Bhakti-Sufi Traditions
Theme VI. Religious history. Covers Alvars and Nayanars; Virashaivas; Sufism; Kabir, Guru Nanak and Mirabai; Integration of cults.
About this unit
This unit traces religious developments between about the eighth and eighteenth centuries. In this period there were new forms of devotion: bhakti saints in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, Sufis in Islamic traditions, and teachers in north India such as Kabir, Guru Nanak and Mirabai. Historians study their compositions, hagiographies and the institutions they inspired to understand how religion and society changed.
Key ideas
- Integration of cults: local deities were absorbed into Puranic traditions.
- Alvars (devotees of Vishnu) and Nayanars (devotees of Shiva) composed Tamil hymns.
- Basavanna founded the Virashaiva or Lingayat tradition in Karnataka.
- Sufis organised around khanqahs and silsilas; the Chishti order was influential in India.
- Kabir, Guru Nanak and Mirabai questioned ritual and caste.
How to prepare
Learn names, regions and key texts (Nalayira Divyaprabandham, Tevaram, Guru Granth Sahib, Bijak). Remember Sufi terms: pir, murid, khanqah, silsila, sama, ziyarat, urs. Expect questions asking you to identify a saint from a verse or teaching.
Topics in this chapter
Alvars and Nayanars
Bhakti traditions of Tamil Nadu.
5 questionsVirashaivas
Basavanna and the Virashaiva tradition of Karnataka.
5 questionsSufism
Khanqahs, silsilas, the Chishti order and dargahs.
5 questionsKabir, Guru Nanak and Mirabai
New strands of devotion in north India.
5 questionsIntegration of cults
How regional traditions were absorbed into wider religions.
5 questions