By Padma Narayanan The Hindu devotee’s God is endowed with all beauty. He is a paragon of all qualities ever conceived by the imperfect human mind and yet He is in some special way part of the devotee’s psyche. If a devotee occasionally forgets all mores of propriety and sees the divine form as someone dearer than anyone or anything else, that very closeness making all apparent inequalities disappear; and if all kinds of liberties are taken with that God, can that familiarity be faulted? Would it amount to sacrilege or blasphemy to bless God Himself or take Him to task for not coming to the devotee in his/her time of need? Our poetry is rich with any number of songs that, under the veil of ridicule adore our Gods and Goddesses, display a unique intimacy. Do we not have a Vaishnavite saint losing himself in the beauty of the Lord that he breaks out spontaneously with verses blessing the Lord that He may live for many years? WE HAVE AN ENTIRE TREASURE OF SONGS AND POEMS BELONGING TO THIS UNIQUE GENRE. WE HAVE DEVOTEES WHO CHIDE THEIR GODS FOR BEING INDIFFERENT TO THEIR NEEDS, SO MUCH SO THAT THEY ASK FOR THE INTERVENTION OF THE LORD’S CONSORT TO ADVOCATE THEIR CASES BEFORE HER HUSBAND. ‘WHEN HE IS ALONE WITH YOU, HAPPY IN YOUR COMPANY, WILL YOU REMIND HIM OF HIS OBLIGATION TO PROTECT ME?’ SINGS RAMADAS (‘NANNU BROVAMANI CHEPPAVE’). DEVOTEE NONPAREIL Saint Tyagaraja’s language is always direct and conversational. His identification with the Lord is so complete that now and then the dividing line between the master and the servant disappears. This servant of Rama has known his master so well and for so long that he indulges in certain leniencies in the way he communicates with Him. Very often, there is a tone of impatient mockery in Tyagaraja’s voice that is so endearing. The saint-poet wonders in one of his songs if Rama is indifferent towards him heeding the advice of someone. “Who did you listen to and so will not come to my help? Or are you not here?” (‘Evarimata’ – Khambodi). In another song the saint makes a bold attempt to ask the Lord, “Have you not yet considered coming to my protection? At this time of my agony, how can you bring yourself to sport merrily with your wife?’” (‘Mathilo Yochan’ – Kolahalam). The devotee-divinity relationship is so personal and intimate that the devotee is able to question the implied indifference that the Lord displays towards His bhakta. Wondering what could have caused such indifference, Tyagaraja questions, “Are you scared you’ll lose your wealth if you appear before me?” (‘Ethita Nilachite,’ – Sankarabharanam) and “Perhaps your grace will fall on me only if I own elephants and wealth?” (‘Tharithapu Lekha’ – Saveri). “REMEMBER YOU OWE ALL YOUR GRANDEUR TO HAVING MARRIED OUR JANAKI.” (‘MAA JANAKI’ – KHAMBODI) REMINDS TYAGARAJA. IN ANOTHER SONG HE EVEN DOUBTS IF RAMA HAS LOST ALL CONTROL OVER HIS SUBORDINATES: HE ASKS, “HAS YOUR MOUNT, THE BIRD-KING GARUDA, REFUSED TO BRING YOU TO MY SIDE SAYING THAT THE EARTH IS TOO FAR FROM THE CELESTIAL SKIES?” (‘NAGUMOMU’ – ABHERI.) “RAMA! HAS ANYONE WHO ASKED YOU FOR HAPPINESS EVER GOT IT? … SURPANAKA EXPRESSED HER DESIRE FOR YOU AND HAD HER NOSE