1. BkE-SathyanarayanaR-Music of the Madhva Monks-0074

MUSIC OF MADHVA MONKS

OF KARNATAKA

MAHA MAHO PADHYA

RASTRA BHOOSHANA

DR. R. SATHYANARAYANA

Late Shri M. D. Nagabhushansa

India is a country of righteousness. It is the birth place of religiousness and benefaction. Late Shri Nagabhushansa who was born in such a country was the eldest son of Dharma Prakasha, Dana Chintamani, Abhinava Kempegowda, Shri Magoji Dhondusa. Shri Nagabhushansa was the Partner of Shri Narayana Silk Throwing Factory and managing the Magoji Dhondusa Religious Insitutions. He was also helping his revered father in his religious activities. He is now no more.

Shri Nagabhushansa was a kind hearted and always cheerful. His motto was 'Work is Worship'. His hardwork in the industrial field and his encouragement towards religious work can never be forgotten. He was a great lover of Art, Literature and Music. He had great reverence towards Artists and Musicians and always respected them.

Shunning all publicity he served people enthusiastically. He died very young leaving the sorrowing family and friends.

He was an active patron of our Institution and had taken keen interest in all our Cultural and Social Activities. The Book, Music of Madhva Monks of Karnataka written by Mahamahopadyaya Rashtra Bushana Dr. R. Sathyanarayana has been dedicated to the memory of Shri M. D. Nagabhushansa as a mark of our respect to his devotion to music and Musicians. May his soul rest in peace.

D. MADHAVA MURTHY

PRESIDENT

GNANAJYOTHI KALA MANDIR (R)

AND

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE,

GNANA SUDHA

KANNADA QUARTERLY

MUSIC OF MADHVA MONKS

OF KARNATAKA

By

Mahamahopadhyaya, Rashtrabhooshana

Dr. R. SATHYANARAYANA

The Karnatic Music Book Centre

14, Sripuram First Street,

Royapettah, (Near Ajantha Hotel)

Madras - 600 014, Phone: 8260147

GNANA JYOTHI KALA MANDIR

BANGALORE

1988

Music of Mādhva monks of Karnataka by Mahā mahopādhyaya, Rashtrabhooshana Dr. R. Sathyanarayana, pub.

Gnana Jyothi Kala Mandira, 31/B, 4th Block, Rajajinagar,

Bangalore, 560 010, pp. xii+187+appx. Price : Rs 40/–

©

Author

Price : Rs. 40/–

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PUBLISHER'S NOTE

We are privileged to place this monumental work of Mahamahopadhyaya,Rashtrabhooshana Dr.R.Sathyanarayana entitlea "Music of Mādhva Monks of Karnataka" in the hands of distinguished readers. Dr.Sathyanarayana needs no introduction. By his versatile scholarship and lifelong devotion to musi? and dancing he has carved for himself a permanent place in the cultural field of India and abroad. We are extremely grateful to Dr. Sathyanarayana for permitting us to publish this book on a subject which is so dear to his heart. We are also grateful to Dana Chintamani Sri Magaji Dhondusa and his family for their munificient grant to publish this woik,to Shri M.N. Gopinath and Sons of M/s. Udaya Ravi Printers, Krishnamurthy Puram, Mysore, for neatly executing the printing work, to Shri B.V. Thipparaja Shetty for printing the cover page beautifully and scores of known and unknown sympathisers of Gnana Jyothi Kala Mandir for their co-operation and assistance.

D. MADHAVA MURTHY H.G. RAMACHANDRA RAO

President General Secretary

Gnana Jyoti Kala Mandir

AUTHOR'S PREFACE

'Music of the Madhva Monks of Karnataka' attempts to examine the contribution to our music of five monks belonging to the madhva faith viz. Sripadaraya, Vyasaraya, Vadirāja, Vijayindra tirtha and Rāghavendra tirtha. When my friend Sri H.G. Ramachandra Rao, Secretary of the

Gnana Jyoti Kala Mandira desired from me an article on the contribution of Rāghavendra tirtha to Karnataka music for inclusion in a souvenir, I pleaded that the available data on the subject was too meagre. When I was allowed a wider latitude in the choice of the subject, my thoughts turned to the theme of the contribution of the madhva

monks to Indian music in general and to Karnataka music in particular because such contribution is significant to both the founding and structuring of our modern music and because a separate, systematic study on this subject has not been so far taken up. About a century after the sage

Sri Vidyaranya laid the foundations of Karnataka music through his rāga mela concept, a train of composers belonging to both the vyāsakūta and the dāsakūta recensions of the madhva faith continued the work in Karnataka and contributed foundational, empirical structures, especially in tāla and prabandha. Sripadaraya inaugurated, proliferated

or stabilised many new musical forms which served as archetypes or prototypes, thus defining or characterising in part the genius of Karnataka music ; Vyasarāya became a bridge between the textual stream and the new, popular stream of this music ; his brilliant disciple Vādirāja still remains the most prolific and the varied composer among

the monks ; another monk-disciple Vijayindra tirtha was also a composer ; yet another brilliant disciple, Purandaradāsa is widely venerated as 'Karnātaka-sangita-pitāmaha' because of his multiple musical contributions.

VI

Traditional mādhva orthodoxy associates Madhvācārya and his second successor Narahari tīrtha with musical accomplishment. I have questioned elsewhere (in a monograph on Śrīpadarāya being prepared for the press) the authenticity and antiquity of the songs ascribed to Narahari tīrtha. Traditional belief in the musicianship of Madhvācārya may be traced to two verses in the Sumadhva-vijaya :

ayam-eva go-viṣayato 'pi kutracit sadasi janārthito javāt 1

puṣpam-uta phalam aho vidadhe jana-suptidā 'nupama-gāna-sampadā 1l1

[At the request of the people of the place called Go(a), he sang such rich music that it lulled them to sleep and thrilled the trees there to blossom and bear fruit (out of season) to their wonder.]

tām padya-praṇi-gaditām tu mūrchayitvā tānānām-ucitatayādya pañcamādyāḥ 1

gandharam dyu-viṣayam-ujjvalam ṣrjanto grāmam te prajagur-akāki-kamra-kanṭhāḥ ll2

[(The gandharvas) sang in faultless voice the (laudatory) stanza (composed by the gods on Madhvācārya) setting it to the celestial gandhāra-grāma, modulating it in terms of appropriate tānas beginning with pañcama etc.]

The second verse refers, not to the musical abilities of Madhvācārya but to those of the gandharvas, who sang his praise . The first verse indicates that Madhvācārya was a

1. Nārāyaṇa, Paṇḍita-, Sumadhva-vijaya, 10.53 ; with the comm. of Chalari Seshacharya, ed. Krishnacharya, D.S., Sri Ramakrishna Dvaita-vedanta-pathashala, Bangalore, 1952

2. ibid. 16.50

VII

music performer par excellence but does not say that he was a composer. No musical composition is ascribed to him, even by tradition. The Sumadhva-vijaya contains nothing which could refute a suggestion that this verse may contain only a poetic license or hyperbole. It may be noted that the supernatural power ascribed to music here viz. thrilling plants to yield sprouts, flowers and fruits out of season is a poetic convention of which the composers of both the vyāsakūṭa and the dāsakūṭa were aware, as has been shown in the present study (pp. 181,182). This is why Madhvācārya and Narahari tīrtha have not been taken up for study in this book.

The present work is confined to the musical contributions of only those samnyāsins who ascended mādhva-pīṭhas. It is interesting to ponder that these belong to a particular, single strand of śiṣya-paramparā. Material composed by the dāsakūṭa composers such as Purandaradāsa Vijayadāsa, Jagannāthadāsa, and Helavanakatte Giriyamma is used here only for illustration, comparison or for tracing the course of evolution of a given musical form. Thus, Vijayindra tīrtha was a disciple of Vyāsarāya, as indicated above. More songs of Vijayindra tirtha than are examined here are said to be available in manuscript ; unfortunately, I did not have access to these for examination, analysis or evaluation. Rāghavendra tīrtha is Vijayindra's disciple's disciple ; only one song ascribed to his authorship is now available. He is included here only because he flourished in both Tamilnadu and Karnataka in a period which was crucial to the evolution of the vinā keyboard, and therefore of the intervallic and melodic aspects of our music. As a vainika who held an influential position in society, it is not unlikely that he participated in such evolution. The development of the vinā keyboard is discussed in this book in some detail in terms of intervals, accordaturae etc. of the times so that the melodic frames which were contemporary could be attempted for reconstruction and restoration.

VIII

The term ‘munitraya’ is applied in mādhva orthodoxy

collectively to Madhvācarya, Jayatīrtha and Vyāsarāya ; the

term ‘yatitraya’ is occasionally employed in the present

work to refer collectivel to Śipādarāya, Vyāsarāya and

Vādirāja. (orthodoxy: body of received beliefs and doctrines,

esp. in religion or theology).

‘Music of the Mādhva Monks of Karnataka’ is a new

endeavour in Indian musicology : it subjects purely

empirical (literary) material to structural analysis in al

historical method and arrives at tenable musicologicae

conclusions. So far as I am aware, this is the first book of

its kind in material and treatment. There is still an

important and urgent need to collect and collimate the

musical tradition of the vast material of the haridāsa litera

ture. I hope such a study would be taken up soon before

even the traces of such musical tradition — such as it is

today — are eroded from our musical soil by the spate of

arbitrary usage and individual fancy in musical setting or

performance.

I am very thankful to the Gnana Jyoti Kala Mandira

Bangalore,especially its President Sri D.Madhavamurthy and

Secretary Sri H. G. Ramachandra Rao for the honour

accorded to this small work by publishing it. My thanks

are due to the Director, Kannada Adhyayana Samsthe,

University of Mysore, Mysore and to Dr. T.N. Nagarathna,

Head of the Section on Research on Haridasa Literature

therein, for permission to peruse some of the songs of

Vādirāja and Prasanna Veṅkaṭadasa before publication. I

am also thankful to Messrs Udaya Ravi Printers, Mysore

for the printing and get up of this book. I apologise for

the printing errors which have crept into the book.

CONTENTS

I Introduction … 11

II Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer … 8

III Śrīpādarāya : Musical Climate … 27

IV Vyāsarāya : Musician and Composer … 42

V Tāla Reorganisation … 51

VI Vyāsarāya Vrttanāma and Gadya … 63

VII Vādirāja Musician and Composer … 71

a. Rāga and Tāla 71

b. Formal analysis 74

c. Kṛti : Structural Analysis 77

VIII Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms … 87

a. Vaikuṇṭha varṇane 87

b. Suvvālis 89

c. Lakṣmī śobhāne 91

d. Svapna gadya 94

e. Gajendramokṣa 95

f. Guṇṭa kriyā 96

g. Koravañji : South Indian Opera 98

h. Nārada koravañji 104

i. Bhramaragīta 132

j. Other Works 146

IX Vijayīndra tīrtha … 149

X Rāghavendra tīrtha … 152

a. Viṇī mela 153

b. Viṇāmela . Notation 157

c. Śuddha mela 158

d. Svayambhū principle 160

e. Key Distribution 162

f. Madhyamela Viṇā 164

g. Comparison 165

h. Pakkasārani 166

i. Other Keyboards 167

j. Hṛdaya nārāyaṇa 170,

k. Rudra Viṇā 174,

l. Modern Viṇā Keyboaid 175

XI Referen:es to Music and Dance ... 181

XII Vṛttanāma (Addendum) 184

APPENDIX

A 1. Index to Authors and Composers V

2. Index to Works IV

3. Index to Rāgas IV

4. Index to Tālas III

5. Index to Song Types III

6. Index to Songs Cited II

7. Index to Metres I

8. Index to Names III

9. Index to Geographical Names II

10. Index to Words X

B Biblography

ix

I have written ‘Music of the Mādhva Monks of Karnataka’ in the hope that it would stimulate more and

better studies in the field and that it would create an awareness and appreciation of the sustained and significant

services rendered by the Mādhva Monks of Karnataka to our music and culture.

Trayeelakshmi,

Mysore,

September 11, 1988

R. SATHYANARAYANA

THIS BOOK IS PUBLISHED

WITH THE

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

OF TTD

X

The following scheme of transliteration of the devanā

geri alphabet is adopted.

a

ā

i

u

ū

ṛ

e

ai

o

au

ṃ

ḥ

k

kh

g

gh

ṅ

ch

j

jh

ñ

ṭ

ṭh

ḍ

ḍh

ṇ

t

th

d

dh

n

p

ph

b

bh

m

y

r

l

v

ś

ṣ

s

h

ḷ

ḻ

kṣ

jñ

I INTRODUCTION

In the cultural history of India, a renaissance was inaugurated in about the 12th cent. A.C. It convoked its sources, internal and external forces and stresses, culminated into a distinct morphic entity and manifested in the South; it reached its zenith in the 15th-16th centuries. The role of the vaiṣṇava saints of Karnataka in this renaissance is major, influential, still functionally relevant, manysided.

The hoary brāhmanical religion of the vedas had in the Karnataka of the 11th-12th cent. become prey to superstition, uncritical custom, dissipated concepts and values and to over-rigid conventions as well as conformities; it had hence lost its vigor and rigor. Sinee samskṛta alone was deemed language of the gods and language fit for gods, the spiritual aspirations, religious, doctrinal and dogmatic values, philosophical enquiries and the code of conduct which were enshrined in samskpta became inaccessible to the common man who therefore receded from them. The vernacular languages were proscribed from disseminating these. Incessant Islamic invasions had eroded economic, social, religious and cultural bases in the life-style of people ; disunity and anarchy loomed large on the political scene. As a consequence, dark and heavy clouds of discontent, discord, turbulence, insecurity, bigotry, excessive prescription of conduct and morality gathered on the firmament of Karnataka ; the thunder of revolt, the lightning flashes of brilliant harmonisation, the rainstorm of re-creation became inevitable.

2

Music of Mādhva Monks

One such protestant force was the vīraśaiva religion. Its proponents protested against the prescriptions and proscriptions of the vedic religion which had grown irrational; they resented the hypocritical conduct and discrimination ushered in by the system of varṇa-āś ama, violence practised in the sacrifices etc. They drew inspiration from ārādhya-śaiva, pāśupata and various forms of śaivism which were already prevalent in Karnātaka, as also from the many schools of śaiva philosophy prevailing in Kashmir, Andhra and Tamilnadu and founded the vīra'śaivism or endowed it with a new dimension ; they beat a new, independent, eclectic path in spiritual endeavour, religious doctrine and practice, society and culture. This religion had its bases in love of all humanity, equality of all men, the sustenance and enrichment of the individual's moral and ethical conduct, dignity of earning one's living by one's own physical labour, envisioning of God and auspiciousness in everything that exists, equal respect and status for all social strata, simplified code of conduct; mystic experience gained for itself an important and prominent role in this religion.

This revolution is witnessed in the literary expression of the śivaśaraṇa-s, reflecting novelty in theme, poetic structure, style etc. Thus a song form called vacana emerged which is not set to tāla, not constrained by specific restrictions, lies structurally between prose and verse and outside the perimeter of 'classical' music-reflecting the attitude ānu olidante pāduve (I sing as I please). For the first time in a vernacular language, the vacana gave expression to introspection, self criticism, self exploration, ethics, philosophy and a code of personal and social conduct ; it became the confluence of bhāva-anubhava-anubhāva. Other musico-literary forms such as mantragopya, kālajñāna, nāmāvali, śisapadya and tattvapada as well as tripadi, ragale and kanda which emerged in their new forms in kannaḍa at this time were also sung in these times. The vīraśaiva literary productions appear to conform to an implicit convention that

Introduction

the subject matter shall not veer from śiva, śivaśaraṇa and

śaiva doctrine. The literaiy style of old kannaḍa moulted its

complexity and terseness so as to realise poetic beauty in

simple forms. Poetic beauty extended into musical forms.

Music and literature became important means in the search

for the soul ; simple devotion became important among the

pathways of worship.

By and large, vīraśaivism stood in opposition to

brāhmaṇa-religion and emerged as an explosion from it. Its

leaders felt that refutation of other faiths-especially

brāhmaṇa- was as important as defence of their own in

order to strengthen the common man's faith in it. Such

refutation often became extremist. Condemnation and

intolerance are too often the characteristic of the exuberance

of compagners of new religions. It is true that the brāhmaṇa

dharma appeared to lose its vigor and glow for about two

hundred years because of dominance of vīraśaivism. It is

equally true that brāhmaṇa dhaima gathered its forces to

meet the challenge of the aggressive rivalry and sharpness of

refutation by vīraśaivism. In a sharp reactionary movement

the brāhmaṇa dhaima was revitalised by the saints of both

vyāsakūṭa and dāsakūṭa of the newly emerging mādhava

philosophy. They reified again the hoary values of sanātana

dharma and cultuie on the anvil of contemporary relevance

in the frame of dualistic philosophy and of bhāgavata dharma;

they reinteipreted, propagated and stabilised these values.

In order to accomplish this, they preferred the aid of the

language of the people - the nonliterary, colloquial variety-

and of music. They achieved their objective in two mutually

complementary streams; a scholarly exposition in samskrta

of the doctrines of dvaita philosophy by ascetic heads of

monasteries ; popular exposition in kannaḍa of the message

of the vedas and upaniṣats transcending creed, caste or color,

using music as the medium. The learned and the lay were

alike embraced thus by them.

4

Music of Mādhva Monks

First, they replaced samskrta with kannaḍa in the 'everyday religious practice of ritual compendium, conduct and custom in the context of brāhmaṇa dharma. This was inaugurated by Naraharitīrtha in the 14th century and was firmly established in popular use in the next century by Śrīpādarāja. Second, the musical compositions of 'classical' music of the day had for their theme praise, prayer, devotion or submission to the king, patron etc. This yielded place to the praise, self offering and surrender to God. This is a characteristic of the 15th century religions in South India. The haridāsa-s and mādhva monks, viraśaiva saints such as Nijaguṇa and Sarpabhūṣaṇa, Andhra saint composers such as Tāllapākam Aṇṇamācārya, his descendents, and Bhadācala Rāmdāsa, Tamilnadu composers such as the musical trinity (Tyāgarāja, Muddusvāmi Dikṣita, Śyāmaśāstri) and a host of their śisya-paramparā took this up in the 16th-19th centuries and built up new mutual dimensions among spiritual quest, devotional literature and music. It has thousands of songs in which the sung word dominated to such an extent as to render musical aesthesis almost secondary, swelled our music. These enabled the use of music as an instrument of propagation of cultural and spiritual values, ethical and virtuous conduct.

As a consequence, vedic culture could be revitalised and carried to every nook and corner of the country. The vyāsakūṭa and dāsakūṭa composers and singers pruned music to an attractive medium so that even the common man could sing or play it without detracting from its 'classicity'. They elevated it into such a great, pervasive institution that the qualifications prescribed for a composer by saṅgitaśāstra were brushed aside so that even ordinary men and women could pour out into this musical format their poetic urges, spiritual and mystic experience etc. and sing them in glow and ecstacy. This amazing institution continues to thrill and throb with life even today. It is possible to witness the miracle of young and old persons who are not learned or skilled in the ways of the mundane world but who are intensely involved with sanātana dharma, deeply loyal to their own religious

Introduction

faith, and who live everyday the life of bhāgavata dharma-

compose ex tempore and sing many a lovely devaranāma,

ugābhoga and sulādi even in these humdrum, starkly realism-

ridden days. The rhythms, tempos, and the rāga-bhāvas

which are enshrined in such traditional, popular lore could

be a challenge, even inspiration to the 'white collar' or

high-brow musician.

Thus while the music of viraśaiva saint singers spread

and settled in a folk format against a background of religious

practices in an anibaddha (not set to tāla) form, the music of

the vaiṣṇava saint singers adopted this background in both

nibaddha (set to tāla) and anibaddha format and developed for

itself for the first time a 'classical' or 'śāstriya' format.

The royal patronage it enjoyed—except perhaps in the case

of Vyāsarāya—was little enough. At least two other facts led to

this situation: our music had developed over the centuries such

internal pressures that, it was ripe for a renaissance: the

vaiṣṇava saint singers allowed themselves to become instru-

ments of this because of their integral vision of our culture

and the role of music therein, their establishing an unbroken

line of composers and singers and their sustained propagation

of both the form and content of this music. They had acquired

high expertise in both art music and composing ; each

generation took up the work of its predecessors and conti-

nued it through proliferation of songs and consolidation

of form. They helped to erect the four pillars of our music

edifice—rāga, tāla, prameya (theory and research) and

prabandha (song) and wrought important and far-reaching

changes in each of these.

