A Brief account of the Surya (Sun) worship in India

The sun was worshipped as Ra by the ancient Egyptians, as Helios by ancient Greeks and as Mithra by the ancient Persians. In India the Sun god was known by various names like Surya, Aditya, Savitr, Bhaskara, Arka, Ravi, Prabhakara, Martanda, Bhanu, Divakara, etc. The Sun god was worshipped as a giver of life and heat, creator of night and day and the god of vegetation and fertility.

In the Vedic texts, the sun god Surya is looked upon as one of the greatest deities delivering man from trouble and dishonour, guilt and disease and in the Rigveda there are at least ten hymns invoking the Sun god. The Gayatri mantra addressed to Savitr, another name for the Sun god, is found in the third mandala of the Rigveda and composed by a rishi belonging to the Vishwamitra family.

Originally the Sun god was worshipped by chanting Vedic hymns and he was represented in symbolic forms like the wheel, swastika, gold-disc, lotus, etc. In due course when images were carved for him, he was worshipped by the offerings of flowers, Arghya (water libation), scents and other articles. Probably by the end of Mauryan age, the sun image came into existence and the worship of the image of sun god started.

According to Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya, with the rise of Vaishnavism, the sun god gradually began to lose much of his importance as Vishnu, originally a solar deity absorbed in himself much of the elements that had been attributed to Surya. However the arrival of the Magas and their introduction of sun worship in the form of Mithra, led to the revival of the sun cult during the 1^st century A.D.,especially in the north-western parts of India.

Indigenous and foreign sun cult

The earliest reference to the Saura sect (as the followers of the sun god were known) is to be found in the accounts of the classical writers who refer to the Indians as worshipping Soroadeios or the Suryadeva. Philostratos states that there was a temple of the sun at Taxila during the time of Alexander’s invasion. Varahamihira instructs that installation and consecration of the images and temples of the Sun should be made by the Magas who are regarded by the Indians as the Brahmanas or the priestly class of the Shaka community. This leads us naturally to the question – had the Shakas or the Scythians to do anything with the system of the solar cult prevalent in the western Punjab in the 4^th century B.C. because it is generally believed that the Shakas came and settled in India in the 1^st century B.C. According to V.C.Srivastava the first batch of the Magas may had entered India in the 5^th century B.C. in the wake of the Achaemenid invasion. According to J.Przyluski a branch of the Shakas probably had entered India and settled in western Punjab as early as the 5^th century B.C. and hence we find the presence of the Magian solar symbol on the coins of the Indo-Greek kings who ruled before the coming of the Shakas in India. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya opines that the arrival of the Shakas into India during the 1^st century B.C. was a second wave of immigration.

Hence in the pre Christian epoch there were two distinct Saura sects, one Indian having the Vedic deity Surya as its supreme god and the other foreign with its own Sun god, Mithra wearing the characteristically foreign dress. The Mithra form of sun worship was introduced into India by the Magians (priestly class of the Shakas) who came to India and the foreign sect was mainly confined to the western Punjab region. The Shakas had imbibed strong Iranian elements in their culture before they entered into India.

Worship of sun god in image form

The earliest representation of sun god in human form is found on a pottery piece of the Mauryan period from Patna in which the deity is standing with Aruna on a four horse chariot. A Shunga terracotta from Chandraketugarh shows the deity flanked by two females and riding on a toy cart drawn by four horses. Similar images of the sun god are also found at Bodh Gaya, Bhaja, and Anantagumpha cave in Khandagiri hill in Odisha. They may be regarded as precursors of the sun images of the first period (from 2^nd - 1^st century B.C. to 2^nd century A.D.) when there is absence of Iranian features in the sun icon.

From about the 1^st or the 2^nd century A.D., the Magian sun priests began to settle down in large numbers in different parts of north India and due to their increasing influence, some distinctly foreign traits came to be associated with the north Indian sun image. Of these were the practices of covering the legs of the images up to the knees with leggings or top-boots and encircling the waist of the images with the ‘Avyanga’, an adoption of the Iranian sacred thread ‘Aiwyaongana’. Many images from the Gandhara and Mathura regions of the Kushana and the post Kushana period demonstrate these features, which was a blending of the Hellenistic, Indian and Iranian traditions.

However south Indian images excluded the above foreign features. Here the legs and feet of Surya images are always left bare and not covered with leggings. Instead of the long coat of northern India, we find an udarbandha in them. The Anshumadbedaagama emphasizes the fact that the garments of the sun god should be red in colour and he should stand on a lotus pedestal (Padmapitha) and encircled with halo (Prabhamandala).

Adityas and Navagrahas

The Adityas and Navagrahas are worshipped as component parts of the solar religion.

Adityas, the solar divinities

In the Rigveda, Surya, Savitr, Pusan, Vishnu, Mitra, Varuna and other gods are jointly invoked under the name of Adityas and called the sons of Aditi. Their number which was around six and seven was increased to twelve during the time of epics and Puranas by including other gods like Dhatr, Bhaga, Aryaman, Rudra, Vivasvat and Tvastr. Regarding the origin of Adityas it has been narrated that the gods called Tusitas of the Chakshusha Manvantara came to be known as Adityas in the Vaivasvata Manvantara. These twelve divinities were identified with the months of the solar year and were invoked for happiness, riches, food and descendants.

The Navagrahas

The tradition of worshipping Surya in association with Navagrahas was a later development as rules for the performance of the grahayaga are laid down in the Puranas. Probably this development may have taken place when by around 12^th century A.D., Surya lost his importance as a deity and was reduced to the position of a planet (Graha). Navagrahas were worshipped to avoid inauspicious happenings in religious performances and grahayaga performed for peace, prosperity and a long life. The figures of Navagrahas namely- Surya, Soma (Moon), Mangala (Mars), Budha (Mercury), Brhaspati (Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Shani (Saturn), Rahu and Ketu are usually found in a panel on a door frame of the shrine, on the entrance doorway and sometimes on the torana of a Surya temple. Slabs carved with Navagrahas were also used for regular Navagraha worship. In south India we can find Navagrahas with images of the sun and other planets engraved on stone slabs installed within the enclosed verandah round the central shrine of a temple. The sun stands in the centre and the others are fixed round him. The only temple thus far known to be dedicated to the sun and its attendant planets exclusively is the one at Suriyanar Koyil in the Tanjore district in Tamilnadu.

Fusion of Vedic and Iranian traditions

Over a period of time the national (Vedic) and Iranian tradition of sun worship were merged together. This is best illustrated by the story of Samba as represented in the later Puranas. The Varaha Purana, the Bhavishya Purana and the Samba Purana tells us that Samba (Sri Krishna’s son) who after being afflicted with leprosy, recovered through the grace of the sun worshipped in the Shakadvipa (eastern Iran). It further states that Samba, constructed a big temple on the banks of river Chandrabhaga at Mulasthana (Multan). As the Indian priests refused to officiate there consequently Samba imported the Magas from the Shakadvipa and they did the necessary worship. This fusion of the two solar sects is marked in the famous Aditya hrudayam hymn occurring in the Bhavishya Purana which is studied with respect by all sun worshippers of the present day.

(The sun temple at Multan was visited by Hiuen Tsang in the 7^th century A.D. and during that time it was a great centre of Sun worship. He writes that the image of the Sun god was cast in yellow gold and ornamented with rare gems. When the Arabs conquered Multan, they broke the idol into pieces and killed its priests. Hence when Alberuni visited the temple, he found the image of the Sun god made of wood and covered with leather ).

Sauras, the followers of the sun cult

The Mahabharata for the first time refers to the sect of sun worshippers who are called as Sauras. Anandagiri in his work Shankaravijaya, says that Sri Shankarcharya came into contact with the followers of the Saura sect at a place Subrahmanya in south India. They wore a circular spot of red sandal on their forehead and bore red flowers. They considered the sun as the Supreme Soul and the author of the world. There were six divisions among the Sauras. The first group worshipped the rising sun, the second, the mid-day sun, the third, the setting sun. The fourth venerated all these aspects of the sun while the fifth used to vow that they would not eat anything until they see the orb of the sun and offer worship to it. The devotees of the sixth class used to imprint the orb of the sun on their forehead, arms and chest with a heated iron piece and used to meditate on the sun continuously.

The sacred day for the sun worshippers was Sunday and the popular festival of the sun god was Rathayatra, wherein the image of the sun god seated on a chariot was taken in a procession. The Bhavishya Purana mentions about 42 different types of vratas performed by the followers of the sun god.

Growing popularity of the sun worship

The popularity of the sun cult during the rule of the Indo Greeks, Shakas and the Kushanas can be gauged by the large number of coins having the figures of the sun god issued by these rulers. The Mandasore inscription of Kumara Gupta mentions that the silk weavers guild built a sun temple at Dasapura. These silk weavers had migrated from Lata in Gujarat which shows that the Magian sun cult which was prevalent in western India in the Scytho-Kushana age had extended into the Madhya Bharat region by the time of the Guptas. The Shakas who introduced the Iranian sun cult in eastern India had been thoroughly Indianized by the time of the Guptas and their cult found a place in the Hindu religion.

From 6^th century A.D. onwards we have evidence of many kings in Saurashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan being devote worshippers of the sun god. So also rulers like the Vardhanas, Chauhans, Paramaras, Gurjara Pratiharas, Kalachuris and Eastern Gangas were followers of the sun cult. The Maliya copper plate inscription (571 – 72 A.D.) informs us that Maharaja Dharapatta of the Maitraka dynasty was a Paramadityabhakta. The rulers of Vardhana dynasty of Thaneshwar like Prabhakaravardhana, Adityavardhana and Rajyavardhana were followers of the sun-cult. The Sonepat copper seal inscription refers to them as Paramadityabhaktas. Poet Mayura Bhatta, a contemporary of king Harshavardhana wrote, Suryashataka praising the sun as the supreme god. The Pratihara kings, Ramabhadra and Vinayakapala are also described in many inscriptions as Paramadityabhakta.

The fact that Surya was one of the deities (others being Shiva, Vishnu, Devi and Ganesha) in the Panchayatana puja instituted by Sri Shankaracharya and also one among the six gods (Shiva, Vishnu, Ganesha, Kumara and Devi) popularized by Sri Shankaracharya for the collective worship by Hindus shows the popularity of the sun cult during the time of Sri Shankaracharya (8^th century A.D.)

Magadha (south Bihar) was one of the favorite place of the descendants of the ancient Magas and the importance of Magadha in the history of solar cult is very much evident from the astounding abundance of sun temples and images scattered profusely all over this region though now in a dilapidated condition. Most of the sun images and temples of this area were built during the Pala-Sena period (730 A.D. - 1197 A.D.) The rulers of these dynasties were worshippers of the sun god and kings like Vishvarupasena and Keshavasena of the Sena dynasty are referred to as Parama Saura. Even to this day worship of sun god is still strong in this region with the festival of Chhath celebrated with fervour and devotion. Thus during the period 700 A.D. to 1300 A.D., the sun cult was one of the most important cults in northern India.

Famous sun temples

About 141 sun temples in India have been listed by Lalta Prasad Pandey. Some of the famous extant sun temples in India are at Martanda in Kashmir erected by Lalitaditya in about the middle of 8^th century A.D., at Modhera in Gujarat dated 11^th century A.D. and at Konark in Odisha dated 13^th century A.D. by the Eastern Ganga ruler Narasimha I.

Apart from seperate temples dedicated to Surya, he was also included in the Hindu Panchayatana system. Panchayatana is the worship of five gods, Vishnu, Shiva, Surya, Ganesha and Devi in one single temple complex with one of the gods having a shrine in the centre and others in the subsidiary quarters. In the Surya Panchayatana, small temples dedicated to Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha and Devi are erected in the subsidiary quarters, with Surya temple in the centre.

