Ravidasi: Difference between revisions

The long established Emblem of the Ravidasis, see explanation of the Emblen under - 6. Religious flag

Known as Ravidasias the members of the Ravidasi religion consider Guru Ravidas or Ravidass as their founding prophet and spiritual master, whom they revere as their Satguru. He is one of the early northern India poet-Sants.

Guru Ravidas founded a spiritual movement in the fourteenth century in India. His parents were Chamars, one of the downtrodden communities in the Indian Varna (caste) system. Though the Chamars were Shudras, because they worked with leather, other Shudras (service providers and artisans), along with the Brahmins (teachers, scholars and priests), the Kshatriyas or Khatris (kings and warriors), the Vaishyas (agriculturists and traders), considered them "untouchables".

The people of this lowest strata were particularly attracted to the path of Guru Ravidas. After being initiated as Ravidasias added the suffix "Ad-Dharm" (Primal Spiritual Way) to their names. They saw themselves as a unique community that was separate from the Hindu and Muslim religions; the two main religions of India at that time.

Ravidas = Nanak = Gobind Singh = Satta Balwand

Founder

Guru Ravidass was a poet, mystic, devotee and Guru was born on Maghshudhi 14 Pooranmashi in Smt.1456, i.e., 30 January 1399 in Kashi (Banaras). In the Guru Granth Sahib, which the Ravidas call the Guru Sikhya Sahib, many devotional hymns of Guru Ravidas (whom the Sikhs refer to as Bhagat Ravidas have been included by Guru Arjan. Sri Sahib Ravidas was adevotee of god, and his hymns are placed under Bani Bhagtan ki. Bhagat Ravidas. The Ravidasis consider themselves to be separate from the mainstream Hindus, Sikh and Muslim faiths.

Early Life

His parents Raghu and Ghurbinia were in the leather trade, and were very well off, they lived near the city of Varanasi. Their new som was barely five days old when Bhagat Ramanand visited his house and blessed the newborn child.

When Ravidas reached the age of discretion his father inspired him to join the family business. But Ravidas was imbued with celestial and humane values. The money he received from his father for business, he spent in the welfare of the Saints and needy. His father was extremely perturbed and banished him from the house. By this time Ravidas was already married. Rather than resenting his father's actions he quietly left the house, started living in a make-shift hut with his wife, and set up a small wayside shop where he mended shoes.

Devotion to the Lord

However he did not abandon his love for God, as he built a Temple of clay-walls with a thatched roof in which he installed an idol made out of hide. His extreme devotion and universal love induced hundreds of people of all castes to join him in worship. This of course angered the Brahmin priests who considered themselves to be the only ones who could build Mandirs (temples) and installing a Murti (an idol out of anything other than marble, especially leather, must have given them fits. They wasted no time in raising the matter in the Court of the Muslim Nawab of Kashi. The Nawab was a man of righteousness, and put the matter to a miraculous test.

Guru Ravidas went into meditation and recited one of his hymns (Gauri Purbi P.346) and requested the Almighty, "Take pity on me that my doubts may be dispelled." His prayer was answered, and his adoration acclaimed the triumph in the miraculous test. To express his gratitude he sang his hymn (Asa P.1606), "Thou art sandal and I am the poor castor-plant, dwelling close to thee. From a mean tree I have become sublime and Thine fragrance, exquisite fragrance, now, abides in me."

Places of Worship

Technically a Ravidasia can meditate and reflect on God anywhere as Guru Ravidass stated that God dwells within the heart and is always around us.

However, there does exist places of worship which are termed "Gurdehera" (properly Ravidasia Gurdehera Sahib). It is not obligatory to cover one's hair or remove ones shoes when entering a Ravidasia Gurdehera Sahib, but many do due to the influences of the practices of the Muslims and particularly because of the Sikh practices within the Punjabi Ravidasi community.

Outside a Gurdehera there is always a red flag upon which is written the Nishaan, which always has above it an electric lamp symbolising enlightenment from Guru Ravidas's teachings.

Langar takes place inside a Gurudwara following in the ancient Sufi practice prevalent in Banaras at the time of Guru Ravidas, all are free to partake of the vegetarian meal.

The Shri Guru Sikhya Sahib is installed as the focal point in the main worship room, although there is talk of this being replaced with works consisting entirely of Guru Ravidas's words (this is known as the Ravidas Bani).

Arti takes place daily at the closing of the day's formal services, this consists of the famous Arti written by Guru Ravidas in which he tells God that only His name is sufficient.

Religious Scripture

The Ravidasi holy book is the Shri Guru Sikhya Sahib, known to Sikhs as the Guru Granth Sahib. Ravidasias believe that this book imparts the existence, worship, belief, praise, dedication and devotion to One Almighty God the creator. This holy book contains Raidas's writings and also many other contemporaries and disciples, including Guru Nanak, Guru Kabir, Baba Farid and others who preached a spiritual path to personal enlightenment. This book contains passages from the holy book Ravidas-Deep, which was presented in the court during British rule in India in recognition of the Ravidasia religion and the ‘Ad-Dharam’ community.

