Tiruvarur - The Musical Magic

Guru: https://aarkaytamil.blogspot.com/2019/03/blog-post_17.html

*இந்தியாவின் மிகப் பெரிய கோயில் எது தெரியுமா?

33 ஏக்கர் (14 லட்சம் சதுரடி) நிலப்பரப்பில் திருவாரூரில் அமைந்துள்ள,

தியாகராஜர் கோயில்தான் இந்தியாவின் மிகப் பெரிய கோயிலாகும்!

9 ராஜ கோபுரங்கள், 80 விமானங்கள், 12 பெரிய மதில்கள், 13 மிகப்பெரிய மண்டபங்கள், 15 தீர்த்தக்கிணறுகள், 3 நந்தவனங்கள், 3 பெரிய பிரகாரங்கள், 365 லிங்கங்கள் (இவை வருடத்தின் மொத்த நாட்களை குறிப்பதாக சொல்கிறார்கள்), 100க்கும் மேற்பட்ட சன்னதிகள், 86 விநாயகர் சிலைகள், 24க்கும் மேற்பட்ட உள் கோயில்கள் என 33 ஏக்கர் பரப்பளவில் பிரமாண்டமாக விளங்குகிறது.

இங்கு சிவன் சுயம்பு மூர்த்தியாக அருள்பாலிக்கிறார்.

சோழர்கள் கட்டிய கோவில் இது. சோழர்கள் மட்டுமல்லாமல், பல்லவர்கள், பாண்டியர்கள், விஜயநகர், தஞ்சை நாயக்கர் மற்றும் மராத்திய மன்னர்களும் தத்தம் ஆட்சியில் இக்கோயிலை சிறப்பாக நிர்வகித்துள்ளனர்.

திருவாரூர் கோவிலுக்கு அழகு தருவது சுமார் 120 அடி உயரமுள்ள அதன் ராஜகோபுரமாகும். தெற்கு வடக்காக 656 அடி அகலமும், கிழக்கு மேற்காக 846 அடி நீளமும், சுமார் 30 அடி உயரமுள்ள மதிற்சுவரை நான்கு புறமும் கொண்டுள்ள நிலப்பரப்பில் ஆலயம் அமைந்துள்ளது.

நான்கு புறமும் கோபுரங்களையும், தேர் ஓடும் வீதியையும் சேர்த்து ஐந்து பிராகாரங்களுடனும் இவ்வாலயம் அமைந்துள்ளது.

ஸ்வாமியின் நடனம் அஜபா நடனம்.ஸ்வாமி திருமேனி தரிசனம் கிடையாது. மார்கழி திருவாதிரை ஒரு பாதமும், பங்குனி உத்திரம் மற்றொறு பாதமும் தரிசனம் கிடைக்கும். திருமேனியை யாரும் பார்த்தது கிடையாது. பார்த்தால் கண் குருடாகிவிடும் என்பதால் யாருக்கும் தரிசனமும்கிடையாது அர்ச்சகர்களும் பார்த்தது கிடையாது.

கிழக்கு கோபுரத்தின் உள்புறம் உள்ள 1000 கல்தூண்கள், முன்காலத்தில், திருவிழாக்காலங்களில் பந்தல் போடுவதற்காக அமைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.

திருவாரூர் கோவில், அதன் முன்புறமுள்ள கமலாலயம் குளம், கோவிலைச் சார்ந்த தோட்டம் ஆகியவை ஒவ்வொன்றும் 5 வேலி நிலப்பரப்பில் அமைந்துள்ளதான சிறப்பு இத்தலத்திற்கு உண்டு.

கோயில் ஐந்து வேலி, குளம் ஐந்து வேலி, செங்கழுநீர் ஓடை ஐந்து வேலி என்ற பழமொழி மூலம் இதன் சிறப்பை உணரலாம். (ஐந்து வேலி என்பது 1000 அடி நீளம் 700 அடி அகலம்).கோவிலின் மொத்த பரப்பளவு 33 ஏக்கர் ஆகும். அதாவது பதினாலு லட்சத்து முப்பத்து ஏழாயிரத்து நானுற்று என்பது (1437480 ) சதுர அடியாகும்.

இவ்வளவு பிரமாண்டமான ஆலயத்தை முழுமையாக தரிசனம் செய்து முடிக்க வேண்டுமானால் ஒரு நாள் முழுவதும் செலவிட்டால் தான் முடியும்.

சிவாயநம !! திருச்சிற்றம்பலம்!!!

Eventhough the temple is known as Sri Thyagraja temple the presiding diety is Sri Vanmeekanathar.

Sri Thyagaraja is in the form Sri Somaskanda. Vishnu was mediating on this form of Shiva and Sri Thyagaraja was dancing to the breath of Vishnu and this dance is called Ajapa natanam.

Neelaotpalambal: The Devi of Thaygaraja is Neelothpalambal. Again a very rare form where the Devi is with 2 hands, one hand holding a flower & the other hand touching the head of a child (Murugan) carried by a girl.

