Aṣṭachāp (meaning "8 seals" in Hindi) is a term used to refer to a group of 8 devout poets who were disciples of Vallabhacharya and his son Vitthalnath, who sang Haveli Sangeet prayers, praises, kirtans and musical storytelling different leelas of Lord Krishna, in Dhrupad Dhamma, Dwi Padi, TriPadi, Chatus Padi, ShatPadi, Ashta Padi Prabandh
It was established in 1565 AD with the foundation of Pushtimarg. The poet Sūrdās was the most well known member of the group the others being, Paramānanddās, Nanddās, Kṛṣṇadās, Govindsvāmī, Kumbhandās, Chītasvāmī, and Caturbhujdās. Apart from astachap kirtaniya Surdas ji, KumbhandasJi was also a great pre-eminent music doyen.
Each member of Astachaps, are assigned the duty of a particular part of daily worship.
References
- हिंदी साहित्य का दूसरा इतिहास, Dr. Bachchan Singh, Radhakrishna Prakashan, Delhi, 2002, pg 128, ISBN 817119785X
- Hawley, John Stratton (2015-03-09). A Storm of Songs. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674425286.
- हिन्दी साहि्त्य का इतिहास, Editor Dr. Nagendra, National Publishing House, New Delhi, Second Edition 1976, page 217
- "Aṣṭachāp | Hindi poets". Encyclopedia Britannica. June 18, 2009. Retrieved 2018-01-18.