Rituals of Baul of Bengal by Rahul Peter Das

Problematic Aspects of the Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal
Author(s): Rahul Peter Das

Source: Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 112, No. 3 (Jul. - Sep., 1992), pp. 388432
Published by: American Oriental Society
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PROBLEMATICASPECTS OF THE SEXUAL RITUALS

OF THE BAULS OF BENGAL*
RAHUL PETER DAS
UNIVERSITY
OF HAMBURG
This study examines several problematic syncretistic and by origin heterodox beliefs of the Bengali Bauls, in the process also drawing attention to parallels not only in South Asia, but in other
parts of the Orient too. Particularattention is paid to "tantric"and Islamic elements in the beliefs
and rites pertaining to microcosmic and macrocosmic correspondences and the sexual duality of the
cosmic principle, as also to the esoteric code language in the songs pertaining to such matters. It is
shown that the confidence of many scholars in the transparencyof the Bauls' beliefs is misplaced,
and that the deeper we delve into the material, the more do the difficulties multiply.
made this religious group4 well known. I may thus

content myself here with stating the basic characteristics of their belief and for the rest referring to the extant literature on the subject.5 In short, the syncretistic
Baul creed, seemingly both lying outside the fold of
the religions of the so-called "great tradition(s)" previously or today current in Bengal, as well as somehow
1. The recent surge of interest in the Bauls (Bengali

bMul)' and the resultant discussion (not always truly
scholarly,2 often tinged with Bengali nationalism)3 has
* This study has benefited greatly from discussions with
several colleagues in Germany and abroad (especially Dr.
Carol Salomon, Seattle, and Prof. Dr. Angelika Hartmann,
WUrzburg),all of whom I hereby thank most heartily.
l On the transliteration used see R. P. Das, 1984a: 662 for
New Indo-Aryan (except when in the Arabo-Persian script,
for which see Transkriptionskommission 1969). Old IndoAryan (= OIA) words (in the usual transliteration) are given
in their stem form which is indicated, where important,with a
hyphen, thus differentiating them from similar New IndoAryan words. Tantric and yogic physiological terms are generally cited in their classical form, but without the hyphen.
2 Folkloric dillettantism is fashionable now (cf. too S.
Cakrabarti1989: 158; 291). On "The Evolution of the Bauls as
Cultural Emblem" and their image as unconventional, earthy,
transcendent,fundamentally Bengali and yet panhumanmystic
bards with an instinctive feel for eternal truths, see Capwell
1986: 20ff. The chief, though not sole, driving force (for older
examples see, e.g., the works in A. Ah'mad 1979, also R. Basu
1984: 73a) behind this development was RabindrandthThdkur
(Rabindranath Tagore), whose literary output has much of
such "Baul" thought (see also Mur'4id 1981: 137-41, Brahma
1987a: 53-57, Ri5djul Hak 1976: 46f.). It has influenced
even the otherwise scholarly Das Gupta 1976: 157ff. Novels
such as P. Bhattacarya 1972 (on the famous Baul Ldlan) go on
propagating such ideas. Indeed, few writers of fiction have
troubled to acquaint themselves with Baul thought; an exception is Kdl'kit (Samarei Basu) (see also Mahdraj1989).
3To many, Bauls are the representatives of Bengali culture
and religious thought. This may lead to mystic effusion, as
in the poem Bahalir janmatithi "The day of birth of the
Bengali": tomader hdi'gulo antahin srotasbini, surer nirjhar
ek'tard hate ek bduler manoj gambuj. ."Your bones are

endless streams, the mind-born bastions/buds (?; cf. Persian
gunbad; surely not "domes"!) of a Baul with [his instrument]
the ek'tard, a spring of melody, in [his] hand. . ." (NiUrul
Hudd 1981: 17). It is thus fitting that Bangladesh's national
anthem (like India's by RabindrandthThdkur)has a Baul tune
(cf. Ri5djul Hak 1976: 75, R. P. Das, 1984a: 65; for Gagan
Har'kard's original words see, e.g., U. Bhattdcdrya 1980:
1049f., Anoyarul Karim 1971: 288f.).
4 I purposely avoid words such as "sect," "denomination,"
etc., in this connection, as the classification of the Bauls and
their beliefs is not easy.
See esp. Anoyarul Karim 1971, Anwarul Karim 1980,
Capwell 1986, whose extensive bibliographies list many relevant works it is superfluous to mention here, and the bibliographic discussion and bibliography in Sarkar 1990: 17-26,
241-45. Add: Lut phar Rah man 1980; S. M. Bandyopadhyay
1976; P. Bandyopadhyay 1988: 150-94 and 1989; K. K.
Dasgupta 1960; Sariph 1973 and 1983: 87-115 (also pp. 11666); Man'sur Uddin 1981, 2.2: 11-46; 0. Ah'mad 1974: 1015; MahmiUd1983: 410-43; Ab'dur Ragid 1984: 115-30 (see
also pp. 131-36); R. Pal 1976: 135-54; Begam 1976: 40-89;
Ab'dul Kadir 1984: 123-27 and 1985: 1-15, 21-27, 42-76,
84-104; Datta/Bhaumik 1966: (93)-(158), 115-204; Siddiki
1980: 140-56; G. Sen 1987: 46-55; Maitra 1988: 108-22;
T. Caudhuri 1983: 169-77; Mahapatra 1972: 9-74; R. C.
Mitra 1981: 85; B. Mukhopddhyd51984 and 1986; A. Mukhopadhyay 1988; Chaudhuri 1982: 18f.; Qureshi 1977; A. Gupta
388

DAS:
Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal
linked to these,6 places the human body, the microcosmic form of the macrocosm, in the center of religious considerations.7 Ultimate salvation, leading to
1983; Inamul Hoque 1983: 94-96; A. Basu 1968: 378-95
(see also pp. 372-77); Sajedul Hak/Hdi 1979: 30; Nasir 1977;
Chowdhury/Chowdhury/Hossain1985; Ashraf 1960: 31, 6620;
Caudhuri/Sdmiyul Is'ldm 1981; Abu Talib 1985: 133-58;
B. Cakrabarti 1980: 10-18; A. A. Caudhuri 1974; As'gar
1985a, b and c; Mukherjee 1985; Khondakdr1961 (written by
the famous Baul Panj Sah); Dimock 1987; Paul 1972 and
1973; Ri5djul Hak 1976 and 1985; Caudhuri/Riyajul Hak
1982 and 1985; D. Simha 1986: 74-97; Schimmel 1980: 50,
148; Manirujjaman 1982: 84-90, 104-6, 115-19; Brahma
1982: 88-124, 174-213 (see also pp. 125-39, 167-72) and
1986; D. Bandyopddhya5 1987: 89ff.; Anisujjdman 1983:
181-90; G. Bhattacdrya 1989: 378-87; Sultana 1987. These
works (most with further references, though not always a
separate bibliography) are of quite varying quality, and naturally not all the literature on the subject, though covering it
quite well. See also R. P. Das 1984a: 57 (the essay on Ldlan
mentioned l.c. has appeared as R. P. Dds 1981, but with misprints: on p. 183 read qat' in 1. 24, qata' in 1. 26 and qit'a in
1. 28; also note that phdtd and phat'nd, etc., on pp. 183f. may
in this case actually come from Arabic fitna "dissension, discord") and the other works mentioned below, especially those
from which songs are quoted.
6 Cf. S. Cakrabarti1989: 163. Though many Bauls consider
themselves a religious community distinct from others (this
often goes hand in hand with the negation of the authoritativeness of scripture), the feeling often seems not very
pronounced; many consider themselves part of the greater
surrounding community (though often it is unclear whether
only the researcher concerned thinks so), but with certain special characteristics and traits setting them apart, like the nonacceptance of many of its social and religious conventions,
which usually includes the idea that it is futile to worship at
temples or mosques, go on Hagg (Beng. haj) or the like. Regarding Hagg, note, e.g., what Ek'lem says in the song Man
dmdr mathurd re, man dmar madind re (Recordings 1: side
B, no. 6.): bhdbiyd ek'lem bale, makkdyydoyd miche "Having
thought [about it], Ek'lem says: It's wrong/useless to go to
Mecca." On Ek'lem, most probably Ek'limur RajV/Rejd,the
son of Hasan Rdjd (on whom see n. 33), see Manirujjamdn
1982: 87, also Ali 1979: 22, P. Gupta 1985: 15, Y. Bhattdcarya 1984: 447.
7 That the macrocosm is present within the microcosm is a
commonplace not only in India, but in many other parts of the
world; closely allied is the concept of the parallelism of macrocosm and microcosm. On such concepts in different areas
and cultures, see, e.g., Diwald 1975: 130-32 (also Gulik
1961: 16f., A. Roy 1983: 167f.; for a note of caution however
also Rosel 1928: 51ff.). In India, we find even medical works
389
the state of being "dead while living,"8 requires not

only knowledge of the external macrocosm and corresponding deeds, or the like, but also-and this is far
more important-knowledge of the microcosm, the
body and its secrets (including those of its macrocosmic significance and connections), and practices which
give the body its greatest power leading to a complete
microcosmic, and thus also macrocosmic, harmony.
These practices affect both body and mind, and they,
as well as the secret doctrines connected with them,
can as a rule only be learned from a preceptor (most
commonly guru, murs?l/mursfd
or gosai/gos&i),
who
plays a crucial role in Baul belief. To many Indian religious groups the preceptor is not only often a deity,
but also may be amalgamated with the supreme divine
principle,9 though there may be subtle differences in
adhering to such views, e.g., the Carakasamhitid(Achdrya
1941) in Sdrirasthdna4.13 and several times in Sdrirasthana5.
Such notions are of course much older, a particularly illuminating example being Aitareydranyaka3.1.2.
8 Such nomenclature for one who has transcended earthly
ties has a high antiquity in India, and is too well known to
need further elaboration. The commonest Baul expression
seems to be jydnte/jydnta marid (also maid). Regarding the
discussion in n. 42, it is evident that one who has transcended
all earthly ties may also be taken to be not bound by anything
(including social mores, which may even be breached before
the attainmentof such a final state, to help the mind and body
in overcoming all things earthly).
9 On the importance of the preceptor (and his divinity) see,
e.g., Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan 1979: 74ff.; McMullen 1982;
Gold 1987; Tripdthi 1987: 42-45; Brahma 1982: 181-213,
361-66; Tivdri 1975; G. Bhattdcarya 1989: 383; Steinmann
1986; S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 158f.; Nicholas 1969: 40f.;
Wayman 1973: 49f.; Sarkar 1990: 33f., 141f.; Dimock 1966b:
22137; J. Simrha1969, 1:94-96; A. Roy 1983: 159-63, 20748; Ydkdri5d 1974: ek'gata da? f.; S. Cakrabarti 1989: 102,
148ff., 199f.; U. Bhattdcdrya 1980, 303ff.; R. Cakrabarti
1990: 222ff. Similar deificatory tendencies abound in South
Asian popular Islam, amalgamating with the cults around
graves of saints. Cf. too Sdm'chujjuhd 1932: [1]: ihudi nachdrdgan dllah'ke chdiid-nija
nija maulabi o dar'beg'digake dllah'r matan bdndiydchila. tadriup barttamdn kale
anekei-nija nija maulabi o pir chaheb'digake mabud bandiydche "Having left Allah, Jews and Christians had made their
own priests/religious scholars and ascetics like to God. Likewise, at the present time quite a few [Muslims] have made
their own venerable religious scholars and spiritual leaders/
saints (pir) into deities." Similar "orthodox" diatribes are legion in South Asia. A work against the veneration of Pirs (see
A. Ah'mad 1985: 647) calls these the 33-crore gods of the
Muslims (a reference to the 33-crore Hindu gods) (see also

390
Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)
such matters only the initiated are aware of;10 the

Bauls are no exception.11 Among their most important
practices are (as in a part of tantrism) some of a sexual
nature;12I shall briefly detail these, and the reasons for
them, as usually given by researchers. (On expressions
such as "tantrism"and "tantrist,"cf. note 42.)
Ab'dur Ragid 1984: 138, 140). On the preceptor among Bengali Vaishnavas cf. also Chakrabarty1985: 320ff., 350.
10 In this regard cf. also P. Dds 1978: 188ff., S. Cakrabarti
1989: 215 on the difference between diksaguru and ?iksaguru
(= Krsna and Rddhd, respectively); see also U. Bhattacarya
1980: 310f., 387; Dimock 1966b, 22137; Wayman 1973: 49f.
(the latter on the "inner" and "external"preceptors). An invocation to both these preceptors as well as the preceptor in general begins Sekh Jdhed'sAdya-paricay: ?ri ?ri radhakrsna. ?ri
ildhi aldmin. ?ri ganesaya namah. ?ri gurur carane namah.
Mrisri mdtdpitdr carandbhyam diksdguru ?iksaguru namah
(Endmul Hak 1979: 30). From H. Sdnydl (1989: 171f.) we
learn that the two preceptors might not always agree in their
opinions, placing their disciple in a fix. Sinha (1966: 77) mentions an interesting case in which the diksaguru is a female,
the siksaguru a male; this is the exact opposite of the identification given above (if a comparison be allowed). On a greater
number of preceptors (seven) see Kal'k-ut1988a: 108. According to Sarkar (1990: 73, 77f.), Bauls usually have three or
four preceptors. Cf. also U. Bhattacarya 1980: 317f.
See, e.g., U. Bhattacarya 1980: 303ff., Datta/Bhaumik
1966: (1 19)-(21), Lut-pharRah-man 1985: (40)-(7), Mukherjee 1985: 125f., 212; also Hak 1979: 4f., who objects to affixing sai (OIA svamin-) to the names of famous Bauls, this
being an appellation of God. Note too Pagal/Pag'la Sdm'su's
poignant songs on his preceptor Nedhus'h (As'gar 1985c: 3847).
12 Those seeing in Bauls mainly "cultural emblems" (see
n. 2) mostly do not acknowledge this; this includes some
works in n. 5. See esp. U. Bhattacarya 1980: 50-104, also
Datta/Bhaumik 1966: (106)ff., Qureshi 1977: 4619. Sexual
practices disconcert even "clean" tantrists (cf. Nig-iuhananda
1981: 46-56); how much more so others! (This attitude paradoxically made a Baul song referring to sexual practices a film
hit: Rasarajs Amdr yeman beni tem'ni rabe in Natun phasal.
For details see Capwell 1986: 53, 22420; the record number
cited differs from that of the one I possess: Angel/EMI 3
AEX.4001 on the cover, Odeon 3 AEX.4001 on the disk itself.
See Baul n.d.a.: satero f. for the song's words; on its coded
references cf., e.g., Bose 1986: 1103 and P. Das 1978: 275.)
But others draw express attention to sexual practices, seeing
in them the Bauls' special "Bengaliness" (cf. n. 3), in keeping
with the notion that tantrism and all connected with it, sexual
practices in particular, originate in (see, e.g., B. Bhattacharyya 1945, Majumdar 1974: 378, Enamul Hak 1979: 25f.,
2. The macrocosmic principle (as a rule seemingly =

life force = universal spirit/soul = creator) is present in
the human body too. It is mostly described anthropomorphically, often as one of the chief male deities current in Bengal,13 though terms such as "6man,"14
"man
of the mind," "golden man," "unobtainable man," etc.,
or "friend," "lover," "beloved," or the like are commoner; there are other images too, notably of a bird or
a light (see also Sarkar 1990: 46-51). But the cosmic
principle exists in humans in a split, dual form, female
and male, which must unite to a whole.15 Both men
and women contain the female and male aspects, but in
differing quantities (see also U. Bhattacarya 1980: 387,
Dimock 1966a: 159); moreover, they reside in different, opposite parts of the body. The female aspect is intimately connected with menstrual blood,16 the male
with semen,17 which latter is stored in the head (probaSarlph 1984: 16) or are at least intimately connected with
Bengal or else eastern India (see, e.g., J. C. Cakrabarti 1987:
108; also Thakur 1972: 112f.; PrajfAnananda1988: athdra f.;
B. Bhattacharya 1977: 314, 320). T. Sdnyal (1970: 17) says
laconically: bamlddeg'itantra sadhanar pith sthan "The country of Bengal it is which is the chief place of tantric practice,"
whereas Mandal (1949: ga[8]) asserts that Kdmariipaand the
adjoining areas are the chief centers of and where Yoga originated. See also Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan 1979: 37ff. (the notion of the "mystical" East seems in fact to be an old notion
in India as well; see, e.g., Vaudeville 1990). Many also think
tantrism is connected especially with the true "sons of the
soil," the "lower classes" (to which most, though not all,
Bauls are also taken to belong); cf., e.g., Chattopadhyaya
1986 (for a different opinion see Kverne 1977: 50). Cf. too
S. Cakrabarti1989: 16f., 132ff., 154ff., 209ff., 219f., 225ff.
3 Mostly, Krsna, Siva (Beng. Sib) and Allah (or synonyms).
14 This is the usual contextual translation of manus. In general the word is, however, also used for male and female
in the sense of "human being; person" (OIA manusa- is of
course masculine); cf., on this problem, ?26.
15 The cosmic principle's creating the microcosm and then
residing in it is often referred to as a divine "game" (1ila,
khelU,or the like), and this also holds true for its appearing in
a dual form and then uniting.
16 In Indian medical theory and in a part, though not all, of
popular belief even today this is a procreatory fluid which
combines with semen to produce a child (its status in Baul
thought is however not clear). I am studying this theory (also
found outside India) in Old Indo-Aryan medical and sexological works separately and shall not elaborate on it here.
17 Traditional interpretations of sukra ("semen," also
"bright; white; clear, pure") characterizing Brahman or the
like in Vedic texts (e.g. Kathopanisad 6.1 = 2.3.1: tad eva

DAS:
bly in its highest portion), which is also where the male

aspect resides. This notion on the location of semen,
well known also from the tantras, is ancient and widespread, found, e.g., not only in China,18 the ancient
Middle East and the oldest stages of Greek medicine,19
but also in India, even today20 (but Indian medical
texts do not subscribe to such a view).21 Bauls usually
refer to the seminal abode in special terms: "hall of
mirrors,""chamber of light," "chamber of colors," and
the like are most common, though there are other
expressions, such as "abode of ras,"22 "blue ocean,"
gukramtad brahma tad evamrtam ucyate; referring to the cosmic tree, on which cf. n. 154) usually do not consider semen.
But cf. Brhaddranyakopanisad3.7.23: yo retasi tisthan retaso
sntaro yam reto na veda yasya retah ?ariram yo reto 'ntaro
yamayaty esa ta dtmdntarydmi....
18 See, e.g., Gulik 1961: 198, 200, and passim. That semen
is located or stored in the head according to Chinese sexual
mysticism is also implied by the expression "making the semen return"or the like for making the semen flow up along
the dorsal column from the genitals to the head; see Beurdeley
1969: 27, 30, 34 (also Maspero 1937: 379ff., esp. pp. 388ff.).
19 Cf. Lesky 1951: 4 (=1228), 9-32 (=1233-56). For an Iranian modification see Lincoln 1988: 138f.
20 Even in non-tantric environments. See Kvxrne 1975:
112103; Dimock 1966a: 157, 170; O'Flaherty 1980: 45-47, 8487, 222-25, 255, 327 (this work with much "interpretatory"
speculation, and also oblivious to the spread of this belief).
21 According to these, semen permeates the entire body of
males and females, with an affinity for certain organs (not the
head). But a seminal receptacle (sukrasaya, sukrasthdna) of
males, too, is mentioned. Its location is a problem; details are
in the study mentioned in n. 16. A (pseudo-?)medical (but not
overtly tantric) 18th-century diagram from Nepal (on the
cover of Meulenbeld/Wujastyk 1987) has it where we would
expect the heart, and the receptacle of rasa "nutrient fluid"
on the opposite side of the body, though in classical Indian
medical theory this fluid has its chief seat within the heart.
The location in this diagram (which may show extraneous
influence, e.g., Tibetan) probably does not coincide with the
one older medical texts presuppose.
22 ras (OIA rasa-) "sap, juice" also means "flavor, taste;
sentiment." The latter meaning is important especially in
Vaishnava doctrine, where ras describes the feeling of attachment (of which there are various types) to Krsna (see De
1974: 104ff., P. Bhattacaryya 1986: 112ff., Saha 1986: 5ff.;
also H. Das 1987: 644-48, P. Das 1978: 316ff., K. Bhattacarya 1978: 167, Dimock 1966b: 48f.). Bauls too may use ras
thus, but also as "juice" for a number of body fluids, especially (but not only) semen and menstrual blood (ras is also
slang for "semen" at least in the Calcutta area). One who
391
"abode of Indra,""abode of Sri," "Medina," "Mecca,"

"Vrindavan,"etc. The two aspects are united in a man
to form a complete, harmonious whole (ideally visually
perceivable internally; cf. S. Cakrabarti 1989: 101,
190) by his having sexual intercourse with a woman
with certain characteristics and knowledge during her
menstrual period. The belief in such unification due to
intercourse (which need not be during menstruation,
though it may; cf. Schoterman 1980: 20, 29ff.) is of
course widespread and not confined to the Bauls; an
interesting Bengali etymology even explains bhagaban (the nominative bhagavan of OIA bhagavat- in
Bengali) "Supreme Being; God" as bhag (OIA bhaga-)
"vagina" + ban / ban (OIA vana- / bana-) "penis"
(-"reed;
arrow") (Sinha 1961: 195 and 1966: 80).
3. During intercourse, the male aspect, attractedby the
female aspect, descends with semen to unite with the
latter, the man involved effecting this by drawing
the menstrual blood inwards by means of his penis.23
The complete cosmic principle must be retained, which
is impossible if the semen to which the male aspect is
attached is lost. Thus the man must practice coitus
reservatus, must not ejaculate. Then he has to separate
the complete cosmic principle, i.e., the semen carrying
this, from the menstrual blood24 and induce it to rise
up again to the highest part of the body, the cranial
abode.25 There are varying accounts on whether the
understands,is able to appreciate, or is filled with, ras (in any
of these meanings), is a rasik (OIA rasika-). As regards rasa
in various meanings not having to do with feelings generally
(Chakrabarty[1985: 102f.] lists several; see also n. 21), we
lack a good, comprehensive study, a possible point of departure being its use in medical, tantric and alchemical works.
23 Cf. esp. U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 411f. and Sinha 1961: 195
and 1966: 80; also Das Gupta 1976: 238f.; Gulik 1961: 345f.,
195, 206, 225, 279. The vajrolimudri too describes such
drawing inwards (Hathayogapradipikd 3.85ff.; see Svatmdrama 1975), saying expressly (3.85) that women also may do
so; the amarolimudrd too presupposes such a practice by
women (ibid. 3.99ff.).
24 This, as also the separation of the female principle from
the fluid (it is often difficult to determine what exactly is
meant), is often compared to refining treacle (Beng. gu*) to
white sugar, or to making sweets out of sugary syrup. The ancient image of the hamsa (originally "goose," but nowadays
also "duck" and the like) separating milk from water (cf. Rau
1986: 195f.; also Ha. Bandyopddhyd' 1978: 2319) is also
common.
25 This separation and the subsequent translocation are
often explained as necessary due to the latter fluid being the

