrated temple on the modern bank of the Bhima river in Deccan. They have got a large mass of sectarian
literature such as Bhakta-vijaya, Pandurang-mahatmya, Hari-vijaya,
etc. A saint called Pundalik is
said to have been the founder of this sect. Probably he flourished in the
fourteenth century of the Christian era. This sect gives prominence to the love
between the Upasya and the Upasaka i.e, the object of worship and
the worshipper. Although they do not place much stress on leading a life of
seclusion or giving up the worldly life, yet there are many devotees of this
sect who renounce worldly life and pleasure. According to them, Pandharpur is
the chief place for pilgrimage. There is much similarity to be seen between the
Jagannatha-kshetra temple and the Pandurang temple with regard to Mahaprasada or Aanna offered to the
deity and taken by the devotees afterwards. This sect may be taken as an
attempt at reconciliation between Buddhism and Hindu Vaishnavism. In 1976
Sambat a man called Ramcaran founded
a sect of Vaishnavas called Ramsnehi after his name.
Vaishnavaism in Bengal
Chaitanya is
generally regarded as the founder of the
samparadaya in Bengal. He was born in 1486
AD in the city of Nadia or Navadwipa on the bank
of the Ganges. His father was Jagannatha Misra
and his mother’s name was Sachi. Chaitanya, whose real name was Visvambhara,
renounced the world and turned out a sannyasi
and preacher at the age of 24. He died or disappeared in about 1533 AD at Puri
or Jagannatha-kshetra. Advaitacharya and Nityananda were his chief helpers in
propagating his creed. His followers not only regard him as the founder of the
faith but also as an incarnation of Krishan and the main object of worship.
After that he studied Nyaya under
Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya. He married twice - the second one named Vishnupriya
after the demise of his first wife Lakshmi. At about the age of twenty he was
initiated into the Vaishnava faith by Iswarapuri a disciple of Madhavendrapuri,
whose descent as a spiritual guru is traced from the great Madhvacharya.
Visvambhara renounced his worldly life and took to sannyasa having been initiated under the name of Krishna-Chaitanya
by one Kesava Bharati who lived in a village about 18 miles distant from
Nuddea. Hunter in his Orissa says, “The adoration of Chaitanya has
become a sort of family worship throughout Orissa. In Puri there is a temple
specially dedicated to his name, and many little shrines are scattered over the
country”. After taking sannyasa at his 24th year, Chaitanya
roamed over different places in India,
such as Muttra, Puri, etc and preached the doctrines of Krishna
worship. The latter part of his life, i.e, for 18 years, he lived in Puri and
devoted to the worship of Jagannathadeva, and preached Prema-Bhakti. The span of his life was altogether 48 years. The
people of his sampradaya regard
Advaita and Nityananda also as Amsa-Avatara, i.e, part-incarnation, of Vishnu. Although
the Chaitanya sampradaya traces its
origin to Madhvacharya, the sect of Vallabhacharya has great affinity with this
sect. Both Chaitanya and Vallabha flourished about the same time. Chaitanya
adopted the worship of Radha-Krishna and there can be little doubt that
Jayadeva’s Gita-Govinda and the Maithili poet Vidyapat’s songs played an
important part in moulding his thoughts. The attitude of the soul to God was
represented in his cult by the attitude of the beloved towards her lover. The
love towards the gallant was considered the highest kind that the soul could
entertain towards God. Chaitanya had a few converts from among Mahomedans
amongst his followers. It appears that within the pale of Hindu religion, he
recognized no caste distinctions when the devotee becomes a Vaishnava or a
worshipper of Krishna. As in Orissa and Vrindavana,
in his native district in Nuddea and other neighbouring places, maths or temples have since been
established, where Chaitanya’s image came to be actually worshipped as the
image of God. Even before his death and so on after, it became the vogue to install
his image in temples for worshipping him as a divinity. Sankaradeva of Assam, was a
prolific writer of Assamese verses and a poet of very high order. In order to
popularise his tenets he and his great disciple Madhavadeva turned out a vast
religious literature in the current language of the people. Sankaradeva also
wrote a Sanskrit work named Bhakti-ratnakara.
Sankara translated the Bhagavata and composed a unique book called Kirtana-ghosa to be read.
He built his system upon the ethics of the Gita and the Bhagavata.
He evolved a creed to wipe off the prevailing social and other evils that were
current in the name of religion, and at the same time to be an expression of
the deepest philosophy. Krishna was the all-supreme God of adoration
for him; and he rejected the feminine element of Radha cult. He composed many
books in the country’s
vernacular for the propagation of his creed: the Kirtana-ghosa was the chief amongst them. The Kirtana-ghosa
contains the quintessence of His creed. He composed popular religious songs
upon the Life and Doings of Sri Krishna.
He introduced a new feature in his movement by composing dramas inculcating the
cult and depicting the Life-Story of Sri Krishna, to attract people by dramatic
performances, and thus popularise his teachings. No Vaisnavite reformer of his
time seemed to have done this. The entire Life-story of Sri Krishna was
rendered into music, poetry and drama by him, and Madhavadeva contributed his
share to all these literary performances.The Nama-ghosa of Madhavadeva
says: In other prevailing forms of religion, different people are entitled only
to rites variously prescribed for different castes; but in reciting the Name of Hari all are equal.
Therefore, this is the best of all religions.
