In Kainchi Dham, there’s morning and evening prarthna (prayers) and arti where we sing for all the deities and Maharaj-ji and wave sacred lights twice a day. It’s such am important part of my retreat time. When I went to Neem Karoli Baba Ashram in Taos, I was delighted that some of those very same prayers are offered as well. As requested by the temple, I made a simple recording of these prayers to help learn how to sing/chant them.
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Join me on Maui, May 4- 9, 2016
These wonderful musicians are accompanying us in Maui May 4-9, 2016.
These wonderful musicians are accompanying us at Spring on Maui Retreat May 4-9, 2016. Genevieve and Mark play regularly with Krishna Das and also with me live and on my album Antarayaami. Dan has been playing classical and for kirtan for many years and we happy to have him join us here!
An Interview I gave @ Sivanada Ashram Bahamas
I was at Sivananda Bahamas last February where I’ve been taking retreat for the last 12 years with Krishna Das. Happy to have offered Hanuman Chalisa chants these past two years in this wonderful ashram steeped in Practice. I sat down for an interview. You can read below or on the Sivananda Ashram website
Indeed I am grateful for this Path...
The Enchanted Life of Nina Rao: Chanting, Krishna Das, and the Hanuman Chalisa
It’s February 2016, and for several nights before the annual Krishna Das Yoga of Chant Retreat at the ashram, Nina Rao joins a group of ashram guests and yogis in the temple to recite a chapter of the Baghavad Gita and sing kirtan. A little later, she will accompany Krishna Das onstage, playing the Indian cymbals; right now, she’s simply doing something she loves.
The group grows and grows over these nights as word gets out that Nina is singing, sometimes accompanied by Krishna Das’ drummer, Arjun. On the third night, it culminates in Nina leading her rendition of the well-known Hanuman Chalisa, the Hindu devotional hymn addressed to the monkey-god Hanuman, with which she has become associated.
Her relationship with the chant is as unlikely as it was inevitable.
The Seeds of Chant
Growing up in the Western way and moving every three years because her father was in management for Air India, Nina’s first connection to Indian writing and song came through her grandfather, a retired engineer who lived in the small village of Bekal in south India. Visiting him at about age 9 when her family lived in Thailand, the little girl with no musical training but a deep curiosity began to read the books in her grandfather’s library and fool around with his harmonium.
“One day I asked him to play and he said, ‘Sing with me.’ He was a natural, though untrained in music, and we sang the bhajans (prayerful songs) of South Indian poets. I had a tape recorder and I recorded him and the two of us singing. Then he said the words and I wrote them out in English. Amazingly, I still have those papers.”
Her grandfather, the only one in the village to own a car, lived in a large house overlooking rice fields. Another year, he held a satsang (a group of people joined to pray and chant) in his large living room with the people of the village. “The best part was that it wasn’t just Grandfather, everyone in the village took turns,” Nina says. “I remember feeling this was the best thing that had ever happened to me.
“And I never did it again.”
Life Goes On
Nina grew older, went to college, and with her economics degree landed a job on the trading desk of a Wall Street firm. After five years she decided to follow her passion for nature and wildlife and in 1991, she launched a travel company, taking people to photograph wildlife in Africa and India. In the meantime, she became a yoga enthusiast. One day, she attended a yoga retreat offered by her teacher at which a fairly unknown kirtan singer named Krishna Das was to perform.
“I didn’t know who he was but when I looked at the schedule it said, ‘Satsang with Krishna Das’ and I remembered the satsang in my grandfather’s home. But I said to a friend, ‘I’m too exhausted, I’ll sit in the back; he’s probably a failed Indian singer anyway’ — although I did notice when we came in that there were pictures of Hanuman and Krishan Das’ guru, Maharajji (Neem Karoli Baba), on a table with a candle. The author of those books I used to read in my grandfather’s home had also been a devotee of Neem Karoli Baba.”
When Krishna Das walked into the room wearing black, she thought her worst fears had been realized.
“Then he sat down and started with Sri Ram Jai Ram, and I don’t remember the rest of the evening. I became good friends with him right away. I was amazed at the heart opening. I would go to his kirtans and he gave me the book, Miracle of Love. And that’s how the relationship started.”
Working with Chant Artist Krishna Das
In those days, she says, not many people followed Krishna Das. “I still had my travel business but I wanted to support him. I learned how to play drums and we would go on weekends to play.”
