Author – Awadhesh Sharma
Surdas was a poet and singer who composed and sang devotional poems dedicated to lord Krishna in Brajabhasha, a vernacular of Hindi. In his own compositions, he has been identified as Surdas, Surajdas, Sur and Surshyam.
Scant information is available in his compositions to frame a legible biography of Surdas. External sources are used to create a profile of his life and work, but they offer conflicting details, and consequently profiles derived from them are not unanimously accepted.
All scholars agree that Vallabhacharya, the main proponent Acharya of Pushtimarg Sect of Vaishnaivism, initiated Surdas to his tradition. Pushtimarg is also known as Rudra Vaishnav Sampraday. It stresses on devotion to lord Krishna for attaining spiritual merits. His philosophy has spread in many regions of India.
Modern rendering of Shree Bhaktamal, a book composed by Nabhadas in late sixteenth century, and its commentary entitled Rasbodhani by Priyadas, has compiled Surdas’ biographical details, which are in agreement with his profile in literatures of the Pushtimarg tradition.
According to Bhaktamal, Surdas was born in a village named Sihi near Delhi in Vikram Samvat 1535 (AD 1478). He was born blind. He was named Surdas, a term commonly used to refer to a blind person. As the baby grew, he acquired specific abilities to compose and sing songs.
His father used to take Surdas to his clients during his visits to perform religious discourses. During such events, Surdas sang devotional songs beautifully, and impressed his audiences. They rewarded him with gifts and recognitions.
Over time, he also gained and cultivated a talent of prescience for locating missing objects.
Despite his unusual and amazing traits, his family members became indifferent to him. They assumed him to be a potential burden on them for life. Surdas became aware of strained relationships in the family due to him. He decided to leave and devote his time in the service of God. He moved out from his house and started living under a Peepal tree, ficus religiosa, away from his village.
Living alone under the tree, he used to sing devotional songs and chant prayers. He also addressed queries from local villagers, who came to him to seek help in finding missing objects. His responses normally proved accurate.
Obliged by his services, people brought food and other essential items that supported his existence. Once a landlord came to him seeking his assistance in finding his cattle. Surdas foretold him the location of the missing animal, which proved to be precise. The landlord became pleased and built a hut for him. Surdas became popular as Pragyachkshu, the one who sees through knowledge.
News of his skills in composing and singing verses and also in foretelling spread widely. People flocked around him to listen to his songs and for help in locating their lost properties. He became admired in the region. A number of people became his devoted followers and assisted him in daily routines.
Surdas was about eighteen years old at this stage. He sensed that he was getting entangled in worldly affairs. He had left home to devote time to spirituality but became busy in gaining fame and followers by spending time on mundane activities. He realised that it would not be possible for him to change the course of his activities while living in the current place, as he had become too well known. He decided to move away from there.
He came to Mathura but he did not feel comfortable there. He moved to Renuka-kshetra, now known as Runkata on the Agra-Mathura road. At Runkata, he came into contact with saints and other religious persons, and gained spiritual insight. However, he felt overwhelmed, as the place lacked peaceful environment.
From Runkata, he relocated to Gau Ghat on the banks of River Yamuna. There he learnt formal skills in poetry and music. He continued composing and singing verses. His reputation as a devotional singer spread widely and he became well respected among the religious communities.
Vallabhacharya was on pilgrimage to the Braj-ksetra. During his pilgrimage, he temporarily stayed near Gau Ghat. He had heard of Surdas who was living in the same area. He wished to see him. Surdas also learnt about him and desired to meet the Acharya.
Surdas went to Vallabhacharya to offer his respect to him. The Acharya welcomed him and expressed his wish to listen to his compositions. Surdas obliged gratefully and sang a prayer poem, which portrayed him very humble and helpless person.
Vallabhacharya was impressed by his performance and praised him for his talent. He asked him to use his genius in the service of Krishna by composing and singing his glories and pastime. Surdas expressed his lack of proper knowledge of Krishna and his activities. Vallabhacharya initiated Surdas into his sect. He familiarised him with his Subodhani commentary of Bhagavat Puran and narrated him stories from it. Learning about Krishna’s pastime delighted Surdas. He started composing and singing verses relating to Krishna’s activities.
Soon Vallabhacharya moved to Gokul. Surdas accompanied him. Surdas visited the Krishna temple daily for Darshan of the deity Navneetpriya, butter lover. Navneetpriya is one of Krishna’s names common in the Pushtimarg tradition. It relates to Krishna’s preference for butter during his childhood. Vallabhacharya preferred worshipping the child form of Krishna. Surdas composed original verses relating to Krishna and sang them in the temple.
From Gokul, Surdas came to Govardhan Hills along with Vallabhacharya. There he worshiped the deity in the Shrinathji temple. Shrinathji is also another name of Krishna. The environment in and around the temple impressed Surdas. He decided to stay in close proximity of the temple and devote his time in the service of Shrinathji. He set up his residence in a place called Parasoli near lake Chandra-Sarovar. He visited Shrinathji daily and sang his newly composed verses in the temple.
During a travel alone, Surdas fell into a deep pit and stayed there for days. He remained hopeful and chanted prayers to Krishna, who appeared before him in person and pulled him out of the pit by holding his hand. After getting him out of the ditch, Krishna tried to free his hand, but Surdas held it tightly, and informed him that now he would never leave him.
