Natyasutra Online

Hinduism – the Bhakthi Tradition

The Gita Govinda made Vaishnavism more romantic than Shaivism, socially safer, and more acceptable than Tantrik Buddhism. The language was easy to understand throughout India. Its vocabulary and syntax were rhythmic and perfectly lyrical to sing. On the wings of its content and form, it was not long before the Gita Govinda spread to different regions at an amazing pace. It acted as a unifying beacon of faith and enjoyment for medieval India.

The first dated manuscript comes from Nepal (1248 CE). The Gita Govinda was sung in Vaishnavite centres of Patan in Gujarat at the end of the 13th century. Manank of Gujrat and Rana Kumbha of Rajasthan wrote major commentaries on the Gita Govinda. The Gita Govinda provided material for artistic creations in Western and Central Asia. Along with the Gita Govinda, Radha travelled to temples and became a favourite subject in the art studies of artists in painting and textiles.

The emergence of the Jagannath cult and the critical importance of Puri as a centre of pilgrimage attracted Shree Chaitanya in Bengal. The Gita Govinda and the worship of Radha became the central themes of the theology, doctrine and rituals of the Goudiya Vaishnav followers of Chaitanya and the Vaishnavs of Odisha. In some temples, the Gita Govinda was sung in front of the image of Krishna; in some of the temples, it was sung in front of the image of Radha; and in many others, it was sung in front of both. At Puri, where the epic was created, it was sung and performed in dance form in front of the images of Lord Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra.

Today, there is a centuries-old tradition at the Jagannatha temple at Puri called the Gita Govinda seva. Every day, as a form of worship, Jayadeva’s beautiful song of devotion and love, the Gita Govinda, is sung in front of the sanctum sanctorum. This unbroken tradition which has been preserved for over 700 years is most visible in modern-day Odisha.