Seeing the love Krishna Das had for his guru, who died in 1973, her next big step was to go to India, to the temple of Neem Karoli Baba. There she met Siddhima, one of Maharajji’s closest devotees for 17 years. “I realized immediately that she was my guru; her whole presence reflects him,” she says. “Having a relationship with her has been beautiful. She has been my guru for the last 18 years.”
A lot of things started changing, Nina says, when the old stuff of her life began to fall away. She became a vegetarian, devoted herself to her practice, and chanted; chanting became a refuge, “more important than anything in the world.”
The Hanuman Chalisa Connection
Krishna Das again became a conduit, this time for the chant she loves best. He used to sing the Hanuman Chalisa in India with the kirtan wallahs (devotional singers), and when she first heard him sing it, he hadn’t started to perform it live. “I was really drawn to it,” she says. “It’s dripping with devotion, even if you don’t know it. Maharajji said that it’s a maha mantra, which means it has it’s own divine power.”
In India, the chant is sung when people are going through a difficult time and Nina believes you can fortify yourself if you sing it all the time. So while Krishna Das learned it so he and the kirtan wallahs could sing it for their guru, she learned it so she could sing it for KD on his 50th birthday.
“It’s my path to sing wherever I can sing,” she says, “although never in a million years did I think I would be sitting on a stage with musicians. I’ve just accepted that’s the way it is.”
A Surprise Turn
When she had first started chanting with Krishna Das, she had a memory of her grandfather’s harmonium and began to play an old harmonium Krishna Das had given her. “I remembered those chants and would sing them, and one melody of the Hanuman Chalisa KD liked very much. He asked me to share it with him before he went into the studio to record Flow of Grace.”
“He said, ‘Let’s do it as a duet.’ and I said okay. He said ‘Practice.’ But when I arrived, there was only one mic. He said, ‘You’re singing it by yourself.’ We recorded it in one take. He named that the Nina Chalisa.”
The record was released in 2007, but by the time of the chanting and recording, Nina had closed her travel business, gotten married, and had a baby. In 2002, after her daughter was born, she took on the management of Krishna Das’ business. “It needed some organization and I’ve been doing it officially since then,” she says.
After Flow of Grace, Krishna Das found himself at the forefront of the chanting movement in the U.S. People also began to love the Hanuman Chalisa, which Nina sang with Krishna Das and on her own for small groups.
“People were asking for a recording, so my daughter’s father did the engineering and put out a disc of Hanuman Chalisa and one of regular kirtan.” Antarayami: Knower of All Hearts was released in 2013.
“I really love what KD is doing and want to support and continue what I can do for him and for myself,” Nina says. This year, that will likely include a new CD.
Stay tuned.
Thank You for 3 years of support for Antarayaami!
These photos span the 9 months it took to make the music that is Antarayaami from March 2012-December 2012. The CD was released in January 2013. I am ever grateful for all the support, beautiful messages and invitations to sing I have received.
There are so many to thank. Matt Thomas, Shamina Rao- Herel, Devadas, Krishna Das, my daughter Uma, Naren Budhakar, Genevieve Walker, Mark Gorman, Arjun Bruggeman, Archit Dave, Camilla Celin, Tom Tedesco. My mother Anasuya, father Taranath, the kiddies Anjali, Ajay, Jaya and Asha. My choir: Satya-Franche Carlson Straus, James McInerney, Ambika Cooper, Janaki Uma Leah, Anjula Saraswati Prasad, Sharada Kagel, Lynn Taylor andJoelle Danant.
Hanuman Chalisa Workshops
This an opportunity for beginners and experienced chants to dive deep into this practice of chanting this 40-verse prayer in praise of Hanuman, together as a group.
The prayer is from the Indian tradition with Hanuman invoked as the very breath of the Divine – our own Divine nature.
Many believe that chanting this prayer gives us the strength to get through difficult times with compassion and grace.
We will talk about the story of Hanuman in the Ramayana, read through the prayer to review pronunciation and translation, and chant the prayer together an auspicious number of repetitions.
If you would like to be notified when the next workshop will be please sign up for email updates.
Spring on Maui Retreat with Ram Dass and Friends
Come join me for Spring on Maui Retreat May 4-9, 2016 to be with Ram Dass!
Read MoreOmega Ecstatic Chant + Bay Area Tour
There's been so much wonderful chanting this month including Ecstatic Chant Weekend at Omega and chanting the Bay Area with my west coast buddies. What an honor for me!
