Nayanars

E118517

The Nayanars were a group of early medieval South Indian Shaivite poet-saints whose devotional hymns greatly shaped the Bhakti movement and the worship of Shiva.

All labels observed (7)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Bhakti movement saints
Hindu religious group
Shaivite poet-saints
AlvarsRelation Vaishnavite contemporaries in Bhakti movement
associatedText Tevaram
Tirumurai
associatedWithTempleTradition Chidambaram Nataraja Temple
Tiruvarur Thyagaraja Temple
classification Nayanars self-linksurface differs
surface form: Tamil Shaivite saints
commemoratedBy festival processions in Tamil temples
compiledBy Nambiyandar Nambi
contrastedWith Alvar saints
surface form: Alvars
culturalImpact shaped Tamil devotional poetry
strengthened Shaivite identity in South India
devotionalForm bhakti
devotionalTheme condemnation of ritualism without devotion
love and surrender to Shiva
floruitCentury 6th century
7th century
8th century
9th century
hymnsPreservedIn Tirumurai
surface form: Tirumurai canon
iconography processional bronze images in temples
influenceOn Bhakti literature
South Indian temple worship
Shaivism
surface form: Tamil Shaivism
keyFigure Appar
Manikkavacakar
Sambandar
Sundarar
languageOfHymns Tamil
legacy foundation for later Shaiva Siddhanta tradition
mainDeity Shiva
movement Bhakti movement
numberOfSaints 63
opposedPractice Jain influence in Tamil regions
promotedPractice singing of devotional hymns
temple-centered worship of Shiva
region South India
Tamil Nadu
religion Hinduism
Shaivism
socialBackground multiple castes and social groups
timePeriod early medieval period
veneratedIn Shaivism
Tamil culture
surface form: Tamil Hindu tradition
worshippedAs saints in Tamil Shaivite temples
worshipStyle personal devotion to Shiva

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (11)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Shaivism hasDevotionalPoets Nayanars
Bhakti movement hasPart Nayanars
this entity surface form: Nayanar movement
Tirumurai includesHymnsAbout Nayanars
Nayanars classification Nayanars self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: Tamil Shaivite saints
Appar scriptureStatus Nayanars
this entity surface form: His hymns are part of the canonical Tamil Shaiva scripture Tevaram
Appar associatedWith Nayanars
Sambandar oneOf Nayanars
this entity surface form: 63 Nayanars
Sundarar memberOf Nayanars
Annamalaiyar Temple associatedWith Nayanars
this entity surface form: Tamil Saiva saints (Nayanmars)
Arubathimoovar festival honors Nayanars
this entity surface form: 63 Nayanmar saints