Kamalambal: The sannidhi of Kamalambal is in a separate temple. The Devi is doing a tapas resting her left thumb on a needle (this point is what I have heard but couldn't confirm thro' other sources). The Kamalambal temple is said to have lot of secrets connected to Sri Chakra.

The Navagrahams in temple are found in a straight line facing Thyagaraja.

Being the birth place of the Trinity, there are quite a few songs, mostly by Dikshitar.

The following are some of the kritis
tyagarajo virajate (atana, rupakam), tyagarajam bhajare (yadukula kamboji, misra chapu), tyagarajena samraksitoham (salagabhairavi, adi), tyagarajaya namaste (begada, rupakam), tyagaraja danyam (darbar, adi), sri tyagarajasya bhakto (rudrapriya, mishra chapu), tyagaraje kritya krityam (saranga, jhampa), viravasanta tyagaraja (viravasantam, adi).tyagaraja palaya sumam (gaula, adi), tyagaraja mahadhvajaroha (sri, adi), tyagarajam bhajeham (neelambari, rupakam), tyagaraja yoga vaibhavam (ananda bhairavi, rupakam), tyagesham bhajare (rudrapriya, adi).

Dikshitar composed his famous Gaulanta kriti-s on Neelopalambal. This is a series of eight kriti-s, all rendered in raga-s ending with the phrase "Gaula". These are: nilotpalamba jayati (narayanagaula, mishra chapu), nilotpalambam bhajare (nari ritigaula, mishra chapu), nilotpalambikaya (kannadagaula, adi), nilotpalambikayai (kedaragaula, adi), nilotpalambikayah param (gaula, rupakam), nilotpalambikayastava (mayamalavagaula, mishra chapu), nilotpalambikayam (purvagaula, rupakam),

nilotpalambike (chayagaula, rupakam).

Pancha Linga kriti-s were composed on the five linga-s of Lord Siva located in the temples in and around Tiruvarur. These are the temples of Achalesvara, Hatakeshwara, Valmikeshwara, Anandeshwara and Siddhishwara. This set is also referred to as the Tiruvarur Pancharatna kriti-s.

The five compositions in this set are: sadachaleshwaram (bhupalam, adi on Achaleshwara), hatakeshwara (bilahari, rupakam on Hatakeshwara), sri valmikalingam (kambhoji, ata on Valmikeshwara), anandeshwarena (ananda bhairavi, mishra chapu on Anandeshwara), siddhishwaraya (neelambari, mishra chapu on Siddhishwara).

Two more to the list - Shodasa Ganapathy kritis and kamalambam navavarnams

Guest: The genius of Dikshithar is shining in the Sri Raga krithi ‘ Sri Thyagaraja Mahadwajaroha’. He describes the tradition of Sri Thyagaraja’s Pasa Darshana as ‘Anugrahatmaka Pada darshanam‘. As we know in Dikshithtar’s sampradayam, avarohana  of Sri Raga is snpdnpmrgrs. The prayoga  of pdnpm is to be sparingly used.

Dikshithar uses it only once in the Krithi as swaraksharam for Pada in Pada darsanam ! With each Sangati sung twice, we will hear the pdnpm twice and see Thyagaraja Swami’s Pada twice in the Krithi as it happens in the temple!

Devi Kamalamba is seated in cross legged Yogic posture

Guru: The sthala vRkSha of tiruvArur is tERRa maram - the nut of the tree is called tERRAkkoTTai - strychnos potatorum - Clearing Nut (also called Cleaning Nut) used for cleaning water and for medicinal purposes. Sri tyAgarAja mentions about this nut in the kRti 'nI cittamu niScalamu' – dhanyAsi

Looks like MuttusvAmi dIkSitar  calls kamalAmbA also as mahAlakSmi, varalakSmi, hariyuvatim, sivAnujaya, etc!

Guest: Not sure, in which Krithi does he mention? In Kamalambam bhajare (Kalyani) he says Kamala Vani sevitha parshvam

Guest: He addresses her mostly with the names of different devis in each chakra. Like tripurasundari, shakambari, etc.

Guru: There is a view that since nilothpalambam krithis is not there in SSP, it is not Dikshithars?

Guest: SSP contains about 220+ , where as we have about 450+ krithis now attributed. We know very well that krithis like Akhilandeswarim (Dwijavanti) are not his. But I have not heard such doubts about Neelothpalamba krithis

Guru: Ok

Guest: kamalA-vANI-sEvita-pArSvAm is a compound word (samasta-padam) that means She who is served and attended to by kamalA (lakSmI) and vANI (sarasvatI).

Guest: Exactly, so Lakshmi and Saraswathi are seen as separate and Kamalamba is not addressed as them in this Krithi. In Mysore Maharaja’s compositions, we can see such usage. For example, in Mayamalavagaula Krithi ‘Kshirasagara Sayana Vaksasthala nivasinim ‘, he starts addressing Lakshmi then goes on to ‘shiva Modinim‘ and ‘Kamakshim’

Guru: One song is Mangala Devataya in dhanyasi... The comment is based on which I raised that point.

