"Stop Faking and Follow the Fakir Way": Baul-Fakirs and Authenticity

This paper analyzes the topic of "authenticity" in Bāul-Fakiri musical contexts, specifically on how the authentic fakir or sadhu is constructed in both emic and etic discourses. Special attention is given to how the yoga of breath-work and other related practices contributes to the perceived authenticity of fakirs or sadhus in these discourses. The paper begins by setting the stage of the world of sadhus, including the place of Bāul-Fakirs within it. It then shifts to discussion of how "Musical Language Worlds" facilitated the emergence of another kind of Bāul-Fakiri sadhu who makes use of sound and music. The paper then shifts to consider an emic example of authenticity by Lalon Fakir, the first line of which is "Stop Faking and Follow the Fakir Way" (phereb cheṛe karo phakiri). The final part of the paper contrasts these emic indicators of authenticity with etic authenticators often imposed from outside.