Chapter Notes

A Mosaic of Religious Beliefs and Practices

From the mid-first millennium CE, the Indian subcontinent saw a vibrant and diverse religious landscape. Alongside existing structures like stupas, monasteries, and temples, new forms of religious expression emerged. Our understanding of this period comes from various sources, including:

• Puranas: Religious texts, many of which were written down in simple Sanskrit during this time to be accessible to women and Shudras, who were typically excluded from Vedic learning.
• Compositions of Poet-Saints: These saints often expressed their devotion orally in regional languages, which were later compiled by their followers. These traditions were fluid, meaning later generations sometimes modified the original message.
• Hagiographies: Biographies of saints written by their devotees. While not always historically accurate, they show how these figures were perceived by their followers.

This period was marked by the increasing visibility of a wide range of gods and goddesses, especially the major deities Vishnu, Shiva, and the goddess, who were worshipped in various forms.

The integration of cults

Historians identify two key processes that shaped religious beliefs during this era:

1. Dissemination of Brahmanical Ideas: This involved composing and compiling Puranic texts in simple Sanskrit so that Brahmanical beliefs could spread more widely.
2. Acceptance and Reworking of other Beliefs: Brahmanas also began to accept and incorporate the beliefs and practices of other social groups, including those previously considered outside the orthodox framework.

This interaction led to a continuous dialogue between what sociologists call "great" traditions (Sanskritic, Puranic practices of priests and rulers) and "little" traditions (local practices of peasants and common people).

Similarly, many local goddess cults, often worshipped as a simple stone smeared with ochre, were integrated into the Puranic tradition. They were given identities as wives of the main male gods, such as Lakshmi (wife of Vishnu) or Parvati (wife of Shiva).

Difference and conflict

While there was integration, this period also saw significant religious differences and conflicts.

• Tantric Practices: These forms of worship were often associated with the goddess. Tantrism was open to both women and men and often ignored caste and class distinctions. It became widespread and influenced both Shaivism and Buddhism.
• Vedic vs. Puranic Traditions: There was a stark difference between these two. The main Vedic gods like Agni, Indra, and Soma became marginal figures in Puranic traditions, while Vishnu, Shiva, and the goddess, who were less prominent in the Vedas, became central. Despite this, the Vedas continued to be revered as authoritative texts.
• Conflicts: Those who followed the Vedic tradition often condemned practices like Tantrism that went beyond prescribed sacrifices and mantras. On the other hand, followers of Tantra often ignored the authority of the Vedas. Devotees also tended to promote their chosen deity (Vishnu or Shiva) as supreme, leading to tensions. Relations with other traditions like Buddhism and Jainism were also sometimes hostile.

It was within this dynamic and often contentious environment that the traditions of bhakti, or devotional worship, grew and evolved.

Poems of Prayer: Early Traditions of Bhakti

Bhakti traditions, which focused on intense personal devotion to a deity, saw the rise of poet-saints as community leaders. A key feature of these movements was their inclusivity.

• They often accommodated women and people from "lower castes," who were considered ineligible for liberation in the orthodox Brahmanical system.
• Bhakti traditions showed remarkable diversity in their expressions of devotion.

Historians classify bhakti into two broad categories:

1. Saguna: Devotion to deities with attributes, conceptualised in anthropomorphic (human-like) forms like Shiva, Vishnu, and his avatars.
2. Nirguna: Worship of an abstract, formless God.

The Alvars and Nayanars of Tamil Nadu

Some of the earliest bhakti movements, emerging around the sixth century in Tamil Nadu, were led by:

• The Alvars: Poet-saints who were devotees of Vishnu. The term literally means "those who are immersed" in devotion.
• The Nayanars: Poet-saints who were leaders devoted to Shiva.

These saints travelled from place to place, singing hymns in Tamil in praise of their gods. They identified certain shrines as the abodes of their chosen deities, which later developed into major pilgrimage centres with large temples. The singing of their compositions became an integral part of temple rituals.

Attitudes towards caste

The Alvars and Nayanars are often seen as initiating a movement of protest against the caste system and the dominance of Brahmanas.

• Their followers came from diverse social backgrounds, including Brahmanas, artisans, cultivators, and even those from castes considered "untouchable."
• The compositions of the Alvars, compiled in an anthology called the Nalayira Divyaprabandham, were described as the Tamil Veda. This claim suggested that their work was as significant as the four Sanskrit Vedas cherished by the Brahmanas.