This was song was probably composed right after hiraNmayim lakSmim (lalitA). kamalAyam is indeed the kamalAmbA temple in tiruvArur. This is the tiruvArur tyAgarAja temple. This kamalAmbA is waiting to get married to tyAgarAjasvAmi. Legend goes like "The day the stone chariot moves, that day kamalAmbA will marry tyAgarAja". MuttusvAmi dIkSitar always calls kamalAmbA as mahAlakSmi, varalakSmi, hariyuvatim, sivAnujaya, etc.!

Guest: Thanks, Quite interesting. Kamalalaya could be interpreted as ‘one who is seated on lotus‘ and still be Lakshmi but Sivanujaya would mean Saraswathi!

Guru: Yes...now looking at all lakshmi songs….

Even in Hiranmayim , "shweta dweepa vaasinim, shri kamalambikaan paraam". TKG sir says " She is kamalamba, who is the supreme spirit"...not sure if that is how it should be interpreted...

According to Skanda Purana, Saraswati is the sister of Lord Shiva. ...here the reference is to kamalamba being called different names. May be somebody with a good idea of SriChakram and Srividya tatthvam could explain...

https://youtu.be/3tVGrlgx0ak - Came across this beautiful piece ...accompaniments MSG-PMI...will tell story behind this in a later discussion.

https://youtu.be/ccIOQJ5efy0 - Supposed to be the first song of thyagaraja according to some sources...

Guest: Yes , even Prof Ramanathan has said so in his lecture.

Guru: some other sources also say it is ela nee dayaradhu....anyways does not matter 😊

Guest: Ela nee dayaradhu was supposed to have been composed when Sri Thyagaraja had the Darshan of Rama after 1 crore Nama japa - he starts the Krithi with the vision as he saw  ‘Bala kanaka Maya‘, but in a flash when the vision disappeared he sang Ela nee Daya Radhu ! And Rama gave the Darshan once again - where Thyagaraja sang ‘Sara Dhara Sudha‘ completely satisfied. We can see the three Bhavas in Athana ! First wonder, then despair and then satisfaction.

As I remember having heard from TS Balakrishna sasthrigal’s Theyagaraja Ramayanam.

Guest: Here is an article by V Sriram - in the topic of Dikshithar Krithis on Mahalakshmi, mentioning Lalitha , Saraswati, Kamakshi!
https://sriramv.wordpress.com/2019/08/09/dikshitars-intriguing-songs-on-mahalakshmi/

We had an interesting talk on music , yoga, dance etc the other day in our whatsapp group. The relationship between them is of immense importance because the flow of prana (loosely translated as breath) is common to them. As a musician i can see it clearly that when your breath flows seamlessly, the effort you put to deliver music( both physically and mentally) improves. The ease of physical flow and hence the opening up of the mental flow happen simultaneously.

An interesting discussion, culminating in the fusion of Music and Yoga.

June 5th,  2019
An interesting discussion, culminating in the fusion of Music and Yoga.

Guru: It’s more a mind game at this stage. Federer has said in the past he stopped playing French open because he was getting psychologically affected by his continued losses to Nadal. He has to get over that and believe that he can win for him to have a chance against Nadal on Friday.

When u say mind game, I am reminded of great artists of indian music who say that it is not required to practice hours and hours to be a great musician - the mind should be set to absorb and immerse in music continuouly and around 2-3 hrs of practice spread over the day is enough. Concerts are made successful with mind and immersiveness and not just skill.....

Ofcourse this,  once the skill is understood and attained.

Guest: As you say, it applies for only a fairly limited set of performers whose minds have been tuned for years into music.

Guru: Obviously...only if you internalize and understand the purpose of music that is possible.

Guest: Many greats keep emphasizing the need for practice may be more so instrumentalists... recall MSG's interviews where he'd say 8-10 hours across basics and advanced lessons he'd do.

Guru: Sorry... i have a different view. While MSG is one of the greatest violinists of our times as far as technique is concerned, i feel as far as kampita gamakams and raga bhavam is concerned, lalgudi and TNK score better....rigorous practice at initial stages is certainly required though....

Again this 8-10 hrs of practice MSG talks about - may be we need to understand what he does....certainly not just the basic practice.

As I write this, the thought comes to my mind "isn't this subjective?"

Guest: Kunnakudi Balamuralikrishna mentioned once practise in mind is enough, but only for artists at his level.

Guru: The whole world defies Pt.Ravi Shankar for Sitar, but Ustad.Vilayat Khan was a much more introspective and deeper artist...who can tell??

Who knows what that level is?

Isn't it mostly subjective likes and dislikes as far as listening goes?? Obviously the artist has to understand where he stands and at which point this tripping to introspection happens.

Guest: All the three - Lalgudi, TNK and MSG are great violinists of our times. It is unfair to say one is better thsn the other. Lalgudi was a great soloist, TNK was a great accompanist. MSG mastered both Carnatic as well as Hindustani music. I used to enjoy his accompanying more than his solos. His raga delineation was excellent. It would be distinct from the mode of the singer. Just one bow. The essence of the raga would be presented.

Guru: People like MSG are artists who view and took us to the next level. So when we hear and take something from them we have to be careful what they exactly mean...

