Product Code Database
Ravidas or Raidas was an Indian mystic poet-saint of the Bhakti movement during the 15th to 16th century CE. Venerated as a guru (spiritual teacher) in the modern regions of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana, he was a poet, social reformer and spiritual figure.
The life details of Ravidas are uncertain and contested. Some scholars believe he was born in 1433 CE. He taught removal of social divisions of caste and gender, and promoted unity in the pursuit of personal spiritual freedom.
Ravidas's devotional verses were included in the Sikhism scriptures known as Guru Granth Sahib.Callewaert and Friedlander, The Life and Works of Ravidass Ji, Manohar, Delhi, 1992, quoted in Gavin Flood, An Introduction to Hinduism, Cambridge 1996. The Panch Vani text of the Dadu Dayal tradition within Hinduism also includes numerous poems of Ravidas. He is also the central figure within the Ravidassia Panth.
Mainstream Sikhs consider him to be a bhagat whilst break-away Ravidassias consider him to be a guru. (2023). 9781800085541, UCL Press. ISBN 9781800085541
The Rajput princess and Bhakti saint, Mira Bai (1498–1547 CE), is recorded in multiple traditions as a devoted disciple of Ravidas. This disciple-guru relationship, mentioned in historical and literary sources, indicates that Ravidass must have been alive after 1498 CE and actively guiding his followers when Mirabai reached adulthood, around the time of her marriage in 1516. The connection between Ravidas and Mirabai helps scholars place his lifetime within the late 15th and early 16th centuries.
The term Ramdasia is merely a corruption of the word Ravidasia. In Punjab, both the words Ramdasia and Ravidasia are also used interchangeably, although these also have regional context. The word Ramdasia is largely used in Puadh and Malwa, while Ravidasia is predominantly used in Doaba.
Followers of Ravidas are known by different names in different regions, depending on history, migration, and local linguistic or social contexts. Ravidassias is the most common and widely accepted name today, especially after the Vienna incident when many followers began identifying as a distinct religious community, Ramdasia is for Sikh Chamar followers, Rohidasi is for those in regions like Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Rajasthan, who revere Ravidas as their spiritual guide, and Ravived is mainly for those in Mauritius.
The text Anantadas Parcai is one of the earliest surviving Biography of various Bhakti movement poets which describes the birth of Ravidas.
Medieval era texts, such as the Bhaktamal suggest that Ravidas was the disciple of the Brahmin bhakti-poet Ramananda.David Lorenzen (1996), Praises to a Formless God: Nirguni Texts from North India, State University of New York Press, , page 268 He is traditionally considered as Kabir's younger contemporary.James Lochtefeld (2002), The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z, Rosen Publishing, , page 569
However, the medieval text Ratnavali says Ravidas gained his spiritual knowledge from Ramananda and was a follower of the Ramanandi Sampradaya tradition.
His ideas and fame grew over his lifetime, and texts suggest Brahmins used to bow before him. He travelled extensively, visiting Hindu pilgrimage sites in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and those in the Himalayas. He abandoned saguna (with attributes, image) forms of supreme beings, and focused on the nirguna (without attributes, abstract) form of supreme beings. As his poetic hymns in regional languages inspired others, people from various background sought his teachings and guidance. Most scholars believe that Ravidas met Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism. He is revered in the Sikhs scripture, and 41 of Ravidas' poems are included in the Guru Granth Sahib. These poems are one of the oldest attested source of his ideas and literary works. Another substantial source of legends and stories about the life of Ravidas is the hagiography in the Sikh tradition, the Premambodha. This text, composed over 170 years after Ravidas' death, in 1693, includes him as one of the seventeen saints of Indian religious tradition. The 17th-century Nabhadas's Bhaktamal, and the Parcais of Anantadas, both contain chapters on Ravidas.Winnand Callewaert (2000), The Hagiographies of Anantadas: The Bhakti Poets of North India, Routledge, , pages 1-4 Other than these, the scriptures and texts of Sikh tradition and the Hindu Dadupanthi traditions, most other written sources about the life of Ravidas, including by the Ravidasi (followers of Ravidas), were composed in the early 20th century, or about 400 years after his death.Callewaert, Winand. (2003), Pilgrims, Patrons, and Place: Localizing Sanctity in Asian Religions (Editors: Phyllis Granoff and Koichi Shinohara), University of British Columbia Press, , pages 203-223
Text, called the Parcaīs (or Parchais), included Ravidas among the sants whose biography and poems were included. Over time new manuscripts of Parcais of Anantadas were reproduced, some in different local languages of India. Winnand Callewaert notes that some 30 manuscripts of Anantadas's hagiography on Ravidas have been found in different parts of India.Winnand Callewaert (2000), The Hagiographies of Anantadas: The Bhakti Poets of North India, Routledge, , pages 303-307 Of these four manuscripts are complete, collated and have been dated to 1662, 1665, 1676 and 1687. The first three are close with some morphological variants without affecting the meaning, but the 1687 version systematically inserts verses into the text, at various locations, with caste-related statements, new claims of Brahmins persecuting Ravidas, notes on the untouchability of Ravidas, claims of Kabir giving Ravidas ideas, ridicules of nirguni and saguni ideas, and such text corruption:Winnand Callewaert (2000), The Hagiographies of Anantadas: The Bhakti Poets of North India, Routledge, , pages 316-334 Callewaert considers the 1676 version as the standard version, his critical edition of Ravidas's hagiography excludes all these insertions, and he remarks that the cleaner critical version of Anantadas's parcais suggests that there is more in common in the ideas of bhakti movement's Ravidas, Kabir and Sen than previously thought.
