Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Miscellaneous topics on Carnatic music
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TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Dear Rasikas,

I have started a non-profit YouTube channel where I will post "song compilation" videos at least 2-3 times a week. Basically, each video will contain a few renditions of one song by various artists. I will try my best to keep the mix of artists varied, but invariably, some artists will be spotlighted more than others! :D

The goal of the channel is to:
  • Promote Carnatic Music
  • Allow for rasikas to listen to a song being rendered by multiple artists, allowing for a full absorption of the song through different angles/perspectives
  • Also try to provide some historical background for each song, wherever possible

The Channel is NONPROFIT and there is no intent to ever monetize. For each rendition, I am trying my very best to profile the artists featured by including their social media/website/Spotify information, wherever applicable. If I ever use content from another Channel, my intent is to give full credit to the original Channel. The goal here is to promote the beautiful system of Carnatic Music.

For each video, I also include a "Our take on this composition" (in the video description). Since I will keep updating this thread with each video post, I will also include this description here. If you catch any errors, please let me know so I can make the corresponding edits to the YouTube video description.

Here's the channel

Thank you!

Warmly,
Raghu Kumar

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Vathapi Ganapathim (Compilation video featuring KJ Yesudas, Semmangudi, and TN /Viji Krishnan)

https://youtu.be/89EktCLD6Dc

This is a compilation video of three renditions of "Vathapi Ganapathim" in the raagam Hamsadhwani, composed by the genius Sanskrit composer of the 1700's, Muthuswamy Dikshitar.

Featured in the video are:
0:06 KJ Yesudas
15:48 TN Krishnan and Viji Krishnan
39:43 Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer

Lyrics
https://www.karnatik.com/c1048.shtml

Wiki on composition
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatapi_Ganapatim

Wiki on Hamsadhwani
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamsadhvani

Arohanam: S R2 G3 P N3 S
Avarohanam: S N3 P G3 R2 S

----------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
Ask a group of Carnatic Music fans the following question: out of the tens of THOUSANDS of compositions which exist in Carnatic Music, what is the most popular song of all time?

Undoubtedly, Vathapi Ganapathim will crack many lists.

Dikshitar's father, Ramaswamy Dikshitar, was the one who conceptualized and created Hamsadhwani. This is incredibly fascinating, since Thyagaraja, Dikshitar's contemporary, has also composed in Hamsadhwani (Raghunaayaka), and yet there is no mention of Dikshitar of ever having met Thyagaraja!

Amy Catlin in "Ganesh--Studies of an Asian God" (reference here: https://bit.ly/3icivyS), supposes that Thyagaraja must have come across a manuscript titled "Sangraha Chudamani", written by a Govindacharaya (reference here: https://bit.ly/3srykGU)

In an age devoid of printing presses, which led to most compositions being lost among these giants, it is refreshing to see that these contemporaries were more than eager to learn and absorb from each other.

In that spirit, we hope you cherish this composition on our favorite elephant God himself, the remover of obstacles, Ganesha!
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 27 Jan 2021, 05:06, edited 3 times in total.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Naada Vindu Kalaadi (Thiruppugazh; compilation video featuring TM Krishna, "Guruji" AS Raghavan, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Madurai Somasundharam, Neyveli Santhanagopalan, Gayathri Venkataraghavan, Flute N. Ramani)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuGJfLIL_Dc

This is a compilation video featuring seven renditions of the infamous Thiruppugazh "Naada Vindu Kalaadi Namo Namah" in the raagam Kurinji, composed by the legendary Tamil poet from the 15th century, Shri. Arunagirinathar.

Composer: Arunagirinathar
Ragam: Kurinji
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 TM Krishna
5:33 "Guruji" AS Raghavan and Thiruppugazh Group
9:12 M.S. Subbulakshmi
12:21 Madurai Somasundharam
14:39 Neyveli Santhanagopalan
18:13 Gayathri Venkataraghavan
21:45 Flute N. Ramani

Lyrics
https://www.karnatik.com/c1079.shtml

Wiki on Thiruppugazh
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thiruppugazh

Excellent Resource on the Raagam Kurinji
https://sujamusic.wordpress.com/kurinji/

Aarohanam (Ascending) : S N3 S R2 G3 M1 P D2
Avarohanam (Descending) : D2 P M1 G3 R2 S N3 S
----------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
Perhaps the most popular Thirrupugazh of all time, this tune is so pleasant to listen to that immediately, it gets stuck and put on auto-play in our brains when we listen to it!

A big reason for that, however, is not just the soft melody, but rather the structure and poetic style of the lyrics. A close listen to the different renditions will quickly point out to the fact that although the Taalam is listed as Adi, in some of the renditions, the words sometimes seem to get "stuck/arrested" in a 4 beat Taalam. That is because Arunagirinathar did not compose the song in Adi, but rather in a different tempo which adds up to the 8; specifically,

1.5, 1, 1, 1.5, 1, 1, 1

And so when we practice with that taalam, the words actually perfectly fit! Arunagirinathar composed most of his pieces in these complex taalam, which probably attributed to why sadly, Thirppugazh are often not sung on Carnatic concerts because when they are, the words sound arrested when accompanied with a Mridangam.

The song sometimes gets listed as being in Senjurutti instead of Kurinji, but it is no doubt Kurinji since it is clearly employing the N3 from Sankarabharnam (the reason it gets confused with Senjurutti is that the N3 is not held). The similarities between Kurinji and Senjurutti are that both the raagas are usually sung in madhyama shruthi, and both raagas have the upper limit as D2. Essentially, swap out N3 with N2 and you get Senjurutti.

The concept of Naada and Bindu is an important ancient Hindu concept dating back to the Upanishads, and there is an entire Upanishad dedicated it, the Nadabindu Upanishad, one of the minor Upananishads of Hinduism. More reading material can be found here.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadabindu_Upanishad
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/do ... 1&type=pdf
----------------------------------------
Sangeethapriya Concert References

Madurai Somu: https://www.sangeethamshare.org/manjuna ... arly1960s/#
MSS: https://www.sangeethamshare.org/muralid ... angam-1967
Neyveli: https://www.sangeethamshare.org/kasturi ... Tirupugaz/#
Gayathri V: https://www.sangeethamshare.org/tvg/SEA ... taraghavan
Ramani: https://www.sangeethamshare.org/manjuna ... NADA-1989/

"Guruji" AS Raghavan and Group
http://www.kaumaram.com/thiru/nnt0170_u.html
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 28 Jan 2021, 01:08, edited 2 times in total.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Saraguna Palimpa
(Kedaragowlai; Compilation video featuring TM Krishna, Sanjay Subrahmanyan, Sandeep Narayan, Ashwath Narayanan/Rajeev Mukundan/Sumesh Narayanan)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnIo1qQbq6g

