Surdas Jayanti is the Holi appearance day of a great devotee-poet of Lord Krishna, Saint Surdas. It falls on Shukla panchami, the fifth day of waxing moon in the month of Vaishakh (May-June). In the year 2010, Surdas Jayanti falls on 18th May.
About Surdas: The exact birth date of Surdas is not known. Scholars believe it to be around 1478 or 1479 AD. Surdas was born blind and hence was abandoned by family members. At the age of 6 he left the family and got into a group of devotional singers who passed by his home. He never returned home.
He met his Guru, the Saint Sri Vallabhacharya on the banks of river Yamuna when he was 18 years old. He got initiated in the path of Bhakti and began to sing the Bhakti songs. He never married and made his living by singing and giving discourses. He lived in Braj bhumi and returned to the eternal abode in 1581 AD.
Surdas songs preach Bhakti Suddha Advaita, the Non-dualism philosophy. Saint Surdas had a very sharp memory. He recited entire Shrimad Bhagavatam. Thousands of people became his followers as he sang and immersed himself into the deep devotion to Lord Krishna. Subsequently, his songs were written and revered as the greatest Bhakti literature of the period. Some of the literally works of Surdas are Sur-sagar, Sur-Saravali and Sahitya-Lahiri.
Celebrations: The appearance of Surdas is celebrated in great pomp in Braj and Vrindavan. The songs composed by Surdas are sung. Seminars are conducted and discourses are given on the life and preachings of Saint Surdas.
