NTRODUCTION :
Eknath (1533–1599) was a great saint, and Marathi poet. He was born in a village at Uttarakhand.
LIFE :
He was born to a Brahmin family. And since his parents were died at his younger age, he was brought up by his grandfather. He was the disciple of the learned scholar Sri Janardhan Swami.
IMPORTANCE :
He was against caste discrimination. Once he had his meal in the house of the lower caste person, even when he was opposed by the people. According to him, all people are equal before Lord Vittal, and he worried about the sufferings of the lower caste people, and prayed to Lord vittal for their welfare. He was well known for his spirituality and for safeguarding the Sanatana Dharma. He was talented in hindu scriptures and a master in all forms of art and a great scholar. Eknath has re-written the Ramayana in his own style which is called as Bhavarth Ramayan. He has written the epic in a simplified form, in order to understand it even by the common people. He was the author of Eknathi Bhagavata which features the childhood miracles performed by Lord Krishna, and describes the kindness shown by Lord Krishna towards his devotees. His other popular writings are as follows:
SPIRITUAL WRITINGS :
1. Shukashtak
2. Swatma-Sukha
3. Ananda-Lahari
4. Chiranjeewa-Pad
5. Geeta-Sar
6. Prahlada Vijayam
He was a polite and a noble person, and he was appreciated for his works by the great scholars and the rulers of the kingdom. He was died at the age of 66 at Uttarkhand. Eknath's Samadhi is located near River Godavari in Uttarkhand, and devotees from the nearby villages will come regularly and visit the place and worship him.
CONCLUSION :
Saint Eknath was a great devotee of Lord Vittal, similar to Bhakta Thukaram. His poems praised the glory of the god, and he has used small and simple verses for writing his poems for understanding it easily. His teachings are mainly focussed on living a worthy and a complete life. Through his teachings, he removed the sadness of the people, and eliminated the suicidal thoughts of the people, and made them to live a happy and a blessed life. His teachings are mainly based on the worship of Lord Krishna. He has advised the followers to worship lord Krishna whole heartedly in order to cleanse ourselves from bad things and to purify ourselves. He lived a pious life and helped the people towards reaching the high level of spiritual path, by giving lectures to them. Let us worship the great saint and be blessed.
“OM SREE EKNATH MAHARAJ NAMAHA”
“JAI VITTAL PRABHUVE NAMAHA”
SENT BY R.HARISHANKAR