Women devotees

A remarkable feature of these traditions was the prominent role of women.

• Andal: A woman Alvar whose compositions are widely sung even today. She saw herself as the beloved of Vishnu and expressed her love for him in her verses.
• Karaikkal Ammaiyar: A devotee of Shiva who chose the path of extreme asceticism to achieve her goal. Her compositions were preserved within the Nayanar tradition.

These women challenged patriarchal norms by renouncing their social obligations. Their very existence and their powerful devotional poetry were a form of social critique.

Relations with the state

From the sixth to the ninth centuries, powerful states like those of the Pallavas and Pandyas emerged in the Tamil region. Later, from the ninth to the thirteenth centuries, the Chola rulers came to power.

• Opposition to Buddhism and Jainism: A major theme in Tamil bhakti hymns, especially those of the Nayanars, is opposition to Buddhism and Jainism. Historians suggest this was due to competition for royal patronage.
• Chola Patronage: The Chola rulers strongly supported Brahmanical and bhakti traditions. They made land grants and built magnificent temples for Vishnu and Shiva at places like Chidambaram, Thanjavur, and Gangaikondacholapuram.
• Claiming Divine Support: By building these grand temples and honouring the poet-saints, the Chola kings sought to claim divine support and legitimize their own power and status. They introduced the singing of Tamil Shaiva hymns in temples and even had metal images of Nayanar saints like Appar, Sambandar, and Sundarar made to be carried in processions.

The Virashaiva Tradition in Karnataka

In the twelfth century, a new movement emerged in Karnataka led by a Brahmana named Basavanna (1106-68), who was a minister in the court of a Kalachuri ruler. His followers became known as Virashaivas (heroes of Shiva) or Lingayats (wearers of the linga).

Key beliefs and practices of the Lingayats include:

• Worship of Shiva as a linga: Men wear a small linga in a silver case on a loop over their left shoulder.
• Belief about Death: They believe that on death, the devotee will be united with Shiva and will not return to this world. Because of this, they do not practice cremation but ceremonially bury their dead.
• Challenge to the Caste System: The Lingayats strongly challenged the idea of caste and the notion of "pollution" attributed to certain groups by Brahmanas. They also questioned the theory of rebirth.
• Social Reforms: They encouraged practices disapproved of in the Dharmashastras, such as post-puberty marriage and the remarriage of widows.

Our understanding of this tradition comes from vachanas (literally, sayings), composed in Kannada by men and women who joined the movement.

Religious Ferment in North India

During this period in north India, while deities like Vishnu and Shiva were worshipped in temples supported by rulers, there wasn't a movement quite like that of the Alvars and Nayanars until the fourteenth century.

• In the Rajput states that emerged, Brahmanas held positions of importance and their authority was not directly challenged.
• However, other religious leaders who operated outside the orthodox Brahmanical framework, such as the Naths, Jogis, and Siddhas, were gaining popularity. Many came from artisanal groups like weavers. They questioned the authority of the Vedas and expressed themselves in the languages of ordinary people.
• The establishment of the Delhi Sultanate in the thirteenth century was a major turning point. It undermined the power of many Rajput states and the associated Brahmanas, leading to significant cultural and religious changes, including the arrival of the Sufis.

New Strands in the Fabric: Islamic Traditions

From the seventh century, with the advent of Islam, the northwestern parts of the subcontinent and coastal regions became part of the wider Islamic world.

Faiths of rulers and subjects

After the Arab conquest of Sind in 711 by Muhammad Qasim, and later with the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate by Turks and Afghans, Islam became an acknowledged religion of rulers in many parts of India.

• Muslim rulers were theoretically supposed to be guided by the ulama (scholars of Islamic studies) and rule according to the shari'a (the law governing the Muslim community).
• The shari'a is based on the Qur'an, the hadis (traditions of the Prophet), qiyas (reasoning by analogy), and ijma (consensus of the community).
• For non-Muslim subjects like Jews and Christians, the category of zimmi (protected) was developed. They paid a tax called jizya and in return received protection from Muslim rulers. In India, this status was extended to Hindus as well.
• Many rulers, including the Mughals, adopted flexible policies. Rulers like Akbar and Aurangzeb gave land grants and tax exemptions to non-Muslim religious institutions and showed respect to their leaders.

