Babu Kishan's life journey was to Archive and Preserve Baul, this was a mission that was given to him at a very young age by Nabani Das Baul and Brajabala Dasi.
He fulfilled this mission decades ago and has archived and Preserved this one and only Lineage of Baul. Now is the time to start to present, even though he has been teaching and representing his Linage for 50 years, it is time for English Translation and discourses, it is time for this information to be presented to the world because there are others who are not qualified trying to do the same and the only Baul they can preserve is bit and pieces of watered down and reduced versions of this lineage. We can this already, so get ready here comes Babu Kishan with his 4th book on his ONE and ONLY LINEAGE O Baul and it is a tell all, right down to the nitty gritty to be released in 2018/early 2019.
Please stop copy and pasting what I write. Thanks Trishula Das
BAUL IS an ORAL and INTANGIBLE
CULTURAL HERITAGE of HUMANITY
UNESCO 2005
When the roots of Baul are cut, the tree dies.
Hrid Majahare Rakhbo
is the poetry of
Baul Saint Avadhuta,
Sri Nabani Das Khyapa Baul
This is his song and was first recorded in 1960’s by Hindustan Records!
No one would know about his song if it were not for this lineage.
'Hridmajahare Rakhbo
is the poetry of
Nabani Das Khyapa Baul'
This lineage is the Path of Radha.
Purna Das Baul was the first to record this in his father's tune and poetry in the 1960's, these Baul songs that people are singing have all been recorded. Even Bollywood is taking their songs and tunes without giving credit.
Babu Kishan was the second to record his Grandfather’s but Babu Kishan created his own tune and composition.
This Baul song was recorded by this family, then came others who copied and recorded it. This again is a huge Cultural Appropriation only in that others are saying they wrote it or they do not know where it came from. All of these songs were already recorded that is how you know about them. Nobody heard these songs until Purna Das Baul recorded them. Today others are taking credit saying they are taking Baul to the world. Baul has been spread around the world many many times by this family and they have included others and brought them along since the 1960’s.
Now there are literally hundreds of people all over India are singing this song without any idea where the song originates.
Even Shah Ru Khan sang it in Bengal.
This Lineage is the (only) Lineage of Baul. Their is no other Lineage of Baul.
This lineage is the roots of Baul, they originate in Ekachakra Birbhum India.
He fulfilled this mission decades ago and has archived and Preserved this one and only Lineage of Baul. Now is the time to start to present, even though he has been teaching and representing his Linage for 50 years, it is time for English Translation and discourses, it is time for this information to be presented to the world because there are others who are not qualified trying to do the same and the only Baul they can preserve is bit and pieces of watered down and reduced versions of this lineage. We can this already, so get ready here comes Babu Kishan with his 4th book on his ONE and ONLY LINEAGE O Baul and it is a tell all, right down to the nitty gritty to be released in 2018/early 2019.
Please stop copy and pasting what I write. Thanks Trishula Das
BAUL IS an ORAL and INTANGIBLE
CULTURAL HERITAGE of HUMANITY
UNESCO 2005
When the roots of Baul are cut, the tree dies.
Hrid Majahare Rakhbo
is the poetry of
Baul Saint Avadhuta,
Sri Nabani Das Khyapa Baul
This is his song and was first recorded in 1960’s by Hindustan Records!
No one would know about his song if it were not for this lineage.
'Hridmajahare Rakhbo
is the poetry of
Nabani Das Khyapa Baul'
This lineage is the Path of Radha.
Purna Das Baul was the first to record this in his father's tune and poetry in the 1960's, these Baul songs that people are singing have all been recorded. Even Bollywood is taking their songs and tunes without giving credit.
Babu Kishan was the second to record his Grandfather’s but Babu Kishan created his own tune and composition.
This Baul song was recorded by this family, then came others who copied and recorded it. This again is a huge Cultural Appropriation only in that others are saying they wrote it or they do not know where it came from. All of these songs were already recorded that is how you know about them. Nobody heard these songs until Purna Das Baul recorded them. Today others are taking credit saying they are taking Baul to the world. Baul has been spread around the world many many times by this family and they have included others and brought them along since the 1960’s.
Now there are literally hundreds of people all over India are singing this song without any idea where the song originates.
Even Shah Ru Khan sang it in Bengal.
This Lineage is the (only) Lineage of Baul. Their is no other Lineage of Baul.
This lineage is the roots of Baul, they originate in Ekachakra Birbhum India.
1982
Indira Gandhi in the front row she was a student of Babu's Grandfather Guru Nabani Das Khyapa Baul at Vishva Bharti where Nabani Das Baul was a professor of Baul song and dance appointed by Rabindranath Tagore.
Nabani Das Khyapa Paul was the first and only Baul Guru (professor appointed) by Rabindranath Tagore to teach Baul at Vishva Bharti and Indira Gandhi was his student because her father Nehru has Nabani Das Khyapa Baul sing all over India for him, Nehru knew the drawing power of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, this is part of the Freedom Movement and History of India.
Later, Babu Kishan's father Purna Das Baul and his wife Manju Dasi sang for Indira Gandhi, then so did Babu Kishan, they sang for Sanjay Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi before their political talks. There are many stories to be told and the now President of India Pranab Mukerjee was completely devoted to Indira Gandhi. They all were so close and there are many stories to be told.
Sitting in the audience is also, the President of India then Zail Singh seventh President of India, serving from 1982 to 1987. Indira Gandhi and all the Cabinet Ministers of India, including todays President Pranab Mukerjee who is also by the way Babu Kishan's uncle on his mothers side. Indira Gandhi was also, Babu Kishan's family friend his mother Manju Dasi was her great friend. Babu remembers being at their house all the time. One time he was a book beside her bed and he asked her what the book was, she said, the Bhagvada Gita and read it every night.
Purna Das Paul was performing because it was Jawaharlal Nehru birth anniversary in Delhi Teenmurti Bhavana. Hey and Babu Kishan was there too. This was his life, he has been there done that.
This is lineage, mystical and intellectual Baul beyond, Baul is Genius .
Indira Gandhi in the front row she was a student of Babu's Grandfather Guru Nabani Das Khyapa Baul at Vishva Bharti where Nabani Das Baul was a professor of Baul song and dance appointed by Rabindranath Tagore.
Nabani Das Khyapa Paul was the first and only Baul Guru (professor appointed) by Rabindranath Tagore to teach Baul at Vishva Bharti and Indira Gandhi was his student because her father Nehru has Nabani Das Khyapa Baul sing all over India for him, Nehru knew the drawing power of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, this is part of the Freedom Movement and History of India.
Later, Babu Kishan's father Purna Das Baul and his wife Manju Dasi sang for Indira Gandhi, then so did Babu Kishan, they sang for Sanjay Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi before their political talks. There are many stories to be told and the now President of India Pranab Mukerjee was completely devoted to Indira Gandhi. They all were so close and there are many stories to be told.
Sitting in the audience is also, the President of India then Zail Singh seventh President of India, serving from 1982 to 1987. Indira Gandhi and all the Cabinet Ministers of India, including todays President Pranab Mukerjee who is also by the way Babu Kishan's uncle on his mothers side. Indira Gandhi was also, Babu Kishan's family friend his mother Manju Dasi was her great friend. Babu remembers being at their house all the time. One time he was a book beside her bed and he asked her what the book was, she said, the Bhagvada Gita and read it every night.
Purna Das Paul was performing because it was Jawaharlal Nehru birth anniversary in Delhi Teenmurti Bhavana. Hey and Babu Kishan was there too. This was his life, he has been there done that.
This is lineage, mystical and intellectual Baul beyond, Baul is Genius .
Calcutta University sent Krishnendu Das aka Babu Kishan as a representative to
The International Symposium of World Philosophy New Delhi,
at the Vijyan Bhavan in the 1980's.
Babu Kishan was representing Baul and Indian Philosophy all over the world at Universities at a very young age, he has been there and down that.
The above is the monk Krishnendu aka Babu Kishan he was a monk in the Ramakrishna Order for 12year in Calcutta.
Babu Kishan is a Sanskrit Scholar in the Classical Book tradition to the MA Masters Level and he is a Oral Sanskritist from birth.
Babu traveled all over with renowned Sanskrit Professor Dr Roma Choudhry of Lady Brahman College, Calcutta University, Tagore University she was a well respected lecturer all over the world and now it is if this history has just become obsolete.
The International Symposium of World Philosophy New Delhi,
at the Vijyan Bhavan in the 1980's.
Babu Kishan was representing Baul and Indian Philosophy all over the world at Universities at a very young age, he has been there and down that.
The above is the monk Krishnendu aka Babu Kishan he was a monk in the Ramakrishna Order for 12year in Calcutta.
Babu Kishan is a Sanskrit Scholar in the Classical Book tradition to the MA Masters Level and he is a Oral Sanskritist from birth.
Babu traveled all over with renowned Sanskrit Professor Dr Roma Choudhry of Lady Brahman College, Calcutta University, Tagore University she was a well respected lecturer all over the world and now it is if this history has just become obsolete.
The only Legendary Baul and the last of the real Bauls of Bengal, (Lineage Baul) Nabani Das Khyappa Baul
Some songs made Baul famous worldwide and belong to this lineage , these songs and the tune are from Babu Kishan's lineage and his family. There is only one lineage of Baul and they are from Ekchakra Birbhum Bengal India.
Most Bauls now sing these songs because they have been recorded and are widely known on the radio but most have no idea who the author is, which is really sad. In some ways it is a cultural appropriation and watering down of this one and only Baul Lineage.
His grandfather Sri Nabani Das Khyeppa Baul wrote the lyrics to "Ghole Male Ghole Male," "Bhalo Kore Porga Schoole," and "Menka Mathay Delo" all written by Nabani Das Baul and music composed by him. In recent times they were made super famous by the one and only "legendary Baul of our time Purna Das Baul" who is Babu Kishan's father and Nabani Das Baul ELDEST son. These songs were recorded by Indian Cinema's legendary music directors of "Hindustan Records which is the first official Indian Music Company in India." These 3 music directors were Bengali's, Pan kaj Mallick, Timir Baran, Raichand Boral, famous music directors recorded Purna Das Baul an award winning India Vocalist and Great Baul singer. These music directors respected Nabani Das Baul, they were his friends and well wishers.
20x Ghole Male Ghole Male was recorded 20 X worldwide and 18 of those times it was recorded 18X by Babukishan and everytime it was recorded it was a hit.
Today this song is sung by all new fake Bauls without any of them giving credit to the Baul who wrote it Nabani Das Khyapa Baul or who made it famous Purna Das Baul. It seems they do not know or they do not care.
These are Baul songs from this many thousand year old lineage and should be treated with respect not songs to be sung on singing shows or in Movies without any understanding of where they came from or who wrote the songs?
Nabani Das Baul songs that are hugely Cultural Appropriated:
Hridmjhare Rakhbo and
Kichhu Din Mone Mone
Both of these Nabani Das Khyapa Paul songs were recorded in the 1960's by Hindustan Records.
Both Culturally Appropriated, there are specific discourses and stories that go with these songs.
1. Ghole Male Ghole Male,
Nabani Das Baul song or poetry by Nabani Das Baul.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 . Jemon Beni,
written by Rasaraj Gosai. (Nabani Das Baul's uncle) Rasaraj Gosai was a prominent Sanskrit ORALscholar and Baul poet in Bengali history. Never married and the greatest tantric and tantric poet. Music composed by Nabani Das Baul and singing by Purna Das Baul who is the first to record this Baul poetry. I just want to let you know this is not a Bengali folk song, none of these songs are folk songs they are Baul songs Spiritual songs. These songs are a deep meditation and Sadhana and are a discourse with a deep philosophical meaning.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Bhalo Kore Porga Schoole
Nabani Das Baul song and tune, it is a song about about Sri Chaitanya mahaprabu, and Nityanada and Chaitanys's Revolution of Love and Baul Kirtan.
The Vaishnava Bauls made this revolution famous because they are the original Das and Dasi, it was Nitai who taught Baul song and dance to Chaitanya. Gaudiya Math and Iskcon high-jacked Baul kirtan and song and dance distorting this tradition There is something that people need to understand Chaitanya was not a poet or Baul he was a scholar, it was Nityananda and his lineage going back thousands of years that were the poets, philosophers, the original Hare Krishna singers and dancers.
Nityananda was an ancestor of this Lineage he was an Avadhuta Baul from Ekkachakra so where these ancestors they were born in Ekkachakra and surrounding areas.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Menka Mathay Delo
Nabani Das Baul song and tune.
-------------------------------------------------------------
5. Nabani Das Baul song is Hridmjhare Rakhbo, it always has and it was recorded first by this family. I have no idea why or where people think these songs came from, they came from this family, you would have no Baul songs to sing if it were not for it first being recorded by this family.
This one and lineage of Baul there is no other,
it was recorded first and the only way people even know about these songs as they have been recorded by this family. The songs come out of this family and its poets (period).
Some songs made Baul famous worldwide and belong to this lineage , these songs and the tune are from Babu Kishan's lineage and his family. There is only one lineage of Baul and they are from Ekchakra Birbhum Bengal India.
Most Bauls now sing these songs because they have been recorded and are widely known on the radio but most have no idea who the author is, which is really sad. In some ways it is a cultural appropriation and watering down of this one and only Baul Lineage.
His grandfather Sri Nabani Das Khyeppa Baul wrote the lyrics to "Ghole Male Ghole Male," "Bhalo Kore Porga Schoole," and "Menka Mathay Delo" all written by Nabani Das Baul and music composed by him. In recent times they were made super famous by the one and only "legendary Baul of our time Purna Das Baul" who is Babu Kishan's father and Nabani Das Baul ELDEST son. These songs were recorded by Indian Cinema's legendary music directors of "Hindustan Records which is the first official Indian Music Company in India." These 3 music directors were Bengali's, Pan kaj Mallick, Timir Baran, Raichand Boral, famous music directors recorded Purna Das Baul an award winning India Vocalist and Great Baul singer. These music directors respected Nabani Das Baul, they were his friends and well wishers.
20x Ghole Male Ghole Male was recorded 20 X worldwide and 18 of those times it was recorded 18X by Babukishan and everytime it was recorded it was a hit.
Today this song is sung by all new fake Bauls without any of them giving credit to the Baul who wrote it Nabani Das Khyapa Baul or who made it famous Purna Das Baul. It seems they do not know or they do not care.
These are Baul songs from this many thousand year old lineage and should be treated with respect not songs to be sung on singing shows or in Movies without any understanding of where they came from or who wrote the songs?
Nabani Das Baul songs that are hugely Cultural Appropriated:
Hridmjhare Rakhbo and
Kichhu Din Mone Mone
Both of these Nabani Das Khyapa Paul songs were recorded in the 1960's by Hindustan Records.
Both Culturally Appropriated, there are specific discourses and stories that go with these songs.
1. Ghole Male Ghole Male,
Nabani Das Baul song or poetry by Nabani Das Baul.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 . Jemon Beni,
written by Rasaraj Gosai. (Nabani Das Baul's uncle) Rasaraj Gosai was a prominent Sanskrit ORALscholar and Baul poet in Bengali history. Never married and the greatest tantric and tantric poet. Music composed by Nabani Das Baul and singing by Purna Das Baul who is the first to record this Baul poetry. I just want to let you know this is not a Bengali folk song, none of these songs are folk songs they are Baul songs Spiritual songs. These songs are a deep meditation and Sadhana and are a discourse with a deep philosophical meaning.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Bhalo Kore Porga Schoole
Nabani Das Baul song and tune, it is a song about about Sri Chaitanya mahaprabu, and Nityanada and Chaitanys's Revolution of Love and Baul Kirtan.