This is a compilation video of four renditions of Saraguna Palimpa in the raagam Kedaragowlai, composed by the famous composer from the 19th century, "Poochi" (Ramnad) Srinivasa Iyenger (1860 - 1919; composer of the famous varnam "Ninnu Kori" in the raagam Mohanam)

Composer: "Poochi" Srinivasa Iyengar
Raagam: Kedaragowlai
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 TM Krishna
19:08 Sanjay Subrahmanyam
39:11 Sandeep Narayan
1:03:01 Ashwath Narayanan, Rajeev Mukundan and Sumesh Narayanan

Lyrics
https://www.karnatik.com/c3263.shtml

Another excellent resource: http://www.shivkumar.org/music/saragunapalimpa.htm

Wiki on Kedaragowlai
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kedaragaula
Aarohanam (Ascending) : S R2 M1 P N2 S
Avarohanam (Descending) : S N2 D2 P M1 G3 R2 S

Wiki on Poochi Srinivasa Iyengar
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poochi_Srinivasa_Iyengar
----------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
Many of us are familiar with the "Trinity" of Carnatic Music composers, namely Thyagaraja, Muttuswamy Dikshitar, and Shyama Sastri, who were all contemporaries and hailed from the Thiruvarur area of Tamil Nadu during the 18th century. Thyagaraja's "Prathama Sishya" (first, longest tenured shishya) was undoubtedly his cousin, Manambucchavadi Venkatasubbayyar, the composer of the famous Adi Talam Varnam "Jalajaksha Ninne" in Hamsadhwani and a multifaceted musician who was also a violinist.

Manambucchavadi Venkatasubbayyar, in his own right, had a star studded ensemble of students including Patnam Subramaniam Iyer, Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan, and the blind flautist Sarabha Sastrigal. Out of these three, the one who stood out for his composing prowess (perhaps, to overcome his gruff voice which was not as pleasant on the ears as Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan's) was Patnam, who became such a prolific composer in his own right that he earned the envious nickname "Chinna (Mini) Thyagaraja". Patnam composed in Telegu and Sanskrit and his compositions resemble Thyagaraja's in terms of structure and musical elements.

Patnam was also a great teacher, and his two star students were Ramnad "Poochi" Srinivasa Iyengar, and Mysore Vasudevachariar. While we have recordings of Mysore Vasudevachariar (who composed the famous "Brochevarevadura" in Khamas), no recordings of Poochi exist, who lived from 1860 to 1919.

Nobody knows for sure why or how he came to be called "Poochi" instead of his name, Ramnad. Of course, "poochi" in Tamizh means insect! The popular story is that when he sang ragas, his voice sounded like a humming beetle. Another theory is that it comes from the word Pūcu because he used to "smear" profuse amounts of sandalwood on his body. Finally, the third theory is that he was tireless, like a bee. Regardless, he is today known much more affectionately as "Poochi" rather than Ramnad!

His compositions resemble Patnam's, and hence, Thyagaraja's, and he is known for his prowess in composing brilliant Varnams, including the aforementioned "Ninnu Kori" in Mohanam, "Nera Nammiti" in Kaanada, and "Vanajakshiro" in Kalyani. Composing in Telugu, his pieces carry his unique "mudra" (signature word/phrase) "Srinivasa".

All in all, he composed around 100 pieces, including a rare piece praising Sita "Paripalayamam Padmasane" in raga Harikamboji, and also one praising Thyagaraja! ("Sadguru Swamiki" in Ritigaulai).

However, his magnus opus is undoubtedly Saraguna Palimpa. The legend is that he was spurned into composing the piece as a prayer after he injured his leg. A quick inspection at the meaning of the lyrics provides us a small glimpse into the composer's state of mind, as he is clearly requesting some sort of divine intervention to protect him from a situation he is facing.

Rough English Translation (from http://www.shivkumar.org/)
O one with divine qualities ("saraguna")! It is time ("samayamuraa") for your protect ("palimpa") me!

Who ("evvarunnaru") is equal ("sari") to you ("neeku") ?

Oh the one with lotus-like ("sarasija") eyes ("nethra")!

You are the one full of beautiful qualities ("varaguna")! You lie on a serpent couch ("sesha-adri"). You are the giver of boons ("vara-daa"). You are Venkateshwara! You are worshipped ("nutha") by Brahma, the one born ("sambhava") of a lotus ("vanaja").

Did you not ("leda") protect ("anugrahincha") Gajendra the king of elephants ("gaja-raajudu") when he prayed to you in pain ("sathadruthu poojitha").

Did you not protect the learned ("ati vedajanthina"), supreme ("parama") devotee ("bhaktha"), Prahlada ?

You are the father ("janaka") of Cupid ("manmatha"); the world is dedicated to you ("marshamunaku niketana").

You are the supreme ("mahaneeya") Srinivasa! I have heard ("vini") of your divine tales ("sad-gatalanu"), and pray to you ("veditini"). Please condescend ("manasu karagi") to listen to my entreaties ("balki"), and release ("deerchi") me from my miseries ("sankatamulu").
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 28 Jan 2021, 01:10, edited 2 times in total.

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Sachi_R »

Tremendous effort. Hope you won't be stopped by YT copyright issues and artistes.

I did this exercise in the past a few times. For example I compiled several renditions of Karttikeya Gangeya... 14 of them. Found MSS version to be the my fav.

I did the same for Vatapi. I found Lalgudi Jayaraman violin version the best.

I do believe Vatapi is a deceptively simple song because of familiarity, but very demanding on the artiste.

Abhishek has sung Vatapi with his own stamp of innovativeness in a recent ABBAS concert. You can get to it after negotiating a million ads.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Sachi_R wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 08:28 Tremendous effort. Hope you won't be stopped by YT copyright issues and artistes.

I did this exercise in the past a few times. For example I compiled several renditions of Karttikeya Gangeya... 14 of them. Found MSS version to be the my fav.

I did the same for Vatapi. I found Lalgudi Jayaraman violin version the best.

I do believe Vatapi is a deceptively simple song because of familiarity, but very demanding on the artiste.

Abhishek has sung Vatapi with his own stamp of innovativeness in a recent ABBAS concert. You can get to it after negotiating a million ads.
Thanks!

No, I don't think I will run into copyright issues (I do get three strikes after all :lol: ) But in all honesty, I am doing my very best to give full credit to artists wherever possible, and the channel is not for monetization. I am generally not reproducing commercial songs, mostly trying to pluck renditions from Sangeethapriya or from Carnatic YouTube channels which are not generating a lot of views/hits.

Vathapi is certainly deceptively simple!

Thank you for the suggestion for Kartikeya Gangeya, one of my personal favorite kritis in Thodi. I am coincidentally uploading Thaye Yashode tomorrow, but I'll keep Kartikeya in the back of my mind when I circle back to Thodi.

Please list suggestions here!

