21/12/2025
In contemporary Dhrupad practice, mantra-based ālāp is seldom heard, although it formed the very essence of Dhrupad in its original temple-rooted tradition.
This historic recording documents the Senior Dagar Brothers - Ustad Nasir Moinuddin Dagar & Ustad Nasir Aminuddin Dagar - performing Rāga Bihag, recorded in June 1955 at the Garden House of Mr. Madhodas Mundhra, Baranagore (North Calcutta). Within this approximately one-hour performance, a mantra ālāp of around five minutes is rendered, offering a rare insight into an earlier spiritual dimension of Dhrupad.
It is important to note that they did not follow a formally structured or hall-oriented mantra presentation such as
“Om Hari Ananta Nārāyaṇa Tāraṇa Tāraṇa Tvam,”
which is systematically preserved and practiced within the Deva Vāṇī Dhrupad tradition today: link👇🏻
https://youtu.be/fxRQOzjI3Sc?si=X0GajlGztdEKicBo
During the performance, the artists themselves reflected on how negative or disruptive forces weaken the devotional potency of mantra by reducing it to syllabic sound devoid of meaning, thereby eroding its bhakti-bhāva. This observation points to a deeper concern: when mantra loses its semantic, spiritual, and contemplative grounding, it risks becoming merely abstract phonetics rather than a vehicle of inner transformation.
The textual and musical corpus of Dhrupad represents a great Indian cultural and spiritual heritage, shaped by centuries of temple-based worship, devotion, and surrender (samarpan). To transmit this heritage authentically to society at large and to ensure the continuity of this profound tradition, it is essential to preserve and practice Dhrupad in its original form, with mantra as a living, conscious presence, not as an optional or symbolic fragment.
In this context, mantra ālāp is not an embellishment; it is a foundational practice that connects sound (nāda) to consciousness, music to meditation, and performance to inner discipline.
Om Naad Bramha🙏