The Vaishnava Bauls made this revolution famous because they are the original Das and Dasi, it was Nitai who taught Baul song and dance to Chaitanya. Gaudiya Math and Iskcon high-jacked Baul kirtan and song and dance distorting this tradition There is something that people need to understand Chaitanya was not a poet or Baul he was a scholar, it was Nityananda and his lineage going back thousands of years that were the poets, philosophers, the original Hare Krishna singers and dancers.
Nityananda was an ancestor of this Lineage he was an Avadhuta Baul from Ekkachakra so where these ancestors they were born in Ekkachakra and surrounding areas.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. Menka Mathay Delo
Nabani Das Baul song and tune.
-------------------------------------------------------------
5. Nabani Das Baul song is Hridmjhare Rakhbo, it always has and it was recorded first by this family. I have no idea why or where people think these songs came from, they came from this family, you would have no Baul songs to sing if it were not for it first being recorded by this family.
This one and lineage of Baul there is no other,
it was recorded first and the only way people even know about these songs as they have been recorded by this family. The songs come out of this family and its poets (period).
Brajabala Dasi was the Legendary Wise Baul Guru from the Oral Tradition of Baul who were Sanskritists she was A Guru to all the women Bauls up to the late 1990's. Her daughter another leading Baul women Radharani Dasi a Legend in Baul Women and Sanskritist.
One can not even mention Baul Women without mentioning Brajabal's daughter- in law Manju Dasi. Nobody would know about Baul without her she is the only Baul women who was a A class singer and with her Husband Purna Das Baul and her son Babu Kishan brought Paul to the world. No Paul would be singing anywhere in this world without the pioneering work of these Baul Women. Their is no other lineage, this is it full and final. What you have today are fakes making up stories, they are not Baul or Baul Women (period). When you do not talk about his lineage when you talk about Baul, when you take Nabani Das Baul's name off of poetry and sing the songs of this lineage you are making up stories.
Manju Dasi's Father was a Sanskrit Professor from Dakha University until 1952 when the Islamist kicked out Sanskrit, Bengal speakers.
Brajabala was one of Babu Kishan's Baul Guru's because she raised Babu until he was 8 and many others including Chintamuni Dasi and Phul Mela Dasi. Make no mistake these women did not have an easy time preserving Baul nor did Manju Dasi. In those days it was not as easy as it is today for those who copy and paste, and do internet searches. Today we have a new age Paul women who is culturally appropriating Baul, making up a lineage and the stories are fake. Cheating, being picky and over stating oneself is not the way to preserve a tradition you can not preserve what you do not own. Today we only have fakes, anybody can be anything through cheating and making up stories. Babu will speak about this openly in the near future because this is not the way. He and his mother have put their whole life into recording a preserving Baul.
They did not have Internet in those days, this lineage are the pioneers, Manju Das was the biggest Baul women pioneer and now her work is being looted and her name is being deleted this is standard for appropriators you know who your are. You can not talk or mention Baul women without the roots of who Baul Women. Cutting their names off and making up stories is inexcusable and a complete appropriation of this Lineage Baul.
I have created a whole page on Cultural Appropriation but I will paste here a short bit on what it means because it is important to understand, there are some very sneaky people who are making up stories. It is important to understand it is not just Western foreign forces, this is coming from India. There is nothing wrong with appreciating Baul and singing Baul songs, however, have the respect and don't call yourself a Baul Master singing the songs of this lineage without acknowledging the poets, for the sake of Baul stop all the acting and faking people out. You are muddying the waters and watering down reducing this tradition that does not belong to you. Taking the stories making them generic by taking the names off of the stories. Creating Lineages that do not exist. This will be brought out very soon.
You can fool some of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.
The signs of Cultural Appropriation as stated by Raj Malhotra,
the appropriation occurs in several stages:
“In the first stage, a Westerner approaches an Indian guru or tradition with extreme deference, and acquires the knowledge as a sincere disciple.
Once the transfer of knowledge complete, the former disciple, or/and his/her followers progressively erase all traces of the original source, repackages the ideas as their own thought, and may even proceed to denigrate the source tradition.
In the final stage, the ideas are exported back to India by the former disciple and/or his followers for consumption. Malhotra cites numerous examples to support this theory, dating from the erasure of Upanishadic and Vijnanavada Buddhist influences on Plotinus to the modern day reimportation of Christian yoga into India.”
And May this is appropriation is happening with this one and only Baul Lineage,
and the Tradition of Folk Today in India.
One can not even mention Baul Women without mentioning Brajabal's daughter- in law Manju Dasi. Nobody would know about Baul without her she is the only Baul women who was a A class singer and with her Husband Purna Das Baul and her son Babu Kishan brought Paul to the world. No Paul would be singing anywhere in this world without the pioneering work of these Baul Women. Their is no other lineage, this is it full and final. What you have today are fakes making up stories, they are not Baul or Baul Women (period). When you do not talk about his lineage when you talk about Baul, when you take Nabani Das Baul's name off of poetry and sing the songs of this lineage you are making up stories.
Manju Dasi's Father was a Sanskrit Professor from Dakha University until 1952 when the Islamist kicked out Sanskrit, Bengal speakers.
Brajabala was one of Babu Kishan's Baul Guru's because she raised Babu until he was 8 and many others including Chintamuni Dasi and Phul Mela Dasi. Make no mistake these women did not have an easy time preserving Baul nor did Manju Dasi. In those days it was not as easy as it is today for those who copy and paste, and do internet searches. Today we have a new age Paul women who is culturally appropriating Baul, making up a lineage and the stories are fake. Cheating, being picky and over stating oneself is not the way to preserve a tradition you can not preserve what you do not own. Today we only have fakes, anybody can be anything through cheating and making up stories. Babu will speak about this openly in the near future because this is not the way. He and his mother have put their whole life into recording a preserving Baul.
They did not have Internet in those days, this lineage are the pioneers, Manju Das was the biggest Baul women pioneer and now her work is being looted and her name is being deleted this is standard for appropriators you know who your are. You can not talk or mention Baul women without the roots of who Baul Women. Cutting their names off and making up stories is inexcusable and a complete appropriation of this Lineage Baul.
I have created a whole page on Cultural Appropriation but I will paste here a short bit on what it means because it is important to understand, there are some very sneaky people who are making up stories. It is important to understand it is not just Western foreign forces, this is coming from India. There is nothing wrong with appreciating Baul and singing Baul songs, however, have the respect and don't call yourself a Baul Master singing the songs of this lineage without acknowledging the poets, for the sake of Baul stop all the acting and faking people out. You are muddying the waters and watering down reducing this tradition that does not belong to you. Taking the stories making them generic by taking the names off of the stories. Creating Lineages that do not exist. This will be brought out very soon.
You can fool some of the people some of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.
The signs of Cultural Appropriation as stated by Raj Malhotra,
the appropriation occurs in several stages:
“In the first stage, a Westerner approaches an Indian guru or tradition with extreme deference, and acquires the knowledge as a sincere disciple.
Once the transfer of knowledge complete, the former disciple, or/and his/her followers progressively erase all traces of the original source, repackages the ideas as their own thought, and may even proceed to denigrate the source tradition.
In the final stage, the ideas are exported back to India by the former disciple and/or his followers for consumption. Malhotra cites numerous examples to support this theory, dating from the erasure of Upanishadic and Vijnanavada Buddhist influences on Plotinus to the modern day reimportation of Christian yoga into India.”
And May this is appropriation is happening with this one and only Baul Lineage,
and the Tradition of Folk Today in India.
A tribute to:
The Bauls of Birbhum Bengal
It was 50 years when this one and only Legendary "Bauls of Bengal" came to America
by Trishula Sandra Das as told Babu Kishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul
The one and only pioneering lineage of Vaishnava Tantric Bauls and the first Lineage of Tantrics to Arrive in America 50 years ago. The Vaishnava Baul's which originate in Birbhum Bengal India are the first authentic living lineage of Kirtan and Bhakti Yoga to arrive in America. They are direct descendants of Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra Birbhum who was a rare Avadhuta Vaishnava Baul.
In 1967 Purna Das Baul is the first highly awarded famous Indian vocalist and Baul to arrive in America with his late brother Laxshman Das Baul Baul and their cousin.
All Bauls follow this lineage, if it were not for this lineage nobody would who or what Baul is nobody would know the Baul songs that they are singing today because this family already recorded the songs way back early and mostly in the 1960’s at Hindustan Records. This lineage is ONE the only lineage of Baul, today there are people making up lineages using half truths, singing the songs from this lineage but taking the names off and replacing the names of the poets with made up names. Baul is about respect and many are writing about Baul and making up stories this is watering down and reducing Baul. A huge Cultural Appropriation is happening not within India and from outside foreigners who have not got a clue and are not even Bengali Speakers let alone Oral Sanskrit.
What people are talking, teaching and writing about Baul is only because of this pioneering Baul family and lineage I can’t repeat it enough and we will qualify who all the Bauls are and how they started, today they are mostly refugees from Bangladesh and now their students are making up complete lies as to who they are. This lineage is legendary worldwide since the 1950’s and have played on the biggest stages around the world including Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall in front of millions of people in India and worldwide .
All credit and respect go to these Bauls and this lineage without them no one would know who or what the Baul are, they have paved a road for a whole new industry to of Baul singers to follow in their footsteps. Babu Kishan a pioneer in bringing Baul to the world is surprised that now these new Baul singers are making up stories which are not accurate. They follow this lineage but they create new stories and never acknowledge the history and names of this history adding in new names and new Guru's that have no connection to Baul? These new Baul singers sing songs that are not Baul they look the part, act the part but sing out of the Baul tune.
This is part of Baul history and many who knew Babukishan will agree he is the pioneer who educated all the Bauls and the world on Baul, he is the one who made the connections with world level Universities including Columbia, Harvard, UCLA, Berkeley, Santa Cruz, Chicago, Washington, Washington and Lee, Toronto, Victoria, Cambridge, Oxford, Berlin, all over the world . He is the one who brought Baul to the all the International Festivals and radio and TV stations BBC, Deutsche Welle, newspapers he brought Baul to world class record companies and made movies about Baul. It is Babu who did all the leg work presenting Baul to the world, Babukishan ran the whole show and it was hard work.
The below picture below includes Sally Grossman the wife of the Legendary Albert B Grossman who was manager of Janis Joplin, Jimmi Hendrix, Joan Baez, Peter Paul and Mary, The Band, Richie Havens, Purna Das Baul (The Bauls of Bengal) and Bob Dylan.
A story about that first trip to America
It should be noted the Bauls first came to America on request of Allen Ginsberg whose Guru was Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, Ginsberg had requested that the Grossman's bring Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to America. Nabani was not well and did not want to leave India so he sent his two son's Baul Samarat Purna Das Baul and Laxman Das Baul. This is a story as told to Babu Kishan by his late uncle Laxman Das Baul. The Bauls of Bengal as a musical group came to America for the first time in late 1966, early 1967 they stayed at a home studio called "The Big Pink"in Woodstock New York this was the home studio for Bob Dylan and the Band.
As usual upon awakening first thing in the morning the Bauls start their music sadhana playing their Gopi Yantra (ektara) and Khamak (mystic drum) after a few hours Sudhananda Das Baul went to the kitchen to see if they could figure out what to do with this packaged food and frozen food source they were left with and had never seen in their life. They didn't have a clue how to open the packages or what the food was in the freezer even was, probably frozen packaged chunks of meat, they were vegetarians. They were confused wondering we are hungry what do we do and also, wondering when Albert Grossman was coming back, they were just left at the house and told to help themselves? The scariest thing on their mind was if they went outside bears would eat them up, the place was called Bearsville.
As Sudhananda Das Baul was in the kitchen he glanced outside he was shocked to see at least 100 people enjoying and blissfully dancing right there on the lawn in front this house. They were not bears they were humans. The house was in the middle of farmland in a nowhere land in Woodstock NY. They had no idea what was going on or how these people came to be outside. Where did they come from?
Simultaneously Robbie Robertson was driving by in his car past the property and saw all the people and wondered what heck is all the commotion, he drove in asking the people what are you people doing here? They said, we heard the music I don't know what it is but we just were magically mysteriously drawn here, this sound is different, it is the first time we have heard this divine ecstatic music it has a mystical pulling power and it pulled us here, we were just drawn unconsciously like the pied piper pulled us here.
The very next day on Robbie Robertsons request Bob Dylan and the Band show up with all their instruments. When the Bauls first saw them they were puzzled, they thought wow a new group is coming here I guess they are going to move us to another place. However, Bob Dylan and The Band had only come to the Big Pink at this time to jam with The Bauls of Bengal on Robbie Robertson's advice.
Bob Dylan and the Band recorded the album, "The Bauls at the Big Pink" at this time without the Bauls even knowing they were being recorded. It should be known that the Bauls never knew who Bob Dylan was and only Lakshman Das Baul spoke a few words of English.
After this Bob Dylan was named and started to call himself, "the first Western Baul".
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The Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Vaishnava Bauls of Birbhum the only and oldest living lineage of Bauls,
An Oral Sanskrit Tradition.
Note* One should understand the oral in the case of the Vaishnava Bauls means Sanskrit, most of the new Bauls do not have any relationship to Sanskrit. Sanskrit was the Baul's indigenous language in the oral tradition.
“That is why, brother, I became a madcap Baul. No master I obey, nor injunctions, canons or custom. Now no man-made distinctions have any hold on me, and I revel only in the gladness of my own welling love. In love there's no separation, but commingling always. So I rejoice in song and dance with each and all."
Rabindra Nath Tagore, The Hibbert Lecture, Oxford, 1930
Rabindranath Tagore's one and only Baul Guru was Nabani Das Khyappa Baul
Rabindranath Tagore became a Baul when the legendary Sri Nabani (Gosia) Das Khyapa Baul gave Tagore the name Ravi (Robi) Baul and in return Tagore gave Nabani (Noboni) the name Khyapa Baul and named him 'Mirror of the Sky'. Rabindranath Tagore was initiated into Baul by Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. To this very day villagers in Birbhum remember a legendary Tantric Vaishnava Baul Saint Avadhuta named Nabani Das Khyapa Baul.
Khyappa or sometimes spelled Khepa and (Kheppi for women) means sat chit ananda (eternal conscious and blissful), highly mystical, fully awake, aware, divine ecstatic love, wild, free bird, blissful, divine consciousness, magical, mysterious, out of body connected to the divine at a very high level, khyapa is not something that can be faked. It is not a name for everybody it was a name designated for a Avadhut, however, today everybody is calling themselves khyapa as many are calling themselves ‘Baul’ & ‘Baul Guru’.
Rabindranath Tagore the great Bengali Nobel prize winner for literature and the writer of the Indian, Bangladeshi, and Sri Lankan national anthems, loved Nabani and Nabani is the only Baul who inspired and associated with Tagore, Nabani was Tagore’s Baul Guru. The Pous Mela in Shantiniketan was created by Rabindranath Tagore in honour of Nabani Das Baul to bring together intellectuals, poets, and creative artists from around the world.
