Archive for December 2018

A few years ago, I finished this composition of Jin Prem Kiyo (an edgy Raag Asa) with some collaborators from around the world. But I didn't like this arrangement when I was done. It has been growing on me and I am now releasing this as part of Guru Nanak's 550 year celebration. Here is the shabad:

Here are some rambling thoughts on this shabad and its arrangement ...

The composition of the shabad is in Raag Asa. Raag Asa is often used to express Love. Whether it is "Haun Vaari" by Bhagat Kabir, or "Man Prem Ratanna" by Guru Ramdas or "Oha Prem Piri" by Guru Arjan Dev, they are all prescribed in Raag Asa. That was my logic of composing this shabad in Raag Asa even thought there is no written prescription.

While I have had this arrangement sitting in my hard drive for a few years, I chose not to publish it widely. The reason I haven't shared this earlier is because I always thought the music was too overpowering. What is the point of have music overshadow the message? Especially when you are composing music for Gurbani. But, I think I was wrong.

Let me take you through the process for a bit. I sang the shabad and sent it to some friends to listen and improvise upon. I did not tell them what the meaning of the shabad was. I wanted them to just feel it from the way it was sung. And within a few days, I started getting different ideas from musicians around the world. One from Indonesia, another one from Italy, one from Canada and another from Europe. I put these ideas together and accepted all of them as they came.

The result was a lot more percussive and upbeat than I had ever imagined. At that time, I thought there were too many percussive elements in this, including loud drums and guitars. But when I would take them out, the feeling and completeness went away. I was not sure I would be proud of this. I kept it away like I do with many compositions.

I was wrong. Guru Nanak says that God lives in sound and in color (Rang Ratta, Japji 27). And all colors are His. All kinds of music is His. Doubts are ours. Limiting Gurbani to just one style is a disservice to the past and future of Gurbani, to the aspirations and love of the musicians, and to the needs and desires of ALL listeners.

This was one of my earlier collaborations and it taught me to better give control away. The result is unexpected. Much learning and excitement can come from such a process. The best learning is around love, incidentally the subject of this shabad. The most important element of any composition is love. And this is even more important when composing music for Gurbani. Whether the music is sparse, dense, soft or loud, is a matter of preference. The message is most important.

For the purpose of love, often what I do in collaborations, I do not give much specific directions for musicians who are playing with me. I do assume that they are good musicians and can follow melody and chordal structures by ear. But I don't give specific direction to prevent all the music sounding the same -- the way I want it to sound. Instead, in any collaboration, I want the true love of any collaborator to speak through the music. It takes less mental and compositional effort, and most musicians improvise using their heart vibes. It is also a great way of letting go of your control. Because in the end, Gurbani and its music is a gift of the world, to the world and from the world.

I will personally always have an inclination of minimalistic music, so I am not sure this will ever be one of my favorite arrangements. But I can tell you that it has been growing on me. Hopefully love is growing on me too.

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"Jaisi Main Aveh" is one of the four poems included in what is called "Babarvani" describing the four invasions by Mughal Emperor Babar (1483-1530). While three of these poems are in Raag Asa (the color of Hope), this poem is in Raag Tilang (the color of Mideast).

Read More: Complete Babarvani

Babar and Guru Nanak in 1520-1521

Before we go into the shabad, let's consider the historical background based on what I have gathered from several sources including Babar's Autobiography in the past few days.

The year was 1520. The season was winter. Babar made his third invasion into India and easily subdued several cities including Sialkot. He wanted to do the same with Saidpur, a town of landowners and merchants. The inhabitants of Saidpur, not knowing Babar's savage intentions, resisted and in his wrath Babar ordered a bloody massacre of city dwellers.

Guru Nanak was traveling back home after his trip to Mecca, and reached Saidpur from Punja Sahib and stayed with disciple and friend Bhai Lalo. Guru Nanak and Bhai Lalo, along with other older men, women and children were imprisoned by Babar. Babar had to leave Saidpur because of attacks at his home in Afganisthan. According to the Puratan Janam Saaki, Guru Nanak and Bhai Lalo were made to carry loads of wealth on their backs for Babar's troops to take away (See Babur's Invasion).

