RAS question
The Bhakti saint who composed the Gitagovinda (12th century) was:
Correct answer: (C) Jayadeva.
Jayadeva, the 12th-century Bhakti poet, composed the Gitagovinda, a Sanskrit devotional poem on Radha and Krishna.
Explanation
Jayadeva is the right answer because the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, Annual Report 2015-16 identifies Gita Govinda as a Sanskrit poem written by Jayadeva in the 12th century. Jayadeva belongs to the Odisha/Bengal cultural zone, and the work is a lyrical poem on the love of Radha and Krishna. Its examination value comes from that clear author-work pairing: Gitagovinda is not just a text title but a major Vaishnava devotional composition, arranged in 12 chapters and 24 songs. This tradition also links the work with temple performance, Odissi dance, miniature painting and Carnatic music, making Jayadeva a recurring name in medieval Bhakti and cultural-history questions.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Tulsidas is wrong because the Gitagovinda is attributed to Jayadeva, not to Tulsidas.
- (B) Surdas is wrong because the question asks for the 12th-century composer of the Gitagovinda, and the verified attribution is Jayadeva.
- (D) Kabir is wrong because the Gitagovinda is identified here as Jayadeva's Sanskrit devotional poem on Radha and Krishna.
Concept
This tests the medieval Bhakti movement through the standard author-work association of Jayadeva and the Gitagovinda. It recurs in RAS because cultural history questions often connect devotional literature with temple practice, music, dance and painting traditions.