To the untrained eye and ear wandering and singing a song does not make one a Baul. Rabindranath honoured Nabani because he was an ecstatic mystic full of wisdom, he admired his poetry, his tune and his depth in sadhana as a Tantric Yogi and Baul Avadhut. Rabindranath respected Nabani’s ancient lineage and its richness, authentic cultural significance and tradition of wisdom, along with the energetic live wire shaktified pure ecstatic love that Nabani embodied. Tagore also, gave land and a special place for Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to sit and be at Tagore’s own Vishwa Bharati University, they spent much time together and it should be noted that all of the old pictures and the ones at The Royal British Museum in London of Nabani were pictures taken by Tagore himself.
This Baul family and their association with Jawaharlal Nehru, his daughter Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi
Tagore appointed Nabani Das Baul as a Professor of Baul music and dance at the Tagore Vishva Bharati University in Shantiniketan. Nabani is the first and last Baul to teach at Vishwa Bharati University. One of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul students was Indira Gandhi, her father Jawaharlal Nehru had the greatest respect for Nabani. The Indian Independence movement was in full swing and Nabani traveled all over India with Nehru.. Nehru appointed Nabani a state singer, where Nabani along with Nehru and his contingent traveled all over India as a Baul does gathering people sharing the magic of Baul before Nehru's would give his political messages.
Like his grandfather, KD Babukishan also traveled with his parents around India as state singers for Indira Gandhi, with whom Babu's mother was best friends until Indira Gandhi's assassination. Babukishan being on the stage as he usually was sitting at Indira Gandhi’s feet he recalls the great power in her as she someone was going to kill her. He recalls going to Delhi for Indira Gandhi's state funeral with the Gandhi family and as usual they stayed with at Pranab Mukherjee’s house in Delhi. There were millions of people it was an epic historical event the fall out from her death or I should say her murder was catastrophic. This talented family of Bauls were state singers for Rajiv Gandhi until Rajiv's demise.
Often after a day of touring Babu would sit with Rajiv Gandhi and unwind during their travels throughout India. Babukishan has traveled India many times with different people including Sitaram Das Omkarnath, his father, his mentor a Supreme Court judge master Jyotishi who predicted when Babu was 8 years of age that he would meet me a foreigner and we would marry. He also, predicted that Sri Pranab Mukherjee President of India would rule India. Pranab Mukherjee and Babu's family were very close as his mom Manju and Pranab's wife were relatives and best friends, the late Mrs Mukherjee whom Babu called Gita Auntie. I met Mrs Mukherjee at the Mukerjee bhavan in Delhi in 2007 she was very sweet.
Mystical Bards, Guru's, Pandits, Acharya's who are simply called Baul.
Baul is a Guru Shishya Parampara Sampradaya Ancient Mystical Lineage. Bauls are Tantrics, Indian musicians who know the Tantra of Sound, Mystical Bards, Guru's, Pandits, Acharya's who are simply called Baul. Their roots are in Sanatan Dharma not Buddhism or Islam. I repeat again Bauls roots are not in Buddhism.
There are some Bauls who are not from this lineage or a lineage period and it is very interesting how they are changing the face of an ancient living lineage it seems many make it up as they go. Real Bauls are mysterious you will never figure them out all one can do is taste their rasa it is impossible to catch a Baul they are here one minute and gone the next, they do not want to be seen and certainly do not want to collect devotee's but there is something to learn from them if one is patient and as we know there are very few students that are prepared and want to put in the time. It is much easier to pay for a yoga (fitness certification) or now we also, have Kirtan certification.
It is a contradictory paradoxical path of opposites that are meant to confuse as you must be a sincere student it is not meant for the spiritual materialist. One must have one foot in the heavens and one foot firmly on the earth. I have spent 10 years 24/7 trying to put this path into words and have read almost everything ever written about Baul and I will tell you what they write is wrong even what they sing is shortened, and sometimes even they are singing Bollywood songs that people think is Baul? A real Baul is very deep and in some ways not meant for this modern world and of course I do not understand Sanskrit or Bengali, I feel Baul I learn from Babukishan who is so connected to Nabani Das Khyappa Baul.
Sri Chaitanya - Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra - Bhakti Yoga
Vaishnava Bauls the original indigenous Hare Krishna Hari Ram singers and dancers.
Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, was wise enough to know what the scholar Sri Chaitanya had figured out 500 years before, that Bauls were able to draw people together through their energetic shakti and ecstatic charismatic chanting, singing and dancing. Dry scholarship and talking doesn't awaken people to a new movement. Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra Birbhum was a Vaishnava Baul and an ancestor of this lineage, he was elder to Sri Chaitanya. It was Nityananda who taught his Baul tradition of kirtan, singing and dancing to Sri Chaitanya.
Sri Chaityana started his Hari Krishna movement based on the ecstatic 'Hare Krishna Hare Ram' singing and dancing of the Vaishnava Baul of Birbhum. The Bauls would start with the Hari Krishna chant early in the mornings as a wake up call announcing their presence to the villagers of Bengal, inviting them to listen and learn about spiritual life. Bauls were never beggers they were given Dakshina for their enlightened singing and teachings. They were loved by the villagers, they were the spiritual newspaper before print media and the internet.
Lineage of authentic KIRTAN
Authentic Baul is a rare, ecstatic, supercharged high speed internet super duper highway to ecstatic union, direct blissful Yoga and sweet heart-opening devotional singing and Baul Kirtan is full of ecstatic energy that turns even the hardest of hearts to honey, bringing the rasa of ananda (bliss) alive. There is layer upon layer of the heart Bauls awakens layers that one never thought existed, it is magical. Baul awakens a memory deep within the heart you do not have to understand the words but you must feel the magic, the power of lineage it will take you there is one is a real Baul, if not it is just singing and sometime a high pitched screaming or just nice singing. Baul should transport one to another realm because they draw that power, the deity to earth and make Shiva or Shakti in whatever form they worship alive.
Baul is both personal and impersonal a paradox indeed because it seems scholars want to put everything in one box or another when in fact any Sanskrit or Oral Tradition the juice and the between the lines arrives from the Guru without a constant year after year, day after day, close association with the Guru there is no way one can claim to be a Baul. It takes years and more than a one or two day, week, month or year transmission it starts at birth and it used to start in as Oral Sanskrit storytelling. Kirtan is not call response singing it is the telling of the stories and chanting, the chanting call response it a small part not the whole kirtan.
Baul is a secret mystical Tantric esoteric supercharged path.
Baul is a secret esoteric path a Baul will never tell you anything directly you must will learn through the practice of listening deeply. If you are fortunate to be with Baul over a lifetime if one is lucky you may grasp a drop, all the rest is just mere speculation. You will be tested every step of the way on this magical journey, the path is not straight it is crooked to prevent the people who are not prepared. Today everybody wants everything right here and now that is not the path of Baul because it is a super advanced path a way to easily reach God/dess but as we know nothing is really easy. It is not a beginners path, however, one can feel the energy and awaken quickly if the person calling themselves a Baul is actually a Baul.
Bauls play a one stringed trance inducing instrument called an ‘ektara’ also called the ‘Gopi Chand’ or ‘Gopi Yantra’ which is the Bauls symbol of peace and unity for all. A Baul plays a variety of instruments including a rare one or two stringed instrument called a ‘Gubgubi’ which Nabani himself named the Ananda Lahari meaning ‘waves of bliss’. Baul is a Guru Shishya Parampara Sampradaya, they are sadhu's and belong to sadhu sangha which are called Akaras. There used to be 22 such sanghas, now there are only 2, they are almost extinct.
There is a lot of misinformation about the Bauls today, misrepresentations abound among a new generation of Baul singers, scholars, writers, documentary filmmakers, information found on wikipedia, Gurus from other sects including Osho who wrote many books on the Bauls and was deeply inspired by Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. All of them have completely missed the point of who these sweet devotional people are. They repeat the same thing over and over and it is not accurate. Many fakes are changing this beautiful tradition, they dress the part, singing out of tune trying to copy what can not be copied. Baul is only achieved through sadhana. The fake Bauls say they are sadhakas to attract students, some say they are sexual tantrics as sex always sells. This has gone on for a long time. Unaware foreigners attracted by sexual tantra of the west, and Indians attracted by the dream of sexual freedom, flock to Shantiniketan. Yet the real Bauls are now almost extinct, and those that still remain, live marginalized.
Bauls have been described as mad, Sai, Shah, Fakir, Dervish, Aula, Muslim, afflicted by the wind, illiterate, beggars and folk singers, yet they are none of the above. First of all Bauls were never beggars for anything but God/dess. A Baul would received Dakshina from the villagers for their wisdom and teachings. Bauls were farmers. They have survived for thousands and thousands of years, it is amazing that they survived through the British imposed famines in Bengal. which is a story These stories have started to be told regarding the 1940 second world war time of mass starvation that occurred during the British imposed diversion of food crops to Europe where millions of Bengal's perished.
Sahaja - Sufi - Buddhism - Islam - their relationship to Baul
Bauls accepted all but that does not mean they became the other, it does NOT mean they became Islamic or Buddhist. I can say this with confidence Bauls are not Islamic or Buddhist they are eclectic however, they are based on Sanatan Dharma. Baul is a sect unto its own, they are Sahaja Vaishnava Baul and are some of the first Sufi"s and Baul on the planet.
Sahaja = Sufi Vaishnava Baul (Hindu tantric Sufi) I am trying to put Baul in a category a box this is what we western's do. Bauls worship the Divine Feminine Shakti.
When I first met Babukishan he would always tell me that he was Sufi Baul or mention the name Sufi, he had some old posters from Sufi Books in New York where he had performed but I knew there was no Islamic Sufi affiliation with Baul. It was confusing and had taken me a very long time to understand Babukishan was talking about a Sufi way before Islam existed a kind of Sufi that belongs to all the peoples of planet earth a Sufi that has no religious affiliation. Perhaps Sufi is a word like Shamanism and Baul also a term used to describe the earliest teachings of the peoples of planet earth and we can also, call this Sahaja.
It is very difficult to understand and describe Baul, it works directly on the heart of those who listen providing a type of psychic heart surgery lightening the soul.
What is Sahaja? What Sahaja is not?
Sahaja is similar to Sufi before Islam in meaning, it is an ancient high spiritual reality “Sahaja simply means natural and spontaneous. It not only implies natural spiritual levels, but on the mystic level of the miraculous. It means that easy or natural state of living without planning, design, contriving, seeking, wanting, striving or intention. It is that nature which, when once established, brings the state of absolute freedom and peace. Sahaja is a natural state which balances reality between the pairs of opposites and maintains harmony of the Cosmos.
Thus ‘sahaja’ expresses one who has reverted to his natural state, free from conditioning. It typifies the outlook which belongs to the natural, spontaneous and uninhibited man or women, free from innate or inherited defects.
As such even nakedness of the avadhut is considered to be ‘sahaja’. By his own demeanor a Baul shows man’s instinct for naturalness and primordial perfection not only of the physical and spiritual level but at the mystical level. A parallel is made to plants and trees which do not grow according ‘svadharma’ or rules and obligations incurred at birth.
Nature only has ‘svabhava’ meaning its own inborn self or essence as its guidance. In other words ‘what is to come must come of itself’ to manifest in a state of absolute freedom. Taoism speaks of ‘sahaja’ as a highest virtue – the loss of the peculiar naturalness or unselfconsciousness. I have personal experiences with Taoism and my Master named his place of practice the same word as Sahaja but in Chinese name.
Bauls are considered to be Sahaja which means natural and spontaneous. It implies natural on the spiritual level and on the mystical level of the miraculous. It means that easy natural state of living without planning, design, contriving, seeking, wanting, or striving for attention. It is that nature which, when once established, brings the state of absolute freedom and peace. Sahaja is a natural state which balances reality between the pairs of opposites and maintains harmony of the Cosmos.
Sahaja is NOT, licentious, loose, lustful, lewd, salacious behavior as described by the orthodox Vaishnava coming out of Bengal and in Vrindavan. Sahaja is a Sanskrit word and those translations are completely wrong. To be sahaja is to hear, see, smell beauty in all things naturally, spontaneously. Sahaja is to be love (prema) unconditionally from the soul spontaneously and naturally it is not acting and faking devotion. Sahaja is a inner feminine way of being the "path of Radha" the inner soul. Sahaja is an elevated higher sattvic way of being. It is to move one’s focus inward and not get stuck in rhetoric and the mind or of knowledge and opinions of others, especially the orthodox who need you to pay for their temples and way of life. Sahaja. It is about having knowledge but not getting caught and hung up on knowledge, more specifically Sahaja is distilled knowledge which has become blissful wisdom.
One finds this state in an innocent child which is always in its ‘sahaja’ state unless interfered to by society. In his semi-naked state an sahaja Avaduta is just as unconscious of others nakedness as he was of his own.
“The person who has conquered the baser self and has reached to the level of self mastery: he is at peace, whether it be in cold or hot, pleasure or pain, honoured or dishonoured” – Bhagavad Gita. “ This is Sahaja the Bhagavad Gita and Vaishnavism is Sahaja in its pure unorthodox sitting on a throne form. It should be noted pure Gaudiya Vaishnavism always honored this family of Bauls.
There are perhaps hundreds if not thousands of pictures of this family performing for them raising huge amounts of money for them. There has never been any debate about them not being ancestors of Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra? Their story has never been told and now with the internet many are making up stories. I hope this is sufficient and people start to understand what Sahaja is. Hey no worries Baul is seriously extinct what you see today is something similar to Yoga as modern postural yoga of the west, although much messier with bits and pieces of the puzzle but no authentic Baul left. Bauls were always very clean and sattvic there long hair clean well kept worn on top of their heads. Baul is a shadow of the past like most indigenous peoples of planet earth. Yes, the are indigenous peoples of Birbhum Rarh an ancient land they did not come from somewhere else or even Calcutta.
It is important to understand that Baul arrived before both Buddhism and Islam. Bauls are considered to be original Sufi before Muslim existed and Sufi in this context is Hindu or more appropriately called Sanatan Dharmic Sufi. Some say they are the very earliest Indian Sufi's but I do not like to use the word Sufi because there is so much debate about where Sufi is from and the Bauls of Bengal are not Islamic they sing some Islamic Sufi songs because they love all but that does not make them Islamic or Muslim. However, I must make it perfectly clear Sufi predates Islam and Sufi in the context of Baul is not Islamic it is Sahaja (Sahaja) Baul Sahaja is Universal Sufi.
The original Das and Dasi Kirtan singers from Rarh, the red soil called Birbhum
The Bauls were not British educated English speaking Christian Bengali's who learned Sanskrit after the fact. Vaishnava Bauls learned Sanskrit in the oral tradition by hearing and remembering from birth, which creates a person with a photographic memory. Bauls are the original Das and Dasi singers and dancers of Bengal, the original kirtanist’s from the red soil called Rarh. Many of their Kirtans have been taken by the Orthodox New fundamentalist Vaishnava and claimed as their own? They use a degrading language to describe the Bauls and many other sects to raise themselves up higher than any other religion in the world this surely anyone can understand is most certainly not orthodox is shows a lack of confidence and heart towards others. Yet they have no clue where their information and kirtan came from or the true.
