Guy L Beck | Tulane University (original) (raw)

Papers by Guy L Beck

Oxford Bibliographies, 2025

Journal of Vaishnava Studies 32.1(Fall 2023): 87-113, 2023

Religions, 2023

Music has played a central role in Indian religious experience for millennia. The origins of Indi... more Music has played a central role in Indian religious experience for millennia. The origins of Indian music include the recitation of the sacred syllable OM and Sanskrit Mantras in ancient Vedic fire sacrifices. The notion of Sound Absolute, first in the Upanishads as Śabda-Brahman and later as Nāda-Brahman, formed the theological background for music, Sangīta, designed as a vehicle of liberation founded upon the worship of Hindu deities expressed in rāgas, or specific melodic formulas. Nearly all genres of music in India, classical or devotional, share this theoretical and practical understanding, extending to other Indic religions like Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. What is less documented is how rāga music has been adopted by non-Indic communities in South Asia: Judaism (Bene Israel), Christianity (Catholic), and Islam (Chishti Sufi). After briefly outlining the relation between religion and the arts, the Indian aesthetics of Rasa, and the basic notions of sacred sound and music i...

SUNY series in Religious Studies, 2023

For generations, religion and music have been regarded as "universals," yet despite the fact that... more For generations, religion and music have been regarded as "universals," yet despite the fact that they have been frequently linked throughout history and topography, and despite the importance of music in the early stages of religious studies, their combined presence has not until now been considered a separate area of study and research. While there are well-developed fields of anthropology of religion, psychology of religion, and philosophy of religion, the widely recognized connections between religion and sound, chant, and music warrant comparable study. Drawing upon theories and methods in the study of both religion and music, referencing examples from world religious traditions, and addressing challenges posed by critics, this book envisions a unified field for religion and music: musicology of religion. Grounded in the scope and methods of phenomenology and comparative analysis, musicology of religion represents an innovative direction in interdisciplinary study, enriched by the social sciences, ethnomusicology, philosophy, theology, liturgical studies, and cognitive studies. As conceived, musicology of religion will spearhead new and creative paths in the study of religion. "Guy Beck's Musicology of Religion is a full-throated call for a new academic discipline constituted by comparative studies of music in religious cultures. Beck boldly and earnestly renews a century-long debate over musical universals that is unquestionably important, and there is no question that he speaks for many in these fields who, as he says, know that religion and music are intimately related in human experience but have no dedicated theoretical and methodological discourse to examine that relationship. Musicology of Religion takes a decisive step forward in advancing that discourse and could well become a landmark in the study of sacred music."

https://sunypress.edu/Books/M/Musicology-of-Religion

The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion. Second Edition. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Nickolas P. Roubekas. West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell, 2021

pp. 335-347

Religions, 2019

https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020085\. While music plays a significant role in many of the worl... more https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020085.

While music plays a significant role in many of the world’s religions, it is in the Hindu religion that one finds one of the closest bonds between music and religious experience extending for millennia. The recitation of the syllable OM and the chanting of Sanskrit Mantras and hymns from the Vedas formed the core of ancient fire sacrifices. The Upanishads articulated OM as Śabda-Brahman, the Sound-Absolute that became the object of meditation in Yoga. First described by Bharata in the Nātya-Śāstra as a sacred art with reference to Rasa (emotional states), ancient music or Sangīta was a vehicle of liberation (Mokṣa) founded in the worship of deities such as Brahmā, Vishnu, Śiva, and Goddess Sarasvatī. Medieval Tantra and music texts introduced the concept of Nāda-Brahman as the source of sacred music that was understood in terms of Rāgas, melodic formulas, and Tālas, rhythms, forming the basis of Indian music today. Nearly all genres of Indian music, whether the classical Dhrupad and Khayal, or the devotional Bhajan and Kīrtan, share a common theoretical and practical understanding, and are bound together in a mystical spirituality based on the experience of sacred sound. Drawing upon ancient and medieval texts and Bhakti traditions, this article describes how music enables Hindu religious experience in fundamental ways. By citing several examples from the modern Hindustani classical vocal tradition of Khayal, including text and audio/video weblinks, it is revealed how the classical songs contain the wisdom of Hinduism and provide a deeper appreciation of the many musical styles that currently permeate the Hindu and Yoga landscapes of the West.

