Mystic Baul Tantra, Tantra Mantra Gopi Yantra
Copyright all rights reserved, this was written many years ago.
Babu Kishan's 4th book on Baul to be released soon.
Copyright, no poaching. All rights reserved by Babu Kishan, no copying and taking the names of the stories off, no using by any pretendian Bauls. There is a huge problem of fake Bauls, with fake Baul Guru's and made up fake lineages stealing the intellectual property of this indigenous lineage. What do they steal, the songs, dress, style of dance and instruments, what this lineage has already accomplished by taking their names off and pretendian they are the ones? No integrity, no truth NO BAUL, Satya (truth) is the first tenant of Baul. Seriously what more can we do except mentioning names. Once again, repeat, repeat, it appears to make no difference, some fake Bauls have no integrity or morals, they are actors?
No poaching by pretendian Bauls or people who using this indigenous ancestral lineages, songs, stories, style, where they go and what they have already accomplished. Thank you, however, Baul is complete it was preserved over a 60 period by Babu Kishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul. Note: Das Baul and Dasi and Khyapa (kepa, Khepa Baul or Baba) only originate from this lineage. (Ektara, Baya (duggi) drum tied around the waist, and Nuppor ankle bells encased in metal only originate from Nabani Das Khyapa Baul? Baul is not one or two generations based on a poet or random Guru's, it is a long ancestral sampradaya. The copy and paste and the' intellectual theft' of this lineage, and Babu Kishan's songs is astronomical and all will be qualified and reclaimed one by one, those who are Masters at appropriated be for-warned all will be revealed, you can fool some of the people some of the time but not all the people all of time.
A tribute: 'The Bauls of Bengal' since the 1920's when Nabani Das Khyapa became a part of the free Indian Movement, where Nehru asked him to sing on stages around Bengal and India as an opener for his speaches. Nabani sang at the inauguration of India in 1947. His son Purna Das Baul being the first to do Baul Cultural Programs as a famed Indian singer first in Russia in the 1950's. Then in the USA starting in 1967 with his brother Laxshman Das Baul and his group called, 'The Bauls of Bengal' pioneering historical living lineage for over 70 years now, in the 1970's Babu Kishan composed the music, recorded and released over 80% of his fathers most famous music, the music all Bauls sing today.
All (pretendian) Baul have followed this one and only lineage, through their songs, style, history and through everything Babu Kishan has written since the 1970's even copying his teaching at Universities around the world, his music recording, his 40 year career in Indian Cinema, and his 12 years of being a monk in the Ramakrishna order, whatever he has completed, what his father has complete and what Nabani has completed has been copied. Baul history is complete, you can not remake the wheel of Baul history and herstory, and that includes Babu Kishan's mother Manju Das whose name has been deleted along with Brajabala Dasi and Radharani Das as the only legendary Baul women, whose story was complete decades ago. Trying to remake the wheel of Baul history at this point is cultrual appropriationg and riding on the coattails of this lineage, deleting this history and replacing it for personal fame is wrong, especially when we are talking about an already marginalized indigenous ancestral people.
This at least documented 13 generations introduced Baul to India and the world without them, no one in this world would know about Baul.
by Trishula Sandra Das and Babu Kishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul
Nabani Das Khyappa Baul, photo by RabindraNath Tagore
The Bengali Tantric Saint Sri Ramakrishna Parmahamsa saw Baul as the ultimate. It is said that Ramakrishna told his wife Sri Sarada Devi that in his next life he would be reborn as a Baul as his ultimate desire.
Babukishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul born into this ancient lineage of Tantric Vaishnava Baul is a rare Baul because he is the only Baul to be a monk in Ramakrishna order in Calcutta for 12 years. Babu is the first Baul to be educated at the Calcutta University with a Masters in Indian Music. A Master of Indian Music folk, classical, Bollywood, bhajan, kirtan and Baul he has composed over 150 scores for Indian Cinema.
