Tulsidas(1532 — 1623)
Tulsīdās
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Hindu poet and saint from North India, a major figure of the bhakti devotional movement. He is the author of the Ramcharitmanas, a Hindi (Awadhi) retelling of the Ramayana epic, which popularized the worship of Rama among the common people.
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Born around 1532 in the region of present-day Uttar Pradesh, in North India
- Composed the Ramcharitmanas from 1574 onward, an Awadhi Hindi version of Valmiki's Ramayana
- Made the epic of Rama accessible to the common people by writing it in a vernacular language rather than in Sanskrit
- Author of the Hanuman Chalisa, a devotional hymn still recited today
- Died in 1623 in Varanasi (Benares), a holy city of Hinduism
Works & Achievements
A retelling of the Ramayana in Awadhi Hindi, a masterpiece of Hindi literature. It made the epic of Rama accessible to ordinary people and is still recited and performed (Ramlila) to this day.
A hymn of forty verses praising the monkey-god Hanuman. It is one of the most popular and most frequently recited Hindu prayers in the world.
A collection of poem-prayers addressed to Rama, expressing humble devotion and repentance. One of the poet's most intimate works.
A poetic anthology recounting episodes from the life of Rama in a variety of metres. It showcases the literary virtuosity of Tulsidas.
A collection of devotional songs retelling the story of Rama in lyrical form, meant to be sung. It enriches the bhakti musical tradition.
A collection of couplets (doha) condensing moral and spiritual teachings. Many have become popular proverbs in North India.
A poem on detachment and the wisdom of the renunciant. It sets out the ascetic ideal so dear to Tulsidas.
Anecdotes
Tradition holds that Tulsidas was so attached to his wife Ratnavali that one monsoon day he followed her all the way to her parents' home. She is said to have rebuked him, telling him that if he loved Rama as much as he loved her body, he would already have attained deliverance. These words are said to have triggered his renunciation of the world and his life as a devout ascetic.
It is said that Tulsidas began writing the Ramcharitmanas in Ayodhya in 1574, on the day of Rama Navami, the festival of Rama's birth. He took about two years and seven months to compose this immense poem of several thousand verses in Awadhi, the language of the common people rather than scholarly Sanskrit.
Legend has it that orthodox Brahmins of Benares, shocked that he was writing the sacred epic in a vulgar tongue rather than in Sanskrit, placed his manuscript at the bottom of the Vishvanath temple to put it to the test. By morning, the Ramcharitmanas is said to have been found at the top of the pile of holy Scriptures, bearing the inscription “satyam shivam sundaram” (the True, the Good, the Beautiful).
Tulsidas is traditionally credited with founding the Sankat Mochan temple in Benares, dedicated to the monkey-god Hanuman. Tradition asserts that Hanuman appeared to him in person at this spot, and that it was thanks to him that the poet was able to obtain a vision of Rama himself.
He is credited with the Hanuman Chalisa, a hymn of forty verses in honour of Hanuman, which remains today one of the most recited Hindu prayers in the world, from morning to night, in millions of homes across northern India.
Primary Sources
I bow before Sita and Rama, sovereigns of the universe, whose form is beyond words, the source of all beauty, an ocean of compassion.
Having cleansed the mirror of my mind with the dust of my master's feet, I sing the spotless glory of Raghuvar (Rama), who grants the four fruits of life.
O Rama, I have neither strength, nor intelligence, nor wealth; you alone are my refuge and my support, just as a child knows only its mother.
Tulsidas has no master other than Rama; a beggar, he sings from door to door the name that saves, without bowing before the powerful of this world.
Key Places
Village on the banks of the Yamunâ traditionally presented as the birthplace of Tulsîdâs. An ancient manuscript of the Ramcharitmanas is said to be preserved there.
Holy city regarded as the birthplace of the god Râma, where Tulsîdâs began composing his epic in 1574. The geographic heart of the cult of Râma.
Great spiritual city on the Ganges where Tulsîdâs spent much of his life, taught, and died. He is said to have founded the Sankat Mochan temple there.
Sanctuary dedicated to Hanumân whose founding is attributed to Tulsîdâs. Tradition places here the appearance of the monkey-god to the poet.
Sacred steps at the confluence of the Assi river and the Ganges, the traditional place of Tulsîdâs's death. A site of remembrance for his devotees.
Forested pilgrimage region linked to Râma's exile in the Râmâyana, frequented by Tulsîdâs. Tradition places here his vision of the god thanks to Hanumân.
