Samiran Bhuyan
(samiranbhuyan977@gmail.co)
International Bhaona artiste Arup Saikia recently published a book, namely, Sankardeva: The Social Scientist. This isn’t about the biography of Sankardeva or about the history of Assam. It’s about the philosophical deeds and views of Sankardeva. It’s elaborately described regarding the socio-political scenario during the times of Sankardeva. Being a Bhaona artiste, author Arup Saikia includes many events and aspects in the book from Saikia’s personal experience. The discourse on Sankardeva in the English language is very limited generally. So writer Arup Saikia decided to publish the book from the national capital, New Delhi, so that the people across the states have a chance for a glimpse of the book. The main targeted readers are non-Assamese Indians and foreigners. Sankardeva is undoubtedly an architect of Assam and the greatest personality of all times.Sankardeva and his legacy are still binding and building the people of the particular geographical location. Sankardeva is a nationalist person, not religious. But he had to walk on the path of religion in the dark and dogmatic society of medieval India to reach the goal. Through his philosophy and actions, Sankardeva not only transformed the religious landscape of Assam but also influenced its social, cultural, and artistic traditions.
Most importantly, the author Arup Saikia tries to highlight here Sankardeva’s tactical and prudent outlook on Neo-Vaishnavism. The culture and literature of Sankardeva is a living tradition. Arup Saikia’s views on various matters are based on historical facts and research works around the world. It’s like a comparative study of the renowned philosophers and preachers across the globe. Here we present an excerpt from the book to go into the depth of the matter. ”The people of other religious spectrums feel the infringement of their religious egoism to recognise Sankardeva as the architect of Assam. Therefore, the greatest social luminary of Assam, Srimanta Sankardeva, was not in a centrally and spontaneously enlightened position. The genuine socio-political research has to be done with a socio-cultural touch.”
The book delves into the liberalism of Neo-Vaishnavites that adjusted religious norms in necessary circumstances, relaxing the rigidity. Nationalism always defeats theocracy. Religion can’t be a matter ultimately. Therefore, Sankardeva hasn’t propounded any religion or theory like monotheism or qualified monotheism, pure monotheism, etc., like the other Bhakti saints. The socio-political situation or economic condition of Sankardeva’s time drives his thought, irrespective of religion. Sankardeva exercised democracy in a multi-ethnic society, the remotest from mainland India. He was to raise Pan-Indian nationalism through literature in the name of “Bharatbarsha”.
The book “Sankardeva: The Social Scientist” clearly describes socio-scientific expressions that bridged the gap between intellectual reformative teaching and everyday life. The motive is to foster deeper engagement and emotional connection to break down rigid social structure. The writer sees the Bhakti movement as a spontaneous social outburst of the oppressed. As the theme of the book, we can try to evaluate Sankardeva and Neo-Vaishnavism in the socio-political perspective of India, sidelining religion. The core aspect of Sankardeva is only inclusivity and social equality to empower marginalised communities. Besides philosophy, the book covers Vaishnavite and medieval economies of Assamese monasteries (Xatras). The reality of society is vividly narrated in “Sankardeva, The Social Scientist”. Sankardeva’s legacy will continue to have a profound impact on Assamese society forever.
Arup Saikia is the first person to perform Bhaona (1998) in foreign languages (English, Russian, French, etc.) worldwide by native Assamese artistes. Arup Saikia’s previously published books, “Bhaona and Assamese Society”, “Bhaona Unmesh, Bhoroli To Volga” and poetry books “Silpi Unmesh and Sabda” in English and Assamese languages, respectively, are widely circulated across the libraries of the world and among the students of cultural studies. The book has one hundred thirty-eight pages. Published by AAYU Publications, the price of the book is Rs 850 (hardbound). The proper cataloguing is done throughout the libraries of the world.
(Samiran Bhuyan is a writer, cultural activist and motivational speaker.)