The popular practice of Islam

The influence of Islam spread far beyond the ruling elites to peasants, artisans, and merchants. Those who adopted Islam accepted the five "pillars" of the faith:

1. There is one God, Allah, and Prophet Muhammad is his messenger (shahada).
2. Offering prayers five times a day (namaz/salat).
3. Giving alms (zakat).
4. Fasting during the month of Ramzan (sawm).
5. Performing the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj).

However, these universal features were often blended with local customs and practices.

• The Khojahs, a branch of Shi'a Muslims, spread ideas from the Qur'an through ginan—devotional poems in local languages like Punjabi, Sindhi, and Gujarati.
• Arab Muslim traders who settled on the Malabar coast (Kerala) adopted the local language, Malayalam, and local customs like matriliny and matrilocal residence.

This blend is also visible in the architecture of mosques, which combine universal features (orientation towards Mecca) with regional variations in roofs and building materials.

Names for communities

The terms "Hindu" and "Muslim" were not commonly used for a long time.

• People were often identified by their region of origin. Turkish rulers were called Turushka, people from Tajikistan were Tajika, and those from Persia were Parashika.
• A more general term for migrant communities was mlechchha, which indicated that they did not follow the norms of caste society. While sometimes used in a derogatory way, it did not denote a specific religious community.

The Growth of Sufism

In the early centuries of Islam, a group of religious-minded people known as Sufis turned to asceticism and mysticism.

• They were critical of the dogmatic interpretations of the Qur'an by theologians and the growing materialism of the Caliphate.
• They sought salvation through intense devotion and love for God, following the example of the Prophet Muhammad, whom they regarded as a perfect human being.
• The term Sufism is an English word. In Islamic texts, the term used is tasawwuf.

Khanqahs and silsilas

By the eleventh century, Sufism had evolved into a well-developed movement.

• Sufis began to organize communities around a khanqah (hospice), which was controlled by a teaching master known as a shaikh (Arabic), pir, or murshid (Persian).
• The shaikh enrolled disciples (murids) and appointed a successor (khalifa).
• Around the twelfth century, Sufi silsilas began to form. A silsila is a chain or spiritual genealogy connecting the master and disciple, stretching back to the Prophet Muhammad.
• When a shaikh died, his tomb-shrine, or dargah, became a centre of devotion for his followers.
• This led to the practice of pilgrimage, or ziyarat, to the graves of saints, especially on their death anniversary (urs), to seek their blessings. Such a revered shaikh was known as a wali (friend of God).

Outside the khanqah

Not all mystics lived in khanqahs. Some initiated movements based on a radical interpretation of Sufi ideals.

• They were known by names like Qalandars, Madaris, and Haidaris.
• They often took to mendicancy, observed celibacy, and ignored rituals.
• Because they deliberately defied the shari'a, they were often called be-shari'a, in contrast to the ba-shari'a Sufis who complied with it.

The Chishtis in the Subcontinent

Of the Sufi groups that came to India in the late twelfth century, the Chishtis were the most influential because they successfully adapted to the local environment.

Life in the Chishti khanqah

The khanqah was the center of social life. A famous example is the hospice of Shaikh Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi (c. fourteenth century).

• It had a community kitchen (langar) that ran on futuh (unasked-for charity).
• People from all walks of life, including soldiers, slaves, merchants, poets, Hindu jogis, and qalandars, visited the khanqah.
• The Chishtis assimilated local traditions, including practices like bowing before the shaikh, offering water to visitors, and yogic exercises.

Chishti devotionalism: ziyarat and qawwali

Pilgrimage (ziyarat) to the tombs of Sufi saints is a central part of Chishti devotionalism.

• The most revered shrine is that of Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, popularly known as "Gharib Nawaz" (comforter of the poor).
• Royal visitors, including Sultan Muhammad bin Tughlaq and the Mughal emperor Akbar, patronized the shrine. Akbar visited fourteen times, seeking blessings for conquests and the birth of sons.
• Music and dance are also key to ziyarat. Specially trained musicians, or qawwals, perform mystical music called sama' to evoke divine ecstasy.
• Amir Khusrau, a disciple of Shaikh Nizamuddin Auliya, gave a unique form to the Chishti sama' by introducing the qaul, a hymn sung at the opening or closing of a qawwali performance.

Languages and communication

The Chishtis adopted local languages to communicate their message.

