Swami Ramanand is considered as a pioneer of the great Bhakti Movement in North India . He was a follower of Swami Ragavacharya of the Ramanuh Movement (1071-1137). In the later part of his life, the Archarya commanded more respect than even his own Guru and came to be known as an exponent of Rama Bhakti. He has also been regarded as the bridge between the Bhakti Movement of the south and north.
Born in 1400,Ramanand was the son of Bhoor Karma and Sushila. He was mystically inclined from his early childhood. Ramanand also people built a memorial that stands there to this day. He started preaching his gospel in Kashi and swayed many devotees with the spirit of Bhakti. Kabir was the most renowned amongst his disciples.
Ramanand was a learned Pandit. Many of his books such as ‘Sri Vaishnava Motabrij Bhaskar’, ‘Sri Ramarachan Padhti’ are still available. One of his hymns has been inserted in the Guru Granth Sahib.