Srimanta Sankardev was a 15th–16th century Assamese polymath; a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist social-religious reformer and a figure of importance in the cultural and religious history of Assam, India. He is widely credited with building on past cultural relics and devising new forms of music (Borgeet), theatrical performance, dance (Sattriya), literary language (Brajavali). Besides, he has left an extensive literary oeuvre of trans-created scriptures, poetry and theological works written in Sanskrit, Assamese and Brajavali. The Bhagavatic religious movement he started, Ekasarana Dharma and also called Neo-Vaishnavite movement, influenced two medieval kingdoms – Koch and the Ahom kingdom – and the assembly of devotees he initiated evolved over time into monastic centers called Sattras, which continue to be important socio-religious institutions in Assam and to a lesser extent in North Bengal. Sankardev inspired the Bhakti movement in Assam just as Guru Nanak, Ramananda, Namdev, Kabir, Basava and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu inspired it elsewhere in the Indian subcontinent.
Guwahati formerly rendered Gauhati is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the seat of the Government of Assam. A major riverine port city along with hills, and one of the fastest growing cities in India, Guwahati is situated on the south bank of the Brahmaputra. The city is known as the "gateway to North East India".
Mājuli or Majuli is a river island in the Brahmaputra River, Assam and in 2016, it became the first island to be made a district in India. In the 1790s, the island covered an area of 1,300 km2 (500 sq mi). It had an area of 1,255 square kilometres (485 sq mi) at the beginning of the 20th century, but having lost significantly to erosion it covers 352 square kilometres (136 sq mi) as at 2014. Majuli has shrunk as the river surrounding it has grown.
Vaisakhi, also pronounced Baisakhi as well as Basoa, marks the first day of the month of Vaisakh and is traditionally celebrated annually on 13 April and sometimes 14 April. It is seen as a celebration of spring harvest primarily in Northern India. Further, other Indian cultures and diaspora celebrate this festival too. Whilst it is culturally significant as a festival of harvest, in many parts of India, Vaisakhi is also the date for the Indian Solar New Year. According to legend, some 5298 years ago, on this day Raja Shaktikaran Dogra, also known as Raja Shastri, commenced the Shastra Samvat alias Dogra-Pahari Calendar, so this day predates special historical significance with Dogras of Himalayas.
Jorhat is an administrative district of the Indian state of Assam situated in the central part of the Brahmaputra Valley. The district is bounded by Majuli on north, Nagaland state on the south, Charaideo on the east and Golaghat on the west. On the north of the district, the river Brahmaputra forms the largest riverine island of the world. The administrative seat is at Jorhat city.
Sikh music, also known as Gurbani Sangeet , and as Gurmat Sangeet, or even as Shabad Kirtan, is the classical music style that is practised within Sikhism. It exists in institutional, popular, and folk traditions, forms, and varieties. Three types of Sikh musicians are rababis, ragis, and dhadhis.
The Moamoria rebellion (1769–1805) was an 18th-century uprising in Ahom kingdom of present-day Assam that began as power struggle between the Moamorias (Mataks), the adherents of the Mayamara Sattra, and the Ahom kings. This uprising spread widely to other sections of Ahom kingdom including disgruntled elements of the Ahom aristocracy leading to two periods in which the Ahom king lost control of the capital. Retaking the capital was accompanied by a massacre of subjects, leading to a steep depopulation of large tracts. The Ahom king failed to retake the entire kingdom; a portion in the north-east, Bengmara, became known as Matak Rajya ruled by a newly created office called Borsenapati, became a tribute-paying but virtually independent territory.
Ekasarana Dharma is a neo-Vaishnavite monolithic religion propagated by Srimanta Sankardeva in the 15th-16th century in the Indian state of Assam. It reduced focus on Vedic ritualism and focuses on devotion (bhakti) to Krishna in the form of congregational listening (shravan) and singing his name and deeds (kirtan).
Assamese literature is the entire corpus of poetry, novels, short stories, plays, documents and other writings in the Assamese language. It also includes the literary works in the older forms of the language during its evolution to the contemporary form and its cultural heritage and tradition. The literary heritage of the Assamese language can be traced back to the c. 9-10th century in the Charyapada, where the earliest elements of the language can be discerned.
Satras are institutional centers associated with the Ekasarana tradition of Vaishnavism, largely found in the Indian state of Assam and neighboring regions. Numbering in the hundreds, these centers are generally independent of each other and under the control of individual adhikaras, though they can be grouped into four different Sanghatis (orders).