The Bauls of Birbhum Bengal
It was 50 years when this one and only Legendary "Bauls of Bengal" came to America
by Trishula Sandra Das as told Babu Kishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul
The one and only pioneering lineage of Vaishnava Tantric Bauls and the first Lineage of Tantrics to Arrive in America 50 years ago. The Vaishnava Baul's which originate in Birbhum Bengal India are the first authentic living lineage of Kirtan and Bhakti Yoga to arrive in America. They are direct descendants of Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra Birbhum who was a rare Avadhuta Vaishnava Baul.
In 1967 Purna Das Baul is the first highly awarded famous Indian vocalist and Baul to arrive in America with his late brother Laxshman Das Baul Baul and their cousin.
All Bauls follow this lineage, if it were not for this lineage nobody would who or what Baul is nobody would know the Baul songs that they are singing today because this family already recorded the songs way back early and mostly in the 1960’s at Hindustan Records. This lineage is ONE the only lineage of Baul, today there are people making up lineages using half truths, singing the songs from this lineage but taking the names off and replacing the names of the poets with made up names. Baul is about respect and many are writing about Baul and making up stories this is watering down and reducing Baul. A huge Cultural Appropriation is happening not within India and from outside foreigners who have not got a clue and are not even Bengali Speakers let alone Oral Sanskrit.
What people are talking, teaching and writing about Baul is only because of this pioneering Baul family and lineage I can’t repeat it enough and we will qualify who all the Bauls are and how they started, today they are mostly refugees from Bangladesh and now their students are making up complete lies as to who they are. This lineage is legendary worldwide since the 1950’s and have played on the biggest stages around the world including Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall in front of millions of people in India and worldwide .
All credit and respect go to these Bauls and this lineage without them no one would know who or what the Baul are, they have paved a road for a whole new industry to of Baul singers to follow in their footsteps. Babu Kishan a pioneer in bringing Baul to the world is surprised that now these new Baul singers are making up stories which are not accurate. They follow this lineage but they create new stories and never acknowledge the history and names of this history adding in new names and new Guru's that have no connection to Baul? These new Baul singers sing songs that are not Baul they look the part, act the part but sing out of the Baul tune.
This is part of Baul history and many who knew Babukishan will agree he is the pioneer who educated all the Bauls and the world on Baul, he is the one who made the connections with world level Universities including Columbia, Harvard, UCLA, Berkeley, Santa Cruz, Chicago, Washington, Washington and Lee, Toronto, Victoria, Cambridge, Oxford, Berlin, all over the world . He is the one who brought Baul to the all the International Festivals and radio and TV stations BBC, Deutsche Welle, newspapers he brought Baul to world class record companies and made movies about Baul. It is Babu who did all the leg work presenting Baul to the world, Babukishan ran the whole show and it was hard work.
The below picture below includes Sally Grossman the wife of the Legendary Albert B Grossman who was manager of Janis Joplin, Jimmi Hendrix, Joan Baez, Peter Paul and Mary, The Band, Richie Havens, Purna Das Baul (The Bauls of Bengal) and Bob Dylan.
A story about that first trip to America
It should be noted the Bauls first came to America on request of Allen Ginsberg whose Guru was Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, Ginsberg had requested that the Grossman's bring Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to America. Nabani was not well and did not want to leave India so he sent his two son's Baul Samarat Purna Das Baul and Laxman Das Baul. This is a story as told to Babu Kishan by his late uncle Laxman Das Baul. The Bauls of Bengal as a musical group came to America for the first time in late 1966, early 1967 they stayed at a home studio called "The Big Pink"in Woodstock New York this was the home studio for Bob Dylan and the Band.
As usual upon awakening first thing in the morning the Bauls start their music sadhana playing their Gopi Yantra (ektara) and Khamak (mystic drum) after a few hours Sudhananda Das Baul went to the kitchen to see if they could figure out what to do with this packaged food and frozen food source they were left with and had never seen in their life. They didn't have a clue how to open the packages or what the food was in the freezer even was, probably frozen packaged chunks of meat, they were vegetarians. They were confused wondering we are hungry what do we do and also, wondering when Albert Grossman was coming back, they were just left at the house and told to help themselves? The scariest thing on their mind was if they went outside bears would eat them up, the place was called Bearsville.
As Sudhananda Das Baul was in the kitchen he glanced outside he was shocked to see at least 100 people enjoying and blissfully dancing right there on the lawn in front this house. They were not bears they were humans. The house was in the middle of farmland in a nowhere land in Woodstock NY. They had no idea what was going on or how these people came to be outside. Where did they come from?
Simultaneously Robbie Robertson was driving by in his car past the property and saw all the people and wondered what heck is all the commotion, he drove in asking the people what are you people doing here? They said, we heard the music I don't know what it is but we just were magically mysteriously drawn here, this sound is different, it is the first time we have heard this divine ecstatic music it has a mystical pulling power and it pulled us here, we were just drawn unconsciously like the pied piper pulled us here.
The very next day on Robbie Robertsons request Bob Dylan and the Band show up with all their instruments. When the Bauls first saw them they were puzzled, they thought wow a new group is coming here I guess they are going to move us to another place. However, Bob Dylan and The Band had only come to the Big Pink at this time to jam with The Bauls of Bengal on Robbie Robertson's advice.
Bob Dylan and the Band recorded the album, "The Bauls at the Big Pink" at this time without the Bauls even knowing they were being recorded. It should be known that the Bauls never knew who Bob Dylan was and only Lakshman Das Baul spoke a few words of English.
After this Bob Dylan was named and started to call himself, "the first Western Baul".
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The Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
Vaishnava Bauls of Birbhum the only and oldest living lineage of Bauls,
An Oral Sanskrit Tradition.
Note* One should understand the oral in the case of the Vaishnava Bauls means Sanskrit, most of the new Bauls do not have any relationship to Sanskrit. Sanskrit was the Baul's indigenous language in the oral tradition.
“That is why, brother, I became a madcap Baul. No master I obey, nor injunctions, canons or custom. Now no man-made distinctions have any hold on me, and I revel only in the gladness of my own welling love. In love there's no separation, but commingling always. So I rejoice in song and dance with each and all."
Rabindra Nath Tagore, The Hibbert Lecture, Oxford, 1930
Rabindranath Tagore's one and only Baul Guru was Nabani Das Khyappa Baul
Rabindranath Tagore became a Baul when the legendary Sri Nabani (Gosia) Das Khyapa Baul gave Tagore the name Ravi (Robi) Baul and in return Tagore gave Nabani (Noboni) the name Khyapa Baul and named him 'Mirror of the Sky'. Rabindranath Tagore was initiated into Baul by Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. To this very day villagers in Birbhum remember a legendary Tantric Vaishnava Baul Saint Avadhuta named Nabani Das Khyapa Baul.
Khyappa or sometimes spelled Khepa and (Kheppi for women) means sat chit ananda (eternal conscious and blissful), highly mystical, fully awake, aware, divine ecstatic love, wild, free bird, blissful, divine consciousness, magical, mysterious, out of body connected to the divine at a very high level, khyapa is not something that can be faked. It is not a name for everybody it was a name designated for a Avadhut, however, today everybody is calling themselves khyapa as many are calling themselves ‘Baul’ & ‘Baul Guru’.
Rabindranath Tagore the great Bengali Nobel prize winner for literature and the writer of the Indian, Bangladeshi, and Sri Lankan national anthems, loved Nabani and Nabani is the only Baul who inspired and associated with Tagore, Nabani was Tagore’s Baul Guru. The Pous Mela in Shantiniketan was created by Rabindranath Tagore in honour of Nabani Das Baul to bring together intellectuals, poets, and creative artists from around the world.
To the untrained eye and ear wandering and singing a song does not make one a Baul. Rabindranath honoured Nabani because he was an ecstatic mystic full of wisdom, he admired his poetry, his tune and his depth in sadhana as a Tantric Yogi and Baul Avadhut. Rabindranath respected Nabani’s ancient lineage and its richness, authentic cultural significance and tradition of wisdom, along with the energetic live wire shaktified pure ecstatic love that Nabani embodied. Tagore also, gave land and a special place for Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to sit and be at Tagore’s own Vishwa Bharati University, they spent much time together and it should be noted that all of the old pictures and the ones at The Royal British Museum in London of Nabani were pictures taken by Tagore himself.
This Baul family and their association with Jawaharlal Nehru, his daughter Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi
Tagore appointed Nabani Das Baul as a Professor of Baul music and dance at the Tagore Vishva Bharati University in Shantiniketan. Nabani is the first and last Baul to teach at Vishwa Bharati University. One of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul students was Indira Gandhi, her father Jawaharlal Nehru had the greatest respect for Nabani. The Indian Independence movement was in full swing and Nabani traveled all over India with Nehru.. Nehru appointed Nabani a state singer, where Nabani along with Nehru and his contingent traveled all over India as a Baul does gathering people sharing the magic of Baul before Nehru's would give his political messages.
Like his grandfather, KD Babukishan also traveled with his parents around India as state singers for Indira Gandhi, with whom Babu's mother was best friends until Indira Gandhi's assassination. Babukishan being on the stage as he usually was sitting at Indira Gandhi’s feet he recalls the great power in her as she someone was going to kill her. He recalls going to Delhi for Indira Gandhi's state funeral with the Gandhi family and as usual they stayed with at Pranab Mukherjee’s house in Delhi. There were millions of people it was an epic historical event the fall out from her death or I should say her murder was catastrophic. This talented family of Bauls were state singers for Rajiv Gandhi until Rajiv's demise.
Often after a day of touring Babu would sit with Rajiv Gandhi and unwind during their travels throughout India. Babukishan has traveled India many times with different people including Sitaram Das Omkarnath, his father, his mentor a Supreme Court judge master Jyotishi who predicted when Babu was 8 years of age that he would meet me a foreigner and we would marry. He also, predicted that Sri Pranab Mukherjee President of India would rule India. Pranab Mukherjee and Babu's family were very close as his mom Manju and Pranab's wife were relatives and best friends, the late Mrs Mukherjee whom Babu called Gita Auntie. I met Mrs Mukherjee at the Mukerjee bhavan in Delhi in 2007 she was very sweet.
Mystical Bards, Guru's, Pandits, Acharya's who are simply called Baul.
Baul is a Guru Shishya Parampara Sampradaya Ancient Mystical Lineage. Bauls are Tantrics, Indian musicians who know the Tantra of Sound, Mystical Bards, Guru's, Pandits, Acharya's who are simply called Baul. Their roots are in Sanatan Dharma not Buddhism or Islam. I repeat again Bauls roots are not in Buddhism.
There are some Bauls who are not from this lineage or a lineage period and it is very interesting how they are changing the face of an ancient living lineage it seems many make it up as they go. Real Bauls are mysterious you will never figure them out all one can do is taste their rasa it is impossible to catch a Baul they are here one minute and gone the next, they do not want to be seen and certainly do not want to collect devotee's but there is something to learn from them if one is patient and as we know there are very few students that are prepared and want to put in the time. It is much easier to pay for a yoga (fitness certification) or now we also, have Kirtan certification.
It is a contradictory paradoxical path of opposites that are meant to confuse as you must be a sincere student it is not meant for the spiritual materialist. One must have one foot in the heavens and one foot firmly on the earth. I have spent 10 years 24/7 trying to put this path into words and have read almost everything ever written about Baul and I will tell you what they write is wrong even what they sing is shortened, and sometimes even they are singing Bollywood songs that people think is Baul? A real Baul is very deep and in some ways not meant for this modern world and of course I do not understand Sanskrit or Bengali, I feel Baul I learn from Babukishan who is so connected to Nabani Das Khyappa Baul.
Sri Chaitanya - Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra - Bhakti Yoga
Vaishnava Bauls the original indigenous Hare Krishna Hari Ram singers and dancers.
Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, was wise enough to know what the scholar Sri Chaitanya had figured out 500 years before, that Bauls were able to draw people together through their energetic shakti and ecstatic charismatic chanting, singing and dancing. Dry scholarship and talking doesn't awaken people to a new movement. Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra Birbhum was a Vaishnava Baul and an ancestor of this lineage, he was elder to Sri Chaitanya. It was Nityananda who taught his Baul tradition of kirtan, singing and dancing to Sri Chaitanya.
Sri Chaityana started his Hari Krishna movement based on the ecstatic 'Hare Krishna Hare Ram' singing and dancing of the Vaishnava Baul of Birbhum. The Bauls would start with the Hari Krishna chant early in the mornings as a wake up call announcing their presence to the villagers of Bengal, inviting them to listen and learn about spiritual life. Bauls were never beggers they were given Dakshina for their enlightened singing and teachings. They were loved by the villagers, they were the spiritual newspaper before print media and the internet.
Lineage of authentic KIRTAN
Authentic Baul is a rare, ecstatic, supercharged high speed internet super duper highway to ecstatic union, direct blissful Yoga and sweet heart-opening devotional singing and Baul Kirtan is full of ecstatic energy that turns even the hardest of hearts to honey, bringing the rasa of ananda (bliss) alive. There is layer upon layer of the heart Bauls awakens layers that one never thought existed, it is magical. Baul awakens a memory deep within the heart you do not have to understand the words but you must feel the magic, the power of lineage it will take you there is one is a real Baul, if not it is just singing and sometime a high pitched screaming or just nice singing. Baul should transport one to another realm because they draw that power, the deity to earth and make Shiva or Shakti in whatever form they worship alive.
Baul is both personal and impersonal a paradox indeed because it seems scholars want to put everything in one box or another when in fact any Sanskrit or Oral Tradition the juice and the between the lines arrives from the Guru without a constant year after year, day after day, close association with the Guru there is no way one can claim to be a Baul. It takes years and more than a one or two day, week, month or year transmission it starts at birth and it used to start in as Oral Sanskrit storytelling. Kirtan is not call response singing it is the telling of the stories and chanting, the chanting call response it a small part not the whole kirtan.
Baul is a secret mystical Tantric esoteric supercharged path.
Baul is a secret esoteric path a Baul will never tell you anything directly you must will learn through the practice of listening deeply. If you are fortunate to be with Baul over a lifetime if one is lucky you may grasp a drop, all the rest is just mere speculation. You will be tested every step of the way on this magical journey, the path is not straight it is crooked to prevent the people who are not prepared. Today everybody wants everything right here and now that is not the path of Baul because it is a super advanced path a way to easily reach God/dess but as we know nothing is really easy. It is not a beginners path, however, one can feel the energy and awaken quickly if the person calling themselves a Baul is actually a Baul.
- The path of Love, Prema
- The path of poetry, deep soul music, trance dance and sadhana
- The path of ecstatic union
- The path of everything as above so below
- The path of humanity
- The mysterious mystical inner path
- The path of GRACE and Divine Love
- The path of the Avadhut
- The Mystic Tantric Path
- The path of higher deep Yoga. The path beyond the Path
- The bliss permeated Path
- The path of Soul mates
- The path of the Divine Feminine
- The path of Shakti Sahana
Bauls play a one stringed trance inducing instrument called an ‘ektara’ also called the ‘Gopi Chand’ or ‘Gopi Yantra’ which is the Bauls symbol of peace and unity for all. A Baul plays a variety of instruments including a rare one or two stringed instrument called a ‘Gubgubi’ which Nabani himself named the Ananda Lahari meaning ‘waves of bliss’. Baul is a Guru Shishya Parampara Sampradaya, they are sadhu's and belong to sadhu sangha which are called Akaras. There used to be 22 such sanghas, now there are only 2, they are almost extinct.