Technically, that is true when you listen to his rakthi ragas like bhairavi, kambodhi, sahana, etc....he excelled in scale ragas no doubt... as musicians and listeners we know that these are alk great artists- but we also have to understand which aspect is great, right?

Guest: He was fairly clear like I said on varisais, alankarams, single string-typical Parur style elements

At least he was the first, I encountered who laid emphasis on practice rather than others' who claimed it as God's or lineage's gift.

Guru: Why i asked that, is,  in a personal discussion i had with him, he told a different perspective of it...

Those are different topics.. let's not worry about that...

Guest: Related because many greats claim these kind of skills as gifts and don't reveal their practice rigour.

Guru: When we say better, the intention is not to say the other was not better. But to understand what is the strength of each artist..and accepting where they stand

There are artists like that. Again there are a few who are endowed with natural gamakas, strong voice etc., who don't do the practice as prescribed... but they cannot be the general case... again we are going to skill which we are not focussing when i shared the note abt mind practice

What we are talking about is introspection of music - certainly skill is not a related point here though it could be the starting point.

Guest: Just to be clear what gets addressed in practice - only technique?skills do get shaped over time, right??

Guest: I agree with you. Yes in what aspect one is great - That we can say. But when we compare the greats, we may refrain from saying one is greater than the other in this or other aspect. We may just point out the strength of each great and leave it at that. Can we compare the trinity and say one is better than the other in a particular aspect?

Guru: Good point....well said....taken🙏
My understanding 🙏- In practice , technique and skills both get addressed. Techniques directly relate to aspect of the art that strengthen the basic requirements- like voice, swara/gamaka shuddham, sahitya practice etc.....skills relate to how you deliver this effectively which is also a part of practice, which also refines with experience. What we started is introspection and internalization which is not a skill but a self growth...may be our guest can add to this.

Guest: Practice, technique, skill - all are important. Fine. In addition to the three we may add sweetness. That is maadhurya. Perhaps it is God''s gift. What made MS Amma so great? More than technique it was maadhurya. Maharajapuram Santhnam was singing probably from his 20s. But only when he added maadhurya to his style he became so famous. May he was about 50 at that time.

Lord Krishna says two things are important to achieve greatness - abhyasa and vairagya. practice and sacrifice. Yes if your voice is affected by icecream you have to sacrifice the ice-cream.

Without the sprit of sacrifice, we cannot achieve greatness. tyagenaikena amrtatvamanasuh.

Maharajapuram Santhanam would not practice much with loud singing. He would get up at 4 a.m. and start his dhyans, internal singing for about 3 hours. Some need to sing aloud to maintain voice culture.

Guest: Yes, MSG had two distinct styles - one as accompaniment and another as soloist. I prefer his accompaniment. The Parur style was abundantly displayed in his solo. I find that the gamakas were in excess , Raga Bhava suffered with that and additional influence of Hindusthani was there. But as an accompaniment, he did amazingly well, sticking to the tradition.

Guest: Thanks for weighing in Sir, can you share your thoughts on Lalgudi's, TNK's styles too?

Guru: Very nice point especially on vairagyam...

Let us try to understand the strengths of each style...will add to the joy of listening...

Also what is the exact word for abhyasa in English?

Guest: Excellent point on Maadhurya! Again another question to ponder: Is it God given or nurtured? Or a combination of both?

In Vocal music , the natural gift has a definite role. But in instrumental music, how is the sweetness developed ?

For example , in Violin IMHO,  N Rajam is the sweetest that i have heard, followed by TN Krishnan.

Guest: On MSG style. Unfortunately greats are also human beings. They do not descend straight from heaven. And so however great they are, they also come with their limitations, flaws and their own idiosyncrasies. We can only take the best out of them.
Some examples are Flute Mali and T. N. Rajaratnam Pillai.

The gamaka style and the introduction of Hindustani strokes are the hallmarks of the Parur style. We cannot blame them for that. We have  to accept them with their idiosyncrasies. Sri Muttusvami Dikshitar introduced out and out Hindustani ragas like Dvijavanti into the Carnatic tradition.
Do we blame him for that?
While playing Dvijavanti yes, MSG would show all his expertise of Hindustani but while playing Kalyani there would not be much of Yaman. Some strokes, yes. That is his style.

Kalidasa says - eho hi doso gunasannipate nimajjati indoh kiranshu iva ankah.
A single fault in the midst of multitude of merits, gets submerged like the black spot in the moon.