Surdas accepted the Nirgun form, the form without attribute, of God but he preferred to worship the Sagun form, the form with physical attributes. Krishna in his childhood and adolescent forms was his adorable God.
After Vallabhacharya, his son Vitthal Gosain became leader of the Pushtimarg sect. His preferred deity was adolescent Krishna. Vitthal established a team of poets known as Ashtachhap, eight marked poets who composed devotional songs for the sect. Surdas became the chief Ashtachhap. He was designated the main singer of devotional songs at the temple.
Surdas came in contact with other saints and poets of Pushtimarg sect at the temple. They contributed to compiling his compositions and disseminated them far and wide. His poems, being in local dialect, were easy to remember and sing. His compositions became popular widely in North India.
Once, Tansen, Akbar’s court poet, sang Surdas’ composition in his court. Akbar was highly impressed by the song and desired Surdas sing for him in person. A meeting was arranged and he met Surdas in VS 1623. Akbar listened to Surdas’ melodic performance glorifying Krishna and praised him for enhancing the spiritual tradition through his songs.
On one occasion Surdas went to Gokul to visit the Navneetpriya temple. Shree Giridhar, son of Vitthal Gosain was in charge of the temple. He wanted to test Surdas’ ability to foretell. He decorated the idol of the deity in the temple with ornaments without normal dress, and asked Surdas to describe the beauty of the deity. Surdas sensed the style of decoration and described it in verses that truly depicted its opulence in unusual adornment. Giridhar felt ashamed of his action and realised his folly.
Surdas continued singing songs in Shrinath temple until the end of his life. One day Vitthal did not find him in the temple. He went to Surdas’ residence to enquire about his health. He found him on his deathbed. Surdas left his mortal body in the lap of Vitthal at the age eighty-five years.
In the words of Vallabhacharya, Surdas was a sea of devotion. According to Vitthal, he was a ship of Pushtimarg. Surdas had detailed knowledge of the Pushtimarg philosophy. He is believed to be an incarnation of Krishna’s friend Uddhav. He came to Earth to spread Krishna’s glory in the age of Kali.
Following the preferences of Pushtimarg Acharyas Vallabhacharya and Vitthal, Surdas focussed on describing pastimes of Krishna’s childhood and adolescence.
Surdas composed around 1.25 lakhs of poems during his creative life. Most of his poems are lost. His work is divided into three groups that include poems composed before initiation to Pushtimarg; those composed during the lifetime of Vallabhacharya; and those during the period of Vitthal.
Initial creations were mostly prayer songs. During his association with Acharyas, his work focussed on describing Krishna’s pastimes. He also wrote poems based on other texts including the Ramayan, Mahabharat and Purans.
Sursagar, Sur Saravali and Sahitya Lahari are three books that are authentic compilations of his work. A number of other books are also credited to him, but scholars disagree on that assertion. Sursagar is his most popular book that contains around 5,400 poems. It includes detailed descriptions of Krishna’s life mostly based on the Bhagavat Puran.
Details relating to child Krishna stealing butter from Gopis’ houses, teasing them and his playful behaviour with mother Yashoda are vividly described in Sursagar.
Krishna’s cattle grazing, his destruction of various demons, lifting Govardhan Hills, subduing Kaliya serpent and other activities are portrayed to demonstrate his divine status.
Surdas introduced Radha, the female partner of Krishna, in his composition. Radha did not appear as a specific character in the Bhagavat Puran. However, poets such as Vidyapati, Jaidev and Chandidas had introduced her as Krishna’s lover in their compositions previously.
Surdas followed the tradition established by these poets and described Radha and Krishna as lovers. Radha attained the status of Lakshmi through her association with Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu. The poems describing affairs between them are full of Shringar Ras or romantic love.
After Krishna moved from Vrindavan to Mathura, he sent his friend Uddhav to console his Gopi friends and elders. The dialogues between Gopis and him related to understanding the divine nature of Krishna and his pastime in Vrindavan as a son of Nand and Yashoda.
Sursagar also contains sections relating to Dwarka and events from the Ramayan and other legends from Purans.
Descriptions of minute details of Krishna’s pastime and activities in his work led many scholars to believe that Surdas could not have been blind from birth. An alternate profile has also been written. According to this profile, his original name was Bilvamangal. He was a married man but maintained strong attachment to a Ganika, female dancer named Chintamani. His family unsuccessfully tried to dissuade him from her.
Later, Chintamani rebuked him for his wild attachment to her and neglectful behaviour towards his own family. Disappointed at her treatment, Bilvamangal left her and went away to become a Sadhu, holy man. However, his love towards Chintamani did not fade.
Once he saw a lady in a temple. He followed her to her home assuming her to be Chintamani. When he realised his idiocy, he blamed his own eyes for his distraction. He pricked his both eyes with needles and became a blind man, Surdas. Subsequent events follow almost a similar narrative as described earlier.
Surdas remains one of most popular devotional poets dedicated to Krishna. Several films have been made on the life of Surdas. Delhi Doordarshan had broadcast a TV serial on the life of Surdas.
Surdas’ work is an important source for Raslila, a popular folklore dance displaying activities performed by Krishna, Radha and other Gopis. His compositions are also found in the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs.
Surdas’ poems remain incredibly popular even now and are chanted by religious devotees, professional as well as amateur singers and common public during private and public cultural and religious events.