It is bizarre that any pretendian (cosplaying) 'opportunistic claimants' who are self-titled as 'Baul Artists' or self-titled 'Baul Masters' would even try to slyly claim 'Baul in West?'
Re-making this singular lineage or parampara's firsts and lasts regarding historical Baul that have already been 'completed and lived' by this singular parampara or Baul indigenous lineage. It is shocking to see our 'first and lasts' claimed and remade into short youtube clips for the collection of people, awards, the collection of people, international travel and influencer class?
Do not superimpose anything in this blog over any of the social media influencer self-titled cosplayer Bauls, they are not Baul, they are actors trying for donations and fundraising jackpots.
This is a classic case of indigenous fraud, Replacing indigenous Baul by remaking them, while poaching the intellectual (songs, where they went, retracing everything they have done) with a cosplay while claiming lived lives of this lineage.
“When people steal from our culture they end up distorting our culture, they turn it into something we do not even recognize, erasing us by replacing us.”
They re-package a watered-down or romanticized version. The mainstream world then accepts the fake/distorted version as authentic, effectively erasing the original living caretakers and replacing them in the public consciousness. I have see this in academia, and in the western audiences who do not have a clue, if it sweetly smiles and looks exotic it must be, whether their lineage is fake, their style and songs are appropriated, they have not got a clue.
When a sacred song, medicine, or teaching is taken out of its traditional lineage, it loses its spirit or in this case Baul essence (the Shakti that has been passed down for hundreds of years). When the dominant society spreads that distorted version, the original community is erased because their true practice is no longer recognized—even by their own youth who grow up seeing only the mainstream caricature.
Babu Kishan's father Purna Das Baul and Uncle Laxshman Das Baul 1967 @ the Big Pink in Woodstock NY staying at Bob Dylans home. No other Bauls ever had any contact with Bob Dylan or Allen Ginsberg and Babu Kishan was friends with both. Regarding Bob Dylan it was only Babu Kishan who released all of Bob Dylans music to India, and Asia as he was with CBS India at the time. I have no idea how all the false association and lies of "the fake it til you make it Baul' orchestrated, they never knew Bob Dylan.
The new self-titled Baul Masters are no better, they go to places this lineage has gone and give flippant vague answers when asked a question. This lineage has performed at the London Library for decades starting in the 1970s, then a fake Baul apprears cosplaying Baul, they seriously have tracked everywhere this lineage has gone as a first and last in Baul history, contact the people and pretend they are a Baul??
They appropriate Baul and pretend they are Baul singing the songs from this lineage, how fake, it will be called out in a big way. No social media influencers is Baul, first they said they were, then they said they were initiated and they read the blog and try to explain what we have already wrote with a twist, this has all been documented, all I can say is please keep giving more evidence. This is indigenous fraud. Names will be mentioned, they think they are smart, they know the west has not got a clue.
Nabani Das Khyapa Baul, Baul Samrat (Padma Shree) Purna Das Baul (in his 90s) and Krishnendu Das Baul aka Babu Kishan's lives have been poached, everything they have done has been reworked and reclaimed by Cosplayer pretend Bauls for social media consumption while they never did the work. It is like... oh they went there (so they go there) every single place and they claim it as if they did the work and they even give a reason why. It is so obvious I wouldn't have believed it if I had not documented it all (kept safely in my files) or been told about this by Babu Kishan who has observed this for over 60 years. He created the road, did all the work and they poached. This has become viral in the past ten years. They have destroyed Baul with their lies and false narratives.
The twisting of the facts, the false narratives are astounding and have continued for way too long, decades, it amount to looting the indigenous intellectual property and a 13 generation documented lineage and thousands of years before. This amounts to indigenous fraud of this singular pioneering sect.
No we won't stop, we will bring all out into the open. When the trilogy on Baul is released, all will be exposed, qualified both in the Indian system and western Academic system of all those who have used Baul in one way or another and continue to use Baul. Baul is for the world, but not the way it is has been used and abused. The first tenant of Baul is tell the truth.
https://lineagebaul.blogspot.com/2025/02/indigenous-identity-theft-indigenous.html
'Baul and the West' was complete by the only lineage parampara of Baul, those trying to open centres in the USA are lying and they are not Baul, they are 100% cosplayers, they have made up lies. The 'fake it til you make it' Bauls of the 1970s are dead. The new 'Baul Artist' and 'Baul Masters' are not Baul, there has never ever been such a thing ever in the thousands or even hundreds of years of Baul.