So let us accept MSG as he is. But there is no doubt that he is  one of the greats.
Some thoughts on Lalgudi style and TNK style. Originality is the forte of Lalgudi Sir. His vidwat is unparalleled. Accompanying the greats like Ariyakkudi from a very young age, he gained wonderful experience. Generally the instrumentalists do not master the sahitya. But Lalgudi knew the sahitya for each and every song he played. In solo, he would play as though he is singing. That is gayaka style. On account of his knowledge of sahitya he trained a number of vocalists like Bombay Jayasri. I do not know whether the other two great violinists trained any vocalists. Lalgudi's response to svaras in the exchange with the vocalists was a treat. Lalgudi was also a composer.
Who can forget his lilting tillanas?
In the raga alapanas, Lalgudi would play phrases from some of the famous kritis. For example, if he plays Kambodi one can expect some phrases from evarimata. There used to be a complaint to which I do not subscribe, that he would forget that he is an accompanist but try to outshine the main vocalist. Sometimes there would be a jarring note of the string other than the one on which he would be fingering. But again this should be forgotten in  such a genius as Lalgudi.
TNK and sweetness are synonymous. In addition to maadhurya, there would be gaambheerya in his style. That is  majesty. He could gel well with any vocalist, Ariyakkudi, Semmangudi or Madurai Mani.
ஜீவ ஸ்வரங்களில் ஒரு அழுத்தம் கொடுத்து அப்படியே சொக்க வைப்பார். (The stress, he gave on jeeva swaras used to mesmerise).
He would enhance the imagination of Madurai Mani's sarva laghu svara pattern by an understanding accompaniment.

But his solos did not appeal to me that much. Especially when he is playing in the company of his daughter and son it would be like a classroom demonstration. Speed is not the strength of TNK. Medium tempo would bring out his sweetness to the fullest extent. To be frank probably he could not find time to master the sahitya of Dikshitar's krtis and so his accompanying for such kritis will be on a low key basis while his knowledge of Tyagaraja kritis was sound.
Abhyasa literally means practice. Practice maketh a man perfect, said Francis Bacon. Practice is important in every field to excel including the spiritual practice. To control the mind, it is very difficult. But constant practice will help. In practice, the mind should be focused on what is being practiced. Otherwise hours of practice will go a waste. Along with practice comes devotion. Single minded devotion. Practice done in the previous births also perhaps comes in handy. Otherwise how could the three Violin greats and Mandolin Srinivas play so well from such a young age?

So friends practice your art very well in this birth. Even if you do not get a chance to perform in this birth, you can do so in the next birth.

Vairagya literally means renunciation. You have to renounce something to get something else. If you want to get a good car you have shell down money from your savings. Rajanikanth may get 100 crores for acting in one film. But what price he has to pay  to get to that status. He cannot even go to Bangalore market to get vegetables and fruits, he likes. So young musicians have to sacrifice watching cricket match on TV if their practice with the guru is scheduled on that day.
Maadhurya comes out of perfection in practice for instrumentalists. Ultimate perfection lies with God Almight only.

But we are also an amsha of the Lord. We have to realise that. And so there is quest for perfection in us also. When we go to buy something we want it as perfect as possible. That quest for perfection should be shown in all our endeavours. We may not get all we want in this birth itself. But perfection in practice in this birth will stand by us in the next birth.

That is why Swami Vivekananda said - You are the maker of your own destiny. By straining for perfection, we go nearer to God. Let it be violin, let it be football, let  it be computer.

Guru: 🙏🙏🙏 very nice. Thanks. That was very informative.

Interestingly abhayasa comes from the root word which means "to sit" (As in yoga). abhyasa implies action without interruption—action that's not easily distracted, discouraged, or bored.

Guest: Sir... I was just wondering if the eight fold path, Ashtanga, is applied consciously in Music??

Guest: I would not say all the singers are consciously adopting the ashtangayoga. But yes indirectly, without knowing that they are adopting them. For example pranayama, breath control. Can we sing without breath control? Niyama. - rules. We follow certain rules while singing. If the astanga yoga is consciously practised it will help not only for singing but for entire life style.

Guest: In dance, we do go through it, though not consciously...but 90% of the dancers manage to just reach till the Asana stage.... very few can reach the Pratyahara stage... but that is because the techniques of Pranayama to be done during the learning time itself is lost to the present generation.

Guru: If ur talking about ashtanga as i  ashtanga yoga, isnt it  about finding joy/realisation without external emotions...??

Guest: Yes... Ashtanga path is common to all streams of sciences and applied sciences too.

Guest: So shouldn't we be teaching these processes, if we have to take Music as a Sadhana?

Guru: The way i see it is , it is about streamlining prana, thereby bringing the body-soul to a groundedness. Dance, music etc benefit from this - atleast in music, which is on/in and the breath

Guest: Just wanted to know if there has been attempts to analyze these processes in Music...

Guru: If i may sound a little idealistic, people should step into music after a good stint of pranayamam techniques. But the person who teaches this has to him/herself internalised it.

Infact the interesting thing is many ashtanga yoga teachers will say don't listen to music/any distraction during this process - just look inward.

Guest: I am trying to correlate it to my study of dance...and I am getting stuck at the Pranayama part...

Guru: Actually in one sense, there is nothing very complicated about it - correct your prana then automatically the attention required for music and dance will follow (if one is interested in music or dance)

Guest: One thing about astanga yoga. They have to be practised simultaneously. You do not have to wait till you master pranayama. You can start pratyahara along with it. Only for the last one, that is, samadhi ohe has to wait till other 7 are mastered.

Guest: As I understand it Sir...Yoga (science) takes one away from all emotions...it works through complete dispassion... but all art forms, which are applied sciences, takes one to the ultimate through peaks of emotions, Rasa.

