A study of devotional song composed by Ramprasad Sen

A study of devotional song composed by Ramprasad Sen
Sabita Chakrabarti

Sakali tomaari ichhaa
Ichhaamoyi taaraa tumi
Tomaar karma tumi karo maa
Loke bale kori aami.
Panke baddha karo kari
Pagureo langhao giri
Kaare daao maa brahmapada
Kaare karo adhogaami.
Aami jantra tumi jantri,
Aami ghar tumi gharani
Aami rath tumi rathi
Yaman caalaao temani chali.
One of the well known Kali worshipers in the West-Bengal was Ramprasad
Sen (1723-1775). Unlike common people he has a spiritual inclination
towards the Divine Mother Kaali from the childhood. He has also an
extraordinary talent in writing poetry. In consequence he composes
lots of poems/songs worshipping the Divine Mother Kali. His songs are
known as “Ramprasadi Sangit”. Above song is one of the instances among
his written songs. This song is an expression of a mystic experience,
and a philosophical observation of the reality. I shall try to explore
the nature of the mystic experience and the philosophical standpoint
from which the song gets its significance.
Mystics believe that there is a deeper or more fundamental state of
existence underlying observable phenomena which are to be attained in
direct experience. Acquaintance with the underlying reality is a kind
of experience but not accessible through ordinary sense perception.
Someone call this reality as nature, some call it divine consciousness
while another one describes it as a god. Definitely certain practices
are needed to have such an experience. Mystics are concerned with
having the effective set of practices in order to come in contact with
the underlying reality or enlightened or divine consciousness or be
able to be united with god. They think that the experience of the
existing world is superficial and concentrate on the inner realms to
equip themselves eligible to get the mystical experience. Ultimately
the mystic reaches at the transcendental level and gets a kind of
transcendental and supernatural experience. The experience is mystical
to an individual in the sense that it is knowable to him alone and
inexpressible in the conventional language. As the experience cannot
be justified empirically or cannot be proved through reason they are
often considered to be irrational. It is surprising to note that
mystical teachings cannot be received merely through written texts
these are passed down directly through transmission from the teacher
to a student. A mystic knows in direct experience the underlying
reality whatever it is. To quote Schopenhaur it may be said
‘ . . .The mystics starts from his inner positive, individual
experience, in which he finds himself as the eternal and only being ,
and so’(http://en.wikipedia.org./wiki/Mysticism). Above exposition
suggests that the mystic experience is purely subjective to that
person. I think that the poem is the resultant of a mystic experience
nonetheless a philosophical understanding of the world is manifested
in it. In other words, the poet Ramprasad has in a sense a
philosophical vision about the existing world and he has a mystic
experience of the ultimate reality which is reflected in the song.
Consequently, the poem/song is not just a product of intellectual
reflection rather it is the product of a direct experience. The song
is the expression of pure devotion, its appeal is irresistible to the
listener. The reading of the poem manifests an intimate relation
between the mother and the son where the son is devoted to his mother
and communicates his demand and thought nakedly, the imagery applied
in the poem is collected from the day to day life. Prima facie the
text suggests a kind of fatalism which may not be acceptable to
someone. I shall make it clear why the poet is saying that everything
is happening according to her will, she is just fulfilling her will
within him.
Fatalism says that all acts and events are inevitably predetermined.
One may immediately raise a question: if fatalism is true how could we
have a free will? If free will does not exist all efforts of us in
achieving a goal is meaningless. Therefore the fatalistic
interpretation of the world view is obscure and should not be
accepted. Actually there may be three alternative interpretations of
fatalism. It is actually used to imply three alternative possibilities
(i) free will does not exist (ii) actions are free but moves towards
an irresistible end (iii) Acceptance is appropriate rather than
resistance against inevitability. Among the three alternatives (i) &
(iii) imply inertia and defeatism but the (ii) alternative asks one to
understand the inevitability of the existence. In the Gita we find
that Shree Krishna is encouraging Aryuna to fight against Kauravas
throwing away affections and inertia, Kaiblavam maasma gamha Partha
naitat tayupapadhyte/ khudramhridayadaurbalyyam
taktottisthaparantapa( Gita 2.3) This sloka acknowledges that we may
have a free will because if no possibility in making a choice is
admitted utterances of Shree Krishna in the above sloka becomes
meaningless. On the other hand in the 11th chapter Krishna himself
again is saying that everything is predetermined. The river with its
full of energy flows towards the ocean , insects run irresistibly
towards fire. (The Gita 11. 28-29). How the contradiction manifested
in Krishna’s speech may be resolved? It seems to me that Shree Krishna
upholds a kind of fatalism retaining the room for free will. What he
wants to highlight is that entire existence is tied up with an
irresistible power. Everything is happening in the universe according
to his will. Here the role of free will is not denied but the focus is
directed to the fact that the existence is moving towards an
irresistible end. We have to understand this inevitability. Fatalism
does not necessarily deny possibility of free will nor does it imply
defeatism. This type of fatalism does not promote inertia but provokes
a kind of detached attitude towards material gain and prosperity.
