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Surdas

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Surdas

Surdas (Sanskrit: सूरदास, romanized: Sūradāsa) was a


16th-century blind Hindu devotional poet and singer, Surdas
who was known for his works written in praise of
Krishna.[2] His compositions captured his devotion
towards Krishna. Most of his poems were written in
the Braj language, while some were also written in
other dialects of medieval Hindi, like Awadhi.[3]

Sūrdās's biography is most often told through the lens


of the Vallabha Sampradāya aka the Puṣṭimārga. The
Puṣṭimārga regards Sūrdās as an initiated disciple of
Vallabha, and his hagiography is told in the Caurāsī
Vaiṣṇavan kī Vārtā by Gokulnāth and Harirāy. Sūrdās'
poems, along with those of other Aṣṭachāp poets, form
a central part of Puṣṭimārga liturgical singing-worship.
However modern scholars consider the connection
between Sūrdās and Vallabha and his sect to be
ahistorical.[4]
A commemorative postage stamp on Surdas
The book Sur Sagar (Sur's Ocean) is traditionally issued by India Post on 1 October 1952
attributed to Surdas. However, many of the poems in Personal
the book seem to be written by later poets in Sur's
Born uncertain, somewhere between
name. The Sur Sagar in its present form focuses on
1478 and 1483
descriptions of Krishna as the lovely child of Gokul
Gram Sihi, Faridabad, Haryana
and Vraj, written from the gopis' perspective.
(but some people believe that he
was from Runkata or Renuka

Life and work Died uncertain, somewhere between


1579 and 1584
The Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature suggests a Braj Parsauli
birth year of 1258 into a Brahmin family of Uttar Religion Hinduism
Pradesh.[5] Sources state he was either a Sārasvata Parents Ramdas Saraswat[1] (father)
Brāhmaṇa, a Jāṭa, or a Ḍhāṛhī.[6]
Jamunadas[1] (mother)
Surdas, whose name translates to "servant of the sun", Known for Influencing the Bhakti
is celebrated as the pinnacle of poetic artistry in Braj movements, Sant Mat,
bhasha. This language is linked to the Braj region, Organization
where Krishna is said to have spent his childhood. The
Philosophy Bhakti
hagiographer Nabha Dass, in his Bhaktamal, praised
Surdas for his poetic skill, especially in depicting Religious career
"Hari's playful acts", a reference to Krishna's divine Literary Sur Sagar, Sur Saravali, Sahitya
activities. Surdas also composed poems about Ram and works Lahari
Sita but primarily focused on Krishna's life and
deeds.[7]

Poetry
Surdas's poetry was written in a dialect of Hindi called Braj Bhasha, until then considered to be a very
plebeian language, as the prevalent literary languages were either Persian or Sanskrit. His work raised the
status of the Braj Bhasha from a crude language to that of a literary one.[8]

Surdas's poems are collectively known as the Sursagar or "Ocean of Sur" due to a large volume of poems
attributed to his name. The traditional format of the Sursagar is divided into twelve parts, similar to the
Hindu scripture, the Bhagavata Purana. Just as the Bhagavata Purana describes the life and actions of
Krishna, the Sursagar also takes on a similar feat with a majority of its poems dedicated to Krishna. Many
of the poems found in Sursagar are pads, containing six to ten rhymed verses. Other subject matter
covered include Rama and Sita, Vishnu, Shiva, heroes within Hinduism like Gajendra and King Bali, and
the poet's spiritual struggles.[9][10]

Philosophy
Eight disciples of Vallabha Acharya are called the Aṣṭachāp, (Eight seals in Hindi), named after the oral
signature chap written at the conclusion of literary works. Sur is considered to be the foremost among
them.[11]

Coverage
Several films have been made about the poet's life. These include:[12] Surdas (1939) by Krishna Dev
Mehra, Bhakta Surdas (1942) by Chaturbhuj Doshi, Sant Surdas (1975) by Ravindra Dave, Chintamani
Surdas (1988) by Ram Pahwa.