Guru: By then " Correct/find your prana" Is the tricky part...in music there is this concept of "finding your voice"

We have to be careful when we use words like dispassion, takes away from all emotions etc.

As per my understanding, i have to understand, cross rasa and also learn to drop it....such musicians are also on path of continuous evolution...

Learn

For intellectual discussion, we have to look at Yoga acting at different levels.

We'll take this when our learned guest is here in one of our Nadaloka's music appreciation sessions.

Guest: But how is it possible to reach Pratyahara state without mastering Pranayama state is my query... because even if we manage to dissolve ourselves completely into what we are doing, mind goes back to at least few other external thoughts, even if it's for few seconds...

Guru: Tht is why people who achieve that are called seers and in our life time we may know only a few of them.

Guest: According to Acharya Mahanidhi, it is possible to achieve each stages in these paths, if we approach it as a technique, rather than as something that happens automatically as a result of practise. So he has advised us to go through these practice sessions consciously implementing these techniques. It's again, very much an experiment...not yet a reality.

Guest: Fine, we have a topic for another workshop, that is Yoga and its applicability for music. I am sorry this input is also going to be a little longish since there are many questions. Let us first understand the eight angas. Each one needs one hour at least to explain. But let me be brief. Yama is control of the mind and Pratyahara is control of the sense organs. Niyama is following the rules of the respective fields. In Yoga, it is following the rules of yoga. Asana is posture. Even in military we see postures being observed. So they are important for discipline. Pranayama is breath control. Dharana is concentration and Dhyana is meditation. Samadhi is transcendental stage. Now for Pratyahara, that is, control of the sense organs why should we wait till Pranayama is fully understood. Both can go simultaneously. For everything Dharana or concentration is necessary. For Pranayama also, Dharana is necessary. Even for drinking coffee from the cup a little bit of concentration is necessary. Otherwise we will spill it. Everyday we can practice Pranayama for 30 minutes and  meditation for 30 minutes. No harm.

Now for music, Yama or control of the mind is necessary. If the mind is wavering or perturbed how can you sing well?
Niyama or rules have to be observed. If madhyama and nishada are excluded in Mohana, we observe it. Otherwise it will not be Mohana.
We sit in a particular posture and sing. That is Asana.
We have already spoken about pranayama.
The fragrance from the canteen will be inviting. But yet one has to control the tongue while singing on the platform. Or one has to avoid ice cream to protect the voice.
And then concentration is necessary. Otherwise we will forget the song itself. Meditation will help in enhancing the power of concentration. Music itself is nadayoga.
Saint Tyagaraja often went into samadhi state. That is how he could produce such wonderful kritis. So Ashtanga Yoga is closely connected with music and dance.

There was a query about emotions. Emotion is a vague term. I will use the Sanskrit terms rasa and bhava.When the bhava is  raised to its highest level, it becomes rasa. Bhava is the emotion that we experience in day to day life. For example, soka or grief. Does anybody want to experience grief in everyday life? No. It may still come. But you don't want it. How do we know that a person is grief stricken? It is by seeing the effect of it. For example, shedding tears. Cause is grief. Effect is tears.
In 50s and 60s many grief oriented films were produced. If the heroine cried our womenfolk also would cry. And they would see the film again and again. If you do not want grief in real life, then why do you want to see grief in cinema There lies the point. What you see in film is not just grief but its heightened form, that is pathos, karuna rasa. You see it again and again because all rasas are ultimately pleasurable. Between husband and wife love is private. But the same is shringara rasa in a film. With family you can sit and see. Rasa has to be handled carefully. If mishandled or excessive, it is not rasa but virasa. In a film when the heroine cried instead of crying with her the  people laughed. The acting was poor and so the rasa was spoiled.

One more topic for workshop - Rasa.

Now Who has the rasa? Saint Tyagaraja or the singer or the listener? If the saint is in the rasa stage he cannot express it. He knows the rasa but himself comes down to the bhava stage in order to express it for our benefit. The singer also cannot go into the rasa stage If he/she does, it will be like K. B. Sundarambal. Often she would be choked and will not be able to sing. After a few minutes, she will come back to the bhava stage and resume singing. On the other hand, the listener can continuously be in the rasa stage. He forgets the whole world and enjoys. Sir most of us belong to that privileged class. Sir cannot since he has to sing and enthrall us. I stop here since too much of rasa will result in its breaking.

Guest: Music can be taken up as a spiritual sadhana, as a preliminary practice, or just as a pleasant, interesting and inspiring sadhana of nada yoga, through which the mind can be attuned to the subtlest vibrations before proceeding to discover the last transcendental sound of nada.
Quoted from
http://www.yogamag.net/archives/2004/fdec04/nada.shtml

2) Chakra meditation through music

From the book : Kundalini Tantra.
(Note: This is FYI, to be practiced under guidance of a Guru)

3) Music is not an instrument for titillation of the nerves or satisfaction of the senses. It is a yoga sadhana which enables you to attain Self-realization. Music should be treated as yoga. True music can be tasted only by one who has freed himself from all taints of worldliness, and who practises music as a sadhana for Self-realization.
Quoted from:
http://www.yogamag.net/archives/2004/fdec04/power.shtml

The above is meant for spiritual aspirants only.
- ultimately, intention matters.
However, nothing wrong in having worldly intentions of fame, wealth etc.. but just that it's a different path with different outcomes.

