Author: Sweety Vyas
Surdas was a 16th century devotional poet. His life was very inspirational. Many people come into this world, live their lives and go back but do not leave their mark. However, some are remembered for generations. Surdas was selflessly devoted to the Lord.
The date of birth of Surdas is uncertain. Some believe that he was born in 1478 AD and others proclaim that he was born in 1479 AD. Surdas was born blind. He was not treated well at home because of his blindness. From childhood itself, he had an inclination towards music and learned to sing by listening to other singers. At the tender age of 6, he left home. His attraction towards Krishna was very strong. He composed beautiful songs and sang them with great love and devotion.
People would come from all over to listen to him sing. Some would offer him food. The turning point was when he met his guru, Shri Vallabhacharya. He received initiation from him. With his guru’s mercy, he progressed very rapidly. The Lord awakened in his heart. Vallabhacharya encouraged him to sing the glories of Krishna. Surdas memorized Srimad Bhagavata and many other Sanskrit works. He gave discourses based on religion and philosophy. Surdas stayed in Braj Bhumi. He composed and sang many Krishna bhajans (devotional songs and hymns). These dealt with Lord Krishna’s pastimes such as His activities and pastimes or the love between Radha and Krishna. His compositions also described his unshakable love for Krishna. His poems were written in Braj language and some were written in Awadhi dialect. Surdas became very famous and even the Mughal emperor Akbar offered homage to him.
Surdas’s vision was divine. He visited the Krishna temple every evening and composed a bhajan. This would describe the shingar (dressing) of the deity. The curtains would be closed for the shingar and no one would know of the attire of the deity until the curtains were raised. But Surdas would describe the dress, adornments and colors in detail. This astonished everyone. “How can he describe the Lord’s attire despite being blind?” they thought. So, one day they decided to conduct a test. They did not dress the deity with any attire except for a string of pearls on the neck and waist. They then asked Surdas to compose a bhajan. Surdas sang of Krishna’s natural color and beauty without any attire. His devotion was so strong that despite being blind, he could see what others could not see.
Surdas composed Sūrsāgar which has poems that are ascribed to him and deals with the life of Krishna. He also wrote, Sur Saravali which describes devotion to the Lord.
Another composition is Sahitya Lahiri which is based on the festival of Holi.
The Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of the Sikhs also contains some of his works.
Mentioned below is a translation of one of Surdas’s poems about Krishna growing up. It is taken from Sur’s Ocean: Poems from the Early Tradition by Surdas (author), Kenneth E. Bryant (editor) and John Stratton Hawley (translator).
Wife of Nanda, behold that beautiful face:
it steals the brilliance of an autumn-night full moon
with all its numberless beams
Tremulous tears spill from the eyes
of your lovely master Gopal
as dewdrops might splatter from a trembling lotus
torn by an enemy from its roots.
Golden earrings in crocodile shapes glisten,
jewel-studded, from his ears-
they seem to be twin suns hurtling
from heaven to rescue a friend.
His twisted curls are like a swarm of bees
gathered in hopes of waging a battle
against one who invades the beauty of his face:
How can Surji capture it in words?
It is said that when we remember great spiritual souls, we absorb a little of their potency. Surdas has left a legacy of devotion which is invaluable. Whoever reads or sings his poems and compositions becomes filled with blissful love for the divine. His pure love for God motivates us and inspires us to follow in his footsteps and make our lives successful.