Ramananda: Difference between revisions

| image              =

| caption            = A Portrait of Swami Ramanand with [[Bairagi (caste)|Bairagi Saints]] in [[Varanasi]]

| birth_date        = uncertain date, ~1300-1380 CE<ref name=ronald>Ronald McGregor (1984), Hindi literature from its beginnings to the nineteenth century, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, {{ISBN|978-3447024136}}, pages 42-44</ref><ref name=schomer/>l

| sect              = [[Vaishnavism]] (deity Rama), [[Hinduism]]

| known_for          = Founder of [[Bairagi (caste)|Bairagi Sampradaya]] ([[Ramanandi Sampradaya]]),<br />Guru of Major Poet-saints,<br />a Pioneer of [[Bhakti movement]] in north India, Social Reformer.

'''Ramananda''' ([[IAST]]: Rāmānanda) was a 14th-century [[Vaishnava]] devotional poet [[Sant (religion)|saint]], who lived in the [[Gangetic basin]] of northern India.<ref name=william/> The Hindu tradition recognizes him as the founder<ref name=schomer/> of the [[Ramanandi Sampradaya]], the largest [[Sannyasa|monastic]] Hindu renunciant community in modern times.<ref name=selva>Selva Raj and William Harman (2007), Dealing with Deities: The Ritual Vow in South Asia, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791467084}}, pages 165-166</ref><ref name=lochtefeld>James G Lochtefeld (2002), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z, Rosen Publishing, {{ISBN|978-0823931804}}, pages 553-554</ref>

Born in a [[Brahmin|Brahman]] family, Saint Ramananda for the most part of his life lived in the holy city of [[Varanasi]].<ref name=ronald/><ref name=lorenzen>[[David Lorenzen]], Who Invented Hinduism: Essays on Religion in History, {{ISBN|978-8190227261}}, pages 104-106</ref> His year of birth or death are uncertain, but historical evidence suggests he was one of the earliest [[sant (religion)|saint]]s and a pioneering figure of the [[Bhakti movement]] as it rapidly grew in north India, sometime between the 14th and mid 15th century during its Islamic rule period.<ref name=schomer/><ref name=william/> Tradition asserts that Saint Ramananda developed his philosophy and devotional themes inspired by the south Indian [[Vedanta]] philosopher [[Ramanuja]], however evidence also suggests that Saint Ramananda was influenced by [[Nath]]panthi ascetics of the [[Yoga]] school of Hindu philosophy.<ref name=lochtefeld/>

An early social reformer, Saint Ramananda accepted disciples without discriminating anyone by gender, class. Traditional scholarship holds that his disciples included later Bhakti movement ''poet-sants'' such as [[Kabir]], [[Ravidas]], [[Bhagat Pipa]] and others,<ref name="lochtefeld" /><ref name="lorenzen" /> however some postmodern scholars have questioned some of this spiritual lineage while others have supported this lineage with historical evidence.<ref name="McLeod 1987 page 54">Schomer and McLeod (1987), The Sants: Studies in a Devotional Tradition of India, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|9788120802773}}, page 54</ref><ref name="julia">Julia Leslie (1996), Myth and Mythmaking: Continuous Evolution in Indian Tradition, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0700703036}}, pages 117-119</ref> His verse is mentioned in the Sikh scripture [[Adi Granth]].<ref name="lochtefeld" /><ref>Winnand Callewaert (2015), The Hagiographies of Anantadas: The Bhakti Poets of North India, Routledge, {{ISBN|978-1138862463}}, pages 405-407</ref>

Saint Ramananda was known for composing his works and discussing spiritual themes in vernacular [[Hindi]], stating that this makes knowledge accessible to the masses.<ref name=william>William Pinch (1996), Peasants and Monks in British India, University of California Press, {{ISBN|978-0520200616}},

pages 53-89</ref>

Little is known with certainty about the life of Saint Ramananda, including year of birth and death<ref name=lochtefeld/><ref name=mcgregor51>Enzo Turbiani (Editor: RS McGregor, 1992), Devotional Literature in South Asia, Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-0521413114}}, page 51</ref> His biography has been derived from mentions of him in secondary literature and inconsistent Hagiographies.<ref name=schomer/><ref name=william/><ref name=julia/>

