The Music Behind Ecstatic Kirtana part two

by Mahanidhi Swami

I. How did the Mrdanga Appear in Gaura Lila?

The following popular story explains the appearance of the mṛdaṅga in Gaura-līlā: Before coming to this world as the Golden Avatāra, Lord Sri Krishna said to His flute, “My dear flute, I am descending again to the material world but not in this form. You should stay here with Rādhārāṇī to pacify Her. I promised Rādhā that I would not take you with Me.”

On hearing this, the flute began to cry and said, “My dear Lord Kṛṣṇa, how can You leave me here alone. I have always been by Your side, but now You are neglecting me. What have I done to deserve this?”
Kṛṣṇa replied compassionately that He would bring him along but in a different form. The flute did not mind changing his form, as long as he could remain engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s personal service. In this way the flute transformed into a mṛdaṅga, and descended to this world with ŚrīCaitanyaMahāprabhu.

The mṛdaṅga is not an ordinary musical instrument. Being the incarnation of Kṛṣṇa’s flute, it is very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa. The mṛdaṅga, like all of the Lord’s paraphernalia, is also completely spiritual since it is an expansion of Lord Baladeva. The Caitanya-caritāmṛta explains how Lord Baladeva expands into ĀnantaŚeṣa: “Lord Balarāma is thus called Lord Śeṣa, for He has attained the ultimate end of servitude to Kṛṣṇa. He takes many forms for the service of Kṛṣṇa, and thus He serves the Lord. He serves Lord Kṛṣṇa, assuming all the following forms: umbrella, slippers, bedding, pillow, garments, resting chair, residence, sacred thread and throne.” (Cc.Ādi 4.123,4)

II. The Danger of Singing Off Tune

There is a story describing the disastrous effect of singing incorrectly. Once, before Nārada Muni had learned the art of singing, he went to the heavenly planets and began singing. The words were good, but the tune and melody were incorrect. Svara, the demigod of melody, was present in that celestial assembly. When he heard Narada singing off key, Svara actually became physically deformed, and others felt pain in their hearts.

Someone told Nārada, “My friend, your improper singing has caused Svara and all of the beautiful singers present here to become ugly and deformed. You should immediately go and learn the art of singing correctly.”

Nārada learned the art of singing directly fromSarasvatī. Later Narada returned to heaven, sang again properly, and all the residents regained their original forms. Nāradawent on to become one of the world’s foremost preachers of beautiful devotional songs.

nārada muni, bājāyavīṇā, ‘rādhikā-ramaṇa’ nāme
nāmaamani, uditahoya, bhakata-gīta-sāme
“When the great soul Nārada Muni plays his stringed vīṇā, the holy name of Rādhikā-Ramaṇa descends, and immediately appears amidst the kīrtana of the Lord’s devotees.” (Gītāvalī)

Certainly one needs to sing properly according to the tal, svara and time of day. But in kirtana, as in all sevas, the main point is purity, sincerity of purpose and pure devotion. Purity is the force, not muscial expertise. Kīrtana singing is not a show of our ego or musical talents, but an expression of our heart’s desire to please Kṛṣṇa.

To conclude we will cite Sri Caitanya’s Teachings: “ŚrīCaitanyaMahāprabhu has not asked us to become proficient in high class music, and become well-practiced in the arts of expert musicians. He told us to constantly chant Hari-kīrtana. Hari-kīrtana does not consist in gratifying our own mundane senses, but in the gratification of ŚrīKṛṣṇa’s transcendental senses.”
(An excerpt from Appreciating Navadvipa Dhama by Mahnidhi Swami)