This is not to say that vernacularisation, bhakti move-

ment and bhāgavata dharma were confined to Karnataka

alone. These had taken firm roots in Tamilnadu and

Maharashtra. The mādhva ascetics and saints had assimi-

lated these traditional values and contemporary influences,

6

Music of Mādhva Monks

travelled over most of South India, settled in Karnataka

and endeavored over some five centuries to enrich the soul

of the common man in both these areas.

The way that Indian music has grown is interesting.

its foundations were laid by seers and sages ; its textual

tradition was fostered by kings, philosohers, yogis,

ministers generals, yāñikas, tāntriks ; the corpus of

compositions has come into being because of saints,

devotees, seekers of the soul ; this is not to say that

professional musicians, composers and musicologists did

not contribute to its growth ; it is they that maintained the

mainstream of music. But little of professional contribution

to śāstra and the prabahndha has remained today compared

to nonprofessional contribution

This is a peculiarity of Indian music; this is true, by

and large, even today.

Karnataka music is a case in point. It is not only the

professional music composers who have given us a wealth

of song forms, but detached ascetics, God-intoxicated

devotees, saints seeking the eternal soul, compassionate

men of God who sought to reform their fellowmen.

It is monks and savants of the mādhva faith who breathed new

life into our music and transmuted it into what is Karnataka

music today. An attempt is made here to describe

briefly the contributions of the great sannyāsins

Śrīpadarāya, Vyāsarāya, Vādirāja, Vijayindra and Ragha-

vendra Tīrtha who flourished as the pontiffs of various

mādhva maṭhas between the 15th and 17th cent. A.C as

well as the musical climate prevailing during their times.

The discussion of the musical climate surrounding these

mādhva monks will be based on data obtained strictly from

musicological treatises which were composed by kannaḍiga-s

Introduction

7

in times and regions from which the hailed so that both theory

and practice of music may be mutually conciled. Only three

songs of Narahari Tīrtha are available today. The ‘ādya-s’

of the vaiṣṇava bhakti movement in Karnataka are assumed

here to belong to a post-Śrīpādarajā period.1 Therefore

Śrīpādarājā is considered here as beginning this epoch. The

following chronological equations are adopted in this paper.

Śrīpādarājā = Kallinātha : Saṅgītakalānidhi, comm.

Śārṅgadeva, Saṅgītaratnākara

Vyāsarāya, Vādirāja = Rāmāmātya : Svaramelakalānidhi

Puṇḍarikaviṭṭhala : Sadraga-candrodaya,

Rāgamālā, Rāgamañjarī, Nartana-

nirṇaya

Vijayindra Tirtha,

Raghayendra Tirtha = Somanātha : Rāgavibodha, Govinda

Dīkṣita : Saṅgītasudhā, Veṅkaṭa

makhin: Caturdaṇḍīprakāśikā,

Mudduveṅkaṭamakhin : Rāga-

lakṣaṇam, Tulaja : Saṅgīta sāramṛtam

Somanātha is included here because of his significant

contribution to the vīṇā keyboard. Mudduveṅkaṭamakhin and

Tulaja are included here because they form a facile bridge

between the above texts and our own times.

1 Varadaraja Rao, G. (ed.), Śrīpādarājara kṛtigaḷu

introduction, pp. xiv-xviii

II. ŚRĪPĀDARĀYA : MUSICIAN-COMPOSER

Śrīpādarāya was born at Abbūru near Cannapaṭṭaṇa (c. 80 km. from Mysore City), probably spent his early days there, received initiation into sannyāsa from Svarṇavaṛṇa tīrtha at Śrīraṅgam in Tamilnadu, spent several years there, finally came to Mulubāgilu in Kolar district in Karnataka and settled there till his last days. He lived probably for 98 years (1404–1502 A.C.)2

Of the 101 songs noticed, collated from 8 palm leaf MSS, 74 paper MSS, and 30 impressi typis sources, 65 have different degrees of consensus, from a minimum of 2 to a maximum of 22 sources. Two are variants, 6 are of ambiguous authorship; 28 compiled from unique sources. Besides, 10 songs of Purandaradāsa are received in transmission as Śrīpādarāya's;3 part of one song is possibly of Jagannāthadasa MSS and 2 printed sources).4 A typological analysis of these yields 3 sulādis, 15 ugābhogas, 1 vrttanāma, one daṇḍaka, one antiphonal song; the rest are ‘padas’. The vrttanāma structure is called bhramaragīta or śṛṅgāra-pārijāta. Among the padas may be recognised the prototypes of the modern krti and jāvali; two are lullabies; besides the e types, Śrīpādarāya has also pioneered in kannaḍa and in Karnataka music venugīta (glories of the Lord's flute music), gopī-gīta (pangs of separation of the gopis and their yearning for Kṛṣṇa) and bhramaragīta (a song on the same erotic theme inspired from the Bhāgavata purāṇam5).

2 Ibid. loc. cit. p. xxxiii

3 Ibid. loc. cit. pp. lxxxiv-lxxxvii, 345–349

4 Ibid. no. 20, pp. 49-65

5 Śukamuni, Bhāgavata purāṇam, 10.47.11-28

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

9

The feregoing song types may be briefly analysed for structural characteristics and trends. The three sulādis (nos.

2, 7 and 30) have 8, 9 and 5 stanzas repectively, followed by the 'jati'. Together, they use all the sulādi tālas, but not ragaṇa maṭhya and jhoṃbaḍa; the tālas are not indicated by their laghu-jātis, thus sugge:ting that the tāla-s were employed in their chāpu forms in fast tempo. This a trend which is observed in all later sulādis. In each sulādi, the length of lines in a given stanza is approximately the same and differs from stanza to stanza, more or less parallel with the āvarta length of the tāla. In ugābhogas, the number of lines is va.iable ; in any given ugābhoga the lines may or may not be of the same or similar length.

Śrīpādarāya's daṇḍaka6 is called uddaṇḍa by him7 and is entitled Lakṣmīnr̥simha-prādurbhāva. It has for its theme the manifestation of Lord Narasimha as an incarnation of Viṣṇu at the prayer of Prahlāda. It is a metrical translation of the 8th chapter of the seventh book of Bhāgavata purāṇam with scintillating flashes of originality. It is the only daṇḍaka of its kind in kannaḍa.8 It is composed in 22 sections (kaḍavaka), 544.5 lines and 2178 five-morae prosodial (ra-gaṇa) units. Each kaḍavaka is thematically selfsufficient. The prosodial structure is very close to that of lalita ragale in kannaḍa. It is replete with a wealth of beautiful alliteration and onomatopoeia.

or Vṛttanāma is a musical form in which a metrical structure (vṛtta, sometimes also called śloka) alternates

6 Varadaraja Rao, G., op. cit. no. 23, pp.225-242

7 ibid loc.cit. ll. 537-8, p.242

8 Krishtacharya, Hulaguru-, Karnāṭaka Saṅgitavū, Dāsakūṭavū, pp. 116, 117; idhem, Haridāsasāhitya, pp. 272-276

10

Music of Mādhva Monks

with the stānza (called nāma or pada) of a song. Vṛtta and nāma together form a unit. Such units vary in number from composition to composition. The metrical form as also the pada (= nāma) structure are also variable. The vṛttanāma commences with a pallavi which may or may not be followed by anupallavi and the padas which follow are regarded as the caraṇa-s of the same song. Thus the whole vṛttanāma is one single song- a mahāprabandha, to borrow a term from Sarvajña Someśvara9 - possessing unity in both literaly and musical theme, with alternately recurring nibaddha and anibaddha segments. The entire song may have been sung in a single rāga and a single tāla ; or, it may have been sung in rāgamālikā and tālamālikā.

The vṛttanāma is a creation of Vaiṣṇava saints, probably of Śrīpādarāya himself; for, the earliest available model is his. He may have drawn inspiration from two song types which were widely known during his time in art music : vṛtta and rāgakadamba.

Vṛtta is a prabandha of ancient Indian music. It is described by Matanga in a passage, which is unfortunately full of lacunae; it states that it was composed in any one of the metrical forms: āryā, dvipatha, gāthā, jethaka, toṭaka, etc. without the restricting, specific tāla prescripticn.10 Jagadekamalla (?Jagannāthamalla?) is extracted by Ramakrishna Kavi11 to say this song is set to a tāla which is appropriate to the metre and is sung with or without svaras. Haripāladeva describes it as composed

9 Someśvara, Sarvajña-, Mānasollāya, 4.16. 192, p. 60

10 Matanga, Bṛhaddesí, 378, p. 143

11 Ramakrishna Kavi, (comp.), Bharatakośa, p. 632. Extant MSS of Jagadekamalla's Saṅgitacuḍāmaṇi do not describe vṛtta prabandha.

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

11

of pāṭa (onomatopoeic percussive syllables), tenna (auspicious syllables te and na) and birudas (laudatory words) appropriate to the subject and sung to all (or any) rāgas.12 According to Someśvara, vṛtta, is the name of a particular prosodial structure in which a ra-gaṇa is followed by a jagana three times, ending with a guru and laghu.

He offers an illustration of his own.13 Piṅgalanāga describes it as a metre in which the line is composed of ten units of guru-laghu.14 Halāyudha Bhatta offers, while commenting on the above, an illustration.15 Kedāra Bhatta describes a metrical form called vṛtta as consisting of na-gaṇa, na-gaṇa-sa-gaṇa followed by two gurus.16 His commentators Nārāyaṇa Purohita17 and Kālidāsa18 offer two illustrations.

Śārṅgadeva interprets the word in both the general and specific senses in describing the composition.19 He compiles the latter from earlier authorities (presumably Someśvara) and the former from his own preference or from Matanga ; the kanda, hayalilā, krauñcapada, āryā, gāthā, dvipatha, kalahamsa, dvipadi, toṭaka etc. prabandhas may also be designated vṛtta prabandha because they are composed in their namesake metres by prescription. Thus any four-foot metre with a definite prosodial structure

12 Haripāla deva, Saṅgītasudhākara, 5.7.63-64, p.216

13 Someśvara, Sarvajña-, op. cit. 4.16. 244,245

14 Piṅgala-nāga, Piṅgalacchandas, 7.23

15 Halāyudha Bhaṭṭa, Mṛtasañjīvani, comm. Piṅgala-nāga, cp. cit. loc. cit.

16 Kedāra Bhaṭṭa, Vṛttaratnākara, 3.12

17 Nārāyaṇa Purohita, Maṇinidhi, comm. Kedāra Bhaṭṭa, op. cit. loc. cit.

18 Kālidāsa, Śrutabodha, comm. Kedāra Bhaṭṭa, op. cit. loc. cit.

19 Śārṅgadeva, Saṅgītaratnākara. 4.246-248

12

Music of Mādhva Monks

is vṛtta according to the general sense of the teim. The

term vṛtta in vṛttnāma appears to be taken in this sense by

the composers of the mādhva tradition.

The application of tāla to this prabandha is worthy of

note. It has been noticed above that the tāla should be

appropriate to the prosody. If this means that the vṛtta is

itself set to tāla, vṛttanāma does not result; on the other,

hand, if it means that the vṛtta is sung anibaddha i.e.,

gamakālapti, then tāla is applied to other word-structured

song. This yields vṛttanāma.

The vṛtta was prescribed to be sung as follows: of its

four feet, the first and second constituted udgrāha (opening

segment); the third and fourth were together performed

as dhruva (the song-body). The ābhoga or concluding

segment was sung to (additional) words other tham in

the first two segments. According to some, solfa passages

were performed at the end of each foot o. at the ccnclusion

of the whole song; according to otheıs, there are no

such svara passage. Thus the vṛtta prabandha has three

dhātus viz. udgrāha, dhruva and ābhoga ; since it has

two aṅgas viz. pada and tāla, it is classified as a

tārāvali jāti song ; if it has svaras also, it has three aṅgas

and its jāti then becomes bhāvani. I have discussed this

prabandha elsewhere.20 From the foregoing it is clear

that in the early days of its career, the vṛtta was a metrical

form set to a rāga and to a tāla; it was interspersed with

svara passages ; it was performed in three musical

segments.

20 Sathyanarayana. R., ed. tr. comm. Puṇḍarikamālā :

Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭhala, Nartananiṛnaya, pp. 450-452

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

13

At least five other compositional forms which are based on vṛttas were known to ancient Indian music :

vṛttagandhi, vṛttadaṇḍaka, yugminī, vṛttabandhinī and vṛttamālā. Of these, vṛttagandhī is a variety of gadya prabandha ; it is admixed with verse; bhāratī vṛtti,

pāñcālī style, peaceful theme, drutamadhyā tempo and yellow complexion are prescribed for it.21 Vṛttadaṇḍaka is described by Jagadekamalla as a variety of daṇḍaka,

composed entirely of vṛttas.22 The remaining three viz.vṛttabandhinī, yugminī and vṛttamālā are varieties of the ḍeṅkī prabandha. These are composed respectively in one, two and many vṛttas. These vṛttas may be syllabic,

trisyllabic (gaṇa) or moraic. Hence they each give rise to three subvarieties called varṇikā, gaṇikā and mātrīkā. They were optionally set to ḍeṅkī tāla or kaṅkāla tāla.23

Rāgakadambā is also an ancient prabandha. It is composed of many element; viz. rāga, tāla, vṛtta, aṅgas, dhātus, prose sections, verses and rasas. There may occur in any desired order. Depending on whether the segments were 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 etc. with a corresponding number

of rāgas, tālas and vṛttas, the rāgakadambā was named haṃdyāvarta, svastika (abjapatra), abjagaṛbha, bhramara, amṛdita etc. Each egment or its part may be sung in a different rāga. Pada and tila occur constantly in every

rāgakadambā variety. Of the remaining aṅgas viz. svara bhāṭa, biruda and tena, if one, two, three or all four are also composed, (in any optional order), the prabandha is of bhāvanī, dīpanī, ānandinī ( r medinī jāti. Whatever the variety or jāti, the first half of the rāgakadambā is always

the udgrāha while the second half is the dhruva. Ābhoga is composed in additional, different words.24 This means that the words in the song were only those in the vṛtta.

21 ibid. pp. 427-431

22 ibid. p. 473

23 ibid. p. 419

24 ibid. pp. 454-456

14

Music of Mādhava Monks

Therefore the vṛttanāma is derived by Śrīpādarāya (or any one who composed it earlier) by inserting stanzas

of a kṛti between two succesive vṛttas. Four vṛttanāma compositions are known today (1) Pālisō Paṇdharipura-

rāyā.25 (2) Rakṣisu Veṅkatagirirāja of Gopāladāsa.26

(3) ‘Kelayya enna prārthane’ of Vyāsarāya.27 and

(4) ‘Mānanidhi Śrī Kṛṣṇa’ of Śrīpādarāya.28 Of these,

(1) is merely mentioned by Keshavadasa as a musical

exemplar for (3). (3) will be briefly discussed under

Vyāsarāya in the next section. (2) may be briefly described

before taking up (4).

‘Rakṣisu Veṅkataḷgirirāja’ is a vṛttanāma of Gopāladāsa.

Its rāga is not specified; it is set to aṭṭa tāla. It

commences with a pallavi of two lines which display rhyming

on the initial and final syllable. There is no anupallavi.

The pallavi is followed by vṛtta-nāma series. The vṛtta is

in śārdūlavikrīḍita metre. There are eight such vṛttas,

each followed by a nāma. The first and fourth vṛttas are in samskṛta. The rest of the composition is in kannaḍa,

it carries the composer’s signature in the last line of the

last nāma. Each nāma is in four lines, each rhyming on

the initial, final syllables as also on the final syllable

of the medial passage. It is ornate with alliteration and

euphony. The pallavi is sung as a refrain at the end of

each nāma ; only the nāma-s and not the vṛttas are set to

aṭṭa tāla, which is performed in its chāpu form. It is

possible to perform each vṛtta and nāma unit in a different

25 Kṛṣ̣tācharya, Hulaguru, Karnāṭaka Saṅgītavū

Dāsakuṭṭavū, p. 117 ; Keshavadāsa, Beluru-

Karnāṭaka Bhaktavijaya, vol. 1, p.107

26 Keshavadāsa, Belūru-, Śrī Haridāsa Sahitya

pp. 272-276

27 idhem, Karnāṭaka Bhaktavijaya, vol. 1, p. 107

28 Śrīpādarāja., op. cit. no. 43, pp. 113-123

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

15

rāga thus making it a rāgamālikā composition. The

composition rests on the pallavi line after the final nāma

is performed. Thus the vrttanāma differs in its musical

setting from that of the vrtta or the rāgakadamba.

Śrīpadarāya's vrttanāma ‘Māpanidhi ŚrīKrṣṇa’ may

now be examined against the foregoing background. It is

called ‘Śṛṅgārapārijāta’ in some MS sources appropriately,

because it has for its theme the apprehension, yearning

and pangs of love of the gopis when they learn of the

imminent departure of Kṛṣṇa to participate in the ‘bow-

festival’ at Madhurā at the behest of his uncle-king Kamsa.

This is a theme inspired by the Bhāgavata purāṇa.

The opus commences with a pallavi, followed by

anupallavi and three caraṇas. In some collative sources

pallavi and anupallavi are not separated but are together

treated as a unit under the name of ‘dhruva’, short for

‘dhruvapada’. In one instance anupallavi is called

‘upapallavi’. After the third caraṇa, there are nine vrttas,

each followed by a nāma. Both vrtta and nāma are

composed of four lines each. The line length varies

within both vrtta and nāma. None of the vrttas can be

identified with any definite metrical form because of

variation in syllabic or moraic quantity, though the

structure ra-sa-ja-na-na-sa-la (gaṇas) is faintly discernible

now and then.

The distribution of syllabic quantity in the composition

is as follows.

Nāma : pallavi 15.9 first caraṇa 15.8.16.14

anupallavi 14.15 second caraṇa 15.9.17.16

third caraṇa 18.10.16.16

16

Music of Mādhva Monks

Vṛtta

Nama

1

21. 22. 21. 21
22. 8. 14. 17

2

22. 20. 20. 16
23. 9. 15. 15

3

21. 22. 20. 20
22. 8. 16. 17

4

21. 20. 20. 18
22. 9. 14. 18

5

19. 18. 21. 20
20. 8. 16. 14

6

20. 20. 22. 19
21. 9. 16. 16

7

16. 15. 17. 15
17. 10. 15. 18

8

15. 15. 16. 15
16. 8. 15. 15

9

20. 19. 19. 20
21. 10. 17. 16

Thus the syllabic quantity averages 21 per line in the vṛtta with a tendency to slight diminution in the last line. The line length in (7) and (8) approximates to that in the nāma. A rough pattern may be discerned in the nāma-s. The first line averages some 15. The quantity of the second line is about half of the first, rounded to the next higher integer (except in (4), (6) and (9). The third and fourth lines are approximately equal to each other and to the first in length. The edition of the text of the song is based on seven more or less independent sources. Variation in both syllabic quantity and moraic distribution cannot be conciled with the name vṛtta. Perhaps ‘vṛtta’ was employed as synonym for ‘anibaddha’ here in contrast with the nāma (pada, nibaddha) parts of the song and the term came to be normalised or justified in later compositions. It may be noticed that pallavi and anupallavi together (or dhṛuvapada according to the north Karnataka exemplar, where Hindusthani music is practised and the name dhṛuvapada is appropriate to it) constitute a unit which has the same pattern as the nāmas. This is a trend which is found in other kṛti compositions of Śrīpādarāya and other vyāsakūṭa and dāsakūṭa

Śrīpadarāya : Musician-Compeser

composers also. The song has an antiphonal character

in part because while the gopis address Kṛṣṇa in every vṛtta and corresponding nāma entreating him not to leave them,

he replies in vṛtta and nāma no (7) reassuring them of his

early return. An entire song in antiphony is also composed

by Śrīpadarāya as will be noticed presently. He is thus a

pioneer in the creation of this form also.

One other vṛttanāma-the fifth-may be briefly noticed

here. This is composed by Vijayadāsa and is called

Śrī Pāṇadevara Pārijāta. It is edited by Gorābāla

Hanumantha Rao and is given in 'Śrī Vijayadāsara Pada-

gaḷu' (pt. I, pp. 65-67), published by Śrī Varadendra

Haridāsa-sāhitya-maṇḍala, Lingasugur, 1958. Its rāga is

not given; but tāla is chāpu. Its text is somewhat corrupt.

