Parvathy Baul
A voice of India's mystical Baul tradition, Parvathy opens hearts through music, dance and poetry, singing of love for the Divine. June 2015 - Invitation to the public performances and conferences offered by artist Parvathy Baul in Bucharest. Artists who walk a spiritual path express mystical truths through their art, bring ancient teachings to light a…
About Parvathy Baul
Parvathy represents the Baul lineage of Bengal, an ancient spiritual tradition from India, included by UNESCO on the list of masterpieces of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity.
Born into a traditional Brahmin family in Bengal, Parvathy studied the Vedic teachings from childhood. Drawn to art, she began early to study visual art, dance, traditional Indian theatre and sacred music. After a period of travelling through several countries with the puppet theatre company led by Andi Pandaram, a renowned Indian puppeteer, she met her master and began to devote herself completely to the Baul tradition.
In her performances Parvathy sings, recites poems and offers talks born spontaneously from her experience on stage and from her connection to the divine through music. Like her masters, she plays many traditional instruments: ektara, duggi, dupki, nupur, ghunguru, anandalahari, sarinda, dotara, kartal, khanjani-dipki, khanjani, chimta, sreekhol. To refine the performance art she practices today, Parvathy studied for seven years with the Baul master Sanatan Baba, who passed the secrets of this ancient art only to her and to his son. Afterwards, she began studying with Shashanko Goshai, the only Baul master still keeping alive the old singing and dancing style specific to the Bauls. Today Parvathy runs the music school ”Ekatara Baul Sangeetha Kalari” in southern India and travels across all continents to offer public performances and talks on sacred art and spirituality.
More details about Parvathy Baul on the website: http://parvathybaul.srijan.asia/
About the Baul tradition of Bengal
The Baul community of Bengal is a small one. They have no temples, study books or elaborate ceremonies. The teaching is transmitted orally, and through music they sing their longing and fascination for the divine. Because they have adopted a nonconformist way of life, in India they are often called beggars. Practice under the guidance of a Baul master is very strict; it is a lifelong process that emphasizes direct experience. In the Baul tradition, learning differs from the norms we are used to. Disciples are often told: ”Learn from Nature. Nature is our school.” Baul masters have an extraordinary memory, although many of them cannot read or write. Asked about this, master Khejmat Fakir said humbly:
”I did not want to do that. What is written in a book, I would keep on a shelf or locked in a cupboard. That would be the end of it. But once the teaching has been written in my heart, I will never be separated from it. I am the Book. The sound of the words is enough for me.”
The Bauls transmit wisdom through the poems and songs they have learned orally, always authorized by masters – qualified composers with experience and a life of practice on this path. Apparently simple messages carry deep meanings that lead to revelation. They offer public performances, but do not explain the text of the poems they recite or the songs they sing. Meditation, introspection, study and practice, patience and time are needed for truth to reveal itself. Shashanko Baul says: ”If you repeat the word sugar, will you feel the sweetness of sugar on your tongue? To know the taste of sugar, you must eat it. Then you will understand its sweetness.”
The Bauls are in a constant search for the meaning of life. Their performances are passionate inner investigations and opportunities for self-transformation, both for the artists and for the audience. To witness a Baul performance is an extraordinary experience and a unique opportunity to access divine grace and the depth of ancient Indian wisdom.
On the UNESCO website, you can watch a documented presentation about the Bauls of Bengal: http://bit.ly/1FOMQf2
Parvathy Baul's Program in Romania
· Friday, June 5, 17:30 – 19:00 – Performance at the Village Museum, Namaste India Festival
Parvathy Baul brings to the “Dimitrie Gusti” National Village Museum the mystical music of the Bengali minstrels, part of the folk tradition of the Bauls from West Bengal and Bangladesh.
· Saturday, June 6, 18:00 – 20:00 – Concert and public lecture at Hermitage Urban Spiritual Hub
Under the title ”Opening my heart on the way to freedom” we are invited to Hermitage to open our hearts in order to access wisdom and authentic freedom. It is a unique opportunity to listen to Parvathy sing and speak about the path toward unconditional love and the revelations that appear when we manage to open our hearts.
· Sunday, June 7, 18:00 – 19:00 – Performance at the Village Museum, Namaste India Festival
Parvathy Baul will present at the Village Museum a performance from the mystical Baul tradition, entitled ”In Search of the Man of the Heart: the mystical music of Bengal”.
· Tuesday, June 9, 18:00 – 20:00 – Performance and dialogue with Grigore Leșe at MȚR, Namaste India Festival
Parvathy Baul, with master Grigore Leșe as her guest, will present at the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant a performance from the mystical Baul tradition, entitled In Search of the Man of the Heart. Known for her solo interpretation of Baul songs and dances, Parvathy Baul masterfully accompanies her voice with the traditional folk instruments Duggie, Ektara and Nupur.
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The Indian culture festival „Namaste India” will take place in Bucharest between June 5 and 9, 2015. It is in its seventh edition and is organized under the high patronage of the Embassy of India in Romania, the „Rabindranath Tagore” Cultural Center, in partnership with the „Dimitrie Gusti” National Village Museum, the National Museum of the Romanian Peasant and India Tourist Office Frankfurt. The full program of the Namaste India Festival can be viewed at: www.namasteindia.ro
Parvathy Baul comes to Bucharest at the invitation of the Namaste India Festival organizers and, as a friend of the founders of Good Company, she accepted to offer several conferences and group meetings in addition to her appearances at MȚR and the Village Museum. For details about the events organized by Good Company, please visit: www.goodcompany.ro
For details about the event at Hermitage, visit: www.hermitageurban.ro
”A connoisseur knows:
The honey is hidden in the
Tree of universal love;
For others, it’s just
A waste of time.
Why suffer?
Embrace the tree;
It will quench your thirst.
Why confuse?
Your body carries the
Secrets of the juice.
Sixty – four types of juices
Flow thru three channels
Know them separately
Do not mix.
There are budding saples
Yet to be trees.
The connoisseur knows the secret,
Follows the cycle of moon,
Journeys back to the
Essential Truth.~