9th Standard, Social, History, CHAPTER – 18
BHAKTI PANTHA
EXERCISES
I. Fill in the blanks with suitable words:
1. Bhakti means pure trust to God.
2. The famous follower of Ramanand was Kabir.
3. Kabir’s followers are called Kabirpanthis.
4. The collection of Chaitanya’s philosophical thoughts is called Chaitanya Charitamruta.
5. The poetic work ‘Ramadhanya Charitre’ was written by Kanakadasa.
II. Answer the following questions by discussing with your group.
6. Who popularized worship of Rama and Sita? What are his services to society?
Answer: Ramananda popularized worship of Rama and Sita. He established a Vaishnava religious school based on love and devotion. He condemned caste system and allowed people from every caste to join his sect.
7. Who are Sikhs? Which is their holy book?
Answer: The followers of Guru Nanak are called as ‘Sikhs’. ‘Guru Granth Sahib’ is their holy book.
8. The role of Srimantha Shankardeva is prominent in cultural and religious history of Assam. How? Explain.
Answer: The role of Srimantha Shankardeva is prominent in cultural and religious history of Assam. His name is associated with bringing a newness in the culture and the music in India. The Bhakti movement started by him in Assam spread its influence over the other parts of India. The movement started by him was rightly called Ekasarana Dharma or Vaishnava movement. He says we must develop unstinted love for Krishna, sing songs on Him, and by listening to it we acquire devotion to the Lord. He must have good feelings as the servant of God. Srimantha Shankaradeva started Sarniya system (a system of initiation into his movement). He waged against the inequality in the society. He associated with all people to bring in the movement. He says follow religious worship, have faith in Krishna.
9. Explain the concept of Bhakti by Purandaradasa.
Answer: Purandaradasa has contributed immensely to the tradition of Bhakti poetry with his Vaishnava influenced Bhakti poems. He is called as the founding father of ‘Carnatic Music’.
Purandaradasa apart from expressing the importance of devotion as per Vaishnava sect, expressed his concern over false worship and philosophies of life. He criticized caste and creed based discrimination. He rejected false Bhakthi and insisted on inner reflections. He declared without inner purity, external purity is of no use. He said ‘What is the use of cleaning the external filth without cleansing the internal filth’. He also said without faith, the mere dipping in a river is of no use. He sowed the seeds of faith in human life and its worthiness and became the beacon for a life of satisfaction.
10. What are the effects of the Bhakti movement?
Answer: Reform of the Hindu practices and bringing about harmony between Hindus and Muslims were the two main purposes of the Bhakti movement. The reformers were successful in removing many weaknesses in the Hindu society. The regional languages of India flourished since the reformers wrote in these languages. This enabled development of Indian culture.
Additional Questions:
1 . Mention the works and teachings of Chaithanya.
Answer: The works and teachings of Chaithanya are as follows.
- He preached that differences of caste can be removed by discipline, and man becomes pure through devotion.
- He popularized worship of Krishna. He composed many devotional songs in praise of Krishna.
- He opposed caste system and attempted to bring about a sense of brotherhood among the people.
- His philosophical thoughts and teachings are collected in the book called “Chaitanya Charitamruta”.
2. What are the teachings of Kabir to the society?
Answer: The teachings of Kabir to the society are,
- He condemned caste system and multiple idol worship, and declared that God is one, and he is the same for both Hindus and Muslims.
- He tried to bring about harmony and tolerance between the two communities.
- Kabir composed couplets in Hindi language known as ‘Dohas’. Hindus and Muslims recite these Dohas even today in North India.
3. Who is Meerabai? What are her services to the society?
Answer: Meerabai was the princess of Mewad. She renounced a life of luxury and became the most devoted follower of Lord Krishna. She composed songs of devotion towards Krishna. These are called ‘Bhajans’ and they are very popular. Even today, these bhajans are sung throughout India.
4. Explain the teachings of Kanakadasa to the society in his keerthanas. Mention his works.
Answer: The teachings of Kanakadasa to the society in his keerthanas are as follows.
- Kanakadasa put efforts to remove discrimination based on caste and creed as Bakthi saint.
- He criticized mere show off bhakthi.
- He preached that people could attain moksha through Bhakthi.
- He broke the belief propagated by the priestly class that in order to attain moksha one has to be born in higher caste through his Keertanas.
- Kanakadasa was a poet, has created literature along with his meaningful Keertanas. He wrote ‘Mohanatharangini’, ‘Nalacharithre’, ‘Ramadhanya Charithre’ and ‘Haribhakthasaara’.
III. Activities.
1. Read the life histories of the Bhakti Pantha reformers.
2. Collect more information about the reformers from your teachers.
IV. Projects:
1. Prepare a detailed project about one of the reformers of the Bhakti pantha. His life, work and achievements.
2. Divide the students into groups and prepare a project about each reformer of Bhakti Pantha.
3. Discuss with the help of teachers about the values contained in the keertanas of Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa.
4. Practise and sing Kanakadasa and Purandaradasa’s keertanas.
