| Borgeet | |
|---|---|
 An imaginary portrait ofSrimanta Sankardeva, the creator of Borgeet. | |
| Stylistic origins | Devotional song |
| Cultural origins | Early 1500s – late 1700sAssam,Neo-Vaishnavism |
| Typical instruments | Khol,Taal |
| Regional scenes | |
| Assam, India | |
| Local scenes | |
| Sattra,Namghar | |
| Other topics | |
| Hiranaam,Dihanaam,Bhaona,Ankia Naat, Katha Guru Charita | |
Borgeets (Assamese:বৰগীত,romanized: Borgeet,lit. 'songs celestial') are a collection of lyrical songs that are set to specificragas but not necessarily to anytala. These songs, composed bySrimanta Sankardeva andMadhavdeva in the 15th-16th centuries, are used to begin prayer services inmonasteries, e.g.Satra andNamghar associated with theEkasarana Dharma; and they also belong to the repertoire ofMusic of Meghalaya outside the religious context. They are a lyrical strain that express the religious sentiments of the poets reacting to different situations,[1] and differ from other lyrics associated with theEkasarana Dharma.[2] Similar songs composed by others are not generally consideredborgeets.
The first Borgeet was composed by Srimanta Sankardeva during his first pilgrimage atBadrikashram in 1488 C.E., which is contemporaneous to the birth ofDhrupad in the court ofMan Singh Tomar (1486-1518) of Gwalior.[3]The Borgeets are written inBrajavali dialect that is distinct from the Brajabuli used in Orissa and Bengal—it is a language where Maithili inflections were added to Assamese vocables and poruniciations—[4] created by Shankardev and Madhabdev.
Theborgeets are written in thepada form of verse. The first pada, markeddhrung,[5] works as a refrain and is repeated over the course of singing of the succeeding verses.[6] In the last couplet, the name of the poet is generally mentioned. The structure ofborgeets is said to model the songs of 8-10th centuryCharyapada.[7]
The first borgeet,mana meri rama-caranahi lagu, was composed by the Sankardeva at Badrikashrama during his first pilgrimage. The language he used for all hisborgeets isBrajavali, an artificial Maithili-Assamese mix; though Madhavdeva used Brajavali very sparingly.[8] Brajavali, with its preponderance of vowels and alliterative expressions, as considered ideal for lyrical compositions, and Sankardeva used it forborgeets andAnkia Naats.[9] Sankardeva composed about two hundred and fortyborgeets, but a fire destroyed them all and only about thirty four of them could be retrieved from memory. Sankardeva, much saddened by this loss, gave up writingborgeets and asked Madhavdeva to write them instead.
Madhavdeva composed more than two hundredborgeets, which focus mainly on the child-Krishna.[10]
The music ofborgeets are based onragas, which are clearly mentioned; andraginis, the female counterparts of ragas, are emphatically not used.[11] The rhythm (tala), on the other hand, are not mentioned; andborgeets need not be set to rhythm. Nevertheless, by convention tala is used when a borgeet is performed for an audience, or in a congregation, and in general specific ragas are associated with specific talas (e.g.,Ashowari-raga withyati-maan;Kalyana-raga withkhar-maan, etc.).[12] The lightness that is associated with thekhyal type of Indian classical music is absent, instead the music is closer to theDhrupad style. The singing of a borgeet is preceded byraga diya orraga tana, the local term foralap, but unlike the syllables used in Khyal or Dhrupad, words likeRama,Hari,Govinda, etc. are used.[13] Furthermore,raga diya is fixed as opposed toalap which is improvised.
The technique of Borgeet follows thePrabandhan Gana tradition which is contemporary toDhrupad andKriti ofHindustani andCarnatic music. Inborgeets, there areTalas from eightmatras to thirty-twomatras, all comprising three parts of proportionate length, viz.,Ga-man, Ghat andCok. TheseTalas are different in structure, rhythmic pattern as well as playing style from thetalas now played withHindustani andCarnatic music. A few likeRupaka, Ektali, Yati, Bisam, etc. are mentioned not only in theSangita Sastras likeSangita Ratnakara but also inJayadeva’sGita Govinda.[14]
It is regarded thatborgeets have been forming an indispensable part ofNama-Kirttana from the days ofSankardeva. The regular performance ofNama-Kirttana inSatra andNamghars is done by a single person calledNam-lagowa, where theNam-lagowa first sings only the outline of araga suitable for that time of the day, and sings a Borgeet or anAnkar git set in that raga without maintaining any beat, repeating theDhrung orDhruva after every couplet of thepadas (subsequent verses). Such renderings of Borgeet are considered as a singing inBak-sanchar (sheer voice-manipulation) orMelan (freedom from rhythmic restriction). The performance ofNama-Kirttana in early morning accompanied by theKhuti Taal is called aManjira-prasanga. TheTal-kobowa prasanga performance which is accompanied byBortaal can be rendered in both morning and dusk. Both theManjira-prasanga andTal-kobowa prasanga are played withborgeets. On occasions likeKrishna Janmashtami,Doul,Bihu, death anniversaries (tithi) of religious preceptors includingSankardeva andMadhavdeva and during the whole month ofBhadra the performance of Borgeet is preceded by an orchestral recital ofKhol,Taal, Negera (Percussion instrument) etc., which is variously referred to asYora-prasanga, Khol-prasanga orYogan-gowa. The orchestra comprises one or two pairs ofNegera,Taal,Khols which are played in unison.[15][16]
The strict rules that are associated with theborgeets, and still practiced in the Sattras, are eschewed in popular renderings. A very knowledgeable Khol player and a renowned singerKhagen Mahanta has sung and documented someborgeets in its pure form in an album called Rajani Bidur. He was from the family of Satradhikars. He and his sister Nikunjalata Mahanta from the Gajala Satra were very well versed with this form.Borgeets were also used byBhupen Hazarika,[17] in movies, and popular singers likeZubeen Garg have released their renderings.[18] Music director, Dony Hazarika has made a successful attempt to celebrate the Borgeet at the national level through his album, Bohnimaan...The folk flows.
Film critic and short film makerUtpal Datta made a short film on Borgeet, titledEti Dhrupadi Ratna (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3I5qgXt9G4) under the banner Pohar Media. Anupam Hazarika has produced the film. All leading exponents and artists were assembled for the film. Dr.Birendra Nath Datta, leading Satriya scholar, music director, singer and folklorist has narrated the content of the film while singer Gunindra Nath Ozah,Tarali Sarma, Sarod player Tarun Kalita, violin player Manoj Baruah and Satriya dancer Prerona Bhuyan has participated in the film with their arts to express various shades of the aesthetics of Borgeet.
Music directorAnurag Saikia is known for taking an initiative of syncingborgeets to the symphonic orchestra.[19]
Borgeets have been translated into Hindi byDevi Prasad Bagrodia.[20]