Khare similarly has questioned the textual sources on Ravidas, and mentions there are few "readily available and reliable textual sources on the Hindu and Untouchable treatment of Ravidas."Ravindra S Khare (1985), The Untouchable as Himself, Cambridge University Press, , pages 41-47
Jeffrey Ebbesen notes that, just like other Bhakti saint-poets of India and some cases of Western literature authorship, many poems composed by later era Indian poets have been attributed to Ravidas, as an act of reverence, even though Ravidas has had nothing to do with these poems or ideas expressed therein.Jeffrey Ebbesen (1995), Literary India: Comparative Studies in Aesthetics, Colonialism, and Culture (Editors: Patrick Colm Hogan, Lalita Pandit), State University of New York Press, , pages 53-55
There is no historical evidence to verify the historicity in these hagiographies, which range from Ravidas's struggle with Hindu Brahmins,Peter Friedlander (1996), Myth and Mythmaking: Continuous Evolution in Indian Tradition (Editor: Julia Leslie), Routledge, , pages 109-110 to his struggle with Muslim Sultan Sikander Lodi.Peter Friedlander (1996), Myth and Mythmaking: Continuous Evolution in Indian Tradition (Editor: Julia Leslie), Routledge, , pages 108, 112-117 Friedlander states that the stories reflect the social dynamics that influenced the composers of the hagiographies during the 17th- to 20th-century. These are legends where Ravidas is victorious because of divine intervention with miracles such as making a stone float in water, or making river Ganges to reverse course and flow upstream.
David Lorenzen similarly states that poetry attributed to Ravidas, and championed by Ravidasi from the 17th- through the 20th-century, have a strong anti-Brahminical and anti-communal theme. The legends, suggests Lorenzen, cannot be separated from the power and political situation of this era, and they reflect a strong element of social and religious dissent by groups marginalised during a period when Indian society was under the Islamic rule and later the colonial rule.David Lorenzen (1995), Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action, State University of New York Press, , pages 105-116, 292-303
David Lorenzen states Ravidas's poetry is imbued with themes of boundless loving devotion to God, wherein this divine is envisioned as Nirguna.David Lorenzen (1995), Bhakti Religion in North India: Community Identity and Political Action, State University of New York Press, , page 107 In the Sikh tradition, the themes of Nanak's poetry are very broadly similar to the Nirgun bhakti ideas of Ravidas and other leading north Indian saint-poets.Neeti M Sadarangani (2004), Bhakti Poetry in Medieval India: Its Inception, Cultural Encounter and Impact, Swarup & Sons, , pages i-xv, 115, 55-60, 72-76Christopher Shackle (2014), The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies (Editors: Pashaura Singh, Louis E. Fenech), Oxford University Press, , page 111 Most postmodern scholars, states Karen Pechilis, consider Ravidas's ideas to belong to the Nirguna philosophy within the Bhakti movement.Karen Pechilis Prentiss (2014), The Embodiment of Bhakti, Oxford University Press, , page 21
According to Bhaktamal text, Ravidas was of pure speech, capable of resolving spiritual doubts of those who held discussions with him, was unafraid to state his humble origins and real caste. Further, the Bhaktamal text states that Ravidas' teachings agreed with Vedas and ancient scriptures, he subscribed to nondualism, discussed spiritual ideas and philosophy with everyone including Brahmins without gender or caste discrimination, and his abilities reflected an individual who had reached the inner content state of the highest Sannyasa.Ravindra S Khare (1985), The Untouchable as Himself, Cambridge University Press, , pages 41-45
The 20th-century version, prevalent in the texts of Dalit community, concurs with the parts about pure speech and resolving spiritual doubts. However, they differ in the rest. The texts and the prevalent beliefs of the Dalit community hold that Ravidas rejected the Hindu Vedas, he was opposed by the Brahmins and resisted by the caste Hindus as well as Hindu ascetics throughout his life, and that some members of the Dalit community have believed Ravidas was an idol worshipper (saguni bhakti saint) while other 20th century texts assert that Ravidas rejected idolatry.Ravindra S Khare (1985), The Untouchable as Himself, Cambridge University Press, , pages 46-53, 163-164 For example, the following hymn of Ravidas, present in Guru Granth Sahib, support such claims where he rejects Vedas and the belief that taking a ritualistic bath can make someone pure.
His spiritual teacher Ramananda was a Brahmin and his disciple Mirabai was a Rajput princess.
We, as Ravidassias have different traditions. We are not Sikhs. Even though, we give utmost respect to 10 gurus and Guru Granth Sahib, Guru Ravidass Ji is our supreme. There is no command for us to follow the declaration that there is no Guru after Guru Granth Sahib. We respect Guru Granth Sahib because it has our guru Ji's teachings and teachings of other religious figures who have spoken against caste system, spread the message of NAAM and equality. As per our traditions, we give utmost respect to contemporary gurus also who are carrying forward the message of Guru Ravidass Ji.Ram, R. (2009). Ravidass, Dera Sachkhand Ballan and the Question of Dalit Identity in Punjab. JPS, 16(1), 2.The Ravidassia religion is a spin-off religion from Sikhism, formed in the 21st century, by the followers of Ravidas's teachings. It was formed following a 2009 attack on a Ravidassia temple in Vienna by Sikh militants leading to the death of deputy head Ramanand Dass and 16 others injured, where after the movement declared itself to be a religion fully separated from Sikhism. The Ravidassia religion compiled a new holy book, Amritbani Guru Ravidass Ji. Based entirely on the writings and teaching of Ravidas, it contains 240 hymns. Niranjan Dass is the head of Dera Sachkhand Ballan.
Kathryn Lum summarises the dynamics behind the separation of Ravidassia and Sikhism, and its focus on Ravidas, as follows:
Beyond India, Ravidassias have built significant temples in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Europe, including Austria, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, and Italy. These shrines function not only as places of worship but also as cultural and social hubs, hosting religious ceremonies, festivals, educational programs, and community services. They symbolise the global spread of Ravidas’s message of equality, devotion, and social justice, while helping the Ravidassia diaspora maintain their spiritual and cultural identity.
The significance of the Guru Ravidass's Jayanti can be identified from the move of the Election Commission of India when they postponed the Punjab general assembly election, which was an unprecedented and rare move in the history of India.
When then-CM Mayawati attempted to create a beautiful park at the birthplace of Ravidas in Seer Gowardhanpur in 1997, the temple's political significance grew. The BSP leader gave a golden palanquin to the shrine and participated in Ravidas Jayanti festivities while serving as chief minister in 2008.Later, as part of their Dalit outreach efforts, representatives from all parties began to visit the Ravidas temple.In 2016 and 2019, PM Narendra Modi also participated in the Ravidas Jayanti festivities.Following his attendance at the Ravidas Jayanti festivities in 2018, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath made numerous visits to the temple to observe its progress.On 6 May 2019, Mayawati and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav hosted a rally for their SP-BSP grand alliance in preparation for parliamentary elections at the temple's satsang field.
During the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections, Ravidas's birthplace, Varanasi, became the political capital of India. Leaders from different political parties, such as Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Yogi Adityanath, Akhilesh Yadav, Charanjit Singh Channi, and many more, paid obeisance to Ravidass at his temple. The prime minister also visited Guru Ravidas Dham Temple, Karol Bagh, amid the political campaign to woo voters from the Ravidassia community.
Prior to the parliamentary elections in Canada, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also paid a visit to the Guru Ravidass Temples in Vancouver and Montreal, where he expressed gratitude for the sacrifices made by the congregation and society members. During his visit, Mr. Trudeau discussed the principles of "equality" that Ravidass advocated, stating that Canada shares these principles.
There is a small chhatri (pavilion) in front of Meera's temple in Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan which bears Ravidas' engraved foot print. Chittauragarh Fort: An Enigma with a Thin Line between History and Mythology . 24 August 2009, Ghumakkar.com Legends link him as the guru of Mirabai, another major Bhakti movement poet.Peter Heehs (2002), Indian Religions: A Historical Reader of Spiritual Expression and Experience, New York University Press, , pages 368-370
Queen Mira Bai composed a song dedicated to Ravidas where she mentioned him as her guru.
== Gallery ==
|
|
