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By Author: Rayford Marks
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A Bhajan is any type of Hindu devotional song. It has no fixed form: it may be as simple as a mantra or kirtan or as sophisticated as the dhrupad or kriti with music based on classical ragas and talas. It is normally lyrical, expressing love for the Divine. The name, a cognate of bhakti, meaning religious devotion, suggests its importance to the bhakti movement that spread from the south of India throughout the entire subcontinent in the Moghul era.

It is lamentable that the ruckus created around the issue of fundamentalism has not left even the devotional compositions out of its purview. The fundamentalist hullabaloo in the Indian scenario never misses an opportunity to constrict a gathering, which has come together for simple religious expressions such as singing of bhajans or popular devotional songs of the mass. To suspect that this trend of devotional singing may be in any way related to the spread of fundamentalism is nothing but naďve thinking.

To deem it propagandist in approach is anything but intelligible. Fundamentalism is a vested political interest whereas religion is something personal. It is ...
... only when religion breeds the desire to dictate mass feelings and direct it to a preconceived end, that it becomes fundamentalist, bringing communalism and destruction in its wake. Singing a bhajan or a 'quwwali' is a cultural expression, and to equate them with fundamentalist outcries is nothing but erroneous. We must save the divine melody, and allow the benign force of music with its tremendous sustaining and benevolent power to drive out any number of 'isms'. This is only possible if we keep our musical sensibilities intact and expanding.

Anecdotes and episodes from scriptures, the teachings of saints and descriptions of gods have all been the subject of bhajans. The Dhrupad style, Sufi qawwali and the kirtan or song in the Haridasi tradition are related to bhajan. Nanak, Kabir, Meera, Narottama Dasa, Surdas and Tulsidas are notable composers. Traditions of bhajan such as Nirguni, Gorakhanathi, Vallabhapanthi, Ashtachhap, Madhura-bhakti and the traditional South Indian form Sampradya Bhajan each have their own repertoire and methods of singing.

Music to human ears is heavenly. And if it's purely devotional, it's truly divine. Such a genre of music is the bhajan. Nothing can be more deeply rooted in the Indian tradition than bhajans. Bhajans are simple songs in soulful language expressing the many-splendored emotions of love for God, a complete submission or self-surrender to him through singing.

Sampradaya Bhajan or Dakshina Bharatha Sampradaya Bhajan is the tradition of Bhajans (singing songs in praise of God and his divine love and simplicity) in India, particularly in South India. "Dakshina" means "south" in Sanskrit and "Bharat" means "India". "Sampradaya" means a tradition which is handed down by one's ancestors.

It is the collection of Kirtanas (songs) and Namavalis (songs composed of names of Hindu gods like Lord Rama, Lord Krishna etc.) in a specific order. Marudhanallur Sadguru Sri Venkataramana Swamigal was instrumental in establishing the format and had chosen the songs himself. Later Sri Pudukottai Gopala Krishna Bhagavathar, and Sri Krishna Premi were instrumental in identifying the Kirtanas and Namavalis that are to be sung in any Bhajan and their evolution.

Swami Haridhoss Giri is one of the principal exponents of the Dhakshina Baratha sampradaya and is regarded by the bhajan fraternity as the sole reason for this traditional form of art to spread worldwide and to reach the masses

The trinity of gurus as far as Bhajans are considered as Bodhendra Swamigal, Sridhara Ayyaval and Marudhanallur Sadguru Swamigal. The sampradaya bhajana paddhati has mainly evolved due to the tradition and efforts of Marudhanallur Sadguru Swamigal.

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