Search - Bauls of Bengal: Mystic Songs from India :: Bauls of Bengal: Mystic Songs from India

Songs of the Baul mix Hindu and Islamic mysticism.

Joanna Daneman | Middletown, DE USA | 07/09/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bauls are Bengali religious minstrels who take religious elements from Hinduism, Tantric Buddhism, and Sufi Islam and sing devotional songs of their own tradition.



This mix of mysticism is unique, in fact the word "Baul" means "wind" and implies madness. The mix of Hindu and Muslim is one cause for naming these religious as crazy--in a land where Muslim and Hindu are often at odds.



The songs are played on the ektara (one-stringed lute), dougi (small, hand-held, drum), dutara (four-stringed lute), kol (two-skinned drum), bamboo flute, cymbals, and bells worn on the ankles of the singers.



These are not for the person looking for jolly Bollywood tunes. Anyone interested in folk music and anthropology as well as Eastern religion will find these fascinating."