Bhima Bhoi

Bhima Bhoi (1850–1895) was asaint, poet and philosopher from the state of Odisha in India. Bhima Bhoi was a bhakta (Oriya: devotee) of Mahima Swamy (commonly referred to as Mahima Gosain and whose birth name is said to have been Mukunda Das). From Mahima Swamy, Bhima Bhoi would receive initiation into Mahima Dharma, an Indian religious tradition that challenged the authority of caste Hinduism on its own terms.

Bhima Bhoi was born in Jatesingha in 1850, though various sources have cited different years as well as different places of birth. Bhima Bhoi's family belonged to the Khond tribe. Bhoi's family was not well off and by most accounts his early life was not a happy one. His father died when he was quite young. His mother remarried and had children with her new husband soon after.

Bhima Bhoi was a great poet, composer and singer. Humanity and liberation of the world were the central theme of his poetic creations. His assertion "mo jeevana pachhe narke padithau, jagata uddhara heu" (let my life remain inglorious, let the world achieve salvation) showcase his broad thinking while being clear reflection of the conditions of socio-economic exclusions during his lifetime. While a few scholars of Odia language have studied the life and poetry of Bhima Bhoi, the recently established Bhima Bhoi Chair of Gangadhar Meher University aims to research the impact of Bhima Bhoi's life on the socio-economic aspects of people of Western Odisha. The Bhima Bhoi Chair of Gangadhar Meher University was set up in 2019.