It consists of a one-line pallavi which is followed by eight

units of vṛtta (called pada). The ślokas are composed in

the śārdūla-vikrīḍita metre with considerable vowel and

consonantal accommodation. The syllabic quantity of the

lines in each padya is comparable but varies from nāma to

nāma and averages some 24 syllables : 23, 21, 22, 20; 25, 22

22, 22; 25, 24, 22, 23 ; 24, 22, 25, 25 ; 23, 23, 24, 22 ;

25, 19, 38 ; 24, 25; 23, 24 ; 25, 21, 23, 23, 16. It may

be noticed that the sixth nāma has only three lines, the

last of which may be split into two lines of 16 and 22

syllabes ; the final nāma has five lines; of these, the

last line carries the composer's signature and is to be

regarded as a seperate colophon; addendum to the song.

The śārdūla vikrīḍita lines are uniformly marked with a

caesura between the 12th.and 13th syllables. The nāma-s

are composed with abundant vādi (internal rhyme).

The song consists of a prayer to Mukhya-prāṇa for

mukti. It describes briefly the achievements of his three in

carnations viz. Hanūmān, Bhīma and Madhva and

rigorously conforms to the dogma of dvaita philosophy. It

18

Music of Mādhva Monks

also accords well with the general features of (ther vṛtta-nāmas. It is possible that the word ‘Pārijāta’ in the name

of the vṛttanāma may signify the vṛttanāma form.

Finally, the kṛtis of Śipāḍiāya merit attention

because, after Narahari Tīrtha’s two or three kṛtis, this

is the first time in the history of Karnātaka music

that as many as some 80 kṛtis are available from a

single composer. This form has received extensive

experimentation at his hands in structure and verbal

themes. It contains the seeds of nearly all later

innovations in segmentation, proportion of segments,

number of lines in each segment and their syllabic

quantity and so on. It developed naturally from the

concept of udgrāha, melāpaka and dhruva elements of

a prabandha. Dhruva is interpreted in two ways: as a

dhātu segment : it is the constant, indispensable part of

the song which cannot be omitted. It constitutes the

body of the song. It is also a segment which

constantly recurs i.e. a refrain : Thus udgrāha,

melāpaka and dhruva correspond to pallavi, anupallavi

and caraṇa in a kṛti. In the sense of recurrence,

pallavi is both udgrāha and dhruva ; thus recurrence of

a refrain after each of a number of segments results,

This yields a kṛti with pallavi and a number of

caraṇas, the music of which may or may not recur.

If it does, a song of the kind of divyanāma

saṅkīrtana results. This is realised in the devaranāma-

like padaṡ of Narahari Tīrtha and his successors in

which the anupallavi does not occur. If the music

does not recur i.e. if each caraṇa is performed to a

different dhātu of the same (or different) rāga, a song

of the type of Pañcaratna of Tyāgarāja results. If the

caraṇa is missing and there is only the anupallavi,

this is the prototype of the samaṣṭi-caraṇa-kṛti type of

Muddusvāmi Dikṣita. Rarely, as in the case of aṣṭapadi

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

or Tyāgarāja's pañcaratna kṛti in ārabhi rāga

(sādhincene'), the anupallavi (melāpaka) performs the

recurrent function of the dhruva.

The pallavi-caraṇa/s structure of the kṛti was so well

established by Śrīpādarāya that the kṛti structure became

settled by the early 16th cent. A.C. so that Annamācārya

describes it in his Saṅkīrtanalakṣaṇamu29.

Another significant contribution of Śrīpādarāya to

the kṛti structure is its differentiation through verbal

content. Sturcture remaining the same, it was called

kṛti if its words spoke of a religious, spriritual, moral,

social, narrative etc. subject. (This is again subdivided

somewhat artificially in recent days into kīrtana which

contains the praise of God and kṛti which bespeaks of

other themes). If it contains a theme of erotic love,

it came to called, in the 17th cent. A.C., pada or

jāvali. The former describes the sublimated, subtile

shades of vipralambha śṛṅgāra, set to slow tempo in a

serious, rakti rāga. The latter describes the physical,

overt love set to middle tempo in sakti or deśya

rāga30. The foundations of both are laid by Śrīpādarāya

in some of his songs31, especially his gopī gitas.

Śrīpadarāya has inaugurated through the self same

frame of kṛti, Kannada song types called venugīta

29 Annamācārya, Saṅkīrtanalakṣaṇamu, extr. Sathya-

narayana, R., Karnāṭakadalli kale : Saṅgīta, pt.1,

pp. 151-152

30 For a detailed discussion of pada and jāvalī, see

Sathyanarayana, R. ; Karnāṭaka Saṅgītāvāhini,

pp. 380-390

31 Śrīpādarāya, op. cit. nos. 13, 16, 17, 32, 39, 43

55; Unique Exemplar, nos. 2, 10 etc.

(flute-song)32 and bhramaragita (bee-song)33 which became prototypes of numerous songs composed by later Vaiṣṇava saints, These were inspired from brief descriptions in the Bhāgavata purāṇa of the glories of Kṛṣṇa's flute playing and of the bee-incident34. These seven songs of Śīpādarāya may be regarded as forming an opus in themselves because of thematic affiliation. This 'kelidyā kautukavan' (no. 16) recoids a monologue/dialogue of gopis in which they pour out their apprehension and pangs of separation at the news of Kṛṣṇa's impending departure to Mathura. In 'mananidhi śīkṛṣṇa' (no. 43) they go to Kṛṣṇa in a group to confirm the rumour ; they express their hungry love for him and fear that he may forget them and their love in the pleasures of Madhura. Kṛṣṇa allays their fears and promises to return to them at the earliest. 'tele ni madhurege' (Unique Exemplars ibid. no. 13) reiterates their apprehensions and requests for early return ; it adduces evidences from Kṛṣṇa's exploits which feed their doubts and apprehension. When he leaves for Madhura and does not return, the gopis sing their sorrow and blame the ill fate which tore him away from them in the song 'vidhige dayavillavakka' (no. 52) ; 'had we but wings, we would fain fly to him'. After some time Kṛṣṇa sends his friend Uddhava to Vṛndā to bring back news of the wellbeing of his (foster) parents (and beloved gopis ?). On beholding him, the gopis burst forth into a vociferous expression

32 Ibid. nos. 12, 17

33 Ibid. nos. 39, 51

34 Vide foot note no. 5

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

21

of their fond memories of and yearning for Kṛṣṇa in

the beautiful sulādi ‘I vanadeegalāṭi‘ (no. 7). Finally,

the song ‘bhrṅgā ninnaṭṭidane‘ (no. 39) is the famous

‘bhramaragīta‘ (the bee-song). The gopis see a bee

(flitting among flowērs) and imagine it to be a messen-

ger from Kṛṣṇa ; they plead with it to convey to him

their undying love and yearning.

Three further instances of the pioneering brilliance

of Śrīpādarāya deserve at lea t a brief mention here ;

for, these served as excellent models for succeeding

generations of Vaiṣṇava composers in Kannada. Also,

they represnt the first systematic attempt by a

composer to expand the repertorie of classical Karnataka

music with materials drawn from folkmusic and stage

music. The first two aie lullabies fashioned after

folksongs (no. 5, 21, 50). Each consists of a two - line

pallavi, and two-line anupallavi followed by four-line

caraṇas (7 and 27 iespectively). The first has dāsava-

tāra for its theme ; both describe the cradle-swinging

of the infant Lord by gods and goddesses.

The third song ‘kuñja netre śubha mañjuḷa gātre‘

(no. 13) is of special historical interest. It is an anti-

phony, consisting of a dispute in dialogue between

Rukmiṇī and Satyabhamā as to who enjoys the better

love of Kṛṣṇa. It has a two-line pallavi followed by

17 four-line caraṇas. The lines are of approximately

equal syllabic content, rhyming on the second syllable.

This is undoubtedly a 1evival by Śrīpādarāya of an

ancient prabandha of Indian music viz. śukasārikā.

Mataṅga describes, almost 1300 yeas ago, the

śukasārikā as a song composed of pada (words), pāṭa

(onomatopoeic instrumental syllables), and of questions

and answers or dialogue which are set to Kannada

22

Music of Mādhva Monks

(or Lāṭa) or an admixture. It is set to two tālas35.

Nānyadeva concurs with this description and adds that

the song has many verse feet36. This agrees with the

description of Someśvara III who adds that the

dialogue may be in prose or verse and contributes a

lovely illustration of his own37. Somarājadeva limits

his description of śukasārikā to words of dialogue in

Kannada or Lāṭa. Pārśvadeva's aphoristic description

mentions its components as pada, pāṭa and tāla38.

Haripāladeva endorses the descriptions of Mataṅga and

Someśvara; he adds that the song is set to any

suitable rāga and that its concluding section should be

performed to two spans of the tāla39. Jagadekamalla

concurs with this; he further prescribes that the pāṭas

should be composed at the end (of each caraṇa)40.

Thus the abovementioned song of Śrīpādarāya should be

sung as follows: The dialogue verses of Rukmiṇī

should be sung in one single rāga and single tāla,

those of Satyabhāmā, in a different contrasting rāga

and tāla. The two-lines of the pallavi should be

composed respectively in the e two rāgas and tālas so

as to offer the necessary transition through refrain.

Each caraṇa should conclude in a jati passage on mrdaṅga

35 Mataṅga, op. at. 410-411, pp. 144-145

36 Nānyadeva, Sarasvati-hrdayālaṅkāra, Ms. in

Śrī Vāralakshmi Academies of Fine Arts, Mysore,

Vol. 2, p.421

37 Someśvara, Sarvajña-, op. cit. 4. 16. 326-329,

pp. 36, 37

38 Pārśvadeva, Saṅgītasamayasāra, 4.32, p.26

39 Haripāladeva, op. cit. 5.7. 162

40 Jagadekamalla, op. cit. Ms. in Sri Varalakshmi

Academies of Fine Arts, Mysore

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

23

or other percussive or a sollukaṭṭu on the voice. I

have attemṛted such reconstruction of this song in part

elsewhere41. It is not unlikely that the śukasārikā and

Śrīpādarāya's above song are inspired by the stage.

The kŗti may now be studied for structure with

special reference to Śrīpādarāya since his contribution is

crucial to the evolution of this form. It has been indi-

cated above that this form has been logically created

by Narahari Tīrtha and the succeeding composers of

vyāsakūṭa and dāsakūṭa by interpreting

the dhruva element of prabandha dhātu as both body

and refrain, thus deriving its main variant structures. In

fact, the term ‘dhruva’ as the dhātu element meaning

refrain (pallavi) is found in many collative sources in

the apparatus criticus of Śrīpādarāya's songs (nos. 15, 20,

28, 34, 36, 37, 39, 44, 52, 58, 59 ; Unique Exemplar :

4, 9). It is significant that these sources hail from

northern parts of Karnataka.

Thus the kŗti has a pallavi and caranas, corres-

ponding to udgrāha and dhruva. The melipaka corres-

ponding to anupallavi has played a citical role in the

diversification of the kŗti form. In its absence the

kŗti is dvidhātuka prabandha, with two aṅgas viz. pada

and tāla. When it has anupallavi, the kŗti is tridhā-

tuka ; it has the same aṅgas and may be classifed in

the tārāvali jāti. Some kŗtis came, in course of time

to include pāṭa, biḷuda and svara, especially those of

Purandaradasa. The inclusion or omission of anupallavi

is quite in conformity with tradition and convention

41 Sathyanarayana, R., Beru-Meru : Musical feature

broadcast from A.I.R., Bangalore on May 18, 1981.

This also features a lullaby (no. 50) described

above.

24

Music of Mādhva Monks

that the dhātu elements which could be optionally omitted are melapaka and abhoga. in this order of preference. These trends may be clearly distinguished in Śrīpada-rāya’s kṛti-songs. Thus the anupallavi is unambiguously present in his following songs : nos. 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 21, 29, 31, 32, 41, 48, 53, 55, 56 ; Variants, no. 2; Ambiguous Signature, no. 6 ; Unique Exemplar: nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12-15, 19-22., 26. The anupallavi is unambiguously omitted in the following song nos : 6, 11, 13, 15, 27, 42, 44, 46, 57, 60. Unique Exemplar: 1, 4, 9, 11, 24, 25.

The use of anupallavi is sometimes ambiguous ; that is, when it is absent in the vulgate, the pallavi lines are decomposed into pallavi and anupallavi in a section of the collative sources. When pallavi and anupallavi are both present in the vulgate, they are reconstituted or fused into only the pallavi in a section of the critical apparatus. This is noticed in song nos. 5, 9, 10, 17, 19, 22, 23, 24, 26, 35-39, 41, 43, 45, 47, 49-52, 58, 59, 61 ; Ambiguous Signature: 6. Examples of this include 2 pallavi (p) lines decomposed into 1 p and 1 a (anupallavi) ; 4p = 2p+2a ; 3 p =1p + 2a ; 7p = 3p+4a42.

The caraṇas occur always in odd number, there are rare exceptions to this rule in later kṛti composers. In Śrīpāda-rāya’s kṛtis the caraṇa number ranges through 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 17, 23, and 27 (30). By and large, the caraṇa is made of couplets or quatrains, though caraṇas with 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12 and even 16 lines are also occasionally found.

42 Abbreviations used in this and following sections : p-pallavi, a-anupallavi, c-caraṇa; l-normal length of line in a song of the composer under consideration; s-short (c.half ‘l’) ; Vl-very long (c.1.5 l or more), Vs-very short (c. 0.25 ‘l’ or less); AS-appendix containing songs of Ambiguous Signature; UE-appendix containing songs from Unique Exemplars ; V= Variant Text.

Śrīpādarāya : Musician-Composer

25

The wide range of quantitative experiments which Śrīpādarāya has conducted may be summarised thus : the

first number indicates the lines per carana and the second, the number of caranas in the song. Those in brackets

indicate song numbers listed by Dr. Varadaraja Rac43. 2-3 (6,33, 37, 56, AS3, UE 24) 2-5 (17, 34, 46, 54, UE 25) 2-7

(23, 26); 2-9 (54V); 2-10 (54V), 4-3 (3, 8, 9, 9, 10 etc.); 4-5

(2, 4, 5 11 etc.); 4-7 (21, 51); 4-11 (36), 4-17 (13), 4-23 (50),

4-27/30 or 4-37/40 (20), 5-5 (53), 6-3 (16, 59), 7-3 (35),

8-3 (UE 10, 15), 8-5 (AS 8), 8-9 (39), 8-11 (47), 9-3 (49),

10-3 (UE 2), 12-3 (UE 12), 16-3 (UE.19).

Next, the quantitative relationships p-a-c in teims of number of lines therein may be briefly considered in Śrī

pādarāya's kṛti songs. In the notation used here the first, second and third numbers refer to those in pallavi, anu-

pallavi and carana iespectively (the number of lines in every carana is the same in a given kṛti) while those in

brackets refer to the song numbers in the source cited. Thus, 1-0-4 (15), 1-1-2 (54, 56, AS 3), 1-1-4 (1, 3, 4, 8, 48,

52), 1-1-6 (59), 1-2-4 (UE-14), 1-2-5 (53), 1-4-6 (16), 2-0-2

(17, 23, 26, 33, 37, AS 3, 24, 25), 2-0-4 (5, 6, 9, 10, 11, 13,

19, 20, 22, 27, 28, 35, 36, 38, 42, 44, 50, 51, 57, 58, 60),

2-1-4 (32), 2-2-2 (34), 2-2-4 (21, 24, 29, 31, 33, 41, 43, 50, 55, 61),

2-2-8 (47, AS 6), 3-0-4 (45), 3-0-9 (49), 3-4-7 (35) 4-0-2 (46),

4-0-4 (4), 4-0-8 (39, 47, AS 6). It is seen that the composer has preferred 2-0-4, 2-2-4, 2-0-2, and 1-1-4 combinations in

the decreasing order of frequency. It is found that both experimental models and preferred models are taken up by

later composers of both vyāsakūṭa and dasakūṭa such as Vādirāja, Puṇḍarīkadāsa, Gopāladāsa, Mahipatidāsa, Vijaya-

dāsa, Jagannāthadāsa, Praṇṇa Veṅkaṭadāsa and others.

One more quantitative analysis of Śrīpādarāya's songs would help in revealing trends in structure; this is in reference

43 Vide foo:note no. 1

26

Music of Mādhva Monks

to syllabic quantity per line in p-a-c. This is expressed in

relative rather than absolute values so that form may be

related to structure in a general way. For this purpose the

notation indicated in footnote 42 is used here ; ‘l’ is here

the length of the line (related to syllabic quantity) which is

normal or appropriate to the particular composition and is

roughly the mean of the syllabic quantities or lengths of all

its lines. Since these are musical compositions, it is

assumed that the composer has arrived at ‘l’ with due

consideration to the extent of the tāla āvarta and to the laya

(tempo) in which the song is intended to be performed. This

does not necessarily reflect the intention of the composer for

these songs are not transmitted in the original dhātu to which

he had set the song. However, the rāga-tāla ascriptions are

traditional, plausible in terms of contemporaneity and are

based on chronological seniority of the source materials.

In any case, the songs are received in both musical and

textual transmissions ; therefore ‘l’ would have received

the two considerations of tāla āvarta and laya at the hands

of the performers, if not the original composer. Therefore

‘l’ and its derived quantites are not entirely arbitrary in

their choice or definition.

Thus, many krtis of Śrīpādarāya reveal 1-1-1 structure

(e.g. 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 13, 17, 21, 26, 27, 34) within fairly

narrow limits. However, there are many interesting models

which differ from such uniform syllabic distribution. Some

of these are : p+a=c (35, 43, UE 20), Vs—O—Vs (UE 14),

1-1-V1 (UE 26), s-1-1 (31) ; caranas of some krtis conform to

a definite pattern : lsls ....... (11, 18, 19, A S6, UE 2, 10, 13,

21), lsll (8, 43, 45, 49, 57, 61, 62, UE 1, 3), lslslll (12),

lslsllsl111111 (19). Such structural models are stablised and

others innovated by subsequent composers in Karnataka,

Andhra and Tamilnadu by proliferation.

3. ŚRĪPĀDARĀYA : MUSICAL CLIMATE

We shall now proceed to consider briefly the musical environment in which Śrīpadarāya sang and composed.

Śrī Vidyāranya founded not only the empire of Karnataka but the empire of Karnataka music as well. He laid the foundations on which Karnataka music began to be built in the 15th century. This is reflected in theory by Kallinātha and in practice by Śrīpadarāya and other musician-composers of the age, who were contemporaries and flourished in the same region,

The 15th cent A.C. was critical in the history of the Vijayanagara empire-that is, South India ; several native and foreign cultural influences and circumstances had confluenced therein : a classical tradition derived from Śārṅgadeva, and Gopālanāyaka, who flourished under the patronage of the Yādava rulers Jaitrasimha, Simhaṇa and Harapāla ; Śrī Vidyāranya ; another stream of music from the Vaiṣṇava saints and savants who broke through the prestigious usages of samskrta and mārga saṅgīta, led by Śrīpadarāya, Vyāsarāya etc ; the patronage and promotion which their deśī music secured from kings and the people ; the gentle but firm influences of exotic music from the neighḃouring Bahmani kingdoms, the distance Mughal empire, Persia, Afghanistan, Poitugal etc ; and an Indian music which had developed internal stresses, the dead weight of fossilized and archaic conventions and p.escriptions - which had grown just ripe for a conceptual and pragmatic change.

There were major changes in three areas of our music at this time : rāga, tāla and prabandha.

A revolutionary, fundamental change in rāga was the replacement of grāma with mela. Madhyamagrāma lost its functional relevance and merged its identity into the ṣadjagrāma. Several corollaries followed : dual tonicity

28

Music of Mādhva Monks

had changed to ṣaḍja exclusively, so that the music now gravitated to, and only to, this lowest note of the scale.

All the functions of madhyama grāma and its paraphernalia were now accommodated in the ṣaḍjagrāma itself. Every melodic structure derived from the forme. had these characteristics : it invariably commenced on madhyama ; the 3- śruti pañcama served as tiitone, and the 4 - śruti dhaivata which distinguished it fiom ṣaḍjagrāma had to be inevitably employed so as to retain its character. This pañcama was further diminished by a śruti - from the 16th to the 15th and served to represent its ma-grāma analogue but as a modification of madhyama. Hence it was ramed prati(nidhi) madhyama. Madhyama now lost its nonomissibility (avirāśitva) and gained modification by expression at the following, not precedent śrutis. Thus it became a 6-śruti interval.

