Vallabha

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Vallabha
Personal
Born27 April 1479
Champaran (now in Raipur district, Chhattisgarh, India)
Died26 June 1531 (aged 52)
Banaras (now in Uttar Pradesh, India)
ReligionHinduism
ChildrenGopinātha and Viṭṭhalanātha
Organization
OrderVedanta
Founder ofPuṣṭimārga
PhilosophyŚuddhādvaita

Vallabha, Vallabha Acharya or Vallabhācārya (1479–1531 CE) was an Indian saint and philosopher. He founded the Krishna-centered Pushtimarg sect of Vaishnavism in the Braj (Vraja) region of India,[1] and propounded the philosophy of Shuddhadvaita.

Vallabha was born in a South Indian family that was residing in Varanasi. They escaped to Champaran in Chhattisgarh state while expecting a Muslim invasion during the late 15th century.[2]

Vallabha studied Hindu philosopy from early age, then traveled throughout the Indian subcontinent for over 20 years.[2] He became one of the important leaders of the devotional Bhakti movement. He won many philosophical scholarly debates against the followers of Advaita Vedanta.

Vallabha rejected asceticism and monastic life, suggesting that through loving devotion to the deity Krishna, any householder could achieve salvation. This idea became influential all over India and was upheld by his 84 Baithakjis (places of worship) across India.[3][4] He is the prominent Jagadguru Acharya of Rudra Sampradaya.[5] He authored many texts including but not limited to, the Aṇubhāṣya (his commentary on the Brahma Sutras), Shodash Granth or sixteen tracts and several commentaries on the Bhagavata Purana.

Vallabha's writings and kirtan compositions focus on baby Krishna and his childhood pranks with Yashoda (unconditional motherly love), as well as a youthful Krishna's protection of the good (divine grace) and his victory over demons and evils, all with allegory and symbolism.[4] Pushtimarg, the sect he founded, is followed to-date in the Braj region as well as the Nathdwara and Dwarkadhish Temple in Mewar region of India.[4]

Life[edit]

Sources[edit]

Events from Vallabha's life are recounted in several sectarian Pushtimarg texts. Among the Braj Bhasha sources include the Caurāsī Vaiṣṇavan kī Vārtā, Śrī Nāthajī Prākaṭya kī Vārtā, and Caurāsī Baiṭhak Caritra. The most important Sanskrit source is the Śrīvallabhadigvijaya.[6]

Childhood[edit]

Birthplace of Vallabhacharya, Prakatya Baithak, Champaran

According to tradition, Vallabha's family were Velanāṭa or Vellanāḍu Telugu Brahmins who belonged to the Bhargava gotra and Taittiriya Shakha of the Yajurveda. Their ancestral village was Kāṅkaravāḍa on the southern bank of the Godavari River.[7]

According to devotional accounts, the god Krishna commanded his ancestor Yagnanarayana Bhatta that he would take birth in their family after completion of 100 Somayajnas. By the time of Yagnanarayana's descendant Lakshaman Bhatta and his wife Illammāgāru who migrated to the holy town of Varanasi, the family had completed 100 yajnas.[1][8][9][10]

The period surrounding Vallabha's birth was a tumultuous one in Varanasi. Bahlul Lodi, sultan of Delhi, was battling with Husain Shah, sultan of Jaunpur, and there was fear that Varanasi would be attacked. Lakshamana Bhatta had to urgently move out of Varanasi with his pregnant wife. According to the Śrīvallabhadigvijaya and other hagiographies, due to terror and physical strain of the flight suffered by the mother, there was a two-month premature birth in the forests of Champaran in the middle of the night. As the child did not show signs of life, the distressed parents left the baby Vallabha under a shami tree. That night, Krishna appeared in their dreams to tell them that he had taken birth as the child whom they had left under a tree mistaken to be dead. In the morning, the parents rushed to the spot and found their son alive and protected by a circle of fire. The mother extended her arms into the fire unscathed; she received from the fire the baby, and a voice announced in Sanskrit that the baby was the incarnation of the mouth of the supreme being. According to other hagiographies such as Śrī Nāthajī Prākaṭya kī Vārtā, Vallabha appeared in the Agnikuṇḍ in Mathura. Most hagiographies date Vallabha's birth to 1535 Vikrama Era, or 1478-1479 CE.[1][10]

Education[edit]

Soon after Vallabha's birth his family moved back to Varanasi. His education commenced at the age of eight, and by the age of eleven had mastered Vedas, Upanishads, six Shastras, and some Puranas, with the Bhagavata Purana being is favorite.[10][11]

