Hare Krsna
Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada
Surdas - The Blind Singing Saint
-Surdas, the 15th century sightless saint, poet and musician, is known for his devotional songs dedicated to Lord Krishna. Surdas is said to have written and composed a hundred thousand songs in his magnum o
-Surdas, the 15th century sightless saint, poet and musician, is known for his devotional songs dedicated to Lord Krishna. Surdas is said to have written and composed a hundred thousand songs in his magnum o
pus the 'Sur Sagar' (Ocean of Melody), out of which only about 8,000 are extant. Surdas was born at Braj, near Mathura in 1478 and much of his life history comes from the Ain-e-Akbari written during the reign of Akbar. He was neglected by his parents and a chance meeting with Sri Vallabacharya changed his life.
Surdas moved to Vrindavan where he sang songs in praise of Lord Krishna. He could play a number of musical instruments and was the chief singer of Srinath temple in Govardhan, near Vrindavan. The legendary musician Tansen sang one of Surdas' songs in the court of Akbar who was charmed by the music. Tansen admitted that the tune and the lyrics were that of Surdas, the blind devotee of Krishna. Akbar invited Surdas to his court as a singer which Surdas declined saying he would sing for his master Krishna and no one else.
Surdas' poetry was a dialect of Hindi language, Brij Bhasha which became popular during the bhakti movement that swept through North India during the time of Akbar. He was considered as one of the foremost disciples of Sri Vallabhacharya and his songs are about Krishna and Radha and The Rasleela. Surdas died in the year 1584 at Braj. In many parts of the country the Surdas Festival is organised and songs are sung in praise of Krishna. His songs are popular outside India and France has an annual Surdas Festival.
Surdas moved to Vrindavan where he sang songs in praise of Lord Krishna. He could play a number of musical instruments and was the chief singer of Srinath temple in Govardhan, near Vrindavan. The legendary musician Tansen sang one of Surdas' songs in the court of Akbar who was charmed by the music. Tansen admitted that the tune and the lyrics were that of Surdas, the blind devotee of Krishna. Akbar invited Surdas to his court as a singer which Surdas declined saying he would sing for his master Krishna and no one else.
Surdas' poetry was a dialect of Hindi language, Brij Bhasha which became popular during the bhakti movement that swept through North India during the time of Akbar. He was considered as one of the foremost disciples of Sri Vallabhacharya and his songs are about Krishna and Radha and The Rasleela. Surdas died in the year 1584 at Braj. In many parts of the country the Surdas Festival is organised and songs are sung in praise of Krishna. His songs are popular outside India and France has an annual Surdas Festival.
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