392
intercourse usually takes place on all three days of

the (ideal) period of menstruation26(each intercourse
effecting a further purification and concentration of the
substances to be united, the final union of the two aspects being only on the third day), or on only one of
these days, or just after them. But the basic principle
remains the same, so I shall not go into details here.
4. This translocation takes place via one of three tubular passages (OIA nddi-, Beng. ndii, in tantric terminology) leading up the spine, one on its left and right
respectively (i4d, Beng. ihd, and pihgald in "Hindu"
tantras), and one within (susumnd in "Hindu" tantras);
only the latter leads to the correct point and is to be
taken.27The translocating agent is wind, first stabilized
within the body by breath control and then directed upwards through the middle passage. The Bauls usually
use dam(er kdj) "(action of the) breath,"or expressions
such as (ul'a) kal "(reverse) apparatus" to denote
this.28 Obviously all this requires a very good knowledge of and long training in various physical and men-
medium of lust, the former, of love, it being only in a state of

love without lust and in a place in which it is fully at ease
and without temptation that the complete cosmic principle
can exist in the harmony of its constituents. A study of Baul
songs in this respect is made difficult by the use of prem (usually taken to mean "love" and seemingly the most common
word in the relevant contexts) and seeming synonyms in several meanings, also for the excitation of ritual intercourse,
and sometimes, it seems, even "lust." On prem and kdm (my
usual translation: "lust") see also Marglin 1982: 305-7, P.
Dds 1978: 262ff., Dimock 1966b: 56f., Singer 1966b: 131
(though the generalizing interpretation on pp. 129f. seems
doubtful).
26 Intercourse must not take place on these very days according to Dharmagdstraand medical texts (which expressly
presuppose that intercourse basically serves the purpose of
procreation).
27 Note also Lesky 1951 and Lincoln 1988 (cited in n. 19),
on the theory of the spinal cord forming the passage for semen to descend in the ancient Middle East and ancient
Greece. Cf. also n. 18.
28 One safely lodging the complete principle is in harmony
with the universe and transcends earthly bonds, of course provided the lodging is permanent. This ideal, permanentstate is
however rarely achieved, and thus the process has to be repeated often. Repetition may, however, seemingly also be
necessary because the cosmic principle does not rise in a full
or unsullied state and has to be further purified. Cf., e.g.,
S. Cakrabarti1989: 242.
tal exercises
and techniques-coitus
reservatus alone
is difficult enough.29
5. The above seems a coherent system, logical in itself,30 in many respects agreeing with beliefs not only
of other religious groups, past and present, in Bengal,
29 According to recent sexological research male orgasm is
not necessarily linked to ejaculation and may as such be multiple; the technique must however mostly be actively learnt
(see, e.g., Ladas/Whipple/Perry 1982: 153-59). Is it possible
that Bauls experience something similar? At any rate, informants practising similar intercourse speak of intense, prolonged pleasure; see B. Bhattacharya 1977: 390ff., esp.
pp. 395f. (also Sinha 1961: 194).
30 And very male-oriented (cf., too, Capwell 1986: 74), as
the woman cannot unify the two aspects in her body. So is
she just a means to the man's ends, of no other import (cf.
also B. Bhattacharya 1977: 389)? Baul theory seems to make
no provisions for women, in contrast to, e.g., the vajrolimudrd
and amarolimudrd of n. 23 (see also below). So there seems
no justification for their engaging in such practice (except for
the ritual of the "four moons," not needing intercourse, in
?42). Yet they do, seemingly of their own volition (cf. also
Sarkar 1990: 73f., 121, 171-73), after a not easy period of
initiation and preparation, expecting a certain reward but
what? (A Sakta-Vaisnava woman adept cites release from the
cycle of rebirth; see B. Bhattacharya 1977: 393.) Has this aspect of the matter been studied? It should be, though such
considerations, typical for modern Westerners (who may see
here a typical example of male dominancy; cf., e.g., Herrmann-Pfandt 1986: 11; many women are indeed exploited;
cf. S. Cakrabarti 1989: 246f.), may be irrelevant in the eyes
of those concerned (e.g., since women do not long for sex:
S. Cakrabarti1989: 196f.). See, too, U. Bhattacdrya1980: 398
(also Gulik 1961: 138, 346), where it is however unclear
whether the concern expressed for the woman's well-being is
really on her account or merely because any disharmony in
her body would affect the male. Mukherjee 1985 says that "le
Bail [sic] et son epouse" (p. 127) or "the Baul couple"
(p. 213) both draw up what he views as their mingled fluids,
but this only shows unawareness of what actually is supposed
to happen (pp. 126, 212 speak of their tubular passages [!]
uniting and the resulting energy being forced up) and gives us
no actual information on what the woman is supposed to be
gaining. Cf., though, the Hathayogapradipika passages mentioned in n. 23, esp. 3.99ff. (Svdtmdrama1975) on the amarolimudra (in a system not that of the Bauls) in which semen
and rajas are united in the woman's body (see also Das Gupta
1976: 238f.); rajas here is the woman's procreatory fluid, the
counterpart of semen (see also 3.91), but whether it is the
same as menstrual blood (cf. ?2), I cannot say.

DAS:
but also pan-Indian and Chinese, maybe even panAsian (on the androgynous deity, cf. also Dimock
1966b: 21914). Similarities with "tantrism" (both socalled Hindu and Buddhist) are obvious. These have
however caused many to be careless in their descriptions of Baul belief and ritual, to simply assume that
particular individual aspects of "tantrism" apply to
these too, and even to use, in their descriptions, tantric
terms which Bauls may not use at all or in the same
implied sense. The same applies, mutatis mutandis, to
the great traditions the Bauls are in contact with, especially those of Vaishnavism (non-tantric and tantric)
and Islam, particularly Sufism.31 Such terminological
carrying over has led, for instance, to the tantric terms
purusa and prakrti being generally used in publications for the male and female aspects of the cosmic
principle, though Bauls rarely use the term purusa
(cf. ?2) (prakrti is, however, frequent-also for the
female engaged in the ritual). But in this case the danger of transferring alien notions, even though we cannot fully discount it (cf., e.g., prakrti = semen; S.
Cakrabarti 1986b: 134; 1989: 224), does not seem so
great, which is why I too use these terms for my readers' facilitation, though aware of possible pitfalls.32 In
many other cases, though, such methodological unsoundness, which is not confined to terminology, not
only may have quite adverse results, but at times
seems actually to have done so;33 sometimes this is
31 The scepticism of Gaborieau (1989: 232) regarding the
Sufi influence on Indian mysticism is not valid, in the case of
the Bauls at least. See also Bakker (1990) on possible Sufi
influences in "Hindu" thought in general. As it is, the give
and take between Islam and what is called Hinduism has
never been a one-way street (as recently shown again by
Chinniah 1990).
32 Of course, the terms prakrti and purusa have many
meanings, but in a context such as this it is naturally the tantric ones which apply. Cf. also n. 113.
33 An example is the discussion, often bordering on the
weird, on the meaning and etymology of bNuW
and dul, summarized in Anoyarul Karim 1971: 23-60. The author himself,
however, seems unable to pass competent judgment (even
mixing up Sanskrit and Prakrit on pp. 36f.); thus his own
speculations are hardly scholarly, even more so the rather
queer remarks of Anwarul Karim (1980: 99-108). Cf. also
MahmfUd1983: 414f. On bdul, aul and their Indo-Aryan cognates (not confined to Bengali, and including Middle and Old
Indo-Aryan) see Turner 1973: nos. 11504, 11546, 12183, and
no. 1012, respectively, which speak a clear language. As it is,
the adherents of many South Asian creeds (whether using
Indo-Aryan or other languages) call(ed) themselves "mad";
393
this is also found in Islamic mysticism, and is, indeed, so

common in many other religions as to hardly merit special
mention (for a brief discussion relating to South Asia, with
references and allusions to similarities in Christian mysticism,
see, e.g., Feldhaus 1984: 19ff., though some of the deductions
are probably debatable). In Bengal, too, the Bauls are not the
only ones to do so; they and many others also use commoner
words for "mad" (pdgal, pdg'1a, dioyanl/deoyand, ksydpd,
mastdn(d), unmdd, etc.); on this phenomenon see now
McDaniel 1989. It is also common knowledge that "mad" is
part of the name or honorific of many a Baul; this holds good
for adherents of similar creeds. Madness is linked with ecstasy
(Rdm'krsinatoo describes the ecstasy of a sldhaka thus), but
also with the attainment of hidden knowledge, and this too is
true of various religious groups. Thus Rameg (cf. n. 73), calling himself pdgal, unequivocally says in a song (Babd maolana maoldnd on Recordings 6: side A, no. 2): plgal chd*?
ei kheld keu bujh'be ni "None but the mad will understand
this game" (cf. n. 15); similarly, the popular song Meher'bdn
khoddr karund says that he who understands God's mysteries
becomes mad (ye bojhe se hay dioyani). Note in this connection also the belief in many cultures that fools, idiots and the
mad have a special relationship with divinity (as evinced too
in the Sanskrit devdndmpriyah "fool"). Madness can also be
due to longing; thus a famous song of Hasan (Hdchan) Raja
(on him, see Khdn/Hosen 1985: 292f.; Manirujjrmnn 1982:
88; P. Gupta 1985; All 1979; Man'sur Uddin 1981, 2.2: 3642; Riyajul Hak 1976: 42; Y. Bhattdcarya 1984: 447; Khan
1982: 19-28; Sen'gupta/ Basu 1988: 627) opens by saying
that he is biuld and duld longing for God: Ego maiil, tomdr
ldgi hdsan rijd bduld. bhdb'tebhdb'te hdsan ratjdyhai'l eman
.uld.... Note too the meaning "disordered"-- "dishevelled"
(also of hair) of baul and aul (or related words) in many IndoAryan languages, and that aul(a)jhaul(a) "dishevelled" (often,
but not only, of hair) is also used in Baul songs to mean
"unsteady, uneasy, bewildered; mad," as in the first line of
Amulyadhan's Aul'jhaul man re amar baul seje ne (Recordings 5: side B, no. 1, sung by Deb'das), in the line sadaisaih
phakire kay haije aulajhauld go, sakhi haye aulajhaula ... of
Sadaisah's Ami kari go mana syam'riupnirakhi (Y. Bhattacaryya 1962: 94, also in Y. Bhattacarya 1984: 285 and Datta/
Bhaumik 1966: 181f.; on the poet see Y. Bhattacarya 1984:
422) or in the line premer mdnus yard duladjaula [sic] hay re
tdrd of another song of Hasan Raja (Man'sur Uddin 1981,
2.2: 39). Incidentally, Anoyarul Karim 1971: 23-25 cites the
explanation of bdul by a Baul himself, who analyzes it as
"wind" (probably bdu) + ul "quest; information" (on the mystical speculations on this ul see pp. 49-52): "searcher for (or:
knowledgeable on) the wind" (cf. ?4). Another explanation of
bdul given by (according to the author) Sahajiyas (cf. ?8) is
found in T. Cattopddhydy1988: 285f.: ul is "success," namely
in esoteric actions relating to ba, which (due to the triangular

394
even intentional,34 though few are as honest about this

as Paul 1972: 4f.35
6. All this has, I trust, shown that describing the beliefs
and rituals of the Bauls may actually not be as easy
as it often seems. And in truth, this task is extremely
difficult, so much so that one could rightly say that,
though so much has been written on them,36 many
problems connected with the Bauls seem not even to
have been seen yet. This has several causes. Firstly, we
form of the Bengali letter) denotes the female genitals. Both

explanations are very interesting, showing how adherents of
these creeds see themselves; unfortunately the latter does not
differentiate between esoteric interpretation and etymology.
S. Cakrabarti(1989: 170) quotes the explanation bd "dtman-"
+ ul "searcher." (On the etymology of bdul see also Dimock
1966a: 250f., 254, quoted wrong by Capwell [1986: 10]).
34 See, e.g., nn. 2, 3, 12, 35. The data in n. 33 is irrelevant
to one determined to seek a complicated (therefore "better"?)
explanation for the otherwise all-too-obvious and therefore
uninteresting; usually this means "proving" borrowing from
Arabic for bdul and dul. That duliyd, a normal Indo-Aryan derivative of dul, (thus too: bduliya) has probably coalesced
with the Arabic auliy&' (a plural, but already in Urdu = the
singular wall), perhaps secondarily influencing dul, facilitates
such reasoning, even though these are quite different issues.
Linguistic games of fantasy are a common pastime in Bengal;
cases I find most interesting are the theory (M. Jand 1984: 3)
that the name of the forest region in South Bengal, Sundar'ban, is influenced by French; the unearthing of Arabic words
in the Carydpadas (cf. R. P. Das 1988b: 32516); the derivation
of Persian pir from OIA sthavira- (Enamul Hak 1984: 114,
l.c. sthabir; see also Endmul Hak 1979: 21); and the assumption that the modern names of Mohenjodaro and Harappaare
five thousand years old (!), originally being Mahendra-drrdha
"Fort Great-Indra"and Hara-appd (l.c. dppd) "Father Hara
(= Siva)" (Sen'gupta 1990: 135)!
35 "Moreover, it cannot be imagined that the members of
this sect will ever think of themselves as mad persons. And
again, any person who has fully appreciated the inner significance of their songs, can never think of them as ordinary mad
persons" (with interesting consequences; see esp. pp. Sf.). In
conveniently disregarding what Bauls themselves say, the author quite openly shows his basic concern with propagating
certain personal convictions (cf. n. 2 above). His Bauls' religious life naturally also knows of no sex (cf. n. 12). He (p. 2)
also states: "Bdul-gdn really means 'Spiritual Song"'!
36 In most detail probably by U. Bhattdcdrya (1980) (for
Baul rituals see esp. pp. 387ff., 371ff.).
have the difficulty of deciding who is or is not a Baul,

not only because not all Baul groups use this name,37
but also because their connections with the religious
groups surrounding them quite often hinder adequate
delimitation;38 this holds good especially for Sufis39
37 Indeed, in many parts of Bengal the terms fakir (Beng.
phakir, which is also simply "beggar" in East Bengal), sufi
(Beng. si~phf), etc., are commoner. It is incidentally not true
(at least today) that a Baul/Fakir must necessarily be "shorn"
(nerd), as the remarks of Datta (1977-1978: 447) could be
construed to mean. The Fakir (in Abul Bdiar 1986) too is anything but shorn. Actually, nera phakir is an historical epithet;
cf. U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 51 (though the explanation may be
debatable); the once common, now derogatory, Hindu term
for a Muslim, namely nere or Were,originally also meant
"shorn." The nerds Capwell (1986: 14f.) says were written
about by R. Montgomery Martin do not seem to be Bauls; certain Vaishnavas too are, even today, often called nera (and
neHi), though admittedly the distinction between them and
Bauls is often difficult to make, as the following line shows:
yata sab bairdgi baisnab bhek diya ndm bdaile bdul ndid in
Gopdl's song Ese ek rasik pdgal bddhdle gol; for different
printed versions, see, e.g., Sil n.d.: 8f., Capwell 1986: 190;
for sung versions Recordings 8: side A, no. 4 (by Gaur Khepa
and Paban Dds), Recordings 10: side A, no. 2 (by Rumd Guha
Thdkur'td),Recordings 15: side A, no. 6 (by Purna Candra
Dds) and no. 7 (by Sambhu Dds).
38 Many persons, mostly villagers (not only "lower class"),
adhere to what we would call Baul (in contrast to other
tantric) tenets, not necessarily seeing themselves in the same
category as those openly proclaiming themselves as Bauls,
Fakirs or the like. Even the latter are not necessarily the wandering minstrels with the habits and dress popularly associated with Bauls, but may be ordinary householders, not easily
distinguishable. I may also draw attention to the surprisingly
high percentage of folk songs, collected from ordinary villagers in different parts of Bengal, similar to Baul songs. Note
too that not all calling themselves Bauls are accepted as
such by other Bauls; see, e.g., Sarkar 1990: 88ff. (with p. 72);
S. Cakrabarti 1989: 158, 186, 244, 252ff.; A. Mukhopddhydy
n.d.: 1ff.
39 Though Bauls are supposed to differ from Sufis
(Mahmud 1983: 413f., Brahma 1987a: 93f., Ab'dur Ragid
1984: 123-30, also Anwarul Karim 1980: 11-13, S. Cakrabarti 1989: 265), common perception seems rarely to see this
(cf., too, Sarkar 1990: 137ff., Mandal 1949: cha[5]f.). To Jaohar (1986: 1-115) the famed Ldlan (and probably all Bauls)
are Sufis; A. Ah'mad (1985: 352, 584) lists books of Baul
songs in his bibliography of "Muslim" works without comment. Most Sufis in Bengal seem bi gar' anyway, in appear-

DAS:
ance and behavior often difficult or impossible to tell from

Bauls, who may have true Sufi silsilas. A friend from Faridpur divulged several pithy sayings from his village, claiming
they referred to all Fakirs and Sufis: suphir thyild baia thyala "The [coital] push of a Sufi is an immense push"; suphi
mdird dise (of an absent-minded/eccentric girl) "A Sufi's
fucked [her]"; suphir thdp khdise (id.) "[She]'s been thrust
[into] by a Sufi." Picturing, for political or religious reasons,
the Bauls as true Muslims (even manipulating sources, according to Lut phar Rah man 1985: [3]; see pp. [17]f. too) helps
this perception. Conversely, "orthodox" Muslims often persecute Bauls (at times Sufis, too); see, esp., S. Cakrabarti 1989:
17ff., 87f., 99ff., 163ff., 177ff., 192f.; A. A. Caudhuri 1990.
Thlib (1980: 234-44) attacks "Hinduism" (including Bauls,
etc.) in Islam, and Ydkdriya(1974: birdnabbai ff.) speaks disapprovingly of "so-called 'Sufism"' (p. birdnabbai); for works
of similar nature see Abu Tdlib 1985: 233, Riyajul Hak 1976:
29f., Anwarul Karim 1980: 5, A. Ah'mad 1985: 699f. (cf. too
Ab'dur Ragid 1984: 136-40). Abul Bd?dr 1986 is a story of
such antagonism; on p. 526 a Fakir (who is finally beaten up),
is called bidharmi "of another religion (= heretic)" and gumut
khaoya phakir "stool and urine eating Fakir" (a reference to
certain Baul practices; see ?42) by a leader of the "orthodox"
camp. Syncretistic creeds, in general, may be persecuted as
"unislamic"; thus the Maij Bhdnddrisong (see n. 72) Al ham'dulillah (Recordings 6: side B, no. 1) says: abujh bale kapher
,dake "[They] name [me] uncomprehending, call me an infidel." Intriguingly, Kay'sar (1987: 140) makes it clear that
"orthodox" Muslims (sunni) may, in their reactions against
what they do not regard as truly Islamic, even lump the Maij
Bhandari cult together with traditional Sufi orders such as
Cistiya, Naqgbandiya, etc.; this is not surprising when we
consider that one of the Maij Bhandari adherents described
(pp. 129ff.) actually belongs to the Mugaddidiya order
(pp. 235ff.). Many "orthodox" Bengali Muslims are however
ambivalent in their attitude toward syncretistic creeds, which
include the Bauls; thus Baj'lur Ragid 1984: 220, on the one
hand, speaks derogatorily of "unislamic" beliefs and practices,
and simultaneously, eulogizes Lalan and his songs (pp. 9-11).
Intriguingly, the leader just mentioned (Abul Bagar 1986: l.c.)
says: phakirer sa-themusal'mainerjal-cal thakleo, ta-ra-a-mader
kauimer(gosthi ba sampraday) keu na [sic, not nay] "Though
Muslims, have a water-accepting relationship with Fakirs
[who thus do not make them impure], they are none of our
kindred (fold or community)" (Abul Basar 1986: 527). On
such attitudes, akin to caste consciousness, among Indian and
especially Bengali Muslims, see Dutta 1987: 173-87, R. P.
Das 1988b: 3181 (also Gabriel 1988, P. Gupta 1985: 13, Rana
1988: 14, S. Cakrabarti 1989: 172ff.), Ali 1985: 415 (kar'o
dbiir huka-pdn bandha ha'ta); Haq (1985: 101) even mentions
a Sufi order shunning food touched by others.
395
and Vaishnavas.40 Secondly, the Baul creed is not, as

is usually assumed, homogeneous, the difficulty being
compounded by the fact that other religious traditions
relevant for its study are also not homogeneous, which
circumstance too is very often overlooked. Thirdly, despite all we today know about them, the Bauls still
keep much of their belief and ritual secret, at times
even deliberately misleading enquirers (cf., e.g., Sarkar
1990: 9f., 15f.; S. Cakrabarti 1989: 12f.). Yet the general impression one gains from publications on the
Bauls is that, though some minor points still remain to
be clarified, we know most things about them quite
well. This may not only lead us astray, but also make
us blind to much that is interesting and important.
Comprehensive knowledge of the Bauls can be gained
only by not avoiding or neglecting even complicated
problems, and I mean to demonstrate this.
7. Let us start with the problem of heterogeneity.41We
should expect this in a system of beliefs influenced by
various others (here especially, though not necessarily
only, those mentioned in ?5), which too show various
cross-influences, especially of tantrism on Vaishnavism
and Sufism.42 In fact one finds this heterogeneity at
40 See on this also the beautiful
picture painted by T. Ban-
dyopadhyay (1980) in the novel Rdikamal. Cf. also Sarkar

1985: 52ff., and n. 37.
41 The problem of delimitation cannot be taken up here, as
it requires exhaustive comparative studies of different religious doctrines. The other two problems mentioned in ?6
however concern not only, but mostly, Baul creed.
42 I am aware of the problems the terms "tantrism" and
"tantric" occasion (cf., e.g., Torella 1983: 309, also Gulik
1961: 3391) but do not know what other expressions to use, as
this is not the place to deal with such difficulties in detail. It
must however be emphasized that tantrism is not a system
striving to derive power through a mere reversal of behavioral
norms, of "transgression." This peculiar notion, seemingly a
misunderstanding of what we have seen in n. 8 and present
especially among French and North American scholars of the
social sciences, is mostly a fabrication of Louis M. Dumont,
and has sadly distorted the views of many scholars (cf., e.g.,
Bouez 1991: 143f., 151ff.; R. P. Das 1991: 751ff., 766f.). But
even then the definition of the terms we are concerned with is
difficult enough. For now, we will have to make do with the
ill-defined expression "tantrism," as it is commonly used, to
describe various methods connected with the microcosmic
macrocosm and the duality of male and female, and which
may mean different things to different persons. Dwight A.
Tkatschow says he is preparing an extensive bibliography of