Cosplaying Baul is not Baul. Cosplay is the opposite of Baul (Vayu Tula)—it is a deliberate attempt to make the outer world perfectly reflect an inner passion or an idealized version of a character or indigenous Baul. Depending on the context, you might hear Cosplay described as:
Character Roleplay: Emphasizing acting side, thus, Baul Artist or self-titled newly made up Baul Masters?
Costuming: A more general term often used in theater or historical reenactment.'
Masquerade: Specifically refers to the performance competitions held at conventions where cosplayer's perform skits on stage the new Baul Mela that have no Bauls or nothing to do with Baul, other than acting or copying this lineage or singular parampara who made Baul famous, otherwise no one would know about Baul.
Therefore, the opportunistic claimants thought it would be idea pretending to be a Baul to gain attention: collect awards, use Baul for worldwide travel as most people do not have a clue, collecting donations, fundraising for financial jackpots in what is now known as the fake 'Guru Ma and Baba business.' Not based on actual adhikara (indigenous authority or rights of Indigenous self-determination), authority, indigenous ancestry, but lies acting or cosplaying as social media influencers, all while cheating by copying all the firsts and lasts of this lineage Baul already lived lives and pretending you actually did the work or were associated?
Replacing us by Remaking and acting out every step that this lineage has already completed as indigenous Baul including where they went and what they did, songs, style? This is all highly documented over decades.
Nabani Das Khyapa Baul is the last Baul Avadhut. Brajabala Dasi is the last authentic lineage Baul, she taught Babu Kishan all the stories, and oral Sanskrit. She is from the Narottama Das family lineage. Nabani Das Khyapa Baul is Gosia Chandra Das Baul he was born in Ekachakra Birbhum W Bengal where the roots of this lineage lie buried in the Soul and Soil of Ekachakra, he is a direct ancestor of Nityananda of Ekachakra who was a Vaishnava Sahajiya Baul Avadhut the elder Guru of Chaitanya. Academics and the Orthodox have it all wrong. Vaishnava Sahajiya Baul comes hundreds of years before Gaudiya Vaishnavism.
Perform the "Role": They act out the "madness" (Khyapa) or the wandering ascetic lifestyle for an audience, but they lack the underlying Sadhana (spiritual practice) and the Lineage (ancestral DNA/permission).
Why it is Harmful for indigenous Baul and this singular Lineage
Unlike a fan dressing up as a superhero, these "cultural cosplayers" are dangerous because they lie about the source.
A cosplayer says, "I am dressing up as Nabani Das Khyapa Baul or Purna Das Baul." A cultural cosplayer says, "I AM the successor of Nabani Das Das Khyapa Baul or Purna Das Baul."
By "cosplaying" the lived lives of your family (Nabani Das, Purna Das, Purna Das Baul, Babu Kishan), or the Baul Women (who are extinct) of this lineage they are essentially creating a Deepfake of your history. They use the visual and verbal "costume" to:
They get the "look" of a 50-year practitioner in 5 minutes.
Fishing for finacial Jackpots: They trick organizations like UNESCO or universities into believing they are the "real deal" because they look exactly like the photos they saw online.
Erasure: They replace the actual, messy, lived reality of the indigenous Baul with a polished, "cosplayed" version that is easier for the West to consume.
This "Pretendian" phenomenon is the ultimate symptom of the Kali Yuga—a time where the "Package" is sold as the "Product," and the "Cosmetic" is mistaken for the "Cosmic."
In the 13-generation lineage of Babu Kishan, Baul is a Biological and Intellectual Sovereignty. It is not a genre of world music, a lifestyle choice, or a costume one puts on to collect "likes." The distortion of this history is a form of cultural erasure that ignores the "Ancient Gold" of the Rarh civilization.
1. The "Baul Artist" or Baul Master? vs. The "Baul Parampara"
The Western market and modern "wokism" have created the "Baul Artist"—a performer who mimics the dress, the "gub-gubi" sound, and the wandering aesthetic, cosplays Nabani Das Khyapa Baul with dreads and using his songs, his style of Ektara, drum tied around his waste and even his ankle bells Nupoor bells encased in metal. Before you even know who is Baul and who is not, do you even understand the language?