After 13^th century A.D., the worship of Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti became popular, Surya lost his importance as a deity and was reduced to the position of a planet (Graha). The Shaivas particularly the Pashupatas were opposed to the solar cult and checked their progress. While some sun temples were destroyed, others were either deserted or converted into the abode of other gods. However sun worship continues even today both at the mass and class level. While at the mass (folk) level it takes place in the festival called Chhath (celebrated in great fervour especially in parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, six days after the festival of Deepavali), at the class level it takes place in the form of recitation of Gayatri mantra, daily by members of the Brahmin community.

Reference

• V.C.Srivastava – The Puranic Records on the Sun Worship, Purana, vol – XI, No.2, July 1969

• V.C.Srivastava – Sun Worship in Ancient India, Indological Publications, Allahabad, 1972

• Lalta Prasad Pandey – Sun Worship in Ancient India, Motilal Banarsidass, 1971

• R.S.Gupte – Iconography of the Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, D.B.Taraporevala Sons & Co. Pvt Ltd, Bombay, 1972

• H.Krishna Sastri - South Indian Images of Gods and Goddesses, Madras, Government Press, 1916

• Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya – Theistic Sects in Ancient India, Progressive Publishers, Calcutta, 1962

• K.S.Singh – Solar Traditions in Tribal and Folk cultures of India, India International Centre Quarterly, vol – 19, No. 4, 1992

• Amar Jiva Lochan – Ancient Sun temples in Gaya region: with special reference to some rare and unrecorded images of sun god, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, vol – 42, 1981

• J.N.Banerjea – Pauranic and Tantric religion, University of Calcutta, 1966

• J.N.Farquhar – An Outline of the Religious Literature of India, Oxford University Press, 1920

• Dilip Kumar Biswas – The Origin and Antiquity of the Surya image in India, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, vol – 16, 1953

Coins and currency in Ancient India

The exchange of commodities on the principle of barter seems to have been in vogue from very early times. The difficulties of barter gave rise to some common measure of value. Though cows were recognized as a unit of value for the purposes of exchanges in Vedic days, there were probably other recognized units of value such as a piece of gold known as Nishka.

Did coins exist during the Vedic age?

Nishka and Hiranyapinda perhaps were two types of metallic money prevalent in the Vedic times. But it is difficult to ascertain their exact nature and significance because they have never been mentioned in the Vedic literature in the context of commercial exchange. Later Vedic Samhitas and the Brahmanas refer to Shatamana, Pada and Suvarna. But none of these coins have been referred to in the commercial context and appear only as a sacrificial fee or gift or reward for religious, social and academic accomplishments. These metal pieces having conventional size, shape, substance, value and weight had a sort of socio-economic significance as they were the gifts from the kings and people gradually began to place confidence in their intrinsic value. It appears that some donees who had received these gold pieces, getting into financial difficulties, sold them to other people and thus put them into circulation. Gradually in the post-Vedic period some of these forms of metallic money like Niksha and Suvarna became the popular medium of exchange. Thus in the Jatakas, Nishka, Masaka and Suvarna are mentioned in the commercial contexts. Panini refers to some coins like Nishka, Suvarna, Masaka, Shatamana, etc. It clearly shows that the people had gradually begun to adopt gold and silver money as medium of exchange for highly priced commodities. Along with them copper pieces also found a place as money for ordinary commercial exchanges.

But S.R.Goyal is critical of those scholars who have tried to prove the existence of a gold currency in India in the early Vedic period (D.R.Bhandarkar) or the later Vedic period (A.S.Altekar). He argues that in this whole period our economy mainly depended on agriculture and local trade and did not need a gold currency. According to him archaeologically the oldest gold coins of India issued by indigenous rulers are those of the imperial Guptas, excluding a few rare Punched Mark Coins. Before the Guptas the Kushanas issued copious gold coinage. Earlier two Indo-Greek rulers Eucratides I and Menander are known to have issued gold coins but there is no evidence to show that they were meant for circulation in their Indian territories. According to Herodotus, the Indian Satrapy paid to the Achaemenids a tribute in gold dust (not in coins) and the king of Taxila paid Alexander ‘coined silver’ and not ‘coined gold’. All these facts indicate the absence of gold currency in India in any period before the age of Kushans.

Earliest Coins of India

The Punched Mark Coins (PMC) are the earliest coins of India and the emergence of these coins is linked up with the origin of coinage of India. These coins were known as Purana, Dharana or Raupyakarshapana in ancient India. These coins which are largely in silver with a few in copper as well were found in various shapes, sizes and weights. The transition from metallic pieces of definite weight to coins took place only shortly before 500 B.C. and literary evidence also does not prove the existence of silver currency in the pre-Panini and pre-Tripitaka period. These coins were in vogue when writing was not current in India or was rarely used. Therefore the PMC are not inscribed; instead they have a predetermined number of symbols punched on them. The different symbols on these coins were stamped by means of separate punches and not by a single die by the issuing authority. It is suggested that the four or five symbols on the PMC represented the name of the state, the ruling king, place of the mint, religion patronized by the state and the mint-master. The PMCs were in use in northern India till the beginning to the Christian era and might have remained in circulation till the time of the Kushanas. In southern India, the circulation of PMCs continued for 300 years more.

Was Indian coins influenced by Greeks?

Princep (who later modified his view), Wilson and C.W.King believed that Hindus derived their knowledge of coinage from the Bactrian Greeks. So also John Allan, V.A.Smith and Michael Mitchine put forward the foreign origin of Indian coins. But Indian scholars like Durga Prasad, D.R.Bhandarkar, S.K.Chakraborty, P.L.Gupta, etc., have put forward the indigenious origin of Indian coinage. Alexander Cunningham believed that the silver PMC, mainly the common square Karshapana coins found all over the country, was essentially original as it differed from the Greek and from all other systems, in its unit of weight, as well as its scale of multiples.

Indian coins existed prior to Alexander’s invasion

In his work Life of Alexander, Quintus Curtius tells us that among the presents given by the king of Taxila to Alexander were included 200 talents of Signati argenti. This refers to coined silver money and not silver bullion. Further the larger Bhir Mound hoard of PMC discovered in Taxila in 1924 belonging to the 3^rd or the 4^th century B.C. definitely proves that the silver PMC were in circulation in India at least a couple of centuries earlier to Alexander’s invasion.

According to P.L.Gupta, PMC can be classified into coins of local series and coins of imperial series; the former being older than the latter. The local series represents the coinage of the Janapadas and belonged to the period before the rise of Magadha Empire and originated in 7^th or 8^th century B.C., and the coins of the imperial series originated with the rise of Magadha Empire in the 6^th century B.C. Silver currency was quite well established in society earlier than the time of Buddha, he adds.

Issuers of these coins

While some scholars are of the view that the PMCs were issued by guilds and silversmiths with the permission of the ruling authority other scholars opine that they were issued by a central authority that guaranteed the genuineness of the metal and the correctness of the weight. According to D.C.Sircar not all PMC were issued by the State and some of them were certainly issued by guilds and silversmiths and such coins were in circulation side by side with those issued by the States. It appears that all or most of the sixteen Mahajanapadas and probably a few smaller states also issued their own coins and their mints were situated in their capital cities like Kosala, Kashi, etc.

Metals for fabricating coins imported from abroad

Extensive mines of neither gold, nor silver nor copper existed in ancient India and the country had to import considerable quantities of these metals to meet her numismatic and household needs. The indigenous supply of gold was from the mines in Assam, Hyderabad, Mysore and Malbar and from the river washes in the beds of the Indus, the Ganges and the Brahmaputra. But they were inconsiderable and the country had to rely to a great extent on foreign imports. India proper contained no mines of silver. Some of them existed in Burma and Afghanistan, but the country had to rely upon the imports from western Asia for her usual requirements. Some copper mines existed and were worked in Rajputana and Madras presidency, but they did not supply all the quantity of the metal required by the country. The Periplus of the Erythrean Sea mentions that gold and silver bullion were articles of import in most ports of western India.

Rate of exchange between gold and silver coins

Through the references in the ancient Hindu law books and the Nasik Cave Inscription No.12, it appears that the rate of exchange of gold and silver coins was maintained within two limits, namely 1:30 and 1:48. According to the law books compiled in different dates 16 to 20 copper Panas are equal to one silver Pana and that 16 silver Panas can be exchanged for a gold Nishka. The rate of exchange between the copper Pana and gold Mashaka is given as 48:1. The ratio of gold to silver under the Kushanas was 1:10.

Methods of fabricating the coins

On the basis of literary sources and the available specimens of PMC, we can find three modes of fabricating these coins.

• The most common method was to beat the metal into flat sheets of necessary thickness of the coins and then cut into pieces of desired weight and size.

• The second method was to take the metal equal in weight to that of an individual coin and to melt it separately and then pour it out on the earth or wooden board to cool and take its own irregular shape.

• The third method was to fabricate coins by dropping the molten metal in required quantity from a spoon in stirred water to take a round shape which was later given a flattened shape with a hammer.

Sometimes in the 3^rd century B.C., a new technique of manufacturing coins was introduced in this country. It was the technique of casting coins from moulds. Instead of punching several symbols by separate dies, a single model was prepared, where all the symbols were put together, and then from that model moulds were made into which molten metal was poured to cast the coins. It made the task of the issuing authority easier and saved a lot of time and labour and gave a uniform look to the coins made from a particular mould.

Mauryas

During the rule of the Mauryas, silver coins called Panas and copper coins called Mashaka were used extensively as a medium of exchange and as legal tender. As Kautilya has not mentioned the name of gold coins, Parmeshwari Lal Gupta opines that during the times of Mauryas gold coins were not in currency and they were not minted. Minting of coins was a prerogative of the ruler and it was the duty of the Superintendent of Mint known as Lakshanadhyaksha to manufacture silver and copper coins of various denominations. The silver coins were of four denominations namely Pana, Ardha Pana, Paada and Ashta bhaga. Panas were used for paying taxes, fines, pay and rewards. Copper coins were also of four denominations namely Mashaka, Ardha Mashaka, Kakani and Ardha Kanani. There was also an official called Rupadarshka whose duty was to examine the genuineness of coins. The state had appointed spies to detect private and unauthorized coining. It is not easy to say if all the imperial coins were issued from one central mint or there were several mints in various provincial headquarters of the empire. Apart from a central mint at Pataliputra, there were at least three others; one in central India (Ujjain), the other in the region of Takshashila and the third somewhere in Kalinga or Andhra.

According to R.S.Sharma, the Mauryas played an important part in spreading the use of PMC beyond the middle gangetic areas. The PMC found in excavations in Orissa, Andhra, the Deccan and western India belong to a date later than 300 B.C. The Mauryas can therefore be reasonably credited with the extension of their use throughout the length and breadth of their empire. They prepared the ground for the rise of the monetary economy in the Deccan where crafts and commerce flourished under the Shathavahanas.

The fall of the Mauryan empire in the 2^nd century B.C. led to the rise of a number of principalities bringing decentralization in politics as well as trade and currency. The north-western region of the Uttarapatha was under the control of Indo-Greek rulers. Probably to create a crisis in the native currency system they stopped the supply of silver from the Bactrian region. This crisis in the availability of silver led to the descendants of Ashoka and post-Mauryan governments to issue copper PMC.

