Surdas was a popular Indian poet and singer in the 16th century. He was reportedly blind and famous for composing poetry out of the love of his mentor, Lord Krishna. The languages in which Surdas wrote his poetry include Braj, medieval Hindi and Awadhi.
Wiki/Biography
According to some historians, Surdas was born between 1478 and 1483 (at the age of 101; at the time of his death) in Gram Sihi, Faridabad, Haryana. His music teacher was the famous 16th-century Indian saint Vallabhacharya. Vallabhacharya is the founder of Pushti Marg Sampraday. Some historians and scholars claim that Surdas was born in 1478. These historians assert that Surdas was born on the fifth day of the Hindu month of Vaishakh according to the Vaishnavite calendar. On this day, India celebrates Surdas Jayanti. Other historians dispute the above facts and claim that he was born between 1561 and 1584. Surdas’ birthplace is also controversial. Some scholars claim that the village of Ranukta or Renuka, located on the main road from Agra to Mathura, is the birthplace of Surdas, while other historians claim , a village called Sihi located near Delhi is the birthplace of Surdas. After the death of Vallabhācharya, his successor Vitalnath selected eight poets, including Surdas, to compose songs and poems to spread the glory of Lord Krishna in India. These eight poets are popularly known as “Astachap”. Surdas was famous for his poetic skills and devotion to Lord Krishna. Astachapur meaning,
The eight disciples of Vallabhā Acharya were called Aṣṭachāp (eight seals in Hindi), named after the verbally signed chapters written at the end of the literary work. “
family
Parents and siblings
His father’s name was Ramdas Saswat and his mother’s name was Jamunadas.
wife
Surdas never married in his life.
Vallabhacharya Enlightenment
Sudarth was born into a very poor family. He was reportedly born blind and neglected by his family. At the age of six, he was abandoned by his family. According to some historical sources, Vallabhacharya first met Sudas on the banks of the Mathura river, where Sudas (the blind man) was weeping and singing religious songs. On the way from Vrindavan, Vallabhācharya asked Sudars the reason for his crying. Sudarth replied that he was abandoned by his family because he was blind. Hearing this, Vallabhācharya put his hands on Surdas’ head. Soon after the incident, Surdas’s closed eyes caught a glimpse of Krish who lived in Brachi about five thousand years ago. Lord Na. Surdas saw the life journey of Lord Krishna through his blind eyes. Surdas traveled to Vrindavan with Vallabhācharya, who taught him the Hindu religion Aarti at the Shrinath temple. Sage Vallabhacharya taught him to recite the Shrimad Bhagavad Gita. Surdas were initiated by Vallabhacharya. Surdas also recited Hindu scriptures under the guidance and training of Vallabhacharya. Soon he began delivering religious and philosophical lectures at local Hindu temples.
Portrait of Vallabhacharya
poetry creation
Surdas’s poetic works include visuals and descriptions of the love between Lord Krishna and Radha. It mainly narrates scenes depicting the longings of Radha and the Gopis in the absence of Lord Krishna. The poems focus on Bhakti philosophy and provide glimpses of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Surdas revealed in his poetry that Lord Krishna had 24 incarnations. He further stated that Indian historical legends Dhruva and Prahlada were his followers. Some incarnations of Lord Krishna throughout history quote that Krishna was a lover of Vasant (spring) and Holi.
bhakti movement
The Bhakti movement first started in South India in the seventeenth century and gradually spread its ideology to North Indian states. During his reign, Surdas actively promoted and participated in the Bhakti movement across the Indian subcontinent. The movement was led by several Indian saints and spread spiritual power to the masses. These poems were composed by him in the Hindi dialect Braj Bhasha. Persian or Sanskrit is also popular among the locals of Braj. Braj Bhasha’s poetry began to gain recognition soon after it became popular and was elevated from a universal language to a literary language. Indian poet Tulsidas was inspired by the works of Surdas. Tulsidas composed the book “Shri Krishna Gitavali” based on the works of Surdas. According to historians, Surdas was a close friend of Tulsidas. The great Indian ruler Akbar was also fascinated by Surdas’ poetry and devotional songs. Surda often participated in pious meetings held at Akbar’s court. Modern Indian poet Dr. Hazari Prasad Dwivedi composed several Hindi poems on Surdas. Dwivedi describes the aura of Surdas in a poem. Hazari Prasad Dwivedi said Alamkar Sutra followed Surdas with folded hands and when Surdas started singing, it started raining. He wrote,
When Surdas begins to describe his favorite subject, it’s as if the Arak Canon follows him with folded hands. There are also plenty of similes and metaphors. At the same time, Surdas has painted the childhood image of Lord Krishna very succinctly and vividly. Surdas Ji took the poetry in a wonderful direction by associating Bhakti with Sringal Raza. “
bhakti movement portrait
philosophy
Surdas was inspired by the ideology of the Bhakti movement and all his poetic works revolved around his love for his guru. He spread the ideology and teachings of the Shuddhadvaita school of Vaishnavaism. He understood the spiritual analogy of Radha-Krishna Leela by listening to the speeches of the saints of that time.
literary works
Surdas wrote a book called Sur Sagar (Ocean of Sur) in the 16th century, which contained 100,000 poems or songs about Lord Krishna. In modern times, several revised editions of this book were published by famous Indian poets under Sur’s name. Surdas in his own work Sur Sagar describes Lord Krishna and his life as:
Gokul and Vraj, adorable children, written from the perspective of the gopis. “
In this book, Surdas describes Lord Krishna from the perspective of the gopis as a naughty and adorable child of Braj. Two other compositions by Surdas include Sur Saravali and Sahitya Lahari. According to some historical sources, the book called Sur Saravali has one hundred thousand verses. Surdas highlighted the Indian festival of Holi in his book Sur-Saravali. However, some of the ballads in this book have been lost over time. His book focuses on the life of Lord Krishna and the Gunas, who created this universe in a playful mood. According to Sudars,
The Lord is the great player who created the universe and Himself in a playful mood and possesses three attributes namely Sattva, Rajas and Tamas.
Some passages from the Sikh holy book Guru Granth Sahib were also taken from Sur. In his other work, Sahitya Lahari, Surdas composed 118 verses based on the bhakti philosophy of Lord Krishna. 
die
According to some historians, Surdas died in Braj, Uttar Pradesh, between 1579 and 1584. He died of natural causes.
Facts/Trivia
- In the library of Kashgari Pracharini Sabha, 25 texts written by Surdas are kept specially for readers.
- Philosophical references in Surdas’ poetry refer to Bavapad and Kalapaksha meeting in the same state.
- Surdas started following the Vallabha sect soon after receiving initiation from Vallabhacharya. Some historians in their works on Surdas claim that Surdas wrote manuscripts that rank highest among other Indian poets and singers such as Narsi, Meran and Vidyapati.
- In 1939, Krishna Dev Mehra released a film called Surdas. Several other films also depicted Surda’s life such as Rustomji Dhotiwala’s Bilwamangal or Bhagat Soordas (1919), PS Ramakrishna Rao’s Bilwamangal (1932), Chintamani (1956), GK Ramu’s Chilamboli (1963), Bilwamangal (1976) Gobinda Roy and Virva Mangal “Ki Pratigya” (1996) by Sanjay Virmani.
Poster of the movie Bilwamangal (1932)
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education