| Sri Guru Ravidass Ji | |
|---|---|
| Religion | Ravidassia Religion |
| Other name(s) |
Hindi: श्री गुरु रविदास जी Father: Baba Santokh Das Ji Grand Father: Baba Kalu Ram Ji Son: Sh Vijay Dass Ji |
| Personal | |
| Born | 15 January 1377 Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan Mandir, Varanasi, UP |
| Died | 1528 – Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, (now India) |
| Senior posting | |
| Title | Guru |
| Period in office | 1450-1520 |
| Religious career | |
| Post | Guru |
| Website | Guru Ravidass Ji Website |
| Part of a series on The Ravidassia Religion |
|
| Ravidasi beliefs and practices | |
|---|---|
| Aarti | |
| Meditation · | |
| Gurdehera | |
| Amritbani Guru Ravidass Ji | |
| Topics | |
| Guru Ravidas · | |
| Ravidas Jayanti | |
| Harr Nishan | |
Guru Ravidas (also Raidas, Rohidas[1] and Ruhidas in eastern India) was a North Indian Sant mystic of the bhakti movement who was active in the 15th century CE. Venerated in the region of Uttar Pradesh as well as the Indian state of Maharashtra, his devotional songs and verses made a lasting impact upon the bhakti movement. He is often given the honorific "Bhagat" or "Sant".
A shoemaker of the Chamar caste, all of his devotional songs were preserved included in the Sikh holy book, the Adi Granth, by the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan Dev.[2] There is also a larger body of hymns passed on independently that is claimed and attributed by some to Ravidas ji. Ravidas was subversive in that his devotionalism implied a levelling of the social divisions of caste and gender, yet ecumenical in that it tended to promote crossing of sectarian divides in the name of a higher spiritual unity.[3] He taught that one is distinguished not by one's caste (jāti) but by one's actions (karma) and that every person has the right to worship God and read holy texts. He opened a frontal attack against the system of Untouchability. He rejected the tradition of Brahmin mediator to reach the Supreme Being. He also said that one need not to hide his caste or leave his low profession to reach God. He became a model for his fellow beings to overcome the hierarchical barriers of Brahminical Social Order and to establish Begumpura - a state without fear and sorrows. Guru Ravidass elevated the status of the labour by emphasizing on the fact that honest labour is empowering.
Artificial social differences between humans has existed in the country as of higher and lower castes. But people at large, believed that certain persons who led a pure and virtuous life and constantly engaged in the supreme effort of realization of God were above the caste and creed. These were venerated as saints and highly respected. Temples were built in the memory of holy men who belonged to so called "untouchable" castes. Tiruppani Alvar in Tamilnadu, Chokha Mela in Maharashtra, Madara Dhulayya in Karnataka were examples of such saints. Guru Ravidas, who lived near Kashi in middle of 15th century was another such saint who has left behind a great legacy. Kashi is as holy for Hindus as it is for Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs.
Ravidas (a.k.a. Raidas) was born in the village of Sear Goverdhanpur, very close to the Holy city of Kashi or Varanasi, in the cobbler community. Only the name of mother of Ravidas is known to us; it was Kalasi.
From early childhood, Ravidas developed spiritual tendencies while attending to his family vocation of repairing shoes. To drive his attention to worldly affairs he was married early. But it did not help. His wife was a pious and God-fearing woman who turned out to be a right partner in Ravidas' quest for self-realization. They spent meager savings of their humble profession in serving holy men and in contemplation.
Ravidas composed and sang songs in praise of the Supreme. He did not worship any one deity. He believed in one and only omniscient and omnipresent God.
In the mid 20th centuries there emerged a distinct sect, the Ravidasis, for whom he is the chief Guru. Ravidasis are mainly Punjabi Chamar caste and their faith, the Ravidassia Religion, is a socia-religious identity. A temple was built at his birthplace in 1978. Ravidas Jayanti is celebrated with a procession, bearing the portrait of the great ascetic in the main streets and bazaars of the city with music.
Contents |
The details of Guru Ravidas' life are controversial. According to some he was born in 1376/7 or else 1399 CE but many scholars offer later dates. Schaller estimates his lifespan as 1450-1520[3] while the Encyclopædia Britannica contents itself with a floreat of 15th-16th century CE.[4] Partly this is due to traditions that make him, one one hand, like his contemporary Kabir the disciple of Ramananda (he is mentioned as such c.1600 CE in Nabhadas' Bhaktamal) but also, on the other, the guru of Meera (according to a song attributed to her:[5] "guru miliyaa raidasjee"). However, as Schaller points out, the importance of such claims lies in their establishing the authority of a lineage of gurus (parampara). One may count oneself a disciple of a master without having actually met him.
His origin and parents are also given differently. According to one account he was born in a village named Seer Govardhanpur, near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, India: his father Baba Santokh Das was a leather merchant (chamar) and Mata Kalsa Devi was his mother. His father got him married to Mata Lona Devi at early age and according to the Ravidas Purana he had a son named Vijaydas. A region between Ahmednagar and Benares is named after him.
The queen of Chittorgarh is said to have been a disciple (this may be connected with Meera, who was married to the ruler of Chittorgarh). It is said that the conservative Brahmins of Kashi could not stand the popularity of this "untouchable saint". A complaint was made to the king that he was working against age-old norms of social order (varnashrama dharma) - a cobbler was not supposed to talk of God or do work of advising or teaching. The ruler arranged for an assembly of learned men. Ravidas was also invited and was felicitated publicly. A procession was arranged (shobha yatra) and the king himself participated.
Today he is respected, as when Bangaru Laxman (Organiser, 6-8-1995) accused Congress leader Sitaram Kesri of showing "disrespect to Dalit saints like Ravidas, Satyakam Jabali, Sadhna Kasai, Banka Mahar, Dhanna Chamar and others who protected Hindus against foreign onslaughts." [6]
Guru Ravidass ji was one of the brightest luminaries in the firmament of the Bhakti Movement, which was a religious renaissance in India. Guru Ravidass upheld the equality of all mankind, giving the call "deed not the creed makes man high or low". Guru Ravidass emphasized the fundamental tenets underlying all religions. Guru Ravidass taught in times dominated by the rigidity and narrow-mindedness of the caste system, and illuminated the atmosphere with his enlightenment. As a proponent of the "Bhakti Movement", his contribution was truly great, spreading the philosophy of spiritual self-realization through "Bhakti", and dispelling the darkness of "ajnana", with "jnana" (wisdom). Guru Ravidass emerged as a great philosopher-poet and social reformer, for humanity at large. Born in most humble surroundings, in the house of a cobbler, Guru Ravidass had a spiritual bend of mind. even in his early life. His father inspired him to join the family business, but Guru Ravidass, imbued with celestial and humane values, spent the money received from his father for business, in the welfare of the needy. Guru Ravidass being a 'charmkar' by birth was denied entry into temples. The maharaja and rani of Chittor became his disciples. Mira Bai, the famous saint poetess also adopted him as her Guru. Guru Ravidass composed many shabdas and his teachings are included in Ravidassia Holy Book Amritbani Guru Ravidass Ji Ki. Gurus shabdas are packed with divine wisdom and in each of them, he advocates 'Ram nam jap' and extols the efficacy of this great mantra. In his teachings, Guru Ravidass says, "God is everywhere'. in you and me."
This song demonstrates several key facets of Ravidas' sant bhakti'. His similes for the divine - water, cloud, light, gold - suggest the one god and state that he himself is inseparable from that formless yet that he is the one who gives it form.