254. Bhakti movement in Gujarat and Narsinh Mehta (1414- 1481 A.D.)

The Bhakti movement in Gujarat is a significant part of India’s devotional and cultural history. It was marked by the contributions of saints like Narsinh Mehta and Gangasati, who played a pivotal role in the development of Gujarati Bhakti poetry. Their works emphasized devotion to God beyond the traditional caste system and promoted the use of the vernacular language, making spirituality accessible to all. Bhakti movement in Gujarat begins from the fifteenth century and there are two major streams here. One is of sagun Bhakti around Krishna beginning with Narsinh Mehata and Meera and developed further under the Vallabha sect and the Swami narayana sect of Sahajanand Swami. The other strain of Bhakti cult was of Yoga which was strongly influenced by the nath cult of Guru Matsyendra Nath and Gorakh Nath, who preached pursuit of ultimate truth and joy by treating the world as an illusion. It was Narsinh Mehta who popularized bhakti in Gujarat  and he found a large number of following among the merchant class.  Narsinh Mehta, often referred to as the ‘Adi Kavi’ (the first poet) of Gujarati literature, is known for his devotional songs and poems which are relevant even in the 21st century.Narasinh Mehta was a Nagar Brahmin born in AD 1414 and was a native of Talaja near Palitana in Bhavnagar district. He gave a new impetus to Bhakthi in Gujarat. The main contributions of the saint poet constitute the valuable resources of Gujarati literature. They are Haramala, sudamacarita, caturi, Sodasi, samaldas, danalila, Govindagaman, about 2000 padas on devotion and erotics (srngar) and Surata sangrama .