CHOPPED OFF. DURVASA CAME EXPECTING A SUMPTUOUS MEAL AND FELT FULL EVEN BEFORE HE HAD EATEN,” CRIES THE POET IN DESPAIR. SRI RAMA IS EVEN ACCUSED OF BEING A CHEAT! “O, YES! HE PREACHES WELL. BUT HIS FAME AS ONE WHO GRANTS BOONS AND PROTECTS HIS DEVOTEES ARE ALL EMPTY WORDS.” (‘VARIJANAYANUDA’ – KEDARAGOWLA). AND MORE DIRECTLY, “YOU SAY SO MANY CONTRADICTORY THINGS. WHAT CAN I DO? YOU ARE LIKE THE ONE WHO ROCKS THE BABY AND PINCHES IT AS WELL!” (‘ATLA PALUKUTHU’ – ATANA). THERE ARE MANY MORE SUCH GEMS IN THE OCEAN OF TYAGARAJA’S SONGS THAT BRING A SMILE TO ONE’S LIPS. THE DEVOTEE IS IN SUCH TOTAL COMMUNION WITH HIS CHOSEN LORD AND LIKE A FOND MOTHER, LOVING WIFE AND INTIMATE FRIEND DOES NOT SEE THE NEED TO HAVE ANY RESERVATION IN EXPRESSING HIS EMOTIONS OF THE MOMENT. THE DEVOTEE-GOD RELATIONSHIP IS AS MUCH SACRED AS IT IS PERSONAL. SUCH IS THE TEXTURE OF A HINDU DEVOTEE’S LOVE FOR HIS PERSONAL GOD THAT THEY ARE ALMOST ONE. IS THIS KIND OF UNINHIBITED LOVE, A PREREQUISITE FOR THE ULTIMATE REALISATION OF ONE BEING DIVINITY ITSELF, AFFIRMING AN ADVAITIC STATE?
By Swami Gautmananda How does one practise Bhakti to the Supreme Brahman whose infinite glory is hailed by the scriptures as beyond description? They state that He is formless and that He is the very essence of Eternal Truth, Consciousness and Bliss. How does a simple Jivatma establish contact with such a great personality? Sri Ramakrishna used to answer this legitimate doubt in the hearts of many of his devotees by advocating the practice of meditating on any one of the forms of the Lord, say Rama, Krishna or Siva. Is there any need for a thirsty person to know the extent of water available in a lake or a pond when a cup of water is enough to slake his thirst? Though the Lord’s greatness is limitless, any form of God is enough for us to cultivate Bhakti. When a picture of the Lord or the stories of His Avatars can help one to meditate on Him, there is no need to take the trouble of trying to comprehend His infinite greatness. The Bhagavad Gita extols the quality of Bhakti as a sure path to salvation and Lord Krishna holds the Bhakta in great esteem. What the Lord expects from the Bhakta is sincerity, faith and true devotion. The Lord accepts whatever a devotee offers — a fruit, leaf, flower or a drop of water — looking only for his love and devotion to Him. The path of Jnana is difficult and it is easy for even the Jnani to succumb to the pulls of worldly attractions. All our sorrows are gone if we identify ourselves with the Atma rather than the body. This feeling liberates us from the limiting forces of worldly life. In Kali Yuga, doing one’s duties in an unattached matter can lead to Bhakti. This attitude to one’s day-to-day activities gradually leads our mind and thoughts to God. When we remember that all our actions, thoughts and words are on behalf of God and we just act as an instrument of God, there is no sense of ego with regard to the action. We also understand that the result of all our acts also is for the sake of God and not for any personal gain. The ultimate aim of every Jivatma is to get liberated from the cycle of birth. This is attainable through devotion.