Journal of Vaishnava Studies 28.1 (Fall 2019): 51-67., 2019

Hinduism and Tribal Religions. 2 vols. Edited by Jeffrey D. Long, Rita D. Sherma, Pankaj Jain, and Madhu Khanna. Dordrecht: Springer, 2022

Vol 2, pp. 1510-1515

Vocabulary for the Study of Religion. 3 vols. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Kocku von Stuckrad. Leiden: Brill., 2015

Vol. 3, pp. 374-380

Vocabulary for the Study of Religion. 3 vols. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Kocku von Stuckrad. Leiden: Brill, 2015

Vol. 3, pp. 234-240

Hinduism and Tribal Religions. 2 vols. Edited by Jeffrey D. Long, Rita D. Sherma, Pankaj Jain, and Madhu Khanna. Dordrecht: Springer , 2022

Vol 2, pp. 1009-1019

The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Volume Five: The Indian Subcontinent. Edited by Alison Arnold. New York and London: Garland Publishing , 2000

pp. 246-258

Contemplative Studies and Hinduism: Meditation, Devotion, Prayer, and Worship. Edited by Rita D. Sherma and Purushottama Bilimoria. London and New York: Routledge , 2021

pp. 195-206.

The Bhāgavata Purāṇa: Sacred Text and Living Tradition. Edited by Ravi M. Gupta and Kenneth R. Valpey. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013

pp. 181-201

The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts. Edited by Frank Burch Brown. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014

pp. 358-366

Religions of India in Practice. Edited by Donald S. Lopez, Jr. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1995

pp. 133-144

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Leiden: Brill, 2010

Vol. II, pp. 585-598

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. V., 2013

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. III, 2011

Vol. III, pp. 329-338

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Vol III, 2011

Oxford Bibliographies, 2025

Journal of Vaishnava Studies 32.1(Fall 2023): 87-113, 2023

Religions, 2023

SUNY series in Religious Studies, 2023

https://sunypress.edu/Books/M/Musicology-of-Religion

The Wiley Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion. Second Edition. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Nickolas P. Roubekas. West Sussex, UK: Wiley Blackwell, 2021

pp. 335-347

Religions, 2019

https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020085\. While music plays a significant role in many of the worl... more https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10020085.

Journal of Vaishnava Studies 28.1 (Fall 2019): 51-67., 2019

Hinduism and Tribal Religions. 2 vols. Edited by Jeffrey D. Long, Rita D. Sherma, Pankaj Jain, and Madhu Khanna. Dordrecht: Springer, 2022

Vol 2, pp. 1510-1515

Vocabulary for the Study of Religion. 3 vols. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Kocku von Stuckrad. Leiden: Brill., 2015

Vol. 3, pp. 374-380

Vocabulary for the Study of Religion. 3 vols. Edited by Robert A. Segal and Kocku von Stuckrad. Leiden: Brill, 2015

Vol. 3, pp. 234-240

Hinduism and Tribal Religions. 2 vols. Edited by Jeffrey D. Long, Rita D. Sherma, Pankaj Jain, and Madhu Khanna. Dordrecht: Springer , 2022

Vol 2, pp. 1009-1019

The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Volume Five: The Indian Subcontinent. Edited by Alison Arnold. New York and London: Garland Publishing , 2000

pp. 246-258

Contemplative Studies and Hinduism: Meditation, Devotion, Prayer, and Worship. Edited by Rita D. Sherma and Purushottama Bilimoria. London and New York: Routledge , 2021

pp. 195-206.

The Bhāgavata Purāṇa: Sacred Text and Living Tradition. Edited by Ravi M. Gupta and Kenneth R. Valpey. New York: Columbia University Press, 2013

pp. 181-201

The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts. Edited by Frank Burch Brown. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014

pp. 358-366

Religions of India in Practice. Edited by Donald S. Lopez, Jr. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1995