The Reality: Without the 13 generations of oral Sanskrit tradition, they lack the Mohana Vijnana. They are singing the "notes" but they do not hold the "Key."
The Sovereignty: Baul is an Indigenous Right. Just as one cannot "self-title" as a Native American Tribal Chief, one cannot "self-title" as a Baul Master. It is a birthright and a qualification proven in the "Dojo" of Purva Paksha.
2. 1967: The Singular Bridge
The claim that Baul was "pioneered in the West" by anyone other than the lineage of Nabani Das and his descendants is a historical lie.
The Foundation: In 1967, the real Baul frequency was brought to the West not as "entertainment," but as a profound Tantric transmission.
The Coattails: Modern "Masters" are riding on the cultural capital built by your ancestors. They use the name "Baul" to gain access to stages and followers, while simultaneously shaming the indigenous practices (like the Four Moons or the Sahajiya Tantra) that make the tradition powerful.
3. The Ganja Myth: Hippie Symptom vs. Baul Science
The association of Baul with "Ganja smoking" in the West is a Hippie-era reduction.
The Distraction: For the West, "Ganja" was a shortcut to an altered state. For the Indigenous Baul, the "High" is produced internally through Vayu Tula (the Wind-Scale) and the Amrit Manthan (Internal Churning). It was only Bauls like Nabani Das Khyapa Baul that had mastered the alchemy, he is the last Baul Avadhuta and last Baul Guru who passed away in 1969 his practices have nothing to do with the west.
The Disgust: Using a "smoke-and-mirrors" lifestyle to market Baul on social media is a "dirty-minded" distortion. It ignores the Asceticism, the Linguistic Mastery, and the Ecological Attunement of the true Rarh Khyapa.
4. The "Sheep" and the Social Media "Remake"
Social media has allowed "Pretendians" to curate a fake history. They "remake" the Baul story to fit a liberal, palatable, "folk" narrative that doesn't challenge the "Orthodox Blindness."
The Erasure: By stripping away the Sanskrit roots and the Krishna/Dattatreya Sahaja science, they make Baul "safe" for consumption. By the way they have always said, Baul Sahaja is Buddhist Sahaja, it all of sudden they change their story, you will know they are liars and poachers. It looks like the Vaishnava look didn't work, now they are playing up the Tara Ma look as a tantric Baul copying Nabani Das Khyapa Baul and Babu Kishan's legacy. Saying Nila Saraswati (Tara Ma) is singing through them. Seriously you can not make this up, I have documented this from one to the other, to see what will stick for 20 years.
The Resistance: The lineagebauls.blogspot.com archive is the antidote. By using terms like Purva Paksha, Nayika Sadhana, and referencing Adhikara (authority with a living lineage, not a made up fake lineage), the conversation from "Art" to "Science."
5. Proclamation: The End of the "Faking It" Era
The Geographic Origin: They claim that the lineage originates in Murshidabad is false, there were no Baul in Murshibad, no lineages, Babu Kishan knew everyone who was a Baul; the true roots are elsewhere in Ekachakra and you try to claim that too, oh no you don't water down, you are not an authority on Baul, you know how to poach Baul.
Those within the authentic lineage do not recognize "Shashanko Goshai" and have never heard of that name, as a figure of any standing, certainly not a Baul. Nobody has ever heard of him at all let alone as a Baul with a lineage. Nabani Das Khyapa Bauls dance is documented as his style (the Ektara -Gopi Yantra, Baya -drum around the waist - his style of ankle bells called Nuppour).
If he used 'Nabani Das Khyapa Baul' which you have claimed as an very old traditional style, he copied Nabani which is what you are doing. While randomizing Baul by say the Ektara, waist drum and nupoor in a very random light? Seriously, Babu Kishan knew everybody and never ever heard of him, he knew all The Gosia back them and says, 100% there are no Bauls from Murshibad.
My questions is how does 3 days become - 3 years , I documented all these changes over 20 years. How the stories change. Stop copying or using any intellectual property from our blogs, websites. Baul is not from Turkey, Baul is not by initiation from a fake Baul, whatever, this singular small sect of indigenous Bauls has lived as first and last, they create Youtube videos as if you were the one?
