Seeking Breath : Workshop in Kolkata
"...the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."
This workshop explores artistic action as a search for personal truth,
without lies or pretence.
From ancient times, different practitioners have sought liberation through
the body itself. In Bengal, Tantric Buddhists, Vaishnavas and the Bauls
have all searched for "Sahaj" - a condition of simplicity and organicity.
Their practices embraced all and rejected the ritualism and dogma of
mainstream religions. All wisdom is contained in the human body itself,
they believed - "whatever is there in the universe is there in the body's
vessel" , say the Bauls. Fundamental to all these traditions are techniques
of the breath, manifested through meditation, song, chant or ritualized
movement.
We draw inspiration from these traditions, yet situate ourselves in our own
times. Through the work, we want to ask:
.In our times of complexity and fractured identities, how do we search for
simplicity, organicity and flow?
.How do we 'kill' ourselves - i.e., kill the narrow external self created
by social conditioning, pretence and falsehood, and connect with our
unique, authentic humanness?
.How can we be "naked" , i.e. how do we stop hiding behind socially
constructed identity and meet the other in an authentic place of creation?
The work will involve:
. Working with space, self and presence
. Working with rhythm and flow
. Working with inner sounds and music, specifically drawing upon Baul songs
. Working with silence
. Working with movement and stillness
. Exploring contact with the other
The workshop is open to professional performers (actors, dancers,
musicians) as well as educators, community workers and others interested in
the inner aspects of our selves (as distinct from daily-life rituals and
behaviour) and in communication with others at an integral, human level
The workshop will be led by Arka Mukhopadhyay of The Arshinagar Project in
collaboration with musicians Pradip (Bula) Chatterjee and Ashok Das Baul.
The workshop will take place in Calcutta between September 17th and 20th
(about eight hours of work each day). Details of venue and timings will be
communicated to those invited to participate.
Fees: The expenses of organizing the workshop work out to INR 2,000/- head.
There is no fixed fee, and it is possible to work out each participant&# 39;s
contribution based on his/her circumstances.
If interested, please mail us at thearshinagarprojec t@gmail.com with the
subject line "Seeking Breath" and tell us who you are and why you'd like to
do this workshop.
[image: Inline images 1]
facebook.com/ thearshinagarpro ject
The Arshinagar Project is envisioned as a collective of artists
and cultural practitioners from different traditional and contemporary
disciplines, as well as practitioners from other disciplines such as
anthropology, education and ecology, for research into performance
as transformational action.
'Arshinagar&# 39; means 'the city of mirrors' , and the name is derived
from a song by Lalon Phokir, one of the greatest masters among
the Bauls of Bengal - wandering mystical musician-performers who
through embodied practice attempt to touch the unbodied.The logo
represents the 'ektara&# 39; (literally 'one-stringed&# 39;) - a drone-like
instrument used in different forms and names in different Asian
cultures, which has come to symbolize the Bauls.
The Arshinagar Project aims to foster a spirit of freedom, respect for
human diversity, ecological harmony and love, among young adults,
youth in colleges and universities, educators and others, through
performances, immersive workshops in urban and natural settings
based on traditions of mystical performance and practice as well as
contemporary performance- craft, through lecture-demonstrati ons,
seminars, and journeys through inner and outer spaces.