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Surdas

16th century CE (1478-1583)

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Introduction

Surdas (1478-1583) is one of the greatest poets of Hindi literature and the foremost poet of the Krishna Bhakti tradition. He holds the highest position among the Ashtachap poets (eight poets of the Pushti Marg). Despite being blind from birth, he composed such vivid and enchanting descriptions of Lord Krishna’s childhood pastimes and divine love that they remain unparalleled. He is regarded as the emperor of Vatsalya Rasa (the literary sentiment of parental love).

Life

Surdas was born in 1478 in the village of Runkta (near Agra) or Sihi, into a Saraswat Brahmin family. He was blind from birth. From childhood, he showed extraordinary talent in music and poetry.

He accepted Shri Vallabhacharya as his guru, who initiated him into the Pushti Marg and inspired him to sing of Krishna’s divine play. Vallabhacharya entrusted him with the responsibility of performing kirtan at the Shrinathji temple at Govardhan. Surdas spent most of his life in the Mathura-Vrindavan region, immortalizing the culture, language, and devotion of Braj in his verses.

Major Works

  • Sur Sagar — Surdas’s most famous and extensive work. It contains verses on Krishna’s childhood pastimes, the love of the gopis, the Uddhav-Gopi dialogue (Bhramargeet), and numerous devotional compositions. Traditionally said to contain over 125,000 verses, approximately 5,000 are available today.
  • Sur Saravali — A work based on Krishna Leela, notable for its Holi songs.
  • Sahitya Lahari — A composition rich in Shringar Rasa (romantic sentiment), featuring beautiful descriptions of nayika-bheda (types of heroines) and poetic ornamentation.

Teachings

  • Krishna Bhakti — Surdas taught that singing and remembering the divine play of Lord Krishna is the supreme path of devotion. His verses radiate unwavering love and surrender to Krishna.
  • Parental love (Vatsalya) — Through Mother Yashoda and the child Krishna, he expressed an extraordinary portrayal of maternal affection that is unmatched in world literature.
  • The pinnacle of love — Through the gopis, he presented the ideal of innocent and selfless love for the divine.
  • Bhakti over Jnana — In the Bhramargeet, the gopis reject Uddhav’s Nirguna philosophy and establish the supremacy of Saguna devotional love.
  • Surrender and humility — In his compositions, Surdas describes himself as lowly and blind, beseeching the mercy and grace of the Lord.