Yatra yatra raghunatha kirtanam; Tatra tatra kritha masthakanjalim; Bhaspavaari paripurna lochanam; Maarutim namata raakshasanthakam Meaning : “We bow to Maruti, Sri Hanuman, who stands with his palms folded above his forehead, with a torrent of tears flowing down his eyes wherever the Names of Lord Rama are sung”. Sri Hanuman is worshipped all over India-either alone or together with Sri Rama. Every temple of Sri Rama has the murti or idol of Sri Hanuman. Hanuman is the Avatara of Lord Shiva. He was born of the Wind-God and Anjani Devi. His other names are Pavanasuta, Marutsuta, Pavankumar, Bajrangabali and Mahavira. He is the living embodiment of Ram-Nam. He was an ideal selfless worker, a true Karma Yogi who worked desirelessly and dynamically. He was a great devotee and an exceptional Brahmachari or celibate. He served Sri Rama with pure love and devotion, without expecting any fruit in return. He lived to serve Sri Rama. He was humble, brave and wise. He possessed all the divine virtues. He did what others could not do-crossing the ocean simply by uttering Ram-Nam, burning the city of Lanka, and bringing the sanjeevini herb and restoring Lakshmana to life again. He brought Sri Rama and Lakshmana from the nether world after killing Ahiravana. He had devotion, knowledge, spirit of selfless service, power of celibacy, and desirelessness. He never boasted of his bravery and intelligence. He said to Ravana, “I am a humble messenger of Sri Rama. I have come here to serve Rama, to do His work. By the command of Lord Rama, I have come here. I am fearless by the Grace of Lord Rama. I am not afraid of death. I welcome it if it comes while serving Lord Rama.” Mark here how humble Hanuman was! How very devoted he was to Lord Rama! He never said, “I am the brave Hanuman. I can do anything and everything.” Lord Rama Himself said to Sri Hanuman, “I am greatly indebted to you, O mighty hero! You did marvellous, superhuman deeds. You do not want anything in return. Sugriva has his kingdom restored to him. Angada has been made the crown prince. Vibhishana has become king of Lanka. But you have not asked for anything at any time. You threw away the precious garland of pearls given to you by Sita. How can I repay My debt of gratitude to you? I will always remain deeply indebted to you. I give you the boon of everlasting life. All will honour and worship you like Myself. Your murti will be placed at the door of My temple and you will be worshipped and honoured first. Whenever My stories are recited or glories sung, your glory will be sung before Mine. You will be able to do anything, even that which I will not be able to!” Thus did Lord Rama praise Hanuman when the latter returned to Him after finding Sita in Lanka. Hanuman was not a bit elated. He fell in prostration at the holy feet of Lord Rama. Lord Rama asked him, “O mighty hero, how did you cross the ocean?” Hanuman humbly replied, “By the power and glory of Thy Name, my Lord.” Again the Lord asked, “How did you burn Lanka? How did you save yourself?” And Hanuman replied, “By Thy Grace, my Lord.” What humility Sri Hanuman embodied! On this holy day worship Sri Hanuman. Fast on this day. Read the Hanuman Chalisa. Spend the whole day in the Japa of Ram-Nam. Sri Hanuman will be highly pleased and will bless you with success in all your undertakings. Glory to Hanuman! Glory to his Lord, Sri Rama!
One of the verses of Vairagya chatakam says that the sun rises and sets regularly and by the rising and setting of the sun, the days are rolling by. This happening so regularly and so fast that we are not aware that the time is rolling by, meaning we are becoming older and older and our lives shorter and shorter. We are not aware of this because we are so busy doing what we do. New Year’s day means yet another year has come, yet another year has gone. And Yama is a little nearer. Our names may not appear in today’s obituary column but we are all in the queue only. To avoid this tragedy, Bharthruhari gives an upadesam (advice) – do not postpone good things for a later time. We have a notion that scriptural study is to be undertaken at the time of retirement, after completing all other jobs. Bharthruhari says our faculties will not function at that time – the eyes will not see and the ears will not hear. When the sense organs are functioning well, when the fag end of life has not yet come, an alert person, a thinking person, a mature person should think of leading a healthy , prosperous and fruitful life. When the house is on fire, it is foolish to begin digging a well. So also at the fag end of life, it is foolish to begin doing good things. We must start right away. If we want a suitable day to begin, the New Year’s day is very auspicious. What should we do to make our lives fruitful? The scriptures emphasise three things – yagna, danam, and tapas. