During the winter ’season,’ Westerners gather at Upahar and Veena’s house to sing bhajans, spiritual songs and chants. Upahar and Veena are musicians from Italy and come to Tiruvannamalai each year. Bhajan singing at their house is one of the favorite Sunday activities of many people here.
The house is off Perumpakkam Road. We arrived early to get a good seat and to talk to Upahar. It starts at 10 am. We arrived a bit before 9:30 and the only one waiting seemed to be this cow.
The bhajan singing is done in their house. Here Veena is tuning her instrument while a few people sit and wait.
Upahar is setting up. He will play several instruments during the session, including the harmonium, now under wraps.
The time is getting close and the room is filling with people. There will be even more people sitting on the porch.
This bhajan singing with Upahar and Veena has been going on for a number of years. Many of the people who are here have been coming for some time. Some are just visiting Ramanasramam for a few days or weeks and have found their way here somehow.
The musicians are doing a final tuning before the session starts. Different musicians are here each week. There are a few regulars, while others play as they can. As the season goes on, the cast of musicians grows, then gets smaller as people leave.
Before the singing, there is a quiet period for meditation. During this a bamboo flute is being played.
The room is quiet but for the flute, with most in the audience silently meditating.
The music starts (after a long group Aum). The call-and-response chants are begun by the leader (usually Upahar, sometimes other musicians). There are books of chants distributed among the audience. The chant is identified by its number in the book.
People join in. Things are pretty calm now, at the start.
After a bit, people start moving and clapping with the chants.
Upahar and the other musicians get into the playing.
After a few chants there is a break, with flute playing and nondual poetry being read by Upahar.
Then back to the chants. Upahar has a great voice and his accompaniment is quite good. It is enjoyable listening to his singing.
Blissful faces, listening and singing the chants.
The pace of the music accelerates.
One chorus that is used again and again is ‘Arunachala Siva,’ evocative of the Monday night chants at Ramanasramam.
Arunachala Siva,
Arunachala Siva,
Arunachala Siva,
Arunachala.
Sometimes it is called out as verses of whatever chant is being chanted now.
Another is Om namaya Sivaya, Sivaya namah om.
The crowd loves it, and really gets into it.
At the end of the session, a camphor lamp is lit, and there is a final meditation. People on the porch can be seen through the window.
After the session is over, it is social time. Tea is served, and the people, who have been quiet, and then chanting, now get a chance to talk. The interaction seems animated and joyful.
Outside the house, there is more conversation. Happy interactions. People seem quite blissful after the chanting.
In some ways this reminds me of the gathering after Sunday church in the US (except for the cows, as in the picture earlier in this posting).
After it is over, many gather at Sathya’s Cafe on Perumpakkam Road for lunch.
After eating an enjoyable (and inexpensive) thali (Indian meal) and more talking with friends, we all go on with the day.
We just started to go recently. We enjoy it, and see why this is a regular event for many Westerners. It is now a regular part of our weekly activities.
If you want to contact Upahar about this, email upahara@yahoo.com. I think he has CDs available. I saw some on a table.
Tags: bhajan, italian bhajan singers, upahar