396
almost every turn, if one only chooses not to ignore it,

but perhaps nowhere as readily-and confusingly-as
in the references to the mystic plexuses along the spinal path the Bauls too believe in. Now Bauls frequently
use the generic term padma of "Hindu"tantrism (cakra
is rather rare), and at times also refer to individual
plexuses with names known from the tantras; no one
would deny that there is some connection. Also, some
Bauls at least were or are well versed in what we
may perhaps call orthodox tantric tradition. But that
does not allow us to generalize, or uncritically to use
(mostly "Hindu")tantric nomenclature for the plexuses
in Baul belief,43 or to assume the same system, as is
commonly done.
8. Our problems do not end there. The exact significance of the terms padma and cakra in so-called Hindu
tantrism is actually unclear: are these synonyms, or do
padmas and cakras only share specific locations, or are
they part of each other (see too Briggs 1970: 309f.)?
Their exact numbers and locations, too, are unclear, as
is also whether the two highest plexuses, ijfii and
sahasrdra (both in the head), are actually different
material on tantrism at the University of Toronto's Centre for
Religious Studies. For now, as an introduction see Gupta/
Hoens/Goudriaan 1979, N. Bhattacharyya 1982, M. Basu
1986, Prajfidndnanda1988, Goudriaan/Gupta1981, Snellgrove
1987, Kavirdj 1972, Banerji 1988, Acdrya/Gautam 19851986, and Kvarne 1975 and 1977: 272' (see also pp. 30-36,
and cf. also pp. 61-64-apart from Kvarne 1975, J. Simha
1969, 1: 37-40 and P. Das 1988: 153f.-on the term sahaja,
which the Bauls too use, though on their sahaja, Beng. sahaj, see U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 86ff., and ??23ff.); cf. too
Dyczkowski 1987 and 1988. See esp. Dimock 1966a, P. Dds
1978 and P. Das 1988 on the special characteristicsof Bengali
Vaishnava tantrism, in which connection T. Cattopddhyd5
1988 (which also deals with the Bauls) is of interest. On
Sufi philosophy and practices see, esp., Schimmel 1975
(with an extensive bibliography), also Gramlich 1976 (esp.
pp. 253ff.) and 1981; Meier 1976 too contains much interesting material and an extensive bibliography. For an overview
of tantric/yogic Sufism characteristic of Bengal (though found
also in other parts of India; for western Indian examples see,
e.g., Wagle 1991, Mallison 1991; cf. also Faruqi 1985: 9ff.)
see A. Roy 1983 (also R. P. Das 1988b: 32516 on Bengali
Islam), and, on the Sufi component in Baul thought, esp.
U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 482-516 (also Datta/Bhaumik 1966:
[124]-[134]).
43 The emphasis is on "uncritically," for one ultimately has
to adopt a system of nomenclature that is widely understood.
But it must be stressed that the same names do not necessarily
make what is so named the same.
points, or whether the latter is a (the upper?)part of the

former, or not exactly a plexus, but something different
(a void?); depending on the answer, we would, following the usual mode of reckoning, have seven or six
plexuses-our handbooks mostly give either the one or
the other number. All this is important, for it is linked
with the problem of the abode of the Purusa, who is at
times portrayedas having his usual abode in the sahasrara, at times in the ijh&,at times in both. Similar
problems crop up with regard to so-called Buddhist
tantrism; here we have problems not only with the
terms kaya and cakra, but also kamala (padma).4
Then there are other tantric systems, often neglected,
whose padmas, cakras and the like may be very different from those of the "orthodox" systems.45 Of especial import for us are also the notions on the padmas
(situated in sarobars-OIA sarovara- -"lakes") in
Bengali Sahaji5d Vaishnavism (henceforth only "Sahajiya"), which are not only at great variance with the
generally known notions of so-called Buddhist and
Hindu tantrism, but also not standardized.46
44 See also S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 146-53, U. Bhattdcdrya
1980: 449-51.
45 Especial attention may be drawn to the Nath school (of
Bengali origin, according to a controversial theory), an overview of whose plexuses, e.g., M. Basu (1986: 636-43) gives.
Banerjea (1961: 169-88, 30) discusses the-nine-plexuses
according to Gorakh'ndth extensively; he also lists sixteen
adharas, some with names of plexuses known from "Hindu"
tantrism, but says expressly that they are not cakras. Nine
plexuses are also assumed by other tantric schools; see Gupta/
Hoens/Goudriaan 1979: 16917 and also Prajfiindnanda 1988:
571, 153-56 (on a theory in which the djniaactually consists
of four cakras, giving in all nine cakras if one disregards the
sahasrara; cf. ?8). On nine plexuses cf. also Rath 1982: 24:
caturbhih ?ivacakraff ca ?akticakraiSca paficabhih
Srivayor vapuh.
navacakrais ca samsiddhim ?ricakram
Cf., too, p. 6 (on the number 9 see also n. 133 below). Certain
sectarian works also mention "secret" plexuses; on these see,
e.g., Pott 1966: 21-24, 37f. (also pp. 137f., 38f. and Briggs
1970: 3174). Rdsel 1928: 24f. and Prajidninnanda 1988: 14419
too mention several plexuses in addition to those usually enumerated. In Ydkdriya 1974, also, the editor draws attention to
problems occasioned by Ndth theories on the plexuses, though
he sees them only in terms of "Hindu" and "Buddhist" tantrism (cf. pp. ek'?ata egdra ff.).
46 Cf., e.g., Dimock 1966a: 170-77; P. Das 1978: 150f.;
Bose 1927a: 48f., 52; and 1986: 125f.; also U. Bhattacarya
1980: 365. The sarobars seem somewhat similar to the seven
oceans of ancient Indian cosmology, which are also present in
the microcosm of the human body, as, e.g., Garudapurana,

DAS:
9. So it is no wonder that Baul theory, not only on the

number and nature of the plexuses, but also on the
abode of the Purusa, is varied. The latter poses a problem similar to that in ?8: is this place akin to the aijfii,
or is it akin to the sahasrira? And is the Purusa always
there, or do Purusa and Prakrti-Purusa(i.e., the Purusa
combined with the Prakrti) have different abodes (the
latter then probably in the place akin to the sahasrira)? Or are what we would call 4jfi and sahasrira
actually the same? The Bauls themselves seem to furnish us with different answers, quite often also such as
we cannot link with either of the plexuses mentioned.47
Then too, the total number of plexuses in the body usually seems to be four, though we find other numbers
too, also six.48 The number four seems common in
"Buddhist" tantrism; however, many descriptions of
individual plexuses in Baul theory even then tally
rather with what we know of "Hindu" tantrism.
10. Most Baul enumerations or descriptions make all
this even more confusing. Particularly puzzling is a
song49 mentioning four lotuses (padma), namely-in
this order-sahasrdra, manipura (= manipura), khaijancksi (!) and muladhara.50 These seem to be in descending order, which is puzzling, for the khahjaniksi
is said to have two petals and be situated at the root of
the nose (ndsamile khafjandksi padma se dbidal), i.e.,
between the brows; it thus seems to correspond to the
djnid, which is above the Manipura! The same order
(with the name khaijanaksi, otherwise unknown to me)
is, also enigmatically, mentioned already by Candidas
(Bose 1986: 129).51 But he was a Sahajiya Vaishnava,
so we might find something relevant in Sahajiya
Uttardrdha(Pretakalpa) 22.60-62 states (Pandey 1986); one
might therefore investigate whether Sahajiya notions on the
microcosm ultimately result from such cosmological notions
amalgamating with those on the plexuses.
47 Cf. also Datta/Bhaumik 1966: (134)ff., (104); U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 452.
48 E.g., in Gobin's Dekh'bi yadi cikan-kilhi 9baisermailajap
nC (U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 929); the cakras (the term used
here) are neither named nor described, just enumerated. The
famous Hdure begins a song: Guru thiken sahasrdire, satcakra upare "The Guru (cf. ?1) resides in the Sahasrdra,on
top of the six cakras" (A. C. Dds 1986: 87); here too the
cakras are not named.
49 Man pdgelk ydis'nJ kabhu dhikdr ?ahare by Mo. Nechdr
Ali Sekh (Tena 1981: 157f.).
50 The transcription follows OIA (Sanskrit) norms, as is
common practice.
51 Note also M. Basu 1986: 640f. on similarly situated similar padmas.
397
literature. And there is a text (see P. Das 1978: 151)

which too could have the two-petalled lotus below the
region where the manipura usually is,52 namely in a
"lonely/solitary place," which might refer to the
genitals.53 In the Baul song, the manipura is also
called the abode of Siva (manipureparam Siber sthal).
Siva is the Purusa (see n. 13), and ?ib (OIA giva-) also
refers to semen in tantric texts.54 But both Purusa and
semen are generally said to reside in the head. Now the
position of the manipura above, just below the sahasrira, is where in "Hindu" tantrism we find the 4djfi!
But what of the khahjaniksi, then? All this refuses to
fit into any single scheme we know of. Some of the
confusion might, of course, disappear if the order of
enumeration of the plexuses above should not be that
of their actual position in the body, but difficulties
would still remain.
11. There is even more food for thought. Manipura
(Beng. manipur) is literally "abode/city of the jewel."
But mani "jewel" is also a common esoteric term for
semen.55 Is manipura the abode of semen? Statements
52 It also locates a six-petalled lotus in or at the
navel, the
usual place of the ten-petalled manipura according to

"Hindu" tantrism, in which the six-petalled lotus is the svddhisthina, located at the root of the genitals.
53 nirjan sthinete; cf. guhyadesa in Dimock 1966a: 171118,
and the fact that guhyadesa is also a common term for the
private parts.
54 Note too that ?iva and expressions for "Siva's semen"
(e.g., Sivabija) also refer to mercury (also called rasa, on
which see nn. 21 and 22).
55 Medieval Bengali Sufi-yogic-tantric works have it too.
Thus Sekh Sddi's Gadd-mdlikd Sambdd uses mani (also candra "moon"; cf. R. P. Das 1984b: 331) for "semen" (and ratiras for "menstrual blood") (Sariph 1976: 55, 69). Mani [sic]
is found in Sariph 1978 (e.g., pp. 28, 31f., 70) also. The editor of Sekh Jdhed's Adya-parica9 derives mdni of the text
from Arabic mani "semen" (thus also in Persian, in High Arabic minan) (Endmul Hak 1979: 19, 5266, 7474; A. Roy [1983:
186] derives mani thus too). But the text refers to semen by at
least three other known tantric terms as well, all from OIA:
bindu, Sukra, and candra (op. cit., 13). The editor mentions
mani (not mdni or mani!) as a fourth name. Now he himself
admits to often emending the manuscript (pp. 4f.), but as a
rule does not mention rejected readings. We may thus ask
whether the text really has mdni, or whether he has changed
mani / mani (the nasal is no problem, for Bengali manuscripts
usually confuse n / n; the letters are often similar). Moreover,
in some parts of Bengal a in an initial syllable was often written as a (cf. R. P. Das 1988a: 344). I thus have reservations
regarding the etymology of mani proposed. It is possible that

398
like Tahejaddi's puruser mani thake mastake-manir

mokame ("a man's jewel is situated in the head-at the
abode56 of the jewel")57 make this worth considering.
Bholai calls the muni the "brain-flower"(magaj phul)58
in which connection note that the Yogi-kic says
that the mani-magaj is in the head (Manidal 1949: 1gha[5]). In a song by Gopal,59 manipur is the place to
which semen rises through the susumna, where the Purusa resides, and also a two-petalled lotus (cf. ?10).60
the Indo-Aryan and Arabic words have later amalgamated,but
as mani "jewel" is after all a well-known tantric term for "semen," it does seem more probable that this is the origin of the
expression used in Sufi-yogic Bengali works, too, especially
since they repeatedly refer to semen as "wealth" (A. Roy
1983: 186). Interestingly, Sekh Jdhed (Endmul Hak 1979: 51)
calls candra after it has left the man and entered the woman
maini,but this differentiation does not seem to be consequent.
Gulik 1961: 3403 says that mani means "penis" in Buddhist
texts. I do not know whether this is correct, but cf. vajra
"thunderbolt;diamond; penis"; see, e.g., S. B. Dasgupta 1974:
106 (p. 169 on om mani padme hum); also J. Simrha 1969,
1:179f. (on possible instances of New Indo-Aryan equivalents
or synonyms of vajra with the meaning "penis" in the Caryapadas, in which texts Simha, in contrast to other commentators, sees references to sexual practices). In medical texts the
glans penis is called mani.
56 mokam or mukam, from Arab. maqdamor muqcim (in
South Asia the latter is common), appears in several contexts
in Baul songs. See also ?14, ?48 and n. 208.
57 In Ei sabhate baisyai achen yatek jan, answering a riddle
song by Aher Baks (Ei sabhdte baisyCiachen yata bayati); see
Ab'dul Hdmid 1981: 15f.
58 In Gacher par tord dekh'se ?atadal (Tend 1980: 7f.).
Muni is a dialectical pronunciation for mani (cf. n. 155 and
Ha. Bandyopddhydy 1978: 1807). JijiHisi hayecha amad;ese
ranger paricay (Tend 1980: 9f.), also by Bholdi, connects
muni with ram "color," but the sense is unclear (dui rahgete
mathan have muni[,(?)] ram prabal have purus pa)'da- hay;
this song links different colors with the conceived child's sex;
cf. on colors also n. 86).
59 Man re cala rtip'nagare (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 853f.).
60 The song says, too, that one sees sixty-four "chambers/
compartments"(kuthuri) there. The mystic number sixty-four
appears in various contexts; I am not sure what it means here.
However, since the Purusa here is clearly Krsna, see also
H. Das 1987: 273, on Krsna's sixty-four female companions.
The nirmdnacakra (0kdya?) of "Buddhist" tantrism however
has sixty-four petals too; but it is in the navel region like
the manipura! A coincidence maybe, but intriguing. Yakdriya
(1974: 148) draws attention to Sekh Cdnd's Tdlib Ndma,
which refers to the body's sixty-four tubular passages (ndi-i).
In a song by Panij,61Allah (= Purusa; cf. n. 13) as the

"fish"62 is in the manipur after having played at the
triveni63 (dche nirmal mahal manipure, kheleche kheld
ghdt tripine), which too speaks for a cranial location.
U. Bhattacarya (1980: 1059) thus seems to be correct
in taking the manikothac"jewel-chamber" (commonly
"innermost chamber/sanctuary") in Panij's Nirakdre
jyotirmay (ibid., 744) too to be a cranial plexus, as it
is hardly different from the manipur. But the song
mentions a union here (manikothd4yog-milan); is this
meant literally, or just an allusion to the united state
of Prakrti and Purusa residing here now? The former
would be problematic, for it could imply that the
Purusa does not descend, but lets the Prakrti rise to
it, or else that the site meant is actually near the genitals. Kal'kut 1988b: 46, too, enigmatically mentions a
"game" of the semi-legendary Jay'deb and Padmabati
61
Mildsddhan kara md1ekcine (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 758f.).

Common for the cosmic principle, which the "fisherman"
"catches" in the menstrual river. (Fish incidentally are lustless; cf. S. Cakrabarti 1989: 83.) In Ldlan's Samay bujhe
bAdhWlbaldhle nd (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 578, Hdmidul Is'ldm
1981: 59f.; not in Ddg/Mahdpdtra1958, S. Mitra 1979) the
fish is clearly Visnu's fish incarnation (to D. Bhattacharya
1969: 921, whose Bauls know of no sex cf. n. 12 this is
the only meaning of "fish"). Images of "catching," and of
"traps," "cages," etc., are common in Baul songs. But not all
mean the same; thus something adverse may be "caught," to
neutralize it. And in the song ldur-mdrd kal rayeche jagat
majhdre (Recordings 7: side A, no. 2, sung by Gaur Khepd)
the mouse-trap is the vagina.
63 Beng. tribenli, in dialects tir(')puni, tir(')pin, etc.: the
holy confluence of Gahgd (Ganges), Yamund, and the mythical Sarasvati at Allahabad (the Yuktaveni), also the point of
separation of Yamund and Sarasvati (Beng. Sarasbati) from
the Bhdgirathi/Hug'li (Hooghly) in Hooghly District, West
Bengal (the Muktaveni, a pilgrimage centre too). It refers in
tantric (also Baul) terminology to the meeting place of the
three tubular passages at the spinal base (see ?4). U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 444 draws attention to the notion that there are
two trivenis within the body, namely the yukta triveni and the
mukta triveni, in the perineum and between the brows respectively. On the triveni(s) also Yakariya 1974: 150, 154, 175 (in
the last place mentioned we find the opinion that according to
the Nath text edited the triveni is situated in the heart; I do
not know if this deduction is valid). Qureshi 1977: 236 says
that in Baul terminology trivenlialso describes "I'uterus d'o'
s'ecoule le sang menstruel"; I do not know whether this is
true (cf. also ?33). D. Bhattacharya (1969: 751) and Paul
(1972: 12, 25f.) explain triveni in various ways, except for
the one meant, as that entails sex (cf. n. 12).
62

DAS:
(revered by Bauls, especially in West Bengal) played in

the manipur, obviously during ritual intercourse. Even
more unclear is manipur in a song of Pacu,64 which
says only that the "man of the mind" (see ?2) sports
here. But S. Cakrabarti(1989: 242) expressly situates
the "jewel of the head" (mithdr manii) = Krsna in the
manikothd. A song of Ananta65 places the manikothd
right at the top of the dwelling66 which is the body.
And a song by an unknown poet,67 detailing the right
conduct of the sadhu,68 advises one to keep one's mind
attached to the "red sign" (menstrual flow) and close
up the mouth of the pitcher (kal'si),69 with attention
fixed on the manikothd, which obviously refers to the
64 Ama-rmaner ma-nus khel'che manipure (U. Bhattadcrya
1980: 699f.).
65
Ke gaieche eman ghar. For the words see U. Bhattacarya
1980: 801f. A. Gupta 1983: 108 has a slightly shorter version,
whilst a corrupt and much abridged version is found on Recordings 17: side B, no. 3.
66 ghar. The body as a house or the like is a common and
ancient image found also in the Carya-padas; see Kvarne
1977: 45.
67 Sddhu ydrd jdne tdra-(Recordings 5: side B, no. 2, sung
by Paban'das).
68 "Of right/properconduct" seems the best approximation.
In Baul terminology sadhu mostly means one who knows how
to attain or has successfully attained the ultimate stage of cosmic harmony through the proper ritual.
69 Is the shape of the scrotum with the testicles enclosed
relevant here (a kal'si is round-bellied, with a large opening
and hardly any neck)? The simile is in any case understandable: one must hoard what one has received from the woman,
not letting it flow out again. Sdhd Kdchim Ali's Tord hao yadi
keo dhani (Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 191f.) says: jr mdiya-nadir
kiile basi sntainkarile guni; kal'sir mukhe cip-ni di sandhane
tula pani "And when [you], talented/skilled one, bathe, sitting
on the bank of the girl-river, raise the water in [your] search,
putting a lid over the pitcher." It could be that the image is
also influenced by the term kumbhak(OIA kumbhaka-), literally "(small) pot/pitcher," but, in tantrism, used to denote the
process of breath control by which the air within the body is
stabilized prior to being directed up via the susumna. Bauls
usually use other terms for this (see ?4), but it is very probable that some of them at least are acquainted with the tantric
term. The pot or pitcher is also supposed to represent the
susumna-and the plexuses, as well as the body (cf. Kvxrne
1977: 52), the latter an ancient image. A song by an unknown
poet (Hari baddhaman on Recordings 8: side A, no. 1, sung
by Gaur Khepd and Padan Dds) speaks of binding a pot on the
date-tree (i.e., a woman; cf. n. 154), to be tapped when its
flood (menstruation) comes, to obtain real sugar (see n. 24).
399
process of translocation to the head.70 Such statements

obviously do not refer to the manipura of "Hindu"tantrism.71 It is also worth examining whether manikula
(variant:manimila) in Carydpada 4.3 might not have a
sense like that considered here.
12. This brings to mind the "chamber of goods/wealth
(mal)," frequently mentioned, which may point to a
parallel with mani (mal is also slang for "semen," at
least in the Calcutta area; cf. ras in n. 22). A Mdij
Bhaid.ari song72 by Ramer73 has the Maij Bhandari
70 Prithwindra
Mukherjee, on the cover of Recordings 5,
calls "le Joyau" "Un des plexus neuro-physique, siege du

psychisme," but, probably unsure as to what exactly is meant,
gives no particulars.
71 Cf. the difficulties of Paul (1972: 12, 27). Incidentally,
Blanchet (1987: 70) records monni for "brain"in the language
of Jamalpur District; I am not sure, but there seems to be a
connection with the above.
72 Such songs are named after a Sufi shrine in Mdij Bhdndar, Chittagong District, mentioned also in some, mostly East
Bengali, Baul songs. Some researchers seem not to know of it
or its songs, or to have no real idea regarding them. Thus the
extensive list of the different types of Bengali folk songs in
Ab'dul Haphij 1975: 31-38 does not mention Maij Bhanddri
songs. Datta/Bhaumik (1966: [32]) list "Maij Bhanddr"as a
poet (!), but say too that the above village could be meant.
Kdy'sar (1987: 129ff.) describes Mdij Bhdndari mystics in
vivid detail. On Maij Bhdnddrisongs see Ohidul Alam 1979:
76, 84-87 and 1985: 18-33, Brahma 1986: 130-32, Jasimud-din 1977: 67-77, Begam 1976: 79-83 (also Riyajul Hak
1976: 42). One can buy booklets containing them all over
Bangladesh (see too A. Ah'mad 1985: 112). Though the songs
in the one I possess (lusuph/Ibrahim n.d.) are mostly not like
Baul songs, many others are. One Maij Bhdnda-risong is
found in 0. Ah'mad 1974: 104, Ohidul Alam 1963: 43f.given as two different songs in Ohidul Alam 1985; 19, 21and Chowdhury/Chowdhury/Hossain1985: 79f., respectively.
There are also recordings of Maij Bhanddri songs (e.g., Recordings 6 and 18); some of these are just like Baul songs.
Some songs are also to be found on Recordings 9; song no. 6
on side A (Ohe asekan bhan~ddriname) incidentally says:
khul'be na tor diler kapat nd bujh'Ie bhanddrir gdn "The door
of your interior/core won't open if you don't understand the
song(s) of the Bhandari," showing (like RameN's song in
n. 33) that at least some of the songs contain secret messages.
(I have used "interior/core"for dil/del to bring out the ambiguity; "heart"or "mind" would not do.) See also n. 73.
73 La illaha illa lhu [sic] (Recordings 13: side A, no. 2).
On Rameg, a famous kabiyal (cf. n. 168) and Maij Bhanddri
devotee, see Manirujjaman1982: 86; Khan/Hosen 1985: 231;

400
reside in the mdl'kothd.74An unknown poet's song75

calls the body a train with eighty-four compartments
(probably, though not definitely, alluding to an ancient
measure of the ideal man: eighty-four of his own
fingers),76 then saying: sollo kothd4 mal kothM"the
mal kotha is within/with/[made] of sixteen chambers/
compartments."77 This reminds one of the sixteen
adharas of n. 45, but also of a lotus of sixteen petals
in the forehead in a "Buddhist" tantric theory,78
Sen'gupta/Basu 1988: 461; Khan 1982: 37-46; Ohidul Alam

1979: 85, 88-90 and 1985: 18, 43-53 (in the song on p. 25
ramen is probably a misprint for rame?). A collection of his
songs has been published, but I could not see this. Recordings
6 and 18 however contain some songs; on others see nn. 33,
74, 131, and ?50. I am not sure if the two songs by a Rameg
on Recordings 14: side B, nos. 1 and 4 (Adhar gharat rdit'ka
and Prem jbdldy) are by the same Rameg, but it is likely.
74 rame? kay mil'kothdte biraj kare maij bhondari "Rameg
says: The Mdij Bhanddri is illustriously present in the chamber of goods/wealth." bhdnidarirefers to the Mdij Bhdnddri,
one of the saints (maulinis, pirs), often regarded as reincarnations of famous holy men, including Jesus and Muhammad,
for whom this shrine is famous. There are supposed to have
been two (for their names see, e.g., Ohidul Alam 1985: 18).
Usually (if my information is correct) the chota pir/maulnd
is invoked (on him see Khan/Hosen 1985: 94, Jasimud din
1977: 65-67, Ohidul Alam 1985: 33), but the bara pir/mauldand(on him see A. Ah'mad 1985: 167, Jasimud din 1977: 6065) might be the subject of songs too, so it may not always be
clear who is meant. On the amalgamation of Maij BhdndIri
and the cosmic principle (also in two songs by Rameg in
Anoyarul Karim 1971: 12f.), cf. ?1.
75 Man're, cal-che harindmer gdHi (Datta/Bhaumik 1966:
182f.).
76 See, e.g., Carakasamhitd, Viminasthdna 8.117 with
Cakrapdnidatta'scommentary (Achirya 1941). Sharif (1972:
349f.) (unaware of the antiquity of this notion) refers to a
similar statement in a mediaeval Bengali Sufi-yogic work. In
Ydkdriyi 1974: cuyittar, the editor, also unaware of the notion's antiquity, objects that measurements he himself conducted did not tally with it, so that the author of this Bengali
text must have made a mistake!
77 Different sets of "chambers/compartments" appearing
side-by-side is nothing unusual in Baul and similar songs.
78 According to the SekoddeSatikd (Carelli 1941: 28: ...
U. Bhattacarya
sodaSadalalalhte kamalakarnikdydm...;
(1980: 451) wrongly says that the text means the neck region
like the Herukatantra, thus making the plexus correspond to
the visuddha of "Hindu"Tantrism). Cf. S. B. Dasgupta (1974:
148f.) on the thirty-two-petalled lotus in the head (outside the
though I cannot say whether anything similar to one of

these is meant.79 Or do we have something like the
sixteen body parts (kalas) mentioned, e.g., in Dalhana's commentary on Sugrutasamhitd,Uttaratantra66.7
(Acharya/Acharya 1938)? But sixteen is also associated with the moon, which may refer to semen (see n.
55), whose place is the head;80note in this context the
tubular passage (kaldnddi) consisting of sixteen kalds
and situated in the highest plexus in the head (Prajfianananda 1988: 145). Nevertheless, the meaning of
mal kothi is unclear. But a song by Rahimuddin8l describes the cosmic principle as standing in the chamber of ras, having locked up its maler kothd opposite
it (tar ultW).The song seems to describe the difficulty
of the sexual ritual; thus the former chamber might refer to the genital region (cf. n. 22), making the latter
the head.
mahasukhacakra with its four-petalled lotus in the Herukatantra), which is according to him based on the doubling of
the sixteen kalks also situated there. He (p. 150), incidentally,
wrongly holds the plexus of the heart to have thirty-two petals
according to the SekoddeSatika; actually it has eight (the
karakamala has thirty-two petals, also a guhyakamala: Carelli
1941: l.c.). Prajfidnananda (1988: 144) says that there is a
sixteen-petalled lotus between the highest and next highest
"regular" lotuses (i.e., sahasrara and dyin-arespectively) according to some (seemingly not "Buddhist") theories. On a
Bengali NMthtext combining sixteen and thirty-two (with reference to the plexuses?) see Ydkdriya 1974: ek'&atabcra, 148
(on thirty-two see also ?22).
79 The song can hardly refer to the sixteen vikdras of the
Sankhya system (see any good dictionary) (Datta/Bhaumik
1966: [131]), though song no. 71 in A. Bhattdcdrya
1977:1285f. probably does (this song by Bholdndth-Dine
dine hala dmdr e din akhari-is usually ascribed to Ldlan;
cf. S. Mitra 1979: 197, Ddg/Mahdpdtra1958: 276, Hdmidul
Is'ldm 1981: 35, U. Bhattacdrya 1980: 623f. and Recordings
11: side A, no. 2-sung to a modern tune by Arundhati Hom
Caudhuri). Cf. also Carakasamhitd, Sarirasthdna 2.33
(Acharya 1941) on the sixteen bhitas in the body.
80 Cf. Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan 1979: 60; J. Sirnha 1969,
1:85; P. Dds 1978: 262; Wayman 1973: 160ff. Rath (1982:
3ff.) too mentions the sixteen kalds of the moon, which "also
imply the divine units of measurement" (p. 3), subsequently
expounding on the mystical meaning of 16 and other numbers
of the geometrical progression of 2, which incidentally also
play a role during ritual intercourse (B. Bhattacharya 1977:
389).
81 Saj pirit hay na go sai mdnusete (Datta/Bhaumik 1966:
200).

