Legacy of Songs: ‘Dust and Tears’
Way off in the distance, across endless desert sands and beneath an infinite starry sky, you can hear the faint cry of the mystic, weeping in love and longing, and singing a melody so profound that it can only be discerned by beings of the most incandescent light. Yet his voice is strangely human and raw, and, like a raging river descending from the Himalayas, his song rolls and churns with all the passionate emotions of a human being yearning for God.
Men and women like this, cosmic songwriters with the ability to translate the deepest unexpressed feelings of the heart into melodies and rhythms, have lived and breathed before the advent of our modern concept of time. They sang in every language, in every land. They sang what we couldn’t speak; they interceded to uplift our souls to spirit consciousness; they gave us songs to sing so we too could reach the very heights of divine love.
About the Album ‘Dust & Tears’
The nine compositions on this album continue this ancient steam of devotion. These mystical songs, though veined with heart-wrenching sorrow, express the deepest spiritual longings of the human psyche. Yet, when sung with beauty, heartfelt intensity, and vulnerability, these primordial emotions give birth to an unspoken well of sublime joy. The lyrics, composed by Nubia and I, rest on the very breath of our mystical ancestors. The inspiration is from their passionate hearts and ardent poetry. These songwriters of Bhakti were untamed revolutionaries, proclaiming the triumph of love over hate. May we, in our small way, sing like they sang, fearlessly and with abandon, longing for darshan, praying for all beings to be free.
Each of these songs grew from a seed found in an ancient text - sometimes it was a line, sometimes just a word, and sometimes simply the sentiment - which was planted in the soil of our souls to sprout into the music you hear today.
About the Song ‘Dust & Tears’
Walking through the villages of West Bengal, along the dusty dirt paths and dried riverbeds, interspersed with brilliant ‘jungly’ flowers, we find Chandidas everywhere. His songs are sung on street corners, temples, family celebrations, and gatherings of sadhus, Bauls and mendicants around their sacred fires. It can be said that Chandidas represents the very heart of the Bengali people.
Born in the late 14th century, Chandidas was raised to be a Brahmin priest in a rustic temple to the divine mother. One day, upon hearing the sweet singing voice of the lower caste washerwoman, Rami, he fell immediately and deeply in love. Rami, for her part, also felt a love that she’d never dreamed possible and fell into ecstasy. As their affair blossomed, they began to write songs to each other, experiencing within themselves the divine presence of Radha and Krishna. Their love knew no bounds.
But, to the rigid societal laws of that time, any relationship between a washerwoman and a Brahmin was unthinkable, so the elders of the village did everything they could to force the lovers apart, finally burning down Rami’s house and exiling her, and dismembering Chandidas on the back of an elephant. This is a very short version of an incredible and heartbreaking story. Every moment of this dramatic romance was depicted in Chandidas’s and Rami’s songs, until the very end, whereupon legend took over. What we know without a doubt is that Chandidas gave his very life for love and is considered to be one of the great heroes of Bhakti. An inspiration to what has become known as the ‘Sahaj Movement’, Chandidas and Rami experienced and lived in the complete intermingling of divine AND human love. How could there ever be one without the other?
Lyrics
You brought the moon, down to my hands
When you used to be in love with me
Ohhh but the night ends
In dust and tears
Shame fills my world, as I’m leaving my home
Because you used to be, in love with me
Ohhh but the night ends
In dust and tears
I’ve hardened my mind, and put a lock on my heart
Because you used to be, in love with me
Ohhh but the night ends
In dust and tears
‘Jai Uttal’s new album, “Dust & Tears,” is a gem.It is essential Jai but in a new dimension, as beautiful as his many other works, but more available to the (my) western ear. On “Dust & Tears” prayers are veiled, but ever present.“Psalm” is a spiritual and musical blockbuster of melody, arrangements, vocal, and chorus.I’m happy putting the entire album on repeat, which is exactly where it is while I write this. — Joan Baez
