Tathagata Buddha songs refer to a set of singing practices, hymns, and other musical performative dimensions that is particularly dedicated to Buddha, his preaching, and the sense of emancipation that the emergence of Buddhism is rooted in. For Dalit and low-caste community, Buddhist songs are more than a purely spiritual experience. It embodies a worldview that is political and is premised on the leitmotif of social justice, equality, and compassion. Bradley and Bhatewara (2013) term this Navayana Buddhist tradition as ‘practical spirituality’ by which the humanist aspect of Buddhism is placed at the center of Buddhist philosophy instead of abstract or other-worldly religious philosophy. Most of the popular songs such as ‘Buddhacharni’, ‘Vandana Sutra Pathan, or ‘Buddha Vandana’ are re-invented in a way that accommodates Navayana Buddhist philosophy and tradition. The production of such songs is actively taken up by organizations like Karuna Trust, The Triratna Buddhist Community, Youth for Buddhist India, and others. The aspect of Buddhism in these platforms is largely development-oriented, that is they support community through education and other forms of community building. The aim of one such organization ‘Youth for Buddhist India’ (YFBI) is to spread Buddhism as a form of social consciousness among Dalits. In North India, many of these songs are circulated by song booklets written by Baudhcharya Shanti Swaroop Baudh, Budh Sangh Premi, Shayar Devidas Gulde, S. K. Roshan, Bhikhu Pragyadeep, and others. These songs are reaching a newer level of popularity across different folk genres like Birha, Gari, as well as it is becoming central in the music of anti-caste movement. Besides this, even popular mainstream songs are also receiving audiences and listeners of Buddhist musical practices. Dalit women have also been active agents in the production of these songs. Many of poets and singers have published a booklet of their songs and it constitutes the popular memory of Dalit-Bahujan community.
When one particularly looks into Tathagata Buddha songs, they are not the traditional protest songs but are largely devotional in nature discussing the practices of Navayana Buddhism. However, it has a historical narrative that responds against caste oppression and the contribution of Babasaheb, which embeds the question of resistance in these songs. Most of these popular songs are widely circulated on many of the YouTube channels Samata Awaz, Awaz India, Bahujan TV, etc. The images of Buddha circulated in these songs are along with the images of Ambedkar. This iconographic representation of Buddha and Ambedkar reflects the significant cultural changes that have with the emergence of this new-popular culture in the form of Tathagata Buddha songs.
A study of these songs by looking into its form, appears similar to ‘Pop Bhajan’ of the 1980s that Manuel had discussed in his work. Most of these songs that circulate in the region of Uttar Pradesh in particular have musical adaptions from mainstream Bollywood songs or the mainstream Bhajans and Aarti. Manuel (2001) has argued that such adoptions are done largely to popularize and spread its circulation. However, besides commercial logic, it is also driven by the ‘creative resignification process’ (2001:140). This ‘resignification’ can largely be understood in terms of the changes that are done in the content of these Tathagata Buddha songs. For instance, if the mainstream Bhajan has an Aarti dedicated to a god, these songs will have a similar form but the lyrics will largely be about Buddha and his Dhamma. These adaptions thus enable a widespread circulation of these songs to ensure that they represent the culture and practices of the Dalit-Bahujan communities at large.
This paper aims to explore what constitutes Buddhist sonic, particularly for communities who have perceived Buddhism as a way of revival of cultural identity. Through ethnographies of anti-caste singers, the paper aims to engage with the forms, cultural practices, and meanings of Buddhist songs for Dalit-Bahujan communities. While acceptance of Buddhism, since Ambedkar’s conversion in 1956, has been a significant moment for oppressed caste cultural revival, the paper will specifically engage with the ways in which sonic culture on Buddhism is significant and how it reflects anti-caste cultural practices.
Keywords: Music, Buddhism, anti-caste movement, cultural practices, emancipation.
Citation:
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Tathagata Buddha songs refer to a set of singing practices, hymns, and other musical performative dimensions that is particularly dedicated to Buddha, his preaching, and the sense of emancipation that the emergence of Buddhism is rooted in. This paper aims to explore what constitutes Buddhist sonic, particularly for communities who have perceived Buddhism as a way of revival of cultural identity. Through ethnographies of anti-caste singers, the paper aims to engage with the forms, cultural practices, and meanings of Buddhist songs for Dalit-Bahujan communities. While acceptance to Buddhism, since Ambedkar’s conversion in 1956, has been a significant moment for oppressed caste cultural revival, the paper will specifically engage with the ways in which sonic culture is significant and how it reflects anti-caste cultural practices.
Keywords: Music, Buddhism, anti-caste movement, cultural practices, emancipation.