Vol. 4, Issue 1, Part A (2022)

Krishna Joo Razdan was a saint-poet of 19th century Kashmir whose lila kavyas and bhajans display the deep effect of Puranas, agam shastras, Kashmir Shaivism and bhakti tradition. The Hindu philosophy forms the backdrop where he discusses the nature of God as naad-bindu swarup, desire for moksha, nishkam bhakti, desire for freedom the cycle of samsara and essential oneness of Godhead etc. In his verses, deep emotions of bhakti towards the ishta-deva and total reliance and submission towards Him are evident. The essentials of bhakti form the bedrock where the necessity of controlling the fickle mind if a devotee wants to meet God, remembrance of God and desire for His darshan are discernible. This paper offers a glimpse of the 19th century bhakti environment of Kashmir.