Consider the following statements regarding the revered bhakti saint Srimanta Sankardeva: 1. He practiced and preached the Vaishnavite faith during the 12th century in Bengal. 2. He propagated the Ek Saran Naam Dharma which focussed on worship through devotion to Lord Krishna. 3. His birthplace at Bordowa Than in Assam is one of the most sacred sites for Assamese Vaishnavites. How many of the above statement/s is/are correct?

The correct answer is option 2. In News Indian Express : Rahul Gandhi prevented from visiting Batadrava Than. Key Points Bhakti saint Srimanta Sankardeva: He practiced and preached the neo-Vaishnavite faith during the 15th-16th century in Assam . Hence, statement 1 is Incorrect. The Batadrava Than, or Bordowa Than, is a temple complex at the birthplace of revered Vaishnavite reformer-saint Srimanta Sankardeva . Bordowa Than, is one of the most sacred sites for Assamese Vaishnavites. Hence, statement 3 is correct. Sankardeva founded the Kirtan Ghar at Bordowa to practice and preach the neo-Vaishnavite faith during the fifteenth century in Assam and propagated the Ek Saran Naam Dharma. The Ek Saran Naam Dharma focussed on worship through bhakti (devotion) to Lord Krishna , through singing and congregational listening of His name and deeds. Hence, statement 2 is correct. Sankardeva espoused a society based on equality and fraternity, free from caste differences, orthodox Brahmanical rituals and sacrifices. His teaching focused on prayer and chanting (naam) instead of idol worship. His dharma was based on the four components of deva (god), naam (prayers), bhakats (devotees), and guru (teacher). The Neo-Vaishnavite reformist movement that Sankardeva started is behind the monastic institutions called Thans/Sattras. As the saint travelled across Assam, spreading his teachings, these Sattras/Thans were established as centres of religious, social and cultural reforms in the 16th century. Today, the Sattras promulgate Sankardeva’s unique “worship through art” approach with music (borgeet), dance (xattriya) and theatre (bhauna). Each Sattra has a naamghar (worship hall) as its nucleus and is headed by an influential “Sattradhikar”.