This was but part of cn extensive scalic reorganisation. Originally, ga and ni cculd function as two- or four śruti intervals under the svara sādhāraṇa technique and were proscribed from a 3-sruti value. These were called sādhāraṇa gāndhāra and kaiśikī niṣāda ; thus ṣaḍja and madhyama also could assume three śruti intervals for the first time. Also, consecutive intervals (ni-sa, ga-ma) could each have 3 śrutis ; ri and dha could be modified only by expression at the subsequent śrutis. For the first time, they had 5 - śruti inteivals. The grāma system had defined only 3 kinds of intervals viz. of 2, 3 and 4 śrutis. It became possible now to have intervals of 5 and 6 śrutis also. Indeed, this centuiy was witness to an experiment with 4 śrutis for ri and dha also.

Because the ma-grāma became obsolescent, the relationship of sa-ma invariance was transferied to sa-pa in consonance with the chara.cter of sa-grāma. Indeed, no part of the scale was left untouched.

Foundations for two revolutionary principles for musical intervals in the scale were laid at this time. These were the principles of representation (pratinidhi tattva) and

Śrīpadarāya : Musical Climate

29

alternative denomination. Because intervallic magnitude was liberated from the restriction of a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 śrutis and was expanded through a range of 1 to 6 śrutis, overlap became possible; that is a single expressive śruti position could be occupied by either of a pair of consecutive note; depending on the context. This came to be known as the pairyāya tattva. Because of the principle of representation, it became possible for a note to represent its next higher semitonal value. Because the minimum and maximum size of the intervals were revised to 1 and 6 śrutis respectively, concepts of consonance and dissonance underwent a drastic change44.

The principle of svara modification was made uniform viz. displacement from a standard (defined) position (called śuddha) to the first, second, third (or even fourth) śruti. The scale now had seven śuddha and seven vikṛta (modified) notes. Therefore, except antara gāndhāra and kākali niṣāda which were lower by one śruti than their analogues of today, all other note positions were aligned into their present state. Musical intervals came to be reckoned for the first time in relation to the reference pitch:ādhāraśruti. Hence drone instrument - the tambūri - was developed to provide the reference pitch for the entirety of music, the melodic body of which was aligned to a structural homogeneity. The tambūri is mentioned for the first time in its career by Śrīpadarāya in one of his songs (no. 54). It is also mentioned in two inscriptions of the Vijayanagara period45, and represented in a sculpture46 belonging to the same period.

44. Kallinatha, Sangeetakalānidhi, comm. Sārṅgadeva, op. cit. 2. 159, p.115 ; for detailed discussion see Sathyanarayana, R., Karnāṭaka Saṅgitavāhini, pp. 130-157

45. Epigraphia Carnatica, 8, Sb. 379

46. Saletore, R.N. Vijanagara Art, p. 237

30

Music of Madhva Monks

It is of course, mentioned by many subsequent vaiṣṇava composers such as Vyāsarāya, Vādirāja, Purandaradasa, Kanakadāsa etc. It may be recalled that Śrīpādarāya is described by Vyāsarāya in his Śrīpādarājastaka as having been honoured by the Vijanaga ruler Saluva Narasimha47.

The tambūrī brought with it the structural alignment of the corpus of all rāgas to ṣaḍjagrāma i.e. to the tonicity of ṣaḍja ; this ṣaḍja became their graha, amśa and nyāsa. This means that even the rāgas originally affiliated to madhyamagrāma now commenced on sa of the middle register ; an interesting relic of this grāma is the tuning of the tambūrī to madhyama śruti with ma as reference pitch to accommodate high pitched voices and the performance of some rāgas like punnāgavarāḷi and maniṟaṅgu48.

No holograph of the songs of Śrīpādarāya (nor of any of the composers considered here) being available, it is not possible to say to what rāgas and tālas he (or they) had set the songs generally or specifically. However, the melas and their janya rāgas as described by Śrī Vidyāranya in his Saṅgitasāra and again described by Govinda Dikṣita49 must have been in vogue in Śrīpādarāya's time and place. Govinda Dikṣita seems to have preserved Vidyāranyamata in its original purity in rāgalakṣaṇa, for he resentfully criticises the views of 'moderners' such as Rāmāmātya. Therefore the following 15 melas and their 50 janya rāgas of Vidyāraṇya are likely to have been employed by Śrīpāda rāya for his songs. These are :

47. Keśavadasa, Beluru-, Karṇāṭaka Bhaktavijaya, vol. 1, p.25

48. For a detailed discussion, see Sathyanarayana, R., op. cit. pp. 134-157

49. Govinda Dikṣita, Saṅgītasudhā(nidhi), 2. 413ff. pp.152 ff.

Śrīpadarāya : Musical Climate

31

1. natta 2. gurjarī 3. saurāṣṭra 4. mecabaulī

2. chāyāgaula 6. guṇakriyā 7. sālaganāṭi 8. śuddha-

vasanta 9. nādaṭāmakriyā 10. gaula 11. baulī 12. kar-

ṇāṭabangāla 13. lalita 14. malahari 15. pāḍi 16. sāveri

17. revagupti 18 varāḷi 19 śrī 20. sālagabhairavi

18. ghaṇṭārava 22. velāvali 23. devagāndhāri 24. ītigaula

19. mīlavaśi 26. madhyamaḍi 27. dhanāśi 28. bhairavi

20. jayantasena 30. bhinnasaḍjā 31. hindolavasanta 32. hindola

21. bhūpāla 34. śaṅkarābharaṇa 35. ārabhi 36. pūrva-

gaula 37. nāāyaṇi 38. nāāyaṇadeśākṣi 39. āhari

40. ābheri 41. vasantabhairavi 42. sāmaṇṭa 43. kannaḍagaula

41. kāmbodi 45. mukhāri 46. śuddharāmakriyā 47. keḍāra-

gaula 48. nāāyaṇagaula 49. hejjujji and 50. deśākṣi

In the foregoing a mela is shown in italics. Its janya rāgas follow in roman script. These are discussed in some detail elsewhere50 and need not be repeated he:e. Śrī Vidyāraṇya inaugurated the mela in Indian music. This developed into an interesting synonym viz. janaka-janya :elationship between the mela and its constituent rāga ; thus there was a conceptual shift from grouping to derivation in the classification of rāgas as indicated by Kallinātha : ‘iti janya-janaka-yor - melanabhedo ras di- viniyogāniyamaś - ceti lakṣya-lakṣaṇayor bahudhā vrodh‘51.

In conclusion, three rāgas occuıring in a song (no.50) of Śrīpadarāya may be mentioned viz. kalyāṇi, ānanda-

bhairavi and devagāndhāri. The text of this song is collated from two printed and two manuscript sources. The editor acknowledges that he has la:gely depended on the printed sources since the MSS are incomplete and generally unsatisfactory. He seems to feel that the transmitted text is not reliable. He is right, at least in so far as the names of these three ragas are concerned. For, they are apocryphal.

50. Sathyanarayana, R., op. cit. pp. 77-121

51. Kallinātha, op. cit., loc. cit.

Ānandabhairavi is mentioned for the first time by Tulaja in his Saṅgītasārāmṛta (p. 104) in the 18th cent. Kalyāṇi is mentioned for the first time by Puṇḍarika Viṭṭhala in the 16th cent. in Sadrāgacandrodaya (2. 49-50) as a mela and in Rāgamañjari (3.1.200) as a janya rāga. Devagāndhāra is an ancient rāga. Therefore it is probable that this is a case of apocryphal signature and must be assigned to the late 17th or early 18th cent. A.C. Hence these rāgas need not be discussed here.

Next, we may examine the musical environment in respect of tālas. It has been mentioned above that Śrīpādarāya has used the seven sulādi tālas viz, dhruva, mathya, rūpaka, jhampā, tripuṭa, aṭṭa and eka -exclusively for all of his songs, Three facts may be noticed in this connection. 1) in none of the songs is any tāla specified in respect of its laghujāti. 2) ādi tala is used as an entity independent of tripuṭa tala 3) ragaṇa maṭhya and jhombada tālas are not used. Two possibilities may be considered: 1) tālas were assigned by the composer himself 2) they are the products of usage by later perfomers, received by oralh textual transmission. This second possibility seems more reasonable as much as in the case ofrāga usages for the songs in the matter of specific application. That is, it cannot be asserted that Śrīpadarāya composed a given song in this or that rāga and tāla. But since only sulādi tālas are used without exception in all lines of transmission to the exclusion of every other kind of tāla such as mārga, deśī, saṅkara, miśra, khaṇḍa, marma, bhaṅga, urupu etc, which were undoubtedly in vogue during his days, we must assume his preference of these tālas to all others. He is thus indisputably the pioneer in bringing about the revolutionary change in the tālas of Karnataka music52.

52. Only two songs of Narahari Tirtha are available but no sulādis.

Śrīpadarāya : Musical Climate

33

Thus it may be inferred that Śrīpadarāya applied

the totality of sulādi tālas to the totality of his songs.

The absence of laghujāti prescription shows that this

concept had not yet operated in the tālas of this time

and that each tāla was used with an exclusively the

same and only laghujāti e. g. jhampā tāla in miśra laghu,

aṭṭa in khaṇḍa laghu, tripuṭa in triśra laghu, and the

rest in caturaśra laghu. It is also probable that they

were employed, especially in sulādis, in their chāpu

forms. Ādi and eka tālas had, in their deśi forms a

laghu and a druta for their ānga respectively. In their

sulādi forms however, they have laghu, druta, druta and

a druta, druta and laghu for their āngas respectively. The jhombaḍa tāla had

jhombaḍa was transformed to the present āditāla by

inversion, and that the jhombaḍa itself was constituted

from one āvarta (span) of the deśi āditāla and two

āvartas of the deśi ekatāla, and that the deśi āditāla was

synonimised with the sulādi ekatāla. Because of its rena-

scence from the deśi to the sulādi fold, āditāla was re-

tained in the beginning as an independent entity. It is

only in about the 17-18th cent. when the jāti as a

tālaprāṇa matured into universal application that āditāla

merged into tripuṭa tāla as a variety. It will be shown

presently that the comprehension of the conceptual and

empirical totality of tāla through collimation into the

daśaprāṇa principle emerged at the very place and time

in which Śrīpadarāya lived and worked.

The vyāsakuṭa and dīsakuṭa composers were moti-

vated to ring in drastic changes in the tāla aspect of

our music by the utter confusion, duplication, irregula-

rity and anarchy which pievailed in the world of deśī

talas. Their contribution will be discussed in Section

(VI). It suffices here to say that the variability of the dura-

tion of the laghu and consequently of the guru, pluta

34

Music of Mādhva Monks

and kākapāda, the impractically fractional durations

which the virāma introduced into the tāla āvarta, fancy,

whim or caprice which replaced creative genius in

formulation of new tālas etc. led to the existence of a large

number of tālas with the same name but different structures,

same structures but different names and same structures

but different durations etc.53

It is interesting that the very first attempt to bring

system and science to this melange came from the self-

same Muḷabāgalu where Śāradarāya lived and composed.

This is found in Tāladīpikā of Sāluva Gopatiippendra

who was the viceroy of Devarāya II at Muḷabāgalu;

his grandfather Sāluva Tippa had married Harima,

elder sister of Devarāya II. It is under this Devarāya's

patronage that Kallinātha wrote his commentary

Sangītakaḷānidhi on Sārngadeva's Sangītaratnākara.

Gopatiippendra records his awarenes of the proliferation of

(duplicate) tāla structures ( to which he himself contributes

as many as 220 !). Gopatiippa (which is colloquial

deterioratiion of the samkrta Gopatripurahara ) intro-

dues the concept of tāla daśapāṇa for the first known

time at the end of the second chapter of Tāladīpikā :

kālamargakriyāngani graho jatiḥ kalā layah

yatiḥ prastārakas-ceti tālaprānāḥ das-eritāḥ54

We shall conclude this section on Śāradarāya with

a brief study of the state of musical compositions in

his time. Indian music had, by the end of the 13th

cent. A.C. developed a huge repertoire in number

and variety. Some 75 song forms had bred more than

4,200 subvarieties; prolifiration had gone wild as in

tāla and rāga. The va rity in these is quite impressive.

It catered to a broad spectrum of taste and requiirement.

53. Kallinātha, op. cit. on op. cit. 5. 254–260,

pp. 139–142

54. Gopa Tippendra, Tāladīpikā, MS. copy in Sri

Varalakshmi Academies of Fine Arts, Mysore

Śrīpadarāya : Musical Climate

35

Thus there were songs which were delimited by specific restriction in rāga, tāla, chandas, rasa and language (niryukta) and those which were so unrestricted (aniryukta), but simply retained the traditional or conventional character in words (mātu) and music (dhātu). There were very short songs such as dvipathaka, dvipadi, tripadi and harṣavardhamāna; also lengthy ones like rāgakadamba, elā. Songs set to tāla, songs without tīla, songs set to tāla but containing gamakālapti passages; songs sung only to prosodial structures without tāla; songs set to a single rāga and single tāla, songs set to a garland of rāgas but to a single tāla; songs set to a single rāga but to a garland of tālas; songs in both rāgamālikā and tīlamālikā, songs in a series of prosodial forms (vrttamālikā) set a single rāga; songs in parallel but connected garlands of rāga, tāla and vrtta (rāga-tāla-vrtta-mālikā)etc. were sung in our music. In fact, Kallinātha records the instance of a rāgakadamba variety called āmredita which was composed by Gopālanāyaka ( in the 13th century ) which featured 64 caraṇas (stanzas), each of which was performed in a different rāga and a different tāla and a different vrtta.55

Time-honored or ‘classical’ compositions such as the suddha sūḍas (e. g. the elā, dhenki or karaṇa)were performed in a music recital; metrical forms like tripadi and ṣaṭpadi were also featured. The musical repertoire included songs meant for special occasions and festivals e. g. the spring festival, holi etc., and didactic songs which exhorted the listeners to detachment and spiritual quest e. g. caccakīl; songs for rituals, celebrations and ceremonies such as for wedding, or victory when dhavalā-varieties were in demand; songs to suit special occasions for particular religious faiths : e. g. maṅgala and mangalācāra. Folk song forms such as ovi, danti, dhollāri, lolli, each segment of which concluded with a refrain of the namesake word were available. There were songs to accompany daily chores like

55. Kallinātha, op. cit. on op. cit. 4. 255. p. 305

36

Music of Mādhva Monks

corn-pounding, grinding or threshing, for narrating heroic exploits, pastoral pastime etc; also songs to stimulate valour in battles (rāhaḍi, vīaśri), laudation of great achievements (kīrtidhavala). There were songs in prose without prosody or rhyme (gadya), songs without segmentation; songs with many segments (bramara), songs with onomato poetic instrumental syllables (pancabhangi); songs in which a literary/poetic theme, descriptive theme or a narrative (story) theme was predominant.56

These and other songs were composed in samskrta, kannaḍa, telugu, tamil, līṭa etc. Also a special language called bhanḍīra with its own autonomy of grammar and vocabulary was developed for music compositions. This is an apabhramśa form of samskrta and employs nonsensie syllables such as tuma, kuma, aya, iya, tiya, voyi, re-amva etc. Bhanḍīra songs of Someśvara III Viṭhalimātya Lakṣminārāyaṇa, Vyāsarāya, Purandaradāsa, Veṅkaṭamakhin, Mudduveṅkaṭamakhin, Paiḍāla Gurumūrti Śāstri and others are preserved even today.

It is a sad mystery that this huge wealth, gathered over several centuries disappeared almost unaccountably in just about three hundred years. There is an inexplicable chasm in the history of our music between oral and textual transmissions in which the old submerged and the new emerged. None of the musical treatises composed after the 14th cent. - with the notable exceptions of Punḍarika Viṭṭhala's Nartananiṛnaya and Bhāvabhaṭṭa's Anūpa Saṅgītaiatnākara and Annamācārya's Saṅkīrtana lakṣaṇam - describes even a single song form which held sway on the concert platform or in popular usage of the times, such as the krti, sulādi, vrttanāma, ugābhoga, pada, jāvali, vaṅpa, tillāna, aṣṭapadi, daru and many forms which were employed in the classical

56. Punḍarīka Viṭṭhala, Nartana-niṛnaya, 3. 2. 54-329; also see, Sathyanarayana, R., comm. in Punḍarīkamāla, p. 418

Śrīpādarāya : Musical Climate

37

or folk theatre from about the 15th to the 19th cent.

A.C. The chapter on rāga in Tulaja's Saṅgītasārāmṛta where illustrative passages from numerous contemporary musical forms is a happy exception; but its chapter on prabandha is strangely barren of such material!

It is in this context that a study of the song types composed by the vyāsakuṭa-dasakūṭa savants should be taken up. Mention is already made of the possible derivation of the kṛti form and vṛttanāma by Śrīpādarāya. The nascent state of these forms is indicated by the diverse trends and directions as well as them etastable condition revealed by them in Sripādarāya's compositions.

The emergence of the sulādi and ugābhoga as two distinct entities from the sālagasūḍa prabandha is discused by me elsewhere.57 Since the very first availabie sulādis and ugābhogas are of Śīpādarāya; he must have pioneered this change.

Such splitting was but the culmination of disintegrating stresses which were building up within the sālagasūḍa to a climax in the 15th cent. This is reflected in the writings of Kallinātha.58 The very first and structurally the most massive and elaborate of the sālaga sūḍa viz. the dhruva prabandha reveals these symptoms in the 14th-15th centuries. According to Rāgārnava 59, it had evolved into uttama, madhyama and kanisṭha varieties with 6,5 and 4 component lines respectively. Uttama was obtained by adding another line to the ābhoga in the standaid dhruva prabandha (which had 3 lines

57. Sathyanarayana,R., Sulādis and Ugābhogas of Karnāṭaka Music, pp. 68-74

58. Kallinātha, op. cit. on op. cit. 4. 314-316, pp. 336-340

59. ?, Rāgārnava, extr. Śārṅgadhara, Śārṅgadhara paddhati, 1966-1975, pp. 293 - 294 et seq.

of udgrāha, the third line also functioning as dhruva dhātu; and two lines of ābhoga) so that it now had three lines of udgrāha and thiee of ābhoga. Its udgrāha was also altered by inserting a gamakalapti into its third (dhruva) line. The last line of the uttama dhruva (or the third ābhoga line) contained the composer's signature and was sung in a higher key and in gamakālapti. The madhyama dhruvaka conformed to the standard dhruva: its 5 lines were divided into 3 - udgrāha and 2-ābhoga lines, but the final line contained the composer's signature and was sung in a higher key. The kaniṣṭha had only 2 -instead of 3 - lines in udgrāha as also in ābhoga. The second and fourth lines were sung in a slightly higher key and the latter incorporated the composer's signature. Prescription of syllabic content (varnaniyama) was rendered more elastic to mean word content (padaniyama) if there could be no conformity to the former. Even when varṇa niyama had to be rigidly followed, it was delimited only to the first two lines. The importance of the dhruva prabandha is brought out by Śārṅgadhaṛa who says that a gīta (i. e. sālagasūḍa song) without dhruvaka is like knowledge without wisdom, contemplation without harmony with the soul, gift without sincerity. Similarly, Sudh kālaśa likens such a gīta to a lake without water.

Kallinātha delineates vividly the fluid state of the sālagasūḍa. Varṇaniyama was no longer followed in any of the sixteen dhruva varieties; the order of udgrāha etc. was arbitrarily changed; tālas applied to them were drawn from heterogeneous sources; therefore even though many of them were shown under different names, they had the same temporal and rhythmic structure. The sālagasūḍas no longer conformed to prescriptions of akṣara, tāla, rasa and dhātu elements etc. Therefore they had begun to lose their

60. Sudhākalaśa, Saṅgitopanisat-saroddhāra, 1.51, p.9

Śrīpādarāya : Musical Climate

39

tructural and formal identity. Such violation of prescriptive

authority had extended from the dhruva to mantha

and other songs of the sālagasūḍa class. Kallinātha defends

their nominal and formal retention by arguing that they

might have lost the power to bestow indirect or unseen-

fruits (adrṣṭaphala) such as auspiciousness, affluence, longe-

vity etc. because of such nonconformity; they may have

even lost their distinctive identity as musical forms; but

hey still retain their most important, directly perceptible

fruit viz. popular appeal.

