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Marathi Keertan

also known as :-

NARADIYA KEERTAN or Naradeeya Kirtan IN INDIA

This is a short essay written to introduce the readers with KEERTAN or "Naradiya kirtan"an age old form of devotion and a tool used by the performers to keep people updated on the world out of their towns and also to educate the masses about good values of life and very purpose of human life,thru a medium of "ONE MAN SHOW" consisting of prose and musical performance given at the temples and other holy places.It is collective devotion ( keertan or Kirtan )with music in temples and halls of festivals. In Indian mythology the story of Bhakta Prahld is famous for the uninterrupted devotion of a small child towards the almighty God,despite the obstacles created by his own father demon Hiranya kashyapu.In the same "Avatar katha" child Prahld the heavenly prince defines 9 types of "Bhakti"devotion.The relevant shloka In Bhagavatam says,

"Shrawanam keertanam vishnoh smaranam padsevanam !" "Archanam vandanam dasyam sakhyam atmanivedanam !!"

Meaning -There are 9 types (stages) of Bhakti .1)Hearing stories of the god or heavenly virtues.2)Admire and sing the songs of god and goodness.3)Remembering god and goodness.4)Offering services to Godly places and godly work.5)Performimng pooja or offering decorations and comforts to god and good people.6)Respects feet of the almighty.7)enslaving own life for god 8)Making friendship with god 9)Offering one's everything to god without leaving back anything.

The second type namely,"Keertan or Kirtan " as is called is performing art of presenting sayings from old good books and mythological literature along with a tint of music,dance humour etc.Due to scare means of transport and communications,the performers called keertankars use to travel a lot.Town to town and place to place over long periods and offer performances so as to enlighten the auditorium.All over india this form of devotion is still live and prevalent in this form or that.All states have keertans in Temples,Gurudwaras,mandirs and holy festival places too.

Keertan is also called "Hari Keertan,Katha or Harikatha or Sankeertan or Nam sankeertan.etc"Keertan carries a tradition as old as times of age old muni Narada the best devotee of lord Vishnu.Naradeeya keertan follows a format that is named after "NARAD"the sacred son of Brahmadev or lord Brahma.

In this format keertan is devided into 5 parts,(major 2 parts poorvarang and Akhyan as they call it) 1)Naman or prayer2)Chanting the holy name of god 3)Main spiritual lesson called "Purvaranga 4)A story suitable to stress and prove the spiritual teaching in first half called "katha or Akhyan" or "utteranga 5)Final prayer or Aarati for universal welfare and well being of people.It lasts for period of any length .Ideally for half an hour to 3 hours at a stretch.

The performer has accomplishment of musical instruments like harmonium,drums and string instruments of various types.Performer needs to study a lot of things in literature,music dance,humor.He has to be a good orator and able debating artist.Usually the subjects are full of devotion,sacrifice,kindness,bravery,values of life,extinguishing ills of life,personal development of each individual physically and spiritually.

A lot of reading,practice of debating, effective oratory, musical training,sound memory and all round knowledge only can make a good performer in "Naradiya keertan"

There are very few institutes offering the training in Marathi kirtan apart from individual schools and coaching classes in small towns all over India.There is an institute in Mumbai Nagpur and in Poona each.They are working as autonomous bodies.However there is an associate body for entire India called "keertan Kul"Different institutes offer education in different languages as suitable for the students and audiences around.There are more than 14 spoken languages in India with their own different scripts.The institutes in Maharashtra prefer Marathi medium while those in Karnataka go for Kannada.Some have started training in various mediums including Hindi and English too along with the local language.

Naradiya keertan knows no much of restrictions and boundaries.It accepts saying from great authors all over the world,if they suit their subject under consideration as to prove the principle or spiritual lessons.The training is also available by postal course also if one wants to do it at home as self studying,with outside guidance in literature and music.A good knowledge of "Sanskrit" the ancient language of India is essential for a best performer.Mostly it tells stories of old mythology and religious deeds of great lives including god and godly men.Now,Even stories of great scientists,warriors,freedom fighters and social reformers are selected to entertain and educate the masses.So, Naradiya keertan was a popular tool of mass education of ancient times .It serves today as an art of spiritual training through entertainment.