DAS:
13. A song by Iman A182 successively lists four padmas (the term is used here), which would, based on the
number of petals on each, correspond to maladhara
(the song too has this name elsewhere),83 svidhisthina, sahasrira and ijfid (though, since the locations
of the last two-in the head and between the brows respectively-are given, they seem not to be mentioned
in the strict order of ascension). But the svidhisthina
seems to have amalgamated with the manipura, as the
text states: ose dbitiya padmate dagam dal ray tate "oh
on that second padma (i.e., the one "Hindu" tantras
would call svidhisthina) the/a tenth petal is on that."
This may be due merely to textual corruption (then we
would have five plexuses),84 but to me the text does not
seem corrupt. Now according to U. Bhattacarya(1980:
365), Sahajiya texts seem to presuppose a ten-petalled
lotus which is an amalgamation of the four-petalled
miWadharaand the six-petalled svadhisthana, the first
and second lotuses, counting upwards. It does look as
if our song had combined this either with "Hindu"
tantric theory, or else with the Sahajiya theory of n. 52,
in which a six-petalled lotus is in the place of the tenpetalled manipura, the third lotus of "Hindu" tantrism,
or even with another Sahajiya theory which describes
the lowest lotus as having six petals (see Dimock
1966a: 175). But in a song of the Balahajis, by Sadananda,85the "apparatus"(the body?; or as in ?4?) arises
in the six-petalled lotus,86 while according to another,
82 Bhabanadir madhye gaich uday (Tend 1981:
129f.).
83 Telling us that the "Lord" (pati) is here and in the thousand-petalled lotus at auspicious moments (subha laganete).
84 The body expressly has five lotuses in a Balahaii song
by Sadananda (Haiiram'din manab'deha gathan kare go;
S. Cakrabarti1986a: 146f.).
85 Hariram manab'dehe baniyeche ek ajab kal (S. Cakrabarti 1986a: 145f.; see also p. 85).
86 In Bal haoyate kay'che katha (ibid., 140f.) Sadananda
says:
tar chajan ripu daman habe
hastir upar maihutyeman
ankus pele hay khara.
Ialjarad sbet pit(a)
saradale bikasita
yay samudrete
se to kare tal(a)mal satadal sahasradal
alek minus biraj kare sei manuse
nihar rekhe nimai cMdmu*@ matha.
The six-petalled plexus has four colors on it here: red, yellow
(jarad), white and yellow (pit); one "yellow" may be a
mistake for "green" or "black" (cf. Enamul Hak 1979: lOlf.,
401
by Dinu,87 this lotus seems to be, or be located near,

the womb.88 Thus Iman Ali may indeed be referring to
a ten-petalled plexus as the second-lowest. But in another song89 he says that the body, here called a "lotus,"90has a ten-petalled plexus at its root (ihiir dagam
dale muWdhare), to which "flower" the Purusa repairs
at auspicious moments. This would make the tenpetalled plexus the lowest. Such examples show what
convoluted notions we have to reckon with. U. Bhattacarya (1980: 373f., 452, 474) remarks that Bauls often
seem to regard the region of the midldhdra and svddhisthana and at times also the manipura as one single
region with a single plexus, not standardized,91often
Sariph 1976: 69, Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 1682, and U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 512 [also p. 508; see also n. 58]). The colors here
seem associated with creation, which would tally with
S. Cakrabarti 1989: 194f., where the menstrual flow has the
colors red, yellow, white and black, the first signifying fertility. Cf. on the "six enemies" (chajan ripu) ?30; on the "elephant" (hasti [sic]), also Kverne 1977: 46f.
' Bal bine ki calere manab garH(ibid., 167).
88Bholdi's first song in n. 58 says that the six-petalled lotus
is maddi, i.e., madhye, of the body. Madhye is literally "in the
middle," but its usual postpositional meaning is simply
"within." In the latter case, the song would have no useful information about the plexus; but the former meaning would be
problematic, the exact significance of "middle" then being unclear. Another song by Bholdi (Ki 4jab ghar ei bhaber par;
Tend 1980: 8) says that the cluster of six bindus(?) is the
place in the middle (madhyasthal sarabinda dal). Bindu has
many meanings (see n. 55 and Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan1979:
182, also Datta/Bhaumik 1966: [101]); I do not know what is
meant here. Or is sarabinda just a word play on arabinda "lotus"? In any case, the line is a problem, especially since "on/
above it is the hamsa-market"(tairupar hamser bajair);hamsa
may since olden times refer to the cosmic principle, and the
hamsabija is, in "Hindu" tantrism, within the aijna.
89 Ajab ek phul phuteche gacher do-dale (Tena 1980: 20).
90 Or maybe just a "flower" (depending on whether padma
in sata sahasra dal padma phule belongs to phule or not).
This is produced in a "tree," on which cf. n. 154; does it
therefore refer to a foetus? A decision is difficult, for the song
seems to use "flower" in different senses.
91 Really puzzling is a nine-petalled hidden plexus, in
Bholai's first song in n. 58, in the line ar phul chara mul ache
nigum phul nay daler pare. As far as I could ascertain, there
are theories which refer to nine plexuses (see n. 45), but not
to a plexus (flower) with nine petals. But perhaps the ninepetalled "flower" (phul) in this song, playing on different
meanings of "flower" (cf. ?39), does not actually refer to a
plexus.

402
termed maladhara (see Qureshi 1977: 240); this also

begs for comparison with the nirmdnacakra (0kaya?)
of "Buddhist" tantrism (see n. 60), as this too replaces
several plexuses of "Hindu"tantrism (op. cit., 449).
14. The Islamic mystic component in Baul belief has
already been mentioned. One aspect particularly relevant is the notion, particularly wide-spread in Indian
Sufism, of, as a rule, four stages on the way to dissolution of individuality and to oneness with God: in ascending order, nisiit (Beng. nasut, in East Bengali
orthographyndchut), malakat (Beng. macl'kut),gabariit
(Beng. jab'rut), and lihat (Beng. lahut).92 Baul songs
too mention these as such, but seem also to transform
them (like, seemingly, the latiphals in n. 175) into
plexuses (see also n. 131), like much of Bengali yogictantric Sufism (see A. Roy 1983 in n. 92). As what
exactly is meant is often unclear, there is much room
for confusion. Other difficulties abound; thus the
mal'kut follows on the jam'rut (= jab'rut) in a song by
lchdk.93A song of Pdn-jseems to mention a fifth stage
(probably = plexus), haut,94 obviously a variant of
hdhut,95which is intriguing, for96 this term seems rare
in the mystic terminology of Sufis in the Islamic world
in general; it is found in Ibn al-'Arabi's vocabulary,
used, however, for the divine essence (Arabic hahat;
see Schimmel 1975: 270).97 But it clearly is used in
Sufi circles in India.98 Now Pafij, in keeping with Sufi
terminology (at least in Bengal), calls the other four
stages mokams (cf. on this n. 56), but not the haut. He
also mentions a UI-mokam,99the seat of the "light" (on
this see ?36). Ab'dur Ragid (1984: 243) cites Ibn al92
On these stages in mediaeval Bengali Sufi-yogic works
see also A. Roy 1983: 170-77, 179. Esp. on the lahut and
nasut, see also Bosworth/Donzel/Lewis/Pellat 1986: 611-14.
93 Naph cher ul'te nao baiyo re manura (Datta/Bhaumik
1966: 197f.).
94 Ei manuse nabir nure jhalak dey (see U. Bhattacarya
1980: 512, 750).
95 Cf. on this term Ab'durRasid 1984: 179, Sariph 1969: pha.
96 Despite what U. Bhattacarya (1980: 503-5) says to the
contrary.
97 H. C. Pal (1969: 390), linking hd(h)ut (given thus) with
the angel Har-utof the Koran, is quite off the mark; he clearly
did not understandthe word.
98 Dara Sik6h's Risala-i haqqnama mentions it (U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 140). To Ab'dur Rasid (1984: 89, 178-81) it is
part of Sufi doctrine in general.
99 mokam nachut, lahut, mal'kut,jab'rut cari hay,
car moka-memanijil-dbaregupta bese kiran dey,
la-mokame nurer asan, haute nabot bjady.
'Arabi (with no reference) on a similar "light" in the

la-makan (i.e., Arab. la-makan); I was unable to verify
this, but suspect that what is meant is la-makan "he
who has no abode" referring to the supreme deity (in
whom the "light" resides), as is common, e.g., in Persian poetry. But the la-mokam mentioned in several
Baul songs seems rather to be a void, maybe lying
above the plexuses. Though sometimes it and the lahut
(usually the highest stage or plexus) could be taken to
be the same, mostly the two seem different, as in Padnj's
song (the context makes ld-mokim "supreme deity"
unlikely here), in which hM(h)utand li-mokim too are
separate. A mystic, cited in S. Cakrabarti 1989: 175,
says the latter is a space two fingers below the heart,
inaccessible to the devil. I lack the specialized knowledge to write more on this subject.
15. Not only plexuses and related matters are problematic; problematic, too, are the natures of the fluids
involved, particularly vexing being that of rati. As this
pertains to Sahajiya Vaishnavism, too, we shall discuss
it in this context before examining it in Baul theory.
Rati to Vaishnavas is a state of mind;100to Bauls too it
has this sense. But it also could describe the Prakrti in
Sahajiya terminology (note too Sinha 1961: 194f. and
discharge
1966: 79f.: the-non-menstrual-vaginal
corresponding to male birya "semen" is also called
rati), and possibly also the combined Prakrti-Purusa
which rises through the middle tubular passage; cf.
P. Das 1978: 131ff. (esp. pp. 133-37). Page 135f. first
says that ka-m'rati= prakrti and prem'rati = purus are
present in the pifigald (right) and idd (left), respectively, but then that the cosmic principle's ras (cf.
n. 22) of sensual pleasure from divine coitus descends
as kcm'rati or jib'rati via the pirigala, ascends, purified
as prem'rati via the idd, and rotates thus until the
mouths of the passages join and the two ratis combine
to form samaras (OIA samarasa-)101 and then ascend
via the central susumna. According to pp. 273f., 290f.,
the unmoving bija, already formed through ritual practice (i.e., Prakrti-Purusa),is brought down via the pingala by sexual arousal, and then purified by making it
rotate as described.102 But pp. 293f. say that jib'rati or
100 For details see K. Bhattdcdrya 1978: 165f.; Sdhd 1986:
8ff., 27. It is linked with ras, on which see n. 22. Cf. also
n. 10.
101 This usually signifies the state of harmony of microcosm
and macrocosm; cf. S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 124-28; Das Gupta
1976: 31f., 82, 147f., 156.
102
See also p. 144. P. Das (1988: 139) says: "Due to sexual
attraction semen comes down through the Pingald nerve and is

DAS:
deharati within the piigald must be made to ascend in

the idd. Then the mouths of the two passages fuse and
the rati rotates, this being called the attainment
(sadhan) of kam'rati, which then attains samaras, etc.
This is rather confusing,103 maybe attempting to combine different theories,104 e.g., ones locating Prakrti
and Purusa at opposite ends of the spine and on the
right and left of the body respectively. Also, "rotation"
means purification as in n. 24, according to U. Bhattacarya (1980: 398). I lack competence to decide such
matters.105But I may point out that during ritual inter-
secreted"; this secretion is to be controlled, but what actually

is supposed to happen remains unclear; cf. ?16.
103 Tantric practice with or without a female partner ("externally" and "internally" sexual, respectively; bdhya and
marma or gauna and mukhya, respectively, in Sahajiya terminology; cf. Dimock 1966a: 214f.; P. Das 1978: 157-62, 302f.)
may require the Purusa to descend to the Prakrti (taken in or
already present at the perineum-in the latter case the
woman, if needed, might be just a stimulant to excite the Purusa, not the source of the Prakrti), or the latter to ascend to
the former. If the Purusa descends, the outcome is a combined
ascent through the central passage. Purification may be required first by circulation through the outer passages, or by
repeated ascent and descent via the inner one. Some theories
on "internal" intercourse hold Purusa and Prakrti each to be
present in one of the outer passages, respectively; here too a
circulation precedes the combined ascent.
104 Or has he misunderstood statements like that of the
Brhat Nigam (one of the rare written Baul works; cf. ?38) that
the "juice" (ras; cf. n. 22) of a woman's "flower" (puspa)
causes kam and prem (or: turns kim to prem) (sei pusparas
hate kim prem hay; U. BhattAcarya1980: 383)? Kim and prem
seem not to be substances here (cf. ? 16). Regardingpuspa, the
text (p. 384) says that this refers to the opening of the three tubular passages, obviously menstruation, for which "flower" is
indeed common, already in OIA (puspa-) (cf. French "les
fleurs"). Cf. also S. Cakrabarti1989: 94f.
105 The Bibartabilhs situates the Prakrti genitally-in all
(P. Dds 1978: 146, 165). It says, too (U. Bhattacarya 1980:
399), that Prakrtiand Purusa are not in contact; one must take
the substance (bastu) situated in "one receptacle" (ek padtre)
to another receptacle and let it rotate. When it becomes full of
prem, prem (feeling? substance?; cf. also n. 25) permeates everything, reaching the thousand-petalled lotus. Is "one" here
"same"? Then Prakrti and Purusa would be together, but not
joined, and must be "mixed" by rotation. This seems unlikely.
Is "one" thus simply "a"? Then the "substance" (Prakrti?,
Purusa?) must be moved to unite with the other aspect,
situated elsewhere in the same or another body. Though, like
403
course breath must be passed alternately through each

of the outer passages, this being effected through the
corresponding nostril, at times a reference to the passage actually meaning the nostril (cf. U. Bhattacarya
1980: 411); note too that "sun" and "moon," wellknown terms for pihgald and i~dd,respectively, are in
the secret language of several religious groups also
used for the right and left nostrils respectively (op.
cit., 426).
16. Anyway, what the Nigiiuhdrthaprakiisibali, on
which the above is mostly based, does say is different
(pp. 135, 293), namely that the pifigald is the passage
of blood, discharging in women who menstruate, while
the idddis that of the kam-substance. "Joyful union"
(raman) is not to take place with the former. It may
take place at the latter's portal, then leading only to a
state of kim "lust," not of prem "love" (cf. also n. 25);
the latter requires the portal of the central passage. Samaras arises "if a blow with a stick takes place at the
portal of the susumnd" (dandighdt hay yadi susumnd
dbare). Carydpada 17 seems to have a similar image106 (showing that danda there cannot refer to the
susumni itself, as Das Gupta [1976: 98] opines). But
that image, too, is unclear and does not help to find out
what the "blow with a stick," which need not be quite
the same here, actually is. One may point to, e.g.,
Hathayogapradipikii 3.68 (Svdtmdrama 1975), which
refers to the Kunidaliniawakening and unravelling like
a snake hit with a stick, but can we assume the same to
be meant in the Bengali instances just quoted? We do
not even know for certain in whose body the passages
mentioned by the Nigiiihdrthaprakagabali are. Turning
first to the outer ones, if they are in a man's body, then
the ihdd(on the left) might carry rati, here probably semen. Several "Buddhist" tantric texts actually say that
the left moon-passage carries semen, the right sunpassage menstrual blood.107 But that contradicts not
only general tantric theory, but also the text itself,
which associates the right side of the body with the Purusa, the left with the Prakrti(P. Das 1978: 136, 294f.).
Also, the Prakrti could not be in the pifigald, as this
takes no part in the process. But if the outer passages
are those of a woman (could danda then refer to the
others, the text mentions both the "internal" and the "external" sexual acts (P. Das 1978: 158) (cf. n. 103), the statement
on the Prakrti'slocation above could speak for the former. In
any case, it would be "standard"tantric theory.
106 On this, see Kvarne 1977: 145-50.
107
Bagchi 1975: 66, S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 107, 156f.

404
penis?), then it seems as if rati would be associated

with the Prakrti (which would be in accordance both
with p. 136 and with the association with kdm) and be
different from the menstrual blood. Now Sahajiya ritual as a rule does need a woman,108though not always
(see n. 103); is it thus not probable that the latter is the
case, even though I have no water-tight proof for
this?109 But what about the susumnd then; in whose
body is it? And what exactly is samaras? It may, but
does not really seem to have the meaning given in
n. 101. Is it a mingling of semen and the Prakrtisubstance? If so, how? Or is it a third substance?
17. The same text complicates matters by mentioning
(p. 133) two ratis, jib'rati and kam'rati,in the kdm'sarobar in the bhagagatta "vagina-hole" (on the sarobars
cf. ?8). It also mentions three ratis: jib'ratilbasturati,
kdm'rati and krsnarati (pp. 133f.), leaving unclear
whether these are substances, or feelings.1 1 P. Das
(1978: 282) says that the first of these ratis is to be
purified to give the second, and this then to give
prem'rati, seeming to take all these to refer to substances, for the last rati is to be further purified to
give a pure, glowing juice (ras). I miss clear evidence
for this theory in the texts adduced loco citato. However, the Amrtaratndbalisays that the substance (bastu)
nirapan is in the kam'sarobar, attaining which gives
the substance tattbadhan, attaining this the substance
rati, which leads to the pure "man" (or: lets a man
108
Menstruating, according to S. Cakrabarti 1989: 151,

U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 379 (see the passage in verse). But
cf., against this, Sinha; see ?15.
109Note too Candidds'sline (P. Dds 1978: 134): "Without it
has one portal, within there are three" (bahire tahar ekti
duiar, bhitare tin'ti ache). These could be the external vaginal opening and the three internal openings of the tubular passages, though a structurewithin the body could also be meant,
then perhaps in a male; P. Dds indeed seems to see here the
union of the three tubular passages to form a structure with
only one opening to its exterior (but within the body), but
three (one of each passage) inside. (See on the song containing this line also Bose 1927b: 57ff.)
110 In the former case not to be confused with the ratis in
n. 100, though note that the fifth of these (madhur'rati) is itself subdivided into three ratis, which, though having different names (K. BhattAcarya1978: 166, H. Das 1987: 639 sub
ratibhed, and Rand 1988: 20f., Sahd 1986: 14f.), may have
been transmutedinto the ratis above as substances, a connection being even more probable if these be not substances, but
emotions.
attain a pure nature).111Another passage of the same

work'12 makes it probable that there are code words
here which I do not understand; I also do not know
whether "substance"is meant literally. Yet anotherpassage (p. 308) says that the woman/spouse of kdm is
a sixteen-year-old called gandhakali situated in the
kLm'sarobar;she, the kam'atmd, is the woman of the
jib'dtmd. Through attaining her, kLm-less rati is obtained. Note also that the text in n. 112 says that rati refers to Radha, kim to Krsna, but also uses these terms,
along with prem, in a confusing manner.113The same
work says (p. 279) that jib'rati/deharati and prem'rati
are situated on the left and right side respectively, in the
same passage mentioning kim'rati and prem'rati too,
but in a way which to me looks as referringto emotions.
All this is only a preliminary overview, showing nevertheless how difficult the whole is.114
18. Baul theory has problems that are in some respects
similar, compounded by its connecting the Prakrtiwith
Op. cit., 276:
kdm sarobare dche bastu nirupan, sddhile paibe taha
bastu tattbadhan.
sei bastu saddhilepaibe bastu rati, suddhasattba madnus
paibe taha prati.
The same text says (ibid.):
kdm sarobare rati sddhibe yatane, sddhile pdibe rati
sahaj bastu dhane.
rati siddha bastu hay karile sadhan, rager bhajan ei
haila nibedan.
112 Op. cit., 197, 286f.:
rati sabde rddhd gun prem ar kdm, kam sabde kdnta
rddhdramannam.
rati radhd ndm hay prem bastu nitya, sahaj manus sei
sbatahsiddha satya.
sei akaitab hay prem nitya tar, tdhd bind nityabastu
keha nahe dr.
sei mdnuser sthiti bakd nadi par, grinandanandan
krsna sbayam prakd? tar.
113 Another passage of this work (op. cit., 278) says that
Krsna is rati, ruip(cf. also ?20), ras and prakrti, which however is in keeping with his role as cosmic principle. The
Rasakadambakalikd(ibid., 179) says: rati siddha radha rati
prakrti sbarup.
114 Cf. also the puzzle posed by the terms gilimunijariand
ndlimunijariand their explanations (the union of the genitals,
located in the genitals, and the union of the male and female
aspects, located in the thousand-petalled lotus, respectively)
in the Ndyikasddhan'tika(Dimock 1966a: 243).