The sālagasūḍa underwent three major changes during it

transformation into the sulādi: the first was thematic. Unti

now they could be composed on practically any subject

ranging from kāma to mokṣa; but from the 15th cent. onwards

they were written to express love of God or to exhort

he common man to higher social, moral or cultural

values. The second change was in the tālas; the sālaga-

sūḍa prabandhas employed only deśī tālas, whereas the

sulādīs employed only the seven sulādī tālas viz. dhruva,

maṭhya, rūpaka. etc. This transition occurred in three

phases: i) selection of simple and short deśī tāla struc-

tures and their fixation in āṅga with respect to number,

order and type of accent in the tāla-āvarta: preference was

given to such a tāla or tālas if they were already used

in the corresponding sālaga sūḍa prabandha. Such tāla,

after -due processing if any, was named after the praban

dha itself; hence it acquired the name suliḍi tāla.

ii) rendering these tālas unambiguous, comprehensive

and adequate by giving them a form in which all rhythmic

requirement; of current and potential music (or dance)

practice could be accommodated. Two opposite qualities

had to be conferred on them: enough rigidity to

give them identity and stability; and enough elasticity

to accommodate additions and subtractions necessitated

by changes in aesthetic requirements and conventions

of present and future generations. iii) the development

40

Music of Mādhva Monks

of a single, uniform scheme by which these tālas could

be applied, coordinated, stabilised, and propagated in

contemporary musical practice. These phraes as well as

the methodological principles will bediscussed in section

(V). The third change was formal in which plurality

was transformed into a single, continuous, coherent form.

This was made possible by providing the three basic

unities-unity in theme, unity in mood and unity in musical

i. e. melodic and rhythmic structure. This was done by

prescribing a sequence suited to the particular requirements

of the song and a rhythmic contiguity during transition

which ensured coheence and continuity. In other words,

seven different prabandhas were now strung together

as stanzas of a single song. This was accomplished

by offering them a recurient melodic pattern; in other

words, a rigidly prescribed form which had the strength

and potentiality of generating a tradition. This last

seems to have been strictly safeguarded in vaiṣṇava

monasteries till comparatively recent times but owing

to sociocultural changes now sweeping through our society,

it is unfortunately becoming extinct.

The sulādi had grown strong, proliferated and stabi-

lised to such an extent that in the 16th century, two

further changes were introduced in its form; enlarge-

ment and athetisation. Athetisation was carried out in

respect of an appendage of other associated prabandhas

such as kanda and vrtta which the sālaḷa sūda had in-

herited; enlaigement by the addition of two more

prabandhas viz. yati and jhumari in the form of stanzas;

in the 17th cent. they were changed to jhompaja and

ragaṇa mathya; yati was retained as a concluding appen-

dage under the name 'jati' 61

61. For details, see Sathyanarayana, R., op. cit.

pp. 21-26

Śrīpadarāya : Musical Climate

41

A fourth change was nominal. In the 16th-17th cent, the

suladis were separated from the generality of song and

was given the special distinguishing name 'gita' as contrasted with prabandha, The sulādi was so important and

integral a part of karnataka music that they formed one

of the four supporting pillars viz. caturdandi. I have discussed elsewhere how the term gita underwent another and

final change in connotation in our music.62

It remains to mention that the three sulādis of Śrī-

padarāya employ only the seven sulādi tālas; of these the

first (no. 2)falls beyond the classificatory scheme proposed

by me elsewhere,63 the second (no, 7) in class IV and the

third (no. 30) into I b roughly. The name sulādi or

gita does not appeal to have been used by him for

this composition, though in the next hundred years

the term gīta is definitely associated with this form

by Rāmāmātya,64 while Purandasadāsa has unambigu-

ously used the name sulādi at the same time 65 and by

Prasanna Venkaṭadāsa in the 17th cent. contemporaneously with Venkaṭamakhin.67

62. idhem. Karnātaka Sāgīta-vāhini, pp. 271-277;

idhem, Karnātakadaḷi Kalegaḷu: Saṅgīta,

pt. 1, pp. 114

63. idhem. Suladis and Ugābhogas of Karnāṭaka

Music, pp. 36-39

64. Rāmāmātya, Svaramelakalānidhi. 5. 6. p. 29

65. Purandaradāsa, Kr̥ti : Vāsudevana nāmāvaliya

kīrtiyahu in Purandara Sahitya Darśana,

vol, 1, p. 119

66. Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa' Kr̥ti : Tande Purandara

dāśara smarisuve, in ibid, vol. ii, no. 6, p. 78

67. Veṅkaṭamakhin, Caturdaṇḍi prakaśikā; 3. 111

IV VYĀSARĀYA : MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER

Śrī Vidyāranya laid the foundations of Karnatak music; Vyāsarāya came some 250 years later and helped build its edifice. He was a genius of many parts; he was an austere ascetic amid the pomp and pageantry of Kṛṣṇadeva rāya's royal court; he served the cause of the dvaita faith in both ways: he addressed dialectical scholarly works for the polemic; he propagated the simple tenets of the faith among the laicity through melodious short songs in their own colloquial language; he transcended frequently the confines of his own philosophical and religious outlook and taught enduring human values.

Vyāsarāya spearheaded a true renaissance in music. He was a sturdy bridge between elitist (classical) music and the people's music. Some songs of art music such as the Śrīvardhana prabandha are available in manuscript sources; a few panegyric songs composed by Veṅkaṭa mantri (son of Bhañjāru Lakṣminārāyaṇa) and others describing Vyāsarāya as abhinavabharata muni, saṅgītā-gama, a veritable Tumburu, Nārada and Dattila in music etc. are preserved in old manuscripts. Early in the 18th cent. Tulaja praises him as a renowned saṅgitavidyā-sampṛadāya pravartaka, (renowned promoter of the ancient tradition of musical learning) 'vidyāsimhāsanādhyakṣah (sovereign of the throne of vidyā [nagara?], kalpana-caturānana (veritaka, (fourfaced creator-god Brahmā in musical composition) and illustrates Vyāsa rāya's song

Vyāsaṭāya : Musician and Composer

43

biginning with words ‘jayakarmāṭadhāra’ for the ancient Śrīvardhana prabandha in the rāga nāṭi. He refers to

Vyāsaṭāya as ‘vyāsapācāryo eva asmat-pūrvācāryo ‘tjiviśrutaḥ’

i.e. a very famous precedent authority in music.60 Thus he

is described by both contemporary composers and a later

musicologist as being both an authority and composer of

prabandhas of traditional, elitist music. The suffix ‘-appa’

indicates that he was fondly and respectfully referred to

Vyāsappa-ācārya ; this is in agreement with similar popular

usage of his times e.g. Rāmappa (for Rāmāmātya),

Kallappa (for Kallinātha); (both of whom were also

‘abhinava bharata muni’-s), Kanakappa (Kanakanāyaka),

Sinappa nāyaka, Varadappa nāyaka, Veṅkaṭappa nāyaka

(Veṅkāṭadri), Acyutappa (Acyutarāja), Timmappa

(Timmarasa) etc. etc.

Vyāsaṭāya witnessed, and contributed to, the acme of

music in the Vijayanagara empire. Devarāya II, Acyutarāya

Krṣṇadevarāya and Veṅkāṭadri nāyaka etc. of Vijayanagara

were themselves highly proficient musicians, musicologists,

and patrons. Under their patronage flourished and wrote

such brilliant musicologist - composers like Rāmāmatya,

Viṭṭhalāmātya, Bhaṇḍāru Lakṣmīnārāyaṇa, Puṇḍarīka

Viṭṭhala was another great musicologist of this time.

Tāllapakam Annamācārya was a prolific composer from

Andhra ; so also Nijaguṇa Śivayogi from Karnataka.

Vyāsaṭāya attracted to himself such brilliant disciples as

Puranadaradasa, Vādirāja and Kanakadāsa who stabilised

and expanded Karnataka music through their prolific com-

positions. He founded two schools for promotion of

dvaíta philosophy and literature-the vyāsakūṭa and dasakūṭa.

Perhaps the most enduring contribution of Vyāsaṭāya is

the development of music for the people, instead of music

69. Tulaja, Saṅgītasāramṛta, 12, p. 158

44

Music of Mādhva Monks

for the kings or the elite, through his own songs and the songs of his disciples. So, this contribution of his will be examined here in some detail. This study suffers from the lack of critically edited source materials-and as is common with early composers, lack of mātu or dhātu in holograph.

Some 110 songs of Vyāsarāya are analysed in this study; they are obtained from three sources : Keśavadāsa (K) Hanumantha Rao (H) and Kāvyapremi (Kp)70, the last has yielded 85 krtis (pada), 7 sulādis and 10 ugābhogas ; the first offers a vrttanāma, the second, 12 sulādis, some of which occur in the last also, with some significant musical variants.71 The krti (pada) format includes gopi-gitas which later came to be called jāvalis (nos. 50-2, 86, 88, 89, 91, 95-1), venuḡitas (92, 93, 95-2, 98) and one Uddhava-gita which is part of a bhramaragita complex (102). Both format and theme are inspirations from and follow-ups of the analogues from Śrīpādarāya. It is quite probable that Vyāsarāya has composed other songs which may be classified in the bhramaragita complex corresponding to those of Śrīpādarāya (nos. 7, 13, 16, 32, 39, 43) and will come to light when more of his songs are discovered, because it is in the 15th–16th cent. that the cult of Kṛṣṇa-bhakti reached its zenith in both North and South India ; Vyāsarāya was undoubtedly its leader in South India in the 16th cent. The treatment of the krti (pada) form by the yatitraya viz. Śrīpadarāya (S), Vyāsarāya (Vr) and Vādirāja (Vd) will be studied for growth and trends through a comparative, quantitative and structural analysis in a following section.

It is convenient to take up a similar study of the sulādis composed by the above ascetic triad here. Each sulādi of

70. Keshavadasa, Beluru-, op.cit., Hanumantha Rao, Gorābaja–Haridāsara pada–sulādigalu ; Kāvyapremi, Vyāsarāyara Hāḍugalu.

71. References to songs in this source (Kp) are to page numbers.

Vyāsarāya : Musician and Composer

45

the respective composer is indicated in brackets by its serial number occuring in the respective source. Variant names for rāga and tāla offered by the respective apparatus criticus are shown in brackets. Each tāla-name is abbreviated into its initial letter. Rāgas and tālas supplied conjecturally are shown by asterisk.

Rāgas ascribed to these suladis may now be examined. Three suladis of S are known : nāṭi (pantuvarāli) (2) bhairavi*** (7) and sāraṅga (30). G and Kp have together offered thirteen suladis of Vr in which rāgas are ascribed to only six : nāṭi (1, 10, 12), bhūpali (9), pantuvarāli (11) and sāraṅga (13). Ten suladis of Vd are noticed. Of these one (UE 91) has no specific rāga ascription. Rāgas used for the others are nīlambari (bhairavi) (6), pantuvarāli (UE4, 30), varāli (UE 126) and sāveri (UE2 -5). Rāga is conjecturally supplied for four suladis of Vd : māyāmālava gaula* (32, 151) mohana* (UE 127) and pahāḍi* (ES 5). The antiquity (earliest mention) and evolution of these rāgas are described by me elsewhere: nāṭi (naṭṭa) c 5th cent., bhairavi c.10th-11th cent., bhūpāli c.15th cent. sāraṅga 16th cent.,

72. Dhruva-d, maṭhya-m, rūpaka-r, jhampā-j, tripuṭa-t, aṭṭa-a, eka-e, ādi-A, jati-y

73. conjecturally supplied by the present writer.

74. From Nāgaratna, T.N. (ed.), Śrī Vādirājara Kṛtigaḷu

75. By Vijayaraghavan, B.S., ibid. pp. xxxxvi-xxxxvii

76. Sathyanarayana, R., Karnāṭaka Saṅgīta Vāhinī pp. 207-209

77. ibid. pp.91-92

78. idhem. Viṇālakṣaṇa-vimarśe, p.177

79. ibid. pp. 221-236

46

Music of Mādhva Monks

pantuvarāli 17th cent.,80 nīlāmbari c.1700,81 varāli (varāḷi) c. 5th cent,82 sāveri (sāvati) 11-12th cent83. The name māyāmālava gouda occurs for the first time in the 18th cent.84

Both name and form evolved from mālavagauḍa which Śārṅgadeva equates with turuṣkagauḍa.85 (13th cent); the latter is described by Jagadekamalla, c. 115088. Mohana occurs for the first time in the late 17th or early 18th cent.87

while pahaḍi (pāḍi) occurs in the 15th-16th cent.88 for the first time.

Vijayaraghavan's conjectural supply of tāla names is anachronistic ; in any event, since no holograph of the dhātu or mātu of any of these composers is available, it has to be concluded that all the above rāgas, notwithstanding the great antiquity of some and the comparatively recent origin of some, were used by performers rather than by the original composers and therefore represent a living, popular tradition.

The sequences of tālas occurring in the above sulādis may now be examined:

S 2) dmt(r)r(j)ajatey

7. dmtra(d)j(r)e(j)j(r)e(A)

8. d(r)mr(t)ae(A)y

80. idhem. Karnāṭaka Saṅgitavāhini, p.306

81. idhem. Viṇālakṣaṇa-Vimarśe, pp. 153-154

82. Mataṅga, op. cit., p.129

83. Sathyanarayana, R., Viṇālakṣaṇa - Vimarśe, pp. 313-321

84. ibid. pp. 151-152

85. Śārṅgadeva, op. cit. 6.769, p. 383

86. Jagadekamalla, op.cit. loc cit.

87. Sathyanarayana, R., Viṇālakṣaṇa-Vimarśe, pp. 182-184

88. idhem. Karnāṭaka Saṅgitavāhini, p8.4

Vyāsarāya : Musician and Composer

47

Vr 1)89 dmrjjtaey

2. dmrjtaey

3. dmraey

4. dmrjey

5. dmtaetry

6. dmrtaAey

7. dmrjtaey

8. dmt(j)a(t)ey

9. dmrtey

10. dmtaey

11. dmtaAy

12. dmrjtaAy

13. dmtaAy

Vd (6) d(j)m(a)t(d,j)rj(t)A(a,e,t)e(A)a(t)A(j)r

(a,e,m)y

32. dmdjratey

33. dmrjtaey

UE 4) dmtrjraaAy

UE 30) dmrjtaaAy

UE 91) dmr*(jA)taAey

UE 126) dmtjtaAy

UE 127) (dmtjrae)*y

ES 5) (dm)*tajtae

UE 2-5) dmrtjaAy

Since the number of sulādis available is small, the validity or generality of inferences which may be drawn from them would not be high. Bearing this in mind, a few observations may be made. Occurrence of variant tālas indicates that the composer's original prescription or assignment or sequence was not always followed by performers ; i.e. the niryukta character of the sulādi was eroded.

89. Numbers correspond to those in G.

48

Music of Mādhva Monks

This is reflected in Kallinātha's comment as mentioned

above.90 This supports further his statement that the word-

text of the sulādi no longer conformed to rules prescribed in

respect of number of syllables or words per line, as seen in

the variable application of tālas to the same stanza. Some

collative sources indeed do not contain tāla names for one or

more stanzas in the same sulādis. Thus it is not possible to

unequivocally determine the original tāla ascription for these

sulādis by the composer. However, there is a general and

rough compatibility in the relative line-lengths i.e. syllabic

quantity of the stanzas and the corresponding tālāvarta

in most of these sulādis.

The sulādi emerged form sālagasūḍa prabandha which

was prescribed in respect of sequence of its components. It

retained this sequence by and large during its transition in

the 15th-16th cent: This is reflected in Vr (1, 2, 7, 12), Vd

(151). The order is maintained more or less even if one or

more tālas do not occur in the song e.g. S (30), Vr (3, 4, 6,

8, 9, 10, 11, 13), Vd (UE 30). As indicated above, prescrip-

tional authority had begun to erode and new trends were

beginning to emerge. One such trend was some liberty

taken in the sequence e.g. S (2, 7), Vd (32; UE 4, UE 126).

Theoretical texts are silent as to whether each constituent

prabandha among the sālagasūḍas should be necessarily used

and if used, only once in a single sulādi. No examples of

sālaga sūḍa prabandhas are now available; hence it is not

possible to resolve this silence in terms of contemporary

musical practice. It is clear however, that when the sālagas

sūḍas transited into the sulādi, the composers of the latter

assumed the liberty to omit one or more of the constituent

prabandhas and to repeat one or more of them; as a

corollary, this omission or repetition applied to the

90. Vide footnote no. 158

Vyāsarāya : Musician and Composer

49

corresponding tālas. Instances of such omission are found

in S (30), V (3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13), Vd (UE 126).

Examples of repetition are S (2,7), Vd (6, 32, UE 126, Es-5).

There are two interesting cases of successive repetition : Vd

(UE 4, UE 30). It is further interesting that repetition is

restricted to ‘t’ as in S(2), V (5), Vd (UE 126), ‘a’ Vd (UE

4, UE 30), and ‘A’ (Vd 6). Successive repetition may be

discounted as they are esthetically poor and since they occur

in unique exemplars. Other repetitions are fairly distant in

a single song and may be esthetically tolerated.

The next observation refers to the use of āditāla (A).

This tāla was derived as an inversion of jhompaṭa tāla

which was constituted from druta, druta and laghu. This

existed as a deśi tāla viz. dvitiya. When the laghu jāti

concept was uniformly applied to the sulādi tālas, this

merged into caturaśrājāti tripuṭa tāla. Its name i.e. ‘ādi-

tāla was ratiocinated in two ways : it could be considered as

formed from the name sake deśi tāla to which two ekatāla

units were added ; also, it was employed as the first tāla to

which the beginner was introduced in the abhyāsagāna in

Karnataka music. Again, the jhompaṭa tāla probably

derived its name from the namesake parent śuddha sūda

prabandha which was prescribed to be sung to one of six

tālas: gārugi, dvitiya, tritiya, niḥśāru, pratimaṇṭha and

ekatāla according to Someśvara91 and to one of the

following ten tālas according to Śārṅgadeva92 niḥsaru,

kuḍukka, tripuṭa, pratimaṇṭha, dvitiya, gārugi, rāsa,

yatilagna, āḍatāli, eka. The jhompaṭa(-ḍa) prabandha

was known after the name of the respective tāla. Of these,

dvitiya jhompaṭa and a variety of maṛhya called ragana-

maṛhya were admitted into the sulādi complex so that the

91. Someśvara, Sarvajña-, op. cit. 4. 16. 537-538, p.80

92. Śārṅgadeva, op. cit. 4. 166, 167. p.260

50

Music of Mādhva Monks

prabandhas as well as talas were nine in the sulādis.93 It is

noteworthy that the sulidis of the haridāsas are conspicuous

by the absence of jhompaṭa tāla and that āditāla is used

instead. (A few manuscript sources reveal the use of

ragaṇa maṭhya tala also). Thus 'A' is used doubtfully in S,

but increasingly in Vr and Vd. This reflects an important

change which was occurring in the times viz. introduction

of the laghujāti concept and reorganisation of tāla

structures. It may also be noted that 'A' occurs almost

always terminally (or occasionally penultimately) and

replaces 'e'. This is probably because the āvarta span of

the ekatāla is too short and has no distinguishing rhythmic

(or 'beat') personality of its own.

93. Veṅkaṭamakhin, op cit. 3, 111-113

V TĀLA REORGANISATION

It is now opportune to examine the contribution of

haridāsas in general and of the yatitraya in particular to the

evolution in tāla which swept over Karnataka music at this

time. These changes were profound and farreaching.

Hindustani music, influenced by Persian music, employed

the tabla as the tāla expounding instrument through the

concept of theka which enunciated the organisation of the

āvarta in terms of accentuation. This became a differenti-

ating and enduring feature of Hindustani music. It is

characteristic of Karnataka music that it rang in all the

transformations strictly within the limits of tradition and

thus retained historical continuity.

That classical Indian music had the same, uniform,

single tāla system before the 14th cent. may be inferred

from music and dance treatises of the period. Tāla may be

defined as a temporal device which performs the following

functions : it measures out sāgita i.e. singing, instru-

mentation and dancing in time; it quantitatively deter-

mines and fixes these agglutinative arts in terms of duration

of their elemental events: thus it is a time matrix for them ;

it provides unity of performance through simultaneity i.e.

several performers may execute the same event at the same

moment; each event may be exactly located against a

continuously fluent temporal background through conti-

nuity; this tāla resolves the linearity of time into these two

dimensions. The measuring unit is a spirally recurrent

(āvarta) constant span of time, the quantity of which-

neither too long nor too short-is determined by aesthetic

and technical exigencies : the span is divided into 'organs'

(avayava, ańga) by constantly placed accents or beats

52

Music of Mādhva Monks

(ghāta or pāta); because of its continuity, the tāla measures and fixes not only an event, but also silences or pauses in music and dance; it bestows spatiotemporal unity on the fluent corpus of melody and on the fluent corpus of formal kinematics in dancing, it also provides a temporal foil to the song or dance through a constantly and uniformly recurring rhythmic background against which a predetermined or ex tempore cross-rhythmic theme, inherent in music or dance or independent, may be compared or contrasted; it confers convergence, direction and stability on the intrinsic and extrinsic rhythmic content of song or dance.

