(1275–1296?) Poet and
saint who founded the Varkari Panth, a religious order focused on the worship
of the Hindu deity Vithoba at his temple at Pandharpur, Maharashtra, in the
present state of Maharashtra.
Jnaneshvar was an outcaste brahmin, according to legend.
Because his father was a lapsed ascetic—he left his wife to
become an ascetic, only to return to his family at his guru's command—he received
this punishment.
Jnaneshvar hailed from a devout family: his sister Muktibai
is a Varkari deity in her own right, and his older brother Nivrttinath is said
to be a "spiritual grandchild" of the legendary ascetic Gorakhnath.
Jnaneshvar spent most of his life in Alandi, according to
Varkari legend, although the veracity of many of the events connected with his
life is disputed—for example, he is believed to have had a buffalo recite the
holy scripture known as the Veda in order to humble the local brahmin priests'
pride.
The Jnaneshvari, a Marathi language commentary on the
Bhagavad Gita, one of the most significant Hindu holy books, was Jnaneshvar's
most famous work.
He's also known for his Vithoba adoration songs, which the
Varkaris still sing today.
G. A. Deleury, The Cult of Vithoba, 1960; Justin Abbott and Narhar R. Godbole (trans. ), Stories of Indian Saints, 1982; and G. A. Deleury, The Cult of Vithoba, 1960.
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