Indian Music, Lost in Translation

Some things are lost in translation between one language &another, between one culture & another, betweeen one mind & another...

But some things need no translation because they sound so good, itdoesn't matter what the words or definitions are, because theysimply feel wonderful...

I love Indian music & listen to it more than mainstream American music. But there's one little problem...

I have no clue what is being said in an Indian song I initiallydiscover... maybe it's a blessing, because I am not judging a song by the lyrics at all, just the sound & it's effect on my feelings & emotions, & how it inspires my body to dance uninhibited & uncontrollably like a whirling dervish.

Once I am attracted to a song, I try to determine what movie it originated from, so I can then look up the translated lyrics & sometimes I am even moved to try to learn the song in Hindi (without murdering the song with my mispronunciations, eeek!)

The music also leads me to discovering & watching new movies. I have certainly progressed since I first discovered Bollywood music in the summer of 2003... I had no clue about Bollywood, but I had stopped into an Indian grocery for the 1st time & purchased some Indian music CDs & DVDs. I was in love at first play!

Not realizing that the names listed in the song credits were names of movies, not of the actual musicians, I went back to the Indian groceries asking them for songs by (what I thought were)the "musicians" names, for instance, KKKK (Khabi Kushi Khabi Gham)or Supari - not realizing the titles were the names of the movies they came from...

I got some really strange looks, until they figured out I was asking for movie titles, not actual musicians or 'KKK' musicians... They were probably thinking, "Crazy Gori!" (white girl, for those of you who don't know Hindi.)

Sometimes we enter into another culture & make total fools of ourselves in our eagerness to absorb all we can; but I have enjoyed laughing at myself & my innocent, ignorant blunders while many things have been lost in translation...

I am also trying to learn my guru's bhajans (songs of devotion, for those of you unfamiliar) sometimes singing is like torture because I feel like my mouth is full of marbles & peanut butter; that I am pronouncing everything wrong, embarrassing myself & worried that I am ruining the sacredness of the songs...

I recall the story of my caucasion American friend, Padma, who was once asked to lead a song for thousands of people attending one of our guruji's functions... Sri Swamiji began giggling as Padma sang the song & afterwards he told her that she sang a song about milking a BULL (a male cow)! After she told me that, I worried less about the specific words ofthe bhajans & I focus more on the intentions of my heart while singing them.

Every now & then, I'll fall in love with a song & I can't wait to find out what the lyrics are & the meaning behind the music that is massaging it's way into my heart… "Oh, this has got to be a really inspirational song about love," I often think.

Right now, I am in love with a song from Monsoon Wedding, Chunari Chunari… I finally looked up the lyrics & found out it is a song about a red scarf, how a woman dyed it red, how she wears it & how it affects a man who is interested in her. OK, not a typical romance song, "oh baby, I love your red scarf, your red scarf…" but how innocent, really.. I mean, if this was an American song, it just might be about a ladies red panties, red panties. I definitely like the scarf better, leaves more to the imagination...

Another time, I became attracted to a music video, Mera Kajal… I saw this lady getting ready for a date with her beloved… loved the scenes, the music, the singer's voice… I thought it was about love, romance, etc. When I called my Indian friend, Romi & asked him for the meaning of the song title, he said, "My eye mascara." "What?! A crummy commercial for eye makeup!", I thought. I was disappointed since I usually think most Indian music lyrics are very poetic & inspirational. But I still like this song by Falguni Pathak.

I often wish I could just download a language straight into my consciousness, like in the Matrix. But on the other hand, I might miss out on the comedic experiences of being lost in translation...