Srimanta Sankardev has widely been credited to shaping the Assamese culture and traditions which is prevalent in all aspects of the modern society. However, I felt that somewhere as time moved on and the global influences creeped into all our lives, there was an erosion of awareness, particularly among the younger population, about this great saint to whom we owe our rich Assamese culture and tradition. This is my attempt to educate the younger generation so that the legacy of the great saint is not lost with time, limited to just a few of his followers.

Sankar was possibly one of India’s greatest visionaries and a doyen of knowledge who transformed the Assamese society by driving great social reformation. Many of his teachings are relevant in the trials and tribulations we observe in our modern life. I felt that spreading awareness and knowledge of this great saint will be beneficial not just for our young generation in Assam but wider at a global platform. Today’s society is swept away by modernity, which is more embedded in the transient present, the here and now. The traditions that we the foundations of a typical Assamese society are slowly getting lost amidst all the changes. The Namghars and Satras where once the sounds of prayers, hymns, khol, taal and kirtan resonated and permeated into the lives of all in their vicinity, today lies quiet and desolate. The dance forms and various other art propagated by Sri Sankardev are losing the relevance. Fewer and fewer people are associated with these art forms and unless we do something about this urgently, we will lose the rich heritage, culture and art that is unique to our Assamese identity.

I had earlier written short chronicles on the life of Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev in Assamese and it was very well received. I was urged by many to write one in English so that I can reach out to a wider group of readers and younger age groups. This book has been written by consulting several other books and articles on this subject by scholars and researchers of repute. I express my sincere gratitude to all of them. I have attempted to collect all the information and present it in an easy-to-read format. I would like to apologise in advance for any unintentional omission while writing this book.

I would like to thank Shri Pranab Thakuria for the manuscript which has been produced at Atul Communication DTP Centre, Japorigog, Guwahati. I would also like to thank Iterative International Publishers, for printing this book. I would also like to express my deep sense of gratitude to my daughter Sumita Dutta who has spent a lot of time to edit the manuscript despite her busy schedule.