Thank you,
Raghu

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Sachi_R »

Raghu, copyright violation has nothing to do with your monetisation. It has everything to do with the copyright holder's monetisation.

Be prepared to suffer pain and anger as artistes and copyright holders are notoriously cantankerous and YT ALWAYS sides with them.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Sachi_R wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 10:05 Raghu, copyright violation has nothing to do with your monetisation. It has everything to do with the copyright holder's monetisation.

Be prepared to suffer pain and anger as artistes and copyright holders are notoriously cantankerous and YT ALWAYS sides with them.
I guess time will tell :)

Ananthakrishna
Posts: 130
Joined: 01 Nov 2019, 17:38

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Ananthakrishna »

TheRaghuKumar wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 04:59
Our take on this composition:
Many of us are familiar with the "Trinity" of Carnatic Music composers, namely Thyagaraja, Muttuswamy Dikshitar, and Shyama Sastri, who were all contemporaries and hailed from the Thiruvarur area of Tamil Nadu during the 18th century. Thyagaraja's "Prathama Sishya" (first, longest tenured shishya) was undoubtedly his cousin, Manambucchavadi Venkatasubbayyar, the composer of the famous "Viriboni" Ata Talam varnam and a multifaceted musician...

An excellent initiative! Just a small correction.

If "Viriboni" Ata Talam Varnam here refers to the one in Bhairavi, that was not composed by Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbayya, but was composed by Pacchimiri Adi Appayya.

The Adi Talam Varnam "Jalajaksha Ninne" in Hamsadhwani is a Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbayya composition.

(I have used ayya, in place of ayyar since that's how I have been taught. Both are equally appropriate)

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-4
----
about Poochi Iengar's 'saraguNa paalimpa' in Kedaragowlai
------------------------------------------------------
https://sites.google.com/site/homage2ms ... na-palimpa
---------------------
How Smt.MS's very famous record of 1940-50 decade was left out?
@TheRaghuKumar

CRama
Posts: 2939
Joined: 18 Nov 2009, 16:58

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by CRama »

When you compile Taye yasoda, three innterpretaions- each fascinating in different ways- Somu, Chembai, Madurai Mani Iyer. Dont leave them.

Pratyaksham Bala
Posts: 4164
Joined: 21 May 2010, 16:57

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Pratyaksham Bala »

.
Please check this post !
viewtopic.php?t=34322

And the compilation !
https://ramanarunachalam.github.io/Musi ... natic.html

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Ananthakrishna wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 16:32

An excellent initiative! Just a small correction.

If "Viriboni" Ata Talam Varnam here refers to the one in Bhairavi, that was not composed by Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbayya, but was composed by Pacchimiri Adi Appayya.

The Adi Talam Varnam "Jalajaksha Ninne" in Hamsadhwani is a Manambuchavadi Venkatasubbayya composition.

(I have used ayya, in place of ayyar since that's how I have been taught. Both are equally appropriate)
Thank you, correction has been made :)

I hadn't known that Viriboni was composed by Pacchimiri Adi Appayya, nor that Pacchimiri Adi Apayya was Shyama Sastri's guru (and hence had presided much earlier than Thyagaraja!)

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

RSR wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 17:36 p-4
----
about Poochi Iengar's 'saraguNa paalimpa' in Kedaragowlai
------------------------------------------------------
https://sites.google.com/site/homage2ms ... na-palimpa
---------------------
How Smt.MS's very famous record of 1940-50 decade was left out?
@TheRaghuKumar
Because I unfortunately only met you now, not last week :lol: jokes aside, thank you for this, I had not heard this evergreen rendition. MS's voice is strikingly vibrant in its youthfulness!

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

CRama wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 19:16 When you compile Taye yasoda, three innterpretaions- each fascinating in different ways- Somu, Chembai, Madurai Mani Iyer. Dont leave them.
Noted! Will be publishing Thaye Yashode today 8-)

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Pratyaksham Bala wrote: 27 Jan 2021, 19:36 .
Please check this post !
viewtopic.php?t=34322

And the compilation !
https://ramanarunachalam.github.io/Musi ... natic.html
WOW!!!! @ranjanimalavi, this is absolutely amazing! This will be incredibly useful :)

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-4
----
Giving more importance to audio-links has my total approval. but rather difficult job. Thank you for the effort and right direction.
---
Chronology errors can be avoided .I hope that my site for the purpose may help.
https://sites.google.com/site/4carnatic ... -reference
Copy right issues may arise for post-1960 recordings. We can perhaps extract the audio from YT, upload to google-drive and give the drive url. (for download and listen).

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Thaye Yashode (Thodi; Compilation video featuring Madurai Somu, Madurai Mani Iyer, Chembai, others)

This is a compilation video of six renditions of "taayE yasOdaa" in the raagam Thodi, composed by the versatile but relatively obscure Tamil composer Oothukkadu Venkata Kavi (as compared to his Trinity contemporaries Thyagaraja, Dikshitar and Shyama Sastri). The kriti was composed in the mid 1700's.

VIDEO LINK

Composer: Oothukkadu Venkata Kavi
Raagam: Thodi
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 Madurai S. Somasundaram
26:52 Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar
51:58 KJ Yesudas
59:59 Madurai Mani Iyer
1:43:54 TV Sankaranarayanan
2:01:25 Ashwath Narayanan

Lyrics
https://karnatik.com/c1446.shtml

Information on Thodi:
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanumatodi
Arohanam: S R1 G2 M1 P D1 N2 S
Avarohanam: S N2 D1 P M1 G2 R1 S

Information on the composer:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oothukkadu_Venkata_Kavi

Another excellent resource:
https://rasikas.org/forums/viewtopic.ph ... asode.html

And another - the author wonderfully describes the poetic brilliance of Venkata Kavi here
https://sujamusic.wordpress.com/2011/04 ... e-yashoda/

------------------------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
For many hardcore Carnatic Music fans, this song is synonymous with the legendary Madurai Mani Iyer. However, we begin with Madurai Somu, who expertly weaves the song into a raagamalikai when he puts swaram and provides us a resounding truth: with bhavam, one can do wonders to bring the beauty out of any composition! The live appreciation of the audience during the rendition is incredible!

We then move on to two sets of guru-shishyas: the legendary Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavathar, who was able to create his own stamp with a unique rendition of the kriti, followed by his world-famous shishya, none of than the super versatile Yesudas.

Not to be outdone, we follow these two giants with Madurai Mani Iyer from his famous 1963 Calcutta concert, followed by his nephew TV Sankaranarayanan. It is fascinating to see the resemblances and differences not only between the two sets, but within guru-sishyas. We finally close the video with a nice video rendition by Ashwath Narayanan.