Coins issued by foreigner rulers of India

From 2^nd century B.C. onwards foreign coins in large numbers were issued by Bactrian Greeks, Parthians, Shakas and Kushanas. Silver was abundantly used for coining standard money by all Greek kings of Bactria and India. Copper was the popular metal for minor coins. Gold was used sparingly by Diodotus, Euthydemus I and Eucratides I. Menander’s queen Agathocleia alone struck some coins in gold. The weight of gold coins called Staters was 132 grains and that of silver coins called Drachm was 66 grains. Deities of Greek gods and animals were usually found on these coins. Demetrios was the first Bactrian king to strike square copper coins with a legend in Greek on the obverse and in Kharoshthian on the reverse. His rival Eukratides struck these bilingual square copper pieces in greater abundance and also a few silver coins. His coins have the figure of a seated Zeus, the sky god. Other Bactrian Greek rulers like Menander and Apollodotus also issued coins. The Shaka rulers also issued coins of which that of Azes I and Azilises are found in large numbers. Apart from Greek gods for the first time an Indian goddess Lakshmi was introduced. The Shakas also used Greek on the obverse and Kharoshthian on the reverse.

Coins under the Kushanas

The Kushanas minted coins in gold and copper only. The gold coin of 124 grains was the standard coin of the Kushana empire but it was most probably confined to the territories of the Kushanas and their subordinate rulers. In other parts of India, copper alone or linked with silver served the purpose of currency.

During the pre-Kushana period it was the silver and copper currency which played an important part in the economic life of India. Hence the reason for the Kushanas to issue gold coins according to Balaram Srivastava was because in the Kushana kingdom’s imports from Rome exceeded the export list of goods. Therefore the traders might have requested the Kushana emperors to issue gold coins for commercial transactions. R.S.Sharma is of the opinion that the Kushanas, who had maintained close contacts with the Roman Empire from where they obtained gold as a result of the trade through the silk route which passed through their territory, converted the Roman gold coins into their own gold coins.

The Kushanas issued a good number of copper coins which evidently presupposes the penetration of the money economy into towns and possibly into rural areas.

Guptas

The Gupta coins constitute the earliest indigenous coinage of India which are regular in size and weight and bear the figure and name of the issuer. Gupta coinage was considerably influenced by the Kushana proto type. The traditional weight of the ancient Indian gold coins (Suvarna) was 80 rattis or about 144 grains. Chandragupta I who started the Gupta coinage did not care to revive this ancient standard but followed the Kushana standard of 120 or 121 grains which in turn was based upon the weight of the Roman gold coins aureus, normally weighing 121 grains. Majority of Samudragupta coins also follow the same standard. But very soon the coins issued by the Guptas became thoroughly national in their art, motif and execution. Chandragupta II issued extensive gold coins apart from copper and silver coins. The silver coins issued by him were a close copy of the Kshatrapa prototype. The silver coins were intended for the newly created western provinces (Malwa, Gujarat and Kathiwar) which earlier under the Kshatrapa rulers were accustomed to silver currency only. Kumaragupta I issued 14 types of gold coins with motifs of Kartikeya, lion slayers and also silver coins free from the Kshatrapa influence. Skandagupta issued his Archer type coin weighing 144 grains, his horseman coin weighed 140 grains. The earlier view that his gold coins are heavily adulterated is now shown to be wrong. It may be noted that the coins of the Gupta tend to increase with each successive reign.

With regards to the abundance of gold coins under the Guptas who issued far more gold coins than their predecessors, R.S.Sharma says that it is likely the Guptas obtained their gold from the eastern part of the Roman Empire through trade and also from China and south-east Asia. It could also be due to the proper working of gold mines in Bihar, says Sachindra Kumar Maity.

In post-Gupta period there is complete absence of gold coins for four centuries and the paucity of coins in general in north India. In the 11^th century it was restarted by the Chedi ruler Gangeyadeva and subsequently continued by the Chandellas, the Gahadwalas and some other dynasties. However, gold coins of that period weighed about 60 grains and were known as Suvarna-Drammas. Half and one-fourth Drammas were also issued. The silver coins were termed variously as Purana, Dharana or Karshapana and weighed 32 rattis or about 57 grains. The copper coins called Panas weighed 144 grains.

Coins of south India

In the south Indian currency systems, gold and copper predominate, while silver currency is practically absent except for the early PMCs from the 2^nd century B.C. to 3^rd century A.D. and occasionally silver mintage in the late medieval period. Coins of gold and silver were perhaps used as a reserve or in major transactions whereas for daily transactions of a minor nature coinage of base metals like lead, potin and copper was in vogue. With regards to the technique of minting coins, the punch system continued throughout the currency history of south India to be replaced by the die striking technique of Vijayanagara in the late 14^th -15^th century A.D. The weight of the coinage was based on a seed called Kalanju weighing 52 grains.

The gold coins were known by different names like Gadyana, Kalanju, Varaha, Pon/Hun and Pratapa. The gold coins were of two types -Pon/Hun, Varaha or Pagoda weighed 50-60 grains and Fanam weighed 5-6 grains. Gadyana weighed a little more than Kalanju and ranged from 61.75 and 63 grains.

The earliest dynasty of the south, the Shatavahans issued coins of lead or a peculiar alloy of copper. The silver coins issued by Gautamiputra Satakarni were the restrucked coins of Nahapana whom he had defeated. Coins of various dynasties which ruled over south India are known only from information gleaned from literary sources. We have not come across coins issued by the Chalukyas of Badami while the coins of the Rashtrakutas are known only from epigraphs which speak of dramma, suvarna, kasu, gadyanaka, etc. The Seunas issued Padmatankas, with an eight petalled lotus in the centre. The Kadambas of Hanagal also issued Padmatankas. The imperial Cholas issued gold, silver and copper coins. While gold and copper were more predominant in the early reigns, copper became the chief metal for currency in the later Chola period. The Chola coins bear their emblem, the tiger. Allmost all Vijayanagara rulers issued coins in gold and copper in large numbers and their coins bear the motif of various deities. The silver coins issued by them are known as Tar which was 1/6^th of Panam. The copper coin was known as Kasu.

Roman coins in circulation

In the early centuries of Christian era we find Roman gold coins in circulation in south India. The reason for this according to Warmington was because the Romans introduced their own coinage of gold and silver to facilitate their foreign trade as there was a dearth of commercial coinage as the Tamilian coins were of base metals. R.Vanaja is of the view that the well organized merchant associations who minted coins with the permission of the State probably imported these Roman coins for their commercial transactions both internal and external as high value currencies. Differing on the above views, Balaram Srivastava says that the Tamilians accepted Roman gold and silver coins from traders only as bullion as the ruling princes of the Chola and Pandya dynasties disapproved the use of Roman coins as currency. As minting at that time was under state control, the government took serious note of all attempts of Roman traders to circulate their coins in Indian markets as detrimental to the national economy. To ward off such attempts they even resorted to the mutilation of Roman coins.

Numerous hoards of Chinese copper coins and Arab dinars were discovered in the Chola region which probably were circulated in the early and late medieval period. Similarly in the Vijayanagara empire currencies of foreign countries were in circulation particularly in places where the foreign merchants had settled.

Reference

• C.J.Brown – Coins of India, 1922

• Sachindra Kumar Maity – Economic Life in Northern India (In the Gupta Period), Motilal Banarsidass, 1970

• R.Vanaja – South Indian Coins, H.M.Nayak, B.R.Gopal Edited: South Indian Studies, T.V.Mahalingam Commemorative Volume, Geetha Book House, Mysore.

• E.J.Rapson – Sources of Indian History : Coins

• Bhagwan Sahai Mudgal – Political Economy in Ancient India, Kishore Publishing House, Kanpur, 1960

• Pran Nath – A Study in the Economic condition of Ancient India, 1929

• Shailendra Mohan Jha – Problems of the study of Punch-Marked Coins, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, vol-50, 1989

• R.S.Sharma – Coins and Problems of Early Indian Economic History, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, vol-30, 1968

• Shankar Goyal – Historiography of the Punch Marked Coins, ABORI, vol-81, No.1/4, 2000

• Shankar Goyal – The Origin and antiquity of coinage in India, ABORI, vol-8o, No.1/4, 1999

• Upendra Thakur – Early Indian Mints, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, vol.16, No.2/3, December 1973

• D.C.Sircar – The issue of Punch Marked Coins, The Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, vol-23 (Golden Jubilee Volume), 1961

• A.S.Altekar – The relative prices of metals and coins in Ancient India, The Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, vol-ii, 1940

• A.S.Altekar- The Coinage of the Gupta Empire, Numismatic Society of India, 1957

• Balram Srivastava – Trade and Commerce in Ancient India (from the earliest times to A.D.300), The Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series office, Varanasi, 1968

• Parmeshwari Lal Gupta – Numismatic data in the Arthasastra of Kautalya, Altekar Felicitation Volume, The Journal of the Numismatic Society of India, vol-22, 1960

• Satya Prakash and Rajendra Singh – Coinage in Ancient India, New Delhi, 1968

Genesis and Growth of the Vaishnava cult

Vaishnavism is one of the oldest religions of India and it is a monotheistic system which upholds Vishnu as the ultimate Reality (para tattva). It believes that the exclusive and devoted worship of Vishnu leads to the realization of the highest spiritual goal and for this purpose, it has laid down an ethical and religious discipline.¹

The Vaishnava religion was also known by different names like Suri, Suhrit, Bhagavata, Sattvata, Panchakalavit, Ekantika, Tanmaya and Pancharatrika.² The word Vaishnava is used in the literal sense of ‘belonging to Vishnu’ in the Vajasaneyi Samhita, Taittiriya Samhita, Aitareya Brahmana, Shatapatha Brahmana, etc. But the use of the word in the sense of a sect of religion is not found anywhere in the earlier literature. Even the Bhagavad Gita does not use the word and it is not found in any of the earlier Upanishads and can be traced only in the later parts of the Mahabharata.³

Vaishnavism is the name given to the bhakti religion which recognises Vishnu also called Bhagavat, Narayana, Hari as the sole God.⁴ Vaishnavism has a philosophy and religion of its own. As a philosophy it bases itself upon the Upanishads and as a religion it reaches its roots into the Tantra. Its religious ritual therefore is of the Agamic or tantric character in general.⁵ According to R.C.Hazra the term Vaishnavism is very comprehensive in its denotation and the modern Vaishnavas consists generally of the Pancharatras and the Bhagavatas. These two sections, though originally different, are designated by the generic term Vaishnava on account of the identification of their respective sectarian deities with Vishnu.⁶

Causes for the rise of Vaishnavism

The elaborate and mechanical system of sacrifice offered to gods by the Vedic religion did not satisfy the religious spirit of all sections of the people. This led to religious speculations of a different type and thinkers like the author of the Mundaka Upanishad began to question the value and efficacy of sacrifice. It also gave rise to religious sects like Buddhism, Jainism and Vasudevism.⁷

Genesis of the concept of Bhakti

According to Akshaya Kumar Banerjea, the seeds of bhakti can be found in the Vedic religion which was interpreted from different viewpoints like Karma, Jnana and bhakti.

