Bahinabai’s life (1628-1700 CE) and the events in it are known to us today because of her unusual practice of noting them all down precisely in her verses, in seventy-eight abhangas with her exact date of birth. She also wrote her autobiography Atmamanivedana.
Abhanga is poetry with verses in praise of Vithoba, Panduranga or Vitthala, a form of Vishnu predominantly worshipped in Marathi-speaking areas. Abhangas of several poets are sung to this day in temples or enroute on varkari, pilgrimage by vari, pilgrims who walk great distances to temples.
The Bhakti Movement
Bahinabai is one of the important poets of the Bhakti period of India’s history. Her verses are particularly autobiographical. The Bhakti movement is a significant development in medieval India which saw the flowering of religious feeling and devotion to God over a period of nearly 700 years, from the 9th to the 16th centuries CE. Several religious teachers took the message of Sanatana Dharma to the people through personal interaction, verse and song. The Bhakti Movement’s impact on literature and the arts was huge. This peoples’ movement occured spontaneously all over India with no ruler or leader in charge. It touched various facets of life - religion, the arts, women’s status. The result was increased geographical and cultural awareness between different parts of India, especially of far-flung areas, since devotees travelled across the country on pilgrimage and artists for work opportunities.
The Marathi scribe Mahipati (1715-1790 CE) wrote biographies of Varkari saints. His work is still considered the most authoritative. He wrote hagiographies of Vaishnava poets who lived between the 13th and 17th centuries CE, and mentions Bahinabai in his Bhakta-Vijaya.