Consequently a man is able to do what ought to be done. Mystics
understand this inevitability in a direct experience following
different kinds of paths. Ramprasad understood the inevitability of
the existence through tantra sadhna and pure devotion to kali that he
has expressed in the poem. What Ramprasad has communicated in devotion
different schools of philosophy also have tried to grasp that ultimate
Reality through intellect. The thrust for comprehending the ultimate
reality is manifested in the Kenopanisad where the disciple is asking
the question to his teacher at whose will do I utter words? At whose
will we will our sense organs like eyes and ears operate? In reply the
guru says that it is the mind of the mind, the life of the life has
caused such events. Nobody can move a single grass without his will
though the guru confess that he is unable to say more than this by
uttering words i.e. the Reality cannot be known theoretically.
However, Ramprasad somehow understood the mystery of the existence
and expresses his thought in the line jhemon chaalaao temni chali as
you are asking I am doing. Ramprasad says that the mother Kali
pervades the entire existence, she is the essence of all, there is
nothing in the world except the mother whatever is done by me is
actually done by her, they say that the poet has done it. Tomar karma
tumi karo maa loke bale kori aami. This line expresses a complete
surrender and dependence to the mother. Karma will necessarily give
birth to effects but that need not be treated to be a punishment. The
effect is just a consequence of actions done which he has stated in
the next two stanzas with the imageries of our daily life. He is
saying that you have the power to fell down an elephant in the mud or
to make capable of crossing a mountain to a lame man. Panke baddha
karo kari/panghureo langhao giri. You give someone highest position of
divine status and fell down someone to the dust of the earth kaare
daao maa Brahmapada/kaare karo adhogami. In the last stanza the poet
compares himself with a machine and the mother is imagined as the
operator of the machine, he is house whereas and the mother is the
housekeeper, he is just like a chariot and the mother is the
charioteer as she is asking Ramprasad is obeying. Aami yantra tumi
yantri/ aami ghar tumi gharani/ aami rath tumi rathi yemon chaalaao
temoni chali. Thus in all the analogies the poet expresses his
affection devotion dependence to the divine mother kali/Tara.

A study of devotional song composed by Ramprasad Sen

A study of devotional song composed by Ramprasad Sen

Sabita Chakrabarty

Maa aamaay ghuraabi kato? Kalur chok dhaakaa baloder mato.
Bhaber gaache bedhe diye Maa, paak ditecho abirato.
Tumi ki doshe karile aamaay chataa kalur anughato.
Aasi lakhya yoni vhromi, pasu pakhi aadi yato.
Tabu garvho dhaaron nay nibaaran, yaatonaate holem hato.
Maa sabdo mamotaa yuto, kaadle kole kare suto
Dhekhi brahmanderi ai riti maa, aami ki chaaraa yagot.
Durga Durga bole go maa, tore ghelo paapi kato
Ayakbaar khule de maa choker thuli,
Dhekhi Sree pado moner mato.
Kuputra anek hoy Maa, ku-maataa noy kakhonoto
Ramprasader ai assaa Maa, ante thaaki padaanato.