Dwimadyama panchama varga ragas

Dwi-Madhyama Panchama Varja ragas is a melakarta scheme of Carnatic music of South India, mentioned in the Ashtotharasata (108) mela scheme. In this scheme the regular 72 mela ragas are expanded to 108, by including the possible 36 vikritha panchama melas. The 36 additional melakartas take both the madhyamas and do not have the panchama, in which the prathi madhyama is sung in place of panchama. (Source: wiki)

S.Kalyanaraman came up with this classification. The name of the mela can be easily found out by looking at the first word. All these ragas have the suffix “Sri”. Like wise the scale for all the 36 ragas can be easily derived.

Nomenclature given by Tanjavur S. Kalyanaraman is as follows :

1. Kanakangi – Kanagasri
2. Rathnangi – Rathnasri
3. Ganamurthy – Ganasri
4. Vanaspathy – Vanasri
5. Manavathi – Manasri
6. Thanarupi – Thanasri
7. Senavati – Sunadhasri
8. Hanuma Thodi – Hanumasri
9. Dhenuka – Dhensri
10. Natakapriya – Natakasri and so on...

A famous writer from Kerala, Attoor Krishna Pisharadi also noticed the possibility of these ‘dwi madhyama’ ragas. He explained these ragas in his book “Sangeetha Chandrika”. He also created a new “Mela Chakram’ including the ‘dwi madhyama ragas’. He renamed all melaragas according to the KADAPAYADI system. According to him, ‘Dheera Sankarabharanam’ is ‘Ragothamsam’. He wrote Lakshana Geethas for all these mela ragas.

The system is also popularized by Dr BMK with his composition is the Raga Rohini ” Maamava Gaana lola”

Scale: Rohini

S R1 G3 M1 M2 D2 N3 S
S N3 D2 M2 M1 G3 R1 S

It has been told this system existed quite long ago. A similar system that cam after this into limelight was ” Sannkeerna Mela Paddathi”. This was revised and put on papers by prof Sambamoorthy. The concept is of combining the melas of 1 and 2 on the aarohanam and avarohanam respectively. So the raga list would go like Kanaka-Kanaka, Kanaka-Ratna, Kanaka -Gana, Kanaka-Maana etc. thereby giving 72 X 72 raagas.

The sankeerna mela paddathi has been used by Dr Bmk in his composition ” Nava Mohana” set to the raga Manorama.

Scale: Manorama

S R1 G3 M1 P D1 N3 S
S N3 D1 P M2 G3 R1 S

December 2010-Lec dems

Three good lec dems which i attended (again i will provide the details later)

Shri.Vijay Siva on ragas Manjari, Devamruthavarshini, Devakriya

Missed the first 5 min- Vijay siva spoke very well on the evolution of these ragas and played the eka kritis that were composed in this raga. Post his presentation the discussion veered into the concept of tradition versus changes/modernization of these ragas/compositions which evoked a discussion around what is creativity and what is tradition which ended for want of time (and also the fact that it by itself is a separate topic)
I only felt while answering to some of the clarifications/questions that 1-2 senior artistes raised the response from Shri.Vijay Siva maight certainly not be called respectful. This may be unintentional but the manner in which he responded sounded so.

Smt R.S Jeyalakshmi on Begada

A very interesting and informative lec dem where Smt.Jeyalaksmi went into the history of Begada that had three possibly distinct swaroopams in arohanam(SGMPNNS, SGMPNDNS, SGRGMPDPS). She further demonstarted this with Geethams from SSP and other literature and dikshithar krithis. Her playing of begada, though in small measure, was a treat to the ear.
Again the end of this lec dem started off with a suggestion on considering Begada as the janya of of harikambhoji rather than sankarabharanam (by Shri Ravikiran) as he felt as an instrumentalist the Ni is kaisiki and not the unique Begada Ni and Ma not the "begada Ma", as being claimed. TM Krishna brought in a valid point stating that it would be good to consider a separate classification process for rakthi ragas like Sahana, Begada where many of the swaras exist with multiple gamakas and anuswaras and not in their exact form. The debate had to be stalled againg for want of time (and it was going no where :-)); however the good point taht came about is that the convenor Shri.Pappu Venugopal suggested that they could have a separate forum for discussion on this topic with the august scholars and musicians to arrive at an amicable decision

December season 2010

This is the summary of the concerts i attended and i would like to discuss some of them in detail later
TNS-1
I started the december season listening to an excellent concert from the great T N Seshagopalan. This was the vaikunta ekadesi conecrt in Mudhra assisted by Shri.M.Chandrashekaran and Trichur Narendran.
An excellent Pantuvarali with the kamba ramayana song "Kai vannam angu kanden" and the great nayaki kriti "Ranganayakam" set the tone for the concert. TNS sang a great nayaki-the best part being the non-repetitiveness of the sangatis and his exploration of the phrases around dha-ni. Ofcourse he sang one of his best renditions of brindavan saranga for an RTP.