DAS:
menstrual blood. This seems, according to some, to

have rati as its vital part. Seemingly, the menstrual
blood must be taken in, this vital part filtered out and
united with semen, which is obviously different from a
mere separation of semen and menstrual blood. One
gets the impression that rati here is the concentrated
Prakrti in the menstrual blood. But matters are not so
easy, as other statements could imply that the Purusa is
always present in the Prakrtiin part, rati actually being
this part of the Purusa present in the Prakrti, and having to be distilled out. On the other hand, one also gets
the impression that rati is the Prakrti-Purusa.Yet other
statements lead one to assume that rati is actually a
substance not the same as semen, menstrual blood, or
their combination (cf. also the statement of Sinha 1961
and 1966 in ?15). For preliminary information on all
this see, e.g., U. Bhattacarya (1980: 89, 362f., 368,
374f., 396-404, 412, 424), who seems the only scholar
aware of the problem at all; I may draw particular attention to pp. 401ff., which links three ratis (cf. ?17)
with the three discharges of the three days of menstruation (cf. ?3). Apart from what has been said by
U. Bhat~tcarya(1980), I have little information on the
subject, though I must mention the possibility that
what could play a role here, too, is the most vexing
problem of female semen in Indian thought, which
O'Flaherty (1980: 15-61) has recently drawn attention
to115 (see also Kvxrne 1975: 9738, Marglin 1982:
309).116 This would fit our last question in ?16 wonderfully. U. Bhattacarya(1980: 412, 424) actually calls
rati, stribirya "female semen," expressly differentiating it from menstrual blood! If the outer tubular passages in ?16 do indeed refer to those in a woman, then
the substance in the pifigala would be an exact counterpart to male semen generally held to be in this very
passage. Note however also S. Cakrabarti(1989: 183):
rati is male semen, though in a different context, so
that here we may actually have a homonym of our rati
above (cf. ?39).
19. A song by R-up'cad,117popular among Bauls of
western Bengal, where Vaishnavism is a strong influence, may illustrate the problem of rati:
115 Though
her efforts at throwing light on it are not satisfactory (she seems to be at a loss, especially, when discussing
Indian medicine).
116
I am also discussing the problem of female semen in Indian medicine in the study mentioned in n. 16.
117
Text as in U. BhattAcarya1980: 840; a slightly shorter
version (sung by Laksman Dds) is to be found on Recordings
405
My mind (= self), take on the characteristics of the

Prakrti.
Take on the nature of the Prakrti,do ritual practice;118
The rati of the body will be upward[-going].
The one who is in the six-petalled one:
Take that one into the reverse apparatus(see ?4).
If that one goes to the two-petalled one,
The/A light will blaze up.
Then fruitlessness/detrimentwill be cessation
(= cease);
The rati will become steadiness/concentration/
perfection/liberation (nisthd),
12: side A, no. 3 (in part incorrectly translated and explained

on the cover):
amar man, saja prakrti.
prakrtir sbabhdb dhara, sddhan kara, uirdhbahabe
deher rati.
ye dche saradale, tOrelao ultdkale,
yadi se ydy dbidale, uth'bejbale jyoti.
takhan anartha nibrtti habe, nisthd habe rati,
kdm'brahmasdkdr habe, uday habe gurur murti.
ye dche milddhdre, tOrelao sahasradale,
ycbi birajdr pcre tahdr samhati.
sei yubati rasabati, rasamay murati,
eman madhur rati jib'ke diye prdpta kardy krsnapati.
rap'cdd bal'che sbariup,dge tui dhar'ge se riup,
sbarap-rupe rup dekh'tepdbi koti siuryerjyoti.
guru bhinna habe na re muihamati,
gurur daydy saphal habe krsnakrpd-prdpti.
A. Bhattacarya(1977: 948) has a different version, not mentioning Rup'cad. Who RUp'cadis I do not know; could it be
the poet mentioned by Jha (1986: 107), H. Das (1987: 1352f.),
A. Cattopadhyay(1986), and Chakrabarty(1985: 465)?
118 Transforming inwardly into a female consort
(gopi) of
Krsna (originally to unite with him), specially Radha, is important in Bengali Vaishnavism (cf., e.g., Stewart 1985: 74f.,
159f., 199ff., 217, 257ff., 301, 339ff., 408ff., 466ff.; Dimock
1966b: 49); outwardly it may approach transvestism (Chakrabarty 1985: 119). In tantric contexts too, "becoming a
woman" plays a role in uniting Prakrtiand Purusa (for its rationale see, e.g., P. Das 1978: 158-62, 331ff.; U. Bhattacarya
1980: 364; Dimock 1966a: 158-61; Sanyal 1989: 131ff.,
173ff.; A. C. Das 1986: 62-64). Importantto many Bauls too,
it is also found elsewhere; see, e.g., Singer 1966b: 111,
129ff., with references to much older (also non-Vaishnava)
South Indian attestations-I may add the identification of
devotee and gopi(s) in book 10.3 of Nammalvar'sTamil Tiruvdymoli (probably pre-ninth century) (Matavatasan 1962:
745-47); cf. also Clooney 1991, S. Ghos 1984: 38ff.,
G. Bhattacarya 1989: 86f.

406

The Kamabrahman(Krsna?)'19will take up form/
materialize;
The figure of the Guru will appear (cf. ?1).

The one who is in the mlaldhdra:
Take that one to the thousand-petalledone.
You'll go to the [other] side of the virajd,120
In her/To his union (= in union with her / to union with
him).
That young maiden is juicy, with a form all of juice.
Such sweet rati/enjoyment (madhur rati) through a
being
Does Lord Krsna cause (or: Causes Lord Krsna) to be
attained.
Rlp'cad is telling (= describing) the sbariup;
First you go and catch that riup.
You'll be able to see the [real] form (or: beauty) (raip)
in sbaruipand rap,
The light of a crore of suns.
Without the Guru [it] won't be (= you won't be
successful), oh [you] of ignorant intellect;
Through the mercy of the Guru the attainmentof the
grace of Krsna will be successful.
20. The mention of the "rati of the body," and of substances to be raised from the spinal base121 and present
there, suggest that this describes an "internal" sexual
act (see n. 103). But Bauls singing the song presumably see it as being in accord with their beliefs, and
then the above might be taken to refer, in not too literal
language, to something that enters the body. This leads
to problems, starting with rap (OIA ripa-, "form,
shape") and sbarap (OIA svaripa-, "own form/shape;
nature, character [peculiar to someone/something]"),
theological concepts important to Bengali Vaishnavism: rap designates the outward appearance, sbarip
119
Thus U. Bhattqcdrya 1980: 475. This is probably correct; cf., e.g., Venkateswaran 1966: 151ff., Dimock 1966a:
132 (on the Brahman-aspectof Krsna); and kam gd4atri (as a
means of obtaining Krsna; see, e.g., Sastri 1987: 35f.) in
K Bhattdcarya 1978: 39 (also Dimock 1966a: 149, 229;
P. Dds 1978: 358).
120 This river (Beng. Birajd) is the boundary of the abode
of Krsna-Visnu, Vaikuntha, the heavenly Vrindavan (Vrndavana) (cf. ?2). It is obtainable through the portal of Sakti,
i.e., the vagina, according to the Brhat Nigam (see n. 104)
(U. Bhat~tcdrya 1980: 381: Sribrndabanpdpti [sic] hay sakti
[sic] dbare). See also Bose 1927a: 57ff.; P. Dds 1978: 142,
285, 296; and H. Dds 1987: 721, as well as n. 187.
121 On
the six-petalled plexus, see ?13.
the inner essence.122 Thus behind the human rap is the

sbarap of the cosmic principle (split into two components).123True union124of the male and female aspects
can take place only when the sbariip behind the rap is
fully realized. The Bauls too believe in the doctrine of
riip and sbarap. But to them (Sahajiyas seemingly too),
riip also is the substance of the Prakrti, and sbarap
may denote semen;125 the Prakrti-substance to Bauls
(also Sahajiyas?; see n. 108), however, is menstrual
blood. In a Baul interpretation, our song could play
with all these meanings. Rati seems to be a substance
here. The mention of something ascending, and of an
ascending rati, suggest that the two are identical. No
clear proof is possible, but if they indeed are, then
nisthd (on its various meanings given above, cf. H. Das
1987: 390) arises after this rati's ascent and transformation into a glowing substance, immovable and unfettered, i.e., firm and concentrated in itself.126 The state
of mind (rati; cf. ?15), too, is transmuted to such a
supreme state on the emotional plane; it is thus surely
no coincidence that our song mentions madhur rati
("sweet rati"), too, which is the highest emotional rati
subsuming all the others and as such the ultimate emotion to strive for.127
21. According to whether the Purusa descends or remains in the head, rati would refer to Prakrti-Purusaor
122 E.g., the riep of a man would be the man, his sbaru-p
Krsna = Purusa, rfep and sbarfup of a woman the woman

and Rddhd= Prakrti,respectively. It is tempting to see something similar, or at least the germ of such a theory, in
carato vigvaruipasya rupadravyam yad ucyate, referring to
semen (OIA gukra-), in Carakasamhita, Cikitsasthana 2.4.49
(Achdrya 1941), but in the absence of any corroborating evidence that would be nothing but speculation.
123 Rap and sbarup are thus not the same as sthulagarira
("gross
body")
and liigaSarira
or saksmagarira
("subtle
body"), which we could, though not quite equivalently, also

translate as "body" and "soul," respectively.
124
By emotive or sexual (OIA anuma-na-, vartama-na-; cf.
U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 476ff.) means, the latter "internal" or

"external" (see n. 103).
125 Rfip in this meaning is common (on raip "woman" cf.
S. Cakrabarti 1989: 215, 237), sbarup, however, much rarer
(see, e.g., Sariph 1984: 19).
126 Cf., e.g., P. Dds 1978: 132, 144f., 148f.; U. Bhattdcdrya
1980: 89, 1059.
127 Rati also has a profane meaning; cf. the translation. We
have the same play with meanings in the use of "juice" (ras);
cf. n. 22.

DAS:
Prakrti, with regard to both "internal" and "external"

acts.128 In a Baul interpretation it would be the latter,
but we still do not know exactly in what manner, for,
despite the common notions on their theory, it is still
possible that those singing this song do suppose an ascent of the Prakrti (from the woman) to the Purusa,
who remains static; cf. Pafij's Nirakire jyotirmay in
?11. There is another uncertainty too, for the relation
between ascending from the six-petalled plexus and ascending from the malddhara is also not clear; are these
plexuses the same or different, and do the same or
different substances ascend? If different substances ascend, then are these Purusa and Prakrti, Prakrti-Purusa
and something else, or this latter and the Prakrti(to the
Purusa)? Now in a Sahajiya theory the basic characteristic of one of Radha's rivals as Krsna'sconsort, Viraja,
is kam.129We do not know whether our song presupposes a knowledge of this theory, but if it should, then
not only could the other side of the viraja be a reference to transcending lust, but we could also have a
very subtle reference to two "female" substances.
22. Should this seem like hair-splitting, then consider
Yadubindu's remark130that r-p, rati and ras move
"against the current"131to the top of the thirty-two
chambers/compartments,132where the manikotha is
(cf. ?11)!133 Songs speaking of "three persons," or the
128 The "young maiden" in

the song may refer to the
Prakrti, but also to the female sexual partner (often called

Prakrti,by Bauls too).
129 See Dimock 1966a: 210f. (where we have Virajd
throughout).
130 In the song Sahaj bhajan kathin karan ye pare ei sahajer ghare (U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 935).
131 The simile is that of a laden boat plying against the current, a very common image in Baul songs. An interesting
song using it is one by Rameg (see n. 73) describing the journey of the Purusa from the triveni (see n. 63) via the nasut,
etc. (in correct order; cf. ?14), to be completed successfully
with the help of the bhainidari(Recordings 6: side A, no. 6:
Mdjhi tribenir ghdte re joyar dhare ydio); cf. also Ydkdriya
1974: 154f.
132 Obviously in the head, irrespective of whether we here
have a plexus of thirty-two petals or the like or whether it is
the body which is said to have thirty-two chambers/compartments; cf. nn. 78, 133.
133 rap-rati-ras ujdn cale, batriS kothar upare.
batriS kothdr tdli atu, tar upare mani-kothd.
rup-rasete cabi-dtd, sadar-khi*'kiduidhare.
407
like, could perhaps134refer to similar ideas (see esp.

Datta/Bhaumik 1966: [118], [131]-[34]), though one
could also consider the three ratis mentioned in ?18.
Complicating matters, U. Bhattacarya (1980: 458)
quotes a passage from Krsnananda's Tantrasara135
saying that in a woman the moon-passage (itdd)carries
water, the sun-passage (pihgald) menstrual blood and
the fire-passage (susumna) "seed."136 This naturally reminds one of the female semen in ?18. But he, p. 412,
also says that the man draws ru-p,ras and rati into his
penis, and identifies these as menstrual blood, semen
and female semen, which is problematic (is semen
drawn in?), the problem being compounded by the fact
that this statement is not substantiated, so that we do
not know whether it is based on the testimony of Bauls
or the author's own ideas.
23. This leads to another vexing matter. Many Baul
songs and descriptions seem to hold that the Purusa
sadar-khi*'kiei dui dbdre rfip-rati-ras basat kare.

dekh'te habe nihar dha're sethd- rasaraj biraj kare.
(On the khii'ki "postern" mentioned here, cf. n. 231.) The
song makes it seem possible that the thirty-two chambers/
compartments refer to a plexus with thirty-two petals, or the
like. On the other hand, batriS kothd might also mean "that
which has thirty-two chambers/compartments,"which would
speak for it signifying the body. Sukur Mdh mud in his Gupicandrer Sannyas actually says that the body (here, ghat "jar")
has thirty-two kothds (ghat madhye laba lari ar batriS kotha;
Ydkdriya 1974: 173). In this connection it is interesting that
according to Ydkdri5d(1974: 148, 172) the body has thirtytwo tubular vessels (naii, OIA nddi-); according to Bose
(1927a: 49f., 53; see also Bose 1986: 127f.), this is, however,
the number of the principal passages, according to Sahajiya
doctrine only. As regards laba lari in the manuscript of Gupicandrer Sannyas, this is quite problematic. Could it refer to
nine tubularpassages (naba nWri)(cf. Yakariya 1974: 173)?
134 Though not necessarily, as "three" can mean various
things, principally, of course, the three tubularpassages. Note
also the very frequent speculation on the three mysterious letters a (alif, Beng. aleph, aliph), I (lam) and m (mim, Beng.
mlm) found at the beginning of many Suras of the Koran.
135 Quoted in translation. The edition quoted from was unobtainable. On Krsnanandasee also Dimock 1966a: 42f.
136 On the nomenclature of the passages see, e.g., Das
Gupta 1976: 239; on the outer passages, cf. also Bagchi 1975:
61-73; S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 107, 154-57. An ancient system
associates the central, left, and right passages with sun, moon,
and fire, respectively (Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan1979: 59f.).

408
appears in or with the menstrual blood. That need not

be problematic if it actually refers to the PrakrtiPurusa; as this is formed in conjunction with menstrual
blood, we could rightly talk of its "appearance."More
problematic is that, in many descriptions, what we
have so far taken to be the Prakrti-Purusais referred to
in the same terms as the uncombined Purusa always
situated within the body. But one might suppose that
this is just terminological laxity.137 Even more puzzling is that, at times, one gains the impression that
some Bauls seem to hold that the (Prakrti-)Purusais
to be drawn, with the menstrual blood, into the male
body from without. This seems at first sight to be
in keeping with the theory of ritual intercourse of
U. Bhattacarya(1980: 387f.): the male aspect (bij, OIA
bija-, and Ksbar,OIA is'vara-) in the woman's head is
each month attracted to the female aspect at the spinal
base in the menstrual blood, and descends to unite with
this. It is in this state the sahaj manus "sahaja man
(here perhaps better: person)," sahaj (cf. n. 42) being
the basic essence (mil'sattd) of the body, the union of
bij and menstrual blood. The sbar4p (see ?20) of bij is
prem, of menstrual blood kdm. Prem and kam must be
separated, and this is what the man does; he separates
out the sahaj manus "having the form of prem, i.e., the
sensation of the unchanging (or: the unchanging sensation of the) joy of prem,1'138 makes this ascend to his
head and feels the joy of the eternal prem-union of
Prakrtiand Purusa.139
24. But this theory is actually problematic; especially
the last part is unclear, seeming, moreover, to juggle
137 Cf.
also the discussion (Dimock 1966a: 140ff.) on the
different, but basically one, bhuattman (Prakrti = material nature), jivatman (Purusa = spirit) and paramatman (PrakrtiPurusa). But P. Dds (1978: 199ff.) takes these to refer to the
soul (iitmd, opposed to deha "body"), saying however that the
individual (jib) addicted to earthly pleasures is the bhatatman,
with a mind purified through the guru's influence the jivatman, and in oneness with Krsna the paramdtman. The texts
cited do not seem to substantiate this, as also not the theory
on the nature of the three bodies (bhautik deha, hutadeha,
nityadeha), explained as the bodies of the nonpracticer of ritual, the practicer, and the successful practicer, respectively.
138 prem-rapi sahaj-mi-nus ... arthdt sthir premanander
anubhati.
139 This theory is briefly repeated on pp. 398f., a passage
from the Bibartabilis being cited as proof. But this is unclear,
and also a Sahajiya, not a Baul, text, not necessarily referring
to the same matters (see n. 105).
with expressions. One could hold that something new

(prem?) is created, this then ascending (cf. ??15ff.),
but then this cannot be the sahaj manus itself. But if
the sahaj manus is the male aspect and is alone separated out, how can male and female aspects be in a
state of eternal union? Also, where is the male's male
aspect? It is not mentioned at all. And we surely cannot
interpret the theory as stating that the male aspects of
the man and the woman unite! Something seems wrong
here, and when we look at the excerpts from the Brhat
Nigam (see n. 104) on pp. 382-87, on which this
theory is mostly based, we find that the author seems
to misinterpret his material. For this text expressly
says that the sahaj manus is the Prakrti,140residing in
the menstrual blood in the thousand-petalled lotus in
the woman's head.141 It sallies forth to unite with the
Purusa (is'bar "Lord," and bij). First comes the blood,
then ras and r-p / the form (r-p) of ras. The "substance" (bastu) (Prakrti?) reaches the six-petalled lotus. The bindu (semen; cf., too, n. 88) descends. Then
all three go to the four-petalled, and finally to the
thousand-petalled lotus, where they are joyful and
flavor ras together with the "pair."142
25. The theory of U. Bhattacarya (1980) (?23) might
stem from his identifying the lotuses with six and four
petals as svddhisthana and mu-I1dhdra,respectively,
which would mean that the substances mentioned unite
in the woman's body, for that is where the svddhisthdna would have to be, as the miaidhara lies lower.
But the text (pp. 383f.) expressly defines not only the
sahaj manus as Prakrti, but also the siddha manus as
Purusa, who is to create a garden and partake of ras
140
-mi sahaj manus hai kisuri (= kWori)sbaruip,

tumi siddha purus hao krsner anurup (p. 384).
Also:
iKbarpurus haen pikiti minus (ibid.).
sahastadal [sic] padma kisurir mastak upare,
tahar bhitare rahe raja satadhare.
tahir angete hay manuser gati ... (ibid.).
142 ifbar miliba bali manus cali yda, age rakta cale pache
rasarup dhay.
eirupe minus cale hania rase bas, bindupat haile hay
madhujyaprakas.
saradale jay bastu muttiman haia, apan sadal na~yy
rahila basia.
tar'pare tin jane catudale jda, kisurir k!rpalese
sahastadal pda.
nijasthane tin jane ananda haia, jugal sahit rahe ras
asbadia.
141

DAS:
with one lover in Braj (Beng. Braja, OIA Vraja-),143as

the vagina is called: sei bhag hay sudhya midhajya
brajadham. Now the Prakrtiappears in Vrindavan (the
woman?, her vagina?; cf. pp. 383f., 386f.; also
S. Cakrabart! 1989: 134) of the woman, the Purusa in
Navadvipa (Beng. Nabadbip) in the man (p. 386). This
seems a reference to the notion that Caitanya is the
male aspect of Krsna;144it is thus consequent if the
text not only lets him seek union with Radha, but also
says (ibid.) that, through the union, Krsna, the divine
Prakrti-Purusa,is obtained.145Considering the fact that
Baul ritual requires coitus reservatus, it becomes clear
that the six-petalled lotus cannot be the svddhisthana
of the woman, but must rather refer to the six-petalled
plexus described in ?13 as the lowest plexus-in the
male. Then the four-petalled lotus is also not the
midldhdra of "Hindu" tantrism, but either the fourpetalled lotus in the throat mentioned by the NigiMhdrthaprakagdbali (P. Das 1978: 151), or akin to the
mahdsukhacakra (0padma), in the head, of "Buddhist"
tantrism.
26. From this it follows that the Prakrtiis cranially situated in the woman just like the Purusa in the man, and
that both are referred to by the same term, "man" (or
"person"), which may be qualified by differentiating
adjectives, but need not be, as Baul songs tell us. Of
course, I do not know whether we can postulate acceptance of this by all Bauls, as it is not without its problems, for the seat of the Prakrtiis usually taken to be in
the perineum. However, it is also true that most tantrism seems to be concerned only with males, so perhaps this does not hold true for females. But there is
also the problem of the three substances ascending in
the male. These may be the Prakrti-Purusaand its two
components regarded as separate entities (cf. also ?22),
but what then is the "pair" mentioned in ?24? And
143 ei braje ek
kunzjakarid sijyan, ek pyari laud kara ras dsbadan. Padmalocan's Brajer Sydm'sundar'ke dhar'bi yadi
sbariupsddhan karo (U. Bhattacarya 1980: 931) seems to use
"Braj" similarly too, as also might Rejo Ksyapa's Brajapure
ruip'nagareyabi yadi man (ibid., 922f.; on ruipcf. ?20).
144 This older theory has been almost fully superseded in
Bengali Vaishnavism by the image of Caitanya as an androgyne, i.e., as Prakrti-Purusa.This development has been studied in detail by Stewart (1985; see also Srlvdstav 1988: 51517, S. Sen 1988: 501). On its place in Baul thought see
U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 54, 312; S. Cakrabart!1986b: 134.
145 pikiti bildse sukh jdne jei jan, sei pdibe braje brajendranandan.
409
what is ras in the text of n. 142; is it linked with the

Prakrti, or is it semen in the male? There is obviously
much more to be studied, and this holds true also for
the differentiation of ras and blood, which brings us
right back to the problem of rati and female semen discussed above. But we should also remember the passage in ?22 telling us of three different substances in
the tubular passages of a woman (cf. also the three
ratis in ?17 and ?18).146 This brings to mind ?3, which
mentioned three days as the actual period of ritual intercourse. According to Baul songs, there is obviously
a difference in the menstrual discharges of these days;
the question now is whether such differences might
perhaps be linked with different substances being discharged by different passages, or whether there is just a
qualitative difference in the single substance secreted.
In this regard we must however also examine whether
all the passages discharge on each of the three days, or
whether only one discharges on each day. Baul songs
contain a wealth of material on these matters. I may
however point out again that the problem is obviously
linked to that of the three ratis, too; see ?18.
27. This leads to another problem regarding rati. A
song of LalanI47mentions the same triad (ras, riip and
rati) as ?22, saying, however, that it moves about in
the "hundredor thousand-petalled one(s)."148Then the
song, in succession, mentions lotuses with the following number of petals: two, six (twice) (or sixteen and
then six),149 ten. On ten petals see ?13, on sixteen ?12;
the other two lotuses would correspond to the djiadand
sv&dhisthdna,respectively. The thousand-petalled lotus
corresponds to the sahasrara. But what is the hundredpetalled one? Is it just another form of the thousandpetalled lotus, or different? If the latter, are the two
somehow part of each other, or separate? The hundredpetalled lotus is mentioned in several songs of Lalan,
146
Rddhaydm's Brndabane tin raier tin phul (Capwell
1986: 183; sung by Yatin DEs: Recordings 15: side A, no. 3)
seems to refer to Rddhd and Krsna in the three menstrual
streams (cf. ?18), which is quite problematic (cf. ?23).
147 Kiba Sobha dbidaler pare; for different versions see
Df/Mahdpdtra 1958: 155f., U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 627,
Brahma 1987a: 154, Hdmidul Is'lm 1981: 111 (I could not
find it in S. Mitra 1979).
148 Satadal kimba sahasradal ras'ratirupe kare calkcal (thus
correctly D fMahdpdtra1958; Brahma 1987a has rab for ras,
probably a misprint, whereas the other two works delete rape).
149 Brahma 1987a: soladale bardm yogantare for saradale
bardm....