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna emphasises these three to a great extent. Yagna – Yagna means worship. We all know worship in the form of daily puja, going to temples, doing abhisheka , etc. Lord Krishna talks about a higher, refined form of worship – converting life itself into worship. ‘Let the very living, the life be an offering to the Lord’. Swami Chinmayananda used to make a wonderful statement – ‘The life that we have is a wonderful gift from the Lord and what we do with this life is our gift, our offering to the Lord’. If we are going to look upon our life as a gift of the Lord, what type of life it should it be? It should be the best. And when it is offered, it must be offered with a cheerful and smiling face. There must be cheerfulness. Thus two conditions must be fulfilled – the gift should be the best and it must be offered with cheerfulness and happiness. Our life should be the best. What does this mean? It does not mean earning money, success, name, and fame. It means the most sincere life. We should be able to do what we love to do we should learn to love what we have to do. If this is possible, our heart will be in what we do and so will our sincerity. This will be the best gift to the Lord. Predominantly there must be cheerfulness. We may wonder whether this is possible in today’s troubled times. By being cynical or cheerful, the situation is not going to change. So why not be cheerful? When the cup is half-full, we can either say it is half-full or half-empty. So why not say it is half-full? Why can’t we have a positive approach? Enjoying what we love to do and learning to love and enjoy what we have to do is the best yagna to the Lord. Danam – We all know what danam means. Danam is charity or gift which we all do. However there is one gift that is very, very important. That is the gift of love. This is the most important gift because it is one thing everybody is craving for. Rich, or poor, success or failure, love is craved for by all people at all times under all circumstances. It is the best gift because even if other gifts are not made, it does not matter. On the other hand, without love, all other gifts remain incomplete. Love makes all other gifts valid and meaningful. It makes the giver a saintly person. Love is both the cause and the consequence of spiritual growth. We may claim ‘I love my family and children’. Love is only an inner feeling, attitude, etc. Love is invisible. Love belongs to the mind. So when we talk of love, we mean expressed love or activated love. Feelings can never become a gift. What do we mean by expression of love? The best expression of love is giving our time and attention for the other person, to share his life and more than his life, his feelings. Of course, if we have to give our time to everyone, we will not have the time and it will be impractical. So the best place to practice the gift of expressed love is one’s own family, by giving time and our fullest attention to every member of the family and going through the feelings of the other person. We share the happiness and unhappiness without judging whether it is justified or not. We need not give a remedy or talk or reply except to say a few words that will lead to healthy sharing. At least once a day we should make ourselves avaibale to our family members. This is the best expression of love and also the cause of our inner growth. If we are not able to grow in this, all our danam is only mechanical danam. Even our scriptural study will not be meaningful. Giving our time to others is one of the indices of spiritual growth. Today many people who have family problems have only this complaint. – family members do not provide time for one another. Many people are shattered even though they are well provided for. All that is required is to say a few words and ask the other person ‘How are you? ‘How was your day?’ This requires only a few minutes. Then the atmosphere in the family becomes so wonderful that all other lapses are not even noticed. Today when many families are nuclear families, the gift of giving the quality time and going through the feelings of the other person is the best Danam. Tapas – Tapas is a discipline or austerity. There are a variety of disciplines we have to follow, e.g. fasting on ekadasi. The most important tapas is vak tapas – austerity or discipline at the verbal level. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna defines vak tapas. Our words should have four qualities to make it an austerity – avoiding verbal violence, satyam, priyam, and hitam. We must avoid verbal violence which is the most powerful and worst form of violence. The words should be truthful. There should be no chasm between our mind and words. When we say something, it is because we mean it. Priyam means kindness. Our words must be soft, polite, and gentle. Hitam means beneficial. Before uttering any words we should think two things – whether it is beneficial to us (which we will do anyway) and whether it is beneficial to the other person. Vak tapas requires that we must be very alert. Before coming out, the words must go through a ‘metal detector’ inside us that acts like a quality control meter filtering the words and giving the stamp of quality. Thus by following the three disciplines of yagna, danam, and tapas, we can make our life fruitful.