pp. 133-144

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Leiden: Brill, 2010

Vol. II, pp. 585-598

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. V., 2013

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. III, 2011

Vol. III, pp. 329-338

Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Vol III, 2011

Lecture and Concert by Pandit Vijay Kichlu at Hindu Vedic Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (USA) on... more Lecture and Concert by Pandit Vijay Kichlu at Hindu Vedic Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (USA) on July 25, 2008. The program was titled “Sound as a Spiritual Discipline: A Hindustani Classical Vocal Experience with Pandit Vijay Kichlu.” The musicians included Pandit Vijay Kichlu, vocal; Guy Beck, harmonium and vocal; and Andrew McLean, tabla. Prof. Guy Beck arranged the event and introduced the artist with the help of Prof. John Whittaker of the Dept. of Philosophy and Religion at Louisiana State University. After giving a short lecture on the spirituality of Indian music, Pandit Kichlu performed Raga Bihag (Alap, Barajo na mane), Raga Bageshri (Balma more tore sanga), Raga Jog (Sajana more ghara ayo), Raga Jhinjhoti (Samvari salone se lage mori naina), Thumri (Na manungi), Hori Kafi (Dekho ali hori khelata nandalal re), Raga Kapar Gauri (Akabara daura), and Raga Bhairavi (Bhavani dayani, Barajori nahi re). The entire program was recorded in digital video format and is available online.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L3YbiVrGPYRZ-vkwPDJ7htQGEs634Atd/view?usp=sharing

16 audio tracks with links, 2012

There are sixteen examples of chant and music on the CD that accompanies the book, Sonic Liturgy:... more There are sixteen examples of chant and music on the CD that accompanies the book, Sonic Liturgy: Ritual and Music in Hindu Tradition (University of South Carolina Press 2012), by Guy L. Beck. Selections 1-8 are the courtesy of pre-recorded discs or audiotape, and songs 9-16 are from tapes recorded on site by the author. Unless specified, the translations are by Beck. The audio links to the MP3 recordings follow each selection.

Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, Oxford University, U.K., 2020

This course presents a historical and theoretical study of chant and music in Hinduism. We begin ... more This course presents a historical and theoretical study of chant and music in Hinduism. We begin with sacred sound in ancient India and proceed to important forms of chant and devotional music that have developed since. Chant and music are interwoven throughout the entire fabric of Hinduism. Subject to theoretical discussion as well as practical prescriptions for use, chant and music are indispensable to Hindu life. The link between chant and music is the predominance of ideas of sacred sound going back to ancient India. Thus, a familiarity with the basic concepts of sacred sound and Indian music are shown to be vital to an understanding of Hindu religious experience.

https://ochsonline.org/product/hinduism-sacred-sound-chant-music

Bihaan Music, Kolkata, 2016

This is a CD set of Hindustani vocal music by Guy L. Beck. It contains 20 Khayal songs in differe... more This is a CD set of Hindustani vocal music by Guy L. Beck. It contains 20 Khayal songs in different Ragas. The lyrics reflect wisdom from Indian philosophy as well as Bhakti devotion. All the lyrics and translations are given in the CD booklet available for downlead from this page. The links to the songs in MP3 format are given below.

Guy L. Beck, vocal and harmonium
Avijit Kastha, tabla
Debasish Halder, sarangi

Bihaan Music, Kolkata , 2016

Four video files were made to accompany the Wisdom of the Khayal Song CD set. The links for each ... more Four video files were made to accompany the Wisdom of the Khayal Song CD set. The links for each Raga selection are included in the document.

Guy L. Beck, vocal and harmonium
Avijit Kastha, tabla
Debasish Halder, sarangi

Door Darshan, 1993

Door Darshan (Indian TV); March 1993, Kolkata. “Temple Music of India.” Guest Artist: Dr. G... more Door Darshan (Indian TV); March 1993, Kolkata.

“Temple Music of India.”

Guest Artist: Dr. Guy Beck, Fulbright Scholar in India 1992-1993, conducted research into temple music traditions from his base in Vrindavan.

Host: Pandit Kumar Prasad Mukherji, renowned classical vocalist of the Agra Gharana, historian of Hindustani music, and author of The Lost World of Hindustani Music (Penguin 2006).

This program first presents a short talk on Haveli Sangit, temple music songs of north India. Introduced by Pt. Mukherji, Dr. Guy Beck explains how Hindustani classical music owes its origin to the medieval temple music of north India, especially in the form of Dhrupad and Dhamar. While undergoing modification into its modern forms of Khayal and Thumri, the original music has remained ‘pristine’ in its context of the worship of Gopāla (Krishna). Dr. Beck explains how different Rāgas or melodic patterns are suited for different times of the day and season in the temple darshans (deity viewings).
The next portion presents a few lines of two selected compositions of temple music. The lyrics are in Braj Bhasha, an early form of Hindi. The first composition is a Dhrupad song suitable for the morning darshan time (7 AM) known as Shringāra, where the deity of Krishna is fully dressed and ready for the daytime devotions. The appropriate Rāga is Vilaval, which uses a major scale with the addition of the flatted seventh. The composition is in the Tāla (rhythm) of Cautal of 12 beats. The composer is Chaturbhuj Dās of the Vallabha or Pushti Mārg tradition of Haveli Sangit.

