Adhivasa from Pada Kalpa Taru

Pada Kalpa Taru
The desire Tree of songs
John Beames

From Krishna Kathamrita Bindu 206
Madhavananda dasa, www.gopaljiu.org

Although he is not a major historical figure, John Beames
(1837 - 1902) played an important role in India. The
eldest son of Rev. Thomas Beames, a preacher of St.
James�s Church, Piccadilly, London, John Beames was
an author and served as a civil servant in British India
from 1859 to 1893. He was also a scholar of Indian his-
tory, literature and linguistics, and was conversant with
a number of Indian languages, including Sanskrit. He
wrote a book entitled, A Comparative Grammar of the
Modern Aryan Languages of India: to wit, Hindi, Panjabi,
Sindhi, Gujarati, Marathi, Oriya and Bangali, which was
published in 3 volumes between 1872-1879.

Perhaps his most significant contribution was in the
late 1860s when a group of Bengali intellectuals and
civil servants with political motivations tried to claim
that the Oriya language was inferior and a mere cor-
ruption of Bengali. Based on this, they proposed that
Oriya studies should be banned from schools in Orissa
and replaced with Bengali. Mr. Beames studied both
languages closely and supported Oriya as a separate
and more ancient language than Bengali. His support
was instrumental in preserving the Oriya language.
He is thus known amongst scholars as �perhaps the
best face of British colonialism in Orissa�.

What follows is from an article Mr. Beames wrote in
1873 entitled, �Chaitanya and the Vaishnava Poets
of Bengal�. He describes the book Pada-kalpa-taru
(the desire tree of song), a famous compilation of over
3,000 Gaudiya Vaishnava songs from various aacaaryas
and exalted devotees in our line that was compiled in
the 1850�s by Shri Gokulananda Sen, a devotee in the
line of Shrila Shrinivas Acharya.

The book Pada-kalpa-taru... takes the reader through
the [songs of] preliminary consecration, invocation, [and
those describing the] introductory ceremonies, [up to the
main body of song describing] the rise and progress of
the mutual love of Radha and Krishna, and winds up
with the usual closing and valedictory hymns.

To keep up the metaphor of its name throughout,
[Pada-kalpa-taru] is divided into four branches (shaakhas),
and each of these into eight or ten smaller branches or
boughs (pallavas). It should be explained that the k�rtanas
are celebrated with considerable ceremony. There is first
a consecration both of the performers and instruments
with flowers, incense, and sweetmeats. This is called the
adhivaasa. The principal performer then sings one song
after another, the others playing the drum and cymbals in
time and joining in the chorus. As the performance goes
on, many of them get excited and wildly frantic and roll
about on the ground. When the performance is over the
drum is respectfully sprinkled with candana, sandalwood
paste, and hung in its place. Performances go on for days
till a whole shaakha has been sung through, and, I believe,
it is always customary to go through at least one pallava
at a sitting, however long it may be.

The Bengali k�rtana,in fact, resembles very much the bhajans
and kathaas common in the Maratha country [now the Indian state
of Maharashtra], and each poem, in length and often in
subject as well, is similar to the Abhaangas of Tukaram and
others of that province. The first pallava contains twenty-
seven hymns. Of these, eight are by Govinda Das, eight
by Vaishnava Das, three by Vrindavan Das, and the rest
by minor masters. Vrindavan Das and Parameshwar Das
were contemporaries of Chaitanya. The others, including
Govinda Das � perhaps the most voluminous writer of
all � are subsequent to him. Of the hymns themselves,
the first five are invocations of Chaitanya and Nityananda,
and one is in praise of the ceremony of k�rtana.

