As millions swarm the Maha Kumbh, the world’s largest spiritual gathering, to take a holy dip in the Sangam, we explore Sant Ravidas’ timeless teachings on inner purity and devotion. This yearning for the sacred dip indicates a deep spiritual thirst for the Divine. However, the journey of the soul does not end here. Beyond immersing the body in the holy waters, one must persevere to cleanse the mind to reap real spiritual benefits. The Bhakti saint, Sant Ravidas, is a beacon of such inner goodness and loving devotion to the Supreme.

Sant Ravidas: An Embodiment of Compassion, Devotion and Equanimity

Sant Ravidas, a revered mystic poet and social reformer, championed equality across class, caste, and creed. His teachings emphasized universal respect, stemming from pure love for the Divine. He exemplified the importance of a pure heart over empty rituals in the path of devotion. In doing so, he upheld the very essence of the scriptures: unalloyed devotion to God.

As the Guru of Meerabai, the female bhakti-saint, Sant Ravidas imparted profound spiritual wisdom. His devotional hymns are inundated with the shining qualities of humility, selflessness, and the longing for divine union, reflecting the true essence of Bhakti.

Ravidas was born to Raghu Charan, a wealthy leather merchant in Kashi. From a tender age, Ravidas displayed altruism and compassion for humanity. As Ravidas was coming of age, he could access his father's vault. He had such a magnanimous heart that he began distributing generously in charity. While his mother silently approved of his deeds, this secret eventually reached his father, who was aghast. Raghu Charan forbade Ravidas from squandering their hard-earned wealth. However, his father’s admonition could not deter him from following the dictates of his giving nature.

 To make him more responsible, his parents arranged his wedding when he was just 14. They hoped that the new responsibility would reduce his excessive propensity for charity, but destiny would have it otherwise. Ravidas’ wife reflected his naturally giving spirit and readily supported him. One day, Ravidas’ charity exceeded his usual limits. Raghu Charan, his father, slipped into a fit of rage and cast him out of his home.

 Devoid of the comforts and luxuries of his father’s household, Ravidas was now on the streets. Knowing no other craft for a living, he became a cobbler. However, he did not get perturbed with his misfortune. He maintained perfect equanimity and continued to live in a humble hut. He stitched beautiful shoes in the marketplace in loving service to God while singing bhajans, glorifying his Bhagavan. He never charged Sadhus and devotees for the footwear he made and continued to give whatever he earned to charity. This shining virtue and his devotional hymns endeared him to thousands of devotees who flocked from far and wide and gathered around his cobbler seat for Satsang. Below is a line from his most famous bhajan:

 prabhujī tum chandan ham pānī, jākī ang ang bāñs samānī

 ‘O Lord, You are sandalwood, and I am water. Your fragrance fills my entire being, and Your essence pervades everything. 

Inspirations

Despite his poverty, Ravidas remained ever contented. He saw the grace of God in adverse situations and continued to give in charity even when he did not have enough for himself and his wife. He mastered the art of seeing challenges as opportunities for spiritual growth.

Ravidas’ True Paras: The Gift of Divine Love

Ravidas’ austerity and sincere devotion endeared him to God. It is said that Bhagavan is bhakta-vatsala–the One who loves His devotees dearly, and He grew uncomfortable with Ravidas’ growing hardships. The Shreemad Bhagavatam states:

aham bhakta-parādhīno hyasvatantra iva dvija (9.4.63)

Shree Krishna says: ‘I am entirely under the control of My devotees and not at all independent.’ Such is the extraordinary bond between God and the Saints that the Lord of infinite universes becomes bound by the love of His devotees.

Such was the sweet relationship between God and his dear devotee Ravidas. One day, feeling pity at his penurious condition, God appeared in the form of an ascetic. He approached Ravidas to mend his shoes. The intention was to confer on him a treasure to care for his needs.

God said to him: You don't seem to have anything with you, how do you eke out a living? 

Saying this, the Lord gifted Ravidas a paras (philosopher’s stone), which would put an end to his miseries. He touched a needle to it, which turned into gold. Then, he urged Ravidas to accept the paras and live a comfortable life.