The most accepted version holds that Saint Ramananda was born in a [[Brahmin]] family,<ref>Max Arthur Macauliffe (2013 Reprint), The Sikh Religion: Its Gurus, Sacred Writings and Authors, Volume 6, Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-1108055482}}, pages 100-101</ref> about mid 14th-century, and died about mid 15th-century.<ref>[[Charlotte Vaudeville]] (1974), Kabir, Vol. 1, Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0198265269}}, pages 110-117</ref><ref>Selva Raj and William Harman (2007), Dealing with Deities: The Ritual Vow in South Asia, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791467084}}, pages 165-185</ref><ref name=nirmaldass>Nirmal Dass (2000), Songs of the Saints from the Adi Granth, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791446843}}, page 160-164</ref> Although few people hold him to be of southern origin, there's no evidence to support such a claim. In fact, all genuinely Indian sources agree in stating that Ramananda was born at Prayaga (Allahabad).<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Grierson|first=George A.|date=1920|title=The Home of Saint Ramananda|journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland|issue=4|pages=593|issn=0035-869X|jstor=25209662}}</ref><blockquote>"Not one word is said as to his southern origin, and the fact that he was stated to be a [[Kanyakubja Brahmin]] is decisively against such a theory" –[[George A. Grierson|George A. Greirson]] (1920).<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>According to the medieval era ''Bhaktamala'' text by Nabhadas, Saint Ramananda studied under ''Raghavananda'', a ''guru'' (teacher) in [[Vedanta]]-based Vatakalai (northern, Rama-avatar) school of Vaishnavism.<ref name="karen">Karen Pechelis (2014), The Embodiment of Bhakti, Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0195351903}}, page 36</ref> <blockquote>"It was Saint Ramananda's teacher, Raghavananda, who came from the South, and after much wandering had settled at Benares. There, and not in the South, he had Saint Ramananda as his disciple."  –[[George A. Grierson|George A. Greirson]] (1920).<ref name=":0" /></blockquote>Other scholars state that Saint Ramananda's education started in [[Adi Shankara]]'s Advaita Vedanta school, before he met ''Raghavananda'' and began his studies in [[Ramanuja]]'s Vishishtadvaita Vedanta school.<ref>Edmour J Babineau (2008), Love of God and Social Duty in the Rāmcaritmānas, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120823990}}, pages 65-66</ref>

Saint Ramananda is credited as the author of many devotional poems, but like most Bhakti movement poets, whether he actually was the author of these poems is unclear. Two treatises in Hindi, ''Gyan-lila'' and ''Yog-cintamani'' are also attributed to Ramanand, as are the Sanskrit works ''Vaisnava Mata Bhajabhaskara'' and ''Ramarcana paddhati''.<ref name=mcgregor51/> However, poems found in the original and well-preserved manuscripts of [[Sikhism]] and handwritten ''Nagari-pracarini Sabha'' are considered authentic and highlight the ''Nirguna'' (attributeless god) stream of thought in Saint Ramananda.<ref name=mcgregor51/>

 

Saint Ramananda developed his philosophy and devotional themes inspired by the south Indian [[Vedanta]] philosopher [[Ramanuja]], however evidence also suggests that Saint Ramananda was influenced by [[Nath]]panthi ascetics of the [[Yoga (philosophy)|Yoga]] school of Hindu philosophy.<ref name=lochtefeld/>

Antonio Rigopoulos states Saint Ramananda's teachings were "an attempt towards a synthesis between [[Advaita]] Vedanta and Vaishnava bhakti".<ref name=antonio264>Antonio Rigopoulos (1993), The Life And Teachings Of Sai Baba Of Shirdi, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791412671}}, page 264</ref> He adds that the same link can be found in the 15th-century text of ''Adhyatma Ramayana'', but there is no historical proof that Saint Ramananda's teachings inspired that text.<ref name=antonio264/>

Shastri has proposed the theory that Saint Ramananda's complex theological schooling in two distinct Hindu philosophies explains why he accepted both ''Saguna Brahman'' and ''Nirguna Brahman'', or god with attributes and god without attributes, respectively. Shastri suggests his theory offers an explanation why Saint Ramananda's disciples co-developed ''saguna'' and ''nirguna'' as the two parallel currents in the [[Bhakti movement]].<ref name=edmour67>Edmour J Babineau (2008), Love of God and Social Duty in the Rāmcaritmānas, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120823990}}, pages 66-67</ref> However, this theory lacks historical evidence and has not gained wide acceptance by scholars.<ref name=edmour67/>