While he was at the Ramakrishna Order the older monks knew Babu Kishan's grandfather Nabani Das Khyappa Baul they knew he was huge well respected mystical source and delighted in telling him stories that only an insider could know about Ramakrishna. Ramakrishna thought Baul was a complete university, that Baul was the most advanced path of tantric sadhana. Lineage Baul's know the tantra to easily connect to the supreme power to pull this power into every moment as if they have their finger on the light switch.
"I tell you, O friend! What is in my heart? I cannot live without a sympathetic heart. The man of the heart is recognized by his look. He is rare; he swims in bliss and is steeped in love. The man of the heart trades in love. Where can we find the man of the heart, Who carries only a tattered rag under his arm" He does not say a word; he travels the high road. by Ramakrishna regarding Baul
"The siddha (perfect individual) of the Shakta Cult is called a kaul. According to Vedanta, he is called a paramahamsa. According to Baul Vaishnavas, he is a Sain. There is none beyond the Sain. A Baul becomes a Sain when he is a siddha. For him, there are no differences in the world. One half of his necklace is made of cow bones and the other of the tulsi plant." Ramakrishna Kathamrita
Bauls are storyteller, mystic spiritual bards, philosophers, poets, tantrics, singers, dancers the path of the Avadhut. Baul is both dual and nondual.
The Vaishnava Bhakti Tantric Baul's of Birbhum respect and worship 'puja' shakti the feminine divine first, they worship Radha first then Krishna, and simultaneously will worship Kali first then Shiva. Saraswati (Sarada Maa) is very important to the Bauls.
Bauls were sattvic with long hair pulled up into a top knot, women wore their hair long and pulled back. Nabani Das Khyappa Baul was a rare Baul he wore his hair in jata or dread locks because he truly was an Avadhut, and the one and only Tantric Baul who lived his life completely as a Mystic Baul.
There is a reason that a sadhu has jata or (dreadlocks) it is not just style, drawing attention or for show. Sadhu's have Jata because they are always in deep sadhana they don't have time to decorate or clean their hair they spend years in sadhana in the mountains or in caves far from people.
Nabani Das Khyappa Baul wandered in the mountains up to Nepal and Tibet, he wandered to Vrindavan and all over India that is why he had Jata (dreadlocks) not for style or to attract people. When he stopped his wandering ways later in life he shaved his head then he didn't need Jata he was already a Guru, a Baul Saint (Sain) an accomplished adept siddha to the highest degree. He was an extraordinary person that is why all the top intellects, poets, writers, creative people, politicians including Rabindranath Tagore were around him all the time.
Nabani Das Khyappa Baul photo by RabindraNath Tagore
To be a tantric Baul one must have experience in everything in life and have no fear, it is not a beginners path of scholarly trying to interpret and figure out what scriptures mean. On first is an oral sanskritist.
There are two types of Baul and Sri Nabani Das Khyappa Baul is both.
1) Ghrihi Baul is a Baul who lives in a family inside the house, with community and sadhu sanga in community or home. This lineage is Vaishnava so they would live a Vaishnava lifestyle very sweet and sattvic vegetarian, they would have cows and be farmers.
2) Udasi Baul is mostly male because of the culture of India it is easier for a man and wander away from home not so easy for a women. Udasi is a person without family without community a free bird, free spirit as in wandering sadhu and in sadhu sanga but a different sanga from the householder. A sanga around the dumi doing fire puja they are more open than family.
Babu Kishan and Guru Grandfather Nabani Das Khyappa Baul
Rasa Tattva
"A Baul once came here. I said to him, “Are you finished with all the work of refining? Is the pot down from the fire?” The more you boil the syrup, the more refined it will be. First you have the juice of the sugar cane, next molasses, after which lumps, next sugar, then sugar candy, hard sugar balls, etc. It is being refined continuously." Ramakrishna Kathamrita
In the above Sri Ramakrishna is talking about the Baul Tantric technique called Rasa Tattva.
Baul Tantra and more specifically the tantra of Rasa Tattva distills, grinds and churns everything inside into ecstatic intoxicating honey and juice then lets it flow. All experience, all shastra, all teachings are turned inside and the tantra is to create a beautiful rasa, creating a intoxicating juice that is distilled into a paradoxical sometimes maddeningly unambiguous or elusive song or poetry filled with riddle and allegory.