First Pilgrimage[edit]

Nearing the end of his life, Lakshama Bhatta decided to take his wife and 10-year-old son along on a pilgrimage to southern India. They first stopped at the Vaishnava temple of Jagannath in Puri in 1489. The local ruler was sponsoring a great philosophical debate where four questions were posed to scholars: "What is the foremost scripture? Who is the foremost deity? Which is the most effective mantra? What is the easiest and best action?", to which Vallabha responded with the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna, any of Krishna's names, and seva (service) to Krishna, whereupon Jagannath wrote a shloka in support of his response and condemning the supporters of Advaita Vedanta (Māyāvādis).[12]

In 1490, they reached the temple of Venkateswara at Tirupati, where Lakshama Bhatta died, and Illammāgārū began to live with her brother in Vijayanagara.[13]

Reception of the Brahmasambandha mantra and installation of Shrinathji[edit]

Vallabha finds Shrinathji at Govardhan Hill.

In 1493, Vallabha is said to have had a dream where Krishna ordered him to go to Govardhan Hill and establish proper service (seva) to his image (svarupa) which had appeared there years ago. When he arrived in Gokul in 1494, Vallabha had a vision where Krishna appeared before him and bestowed upon him the Brahmasambandha mantra, which was to be used to clean the flaws of a human soul. The next morning, Vallabha administered the mantra to his companion Dāmodaradāsa Harsānī, who became the first member of the Pushtimarg (Vallabha Sampradaya).[10][14] Most sources state these events occured in Gokul, except the Śrī Nāthajī Prākaṭya kī Vārtā which states it happened in Jharkhand.[15]

When Vallabha came to Govardhan Hill, he went to the house of Saddu Pande. Saddu Pande had received a vision from Krishna years earlier that told him a stone that had appeared on Govardhan Hill was his own svarupa and that he should give offerings to it. The image was known as Devadamana; Vallabha announced that it was actually the svarupa of Shri Govardhananathaji (shortened to Shrinathji). Vallabha built a small shrine on the hill for Shrinathj, and initiated an ascetic named Ramdas Chauhan to perform the regular worship.[10][14]

In 1499 a wealthy merchant from Ambala named Purnamalla Khatri had a dream where Krishna told him to build a temple for Shrinathj. However, when the temple was only half built Purnamalla had exhausted his finances and the temple would only be completed in 1520.[10][14]

Personal life[edit]

Vallabha intended to remain a lifelong celibate brahmachari, but during his second pilgrimage of India between 1501 and 1503, he had gone to Pandharpur to view the god Vitthala or Vithoba (a form of Krishna, called Vitthalanatha in Pushtimarg literature). There Vallabha was ordered by Vitthala to marry. Some sectarian sources assert this was because Vitthala wanted to take birth as his son, and others say it was to create a line of descendants to preserve and promote Vallabha's version of bhakti-marga.[10][16]

Obeying this, following his caste traditions and practices, Vallabha married Mahalakshmi (aka Akkaji)[17] sometime between 1502 and 1504, a Varanasi girl of his own caste who began living with him upon maturity c. 1510–1512.[18][19][20] Vallabha had two houses, one at Aṛaila on the Yamuna river across Prayagraj, and at Charanata near Varanasi. According to Saha, the location of his home provided a central location which allowed him to access to preach and convert throughout northern and central India.[21][22]

His first son, Gopinatha, was born in 1512 at Aṛaila and according to sectarian tradition was the avatar of Balarama, elder brother of Krishna. His second son, Vitthalanatha, was born in 1516 at Charanata, and is considered the avatar of Vitthala.[10][20]

Grand victory at Vijayanagara[edit]

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Closeup of Vishnu, seated in the lotus position on a lotus. From depiction of the poet Jayadeva bowing to Vishnu, Gouache on paper Pahari, The very picture of devotion, bare-bodied, head bowed, legs crossed and hands folded, Jayadeva stands at left, with the implements of worship placed before the lotus-seat of Vishnu who sits there, blessing the poet.
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When Vallabha was living in his ancestral village of Kāṅkaravāḍa, he heard of a philosophical debate (shastrartha) being held in at the court of King Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara, and that the Vaishnava schools of thought were being beaten by Advaita Vedanta philosophers. Vallabha immediately went to Vijayanagara to join the debate, and entered the Vaishnava camp led by Vyasatirtha of the Madhava school. Vallabha through his erudition and debate skills defeated the Advaita philosophers, and was rewarded by Krishnadevaraya with large amounts of gold (most of which he distributed among Brahmins).[23]