Tālas were classified as mārga or deśi in ancient Indian music. The former were five viz. caccatputa, cācaputa, udghattā, satpitāputra and sampakveśaka; these were regarded as the archetypes of all other tālas - collectively called deśi-which were derived or generated from them. The mārga tālas were constituted only from three angas viz. laghu, guru and pluta which were inspired from, and corresponded to their prosodial, namesake analogues. The deśi tālas had three more besides these viz. viāma, druta and nihśabda (= kākapāda or hamsapāda). Of these, druta was defined with a duration of half that of the laghu and laghu of five short syllables. Guru, pluta and nihśabda had double, triple and quadruple durations of the laghu respectively. The deśi tālas were formed by various permutations and combinations as well as different numbers of these. By dividing each unitary duration of the āvarta (pādabhāga) into three, four and five parts, techniques of triple (tiyaśra), quadruple (caturaśra) and quintuple (khaṇḍa) times became possible. The quantity of the tāla span (āvarta) could be expanded or contracted through the prāṇas (vital aspects) kāla, kalā and mārga. The constituent organs (aṅga) of the tāla were marked by sounded (saśabda) and silent (nihśabda) manual acts (kriyā). The

Tala Reorganisation

53

commencing position of the melody line in the tāla-āvarta was marked by graha. The overall pace of the tāla, determined by the quantity or mātrā of each unit (pādabhāga) of the tala was defined as laya. The temporal pattern emerging from the inherent distribution of the angas was defined as yati. The scheme of tabulating all possible permutations of angas to yield together the same total time span of a given tālāvarta or an anga thereof was known as prastāra. Laghu, which determined the durations of the guru and pluta, was rigidly assigned a duration of five short syllables in mārga tālas; the number of deśi tālas was not fixed; indeed, they numbered several hundreds in the haridāsa-age in Karnataka music and were still proliferating. Laghu still determined the quantity of the āvarta because guru, pluta and nihśabda were defined relative to it, but its quantity was variable; there were three kinds of laghus with durations of four, five and six syllables respectively in practice in deśi tālas. The virāma was defined with half the duration of the anga preceding it; therefore its quantity was also relative and often, was of inconvenient fractions.

This then, is briefly the conceptual and empirical material which the mādhva saints inherited from their musical forebears. The endless permutative possibilities and extensive practice had yielded a huge crop of deśi tālas; paradoxically these very reasons for their prolifi:ity also tolled the knell of their dissipation. For, excessive proliferation and excessive usage led to excessive permissiveness and consequently to insecurity, slackness, anarchy and disorganisation in tāla. The yatitraya and their haridāsa disciples guided our music with vision, wisdom and brilliance in these critical times and conferred on it direction and destination in practice ; musicologists of Karnataka and from Karnataka stabilised and authenticated it in theory. Their main contributions may be briefly listed here.

54

Music of Mādhva Monks

1. They replaced hundreds of deśī tālas obtaining wide usage with only nine or ten tālas. In this, their genius lies in the fact that the latter were not of their own creation, but were derived from an earlier parallel tradition; they constructed necessary theoretical parameters, refined them with adequate methodology and established them with revised names and revised forms. They used three sources for this purpose : i. The revised forms or names were not unknown to practice or theory ; even as long ago as in the 12th cent. Hāripaladeva94 mentions them. That these were well known in Karnataka is proved from references to them by the Kannada poets Aggala,95 Pālkuriki Somanātha,96 Candraśekhara,97 Bāhubali98 etc. ii. Folk music and metrical structures had already contained time measures such as ragaṇa maṭhya, kuru (= tuṛupu = are) jhampe, tivude etc. The haridāsas refined them theoretically and brought them into the fold of art music. iii. These tālas were already prescribed for sālagasūḍa prabandhas from early times. The haridāsas transformed these tālas into sulādi tālas and the prabandhas into sulādis. For this purpose they adopted the tālas which were then already in wide usage viz. pratimaṭhya, baddhāpaṇa = āḍḍa = tripuṭa, yatilagna, jhampā, dvitīya = turaṇga, kuḍukka = prati = varṇayati and eka = ādi and adapted them with minor changes; these were established in different names and slightly different forms. It should be noted that in order to achieve this, sometimes both name and form had to be exchanged.

2. Hāripaladeva, op. cit. 5.184-200

3. Aggaḷa, Candrāpiḍha-purāṇam, 15. 52, 72

4. Somanātha, Pāḷkuriki-, Paṇḍitārādhya Caitramu, Parvata-prakaraṇamu, pp.446,447,449

5. Candraśekhara, Pampāsthāna-vaṛṇanam, 74, p.27

6. Bāhubali, Ṇagakumāracaritam, 22.98

Tāla Reorganisation

2. Further changes were introduced in the concept of deśī, and in the ānga, technique and method of tāla. Many tālas such as vijaya, darpaṇa, caccatī were called deśī but were never associated with folk music ; they were deśī only to the extent that they were different from caccatputa etc. just as all musical material which we now regard as classical was defined as deśī by Matanga. But the tāla complex erected by the haridāsas was truly deśī in origin ; the haridāsas not only endowed them with a 'classical' status but stabilised them to the exclusion of all other tālas which had come down in use over hundreds of years in art music. This was indeed a significant contribution.

Musicians and musicologists of the haridāsa-age athetised guru, pluta and nihśabda from contemporary tāla practice and retained only druta and laghu. Guru and pluta commenced on a single sounded beat and their relatively longer durations had to be executed without the prop of intermediate kriyā-s; kākapāda, indeed, had to sustain the duration of four laghus through only nihśabda kriyās. These were neither useful to, nor compatible with ordinary contemporrary melodic usage. The guru however, was at once completely cut off but was retained at first for sometime in nātya dandī dhruvatāla. Since they adopted, adapted or retained only such tālas in which no ānga was longer in duration than the laghu, they lent themselves readily to universal, popular use.

3. It is at this time that the laghu was revised and reorganised. Its variable value of the durations of four or five or six short syllables in deśī tāla practice was fixed at the constant value of four syllables uniformly in all tālas. This provided a natural rhythmic base of quadruple movement so that the entire corpus of melody gained uniformity, convergence and balance. This standard value has remained in usage even today.

4. Before the standardisation of the laghu, musical practice in respect of tāla was rampant with confusion and inconsistency. Even from merely theoretical descriptions, it could be seen that the tālas jhañjuka, āḍḍa, and vaikunda (a variety of niḥśāru) all had the same structure viz. two drutas and two laghus; similarly, darpaṇa-madana-makaranda, niḥsaru-hamsalīlā-hamsa, jayasīla--kamala, udikṣaṇa-saundara - sagana mantha, dhenki-vaiṇamantha, karuṇa-amara, tribhaṅgi-satilila, kriḍa-nanda, śaṅkha-prati, maṅgalābhairava-pratimatha, kāntā-rati, kalapa-vicāra, tṛtīya -- antarikriḍa, vaṅpabhinna -- rājamṛgaṅka, abhaṅga--utsava, vijaya-dvitīya etc. revealed only a nominal, but no structual difference. Differences in them were in termṡ of relative duarations because the laghu and hence the other aṅgas had different sizes. When the mṛga tālas became obsolescent, their laghu of five syllables also disappeared. With this also disappeared the arbitrariness of the laghu-size in deṡi tālas. Hence the quantitative differences between the above tālas disappeared, leaving only norminal differences. In such a state of confusion and inconsistency, the practical exponents, led by the haridāsas obviated such tālas and hence their ambiguity and incon-sistency, and in their place established a simple, compre-hensive, compact and logical tāla system.

5. The standardisation of laghu led to the standardisa-tion of druta also. Defined with half the duration of laghu, use of druta led to very complex values for the tāla āvarta which were impracticable in actual musical practice; with the standardisation of laghu into four syllables, this difficulty was removed ; further, the druta was defined with a duration of two short syllables as an independent aṅga in its own right. The excessiveness of the number of laghus and drutas in deṡi tālas was now avoided, limiting each of them to a minimum of one and maximum of three. Thus the āvarta value became viable, neither too long nor too short.

Tāla Reorganisation

57

6. In the early days the position and scope of the

virāma were indefinite and ambiguous. All ancient autho-

rities have described the virāma but have not offered it the

status of a separate tāla-ańga; by and large, it was

regarded as of the form of pause occurring ofter the kriyā of

a given ańga. It lacked ghāta or silent manual acts such as

āvāpa and had no independent existence. It could be

suffixed to every ańga and assumed, as indicated above,

half the duration of the latter. Therefore both the ańgas

and the āvarta could assume alternative values ; thus with

the same set of ańgas, the āvarta could take various values

by adding the required number of virāmas ; also it was

possible to resolve similar or same tāla structures into

different entities by adding an adequate number of virāmas

arbitrarily or by design at appropriate positions. Thus

when suffixed to druta, laghu, guru, pluta and nihśabda,

it assumed 0.25, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 times the value of the laghu

respectively ; when the laghu came to be standardised into

a value of four short syllables (akṣara) and thus equated

with the mātra, these values were 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 akṣaras

respectively.

Even though tālas were endowed with variety, vari-

ability in duration and differentiability, these very reasons

resulted in uncontrolled proliferation of tāla structures

because of whimsically or capriciously designed order and

number of ańgas; thus the virāma became a curse instead of

a boon ; many an impracticable tāla was created through

or only because of, permutative possibilities. Some effort was

also made at this time to elevate the virāma into an ańga.

The brilliant acumen displayed by the haridāsas and

other musicians of this age in this context is admirable :

when the laghu is standardised with a value of four

syllables, druta-virāma assumes a duration of one syllable.

This was now given an independent status and named 'anu

(antu-)druta' ; when it thus became 'an ańga, it was

58

Music of Madhva Monks

performed with the saśabda kriyā of a ghāta. This auto-

niḥśabda in deśī-tālas ; for if the virāma were retained, the

āvartas of tālas such as dvitīya and tritīya would involve

complex, residual time fractions, thus rendering their

performance both complicated, imprecise and unbalanced,

ending up with a viṣama yati. Therefore its use was

necessarily limited to druta and laghu. In fact, the notion

of tripuṭa tāla arose fiom such considerations : its structure

was inaugurated as druta-virāma, druta, druta. When the

virāma was transfermed into anudruta, the beats (ghāta)

now had syllabic durations of 2, 1, 2, 2-since the laghu

was prescibed with a value of four short syllables.

Jhampā tāla also commenced its career with the structure

druta-virāma, laghu, druta, druta, anudruta, laghu. But

when tālas had to commence with a laghu by conventional

rule (exception : rūpaka tāla), the initial drutavirāma of

tripuṭa tāla was naturally transformed into a laghu of a

duration of three short syllables. This was facilitated with

the application of the laghujāti concept to tālas. Similarly,

jhampā tāla was transformed into laghu, anudruta and

druta. An unwritten rule that a tāla should not commence

with an anudruta appears to emerge from this age. In any

case, the exemplar deśī tālas which were adapted as sulādi

tālas started from a laghu with the above two exceptions ;

these two instances show that the drutavirāma was trans-

formed by decomposition into anudruta and druta. However

the virāma was used in the deśī tālas, the manner in which

the anudruta was performed in the sulādi tālas had no

alternative. For when as an appendage with a value of one

half of the precedent aṅga, the value of the tiśra, khaṇḍa,

miśra and saṅkīrṇa laghus with the virāma would have been

4.5, 7.5, 10.5 and 13.5 short syllables. This would

have rendered inoperative the basic principle that the

duration of a single syllable is unit or irreducible minimum

of time in the kriyā, aṅga or āvarta of a tāla. Nor could it

Tāla Reorganisation

59

be retained as a suffix of the caturaśra-jāti laghu; for, in

that case it would become a duplication of the triśrajāti laghu

in dvikalā or have a value of six short syllables which had

just then been scrapped in deśi tīlas. The anudruta

succesfully circumvented these problems and entered the

jhampa tāla in an unequivocal way. Thus the anudruta

which was born ambiguously during Simhabhūpāla's times,

became a definite, independent entity in the Tālakalābdhi

of Acyutarāya due to the experimentation it received from

the Vaiṣṇava saint singers of Karnataka.

7. When the anudruta, druta and laghu were so un-

ambiguously determined, tripuṭa tāla was left with a laghu

of three syllables even though the laghu was standardised

with four syllables. The haridāsas now proceeded to extend

the concept of laghu. They continued to regard the laghu

as determining the nature and structure of the tāla. An

earlier form of the laghu which had six syllables duration

and was called tryaśra was now diminished to half size and

retained as triśra laghu. Durations of 4, 5, 7 and 9 syllables

were now enunciated for the laghu which was called

caturaśra, khaṇḍa, miśra and saṅkīrṇa respectively. These

were regarded not as independent entities but as compre-

hended in the concept of the laghu and hence as kinds (jāti)

of laghu. Thus the purpose and scope of the laghu were

now extended to cover the functions, though not the

quantities of the guru and pluta. The laghujāti is first

enuaciated by Acyutalāya in the 16th cent.

At first, the laghu was employed triśra jāti only in the

tripuṭa tāla, in the caturaśra jāti only in dhruva, maṅthya,

rūpaka and eka tālas, in the khaṇḍa jāti only in aṭṭatāla,

leaving the saṅkīrṇa jāti without application. Owing to such

specific associations, each laghu jāti became integrated into

the definition of the respective tāla, for almost two hundred

years, till the end of the 19th cent. The only reason for

this is that the Vaiṣṇava saint singers employed three tālas

with the above specific laghu-jātis in sulādis and other

60

Music of Mādhva Monks

songs. Thus tripup̣a tāla came to be synonymous with a

triśra jāti laghu, jhampā tāla with a miśra jāti laghu, aṭṭa-

tāla with a khanda jāti laghu, and dhruva-mathya-rūpaka-

eka tālas with caturaśra jāti laghu. In other words, triśra-

jāti tripuṭa tāla for example, was a distinct, independent

tāla, uniquely but not generally defined, not a variety of

tripuṭa tāla.

In course of time, this concept was extended : Laghu

was conceived of as genus and its jāti as species; laghu was

general; its jāti was particular. Thus the laghu could

assume any or all the jātis in all the tālas, since anudruta

and druta could not be processed. Similarly, the laghujāti,

prefixed to the tāla name, became quantitatively descriptive

whereas the tāla name, till now quantitatively descriptive

became only qualitatively descriptive. But it did not gain

much ground with the Music Trinity or their Schools, for

their compositions assume the above restrictive synonymi-

sation, on the lines laid down by the haridāsas. Tālas with

all the laghujātis are found only in svarajati, vaiṇa and

pallavi-only in demonstration of scholarship or sophistication.

These forms emerged in our music only some 250 years ego.

8. Yet another feat performed by the haridāsas in the

construction of the suladis may be noticed. This is in respect

of jhompaṭa tāla to which reference has already been made.

It remained an independent entity till the 15th-16th cent., for

tripuṭa tāla was applied in its caturaśra jāti laghu and was

synonymised with āditāla only comparatively recently in the

history of Karnataka music, probably not earlier than the

18th cent. Therefore the collative sources which give

āditāla for the sulādis which are discussed here should be

dated from this period.

9. A consequence of regarding each tāla as a distinct,

independent entity possessing an invariable affinity for a

specific laghujāti may be noticed here. The haridāsas

reconstructed and stablished these tālas for the purpose of

Tāla Reorganisation

61

setting their several thousands of songs to them. These songs were not composed solely for their aesthetic beauty;

rather, they were intended primarily as attractive, popular vehicles of the social religious, spiritual, ethical and other values enshrined in their word-content. Their

objective-and achievement-lay in the dissemination of these values among the common man without making demands on him for special training, taste or equipment in art

music. Such propagation had to proceed at the level of the common householder with his unlearned womenfolk and children. Therefore the quantum of music required for this

burpose was just enough for the laiety to sing for themselves in attractive and popular tunes and rhythms, simple, colloquial direct words enshrining the essence of veda, upaniṣat,

purāṇa, itihāsa, smṛti, dharmaśāstra, nītiśāstra and other traditional lore. In short, tālas had to applied to songs in which the words were of prime importance and the melody

was secondary. If these words were set in prosodial structures, they would have missed the song-format and universal usage. Therefore factors such as loose prosody

(if any), variable syllabic quantity per song-line, approximate rhyming, non-conformity to syllabic phrasing (gaṇa-vinyāsa) etc. became virtues instead of defects. Therefore

many of their songs were, in all probability, yathākṣara prabandhas originally (i.e. songs in which musical duration closely approximated to syllabic duration). So, tālas in

expansive, slow tempo-or extended mātrā quantities,-even middle tempo-became irrelevent for such songs : close contiguity of the constituent elements of pattern is an

important criterion for the ready intelligibility or discernment of the pattern. Therefote, the haridāsas contracted the pādabhāga duation (i.e. duration between any two

succesive 'counts' of the tāla and adapted the tāla structure to diuta-laya; the talakriyās which accordingly were fast, were reduced only to the initial beats (ghāta). Such a

sounded beat is called 'chāpu'. Such tālas were then called

chāpu tālas. Such abbreviated forms of the tāla have survived

even now as rūpaka chāpu, khaṇḍa chāpu and miśra chāpu. It

suffices to observe here that the niḥśabda kīyās have comple-

tely disappeared from them and that though originally

designed for fast tempo, they serve the madhya and vilamba

layas also in contemporary musical practice.

10. One more contribution of the haridāsas to the

sulādi tāla system may be mentioned here in conclusion.

Some among the ten vital aspects of the tāla (tāladasa prāṇa)

had outlived their usefulness and grown overcomplex.

The

haridāsas athetised mārga, yati and prastāra; they limited

the scope, but focussed the function, of kriyā. Kālá prāṇa

perhaps did not exist per se before their time, or if it did, it

was nebulous. The haridāsas gave it a new dimension in

the sense of progressively doubling relative speeds. e.g.

first speed, second speed, third speed etc. Similarly, they

obviated the technique of expanding/magnifying the āvarta

span (e.g. dvikalā, catuṣkalā etc.) progressively in doubling

quantity (kalā prāṇa) and strengthened instead the laya

prāṇa. Tryaśra, caturaśra etc. in ancient Indian tāla

system connoted equal divison of the padabhāga into 3, 4

etc. equal parts so as to yield distinct gaits. Indeed tālas

were classified as tryaśra or caturaśra. With the passing of

deśī tālas, this important kinematic technique was trans-

planted into the sulādi tālas by the haridāsas. Thus they

transferred the concept from the tāla to its unit viz. tāla-

bhāga. In modern parlance 3, 4, 5, 7 or 9 equal divisions

of the padabhāga and kinematic events occurring in such

patterns are called triśra, caturaśra, khaṇḍa, miśra and

saṅkīrṇa gati or naḍai in music or dance. In other words,

the jāti concept was extended from the laghu to its unit viz.

the padabhāga. Naḍai has become both important and

integral to Karnataka music and to various forms of classical

and folk dances. Such naḍais or gatis may be observed in

whole stanzas of sulādis.

VI VYĀSARĀYA : VRTTANĀMA AND GADYA

Let us return to the study of Vyāsarāya and examine his two remaining musical forms : vrttanāma and gadya. His vrttanāma, beginning with the words ‘kēlayya enna māta pārthane’ is extracted by Keshavadāsa39 in chāputāla and in a tune which he identifies with that of a song ‘pāḷisu paḍharipurirāyā’ which must have been popular some 50 years ago but which is now lost. It consists of a one-line pallavi and nine units of vrtta-nāma in which a vrtta is followed by a nāma. These are called śloka and pada by him respectively, though elsewhere,100 he designates them as vrtta and nāma. Each śloka and each pada has four lines. The ślokas do not rhyme and possess variable syllabic extent,101 and have no discernible metrical pattern. However, there seems to be a caesura ofter the 5th syllable in most lines. The pada (nāma) stanzas also have variable extent and no discernible moraic pattern per line. There is some internal rhyming. The stanza line is roughly double that of the śloka. The composer's signature occurs in the final line of the final pada. The theme is the content of Bhagavadgītā, delineated in a simple, direct literary style. The song takes on an antiphonal character, being dialogues between Dhṛtarāṣṭra-Saṃjaya and Arjuna-Kṛṣṇa.