Through Rasa Tattva one song is a seed for a whole discourse, one song is the whole Bhagavad Gita. It all takes place through rhythm because as Babukishan says, "our life is based on rhythm". The Rasa Lila Mystics are the biggest trance music and dance, they believe in nature their instruments are made from nature, they take from nature and give to nature because there is a connection.
Bauls were the spiritual newspaper and internet before modern technology, they never thought about copyright or protecting their lineage they just gave freely, they never foresaw that the world would change and the world of copy and paste would be a reality. They never for told of the watering down of their tradition, and that others would claim their lineage, dissect it and reduce it. Time has changed the Bauls must adapt also.
Tantra of Baul Music and sound
A Baul Yantra is not the same as the usual geometrical yantra's, you could say their tools for Tantra are different. A Baul Yantra is called a (Gopi Yantra) it is an ektara the one stringing instrument of peace and unity.They puja their tool the ektara infusing it through sadhana bringing spirit into it, much care and respect is given the ektara just as one would give a mala that has gone thousands of rounds. When a Baul plays any of their instruments they treat it how one would treat a Deity, they are playing the divine they are focusing on a inner divine formula or yantra.
Babu Kishan aka Krishnendu Das Baul with his Gopi Yantra at Sivananda Ashram in Bahamas 2011
When Babu Kishan started his world travels in the early 1970's at a very young age he has visited Universities around the world teaching Baul first with his parents and then by himself . Babu always been a vocal adversary regarding all the wrong things that have been written about Baul, he is a Guru and scholar mystic of his tradition how can an outsider even claim to be an authority of his tradition because they have written a book or have a PHD on Baul. This is called cultural appropriation and a silencing of the tradition because more often than not it would require them to write a new book or update and they refuse to.
Babu strongly feels that when a person is representing a community by teaching about Baul on any level, writing books the books should be accurate and truthful, you are representing a living tradition it is not meant to be chopped up dissected and put a box. They are not field work or monkey's in a cage. Books on Baul are not accurate.
Dear friends of Babu's and this lineage of Baul. George Harrison & Babukishan 1986. Ravi Shankar & Babu & Ravi's his son a friend of Babu's. In 1986 George Harrison and Ravi Shankar helped with the publishing of Babu aka Krishnendu's book on The Bauls of Bengal.
Someone recently asked me how can a Baul be Vaishnava Tantric or a tantric at the shamshan cremation ground as well as being Vaishnava? This is the Baul way it is called Sahaja spontaneous natural flowing they do not follow rules and regulations it varies for each and every Baul. Some Bauls lean more Vaishnava especially the householder, their practices are pure Vaishnava, they are poets, singers and dancers, living a simple sattvic life, they do simple right handed tantric techniques. Some are adept Bauls doing Tantric practices in cave and cremation grounds it can be a combination.
Babu Kishan his mother and father. Purna Das Baul, the late (2010) Manju Dasi and Babu Kishan legendary Baul pioneers they traveled the world together constantly for 4 decades and played on the worlds biggest stages. Babukishan composed and recorded most of his father's music and was their manager.
Kirtan, yoga, tantra are indigenous to India we can gain a benefit but the feeling is different the bhava (emotion and mood) is different, respect is different. I never ever see someone in the west talking to a Deity, crying and pleading to a Deity, it is very rare to see someone speaking out loud to thin air or walking down the street singing out loud everyday. Some do but they are not advanced Yogi's or people who do Yoga in the west. This wild uncontrolled display of emotion is the Bhakti way not always nicey nice controled
How is a western mind to understand Baul Tantra? First one must take themselves out of a book, scholarly box or religious box, then one must take themselves out of a western mind box of thinking in a linear straight line. A Baul plays in the unseen world between the lines a shamanic world of mystery and all Baul Tantra is based on deep love and respect.
Hari is the lover of Love without Hari there is no Love. Babukishan
One must realize India and the Bauls are a paradox and meant to confuse so that the unauthentic or even the unprepared are kept far away. Baul does not reject intellect they have a razer sharp genius intellect at least they should.
