Context:

  • Recently Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was prevented from visiting Assam’s Batadrava Than, where he was going as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra.
  • The yatra was stopped for about two hours at Haibargaon in Nagaon, and around 9:30 am.
  • Only Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi and Batadrava MLA Sibamoni Bora were allowed past the barricades to visit the Than.

What is the Batadrava Than?

  • It is located in Nagaon district and is one of the most sacred sites for Assamese Vaishnavites.
  • The Than is located at the birthplace of revered Vaishnavite reformer-saint Srimanta Sankardeva (1449-1568).
  • It is said that Sankardeva founded the first-ever Kirtan Ghar at Bordowa in 1494 AD to practise and preach the neo Vaishnavite faith during the fifteenth century in Assam, and propagated the Ek Saran Naam Dharma.

What was Sankardeva’s philosophy?

  • The Ek Saran Naam Dharma is focussed on worship in the form of bhakti (devotion) to Lord Krishna, through singing and congregational listening of His name and deeds.
  • Sankardeva espoused a society based on equality and fraternity which is free from caste differences, orthodox Brahmanical rituals and sacrifices.
  • His teaching focused on prayer and chanting (naam) instead of the idol worship.
  • His dharma was based on the four components which are deva (god), naam (prayers), bhakats (devotees), and guru (teacher).
  • The Neo-Vaishnavite reformist movement that Sankardeva started is behind the monastic institutions which is called Thans/Sattras that dot Assam.
  • As the saint travelled across Assam, spreading his teachings, these Sattras/Thans were established as centres of religious, social and cultural reforms during the 16th century.
  • In recent times the Sattras promulgate Sankardeva’s unique “worship through art” approach with music (borgeet), dance (xattriya) and theatre (bhauna).
  • Each Sattra has a naamghar (worship hall) as its nucleus and is also headed by an influential “Sattradhikar”.