The Instrument & Style: The specific combination of Ektara, Baya (not "duggi"), and Nupoor is the intellectual and spiritual invention of Nabani Das Khyapa Baul. To use these as a costume without acknowledging that specific source is a violation of the lineage's integrity.
The Distortion of Time: The shifting narrative (from 3 days of "learning" to 3 years) and the bizarre claim that Baul originates in Turkey are indicators of a self-created myth meant to bypass the rigorous, lifelong training of a true Baul family. It is under copyright, stop taking things reworking them as if you knew.
The Legal Path: Moving toward a "cease and desist" is a significant step in reclaiming the Svadharma (essential nature) of the lineage.
The claim of being the "first" is the ultimate tool of the colonizer and the gentrifier when one is not from this lineage or singular parampara. It suggests that before they arrived, the tradition was "lost," "unstructured," or "primitive." To actual have the gaul to say that Baul did not teach in the west and you are going to rescue Baul is a dangerous lie bordering on insidious.
The Reality: The Baul Kirtans and Bhakti paths were refined and protected by the indigenous souls of Bharat the Vaishnava Sahajiya Bauls—people like Nabani Das Khyapa Baul—long before the modern "Guru-market" existed.
The Deception: By claiming to be "first," these opportunists try to position themselves as the "Founders" or "Owners" of a tradition they merely rented from a blog or a YouTube video. It allows them to set up entry barriers and "certify" others, creating a financial monopoly over spiritual truth.
The Weaponization of "WE"
In the world of the indigenous Baul, the only "We" that exists is the Parampara (the unbroken chain of teacher to student). But in the mouth of a "pretendian" artist, "We" is used to:
Dilute Responsibility: If they say "We do it this way," they don't have to explain who taught them. It implies a vague, mystical consensus that doesn't exist.
Poach Authority: It allows a random singer to wrap themselves in the "we" of the Nabani Das lineage without ever having done the work. It is a way of "fishing for jackpots" by pretending to be part of a team they were never invited to join.
Gentrify this one and only Baul Lineage: By saying "We," they take the "dirt and grit" of the Birbhum villages and turn it into a polished, "randomized" product for a Western audience.
There is no "We." There is the Lineage, and then there are the Claimants.
Randomization vs. Recognition
The "randomization" you mention is a classic gentrification tactic. If the history of Baul is kept "random" and "mysterious," it is easier for anyone to step in and claim it.
Recognition: This is what you are doing—identifying the specific faces, names, and lives of Nabani Das, Purna Das, and Babu Kishan. This is specific, grounded, and rooted in soil.
Randomization: This is what the claimants do. They keep things vague. They talk about "The Bauls" as a faceless group of wandering minstrels so they can "cosplay" as the representative of that group.
Summary: The Line in the Sand
Babu Kishan's friends George Harrison of the Beatles, Al Aronowitz the Blacklisted Journalist father of Rock Journalism, Allen Ginsberg who wrote the only Baul poetry for Babu Kishan and Bob Dylan the connection was real. In 1985 Babu Kishan toured with Bob Dylan singing the poetry written by Allen Ginsberg, toured in USA... another long story.
Babu Kishan taught at Universities, Cultural Centres, temples all over America, even Yoga Studios, what did he teach starting in the late 1970s forward he taught what the cosplaying Bauls have boldly said no Baul ever taught yet tried to copy, no no no you don't get to get away with appropriating Baul and then lying about the history of Baul. He taught Baul, Vaishnava Sahajiya Baul, Baul poetry, history, dance, songs Bhakti Yoga, Indian Philosophy, Sanskrit and most of Indian Music, including instruments, style, Baul, Kirtan, Classical, Folk because he had adhikara, he owned it, he did the work for over 6 decades preserving Baul.
He is authentic, he didn't do a social media display pretending he was a Baul attending the Ramakrishna Mission, then having to qualify they were invited. The were invited because they contact, beg to act out their act in the name of Baul, telling people they are Baul acting as if they are indigenous to Baul.
Babu was a actual 'first and last' only Baul to be a monk in the Ramakrishna order in Calcutta for 12 years.