Baul does not reject anything, except being tied to the corner of the room. They are freedom seekers, free birds which I am sure does not mean the same thing as the western mind, when I say free bird here I am saying it in a mystical sense it does not mean anything goes as Bauls do have limits.
"Bauls are the bird people we like to fly, we do not like to walk." Babu Kishan
Babu Kishan 2007 Fairfax California, this place is very special to us, as this is where we spent alot of time, Babu Kishan has had a long association with this place and all of California since the 1970's. Picture by Sandra Trishula Das
A small taste of Baul Tantra: a tiny synopsis and remember this only pretains to this lineage, there is no other lineage or sampradaya of Baul, random people have used Baul over the past decades, making up lineages and sampradaya's that do not even exist. This can all be proved.
Baul sadhana - one attains an inner vision, without inner vision one is blind to 95% of reality. You must be able to move freely outside of your body mystically, one needs a well developed GPS system or intuition and beyond. There are too many part of Baul sadhana to mention. One unique to Baul is setting up the altar of your heart and being able to bring the Deities alive inside the human body. How to do Kali Sadhana and or Tara Sadhana, Shiva Sadhana, how to respect because without respect there is no Baul. Mantra, Music and sound healing. Learning all the stories of all Deity, they respect all as part of the whole in a natural spontaneous way.
Baul darshan - the philosophy of Baul which includes all Indian Philosophies distilled into simple songs with discourses.
The Sadhana of tattva's information about all the things in the universe samkhya philosophy, they include 108 tattva's where 25 and 36 are usually given.
Manush sadhana(Manaba Dharma), practices that teach about humanity Bauls believe in being a good human first. Bauls are peacemakers understanding the human condition. Unity of all cultures, caste and creed, love and accept all.
Guru tattva - things about the Guru, the Guru teaches through song, here one would also, learn the importance of respect, Joy Guru.
Nayika sadhana partner sadhana - where all focus goes to the soul mate, sadhana of a partner constant connection, mystical love, strong attachment, all imagination and poetic thought is directed around the partner. Concentration and focus are needed a deep yogic focus as there are so many distractions in this world today. The partners feel each other deeply if one is sick the other feels the connection is strong, they are joined at the heart and above the head tied together no words are needed. This is soul to soul and has very little to do with the body.
Rati car-dande sadhana, Kama and Kamini sutra, desire, again a mystical yoga not regular unconsious sex. Bauls use the word Rati Sangam for mystical union between soul mates or Monar Manush, a women Baul is called a Baulini. This sadhana is a higher level advanced mystical practice not for regular people. In most traditions we are taught to give up attachment but without attachments there is no deep love, this goes against the grain of what many are teaching.
Love a love that is ecstatic, crazy, wild, love and a love in all the hearts bhava's (moods), then comes years and years of being a mystic, sadhana and meditation as a couple. To do the Rati practices you must be awakened and have all your energy channels open. Baul Kundalini Yoga is flowing waves of bliss (ananda larhari).
Udasi Bauls do not even need a partners they can easily reach to that level through their mystical sadhana of creating all inside their factory including their ideal women.
Lila tattva, the love between Radha and Krishna and how the Rasa Lila is created in the body, the inner dance that takes place on the altar of the heart. This is a rare esoteric practice that takes years to Master it is a Vaishnava Baul Tantric practice and part of their lineage going back to the beginning of the story of Radha and Krishna.
Pra or Poro tattva - knowledge of other, including face reading, prasna, mystical ways of knowing, vastu ect.
Rasa tattva - how to grind all of everything and make it into a juice. A very important practice for the Bauls I have described a bit of it above. Again, it is taught under a Baul Guru and takes years if not a few lifetimes. If someone is a Baul Master you can be sure they have spent lifetimes and this life is not the first time they have been Tantric or a Baul.
Atma tattva - techniques of self realization, God realization, samadhi and the different ways to achieve samadhi and the different kinds of samadhi. Knowledge about your soul your monar manush and atma (bliss, pure consciousness, and your eternal nature).
Vayu Dharma, pranayama, controlling the wind, the wind catchers, Hanuman-ji the son of the wind God, they have their own unique techniques and this is a very important part of Baul because the very name Baul comes from Vayu (wind).
