Write about two bhakti sects?
Answers
Bhakti movement tells about theistic devotional tradition that came out in medieval Hinduism and later revolutionised in Sikhism.
It initiates in eighth-century at south India and spread northwards.
It swept over east and north India since 15th century onwards and later reaching its zenith between 15th and 17th century CE.
Bhakti movement regionally spread around different gods and goddesses and some sub-religions were Vaishnavism (Vishnu), Shaivism (Shiva), Shaktism (Shakti goddesses) and Smartism.
Bhakti movement preached using local languages so that messages reached the masses.
Movement was preached by different poet-saints who championed wide range of philosophical posts ranging from theistic dualism of Dvaita.
The two Bhakti sects of Hinduism were the Saguna and the Nirguna. Either of them were methods of imaging the properties of the divine.
Saguna was developed with form, quality and attributes whereas Nirguna was the idea of the Ultimate Reality and was associated with being formless and without any quality or attributes.
Both of them had a presence in the age-old theistic manifest traditions and the pantheistic traditions respectively. They have their roots to the Arjuna-Krishna dialogue that is there in Bhagavad Gita. The idea of the same Brahmana is viewed from two different perspectives.
One is from the Saguni love-focus that is united as Krishna in the Gita while the Nirguni delves into knowledge-focus only. The Saguna bhakta's poetry was Prema-shrayi that had roots in love whereas Nirguna bhakta's poetry was Jnana-shrayi that had its roots in knowledge.
In Bhakti, the focus is on devotion and reciprocal love. Where the God loves the devotee, the devotee also loves God.