Those who interpreted the Vedas from the Karma point of view laid special emphasis upon the practical aspect of the teachings of the Vedas and held that all the Vedic revelations were chiefly concerned with the regulation of the practical behaviour of men in the path of righteousness (dharma). According to this school every Vedic instruction enjoins upon men either to do something right or to refrain from doing something wrong. This school was not interested in moksha and for them moksha meant the perfect fullness of life in the highest swarga. This school advocated the karma kanda of the Vedas.⁸

Those who interpreted the Vedas from the Jnana point of view attached the utmost importance to the metaphysical and transcendental truths revealed in the Vedas (Upanishads). This school strongly advocated the ascetic view of life and renunciation of the active domestic and social life, suppression of passions and desires and attachments and systematic practice of concentrated reflection and meditation. This school gradually divided into two sections, one section attached greater importance to metaphysical reflection and intellectual refinement and the other to the practical discipline of the body, senses, the vital system, mind and regular practice of concentration and deep meditation. The former was known as Jnani and the latter Yogi. Both advocated the nivritti marga and the Jnana kanda of the Vedas. For them moksha was the ultimate goal.⁹

Those who interpreted the Vedas from the bhakti point of view, the supreme ideal of moksha and tattwa jnana (absolute liberation and truth realization) is a gift of Divine mercy and the highest reward for wholehearted devotion to the Supreme Spirit. According to them the teaching of devotion or bhakti was the centre of all Vedic revelation.¹⁰

Seeds of Bhakti in Upanishads

R.G.Bhandarkar thinks that the origin of the bhakti doctrine may be traced to the Upanishadic idea of upasana or fervent meditation, which magnifies what is meditated upon and represents it in a glorious form in order to excite admiration and love.¹¹

Bhakti, a pre-Vedic cult

Contradicting the claim of R.G.Bhandarkar, R.N.Dandekar feels that the learned scholar’s opinion is similar to the characteristics of the early Indology which has a tendency to trace all religious ideologies and the entire Indian culture back to the Vedas. According to Dandekar there is sufficient evidence to show that different religious sects prevailed in different regions of India prior to the Vedic cult of which the important were the Muni-Yati cult and the Bhakti cult.¹²

The Muni-Yati cult with its emphasis on Yoga-Tapas-Sanyasa was a characteristic feature of the pre-Vedic Shiva religion, while the the Bhakti cult was connected with the worship of the Mother-Goddess and the Naga and the Yaksa cult and its vegetal and fertility symbolism.¹³ According to Dandekar, the cult of bhakti which had become dormant on account of the influence of the Vedic religion became re-animated as the vitality of the Vedic religion began to diminish and emerged in the form of Vasudevism which became a dominant force during the time of Panini.¹⁴ The doctrine of Bhakti may be said to constitute perhaps the most significant feature of what we today understand by Vaishnavism.¹⁵

Vaishnavism, an amalgamation of different streams of thought

According to M. Hiriyanna, altogether three streams of thought combined to form Vaishnavism. The first is the worship of Vishnu who is represented in the Vedic mantras as one of the solar deities and as such is associated with light and life. There was also an allied conception, that of Narayana, whose origin may be traced in the Rigveda and referred in the epic as the son of Dharma. There is a third element also which goes to form Vaishnavism derived from a non-Vedic source. Krishna, a religious reformer who preached a theistic faith. It soon assumed a sectarian complexion in the form of Bhagavata religion. This monotheistic creed came in course of time to be combined with the Vedic cult of Vishnu-Narayana and Krishna was later deified and identified with Vishnu-Narayana as an incarnation of him.¹⁶

Similarly, Dandekar considers the classical Vaishnavism an amalgamation of four originally independent religious elements respectively embodied in the personalities of four divinities namely Vasudeva, Krishna, Vishnu and Narayana.¹⁷ According to him Vasudeva was different from Krishna and was a Vrsni prince who had come to be regarded as a god earlier than Krishna who was the religious leader of the Yadavas and who was the pupil of Ghora Angirasa. Later when the Vrsnis and the Yadavas who were related to each other came closer presumably for political reasons, the personalities of Vrsni Vasudeva and Yadava Krishna were merged into each other so as to give rise to the new supreme god Bhagavan Vasudeva Krishna.¹⁸

R.G.Bhandarkar also opines that Vasudeva and Krishna were originally names of distinct individuals. Vasudeva was a kshatriya belonging to the Yadava-Vrishni-Satvata race who founded a theistic system and later he was identified with Krishna, a holy seer. But H.C.Rayachaudhuri refutes this argument and says that on the basis of all available evidence, Hindu, Buddhist and Greek, it is impossible to justify the separation of Vasudeva and Krishna as two entities.¹⁹

D.C.Sircar opines that the success of Vasudevism (which later became Vaishnavism) was principally due to the identification of Vasudeva with the Vedic god Vishnu, with an ancient deified sage named Narayana, with a number of tribal deities as well as with Parabrahman (the Supreme Spirit) conceived by the Upanishads.²⁰

Emergence of Vishnu as the Supreme God

A Solar deity

In the Vedic hymns Vishnu is represented as a solar deity and his essential feature as depicted in the hymns is his taking three strides which in all probability refers to the rising, culmination and setting of the sun. It was this worship of the sun, “the swift moving luminary” that gradually transformed itself into the worship of Vishnu as the Supreme God.²¹ Vishnu also figures in the Veda as a leader in battle. He is specially praised with Indra, the two being looked upon as masters of the world. Vishnu is revered under the title ‘Shipivishta’ meaning ‘clothed with rays of light’.²² In the later Vedic literature, the position of Vishnu becomes more prominent. The Shatapatha Brahmana relates with great fullness of detail the legend regarding the ‘three strides’. It further represents Vishnu as the personification of sacrifice. Earlier he was called the ‘germ of sacrifice’.²³ In Aitareya Brahmana, Vishnu is said to occupy the highest place among gods. But at the same time in a passage of Aitareya Brahmana, he is called the door-keeper of the gods, not a very complimentary epithet for the highest among the gods.²⁴

Non-Vedic popular god of the masses

From being occupied in a comparatively subordinate position in the pantheon of Vedic gods, R.N.Dandekar analyses how Vishnu was able to rise more or less suddenly to supreme eminence in Hindu mythology.²⁵

In the view of Dandekar, Vishnu must have been regarded as a bird, at least among certain cultural groups among the Vedic people. In that form he was very closely connected with the vegetation ritual. He was indeed the god of fertility and productivity and as such he must have been regarded as most eminent in the popular religion of the masses. It was however on account of the aversion on the part of the Vedic priestly intellectuals and the conquering higher classes, for this popular fertility god and his uncouth, frivolous and to a certain extent obscene fertility rituals, that Vishnu was not easily admitted to the pantheon of the Vedic gods. The Vedic poets could not however completely ignore him. They therefore sought to transform the basic character of Vishnu. This attempt of theirs was greatly facilitated by the original bird-form of that god. The hieratic Vedic poets understood the bird-form of Vishnu as indicating not the fertility-God but the sun-God. They thus tried to suppress as far as possible the true nature of this god of the people. But those culture groups among whom Vishnu was a prominent god must have persisted in forcing him upon the official Vedic religion which was dominated by the Indra mythology.²⁶

Vishnu incorporated into Vedic pantheon

If religious dignity and recognition had to be specially granted to any particular god, it was the practice of the Vedic poets to do so by associating that god with Indra and his fight with Vrtra. That made the god a legitimate member of the Vedic pantheon. Hence several hymns were composed wherein Vishnu rendered help to Indra in his fight with Vrtra.²⁷ In post Vedic times when the popular religion again came into prominence, Vishnu became the supreme god.²⁸

According to H.C.Rayachoudhuri we have no evidence of the existence of a Vaishnava sect in these early times. The sectarian name Vaishnava is met only in the latest portion of the Mahabharata. Also, there is very little inner connection between Vedic and Brahmanic Vishnu worship and the bhakti religion we call Vaishnavism. The idea of a God of grace, the doctrine of bhakti- these are the fundamental tenets of the religion termed Vaishnavism. But they are not very conspicuous in Vedic and Brahmanic Vishnu worship. Vishnu in the Brahmanic texts is more intimately connected with yajna (sacrifice) than with bhakti or prasada.²⁹

Vishnu identified with Krishna

The exact period when Krishna as first identified with Vishnu cannot be ascertained. As Vishnu is one of the solar deities, it is not altogether improbable that he had from the first some connection with the religious movement associated with the name of Krishna who was himself a disciple of a priest of the sun. But there is no direct evidence to show that Vishnu occupied a prominent place in the early Bhagavata pantheon. Vishnu worship may have been a rival Brahmanical cult. There is a clear indication of the identification of Vasudeva with Vishnu found in Taittiriya Aranyaka.³⁰

The identification of Vasudeva-Krishna with the Vedic deity Vishnu was the first step in the evolution of Vaishnavism. This was accomplished by the time the Bhagavad Gita was composed and henceforth the Vasudeva cult or Bhagavata religion was known also as Vaishnava dharma. It has been suggested with great plausibility that this identification was prompted by a desire on the part of the Brahmanas to bring this new and powerful religious sect within the pale of orthodox Vedic faith.³¹

Why was Krishna identified with Vishnu and not with any other Vedic god? Probably as Vishnu was from the earliest Vedic times connected with a work of deliverance for mankind in distress. He is always lauded as a great benefactor of mankind and known for his benevolence. He is the unconquerable preserver who maintained Dharma. He is a great helper of the gods against the Asuras. He assumed forms of a dwarf in order to recover the earth for the gods from the Asuras. All these characteristics of Vishnu eminently fitted him to be the centre of the Avatara theory propounded in the Bhagavad Gita.³²

Evolution of Bhagavatism

In the Rigveda and Atharva Vedas, the word Bhagavat conveys the meaning of blissful and happy one. In several places of the Upanishads, the term Bhagavat is used to denote Lord Rudra-Shiva. In later works the term is used exclusively in connection with Vaishnavas though Patanjali once refers to the Shiva-Bhagavatas.³³ Though Vaishnavism as its name implies is the religion in which Vishnu is the supreme object of worship, in the period just preceding the Christian era, the highest deity was the human hero Vasudeva. It is difficult to determine exactly how and when this Vasudeva sect originated and came to the forefront. Its earliest reference is to be found in the Astadhyayi of Panani, where the worship of Vasudeva and Arjuna are mentioned.³⁴ In the epic Mahabharata, Arjuna is always associated with Vasudeva-Krishna; also, in the Shatapatha Brahmana, Arjuna is one of the secret names of Indra and thus at the root of the close connection between Vasudeva-Krishna and Arjuna we may makeout the relationship between Vishnu and Indra in the Rigveda. In Mahabharata Arjuna has been described as the son of Indra.³⁵ The next stage in the evolution of the Vasudeva cult is marked by the dropping of Arjuna and Vasudeva being worshipped alone as the Supreme God as proved by the evidence of the Besnagar inscription.³⁶

Vasudeva’s associated with Samkarsana

In the next centuries we find Vasudeva associated with Samkarsana or Baladeva, who is regarded in the epic as his elder brother. The Ghosundi stone inscription records that in the second half of the first century B.C. king Sarvatata performed a horse sacrifice and constructed a stone enclosure for the place of worship of the gods, Samkarsana and Vasudeva and it was called Narayana Vataka or house of Narayana.³⁷

Samkarsana was originally a non-Vedic agricultural divinity with an influential following among the masses. The cult also reveals many features of snake worship and Samkarsana is regarded as an incarnation of Sheshanaga. The worship of Samkarsana appears to have been quite popular in the fourth century B.C. and Megasthenes seems to refer to him.³⁸

One of the prominent characteristics of Samkarsana is his association with agriculture and he invariably figures as holding the two characteristically agricultural weapons, the pestle and the plough. He was identified with Baladeva, the elder brother of Vasudeva-Krishna and this identification took place prior to the second century B.C. The alliance of the cult of Samkarsana with Vasudeva-Krishna must have promoted the cause of Vaishnavism by winning over a large number of agricultural populations to its fold.³⁹

Vasudeva and Krishna, One and the same

A reference to the founder of Vasudeva sect has been traced in the Chhandogya Upanishad which refers to sage Krishna, son of Devaki as a disciple of the rishi Ghora of the Angirasa family. The Chhandogya Upanishad inculcates tapas (asceticism) dana (charity) arjava (simplicity or piety), ahimsa (non-injury) and sathyavahana (truthfulness), the same virtues are extolled by Krishna in Gita.⁴⁰

