Medieval India Poems
← The 5 Love Languages | An Irish Airman foresees His Death by William Butler Yeats → |
For many centuries, religion has played an arguably critical role in enhancing the literature of a certain race or even that of an entire country. In India for instance, the unstable ancient days played a great role towards the diverse Indian culture. Throughout the 10th century, there had emerged many saintly poems which had different meaning and also interpreted in diverse ways by various groups of people. The most famous poems of the Indian empire are critically analyzed herewith. These poems include: Virasaiva Saints, The Bengali Vaisnava Saints' Songs of Devotion to Krishna and Govindadasa, to mention just a few.
The poems of the Virasaiva saints
Virasaiva poems are also referred to as vacanas meaning ‘what is spoken’ and this contradicts with smiriti poems which means ‘ what is memorable’ and sruti poems which means ‘recipients understanding’. Virasaivas poems are widely recognized for their rebellion against the caste system which prescribes a certain definite way of marrying. In this system, a person was only allowed to marry the other if their families had a common economic activity. For instance, a man from a merchant family could only marry a woman from another merchant family. The poem criticized the system and this eventually resulted to the collapse of that system. In the 10th century, people used virasaiva poems to worship Siva who was believed to be the Indian god. It is imperative to note that virasaiva poems are part of devotional songs in almost all households in Karnataka, India.
Bhati Hinduism, Virasaiva inclusive emphasizes on devotion, affection and openness to converts. Moreover, virasaiva saints believe in acquisition of merit. By believing the existence of a certain state of affairs, a virasaiva saint can either convert or be converted. This means that a virasaiva practitioner is free to change his religious allegiance from one denomination to another. This is contrary to classical Hinduism whereby they keep their religion to themselves. In my own personal idea, virasaiva movement seems to respect religious freedom. It has also played a major role in criticizing irrelevant systems in the Hindu society such as caste system.
Vaishnava poems
Vaishnava saints are also referred to as twelve Alvars and originated from South India. The Vaishnava saints also remained opposed to the caste system which was a persistent hereditary system in the ancient India Empire. There are many saintly poems that have been authored by this movement since its formation. However, they mainly focused and advocated for some traditional rituals while morality, holiness and selflessness were overlooked. They expressed their feelings and opinions through poems and music that basically attracted many people. The founder of this movement was Chaitanya. The Vaishnava mainly worshipped through songs and dances. In my own opinion, Vaishnava, like Virasaiva actually played a tremendous role in creating awareness among people on the disadvantages of the caste system. They were however very ritualistic and little did they focus on holiness or morality.
Govindadasa's Kalikamangal
This is a narrative poem that belongs a certain Bengali literature called mangalkavya. The poem was basically used to praise the goddess who was known as Kal. It is believed that the composition of this poem was between late seventeenth or early eighteenth century. It is actually named after an Indian poetess; Govindadasa. Basically, her poem focuses on human peripatetic behavior, religious search for devotion and the attainment of unity with God. Govindadasa is very interesting in her explanation especially regarding krisna and Radha story whereby she uses this story to describe the forgiveness aspect by mankind. In her narration, Govindadasa’s uses human love to symbolize divine love. She further use the narration to emphasize on the fact that as separation may exist between two lovers, it can also exist between a human person and God. In subjective terms, Govindadasa’s poem is more realistic about religion. It focuses more on real aspects of life viz. love, unity and separation.
In conclusion, therefore, the three poems to our discussion are similar in that they all talk about religious practices among the Hindu. Furthermore, both virasaiva and Vaishnava poems are similar to the effect that they both criticize the caste system. There is also a slight difference between Virasaiva and Vaishnava poems on one hand and Govindadasa’s poem on the other hand. The former are purely religious/worship poems while the latter is more of a narrative than a poem.
- An Irish Airman foresees His Death by William Butler Yeats
- The relationship between Merry and the Swede
- The 5 Love Languages
- Why the Past Matters?
Tiffany E.
Monroe, LA
|
|
|
I am 100% satisfied with the writer that you assigned to my project. This person understood exactly what I needed, even though I’m not the best communicator and the instructions were tedious and difficult. I felt certain I would have to send my paper back for a number of revisions, but I didn’t. The writer was able to convey exactly what I wished to express and he did it in record time!Thanks for everything. EssaysEmpire.com is the greatest! |
Jaffar M.
Salt Lake City, UT
|
|
|
My sincere thanks for a job well done. My professor loved my paper and commended me for handing in the one that your writing service helped me with. The paper flowed very well. It was logical and intelligent-sounding. I was very pleased overall. |
Royce E.
Dallas, TX
|
|
|
I first approached EssaysEmpire.com with skepticism. However, now, I have none. I am convinced that you are probably the best writing service on the Internet. Plus, you don’t overcharge, as so many writing services do. Thank you for the quality writing at affordable prices. You offer such a valuable service to students such as me. |
Nancy B.
