CBSE Notes | Class 12 | History | Chapter 4 - Bhakti - Sufi Traditions

Introduction to Bhakti & Sufi Traditions

What are the sources to understand Bhakti and Sufi Traditions?

Writers and sages throughout this era utilised a variety of written sources, including compositions attributed to poets and saints. Most of these were in local dialects.

Often, these compositions were set to music and compiled by devotees or disciples after the musician or composer had died.

Hagiographies of biographies of saints written by the faithful are also referred to as hagiographies or biographies of saints. Although these could not be considered literal truths, they provide an impression of how these devotees thought about the realities of how these paths broke women and men.

India is a Mosiac of Religious Beliefs and Practices

Integration of Various Cults

There were two processes at work to integrate different cults;

• One was the process of disseminating Brahmanical ideas. This is exemplified by the composition, compilation and preservation of Puranic texts in simple Sanskrit verse, explicitly meant to be accessible to women and Shudras.

• There was a second process at work that of the Brahmana accepting & reworking the beliefs and practices of Shudras.

• In fact, many beliefs and practices were shaped through a continuous dialogue between “great” Sanskritic Puranic traditions and “little” traditions throughout the land.

One of the most striking examples of this is in Puri, Orrisa, where Jagannatha, Lord of the World, a form of Vishnu, was identified as the main deity.

Goddess cults are also showing signs of integration. Goddess worship was evidently widespread, often in the form of a stone-coloured with red and yellow mud.

Local deities were frequently incorporated into the Puranic framework by giving them the identity of a wife of the main male deities – Lakshmi, the wife of Vishnu, or Parvati, the wife of Shiva, and Saraswati, the wife of Brahma, in some cases.

Difference & Conflicts between cults and traditions of Hinduism

• Tantric Practices

• Puranic Traditions

• Vedic Traditions

Tantric practitioners frequently disregard the authority of the Vedas. Devotees often project their chosen deity, Vishnu or Shiva, as the supreme being.

Agni, Indra, and Soma are the main deities in Vedic mythology.

Tantric practises were common in many parts of the subcontinent; they were open to both men and women, and practitioners often ignored caste and class distinctions within the ritual context.

Such forms of worship frequently included the singing and chanting of devotional compositions. The Vaishnava and Shaiva sections were particularly affected. Other practises were frequently condemned by those who valued the Vedic tradition. They followed sacrifices or chanted mantras with precision.

This tradition included Alvars and Naynars.

Only men, Brahmans, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas were allowed to participate in Vedic practises. They followed Vedic traditions, which included chanting long Vedic hymns and performing elaborate sacrifices.

Early Tradition of Bhakti in Tamil Nadu

The Bhakti tradition is often classified into two broad categories: Saguna & Nirguna.

• The Saguna bhakti tradition focuses on the worship of specific deities such as Shiva, Vishnu & his avatars (In-carnations) and forms of the goddess or Devi. In anthropomorphic forms.

• Nirguna bhakti on the other hand was the worship of an abstract (Non-living objects) form of god.

The Alvars: Some of the earliest bhakti movements (c. sixth century) were led by the Alvars (literally, those who are “immersed” in devotion to Vishnu) and Nayanars (literally, leaders who were devotees of Shiva).

They travelled from place to place singing hymns in Tamil in praise of their gods. During their travels the Alvars and Nayanars identified certain shrines as abodes of their chosen deities. Very often large temples were later built at these sacred places. These developed as centres of pilgrimage.

Attitude towards Caste

• Alvars & Naynars initiated a movement against the caste system & Dominance of Brahmanas.

• Many Bhakts joined from different social backgrounds like cultivators and even those who were considered untouchables.

• They claimed that their compositions were as important as Vedas. The composition of Alvars, the Nalayira-Divyaprabandham was described as Tamil Veda.

• Tevram was the composition of Nayanars.

Women Devotees

• This was the most striking feature of these traditions, which is the presence of women. The composition of Andal, The women Alvar were widely sung and to be sung till date.

• Andal saw herself as a beloved of Vishnu, in her verses she was expressed for her deity. Karaikkal Ammiyar, a devotee of Shiva adopted a path of extreme asceticism in order to attain her goal. Her compositions were preserved with the Nayanar Traditions.

Alvars & Nayanars

Relation with the State

Cholas, Pallavas & pandayas ruled South India. Buddhism & Jainism had been prevalent in this region for several centuries.

Alvars and Nayanars opposed Buddhism and Jainism through their hymns. This hostility was due to competition between religious traditions for royal patronage. Chola rulers supported Brahmanical and bhakti traditions, making land grants and constructing temples for Vishnu and Shiva. 

The most magnificent Shiva temples like Chidambaram, Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram, were constructed under the patronage of Chola rulers.

In this period some of the most spectacular representations of Shiva in bronze sculpture were produced.

