Twilight of the Sultanate c18.s6: Conclusion
Twilight of the Sultanate c18.s6
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Conclusion
c18.s6.1
The saint-reformers continue to appear in a chain in the succeeding centuries, but the scope of the present work necessitates a review of the work of the reformers of the fifteenth century only. From Rāmānand to Chaitanya it is a long line of some of the greatest thinkers that the country has seen in any one century, and it can be asserted without any fear of contradiction that the fifteenth century in India was an Age of Socio-Religious Reformers.
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These reformers gave to the people a simple religion. They believed in one God—Saguna or Nirguna. The Soul was His part and constantly strove to be near Him or merge with Him. Communion with Him could not be achieved through rituals, pilgrimages, or adherence to the letter of the scriptures. The path of salvation lay in Bhakti. Salvation could be achieved by all; there was no distinction of caste or creed or religion before God. A devotee needed to have a Guru; there was no place for the exploiting priestly class. The Bhakta was not to attach himself to the mundane things of life, nor was he to retire completely from the world. These saints advocated a middle path of life. Theirs was a simple creed which every one could follow.
c18.s6.3
The contribution of these reformers in the religious field was great indeed, but it was still greater in the social sphere. By their message these saints revolutionised the Indian society in a peaceful, invisible way. They were men of very high order. Almost all of them travelled widely and extensively, and met people of all shades of opinion and all climes. They belonged to India and not to any state or province. They held cosmopolitan views; they reflected the common urge, the cherished views of their age.
c18.s6.4
The urge for unity which began during Tīmūr's invasion, when Hindus and Muslims stood shoulder to shoulder to fight the foreign invader, found its culmination in their teachings. The difference was that unity in the first case was born of adversity and necessity. In the case of these saints, their appeal was directed towards the hearts rather than towards the minds of the people. The doctrine of Bhakti went straight to the heart, and proved to be a panacea for the many prevailing ills. It showed the futility of meaningless religious conflicts when the essence of all religions was but the same.
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It gave the privilege of communion with God to all—high and low—without distinction and without the aid of the self-seeking priestly class. It checked excessive polytheism with its rituals, ceremonies and superstitions and their debasing effects. The masters taught the lowly not to surrender to insolent might just as they taught the strong that all human beings were the children of one God. Their convincing attacks on the caste system helped raise the status of millions of down-trodden people. Perhaps their greatest contribution was the uplifting of the common low-caste man. Besides, their teachings created an atmosphere which produced men like Bodhan Brahman, Dongar Mal, Mān Singh and Ahmad Khan.
c18.s6.6
Just as these socio-religious reformers uplifted the social status of the common man, they also helped in the development of the language of the common people throughout the country. Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit were being cultivated in the secluded corridors of Islamic and Hindu institutions. The language of the common man possessed little literature and was hardly studied. Amīr Khusru was perhaps the first national poet who employed Persian metres in Hindī in which he composed many couplets, but by the fifteenth century Hindī got a definite shape at the hands of Sant Kavīs like Kabīr, Raidās, etc. The message of these masters was delivered in simple but beautiful language. Their medium was poetry, mystical and philosophical, sarcastic yet soothing. They preached and composed in Hindī. Therefore, the importance of Sant Kāvya in Hindī language and literature is self-evident. Besides Sūfī poets like Qutban, Manjhan and Jaisī (and the great Bhakta poet Tulsī Dās in the sixteenth century) also greatly enriched Hindī literature. Similarly the Vaishnava poets of Bengal, Maharashtra and Gujarat contributed much to the development of the languages of their regions. In the Punjab, Gurū Nānak gave to the people a new dialect—Gurmukhī.
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Thus the services of these saints to Indian religious thought, society, language and literature were great indeed. However, looking retrospectively, we find that they could not unite the Hindus and Muslims into one nation, though they spared no pains in their efforts to do so. People of the two faiths listened to their behests, followed their teachings, but then continued to cling to their religions tenaciously. On the death of Kabīr there was a quarrel between his Hindu and Muslim followers about the disposal of his body. The story repeated itself on Nānak's death. In days to come if there was an Akbar in India, there was an Abdul Qādir Badaonī also; if there was a Dārā Shikoh, there was an Aurangzeb too. The division of India and creation of Pakistan (whatever the part played by the divide-and-rule policy of the British Government) points to the painful fact that centuries of association of the people of the two religions could not weld Indians into one nation. Why?