Many of the historical accounts of Babar's third invasion I found were short and colorless. For example, one account mentioned Babar's invasion in the following way:

"There is no doubt, however, that he made an expedition, called the third, in 1520. On this occasion he crossed the Indus, marched into the part known now as the Rawal Pindi division, crossed the Jehlam, reached Sialkot, which he spared, and then marched on Saiyidpur, which he plundered. He was called from this place to Kabul to meet a threatened attack upon that capital."

In comparsion ... Guru Nanak is beautifully descriptive, and he calls the savagery like it is: evil and sinful:

Calling it like it is ... Guru Nanak Style

Guru Nanak's courageous song of truth that describes the condition of Saidpur after it was devastated by Babar's attack in 1521:

Tilang, First Mehl:

Jaisi Main Avai Khasam ki Baani, taisada kari gyaan vey Lalo

As the Word of the divine comes to me, so do I express it, O Lalo

Guru Nanak is going to describe the horrors of Babur's atrocities. He says, look, I'm going to say it like it is. This is not just ordinary "Bani" or ordinary "word," it is "Khasam ki Bani" or the "word of the eternal husband." And what is "khasam" according to Guru Nanak -- it is "satnam" or the truth. So this is the word of truth according to Guru Nanak! Because Khasam can also be defined as "love," one can say that Guru Nanak is saying, "These are not necessarily my words. These are the words that have come to me from my love."

Another interpretation of this line is that Guru Nanak is emphasizing that it is not he who is making any judgements, because in the end whether someone is good or evil, is a judgement. He says that the source his knowledge (gyaan) is the divine husband (khasam). He is just imparting what has come to him from the divine. He is just doing what God willed him to do: sing!

This line reminds me of Bob Dylan's song Blowin in the Wind. In this song that was meant to be a protest against war, Bob Dylan asks several poignant questions. For instance:

How many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn't see?

The convenient thing to do is to ignore atrocities. It saves you from any negative repercussions. But the right and courageous thing to do is to stand by the truth. Guru Nanak's poem is especially courageous because it could result in him losing his life; despite this, he choses to write and sing this.

Paap kee janj lai Kabulon Dhaaeiaa Jori Mangai Daan vey Lalo

Bringing the wedding party of sin from Kabul he (Babur) demands land as his wedding gift, O Lalo.

He is saying it like it is.

The Wedding Metaphor

Wedding are often used as metaphors of death in sufi poetry and gurbani. Just like the bridegroom leaves her temporary house and goes to her husband's house one day, it is inevitable that we all die. Guru Nanak extends this metaphor chillingly -- the wedding party has come from Kabul and "demands" land. This sin has come from greed. Through this poem he slays the greed of acquirers of land and women. The fact that he wanted the land and riches of the people of Saidpur has been corroborated from primary sources.

The wedding party of sin comes from Kabul. After Babur's failures in Central Asia he had moved south east to Kabul and established his supremacy. He was especially punitive to the Afghans, often setting up "pillars of heads" after winning battles; now he brings such horrors to India.

One historian remarks that Guru Nanak knew about Babur's attack beforehand and came to Saidpur to warn Bhai Lalo of the devastation. I believe the shabad was written afterwards because of the specific description and the evidence (chakki).

Saram Dharam Doi Chhap Khaloye Kood Phire Pardhaan vey Lalo

Decency and righteousness are hiding, and falsehood struts around like a leader, O Lalo.

Kajiyan Baamana ki gal Thakki, Agad Padai Saitan vey Lalo

The Qazis and the Brahmins have lost their roles, and Satan now conduct wedding rites, O Lalo.

Normally weddings are decent and righteous affairs; they are celebrations. And normally the pious elevated individuals conduct marriage ceremonies. So that would be the brahman for hindus and the kazi for muslims. But in this case Satan is conducting wedding rites. As we go on in this shabad, the wedding metaphors will continue - especially about singing wedding songs in the end of the shabad.

Toll of War on Women

Musalamaaneeaa parrehi kathaebaa kasatt mehi karehi khudhaae vae laalo

The Muslim women read the Koran, and in their misery, they call upon God, O Lalo.

Jaath sanaathee hor hidhavaaneeaa eaehi bhee laekhai laae vae laalo

The Hindu women of different statuses, as well, have been met with the same fate, O Lalo.

The Muslim women are suffering ... they have no where else to go but God. And Hindu women of all statuses are met with the same fate. Everyone is suffering.