In the first line of the poem/song Ramprasad is saying, Maa ammay
ghurabi kato? Kalur chok dhaakaa baloder mato? Oh Mother how long will
you make me roam just as the oil manufacturer Kalu makes the blinded
bull roam? Ramprasad is complaining to the Mother why you are
revolving me repeatedly like an ox whose eyes are closed with a piece
of cloth? Here the expression ‘ghurabi koto’ may suggest roaming in
the present life or roaming from one birth to another birth. Again he
is describing his condition with the help of an analogy ‘kalur chok
dhaakaa balader mato’. Who is Kalu? Why the eyes of the bulls or
‘balods’ are tied up with a piece of cloth? How the analogy is
suggestive? Kalu may be the name of a person who manufactures oil by
using bulls, who has no sympathy or kindness to his bullocks, who
simply tries to derive maximum profit by employing those bulls. Bulls
are just tools and they act like a machine. Kalu tries to derive all
energy of the innocent creatures to fulfil his interest. The eyes of
the bulls are covered with a piece of cloth. This suggests that they
have no decision making power in activities. As his master dictates
bulls have to obey it, they have no alternative before them in making
a choice of their activities. The question is: why Ramprasad is using
such an analogy comparing his state with a blinded bull? Whether he is
stating his condition in the context of present life or in the context
of chain of life from one birth to another birth? If the roaming is
understood in the context of present life the question may be raised
why he is comparing his state with a ‘Kalur chok dhaaka baloder
mato’? It may be case that Ramprasad has tried to accomplish his
duties and obligations towards his family and society silently
allotted by the Mother but in fulfilling the responsibilities he has
been confronted with uncountable difficulties and troubles. He is
tired with the problems that he has been painful to him for which he
is uttering this sentence. Again it may be the cause that he acted as
a slave of his desires. He tried to relieve himself from the
attachment of desires but he could not do that. So he is saying that
life is full of pains and sorrows and utters this sentence. One of the
incidents taken from his biography may be cited here. After the death
of his father he had taken a job as an accountant under a zaminder in
Calcutta. Instead of keeping the accounts he filled up the ledger with
poems on the mother Kali and his colleagues complained to the
authority that he ignored his duty.
The realization of Ramprasad is in consistent with all schools of
Indian Philosophy except charvakas. For them life is full of pains and
sorrows. They have tried to search the path how one could make free
from pains and sorrows. Among them Sankhya philosophers discussed in
detail on different kinds of dukha that one meets in the worldly life.
They think that the root of philosophical questions begins from the
experience of pains and sorrows of worldly life, Dukhotrayavighaataat
jighaasha(Shankhya Kaarika). They have referred to three kinds of
pains viz. adhyatmik, adhidaivik and adhibhautik dukkha. According to
Sankhya nobody could escape from these three kinds of dukkha. If one
is born one has to suffer from pains generated from these causes.
Adhyaatmika dukha is caused by intra-organic psychophysical factors
including mental and bodily sufferings. It is a fact that one is
attacked by various diseases during life-time. It may be the case that
an individual himself to some extent is responsible for his diseases.
But the individual is being attacked by various diseases due to
environmental pollution. In some cases an individual is attacked by
diseases due to lack of controlling power over his senses and in some
cases he is forced to experience diseases due to external causes. We
are taking poisonous foods which are nourished with artificial
fertilisers, we are receiving polluted air due to increase of carbon
in the air and abolition of trees to make our country developed. We
are drinking polluted water due to soil and air pollution. So we may
be attacked by any disease at any moment. Again in the present society
we are leading fast life for the enhancement of our quality of life.
We are participating in a rat-race, all actions are designed by the
rules of competition. Competition is regarded to be the driving force
of modern life and one’s activity is nourished and encouraged by
greed, jealousy etc. So one is thrown away within different
psychological problems. From the very beginning of life a little boy
from a middle class family hears from his parents he has to attain
more and more success at the school level gradually in the wider
world. Parents try to draw the attention to their child how to
participate in the competition market instead of being a man. And the
pressure is created over them, parents create their child to be
greedy, to be jealous over others. In consequence, present society is
suffering from various psychological problems. A child is gradually
becoming arrogant, disrespectful towards elders, too much selfish,
drug-addicted etc. and ultimately melancholic towards life. To succeed
in life an young man tries to please his officer at any cost, takes
different means to reach at the top chair. To keep his job undisturbed
he is compromising with humiliating terms and conditions. This is
creating a pressure to a person and in consequence he suffers from
different physical and psychological problems. Adhibhautika dukha is
generated from extra-organic natural causes like men, beasts, birds,
insects etc. when I am going along the road suddenly a dog bites me
and I have to suffer for a long time. A farmer sows seeds in his corn-
field which was destroyed by insects. What can we do except to
experience pains and sorows. We are confronted with Adhidaivika dukha
which are generated from supernatural causes like planets flood,
drought, ghosts demons etc. This shows that we have to experience
dukha or pain if we are born. There is no way to escape from these
dukha. We may receive support in favour of the above description from
the Gita, If one meditates on wealth and prosperity in the present
world one will be inclined to it and try to possess it. If his desire
is not fulfilled one will be angry, anger may make him blind , he will
forget his sense of reasoning, sense of duty, sympathy to anybody else
except the fulfilment of desire which ultimately brings about his
destruction in the present life and has to take birth in the next life.
