Bhajan
Genres such as Nirguni, Gorakhanathi, Vallabhapanthi, Ashtachhap, Madhura-bhakti and the traditional South Indian form Sampradya Bhajan each have their own repertoire and methods of singing.
[6][7][8] The word also connotes "attachment, devotion to, fondness for, homage, faith or love, worship, piety to something as a spiritual, religious principle or means of salvation".
The Vedas and Upanishads celebrate Nada-Brahman, where certain sounds are considered elemental, triggering emotional feelings without necessarily having a literal meaning, and this is deemed a sacred, liminal experience of the primeval ultimate reality and supreme truth.
[16] However, bhajans rose to prominence as a way of expressing fervent devotion to the divine, breaking down barriers of caste and society, during the Bhakti and Sant movements of medieval India (about the 6th to the 17th centuries).
By writing verses in a variety of regional languages, saints and poets like Kabir, Mirabai, Tulsidas, and Surdas played a crucial part in popularizing bhajans and making them understandable to a larger audience.
[19] They are found all over India and Nepal, but are particularly popular among the Vaishnav traditions such as those driven by devotion to avatars of Vishnu such as Krishna, Rama, Vitthal and Narayana (often with their consorts).
[1][4] Bhajans often describe loving devotion to a deity, legends from the Epics or the Puranas, compositions of Bhakti movement saints, or spiritual themes from Hindu scriptures.
[22] Bhajans have played a significant role in community organization in 19th and 20th century colonial era, when Indian workers were brought to distant lands such as Trinidad, Fiji and South Africa as cheap labor on plantations.
A Bhajan is closely related to Kirtan, with both sharing common aims, subjects, musical themes and being devotional performance arts.
[33] The subject of a Stavan varies, ranging from praise of Jina, Jain religious ideas and its philosophy, in a manner similar to Bhakti Bhajans.
[33] Jainism rejects any Creator god, but accepts protector deities and rebirth of souls as heavenly beings, and its devotional singing traditions integrate these beliefs.
Known as Bhajan in north and west Indian regional languages, a Stavan is typically sung as folk melodies by groups of Jain women, and are a formal part of ceremonies and celebrations within Jainism.
[41] A modern Bhajan has no fixed form: it may be as simple as a mantra or kirtan or as sophisticated as the dhrupad, thumri or kriti with music based on classical ragas and talas.
Abhinaya Chakravathi Sri JS Eswara Prasad Rao of Hyderabad, who is the disciple of AL Krishnamurthy Bhagavathar, Pudukkottai system, has produced performances based on Sampradaya bhajans under the title "Nitrya Sankeerthnam".
[48] Renditions of Shree Maharaji's bhajans and kirtans have been recorded by well-known singers in India such as Manna Dey,[49] Ajnish, Anuradha Paudwal and Anup Jalota.