410
either joined by "or,"150or else in a copulative compound,151 with the thousand-petalled one, and once
alone,152 the latter however doubtful, as other versions
do not have this reading.153One gains the impression
that the two might be in the same place, the head.
Bholai's first song in n. 58 actually tells us that the
"hundred-petalled one" is (up)on the tree, i.e., the
body.154 But in his song Ki djab ghar ... (see n. 88)
he says that the body-house (see n. 66) has a lotus of
the feet, of semen and of a hundred petals, the latter
being where the house is made erect,155which I do not
understand. His 0 yauban bali tore (Tena 1980: 8f.)
mentions the lotus of a hundred petals as something
that does not work properly anymore in old age (like
the emotions, senses, etc.); could this refer to the
brain? Iman All, in his song of n. 89, says that the hu150
Til parimdanja-y'gdte ki kud'ratimayin Abu Thlib 1968:
25 (joined through ki; Ddg/Mahdpdtra[1958: 91f.] have a copulative compound).
151 In Apanar apani re man na jana thikifnd (Ddf/Mahdpatra 1958: 6, U. BhattAcdrya 1980: 569, Hdmidul Is'ldm
1981: 99), Ache ddi makka ei mdnab'dehe (Dfg/Mahdpdtra
1958: 199f.; the relevant line is missing in the shorter
versions of U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 572f. and Hdmidul Is'ldm
1981: 37) and Bhcber uday yedin hay (Dd/Mahdpdtra 1958:
270, Hdmidul Is'lqm 1981: 80, U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 669, and
S. Mitra 1979: 193f.).
152 In Mur'?id rari'mahalesadai jhalak deP (Ddg/Mahdpdtra
1958: 90).
153 U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 615 and Hdmidul Is'lam 1981:
107f. read saptatale antahpuri (cf. ?46) instead of gatadal an-
tahpuri.
154 The concept of the body as a tree is old, found in the
Caryapadas (cf. Kvarne 1977: 40-42), and in tantric texts
too, where the tree is also said to be inverted (Gupta/Hoens/
Goudriaan 1979: 58), which reminds one of the cosmic tree
(often upside-down), not only in Vedic India, but in religions
all over the world (on the cosmic tree see, e.g., R. P. Das
1983: 67326, 1987: 247, and 1991: 74732; Reno 1977: 78ff.;
Parkes 1991: 85ff.; see also Derrett 1992: 55f. and Yakariya
1974: 169 on the anupim brksa in Gupicandrer Sannyds of
Sukur Mah mud). In Baul songs the tree seems also to be,
more specifically, the trunkof the body, and, still more specifically, the spine with its passages and plexuses. Cf. also a song
by Miraj Ali (Ami kare yauban dan kariba, Recordings 16:
side B, no. 4), in which the poet, like a woman pining for her
lover, laments on his futile quest for the "friend," saying that
he has bound the pot (see n. 69) of (i.e., for) ras (see n. 22) on
the tree of prem "love" (cf. n. 25) in vain. See also n. 17.
155 ache pdda padmadal, muni padmadal, gatadale hay
ghar khair. On muni see n. 58.
man body ("lotus") has a hundred thousand "bunches/

clusters" (?), or that it ("flower") has a lotus with a
hundred thousand petals (cf. n. 90), but that a hundredpetalled flower is on its eighth bunch/cluster/petal (and
a thousand-petalled flower in the head). Does this mean
that the hundred-petalled plexus is on the eightpetalled plexus (cf. n. 158), or that it is the eighth
plexus?156
28. As far as I know, "orthodox" tantric systems have

no hundred-petalled plexus. But Sahajiya Vaishnava
works do (see, e.g., Dimock 1966a: 174-76; U. Bhattacarya 1980: 337f.; P. Das 1978: 150f., 277; Bose
1927a: 51 and 1986: 129). There seems however to be
confusion on the site of this padma (indeed, the whole
system of sarobars and padmas in these texts seems
not to be standarized; cf. also n. 46). Some place it in
the region of the heart (corresponding to that of the
andhata), some in that of the upper abdomen (corresponding to that of the manipura).157The Atmanirtipan, in an obvious amalgamation, mentions two such
lotuses, in the heart and the navel regions, respectively.158 The Sahaj'tattba too mentions two such padsata sahasra dal adma phule, ihdr astam dale ray
gatadal;
bhomrra se thdke cirakil berajer kule (cf. n. 120 and
?2 1).
ore dudiia padma dchen sei phule, oi ache sadhaner
phale;
ihdr astam dale ray ?atadal, sahasra dal ray mastake.
157 Cf. P. Dds 1978: 150, U. Bhattacdrya 1980: 337; in the
text quoted (Anandabhairab) the hundred-petalled padma
arises from the ksirod sarobar, which is above the man sarobar in the abdomen. (Dimock [1966a: 174] overlooks the latter part of this statement; thus, according to him, the padma
mentioned arises from the man sarobar.) One could argue that
both sarobars are in the abdomen, one in the lower, one in
the upper part. But the text of the NigfiPhdrthaprakasabali
(P. Dds 1978: 151) expressly places the ksir sarobar (obviously = ksirod sarobar) in the heart, the man sarobar in the
abdomen above the navel, which would tally with what the
Anandabhairab says, except that the hundred-petalledpadma
is said to arise from the mdn sarobar. The Amrtaratndbali
(ibid., 277) places the man sarobar, which gives rise to a
hundred-petalledlotus and is the seat of rati, in the heart.
158 The lotus in the heart is the place of the "game" [of the
cosmic principle] descended from the thousand-petalled lotus,
whilst that below is where riip, rati and ras glitter (rfip ras
rati karejhal'mal ) (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 338). In the Anandabhairab (see n. 157, esp. P. Dds 1978) the man sarobar
seems to be the place of union; the mul substance (bastu)
156

DAS:
mas, the seats of Purusa (here Krsna) and Prakrti (here

Rddhd), in the right and left eye, respectively (Dimock
1966a: 176);159 this is repeated in the Brhat Nigam
(see n. 104) (U. Bhattacarya 1980: 383). All the texts
mention the thousand-petalledpadma too. Is Lalan thus
actually alluding to these theories, telling us that there
are two different places in which we may expect to find
the Purusa (at different times)?160
29. Baul songs may, like the Upanisads, refer to a cosmic principle in the heart. This could be due to lax use
of metaphors, maybe influenced by love songs, placing
the beloved in the heart(-lotus) of the lover. On the
other hand, P. Das (1978: 150f.) quotes a Sahajiya text
placing seven sarobars (sarovaras) in the heart. True,
this seems an uncommon notion (do we have a microcosm within the microcosm?), and, moreover, not in a
Baul text, but, given the links between the two groups,
we should examine the possibility of a transference of
attributes of the body to the heart in some Baul tenets,
especially since there are old Indian notions, still surviving in Bengal (S. Cakrabart!1989: 134), placing the
macrocosm not in the body as such, but in the heart.161
While delivering the paper summarized as Tkatschow
1987, Dwight A. Tkatschow drew attention to a Tibetan
tantric text describing how two opposite energies, at the
base of the spine and in the head, respectively, can be
(Prakrti?) is found here, especially on the hundred-petalled
lotus: mid bastur sbarap sei padme ray. But the line immediately following runs: tar ndm sarobar prthu ndm hay "Its
name is the sarobar named prthu," with no description or localization preceding; could one or more lines between the two
lines have been mistakenly left out? An eight-petalled lotus
arises from the latter sarobar; this lotus however arises from
the ksir sarobar according to the Nigufharthaprakagdbali (see
n. 157), the prthu sarobar lying at the navel and giving rise to
a six-petalled lotus. (On the eight-petalled lotus in Sahajiya
texts see also U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 365.) Cf. n. 162.
159 It also locates the paramitman (see n. 137), coming and
going via the nostrils, in the navel-region. Rddhdand Krsna in
the eyes remind one of Indra and Indrdni,residing in the right
and left eye respectively (descending to copulate in the person's heart during sleep), in a Vedic belief (Frauwallner 1982:
103ff.). Sukur Mdh-mud'sGupicandrer Sannyis too mentions
two sarobars in the eyes, but with no other details (Ydkdriya
1974: 154).
160 Cf. also the enigmatic mention of the hundred- and
thousand-petalled lotuses in a copulative compound in the
Baldhdrisong in n. 86; the song might eventually also say that
an ocean is to be found in these.
161 See
Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan1979: 57.
411
made to approach each other by certain practices and

unite in the region of the heart (cf. also n. 159); unfortunately, the paper containing this information has, to
my knowledge, not yet been published. In a Chinese
theory, what we would call the Purusa, situated in the
perineal/genital region, has to ascend to the seat of
what we would call the Prakrti,namely to the heart, and
there unite with the latter; cf. Beurdeley 1969: 40. This
is quite intriguing, for we have seen that the Prakrtiis
connected with a hundred-petalledpadma, which itself
may perhaps ultimately also be connected with the region of the heart, even though, in the texts mentioned in
?28, the lotus is in the eye. Thus we should also consider the possibility of the Prakrtiresiding, according to
some Baul theory, in the heart; we shall return to this
problem in ?31 below. According to Beurdeley (1969:
40) however, the Chinese theory mentioned is a later
development in China, which once again leads to the
most complex problem of the possibility and, if it
should have existed, the nature of the relation between
the Indian and Chinese (and other) mystical sexual systems; I lack competence to remark on this old bone of
contention (see too U. Bhattacarya 1980: 527f.). But
see Meyer 1990: 42ff. (also Gulik 1961: 198, 200): according to Chinese and Tibetan (medical) theories, a
branch of the path leading from perineum to cranium
leads to the heart. Cf. also the theory of three bindus
(cf. n. 88) signifying the three deities of the (male)
"Hindu"trinity, of which one is linked with the mouth,
the other two with the breasts of the Devi (= Prakrti)
(bindudvayamstanadvayam hrdi sthane niyojayet) (see
Prajfidndnanda1988: 156).
30. Here an unknown author's song (A] gubi tarahga
nadi: Ab'dul Hamid 1981: 18f.) is interesting. In it, the
laden boat plying upriver (cf. n. 131) from the triveni
(n. 63) must pass a bend where the sun has appeared,
navigating past which is very difficult, as six guards
(obviously the six vices: lust, anger, greed, infatuation,
vanity and envy) sally forth and impede the boat. If
"bend" refers to one of the plexuses to be passed on
the way up, then "sun" is hard to explain. Could it be
the light in the heart of the plexus of this region (the
andhata in "Hindu" tantric terminology), which is also
said to be the world of the sun and, in some theories,
where the ]ivdtman or Prajapatiresides?162This would
162
According to one theory, this lotus of the heart containing the jivdtman has eight petals (Gupta/Hoens/Goudriaan
1979: 51); cf. nn. 78, 158. As for the sun, note that there is
also a very ancient (Vedic) theory linking the heart directly
with the sun (see Frauwallner 1982: 100ff.).

412
fit the theory that one of the several "nodes" (OIA

granthi-) in the susumnd, forming especial obstacles to
ascent, is at the door of the andhata.163 We saw in
n. 137 that the jivatman may be equated with the Purusa. Now "sun" is linked with the male principle, as,
e.g., in the case of the sun-passage, the pihgald (cf.
??15ff.); dazzling brightness is a characteristic of the
(Prakrti-)Purusa,in any case.164 Note too the discussion on the hundred-petalled lotus in the eye carrying
the Prakrti in ?29; there is, as we have seen in ?28, a
similar lotus in which the Purusa is situated. Cf. also
the remarks on the receptacle of semen in n. 21. So
could we postulate that the song refers to the Purusa
in the heart?165Interesting in this connection is also
Briggs 1973: 313, where the manipara(ka) in the region of the navel is called saryasthana "place of the
sun"; cf. manipura as the abode of semen in ? 11.
31. But what about the difficulty of moving past the
bend? This hardly makes sense if it should harbor the
male aspect. Some tantras hold the/a sun to be situated at the base of the spine,166 where the Prakrti's
influence is strongest. Sun and Prakrti are equated in
some "Buddhist"tantric theories (see, e.g., n. 107, also
n. 165), just as "moon" often denotes semen and Pu163 Cf. GuptalHoens/Goudriaan 1979: 175f. According to
Yakariya (1974: 175) the "postern"(on this see n. 231) is situated in the heart. If so, then this too could explain the difficulty of navigating past the "bend," if this indeed be the
heart. But is the explanation of Yakdriyacorrect?
164 Cf. also Paul 1972: 10.
165 In China the male principle is connected with the sun,
the female with the moon (Gulik 1961: 197). He opines that
these equations are actually of Indian origin (pp. 342f., 356)
and imported into China (p. 347), and that later there was a
reversal in India. But even earlier than the time of the supposed Indian influence we seem to have had a reversal in still
older mystic correlations in China (p. 84), though of a complicated nature leaving unclear whether the ancient equations,
male principle = fire = sun and female principle = water =
moon (pp. 37, 40), were any longer valid. The point I want
to make here is that there seem to have been theories current
in India and adjoining countries linking the Purusa with the
sun, and that we thus cannot discount the possibility of the
Bauls' having been influenced by them. Note also theories
linking the intellect with the heart, e.g., in Carakasamhitk,
Cikitsasthana9.5 (buddher nivasam h!rdayam)(Acharya 1941)
(cf. also SUtrasthana30.3ff.); see Rao 1987: 105f., also Rhys
Davids/Stede 1975: 728f. and Ruben 1971: 38, 83.
166 See, e.g., GuptalHoens/Goudriaan1979: 60, U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 445.
rusa (cf. n. 55); this fits the usual notion of the Prakrti
being the active, the Purusa the passive principle.
Could "sun" therefore be the Prakrtihere too? Kdlus'dh,
in a song, 67 says: ek mdiya sahasra dale basat kare
hrd kamale "One/A girl resides in the thousandpetalled [lotus], in the lotus of the heart" (note too how
the sahasrdra and the plexus of the heart are mixed up;
cf. ??28f.). A song by Ajit Das begins: Amader hrd-brndibane thaken radhi, thaken krsna-ndii kona samsay "In our heart-Vrindavan resides Radha, resides
Krsna-there's no doubt" (A. K. Das 1980: 78). But
this may have been used metaphorically. Cf. however
Briggs 1973: 318: menstrual blood originates in the
manipira(ka) = siryasthina (cf. ?30). We may thus
consider whether "sun" in our song might not refer to
the Prakrti.Then a "bend" with the "sun" would obviously be very difficult for the cosmic principle to navigate past. On the other hand, the "curved river" (cf.
n. 187) may be the vagina (S. Cakrabart! 1989: 14,
151); could "bend" here thus actually be the vagina?
But the bend is part of the river's upward course (nadir
o ujan baDike);would this apply to the vagina?
32. But the song apart, there are other tantalizing hints
above that, to some at least, the heart might be the seat
of either Prakrti,or Purusa, or Prakrti-Purusa.Some of
this is not based on Baul songs, and is not even Indian;
nevertheless, given the close parallels between many
Indian and non-Indian esoteric sexual theories, we
should not neglect any possible avenue of investigation. The need for following up such leads may be illustrated by a line from Paij's Nirakire jyotirmay (see
?11), which says that rati sports in the lotus of the
heart (hrdikamale), mixed with radiant ras. The preceding line mentions the mingling of rap and sbaruap,
and the following line the union in the manikotha (cf.
?1 1). U. Bhattacarya(1980: 1059) explains the line by
referring to the astral body of Theosophy, saying that
Pafij means to say that in this astral body rati (which is
not explained) arises in the heart of the Purusa. This
does look far-fetched. I must confess that I have no explanation of my own, but the song is very difficult and
obviously meant only for the initiated. Nevertheless, I
would like to draw attention to the various mentions of
rap, ras and rati in ??22, 27 and n. 158. The possibility of a link must be considered in any case, and this
shows that the discussion regarding the heart may not
touch just some obscure particulars in Baul belief, but
167 Man tui phakir habire maiyar bzjdre yadiyd (As'gar

1985a: 95f.).

DAS:
fundamental concepts, though not necessarily in the tenets of all Bauls.
33. But the heart is not the only problematic internal

organ. The uterus too is puzzling. In males the three tubular passages open out in the perineal region, and one
should think that this is what they do in women too.
But these passages are in women instrumental in the
process of menstruation, and one cannot imagine that
Bauls would have no idea at all about the connection of
menstrual blood and the uterine opening into the vagina. Note in this connection the remark of Qureshi
(1977) in n. 63 on the triveni and the uterus. Of course
Baul songs mention the uterus too, but I have not come
across any references linking it with the theory of ritual intercourse, though I have not made a systematic
search. In any case, I may draw attention to the problem of the three tubularpassages and the uterus, which,
to my knowledge, has not been studied yet.
34. Males however also have three tubular passages.
Since we have seen above that at least some theories
hold that women discharge different substances through
their passages, the question must arise whether something similar might not be the case for men, too. In
this connection the song mentioned in ?30 (Ab'dul
Hamid 1981: 19) is interesting, for it ends with the
question (to which the answering song seems not to be
known):168
168
Disputes between individuals or groups on religious

themes in the form of poems and songs, often spontaneously
composed, were popular in Bengal, and still are in some parts
or among certain groups (to which the Bauls also belong; see
?38). In Jessore (Yago[ha]r), such disputes (called dhdti ) are
part of the marriage ritual (to test the bridegroom; cf. Masud
1980: 208). In "orthodox" Hindu surroundings, particularly,
this form of question and answer developed into a quite literary genre which was at one time very popular; see P. Pal n.d.
and D. Simha 1978. In many parts of Bengal, the contestants
were or are called kabi9dl (see also Ohidul Alam 1979: 88-90
and 1985: 43-64 on the kabijdls of Chittagong; on p. 90 of
the former, an opening statement [ghosd] mentions the lhut;
cf. ?14). The word baydtl, used in our song, is rarer in such a
context. It may, incidentally, also refer to the lead or sole
singer of a group; cf. 0. Ah'mad 1974: 100. For quite another
meaning of baytit ("narrative singer" is probably the nearest
equivalent) see A. Bhattdcarya 1977: 1236, Deb 1966: 45267. See also Abu Talib 1985: 202-19. Many singers, mostly
of local fame in East Bengali villages, affix the word bajdtafto
their names; a well-known example in Bangladesh is Ab'dur
Rah'man Ba'ati, who also has done several recordings. Three
413
Moon and sun are situated in the sky;

That sun has a [dark period] of new moon.
On which day do sun and moon have the [period of]
new moon?
o (poet-)singer, tell me [what] the new moon
Of moon and sun [is].'69
As the outer tubular passages iIddand pihgalii are the

moon and sun passages respectively, one may consider
them being meant here. But we have remarked in
??30f. on the equation of both Prakrtiand Purusa with
the sun, too. Also, "moon" often signifies the cosmic
principle in Baul songs, which is hardly surprising, for,
quite apart from any secret terminology, "moon" (cad,
candra), as the second part of an appellation, especially
in endearments, is common to Bengali. "(Full) moon"
also refers to the "man" appearing out of menstruation
(cf. ??23ff.), which170 Baul songs often allude to as
"new moon." A "new moon" of the Prakrtiis of course
no problem, but what if the poem should refer to a
"new moon" of the Purusa too? This leads to something on which I have only tantalizing hints from
informants and hardly any references in primaryor secondary sources. Some Bauls may have a notion that the
man too has a "new moon" like the woman, less frequent than her menstruationand not necessarily coincident with it. S. Cakrabarti (1989: 195) seems to be
referring to this too, but as "full moon," not "new
moon." Could Camu's Jhumur song (Saha 1973: 132)
hint at something similar: yubatlr hay miise mdse puruser hay kon dibase ("the young woman has it month
after month; on which day does the man have it?")? As
to the fluids possibly secreted, I have no idea what they
are, where they come from, and whether or not they are
related to semen. The "new moon" (amabasyii) of the
sun is mentioned in Sukur Mah mud's Gupicandrer
Sannyiis (Yakariya 1974: 17 If.), too. The text says that
the sun has phases that are the exact opposite of those
of the moon; thus it has a new moon when the moon
has its full moon, the latter having its new moon when
the former has its full moon, and the like (see also
folk-poets with the title bajadti are described in Ghatak
Caudhuri 1984: 43-54. Malu, the main character in Kay'sar
1987, is also a bajdti in his village, singing folk- and his own
compositions, before he becomes a professional singer in Calcutta and Dhaka. See also n. 57.
169 dkdgete candra sarya ray, o siryer amzbasyd hay.
candra saryer amabasyd kon- dinete hay?
candra siryer amdbasyd re baydti kajyy deo dmdy.
170 The menstrual period or only its first day (the usage
varies).