Lawrence, KS
|
|
|
I accidentally read the wrong chapters for my history assignment. Therefore, when it came down to the wire and I needed to hand in my history paper, I had to reach out for help very quickly. Your writers were able to put something together for me so fast! I couldn’t believe it! I handed the paper in and got a very high score on it. I was stunned! Thank you so much for your help! |
Ramona R.
Sparks, NV
|
|
|
Thank you for doing such stellar work on my paper. How anyone could write a paper this well on a subject this boring, is beyond me. When I tried to write it myself, I thought it would have put my professor to sleep! Your writers made it sound so interesting! I really appreciate that. Thanks a million! |
Tom J.
Jackson, MI
|
|
|
Many thanks to your writers and customer service representatives for helping me get through a very difficult time in my college career. I needed writing assistance and your crew came through for me, big time! My papers were written impeccably. Thanks so much! |
Shirley R.
Casper, WY
|
|
|
I would be honored to recommend your writing service to all of my friends. I don’t usually recommend anything unless I truly believe it to be a good thing. EssaysEmpire.com is a good thing! |
Barry M.
Seattle, WA.
|
|
|
BRAVO! EssaysEmpire.com has done it again. I have just received another A+ for an EssaysEmpire.com paper! Thanks!Thanks! |
Lonnie K.
Falcon Crest, MA
|
|
|
I work very long hours. Therefore, I sometimes run behind in my school assignments. This is especially true for the long written assignments. It is so great to know that I can always count on EssaysEmpire.com to help me out. The papers that I buy from you are excellent, without fail. I really appreciate your help . Thanks for everything. |
Phil E.
South Hadley, MA
|
|
|
So often, when one deals with customer service, he or she is treated rudely. That was not the case with EssaysEmpire.com. The agents were helpful and friendly, knowledable and concerned. I, for one, was astounded with their competence. When it came down to the actual written material that I ordered, it was much better than I had anticipated. There are clearly some expert writers who work for EssaysEmpire.com. I would rate this writing service as exceptional, 5 stars out of 5 stars. I will happily return when I need help with another written work. |
George Sparlin
Nashville, TN
|
|
|
You guys are fabulous to offer such amazing guarantees for your work. I hired you for my last two papers because there was no risk involved. That was a pretty attractive option, if you ask me. Of course, I didn’t have to cash in on any kind of guarantee, because the work was perfect! Go figure. Thank you, EssaysEmpire.com. |
Stephanie K.
Stowe, VT
|
|
|
Dear Sirs: Just a quick note to let you know that I appreciate your working on my paper so quickly. I did get it in time to turn it in for the deadline, even though I hadn’t given you much notice. I made a very good grade on it and was much relieved. Thanks again. You rock. |
Ohjasi O.
Tokyo, JP
|
|
|
The essay that your writers turned out for me far exceeded what I was expecting. It even came with a plagiarism report to prove that it was original. The customer service center was the picture of perfection, too. I loved everything about using EssaysEmpire.com and plan to use your services again. You are one class act! |
Zola R.
Salulita, MX
|
|
|
The paper that I bought from EssaysEmpire.com was a whole lot better than I thought it would be. Thank you for the excellent service and product. I will be happy to recommend you to my friends. |
Ren B.
Sparks, NV
|
|
|
I ordered two papers from you at once. Both of them had strict deadlines and not that much time left. Your writers managed to get both papers to me on time, and both of them received high marks. I am so happy about this! |
Rob B.
Tulsa, OK
|
|
|
I needed APA formatting, EssaysEmpire.com’s writers gave me APA formatting. I needed 2000 words. EssaysEmpire.com’s writers gave me 2000 words. I needed an A+ on my paper to bring up my GPA. EssaysEmpire.com gave me a paper that got an A+. I am a happy person, thanks to EssaysEmpire.com! |
Celine H.
Calistoga, CA
|
|
|
Thanks for doing a great job on a paper that was an important part of my semester. You guys rock! |
Stephanie M.
Bath, ME
|
|
|
This is the fourth A+ in a row from EssaysEmpire.com! Thanks! |
Philipa W.
Rome, ITALY
|
|
|
The paper that your writers did for me on the topic of, The Psychological Effects of Fluorescent Lighting in the Workplace,” was right on the money! They included my long list of customizations and did not charge extra for them. The formatting was just right. There were no grammatical errors. The length was what it was supposed to be. I am so happy that I chose to let the EssaysEmpire.com writers take care of my paper for me. I will choose this writing service again without hesitation. |
Millie P.
Jackson, WY
|
|
|
Thanks goes out to the writer who filled my order. He did everything right the first time around. I had to ask for one tiny revision, but that was my own fault for leaving it out of the directions. |