Guru Ravidas Jayanti: A Celebration of Equality and Selflessness

Observed on Magha Purnima, the full moon day in the month of Magha (February), Guru Ravidas Jayanti is celebrated as Ravidas’s birth anniversary. Also known as Raidas, Roidas and Ruhidas, he was a spiritual leader of the Bhakti Movement and a social reformer who worked against casteism. His devotional poetry and songs made a lasting impression on his followers.

The day is celebrated across the country, especially in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Chandigarh. The devotees take a holy dip in the river and perform rituals. They remember his teachings and contribution to reforming society.

Let’s learn more about the date and timings, background, significance, and celebrations on the occasion of Guru Ravidas Jayanti.

Date and Timings of Guru Ravidas Jayanti

Since there is no clarity on the exact birth date of Guru Ravidas, some historians believe he was born in 1377 CE. As per the Hindu calendar, he was born on Magha Purnima and hence his birth anniversary is celebrated on Magha Purnima, the last Purnima of the Magha month.

In 2025, Guru Ravidas Jayanti will mark 648th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas on Wednesday, 12th February 2025. The Purnima tithi will begin at 06:55 PM on 11th February 2025 and will end at 07:22 PM on 12th February 2025.

Background of Guru Ravidas Jayanti

Guru Ravidas was born in the village of Seer Goverdhanpur, near Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Born into an unprivileged leather-worker family, he became one of the primary people to instigate a war against the caste system.

According to a legend, he was a Brahmin in his past life. On his deathbed, he became interested in a woman of the Chamar caste and wished her to become his mother in the next life. For this reason, he became reincarnated as Ravidas and was born to the same woman.

During his journey to reform society, he became a contemporary of Saint Kabir and interacted with him on spirituality. He became a mystic poet and saint of the Bhakti movement during the 15th-16th century CE. He was a progressive thinker who spread the message of equality through his poetry and teachings based on spirituality. His teachings include the removal of social divisions of caste and gender and the promotion of unity in the journey of attaining personal spiritual freedom.

Every year his followers visit Shri Guru Ravidas Janam Asthan Mandir, his birthplace, on the occasion of Guru Ravidas Jayanti and honour his teachings and spiritual ideology. Those who cannot visit, perform rituals at their homes and within their surroundings through Nagar Kirtan and other rites.

Significance of Guru Ravidas Jayanti

Guru Ravidas Jayanti is observed on the full moon day of the Magha month, to honour his efforts to eradicate the caste system from society. He was among the initial reformers who used poetry and spiritual teachings to challenge the caste system in India. He preached the idea of equality and dismissed the division of society on the basis of caste, gender and status.

His devotional verses were later included in the Sikh scriptures, Guru Granth Sahib. The traces of his poems can also be seen in the Panch Vani text of the Dadu Panthi tradition in Hinduism. His ideas reached a wider audience and people from different religions became his disciples, including Mirabai, a major Bhakti Movement poet. Other followers of Guru Ravidas include Kabirpanthis, Sikhs and gurus from different communities. He is also considered the founder of the 21st-century Ravidassia religion. About 40 poems attributed to Guru Ravidas were a part of the Adi Granth (“First Volume”).

He introduced the word “Begampura”, meaning a city without sorrow and suffering (be-gham). The word was also adopted by Train No. 12238 as Jammu Tawi Begampura Express. Moreover, a special train runs from Jalandhar to Varanasi on the occasion of Guru Ravidas Jayanti.

The day is not just celebrated in the various parts of the country, but people from different countries also get together to celebrate this special day as a religious event. 

An event is organised at Shri Guru Ravidas Janam Asthan Mandir to honour his ideology which includes:

• Equality: A person is defined by his virtues and deeds, not caste or status.
• Devotion: One can connect with God through spirituality and righteous living.
• Beghumpura: A vision for a peaceful society without sorrow, where equality prevails.

His ideology is reflected through some of his famous quotes which are as follows:

• “God resides in those hearts in which there is no hatred towards anyone, there is no greed or malice.”
• “There is no difference between gold and gold ornaments. God does not differentiate between its creatures.”
• “A person is not big or small by status or birth, he is weighed by his virtues or deeds.”
• “Let no man in the world live in delusion. Without a Guru, none can cross over to the other shore.”
• “If your heart is pure, the water in your bathtub is holy water. You need not go anywhere to take a holy dip.”

How to Celebrate Guru Ravidas Jayanti

Guru Ravidas Jayanti is celebrated across the country for his spirituality and works against casteism. Guru Ravidas’s followers take a dip in the holy rivers and remember significant events and miracles related to his life. Devotees across the world visit Shri Guru Ravidas Janam Asthan Mandir and other temples and bhajans are dedicated to him. They also perform special aartis and organise Nagar Kirtan processions.

Guru Ravidas Jayanti is celebrated around the world, where people from different religions come together to honour his idea of equality in society. Some of the ways, Guru Ravidas Jayanti is celebrated are:

• Guru Ravidas’s followers take a bath in the holy rivers.
• Gurudwaras across the country are adorned with colourful lights and special prayer meetings are organised in adoration of Guru Ravidas.
• Followers of the Ravidassia religion organised a reading of Amritbani Guru Ravidas Ji, a holy book and a compilation of Guru Ravi Das’s teachings and writings.
• A special ceremony is organised to change the official symbol of the Ravidassia region.
• Devotees host the Nagar Kirtan, where devotees carry portraits of Guru Ravidas, dress up as Ravidas and his supporters and sing hymns focused on love, compassion and devotion to God.
• Community meals (Langars) are organised by the devotees to promote his teachings of equality and service.
• Various cultural activities including dance, music and poetry are organised to celebrate Guru Ravidas’s life and ideology.
• Followers perform acts of charity to support his ideas of selflessness and kindness.

Guru Ravidas played a significant role in bringing social reforms in India by promoting equality and social justice while opposing the caste system. The followers across the world come together to celebrate and honour his contribution by organising processions, prayers, langar and cultural events. You can explore Punjab or visit Uttar Pradesh to celebrate Guru Ravi Das Jayanti. You may also participate in celebrations at various Gurudwaras, temples and bhawans dedicated to Guru Ravidas across the country.

While planning a trip to be a part of the celebrations, you can book hotels in Varanasi from the Treebo Club’s website or app. You can also book banquet halls in your nearby hotels to host events on Guru Ravidas Jayanti and promote his ideology amongst your community.