There is a lot of misinformation about the Bauls today, misrepresentations abound among a new generation of Baul singers, scholars, writers, documentary filmmakers, information found on wikipedia, Gurus from other sects including Osho who wrote many books on the Bauls and was deeply inspired by Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. All of them have completely missed the point of who these sweet devotional people are. They repeat the same thing over and over and it is not accurate. Many fakes are changing this beautiful tradition, they dress the part, singing out of tune trying to copy what can not be copied. Baul is only achieved through sadhana. The fake Bauls say they are sadhakas to attract students, some say they are sexual tantrics as sex always sells. This has gone on for a long time. Unaware foreigners attracted by sexual tantra of the west, and Indians attracted by the dream of sexual freedom, flock to Shantiniketan. Yet the real Bauls are now almost extinct, and those that still remain, live marginalized.
Bauls have been described as mad, Sai, Shah, Fakir, Dervish, Aula, Muslim, afflicted by the wind, illiterate, beggars and folk singers, yet they are none of the above. First of all Bauls were never beggars for anything but God/dess. A Baul would received Dakshina from the villagers for their wisdom and teachings. Bauls were farmers. They have survived for thousands and thousands of years, it is amazing that they survived through the British imposed famines in Bengal. which is a story These stories have started to be told regarding the 1940 second world war time of mass starvation that occurred during the British imposed diversion of food crops to Europe where millions of Bengal's perished.
Sahaja - Sufi - Buddhism - Islam - their relationship to Baul
Bauls accepted all but that does not mean they became the other, it does NOT mean they became Islamic or Buddhist. I can say this with confidence Bauls are not Islamic or Buddhist they are eclectic however, they are based on Sanatan Dharma. Baul is a sect unto its own, they are Sahaja Vaishnava Baul and are some of the first Sufi"s and Baul on the planet.
Sahaja = Sufi Vaishnava Baul (Hindu tantric Sufi) I am trying to put Baul in a category a box this is what we western's do. Bauls worship the Divine Feminine Shakti.
When I first met Babukishan he would always tell me that he was Sufi Baul or mention the name Sufi, he had some old posters from Sufi Books in New York where he had performed but I knew there was no Islamic Sufi affiliation with Baul. It was confusing and had taken me a very long time to understand Babukishan was talking about a Sufi way before Islam existed a kind of Sufi that belongs to all the peoples of planet earth a Sufi that has no religious affiliation. Perhaps Sufi is a word like Shamanism and Baul also a term used to describe the earliest teachings of the peoples of planet earth and we can also, call this Sahaja.
It is very difficult to understand and describe Baul, it works directly on the heart of those who listen providing a type of psychic heart surgery lightening the soul.
What is Sahaja? What Sahaja is not?
Sahaja is similar to Sufi before Islam in meaning, it is an ancient high spiritual reality “Sahaja simply means natural and spontaneous. It not only implies natural spiritual levels, but on the mystic level of the miraculous. It means that easy or natural state of living without planning, design, contriving, seeking, wanting, striving or intention. It is that nature which, when once established, brings the state of absolute freedom and peace. Sahaja is a natural state which balances reality between the pairs of opposites and maintains harmony of the Cosmos.
Thus ‘sahaja’ expresses one who has reverted to his natural state, free from conditioning. It typifies the outlook which belongs to the natural, spontaneous and uninhibited man or women, free from innate or inherited defects.
As such even nakedness of the avadhut is considered to be ‘sahaja’. By his own demeanor a Baul shows man’s instinct for naturalness and primordial perfection not only of the physical and spiritual level but at the mystical level. A parallel is made to plants and trees which do not grow according ‘svadharma’ or rules and obligations incurred at birth.
Nature only has ‘svabhava’ meaning its own inborn self or essence as its guidance. In other words ‘what is to come must come of itself’ to manifest in a state of absolute freedom. Taoism speaks of ‘sahaja’ as a highest virtue – the loss of the peculiar naturalness or unselfconsciousness. I have personal experiences with Taoism and my Master named his place of practice the same word as Sahaja but in Chinese name.
Bauls are considered to be Sahaja which means natural and spontaneous. It implies natural on the spiritual level and on the mystical level of the miraculous. It means that easy natural state of living without planning, design, contriving, seeking, wanting, or striving for attention. It is that nature which, when once established, brings the state of absolute freedom and peace. Sahaja is a natural state which balances reality between the pairs of opposites and maintains harmony of the Cosmos.
Sahaja is NOT, licentious, loose, lustful, lewd, salacious behavior as described by the orthodox Vaishnava coming out of Bengal and in Vrindavan. Sahaja is a Sanskrit word and those translations are completely wrong. To be sahaja is to hear, see, smell beauty in all things naturally, spontaneously. Sahaja is to be love (prema) unconditionally from the soul spontaneously and naturally it is not acting and faking devotion. Sahaja is a inner feminine way of being the "path of Radha" the inner soul. Sahaja is an elevated higher sattvic way of being. It is to move one’s focus inward and not get stuck in rhetoric and the mind or of knowledge and opinions of others, especially the orthodox who need you to pay for their temples and way of life. Sahaja. It is about having knowledge but not getting caught and hung up on knowledge, more specifically Sahaja is distilled knowledge which has become blissful wisdom.
One finds this state in an innocent child which is always in its ‘sahaja’ state unless interfered to by society. In his semi-naked state an sahaja Avaduta is just as unconscious of others nakedness as he was of his own.
“The person who has conquered the baser self and has reached to the level of self mastery: he is at peace, whether it be in cold or hot, pleasure or pain, honoured or dishonoured” – Bhagavad Gita. “ This is Sahaja the Bhagavad Gita and Vaishnavism is Sahaja in its pure unorthodox sitting on a throne form. It should be noted pure Gaudiya Vaishnavism always honored this family of Bauls.
There are perhaps hundreds if not thousands of pictures of this family performing for them raising huge amounts of money for them. There has never been any debate about them not being ancestors of Sri Nityananda of Ekachakra? Their story has never been told and now with the internet many are making up stories. I hope this is sufficient and people start to understand what Sahaja is. Hey no worries Baul is seriously extinct what you see today is something similar to Yoga as modern postural yoga of the west, although much messier with bits and pieces of the puzzle but no authentic Baul left. Bauls were always very clean and sattvic there long hair clean well kept worn on top of their heads. Baul is a shadow of the past like most indigenous peoples of planet earth. Yes, the are indigenous peoples of Birbhum Rarh an ancient land they did not come from somewhere else or even Calcutta.
It is important to understand that Baul arrived before both Buddhism and Islam. Bauls are considered to be original Sufi before Muslim existed and Sufi in this context is Hindu or more appropriately called Sanatan Dharmic Sufi. Some say they are the very earliest Indian Sufi's but I do not like to use the word Sufi because there is so much debate about where Sufi is from and the Bauls of Bengal are not Islamic they sing some Islamic Sufi songs because they love all but that does not make them Islamic or Muslim. However, I must make it perfectly clear Sufi predates Islam and Sufi in the context of Baul is not Islamic it is Sahaja (Sahaja) Baul Sahaja is Universal Sufi.
The original Das and Dasi Kirtan singers from Rarh, the red soil called Birbhum
The Bauls were not British educated English speaking Christian Bengali's who learned Sanskrit after the fact. Vaishnava Bauls learned Sanskrit in the oral tradition by hearing and remembering from birth, which creates a person with a photographic memory. Bauls are the original Das and Dasi singers and dancers of Bengal, the original kirtanist’s from the red soil called Rarh. Many of their Kirtans have been taken by the Orthodox New fundamentalist Vaishnava and claimed as their own? They use a degrading language to describe the Bauls and many other sects to raise themselves up higher than any other religion in the world this surely anyone can understand is most certainly not orthodox is shows a lack of confidence and heart towards others. Yet they have no clue where their information and kirtan came from or the true.
KD Babukishan a Master of Indian Music
Lineage Baul Guru
Babukishan is a Pandit (Guru of of India Music) Classical, Folk Bhajan, Baul Kirtan and Indian Cinema, all music and his job for years was working for the biggest Music Companies in India including CBS India categorizing all of the music of India, his description of kirtan is completely different from what is going on in the west. The west is chanting, kirtan is the telling of the stories of Krishna, Ram Shiva and Kali telling their stories in reverence and chanting. Kirtan is worship with reverence it is unheard of in his tradition for people to fall asleep on the floor.
It should be noted that Babukishan has recorded and produced the first recorded Hanuman Chalisa in India that is one of the most successful recordings of the Hanuman Chalisa played in all the temples in India the singer the late Hari Om Sharam. Babukishan has also, produced and recorded music by some of the Islamic Sufi greats including, Abida Parveen, Munni Begam, Allan Fakir, Nusrat Fateh Ali, Karim Khan, Majid Shola, and many more so he understands what is Muslim Sufi and what is Baul Sufi from experience not from books. He has recorded more Lalon Fakir songs than anybody and loves his poetry but still does not consider him to be a Baul. Babukishan has also, produced and recorded the biggest kirtan, bhajan singers in India including ... all those names I can not spell or say I will list them shortly.
Bauls were the biggest peacekeepers accepting all people. It should be understood that Baul is the path of the Avadhut always exploring and learning. They have many teachers but only one Guru. Understanding the history of Bengal is very important to understanding Baul. When Bengal was in strife under Islamic invasion they accepted Sufi into their fold. When Buddhists flowed into Bengal and were challenged by Brahamins, Bauls were the only people who gave them refuge and accepted them saving many from persecution. Baul is a sect onto its own based on Sanatan Dharma with a sprinkle of what are called Sufi and Buddhist practices. Please understand that it is also, said Sufi is based on Sanatan Dharma and was in India way before the Muslim's existed. Bauls have always been natural Indian Tantric Sufi's. A Baul will also say Buddha actually followed Shiva thus Shiva predating Buddha. Many of Baul practices are some of the earliest known before Buddha and before Sufi was ever attached to Islam in modern thought and modern times.
Birbhum W Bengal is the birth place of The Bauls of Bengal.
Stories abound about Bauls being from Persia, Uzbeckistan or Bangladesh, but many of these speculations are coming out of Bangladesh which is a Muslim country. They have somehow appropriated Baul culture and use this as a way to raise huge amount of money, apparently in order to preserve Baul Tradition as their ‘National heritage’. Baul tradition was born thousands of years ago and is indigenous to and originates from Birbhum Bengal. There were no Bauls in Bangledesh, even when Bangaldesh was Bengal they were not from the place now called Bangladesh. Baul has always been based on Sanatan Dharma, the eternal dharma of India as found in the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, Puranic and Vedic wisdom. There were no Bauls in Bangladesh prior to the 1970's because Babu's mother Manju was a well know family in that area before it became Bangladesh.
Vaishnava Baul is the lineage of Krishna & Kali Kirtan. The Vaishnava Bauls are the original Kirtanists from the land of Rarh (red soil) which is Birbhum.
Kenduli Birbhum Bengal is the home of the Joy DEV Baul Mela. JOY Dev wrote the Gita Govinda about the love between Radha and Krishna.
This story comes from the oral tradition of the oldest living Baul lineage as told by Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul, a ‘Lineage Baul Guru’ and the only Baul Guru Scholar from inside the tradition of the Vaishnava Bauls of Birbhum Bengal. Babukishan has lectured all over the world for decades at the University level and has done Baul preformances on some of the biggest stages in the world since the 1970's.
Baul is not only an ocean of devotion but is also, an ocean of Indian Philosophy, Yoga, Tantra, Vedic, Puranic, and Upanishad wisdom. The title 'Baul' implies one is a Guru, Pandit, Acharya, an authority, they were the Shastra before books, they are oral storytellers, spiritual Bards, Bhakti Yogi's, Masters of Nada Yoga, and Vayu Dharma. However, being an oral tradition did not mean they didn't read Bengali and Sanskrit manuscripts and Shastra.
KD Babukishan was born in 1962 in Suri Bhirbhum W Bengal into the lap of Nabani Das Khappa Baul and his wife Brajabala Dasi. KD Babukishan is the birth son of Purna Das Baul and Manju Dasi, however and for whatever reason he was left right after his birth to be raised by Sri Nabani, his Sat Guru and grandfather. Nabani and Brajabala raised their little grandson who was born premature with crooked limbs, it was thought he would die the next day. They named him Krishnendu (Krishna in Bengali). The name Babukishan was given to him by Mahesh Bhatt a Hindi film Director and Suraj Sanim one of the biggest Hindi film writers.
Tarapith - Authentic Tantric Sadhana Tara/Kali Maa
Nabani was an adept sadhak at Tarapith who had traveled as a sadhu tantric all over India living in the Himalaya's into Tibet he has lived in caves and was a great Yogi Tantric. Nabani took his sick tiny premature grandson (Krishnendu aka Babukishan) with crooked limbs to Tara Maa right after he was born praying and begging for his life. Ayurvedic medicine, prayers and mantra were used to heal baby Krishnendu. His limbs were straightened through daily Ayurvedic massage given by Nabani and Brajabala Dasi. It should be noted that Nabani was a healer and he had healed thousands of people every where he went, taking their karma and transmuting it. He was an adept at traditional Ayurvedic healing and herbology he was a Baul loaded with siddhi that he never used for his own good. He only helped others, he was the fire and Brajabala Dasi his wife commented that he should stop giving his flame but only let others enjoy the flames but he was a giver and give he did manifesting food for many in other villages while his own family at times struggled. He was extraordinary not your ordinary person or Baul for that matter.
Nabani knew the Tantra of alchemy and traditional herbs, as a close friend of the famed Ayurvedic doctor and healer Dr. Kali Goti who also helped with healing Babu. Nabani was an adept at manifesting siddhi's, he knew all the Guru's, Saints, Siddhas, Yogis, Naths, Swamis, Sadhus, Sadhakas of the time and had them all give dharshan and blessings to his little baby Krishnendu. Babu went everywhere with Nabani and was a regular at Tarapith learning tantric and Baul sadhana. hanging out with the Gurus and Tantrics one could say he owes his life to Tara Maa and Kali Maa. The village Rakha Kali Maa temple where he played, was right beside the Ratha Yatra Cart with Radha and Krishna. The village favoured many gods. Babu saw and experienced a world that does not exist today, those times are gone. I specualate that perhaps this was Babu's karma and a continuation of his past life.
Nabani Das Khyappa Bauls Samadhi 1969
Nabani's samadhi was in 1969, when KD Babukishan was only 8 years old. He thought Nabani was his father, until he learned his real father was Nabani's eldest son Purna Das Baul who had since had two other sons that were raised outside the Baul tradition, in contemporary Calcutta. Most people on a path would agree that our family is not who we are. Guru is our real family if we are lucky to have one, Babu was lucky to have Nabani who left him his spark. Losing Nabani was to be the greatest loss of little KD Babukishan's life and the greatest loss to the whole Baul community. Nabani was not an ordinary Baul he was an extraordinary genius. Babukishan was by his side when he went into samadhi.
On his grandfather’s passing, KD Babukishan recalls, "suddenly my grandpa reached out and gave me his hand at the same time a huge load thunder cracked and filled the air with energy, my grandpa whom I called ' Boro Baba' whole body turned an electric blue whitish the electric current shocked me and ran through my body at the same time automatically the tulsi plant with a small Bhagavad Gita in it fell over and hit Boro Baba directly on his head and he was gone. He held my hand so tight I felt an electric current run through my body my third eye opened, I saw the universe my Boro Baba had given me what is called a Bramhma darshan. I felt a huge force of power and light in my body, I couldn't break free of Boro Baba's grip I was only 8 years old my life had been full of one initiation after the other and this was the biggest gift ever given to me."
