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Concept
Gorakhnath
Summary
Gorakhnath (also known as Goraksanath, c. early 11th century) was a Hindu yogi, saint who was the influential founder of the Nath Hindu monastic movement in India He is considered one of the two notable disciples of Matsyendranath. His followers are called yogis, Gorakhnathi, Darshani or Kanphata.
He was one of nine saints also known as Navnath and is widely popular in Maharashtra, India. Hagiographies describe him as more than a human teacher and someone outside the laws of time who appeared on earth in different ages. Historians state Gorakhnath lived sometime during the first half of the 2nd millennium CE, but they disagree in which century. Estimates based on archaeology and text range from Briggs' 11th to 12th century to Grierson's estimate of the 14th century.
Gorakhnath is considered a Maha-yogi (or great yogi) in the Hindu tradition. He did not emphasise a specific metaphysical theory or a particular Truth, but emphasised that the search for Truth and the spiritual life is a valuable and normal goal of man. Gorakhnath championed Yoga, spiritual discipline and an ethical life of self-determination as a means to reaching samadhi and one's own spiritual truths.
Gorakhnath, his ideas and yogis have been highly popular in rural India, with monasteries and temples dedicated to him found in many states of India, particularly in the eponymous city of Gorakhpur.
Historians vary in their estimate on when Gorakhnath lived. Estimates based on archaeology and text range from Briggs' 11th to 12th century to Baba Farid documents and Jnanesvari manuscripts leading Abbott to connect Gorakhnath to the 13th century, to Grierson, who, relying on evidence discovered in Gujarat, suggests the 14th century. His influence is found in the numerous references to him in the poetry of Kabir and of Guru Nanak of Sikhism, which describe him as a very powerful leader with a large following, thereby suggesting he likely lived around the time these spiritual leaders lived in India.
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