The world of Bhajans

 Bhajans are a quite different world in themselves. 'Dakudin' 'Dakudin' so the mrdangas resound to keep the beats. And a voice soaked in anguish sings 'Hari Hari Vittala' Jai Govinda Hari Jai Gopala Hari... Radha Madava Mukunda MurarE... and the assembled hearts shedding their thousands of cares and worries and bickering all melt along to the one Govinda.

Is there Govinda? A picture or an idol is there but the emotions are very much real and throbbing. Bhajans was the weapon in the hands of Sri Krishna Chaitanya. And Sri Ramakrishna was losing himself chanting and singing about Ma, Bhagavan. He was lost in ecstasy but made Narendra into Vivekananda to save us from being lost in worldliness.

Usually Bhajans are attractive to me. They say that there are more than one paddhati in bhajans. I wanted to ask my Periyappa's daughter who is an expert in Bhajan systems about all these things. But she did not believe me so easily, She said ' you are a dry Vedantin. how come you are interested in bhajans?' I have heard there are many hurdles to Vedanta but that was the first time I realised Vedanta can be a hurdle in turn. But somehow, probing here and there and doing some studies I managed to update myself regarding the paddhatis and all that. What interesting fields have been going on in our land in different parts! But one thing we must give the credit. Many groups have been involved in bhajan traditions. And no difference anything was preventing anybody to contribute their part to bhajans. If anything has been near to the Hindu celebration of the Divine as a unified society I will say it is bhajans. In that area the contribution of the devotees of Sri Adisankara is phenomenal and continuous.

In Bhajans when we concretize our emotions and elations on the forms, what we are doing is really towards Paramatman but are we not approximating our ideal, may be, but even our thinking about the Supreme is only approximating and bhajans allow us to transcend easily all fragmentations of the concrete world. It is a melting impasse that is felt by the blend of music and emotions. Devotion becomes a very palpable power in uniting us before the Divine and magnetize our hearts towards the Transcendent. Whoever discovered Bhajans that person has done enormous good by that one action.

Sri Sudarsana Bhattar, who wrote the extraordinary metacommentary viz., Srutaprakasika over Sri Bhashya of Sri Ramanuja, in a sloka says this;

The Paramatman is something heard in the essences of srutis

It is mentally pondered over in detail in the Bhashya

In the heart-lotus it remains the object of meditation

But in Sriranga Daama He becomes visible to these eyes

As the very LakshmiPathi ! To that Divine Couple I surrender.

srutyantEshu srutam

bhAshyE matam

dyAtam hrudambhujE |

lakshmIpatim prapadyEham

drushtam sriranga dhamani ||

And Bhajans make eyes out of emotions and the hearts become retina to behold the Transcendent.