414
Mandal 1949: 171). I must confess to not understanding these and similar statements of the passage; the editor, too, was at sea, on p. 203 simply explaining "new
moon" according to the etymology of OIA amdvasya as
the time when sun and moon dwell together, which is
not very helpful (on the new moon cf. also G. Bhatticarya 1989: 41).
35. In Capwell 1986: 49, a Baul claims to effect "internal" sexual union, regarding this as superior to the
"external" one (cf. n. 103) (like the Kartdbhajas,who
practice both; see A. C. Das 1986: 70). Such "internal"
union, usually not considered as effective as "external"
union, seems unusual among Bauls on the whole, but
not unknown.171The Baul is however quoted as saying: "The reason a partneris needed at all is that semen
must be activated, not merely retained,172in order to
force it along the reverse path up the spinal column
from the mystical plexus near the genitals, to which it
has descended, to the plexus in the brain where it can
unite with its female counterpart." This last part is
highly problematic; it either seems to imply that the
Prakrti is situated cranially and the Purusa genitally,
for which I know of no parallels, or that both Prakrti
and Purusa (the latter first made to descend) rise upwards together, but not united on the way, for which,
too, I know of no parallels. And the possibility that
they might ascend along different paths is not in keep171 Cf., e.g., the song Harike dhar'bi yadi age gakti sahd5
kar of Candi, which says that the "mother of the world"
(jagat-mdtd) resides in the mladhdra, the "father of the
world" (jagat-pita) in the sahasrara (U. Bhattdcarya 1980:
712). See also ibid., 84f.
172 An activation of semen makes sense especially if the
abode of the Purusa is not the sahasrara, but the zjfii. For, as
far as I know, the Prakrtialone cannot effect the difficult passage from the ijfii to the sahasrara. Thus, if the Purusa be
static and the Prakrti alone be dynamic and ascend up to it,
only the djnidwould be reached, as there the Prakrti-Purusa
would remain in a state of static harmony. But the dynamic
Prakrti-Purusaformed from a dynamic Purusa brought down
to the midadhara and then forced up could be forced right up
to the sahasrara. In fact U. Bhatticarya (1980: 481) gives us
the words of a tantrist, who says that only the Prakrti-Purusa
from the Purusa first made to descend (cf. p. 479) can reach
the sahasrara, whereas those bringing the Prakrti only up to
the Purusa can reach only the djaid.The reason for this statement is given l.c. as: saptam dbar (Nagari: dvdr) par rajd
baithat, tdhd kahfhydobi (Nagari: jdobi/yjvbi) ndri "On/At
the seventh door(way) [between djfii and sahasrara] the King
sits; where will you go there, woman (i.e., Prakrti)?"See also
1988: 14419.
Prajnidndnanda
ing with the belief that only the middle passage leads
to the ultimate abode. Has the author misunderstood
the Baul's statement? But it is in accord with Pafij's
Nirakdre jyotirmay, given in ? 11, which mentions a
union in the manikotha-if this latter should be in the
head; see also n. 114 and ?21. I have no solution.
36. ?1 drew attention to the amalgamation of cosmic
principle and preceptor. In Baul theory this also seems
to apply to preceptors par excellence, like Caitanya, already divine to Vaishnavas (on his divinity, see, e.g.,
De 1974: 110-24, also Stewart 1985).173 Muhammad
(Beng. Mohammad), too, has amalgamated in this manner; it is thus no wonder that, in many songs, Allah
(cf. n. 13) and his Prophet seem not only one and the
same (see R. Cakrabarti1990: 238),174 but that the latter often seems to usurp the place of the former (we
must also bear in mind a similar phenomenon in the
popular version of so-called orthodox Islam in Bengal).
And not only Allah's "light" (= Muhammad), but Muhammad's "light," too (Arabic nur, Bengali nuir),plays
an important role as an omnipotent force in Baul
songs;175 according to Yakari5d (1974: 1712), cranial
semen evolved out of this "light." Then again, at times
Allah and Muhammad seem to be pictured as Purusa
and Prakrtirespectively;176this notion exists already in
173 The song of n. 75 says kaler koth@yrip-sandtan (printed
thus), i.e., "in the chamber of the apparatus(cf. ?4) is the eternal/permanent (sandtan) form (rip)," or "in the chamber of
the apparatus are RUp and Sanatan." Are two of Caitanya's
most important disciples, founding fathers of Bengali Vaishnavism, who are often mentioned in one breath (on them
cf. N. Jana 1970), identified here with the Prakrti (on rap
cf. ?20)? The vagina is also the portal of (the disciple) Nityananda (on him cf. Chakrabarty1985: 133ff.); see S. Cakrabarti
1989: 230, 242. On Caitanya as the Purusa, cf. n. 144.
174 This is probably influenced by Sufi concepts too, though
these, even when tending more or less in the same direction
(cf., e.g., Schimmel 1982: 21ff. and 1985: 140), as a rule do
not go quite as far as this.
175 It is important in mysticism elsewhere in the Muslim
world, too (cf. Schimmel 1985: 123-43; also Dimock 1987:
381f., R. Cakrabarti1990: 224). On different lights connected
with special centers in the body, cf. also A. Roy 1983: 168,
Haq 1985: 180f.; such centers (latipha, Arabic latifa, on
which see Profitlich 1973: 85ff., Gramlich 1976: 63f., 144822,
399) vary in number (cf. Ab'dur Ragid 1984: 183, Datta/
Bhaumik 1966: 1893).
176 Thus, e.g., in Kachim's Dekh cdiyd tor dehdr mdjhe
(Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 171): alld-rachul ek jani, ek nd haile
kem'ne duni}d ray. ek-duiye milan kari, bhabanadi yabe tari.
cdiid dekh-, tor ei dehate raiche duiyer meld "Allah and the

DAS:
medieval Sufi-yogic works (cf. U. Bhattacarya 1980:

513-15). But Adam (Arab., Beng. Adam) too is often
said to be the same as Allah and as Allah and Muhammad; we also find it said that all three are present in the
body, bringing up again the problem of three substances, which has already caused us much trouble.177
The use of idam as "human, man" complicates this.
See also U. Bhattacarya 1980: 509ff., on an "unknowable man (manus)" who is "smaller/inferior to God"
(khodar chota), but "larger/superior to the Prophet"
(nabir baio). We also find the mention of a female
Prakrti, such as Fatima (Beng. Phatima, Phatema),178
and maybe also Eve (Arab. Hawwa', Beng. Haoya).
Such problems are intrinsically linked with those discussed above, bringing in however a further complication, namely, the Islamic (Sufi) component.
37. There are also other matters to ponder, as, e.g., the
role of the Prakrti theoretically present even at the
perineum of a man who obtains the Prakrti from a
woman. But I cannot discuss here all problems having
to do with the heterodoxy of Baul thought, and shall
pass on to the problem caused by the secrecy still surrounding Baul ritual (cf. ?6).
38. Bauls have no written codex except for a few
works (cf. n. 104; those listed by Mallik [1986: 188]
are today mostly classed as Sahajiya texts); its function
is taken over by their songs, which are, apart from the
secret instructions of preceptors and some utterances of
famous authorities,179their main repository, constantly
Prophet are one, I/we know; if [they] were not one, how could
the world remain (= exist)? Uniting the one and the other, [you]
will cross the river of life. Look and see: in this your body is
the assemblage of both." "River of life" and "ocean of life"
may also be esoteric terms for menstrual blood (cf. U. Bhattacarya 1980: 430). Lalan's Narekdre dujan nuri bhds'che saddy
(Das/Mahapatra 1958: 81, S. Mitra 1979: 206f.) calls Prakrti
and Purusa two luminous beings (niri), bringing to mind the
nurs just mentioned. I found an even more concrete statement in a song-placing Allah in the head and the Prophet in
the "apparatus-room"(kaler ghar), the perineal seat of the
Prakrti (see ?4; cf. also ?31)-but, unfortunately, did not at
the time make a note; I have not found the song again, though
it should be in one of the works used to prepare this study.
177 Cf. also DattalBhaumik 1966: (131)f.
178 See, e.g., Pdfij's song in n. 94: nu-reryatna kebal ja-nen
phdtemd9 "Only Fatima knows how to care for the light," the
latter referring, as the song expressly states, to the "light" of
the Prophet.
179 Some Bauls jocularly call this their Hadit (U. Bhattacarya 1980: 370).
415
being replenished, of ritual knowledge-their scripture.180 The songs serve to impart knowledge, ask
questions on ritual matters,181test the knowledge (often in riddle form) of other Bauls, and also occasion
theological discussions, often in the form of publicly
sung debates.182Cf., e.g., S. Cakrabart!1989: 14. Most
of their matter is supposed to be kept secret, especially
that large part which has to do with sexual rituals.
Songs are however also something public; to overcome
this difficulty, Bauls resort to a coded mode of expression. Not only do code words and oblique allusions replace plain statements, but many songs may also have
two (or even more) levels of meaning, the actual ritual
one(s) being comprehensible only to the initiated.183
Some songs even seem to delight in playing with such
different levels of meaning, making it extremely difficult even for Bauls to understandthem.184
39. Many code expressions are now known, thanks in
no small part to pioneers like U. Bhattdcarya(1980); I
will confine myself here to terminological problems
going beyond the general ones that use of a secret
180
And not merely upwellings of an overflowing heart, as

many believe, though this element is not to be neglected (cf.
also Capwell 1986: 49).
181 According to Lut-phar Rah-mdn (1985: [18]), Baul
songs are in the form of paired questions and answers, one
song answering the other. If so, it is a pity that mostly only
the question songs seem to be available.
182 See n. 168. Bauls engaged in such disputes are not necessarily expected to compose a song on the spot, but to select
one from their repertoire to fit the occasion; spontaneous composition is however also known.
183 Perhaps this is why, though Bauls readily sing for a general audience and appear to enjoy it, they seem happiest when
singing for other Bauls, who can readily appreciate what is
being sung (cf. the illuminating descriptions of Capwell
[1986: 68, 70]).
184 Such methods of imparting secret knowledge are, of
course, known from other parts of the Indian subcontinent
and of Asia. I may also mention Chinese texts simultaneously
discussing alchemical and sexual matters (see Gulik 1961;
also on sexual texts in the language of treatises on warfare;
on this latter subject cf. also Scharfe 1985, Leslie 1989:
243); explanations of alchemical operations in sexual terms
are known from Europe too. Rosel (1928: 37) discusses possible connections between tantrism/yoga and alchemy in the
Indian context. Cf. also the explanation of the process of imparting knowledge among Baul, Sahajiya and similar groups
(S. Cakrabarti1989: 13, 79f.; P. Das 1978: 290), which has a
parallel in a medieval Ismdcil! text (Buckley 1984: 147, 149).
See also n. 22.

416
language entails. One such problem is caused by the use

of the same term in different meanings; this applies to
some very important expressions, too. Thus "flower,"
though often used for menstruation or the menstrual
flow (see n. 104), may also refer to the vagina,185 the
plexuses, the placenta (U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 374), the
tubularpassages (cf., e.g., Datta/Bhaumik 1966: [128]),
the dazzling lights at the cosmic principle's abode
(cf. also, p. 1682), this principle itself186 (its male and
female aspects, too), semen (see ? 11), and maybe the
body (see ?13). Bholdi's first song in n. 58 (not fully
clear to me) plays on different meanings of "flower"
(phul) (cf. n. 91); see also ?27.
40. A similar expression is "dying"; no one seems to
have noticed so far that in some contexts this cannot
mean the same as in ? 1. In such cases it usually refers
to a mistake preventing the cosmic principle from reaching its final abode; though theoretically this could also
be something else (e.g., wrong breath control), as a rule
it means the unwanted ejaculation of semen.187 There
185
Thus also as regards phul (differentiated there from

puspa) in the Brhat Nigam (see n. 104) (see U. Bhattacarya
1980: 383: phul gadbe bhag mor sbarirete han). The tiger
mentioned in ?40 bears the name phulegbari "mistress who is
a/of the flower"; depending on the analysis of the compound,
the "flower" here is the menstrual blood or the vagina.
186 Cf. dheu kheldio apan dele, padma yena bhdse padmir
jale "Make waves play in your interior/core (see n. 72), so
that the lotus floats on the Padma's water," in Sekh Bhanu's
Nigithe ydio phul'bane (Ab'dul Kadir 1985: 98, also Man'sur'uddin 1967: 25; the poet is Radharamanin Bhattacarya/
Caudhuri 1988: 396), which uses "flower" in various meanings. The Padma, the East Bengali arm of the Ganges (the
other works cited have gatigar for padmar), is the susumna of
the trivenli(see n. 63) (see, e.g., S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 155f.);
"waves" could refer to sexual excitement (cf. S. Cakrabarti
1989: 240; A. Bhattdcdrya1977: 979 sees no sexual connotations in the song).
187 See too Endmul Hak 1979: 4515; cf. the French "petite
mort" for an orgasm, and Chinese expressions for "die," for
having one (see, e.g., Gulik 1961: 304, 306). Hathayogapradipika 3.88 (Svatmarama 1975) says that one preserving
the bindu (cf. n. 88) conquers death (cf. ?1); death results
through the bindu falling, life through its being preserved
(see, too, Schoterman 1980: 29). Such uses of "death" might
make us ponder whether the emendation in Srikirsnakirtan(a),
Radhabiraha52, of marane to ramane (Klaiman 1984: 300172)
or mane (Laha 1988: 167) is justified, as it is known that the
author of this text was versed in tantric practice or at least terminology; cf. also Klaiman 1984: 283f. and 1983: 1 If. Also,
the explanation by Klaiman (1984: 28495) of the "tenth door"
are many such references in Baul songs-the most drastic I know in a song by Dah (i.e., Dr.) Haniphd,'88mentioning the restless (nat'khati) kham'dhard (?) (which
wants to burstout of even the tightest loin-cloth): ksudha
lagle kare bami khdile hay marl "When he's hungry,
he vomits; when he eats, he becomes dead"; khdoya is
obviously elliptical for the obscene magi khdoya "eat
a wench," meaning intercourse with a woman.189 A
song by an unknown poet190refers to the vagina191 as
(which Krsna has blocked) in Radhabiraha29 as being situated in the oral cavity, though in keeping with a tantric theory
(also among the Naths, cf., e.g., Das Gupta 1976: 239-43),
could also refer to the tenth body-opening through which semen issues, in the genitals; cf. U. Bhattacarya 1980: 426 (on
the corresponding "curved passage" see pp. 345f., as well as
Bose 1927a: 57f., which describes the curved river Viraja,
on which see also n. 120; cf. too ?31). U. Bhattacarya(1980:
33-35) wants to disregard the latter Srikrsnakirtan(a)passage
(p. 33: aprisangik mane hay "it seems irrelevant"), but
apodictically and not based on evidence, and despite its fitting
the narrative plot well. The "tenth door" (the vagina in
S. Cakrabarti1989: 84, 151) is also found in Caryapada 3.3.
The Sanskrit commentary explains it as the "door of Vairocana," which is enigmatic, but nevertheless what the allegorical explanations of most modern scholars seem to follow;
Yakariya (1974: 174), however, identifies it with the brahmarandhra (cf. ?43), whereas, according to J. Sirmha (1969,
1:61, 151), it is the seminal opening in the sense above.
188
Khel'te dilhimbhabe tin taser kheld (Reja 1978: 0944f.).
189 And not, like the similar American expression, to
cunnilingus.
190 Bagher dake antar kdpe (Recordings 5: side A, no. 1,
sung by Paban'das). The song also mentions the dancing naked woman in battle attire, i.e., Kali. References to Kali are
quite rare in Baul songs, though not unknown. Thus Mo. Nechar Ali Sekh's song in n. 49 mentions the naked Kali's
temple, with blood flowing in it, obviously a reference to
menstrual blood, and Duddu's Jydnta kdli gharer majhe
dekh-li na (U. Bhattacdrya 1980: 816) urges worship of the
real Prakrti, not just the image of Kali. Bhaba Pdg'la, famous
preceptor of many Bauls in the extreme west of Bengal,
seems especially influenced by Sakta tantrism. He has also
written a hymn to Kali; cf. Recordings 5: side A, no. 3. Very
interestingly, the singer Paban'dds unconsciously substitutes
hari for kdUlin the line kata din rabe tumi e(i) dhard dhime,
maran tomar nai maja kali ndme (he then repeats it with the
correct kali), showing how uncommon this hymn to Kali must
have seemed to him.
191 Here also called the "residence/chamber of the city/
abode of honey" (madhupurerghar), a reference not only to
sensual pleasure, but also to sweet juice needing purification
(cf. nn. 24, 69). The similarity of madhupur to manipur (see

DAS:
a blood-sucking192tiger with a snub nose (the clitoris),

and says that the tiger does not eat dead persons, but
catches a siidhu193if it gets one.194Some songs seem to
play with different meanings of "dead."
41. A song clearly playing with different meanings of
the same word is one by Gopal, in which "moon" occurs in several meanings.195
Where is the dwelling of the moon?
In which circuit does the night rotate; in which circuit
does the movement of the day take place?
All people know the taking (grahan) of the moon at
full moon;
The taking (grahan) of the moon at new moon-who
enquires about that?
The nature/system of the four moons-get to know,
mind, its/their description;
Had [you] (or: [they]?) known it,
The harmful sentiments in the mortal body (or: in the
bodies of [all] beings?) would have ceased to exist.
Know (or: You'll know) that rising and setting is what
the moon does in this world;
Then (i.e., if you know this) the radiant moon (or,
maybe better: moon brought to light/shine), the full
moon, will rise.
?11) is surely no coincidence. I have found madhupur again
in the song Ghoidr byepari, about a horse-trader who overworks his horse (= penis, it seems to me) without any palpable reward, also squandering his wealth on useless women. He
is advised to learn the correct art of horse-trading from a
guru, the song ending with the admonition: tom'rd sabe hao
sabdhan, dcbeder lok'sdn madhupure ghorir khydpa diya
"You all be careful/You be careful in all: the votary's loss is
(= takes place) by making the horse run mad in the madhupur" (Recordings 16: side B, no. 5).
192 An oblique reference to semen; semen is, in India,
widely (also in medical tradition) believed to be derived from
blood. In Bengal one drop of semen is widely held to equal
ten (or even a hundred) drops of blood.
193 See n. 68. The sadhu of course retains his erection.
194 Mard mdnus khd9 nd bdghe, sjdhu paile dhare. Crocodiles (= the body's adverse emotions) seemingly do the exact
opposite in a song by Pdg'ldKdndi:"When they see [a man to
be] fresh, they catch and eat [him], when they see [him to be]
dead, they run away" (tdjd dekh'le dha-rd khii) mard dekh'le
dauriyd pal@y:M. Caudhuri 1985: 199), but on "dead" here,
see ?1.
195 See esp. U. Bhattacarya 1980: 375; cf. also ??31, 34, 47,
as well as Mandal 1949: kha[6]-[8] and Yakariya 1974: 168ff.
D. Bhattacharya (1969: 452), of course, sees only Krsna in
"moon" (cf. nn. 12, 62, 63).
417
In two fortnights (or: In/Through each party) (paksa)

there is one; the name of that/those, one says, [is]:
"pair."
Half a moon is hidden [as] the girl; her husband is at
the root of the Brahman.
He who makes the full moon rise during/from the
new moon
Will be victorious in [all] the three worlds: Heaven,
Earth and Nether-World.
It's not the work of an ordinary person; [only] when
one endeavours deeply [with the right knowledge]
does one become accomplished (siddha).
Now Gosdi Ram'lal (Gopdl's father and preceptor)'96
says:
"Gopdl, you'll be able to see its radiance."97
42. Not all the references are clear to me; also, since
Bengali does not usually distinguish between the singular and the plural of non-determinateinanimate objects,
"moons" may often (or throughout) be more correct
196 In South Asia, a father (the
preceptor par excellence;
see, e.g., Wezler 1979: 34-36, also Oguibenine 1990: 2) is
often his son's esoteric teacher. Cf. paiyid sunid dekha
bhdrata purdne, pita binu guru ndiii i tina bhubane "See by
reading/reciting and hearing in the Mahabharata[and] Puranas: there is no guru apart from the father in these three
worlds" (Enamul Hak 1979: 56; modern pronunciation is disregarded). Cf. the songs of Nedhugah (whose father Kalugah
was also his preceptor), many playing on the names Kalu and
Kala, also names of Krsna (clearly, e.g., in the song Kalu bihane sad- akhijhare in As'gar 1985c: 53f.; cf. also ?1). But
a preceptor not the actual father may be called the father, too
(cf. Riyajul Hak 1976: 29, S. Cakrabarti1989: 60). According
to the Yogi-kac father, mother, elder sister and elder brother
are gurus (Mandal 1949: 1-gha[5]f.). On esoteric meanings
of guru (woman, breath) see S. Cakrabarti1989: 151, 224.
197 U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 787f.:
kon-khine candrer basati.
kon- pdke rajani ghore, kon- pcke hay diner gati.
piirnimite candragrahan jdne sarbajan,
amabasyad-candragrahan ke kare tar anbesan,
car candrer niriupan,jdn'gd man tir bibaran,
jin'le pare jib'dehete ghuce yeta kumati.
uday-asta candrer karmajdnibe bhabe,
dipta candra purnacandra uday halbe tabe;
dui pakse ek'ti hay, tar nam yugal kay,
adh candra gupta meye brahmamide tar pati.
amabasyda piurnacandraye kare uday
sbarga-martya-patale tin dhamete habe jay,
sdmdnyer karma nay, sadhile siddha hay,
ebar g~sdi rdm'ldl bale,
gopal, dekh'tepabi tar jyoti.

418
here. Nevertheless, I have chosen this song because it

is one of the few direct references to a very secret Baul
ritual,198 namely the imbibing (grahan) of the four
"moons" menstrual blood, semen, urine, and stool (cf.
also n. 39), among some groups singly, but mostly
either in pairs (the first two and the last two) at different times, or all together (the semen usually obtained
by the woman through fellatio). "New moon" refers to
the menses, out of which the cosmic principle, the "full
moon," has to be "taken" out (grahan) (see ?34). The
pun on grahan is completed by its meaning "eclipse."
Of course there is a difference between a lunar eclipse
and the new moon, but the tertium comparationis is the
disappearance of the moon.
43. The "moon" menstrual blood can be taken in only
at "new moon." If paksa refers to a fortnight, then we
could have a reference to the time when this "moon"
and the "moon" with which it forms a "pair" (semen)
"rise" or appear.199If however paksa here is a "party"
involved in something, then "moon" would refer to the
cosmic principle created by the union of menstrual
blood and semen, or to man and woman. "Half" refers
to the Prakrti,half of the "moon" cosmic principle (cf.
also n. 215). Brahman (Beng. brahma) is the name of a
tubular passage, the innermost and finest of several
such, lying within the central passage (susumnd) according to most theories; it leads to the true residence
of the cosmic principle, but in many theories also to
the brahmarandhra, the secret opening on the crown
(in some theories however the highest plexus), which
we should perhaps also consider here is referred to.200
In any case, "root of the Brahman" could be the
perineal region whence the central tubular passage
leading up to this plexus originates, the place of union
with the "husband."
44. Most of the song is thus relatively clear, though
difficulties remain, such as the circuits of night and
day. Are these the two outer tubular passages iiddand
pihgala, the moon- and sun-passages? However, I have
discussed the song as an example for the problems
See U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 394ff., 424ff.; Capwell 1986:
22; Qureshi 1977: 236; S. Cakrabarti1989: 30, 182ff., 198ff.
199 In cases in which only menstrual blood and semen are
taken in together, urine and stool are usually ingested a fortnight later.
200 See too Banerjea 1981: 173f. on the brahmacakra in the
mdladhdra, the latter, according to pp. 182-88, 30 not a
cakra, but an ddhdra (see n. 45), the highest such being the
brahmarandhra(cf. also Briggs 1970: 317).
198
caused by the use of the same word in various meanings, not to offer solutions at any cost.
45. But often Baul secrecy does not even give us the
chance of trying to coordinate a possible meaning with
known aspects of the creed, simply offering us no information at all to build upon. Such is the case as regards
an expression in one of the best-known Baul songs, Ldlan's Kh car bhitar acin pdkhi.201The line at(-)kuthari
nay darja Jtd either calls the body, here a house (see
n. 66), "having eight chambers" (dt-kuthari), or says
that "[it has] eight chambers" (at kuthari). This is
enigmatic.202 "Eight" is absent in the list of numbers
in Datta/Bhaumik 1966:(126)-(31). It reminds one of
astatiga, the eight parts of the body used in profound
obeisance, but, by definition, this refers neither to the
whole body, nor to all times. Qureshi (1977: 225f.) explains our term as "huit enveloppes corporelles," but
gives no references and no other elucidation. Does he
mean something akin to the "skins" (OTAtvac-) in classical Indian medicine? These are, however, six or seven
in number. Mahapatra(1972: 33) says: "Eight cells are
the eight stages in the process of Baul sadhana."There
are however only three (U. Bhattacarya 1980: 111,
405), four (Lut phar Rah man 1985: [18]), or five
(U. Bhattacarya 1980: 503ff.) (see also ?14). Does he
then mean the plexuses, or something similar, situated
in the path of movement of the cosmic principle? This
would then not be an "orthodox" tantric theory. The
plexuses (as well as their "petals") could be and are indeed at times called "chambers" or the like, and Hi.
Bandyopadhyay (1978: 49f.) does mention eight cakras
residing within the body in Baul belief. But he names
only two (milddhdra and sv&dhisthdna)and says no
more; we thus do not know on what this statement is
based. Banerjea (1961: 172) says: "Cakras are enumerated generally as six, and sometimes as seven or eight
or nine" (cf. on the last numberalso n. 45), but gives no
references for eight.
201 For different versions of the text see, e.g., Ddg/Mahapatra 1958: 202f., Baul n.d.a: chatriU f. (but Baul n.d.b:
nirdnabbai is different), Brahma 1987a: 5, U. Bhattacarya
1980: 599f. and Hamidul Is'lam 1981: 17. The song is not
found in S. Mitra 1979; Lut-pharRah man 1985 too does not
have it, but this work is still incomplete. For different staff
notations see, e.g., Nlirul Alam 1985: 41f. and B. Roy 1980:
15, for different sung versions (differing in tune and/or text),
Baul), Ree.g., Recordings 2: side A, no. 1 (sung by PtUrnadds
cordings 3: side B, no. 5 and Recordings 4: side B, no. 1.
202 In a song written by her to "answer" Lalan's song,
Brahma (1987b: 25) evades the issue, which a Baul poet
would not have done.

