Who among the following Bhakti saints did not belong to Nirguna School of Bhakti?

The Bhakti movement is historically classified into two streams: Nirguna (devotion to a formless God without attributes) and Saguna (devotion to a deity with specific forms and attributes) [3]. Kabir, Guru Nanak, and Dadu Dayal are prominent representatives of the Nirguna school [2]. Kabir emphasized absolute monotheism and rejected image worship [3], while Guru Nanak advocated for a formless God and repudiated external rituals [2]. Dadu Dayal, a cotton carder, similarly belonged to this non-iconic tradition [3]. In contrast, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu of Bengal was a leading figure of the Saguna school [4]. His teachings focused on the ecstatic worship of Krishna, an anthropomorphic incarnation of Vishnu, emphasizing personal devotion (prema) and the superiority of Krishna over other deities rather than a formless reality [4]. Therefore, Chaitanya did not belong to the Nirguna school.

Sources

1. [1] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART II, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 6: Bhakti-Sufi Traditions > Early Traditions of Bhakti > p. 143
2. [3] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 14: The Mughal Empire > 14.11 Religion > p. 216
3. [2] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART II, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 6: Bhakti-Sufi Traditions > 8.2 Baba Guru Nanak and the Sacred Wor d > p. 163
4. [4] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 13: Cultural Syncretism: Bhakti Movement in India > Chaitanya (1485-1533) > p. 194