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The work of these reformers lacked in many ways. Their audience generally comprised of low class people whose lot they had sought to improve. The high caste privileged classes seem to have hardly paid much attention to them. They even suspected their motives, and some Brahmans and Mullās even appealed to Sikandar Lodī to put a stop to the activities of Kabīr, which the king did. Now, when an idea or an appeal which is meant for all reaches or influences only a certain section or sections of people, it does not succeed in its purpose. This is what happened with the appeal of these masters. All sections of people appreciate their ideas today, but in their own times their appeal lay mainly with the lower strata of society. Even there they did not work with the intention of converting people to their "faith." Each master had his message to deliver; he did not approach the people in the must-convert spirit.
c18.s6.9
Again, although no society progresses only with the improvement of men, still there was no effort made to uplift the status of women. Nay, in the sixteenth century Tulsīdās advocates a very uncharitable attitude towards them. Although emphasis on family life was a step forward, and although the Maharashtra saints did help raise the status of women in the south, in the north their plight hardly seems to have attracted the attention of the reformers.
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Besides, their message lacked in emphasis on improving the economic condition of the people whom they had helped to see the light; and soon penury, fatal to progress, enveloped them in darkness again. Any social reform in India can be achieved the more successfully if it is given an economic basis. All efforts at reform are welcome, but there is no better leveller than prosperity; and changes in the economic life of a people bring in their wake many more social and psychological changes than mere religious reforms.
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But unfortunately these masters could not shake off the element of fatalism so deep-rooted in Indian society. They shared the pessimistic view that the basic philosophy of Hinduism is incompatible with economic prosperity. Although they denounced renunciation, their message of Bhakti did lead to some sort of asceticism and aloofness from society, and the members of the various sects became separate entities having nothing much to do with the society as a whole. That is why though the attemps of the fifteenth century reformers were impressive and gallant in themselves, their achievements now do not seem to be great in retrospect.
c18.s6.12
And once these masters were on the scene no more, their message was forgotten by a people in whose mind caste and religious differences were built-in fixtures. As time passed the message of each thinker became a monopoly of his followers. Failing to understand the ideas of others, members of each group made unique claims and preached the inherent virtues of their own sect. Religious tolerance only came to mean that since people must live separately, let them live in peace. The result was that in place of all people coming together and uniting, there were some more sects added to the existing ones, and if differences were not actually accentuated they were not minimised.
c18.s6.13
But it would be unfair to judge the effect of the work of these socio-religious reformers for all the centuries that followed. In their own day they achieved good success. It was in the fifteenth century that a cry for Hindu-Muslim unity was first raised with any forceful voice and in so many parts of the country—by Nānak in the west, by Kabīr in Madhya Desh and by Chaitanya in the east. It was well received too. People hailed it, Bābur appreciated it,⁵⁹ and Akbar worked upon it. Therefore, the work of these reformers was unique and deserves all praise. They had created a stir in the minds of men and had revolutionised social values. The Mughals certainly ruled over a country and a society which bore the impress of the teachings of these master minds.
c18.s6.14
⁵⁹ While Gurū Nānak was residing at Amīnābād (now venerated under the name of Rori-Sahab in the district of Gujaranwala), Bābur's invasion of India took place. Amīnābād was stormed and Nānak was carried to the Emperor's presence. Bābur was struck by his appearance, and still more by his words, and held a long conversation with him. It is narrated that while the Gurū was talking with the Emperor the servants brought *bhang*. Bābur offered some to the Gurū, who declined, stating that he had a supply which never failed him, and of which the effects were never exhausted. "Upon being asked to explain, he replied that he alluded to the name of God, the consideration of which occupied his faculties." The Emperor ordered his release.