DAS:
46. Padfj'ssong Nirdkdrejyotirmay (see ? 11) mentions

seven "storeys" of the body. U. Bhattdcarya (1980:
1059) says these are the seven worlds.203But this is not
sure, as the text says that nectar, mixed with lustre,
drips downwards (as it does in many songs) from the
two-petalled lotus-here however onto each of the
seven storeys, while lightning plays in the six-petalled
lotus and the cosmic principle tastes ras (see n. 22) at
the triveni (see n. 63).204 Gobin'cdd in a song205 says
that the cosmic principle, taken up from the maladhara,
lights seven storeys, or else lights that which has seven
storeys (aWokare saptatilc) (on its way up?) and then
shines in a hidden chamber, obviously the cranial
abode. Similarly, Lalan speaks of the cosmic principle
in his abode above/on top of seven storeys,206 and of
the mirror (signifying brilliance) on/above seven storeys.207 Now "seven" may refer to various things in
Baul songs,208 but the above statements do make us
consider whether here seven plexuses on the spinal
203 This refers to the seven
worlds on earth and above,
against the seven below. Together these give fourteen (see
also n. 211). As a rule, "seven worlds" refers to the first
seven (in Baul songs also found combined with the plexuses,
though not necessarily systematically). Note too U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 444 and Bose 1927a: 49, 53; Bose 1986: 127;
A. C. Das 1986: 66: of all the passages (ndri) in the body,
fourteen are the most important.
204 yugal'padmejyoti mige hacche sudhdr barisan
saptatdldr tale tale saradale bidyut- khele
tribeni-tir-dhdre rase kare dsbddan.
205 Khel'che mainusbckdnale (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 851f.).
206 Ke bojhe sadr lill kheld (Dad/Mahdpatra 1958: 1lf.,
S. Mitra 1979: 136f.).
207
Ki gobhd kar'chen sMiran'mahale: Hamidul Is'lam 1981:
133, Dd9/Mahapatra1958: 103 (this with saptatdld ay'nd atd
for sapta taldy ...
208 Apart from the seven worlds (see n. 203), e.g., the seven
oceans (cf. n. 46), the seven divisions of the earth, the seven
mountains, etc., of ancient Indian cosmology, present in the
microcosm too, also according to several Baul songs. Ab'dur
Rabid (1984: 179) points out that some Sufi theories speak not
of five, but of six or seven mokdms (see ? 14). The seven
parts of Muhammad's body are also often said to be in the
body (as seven plexuses?); cf. Schimmel 1985: 140, where
this seems to be not correctly understood. Ananta in a song
(E mdfr-samsdre ghireche dmdy saptarathite, U. Bhattacdrya
1980: 945f.) calls his mind and the six vices (see ?30) the
seven charioteers of the Mahdbhdrata (who killed Abhimanyu). The mind and the vices are obviously also meant by
Abdur Rah'mdn, who complains of marrying seven shrews
who live in his body and make his life miserable (Sddh kare
bije kare geche bijer scdh mite, Tena 1980: If.).
419
path might not be meant, or, at least, layers of the

body209 containing them.210 If the latter, then these
layers would probably be situated in the trunk and
head.211 One could then ask whether Lalan's song
might not refer to something similar, for adding the
209 In Lalan's Ache ddi makkdei mdnab'dehe
(see n. 151) a
fantastic sound arises in Mecca (the body), piercing its seven
storeys. U. Bhattacarya (1980: 508) says this refers to the
seven heavens mentioned in the Koran, but that is sheer speculation; the song gives no hint on what is meant.
210 One could think of similarly explaining the seven
abodes/rooms of Ananta's song of ? 11, among/in the middle
of which is the innermost room (gharer prdcir[,?] saptapur,
tar madhye antahpur; is the "wall" the skin?). They cannot be
part of the fourteen worlds (see n. 203), as these are mentioned too. But the body is also a six-storeyed building (cf.
nn. 66, 77) (in Recordings 17 the line ghar beg Jtdsastd,chatdld kothd is different: e gharer cdr'dike beid, dche ds'mdne
khdid), having one more storey, the manikotha, above/on top
of it (tdr upare). Should the plexuses be referred to, the case
for "six" would be as valid as for "seven." Which should we
consider? And if "six" refers to the plexuses, what about the
extra storey, the manikothd?If it does not, what does it mean?
The six vices (see ?30) can hardly be meant (Datta/Bhaumik
1966: [129]f. are at a loss in similar cases). Does "six" refer
to the Indian medical theory of the body's six divisions (OIA
ahga-): the extremities, head and trunk (cf. Rao 1987: 38f.)?
On the other hand, Bose 1986: 194 draws attention to the six
qualities of the five sense objects and vildsa "pleasure." Note
also that in the secret language of some religious groups the
perineum is called the goindriya, giving six senses (OIA
indriya-) in all; see U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 426. He (p. 333)
also mentions a seemingly rare theory speaking of six, not
seven, mountains (cf. n. 208). Should we consider this?
A. Bhattacdrya(1977: 1274 [song no. 47]) complicates matters by listing not only six localities (mahalld) (and six enemies, gdlim), but also sixteen storeys (tald), the latter a
problem, too (see ?12). Nechar Ali Sekh's song in n. 49 too
mentions six tdlds, but five gems (the senses?) are also said to
be there under heavy guard. So tdld could be "storey" or
"lock" here, making "six" even more enigmatic.
211 But see also the references to the lower portions of the
body in Dimock 1966a: 175f.; S. B. Dasgupta 1974: 87;
U. Bhattdcdrya 1980: 337, 1060, and n. 155. Garudapurdna,
Uttarardha(Pretakalpa) 22.52-54 (see Pandey 1986), part of
the description of a macrocosm present within the microcosm, says that the seven cosmic nether worlds are also
present within the human body, namely in the parts below the
navel; they are: tala (the usual name of this world seems to
be atala), vitala, sutala, taldtala, rasdtala, mahdtala and
pdtdla. The similarity with the Bengali word usually used for
"storey" in Baul songs, namely tdld (also tal[C]), strikes one

420
lower extremities (as one unit) would give eight. The

song however also states: tOr upar ache sadar-kothd,
4ynd-mahal tda "Above this/these is the principal
chamber, in this the mirror gallery," i.e., the abode of
the Purusa (see ?2), which could thus be above the
eight chambers ("layers"). This need not be, as
"above" might simply mean "at the highest point of,"
but if the abode itself should be one of the plexuses,
there would be a new difficulty. One could circumvent
this by counting each leg separately, but this leads even
more into the realm of unfounded speculation. However, the abode of the Purusa (or maybe only the
Prakrti-Purusa,the combination of Purusa and Prakrti)
at times appears to be a void above the plexuses (cf.
??8, 14), so that one may still arrive at the number
eight by counting the lower extremities as one. On the
other hand, Ram'krsna expressly calls each cakra
(seven in number, the sahasrdra included) a bhiimi
"site; storey" (see Prajfianananda1988: 159f.), so that
we should consider whether the seven storeys of Baul
songs might not refer to the same. But this would be
even more difficult to reconcile with the eight chambers
or compartments, as in this case we must operate with
the plexuses themselves, and not with layers, which
need not necessarily all contain a plexus.
47. But the eight compartments/chambersof the body
are also found, equally enigmatically, in other songs.
Jfianananda'sEsecha basecha bhabe tag. khelite (Recordings 7: side B, no. 2; sung by Subal Das) describes
their significance as a secret only the initiated knowi.e., the enigma is intentional. This song however also
refers to the saptatlld as another secret. This mention
side-by-side makes the reasoning based on Pafij's song
in ?46 weaker,212leaving us, as before, at a loss. The
confusion is worsened by Naran's advice213 to make
the cosmic principle ascend by means of wind, while
keeping the eight chambers/compartments,or that with
eight chambers/compartments,shut (at kuthuri bandha
ka're); the latter would be simply a reference to the
at once; however, this may be mere coincidence, since the
discussion here (?46) does not make a special connection of
the seven "storeys" with the lower part of the body seem
likely. The worlds in the upper part of the body too are listed
in Garu~1apurdna,Uttarardha (Pretakalpa) 22. 55f. (Pandey
1986), the names there being the same as those generally
given the upper cosmic worlds, namely bhtirloka, bhuvarl',
svarl, maharl, janal' (usually janarl), tapol and satyal.
212 As we would have not different systems of enumeration
(cf. n. 77), but two systems, of which one subsumes the other.
213 In his song Dam lagdo sei damer ghare (U. Bhattacarya
1980: 858).
body and contain no new information, but should the

former be meant, then we would have a problem.
Bhaskar Bhattacharyya in his notes on Jianananda's
song explains the eight compartments/chambersas the
cheeks, breasts, navel, forehead, chin and heart-I do
not know on what evidence, and, also, not how these
can be "shut." Yet this reminds one of U. Bhattacarya
(1980: 375), who lists eight "moons": mouth/face,
breasts, hands, chest, navel and genitals.214 This is
really worth considering; however, no reference for
this list is given,215 and this also holds true for P. Bandyopadhyay (1989: 571), where Lalan's "eight" in ?45
is explained as "two hands, two legs, forehead, breast,
throat and backbone."
48. A Bangladeshi who has received basic Sufi initiation216 told me that the body contains the eight layers
of Paradise (Beng. form: behest, beheit), and that this
is what Baul and similar songs often hint at. But Islamic cosmological systems usually mention only
seven heavens (and also seven earths and hells).217 In
some astronomical texts we do find eight heavenly
spheres mentioned, but the number is generally given
as nine218 (in some mystic systems, too, the body has
nine levels).219 And the mention of eight (in contradistinction to seven) worlds in mystic texts seems to be
214
Also enumerated thus by Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 260';
this looks like a quote from a previous edition.
215 L.c. only refers to a song, explained on pp. 1060 in exactly the same apodictic manner. True, there is also a quote
from a passage of the Caitanyacaritdmpta, but this is puzzling, for it does not seem to be of any relevance, referring instead to an eighth moon in the forehead, explained by H. Dds
(1987: 86) as "halfmoon" (arddhacandra) (the astami is the
eighth day of the lunar half-month, i.e., the day of the halfmoon); on the "half-moon" see also Mandal 1949: ca[1],
where it is equated with semen (?ukra) (cf. ?43 too, where the
female principle is called half-a-moon).
216 One of his first lessons, in a well-known mosque (!) in
Dhaka, was on the importance of holding back semen during
intercourse.
217 See, e.g., Nasr 1964: 57 and Heinen 1982: 138-45, with
the corresponding notes on pp. 196-209 and also p. 218. On
the significance of the number seven see also Diwald 1975:
40. According to Paul (1972: 27) the haft 'clam "seven
worlds" are the five stages or planes mentioned in ?14 plus
"others"-I do not know on what evidence.
218 On the number eight see, e.g., Nasr 1964: 133f.; on the
number nine, e.g., Diwald 1975: 152, Nasr 1964: 133, 236.
219 Cf. Nasr 1964: 97, though note the explanation which
states that these levels are "the first odd square and the number of heavens."

DAS:
very rare in general. Etim Alam and Ali Raja however

describe eight heavens in Abdulldh'r Hijdr Saoyal
and Sirlj Kulib, respectively (Sariph 1976: 177, 204),
though to both the number "seven" denotes the seven
heavens, "eight" the chief angels guarding God's
throne (ibid., 145, 217; see also p. 214). We could arrive at the number eight by taking the earth together
with seven heavens, but again we enter the realm of
unfounded speculation. Moreover, though Hindu cosmology, as a rule, has seven worlds on earth and above
(see n. 211), some systems mention eight, too.220 As if
this were not enough, the Brhat Nigam (see n. 104),
tells us that a man and a woman each have four substances, of eight syllables in all, in their bodies.221 But
Datta/Bhaumik (1966: [133]f., 1734) state that the body
is composed of eight parts, four each (the known quadruplet: water, fire, dust, and wind) from mother and
father, these eight being part of the eighteen "stations,"
"abodes" or "bases" (mokam / mukim) of the body
often alluded to in Baul songs.222What is quite intriguing is that Datta/Bhaumik (1966: 1751) gloss mukam
with kotha, without comment. I do not know on what
this is based, or if it is justified at all, but it opens up
interesting avenues for investigation, especially when
we consider the Saikhya system of eight prakrtis223
making up the body.
49. I have found other references to the number
"eight." A song by Abdulla224 refers to four lawcourts in number eight, in the city called the body; I
do not know what "eight" refers to.225 A song of Phakir (Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 259f.) speaks of a hoe of
eight digits with a sixteen-digit handle for digging up
the earth for one's own body, which looks like an allu220 OIA brahmaloka-, pitrl', somal', indral',
gandharval',
raksasal', yaksal and pigdcal'.
221 U. Bhattacarya 1980: 382: the male body has pahkajalapadmamula, the female body, patraphulabrndapuspa (the
transliterationdisregards pronunciation).
222 Textual evidence supports this; see also Ydkdriya 1974:
173 and Sariph 1976: 50. For another explanation of the eighteen mokams (including the mokams in ?14) see Datta/
Bhaumik 1966: 1734 and Qureshi 1977: 225 (the reference, in
the former, to U. Bhattacdrya 1980 seems to apply to an edition I do not have); see also S. Cakrabart! 1986a: 84 and
1989: 42. On the (Arabic) terms maqdm in Sufi texts in general see also Profitlich 1973: 93ff.
223 Not the term prakrti we are here dealing with.
224 Ek'ti phuler tin'ti rase
ddam-gahar (Datta/Bhaumik
1966: 168f.; see also the speculations on "eight" on p. 1698).
225 On "four" see op. cit., (129), 1687, though I do not
know if the explanation is correct.
421
sion to the grave. Another song speaks of a man measuring eight digits, with intelligence/brains (bujh) of
sixteen digits (ibid., 172f.) (ironic for: not intelligent?).
"Eight" seems in both songs to refer to the cosmic
principle, but I am not sure, for should "sixteen" mean
the vikaras (see n. 79) and thus the body, one might
consider that the penis is meant. But note the description of the body as at kuthari sola tald (in song 854,
BhattacaryalCaudhuri 1988: 406). A song by Sarat
(Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 17f.) seems to call the body an
earthen jar (cf. n. 69) with eight ganidas of cowries in
it; this works out to eight annas (half a rupee) (ganda =
anna), or else to thirty-two (gandd = four). This last
song (I am not sure about the others) looks as if it
could be relevant for our discussion, but I do not understand it. Ar'kum,226describing the upward journey
of the cosmic principle to the head as a laden boat's
struggle against the current (cf. n. 131), speaks of eight
bdks227 in the boat.228 Now usually certain qualities,
properties, or agents are associated with the boat in
such images in the songs-plexuses or the like usually
being associated with the river or land along or through
which the boat plies. This rather speaks against "eight"
referring to plexuses or the like, at least here. Attention
may also be drawn to Rath 1982: 10, where we find the
esoteric explanation of vasudhi "earth; country" as
"divided into eight" (according to the numerical value
8 of vasu); since the body is regarded as a microcosm,
complete with its own geography, it may be worth examining whether similar notions might not be at the
root of the problematic eight compartments/chambers
in ??45ff. Dimock (1966a: 14238)lists still more eights,
in Sahajiya contexts, but they, too, do not serve to
clarify matters. I am still at a loss as to the significance
of the eight compartments/chambers,though it is clear
by now that we do have a problem here.229
50. What further complicates the matter is that the
original meaning (whatever it was) of this expression
may no longer be known to all who use it. Indeed, I
have come across a clear example of this in the song
Bhan~ddrebhin4ddriache (Recordings 6: side B, no. 2)
226 Are dsdih maser gold (Datta/Bhaumik 1966: 333-35).
227 This is a nautical term describing certain
planks (see
Ray 1971: 77), for which I know no equivalent.

228 Also of twelve "bulwarks" (buruj). Datta/Bhaumik
1966: 1734 are of no help regarding the meaning of this.
229 It is however unlikely that an eight-petalled plexus such
as that at the navel in some Sahajiya theories (cf. U. Bhattacarya 1980: 365) or the dharmacakra in the heart in some
"Buddhist" tantric theories (others speak of thirty-two petals)
are of any import here.

422
of Rames (on him see n. 73), which has the line at

darajd niiko dbdri "eight doors, [but] there is no doorkeeper." The nine "doors" (= openings) of the body are
standard all over South Asia; eight "doors" are, however, a puzzle. I suspect that we have here a misinterpretation of the term dar(a)ji; dar(a)jft "door" has a
homonym dar(a)ja = Arabo-Persian daraga "stair; order, rank; sort," which (also as darga) is also used as
"storey" in Hindustani and in other Indian languages
(also Bengali). As, in Bengali, the word is today rather
rare, at daraja could actually once have referred to
eight ranks, sorts, storeys, etc. (see above),230 but then
have been misinterpreted as "eight doors." The same
seems to be the case in Sadananda's Bal hdoyate
ka9'che kathd (see n. 86), where the cosmic principle
in the body, which is expressly said to have the usual
nine doors (openings), is asked whither it goes, shutting the seven doors (darjl) and keeping the postern
(khi*'ki) unfastened.231 Obviously, such things serve
only to complicate an already complicated situation.232
51. We thus end on a note of confusion, which, however, exactly mirrors the material studied. This study
has shown that there is much here that is confusing and
contradictory, much that is unclear, and much that is
unknown. Having to admit this is of course frustrating,
but more honest than trying by all means to press the
material into some uniform theoretical frame, smoothing over difficulties by means of intellectual caprioles
and subterfuges-even though more satisfying to the
scholar concerned. We must also not overlook one important fact: phenomena such as those dealt with do
not exist merely in the intellect, but as parts of real and
very material life, subject to all its influences and developments, and not to be separated from the humans
who form and are formed by them-humans who are
characterized by unpredictability, inconsistence, desultoriness, and all the other traits that so frustrate psychologists and sociologists. And it must also be borne
in mind that these phenomena did not develop or were
not developed for the sake of study by scholars searching for universally valid explanations and rules.
230 Unfortunately, the various meanings of dar(a)jd do not
allow us to draw any definite conclusions on the significance

of at(-)kuthari.
231 The postern door is, according to Ydkdriya (1974: 150,
175), the gateway for unwanted thoughts and emotions to enter the mind. It remains to be examined whether this also
applies to the "postern" mentioned in Yddubindu's lines in
n. 133, which I do not quite understand. But whatever the
"postern"does refer to in Sadananda'ssong, and irrespective
of the problem of the number of doors mentioned, the picture
in this song seems to be different from that, e.g., in Ab'dul
Hdlim 1977: 21 f. (song: Phdnd phillar dese yadi ydbi), which
tells us to close the nine doors and keep one door open to see
the rip (cf. esp. ?20), seemingly thus making Allah within us
visible: nav darfjty mdro tdla, ek darja rdkho khold, sei
darjd4 mil'be riper chabi; the open door here probably refers
to the secret tenth mentioned in n. 187, especially since the
song subsequently speaks of a union to be effected in the
"room of three" (tiner ghare kara mil), which does look like
a reference to the meeting point of the three tubular passages.
232 A famous song from Chittagong, Bhainer bdndrasi sdai
gay (see Ohidul Alam 1979: 81 and 1985: 6) seems to speak
(referring to the body of the "sister"?; on "sister" as a term
for the female lover cf. Ohidul Alam 1985: 70) of seven compartments (sat kutari) and nine doors, with a locker room (talar ghar) in the middle (genitals?, heart?). But the song, as
found on Recordings 9: side A, no. 1 (Bhainar bendrasi sdai
gb)), has aftkuthari, i.e., "eight" in the place of "seven," and
in the light of our discussion, that appears to be the correct
version. The other version, however, shows that the line in
question has been misunderstood, and perpetuatedas such.
A NOTE ON BAUL SONGS
Defining a Baul song exactly is difficult. Bauls do

compose songs relating to their creed (not only its sexual aspects). But their syncretism allows them to take
over songs of other religious groups, or even folk songs,
too, if these may be interpreted to fit their tenets (see
also Salomon 1989: 323). Conversely, songs of a Baul
nature may be part of the stock of songs of other religious groups too. The researcher must thus also consider songs classed as Padabali (Padavali) (mostly of
Vaishnavas), Dehatattba (Dehatattva), Phakirall (Fakirali), Maij Bhandarl (see n. 72), Murgidi (Murshidi),
Mar'phati (Marfati), Dhuya (Dhua), Gurubadi (Gurubadi), and so on (none composed with scholars in
mind). This obviously does not lessen the problems detailed in ?6. The mass appeal of the Bauls has created
problems, too, as it has led to the circulation of many
fake Baul songs (cf. U. Bhattdcarya 1980: 103f.;
S. Cakrabarti1989: 253f.; also n. 3),233 to the designation of any folk song as "Baul" by many, and to a commercialization which has led Bauls (often fake) to take
up the concert stage-which, though it has made an acquaintance with Baul thought easier, has also served to
enhance their false image in the public mind, as often
only "clean" songs are sung. Some Bauls give lessons
233 Not all songs composed by non-Bauls are out of keeping
with Baul tenets, though; a case in point is T. Das 1977.

DAS:
Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengzal
in singing for a fee (cf. Capwell 1986: 46), to people

who often probably have no idea what they are learning-if they learn real Baul songs at all. In B. Ghos
1986: 49, a Baul sadly remarks on this state of affairs.
I am not moralizing, for why should Bauls, many of
them desperately poor, not sell their repertoire if they
wish to? I am only pointing out that this has created
problems of which the researcher must be aware. Cf.
423
also P. Bandyopadhyay 1989: 100ff.; A. Mukhopadhyd'

1988: 108ff.; and Sarkar 1990: 72, 78ff., 190ff., as well
as-mutatis mutandis-H. Sanyal 1989: 243ff. on the
state of kirtan singing today. Note too what Banerjee
(1989: 209) rightly states: "What is masquerading as
folk culture in the commercial network is sans the participation of the original artistes-common folks."
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Problematic Aspects of the Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

Author(s): Rahul Peter Das

This content downloaded from 137.73.126.242 on Sun, 12 Jan 2014 12:10:10 PM

PROBLEMATICASPECTS OF THE SEXUAL RITUALS

made this religious group4 well known. I may thus

1. The recent surge of interest in the Bauls (Bengali

ek'tard hate ek bduler manoj gambuj. ."Your bones are

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

the state of being "dead while living,"8 requires not

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

such matters only the initiated are aware of;10 the

2. The macrocosmic principle (as a rule seemingly =

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

bly in its highest portion), which is also where the male

"abode of Indra,""abode of Sri," "Medina," "Mecca,"

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

intercourse usually takes place on all three days of

medium of lust, the former, of love, it being only in a state of

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

this is also found in Islamic mysticism, and is, indeed, so

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

even intentional,34 though few are as honest about this

form of the Bengali letter) denotes the female genitals. Both

have the difficulty of deciding who is or is not a Baul,

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

ance and behavior often difficult or impossible to tell from

and Vaishnavas.40 Secondly, the Baul creed is not, as

dyopadhyay (1980) in the novel Rdikamal. Cf. also Sarkar

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

almost every turn, if one only chooses not to ignore it,

points, or whether the latter is a (the upper?)part of the

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

9. So it is no wonder that Baul theory, not only on the

literature. And there is a text (see P. Das 1978: 151)

usual place of the ten-petalled manipura according to

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

like Tahejaddi's puruser mani thake mastake-manir

In a song by Panij,61Allah (= Purusa; cf. n. 13) as the

Mildsddhan kara md1ekcine (U. Bhattdcdrya1980: 758f.).

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

(revered by Bauls, especially in West Bengal) played in

process of translocation to the head.70 Such statements

calls "le Joyau" "Un des plexus neuro-physique, siege du

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)

reside in the mdl'kothd.74An unknown poet's song75

Sen'gupta/Basu 1988: 461; Khan 1982: 37-46; Ohidul Alam

though I cannot say whether anything similar to one of

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Sexual Rituals of the Bauls of Bengal

by Dinu,87 this lotus seems to be, or be located near,

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 112.3 (1992)