Chanting Music and Recitals

Chanting Music and Recitals

It was strange coincidence, I did some soul searching during the Perehara what relevance the dance and music has Buddhism and its practice.

To my surprise nothing at all. 

Buddha was never a musician.

One and only reason for the musical tone, if any when chanting stanzas was to enhance the memory power of the reciter, the colossal volume of Dhamma in the three baskets was prohibitive.

It is said devoted monks use it even during the Baminitiya Saya, the 11 year period of famine in our history.

That was the devotion. 
 
In actual fact, even the Gatha or the Stanza should not be recited in a musical tone, lest the actual meaning that they convey would be distorted out of context and practical use.

All these musical activities of the Vihara, Devala and Kovil are a corruption and should be considered a sub-religion.

In the entire Theravada Tradition and history there are no musical notes.

The musical sub-culture was entirely of Indian (they should be proud of it) Origin.

Of course India is the seat and origin of music in Asian subcontinent and civilization.

The Tibetan and Chinese drum beating associated with Mahayana tradition is entirely a different preposition.

They were probably developed to gather masses.

Whether it is Bali, Thovil or Kohomba Kankariya or any other derivative of music or Thalas and dances or the Vannamas have no relationship to Buddhist outlook but a local sub-culture of quality.

If at all, they are hindrances to the devoted meditator who chooses to retire to the jungle for solace.

With domestication of monks (they are supposed to walk bare foot in all directions, spreading Dhamma) in temples or Viharas with the help of the late kings of this ancient Kingdom, the musical traditions were perpetuated and the dancing took a root in the sub-culture.

However, in Hindu tradition music was a vehicle and Bajjan is a rule not an exception.

It says how much Hindus contributed to the variegated sub-culture.

In spite of all this dancing and chanting were limited to the males of the species.

Buddhist ladies never took part (in my time) in these practices.
I now observe that Girls are too parading, dancing and reciting (I believe that is emancipation, in practice).
Ladies were paraded in Ran Dholis carried by the lowest of the caste.
I hate this caste tradition and they  are not allowed to wear footwear under the hot sun on "Day Perehara". 
When (ladies taking part) it was practiced in the palaces they were for the entertainment of the King (and Queens) and the entourages were brought from South India.
However, there is a difference in practice in Devalas and Kovils.
In the Kovil it is the practice by the Bahamian and it is caste oriented but not so in Devalas.

The Kapuva was a Buddhist but he could be of any caste.
The language was never Pali but was Sanskrit in verse and were handed down by family trait for many centuries.
There are even few well known politicians who have descended from these family traits.
In today's context they are part and parcel of the organized ingrained traditions and a religion of their own and have no relationship to Buddhism.

So enjoy, the dance and music at Perehara but sooner it is over retire to the jungle (if there is any left in this blessed country) for meditation which is practiced in style in the jungles of Burma and Thailand.