Rulers tried to win the support of Alvars & Nayanars.

The Chola kings often attempted to claim divine support proclaim their own power and status by building splendid temples that were adorned with stone and metal sculpture to recreate the vision of these popular saints who sand in the language of the people.

These Kings also introduced the singing of Tamil Shaiva Hymns In the temple under the royal Patronage, taking the initiative to organise them into a text (Tevaram). 

Prantaka I, the Chola ruler had consecrated metal images of Bhakti Saints- Appar, Sambandar & Sundarar in a shiva temple. These were carried in processions during the festival of these saints.

The Virashaiva Tradition in Karnataka

This tradition was led by Brahman named Basavana; he was a Jain and a minister in the court of a Chalukya king.

The followers of Basavana were known as Virashaivas (Heroes of Shiva) or Lingayats(Wearers of Linga). They worship Shiva in his manifestation as a Linga, and men usually wear a small linga in a silver case on a loop strung over the left shoulder.  

Those who were revered include the Jangama (wandering monks).

Lingayats do not practice Cremation instead they bury their dead, as they believe the devotee will be united with Shiva after death. 

The also challenged the idea of Caste and pollution attributed to certain groups by Brahmanas. The theory of rebirth was also questioned by Lingayats. This won them, followers, amongst those who were neglected by the Brahmans.

The practice of post-puberty marriages and re-marriage of widows were encouraged. The understanding of Virashaivas traditions is derived from Vachanas, composed in Kannada.

Religious Ferment in North-India

In north India deities such as Vishnu and Shiva were worshipped in temples, often built with the support of rulers. Historians have not found evidence of anything resembling the compositions of the Alvars and Nayanars.

Several Rajput states emerged in North India. In most of these states, Brahmans were the dominant actors & were performing a range of secular and ritual functions.

Little attempts have been made to change the Brahmanical position, like Naths, Jogis & Siddhas.

Many of them came from artisanal groups, including weavers, who had long-distance trade and central Asia and West Asia.

Many of the new religious leaders questioned the authority of the Vedas & expressed themselves.

The religious leaders were not in the support to win the support of the rulers. The arrival of Turks and the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate undermined the power of many states and Brahmans who were associated with these kingdoms.

New strands in fabric Islamic Traditions

Arab merchants, for instance, frequented ports along the western coast in the first millennium CE. From the seventh century, with the advent of Islam, these regions became part of what is often termed the Islamic world.

In 711 an Arab general named Muhammad Qasim conquered Sind, which became part of the Caliph’s domain.

Turks & Afghans established the Delhi sultanate. This continued the establishment of the Mughal Empire in the sixteenth century.

Muslim rulers were to be guided by the ulama. These were the theologians who were well versed in Islamic laws.

Rulers rules according to the sharia. It is the law governing the Muslim community based on the Quran and the hadiths.

The Popular Practice of Islam

Islam permeated far and wide, through the subcontinent among different, amongst different social strata- peasants, warriors, artisans, warriors, merchants etc.

All those who adopted Islam accepted, the five pillars of faith. There is one God, Allah, and Prophet Muhammad is his messenger (shahada).

• Offering prayers five times a day (namaz/salat ) 

• Giving alms (zakat)

• Fasting during the month of Ramzan (sawm)

• Performing the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj).

The Khojahs, a branch of the Ismailis (a Shi‘a sect), composed devotional poems in devotional poems in Punjabi, Multani, Sindhi, Kachchi, Hindi and Gujarati, sung in special ragas during daily prayer meetings.

Arab Muslim traders who settled along the Malabar coast (Kerala) adopted the local language, Malayalam.

They also adopted local customs such as matriliny and matrilocal residence.

Some of the architectural features of mosques are universal – such as their orientation towards Mecca, evident in the placement of the mihrab (prayer niche) and the minbar (pulpit).

However, there are several features that show variations – such as roofs and building materials.

Different names of the Muslim community

Historians pointed out that the terms Musalman or Muslim were virtually never used in India up to 14th Century; instead, they were occasionally identified in terms of the region from which they came.

Turkish rulers were designated as Turushka. Tajika were people from Tajikistan and Parashika were people from Persia.

The terms used for other peoples were applied to the new migrants. For instance, the Turks and Afghans were referred to as Shakas and Yavanas.

Mlechchha was a more general term for these migrant communities, indicating that they did not observe the norms of caste society and spoke languages that were not derived from Sanskrit.

The Growth of Sufism

In the early centuries of Islam, a group of religious-minded people called Sufis turned to asceticism and mysticism in protest against the growing materialism of the Caliphate.

They were critical of the dogmatic definitions and scholastic methods of interpreting the Qur’an and sunna by Ulemas.

They emphasised seeking salvation through intense devotion and love for God by following the commands of Ph. Muhammad.