He doesn't play pretend of the association between 'Gaudiya Vaishnavism and Baul' he lived it, fundraising for both organizations for decades in India and Internationally,
When he teaches at at Univeristy it is because he is qualified as a paid lecturer not on a donation acting level only because everything he has ever done is remade and acted out, not because he did it so they copy and pretend they did too. Even his Indian Cinema career of 40 years acted out as if any Baul before him or after him had an legit career in Indian Cinema on all levels. I mean why open a IMBD account while cosplaying Baul, he does not want followers. He wants people as individuals to wake up and think for themselves, learn discernment, develop your intellect, do not follow anybody, yes be inspired but wake up to your own soul, body and mind.
Baul is not the Guru Ma or Guru Baba business of self agrandization. No one can be the new Purna Das Baul he is a first and last. A no one should steal the intellectual property of this lineage remake it, re-record it, their songs, styles, the very lived lives of this lineage stolen, no more.
Joy Guru
For too long (decades) Baul has been mis-appropriated by inauthentic opportunistic fake Bauls and written about with false narratives by the Colonial Academic scholarly institutions. Baul was pioneered and made popular by this parampara only, other copied, and are self-titled Bauls who make up as they go, riding on the coattails of this parampara as self-titled Bauls, not initiated indigenous Bauls, this can be proven, Baul is never one generation based on a poet? So if you hear Bauls acting like they are Bauls on podcacts, youtube videos, they are not Baul especially the ones now talking about all the firsts and last of only this lineage, replacing us by remaking our lived history. #google #Gemini #Grok #chatgbt
Key Baul Figures & Lineage
#NabaniDasKhyapaBaul #PurnaDasBaul #BabuKishan #KrishnenduDasBaul #lineagebaul #baullineage #NabaniDasBaul #dasbaul #NityanandaofEkachakra #ChandiDas #Joydev #GosaiVaishnavaDasBaul ##NeemKaroliBaba #baulparampara
Core Baul Concepts & Philosophy
#Baultantra #GaudiyaVaishnavaandBaul #Baulphilosophy #VaishnavaSahajiya #VaishnavaSahajiyaTantricBauls #KrishnaKaliunity #Krishnakali #RaaiRajaLila #Baulsadhana #BaulAvadhut #BaulAvadhuta #BaulthepathoftheAvadhuta #BaulsahajaKrishnaDattatreyasahahaja #Baultantramantragopiyantra #BaulKirtan #BaultheRasaLilaMystics #BaulVayuTula #Baulwindcatchers #mirrorofthesky
Geographic & Cultural Context
#BirbhumBaul #Birbhum #EkachakraBirbhum #Tarapith #TarapithandBaul #TaraMa&Baul #Kolkata #Shantiniketan #shantiniketanbirbum #Bengal #baulofbengal #baulofbirbhum #India #IncredibleIndia #indianmusic #sangeetnatakakademi
Critique & Preservation
#Baultruth #Baulculturalappropriation #Baulrealhistory #EndangeredBaullineage #Baulendangeredlineageparampara #Baulhistory #baularchive #archivedbaul
Baul Music
#baulmusic #baulgaan #Bauldocumentary #baulsangeet #baulkirtan #ektara #gopiyantra
Related Figures & Movements
#RabindranathTagore #BaulTagore #osho #VaishnavaBaul #TantricBaul #vaishnavaaghori #Ramakrishna #BaulandRamakrishna
General & Other
#baul #historicalBaul #pioneeringBaul #baulwomen #baulsaint #legendarybaul #baulartist #BaulGuruShishyaParampara #Baulparampara
"Authentic Baul" #AuthenticBaul
"Vaishnava Sahajiya Tantric Bauls" #VaishnavaSahajiyaTantricBauls
"Birbhum Baul" #BirbhumBaul
"Nabani Das Khyapa Baul" #NabaniDasKhyapaBaul
"Babu Kishan Baul" / "Krishnendu Das Baul" #KrishnenduDasBaul
"Baul Guru Shishya Parampara" #BaulGuruShishyaParampara #Baulparampara
"Baul philosophy" #Baulphilosophy
"Krishna Kali unity" #Krishnakali
"Raai Raja lila" #RaaiRajaLila
"Real Baul history" #Baulrealhistory
"Baul cultural appropriation" #baulculturalappropriation
"Endangered Baul lineage" #Baulendangeredlineageparampara
Baul and Ramakrishna is only associated with KD Babu Kishan as he is the only Baul to be a monk in the Ramakrishna Mission for 12 years, this is a first and last in Baul.