Āju ko shringāra subhaga sāmvare Gopāla jū ko; kahata na bana āve dekha hi bana āve.

This is a description of the beauty of how the deity of Gopala (Krishna) is dressed upon arrival to meet his consort Rādhā.

The second composition is a evening temple song in Rāga Kamod, set in Jhap Tal of 10 beats. This is a composition of Hita Harivamśa of the Rādhāvallabha temple tradition.

Mohanī madana Gopāla kī bāmsurī. Kalpataru tīra bala vīra krita rāsurī
Mādhurī śravana pūta, sunata suni Rādhike, karata rati rāja ke, tāpa kau nāsurī

This is a praise of the flute of Gopāla during the Rāsa Dance with Rādhā, destroying all anxiety.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SVSCSZlWpzGagSMWjBkE9tYD8VF9cC69/view?usp=sharing

STR Digital, New Orleans, 1999

A selection of Hindustani classical vocal compositions in different Ragas, including two Bhajans ... more A selection of Hindustani classical vocal compositions in different Ragas, including two Bhajans by Sur Das. Guy L. Beck, vocal and harmonium, with Ashwin Batish on tabla. Recorded in 1999 at STR Digital Studios at Loyola University New Orleans, under direction of Prof. Sanford Hinderlie. The Track List with Audio Links are on the attached document.

Notes: Music Library Association (UK), 2024

Yale Journal of Music & Religion, 2023

Journal of Dharma Studies, 2019

As a young booklover frequenting used book stores 50 years ago, I was sometimes mystified to open... more As a young booklover frequenting used book stores 50 years ago, I was sometimes mystified to open old books with titles like BHistory of Religions^ or BFaiths of the World^ to find only accounts of Western examples-European, BMiddle Eastern,^ and American. What about Asian traditions? As a scholar of religions and music, Guy Beck had a similar question regarding studies of liturgy. Knowing that India has rich traditions of religious music in rituals going back thousands of years, Beck undertook a project to enrich Western-centric liturgy studies with detailed examples of the theories and practices of music in India's religious traditions. His first book, Sonic Theology: Hinduism and Sacred Sound (1993), was a significant contribution to Western understanding of the importance of sacred sound in Hindu worldviews. But because theory alone does not suffice to fathom fully the role music and sacred sound play in religion Beck next wrote Sonic Liturgy: Ritual Music in Hindu Tradition (2012), in which he argues Bthat sound and music provide that necessary bond between myth (words) and ritual (action) in religion. And for ritual worship to sustain that necessary element of mystery within religious life, music must be acknowledged as the most important and vital balancing factor between word and action in religious rituals, public and private, preventing their decline into the extremes of either verbal pedagogy or mindless ritualistic actions.^ (p. 17) Beck's compelling focus probes the ways music functions in India as a linchpin connecting faith and practice in countless lives engaged in spiritual traditions throughout the ages. In Sonic Liturgy, Beck presents a chronological unfolding of creative developments in major aspects of religious music in the subcontinent: In ancient India, he considers the roles of yajna and sama gana. In classical India, he explores puja and gandharva sangit. In medieval India, he delves into temple Hinduism and bhakti sangit with padas, kirtanas, and bhajans. And, delving into recent and current times, he discusses seva and haveli sangit and also seva and samaj gayan.