The twenty-third song begins the adhivaasa, conse-
cration, and is curious less for its language than for the
description it gives of the ceremonies practiced. It is by
the old masters Parameshwar and Vrindavan, with the
concluding portion by a younger master, Bamsi. The
poem is in four parts and takes the form of a story of
how Chaitanya held his festival. It runs thus:

The AdhivAsA CereMony for kirTAnA
The Poets Parameshwar Das and Bamsi Das

"Call the Devotees!""

dhaana-shr� raaga
eka dina pahun haasi       advaita-mandire aasi
basilena shac�ra kumaara
nityaananda kari sange advaita basiyaa range
mahotsavera karilaa vicaara

One day, the son of Mother Sachi happily arrived
at Adwaita�s house, accompanied by Nityananda.
While Adwaita sat and listened with pleasure, he
spoke about his plans for a great festival.

shuniyaa aanande aasi              s�taa thaakuraan� haasi
kahilena madhura vacana
taa shuni aananda-mane    mahotsavera vidhaane
kahe kichu shac�ra nandana
shuna thaakuraani s�taa       vaishnava aaniye ethaa
aamantrana kariyaa yatane
yebaa gaaya yebaa baaya      aamantrana kari taaya
prithak prithak jane jane

Hearing the plans, Sita Thakurani, the wife of Adwaita,
smiled with joy and spoke sweetly. Listening to her, the son
of Mother Sachi became blissful thinking of the festival and
told her: �Listen, Thakurani Sita, invite the vaishnavas and
bring them here. One by one, invite whoever can sing and
whoever can play musical instruments.

eta bali goraa raaya         aajnaa dila sabaakaaya
vaishnava karaha aamantrana
khola karataala laiyaa      aguru candana diyaa
purnaghata karaha sthaapana

In this way, Gaura Ray ordered everyone there, �Invite
the vaishnavas! Get out the mridanga and karataalas! Ar-
range for full pots of aguru and sandalwood paste!
aaropana kara kalaa        taahe baandha phula-maalaa

k�rtana-mandal� kutuhale
maalya candana guyaa     ghrita madhu dadhi diyaa
khola-mangala sandhyaakaale

�Arrange banana trees around the kirtan hall, and
jubilantly decorate them with garlands of flowers.
At the auspicious time in the evening, worship the
mridanga drum with garlands, sandalwood paste,
betel nuts, ghee, honey and yoghurt.�

shuniyaa prabhura kathaa   pr�te vidhi kaila yathaa
naanaa upahaara gandhabaase
sabe hari hari bole        khola-mangala kare
parameshvara daasa rasa bhaashe

Hearing the Lord�s words, in a loving way, Sita
made various offerings with fragrant perfumes.
Calling out, �Hari! Hari!� all the devotees con-
secrated the mridanga drum. Parameshwar Das
floats in the mellows of rasa.

The Adhivasa Ceremony Begins

jaya jaya navadvipa maajha
gauraanga-aadesha paanaa    thaakura advaita yaanaa
kare khola mangalera saaja

All glories! All glories! In Nabadwip, by Gau-
ranga�s order, Adwaita goes to prepare for the
consecration of the mridanga.

aaniyaa vaishnava saba      hari-bola kalarava
mahotsavera kare adhivaasa
aapane nitaai dhana        dei maalaa candana
kare priya vaishnava sambhaasha

Bringing all the vaishnavas by calling out �Hari-
bol!� he begins the festival of adhivaasa. He person-
ally gives out garlands and sandalwood paste and
speaks sweet words to the devotees.

govinda mridanga laiyaa    baajaaya taataa thaiyaa thaiyaa
karataale advaita capala
haridaasa kare gaana       shr�vaasa dharaye taana
naace gauraa k�rtana mangala

At the auspicious k�rtana, Govinda takes the
mridanga and plays, �taataa thaiyaa thaiyaa!� Adwaita
plays the karataalas, Haridas begins to sing, Shrivas
Thakur keeps time, and Lord Gaura dances.

caudike vaishnava-gana   hari bole ghane ghana
kaali habe k�rtana-mahotsava
aaji khola mangali raakhiye aananda kari
vamsh� bale deha jaya rava

On all sides the vaishnavas repeatedly call out
�Haribol!� Tomorrow there will be a great festival of
k�rtana, and today the mridanga has been duly in-
stalled. Bamsi Das joyfully calls out, �All glories!�

Bibliography

� A Journal of Oriental Research in Archaeology, History,
Literature, Languages, Philosophy, Religion, Folklore. Edited
by Jas. Burgess, M.R.A.S., F.R.G.S. VOL. II. Bombay, Education
Society�s Press. 1873
� Gokulananda Sen. Pada-kalpa-taru. Syamacharan Library.
Calcutta. 438 Gaurabda (1924). Bengali.

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