Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

History, religion and culture
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shivanand
Posts: 5
Joined: 11 Dec 2017, 12:26

Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by shivanand »

There was a tweet some years back, where a picture of Syama Sastri which was posted and it was said to be done just before his death. Here is the tweet: ps://twitter.com/veejaysai/status/879682276291825664

Is this true? Also where is the painting from, where is it located today?
[img][https://wegotguru.files.wordpress.com/2 ... -2.jpg/img]

rajeshnat
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Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 08:04

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by rajeshnat »

Image

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

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by Pratyaksham Bala »

.
Check this link !
http://www.vidyavrikshah.org/arts/syama.html

“Syama Sastri … is my grandfather's great-grandfather. … Portrait of Syama Sastri … original portrait … is in my possession.”

Who is this writer ? And where is he ?

harimau
Posts: 1819
Joined: 06 Feb 2007, 21:43

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by harimau »

Pratyaksham Bala wrote: 01 Jun 2018, 06:15 .
Check this link !
http://www.vidyavrikshah.org/arts/syama.html

“Syama Sastri … is my grandfather's great-grandfather. … Portrait of Syama Sastri … original portrait … is in my possession.”

Who is this writer ? And where is he ?
You yourself have quoted the antecedents of the writer: he is the great-great-great-grandson of Sri Syama Sastri. :D

The article to which a link has been given identifies him as S Raja.

So, here is my only useful addition to the above. :lol:

He lives in Chennai. Somewhere in an area named Parameswari Nagar (IIRC) off Lattice Bridge Road in Adyar.

RaviSri
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Joined: 10 Apr 2011, 11:31

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by RaviSri »

Mr. Raja has with him the Sri Chakra mEru and the nartana gaNapati icon worshiped by Shyama Sastri. There is also a painting of shyAmkriShNa along with the above. Mr. Raja also has Shyama Sastri songs written in the grantha script by the composer himself in palm leaf manuscripts.

harimau
Posts: 1819
Joined: 06 Feb 2007, 21:43

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by harimau »

RaviSri wrote: 01 Jul 2018, 19:02 Mr. Raja has with him the Sri Chakra mEru and the nartana gaNapati icon worshiped by Shyama Sastri. There is also a painting of shyAmkriShNa along with the above. Mr. Raja also has Shyama Sastri songs written in the grantha script by the composer himself in palm leaf manuscripts.
In that article, I think there was a mention that the palm leaf manuscripts would be scanned and made available on line. So far, that hasn't happened and not likely to happen.

There is great historical value to the manuscripts and they need to be preserved. The warm humid climate of Chennai is not necessarily conducive to keeping them in good condition. They need to be stored in a humidity and temperature controlled cabinet Just to be doubly safe, they also need to be scanned and stored in multiple locations on line.

But in India, we put these things in front of the altar where pictures of gods are kept in a home and leave it at the mercy of nature, which includes insects which like organic material as food.

I am extremely pessimistic about their survival beyond the next dozen years.

bhakthim dehi
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Joined: 24 Feb 2014, 21:28

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by bhakthim dehi »

He is a shrewd old man, much knowledgeable in preserving those manuscripts. He visits TMSSML frequently, get their advise to preserve the same. Anyways, it's better to digitize them.
Once an organization approached him, applied some white powder to make the letters visible and scanned those manuscripts. But only few leaves were scanned. I don't know the reason for them to discontinue.
And, he himself says it was not written by Sri Syama Sastri. What he said was Syama Sastri dictated and someone else wrote.
I could see the Reethigowla varnam of Veena Kuppaier in those manuscripts.

harimau
Posts: 1819
Joined: 06 Feb 2007, 21:43

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by harimau »

bhakthim dehi wrote: 11 Aug 2018, 20:30 He is a shrewd old man, much knowledgeable in preserving those manuscripts. He visits TMSSML frequently, get their advise to preserve the same. Anyways, it's better to digitize them.
I don't doubt that he is doing his best to preserve those manuscripts.

But I am not so sanguine about their fate after his time.

My friend told me of how the ladies of Chettinad "re-purposed" old gramophone records by heating them over a fire and molding them in the shape of a plate with raised edges (about an inch high) to give thaamboolam to guests at weddings and other family festivities.

The best way to preserve the manuscripts is not to treat them as objects of worship but to make as many copies as possible and store those copies in several different places.

I am glad that they escaped the unprecedented rain and floods in Chennai of two years ago. We cannot expect that such luck would hold indefinitely.

bhakthim dehi
Posts: 539
Joined: 24 Feb 2014, 21:28

Re: Syama Sastri Painting right before his death?

Post by bhakthim dehi »

Yes. Digitization is the one way to preserve. But we need his cooperation. I tried once with no success :cry:

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