The Baul kirtan for Nabani went on for weeks, they chanted HARI KRISHNA HARI RAM for 8 days in a continuous flow, and then 6 more weeks changing kirtan groups and taking short breaks for some food and rest. Kirtan usually goes on for day continuously my Boro Baba would be furious if anybody broke the kirtan, it is meant to flow and done with such worship that one would never dream of falling asleep on the floor. Hundreds of thousands of people came to pay their respects. Nabani was a famous father figure, Baul Guru of Birbhum, a state artist and the whole state of Birbhum was closed. He was burried in traditional Baul way, sitting in a padmasana. Vaishnava Bauls are not burned it is traditional for Vaishnava's to bury.
Some time after Babu's grandfather’s death, his Grandmother Brajabala sent him to live in Calcutta with Purna Das Baul and Manju Dasi, his birth parents, as she felt he’d be better off there and that he needed to be educated. KD Babukishan's went from the highest energy and biggest love bliss to a material life in Calcutta and a family where he didn't fit in. He recalls how his mother Manju used to bribe him with cookies to call her Maa. Brajabala Dasi is should be noted was a great Guru and a life long Guru and Mother love to Babukishan.
Those days were hard for a little boy, suddenly surrounded by strangers, in the strange city, and before long, they packed him off to Ramakrishna Mission, where he remained for the following twelve years. Living there was tough, but the Swami’s there respected the Bauls, and often told him the story how Ramakrishna loved the Bauls, and said many times how he wanted to be born a Baul in his next life.
A New life in Calcutta - Ramakrishna Mission
First trip oversee's London 1971
The family in Calcutta sometimes let him stay with them and even travel with them, touring with his father. When he was nine, they went to London and Europe on his first of many overseas trips. They went to perform at the fundraiser for Bangladesh in 1971, 1972, and 1978. There was a big group of Indian musicians who played at Hyde Park at the concert sponsored by the Beatles and The Rolling Stones. That is where he first met and became lifelong friends with George Harrison and the Rolling Stones. Later in 1986, George Harrison along with Ravi Shankar helped him publish his 3rd book on Bauls, now out of print. During that trip they traveled to Mick Jaggers place in Nice, France and where his father recorded with them for the album Jai Bangla. Mick Jagger was their limousine driver, and drove them from the airport to his place. In 2004 Babukishan returned the favor picking up Mick Jagger from the airport when The Rolling Stones performed in Mumbai. In 1986 Babukishan performed at the Royal Albert Hall and the South Hall he played there 3 times.
Just as he was in the process of becoming a sanaysin, his father pulled him out of Ramakrishna Mission to work as his tour manager and it should be noted that Babukishan composed most of his fathers music under his birth name Krishnendu Das he was also, the youngest music composer in India at the time and was given awards for being the youngest and has a 40 years of award winning music composer. There were many good times and many difficult times with his Calcutta family and he left them for Mumbai after somethings that Babu didn't agree with but always supported them.
How to pronounce Baul
The easiest way to pronounce Baul is (Ba–oowl). Bauls are known as 'wind catchers' , the Masters of Pranayama which they call Vayu Dharma. Baul comes from the words Vayu (air) and Tula (to raise the vital air). Ba stands for Va in Bengali language. Bauls practice various yogic tantric techniques and their singing and mantric chanting. The aim of the Baul is God Realization & Self Realization in the human body, humanity is first and foremost to the Bauls – to be a good human, to realize God within this body temple.
Bauls practice techniques similar to Daoist Qigong. They are Masters of energy work and mysticism. They are visionary and communicate inward, it is a inner path. Inner ritual, Radha and Krishna reside in the alter of the heart this is where the Rasa Lila takes place. As an example of outer it would be the temple and book business and even sometimes even murti's. Remember a Baul does not reject therefore, they also worship murti's but they do not give much importance to outer it is accepted not rejected. I have been to every type of temple, church and even mosques around the world with Babukishan that is what we do. However it is not Babu's dream to be in the temple business, it is his dream to have an ashram to preserve and educate about Baul and folk music, Indian music. His dream is music, Indian music is born in him, his education is music, his career is music, you can take the Baul out of India but you can not take the MUSIC out of the Baul.
Pioneering only Legendary BAULS
Purna Das Baul is the first famous Indian Vocalist to come to America. First arriving in 1967 on a tour from San Francisco to New York staying in Woodstock NY at Bob Dylan's home as guests of Sally and Albert B Grossman (Bob Dylans manager). The recorded music from that time is called 'Bauls at Big Pink'. Purna Das Baul and his brother the late Laxshman Das Baul who was a much loved Baul a Bob Marley of the Bauls appeared on the cover of Bob Dylan's Legendary album John Westly Harding, Bob Dylan was a super fan of Lakshman Das Baul. Sally Grossman has remained a loyal a very dear friend of the Bauls and Laxshman Das Baul since 1967. At 81 years of age Lashman Das Baul passed away in April 2015 ending a legendary period of Baul history.
Please note it was the early 1950's when Purna Das Baul first traveled outside of India, he went to Russia. This family started the tradition of Bauls traveling outside of India it is not their traditional custom.
The Bauls at Big Pink produced by Al Aronowitz the father of Rock Journalism and another beloved friend of Babu's who passed in 2004, Garth Hudson and Robbie Robertson of the Band 1967 / The photo of Nabani Das Khyappa Baul was taken by Rabindranath Tagore. The Bauls on this album are Purna Das Baul and Lakshman Das Baul
Baul Samarat (King of the Bauls) Purna Das Baul at 82 years old has recieved the highest awards as a vocalist in India including many President Awards, Padma Shri and a rare award from the JAGANATHA TEMPLE called 'Nada Brahma Award' which only 3 have received including the much celebrated Ravindra Jain and Lata Mangeshakar. This family of Vaishnava Bauls are celebrated at the Jaganatha Temple in Orissa they know they are ancestors of Nityananda, Jai Nitai.
Allen Ginsberg's 'Guru' was Nabani Das Baul, Ginsberg first met Nabani in the early 1960's while traveling in Bengal. Nabani Das Baul is the only Baul Guru that Allen Ginsberg had, I keep reading how Ginsberg was associated with Lalon Fakir which is a complete fabrication his Baul Guru was Nabani Das Khyappa Baul. Ginsberg became a very dear friend of KD Babukishan he knows all the stories about Ginsberg and any association and inner feelings of his relationship between Ginsberg and Nabani Das Baul. Babu visited Ginsberg every year in New York from the 1980's until Ginsberg passed they were great friends perhaps meeting 100's of times, they are both poets and have a love for Nabani Das Baul. Ginsberg is the one who insisted to Sally and Albert B Grossman (Bob Dylan's manager) to bring Nabani to America, however, in 1967 Nabani's health was failing and he sent his two son's Lakshman Das Baul and Purna Das Baul.
Nabani had also spent a lifetime of traveling throughout India, meditating in the Himalaya's and Tibet and associated with many Guru Bai's and high level adepts many miraculous stories to be told. In 1962 when Babukishan was left with Nabani and Brajabala he stopped traveling. He was addicted to his grandson and considered him to be his Bala Krishna, he also called Babu, Prem and kept him with him all the time.
Kshiti Mohan Sen was a well-known scholar of ancient and medieval India and close associate of Rabindranath Tagore served as the Vice Chancellor of Visva-Bharati University in Santineketan for years. Kshiti Mohan Shastri described Nabani Das Baul "the last real true Baul" he wrote a book on Baul and regarded Nabani as the greatest ocean of intelligence he was as a huge admirer of Nabani. Kriti Mohan Sastri is the Grandfather of Armarta Sen a Professor, Economist and Philosopher living in New York.
This lineage are the only Bauls who have associated with The President of India Pranab Mukerjee, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and The Rolling Stone, Indira Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Jawaharlal Nehru, Tara Shankar Bandhypadhya, Kavi Nazrul, Bidhan Chandra Roy, Pankoj Mollick, R. C. Boral, S D Burman, RD Burman, Bimol Roy, Sakti Pado RajGuru, Uday Shankar, Nitish Mukherjee, Nitin Bose, Shantidev Ghosh, Ajit Ganguly, Deben Bhattacharya, Pahari Sanyal, Timir Baran, Allauddin Khan, Dr. Amartya Sen's Grandfather Kshiti Mohan Sen, Ram Kinkar Baij, Sita Ram Omkarnath, Ravi Shakar, Sonja Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Dr. Ananda Shankar Roy, Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, Tv Producer Abhijit Das Gupta, Jyoti Basu W Bengal former chief Mininster, Diretor General of India Radio. Dr Bhupeen Hazarika, Mithun Charabhorty, Bapi Lahari, MF Huissen, Chuni Goswami, Shyam Benegal, Amitabha Bachchana, Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Zakir Hussain, Ratan Tata and many, many more.
KD Babaukishan aka Krisnendu Das Baul
KD Babukishan walks between worlds in a true tantric form with one foot in the spiritual world and one foot firmly on earth, in the world but not of the world. He is a highly awarded Bollywood Indian Cinema Music Composer, Indian Music Producer, a Master of Indian Music, Classical, Folk, Bhajan, and Kirtan composing scores for 150 films, Film Designer, Film Maker, he has recorded and worked with the who is who of Indian music and Western music.
KD Babukisha was raised a Baul and spent 12 years as a Ramakrishna monk in Calcutta, BA in Indian Philosophy, MA of Indian Music from Calcutta University, Poet, the first Baul to be educated in the oral tradition and outside. A Sanskrit Scholar from the Oral Tradition, Sanskrit Education at the Masters level and because of his love of Sanskrit he spent countless years learning from Dr. Roma Chowdhri who was like a mother to Babu she was a legendary world renowned Bengali Sanskrit scholar who dedicated her whole life to Sanskrit.
Baukishan now lives in Vancouver Canada with me Trishula his Moner Manush wife and partner of almost ten years, traveling back and forth to India. Babu's life changed dramatically when he was in the 2004 Tsunami in Indonesia where he witnessed, tens of thousands of souls leaving Bhumi Maa all at once, one of Maa's biggest smashen grounds. He has lived through the 1971 war between Bengal and Bangladesh, he has lived through many many terrorist attacks in Mumbai and lived many lifetimes in this one lifetime. Babu's main cause has always been to preserve his Baul tradition and it has been proven a difficult task it seems that over many decades his dream, all of his time and energy have been thwarted by his Calcutta family and many other road blocks, but he never gives up.
"The way my braid is, that’s how it will stay.
I’ll get into the water, I’ll splash water around, but I won’t get my hair wet.
I’ll swim about this way, and that way.
I’ll dive into the water, and won’t listen to what people say.
I’ll enjoy myself but not suffer because of it.
Gosain Rasaraj says: “Listen, my friend , that beauty leaves me speechless".
I won’t be chaste; I won’t be unchaste.
I won’t leave my Lord".
Famous Baul song (poetry) by Rasaraj Gosai (Nabani Das Baul's elder brother)
Not getting ones hair wet means to remain unattached do it, do everything but do not remain attached to the event or outcome give your attachments to Krishna.
Bauls songs are metaphorically coded. It is really hard to translate Bengali or Sanskrit into a one worded English translation and sometimes even impossible, there is assumed one knows all of Yoga and Tantra because each song is many discourses all in a simple song and sometimes you do not need to understand, you can listen and just get in it on a very deep level, the songs awaken a person to understanding. It is very subtle but a memory deep within your heart will understand.
The Joy Dev Baul Mela is held here the Vaishnava Bauls attend ever year to do puja to the great poet (kavi) Joy Dev. The bridge going across the Ajoy river is named Nabani Setu after Nabani Das Baul. The mela is completely different today, the Bauls have been marginalized and pushed out by the new kirtan singers. The Bauls honour Joy Deva and the love he had for his soul mate Padmavati because Bauls believe in Soul Mates as Radha and Krishna live and dance in their hearts, this is the real Rasa Lila dance.
Copyright all rights reserved 2017 -2030 by Trishula Das
PLEASE do not copy and paste, then cut the names off. There has been too much Cultural Appropriation of the Baul lineage, taking what is written, rewording and claiming as your own?
Copyright all rights reserved 2017 -2030
If not for Baul Saint Nabani Das Kyappa Baul, Purna Das Baul and Maju Dasi, Lakshman Das Baul and Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul there would be no one in this world who would know anything about Baul.
Babukishan should be given an oscar or an equivalent reward because if not for him no one would know anything about Baul. He created most of the relationships and maintained them for his Baul family, he has never asked for acknowledgement but I am saying after hearing what he has done for Baul. He is the first Baul author writing 3 books on Baul in the 1980's, the last one in 1986 was published with the help of George Harrison and Ravi Shankar. George Harrison was Babu's person friend. Ravi Shakar was a family friend he has known since childhood, Babu was best friends with Ravi Shakar's only son.
This lineage are the pioneers who brought Baul to the world. Today some 50 or 60 years later some Bauls are trying to do what they have done and that is a good thing they have been inspired by this lineage the oldest living lineage of Baul, however, the copying and deleting of this lineages names and then just listing them just as the Bauls of Bengal who were associated with Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and more.
I have seen article after article on the net saying Bauls even received a Padma Shri Award, no Bauls did not a Baul did and his name is Sri Purna Das Baul, please use the names of the Baul and when saying Bauls were associated with Tagore, it was only Nabani Das Khyappa Baul.
Bauls were not associated with any of the below, it was only this family of Bauls the oldest living lineage and the Bauls who brought Baul to the world.
Please do not use what they have done and then generically say Bauls did.
If you were the Prime Minister of India would all chai walla's take credit and say Chai Walla's are Prime Minister of India?
This lineage and family are the only Bauls who have associated with, when you read Bauls associated with Bauls did not only Babukishan and family did. Bauls in general as posted on the internet did not. I t should read Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das or Purna Das Baul or Nabani Das Baul associated with:
Allen Ginsberg,
Bob Dylan,
George Harrison
The Rolling Stones,
Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India
Rabindranath Tagore,
Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India, respected Nabani and Admired him.
Tara Shankar Bandhypadhya, Top Bengali Writer
Kavi Nazrul, Bangladeshi Top Poet but spent his life in Calcutta
Bidhan Chandra Roy was the chief Minister of Bengal (Nabani Das Baul Friend)
Pankoj Mollick, Pioneer Indian Cinema Bengali Music Composer
R. C. Boral, Bengali Music Composer, the first.
S D Burman, Indian Music Composer and Follower of Nabani
RD Burman, Babu Kishan's Film Music Guru
Bimol Roy, Producer, Director of Bengali Film and Hindi Film, he did Devdas first.
Sakti Pado RajGuru, Well known film critic and film story screenplay dialogue, Babu Kishan's friend
Uday Shankar, Indian Dance pioneer, Ravi Shankar's eldest brother, family friend and follower of Nabani
Nitish Mukherjee, Indian Cinema Film Director, Actor, Nabani Das Baul's follower
Nitin Bose, Indian Film Director, Nabani's friend and well wisher
Shantidev Ghosh, Nabani Das's great friend and follower, he was Rabindranath Tagore right hand and in charge of Visva Bharti Poush Mela. He was a long time dance teacher at Vishva Bharti.