(The Gita 2-62, 63) An infinite journey from one birth to another will
go on.(the Gita 2-27). Indian philosophers looks life as being full of
pains and sorrows and birth is the cause of all misery.
One may immediately revolt, life is not merely full of pain, there is
pleasure also. We should try to fulfil pleasure as much as possible
avoiding pain. To call life as being surrounded by pain is to uphold
pessimistic attitude towards life which could not be supported. At a
glance the stance of Indian Philosophers seems to be pessimistic but
ultimately it suggests a path to the attainment of complete cessation
of pains. They have searched for the route of complete cessation of
pains and sorrows. Body undergoes birth and deaths but self is
indestructible. If life is taken to be a long journey it is possible
to reach the destination at the end wherein lies the complete
cessation of sufferings. Different schools described this stage
through different terminology. Buddha refers to to the state of
liberation as nirvana, Jaina and Sankhya speaks of kaivalya, Nyaya
refers to Apavarga, Vedanta suggests mukti or moksha. One could make
free himself from all kinds of pain in the state of moksa, this is the
state of complete cessation of pains.
One may raise a question: Is it an attainable state? Because the
driving force of our life is satisfaction of desires. To satisfy
desires one acts that must produce consequence. If life is imagined as
being limited to the present life how one could attain moksa or
liberation? To experience the fruits of actions one has to born again
and again until the completion of having fruits of actions. By using
the expression ‘ghuraabi kato’ does Ramprasad say of roaming from one
birth to another birth? He is expressing his frustration to the Mother
how long she will revolve him? If the revolving is understood in the
present life he is obeying the duties allotted to him without
expressing his willingness like the bull of Kalu. He is waiting for
the favour of the Mother Kali and indirectly praying an appeal to stop
roaming further. If the roaming is conceived to be extended to the
series of life from one birth to another it implies that Ramprasad
believes in the existence of rebirth. It would not be illogical to
derive that Ramprasad is speaking of liberation or moksa as suggested
by different schools of Indian Philosophy. Moreover, he was a
practitioner of Tantra. The basic presuppositions of Tantra are the
belief in the existence of rebirth and the law of karma. It may be the
cause that being a follower of Tantra he spoke of the liberation from
the chain of births from one life to another life.
In the next line Ramprasad writes, ‘bhaber ghaache bedhe diye Maa,
paak ditecho abirato’, Oh Mother, you have tied me to the tree of
worldly life and constantly revolving me there. Here the world is
compared with a ‘tree’ or ‘gaach’ the root of which are spread
covering a wider area and the roots are extended into the deeper
level. Again the tree extends its trunk upwards along with its
branches as if it wishes to touch the sky. This analogy is significant
in the sense that the world that we perceive is not all it is more
than that. We have to explore the tree to know it totally how far its
roots are extended, the thickness of roots etc. at the upward level we
have to count, examine its extension, branches, leaves etc. in a word
from different perspectives. It is not possible to know it merely by
observing its perceivable structure. Though materialists does not want
to delve into the deeper structure of the world and confine themselves
into fragmented domain. Even if the life is conceived as being
confined to the present life we find that we are suffering from
different kinds of pains. It may be legitimately asked why we are
bound to move within the sphere of the present life? Ramprasad is
putting a similar question. He wants to know the cause for which he is
experiencing pains and sorrows. If life is something joyful one must
not utter Maa aamay ghuraabi kato, Kalur chok dhaakaa baloder mato.
Again, the comparison of the world with a tree conveys the implication
that he is interested to unfold the mystery of birth why he is forced
to take birth again and again?
In the next line Ramprasad is expressing his accusation to the Mother,
tumi ki doshe karile aamaay chataa Kalur anugata? What wrong have I
done? Why have you made me a slave of six Kalu’s or six oil-
manufacturers? We have seen in the beginning of our discussion kalu is
merely guided by the objective gain, he has no sympathy or kindness to
his bulls in satisfying his target. Whereas mother has made him the
slave of six Kalu’s. Consequently he is in great distress. It may be
the case that he is comparing ‘six Kalus’ with six sense organs, five
external organs like the organs of sight, smell, hearing, taste, touch
and one internal organ mind. These sense organs govern the activities
of all living beings. Among these mind not only has a specific domain
regulating desire(icchaa), aversion (dvesa), willing (prayatna),
pleasure (sukha), pain (dukha) and cognition (jnana) but also
functions as a central co-ordinating organ regulating five external
organs. However, due to the cause of birth Ramprasad is being governed
by the laws of the rules of six masters and expressing his tiresome
condition to the Mother. By giving birth why you are making me
subservient to the six senses?
