FINAL REVELATIONS OF INDO-FIJIAN & INDIGENOUS FIJIAN MUSIC

I still cannot believe how quickly my time in Fiji has slipped away. The truth is that I have had so many experiences, met so many people, seen so many different parts of the islands, that it does seem like I have been here for ages. All that being said, I am in a state of disbelief that the time in Fiji is now over.

Many of my discoveries here have been very refreshing: I actually am happy that much of my field research has contradicted my initial hypotheses prior to arriving in Fiji. I would like to share some of my concluding thoughts of my research; please bear in mind that I have written about all of this before, and that is just a condensed version of my findings in Fiji…

The most valuable hypothesis that I have formed is that, when the first Indian indentured servants came to Fiji in the mid-1800s, almost none of them were formally trained Hindustani musicians or instrument crafts; let alone percussionists or drum crafters. This theory is derived from the fact that the conception of the Hindustani music within the Indo-Fijian community greatly differs from that of the Hindustani back in India. Traditionally, musicians and instrument crafters are commissioned by a temple: thus, their art/craft is spiritually pure, and represents an integral asset of religious rituals of Hinduism. The logic remains that, in the middle of the 19th Century, why would a Hindu musician or instrument crafter – both professions that have relatively high social standings – desire to leave his homeland of India to work slave-labor in a cotton field or sugar plantation in Fiji? Of course, to my knowledge, there are no concrete records detailing the caste and former profession of the Indian indentured servants that came to Fiji; but, it is fair to assume that most of these individuals were of the lowest, or even untouchable, caste. Therefore, due to their low social ranking, these individuals could never be included in the strict hierarchy of Hindustani music: religious music is “pure,” and an “impure” individual could never have a part of it. In the mind of a traditionalist Hindu, how could a dalit – a second-class citizen – even set foot in the temple, let alone play the instruments that connect man with the Divine?

I continually draw upon this hypothesis to explain the sheer lack of Hindu Indo-Fijian drum crafters; and, to justify why I did not meet a single second-generation Hindu Indo-Fijian music. (Again, bear in mind that in India, the trade of music is passed down from father to son; generally speaking, only individuals with a familial history of performing study Hindustani music).

In regards to the indigenous drumming of Fijian music, due to the influx of Christianity, the traditional usage of the lali and other percussion instruments is now a lost art. Sure, the lali is still beaten to announce the beginning of a church service, and even in the meke (traditional dance) performances, but it is not as a dominant aspect of Fijian music as it once was. Furthermore, although I unfortunately was unable to interview a lali crafter; in Suva, I learned that many Indo-Fijians have become lali crafters: this would contradict the idea that the lali is a unique aspect of the indigenous Fijian culture. Why have Indo-Fijians absorbed this trade? Is it merely because that it is a solid way to earn a livelihood for the Indo-Fijians, or is there a greater cultural shift of indifference to the lali of the indigenous Fijians?

It is interesting to draw parallels between the Indo-Fijian and indigenous Fijian forms of music: both seem to have strayed greatly from its respective heritage. Without a doubt, there is nothing inherently wrong with that prospect; but it is a curious commonality nonetheless.

Because the vast majority of my research pertained to the music of Hinduism, I am very eager to go to India. It should be really neat to compare my findings on the Hindu Indo-Fijian drummers and drum crafters to that of the Hindu Indians I will meet. I do wish that India were my next destination for these very reasons; yet, to due restrictions on my around-the-world ticket, Japan had to be next.

Although I am sad to leave, I fully recognize that if I had another week or month here, there would not be much to do, in regards to my research. I will miss this place; very few places in the world still run on “coconut time.”