Hearing this, Ravidas became silent. He not only refused it, but he would not even look at the miraculous stone. He posed a question to God: 

“If gold could bring happiness, why did so many kings renounce their kingdoms and become mendicants?” 

Pleased with his true devotee, He left the paras with him and returned after a year only to find that Ravidas still lived in poverty in his humble cottage, and the paras remained untouched. 

When God asked him why he hadn't used the paras to fulfill his needs, Ravidas retorted with this soul-stirring couplet:

Pāras more hari ko nāmoon

Patthar soan mohi nāhian kāmoon

“This stone is of no use to me. I have a more precious stone in the form of my beloved Hari”.

Inspirations

Sant Ravidas exhibited a deep realization of the transient nature of worldly possessions. He illustrated the futility of material pursuits before divine love for God, which is the soul’s true and greatest wealth.

 Transcending Social Disparities Through Loving Devotion to God

Sant Ravidas continued with his craft of mending shoes while worshiping a Shaligram Shila, a form of Lord Vishnu. His saintly nature, simple teachings, and holy satsangs attracted many disciples, regardless of caste, creed, and gender.

The orthodox Brahmin Pandits of that region were envious of Ravidas’ widespread fame, as it posed a threat to their priestly authority. One day, they decided to teach him a lesson. They complained to the King of Kashi about how a low-caste shoemaker was performing puja and destroying their religion. The King summoned Ravidas to his court, and everyone waited eagerly for the judgment.

When questioned about his audacity to worship a Shaligram, Ravidas replied: “If God is accepting my loving offerings, why should anybody else have a problem with it?”

This infuriated the Brahmins further, and they accosted him to prove his statement. They kept a Shaligram on an altar between them and Ravidas. Then, they began worshiping and invoking it. To whichever side the Shaligram moved, would be adjudicated as the true worshiper.

The Brahmins started chanting Veda mantras loudly, believing that the Shila would tilt towards them. But the stone remained static. When Ravidas’ turn came, he humbly confessed his lack of knowledge of Vedic chants. Instead, he started singing a soul-stirring bhajan to please the Lord: 

aisī lāl tujha binu kaunu karai

garīb nivāju gusāīā merā, māthai chhatru dharai

 O my Lord, who else but You can do such a spectacular thing? You are the savior of the destitute. You can make a fallen person a king. You alone have that ability. 

Pulled by his genuine, heartfelt love and childlike faith, the Shaligram rolled into his lap. The proof of the purity of Ravidas’ devotion became apparent to all as God had pronounced His verdict. The Brahmins were stunned and bowed humbly before Ravidas in reverence. The king was amazed. Seeing this as a divine sign from God, he embraced Ravidas as his spiritual guide and became his devotee.

Inspirations 

Sant Ravidas propagated social equality in an era when society was divided along faultlines of caste, creed, and class. In those times, society was drowned in overt rituals, and religion was considered a privilege of the upper castes. Ravidas’ teachings challenged these oppressive norms to transform society through loving devotion to God. Consequently, he proved that what appealed to God was not which strata of society you belonged to, but simple, childlike devotion that anyone could cultivate, irrespective of social class or caste.

When the Mind is Pure, We Experience Divinity Everywhere

Sant Ravidas was a bhakti saint who propagated the essence of the scriptures through simple and unpretentious devotion. One of his primary teachings was the futility of formal rituals. All his life, he has exemplified purity of heart and unshakeable faith in God. One of his famous sayings was: mana chañgā to kaṭhautī meṅ gangā. This dramatic and epigrammatic statement brilliantly highlights inner purity above and beyond everything else. A touching tale from Ravidas’ life enunciates this core spiritual principle.

The King of Kashi had a priest who regularly performed rituals and offerings to Mother Ganges. He would often urge Ravidas to accompany him to the Ganges. Ravidas politely refused with the statement: mana chañgā to kaṭhautī meṅ gangā, thereby harping on inner purity over external acts.

As Panditji continued to insist, Ravidas gave him two bananas to offer to the Holy Ganga. When he offered the bananas, a hand appeared and accepted them as if to accept Ravidas’ devotion. Panditji was shocked by what he saw. Before he could think what to make of it, the hand appeared again and offered a gold bangle as a gift for Ravidas. Panditji was stunned by the beauty of the bangle. Greed clouded his judgment and he decided to sell it to a jeweler instead of delivering it to Ravidas.