A similar song of Purandaradāsa may be noticed here.102

99. Keshavadāsa, Beluru-, op. cit. p.107

100. idhem. Śrī Haridāsa Sāhitya, pp. 272-276

101. 13-13-14-13; 13-12-14-13; 12-11-11-13; 12-12-13-12; 14-13-12-11; 12-13-12-13; 13-13-13-15; 12-13-12-13; 13-13-13-12

102. Purandaradāsa, Purandara Sāhitya Darśana (cd.) Ramachandra Rao, S.K., vol.2, no. 142, pp.312-319

64

Music of Mādhva Monks

This is closely affined to the vṛttanāmā, from which it differs in three ways : i. Its ślokas are in samskṛta. ii. The ślokas are probably borrowed.103 iii. The padas are free translations of the respective ślokas.

This song commences with a samskṛta śloka 'nābhimūle sthitam padmam'. It is called 'hṛdayakamala-mīnasapūja' with some aptness and 'bhagavadgītāsāra' with little justification. Its theme is the description of the nāḍīcakras and their presiding deities in the yoga body. It teaches practice (sādhanā) for liberation (mukti). The song consists of 17 sections, in which each contains a number of metrical lines in samskṛta, followed by its translation or paraphrase in Kannada. The śloka is not designated with rāga ; the translation is always in the form of a song (pada) for which rāga and tāla are given. The song lines invariably rhyme on the second syllable. The ślokas were sung, if at all, in the same rāga in which the tran-lating stanza was rendered. The ślokas are all in the anuṣṭubh metre, except in the second section, which is in indravajrā metre. Following is the analysis of the song.

unit

no

lines

śloka

pada

lines

rāga

tāla

1

1,2

2+3

2*+3

sāveri

jhampe

2

3,4

4

4

sāveri

jhampe

3

5,6

''

''

''

''

4

7,8

''

8

kalyāṇi

chāpu

5

9

2

4

''

aṭṭa

6

10,11

2+3

''

bhairavi

chāpu

7

12,13,14

2+2+3

''

''

''

8

15,16

2+4

''

''

''

9

17,18,19

6

''

sāveri

eka

10

20,21

4

''

''

''

103. Ramachandra Rao, S.K., op. cit. ncte on p.315

Vyāsarāya : Vṛttanāma and Gadya

65

11 22,23 ″ 8 ″ ″ ″

12 24 2 ″ 4 ″ ″ ″

13 25 3 ″ ″ ″ ″

14 26,27 4 ″ ″ pantuvarāli chapu

15 28,29 ″ ″ ″ ″

16 30,31 ″ ″ ″ ″

17 32,33 ″ 8 ″ ″ ″

The first two lines of pada in section (1) marked with an asterisk above and commencing with the words ‘hṛdaya-

kamaladaḷadāḷa’ (hence the name of the song) are indicated as pallavi, presumably to be sung as refrain at the end of

each pada. This segment does not fulfil the normal semantic, textual function as in a normal song because it is

continuous in theme with the remaining three lines of the

same section and does not naturally dovetail in meaning at

the end of each pada. Presumably, the ślokas were sung

without refrain. A possibility is that the ślokas were not

sung at all, so that the song consisted of 17 stanzas

following a pallavi, and that the ślokas were a transmis-

sional interpolation wherein the scribe indicated the

original texts of which the padas were translations. In this

case the song has no affinity with vṛttanāma.

It is useful to study three other available vṛttanāmas at

this point.

The first is by Purandaradāsa. It begins with the words

‘śrī kṛṣṇarāya torise mātānāḍise’ and is set to rāga āhiri

and tāla eka.104 It consists of a one - line pallavi and five

units of vṛtta-nāma, each vṛtta and nāma being in four

104. This song is available in two sources: Ramachandra

Rao, S.K. (ed.), op. cit. vol.4, no.16, pp. 68--69

(R) ; Rama Rao, Subodha-, Śrī Purandaradāsara

Kṛtigaḷu, pts.1-2, no. 379, p. 246 (S) ; S does not

give the tāla.

66

Music of Mādhva Monks

lines.105 The syllabic quantity of the vṛtta-lines is variable106 and no metrical pattern is discernible. The pada-line is also variable in syllabic quantity and somewhat shorter than the vṛtta-line. The word theme is vipralambha śṛṅgāra, being an expression of the pangs of separation of a gopi for Kṛṣṇa; she pleads with a friend-dūti to bring the latter who has left her because of a lovers’ tiff. The whole vṛttanāma may be construed as a jāvali. The literary style is simple and adequate. The composer’s signature occurs in the first line of the final pada.

The second is by Gopāladāsa, extracted by Keshava-dāsa.107 The word ‘pada’ occurs in the place of rāga, which is not given. The song is given in āṭa tāla. Its beginning words are : ‘rakṣiṣu veṅkaṭagirirāja’. It has a one - line pallavi followed by eight units of vṛtta-nāma. The vṛttas are set in śṛdūlavikrīḍita, sometimes the terminal short syllable serving as guru. The lines in nāma-stanzas are approximately equal in syllabic content. The word theme is praise of and supplication to Viṣṇu. Both vṛtta and nāma reveal second syllable- and internal rhyming. The literary style is simple but involves the frequent use of samskṛta words. The vṛtta-line is subdivided into two portions and the nāma-line into three portions, for purposes of musical setting and rhyming. The composer’s signature occurs in the last line of the last pada.

The third example is from Jagannātha dāsa, beginning with the words ‘pāliso pañharīpurarāya pāvanakāya’.108 It is given in the rāga kānaḍa and tāla rūpaka. It begins with

105. S gives the vṛttas in couplets in terminally rhyming sections.

106. 12-12-12-14 ; 12-12-13-12 ; 12-12-13-13; 12-14-14-13; 12-13-13-14

107. Vide footnote no. 100

108. Venugopala dāsa, T.K. (ed.) Śrī Jagannātha dasarụ, inter alia

Vyāsarāya : Vṛttanāma and Gadya

67

a one-line (or two - line ?) pallavi, followed by nine units,

each consisting of a vṛtta (called śloka by the editor)

followed by a nāma (called pada by the editor). The vṛtta

apprroximates to mālinī under atiśakvarī. The pada-lines

are approximately mutually equal and roughly 1.5 times the

vṛtta-line in syllabic quantity. Both vṛtta and nāma stanzas

have four lines each. The theme consists of a praise of and

supplication to Paṇḍuraṅga Viṭṭhala of Paṇḍharāpura.

Hence it is also called Paṇḍuraṅgaṅgaṅka or Paṇḍuraṅga Pāri-

jāta. The literary style is scholarly, with rhyming in the

second syllable both in vṛtta and nāma and occasional

terminal rhyming in the ślokas. The composer's signature

occurs in the penultimate and final lines in the last pada.

Therefore, the vṛttanāma may be summarised as a

musical form consisting a brief pallavi and a number of

vṛtta-nāma units (the number is left unprescribed). It has

no anupallavi. Each stanza of the vṛtta and nāma has four

lines. The name vṛtta (or śloka) is only occasionally

appropriate and is set to a metre. It may also consist of

free-verse lines of comparable and slightly variable syllabic

content ; in this case, the name vṛtta or śloka has to be

liberally interpreted as anibaddha i.e. not set to tāla or

metre. The pada-lines are also mutually comparable but

generally longer than the vṛtta lines. The entire compo-

sition is performed in a single rāga; only the padas are set

to (the same) tāla. It is probable that the vṛttas were sung

to different dhātus in the same rāga while the padas were

performed to the same recurrent dhātu. The literary style is

generally simple and direct. The theme may be meta-

physical, stuti, supplication or śṛṅgāra. The composer's

signature invariably occurs in the final pada.

Before concluding this study of vṛttanāma, two notes

may be offered : the first is that the śuddhasuḍa prabandha

dheṅkī has a variety called vṛttamālā which has further

subvarieties called varṇikā, gaṇikā and mātr̥kā. Each of

these three may be further divided into samālanikarana,

viṣamalanikrti and citrālanikrti. Thus there are nine types

of vrttamālā dhenki. They are formed from various metrical

structures.109 This may have been one of the sources which

inspired the genesis of vrttanāma ; to combine a song

consisting of many caranas with a song consisting of many

vrttas with alternation would be a natural inclination

towards innovation. Secondly yamaka, a rind of śabda-

lankāra has many subvarieties including one called

vrttamālā.110 This is irrelevant to the vrttanāma.

Another musical form of Vyāsarāya which merits

examination is a song which has been designated here

'gadya' for want of a better description. This is given by

Kp.111 It begins with the words 'marugu molle mallige' and

consists of a description of Lord Krsna of Udupi in detail

from foot to head and is a valuable treasure-house

of the names of ornaments in vogue in Karnataka of the

15th - 16th cent. It is given with rāga regupti and tāla atța.

Alternatively, bhairari and in tal of hindustani music are

also given. The word-or line structure gives the impression

of free verse. However, certain features of the composition,

or their absence argues against the form being a gadya

prabandha. Thus it has 59 lines, averaging some 13.5

syllables per line. The shortest line bears 11 syllables

(no. 22, p. 68) while the longest (no. 23, p. 68) has 16

syllables, the others ocillate between 13 to 15 syllables. If

this is a yathākṣara prabandha, the ascription of atța tāla

may be justified, though the caesura in the lines do not

generally correspond to the tāla-anga. If the services

109. Sarngadeva, op. cit. 4. 145-152; cf. Sathyanarayana,

R., (ed. tr. comm.), Pundarikamālā, foot note no.

76; Pundarika Vitthala, Nartananirnaya, 3.2.83-90,

p. 419.

110. Bharatamuni, Natyasastram, 16. 59-86.

111. Kavyapremi, op. cit. pp. 60-69.

Vyāsarāya : Vṛttanāma and Gadya

69

mentioned in the song are performed in the early hours of

the morning, the ascription of the rāga regupti is also justi-

fied because it is traditionally sung as udayarāga.

The song is not segmented. This has contributed to

the impression that it may be a form of gadya prabandha.

However, none of the features described for this form in

textual tradition112 is found in it. For instance, it has no

correspondence at all with otherexamples of gadya or its

cūrṇikā variety available in Karnataka music or bharata-

nāṭya. Its lines possess approximately equal syllabic

extent. It is not a string of names (vide infra). It

reveals unmistakable grouping in te1ms of rhyming, which

is invariably on the second syllable. On the basis of

rhyming, the 59 lines may be grouped into 17 segments

containing 4, 2, 4, 4, 2, 4, 4*, 6*, 2, 4*, 2, 4,* 2, 4, 5, 4 and 2

lines respectively. Those marked with an asterisk carry

one line which does not rhyme. The song contains the

composer’s signature in the penultimate line, but does

not carry the name of the prabandha as required in

theory.

In this context, a gadya prabandha of Purandaradāsa

may be offered in comparison.113 No rāga or tāla is ascribed

to this song; it is not segmented. It is a string of 180 names

of Viṣṇu, such that His divine qualities, incarnations, holy

places of His divine presence, His grace protecting the

devotees etc. are interwoven with the names. Such a

composition is also called nāmāvali. The names are in

vocative case and the song ends in words of obeisance :

‘namo namaḥ’. This also does not conform to requirements

in the theory e.g. name of the prabandha, the initial

occurrence of praṇava, the provision for solfa passages etc.

112. e.g. cf. Sathyanarayana, R., (ed. tr. comm.)

Puṇḍarīkamālā, pp. 427-432 on Puṇḍarika Viṭṭhala,

op. cit. 3. 2. 112–124.

113. Ramachandra Rao, S. K., op. cit. vol. 2, no. 76,

pp. 202-203.

70

Music of Mādhva Monks

However, it fully corresponds to the type of song called cūṛnikā, a variety of gadya prabandha, which is generally sung in the rāga ārabhi such that the final syllables of musically expendent phrases carry brief ex tempore passages of ālāpana of the rāga, a form which is performed uniquely in the Mysore School of Bharatnāṭya at the beginning of the recital. However, because of significant departures from norms and theory, it cannot be definitely stated whether the composition is a gadya at all. It is quite possible that Vyāsarāyā may have pioneered a new musical form or has innovated the traditional gadya prabandha.

VII VĀDIRĀJA : MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER

The coffers of Karnataka music overflowed in the 16th cent. with the compositions of Vādirāja, Purandaradāsa and Kanakadāsa in number and variety. Our music attained to great heights and range during this period. Several exotic and indigenous tributaries joined to swell its flow in several directions and lands.

Śrī Vādirāja (nee Varāha) (1480-1600 A.C.) was born at Hūvinakere near Kumbhāsi, Kundapur taluk in Dakshina Kannada. His mother was Sarasvati and father, Rāmācārya. Even before birth, he was promised as disciple and heir to Vāgiśatirtha of the Svādi (vulg. Sode) Mutt, one of the 8 mutts of Udupi founded by Madhvacārya. Vāgiśatirtha was the 19th monk who headed this Mutt, descended in the line of Viṣṇutirtha, younger brother of Madhyācārya. Young Varāha was initiated into saṃnyāsa order in his 8th year with the āśrama-nāma ‘Vādirāja’. He received his education from Vidyānidhitirtha, Vyāsarāya, Vijayīndra and possibly Vāgiśatirtha also. He travelled all over India in an endeavour to propagate the dvaita school of philosophy, yet retaining a catholicity of outlook. He has authored many scholarly works in samskrta expounding, supporting, defending or explicating the philosophy-school of dualism.

Some 313 songs are available under his signature, including 291 krtis 10 sulādis and 12ugābhogas.At least 170 of these are unambiguously his; 5 occur under ambiguous signature, 138 in unique exemplars. He has also composed unique and long songs viz. bhramaragita, guṇakriya, vaikuniha vaiṇane, svapnagadya, lakṣmīśobhāne, nārada-koravañji; his tattva-suvvāli is yet to be traced.

VII (a) : RĀGA AND TĀLA

Before analysing Vādirāja’s songs for formal or structural characteristics, it is pertinent to make a few observations

72

Music of Madhva Monks

on the rāga and tāla ascriptions since these songs themselves are derived from rich, widely distributed and chronologically heterogeneous collative sources. Altogether 86 rāgas are eclectically ascribed for the 313 songs mentioned above in the apparatus criticus. Personal opinion or taste rather than historical validity has been the criterion in the choice of rāga in some cases. The rāgas found in the various collative sources largely reflect the time and place of their origin and are therefore excellent indicators of the same. If historical validity i.e. the probability of the rāga being chosen by the composer himself because of its popularity during his time, is admitted as a criterion in the choice of the rāga, many now found in the collative sources or chosen by Vijayaraghavan become improbable. For example, the following 18 found in MSS of Vādirāja’s songs are only recent borrowals into Karnataka music : kāpi, kānadā, j(h)anjjūṭi, tilaṅg, darbār, deś, dvijāvanti, dhanāsari, pṭilu, bāgeśrī, brndāvana sāraṅg, behāg, bhimpalās, māravi, yaman, śāma, hindusthāni kāpi and huseni. The following three are names of melakartas which emerged in the 16th century : kharaharapriya,

cakravāka and simhendramadhyama. The following 33 are of late (much later than Vādirāja) or recent origin : amṛtavāhini,aṭh nā, asāverī ābheri, ānandabhairavi, ārabhi, kannaḍa kāmbodhi, kalyāṇa varṣanta, kalyāṇi, gumbha (= gummā) kām ādi, gaulipantu, telugu kāmbodhi, navarōju, nīlāmbari, pū. vi/pū.avi kalyāṇi, pantuvarāli, bilahari, begaḍe, maṇiṅgu, myāmālavaguḷa, mohana, mohana kalyāṇi, māṅji, yadukula (yarakla) = kāmbodhi, ṇitigauḷa, vasanta baharavi, śuddhasāveri, sāma, suruṭi, ham adhvaṇi and hamsaṇandi.

These are, clearly, the rāgas in which Vādirāja’s songs were performed and transmitted over the last five centuries, but not originally composed. The rāgas in which they were probably composed are those which are described in the musical treatises of the time in Karnātaka scuh as

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

73

Rāmanātya's Svaramelakalānidhi, Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭhala's Saṅgītacandrodaya, and Lakṣmīnārāyaṇa's Saṅgītasūryodaya. This anamoly between performed music and originally composed music extends to all the haridāsas (including the yatitraya) in particular and other saint singers (such as Nijaguṇa Śivayogi, Tāḷḷapākam Annamayya, Bhadracāla Rāmadāsa and others) in general. This situation may be traced to the following: neither these composers, schools of their disciples, listners, nor performers regarded the songs as dhātupradhāna and hence most songs were left without a fixed notation : these songs were sung by a very large number of persons who regarded them as mātupradhāna and who were, by and large, not trained in 'classical' music. The 16th cent. witnessed a political-and therefore social and religious-upheaval in the South. as a consequence of which many cultural values and modes became dormant.

The anamoly between performance tradition and probably originally composed music is serious, with respect to rāgas ascribed by Vijayarāghavan because such rāgas preferred by him to those found in traditional MSS sources, are of recent emergence in Karnataka music. In the following examples, his preferences are shown first, followed by the rāgas given in the critical apparatus, with the song number given in brackets : cakravāka-kāmbodī (56), rītigaula - nāṭi (62), bilahari-kāmbodī (68), amṛtavāhinī-mādanāmakriyā (97), nīlāmbari-ānandabhairavī (102), des for deśīya, deśya, meaning hindūstānī rāgā, 106), ānandabhairavi and bhairavi (114), ābheri-ānandabhairavi (134), kalyāṇavasanta - mukhāri (140), des (148), huseni (152), jañjhūṭi - śaṅkarābharaṇa (155), kharaharapriya-regupti (AS 3), kedāra (UE 7), yadukulakāmbodī (UE 14), double ascription of śrīrāga-varāḷī (UE 16), bāgeśrī (ES 13), tilaṅg (UE 2-5), bhimpalās (UE 2-7). If it is conceded that historical validity is not attempted in the selection of rāgas, the choice is reduced to personal equation and therefore not open to a critique.

74

Music of Mādhva Monks

The tālas found ascribed to the songs in the various

Sources do not present a serious anamoly in toto, for only

the sulādi tālas are exclusively used. Of these, only are-

jhampe and pañcaghāta merit some observations. The

ormer, also called kuru-jhampe, is extensively (e-g. 56, 61,

65, 68, 89, 90, 91, 92, 113, 119, 126, 131, 132, 140, 147,

148, UE 45, 60, 106, 116, 128, UE 2-4, 6). It is a folk

rhythm structure of a duration of ten short syllables in which

the accent (or ghāta) occurs on the first, third and eighth.

It is found frequently employed in jakkini darus in

Tamilnadu, yakṣagānas of Andhra and Karnataka. In the

latter, jhampe tāla occurs in mainly three forms viz. nidhāna

jhampe and tvarita (turupu or duḍuku) jhampe and kuru-

jhampe. Pañcaghāta (UE 2-50, 117, 120) is also called

pañcagati and pañcāgati through phonetic degeneration. It

is known as pañjāri in the kathakali in Kerala. It is khaṇḍa

jāti maṭhya tāla played with five accents. Its full name is

pañcaghatamaṭhya. The maṭhya tāla may have been

frequently used in the songs of the haridāsas, in both its

regular and rāgaṇaforms, notwithstanding that the

manuscript sources do not specifiy the latter. The rāgaṇa

maṭhya may have been employed in its triṣṭa, caturaśra and

khaṇḍa forms in sulādis which promote the rhythmic sense of

triple, quadruple and quintuple movements. The rāgaṇa

maṭhya offers a facile, uniform, prosodial coustruction. The

foregoing observations admit the inference that Vādirāja's

songs received wide experimentation in te1ms of folk musical

materials. The use of dhavalā (AS 4) and udayarāga (59, 137)

tunes may be mentioned in this connection.

VII (b) : FORMAL ANALYSIS

Vādirāja has composed both unsegmented and

segmented songs. Under the former may be mentioned prose

passages (in opera), ugābhogas, svapnagadya etc. The

latter include such forms as the kṛti, sulādi, guṇdakriya

etc. The segmented form in the kṛti includes a pallavi,

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

75

(often) anupallavi and caranas (stanzas); there are also

many segmented songs without a refrain at all : i.e. without

pallavi or anupallavi; the sulādi is segmented, unrefrained,

but unlike the latter, are tālamalikā songs. Besides these,

Vādi rāja has also composed musico-prosodial structures like

the tripadi, śatpadi etc. The longer songs of Vādirāja, such

as bhramaragīta, nārada koravañji, koluhādu, vaikunṭha

varṇane, svapnagadya, lakṣmī śobhāne, giṇḍakriya,

tattavasuvvali will be taken up separately tegether for a

brief, synoptic study later.