Spring Ecstatic Chant Weekend at Omega May 2014
L-R: Shyama Chapin, Keli Reddy, Genevieve Walker, me, Roshni Thompson, Mark Gorman, Devadas Labrecque
From Left-Right: C.C. White, Wah!, Me, Snatam Kaur, Ajeet Kaur Khalsa, Donna De Lory, Gina Salá
Chanting Hanuman Chalisas at Open Secret San Rafael
Kirtan at Integral Yoga Institute San Francisco
(Thanks for the photos Jennifer Mazzucco!)
I'll be with Krishna Das at his annual retreat at Yogaville; back in New York for more of his events in early June; and onward to Bhakifest Midwest; and a whole Kirtan Wallah Tour with Krishna Das in the summer. Look forward to chanting with you soon in CT and MA and much more...
Asheville, NC Weekend
My old friend, Saraswati
I think we might finally be passed snow on the ground while flowers try to bloom! It finally feels like spring. It's been nice to hang with the kids during school break.
Had a great time in Asheville where we joined Krishna Das in kirtan, workshop, I sang for Saraswati's yoga class at her most beautiful center and we chanted Hanuman Chalisas as a group. Saraswati's yoga style weaves principles of Chinese medicine into an asana and pranayam practice designed to bring women's energy and hormones into balance. See this article in Yoga Journal for more information.
Singing for Dr. Saraswati Markus' yoga class at Nourishing Life in Asheville, NC
Here's a clip of live Radhe Govinda from KD's new CD Kirtan Wallah !
This weekend come chant with my friend from the Bay Area, David Estes of Ananda Rasa kirtan who is leading chanting at Brooklyn Yoga School Sat April 26 8pm. He's a wonderful musician, loves chanting AND offers harmoniums - check out Ragamala.
David Estes playing with me at Bhaktifest West last year
One of Ragamala's lovely harmoniums
Hope you can join us at Omega Spring Ecstatic Chant!
Am so looking forward to seeing my Bay Area friends and chanting together very soon!
Southeast Kirtan Wallah Tour + New Live CD
The birds in Brooklyn are finally calling! It's spring! I just returned from a wonderful weekend with Krishna Das and Sharon Salzberg at Kripalu and now ready to embark on my trip to Asheville NC to join Krishna Das on a portion of his southeast Kirtan Wallah tour. Here's one my favorite tracks on KD's new CD Kirtan Wallah
We are excited to announce the release of the live kirtan recording from Brooklyn Yoga School and the website where you can order it from. You can hear Brooklyn kirtanwallahs Jeremy and Devadas and kirtanwallis Ambika, Lily, Shyama, and myself as we sing together recorded live. It's available digitally on iTunes or physically from the new Vanaras website!
It takes a village! From my heart I want to offer my deepest thanks to all who helped fund and create Krishna Das's new cd - Kirtan Wallah.
Behind the Making of "Kirtan Wallah"
In a couple of weeks will be the official street date of Krishna Das's new studio album on his own label, Kirtan Wallah. What a journey it's been from conception to delivery and we will continue on tour with the CD this year through the spring, summer and onwards. I have been fortunate enough to hang around Krishna Das for all these years and the release of this CD is another milestone on an incredible exploration of life, work, chanting, practice, friendships, family and so much more.
Deepest thanks to:
Krishna Das, captain of the ship, steering us always toward Maharaj-ji
All the Krishna Das backers without whom none of this would have happened
All of you who will hear this CD
All the musicians and Kosmic Kirtan Posse on the CD who are mentioned here in KD's credits.
Sarina Rao for steadfastly handling the fundraising campaign and fulfillment management
Shamina Rao-Herel for artfully designing the backer TShirt and CD packaging
Janaki Kagel for cheerfully handling the fulfillment of the fundraising campaign
Satrupa Kagel for selecting the malas to be blessed
Lily Frindel for graphics and spreading the word
Devadas for the heartful and thoughful writeup for the CD
Kevin Reilly for providing the sound channels
Matt Thomas, Dj Pierce, Sean Collelo, and Sandy Chase for the still and moving visuals
Ana Ban for supporting in so many ways from the beginning
Tony Palleschi for all the online support
ABC Home for providing the space for an amazing NYC launch
The Rescuers: Jeremy Frindel, Jerry Scarnato, Marie Maybury, Bubby McInerney, Michael Fantin, Raghu Naik, Anasuya Rao, Sharada Kagel, Al Evers