Ramprasad is expressing his fatigue in the existence of the present
life in the following lines. Aasi lakhya yoni vromi, pasu-pakkhi aadi
yato/ tabu garvo dhaaron nay nibaaron, yaatonaate holem hato. I have
travelled past eighty lakh species I was born as a bird and as a beast
and so on/ despite that my sojourn through the wombs has not ended. I
am being killed with untold pain. These two lines explicitly indicates
rebirth. He has to make a roam into innumerable wombs like birds and
beasts. On completion of different births into different species one
gets human life. Again as a human being he has completed a long
journey taking births into uncountable wombs. He is exhausted with
tiresome journey suffering from untold pains. Now he wants to take
shelter at the arms of the Mother i.e. he is ardently seeking for
liberation or cessation of pains.
It is surprising to note that the selection of the words in the
following lines is impregnated with deeper meaning. He is saying in
the lines, Maa sabda mamata yuta, kaadle kole kare suta/ dheki
brahamanderi ai riti maa aami ki chaaraa yagot? A mother is full of
sympathy. She embraces a child in her arms when it weeps/ that is the
way of the world. Do I not belong to the world? At the empirical level
the word ‘mother’ is associated with affection, love, sympathy. Mother
stands for sympathy and affection. So Ramprasad is requesting to
mother not to be heartless, unsympathetic, unconcerned to his children
which brings about distress to a child in the guise of a request. Your
son is weeping i.e. he needs his food or something else out of
affection mother fulfils his demand. Similarly he is asking for the
feet of the mother and the mother should fulfil his demand. If the
line is seen from another level mother is the source of creation,
cause of survival of existence, source of energy of the entire world.
She is all in all in the world. From that perspective, if She stands
for the consequence- giver or stands for justice does She wish to
violate the rule of preservation?
In the next two lines Ramprasad writes, Durga Durga bole tore gyelo
paapi kato/ aykbaar khule de maa choker thuli dhekhi Sri-pada moner
mato. Many sinners have crossed chanting Durga Durga/ remove the
veils of the eyes at least for once so that I can have the glimpse of
your effulgent feet to my heart’s content. The word ‘Durgo’ may denote
a well protected surrounded area, and the owner of that place may be
called Durga. Durga protects his/her dependants from distress and
troubles destroying harmful elements, helps to survive providing all
requirements. In this sense Durga may be the protector of her follower
unfolding the path of liberation. In the scriptures like Durda-
Saptasati Durga is described as the destroyer of demons. Being a
follower of the Mother Ramprasad is expressing his ultimate
expectation to the Mother i.e. he wants to have the glimpse of the
effulgent feet of the Mother. Even if the mother is thought to be a
Being why Ramprasad is eager to see the feet of the Mother? It may be
the cause that though mother is omnipresent one has to excavate at the
deeper level to know the nature of the Mother whose Being is extended
beyond the apparent world like a tree which extends its root under the
soil. An individual cannot comprehend the Mother truly due to his
ignorance. So far as ignorance is not removed, so long as the person
is not eligible to attain the state of liberation he could not
perceive the effulgence of the Mother. Since Mother is conceived as
all-powerful Ramprasad is asking the Mother to eradicate his
ignorance. Thuli is a kind of musk through which one perceives
distorted and coloured objects and fails to comprehend the real nature
of objects. To see the real nature of objects it is necessary to open
the musk. So long as ignorance prevails a person is bound to
experience the cycle of birth and rebirth. Ultimately through the
interference of the Mother the person attains the ultimate destination
of liberation. It may be the cause due to which he is asking the
favour of the Mother by saying, aykbaar khule de Maa choker thuli
dhekhi Sree pada moner mato.
Let us see what is said by Ramprasad in last two lines, ku-putra anek
hoy Maa, ku-mata noy kakhono to/ Ramprasader ai aasaa Maa onte thaaki
padaanato. Sons are often undutiful or misbehaved to his mothers but
Mothers are never unaffectionate, unlawful to her sons/ Ramprasad
lives with this belief remaining obedient to her that the Mother will
surely show his favour to his ardent devotee. If I have understood the
stance of Ramprasad he wanted to liberate himself from the bondage of
the birth and to attain the states of salvation uniting himself with
the effulgence of the Mother.
Note.
The methodology followed in writing this episode is suggested by
Ramesh Mukhopadhyay. I express my indebtedness to him for his
cooperation.