As both in the Chhandogya Upanishad and the Gita essentially the same doctrines are associated with one and the same person called Krishna -Achyuta, son of Devaki, it is very probable that they were originally learnt by Krishna from Ghora and were later taught by him to his own disciples and the teachings of Ghora Angirasa to Krishna formed the kernel of the Gita.⁴¹ The age when Vasudeva-Krishna flourished cannot be determined with certainty. The reference to Chhandogya Upanishad seems to point to a date in the 6th or 7th century B.C.⁴²

The Bhagavata religion propounded by Vasudeva was the parent of later Vaishnavism and it was probably the development of sun worship. According to the Shantiparva of Mahabharata, the Satvata vidhi, another name for the Bhagavata doctrine after the tribe responsible for its introduction, was laid down in the old times by the sun.⁴³

Bhagavatism, a religion based on God’s grace

The cult of Bhagavatism was eminently a religion based upon God’s grace to humanity. It emphasized and developed for this purpose the doctrine of Avatara or the divine incarnation. The Arcavatara (the theory of the presence of God in images) was also elaborated in order to illustrate his easy accessibility.⁴⁴

Derided by the Vedicists

The Bhagavata system was not favourably inclined towards the varnashrama dharma and the Brahmins and the Vrsnis among whom Krishna was born was noted for their irreverent attitude towards Brahmins and they freely admitted the casteless foreigners into the Bhagavata fold. The Besnagar inscription of the 2^nd century B.C. mentions Heliodorus, an ambassador of the Greek king Antialkidas as a Bhagavata. Women and shudras were also given initiation and allowed to worship Vishnu themselves.⁴⁵

The Vedic Brahmins had contempt towards the Bhagavatas as they worshiped images and lived upon the offerings for initiation and those made to temple gods. They did not perform the Vedic duties and had no relationship with the Brahmins and so they (Bhagavatas) were not regarded as Brahmins by the Vedic Brahmins. It was considered that even by the sight of a man who takes to worship as a means to livelihood is polluted and should be purified by proper purificatory ceremonies. The Vedic Brahmins also regarded the Pancharatra texts adopted by the Bhagavatas as invalid and non-Vedic.⁴⁶

Medhatithi, the commentator on Manu Smriti discards not only Buddhism and Jainism as being outside the true Vedic dharma but also the followers of Pancaratra (Bhagavatas) and the Pasupatas as well. He held that their (Bhagavatas) teachings are directly contrary to the mandates of the Vedas and as an illustration he points out that the Bhagavatas considered all kinds of injury to living beings to be sinful, which directly contradicts the Vedic sanctions to sacrifice animals at particular sacrifices. According to him injury to living beings is not itself sinful but only such injury is sinful as is prohibited by the Vedic injunctions. So, the customs and practices of all systems of religion which are not based on the teaching of the Vedas are to be discarded as not conforming to dharma.⁴⁷

Was Vedicist alliance with Bhagavatas, a tactical alliance?

The Mahabharata contains indications that it was with great difficulty that the orthodox Brahmanists could be prevailed upon to recognise Krishna-Vasudeva as the God Narayana himself. Hence H.C.Rayachoudhuri opines that it was probably due the active propaganda of Ashoka (who propagated Buddhism) that led the Vedic priests to identify Vasudeva with Vishnu for the purpose of winning over the Bhagavata as their allies.⁴⁸

Narayana cult assimilated into the Bhagavata fold

The next step in the evolution of Vaishnavism was the identification of Vasudeva-Krishna-Vishnu with a deified sage or hero named Narayana. According to Shatapata Brahmana, Purusha Narayana thrice offered sacrifice at the instance of Prajapati. Narayana is said to have performed a pancharatra sacrifice (sacrifice continued for five days) and thereby obtained superiority over all beings and became all beings. The earliest identification of Narayana with Vishnu is probably to be traced in the Baudhayana Dharma Sutra. The Taittiriya Aranyaka regards Narayana, Vasudeva and Vishnu as one and the same deity. Narayana also appears as Hari. Some passages of the Mahabharata call Narayana an ancient rishi who was the son of Dharma and was associated with another rishi named Nara. Narayana is said to have undergone austerities in the Himalayas (Badri).⁴⁹

It seems more reasonable to think that Narayana was an ancient leader of thought born in a family of another sage called Nara, that both of them probably advocated solar worship and this ultimately led to the identification, especially of the former with the solar deity Vishnu. The Narayana cult originated in some part of the Himalayan region or its neighbourhood. It is difficult to determine whether the family of Narayana had anything to do with the Yadavas. The followers of Narayana were originally called Pancaratrika and were later merged into the worshippers of Vasudeva-Krishna.⁵⁰

Once Narayana was assimilated into Bhagavatism, he came to be represented as the propounder of a specific aspect of Vaishnavism namely the Pancaratra. This was presumably due to the reference in the Shatapata Brahmana to the Pancaratra Sattra which Purusha Narayana is said to have performed.⁵¹

The assimilation of the Narayana element into Bhagavatism probably took place after the final revision of the Bhagavad Gita as neither the name of Narayana nor the doctrines of the Vyuhas are found in the Bhagavad Gita.⁵²

The Pancaratra Shastra

The Pancaratra Shastra or doctrine is said to have been promulgated by Shandilya as he did not find a sure basis for the highest welfare of man in the Veda and its auxiliary disciplines.⁵³ The basic doctrines of the Sattvata (Bhagavata) religion were probably first reduced to a system by Shandilya Kashyapa. In the Pancaratra text name Ishvara Samhita (I. 39-41) the initiation of Shandilya to Bhagavatism is described. It says that after many years of severe austerities, Shandilya obtained from Samkarsana, the Veda by name Ekayana and taught them to Sumantu, Jaimini, Bhrgu, Aupagayana and Maunjayana. The Vrddha-Harita Samhita contains this legend about un-Vedic Vaishnavism originally taught by Shandilya who promulgated a religious code (Dharma Samhita) for the worship of Vishnu drawn up in un-Vedic spirit. Adopting his system some great sages worshipped Keshava in un-Vedic manner. Men performed religious rites in a way not ordained in the shastra (Veda) and the earth was deprived of svahak svadha and Vasatkara. Angered at this, Vishnu condemned Shandilya to live in hell. After Shandilya expressed his regrets, Vishnu modified his curse and blessed Shandilya to be born again as a human after 100 years in hell and advised him to worship Him (Vishnu) according to rules laid down in the Vedas. Shandilya followed his advice and entered the world of Hari.⁵⁴

What was the un-Vedic method of worshipping Vishnu originally taught by Shandilya we are not told in the Vrddha-Harita-Samhita. The Narayaniya section of the Shantiparva of the Mahabharata contains the earliest exposition of the Pancaratra in its Sanskritised form. About the origin of Pancaratra we are told that this supreme scripture was compiled and uttered by the seven Citra shikandin Rishis- Marici, Atri, Angiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu and Vasishta and Manu Svayambhuva after worshipping Hari Narayana for thousand years. They then read it to Narayana who praised it and certified it to be in complete accord with the four Vedas. Shandilya Kashyapa is not recognized as a teacher here.⁵⁵

Resentment against the Pancharatra

In chapter 15 of the Kurma Purana it is said that the Pancharatrins were produced as a result of killing cows in some other birth, that they are absolutely non-Vedic and that the literatures of the Shaktas, Shaivas and the Pancharatras are for the delusion of mankind. The Pancharatras are strongly denounced in Parashara Purana, Shamba Purana, Vasishta Samhita and the Suta Samhita as great sinners and as absolutely non-Vedic. The reason for this type of denouncement was that the Pancharatras initiated and admitted within their sect even women and sudras.⁵⁶

Yet another reason for the resentment against the Pancharatra from the custodians of the Vedas was for the simple reason that the Pancharatra easily displaced many of the elaborate Vedic sacrifices and rituals by idol worship and that they promoted universality and a common approach and helped in making God more easily accessible to the worshippers. Reluctantly the orthodox gave the Pancharatras a status and standing. But the Pancharatras never accused the Vedas nor belittled their followers and even called the Vedas as their source, guardian and friend.⁵⁷

Pancharatra Agama superior to the Vedas

The term Agama is the counterpart of mantra or Veda and denotes a popular cult wherein practical religious formularies and offerings, in the form of fruits, flowers, food and drinks, etc, made with devotion take the place of incantations and sacrifices in fire.⁵⁸ By the second century A.D. Bhagavatism came to be generally known by the name of the Pancharatra Agama and the Pancharatra Agama was regarded by the Bhagavatas as superior to the Vedas and called it Mulaveda; the holy teaching from Narayana himself to Nara and a succession of teachers like Shandilya, Prahalada, Sugriva and others till it was taught to mankind in order to save it.⁵⁹

Meaning of Pancharatra

One of the Samhitas says that it is called pancharatra because it consists of five lectures delivered by God Narayana to five deities- Ananta, Garuda, Visvaksena, Brahma and Rudra respectively during five nights (pancharatra).⁶⁰

Another Samhita indicates that it is called pancharatra because by it five other systems of thought namely Samkhya, Yoga, Pasupata, Bouddha and Jaina are obscured, that is made nights (darkened).⁶¹

A third derivation to the term Ratra is said to mean knowledge and pancharatra is said to delineate five kinds of knowledge, tattva-truth, mukti-liberation, bhakti-devotion, Yoga-concentration and vishaya-material things.⁶²

The word pancharatra is also interpreted as the five forms of Narayana namely- Para, Vyuha, Vibhava, Harda and Arca. In Purushasukta and Narayanoparishad it is expressed that Narayana desired to be worshipped in the above mentioned five forms.⁶³

The Pancharatra Samhitas are in fact numerous and said to number over 200. Of these Sattvata, Paushkara and Jayakhya are considered by the orthodox as the three jewels of the Pancharatra agama.⁶⁴

The doctrine of the four Vyuha

Although Vasudeva-Krishna alone figures as the founder of the new religious movement, several other members of his family originally shared the honour of deification with him. The five Vrshni heroes referred to in the inscription of the first century A.D. at Mora near Mathura are enumerated in the Vayu Purana as Sankarshana (son of Vasudeva by Rohini), Pradyumna (son of Vasudeva-Krishna by Rukmini), Samba (son of Vasudeva-Krishna by Jambavati) and Aniruddha (son of Pradyumna).⁶⁵

The Vyuha doctrine is one of the principal tenets of the old Pancharatra system, which was absorbed in the Bhagavata religion as well as the later Vaishnava philosophy. According to the Vyuha doctrine, Bhagavat Vasudeva created from himself the Vyuha (phase of conditioned Spirit) Sankarshana and prakriti (matter) and from them Pradyumna and manas (buddhi or intelligent) and from them Aniruddha and ahamkara and from them the Mahabhutas (elements with their qualities and Brahman who created the earth.⁶⁶

As there is no reference to Vyuhas in the Bhagavad Gita, the earliest religious text of the Bhagavatas, it is clear that this philosophical interpretation of the relation of Vasudeva with the other deified Vrshni heroes is a later development.⁶⁷

Bhagavata dharma, a modification of Nivritti dharma

According to P.C.Divanji, the Bhagavata religion founded by Sri Krishna, was not a new religion but a modification of the old nivritti marga started by Rishi Narayana, the Vedic sage. Sri Krishna modified the way of adoration of Narayana by propounding the view that a kshatriya need not renounce the world in order to be able to realise the identity of the individual soul with the supreme soul and that he can realise it by leading a life of a kshatriya in the true sense of it, that is to say by continuing to discharge his duties as laid down in the Dharmashastras without allowing his mind to be swayed by the emotions promoted by self-interest and a desire to enjoy the fruits of the efforts involved in the discharge of such duties.⁶⁸

Divanaji also opines that the doctrine of Samkhya which is interwoven with the doctrine of the Bhagavata could be due to the intervention of Veda Vyasa who brought about a reconciliation between the Samkhya doctrine and the old nivritti dharma on acknowledging the propounder of the former as an avatara of Vishnu or Narayana and the theory of Avataras as a whole too was a product of his imagination.⁶⁹

Were Bhagavatas and Pancaratrikas one and the same?