This kriti is undoubtedly one of the composer's greatest works, if not his greatest. This song describes the mischief of young Krishna, as the gopis describe to his mother Yashoda, wife of King Nanda (the father of young Sri krishna). It is the first song of a three part trilogy by the composer. This song can be considered part of a 3-song set, in which the gopis complain (taayE yashOda), Krishna defends himself (illai illaiyammaa - mOhanam), and a judgement is made by YashOda (pEsaadhE pOngaLadi - madyamaavati) in the royal court. Legend has it that when the composer sang this song, Krishna himself came and danced before him!

------------------------------------------------------

Translation (pulled from https://sujamusic.wordpress.com/2011/04 ... e-yashoda/ )

O Mother Yashoda! Listen to the tricks done by that illusionist, Krishna, born in your cowherd tribe.

O Lady (taiyalai), listen (kElaDi)! Whew (ammamma)! I have never seen (kanDadillai) a boy (paiyan) like (pOlavE) yours (undan) in this (inda) whole universe (vaiyagattil)!

With anklets (silambu) ringing (konja) in his feet (kAlinil), with bangles (kai vaLai) shaking (kulunga), with a pearl (muttu) necklace (mAlai) moving, he came (vandAn) to the street-front (teru vAsalil). As the heavenly beings (vAnOrgaL) became joyful (magizha) and all (ellAm) the earthly beings (mAniDargal) praised him, this (ivan) blue-skinned (nIla varNa) Krishna (kaNNan) danced (nartanam AdinAn).

Thinking him to be just an infant (bAlan endru) I gathered and hugged him (vAri aNaittEn). Like a husband (malai ittavan pOlE) he kissed me (muttam iTTAn) on the mouth (vAyil), I, who hugged him (aNaitta ennai)! Your son (un magan) is not an infant! If I were to hear (kEtka) people (nAlu pErgal) talk (cholla) about all the tricks he plays (jAlamAga seyvadellAm), I will be so embarrassed (nANamigu agudaDi!

At dusk (andi nErattil) day before yesterday (mundAnAL), he came proprietarily (sondamuDan) near (kiTTE vandu) me. He did many (anEgam seidu) amazing things (vindaigaL) and played (viLaiyADinAn). He struggled with me (pOrADinAn) by catching hold (paTri) and pulling (izhuttu) at the front of my sari (mundukilai – I guess) saying that he would only let go (viduven enDRu) if I gave (tandAl) him at least (Agilum) a ball sized (pandaLavu) roll of butter (veNNai) !

O Yashoda, verily, he (ivan dAn) is that (anda) Vasudeva himself! Thinking him to be my son (maindan endru), I lifted (eduttu) and hugged him (aNaittu) and placed him on my lap (maDi mEl). As I was looking (parkkum) at his beautiful (sundara) face (mugattai), he opened (tirandu) his mouth (vAy) and, like Indra’s magic (indirajAlam pOlE), he showed me (kANbittAn) the fourteen worlds (irEzhulagam)!
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 28 Jan 2021, 13:52, edited 2 times in total.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

RSR wrote: 28 Jan 2021, 12:39 p-4
----
Giving more importance to audio-links has my total approval. but rather difficult job. Thank you for the effort and right direction.
---
Chronology errors can be avoided .I hope that my site for the purpose may help.
https://sites.google.com/site/4carnatic ... -reference
Copy right issues may arise for post-1960 recordings. We can perhaps extract the audio from YT, upload to google-drive and give the drive url. (for download and listen).
wonderful resource!

rajeshnat
Posts: 9906
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by rajeshnat »

TheRaghuKumar
You are doing an awesome work of collating the pieces of a particular number . May I suggest as definitely artists especially present day artists may view this as affecting their livelihood and more importantly recording labels will be after the links , you can restrict to mostly dead artists or the era of those who performed last in 1980s. That will do. Thank you for the effort.

rajeshnat
Posts: 9906
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by rajeshnat »

My suggestion of what i call them over the years carnatic vocal trinity
Sarasasaama dhana - kapinarayani-T by MMI , SSI and GNB can go next if it is ok for you.

CRama
Posts: 2939
Joined: 18 Nov 2009, 16:58

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by CRama »

When you take up Karthikeya Gangeya, please include the M.S.Subbulakshmi version, the best is in the following link.
https://youtu.be/VZ9P9Tap_jU

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

mAru balka kunnAvEmirA (Shree Ranjani; compilation video feat. Ariyakudi, Musiri, Semmangudi, MLV, Neyveli, Sanjay)

This is a compilation video of six renditions of "mAru balka kunnAvEmirA" in the raagam Shree Ranjani, composed by none other than Thyagaraja.

VIDEO LINK

Composer: Thyagaraja
Raagam: Shree Ranjani
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar
11:38 Musiri Subrahmanya Iyer
20:02 Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
34:12 ML Vasanthakumari
42:57 Neyveli Santhanagopalan
51:58 Sanjay Subrahmanyan

Information on Shree Ranjani
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shree_ranjani
Arohanam: S R2 G2 M1 P D2 N2 S
Avarohanam: S N2 D2 M1 G2 R2 S

Another excellent resource:
http://www.shivkumar.org/music/marubalka.htm

Discussion on meaning of lyrics
https://groups.google.com/g/rec.music.i ... gmbY?pli=1

Thyagaraja Vaibhavam (website)
http://thyagaraja-vaibhavam.blogspot.co ... a-sri.html

EXCELLENT resource by CN Narasimhan where he describes Thyagaraja's state of mind
https://csnarasimhan.wordpress.com/category/thyagaraja/

------------------------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
As far as we know, Thyagaraja all in all composed five kritis in this ragam, namely, ‘Sogasuga’, ‘Marubalka’, ‘Brochevarevare’, ‘Bhuvini Sasudane’, and ‘Sariyevvare’ of Thyagaraja. All five have been commonly presented by artists; however, Marubalka probably slightly edges out the rest in terms of popularity.

While each of these six artists inevitably has their own unique style in presenting this kriti, Semmangudi's influence is probably the "gold standard" for Marubalka seeing how most current-day musicians inevitably reproduce many of the famous sangatis popularized by SSI (as evidenced by Neyveli Santhanagopalan's and Sanjay Subrahmanyan's renditions). In the 1930's and 40's, in his prime, young Semmangudi would feature Marubalka in virtually every concert (as per Shankar Krish's blog, referenced here, https://shankarkrish.blog/carnatic-voca ... vasa-iyer/)

Marubalka is a nice example of Thyagaraja's usage of Svarakshara (Svarakshara is when the sound of the consonant matches the note). In Marubalka, the Pallavi begins on the Svara ‘Ma’. Another example is the famous krithi ‘Nee bhakti bhagyasudha‘ in Jayamanohari.