Vallabha was alsp offered the prestigious title of acharya from the Madhava sampradaya and the Vishnuswami sampradaya (Rudra Sampradaya). Vallabha chose to become acharya of the Vishnuswami school. Very little is known of the Vishnuswami school, and by Vallabha's time its followers were few. The majority view is that Vallabha chose to become acharya of that school in order to make his own doctrines more prestigious, and that there is likely no real connection between the ideas of Vishnuswami (founder of the Vishnuswami school) and Vallabha.[23]

According to sectarian literature, this debate occurred shortly after Lakshama Bhatta's death in 1490; however, Krishnadevaraya only became king of Vijayanagara in 1509, which is when scholars believed the debate likely occurred historically.[23] The debate is first mentioned in a mid-eighteenth-century text called the Caurāsī Baiṭhak Caritra and is not mentioned in independent historical sources. According to Saha, this story is meant to portray "the image of a victorious Vallabha winning the subcontinent for Kr̥ṣṇa (Krishna)".[24]

Pilgrimages and Preaching Tours of India[edit]

Vallabha made three pilgrimages throughout India which are documented in later sectarian sources. These pilgrimages are stated to have taken place between 1479 and 1530, although Saha doubts the accuracy of the dates. At pilgrimage sites such as Dwarka, Kannauj, Puri, Mathura, Gokul, and Govardhan, Vallabha had theological debates and attracted followers and devotees. He made extensive conversion campaigns in the Gangetic Plain and Gujarat, where he attracted converts from various castes including Bhumihars, Rajputs, Gurjars, Ahirs, Kurmis, and Vaniyas, Bhatias, Kanbis, and Patidars respectively.[25]

Only scholarly theory for why Vallabha's theology was attractive to these groups was that of social mobility. For agrarian castes, particularly in Gujarat, the emphasis on purity gave higher status. For mercantile castes, purity as well as the emphasis on restraint and frugality in daily life elevated their status, while wealth could then be funnelled toward religiously meritorious seva to Krishna.[26]

Another reason was that Vallabha promoted a househoulder life-affirming, socially conservative view that appealed to castes that depended on social and political stability for their livelihoods, notably in the context of splintering Muslim sultanates in India.[26]

Death[edit]

In 1530, Vallabha took a vow of renunciation and withdrew to Hanuman Ghat on the Ganga river in Varanasi. After a month, he summoned his sons Gopinatha and Viṭṭhalanatha, and designated the 18 or 19 year old Gopinatha as his successor. According to sectarian accounts, he walked in the Ganga and vanished in a flash of light.[6]

Works[edit]

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Vallabhacharya composed many philosophical and devotional books during his lifetime which includes:[6]

  1. Subhodinī, a partial commentary on the Bhāgavata Purāṇa
  2. Aṇubhāṣya, a partial commentary on the Brahmasūtra of Bādarāyaṇa
  3. Tattvārthadīpanibandha, a text interpreting existing Hindu scriptures through Vallabha's philosophy of Śuddhādvaita
  4. Tattvārthadīpanibandhaprakāśa, a commentary on the Tattvārthadīpanibandha
  5. Ṣoḍaśagrantha, sixteen treatises on important facets of Śuddhādvaita and theology of the Pushtimarg

Philosophy[edit]

Vallabha formulated the philosophy of Śuddhādvaita, in response to Śaṅkara's Ādvaita Vedānta, which he called Maryādā Mārga or Path of Limitations. Vallabha asserted that religious disciplines focusing on Vedic sacrifices, temple rituals, puja, meditation, and yoga held limited value. Additionally Vallabha rejected the concept of Māyā, stating that the world was a manifestation of the Supreme Absolute and could neither be tainted nor change.[27] The school rejects the ascetic lifestyle and cherishes householder lifestyle, wherein followers see themselves as participants and companions of Krishna, viewing their daily lives as an ongoing raslila.[28]

Brahman[edit]

According to Vallabha, Brahman consists of existence, consciousness, and bliss (sat-cit-ānanda), and when manifested completely, as Kr̥ṣṇa himself. The purpose of this tradition is to perform sevā (selfless service) out of love for Kr̥ṣṇa. According to Vallabhacharya, through single minded religiosity, a devotee would achieve awareness that there is nothing in the world that is not Kr̥ṣṇa.[27]

Pusti (Grace)[edit]

