Baul singing, with Arpita. Boul, the word comes from wind (vatul) and mad (bawara). She made it very easy for the kids and all of us to understand about the Baul. Her interaction and presentation instilled curiosity among the kids of all ages to know more about it.
Baul is an oral tradition, coming from Bengal. Arpita is a student of the Baul Parampara. This is an ancient tradition that follows the path of Guru-Shishya, the transmission of the work from Guru to Disciple. A Baul sings and dances in meditation, moving ever-closer to their true Self through dedicated practice. She has been learning this tradition for two years now from her Guru, Parvathy Baul. She has practiced Baul for 25 years, and she performs with the traditional instruments, Ektara, Duggi and Nupur, singing, playing the instruments and dancing all at once. You can know more about her here (https://parvathybaul.com/).
It’s Guru- Shishya tradition. The tradition is transmitted by living together. Songs are all about life, history, geography, religion and all other learnings. Ektara, an Ancient instrument is a symbol of Boul tradition. It is also the symbol of the body – holds altogether mind, body, and spirit. Two Bamboos are a symbol of the sun and moon energy, while the string is the symbol of Prana. The question of Baul is to ask a question ‘who are we’. She sang a song, telling a bit about the tradition of the Boul tradition, song meaning – When you wake up in the morning you leave your laziness, be active and call God (Krishna). She sang, she danced and shared about Boul. She shared her journey of focusing while singing. She shared about her life, practice and daily routine. This was just a sharing of being a Boul… It’s just a beginning of a journey.
Children were curious to know about What do they eat? How do they spend their day? kind of clothes they were? what time do they wake up? can they watch movies? How can you talk funny and lost while singing? Do your hands pain for handing the instrument?
We had a wonderful session immersed us in music.
Parvathyji will be traveling to Japan in June 2018. Arpita wants to accompany her Guru to offer her Seva, service as a disciple, and to learn from her in close proximity. In order to make this possible, she is doing her Madhukori, sacred begging, by fundraising in small and intimate gatherings. Madhukori is an integral part of Baul practice, where the practitioner humbly offers one’s music and asks for energy and resources, as bees gather honey from flowers.
If you feel called to put your energy into her journey to Japan, you can participate in the following ways:
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Offer your home for me to share my journey and music and do my Madhukori
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Help organise the fundraiser
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Donate money for the journey
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Spread the word to other friends
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Share your energy and good wishes for this work