In some translations of the Pallavi, it is mentioned that the meaning translates to "O Delighter of the mind of lakshmI (Sita), why are you not responding!". However, the more likely, correct breakup of the words are

mAru balka kunnAvEmirA
mA manOramaNa


Meaning, the "mA" from the second line is split from the "rA" from the first line, indicating that instead, the translation is

Why don't you respond to me (when I call you)?
You, who charm my heart


This also makes more sense since it allows for a fuller effect of Svarakshara as both lines begin with the sound "Ma" and fall in the note "Ma" on a new word. It also allows Thyagaraja to address Rama in a much more familar manner.

In the Anupallavi, Thyagaraja seems to spike up the intensity of the kriti when he asks Rama if he worshipped thiefs and adulterers (of course, he didn't). The Anupallavi translates to:

Did I extol (bhajana) (literally chant names) adulterers (jAra) and thieves (cOra), O Resident (sadana) of ayOdhyA (sAkEta)?

Interestingly, Thyagaraja is specifically asking Rama if he wasted his time singing the praises of Krishna instead of Rama! This is clearly evidenced as Krishna is referenced as "jAra cOra" in Dikshitar's kriti ‘mAra rati priyam’ in the ragam ratipriya, and in Thyagaraja's kriti ‘vara lIla gAna’ in Sankarabharanam!

You could make the argument that Thyagaraja is composing in a state of anger, as CN Narasimhan expertly describes in his blog (referenced above).

Thyagaraja then takes his emotions to a new high in the Charanam. He describes that despite having come to the understanding that Rama is both everywhere and in his heart, Rama is still not responding, and is aggressively asking Rama why that is the case. Specifically, the translation is:

O Lord praised (nuta) by that (aTTi) tyAgarAja who is exulting (santasillina) (santasillinaTTi) having understood (erigi) the method (dArini) (dArinerigi) in which You are established (nelakonna) (at once) everywhere – in (andu) far away places (dUra-bharamu) (dUra-bhAramandu) as also in (andu) the lotus (aravindamu) of my (nA) heart (hRdaya) (hRdayAravindamandu)!

And so, when we contextualize the song and wonder how, when we listen to Neraval being put at "dArinirigi", the electricity in the room always kicks up a notch, it is undoubtedly due to the fact that we are experiencing the composer's state of mind.

What a great composition!

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

rajeshnat wrote: 29 Jan 2021, 10:33 TheRaghuKumar
You are doing an awesome work of collating the pieces of a particular number . May I suggest as definitely artists especially present day artists may view this as affecting their livelihood and more importantly recording labels will be after the links , you can restrict to mostly dead artists or the era of those who performed last in 1980s. That will do. Thank you for the effort.
Sounds like a plan! Although, I think these things can go both ways with present day artists; if you give them credit and link their Spotify/iTunes/websites, this is actually what leads to people buying albums.

When a Justin Bieber performs live for Jimmy Kimmel, it leads to sales because immediately, we go on Spotify and purchase his songs. This same analogy needs to be applied not just to present day artists, but ALSO for artists of the past.

What the Carnatic fraternity needs to do is figure out which types of marketing funnels lead to actual meaningful sales
rajeshnat wrote: 29 Jan 2021, 10:35 My suggestion of what i call them over the years carnatic vocal trinity
Sarasasaama dhana - kapinarayani-T by MMI , SSI and GNB can go next if it is ok for you.
Excellent song suggestion!
CRama wrote: 29 Jan 2021, 20:35 When you take up Karthikeya Gangeya, please include the M.S.Subbulakshmi version, the best is in the following link.
https://youtu.be/VZ9P9Tap_jU
Will do, thank you!

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-23
@TheRaghuKumar

Absolutely BRILLIANT WORK!
Stunning in technical expertise too.
So very educative.
Thank you.
----------------
A request.
Can we have such a compilation of
saraseeruhaasanapriye (Naatai) by
Puliyoor Duraisamy Iyer?
Meaning of the kruthi will be very much welcome.
Would like to add that song in the thread on Sanskrit kruthis.
And please look for the rendition by Smt.MS uploaded by Srinivasan.v
--------------
Was the composer , father of Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan?
.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

RSR wrote: 01 Feb 2021, 23:24 p-23
@TheRaghuKumar

Absolutely BRILLIANT WORK!
Stunning in technical expertise too.
So very educative.
Thank you.
----------------
A request.
Can we have such a compilation of
saraseeruhaasanapriye (Naatai) by
Puliyoor Duraisamy Iyer?
Meaning of the kruthi will be very much welcome.
Would like to add that song in the thread on Sanskrit kruthis.
And please look for the rendition by Smt.MS uploaded by Srinivasan.v
--------------
Was the composer , father of Maha Vaidyanatha Sivan?
.
Thanks!

Absolutely, on it now. I really enjoy this song as well and would have never thought of creating compilation video on it, so let me do my research and get something up in the next couple days! If there any other favorite renditions of the kriti please do let me know.

Ananthakrishna
Posts: 130
Joined: 01 Nov 2019, 17:38

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Ananthakrishna »

@TheRaghuKumar I enjoyed listening to all your compilations uploaded till now! As @RSR put it, it was a most educative experience for me!

I had a small request, could you consider making a compilation for the song Ninnuvina Marigalada, set to Abheri (but also sung in Reethigowla) by Shyama Sastri? The compilation with both the Abheri and Reethigowla versions ought to be very informative, and help in a comparative analysis of both versions. I believe musicians from the Mudikondan bani still strictly render this krithi in Abheri only!


(Abheri refers to the original Abheri, with a D1 and not D2)

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Sarasiruha Sanapriye (Nattai; feat. MS Subblakshmi, Semmangudi, Voleti, MDR, Mysore Duraiswamy)

This is a compilation video of 5 renditions of "Sarasiruha Sanapriye" in Nattai, composed by Puliyur Duraiswamy Iyer

VIDEO LINK

Composer: Puliyur Duraiswamy Iyer
Raagam: Nattai
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 M.S. Subbulakshmi
04:48 Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer
10:22 Voleti Venkateswarlu
19:02 MD Ramanathan
28:20 Mysore Doraiswamy Iyengar

Information on Nattai
Wikipedia: http://bit.ly/39M6LRe
Arohanam: S R3 G3 M1 P N3 S
Avarohanam: S N3 P M1 G3 M1 R3 S

Information on the composition
http://bit.ly/3pVOE0Y

Discussion on Versions of Nattai
http://bit.ly/3oIpyBa

Excellent blog post by Vishnu Vasudev (compares Dikshitar and Thyagaraja versions of Nattai)
http://bit.ly/2Ln73og

Discussion on meaning of kriti
http://bit.ly/3jpEt23

EXCELLENT writeup on the song
http://bit.ly/3oT4cRA

Discussion on Pallavi vs Puliyur Doraiswamy Iyer (were they the same person? Answer: NO)
http://bit.ly/3cIBz7g

One more reference refuting the idea that they were the same person, by U.V.Swaminatha Iyer, a Tamil scholar of 20th century.
http://bit.ly/3tCFjxg

Excellent writeup by V Sriram on Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer
http://bit.ly/2O6xWOi
--------------------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
Sometimes, we forget that behind every brilliant artist, there is a backstory to where that brilliance came from.