The legend of the blind poet Bilwamangala (identified with Surdas) and Chintamani has also been
adapted several times in Indian cinema. These films include:[12] Bilwamangal or Bhagat Soordas (1919)
by Rustomji Dhotiwala, Bilwamangal (1932), Chintamani (1933) by Kallakuri Sadasiva Rao, Chintamani
(1937) by Y. V. Rao, Bhakta Bilwamangal (1948) by Shanti Kumar, Bilwamangal (1954) by D. N.
Madhok, Bhakta Bilwamangal (1954) by Pinaki Bhushan Mukherji, Chintamani (1956) by P. S.
Ramakrishna Rao, Chintamani (1957) by M.N. Basavarajaiah, Chilamboli (1963) by G. K. Ramu,
Bilwamangal (1976) by Gobinda Roy, Vilvamangal Ki Pratigya (1996) by Sanjay Virmani.

See also
Main Naahin Maakhan Khaayo
Sant Mat
Bhajan
Sant Surdas (Sihi) metro station

References
1. "सूरदास का जीवन परिचय - Biography of Surdas in Hindi Jivan Parichay" (https://knowledgeocea
n.in/biography-of-surdas-in-hindi-jivan-parichay-%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%B
0%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B8-%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE-%E0%A4%9C%
E0%A5%80%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%A8-%E0%A4%AA%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BF%E0%
A4%9A%E0%A4%AF/3290/). 16 September 2020.
2. Klaus K. Klostermaier (5 July 2007). A Survey of Hinduism: Third Edition (https://books.goog
le.com/books?id=E_6-JbUiHB4C&pg=PA215). SUNY Press. p. 215. ISBN 978-0-7914-
7082-4.
3. "Surdas Biography - Surdas Poems - Life History in English" (https://web.archive.org/web/20
220626144617/https://indiathedestiny.com/icons/poets-writers/surdas-biography/). India the
Destiny. 17 June 2018. Archived from the original (https://indiathedestiny.com/icons/poets-w
riters/surdas-biography/) on 26 June 2022. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
4. Hawley, John Stratton (2018). "Sūrdās". In Jacobsen, Knut A.; Basu, Helene; Malinar,
Angelika; Narayanan, Vasudha (eds.). Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online. Brill.
5. Datta, Amaresh (1987). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature: A-Devo, Volume 1. Sahitya
Akademi. p. 79. ISBN 9788126018031.
6. Barz, Richard (1992). The Bhakti Sect of Vallabhācārya. Munshiram Manoharlal. p. 106.
7. Sūradāsa (2015). Sur's Ocean: Poems from the Early Tradition (https://books.google.com/b
ooks?id=2iJ9oAEACAAJ). Harvard University Press. pp. vii–xi. ISBN 978-0-674-42777-8.
8. "Surdas (Sur Das, Soordas)" (https://chandrakantha.com/biodata/surdas.html).
chandrakantha.com. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
9. Bryant, Edwin Francis (2007). Krishna: A Sourcebook (https://books.google.com/books?id=0
z02cZe8PU8C&q=bryant+edwin+krishna+a+source+book). Oxford University Press. p. 224.
ISBN 978-0-19-803400-1.
10. Lochtefeld, James G. (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z (https://books.g
oogle.com/books?id=GnmPzgEACAAJ). Rosen. pp. 673–674. ISBN 978-0-8239-3180-4.
11. "Aṣṭachāp | Indian Poetry, Devotional Verse, Sanskrit | Britannica" (https://www.britannica.co
m/art/Astachap). www.britannica.com. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
12. Rajadhyaksha, Ashish; Willemen, Paul (1999). Encyclopaedia of Indian cinema (https://archi
ve.org/details/encyclopaediaofi0000raja). British Film Institute. ISBN 9780851706696.
Retrieved 12 August 2012.

External links
Surdas (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11509579/) at IMDb

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Surdas&oldid=1258853831"

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