What do you think?
Rate this book
The Honey Gatherers: Travels with The Bauls: The Wandering Minstrels of Rural India
Living a bohemian life in France, Mimlu Sen witnesses a performance by the Baul, a group of wandering mystic-minstrels from West Bengal. Captivated by the music, and by one of the musicians in particular, she returns to the country of her childhood: "yearning for the deep familiar breath of India". What follows is a love story on several levels. Sen, whose life had already included a spell in jail for political insurgency and a ménage à trois in Paris, pledges herself to the mystic as his boshtomi (lifemate). The Honey Gatherers recounts her adventures in rural Bengal.
The Bauls' philosophy synthesises elements of Sufism, Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism and is concerned with enlightening the body through song. Sen gains a privileged view of their secret world, as they make their way from shanty town to village, from fair to festival, generally among the lowest castes of Indian society. "I was shocked and disorientated by the extreme poverty and sudden violence of this way of life," she writes. But she is also mesmerised by the mystics' freedom and dignity, their claims to divine knowledge, and their courage to live on their own terms.
Combining anthropology and travelogue, The Honey Gatherers is more than just a book about the Bauls, however. Sen's own journey from upper-class Shillong to Europe and then back into the hinterlands of Bengal adds an important element to the narrative. She brings an outsider's perspective to the changing world of the Bauls, confronted by the rapid globalisation of India. Most successfully, her patient exploration of complex Baul philosophies conveys that the world has forgotten how to listen to, or look at, the poorest in society, and risks missing one of our greatest repositories of knowledge in the process.
The "honey gathering" of the title is a term for the collecting of alms in the rural villages, which was once the principal means of income for the Bauls. Despite musicians such as Paban das Baul gaining a profile on the international stage, the Bauls' basic means of subsistence is becoming less dependable, with some of them even forced into prostitution. "Only a handful of the Baul singers and sages, who lived in the remote ashrams, were still in contact with the songs' deep meaning," Sen writes. "The rich rustic world that was the fount of their inspiration was drying up."
But The Honey Gatherers is an optimistic rebuttal to any notion that the Bauls' days may be numbered. One hopes these free spirits, wearing patchwork robes to symbolise the multiplicity of all religious sources, may be travelling on the wings of song for some time to come. "If songs can define territory, in the manner of migratory birds, then the map that describes the journey of the Baul singers today goes well beyond the borders of present day West Bengal and Bangladesh," Sen writes. "It follows vertical directions into mystic spheres and travels horizontally around the globe, via the new networks of world music."
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-ent...
The Bauls' philosophy synthesises elements of Sufism, Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism and is concerned with enlightening the body through song. Sen gains a privileged view of their secret world, as they make their way from shanty town to village, from fair to festival, generally among the lowest castes of Indian society. "I was shocked and disorientated by the extreme poverty and sudden violence of this way of life," she writes. But she is also mesmerised by the mystics' freedom and dignity, their claims to divine knowledge, and their courage to live on their own terms.
Combining anthropology and travelogue, The Honey Gatherers is more than just a book about the Bauls, however. Sen's own journey from upper-class Shillong to Europe and then back into the hinterlands of Bengal adds an important element to the narrative. She brings an outsider's perspective to the changing world of the Bauls, confronted by the rapid globalisation of India. Most successfully, her patient exploration of complex Baul philosophies conveys that the world has forgotten how to listen to, or look at, the poorest in society, and risks missing one of our greatest repositories of knowledge in the process.
The "honey gathering" of the title is a term for the collecting of alms in the rural villages, which was once the principal means of income for the Bauls. Despite musicians such as Paban das Baul gaining a profile on the international stage, the Bauls' basic means of subsistence is becoming less dependable, with some of them even forced into prostitution. "Only a handful of the Baul singers and sages, who lived in the remote ashrams, were still in contact with the songs' deep meaning," Sen writes. "The rich rustic world that was the fount of their inspiration was drying up."
But The Honey Gatherers is an optimistic rebuttal to any notion that the Bauls' days may be numbered. One hopes these free spirits, wearing patchwork robes to symbolise the multiplicity of all religious sources, may be travelling on the wings of song for some time to come. "If songs can define territory, in the manner of migratory birds, then the map that describes the journey of the Baul singers today goes well beyond the borders of present day West Bengal and Bangladesh," Sen writes. "It follows vertical directions into mystic spheres and travels horizontally around the globe, via the new networks of world music."
http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-ent...
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
3 people are currently reading
57 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 28, 2024
This book has everything: culture, music, politics, cuisine, family drama.
Opened a wonderful door not only to the world of Bauls, but the 80's as a roaring era of culture.
A glimpse of a Paris where Fela Kuti and other brilliant musicians were shaking the musical scene to its core. Of a Paris where Mitterand is walking to its favorite restaurant, under the shocked eyes of Bauls who will never feel comfortable in the West.
The complexity of India. The Naxalite movement, post-colonialism, Muslims and Hindus and Hindu deities, the mangrove mosaic of the Sundarbans, the intricate social fabric of Bengal.
Opened a wonderful door not only to the world of Bauls, but the 80's as a roaring era of culture.
A glimpse of a Paris where Fela Kuti and other brilliant musicians were shaking the musical scene to its core. Of a Paris where Mitterand is walking to its favorite restaurant, under the shocked eyes of Bauls who will never feel comfortable in the West.
The complexity of India. The Naxalite movement, post-colonialism, Muslims and Hindus and Hindu deities, the mangrove mosaic of the Sundarbans, the intricate social fabric of Bengal.
Read
April 8, 2020Living nomad. Music busking.
What did i just read? it is hard to digest. so many unfamiliar words. not even an index?
i have never given zero star. i had to skim read this to prevent losing my brain cells. it is so heavy. so many names and settings. i think, book about nomad living is just not my kind of read.
i need to take a moment to breath.
What did i just read? it is hard to digest. so many unfamiliar words. not even an index?
i have never given zero star. i had to skim read this to prevent losing my brain cells. it is so heavy. so many names and settings. i think, book about nomad living is just not my kind of read.
i need to take a moment to breath.
June 11, 2024
bauls have always fascinated me and this book provided me with context that made me appreciate them even more.
April 6, 2021
I have been a long-time fan of Paban Das Baul, now after reading this enchanting memoir i'm full of admiration for Mimlu Sen...
Want to read
May 6, 2010KOBOBOOKS
Reviewed by The Independent
Reviewed by The Independent
November 11, 2015
Fascinating. Amazing life story of unusual musicians of India. Having seen them busking on the trains of West Bengal and heard their music it was a must for me. What a way to live their challenging and difficult lives. Very inspiring,
December 29, 2016
It's one of the best Malayalam books that i read recently. It is about a Baul singer who lives a nomadic life style, singing their kind of songs. A wild story that pulls all the right strings of your heart at right times, it's a must read memoir.
August 28, 2012
Fascinating life story. This book is also published in India under the name Baulsphere and has photos not included in this western edition.
December 15, 2013
Great stuff. Enchanting. Made me want to be a Baul.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews