Bhakti and Sufi Movements — Part 6: UPSC Questions, Revision Summary and Glossary

6. UPSC Relevance and Expected Questions

Prelims (factual MCQs)—High-yield facts:

• Kabir's caste background: weaver (Julaha family, indigenous converts to Islam)
• Qawwali attributed to: Amir Khusrau (1253–1325), disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya
• Baba Farid's verses included in: Adi Granth (compiled 1604 CE by Guru Arjan, fifth Sikh Guru)
• Chishti order's founder in India: Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti (d. 1236, settled in Ajmer c. 1206)
• Nalayira Divyaprabandham: anthology of 12 Alvars' compositions; known as the "Tamil Veda"
• Virashaiva/Lingayat movement: founded by Basavanna, 12th-century Karnataka; composed vachanas in Kannada
• Shankaradeva's institution: satra (communal monastic assembly)
• Jnaneswar's major work: Jnanesvari (commentary on the Bhagavad Gita in Marathi, c. 1290)
• Al-Hujwiri's work: Kashf-ul-Mahjub—earliest Persian Sufi treatise; author settled in Lahore
• Fawaid-ul Fuwad: recorded conversations of Nizamuddin Auliya compiled by Amir Hasan Sijzi
• Mulla Daud's Chandayan: early Sufi-influenced Hindi work combining mysticism with Hindu mythology

GS-1 Mains (200–250 word answers):

• "Discuss the contribution of the Bhakti movement to social reform and cultural development in medieval India."
• "How did Sufism become a bridge between Hindu and Muslim communities in medieval India?"
• "Compare the nature and impact of the Bhakti and Sufi movements in medieval India."
• "The Chishti order became popular in India because of its adaptability to the Indian environment. Critically examine."
• "How did the Bhakti movement contribute to the development of regional languages?"

Optional History (long answers):

• "Analyse the interface between Bhakti and Sufi traditions as a process of cultural synthesis in medieval India."
• "The Bhakti and Sufi movements, despite their differences, shared a common social vision of equality. Critically examine."

---

One-Page Revision Summary

Bhakti Movement at a Glance

• 7th–10th c.: Alvars (Vishnu) and Nayanars (Shiva) in South India; Tamil language; Nalayira Divyaprabandham; Tevaram
• Acharyas: Ramanuja (11th c.) → Nimbarka → Madhava (13th c.) → Ramananda (late 14th–15th c.) → Vallabha (15th–16th c.)
• Two schools: Nirguna (formless God—Kabir, Nanak, Raidas) vs. Saguna (God with form—Chaitanya, Mirabai, Tulsidas)
• Key saints and identifiers: Kabir (weaver, Banaras), Raidas (tanner), Guru Nanak (Khatri, Punjab, 1469–1539), Chaitanya (Bengal, 1486–1533, sankirtan), Tukaram (Maharashtra, abhangas), Jnaneswar (Jnanesvari, Maharashtra), Basavanna (Karnataka, Lingayat, vachanas), Shankaradeva (Assam, satra, Ankia Naata), Mirabai (Rajasthan, Krishna bhakti)
• Causes of rise in North India: Decline of Rajput-Brahman alliance after Turkish conquest; growth of artisan/merchant classes; Islamic ideas of equality

Sufi Movement at a Glance

• First sufi in India: Al-Hujwiri (d. 1073, Lahore), Kashf-ul-Mahjub
• Key concepts: Silsilah, Khanqah, Dargah, Ziyarat, Sama, Zikr, Fana, Urs, Wahdat-ul-wujud
• Orders and character: Chishti (most popular; avoided state; sama/qawwali), Suhrawardi (accepted state; Multan), Naqshbandi (strict Shariat; Ahmad Sirhindi), Qadiri (orthodox; urban), Rishi (Kashmir; indigenous)
• Chishti lineage: Muinuddin Chishti (Ajmer, d. 1236) → Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki (Delhi, d. 1235) → Baba Farid (Ajodhan, 1175–1265) → Nizamuddin Auliya (Delhi, 1236–1325) → Nasiruddin Chiragh-i Delhi (d. 1356)

Synthesis

• Qawwali: Amir Khusrau + Chishti sama tradition
• Rishi order (Kashmir): influenced by Lal Ded's bhakti
• Kabir and Nanak blend both traditions
• Chandayan by Mulla Daud: Sufi-Hindu literary synthesis
• Amrit-kund: Sanskrit yoga text translated into Persian
• Dargahs: shared Hindu-Muslim sacred spaces

---

Glossary

1. Bhakti: Devotional surrender to a personally conceived Supreme God as the path to salvation; the foundational concept of the Bhakti movement, traceable to both Brahmanical and Buddhist traditions.
2. Silsilah: A Sufi order; literally "chain," signifying an unbroken spiritual genealogy linking the pir and his disciples back to the Prophet Muhammad through successive masters.
3. Khanqah: The hospice or residential centre of a Sufi order where the pir imparted spiritual training to murids (disciples); supported by futuh (unasked-for charity) and open to all classes.
4. Dargah: The tomb-shrine (Persian for "court") of a deceased Sufi master that became a centre of popular pilgrimage and cross-community devotion.
5. Sama: Sufi devotional musical session intended to induce mystical ecstasy (hal); central to the Chishti order and the origin of qawwali; contested by orthodox ulama.
6. Ziyarat: Pilgrimage to a dargah, especially on the urs—the saint's death anniversary, understood as the "marriage" (union) of the saint's soul with God.
7. Nirguna: "Without attributes"—the school of bhakti worshipping a formless, abstract God (Kabir, Nanak, Raidas); contrasted with saguna bhakti.
8. Saguna: "With attributes"—the school of bhakti worshipping God in a specific anthropomorphic form (Vishnu/Ram/Krishna or Shiva).
9. Fana: The Sufi concept of annihilation of the self in union with God, developed by Bayazid Bastami; followed by baqa (eternal life in God).
10. Malfuzat: Recorded conversations (discourses) of Sufi masters compiled by disciples; key historical sources (e.g., Fawaid-ul Fuwad, recording Nizamuddin Auliya's teachings).
11. Wahdat-ul-wujud: "Unity of Being"; the Sufi doctrine that all existence is one with divine reality; opposed by Naqshbandi saint Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi, who propounded wahdat-ul-shuhud instead.
12. Urs: The death anniversary of a Sufi saint, observed as a celebration of the saint's union with God; a major occasion for ziyarat at the dargah.

---