The Saint Ramananda literature that is considered authentic, states Enzo Turbiani, suggest a milestone development in metaphysical principles of the Bhakti movement.<ref name=enzo52>Enzo Turbiani (Editor: RS McGregor, 1992), Devotional Literature in South Asia, Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-0521413114}}, pages 52-54</ref> Saint Ramananda asserts that austerity and penances through asceticism are meaningless, if an individual does not realize ''Hari'' (Vishnu) as their inner self. He criticizes fasting and rituals, stating that the mechanics are not important, and that these are useless if the individual does not take the opportunity to reflect and introspect on the nature of [[Brahman]] (supreme being).<ref name=enzo52/> Saint Ramananda states that rote reading of a sacred text is of no benefit, if the person fails to understand what the text is trying to communicate.<ref name=enzo52/>

Saint Ramananda is often honored as the founder of ''Sant-parampara'' (literally, the tradition of bhakti [[sant (religion)|sant]]s) in north India.<ref>Antonio Rigopoulos (1993), The Life And Teachings Of Sai Baba Of Shirdi, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791412671}}, page 37</ref> His efforts, in a time when Ganges river plains of north India was under Islamic rule, helped revive and refocus Hindus to a personalized, direct devotional form of Rama worship, his liberalism and focus on the devotee's commitment rather than birth or gender set a precedent that attracted people to spirituality from various walks of life, and his use of vernacular language instead of Sanskrit for spiritual ideas made sharing and reflection easier for the masses.<ref>Edmour J Babineau (2008), Love of God and Social Duty in the Rāmcaritmānas, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120823990}}, pages 65-68</ref>

 

Twelve influential disciples of Saint Ramananda included 10 men and 2 women poet-sants. According to [[Bhaktamal]], these were:<ref>Rekha Pande (2014), Divine Sounds from the Heart—Singing Unfettered in their Own Voices, Cambridge Scholars, {{ISBN|978-1443825252}}, page 77</ref>

# [[Sukhanand]]

# [[Kabir]]

# Sen  

# [[Ravidas]]

Saint Ramananda is the founder of the eponymous Ramanandi Sampraday (Shri Ramavat or Shri Sampraday). This is the largest [[sannyasa|ascetic]] community in India, and their members are known as ''Ramanandis'', ''Vairagis'' or ''Bairagis''.<ref name=larsonvair>Gerald James Larson (1995), India's Agony Over Religion, State University of New York Press, {{ISBN|978-0791424124}}, page 116</ref><ref>Ramdas Lamb (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga (Editor: Knut A Jacobsen), Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120832329}}, pages 317-330</ref> They are known for their self-imposed highly disciplined, austere, structured and simple lifestyle.<ref name=selva/> Richard Burghart acknowledges that Saint Ramananda is revered as the founder in the Ramanandi Sampraday's tradition, but adds that historical evidence about its origin is meager and India's largest monastic community may have gathered strength a few centuries after Saint Ramananda's death.<ref>Richard Burghart (1978), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/481036 The Founding of the Ramanandi Sect], Ethnohistory, Vol. 25, No. 2, pages 121-139</ref>

Saint Ramananda was an influential social reformer of Northern India. He championed the pursuit of knowledge and direct devotional spirituality, and did not discriminate based on birth family, gender or religion.<ref name=larsonvair/>

 

 

One poem of Swami Ramanand poem, originally written in Hindi, is a response to an invitation to go to a temple,<ref name=maxqna/> and the answer states there is no need to visit a temple because God is within a person, all pervasive in everything and everyone.<ref name=nirmaldass/>

|Saint Ramananda in Raag Basant|[[Adi Granth]] 1995<ref name=nirmaldass/><ref name=maxqna>Max Arthur Macauliffe (2013 Reprint), The Sikh Religion: Its Gurus, Sacred Writings and Authors, Volume 6, Cambridge University Press, {{ISBN|978-1108055482}}, pages 105-106</ref>}}

*[[Sant Mat]]

* [http://www.kamat.com/indica/faiths/bhakti/ramanand.htm Saint Saint Ramananda] Jyotsna Kamat (2008)