• In Delhi, they conversed in Hindavi, the language of the people.
• Sufis like Baba Farid composed verses in the local language, which were later incorporated into the Guru Granth Sahib.
• Some composed long poems (masnavis) like the Padmavat by Malik Muhammad Jayasi, which used the allegory of human love to express the soul's journey to the divine.
• In the Deccan, Chishti sufis composed short poems in Dakhani (a variant of Urdu), often sung by women during household chores.

Sufis and the state

The Chishtis maintained a distance from worldly power, but they were not completely isolated.

• They accepted unsolicited grants and donations from political elites but preferred to use them for immediate needs like food and clothing rather than accumulating wealth.
• This enhanced their moral authority and made them popular among the masses, whose support rulers wished to secure.
• Rulers sought legitimation from the Sufis, who were believed to derive their authority directly from God. This is why kings often wanted their tombs built near Sufi shrines.
• However, there were also instances of conflict, as both Sultans and Sufis expected rituals of respect like prostration to be performed.

New Devotional Paths: Dialogue and Dissent in Northern India

Many poet-saints of this era engaged in dialogue with the new social and religious ideas around them.

Weaving a divine fabric: Kabir

Kabir (c. fourteenth-fifteenth centuries) is one of the most outstanding poet-saints of this period. Reconstructing his life is challenging, but his teachings have been preserved in three distinct traditions:

1. The Kabir Bijak, preserved by the Kabirpanth in Uttar Pradesh.
2. The Kabir Granthavali, associated with the Dadupanth in Rajasthan.
3. Many of his compositions are also found in the Adi Granth Sahib.

Kabir's Teachings:

• He described the Ultimate Reality using a wide range of terms from different traditions: from Islam (Allah, Khuda, Hazrat, Pir) and from Vedantic traditions (alakh, nirakar, Brahman, Atman).
• His poems often attack polytheism and idol worship using Islamic ideas of monotheism, while also using the Sufi concept of divine love (ishq).
• He composed in a special language of nirguna poets called sant bhasha and also used ulatbansi (upside-down sayings) to express mystical experiences that are hard to capture in words.
• Later hagiographies debate whether he was born a Hindu or a Muslim, reflecting his legacy as a figure who transcended religious boundaries.

Baba Guru Nanak and the Sacred Word

Baba Guru Nanak (1469-1539) was born into a Hindu merchant family in Punjab. He spent most of his time among Sufis and bhaktas and travelled widely.

Teachings of Baba Guru Nanak:

• He advocated a form of nirguna bhakti, believing that the Absolute or "rab" had no gender or form.
• He rejected external religious practices like sacrifices, ritual baths, image worship, and the scriptures of both Hindus and Muslims.
• He proposed a simple way to connect to the Divine: remembering and repeating the Divine Name.
• He expressed his ideas through hymns called "shabad," which he would sing in various ragas.

He organized his followers into a community and established rules for congregational worship (sangat). After his death, his followers consolidated their practices.

• The fifth preceptor, Guru Arjan, compiled the hymns of Baba Guru Nanak and his successors, along with those of poets like Kabir and Baba Farid, into the Adi Granth Sahib.
• The tenth preceptor, Guru Gobind Singh, founded the Khalsa Panth (army of the pure) and defined its five symbols, consolidating the community as a socio-religious and military force.

Mirabai, the devotee princess

Mirabai (c. fifteenth-sixteenth centuries) is perhaps the best-known woman poet in the bhakti tradition.

• She was a Rajput princess from Merta who was married into the Sisodia clan of Mewar.
• She defied the traditional role of a wife and mother, recognizing Krishna as her lover.
• She escaped her in-laws, who tried to poison her, and lived as a wandering saint, composing intensely emotional songs (bhajans).
• Some traditions say her preceptor was Raidas, a leather worker, which would indicate her defiance of caste norms.
• Her songs continue to be sung today, especially by poor and "low caste" communities in Gujarat and Rajasthan, making her a lasting source of inspiration.

Reconstructing Histories of Religious Traditions

Historians use a variety of sources to reconstruct the history of these religious traditions, including sculpture, architecture, and a wide range of texts written in different languages and styles.

For Sufi traditions, specific types of texts are particularly important:

1. Treatises: Manuals on Sufi thought and practice, like the Kashf-ul-Mahjub.
2. Malfuzat: Conversations of Sufi saints, such as the Fawa'id-al-Fu'ad, which recorded the conversations of Shaikh Nizamuddin Auliya.
3. Maktubat: Collections of letters written by Sufi masters to their disciples.
4. Tazkiras: Biographical accounts of saints.