In Carnatic Music, you could make the argument that Maha Vaidynatha Sivan was the greatest Carnatic Music prodigy of all-time. Who else do we know named "Maha", and that too, a title conferred at the age of 12 which stuck with him his whole life! Yet, we have numerous eyewitness accounts testifying to the fact that although he sometimes irked contempories like Patnam Subramanya Iyer due to his competitiveness, Sivan's voice and musical prowess was simply unmatched. It is said that the only voice at par to Thyagaraja's was Sivan's!

But was it all spontaneous brilliance? No! His father was Puliyur Duraiswamy Iyer, a brilliant artist and composer in his own right, and the composer of Sarasiruha Sanapriye.

A quick note, as this is still a slight unsolved mystery: one of Maha Vaidynatha Sivan's pupils was the great TS Sabesha Iyer (Musiri's guru), whose great grand-father was Pallavi Duraiswamy Iyer. While Pallavi Duraiswamy Iyer was a genius in his own right (he was born in 1782 and died at the age of 34, but in this brief span, produced about 50 compositions of his own), he definitely did not compose Sarasiruha Sanapriye (references are listed above)

Which brings us to the composition, and its backstory!

One day, Puliyur Duraiswamy Iyer was singing "Chakkani Raja", the famous composition of Thyagaraja's. It is said that Thyagaraja heard the rendition and enjoyed it so much he told Puliyur that his sons would become musical giants. Imagine the motivation Thyagaraja instilled in the man!

Let's break down the basic meaning of the song. Quick note: the song is in Sambodhana Prathama Vibhakti , or the Sanskrit vocative case, which means you are directly addressing the personality (in this case, Saraswati).


Hey Saraswati !

P : One who is the consort of lotus throne adorner ( Brahma ) , one who relishes playing the veena and is always happy ||

AP : My shelter is your tender lotus feet , you who makes the souls of poets and devotees happy and who wears gemstone rings ||

C : Your eyes are like lotus petals , you who - are the protector of destitutes, - are the one with the radiance like that of waxing winter moon and with clean mind ; you who - has all the good virtues, always the repository of knowledge, - has two perfectly rounded breasts resounding with literature and music , - are fair complexioned, - gives all the desired boons , - has books in the hands. || Hey Saraswati ! ||



Nattai has two distinct versions (refer to the blog by Vishnu Vasudev, referenced above). In the Thyagaraja school, D3 is basically rarely/never used. We can presume that Sarasiruha Sanapriye follows the Thyagaraja version of Nattai; hence, it may make sense to avoid D3 (and emphasize the use M1 G3 M1 R3 in the avarohanam) when rendering swarams for the kriti.

Another note on Nattai: its compositions are often in Sankrit. Thyagaraja's only Pancharatna in Sanskrit was of course Jagadananda. Sarasiruha Sanapriye is a favorite among Veena players, probably due to the focus on Saraswati, but also due to the fact that it expertly weaves a dense amount of syllables (tongue twister, much like Jagadananda). Nattai is a Ghana ragam, aptly subted for Tanam and for playing on the Veena, displayed by Doraiswamy Iyenger in the video. All these facets beautifully come together in this composition.

Maha Vaidynatha Sivan was known to have not only a tremendous voice, but also the ability to sing at different speeds effortlessly. When we take into account that his father composed this kriti, does it really surprise us?

It shouldn't!
NOTE: Sangeethapriya references are mentioned in the video
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 05 Feb 2021, 02:30, edited 1 time in total.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

Ananthakrishna wrote: 03 Feb 2021, 14:12 @TheRaghuKumar I enjoyed listening to all your compilations uploaded till now! As @RSR put it, it was a most educative experience for me!

I had a small request, could you consider making a compilation for the song Ninnuvina Marigalada, set to Abheri (but also sung in Reethigowla) by Shyama Sastri? The compilation with both the Abheri and Reethigowla versions ought to be very informative, and help in a comparative analysis of both versions. I believe musicians from the Mudikondan bani still strictly render this krithi in Abheri only!


(Abheri refers to the original Abheri, with a D1 and not D2)
Will do!

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-28
@
Fantastic!
I have read all your references earlier, like the article by SriramV,
I had visited the 'medium' blogs by Vishnu Vasudev.
This particular post cited by you is a gold-mine. There are so mny other video clips there which I would like to explore and incorporate
Dr.Pasupathy blog giving UVS Iyer's write up on Pallavi Duraisamy iyer also is very nice. This compolation by you leaves nothing more to be desired... (except that - the lyrics could be given in language of the song- in this case, Sanskrit -deanagari ( sujamusic does a fine job in that respect). and word-by-word meaning of Sanskrit words.
For a sample, kindly see how it has been done in firststep.naaraayaneetam site. ( the last entry - agre pasyaami-NaaraaaNeeyam - last mentioned link)
With your permission , I will cite this URL in Sanskrit kruthis thread.
============================================
There is a fine blog post in Thamizh by Gamakam-Parivadini-Lalitharam, on Naattai and GambiraNaattai. If possible, kindly include that URL here.
==========================================
May I suggest 'DhinamaNi vamsa thilaka laavanyaa' next?
I am also searching for audio/video of MD's sarasijanaabha sodhari and detailed meaning.
---------------------------------------------
Each of your posts in this thread are GEMS.

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

sarasa sAma dAna bhEda daNDa catura
(Ragam: Kapi Narayani; compilation video featuring Madurai Mani Iyer, G.N. Balasubramaniam, Maharajapuram Santhanam, Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer)

This is a compilation video of 4 renditions of "sarasa sAma dAna bhEda danDa catura" in the ragam Kapi Narayani, composed by Thyagaraja
Image
VIDEO LINK

Composer: Thyagaraja
Raagam: Kapi Narayani
Taalam: Adi

Featured in the video are:
0:06 Madurai Mani Iyer
6:55 G.N. Balasubramaniam
20:16 Maharajapuram Santhanam
25:15 Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer

Lyrics

Pallavi
sarasa sAma dAna bhEda daNDa catura
sATi daivam(e)varE brOvavE

Anupallavi
parama SAmbhav(A)grEsaruND(a)gucu
palku rAvaNuDu teliya lEka pOye (sarasa)

Charanam
hitavu mATal(e)ntO bAga palkitivi
satamugAn(a)yOdhyan(i)ttun(a)NTivi
nata sahOdaruni rAju cEsi rAka
hatamu jEsitivi tyAgarAja nuta (sarasa)

