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Illustrated manuscript depiction of Gorakhnath nether a histrion extracurricular his hut. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Folio from Hindi MS 371 kept successful the Wellcome Library)
Nov 21, 2024 15:30 IST First published on: Nov 21, 2024 astatine 15:30 IST
Now comes quality from 1 of the biggest Hindi dailies that a lawsuit of impersonation and cheating nether conception 319 (1) of the penal codification has been slapped against 3 Muslim men from the colony of Atarsanwa successful Ghazipur district. The SHO told the media that the men were singers and, dressed successful saffron robes of jogis, had agelong been earning a surviving by singing Gorakhpanthi bhajans arsenic they wandered from colony to village. The men claimed to beryllium Gorakhpanthi jogis, saying this was an ancestral vocation. But the villagers, led by a almighty BJP leader, were adamant that they could not beryllium yogis oregon jogis, which astir present assertion is simply a Sanatani sect. The singers were caught and subjected to a “hard” quizzing, with the constabulary being told that they were impersonators looking to marque wealth by acting arsenic Gorakhpanthi yogis. The 3 were past presented successful the tribunal of the SDM area, and person been remanded to judicial custody for 14 days.
How bash we justice who is simply a existent Gorakhpanthi yogi?
Most radical who enactment successful Yoga Day events are fixed to recognize that yoga is an past Hindu signifier created by a sage named Patanjali and that it helps blend assemblage and caput and psyche and leads to cleanable bid within. But successful its agelong history, yoga has undergone galore mutations and the signifier that is practised contiguous was shaped retired of Patanjali’s mentation aft the 11th century, pursuing a rebranding by 1 Raja Matsyendranath (known successful folklore arsenic Raja Machhinder). The Raja, it is said, was a large yogi and alchemist who renounced his kingdom and Vedic traditions, opting for the beingness of a wandering sadhu. Such heresy and diverseness person ever been portion of India’s sectarian scenery and absorbing things hap erstwhile spiritual thoughts and practices conscionable and mutate. Under Matsyendranath, determination was a caller span betwixt the Tantric Shaivite rituals (the Kaul tradition) and Tantra-inspired Buddhism. The effect was the Nath Siddha tradition.
This contented created by Guru Matsyendranath was further fine-tuned by his premier disciple Gorakshanath, amended known arsenic Guru Gorakhnath. Gorakhnath was a large traveller and is believed to person travelled to Joshimath successful Uttarakhand, 1 of the large centres of Sanatan Dharma founded by Adi Shankara. As a large unifier of religions and breaker of caste taboos, Guru Gorakh besides created a centre for Gorakhpanthis successful Joshimath. His dhooni (sacred flame) is inactive kept live by his galore followers, section and arsenic good arsenic bands of Gorakhpanthi pilgrims.
The existent communicative astir Gorakhnath being a protector of cows leaves retired overmuch of this story, arsenic good arsenic his aesthetic broadside arsenic a creator of verses and adroit subordinate of percussion and stringed instruments. According to the Gorakshanath Stotra, the sanction Gorakhnath means a antheral who is virtuous (ga), beauteous (ra) successful signifier and with an eternal psyche (kha).
When the British arrived successful India, they accepted galore of the prevalent biases successful mainstream Hinduism against heretic sects similar the Gorakh Panth. The representation of a yogi connected a furniture of nails and pictures of bare fakirs and sadhus brandishing tridents and swords became symbols of a degenerate and unsafe tribe. This was not the Nath Siddha cadre that Guru Gorakhnath had raised. The Guru wished for the sect to beryllium escaped from the cloying and degenerated signifier of bhakti that the Brahmanical clergy had fattened itself on, portion besides defying divisions based connected caste, creed and gender. Gorakhnath’s was a axenic unwavering rationalism of the caput (“Gorakh tyago bhog, bhagayi bhakti, jagayo jog”). He came down hard connected the usage of foul connection and inducted some Hindus and Muslims (mostly weavers) into the sect, on with women.
According to the student Hazari Prasad Dwivedi, successful time, arsenic sectarian and governmental polarisation grew, immoderate Hindu disciples tried to induct Hindu gods and goddesses into the pantheon of the sect that hitherto lone worshipped Adi Nath (a signifier of Shiva). At that point, the Gorakhpanthis from little castes opted for Islam, but continued to telephone themselves Nathpanthi jogis. Up until the 1921 census, determination were 6,29,978 listed Hindu yogis, 31,158 Muslim jogis and 1,41,132 Hindu fakirs each associated with the Nath Panth.
By the 14th century, the Nath jogis had acquired subject musculus and with that Mutt gathering and politicisation of the Mahant arsenic the Head besides gained ground. Jogis successful Gujarat had reportedly go truthful assertive that they would forcibly person men by tearing disconnected their receptor lobes. In the 16th century, determination were convulsive clashes betwixt them and the Sikhs. Kabir scoffs astatine these tendencies for unit driven by greed: “Brothers, ne'er seen a yoga specified arsenic this, stalking the land, afloat of idiocy/ When did Narad Muni occurrence a weapon oregon (Ved)Vyas lob a weaponry similar them?/ In the sanction of asceticism, fto not these duffers make divisions and springiness a atrocious sanction to jogis! (Aisa jog na dekha bhai, bhool firai liye gafilai/ Narad kab bandook chalava? Vyas dev kab weaponry bajava?/ Karain larai mati ke manda …/ Bhaye virakt lobh antheral thanaa…”[Bijak])
Prescient words from the poet!
The writer is erstwhile chairperson, Prasar Bharati
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