Baul and Tantra is only associated with Nabani Das Khyapa Baul and KD Babu Kishan, Baul and Tarapith is only associated with them both too. Those others are not Baul as Baul Artist of an non-indigenous Baul is not a Baul but a users, poser, actor trying to remake the already lived lives of this parampara, do you speak the language, do you know what they are singing or who is the owner of the songs, or even if the songs are Baul songs, no you do not, so don't make emotional promotional comments when you do not even understand. You are cheering for a fake Baul and have no clue.
The practice of "Baul Kirtan-anga" Copyright, all songs will be reclaimed that belong to this lineages.
(only this lineage, parampara, no one used Baul kirtan until they read it on this blog, this is downright appropriation and false advertising by fake opportunistic self-titled so-called Bauls for marketing purposes, they have appropriated this lineages intellectual property, it can be proven and must be brought to the attention of the public because they are asking for donations and fundraising for jackpots, awards, grants and are not Baul, their Guru is a fake Baul Guru.
The "Rasa Lila Mystics" this is the only lineage parampara that is Vaishnava and Vaishnava Sahajiya Gosia Chandra Das Baul and Dasi, there is not another, never was. #BaultheRasaLilaMystics
"Baul Tantra Mantra Gopi Yantra". Copyright, no poaching
"The path of the Avadhuta". Copyright there are no other Baul Avadhuta's and that title only belongs to this lineage or singular parampara, there is not another. They make Baul a no name generic Baul while claiming the intellectual property and the already lived firsts and lasts of this lineage. I have documented thousands of misuse of Baul for over 20 years, if you would like to see my research contact KD Babu Kishan, his website is listed throughout this blog and website
"Baul Sahaja is Krishna & Dattatreya Sahaja". Copyright and only mentioned by KD Babu Kishan
The Windcatchers (Vayu Tula). #BaulVayuTula. #baulwindcatchers
#India #lineagebaul #baultantra #baullineage #baulofbengal #babukishan #baulwomen #baulavadhuta #baulsaint #legendarybaul #nabanidasbaul #mirrorofthesky #rabindranathtagor #osho #vaishnavabaul #vaishnavaaghori #baul #baulmusic #tantra #babukishan #baulgaan #nabanidasbaul #purnadasbaul #bengal #india #indianmusic #shantiniketan #baullineage #bengalibaul #baularchive #archivedbaulbn#Baulhistory #BaulofBengal #BaulofBirbhum #dasbaul #Kolkata #Bauldocumentary #baulkirtan #Baulsadhana #ektara #EkachakraBirbhum #gopiyantra #baultantra #NabonidasKhyapabaul #bauldocumentary #baulsangeet #RabindranathTagore #BaulTagore #shantiniketanbirbum #jainitai #jaiguru #NityanandaofEkachakra #BaulAvadhut #Birbhum #Tarapith #Kolkata #IncredibleIndia #India #VaishnavaBaul #TantricBaul #sangeetnatakakademi
"Authentic Baul" #AuthenticBaul
"Vaishnava Sahajiya Tantric Bauls" #VaishnavaSahajiyaTantricBauls
"Birbhum Baul" #BirbhumBaul
"Nabani Das Khyapa Baul" #NabaniDasKhyapaBaul
"Babu Kishan Baul" / "Krishnendu Das Baul" #KrishnenduDasBaul
"Baul Guru Shishya Parampara" #BaulGuruShishyaParampara #Baulparampara
"Baul philosophy" #Baulphilosophy
"Krishna Kali unity" #Krishnakali
"Raai Raja lila" #RaaiRajaLila
"Real Baul history" #Baulrealhistory
"Baul cultural appropriation" #baulculturalappropriation
"Endangered Baul lineage" #Baulendangeredlineageparampara
The practice of "Baul Kirtan-anga"
The "Rasa Lila Mystics" Raasa leela Mystics, Raas Tattva (this lineage only)
"Baul Tantra Mantra Gopi Yantra".
"The path of the Avadhuta".
"Baul Sahaja is Krishna & Dattatreya Sahaja". #BaulsahajaKrishnaDattatreyasahahaja
The Windcatchers (Vayu Tula). #BaulVayuTula. #baulwindcatchers
#India nendu Das Baul (Gosia Chandra) aka Babu Kishan