Deha tattva - knowledge of the body, yoga, Nabani Das Baul was a legendary Yogi who meditated under water sometimes for a whole day, sankhya philosophy, elements, gunas, anatomy, the kosha's, energy centres aka known as Chakra's but the Bauls use different ones, a Baul needs to know how the machinery works, how all the joints, organs work, how the mind works emotional mind (manas), intellectual mind (buddhi), how the body is put together and all the layers of the body. Ayurveda Indian's system of healing, art and science of life itself. Remedies, healing herbs. All the tattva's things some systems say there are 25 others say there are 36, Baul has108 tattva's but also, says it is unlimited.
Shakti sadhana - the worship of shakti the feminine divine, women are held in the highest respect, as above so below, in the world not of the world, Joy Maa. There are many famous women Bauls they take their side as equal to their husbands. Tantric techniques of worshiping the Goddess of India Baul favorites are Kali Maa, Radha, Tara Maa and Saraswati, Mahavidya, Durga Maa
Samgita and nitya sadhana - music and dance, Baul learns the deep Tantra of Indian music and sound healing, how to connect to the divine through music. This is the highest Tantra. Perhaps because it is not easy to open your inner ear to a high level and become a master of Indian music.
Bhava sadhana - learning what the moods are, this is where I say Indian Bhakti is different from western because their moods and emotions are so very different. A person of European DNA which is our ancestral memory is different from an Indian's ancestoral memory. One is not better than the other but they are different so are their ways and emotions.
Guruvada - the talk of the Guru, learning from the Guru. Guru shishya parampara sampradaya.
Lila tattva the mystical love between Radha and Krishna and how this takes place in the human body. The dance the lila inside the soul.
Rasa tattva - all of the things a Baul must know about Rasa, the different kinds of juice.
Gopi Yantra
A Baul Yantra it is called the Gopi Yantra or Gopi Chand more commonly known as an Ektara the one stringed instrument that symbolised peace and unity to the Baul.
The Gopi Yantra is the Bauls tool of focus, it is alive awake and spirit is infused in their Yantra. The Gopis were the lovers of Krishna, when Krishna would play his flute they would go mad with divine love and come running to Krishna they would drop everything and run to him. Baul Gopi Yantra can make one mad with divine desire of love and yearning it is a trance instrument. when Babu starts to play all the world disappears and days go by without my mind I forget what I am supposed to do, it takes one out of this world. The difference between classic tantra and Baul tantra is that the tools and techniques are different not all but some.
TRIBUTE - 50 years ago the Bauls of Bengal came to America
Press photo 1967 Arrivals Calcutta airport
The legendary brothers Purna Das Baul and the late (2015) Laxman Das Baul arrived in America 50 years ago and arrived back home in Calcutta to a huge fan fare in their new suit coats.
* They are the first Tantrics and Bauls to arrive in America. All Bauls copy and follow this lineage because this lineage has the historical roots of Baul not only for the Bauls but for the world. No one in India or outside would know about Baul if it were not for these pioneering Baul who brought Baul and Tantra to the world.
* Purna Das Baul is the first accomplished Indian Vocalist to arrive in America.
* They are the first oldest living Lineage of Bhakti Yoga and Kirtan to arrive in America.
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 Khyappa Baul, Ginsberg had requested that the Grossman's bring Nabani Das Khyappa 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 farm land in a no where 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.
Bob Dylan the First Western Baul, Purna Das Baul and Lakshman Das Baul, far left man unknown, 1966/67 Woodstock NY
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" the Bauls did not know 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”. Many others came out of the woodwork and called themselves the first Western Baul only Bob Dylan is the first western Baul by name only and I am sure he has better things to do than present himself as such. There is no such thing as a western Baul, to be a eastern or western Baul first you have to be indigenous to Baul, have some ancestry in Baul? Baul is extinct? You can not fake Baul, sorry, you may be able to fake many things today, having a million likes on social media and pasting your picture all over does not make you a Baul. The first tenant of Baul is Satya, tell the truth, no truth, no Baul?