The Vishnu Gayatri shows us that the Lord is everywhere, and the Narayana mantra is the most efficacious of all mantras. But in order to benefit through a recitation of the Narayana mantra, we must have bhakti towards the Lord, K.B. Devarajan said in a discourse. Suppose there is a tank full of water. There are three orifices in the tank, which are kept plugged. Suppose even one of the plugs is removed, all the water will drain out. Similarly, in order to get the benefit of the Narayana mantra, there are three holes that we must plug — lack of bhakti towards the Lord, lack bhakti towards one’s Acharya and lack of belief in the efficacy of the mantra. We often lack all the three requisites. We lack bhakti towards the Lord, whom the mantra extols. We lack bhakti towards the Acharya who teaches us the mantra. Or we lack faith in the mantra itself. A mere recitation, without faith, is not going to help us. All the three conditions are essential for us to reap the benefits of the mantras taught by our Acharyas. Those in samsaric life are in a pitiable condition. They have forgotten who they are. They have forgotten who God is. So they do not serve God. And the saddest part is that they are not sorry to have forgotten God. They are like a man who has lost his property, does not know he has lost his property, and is therefore not sorry about his loss. The Lord has great sympathy for our plight and is eager to save us, if only we have bhakti towards Him. Bhakti yoga is difficult for most of us. That is why the Lord shows us the path of surrender at His feet. But we do not even resort to this, often. We will resort to surrender only if we have the knowledge about our ‘atma’ and about God. An ignorant man does not know that he is imprisoned in a cycle of births and deaths, and to escape from this repeating sorrow, he must surrender at the Lord’s feet. If we understand the Lord’s qualities of kindness and willingness to forgive us for our transgressions, love for God will result, and will prompt us to resort to surrender.
Embodying good qualities What is the nature of Lord Narayana’s form, when He takes avataras? While those of us on earth have bodies that are made up of Satva, Rajas and Tamas, His form is always pure Satva, said Adur Asuri Madhavachari. Swami Desika points out that in all His avataras, whether as Rama or Krishna or Trivikrama, He retains all these auspicious qualities, thereby demonstrating His Supremacy. Lord Narayana is the opposite of all bad qualities, and the embodiment of all good ones. But those who still harbour doubts, then turn their attention to the Narsasimha avatara, and wonder how the half- man, half- lion form is also auspicious. There need be no doubts on this count. It is one of the three complete avataras, the other two being the Rama and Krishana avataras. In the Vishnu Sahasranama, it is the Narasimha avatara that is mentioned first among all the avataras. Narasimha came heeding the calls of a child, and that too the child of an asura. It is said that Lord Narayana came as Narasimha for the sake of Prahlada. But a better way of putting it would be to say that He came in order that Prahlada’s words might be proved true. The Lord is always true to His words. He never slips from them. Nor does He let his devotees’ words prove false. Prahlada had declared to his father Hiranyakasipu that the Lord was there everywhere. That is why the Lord took His position in all pillars, for He wanted to be at hand, whichever pillar Hiranayakasipu chose to strike. He wanted to show that He would never allow His devotees’ words to be proved false. Whatever form pleases His bhaktas, is a form that He readily assumes, and in doing so, the Lord loses none of His auspicious qualities. His form remains always pure and untainted. Nammazhvar shows this to us, by saying that He is the One who is on earth, heaven and also in the space between heaven and earth. He is one and the same everywhere, with no dilution in His qualities. His form is pure everywhere and at all times. He is unmatched and Supreme, and yet simplicity is His defining quality. Else would He hasten to the side of Prahlada, in His half-man, half-lion form
Clips of some early chanting and the first Puja from the February 2010 Sivaratri celebration at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Ranch in Woodbourne NY with Swami Sadasivananda and Srinivasan.