Immediately after Sankaradeva's death, there was a cleavage between his
apostolic successor, Madhavadeva and
Damodaradeva, a Brahmin follower
and associate of Sankaradeva. Since then the sect has been divided into two;
one came to be known as Mahapurusiya and the other Damodariya.
The followers of Madhavadeva are called Mahapurushiyas and of
Damodaradeva Damodariyas.
Vaishnavaism in
Kashmir
The
Nilmat Purana is a Vaishnavite text, gives an elaborate account of Vaishnava
cult in Kashmir. The Nilmat Purana, upheld Vishnu as the supreme god and as
such he is eulogized and assigned a higher stature than that of Brahma and even
Shiva. Vishnu Purana, fully establish the popularity of Vaishnavaism and depict
rituals and mode of worship connected with Vishnu as supreme god. The valley was
a seat of Vishnu in the form of Cakrin,
says the Visnudharmottara Purana. It was deeply impressed by the Pancharatra school of Vaishnavism. Names of lakes like
Visnasar and Krsnasar, mountain-peaks and places like Visnupada, Ramardhan and
Chakaradar, are enough to establish the presence of Vaishnavism in Kashmir. Many images have been discovered from various
centres in Kashmir establishing the popularity
of the Bhagavata cult, which also falls within the ambience of Vaishnavaism.
Jayakhya Samhita, mentions that Pancharatra school of the Satvatas of Rama and Krishna, the two incarnations of Vishnu,
gained considerable popularity in Kashmir and
elsewhere. Kashmir has been regarded as a
cradle of early Pancharatra literature dealing mainly with Vishnu and his vyuhas. Bhagavata accepted
Vasudeva-Narayana as the supreme deity while Pancharatra followers worshipped
four Vyuahas, namely; Vasudeva, Pradyumna, Sankarastrana, and Aniruddha. This
led to the introduction of a sizeable number of Vasudeva-Narayana and Vaikuntha
images in the temples in Kashmir. Another
concept of Hari-Hara was familiar in early Kashmir.
The Hari-Hara is a syncretic icon, half Vishnu and half Shiva, symbolizing
syncretism between the Vishnu and Shiva cults. Vishnu and Shiva, as a result of
fusion, were taken to do good to mankind. With the passage of time, Brahma was
added to Hari-Hara cult and the triad thus formed came to be known as Hari-Hara
Pithma.
Hari-Hara
Pithama statue of Early Kashmir
Vishnu statue of Early Kashmir
The
history of the Vishnu temples goes back to the early history of Kashmir. Nilmat
Purana refers to the temples built in the ancient town of Chakaradar
situated at the foot of the Chakardar Udher, Karewa, situated to the west of
the ancient town of Bijbehara in south Kashmir. Buhler established the presence of a Vishnu
temple at Chakardara. The temple was dedicated to Adi Keshva. Laltaditya
Mukhtapida built, Vishnu temples, in Kashmir.
He built four Vishnu temples, namely Mukta Kesva, Parihas Kesva, Mahavarah and
Govardhanadhara. In Mukta Keshva, an image of Keshva, the Vishnu, built of gold
weighing 84,000 tolas, was installed. In the Parihas Kesva temple, an image of
Vishnu, in the form of Parihaskeshva, made of 3,36000 tolas of silver, was
installed.
Sri
Rama and Sri Krishna, the incarnations of Vishnu are worshipped in Kashmir widely. While the temples dedicated to Sri Rama
are scattered all over Kashmir, the temples
dedicated to Sri Krishna are less common. At many places the remannents of
ancient stone temples are linked with Sri Rama and Sita, like Sita Kund at Khag
and Sita Haran, a few miles away from Arizal in Beerwah district. An ancient
temple dedicated to Sri Krishna is situated inside the Hari Parbat fort in Srinagar. The Dogra
rular, Maharaja Partap Singh, built Sri Krishna temple, better known as Shri
Gadadahar temple, at Shergari palace, on the banks of river Jehlum. Two large
temples dedicated to Sri Rama, were built in Srinagar, in recent times, one on the left
side of river Jehlum, Raghunath mandir,
near Habakadal and other Rama mandir,
at Sathu, Barbarshah. A temple known as the Radha Krishna is located in the Lok
Bhawan complex at Anantnag.
Kashmir
has its own version of Bhagavata Purana, which stands preserved in Goetingen
Museum Library in Germany.
It is the oldest and authentic version whose date can be fixed as 14th
century. The manuscript contains many Shlokas
drawn from other earlier manuscripts. There is Kashmiri Bhagavat Gita and
Ramayan as well. Many Kashmiri poets have written Krishna
and Rama Leelas as a part of Kashmiri
folk poetry and are sung even today.
To what the
ancient seers of the Upanisads had evolved after ceaseless contemplation as an
abstract conception of God, Vaisnavism gave a concrete form to be easily
understood and be accessible to all and sundry, so that even the humblest of
the humble could come to Him, irrespective of caste and creed. The
fountain-heads of Vaisnavism, the Gita and the Bhagavata,
simply worked out the abstract propositions of Vedanta-Sutra and gave them a
concrete shape and made them accessible to all. Vaisnavism has opened wide the
portals of the temple
of God for everyone from
the highest to the lowest, and binds them with the sacred tie of brotherhood. In
coming to the end, there cannot be any doubt as to Vaisnavism remaining always
a living religion. The ground on which it stands and all-pervading, is based on
eternal truths, such as love, ahimsa,
humility, and at the same time unbending rigidity in principles, with overall
devotion to God Who is sat, cit and
ananda.
