Important Facts For Prelims
Sant Tukaram
- 15 Jun 2022
- 2 min read
Why in News?
Recently, Prime Minister inaugurated the Sant Tukaram Shila Mandir in the temple town of Dehu in the Pune district.
- Shila Mandir is a temple dedicated to a slab of stone (shila) on which Sant Tukaram meditated for 13 days.
- Shila refers to a rock that is currently on the Dehu Sansthan temple premises, and that for centuries has been the starting point of Wari, the annual pilgrimage to Pandharpur.
- The rock where he sat for 13 days is considered pious and a place of pilgrimage for the wakari sect.
Who was Sant Tukaram?
- About:
- Sant Tukaram was a Warkari saint and poet.
- The sect is spread across Maharashtra and Sant Tukaram and his works are central to it.
- He was famously known for Abhanga devotional poetry and community-oriented worship through spiritual songs known as Kirtans.
- Also, composed a Marathi genre of literature called Abhanga poetry which fused folk stories with spiritual themes.
- Sant Tukaram was a Warkari saint and poet.
- His Philosophy:
- Tukaram mentions four more people in his Abhangas work who had a major influence on his spiritual development: the previous Bhakti Sants Namdev, Dnyaneshwar, Kabir, and Eknath.
- Tukaram’s teachings were regarded as Vedanta-based.
- Social Reform:
- His message about a casteless society and his denial of rituals had led to a social movement.
- His Abhangs became the strong weapon against the Brahmanical dominance of society.