When the bangle ornamented the hand of the jeweler’s wife, it caught the queen's attention. She paid a hefty price and acquired it. When the king noticed it, he urged her to order a second bangle to complement the first. The jeweler could not have made such a divine ornament and approached the priest for its pair. Now, the priest’s deceit was exposed. Seeing no way out, he went to Ravidas and confessed his guilt.

The Pandit asked Ravidas for two bananas so that the process could be repeated, but Ravidas stopped him, uttering the same proverb. He took a tumbler of water from his usual cobbler’s seat and prayed to Mother Ganga to manifest an identical bangle for Panditji. Amazingly, a second bracelet appeared.

This episode deepened the king’s reverence for Ravidas, reinforcing the teaching that true love and communion with God are consequences of inner purity. To purify the mind, we must bathe it in devotion to the Supreme. The Ramayan states:

 milahiṅ na raghupati binu anurāgā,

kieñ jog tap gyān birāgā

‘Though you may practice yoga and austerities, cultivate bookish knowledge, or display external renunciation, without loving devotion, you will not attain Shree Ram.’

Inspiration 

The miracle has a latent lesson for many people who believe in the ritual of taking a holy dip in the Ganga to cleanse their sins. Ravidas’ story shows that when the mind is impure and possessed by worldly desires, no amount of holy dips can cleanse it. It becomes a physical ritual. On the other hand, if the mind is surrendered to the Almighty with utter humility, it gets cleansed and can perceive the Lord everywhere. 

Reflection

Fill a bottle with muddy water and dip it into the Ganges at an auspicious hour. Uncap the bottle now. Will you be able to drink it?

Similarly, bathing in the Ganga will cleanse your body but not the inner vessel, the mind, if it remains impure with ignoble thoughts. To truly purify the mind, you need to bathe it in divine consciousness.   

Key Lessons From the Life of Sant Ravidas

1. Purity of Heart Beyond Rituals: Rituals enable us to support our devotion, but inner purity leads to genuine love and union with God 
2. Universal Equality and Social Justice: Caste and creed are mere externals and have no value in the eyes of God. Rather than conditions of birth, God is pleased with pure thoughts and actions directed towards Him. We must see divinity in all souls irrespective of their social position and practice universal equality. 
3. Equanimity: This quality empowers us to accept all circumstances with serenity and helps us remain calm in contrasting situations like fame and infamy, success or failure. Sant Ravidas exhibited this virtue spontaneously as he perceived everything as the will of God. 
4. Reversals are Graces of God: We must learn the lesson of resilience in the face of trials and tribulations from the life of Sant Ravidas. Like him, we too, should see in them the silver lining, which is the opportunity for growth in challenging conditions. 
5. Service to the Divine: When we harbor the sentiment of selfless service, we do all works to serve our Beloved Lord. For Sant Ravidas, even a menial trade like that of a cobbler became his medium of communion with God. This attitude of doing our daily duties for the pleasure of God liberates us from anxiety, fear, and hopelessness. This fills our lives with eternal contentment.

Take the First Step Today

1.   Deepen your Devotion with timeless stories and inspirations from saints with Swami Mukundananda’s book Nourish Your Soul. Order now Nourish Your Soul Book Launch - Discover Life Lessons from India's Great Saints by Swami Mukundananda and alight on your journey of spiritual enlightenment.

2.   Subscribe to the Swami Mukundananda YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@swamimukundananda

3.   Practice the virtues of faith and surrender, strive for inner purity and connect with the Divine through this meditation:Connecting with Lord Krishna | Guided Meditation | Purifying Relaxing Music | Yoga

4.   Contemplate the sentiment of loving service to God through this heartwarming hymn by Sant Ravidas “Prabhujī tum chandan ham pānī, jākī ang ang bāñs samānī”

Resources

●   Mukundananda, S. (2024). Nourish Your Soul: Inspirations from and Lives of Great Saints. Rupa Publications Pvt Ltd: New Delhi, India.

●   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23SUniHJXJ0

●   https://shrigururavidasji.com/site/articles_books/ravidasji/ravidas_a_b_stories.php