Bhairava is the guardian deity of the abode of God shiva. So he is called Kshetrapala. The term Bhairava means “Terrific”. As the guardian of the abode of Lord, his form is very fierce, with ery many kind of weapons, naked and decorated with skull and having a smileShuna vahanar. on the face that threatens the wrong doers and protects the devotees. He has a dog as his vehicle. So he is referred as bhairava is not a form of Lord shiva, but a form very closely associated and he is one of the powers assigned by the Lord. It is the custom that the keys of the temple are submitted to bhairava after the pujas are completed for the day and again taken from him the next morning before the opening. As the guardian deity he is also worshipped after any of the festivals at the temple. bhairava would be having an abode naturally in all the Lord shiva temples. The Kasiaranasi) abode is much renowned abode of bhairav, as he is the protector of that whole city – the holy land of the Lord Vishvanath. Adishankara has sung a stotra in praise of Kala Bhairava of Kashi. (V Purana of the deity When brahma and Vishnu were got into an argument who is the supreme, Lord shiva appeared as the column of fire in between them. Kala Bhairava cut off the fifth head of brahma that lied in ego and he having that skull of brahma as the bowl, bhairava took the blood of Maha Vishnu in that. The two got to understand their mistake and worshipped Lord shiva. God appointed bhairava to be the protector deity. He also appointed him as the protector of the town Kashi. Bhairava ensures that nobody misuses the belongings of Lord Shiva and he is dreaded to punish and correct those who misuse the temple properties. Various Bhairava Murthams Kalabhairavar Acithanga Bhairavar Krotha Bhairavar Kanda Bhairavar Unmaththa Bhairavar Kapala Bhairavar Vibushana Bhairavar Marththanda Bhairavar Suthandhira Bhairavar Svecca Bhairavar Loka Bhairavar Ugra Bhairavar Praccaiya Bhairvar Ninmanava Bhairavar Bushana Bhairavar This deity who appears terrific is the protector of the devotees. His valour gives courage to good people and deterence to those who do the wrong things so that they get corrected.
Bangalore, Jun 12: Gali Janardhan Reddy, the Karnataka tourism minister and Bellary mine baron on Thursday, Jun 12 offered a diamond-studded crown worth Rs 42 crore to Lord Ventakeswara Temple in Tirupati. With this he became the biggest donor to the Lord Venkateswara since the Vijayanagara kings 400 years ago. Buzz up! Minister said that the 20-kg crown was a ‘thanksgiving’ gesture. Sources said that 32kg of ‘aparanji (pure)’ gold went into its making, besides 70,000 diamonds weighing 4,000 carats. The 2.5-ft crown has a huge 890-carat emerald from Africa engraved in the centre which alone costs around Rs 10 crore. The crown was placed on the Lord’s idol during Abhishekam seva on Friday, Jun 12 morning. It was earlier kept in the Vaibhavotsava Mandapam in Tirumala and special pujas were performed. After a ritual called Sahasra Deepalankara seva, it was taken around on a procession along with the deity, Lord Malayappa Swamy. Then the crown was taken inside the sanctum sanctorum. Coimbatore (TN) based Keertilal Jewellers took nine months to fashion the crown. With this crown, the total number of crowns placed with the Lord has gone up to seven. This precious crown has been added to the jewel treasury of Lord which holds over 11 tonnes of gold ornaments and vessels. Visit Priya Anand’s following web site for Crystal Jwellery http://www.douechrystal.com/
Pnduranga Vittala & Temple above Bhajan is a Hindu devotional song often known as Kirtan. It is of ancient origin and sung with utmost devotion to God. Bha in the word Bhajan means that which is bhaavyam (sacred or holy), that Atma Tatwa (Principle of Atma) which is divyam (self-effulgent). The letters Ja in the word bhajan connotes japa (chanting of the Lord’s name). Bhajan literally means chanting the sacred name of Lord with utmost devotion. This act of singing with devotion makes one feel closer to true self (atma or jeeva) or to God (Brahma or Ishwara). In other words, Rasanam Lakshanam Bhajanam, acts which are performed for the purpose of pleasing God also known as Bhajans. Such devotional form of singing is heavenly to human ears and truly divine. Bhajans have been deep rooted in Indian tradition than anything else. They are simple soulful songs expressing undying love for God, a complete submission to Him through singing. This is one of the constituents of Bhakti for