According to the prevalent view of the scholars, the worshippers of the deified sage Narayana called Pancaratras merged with the Bhagavata sect who were the worshippers of the Vrshni hero Vasudeva-Krishna.

While the Pancaratras had accepted the doctrines of Vyuhas and were the followers of tantric Vaishnavism the Bhagavatas had accepted the doctrines of avataras and were followers of Vedic Vaishnavism.⁷⁰ But Mrs Suvira Jaiswal says that the difference between the Bhagavatas and the Pancaratras does not lie in the fact that they were originally devoted to two different gods or two different groups of divinities, but in their social base. The main difference between them seems to lie in the fact that whereas the Bhagavata devotees of Narayana had accepted the brahmanical social order, the Pancaratras were indifferent to and were perhaps against it. The Pancharatras had prominent tantric leanings while Bhagavatas gained support of the ruling class and championed the varna system. It was only gradually that varna distinction crept into the Pancaratra rituals.⁷¹

Main features of Vaishnavism

The most important characteristic of Vaishnavism is its adoption of bhakti (devotion) as a way to attain salvation.⁷² God cannot be apprehended by the senses and is attained only through whole-hearted devotion⁷³ In Bhagavad Gita (xii.8) Krishna ask his devotees to fix their mind and intellect on him alone so that they can dwell on him alone.⁷⁴ Knowledge and action are motivated by egoism and pride. So, knowledge and action cannot excite God’s compassion. But devotion is meek and humble and also the easiest and superior of all kinds of worship. Therefore, those who seek liberation should adopt the path of devotion alone.⁷⁵

Prapatti or Sharanagati or complete surrendering to God is another important feature of Vaishnavism. In Bhagavad Gita (xviii.66) it is said relinquishing all religious rites and actions (yielding merits and demerits) take refuge in God alone and He shall deliver men from all sins. Taking refuge in God is the highest good of men.⁷⁶

Yet another feature of Vaishnavism is the belief in the Grace of God. God can be attained only by his grace. He cannot be brought for any price or gift. No human attainments, physical, intellectual, moral or spiritual are adequate for the attainment of God. It is God who awakens in us the desire to undergo penances, grants us wisdom and gives us enlightenment. Liberation depends entirely upon the grace of God.⁷⁷

An important feature of Vaishnavism is that the path of devotional love to God and through it, of obtaining salvation is opened to all irrespective of caste, character and gender. An outcast who possesses sincere faith and devotion is considered dearer to God than a Brahmin lacking in faith and devotion.⁷⁸

Vaishnavas believe in the concept of Avataras. The word Avatara mean descent. It signifies that in order to present men a higher ideal of life God brings himself down. He appears in a tangible form so that the world may be saved and helped to move higher in its spiritual evolution.⁷⁹ Traditions as to the number of Avataras varied and the later lists of the Avataras, though usually ten is generally adhered to, very often offer different names. But the pauranic verse enumerating Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parashurama, Dasharatha Rama, Krishna, Buddha and Kalki as the ten avataras almost universally recognized since the medieval period is found in a Mamallapuram inscription of about 8^th century A.D. The Avatara theory which must have undergone several stages of evolution appears to be based on old tales about strange animals exhibiting mysterious powers of helpfulness. Some of them however had originally little to do with Vishnu. Though it is said that the Buddhist conception of the former Buddhas may have influenced the development of the avatara concept, the origin of the avatara concept may be traced in the later Vedic literature.⁸⁰

Vaishnavism lays stress on ahimsa or non-violence and discarded animal sacrifices evincing there by its antagonism to what was a conspicuous feature of the Vedic religion. It may be noted that a section of the Mahabharata speaking of the glory of Vaishnavism refers to the performance of Ashvamedha sacrifice in which no animal was slaughtered. If God is truth, non-violence is the supreme and the sole way to realize Him.⁸¹

Main tenets of Vaishnavism

The Bhagavad Gita and the Bhagavata Purana contains the main tenets of Vaishnavism.

The Bhagavad Gita contains 18 chapters and 700 shlokas and forms a part of the Bhishmaparva of Mahabharata.⁸² The main spirit of the Bhagavad Gita is that of the Upanishad but there is a greater emphasis on the religious side.⁸³ The tradition account of the relation between the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads is contained in the famous quotation the “the Upanishads are the cows, Krishna is the milker, Arjuna the calf and nectar-like Gita is the excellent milk”.⁸⁴

According to the Bhagavad Gita, the Soul is the master of the body and is indestructible. The Soul does not cease to exist when the body dies and hence grief over death is foolish. It is the body that is cast off in death just like we cast off old cloths.⁸⁵ Bhagavad Gita teaches us that with equanimity we should welcome pain and pleasure, joy and sorrow and success and failures.⁸⁶ It urges that work should be done in a spirit of duty done and result should not be permitted to agitate the mind. This unselfish and detached attitude can and should be cultivated even while we are engaged in normal activities.⁸⁷ The Gita says that none need despair and even those who have sinned, if they surrender and worship me (Sri Krishna) with devotion and repentance will be absolved of sins.⁸⁸

The Bhagavata Purana shares with Bhagavad Gita a unique position in the devotional literature of India. According to S.N.Dasgupta the Bhagavata Purana was probably composed after 10th century A.D. by a south Indian as it makes references to the Alvars who have probably never been referred to by any writers in north India.⁸⁹ The Bhagavata Purana emphasis on the worship of God without any ulterior motive- a worship performed with a perfect sincerity of heart by men who are kindly disposed towards all, and who have freed themselves from all feelings of jealousy.⁹⁰ According to Bhagavata Purana neither Yoga, nor knowledge, or performance of duties, neither study of Vedas, nor austerities, or charities propitiates God so well as unswerving devotion to him.⁹¹

Popularity of the Vaishnava Dharma

The Pancharatra Agama considered as the religious/ritualistic text of the Vaishnavas emphasized the worship of God as Narayana with faith and surrender. It made worship easier and simpler. It inculcated the spirit of self-surrender to the will of God and thereby extolled nishkama karma, duty for duty’s sake, in fact, every act of for God’s sake. In the process it removed all the barbed fringes of Vedic rituals and sacrifices such as caste distinctions, animal sacrifices, elaborate rituals and also the stigma of mercenary motives in the acts of worship. Above all it made worship of God individualistic and personal. Everyone has his own freedom to seek God and has direct access and is in need of no permit.⁹² The shifting of emphasis from costly rituals to simple japa or repeated recitation of sacred syllables, formulae or names of the deity contributed a great deal to the popularization of the Vaishnava dharma. The Vishnu Smrti states that japa yagna is ten times more meritorious than ritualistic sacrifices (vidhi yajna).⁹³

Growth of Bhagavata religion

The Bhagavata religion which originated with the Yadava-Satvata-Vrishni people of the Mathura area, appears to have spread to western Indian and the northern Deccan with the migration of the numerous Yadava tribes. Vasudeva was probably deified and worshipped by his own people as early as the age of Panini.⁹⁴ The Besnagar inscription, the Ghosundi stone inscription, the Nanaghat cave inscription and Panani, Patanjali, Kautilya and Megasthenes in their works testify to the early spread and popularity of Vaishnavas in the per-Christian era.⁹⁵

The Gupta rulers bearing the title ‘Parama Bhagavata’ championed Vaishnavism. Under their patronage Vaishnavism spread to a great extent not only in India but also in Indian colonies of South-East Asia, Indo-China, Combodia, Malaya and Indonesia.⁹⁶ It was in the Gupta age that Vasudeva’s identity with Vishnu became an accomplished fact and the great mantra ‘Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya’ came to be regarded as the best mantra for worshipping Vishnu as well and this mantra became the mantra par excellence of all the Vaishnava sub-sects.⁹⁷

Vaishnavism in South India

With the fall of Guptas, the Bhagavata religion lost its supremacy in north India. But the centre of gravity shifted to the south where it flourished under the patronage of the Alvars, the Tamil saints who mainly preached Krishna worship and Bhakti.⁹⁸ The Alvars who lived roughly between seventh to ninth century A.D. were drawn from various classes of men and women. They were God-intoxicated and recorded their experience of the fellowship with the Lord in their songs which are about 400 and goes by the name Prabandham. The Alvars were poet-philosophers who were inspired by their mystic experience to sing the glory of the Lord.⁹⁹

The Bhagavata religion as preached by the Alvars was accessible to the people of high and low castes, men and women, wise and ignorant. The only thing necessary according to the Alvars was prapatti or self-surrender. Dhyana and Yoga were neither necessary.¹⁰⁰

After the Alvars came the Acharyas, a group of teachers who represented the intellectual side of Tamilian Vaishnavism. They supplemented the doctrine of bhakti with jnana and karma and reconciled the Prabandham with the Vedas, the Upanishads and the Gita. The first Acharya was Nathamuni or Ranganatha Muni who lived in Srirangam.¹⁰¹ Among the acharyas, the most significant contribution to the development and propagation of the vishistadvaita philosophy and the Vaishnava religion has been made by Ramanuja.¹⁰² Under his influence the Hoysala ruler Vishnuvardhana and the Ganga ruler of Kalinga, Ananta Varman Chodaganga embraced Vaishnavism.

Vaishnavism in North India

Ramananda (1299 A.D. – 1410 A.D.) was the fifth in apostolic succession to Sri Ramanuja and was born in Prayag. He went to Benaras for education where he met Raghavananda a prominent teacher of the Sri Vaishnava school founded by Sri Ramanuja. Raghavananda admitted Ramananda to his school and initiated him. After serving his guru for some time, Ramananda went on a pilgrimage. When he returned back Ramananda was not accepted by his guru for an imaginary impurity. This incident transformed Ramananda and he became imbued with a feeling of spiritual humility and began to recognize the equality of all men whatever their caste, colour or creed in the eyes of God. In one of his sayings Ramananda declared – “Let no one ask a man’s caste or with whom he eats. If a man is devoted to Hari, he becomes Hari’s own”. Ramananda substituted the worship of Rama and Seetha in place of Narayana and Lakshmi and admitted all high and low alike into his fold and made spiritual knowledge accessible even to the degraded castes. He had twelve disciples and these included besides Brahmans, a Muslim weaver, a Rajput, a Jat, a barber, two women and Ravi Das a leather worker. This act of Ramananda rendered the Hindu religion all-embracing in its sympathy and catholic in its outlook. This new ethical outlook was developed in various direction by Ramananda’s successor’s and through all their teachings we find emphasis laid upon two great principles- 1. That perfect bhakti consists in perfect love directed to God and 2. That all servants of God are brothers. Ramananda taught in the vernacular and his followers composed their hymns in one or the other of the various dialects of Hindi. Of Ramananda’s twelve disciples, three, Kabir, Sena and Ravi Das founded branch sects of their own.¹⁰³

Vaishnavism in Western India

Among the several sects that arose in Medieval India, none has spread more widely or attracted more popular attention both in India and outside than the one connected with the name and teachings of Vallabhacharya.¹⁰⁴

