Bhakti Andolan

Bhakti movement Bhakti movement swept across the medieval India with loving devotion to Rama and Krishna as the incarnations of Vishnu, the supreme lord, as its core message and philosophy and as a rebellion against the superficial Brahminical customs and rituals and caste distinction and discrimination prevalent in the society. The movement was headed by Ramananda who was the first to present Rama as the supreme lord. In the later years, Kabir, Ravi Das, Meera Bai, Chaitanya and many other lesser known mystics emerged and spread the movement far and wide in India. Ramananda is believed to have lived during the 15th century. The movement brought about a revolutionary change in the thought of the common people of India who were severely divided into castes, and untouchability was the prevalent practice against the lower castes. The leaders of the Bakti movement taught that it was not one’s caste but his deeds that were important and consequential in the end. One would be judged by his deeds and not by his race, colour or caste and a person’s deeds only would lead to his salvation. They were the lovers of the supreme being – Vishnu and sought to attain spiritual union with him through their devotion.

This movement had had a deep impact on the common men of the times and the philosophy of equality and loving devotion to the Supreme Being produced many exponents across India. The most influential of them was Kabir who was born in the central India but his message spread across the whole country. His dohas (couplet) were the main carriers of his message of pure love for humanity, devotion to God and a rebellion against the bias, hypocrisy and the complexities of the society. He lived a simple and pure life and attracted the common masses with their message of love and devotion.