International Christian University. Tokyo, Japan. June 4, 2016

National University of Singapore, Asia Research Institute, Feb 27-28, 2020

Whether through mantras, Quran recitation contests, or Christian congregational singing, sounds, ... more Whether through mantras, Quran recitation contests, or Christian congregational singing, sounds, bodies and texts depend on each other for the continued vitality of the sacred and the way it is experienced in Asia. However, texts have been given utmost priority in the field of Religious Studies for a series of historical and cultural reasons that have been summarized as a "scriptist bias" and "ocularcentrism". Ranking vision over other senses in Western cultures, at the expense of the auditory and other sensory realms, has produced a kind of "disciplinary deafness" in the study of religions. This conference aims to consider the importance of "a sonic turn" to bring forth understudied connections between bodies, sounds and media in the private and public life of religions in Asia. It welcomes toolbox approaches from multidisciplinary scholars who combine methods and perspectives from religious studies, history, ethnomusicology, anthropology, media studies, folklore and performance studies. Bodies of texts, which represent our common acceptation of the term corpus/corpora, will give way to a specific attention on "bodies of songs" (Hess 2015), "bodies of sounds" (Dodds and Cook 2013), the "skinscapes" of religious experience (Plate 2012), the sensory and embodied dimensions of the sacred (Csordas 1994, Meyer 2011), and the "entextualization" of the body through sacred sounds (Flood 2005). The role of sounds and embodied practices will also emerge as encompassing these intimate and affective dimensions, and reflecting broader questions on mediatization, and on the relationship between sounds, religions and power. In fact, the use of sound shapes the ways in which space is produced and perceived. Hence religious soundscapes, especially in urban and multicultural spaces, have been discussed as enveloping and claiming territorial authority, establishing boundaries, or awakening inter-religious tensions. An emerging literature on congregational singing as establishing community and the sense of belonging, and recent scholarship on the relationship between religious soundscapes and place-making are helpful in articulating the theoretical liaison between sound, people, places and identities. However, these conceptual frameworks, frequently based on urban, predominantly Christian, and North Atlantic contexts, often neglect intimate discourses, real experience and lived understandings of sound-and what sacred sound does to the people who are creating, listening, producing, and interpreting it. The focus on the sonic aspect of religion cannot be separated from movement and touch, as fundamental dimensions of the experience of the religious body. Sound, and the senses of the praying/playing/listening/dancing body, appear as an interconnected and fundamental point to start an innovative discussion on the politics and the aesthetics of religious experience. The ways in which performed and sounded religious experiences are produced, transmitted, reproduced, commodified and received is also inseparable from the technical and mediated ways in which these communicative acts take place. Therefore our discussion is necessarily embedded in the understanding of the relationship between religion and media. Sound and the sonic ritual body are articulated and understood in different religious mediatizations, as cultural expressions communicated by oral, textual, musical, danced, digital, and other vehicles. Whether conveyed by live performance, graphemes, televangelism, or social media, the sensorial field of religious chanting, preaching, mourning, ritual dancing, or singing, becomes a site for broader social negotiations, sectarian contestations and trans-territorial identity formations, ultimately unsettling and multiplying the discussion on religion, the senses and the media in Asia. Our discussion is interested in the various intersections between religious sounds, bodies, mediascapes and the reflection of power relationships, in order to understand contemporary issues that comprise but are not limited to:  Community-making and place-making processes;  Sound in ritual performance and the heritage discourse;  Multicultural soundscapes in the public sphere;  Sacred music, migration and diasporas;  Sonic contestations and the production of inequalities;  Religious sounds in new and changing mediascapes.

Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat, Bahamas. May 4-6, 2014

Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies. Sept 2-3, 2017

Boston University. April 6, 2018

2020, January 17 – 18: Organisation of the international workshop at the University of Tübingen "... more 2020, January 17 – 18: Organisation of the international workshop at the University of Tübingen "From Sacred Hymns to Devotional Songs. A Diachronic and Transcultural Study of Religious Singing in India” as part of the interdisciplinary Exploration Full Fund Project "Sacred Sound – Musical Manifestations of the Sacred between Theory and Practice" (Excellence Strategy University of Tübingen).

July 25, 2008. Hindu Vedic Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (USA). The program was titled “Sound as... more July 25, 2008. Hindu Vedic Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (USA). The program was titled “Sound as a Spiritual Discipline: A Hindustani Classical Vocal Experience with Pandit Vijay Kichlu.” The musicians included Pandit Vijay Kichlu, vocal; Guy Beck, harmonium and vocal; and Andrew McLean, tabla. Prof. Guy Beck arranged the event and introduced the artist with the help of Prof. John Whittaker of the Dept. of Philosophy and Religion at Louisiana State University. After giving a short lecture on the spirituality of Indian music, Pandit Kichlu performed Raga Bihag (Alap, Barajo na mane), Raga Bageshri (Balma more tore sanga), Raga Jog (Sajana more ghara ayo), Raga Jhinjhoti (Samvari salone se lage mori naina), Thumri (Na manungi), Hori Kafi (Dekho ali hori khelata nandalal re), Raga Kapar Gauri (Akabara daura), and Raga Bhairavi (Bhavani dayani, Barajori nahi re). The entire program was recorded in digital video format and is available online.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L3YbiVrGPYRZ-vkwPDJ7htQGEs634Atd/view?usp=sharing