Zainab Salbi, an Iraqi author, who has written a book on the plight of women in war, claims that things are not different now. She claims that we talk about only one side of war. We talk about the missiles, the destruction, the valiant warriors, the vanquished ones, troop levels, tactics, dollars and casualties. We treat casualties rather casually. We don't talk about where the social fabric is most torn. We don't talk about the suffering of women, the suffering of children ... they remain the the unspoken sufferers of war. And the fact is that seventy-five percent of the casualties of war are women and children.

It is also possible, that Guru Nanak only mentions women, because he is continuing to use the wedding metaphor, where everyone is the soulbride of the one in power.

Babar - Jabar - Equal Opportunity Savage

It is clear from this description that Babar is indiscriminately killing and torturing people regardless of religion. He was an equal opportunity savage. History shows that Babar (and for that matter his ancestor Genghiz Khan) was more interested in capturing land and wealth than converting folks to Islam. As an aside, it was much later, after he had conqured Delhi, Babar used Islam to rally his troops to defeating Rajputs of Mewar.

A noted Pakistani Journalist, Mushtak Soofi, describes Babar's intent in his article on Guru Nanak:

Babar was like a character one finds in one of Bertolt Brecht’s poems; 'where my tank passes is my street/what my gun says is my opinion.'

When Babar decided to savagely kill the people of Saidpur, much of its male population must have been killed in the attack. Guru Nanak only mentions the plight of the Muslim and Hindu women, perhaps because most of the men were dead. But, it is clear that it was the women who suffered the most.

Guru Nanak And Bhai Lalo Survive

It is interesting that both Guru Nanak and Bhai Lalo survived the attack. It might have been because Guru Nanak was highly regarded (because he was returning from Mecca and was considered a Haji; there weren't too many people in that time and place who had completed the Hajj), or because he was spiritual, because he was a musician (and Babar loved music and musicians), or just because he was old (>50 years old). We don't know this; but it is also possible that Babar only killed folks who were opposing his invasion; he imprisoned the others. According to the puratam janam sakhi over 11,000 people were imprisoned.

Imbued in Red

Khoon kae sohilae gaaveeahi naanak rath kaa kungoo paae vae laalo |1|

Sing the songs of murder, O Nanak, sprinkling kungoo* of blood, O Lalo.

Although kungoo is often translated as "saffron" in most translations of this shabad, this is not accurate. Kungoo is a powdered dye from a variety of millet that was used as make-up by women. I found some references of modern use of this millet for making hair pink (More on Kungoo)! Continuing the extension of this chilling metaphor of death, the poet is also decorated with the kungoo, but its the kungoo of blood and he sings the songs of murder.

It is interesting to note that Khoon is red. Kungoo is pink, derived from red. And Lalo, although a person's name, is also derived from red. Red is the color of blood. It is the color of blood that makes a memory of war so gory. Yet, it is also the color of love. It is the traditional color of a bride's dress. The redness of Guru Nanak's last line highlights the dichotomy of the world that we live in. This world is full of suffering, yet it is also full of love. And all us poets of life have a choice.

Guru Nanak Sings His Part

What does Guru Nanak do despite all the suffering. He is not dejected. He sings! The poet of the soul is ready to die. He is ready to die a bloody death. Not just ready, he accepts the bloody death gleefully. He sings the songs of murder. He does what he is here for. He does his part. In the darkest hours of life, he sees stars; he has optimism. He has hope. He rejoices in His Will.

How can we remove all this dark falsehood? By rejoicing in His Will, says Nanak! (Japji 1)

We live in a time of great confusion and pain. There was uncalled for bloodshed in Paris, Syria and California last year. Terrorists were killing innocent people for reasons even baser than Babar's. But you shouldn't be discouraged. While you might not be able to fix this, but you should not lose heart. Peace begins with you. Just like Guru Nanak, you have a unique mission. Just like him, you can be singing. Just like him, you can make a big difference. Just like him, you can truly live.

Martin Luther King once said, "A man dies when he refuses to stand up for that which is right. A man dies when he refuses to stand up for justice. A man dies when he refuses to take a stand for that which is true." To truly live, you have to sing what is right, you have to sing for justice, you have have to sing the truth. The Guru Nanak within us lives as long as we sing the truth. He sings eternally, 'Akhaan Jeevan Visrai Mar Jaon' ... he sings, "As long as I sing I live; as soon as I forget I die."

Note: This is ongoing research as of December 2018. Please contribute if you can help improve this.

Also spelt: Jaisi Main Avai

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