Compiling a playlist

[Sirona]

Dear forum,

I'm compiling a playlist. Would you please tell me whether the following song is religious or secular? (I know, if the song is nice it shouldn't play a role ). And what is it about? Google let me down

In my opinion, the song sounds a little bit similar to "Aigiri Nandini" . Do you agree?

 

[ameyAtmA]

Hi Sirona

Spiritual bhajan.
Content is spiritual, and hence religious - by context. A very very common theme, topic and wording for a bhajan.

Never heard it, so thanks.
It is a prayer to / conversation with [the IshTaDev form of] the Supreme Almighty (PrabhU)

beecha bhavar mein kabase/ kahu se paDA
PrabhUvar, muzko rAha dikhA
My Beloved Lord, I am stuck in the center of this dangerous whirlpool [of niessance, material worldly life] since time eternal. Please come and show me the way out.

jab maine Tuzko pukArA sabne muzko muDha (?) kahA
When I called You in times of sorrow, everyone called me a dummy.

Tu hi batA ab jaun kahA? Tu hi to hai merA sahArA!
Now You tell me, where should I go? You alone are my Support and Shelter.

Ina jAlon se muzko bachA le, jeevan naiyyA pAra lagA
Please save me from this web, entanglement (of niessance, worldly life), and bring my life-boat/ship to the shore (of eternal spiritual life).

 

[Sirona]

Thanks @ameyAtmA for your fast reply. This was very helpful and these are nice lyrics. Would you tell me which language it is?

 

[Jainarayan]

Wow, I like that. I'm adding it to my collection.

 

[ameyAtmA]

You are welcome.

Would you tell me which language it is?

The language is Hindi
This is a generic bhajan, so applies to one's IshTaDev.
Many times, Krishna bhajans are in Vraj-bhAshA -- a very sweet language of the locals of 80 kos radius of Vraj, a dialect of Hindi+MArwAri+ GujrAthi hybrid.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Beautiful religious poetry either with Surdas in Brija or Meera in Rajasthani. Surdas (a blind devotee of Lord Krishna) is considered the foremost poet of medieval India (i.e., leaving out the Sanskrit poets like Valmiki and Kalidas). They say:

"Sur Sur, Tulsi Shashi, udgan Kesavdas;
baki kavi khadyot sam jahn tahn karat prakas."

Surdas is the sun, Tulsi is the moon, Kesavdas is like a bird;
all the rest of poets are like fire-flies, making light here and there."

 

[ameyAtmA]

While we can tell from the tone and sentiment this bhajan is addressing BhagavAn Shri KRshNa, a line after this one that directly makes it obvious :

jab maine Tuzko pukArA sabne muzko mUrkha kahA...
When I called You in times of sorrow, everyone called me a dummy.

Why? The answer is in the next line:
kehete hain We BhagvAn nahi, wo to hai jag chhoDa chalA
They say He is not BhagavAn, [and the argument for that is -- ] He left the world (they are referring to Krishna leaving His avatAr body at BhalkA Teertha, near Somnath, Gujarath, a few miles away from DwarakA, exactly as predicted and to fulfill 2 events. They think Krishna is no more.)

Little do they know Who Krishna is.... (they think "was")

 

[ameyAtmA]

BG 10.20 I am the AtmA, Who is the support of all living beings. I am their beginning (Divine Source), middle (I am with them when they are alive), and their end (final destination).

 

[Jainarayan]

Little do they know Who Krishna is.... (they think "was")

Well, He did say fools and the ignorant ones mock and deride Him. Even today, from certain religious groups.

 

[Sirona]

Dear forum, would you help me with another song?

I just figured out "Om Shrim ..." and I suppose it adresses Lakshmi.

 

[ameyAtmA]

Why do you want to listen to such strange renditions of holy sacred mantras?
A mantra is ideally given by Guru (in the ear) and guarded , treated as sacred. To be chanted in low tone for oneself to hear, understanding the meaning, following a specific meter.
Not to be turned into rock or pop music.

 

[Sirona]

Why do you want to listen to such strange renditions of holy sacred mantras?
A mantra is ideally given by Guru (in the ear) and guarded , treated as sacred. To be chanted in low tone for oneself to hear, understanding the meaning, following a specific meter.
Not to be turned into rock or pop music.

Dear @ameyAtmA,

Thanks for your insight. It never occurred to me that somebody might find such music offensive. I also chant silently but I am mostly used to the loud kirtan of the Hare Krishna mantra. I used to think listening to mantras as music was okay. I like the story of Ramanuja who gave to everybody the mantra he had received from his guru in secret.

Ramanuja’s revelation of the ‘secret mantra’

Thus, I saw no problem in icluding a mantra into rock or pop music. But maybe this is just a remainder of my former Christian attitude that “everybody should be saved”. Maybe it’s more of an individual thing. You gave me something to think about.

 

[ameyAtmA]

Dear @Sirona

It is nice to see you are open about this. These things are not set in stone and there is a fine line.

With sharing a mantra comes responsibility. Especially the beej (seed) mantras (hreem , klim, haum etc.) and the heavy Devi mantras full of beej are recommended to be taken up after properly studying their meaning from an authentic source, IF that is a suitable mantra for that living entity, since it will make a difference to their consciousness.
Nowadays , internet can do that to a certain extent, but care has to be taken.

However, turning it into "fusion music" etc. is taking things far IMHO.
Just take this one -- you could not even hear the mantra clearly at first glance.
Is that guarding Devi's and the mantra's honor ? To me it is treating the mantra casually.

This kind of music does not sound sAttvik enough for a mantra.
"Of Vedas I am SAma" says Krishna in VibhUti Yoga , BG Chap 10. SAma introduced the swar, musical notes, and laid foundation for divine classical music. Music is an expression which can be sAttvic, RAjasik or TAmasic - hence affects consciousness.

-----
It was Ramanuja's "adhikAr" because he had earned it, was an "adhikAri" person of God, and distributed the simple ashTAkshari (8-syllabled) mantra to call NArAyaNa. (AdhikAri = with a certain spiritual standing and responsibility).

Chatanya Mahaprabhu was compassionate too, like Ramanuja -- but went one step further: He reversed the 16-word mantra in Kali Santarana Upanishad that Lord BrahmA told DevaRshi NArad, from "Hare Ram Hare Ram ..." first to "Hare Krishna " first. This way it is no longer a Vaidic mantra and you can sing, dance with it and sky is the limit.

Actually in those days, they sang bhajans and called out to Hari spontaneously as they wished (e.g. He taught his friends -- Hari HarAya nam,ah: KrishNa yAdavAya namah: ...) .

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu did not perform the Hare Krishna kirtan like the modern day GauDiya VaishNavs do - where the only words are Hari, Ram and Krishna (and they interpret Hare as vocative of HarA instead of vocative of Hari) .
Rather, it was more lose flowing bhajan that brought "Krishna- bhAvAmRut" into people's consciousness.

However, that kind of bhajan is culturally absorbed or picked up, whereas a standard set of words is easier to teach universally across cultures when uniformity is emphasized - especially applies to a preaching organization.