Haridasa to acquire the highest level in devotion (The other being Faith). These songs can be for a single God/Goddess, or any number of divinities, sometimes featuring several names and aspects of the chosen deity (esp in case of Ashtottarams and Sahasranamas). The music based on ragas and talas of Indian Classical Music played on Veena, Sarangi Venu (Flute), Mridanga (Tabla) or any traditional Indian instrument. The Sikh Scripture, however, contains 31 ragas and 17 talas which form the basis for Bhajan (Kirtan) music compositions. Bhajans can be seen in as old as Sama Veda, third Veda in Hindu scriptures. They have a very easy flow and their colloquial renderings differentiate them from the Shlokas (which for most people are much difficult to utter). They usually are sung in group by devotees, with one or more lead singers. The theme for a Bhajan is based on lives of Gods, their preachings, preachings of saints, glories of Gods and descriptions. Tunes are often fixed and words and phrases are repeated through out the bhajan. Bhajans have come a long way from when they were introduced first in Sama Veda. Types of Bhajans: Bhajans are typically classified into the following. There is no basic criteria for definign these types, but just the way they have been either formed or sung or who sang them. 1) Suprabhata Bhajans: Bhajans that are sung in the praise of Lord early morning to wakeup the Lord. Suprabhatam for Sri Ramakrishna,Sri Panduranga at pandharpur,Sri Kashi Visshwanath etc. are some good examples for Suprabhata Bhajan. 2) Avarohana Bhajans: Bhajans that are song in a descending order of the swaras (notes) in the early morning come under this category. Bhajagovindam sung in praise of Lord Venkateshwara is one good example for such Bhajans. 3) Aarohana Bhajans: Bhajans sung in ascending order of swaras (or notes) mostly during the evening or close to night are placed under this category. Shej Arathi sung for Shirdi Saibaba is a good example for Aarohana Bhajan. 4) Haridas Kitran: A well-known bhajan form is Haridas Kirtan where the bhajans are story-lined and revolve around the Gods and Godesses. 5) Sampradaya Bhajans: Also known as Dakshina Bharatha Sampradaya Bhajana is famous mainly in South India. Its a collection of Keertanas and Namavalis in a specific order which was evolved mainly by Sri Marudhanallur Sadguru Swamigal, Sri Pudukottai Gopala Krishna Bhagavathar, the trinity gurus for Sampradaya Bhajans. Sringeri Bhajans: A form of bhajan popularly known as Jyothirbhan is another form of Bhajan which has been uplifted from past 50 years by Sr. R. V. Krishnabhat in Bangalore. These bhajans have a flavor of classical raga and touch of tala perfection. They also have a mix of modern bhajans, kirtans and traditional bhajans. 6) Shyama Sangeet/Kali Kirtan: Shyama Sangeet is a genre of Bengali devotional songs dedicated to the Mother Shyama or Kali. It is also known as Shaktagiti. Shyama Sangeet appeals to the common man because it is a musical representation of the relationship of eternal and sublime love and care between the mother and her child. It is free of the common rituals of worship and also the esoteric practice of the Tantra.In modern times both Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam have composed poems of Shyama Sangeet genre. The term ‘Shyama’ refers to the skin color of Kali (usually depicted in black or deep blue.) Literally, it means dusky (or wheatish). Shyamasangeet can be divided into two streams: devotional or metaphysical and Umasangit, Agamani or Vijaya songs. The first category of songs is inspired by devotion and spiritual thoughts. The second category which is based on themes of daily family matters or social events, is known as Padavali, Umasangit, Agamani or Vijaya songs. Shyama Sangeet conceptualizes Goddess Kali as a loving human mother and the singer is longing for The Mother’s love. The songs have become popular not only for it’s devotional side, but also for it’s human appeal. The theme and occasion of Āgāmanī and Vijayā songs are as follows. Umā or Gaurī, daughter of Himālaya and Menakā, was married to Śiva, the Lord of Kailāsa. The Goddess Durga comes to see her parents from her in laws every year. The goddess is portrayed here as an ordinary girl living far away from her mother and feels joyous to come back home after a long stay at her in laws’ place. These songs too are highly popular because of their human appeal and as they are easily identifiable with any married girl living far away from their parents.