Narayanpur is a town located in Lakhimpur district of the northeastern Indian state Assam. It falls under Bihpuria constituency of Assam Legislative Assembly and under Narayanpur Police Station. Narayanpur is also the name of the development block. It is located between Dholpur and Bihpuria. Narayanpur is famous as birthplace of Madhavdev.
Prof Bhabananda Deka was a pioneer Assam economist and author who conducted novel research on the economy of the far eastern part of India. He was also a leading Indian-Assamese litterateur of the famed 'Awahon-Ramdhenu Era' of Assamese literature during the mid-20th century. He was the author of a total of 115 English and Assamese books including textbooks on a range of fifteen subjects including economics, ancient Assamese literature, philosophy, education, religion, mythology, archaeology, tribal study, poetry, drama, memoirs, civics, political science, biographies; he also edited books and journals. He also authored a variety of research papers and articles about the state of Assam, a state in the north-eastern part of India. He pioneered the writing of books on Economics in Assamese. His Assamese book Axomor Arthaneeti was the first ever research-based comprehensive book on Assam Economics, which was published for the first time in 1963. He was conferred with the honorary title of 'Asom Ratna' -- 'Jewel of Assam' by the intellectuals of Assam on 19 August 2007 at a public meet held under the presidency of Prof. (Dr) Satyendra Narayan Goswami.
The Golden Temple is a gurdwara located in the city of Amritsar, Punjab, India. It is the preeminent spiritual site of Sikhism. It is one of the holiest sites in Sikhism, alongside the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Kartarpur, and Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib.
Vrindavani Vastra is a drape woven by Assamese weavers led by Mathuradas Burha Aata during 16th century under the guidance of Srimanta Sankardeva, a Vaishnavite saint and scholar who lived in present-day Assam. The lead weaver Mathuradas Burha Aata a disciple of Sri Sri Madhabdev, who was the first Satradhikar of the Barpeta Satra. Mathuradas Burha Aata along with his 12 assistant weavers wove the Brindavani Bastra. The large drape illustrates the childhood activities of Lord Krishna in Vrindavan. Parts of the original Vrindavani vastra are presently owned by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and Musee Guimet in Paris. The piece of cloth demonstrates the skillful weaving methods developed during medieval times and such complexity is rarely seen in present-day Assam.
Northeast India consists of the eight states Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. Tourism in this area is based around the unique Himalayan landscape and culture distinct from the rest of India.
Basudev Than or Narua Satra is a satra located in Dhakuakhana, Lakhimpur, Assam. It was first established in the 14th century by the Chutia king Satyanarayan. Originally known as Laumura Satra, this satra is well known in Assam and other parts of India.
Madhupur Satra is a religious institutional center associated with the Ekasarana tradition of Vaishnavism, situated in Cooch Behar, the Indian state of West Bengal. It was established by Assamese Vaishnavite monasteries for religious practices in the mid 16th-century during Koch kingdom (1515–1949). The great Bhakti Saint Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva (1449–1568) and his disciple Mahapurusha Madhavadeva died here. Madhupur satra is also called as Dahmukutor than; 'dahmukut' means 'bhiti' or living houses of ten disciples (bhaktas) of Srimanta Sankardeva. The name satra originates in the Bhagavata Purana in Sanskrit (sattra), and is used in the sense of an assembly of devotees.
Assamese Brahmins are the Brahmins present in the Assamese society. There are two classes of Brahmins in Assam Chandra-Vipra and Surya-Vipra. In Assam, usually The Chandra-Vipras perform the tasks of a Pujari in the Douls/Devalayas and hindu households and The Surya-Vipras perform the tasks of Jyotish, Ayurved, Graha Pujas etc. But there are exceptions, in many parts of Assam( specially in Lower Assam) Surya-Vipras also perform the task of a pujari in many Devalayas. Similarly, some Chandra-Vipras also perform Jyotish & Ayurvedic tasks. The Assamese Brahmins were originally priests from different regions of India, who came to Assam on the Invitation of different Kings. From or Before the time when Assam was known as Pragjyotishpur, Brahmins are coming to this region. The Religious worship in temples is generally carried out by them.
Bharali Namghar is a temple situated in Bharali village. Bharali is approximately 2 km away from Hatbor, a place of historical importance under the Kaliabor subdivision in the Nagaon district in Assam in India. People from the Nagaon district are mostly agriculture oriented and are guided by rich Sattria culture.