He only allowed Purna Das Baul as the only Baul.
Ajit Ganguly, top Film Producer and Director, Biggest Devotee of Nabani Das, Hamsraj Movie
Deben Bhattacharya, Folklore colector who loved Nabani Das Khyapa Baul
Pahari Sanyal, Top Indian Film Actor Early Film, Nabani Das Khyapa Baul follower
Timir Baran, Top India Orchestra Director 200/300 musicians Nabani follower
Allauddin Khan, father of Ali Akbar Khan, Nabani Follower and well wisher.
Dr. Amartya Sen's Grandfather Kshiti Mohan Sen,
Ram Kinkar Baij,
Sita Ram Omkarnath,
Ravi Shakar,
The President of India Pranab Mukerjee,
Sonja Gandhi,
Rajiv Gandhi,
Dr. Ananda Shankar Roy, Oriya and Bengali Writer, loved Nabani's Mysticism
Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, Minister and Professor of Babu Kishan and well wisher of Purna Das Baul
Tv Producer Abhijit Das Gupta,
Jyoti Basu W Bengal former chief Mininster, Diretor General of India Radio.
Dr Bhupeen Hazarika,
Mithun Charabhorty,
Bapi Lahari,
MF Huissen,
Chuni Goswami, Top football player, Manju Das Relative, loved Purna Das Baul
Shyam Benegal,
Amitabha Bachchana,
Satyajit Ray,
Mrinal Sen,
Zakir Hussain,
Ratan Tata and many, many more.
Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul is the only BAUL who has worked in Indian Cinema and Bollywood for 30 years in a big big way. He has, recorded composed and produced most of his father's music without taking credit or any payment, he did everything for his Calcutta family for free and gave them everything and in return they delivered negative prayers. A negative prayer is the opposite of being a well wisher.
All will be told in our upcoming book which is almost, ready for printing. There will be two books "The Rasa Lila Mystics" on this lineage and another book about Babukishan's life Baul to Bollywood to Canada and it will be unplugged.
Lineage Baul Guru
Babukishan is a Pandit (Guru of of India Music) Classical, Folk Bhajan, Baul Kirtan and Indian Cinema, all music and his job for years was working for the biggest Music Companies in India including CBS India categorizing all of the music of India, his description of kirtan is completely different from what is going on in the west. The west is chanting, kirtan is the telling of the stories of Krishna, Ram Shiva and Kali telling their stories in reverence and chanting. Kirtan is worship with reverence it is unheard of in his tradition for people to fall asleep on the floor.
It should be noted that Babukishan has recorded and produced the first recorded Hanuman Chalisa in India that is one of the most successful recordings of the Hanuman Chalisa played in all the temples in India the singer the late Hari Om Sharam. Babukishan has also, produced and recorded music by some of the Islamic Sufi greats including, Abida Parveen, Munni Begam, Allan Fakir, Nusrat Fateh Ali, Karim Khan, Majid Shola, and many more so he understands what is Muslim Sufi and what is Baul Sufi from experience not from books. He has recorded more Lalon Fakir songs than anybody and loves his poetry but still does not consider him to be a Baul. Babukishan has also, produced and recorded the biggest kirtan, bhajan singers in India including ... all those names I can not spell or say I will list them shortly.
Bauls were the biggest peacekeepers accepting all people. It should be understood that Baul is the path of the Avadhut always exploring and learning. They have many teachers but only one Guru. Understanding the history of Bengal is very important to understanding Baul. When Bengal was in strife under Islamic invasion they accepted Sufi into their fold. When Buddhists flowed into Bengal and were challenged by Brahamins, Bauls were the only people who gave them refuge and accepted them saving many from persecution. Baul is a sect onto its own based on Sanatan Dharma with a sprinkle of what are called Sufi and Buddhist practices. Please understand that it is also, said Sufi is based on Sanatan Dharma and was in India way before the Muslim's existed. Bauls have always been natural Indian Tantric Sufi's. A Baul will also say Buddha actually followed Shiva thus Shiva predating Buddha. Many of Baul practices are some of the earliest known before Buddha and before Sufi was ever attached to Islam in modern thought and modern times.
Birbhum W Bengal is the birth place of The Bauls of Bengal.
Stories abound about Bauls being from Persia, Uzbeckistan or Bangladesh, but many of these speculations are coming out of Bangladesh which is a Muslim country. They have somehow appropriated Baul culture and use this as a way to raise huge amount of money, apparently in order to preserve Baul Tradition as their ‘National heritage’. Baul tradition was born thousands of years ago and is indigenous to and originates from Birbhum Bengal. There were no Bauls in Bangledesh, even when Bangaldesh was Bengal they were not from the place now called Bangladesh. Baul has always been based on Sanatan Dharma, the eternal dharma of India as found in the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads, Puranic and Vedic wisdom. There were no Bauls in Bangladesh prior to the 1970's because Babu's mother Manju was a well know family in that area before it became Bangladesh.
Vaishnava Baul is the lineage of Krishna & Kali Kirtan. The Vaishnava Bauls are the original Kirtanists from the land of Rarh (red soil) which is Birbhum.
Kenduli Birbhum Bengal is the home of the Joy DEV Baul Mela. JOY Dev wrote the Gita Govinda about the love between Radha and Krishna.
This story comes from the oral tradition of the oldest living Baul lineage as told by Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul, a ‘Lineage Baul Guru’ and the only Baul Guru Scholar from inside the tradition of the Vaishnava Bauls of Birbhum Bengal. Babukishan has lectured all over the world for decades at the University level and has done Baul preformances on some of the biggest stages in the world since the 1970's.
Baul is not only an ocean of devotion but is also, an ocean of Indian Philosophy, Yoga, Tantra, Vedic, Puranic, and Upanishad wisdom. The title 'Baul' implies one is a Guru, Pandit, Acharya, an authority, they were the Shastra before books, they are oral storytellers, spiritual Bards, Bhakti Yogi's, Masters of Nada Yoga, and Vayu Dharma. However, being an oral tradition did not mean they didn't read Bengali and Sanskrit manuscripts and Shastra.
KD Babukishan was born in 1962 in Suri Bhirbhum W Bengal into the lap of Nabani Das Khappa Baul and his wife Brajabala Dasi. KD Babukishan is the birth son of Purna Das Baul and Manju Dasi, however and for whatever reason he was left right after his birth to be raised by Sri Nabani, his Sat Guru and grandfather. Nabani and Brajabala raised their little grandson who was born premature with crooked limbs, it was thought he would die the next day. They named him Krishnendu (Krishna in Bengali). The name Babukishan was given to him by Mahesh Bhatt a Hindi film Director and Suraj Sanim one of the biggest Hindi film writers.
Tarapith - Authentic Tantric Sadhana Tara/Kali Maa
Nabani was an adept sadhak at Tarapith who had traveled as a sadhu tantric all over India living in the Himalaya's into Tibet he has lived in caves and was a great Yogi Tantric. Nabani took his sick tiny premature grandson (Krishnendu aka Babukishan) with crooked limbs to Tara Maa right after he was born praying and begging for his life. Ayurvedic medicine, prayers and mantra were used to heal baby Krishnendu. His limbs were straightened through daily Ayurvedic massage given by Nabani and Brajabala Dasi. It should be noted that Nabani was a healer and he had healed thousands of people every where he went, taking their karma and transmuting it. He was an adept at traditional Ayurvedic healing and herbology he was a Baul loaded with siddhi that he never used for his own good. He only helped others, he was the fire and Brajabala Dasi his wife commented that he should stop giving his flame but only let others enjoy the flames but he was a giver and give he did manifesting food for many in other villages while his own family at times struggled. He was extraordinary not your ordinary person or Baul for that matter.
Nabani knew the Tantra of alchemy and traditional herbs, as a close friend of the famed Ayurvedic doctor and healer Dr. Kali Goti who also helped with healing Babu. Nabani was an adept at manifesting siddhi's, he knew all the Guru's, Saints, Siddhas, Yogis, Naths, Swamis, Sadhus, Sadhakas of the time and had them all give dharshan and blessings to his little baby Krishnendu. Babu went everywhere with Nabani and was a regular at Tarapith learning tantric and Baul sadhana. hanging out with the Gurus and Tantrics one could say he owes his life to Tara Maa and Kali Maa. The village Rakha Kali Maa temple where he played, was right beside the Ratha Yatra Cart with Radha and Krishna. The village favoured many gods. Babu saw and experienced a world that does not exist today, those times are gone. I specualate that perhaps this was Babu's karma and a continuation of his past life.
Nabani Das Khyappa Bauls Samadhi 1969
Nabani's samadhi was in 1969, when KD Babukishan was only 8 years old. He thought Nabani was his father, until he learned his real father was Nabani's eldest son Purna Das Baul who had since had two other sons that were raised outside the Baul tradition, in contemporary Calcutta. Most people on a path would agree that our family is not who we are. Guru is our real family if we are lucky to have one, Babu was lucky to have Nabani who left him his spark. Losing Nabani was to be the greatest loss of little KD Babukishan's life and the greatest loss to the whole Baul community. Nabani was not an ordinary Baul he was an extraordinary genius. Babukishan was by his side when he went into samadhi.
On his grandfather’s passing, KD Babukishan recalls, "suddenly my grandpa reached out and gave me his hand at the same time a huge load thunder cracked and filled the air with energy, my grandpa whom I called ' Boro Baba' whole body turned an electric blue whitish the electric current shocked me and ran through my body at the same time automatically the tulsi plant with a small Bhagavad Gita in it fell over and hit Boro Baba directly on his head and he was gone. He held my hand so tight I felt an electric current run through my body my third eye opened, I saw the universe my Boro Baba had given me what is called a Bramhma darshan. I felt a huge force of power and light in my body, I couldn't break free of Boro Baba's grip I was only 8 years old my life had been full of one initiation after the other and this was the biggest gift ever given to me."
The Baul kirtan for Nabani went on for weeks, they chanted HARI KRISHNA HARI RAM for 8 days in a continuous flow, and then 6 more weeks changing kirtan groups and taking short breaks for some food and rest. Kirtan usually goes on for day continuously my Boro Baba would be furious if anybody broke the kirtan, it is meant to flow and done with such worship that one would never dream of falling asleep on the floor. Hundreds of thousands of people came to pay their respects. Nabani was a famous father figure, Baul Guru of Birbhum, a state artist and the whole state of Birbhum was closed. He was burried in traditional Baul way, sitting in a padmasana. Vaishnava Bauls are not burned it is traditional for Vaishnava's to bury.
Some time after Babu's grandfather’s death, his Grandmother Brajabala sent him to live in Calcutta with Purna Das Baul and Manju Dasi, his birth parents, as she felt he’d be better off there and that he needed to be educated. KD Babukishan's went from the highest energy and biggest love bliss to a material life in Calcutta and a family where he didn't fit in. He recalls how his mother Manju used to bribe him with cookies to call her Maa. Brajabala Dasi is should be noted was a great Guru and a life long Guru and Mother love to Babukishan.
Those days were hard for a little boy, suddenly surrounded by strangers, in the strange city, and before long, they packed him off to Ramakrishna Mission, where he remained for the following twelve years. Living there was tough, but the Swami’s there respected the Bauls, and often told him the story how Ramakrishna loved the Bauls, and said many times how he wanted to be born a Baul in his next life.
A New life in Calcutta - Ramakrishna Mission
First trip oversee's London 1971
The family in Calcutta sometimes let him stay with them and even travel with them, touring with his father. When he was nine, they went to London and Europe on his first of many overseas trips. They went to perform at the fundraiser for Bangladesh in 1971, 1972, and 1978. There was a big group of Indian musicians who played at Hyde Park at the concert sponsored by the Beatles and The Rolling Stones. That is where he first met and became lifelong friends with George Harrison and the Rolling Stones. Later in 1986, George Harrison along with Ravi Shankar helped him publish his 3rd book on Bauls, now out of print. During that trip they traveled to Mick Jaggers place in Nice, France and where his father recorded with them for the album Jai Bangla. Mick Jagger was their limousine driver, and drove them from the airport to his place. In 2004 Babukishan returned the favor picking up Mick Jagger from the airport when The Rolling Stones performed in Mumbai. In 1986 Babukishan performed at the Royal Albert Hall and the South Hall he played there 3 times.
Just as he was in the process of becoming a sanaysin, his father pulled him out of Ramakrishna Mission to work as his tour manager and it should be noted that Babukishan composed most of his fathers music under his birth name Krishnendu Das he was also, the youngest music composer in India at the time and was given awards for being the youngest and has a 40 years of award winning music composer. There were many good times and many difficult times with his Calcutta family and he left them for Mumbai after somethings that Babu didn't agree with but always supported them.
How to pronounce Baul
The easiest way to pronounce Baul is (Ba–oowl). Bauls are known as 'wind catchers' , the Masters of Pranayama which they call Vayu Dharma. Baul comes from the words Vayu (air) and Tula (to raise the vital air). Ba stands for Va in Bengali language. Bauls practice various yogic tantric techniques and their singing and mantric chanting. The aim of the Baul is God Realization & Self Realization in the human body, humanity is first and foremost to the Bauls – to be a good human, to realize God within this body temple.
Bauls practice techniques similar to Daoist Qigong. They are Masters of energy work and mysticism. They are visionary and communicate inward, it is a inner path. Inner ritual, Radha and Krishna reside in the alter of the heart this is where the Rasa Lila takes place. As an example of outer it would be the temple and book business and even sometimes even murti's. Remember a Baul does not reject therefore, they also worship murti's but they do not give much importance to outer it is accepted not rejected. I have been to every type of temple, church and even mosques around the world with Babukishan that is what we do. However it is not Babu's dream to be in the temple business, it is his dream to have an ashram to preserve and educate about Baul and folk music, Indian music. His dream is music, Indian music is born in him, his education is music, his career is music, you can take the Baul out of India but you can not take the MUSIC out of the Baul.
Pioneering only Legendary BAULS
Purna Das Baul is the first famous Indian Vocalist to come to America. First arriving in 1967 on a tour from San Francisco to New York staying in Woodstock NY at Bob Dylan's home as guests of Sally and Albert B Grossman (Bob Dylans manager). The recorded music from that time is called 'Bauls at Big Pink'. Purna Das Baul and his brother the late Laxshman Das Baul who was a much loved Baul a Bob Marley of the Bauls appeared on the cover of Bob Dylan's Legendary album John Westly Harding, Bob Dylan was a super fan of Lakshman Das Baul. Sally Grossman has remained a loyal a very dear friend of the Bauls and Laxshman Das Baul since 1967. At 81 years of age Lashman Das Baul passed away in April 2015 ending a legendary period of Baul history.
Please note it was the early 1950's when Purna Das Baul first traveled outside of India, he went to Russia. This family started the tradition of Bauls traveling outside of India it is not their traditional custom.
The Bauls at Big Pink produced by Al Aronowitz the father of Rock Journalism and another beloved friend of Babu's who passed in 2004, Garth Hudson and Robbie Robertson of the Band 1967 / The photo of Nabani Das Khyappa Baul was taken by Rabindranath Tagore. The Bauls on this album are Purna Das Baul and Lakshman Das Baul
Baul Samarat (King of the Bauls) Purna Das Baul at 82 years old has recieved the highest awards as a vocalist in India including many President Awards, Padma Shri and a rare award from the JAGANATHA TEMPLE called 'Nada Brahma Award' which only 3 have received including the much celebrated Ravindra Jain and Lata Mangeshakar. This family of Vaishnava Bauls are celebrated at the Jaganatha Temple in Orissa they know they are ancestors of Nityananda, Jai Nitai.
