Sacred Songs of India: Devotional Lyrics of Mystics - Vol. IV

From the Jacket:

The Sacred Songs of India Volume Four, like its predecessor volumes one, two and three, encompasses selections from the lifework of ten mystic poet-saints of India.

The mystic poet-sages included in this volume lived between the 8th and 20th centuries and came from such diverse regions of India like Kashmir, Kerala, Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh.

They are: Sundarar (also known as Sundara-murthy), one of the great Nayanmars, Nammalwar, the Doyen of Alwars, Basavanna, the Founder of Veerasaivism - a movement pledged to an egalitarian society devoted to God, Lad Ded or Lalla Yogeswari, the Kashmiri Saivite Yogin, Bilwa Mangal immortalized by his poem Krishnakarnamritam, Chandidas, the Viashnavite Rebel of Bengal who spear-headed the Sahaja movement of Bhakti, Guru Nanak, the Founder of Sikhism, Eknath, the Maharashtra saint, Kshetrajna, the Telugu composer whose sensual images sought to seek spiritual uplift and Suddhananda Bharati, the mystic Yogi, who poured out his heartfelt love for God in mellifluous poetry.

The sang in different languages: Kashmiri, Kannada, Sanskrit, Punjabi, Telugu, Marathi, Bengali and Tamil. But all of them sang of the glory of God, with whom each had an intimate, spiritual communion.

This precious spiritual legacy bequeathed by the mystics of India will be a perennial source of inspiration for all scholars of Indology and a limitless repertoire for all artistes in the fields of music, dance, drama and ballet.

About the Author:

Vadakaymadom Krishna Iyer Subramanian (b. 1930, Kerala, India) is an eminent scholar, whose life mission is to present to the world the treasures of ancient India, in the fields of art, literature, philosophy and religion.

He has already translated several ancient texts into English.

These include: Saundaryalahari, Sivanandalahari, Sacred Songs of India, Maxims of Chanakya and Sri Rudraprasna.

As a consultant for holistic health and spiritual development, he has spelt out the Hindu regimens in this regard in his popular book: The Holistic Way to Health, Happiness and Harmony.

Subramanian's prolific literary output covers a variety of subjects ranging from astrology to art. He has been an astropalmic counselor for over 35 years.

A retired officer of the Indian Audit and Accounts Service (which he joined in 1953), Subramanian is also a reputed painter, who has held 22 one-man shows and whose paintings (some of them in the Chandigarh Museum) have won wide acclaim from leading art critics of India.

Subramanian who has traveled extensively in India, now lives in the United States of America.