HOME
*



picture info

Sattra
Satras are institutional centers associated with the Ekasarana tradition of Vaishnavism, largely found in the Indian state of Assam and neighboring regions. Numbering in the hundreds, these centers are generally independent of each other and under the control of individual ''adhikaras'' (or ''satradhikars''), though they can be grouped into four different ''Sanghatis'' (orders). These centers, in the minimum, maintain a prayer house ('' Namghar'', or '' Kirtan-ghar''), initiate lay people into the Ekasarana tradition and include them as disciples of the Satra from whom taxes and other religious duties are extracted. The Neo-Vaishnavite satra culture started in the 16th century. They grew rapidly in the 17th century and patronage extended to them by first the Koch kingdom and later the Ahom kingdom was crucial in the spread the Ekasarana religion. Many of the larger Satras house hundreds of celibate and non-celibate ''bhakats'' (monks), hold vast lands and are repositories o ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Sankardev Satra Patbausi, Barpeta
Srimanta Sankardev( শ্ৰীমন্ত শংকৰদেৱ )(; ; 1449–1568) was a 15th–16th century Assamese polymath; a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist social-religious reformer and a figure of importance in the cultural and religious history of Assam, India. He is widely credited with building on past cultural relics and devising new forms of music (Borgeet), theatrical performance (Ankia Naat, Bhaona), dance (Sattriya), literary language (Brajavali). Besides, he has left an extensive literary oeuvre of trans-created scriptures (Bhagavat of Sankardev), poetry and theological works written in Sanskrit, Assamese and Brajavali. The Bhagavatic religious movement he started, Ekasarana Dharma and also called Neo-Vaishnavite movement, influenced two medieval kingdoms – Koch and the Ahom kingdom – and the assembly of devotees he initiated evolved over time into monastic centers called Sattras, which continue to be important socio-re ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Ekasarana Dharma
Ekasarana Dharma (literally: ''Shelter-in-One religion'') is a neo-Vaishnavite monolithic religion propagated by Srimanta Sankardeva in the 15th-16th century in the Indian state of Assam. It reduced focus on vedic ritualism and focuses on devotion (''bhakti'') to Krishna in the form of congregational listening (''sravan'') and singing his name and deeds (''kirtan''). The simple and accessible religion attracted already Hindu as well as non-Hindu populations into its egalitarian fold. The neophytes continue to be inducted into the faith via an initiation ceremony called ''xoron-lowa'' (literally: take-shelter), usually conducted by ''Sattradhikars'', heads of monastic institutions called Sattras, who generally draw apostolic lineage from Sankardev. Some Sattradhikars, especially those from the Brahma-sanghati, reject apostolic lineage from Sankardev due to an early schism with the order. Some modern reformation institutions conduct ''xoron-lowa'' outside the ''sattra'' ins ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Sattriya
''Sattriya'' ( as, সত্ৰীয়া), or ''Sattriya Nritya'', is a major Indian classical dance. This dance was initially created as part of Bhaona which are performances of ''Ankiya Nat'', one-act plays, originally created by Sankardev, the 15th-16th century polymath from Assam.Ankiya Nat
UNESCO: Asia-Pacific Database on Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH), Japan
These dances are part of the living traditions today of Sattras, which are communities of live-in devotees belonging to the , the religion established by Sankardev.
[...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Damodardev
Damodardev (1488–1598) was sixteenth century Ekasarana preceptor from Nalaca, Nagaon. Damodardev was a follower of Sankardeva's Ekasarana dharma order. He started his own order after the death of Sankardeva that came to be called the Brahmasamhati, which admitted Brahmanical rituals and greater adherence to the caste system alongside the namadharma of Sankardev. He was succeeded by Bhattadeva. Early life Damodardev was born in a village called Nalaca in (in present-day Nagaon) in the 1488, the third and youngest son of Sushila and Satananda a Brahmin couple. Nalaca was close to Bordowa than, Sankardev's native place, and Satananda was Sankardev's friend. Damodardev and his family moved from the Ahom territories after Sankardev moved from Dhuwahat to Barpeta in 1546 and settled, after some wandering close to Patbausi, or Chandravatipura near Sankardev's ''sattra''. Damodardev received his education along with his two brothers under Kalpacandra of Navadwip in Bengal, wher ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Madhupur Satra
Madhupur Satra is a religious institutional center associated with the Ekasarana tradition of Vaishnavism, situated in Cooch Behar, the Indian state of West Bengal.It is established by Assamese Vaishnavite monasteries for religious practices in 16th century during Koch kingdom.The great Bhakti Saint Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva (1449-1568 AD) and his disciple Mahapurusha Madhavadeva died here. Madhupur satra is also called as dahmukutor than ; 'dahmukut' means 'bhiti' or living houses of ten disciples (bhaktas) of Srimanta Sankardeva.The name ''satra'' originates in the Bhagavata Purana in Sanskrit (''sattra''), and is used in the sense of an assembly of devotees. Geography Location Madhupur Satra is located at . Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the subdivision. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map. Establishment This satra buildings were built by Raja Nara Narayan of the Koch dynasty in the 16th century. A ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Dakhinpat Satra