Malladi

I attended a live concert of Malladi Brothers in Music Academy prior to TNS's concert. I started listening with the karaharapiya main piece "Satatham Thavaka". The karaharapriya ragam sung that day was exemplary and encompassed all the known phrases and some innovative phrases.
Saveri was good but for a RTP it was quite less possibly due to lack of time

TNS at Music Academy

This concert started off with a low key with him warming his voice-a vachaspathi with some great phrases flowed with the kriti "ennadi nee" (of patnam subramania iyer); the best was though reserved for the Bhairavi raga anad the kriti "Upacharamu".

Somehow always i had a feeling though TNS sings some great ragams and compositions in Music academy, the overall mood there does not shine like in MFA or Mudhra or the like (even though the MA auditorium is much better acoustically and the overall ambience)

Bharat Sundar at MA

An good musician to watch out for- he sang a vibrant "amba paradevathe (rudrapriya)" with swarams and an excellent Varali for seshachala nayakam.

Prasanna Venkatraman at MA

Quite a good concert content wise-a very good kambodhi ragam-however prasanna needs to focus on how he uses his voice - it produces a lot of unmusical sounds that rob the musicality of the ragam he sings (this i have observed from his previous concerts also)

Abhishek Raghuram at NGS

An Excellent Lathangi from Abhishek with sme unique panchama varja prayogams and a beautifully rendered Kriti.

TNS-U Srinivas-Zakir and Guruvayur Dorai

A much anticipated concept - more or less satisfied the listeners expectation. Ofcourse TNS's voice had problems initially-however with the onset of kalyani ragam you could hear him at his best (though again his voice became sore post this piece). His prayogams focussing on pa-dha-ni and the nagaswaram pidis were amazing.

Vijay Siva's lec dem and Dr R S Jeyalakshmi's Lec dem - to follow

Mungaru maleye

Just random notes!!!!!!

Again not just about the movie but the southwest monsoon that rafts through Bangalore and creates that pleasant chill and romantic feeling (if you are not in one of the places that gets flooded, not in traffic jam and dripping wet, waiting for an auto to stop).

I had gone to Jayanagar and was starting back after my purchase of CD's and DVD's (hehehe-what else will i buy), when the first drops of rain hit my windshield. The rain drops glittered and rode through the green leaves (i had incidentally parked my car under a tree) on to the windshield, first drop by drop. By the time i started the downpour strengthened, clearing the road and the traffic.

I switched on the tape recorder without realising what cassette was in - and lo-it was mungaru maleye by sonu nigam. The music wafted through the car and the rain, outside. I couldnt but appreciate the way the song has been crafted and composed-somehow most of the songs of this movie have that ethereal feeling-whenever i hear the title song, anisuthide and the sad versions of these , i feel similar. I cannot comment on the movie but the songs are something out of the world.

The music does not override the lyrics and aids the songs-it just enables the songs unlike many new ones which just submerge the voice. The lyrics i hear are composed by a famous poet (pls correct if iam wrong).

Back at home - from the 12th floor i could see the wizzing rain pouring from the sky-it is so dense that i cannot see the distant hills which i can normally can. I switch on the CD's of Mungru malaye and there iam enjoying it literally and figuratively !!!!!!

Got the meaning of Anisuthide from internet-sound very nice-ofcourse may sound too mushy for some :-)

Anisuthide yaako indu
Neeneyne nannavalindu
Maayadaa lokadinda
Nanagaage bandavalindu
Aahaa yentha madhura yaathane
[ Don’t know why I feel this way today,
That you are the one for me,
From a magical world,
You have come for me today,
Oh what a sweet pain is this……]
Kollu hudugi omme nanna, haage summane (these 2 words are equivalent of ‘bas yun hi’ in hindi…literally it translates to just simply)
[ Kill me once oh girl, just like that…..]
Suriyuva soneyu sooside ninnade parimala
Innyara kanasulu neenu hodare talamala
Poorna chandira rajaa haakida
Ninnaya mogavanu kanda kshanaa…
Naa khaidi neeney seremane
Tabbi nanna appiko omme…. haage summane
[ The raging rain has brought your sweet smell,
If you step into anyone else’s dream, I feel so restless,
The full moon ceased to exist, from the moment he saw your face.
I’m a prisoner and you are the prison….
Please hold and hug me tight, just like that….]
Anisuthide yaako indu…
Tutigala hoovali aadada maathina sihiyide
Manasina putadali kevala ninnade sahiyide
Haneyali bareyada ninna hesara
Hrudayadi naane korediruve
Ninagunte idara kalpane
Nanna hesara kooge omme… haage summane
[ The petals of your lips have the sweetness, of the words you haven’t spoken,
The pages of my heart have only your signatures,
Your name which fate hasn’t written on my forehead,
I have engraved them on my heart,
Do you have any idea about this?
Call my name just once, just like that…..]
Anisuthide yaako indu….
Neeneyney nannavalindu….
Maayadaa lokadinda
Nanagaagi bandavalindu
Aahaa yentha madhura yaathaney
Kollu hudugi omme nanna, haage summane…