Bhakti and Sufi Movement

The Bhakti and Sufi Movement in India played an important role in bringing
harmony between the Hindus and the Muslims.

Bhakti Movement
The Bhakti Movement was a reform movement in Hinduism. It occupies a
significant position in bringing about harmony and normal relationships
between the Hindus and Muslims.

The development of the Bhakti cult first began in South India in the 7th-8th
century in order to bridge the gulf between the Shaivas and the Vaishnavas. It
stood for intense personal devotion and complete self-surrender to God. It
believed in the unity of godhead, brotherhood of man and equality of all
religions. The roots of the Bhakti Movement can be traced to the Upanishads,
the Puranas and the Bhagvad Gita. Shankaracharya is reputed to have been
the first and principal exponent of this reform movement.

After the advent of Islam, the necessity of making Hinduism a living active
force in the life of the common people was felt deeply. Islam with its liberal
outlook, equality of status among its followers, and concept of one God, posed
great threat to Hindu society that was suffering from ritualism, rigid caste
system, evils of untouchability and multiplicity of gods and goddesses. In this
situation many lower class Hindus were attracted by the catholic outlook of
Islam in these respects. They were also tempted to adopt Islam which could
afford them better status in society and a less cumbersome religion. But at
this critical juncture the preachers of Bhakti Movement tried to bring harmony
among various religons. The often condemned the Hindu Caste
System. Though the Bhakti cult had a long tradition, it was during this time
that the cult grew to a new dimension.

Features of Bhakti Movement

Its proponents preached the ‘unity of the god-head’ and emphasized that
‘devotion to God’ and faith in him led to salvation. It also laid stress on equality
of all human beings and universal brotherhood. The other tenets of the Bhakti
cult were purity of heart and honest behaviour. The basic features of this cult
thus had many similarities with those of Sufism. This helped greatly in
checking the growth of Islam in India.

Impact of Bhakti Movement

The Bhakti movement became popular among the common masses as its
teachings were preached in the form of hymns in various popular languages.
In this accessible form Bhakti ideas were spread among wide strata of the
population and the hymns frequently became folk songs. Amongst the leaders
of the Bhakti movement, Ramananda, Kabir, Ramanuja, Sri Chaitanya, Nanak
etc. were prominent.

Sufi Movement
The Sufi Movement had twofold aims:

1. To make their own spiritual progress and

2. To serve the mankind.

Sufism, which started as a reform movement, laid emphasis on free-thinking,

liberal ideas and toleration. They believed in the equality of all human beings
and brotherhood of man. Their concept of universal brotherhood and the
humanitarian ideas of the Sufi saints attracted the Indian mind. The Sufi
movement proved very helpful in bridging the gap between the followers of the
two religions and in bringing the Hindus and the Muslims together.

The Sufi movement gained impetus during the reign of Akbar who adopted a
liberal religious policy under the influence of the Sufi saints.

Abul Fazal had mentioned the existence of 14 Silsilahs in India. A close link
that existed between the leader or Pir and his murids or disciples was a vital
element of the Sufi system.

The Sufism reached India in the 12th century A.D. Its influence grew
considerably during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. In India, Chisti
and Suhrawardi Silsila were most prominent.

Chisti order was founded in India by Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti. His dargah at
Ajmer became a centre of veneration for both the Muslims and Hindus. After
his death in 1236 A.D., his devotees continued to celebrate an annual Urs
festival at Ajmer. But the most famous Sufi saint of the Chisti order was
Nizamuddin Auliya. He led a simple austere life and lived in Delhi. By his vast
learning, religious knowledge, and tolerant attitude to all religions, he earned
devotion of both the Hindu and Muslim masses.

Like the Bhakti saints, the Sufi saints contributed greatly to the
growth of a rich regional literature. Most of the Sufi saints were
poets who chose to write in local languages.

Baba Farid recommended the use of Punjabi for religious writings.

Shaikh Hamiduddin, before him, wrote in Hindawi. His verses are
the best examples of early Hindawi translation of Persian mystical
poetry

The most notable writer of this period was Amir Khusrau (l 252-
1325) the follower of Nizamuddin Auliya. Khusrau took pride in
being an Indian and looked at the history and culture of
Hindustan as a part of his own tradition. He wrote verses in Hindi
(Hindawi) and employed the Persian metre in Hindi. He created a
new style called sabaq-i-hindi. By the fifteenth century Hindi had
begun to assume a definite shape and Bhakti saints such as Kabir
used it extensively.

The Sufi Movement in India helped in establishing peace and amity among
the Hindus and Muslims.

Impact of Sufism
The liberal ideas and unorthodox principles of Sufism had a profound
influence on Indian society. The liberal principles of Sufi sects restrained
orthodox. Muslims in their attitude and encouraged many Muslim rulers to
pursue tolerant attitude to their non-Muslim subjects. Most Sufi saints
preached their teachings in the language of common man that contributed
greatly to the evolution of various Indian languages like Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi,
Kashmiri and Hindi. The impact of Sufi Movement was deeply felt on some
renowned poets of the period, like Amir Khusrau and Malik Muhammad
Jayasi who composed poems in Persian and Hindi in praise of Sufi principles.