Relationship with Sikhism

The Ravidasi movement gained an extra impetus in the 1920s in Punjab. Though Guru Gobind Singh had by his Khanda-ki-Pahul initiation (1669) made it very clear by his creation of the Panj Pyare, when four men - each of the four Varnas drank out of the same bowl of Amrit with the 10th Padshah of the Sikhs. The creation of the Khalsa, however only continued the long established credo of the Sikh Gurus who considered all humans to be equal. Despite this the Sikhs, who were formerly Chamars, continued to face caste oppression from their fellow Sikhs. Rebelling against this, the group split from the Sikh community and joined the Ravidasi faith en-masse. Today, former Chamars from the Punjab are the largest visible ethnic group in the Ravidasi community. Punjabi Ravidasis have a number of Gurdeheras in the United Kingdom, especially in the Midlands.

The practice of the Ravidasi faith amongst its Punjabi converts is strongly influenced by Sikh practice and form due to their history in the Sikh community. Ravidasis believe that there is no hypocrisy in practicing Sikhism alongside their Ravidasi beliefs, as the two do not contradict each other.

Ravidasis also believe that Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikh religion, might have met with Guru Ravidass during his travels. It is believed that it was at this stage that Guru Ravidass handed over his hymns to Guru Nanak. Both spoke against discrimination based on Caste, Colour and Creed, and preached ideas of Equality and Socialism, and this is evident from hymns incorporated in the Guru Granth Sahib. Sikhs refer to Guru Ravidas and several other Sants and Pirs whose Hymns (though they were not Sikhs) have been included in the Guru Granth Sahib as Bhagats.

Places of pilgrimage

All Ravidasias and many historians hold that Ravidas was born on 15th January 1377 and according to the Indian calendar, Sunday Sukhal Falgin Parvithta in 1433. His birth place is located in the Uttar Pradesh State of India, in the city of Benares. It was not an urban area. The locality was known as Mandhuadhe. The community was known as ‘Kutvandla’ one of the Shudhra communities. Begumpura otherwise known as Shri Guru Ravidass Janam Asthan Mandir, at Seer Goverdhanpur, Varanasi, India is the ultimate place of pilgrimage for the followers of Guru Ravidass today.

Religious flag

Main Symbol

The Ravidasi religious symbol is known as the Nishaan, distinct from the Sikh Nishan Sahib. Strictly speaking "Nishaan" means "symbol" and is used in Ravidasi context to mean their mantras passed down by their Sants. There is some discussion going on amongst some Ravidasias that the symbol should be Sohang. This symbol directly or indirectly meant for recited "Sohang" while leaving his holy body. However, there is a long established Ravidasi flag which has been in use for centuries, its explanation is as follows:

Centre

Chaar Janju (four sacred threads) The Brahmin’s usually put these on according a few scriptures. Guru Ravidass demolished this by arguing on the basis of logic and spirituality. He explained the four different states of time relating to four disciplines and rituals of religion Dharma.

Square (The Heavy Stone)

According to legend, Guru Ravidass made the heaviest stone float on the River Ganges. The logic behind this miracle is the enlightenment and overall uplift of every individual. Lack of knowledge and wisdom one sinks to depths of darkness, knowledge makes the stone and steel float.

Sunrays (Thirty four rays of Sunlight)

As a downtrodden people, the Dalits were not allowed to be educated or could afford to be so. Guru Ravidass spoke and communicated in local dialect, and established a 34 syllable script, which later was modified by a Sikh Guru and was known as the Gurmukhi script at a later stage. This enabled the Dalits to enjoy and progress in understanding and communicating their philosophy. The Ravidassi Guru's name is composed of two elements;

• Ravi, meaning the sun, without the light of the sun oh our world and our solar system would be in darkness for even the moon is only a reflection of the rays cast by the sun.
• Dass, meaning "servant," therefore the Satguru of the Ravidassi religion is the "Servant of Illumination." By following his example, Ravidasia people are striving to become enlightened, as was their Guru.

Circle

The whole universe - the sacred Kara or "Bangle" and the Charanamrit or Bowl of holy water. This circle depicts the whole universe, which is contained and run in God's order. Guru Ravidas produced the holy water in a round bowl. The circle also represents the round golden bangle presented to him by Mirabai his follower.

Slogans & chants

The following slogans have been used in Ravidasi community worship since around 1490 CE, and are still used today:

1. “Jo Bole So Nirbhey” - “Shri Guru Ravidas Maharaj Ki Jai”.
2. “Jo Bole So Nirbhey” – “Ravidasia Dharma Ki Jai”.
3. “Jo Bole So Nirbhey – Sadh Sangat Ki Jai”.

Whenever any Ravidasi receives, meets, writes or addresses another he or she is supposed to say “Jai Gurudev”.

Guru Sikhya Sahib

The Guru Sikhya Sahib, often given the honorific title "Shri" is the holy scripture of the Ravidasi faith alongside the Ravidasdeep.

It is essentially the Guru Granth Sahib in that its contains the same text, but Ravidasis and Balmikis differ from Sikhs in that it is not considered the embodiment of the last Satguru, as Ravidas and Valmiki are assigned that position.

It contains the gospels of Ravidas and of many other contemporaries and disciples, who preached for the emancipation of Untouchables. It contains passages from the Ravidasdeep.

External Links

• The Ravidassia Community - Jai Gurudev
• The Guru Ravidassia Community Worldwide
• Ravidassia UK

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