Information on the ragam (Karnatik.com)
https://karnatik.com/c1083.shtml
Arohanam: S R2 M1 P D2 N2 S
Avarohanam: S N2 D2 P M1 G3 R2 G3 R2 S

Information on the composition (Thyagaraja Vaibhavam, EXCELLENT resource)
http://thyagaraja-vaibhavam.blogspot.co ... daana.html

Discussion on Kapi Narayani on Rasikas.org
viewtopic.php?t=9940

Quora thread on Venkatamakhin and Govindacharayas influence on Trinity
https://www.quora.com/Were-the-carnatic ... mpositions

EXCELLENT article on the influence of Venkatamakhin and Govindacharya on the current day raga system
https://sreenivasaraos.com/tag/govindacharya/

Wikipedia on history of the Melakarta system and Govindacharya's contributions towards its development
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melakarta

Concept of Raja Dharma in the Mahabharata
http://www.ghvisweswara.com/wp-content/ ... ration.pdf

Concepts of Danda, Dandaneethi, Dharma and Raja-Dharma
https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/poli ... arma/40148
--------------------------------------------------
Our take on this composition:
Let's start with a bit of historical context into the ragam, and then we can dive a little deeper into the significance of the lyrics and meaning of this famous kriti by Thyagaraja.

Kapi Narayani was relatively obscure before Thyagaraja composed this kriti. It was well known that Thyagaraja was heavily influenced by Govindacharya, a scholar from the late 17th century who improved upon the works of Venkatamakhin and introduced a rules-based, formalized 72 Mēḷakarta system in his text Sangraha Chudamani

A classic distinction between Govindacharya and Venkatamakhin's Mēḷa classification systems was that Govindacharya's system produced the modern 72 Mēḷakarta system lending itself to the easy creation and proliferation of sampoorna ragams (ragams utilizing all 7 notes). To perhaps add an exclamation point to the significance of his work, Govindacharya himself composed hundreds of Geethams in newly created Janya ragams, no doubt an offspring of his Mēḷakarta classification system. Muttuswamy Dikshitar, Thyagaraja's contemporary, followed a different set of scales as the 72 Mēḷakarta ragas, and followed the original system taught by Venkatamakhin. Many of these scales were asampurna (not sampurna ragas) because Dikshitar chose to follow the earlier established structure to mitigate ill-effects of usage of direct vivadi swaras in the scales.

Which brings us to Kapi Narayani - if you can guess where we are going with this, yes, Govindacharya indeed seems to have invented the ragam. While V Sriram has attributed Thyagaraja as the inventor of Kapi Narayani here, Govindacharya has actually composed a Geetham in the ragam, ArErE jayajaya parashurAma, so we can assume that Thyagaraja must have come across the composition.

Kapi Narayani, as you can guess, is an offspring of Narayani, with the clever addition of G3.

Narayani's Arohanam/Avarohanam
Arohanam: S R2 M1 P D2 S
Avarohanam: S N2 D2 P M1 R2 S

And now, we get to the beautiful meaning and lyrics of the composition!

Image

"That king alone can govern, who taketh counsel of experienced men, and is helped by honest, intelligent and learned ministers; but a king who is addicted to vices, meeteth with defeat. ...therefore, it is necessary to ascertain through spies the nature of the hostile country, its fortified places and the allied force of the enemy...spies are among the important auxiliaries of the king; and tact, diplomacy, prowess, chastisement, favour and cleverness lead to success. And success is to be attained through these, either in separation, or combined—namely, conciliation, gift, sowing dissensions, chastisement and slight”
(Hanuman to Bhima, Mahabharata Vana Parva, Tirtha-yatra Parva, Chapter 150)


Exact line:
sAmnA dAnena bhedena daNDenopekShaNena cha.
sAdhanIyAni kAryANi samAsavyAsayogataH

Reference in Sanskrit

Thyagaraja no doubt largely referenced the stories of Rama when composing his thousands of kritis over his lifetime. However, this simple scene between Hanuman and Bhima shows that the politics of Rama’s age carried forward to the Pandavas’ age, and therefore could carry forward to today’s age as well. The wars fought may be different, but the principles and difficult questions related to dharma, remain intact.

What are those principles? A leader is intrinsically allowed what rights? A king is to assume which “Raja Dharma” principles?

The concept of Raja-Dharma is thoroughly covered in the Mahabharata. Here is an excellent overview of many instances where the topic is covered the Great Epic.

Hanuman clearly tells Bhima that although he must follow his Dharma as a Kshatriya, a King is also to carry out Raja-Dharma duties, which even gives him the permission to spy on the enemy, as needed. Hanuman, of course, is also referencing his own masterful spywork conducted in Lanka on behalf of Rama and even narrates the 007 style spywork he expertly carried out!

Hanuman, then, directly gets to the point: after laying out the explicit duties of each of society's "classes", he proceeds to mention that a King has four tools at his disposal:
  • Saama - the process of pacifying or conciliation
  • Dhaana - the process of giving money (in charity), or even bribing
  • Bheda - the process of dividing and sowing seeds of dissension
  • Danda - as a last resort, breaking the will of the enemy using a figurative stick; punishing the enemy
These four tools are referenced in Srimad Bhagavatham 7.5.19. It is also ushered by Brahma in Devi Bhagavatham 1.7.26

In the composition, Thyagaraja is nothing less than a masterful storyteller.

In the Pallavi, he starts by singing the praises of Rama's elegant usage of these four tools. In the Anupallavi, he reminds us that despite having benefited from Shiva's boons, Ravana didn't understand where Rama was coming from.

Finally, in the Charanam, he walks us through exactly how Rama used Saama, then Dhaana, then Bheda, and finally Danda to claim Sita back. First, he tried to convince Ravana through soft words. Then, he offered Ayodhya, but Ravana wouldn't budge. Division cracked Ravana's camp when Vibhishana, Ravana's brother, sided with Rama. Finally, Rama ended the war by directly killing Ravana.

Another incredible aspect of the song is the rhyming Thyagaraja employs. Within the Pallavi, the first line has the four aforementioned tools, rhyming, and then has 'evarE' and 'daivamevarE' and 'brOvavE' rhyming. The Anupallavi has "agucu" and "rAvaNuDu" rhyming. In the Charnam, we have 'palkitivi' rhyming with 'satamugAnayOdhyAnittunaNTivi'. Finally, he ends it with 'nata' rhyming with 'nuta'.

Here is a full word-by-word meaning. Needless to say, we bow down to Thyagaraja's greatness!

Word-by-word meaning
Referenced from Thyagaraja Vaibhavam

Pallavi Elegant Lord (sarasa) who is adept (catura) in the four-fold actions (of rAja dharma) - conciliation (sAma), gift or bribe (dAna), creation of dissension (bhEda) and punishment (daNDa)!
which (evarE) God (daivamu) (daivamevarE) is equal (sATi) to You? deign to protect (brOvavE) me.