Vallabhacharya (born in 1479 A.D.) was the founder of the great Vaishnavite church of Rajasthan and Gujarat. A native of Telugu country, a great Sanskrit scholar, Vallabhacharya first settled in Mathura and then at Benaras and preached with great ardour and learning the Vaishnavite cult and philosophy. He made a tour through the whole of India and won fame and following in several disputation in various cities.¹⁰⁵ In Brindavan near Govardhana hills Vallabhacharya found an image of Devadamana or Shri Nathji and duly constructed a temple and installed the image there probably in 1520 A.D.¹⁰⁶ (the image was later shifted to Nathdwara in Rajashtan). After Vallabhacharya’s death his son Vittalnath (1516-1576) travelled widely and made numerous converts who belonged to different strata of the society especially in Rajasthan and Gujarat.¹⁰⁷ Vittalnath had seven sons who upon his death established their own seat of teachings and brought more adherents to the Vaishnava fold. Of these seven sons, Gokulnathji (1552-1610) became the most celebrated. Gokulnath converted nobles and soldiers and the former build shrines and mathas to Krishna and their guru and endowed them with lands and revenue.¹⁰⁸

Vaishnavism in Eastern India

Before the advent of Chaitanya, the religious condition of Bengal was far from satisfactory. The worship of Mangala Candi and Manasa was what the masses did in the name of religion and even the Brahmanas cared very little for religious devotion and were fully immersed in worldly affairs.¹⁰⁹

The official religion of the Pala rulers of Bengal was Buddhism and that of the Senas was Shaivism with the exception of Lakshmana Sena who’s contemporary Jayadeva wrote the Gita Govinda, the most important devotional work and which inspired the Vaishnavas through the ages.¹¹⁰

Chaitanya (1486-1533 A.D.) born at Navadvipa was initiated into the bhakti cult by Ishvara Puri a Vaishnava savant at Gaya. This initiation had a marvelous effect on Chaitanya and revealed a new phase of life and brought home to his heart the most fascinating charms of Sri Krishna. Chaitanya organized sankirtana, that is saying the names of God in chorus with the accompaniment of musical instrument. This novel way of uttering the names of Hari caught the fancy of people, who shook off their indifference to spiritual matters and began to flock under his banner in hundreds and thousands. After touring several parts of India, Chaitanya spent his last days at Puri.¹¹¹

An outstanding feature of modern Vaishnavism particularly in Bengal, Assam and Orissa is the worship of Radha along with Krishna. There are sects outside this area such as Vishnusvamins (this sect does not exist at present) and the Nimbarkar who also worship Radha, but to the Nimbarkars, Radha is the wife of Krishna and occupied the same place of Rukmini, but in Bengal she is the mistress of Krishna. This phase of Radha-Krishna cult has had a long development and became the accepted dogma of a religious sect only after Chaitanya accepted it as part of his creed.¹¹²

From historical point of view, it appears that Chaitanya took the detailed idea of Radha-Krishna cult from Raya Ramananda and transmitted it to his disciples, Rupa Gosvami at Prayag and to Sanatana Gosvami at Kashi. These two Gosvamis and their nephew Jiva Gosvami elaborated this idea and placed it on a philosophical basis in their numerous works. All of them lived at Brindavan and reclaimed the village and many other places connected with the sacred memory of Krishna, transformed them into places of pilgrimage and established a number of temples dedicated to Krishna. Since then, Brindavan has become a great centre of Bengal Vaishnavism in north India.¹¹³

In Bengal Vaishnavism, Sri Krishna is considered as the ultimate reality and not an incarnation of the Lord, but the very Lord himself. The Chaitanya Charitamrita which is regarded as the special scripture of the Bengal school of Vaishnavism says that Sri Krishna is avataree or That from which all avataras or incarnations proceed or emanate. The Sri Krishna of Bengal Vaishnavism is different from Sri Krishna of the Yadus or Sri Krishna of Mahabharata epic. The Sri Krishna whom the Bengal Vaishnavas worship never moves from Brindavana.¹¹⁴

Chaitanya believed in the reality of the world and viewed the relationship between the soul and the Lord as one of identity-in-difference. The relationship is indescribable and is called achintyabhedabheda. He preached prema-bhakti and condemned rituals and caste-distinctions.¹¹⁵ In 1966 Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, a follower of the Chaitanya school of Vaishnavism founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) which has been propagating and popularizing Vaishnavism across the globe and attracting adherents from all over the world.

In Assam, a strong centre of Tantricism, Shankaradeva introduced and popularized Vaishnavism. He was born in 1449 at Alipukhuri a place 16 miles from the town of Nowgong.¹¹⁶ At the age of 37 he undertook a pilgrimage and visited important sacred places all over India. It is in the course of this pilgrimage Shankaradeva came into contact with Vaishnavism practiced in different regions. At those holy places he also entered into religious controversies with Vaishnava pundits of various schools and the consequent discussions must have prompted Shankaradeva to inaugurate the neo-Vaishnavite movement in Assam.¹¹⁷

Another turn in his spiritual life was his meeting with a learned pundit Jagadis Misra who explained to him the holy Bhagavata Purana. This had an impact on Shankaradeva and he took up the work of translating the Bhagavata Purana. These verses were sung accompanied with music and attracted people.¹¹⁸

Shankaradeva simplified religion to such an extent that even the most ignorant, the humblest and the poorest of all could join in religious worship.¹¹⁹

Sects of Vaishnavism

There are four Vaishnavas sects or schools of thought. Sri-sampradaya expounding the Vishishtadvaita philosophy and established by Sri Ramanujacharya, Sanakadi or Hamsa sampradaya expounding the Dwaitaadvaita or Bhedabheda philosophy and established by Nimbarkacharya, Brahma sampradaya expounding the Dwaita philosophy and established by Madhvacharya and Rudra sampradaya expounding the Shuddadvaita philosophy and established by Vallabhacharya/Vishnisvami.¹²⁰

It is a sort of convention that even such great thinkers like Ramanuja and others feel hesitation in having full confidence of people accepting their teachings and therefore they always try to trace the origin of their thought from God himself or any other similar reliable authority like the Veda. Hence it is said that the teachings of Nimbarkacharya was first taught to Sanaka, Sanatana, Sanandana and Sanat Kumara, the four sons of the creator through his mental creation by God himself appearing before them in the form of a swan. It is due to this very belief that this school of philosophy is known as Sanakari sampradaya or Hamsa sampradaya. Similar is the case of Madhvacharya and Vallabhacharya who trace the origin of their thoughts to Brahma and Rudra respectively.¹²¹

Philosophy of Visishtadvaita

Shankaracharya stressed the reality of the one Brahman and explained the many as the illusory manifestation of the One, due to the functioning of maya. Ramanuja stressed the reality of the many as well as the One. According to Ramanujacharya the many are not the illusory manifestations of the One but are an inseparable relation of dependence on the One. The world of souls and matter are attributes of Brahman who is a supra-personality (Purushottama).¹²² For Ramanuja the relation between Brahman on the one side and Atman and the material world on the other is that of the atman-body relationship (shariraatmasambandha). And although the atma constitute the body of the Brahman they are yet different from it. Atma and the material world stick to Brahman in their subtle form before creation and assume gross forms after creation. Creation is therefore the change (parinama) of the subtle into the gross. Maya is the energy of the Brahman by which he creates the world. The world is real and Ramanuja calls it prakriti which is a unconscious matter.¹²³

Philosophy of Dwaitaadvaita or Bhedabheda

Nimbarkacharya the founder of the Bhedabheda system of philosophy opined that Brahman who is the cause of the world is not merely the efficient cause but also the material cause. The relation between cause and effect is both identity and difference. For instance, the clay which is the material cause of the pot is identical with the pot. But if it is merely identical with the pot, then there will be no difference between the lump of clay and the pot. Hence there is difference also. Similarly, there is many similarities and differences between the Brahman and Atman and Brahman and the material world. By nature, both Brahman and Atman are identical and different. They are identical because Atman is a part (amsa) of Brahman and is conscious like it. But they are different because part and whole are not equal to each other. The Brahman is supreme and omnipotent and is the creator of the world whereas the Atman is only a part, finite and cannot be the creator. Similarly, the material world also has both identity and difference with Brahman.¹²⁴

Philosophy of Dwaita

Madhvacharya the founder of Dwaita system of philosophy was a pluralist. According to him there is Brahman and an infinite number of Atmas and an infinite number of material entities. According to Madhvacharya the world is real and has no beginning and will have no end. He accepts five kinds of difference as absolutely real. They are

• The difference between Brahman and Atman

• The difference between Brahman and matter

• The difference between one Atma and the another

• The difference between Atmas and matter and

• The difference between one material entity and another

According to Madhvacharya Brahman alone is independent and has control over everything else which is subordinate to it.¹²⁵

Philosophy of Shuddadvaita

According to Vallabhacharya, the propounder of Shuddadvaita, Brahman is an independent reality and his nature is Sat (existence), Cit (knowledge) and Ananda (bliss). All the things in the world are his real manifestations. This Brahman is not nirguna Brahman of Shankaracharya but the most perfect person, Lord Krishna. The entire creation of the world is his real manifestation. While the Lord undergoes all the transformations he is not affected. It is similar to the spider and its self-drawing web and the blazing fire and the multitude of sparks which springs from it. The universe and the souls are the real manifestation of the Lord and not the products of ignorance or maya as in Shankara’s philosophy.¹²⁶

While to Ramanujacharya and Madhva Brahman is Narayana or Vishnu, to Nimbarka and Vallabha, Brahman is Gopala Krishna accompanied by Radha.¹²⁷

Folk deities brought under Vaishnava fold

The Avatara theory (incarnation) led to the absorption of different creeds by Vaishnavism by explaining the gods worshiped in them as nothing but the manifestations of one Supreme Being.¹²⁸ For instance the famous deity of Tirupati, Balaji, the cult of Vithoba (Pandharpur in Maharashtra) and Jagannath (Puri in Odisha) were absorbed into the Vaishnava fold over a period of time.

For centuries up to the present day there has been an endless controversy on the subject of the real nature of the God of Tirupati. Is he a form of Vishnu or a form of Shiva? According to Vaishnavites he is Vishnu. But Shaivites retort that it was Shankaracharya himself who gave the god his name after a crystal Linga was set up by him at that place. The very fact of the existence of that controversy shows that Venkateshwara was originally a (folk) God who was probably integrated in the Hindu pantheon either in a form of Shiva or Vishnu. Venkateshwara was probably a (folk) God, one of the forms of the child God worshipped in Tamil country under the various names of Subramanya, Muruga, Skanda, Kumara, etc.¹²⁹

Similarly, G.A.Deleury has hypothesized that Lord Vithoba, now recognized as a special avatara of Vishnu was a holy man belonging to Jaina religion. Accordingly, Viththala died by fasting up to death that is by performing the jaina ritual Sallekanavrata. His disciple and also son called Pundalika erected a stone to commemorate this event. Pundalika also became an ascetic of great repute. At that time Jainism was giving place to a revival of Hinduism based on the teachings of Bhagavata Purana and Bhagavad Gita and the disciples of Pundalika adopted the doctrines of Vaishnavism and Vithoba was recognized as an avatara of Vishnu. This fame of Viththala spread during 13^th century A.D. first in Karnataka as before 13th century no records concerning Vithobha are available. Towards the end of 13^th century, Jnanadeva born in a family devoted to Viththala and his teachings and writings became the foundation of Varkari Panth.¹³⁰

Another important folk deity incorporated into the Vaishnava fold was the present famous god of Puri, Jagannath. Accordingly, the Jagannath figure was the result of a process of Hinduisation where a tribal deity represented by a wooden post was later identified with Narasimha with an attempt to represent a lion head; the round eyes being typical features of Narasimha’s fury. At present the Jagannath figure displays what seems to be a ‘tribal look’. The wooden figures may be called crude and certainly differ considerably from the images worshiped in other great Hindu temples which correspond exactly to the described iconographical canons. Even today a special group of priests Daityas who are thought to be the descendants of the original tribal worshipers are specially entrusted with dressing or moving the deities.¹³¹

Impact of Vaishnavism on Indian culture and society

Pancaratra the text of the Vaishnavas has done the greatest service to Hinduism. It strongly reacted against the polytheism and speculative pantheism of the Vedas and emphasized monotheism in the form and person of a Supreme deity namely Narayana as the Ultimate Reality. Pancaratra not only divested the Vedas of innumerable gods, it has provided an effective check against enormous proliferations of the Vedic rituals. The Pancaratra agama picked up the concepts of bhakti in the Vedas, enlarged them and made them the universal means of worshiping a monotheistic God. The average Hindu could be without the Vedas and its ritualistic and sacrificial lore. But he could not be without a God to be worshiped and adored.¹³²

Unlike the earlier Vedic ritual of sacrifices, Vaishnavism not only safe guarded the interests of the priestly and the ruling classes but also catered to the needs of the lower varnas by allowing them to worship Vishnu with the rituals prescribed for them. It did no damage to any religious beliefs or superstition but merely assimilated and fitted it into a Vedic framework without creating any antagonism. It could successfully Sanskritize the numerous tribal and local cults and became popular among all classes and varnas.¹³³ That a large number of Buddhists were admitted into the fold of the Vaishnavas is suggested by the inclusion of Buddha in the list of Vishnu’s avataras.

