Nirguna and Saguna Saints of the North
NCERT Class 7 - Our Pasts II • NCERT Class 12 - Themes in Indian History Part II, Chapter 6
Nirguna and Saguna Saints of the North
Northern Bhakti divides into two streams. Nirguna saints worshipped a formless god without attributes and rejected image worship. Saguna saints worshipped god in form, mainly as Rama or Krishna, and produced the great devotional poetry of the regional languages.
The nirguna stream
- Kabir, fifteenth century, is the central figure. Raised in a weaver family of Varanasi and linked in tradition to Ramananda, he attacked ritual, caste and outward religion in both traditions.
- His verses survive in the Bijak, the Kabir Granthavali, and in the Adi Granth; he used short dohas and sakhis, and the deliberately paradoxical ulatbansi style.
- Guru Nanak (1469-1539) was born at Talwandi, now Nankana Sahib. He taught the oneness of god beyond ritual and caste, and settled at Kartarpur.
- He instituted sangat, the congregation, and langar, the common kitchen where all eat together - a practical attack on caste separation.
- His hymns were written in Gurmukhi; the Adi Granth was compiled by Guru Arjan in 1604 and includes verses of Kabir, Ravidas and the Sufi Baba Farid.
- Ravidas, a cobbler-saint of Varanasi, spoke of a society without sorrow or inequality; Dadu Dayal in Rajasthan continued the same stream.
The saguna stream
| Saint | Region and deity | Main work or form |
|---|---|---|
| Surdas | Braj, Krishna | Sursagar, in Brajbhasha |
| Tulsidas | Awadh, Rama | Ramcharitmanas, in Awadhi |
| Mirabai | Rajasthan, Krishna | Devotional padas sung across India |
| Chaitanya | Bengal, Krishna | Kirtan and Gaudiya Vaishnavism |
| Shankaradeva | Assam, Krishna | Ekasarana dharma, borgeet, satras |
| Narsinh Mehta | Gujarat, Krishna | Bhajans including Vaishnava jana to |
- Tulsidas retold the Rama story in Awadhi, deliberately in the people's language, which made it the most widely known religious text of north India.
- Mirabai, a Rajput princess, left palace life for devotion to Krishna and is remembered for defying the restrictions placed on women of her rank.
- Chaitanya spread congregational singing (kirtan) in Bengal and Odisha, open to all castes.
- Shankaradeva in Assam founded satras, monastic centres, and namghars, prayer houses, and used drama and song to teach.
What the saints shared
- Devotion to a personal god as the path to liberation, above ritual, pilgrimage and priestly mediation.
- Preaching in the people's language rather than Sanskrit, which enriched Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati and Assamese.
- A critique of caste ranging from the mild to the radical, and acceptance of disciples from all communities.
- Use of the guru as the essential guide, and of song as the main medium.
- Their social effect is debated - the saints challenged hierarchy in the religious sphere without overturning it in everyday social life.
हिंदी संकेत: निर्गुण का अर्थ बिना रूप और गुण वाला ईश्वर, सगुण का अर्थ रूप सहित ईश्वर। कबीर और नानक निर्गुण हैं; तुलसी, सूर और मीरा सगुण।
Exam me kaise aata hai
Match-the-following on saint, language and work is the standard format. Factual questions ask who compiled the Adi Granth and in which year, and in which language the Ramcharitmanas was written. Statement-based questions test which saints belong to the nirguna stream.
UPSC / State PSC ke liye
Note two things for descriptive answers. First, the Adi Granth's inclusion of Kabir, Ravidas and Baba Farid is concrete textual evidence of cross-tradition exchange. Second, keep the distinction between religious equality preached by the saints and social equality, which their movements did not achieve.
Yahan confuse hote hain
✗ Tulsidas wrote the Ramcharitmanas in Brajbhasha | ✓ It is in Awadhi; Surdas wrote in Brajbhasha
✗ Kabir belonged to the saguna stream | ✓ Kabir is the leading nirguna saint
✗ The Adi Granth was compiled by Guru Nanak | ✓ It was compiled by Guru Arjan in 1604
Ek nazar me
- Nirguna worships the formless god; saguna worships god in form as Rama or Krishna.
- Kabir attacked ritual and caste; his verses are in the Bijak and the Adi Granth.
- Guru Nanak, 1469-1539, founded sangat and langar; Adi Granth compiled by Guru Arjan in 1604.
- Surdas wrote the Sursagar in Brajbhasha; Tulsidas the Ramcharitmanas in Awadhi.
- Mirabai of Rajasthan, Chaitanya of Bengal and Shankaradeva of Assam lead the saguna stream.
- All preached in regional languages, enriching Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Marathi and Assamese.