Anupallavi But, rAvaNa (rAvaNuDu) being (agucu) the eminent (agrEsaruNDu) devotee of the great (parama) (literally supreme) Lord Siva (SAmbhava) (literally related or belonging to Sambhu) (SAmbhavAgrEsaruNDagucu), failed to understand (teliya lEka pOye) Your words (palku)!
O Elegant Lord who is adept in the four-fold actions (of rAja dharma) - conciliation, gift or bribe, creation of dissension and punishment! which God is equal to You? deign to protect me.

Charanam You conveyed (palkitivi) (literally uttered) well (bAga) a lot of (entO) beneficial (hitavu) words (mATalu) (mATalentO);
You said (aNTivi) that ‘I shall offer (ittunu) even ayOdhyA (ayOdhyanu) for ever’ (satamugAnu) (satamugAnayOdhyAnittunaNTivi);
when he (rAvaNa) did not mend his ways (rAka) (literally come) even after anointing (cEsi) (literally make) vibhIshaNa – his brother (sahOdara) (sahOdaruni) who supplicated (nata) before You – as King (rAju) of lankA, You ultimately slayed (hatamu jEsitivi) him;
O Lord praised (nuta) by this tyAgarAja!
O Elegant Lord who is adept in the four-fold actions (of rAja dharma) – conciliation, gift or bribe, creation of dissension and punishment! which God is equal to You? deign to protect me.
Last edited by TheRaghuKumar on 25 Feb 2021, 01:32, edited 2 times in total.

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-31
@TheRaghuKumar
Excellent. The presentation , clips, references and information.
--
The four steps taken by Lord Ramachandra was for a just cause.
The same tactics may be used by Evil characters also. Finally, the Ends ( just Ends) justify the means. Bad Ends don't.
------
It is a rare information that Govindacharya had composed kruthis.
Is there any kruthis-lyrics in his famous treatise? How many kru'this are there? Have they ever been sung by vocalists?
The veracity is not being questioned . Just a request for information. Are the kruthis, deity-oriented in lyrics-content?
--
Excellent work. Thank you

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-31
@TheRaghuKumar
Excellent. The presentation , clips, references and information.
--
The four steps taken by Lord Ramachandra was for a just cause.
The same tactics may be used by Evil characters also. Finally, the Ends ( just Ends) justify the means. Bad Ends don't.
------
It is a rare information that Govindacharya had composed kruthis.
Is there any kruthis-lyrics in his famous treatise? How many kru'this are there? Have they ever been sung by vocalists?
The veracity is not being questioned . Just a request for information. Are the kruthis, deity-oriented in lyrics-content?
--
Excellent work. Thank you

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

RSR wrote: 24 Feb 2021, 20:27 p-31
@TheRaghuKumar
Excellent. The presentation , clips, references and information.
--
The four steps taken by Lord Ramachandra was for a just cause.
The same tactics may be used by Evil characters also. Finally, the Ends ( just Ends) justify the means. Bad Ends don't.
------
It is a rare information that Govindacharya had composed kruthis.
Is there any kruthis-lyrics in his famous treatise? How many kru'this are there? Have they ever been sung by vocalists?
The veracity is not being questioned . Just a request for information. Are the kruthis, deity-oriented in lyrics-content?
--
Excellent work. Thank you
Based on what I was able to pull up, they are Geethams, so I suppose Kritis is the wrong term (my apologies). Here is the exact screenshot of the Geetham from Sangraha Chudamani, again referencing the Geetham Aarare Jayajaya Parashuram

Image

RSR
Posts: 3427
Joined: 11 Oct 2015, 23:31

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by RSR »

p-34
@TheRaghuKumar
Thank you for the clarification. Is there any English translation of the book?
My humble suggestion. We never know how long this forum will be maintained. Also, such labour-of-love as yours will get drowned in the thousands of trivial/ non-trivial topics and posts in General
discussion sections. Hence, I request you to have your own website ( not a blog) as a back up for your wonderful posts in this series. Blogs are not good unless we have an index page for random-and direct access to all the pages. From my personal experience, I would suggest Google sites.
Another advantage is that you can always edit/ add/ more info subsequently. which is not possible in this forum posts.
============================
When you have your own website page, you can add that information to your youtube upload giving the page URL and a few introductory comments. FOR HEAVENS SAKE, PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW ADVERTISEMENTS. ( I know that you will never do that)
Cloud ensures that your work will not be lost , say, a decade from now.
Thanks for all your grand initiative, technical work and dedication.
Just as an illustration, for organizing your website nd its pages,
https://sites.google.com/site/homage2mssubbulakshmi

TheRaghuKumar
Posts: 22
Joined: 11 Jan 2019, 21:40

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by TheRaghuKumar »

RSR wrote: 25 Feb 2021, 08:52 p-34
@TheRaghuKumar
Thank you for the clarification. Is there any English translation of the book?
My humble suggestion. We never know how long this forum will be maintained. Also, such labour-of-love as yours will get drowned in the thousands of trivial/ non-trivial topics and posts in General
discussion sections. Hence, I request you to have your own website ( not a blog) as a back up for your wonderful posts in this series. Blogs are not good unless we have an index page for random-and direct access to all the pages. From my personal experience, I would suggest Google sites.
Another advantage is that you can always edit/ add/ more info subsequently. which is not possible in this forum posts.
============================
When you have your own website page, you can add that information to your youtube upload giving the page URL and a few introductory comments. FOR HEAVENS SAKE, PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW ADVERTISEMENTS. ( I know that you will never do that)
Cloud ensures that your work will not be lost , say, a decade from now.
Thanks for all your grand initiative, technical work and dedication.
Just as an illustration, for organizing your website nd its pages,
https://sites.google.com/site/homage2mssubbulakshmi
Thanks for the suggestion :) Will definitely consider it!

Regarding Govindacharya's work, not able to find an English translation, only the original in Sanskrit!

Manian
Posts: 76
Joined: 09 Aug 2020, 13:48

Re: Introducing: Carnatic, Untitled!

Post by Manian »

RaghuKumar History will bless you.

I did some thing different a long time back. I will copy different songs/lyrics from different artist for a single raga. For example if it is Mohanam, there will be about at least five singers with five different songs. These were copied form tape from reel to reel method. The I will listen and learn the various efforts of Alapana, swara etc. I though to share it with learners free of charge. But due to several other problems the project stopped with about five ragas. The basic theme is to start from sarili variasi in the ragam, then jantai and so on, until the Kriti is followed. I thought some one like Rajakumar Bharati can do that and post it on the YouTube and ask donations. If you can do that it will be a tremendous contribution to revive the Carnatic music outside India. This also removes the various Banis people acquire from their teachers and parrot it in concert excepting a few like late Madurai Mani Iyer etc.

What you are doing is a subset of the idea. God bless you.

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