Vallabha emphasizes that devotion through God's grace (pusti) is superior and more accessible. This is based on the belief that divine choice ("varana"), is the sole effective means to achieve devotion, and other efforts are insignificant without God's grace. Vallabha asserts in his works that certain souls are specifically favored by God for their inclination toward devotion, labeled as "pusti souls".[29]

Vallabha distinguishes between two aspects of devotion: the maryada and the pusti. Maryada followers rely on their actions and God's judgment for spiritual rewards, aligning with scriptural injunctions. In contrast, Pusti followers rely solely on God's grace, prioritizing complete devotion and surrender without personal effort, embodying unconditional love and faith towards God. Vallabha also emphasizes that the path of pusti is open to all, regardless of caste or gender. He cautions against seeing this path as too focused on pleasure, saying it is about pure, divine devotion without being attached to worldly desires.[30]

Postage Stamp[edit]

On 14 April 1977, the Indian postal department, Government of India issued in his honor, a commemorative stamp bearing the image of Vallabhacharya.[31][32]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Shah, J.G. (1969). Shri Vallabhacharya: His Philosophy and Religion. Pushtimargiya Pustakalaya.
  2. ^ a b Constance Jones; James D. Ryan (2006). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Infobase. pp. 475–476. ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5.
  3. ^ "List of 84 Baithakjis".
  4. ^ a b c Catherine B. Asher; Cynthia Talbot (2006). India Before Europe. Cambridge University Press. pp. 111–112. ISBN 978-0-521-80904-7.
  5. ^ Sharma, V.P. (1998). The Sadhus and Indian Civilisation. Anmol Publications Pvt. Ltd.
  6. ^ a b c Barz 2018.
  7. ^ Barz 1992, p. 23.
  8. ^ Prasoon, Shrikant (2009). Indian Saints & Sages. Pustak Mahal. ISBN 9788122310627.
  9. ^ Jones, Constance; Ryan, James D. (2006). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Infobase Publishing. p. 475. ISBN 978-0-8160-7564-5.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h Barz, Richard (2018). "Vallabha". In Jacobsen, Knut A.; Basu, Helene; Malinar, Angelika; Narayanan, Vasudha (eds.). Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism Online. Brill.
  11. ^ Barz, Richard (1992). The Bhakti Sect of Vallabhācārya. Munshiram Manoharlal. pp. 25–26.
  12. ^ Barz 1992, p. 26-27.
  13. ^ Barz 1992, p. 27.
  14. ^ a b c Barz 1992, p. 28-29.
  15. ^ Entwistle 1987, p. 31.
  16. ^ Barz 1992, p. 29.
  17. ^ Mallison, Françoise (1986). "Les Chants Dhoḷa au Gujarāt et Leur Usage pour la Dévotion Vallabhite". Bulletin de l'École française d'Extrême-Orient. 75: 89. JSTOR 43731333 – via JSTOR.
  18. ^ Edwin Francis Bryant (2007). Krishna: A Sourcebook. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 482. ISBN 978-0-19-803400-1.
  19. ^ Kincaid, C. (January 1933). "Review: Imperial Farmans by K. M. Jhaveri". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (1): 131–132. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00072543. JSTOR 25194699. S2CID 163921774.(subscription required)
  20. ^ a b Barz 1992, p. 38.
  21. ^ Saha 2004, p. 111-112.
  22. ^ Barz 1992, p. 52.
  23. ^ a b c Barz 1992, p. 43-45.
  24. ^ Saha, Shandip (2004). Creating a Community of Grace: A History of the Puṣṭi Mārga in Northern and Western India (1493-1905) (Thesis). University of Ottawa. p. 107-108.
  25. ^ Saha 2004, p. 107-113.
  26. ^ a b Saha 2004, p. 113-117.
  27. ^ a b Saha 2004, p. 98-106.
  28. ^ Lochtefeld, James G (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z. Rosen Publishing. pp. 539-540. ISBN 978-0823931804.
  29. ^ Marfatia 1967, p. 70-75.
  30. ^ Marfatia 1967, p. 72-74.
  31. ^ "Mahaprabhu Vallabhacharya | 14-04-1977 | Philcent #937 SG #846, MJ No. 720 | Stamps | Mintage World". www.mintageworld.com. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  32. ^ "Postage Stamps:: Postage Stamps,Stamp issue calendar 2014, Paper postage, Commemorative and definitive stamps, Service Postage Stamps, Philately Offices, Philatelic Bureaux and counters, Mint stamps". postagestamps.gov.in. Retrieved 20 January 2022.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

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