Saint Meera Bai today's context

Meera Bai a perfect example of a woman - a symbol of courage and defiance

Meera bai was she was a great Hindu woman saint and will always be remembered. Meera was a born poetess. She expressed in a beautiful style her intense and deep love of God. Hundreds of poems in a simple, unpretentious style. They are full of vivacity and feelings. No poetess in the history of India enjoys a greater respect than Meera. She composed popularity and are sung by the rich and the poor alike, even to this day. Perhaps it has never been more relevant to remember the message of love and truth sung and spread by Saint Meera Bai’s of yesteryear's.

Life sketch of Saint Meera Bai

Meera was born in 1504 A.D. at Chaukari village in Merta District of Rajasthan. Her father, Ratan Singh, was the second son of Rao Dudaji, a descendent of Rao Jodhaji Rather, the founder of Jodhpur. Meera's mother died when she was ten year old. She then came to live with her grandfather who died in 1515. Her father's elder brother Vikram Deo who succeeded to the throne arranged her marriage with Prince Bho] Raj, the eldest son of Rana Sanga of Chitter. This marriage raised Meera to a very high social status as the ruler of Chittur was considered to be the leader of the Hindu princes. But luck didn't favor Princess Meera. By 1527 A.D. she had lost her father, her husband and her father in-law as well. Meera, who dedicated her life to Lord Krishna, accepted these bereavements as a matter of course.

At the lime Meera was born there was widespread political and social turmoil in India. Bloody conflicts for petty selfish gains, disrespect for human life and hatred for others was a norm. Meera was bewildered and at a loss to understand all that was going on all around. She was in search of peace which she found in Chaitanya's Vaishnav Panth and dedicated her life to the love of Lord Krishna.

Meera began to devote most of her time in prayer and worship and did not pay any attention to the etiquette of a royal household. This led her to be subjected to great hardships and punishments. these physical hardships became intolerable and came in the way of prayer to Krishna, whom she addressed as 'Giridhar Nagar' in fond reverence, she left the palace for good and went to the pilgrimage of Mathura, Vrindavana and finally to Dwarika.She spent her life dancing In trance and singing the attributes of her Beloved Krishna till she left this mortal world in 1550 to be united with Him.

Poems by Meerabai

Meerabai was a born poetess. Through her numerous poems, marked with simplicity and lack of pretension, she has beautifully expressed her intensity and depth of love for Krishna. Mirabai's bhajans (songs dedicated to the lord), composed centuries ago still capture the thoughts and emotions of devotees today. These songs are highly regarded for the mystic quality as well as their rich inner meanings. Meerabai offered her soul to the lord, singing and dancing, in a trance, to please her beloved and her lord, Krishna. And through these songs and her devotion she has left behind a legacy of thoughts and ways of making one's soul reach Lord Krishna.Even though her symbolism is erotic, her love is divine and pure - selfless, all-absorbing, immaculate, insatiable and endless. The expression of Mira's love is very intimate in nature.

It is through love that she communes with God. "Mira's Lord is none other than Giridhara." (Giridhara being Krishna) - these are usually the ending words of Meera's poems which are predominantly an expression of her oneness with Krishna. Mira's love for Krishna is all encompassing. The lord of her heart and soul, she used to weep for him and spend sleepless nights for a sight of him.

Meerabai says she had "sold" herself - surrendered herself - completely to him. She says "I am colored with the color of dusk", dusk implying the color of Krishna. As if her love for Krishna permeated every pore of her body, just like dye permeates a garment. This aspect of union through surrender is predominant in Mira's poetry.

Through her devotion-filled yet tumultuous life she gained a number of enemies, owing to her rising fame and her undeterred and unconventional devotion to Lord Krishna. But more than she gained enemies, she gained followers and admirers. Not only the common people, but also the Mughal emperor Akbar and his famous court musician, Tansen, are believed to have visited her in disguise and are said to have touched her feet, in awe of her devotion for Lord Krishna.

Literature and Meera Bai

A Mira poem is traditionally called a Pada, a term used by the 14th century preachers for a small spiritual song. This is usually composed in simple rhythms and carries a refrain within itself. Her collection of songs is called the PadavaliThe typicality of Indian love poetry of those days was used by Mirabai but as an instrument to express her deepest emotions felt for her lord. Her typical medium of singing was Vraja-bhasha, a dialect of Hindi spoken in and around Vrindavan (the childhood home of Krishna), sometimes mixed with Rajasthan.

Philosophy in Meera Bai’s poetry

As compared to the literature of the then-existing Hindu schools of devotion (bhakti), which typically saw devotees as servants of the lord, Meera Bai's poetic preoccupation with worship and love as it exists between lovers, sets apart her devotional philosophy. This love-based philosophy of Meera Bai took time to catch on but as she grew popular, her songs and philosophy caught the imagination of the common-folk as a means of reaching out to their popular deity, Lord Krishna. Disregarding her royal lineage, Meera Bai traveled across vast distances of North India, spreading her gospel of love for Krishna being the only weapon that could conquer the transient nature of life.

Through her love songs addressed to her beloved, Krishna, Meera paints on a literary canvas, the longing of the individual soul (atman) to merge with the universal soul (paramatman). These songs talk about the beauty of the object of her love and her passion and longing for union with him, the madness of her love, and the pain of separation from him.

When seen in the context of the conservative and male-dominated society with a uni dimensional perception of life and religion, Meera bai can be seen as a perfect example of a woman - a symbol of courage and defiance - who was far ahead of her times in seeking freedom not only from social barriers but also the ultimate freedom from the bondage of human existence.A major change in her life occurred at the time of the death of her husband. It was customary in those days for a wife to commit satti. Satti is the self immolation upon the husband's funeral pyre. She refused to comply, whereupon her in-laws began harassing her. She then left the palace and began wandering throughout Rajasthan, preaching and gaining followers.

Street theatre a medium of language

Street theater

The concept behind the project is that art cannot exist outside the context of society and hence has a responsibility towards society. So they choose the path of theatre of relevance and committed themselves to art for the sake of social responsibility and transformation, thus extending the exiting principles and ideologies of art. Theatre of relevance is also very much in keeping with traditional art forms like – ‘Katha’, ‘Kirtan’, ‘Loknatya’, that reached out to the people with a sense of purpose and devotion, besides entertaining them and touching upon issues of social significance.

Approach to street theatre has been to eliminate preaching and concentrating on performance. At the same time, the goal of creating awareness about issues of contemporary social relevance has never been abandoned. Project ‘Jagruti” (project of street plays) have always attempted to have as much realism and depth as the lives of the people whose problems are being highlighted so that they can reach the widest possible audiences and give them an insight into the problems of the poor, the underprivileged and oppressed.

The audience of the street theatre is the common citizen---- passers-by, commuters, middleclass workers, slum dwellers, beggars, villagers, city-folk, but industrialists, the ruling class and elite are not excluded.

The street theatre has its inherent challenges—to portray various problems accurately, an in-depth study is required to lend the play a certain gravity and intensity. At the same time there should be no sermonizing.

Street theatre is not the only medium of an entertainment but a means of creating social awareness. It is not a take-off on film scenes and songs but needs much effort on the part of the scriptwriter as any regular stage play. The out look of the play write should be fearless, impartial and enlightened. The actors and directors should be equally sensitive, aware and disciplined and have ability to draw out responses from the audience. All this needs training and practice. For street theatre to be meaningful, it should never be haphazardly written or performed.