Hindu Feasts, Fasts and Ceremonies/Chapter 9
9. Kalakshepas—Old and New
ONE of the striking ways in which Hindu Revivalism has made itself particularly visible, specially among the Hindu community in Madras, in recent years, is the weekly gatherings in different parts of the city to hear religious discourses by professional preachers. These discourses are known as Kalakshepas in the sacred language of the Kast. What is a Kalakshepa? The word is a Sanskrit compound formed of two simple words meaning "the whiling away of time." The history of the word can be traced to the early days of the earliest of the Puranas.
In the good old times of Ancient India, whenever a king or any great personage celebrated a religious sacrifice, several learned persons from remote parts of the country came, on invitation, to take part in the celebration, their primary duty being to assist in the religious rites. And these rites extended over a large space of time, in some instances to as many as twelve years and in some to as few as twelve days. But the generality of sacred rites lasted for a period of twelve months; and the spots chosen for such celebrations were the banks of a stream or river with beautiful groves or other natural scenery. The ceremonies connected with the performance of the rites were invariably gone through in the first half of the day, and the royal host had to provide some sort of diversion for the guests for the other half. And this diversion had, from early times, been called Kalakshepa. The guests, among whom were hundreds of men learned in various branches of study, often had new and old ideas to communicate to and exchange with each other. The sages of old utilised the occasion of such unique gatherings not merely for the pleasant whiling away of their time but more particularly for the instruction and mutual enlightenment of the guests. After the midday meal, these learned men assembled under the cool and refreshing shades of the spacious trees of the hermitage and spent their time in the most pleasant and useful manner possible. A few who were learned in philosophy would form themselves into a group under a stately banyan and discuss the several systems of their special branch of study. Another group under the sacred pipal, probably codifiers like Manu, would discuss the revisions and emendations of moral and ethical codes. A third batch would be clearing their doubts regarding their intonation in the chanting of Vedic hymns. Thus according to their tastes and inclinations the learned sages grouped themselves into batches and carried on discussions in their lines of thought; and at the end of the period of the sacrifice they left the hermitage not only enriched by the liberal gifts of the host but with increased knowledge acquired from exchange of thoughts with their fellow professors, which knowledge they diffused among the people at large during their travels from place to place.
Such gatherings, which in the old days may be said to have somewhat corresponded to the present day British Association stripped of all its modern environments, were the result of the ancient form of Kalakshepa. And students of oriental literature will find descriptions of such gatherings in the pages of the ancient epics of India, such as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Nay, the whole of the Mahabharata is said to have been related during one of these long sacrifices. In ancient times Kalakshepas were few and far between. But wherever and whenever such took place they always resulted in a substantial addition to the literature of the country and the enlightenment of the people at large.
But now these Kalakshepas have multiplied like mushrooms and in many cases persons with no pretensions to learning stand up as preachers. The original object of instruction is lost sight of, and Mammon is the God presiding over most of these exhibitions. Most of the Bhagavatas are self-styled; and having managed to get a smattering knowledge of a few puranic tales, they make Kalakshepa of these tales, not on religious occasions but invariably during the Rahukala time of a Sunday evening, nor before learned assemblies always, as in days of old, but often before unlearned and uncritical audiences. In the majority of instances at the present day it is the inspiring nature of the themes chosen for Kalakshepa and the accompaniment of music that attract large crowds to such discourses more than the learning or powers of exposition of the preacher. Whether the audiences return home the wiser for having attended such lectures or not, there can be no doubt that the Bhagavatas return the richer; for, their fees, in most cases, for a lecture range from Rs. 10 to 100 according to their power to amuse, instruct or divert the audience. One with a decidedly musical talent is more popular among the people than one with mere learning. Sometimes these modern Bhagavatas drive in coaches to their places of preaching while the sages of the old had perhaps to perform their long and tedious journeys on foot. Some of them robe themselves in silks and shawls and glitter in diamonds, while the Bhagavatas of old were content perhaps with the bark of trees. Many of the popular Bhagavatas often earn Rs. 200 to 500 and sometimes more a month. For all that what is an average Bhagavata? When compared with the sages of old most of the modern Bhagavatas have only a show of knowledge and are yet admired by an audience who wonder "how such a small head could carry so much wonderful knowledge" in Tamil, Telugu, Kanarese, Sanskrit, Mahratti, Hindustani, and sometimes English also. As is the Bhagavata, so is the audience.
But in these days of widespread irreverence and irreligion, preachers, however poor in attainments and however low they have fallen from the standard of the ideal preachers of old, still have some power of God in their hands, provided the Hindu public who are catered for by these professionals learn to be discriminating in the bestowal of their patronage and exacting in their judgment of the qualifications: and capabilities of the preachers. There are many religious organizations in Madras, which ought to combine for their common good and resolve to encourage only the really learned among these professionals. A great responsibility therefore lies on the leaders of the Hindu community in this matter, and, if only they introduce wholesome reforms in their field of popular education a great deal of good might in time be expected by the people.
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