Dakshinpat Xatra is a well-known Xatra (socio-religious institution) on Majuli island in the Brahmaputra River, in the Indian state of Assam established by Vamshigopal disciple Satradhikar Sri Vanamalidev in 1584. He was honoured and treated with much respect by the reigning Ahom kingdom monarch Jayadhwaj Singha who made liberal gifts to the Xatra. An ornate gateway engraved with religious motifs, animals and flowers forms the entrance while inside similar sculptures and paintings with divine overtones adorn the walls of the Namghar and heighten the aesthetic appeal of the sacred precincts where the idol of Mahaprabhu Jadavarai is worshipped. Dakshinpat Xatra is a treasure house of dances contributed by Shri Shri Sankardeva such as the Borgeet, Matiakhara, Jumora, Chali, Noyua, Nande Vringee, Sutradhar, Ozapali, Apsara, Satria Krishna and Dasavater among others while it is also a storehouse of antiques of cultural importance and an advanced centre for the performing arts. Du ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Namghar
Namghars ( as, নামঘৰ) literally ''Prayer House'' are places for congregational worship associated with the entire Assamese community and the Ekasarana sect of Hinduism, in particular, that is native to Assam. Besides forming the primary structure used for worship, they also function as meeting houses for congregations, as well as theaters for dramatic performances (''bhaona''). The Namghar, also called the ''kirtanghar'', is also the central structure in the Sattras (monasteries of the Ekasarana dharma) where the other buildings are positioned around it. Namghars are widespread in Assam, and very often more than one namghar exists in a single village, signifying many congregational communities. Namghars were introduced in Assam by the Vaishnavite saints Damodardev, Madhavdev and Sankaradeva for Assamese people where they can culture and practice naam (devotional songs) and Bhakti of God (devotion). He established the first Naamghar at Bordowa in Nagaon district. T ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Madhavdeva
Madhavdev (1489–1596) (Pron: ˈʃrɪ ˈʃrɪ ˈmɑ:dəbˌdeɪv) is an important preceptor of the Ekasarana Dharma known for his loyalty to his guru, Srimanta Sankardev as well as his artistic brilliance. Initially a sakta worshipper, he was converted to Ekasarana Dharma by Sankardev and became his most prominent disciple. He became the religious as well as artistic successor of Sankardeva after the latter's death in 1568. He is known particularly for his book of hymns, the Naam Ghosa, as well as a large selection of songs called ''Borgeets''. Biography Early life in adversity Madhavdev was born in May 1489 at Baligrama in Lakhimpur District of Assam to Govindagiri Bhuyan and Manorama. Govindagiri was a descendant of Hari Bhuyan one of the Bhuyan's who accompanied Candivara (Sankardev's forefather) in the 14th century as part of an exchange between Dharmanarayana of Gauda and Durlabhnarayan of Kamarupa-Kamata. Govindagiri became a Majinder at Banduka, (in Rangpur Dis ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Caste System In India
The caste system in India is the paradigmatic ethnographic example of classification of castes. It has its origins in Outline of ancient India, ancient India, and was transformed by various ruling elites in medieval, early-modern, and modern India, especially the Mughal Empire and the British Raj. It is today the basis of Reservation in India, affirmative action programmes in India as enforced through constitution of India, its constitution. The caste system consists of two different concepts, ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' and ''Jāti, jati'', which may be regarded as different levels of analysis of this system. Based on DNA analysis, endogamous i.e. non-intermarrying Jatis originated during the Gupta Empire. Our modern understanding of caste as an institution in India has been influenced by the collapse of the Mughal era and the rise of the British Raj, British colonial government in India. The collapse of the Mughal era saw the rise of powerful men who associated themselves w ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Brahmin
Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests ( purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru or acharya). The other three varnas are the Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra. The traditional occupation of Brahmins is that of priesthood at the Hindu temples or at socio-religious ceremonies, and rite of passage rituals such as solemnising a wedding with hymns and prayers.James Lochtefeld (2002), Brahmin, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing, , page 125 Traditionally, the Brahmins are accorded the highest ritual status of the four social classes. Their livelihood is prescribed to be one of strict austerity and voluntary poverty ("A Brahmin should acquire what just suffices for the time, what he earns he should spend all that the same day"). In practice, Indian texts suggest that some Brahmins hist ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]