Dube dekh dekhi mon ডুবে দেখ দেখি মন | Lalon geeti | Bhajan Baul

#bengaljukebox
Songs of Lalon Shah (c. 1772-1890)
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To celebrate 50 years of Bangladesh’s independence, Bengal Foundation organised Srijone O Shekore, a 5-day arts festival, from 14 to 18 December 2021, at Bengal Shilpalay, Dhaka. Supported by BRAC Bank, the festival featured performing arts, visual art, crafts, books, film, readings, and events for children. Over 300 singers-musicians-dancers-craftspersons-artists performed on stage and engaged in various kinds of programming at the festival, over the five days.
Lalon Shah (1774-1890) lived in the village of Chheuriya, near Kushtia, Bangladesh. He was a living embodiment of the Baul tradition, who yearned for spiritual enlightenment, but rejected blind faith and celebrated the liberating power of reason. In that sense, he was both a mystic and a revolutionary- and it is only through navigating the nuances of this connection does his philosophy truly begin to make sense. Baul music is, thus, a music employed to probe the inherent divinity of the body, search within the self for meaning, and discover moner manush (The man of my heart) “in the deep, lonely path.” But it is also one of awakening for the underclass, of resistance, and a pursuit of life that is pure and beautiful.
Lalon envisioned a society where all religions and beliefs would coexist in harmony. He inspired and influenced many poets and thinkers, including Rabindranath Tagore, Allen Ginsberg, Kazi Nazrul Islam, among others. Of the numerous songs attributed to Lalon, only about 800 are generally considered authentic. He left no written records of his songs, which were transmitted orally and only later transcribed by his followers.
The Lalon geeti Dube dekh dekhi mon, lovingly rendered by Bhajan Baul in his deeply immersive style, brings to life the eternal question of self-reflection. The song was performed by Bhajan and his accompanists at Ganer Jhornatolay, as the second day’s session of the Srijone O Shekore festival drew to a close.
Bhajan grew up in Kushtia, the heartland of the Baul tradition. Encouraged by his father and mother, he first lessons were in kirtan from guru Ramchandra Mohanta. Ustad Bablu Biswas taught him the fundamentals of classical music. Over a span of eighteen years, the love of Bhab-sangeet (literally ‘emotion poetry’) and Shadhon-sangeet (songs of salvation) drew Bhajan to many teachers and mystics. As he wandered around the country, Bhajan pursued the many streams of Sahajiya Bhab-sangeet, Lokogeeti, Kirtan, Bichar gaan and Baul-tatva gaan, while also taking lessons with guru Mintu Krishna Pal in Dhaka. Steeped in rich spiritual content, Bhajan’s music is a riveting experience.
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Bengal Foundation has been promoting Bengali music for decades in order to nurture and uphold the musical traditions of Bengal. The Foundation releases a wide selection of Bengali albums to the public, conducts workshops, and well as create opportunities to train under distinguished musicians at the Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay. Bengal Foundation’s music programme also frequently organises a number of large scale music events which include the Bengal Classical Music Festival.
Bengal Foundation’s music programme aims to pave the way for better appreciation and understanding of the fundamentals of music; as well as to energise, influence and promote the music industry of Bangladesh.
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