Allen Ginsberg's 'Guru' was Nabani Das Baul, Ginsberg first met Nabani in the early 1960's while traveling in Bengal. Nabani Das Baul is the only Baul Guru that Allen Ginsberg had, I keep reading how Ginsberg was associated with Lalon Fakir which is a complete fabrication his Baul Guru was Nabani Das Khyappa Baul. Ginsberg became a very dear friend of KD Babukishan he knows all the stories about Ginsberg and any association and inner feelings of his relationship between Ginsberg and Nabani Das Baul. Babu visited Ginsberg every year in New York from the 1980's until Ginsberg passed they were great friends perhaps meeting 100's of times, they are both poets and have a love for Nabani Das Baul. Ginsberg is the one who insisted to Sally and Albert B Grossman (Bob Dylan's manager) to bring Nabani to America, however, in 1967 Nabani's health was failing and he sent his two son's Lakshman Das Baul and Purna Das Baul.
Nabani had also spent a lifetime of traveling throughout India, meditating in the Himalaya's and Tibet and associated with many Guru Bai's and high level adepts many miraculous stories to be told. In 1962 when Babukishan was left with Nabani and Brajabala he stopped traveling. He was addicted to his grandson and considered him to be his Bala Krishna, he also called Babu, Prem and kept him with him all the time.
Kshiti Mohan Sen was a well-known scholar of ancient and medieval India and close associate of Rabindranath Tagore served as the Vice Chancellor of Visva-Bharati University in Santineketan for years. Kshiti Mohan Shastri described Nabani Das Baul "the last real true Baul" he wrote a book on Baul and regarded Nabani as the greatest ocean of intelligence he was as a huge admirer of Nabani. Kriti Mohan Sastri is the Grandfather of Armarta Sen a Professor, Economist and Philosopher living in New York.
This lineage are the only Bauls who have associated with The President of India Pranab Mukerjee, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and The Rolling Stone, Indira Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Jawaharlal Nehru, Tara Shankar Bandhypadhya, Kavi Nazrul, Bidhan Chandra Roy, Pankoj Mollick, R. C. Boral, S D Burman, RD Burman, Bimol Roy, Sakti Pado RajGuru, Uday Shankar, Nitish Mukherjee, Nitin Bose, Shantidev Ghosh, Ajit Ganguly, Deben Bhattacharya, Pahari Sanyal, Timir Baran, Allauddin Khan, Dr. Amartya Sen's Grandfather Kshiti Mohan Sen, Ram Kinkar Baij, Sita Ram Omkarnath, Ravi Shakar, Sonja Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Dr. Ananda Shankar Roy, Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, Tv Producer Abhijit Das Gupta, Jyoti Basu W Bengal former chief Mininster, Diretor General of India Radio. Dr Bhupeen Hazarika, Mithun Charabhorty, Bapi Lahari, MF Huissen, Chuni Goswami, Shyam Benegal, Amitabha Bachchana, Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Zakir Hussain, Ratan Tata and many, many more.
KD Babaukishan aka Krisnendu Das Baul
KD Babukishan walks between worlds in a true tantric form with one foot in the spiritual world and one foot firmly on earth, in the world but not of the world. He is a highly awarded Bollywood Indian Cinema Music Composer, Indian Music Producer, a Master of Indian Music, Classical, Folk, Bhajan, and Kirtan composing scores for 150 films, Film Designer, Film Maker, he has recorded and worked with the who is who of Indian music and Western music.
KD Babukisha was raised a Baul and spent 12 years as a Ramakrishna monk in Calcutta, BA in Indian Philosophy, MA of Indian Music from Calcutta University, Poet, the first Baul to be educated in the oral tradition and outside. A Sanskrit Scholar from the Oral Tradition, Sanskrit Education at the Masters level and because of his love of Sanskrit he spent countless years learning from Dr. Roma Chowdhri who was like a mother to Babu she was a legendary world renowned Bengali Sanskrit scholar who dedicated her whole life to Sanskrit.
Baukishan now lives in Vancouver Canada with me Trishula his Moner Manush wife and partner of almost ten years, traveling back and forth to India. Babu's life changed dramatically when he was in the 2004 Tsunami in Indonesia where he witnessed, tens of thousands of souls leaving Bhumi Maa all at once, one of Maa's biggest smashen grounds. He has lived through the 1971 war between Bengal and Bangladesh, he has lived through many many terrorist attacks in Mumbai and lived many lifetimes in this one lifetime. Babu's main cause has always been to preserve his Baul tradition and it has been proven a difficult task it seems that over many decades his dream, all of his time and energy have been thwarted by his Calcutta family and many other road blocks, but he never gives up.
"The way my braid is, that’s how it will stay.
I’ll get into the water, I’ll splash water around, but I won’t get my hair wet.
I’ll swim about this way, and that way.
I’ll dive into the water, and won’t listen to what people say.
I’ll enjoy myself but not suffer because of it.
Gosain Rasaraj says: “Listen, my friend , that beauty leaves me speechless".
I won’t be chaste; I won’t be unchaste.
I won’t leave my Lord".
Famous Baul song (poetry) by Rasaraj Gosai (Nabani Das Baul's elder brother)
Not getting ones hair wet means to remain unattached do it, do everything but do not remain attached to the event or outcome give your attachments to Krishna.
Bauls songs are metaphorically coded. It is really hard to translate Bengali or Sanskrit into a one worded English translation and sometimes even impossible, there is assumed one knows all of Yoga and Tantra because each song is many discourses all in a simple song and sometimes you do not need to understand, you can listen and just get in it on a very deep level, the songs awaken a person to understanding. It is very subtle but a memory deep within your heart will understand.
The Joy Dev Baul Mela is held here the Vaishnava Bauls attend ever year to do puja to the great poet (kavi) Joy Dev. The bridge going across the Ajoy river is named Nabani Setu after Nabani Das Baul. The mela is completely different today, the Bauls have been marginalized and pushed out by the new kirtan singers. The Bauls honour Joy Deva and the love he had for his soul mate Padmavati because Bauls believe in Soul Mates as Radha and Krishna live and dance in their hearts, this is the real Rasa Lila dance.
Copyright all rights reserved 2017 -2030 by Trishula Das
PLEASE do not copy and paste, then cut the names off. There has been too much Cultural Appropriation of the Baul lineage, taking what is written, rewording and claiming as your own?
Copyright all rights reserved 2017 -2030
If not for Baul Saint Nabani Das Kyappa Baul, Purna Das Baul and Maju Dasi, Lakshman Das Baul and Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul there would be no one in this world who would know anything about Baul.
Babukishan should be given an oscar or an equivalent reward because if not for him no one would know anything about Baul. He created most of the relationships and maintained them for his Baul family, he has never asked for acknowledgement but I am saying after hearing what he has done for Baul. He is the first Baul author writing 3 books on Baul in the 1980's, the last one in 1986 was published with the help of George Harrison and Ravi Shankar. George Harrison was Babu's person friend. Ravi Shakar was a family friend he has known since childhood, Babu was best friends with Ravi Shakar's only son.
This lineage are the pioneers who brought Baul to the world. Today some 50 or 60 years later some Bauls are trying to do what they have done and that is a good thing they have been inspired by this lineage the oldest living lineage of Baul, however, the copying and deleting of this lineages names and then just listing them just as the Bauls of Bengal who were associated with Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and more.
I have seen article after article on the net saying Bauls even received a Padma Shri Award, no Bauls did not a Baul did and his name is Sri Purna Das Baul, please use the names of the Baul and when saying Bauls were associated with Tagore, it was only Nabani Das Khyappa Baul.
Bauls were not associated with any of the below, it was only this family of Bauls the oldest living lineage and the Bauls who brought Baul to the world.
Please do not use what they have done and then generically say Bauls did.
If you were the Prime Minister of India would all chai walla's take credit and say Chai Walla's are Prime Minister of India?
This lineage and family are the only Bauls who have associated with, when you read Bauls associated with Bauls did not only Babukishan and family did. Bauls in general as posted on the internet did not. I t should read Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das or Purna Das Baul or Nabani Das Baul associated with:
Allen Ginsberg,
Bob Dylan,
George Harrison
The Rolling Stones,
Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister of India
Rabindranath Tagore,
Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India, respected Nabani and Admired him.
Tara Shankar Bandhypadhya, Top Bengali Writer
Kavi Nazrul, Bangladeshi Top Poet but spent his life in Calcutta
Bidhan Chandra Roy was the chief Minister of Bengal (Nabani Das Baul Friend)
Pankoj Mollick, Pioneer Indian Cinema Bengali Music Composer
R. C. Boral, Bengali Music Composer, the first.
S D Burman, Indian Music Composer and Follower of Nabani
RD Burman, Babu Kishan's Film Music Guru
Bimol Roy, Producer, Director of Bengali Film and Hindi Film, he did Devdas first.
Sakti Pado RajGuru, Well known film critic and film story screenplay dialogue, Babu Kishan's friend
Uday Shankar, Indian Dance pioneer, Ravi Shankar's eldest brother, family friend and follower of Nabani
Nitish Mukherjee, Indian Cinema Film Director, Actor, Nabani Das Baul's follower
Nitin Bose, Indian Film Director, Nabani's friend and well wisher
Shantidev Ghosh, Nabani Das's great friend and follower, he was Rabindranath Tagore right hand and in charge of Visva Bharti Poush Mela. He was a long time dance teacher at Vishva Bharti.
He only allowed Purna Das Baul as the only Baul.
Ajit Ganguly, top Film Producer and Director, Biggest Devotee of Nabani Das, Hamsraj Movie
Deben Bhattacharya, Folklore colector who loved Nabani Das Khyapa Baul
Pahari Sanyal, Top Indian Film Actor Early Film, Nabani Das Khyapa Baul follower
Timir Baran, Top India Orchestra Director 200/300 musicians Nabani follower
Allauddin Khan, father of Ali Akbar Khan, Nabani Follower and well wisher.
Dr. Amartya Sen's Grandfather Kshiti Mohan Sen,
Ram Kinkar Baij,
Sita Ram Omkarnath,
Ravi Shakar,
The President of India Pranab Mukerjee,
Sonja Gandhi,
Rajiv Gandhi,
Dr. Ananda Shankar Roy, Oriya and Bengali Writer, loved Nabani's Mysticism
Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi, Minister and Professor of Babu Kishan and well wisher of Purna Das Baul
Tv Producer Abhijit Das Gupta,
Jyoti Basu W Bengal former chief Mininster, Diretor General of India Radio.
Dr Bhupeen Hazarika,
Mithun Charabhorty,
Bapi Lahari,
MF Huissen,
Chuni Goswami, Top football player, Manju Das Relative, loved Purna Das Baul
Shyam Benegal,
Amitabha Bachchana,
Satyajit Ray,
Mrinal Sen,
Zakir Hussain,
Ratan Tata and many, many more.
Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul is the only BAUL who has worked in Indian Cinema and Bollywood for 30 years in a big big way. He has, recorded composed and produced most of his father's music without taking credit or any payment, he did everything for his Calcutta family for free and gave them everything and in return they delivered negative prayers. A negative prayer is the opposite of being a well wisher.
All will be told in our upcoming book which is almost, ready for printing. There will be two books "The Rasa Lila Mystics" on this lineage and another book about Babukishan's life Baul to Bollywood to Canada and it will be unplugged.
2004 was the last time Babu Kishan met with the Rolling Stones in Bombay, note on the right, Baul Bowls Jagger over, it was Babu who picked Mic Jagger up from the airport. He has known them since 1971 when his father recorded at Mic Jaggers home studio in Nice France.
The American Poet Allen Ginsberg & Babu Kishan The Indian Poet
Babu Kishan is in the process of writing his personal story of his long friend and friendship with Allen Ginsberg. He is the only Baul who developed a long friendship with Allen Ginsberg.
Of course this friendship has it roots in Babu Kishan's Grandfather 'Nabani Das Khyepa Baul'who was an Avadhuta that Ginsberg met on his trip to India in '1962' and whom he kept a personal and private connection all his life. You can see Babu Kishan's link on Allen Ginsbergs Page under links, miscellany. Babu and Allen are both poets and they were mystical friends.
"From Sally Grossman's Baul Archive"
"We also are indebted to the influence of Allen Ginsberg, who met Nabani Das in the early 1960s and wrote “Indian Journals” and never wavered from his spiritual path; to Albert B. Grossman who brought Nabani’s sons Purna and Luxman Das Baul with their group to the US in 1967 to record for Elektra Records and tour; " oh you don't know who Sally Grossman is, well that just makes the point that you do not know what you are writing about copy and paste from papers that copy and paste from here and there."
Sally Grossman was Albert B Grossma's wife. Albert was the Music Producer of Bob Dylan. It was 'Allen Ginsberg' who contacted them to bring Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to America:
"Albert Bernard Grossman (May 21, 1926 – January 25, 1986) was an American entrepreneur and manager in the American folk music scene and rock and roll. He was famous as the manager of many of the most popular and successful performers of folk and folk-rock music, including Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Peter, Paul and Mary, the Band, Odetta, Gordon Lightfoot and Ian & Sylvia."
It should be noted that it was Allen Ginsberg who wanted to bring Nabani Das Khyepa Baul to America but he refused, thus he sent his two son's, Laxshman Das Baul and Purna Das Baul and their band.
http://allenginsberg.org/links/
Babu Kishan is in the process of writing his personal story of his long friend and friendship with Allen Ginsberg. He is the only Baul who developed a long friendship with Allen Ginsberg.
Of course this friendship has it roots in Babu Kishan's Grandfather 'Nabani Das Khyepa Baul'who was an Avadhuta that Ginsberg met on his trip to India in '1962' and whom he kept a personal and private connection all his life. You can see Babu Kishan's link on Allen Ginsbergs Page under links, miscellany. Babu and Allen are both poets and they were mystical friends.
"From Sally Grossman's Baul Archive"
"We also are indebted to the influence of Allen Ginsberg, who met Nabani Das in the early 1960s and wrote “Indian Journals” and never wavered from his spiritual path; to Albert B. Grossman who brought Nabani’s sons Purna and Luxman Das Baul with their group to the US in 1967 to record for Elektra Records and tour; " oh you don't know who Sally Grossman is, well that just makes the point that you do not know what you are writing about copy and paste from papers that copy and paste from here and there."
Sally Grossman was Albert B Grossma's wife. Albert was the Music Producer of Bob Dylan. It was 'Allen Ginsberg' who contacted them to bring Nabani Das Khyapa Baul to America:
"Albert Bernard Grossman (May 21, 1926 – January 25, 1986) was an American entrepreneur and manager in the American folk music scene and rock and roll. He was famous as the manager of many of the most popular and successful performers of folk and folk-rock music, including Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, Peter, Paul and Mary, the Band, Odetta, Gordon Lightfoot and Ian & Sylvia."
It should be noted that it was Allen Ginsberg who wanted to bring Nabani Das Khyepa Baul to America but he refused, thus he sent his two son's, Laxshman Das Baul and Purna Das Baul and their band.
http://allenginsberg.org/links/