The reconciliatory attitude of Vaishnavism gave the country a kind of cultural unity and succeeded in establishing the same kind of social structure all over India. It also fostered hero-worship and kings, nobles and celebrated personages were often described an incarnation of the god Hari.¹³⁴

The Bhagavatas or the Pancharatrins seem to be mainly responsible for the dissemination of the practice of image worship among the higher section of the orthodox Indian people. To them Archaa or Sri Vigraha (auspicious body of the Lord) was the God Himself in one of His aspects and was thus the object of the greatest veneration as the ‘God manifest’ (pratyaksha devata). Epigraphic data of the pre-Christian and early post-Christian periods prove that there were Vaishnava shrines in various parts of India such as Besnagar (ancient Vidhisha), Mathura, etc.¹³⁵

Vaishnavism gave birth to devotional literature in various Indian languages. For instance, the Prabandham in Tamil, Dasa sahitya in Kannada, the devotional songs in Marathi by Namadeva and Tukaram, Suradas work in Braja bhasha, Tulasidas, Rama Charita Manasa, Kabir’s couplets in Hindi, Mira Bai’s poems in Rajasthani, etc. Also, biographies of reformers and saints, works on philosophy, commentaries on Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, etc. in Sanskrit and vernaculars have enriched the Indian literature.

The doctrines and teachings of great reformers like Guru Nanak and Kabir were chiefly derived from the contemporary Vaishnava schools of thought and during the period when north India came under the rule of the Turks, the Vaishnavite creed became the basis of a new religion of love and faith. It gave rise to a system of ethics at once deep and exalted, that inspired ideals of social and political freedom such as no previous faiths of India had done. In the darkness and terror of the Middle Ages, it helped to shed a ray of light and faith on the homes and hearts of the people. In the age of oppression and foreign rule, it helped to draw men together and form them into political federation which ultimately grew into empires and republics.¹³⁶

Reference:

1. S.M Srinivasa Chari – Vaishnavism, Its Philosophy, Theology & Religious discipline, Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt Ltd, Delhi, 2000, p.3

2. J.N.Banerjea – Pauranic and Tantric Religion (Early Phase), 1966, p.18

3. S.N.Dasgupta – History of Indian Philosophy, vol-2, p.536

4. H.C.Rayachaudhuri – Materials for the Study of the Early History of the Vaishnava Sect, p.10

5. S.Krishnaswami Aiyangar – Early History of Vaishnavism in South India, Madras University, 1920, p.1

6. R.C.Hazra – Pre Puranic Hindu Society before 200 A.D., Indian Historical Quarterly, vol – 15, pp:410,411

7. Haridas Bhattacharyya – (Editor) – The Cultural Heritage of India, vol – IV, Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Calcutta, 1956, p113

8. Akshaya Kumar Banerjea – Philosophy of Gorakhnath, Mahant Digvijainath Trust, Gorakhpur, pp:266,267

9. Ibid, pp:266-269

10. Ibid, pp:269-270

11. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.112

12. R.N.Dandekar – Insight into Hinduism, Ajanta Publication, Delhi, 1979, pp:233-234

13. Ibid

14. Ibid, p.210

15. Ibid, p.205

16. M.Hiriyanna – Essentials of Indian Philosophy, pp:33,34

17. R.N.Dandekar – Op.cit, p.215

18. Ibid, pp:217,218

19. H.C.Rayachaudhuri –Op.cit, pp:35,36

20. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.114

21. M.Hiriyanna – Op.cit, pp:34,35

22. H.C.Rayachaudhuri –Op.cit, p.13

23. Ibid, p.15

24. Ibid,pp:16,17

25. R.N.Dandekar – Vedic Mythological Tracts, p.68

26. Ibid, pp:88,89

27. Ibid, p.71

28. Ibid, p.89

29. H.C.Rayachaudhuri –Op.cit, pp:17,18

30. Ibid, pp:106,107

31. R.C.Majumdar (Editor) – History and Culture of the Indian People, vol -II, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1960, p.235

32. H.C.Rayachaudhuri –Op.cit, pp:108,109

33. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya – The Evolution of Theistic Sects in Ancient India, p.18

34. Ibid, pp:24,25

35. Ibid, p.27

36. Ibid, p.33

37. Ibid, pp:33,34

38. Mrs. Suvira Jaiswal – The Origin and development of Vaishnavism from 200 B.C. to A.D.500, Munshiram Manoharlal, Delhi, 1967, pp:52,53,55,58,60

39. Ibid

40. R.C.Majumdar- Op.cit, p.433

41. Ibid

42. Ibid, p.434

43. Ibid, p.433

44. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.164

45. R.C.Hazra – Op.cit,pp:412,413

46. S.N.Dasgupta – History of Indian Philosophy, vol-3, p.15

47. S.N.Dasgupta – History of Indian Philosophy, vol-4, p.7

48. H.C.Rayachaudhuri –Op.cit, pp:106,107

49. R.C.Majumdar- Op.cit, pp:435,436

50. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.120

51. R.N.Dandekar – Insights into Hinduism, pp:259,260

52. Ibid, p.256

53. Rama Prasad Chanda – The Indo-Aryan Races, A Study of the origin of Indo-Aryan People and Institutes, part I, Rajshahi, 1916, p.99

54. Ibid, pp:105,106

55. Ibid, pp:108,109

56. S.N.Dasgupta – History of Indian Philosophy, vol-3, pp:19,20

57. S.Rangachar – Philosophy of Pancaratras,Sridevi Prakashana, Mandya, 1991 p.36

58. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.164 (in footnotes)

59. Ibid, p.164

60. S.Rangachar – Op.cit, p.48

61. Ibid

62. Ibid, pp:48,49

63. Ibid, pp:49,50

64. Ibid, p.65

65. R.C.Majumdar- Op.cit, p.447

66. Ibid

67. Ibid

68. P.C.Divanji – Origin fo the Bhagavata and Jaina Religions, ABORI, vol – xxiii, Bhandarkar, Oriental Research Institute, 1943, p.114

69. Ibid, p.112

70. R.N.Dandekar – Op.cit, p.261

71. Mrs. Suvira Jaiswal – Op.cit, p.45

72. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Vaishnavism of Sankaradeva and Ramanuja, Motilal Banarsidass, 1973 p.12

73. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.146

74. Ibid, p. 147

75. Ibid, p. 158

76. Ibid, p. 147

77. Ibid, pp: 147,148

78. Ibid, p. 158

79. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Op.cit, p.11

80. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, pp:132,133

81. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Op.cit, p.13

82. S.Radhakrishnan – Indian Philosophy, vol I, p.519; C.Rajagopalachari – The Bhagavad Gita, Madras, 1935, p.5

83. S.Radhakrishnan – Op.cit, p.522

84. Ibid, p.526

85. C.Rajagopalachari – Op.cit, pp:13,14

86. Ibid, 56

87. Ibid, p.35

88. Ibid, p.73

89. S.N.Dasgupta – History of Indian Philosophy, vol-4, p.1

90. Ibid, p.10

91. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.158

92. S.Rangachar – Op.cit, p.61

93. Mrs. Suvira Jaiswal – Op.cit, pp:144,145

94. R.C.Majumdar (Editor) – Op.cit, p.437

95. R.C.Hazra – Op.cit, pp:412,413

96. Mrs. Suvira Jaiswal – Op.cit, p.210

97. Sudhakar Chattopadhyaya – Op.cit, p.142;

98. O.B.L.Kapoor – The Philosophy and Religion of Sri Chaitanya, p.6,7

99. P.Nagaraja Rao – The Schools of Vedanta, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1943, p.69

100. O.B.L.Kapoor – Op.cit, pp:6,7

101. Ibid

102. S.M Srinivasa Chari – Op.cit, p.24

103. Ramanand to Ram Tirath – Lives of the Saints of Northern India including the Sikh Gurus, 2nd edition, G.A.Natesan & Co, Madras, pp: 2,3,4

104. Ibid, p.72

105. Ibid, pp: 72,73

106. Ibid, p.78

107. Ibid, pp: 81,82

108. Ibid, pp: 72,83

109. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.186

110. Suniti Kumar Chatterji (Editor) – The Cultural Heritage of India, vol- V, The Ramakrishna Mission, Calcutta, 1978, p.113

111. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, pp: 186,187,188

112. Asoke Kumar Majumdar – A Note on the development of Radha Cult, ABORI, vol 36 no3-4, July/October 1955, p.231

113. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, pp: 188,189

114. Bipin Chandra Pal – Bengal Vaishnavism, Calcutta, 1933, p.40

115. P.Nagaraja Rao – Introduction to Vedanta, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1958, pp:170,171

116. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Op.cit, pp: 45,46

117. Ibid, pp:50,51

118. Haridas Bhattacharyya – Op.cit, p.202

119. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Op.cit, p.204

120. Suniti Kumar Chatterji, Op.cit, p.120

121. Umesha Mishra – Nimbarka School of Vedanta, Tirabhukti Publications, Allahabad, 1966, p.3

122. P.Nagaraja Rao – The Schools of Vedanta, Op.cit, pp:72,73

123. P.T.Raju – Philosophical Traditions of India, pp: 188,189,190,191

124. Ibid, pp:198,199

125. Ibid, pp:197,198

126. P.Nagaraja Rao – The Schools of Vedanta, Op.cit, pp: 161,162,164

127. Suniti Kumar Chatterji, Op.cit, p.126

128. H.V.Sreenivasa Murthy – Op.cit, p.12

129. G.A.Deleury – The Cult of Vithoba, Deccan College, Poona, 1960, p.185

130. Ibid, pp:190,191

131. Anncharlott Eschmann, Hermann Kulke, Gaya Charan Tripathi (Edited) –The Cult of Jagannath and the Regional Tradition of Orissa, Manohar, 1986, pp:99,100,116

132. S.Rangachar – Op.cit, p.61

133. Mrs. Suvira Jaiswal – Op.cit, p.167

134. Ibid, p.132

135. R.C.Majumdar (Editor) – Op.cit, p.452

136. Ramanand to Ram Tirath – Op.cit, pp:45,47