Among the unsegmented compositions of Vādirāja there

are 12 ugābhogas (2, 3, 45, 64, 75, 87, 88, 136, UE 88,

119, 123 (ES 1). None of these carries a rāga ascription.

This is a feature of the ugābhoga. The composer appears to

offer here to the performer the choice of his own rāga. This

is true nearly of all ugābhogas and the majority of sulādis.

These ugābhogas have variable number of lines (4 to 11) with

variable syllabic quantity. One ugābhoga (64) may be

specially noted here. It has 24 lines and has a regular

syllabic pattern : lsls….It is doubtful whether this is an ugā-

bhoga at all in view of such length and pattern. Also, it is

set to the rāga nāṭi and tāla jhaṃpā in some of its sources.114

Among the segmented songs, Vādirāja's sulādis have

been examined above. The format of the krti has, by the-

matic difference, given rise to several musical forms such

as jāvaḷi (11, 52, 55, 90, 133, 138, 152, UE 1, 14, 15, 49,

54, 61, 79, 84, 99, 101, 120, 129, ES 3, 9, 13), and

antiphonal (śukasārikā) songs (41, UE, 15, 79, AS 5). It

should be clearly understood that the name and the form

jāvali were not known at this time but appear in about

the 17th cent. But the theme and its musical treatment were

known from at least the times of Śrīpādarāya. Besides these,

114. There is a school of musical practice which sings

ugābhogas in specific rāga and tāla. Vide Keshava-

dasa, Beluru-, Śrī Haridāsa Sāhitya, pp. 68-69.

76

Music of Mādhva Monks

Vādirāja has composed a few traditional (sampradāya) songs which are sung by womenfolk on ritual, festive, or ceremonial occasions which have overtones of religious or spiritual practices, being dedicated to God. Such instances are : ārati (waving of light before deity), lāli (lullaby), uruṭāṇe (play of rolling a coconut or a ball made of flowers between bride and groom in a playful mood during a conventional wedding ceremony in Karnataka), maṅgaḷa (benediction) sung to the ten incarnations Viṣṇu (10), ārati (115), uruṭāṇe (129), anna prāśana (ceremony of the first feeding of an infant with ‘anna’, one of the 16 samiskāras prescribed for the brāhmaṇa by the Veda) (UE 2), arogaṇe (food dedicated to God) (100, UE 8, 9), daily ritual upacāras and worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa of Udupi (UE 20), awakening the Lord from His slumbers early in the morning (uppavaḍa) (UE 21, 22), uyyāle (play on the swing) (UE 31), lāli (lullaby e.g. UE 113, 114).

Song forms inaugurated by Śrīpādarāya and sustained by Vyāsarāya, Purandaradāsa and others in the context of Kṛṣṇa-bhakti in Kannada are continued by Vādirāja e.g. bhramaragīta (1, UE 2, 49 etc.) veṇugīta (70, 134), Several songs are also available which unequivocally draw inspiration from folk themes and may be regarded as Vādirāja’s contribution to classical music from folk music: 67 (lullaby : jō jō), 74 (dimmisāle, prob. from holi festival), 135 (śaraṇu) 143, 144 (suvvi), UE 26 (each line ending ‘myā’),115 UE 38, 48 (kōlāṭa), UE 113 (lāli) ES 7 (gubbiyālō).

Several songs with a single word recurring at the end of each line, couplet or stanza serving as refrain or preface to the refrain are composed by Vādirāja within the kṛti format : 25, 67, 108, 135, UE 18, 45, 46, 74, 75, 83, 118, ES 6, 10 etc. Such songs of the haridāsa were favourites of the brāhmaṇa

115. Kanakadāsa, Kṛti no. 77, p. 85, Krishna Sharma Betageri and Huchu Rao, Bengeri, Guru Rao (ed.), Kanakadasara Bhaktigitegalu.

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

77

housewife till a generation ago in her morning prayer-or

household routines. A song eminently suitable for dance,

set in the kṛti form may also mentioned here en passant

(UE 85).

In common with other vaiṣṇava saint singers, Vādirāja

has also composed songs in musico-prosodial forms such as

tripadi (UE 29, 39, 56, 92) and śatpadi (82, UE 17).

VII (c) KṚTI: STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS

The musical form called dāsara pada, which was also

called kṛti and kīrtana in the context of classical Karnataka

music, received the widest experimentation and treatment

by Vādirāja among the yatitraya. A comparative study of the

structures composed by the yatitraya in this format would

indicate the evolution of this form in the 15th - 16th cent.

For reasons explained elsewhere¹¹⁶, the kṛti became, and

remains the most popular form in modern Karnataka music

and is the mould in which other musical forms such as the

svarajati, jatisvara, varṇa, pada, jāvali and tillāna were

cast.

The kṛti has three parts : pallavi, anupallavi and

caraṇa. Pallavi is the udgrāha dhātu (with rare exception).

anupallavi is the melipaka dhātu and caraṇa is the dhruva

dhātu; the latter half or the last line of the caraṇa consti-

tutes the ābhoga. If these are denoted by u, m, d, a

respectively, the mode of singing of the kṛti is u-m-u-d-a-u.

The caraṇa consists of many stanzas, usually odd in number.

All the caraṇas are set to the same dhātu with a few

exceptions e.g. rāgamālikā kṛtis, pancaratna kṛtis of

Tyāgarāja etc. The composer’s signature occurs in the last

caraṇa.

¹¹⁶. Sathyanarayana, R., Karnāṭaka Saṅgītavāhini,

pp. 366-370.

78

Music of Madhva Monks

S. has used 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 17, 23 and 27+3 or 37+3 caranas in his padas. One song has 4 caranas (UE 11) and another, 12 (43). Vr. has composed 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 17 caranas in his songs. In the limited number of songs (edited without the benefit of textual criticism), there is no example of even-numbered caranas while Vd. has generally composed the caranas in odd number (3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 21, 25, 27, 35, 45), there is also a fair sprinkling of even numbered caranas also: 4 (128) 6 (17, 129, 155, UE 35, 38), 10(4, 41, 43, 55, UE 26, 109, 118, UE 2-6) 12 (85), 14 (UE 20), 26(70, UE 60 and 30). Several songs of the haridasas composed without pallavi or anupallavi are of course available; these are however, metrical structures like the satpadi. Vd. is perhaps the first composer to have experimented with this segmented forms in several caranas, without pallavi or anupallavi. The number of lines per carana and the number of caranas are both variable 2-3117 (97), 2-7 (UE 2-1), 2-17 (UE 2-7), 2-24 (UE 46), 3-28 (UE 56), 4-3 (UE 16, UE 103), 4-11 (1.15), 4-26 (98), 10-40 (101). The instance of (26), is interesting ; the editor admits the textus constitutio with anupallavi, but no pallavi. Three of the eight collative sources used give the variant reading ‘pallavi’ for ‘anupallavi’. On extrinsic probability, the ‘anupallavi’ should be emended to ‘pallavi’.

Now the krtis of the yatittraya may be subjected to a structural analysis,118 reproducing for the sake of convenience (and the risk of repetition) the data from S.

117. The first digit indicates the number of lines per carana; the second indicates the number of caranas in the song.

118. The four numbers given here are those of lines in pallavi, anupallavi, carana and number of caranas respectively.

Śrīpādarāja

1044 (UE 11)

1045 (5, 15)

1123 (56)

1125 (54)

1143 (3, 8, 48, 52)

1145 (1, 4, UE 8)

1243 (12, UE 14)

1245 (UE 22, ES 4)

1255 (53)

1293 (49)

1463 (16)

1563 (UE 20)

2023 (6, 26, 33, AS 3, UE 24)

2025 (17, 34, UE 25)

2027 (23)

204.11 (36, 60)

2043 (9, 10, 19, 22, 27, 28, 38, 42

57, VS 1, UE 4)

2045 (11, 18, 44, 58, UE 1, 9)

2047 (24, 51)

204.17 (13)

204.30/40 (20)

2063 (59)

2143 (52)

2243 (29, 41, 55, 61,

VS 2, UE 5, 6)

2245 (31)

2247 (21)

224.12 (43)

224.23 (50)

2263 (UE 3, 21)

2273 (UE 26)

2283 (UE 10, 15)

2285 (AS 6, UE 13)

228 11 (47)

22.10.3 (UE 2)

22.12.3 (UE 12)

22.16.3 (UE 19)

79

Vādiāja : Musician and Composer

3043 (45)

3473 (35)

4025 (46)

4069. (46)

1143 (8, 10–2, 14, 22, 25,

31, 33, 34, 53, 54–2, 56,

57, 59, 60, 75–1, 79, 82)

1145 (2, 17, 20, 25–2, 41,

42, 48, 52)

1147 (5, 11, 58, 72)

1149 (18, 95–2)

114.11 (80)

1223 (99)

1225 (46, 61)

1243 (4, 10–1, 38–1,

38–2, 47, 50–1)

1245 (3)

1273 (6)

1283 (29, 102)

1293 (93)

1453 (15)

1493 (89)

2027 (24, 75–2)

2043 (28–1, 54–1, 62–1, 90, 93)

2045 (27, 28–2, 32, 43, 65, 97)

2047 (45, 69, 101)

204. 17 (83)

2153 (55)

Vyāśaṭṭa

1453 (15)

1123 (44, 49)

119. References are to page numbers in Kp. Hyphenated number indicates the number of the

song on the given page when the latter carries more than one song.

2243 (16, 32-1, 62-2, 76, 92,

95-1, 103)

2245 (50-2, 91)

2249 (77)

2283 (39, 86)

2335 (100)

2393 (73)

2463 (88)

Vādirāja

1021 (UE 60)

1023 (37, 135)

1025 (137, UE 34,95,102)

102.12 (85)

102.15 (UE 60)

1043 (22, ES 12, UE 8, UE 2-4)

1045 (65)

1049 (UE 9)

104,10 (41,UE 26, UE 2-6)

104,25 (UE 60)

108,14 (UE 20)

1123 (47,51, 104, 110, 142, 149)

1125 (44, 106, 108, AS 3)

1126 (17, 29)

1127 (UE 108)

112,10 (UE 113)

1143 (23, 24, 25, 28, 39, 50, 60,

68, 71, 99, 112, 119, 146, 147)

1145 (124, UE 115)

1147 (21)

114,25 (128)

1183 (132)

1223 (13, 62, 66, 138, 148, AS1)

1225 (15, 74, 130)

1243 (30, 48, 81, 117, UE 42)

1245 (96, UE 2-3)

1255 (29)

1263 (UE 75)

1287 (150)

1443 (UE 116)

1463 (19, 139)

148.23 (114)

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

1495 (UE 6)

1575 (125)

2023 (46, 102, 156, UE 19,

39, 44, 111, ES9, UE2-5)

2025 (78, 122, UE 18, 68, 96,

112, 129, ES 2)

2027 (UE 83)

2028 (UE 71)

2029 (UE 27)

202.10 (43, UE 109)

202.11 (36, UE 31)

202.13 (36, UE 31)

202.25 (UE 45)

2031 (UE 76)

2033 (UE 40, 57, 78, 82, 104)

2035 (47)

2043 (10, 12, 27, 34, 42, 57,

62, 72, 76, 77, 80, 90, 91,

63, 100, 107, 109, 118, 120,131,

141, ASS, UE 2-11, 14, 23, 25,

32, 41, 54, 55, 63, 64, 65,

69, 70, 73, 89, 90, I.1, 114.

120, 122, ES 14)

2044 (UE 76, 128)

2045 (9, 11, 20, 53, 54, 58, 1,

113, 113, 140, 153, UE 3, 4, 10,

12, 33, 61, 67, 72, 74, 94, 104,

ES 4)

2046 (UE 35, 110)

2047 (31, 40, 69, 94, 95, UE 49,

52, 81, 99)

2049 (73, 92, UE 21, 36)

204.13 (UE 107)

204.15 (UE 56)

204.26 (70)

2053 (126)

2065 (86)

2077 (UE 80)

2079 (7)

2083 (UE 53)

2093 (UE 43)

2123 (123)

2223 (84)

2225 (UE 7)

82

Music

of

Madhva

Monks

2243(8,14,16,49,52,59,67,133,134,UE2)

2245 (5, 35)

224. 11/12 (83)

225. 21/27 (33)

2263 (155)

2283 (89, 116)

22.13.3 (UE 28)

2478 (105)

26. 10, 3 (145)

3025 (UE 85)

302. 10 (UE 118)

3032 (UE 92)

3033 (UE 29)

3035 (144)

3043 (UE, 11, 117, 121)

3047 (UE 93)

304. 13 (UE 79)

305. 35 (143)

3053 (UE 98)

3073 (UE 77)

3083 (UE 66)

3283 (127)

3361 (79)

4043,(AS4,UE84,100,105,UE2-13ES13

4045 (1, UE 87)

4046 (UE 38)

4047 (UE 130)

4049 (UE 62)

404. 10 (4,55)

405. 22 (152)

4069 (UE 38)

4083 (18, UE 50)

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

83

84

Music of Mādhva Monks

The above data represent the constituted text arrived by collative consensus or collative majority. A small discount should be allowed for different organisation of lines between pallavi and anupallavi. The preferences of the composers for various structures in decreasing order are : S-2043, 2243, 2045, 2023, 1143; Vr-1143, 1145, 2243, 1243, 2045; Vd-2043, 2045, 1143, 2243, 2023. It may be noted that the preferred structures or more or less the same, but the order is different i.e. personal equations are different. The preference is for only 3 or 5 carañasi; S and Vd appear to favor 2 line pallavis, while Vr seems to prefer 1-line pallavis. It should be remembered that p-a relationships are rather fluid in the apparatus criticus. Thus the following transformations or alternates may have occured at the hands of composers or performers : 11–20, 20–11 and less frequently, 22–40. The composers have used such structures to maintain musical and textual coherence, employing highly numerous carañas for narratives and detailed exposition of word themes.

Now the foregoing structures may be analysed for patterns in syllabic content.120 As seen above, unequal syllabic content in the lines occurs to the largest extent in S. Some 8 songs reveal an approximate equality in the caraña lines. An equal number has an ls... series. About 10 songs show an lsl1 patern in the carañas. The other paterns may be summarised thus : vl (39, 53, 54, UE 26), lsls-ssss(49), lllss (53), lslIlll (UE 3), lslslsls llll (UE 12), lslslslslllllIllllIlll(UE 19). Of about 100 songs of Vr examined, some 27 show in equitable syllabic distribution in the caraña lines, 17 contain more

120 For abbreviations vs, s, l, vl, p, a, c etc. vide foot note no. 42

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

85

or less equitable distribution, 8 possess the ls…pattern

while about 20 songs contain the lsll series in the

caranas. Some noteworthy patterns are ls ls lsll (p. 88)

ssll (p. 44), lsll-lslslsl (pp. 39, 86) and lll sssss (p. 93).

A few interesting p-a-c relationships also emerge :

p + a = c (pp. 15, 88), p + a + ll = c (p. 8), 4 s 3-1

= 2a + 3-1

= c (p. 6).

The same overall pattern develops in the compositions

of Vd also. Thus nearly one fourth of all the songs show

in equitable syllabic quantities in the caranas, about a fifth

accounts for an equitable or comparable distribution.

Nearly 40 songs contain ls or ls…series in the stanzas;

roughly 30 songs reveal lsll series; the other patterns are

ls ls lsll (77, 86, 132, 150, UE 20, 55, 81, 84), vl (15, 92, 99,

105, 123, 135, UE-92, 109, 110, 117); llls (18), lls (UE-29,

77), lsl (UE 47, 57, 76), lss-lss (79) vs (25, 87, 135, 138,

UE 6, 110), slsl (UE 28), lllsllsll (101), lsllsls (119),

slsllslll (UE 23), llls-llls (UE 53, 66), lslvl (ES 13). Two

interesting instances are available (UE 6, 20) in which a

ll-unit shifts its position from one carpa to another.

While some songs (33, 79, 139, 153) contain p + a = c

relationship, one song (155) has a peculiar relationship :

c = p + a + 2l. Thus Vd among the yatitraya has extensive-

ly experimented with both p—a—c structure and their

syllabic proportions. Many of these become trendseters

in future generations and culminated into distinct patterns

in Tyāgarāja and his school.

It has been mentioned above that Vd hailed from

Dakṣiṇa Kannaḍa district in Karnataka But he travelled

extensively all over India, perhaps even more than the

other vaiṣṇava saint composes. His travels entended

over North Karnataka especially, where his songs gained

much popularity. This is reflected in his songs in an

interesting way. Some 5 collative sources (ka.sam 3,

86

Music of Mādhva Monks

la:24, bē 41, m 49 and pām. 5) use ‘dhruva’ for pallavi

in several songs (5, 7, 12, 14, 20, 23, 27, 31, 36, 37, 39, 43,

47, 67, 69, 72, 76, 111, 112, 150, AS 3). This is an abbre-

viation for ‘dhruvapada’ which means refrain. However,

one source (Ka.sam 3) is ambient in this regard, since it

also uses the term on two occasions (26, p. 65, 39, p. 100).

It may be remembered that nearly all relevant songs of

Mahipatidāsa who hailed from North Karnataka,

contain the word ‘dhruva’ instead of pallavi, their format

being unequivocally that of kṛti.

VIII VĀDIRĀJA : LONG MUSICAL FORMS

It has been mentioned that Vādirāja is an experimenter and trendsetter in musicoliterary forms. This is evident not only in the forms such as kṛti, ugābhoga, sulādi, musico-poetical structures, folk musical forms etc., but in many other larger forms also. At least ten such compositions of Vadiraja are available viz. Vaikuṇṭhavarṇane, madhva suvvāli, birudina suvvāli, tattva suvvāli, bhramarāgita, lakṣhmi śobhane, gajendra mokṣa, nārada korvañji, guṇakriya and svapnapadā. These may be examined briefly here. Of these, two are from Udupi edition by Pavanje Guru Rao published by Śriman-madhva-siddhānta-laya, Uḍupi viz. gajendra mokṣa and svapnapada. Of the remaining, four are from the critical edition of Vādirāja's songs by T. N. Nagaratna published by the Institute for Kannada Studies, Mysore University, Mysore viz. birudina suvvāli, tattva suvvāli, nārada koravañji and guṇa-kṛti/gaḷu critically edited by T.N. Nagaratna and recently published by the same Institute.

VIII (a) VAIKUNTHAVARNANE

As indicated by the name, vaikunṭha varṇane is a description of Vaikuṇṭha, abode of Viṣṇu.121 It purports to be a Kannada version of Puṛṇaprajña's Tattvasāra (1.3)

121 Vādirāja, vaikunṭha - varṇane, in Śrī Vādirājara Dīrgha Kṛtigaḷu, (ed.) Nagaratna, T.N. pp. 1-96

88

Music of Mādhva Monks

based on the Śruti and Purāṇas (introductory poem),

composed in nāṭi and other rāgas as well as (sulādi) talas

(1.2).

The woik is composed in four chaptels or sandhis :

mukti, lava, sṛsti and sthiti. It is written entirely in four-

lines stanzas, entaining 140, 55, 83 ard 109 of these in the

four sandhis resfectively, totalling 387 stanzai. The work

begins with an introduction in bhāmini śāpadi metre. A

total of 33 śloka; borrowed from samskṛta sources are

inserted into the woik, but not counted. Each śloka

serves as a nucleus which functions as the

basis for translation, paaaphrase or elaboration of

Vaikuṇṭha descsiption in the stanzas which

follow immediately. These ślokas occur after the following

stanzas in each sandhi : mukti-3, 4, 7, 34, 38, 40, 49, 57,64,68,

70, 77, 83,102, 120, 124 (16) ; laya-1, 7, 35, 40,46,47.(6); sṛṣṭi-

1, 3,22, 70(4); sthiti, - 1, 17, 24,29,32,70,86 (7). Besides these,

veises from Vedic literatuie are also extracted under the

caption 'śruti' (but not counted). Theie authorities are not

documented in the work. The 'śruti' jnsertions, totalling 6,

occur aftei the following stanzas : mukti - 8, 88 (2); laya-

14(1); sṛṣṭi - nil; sthiti - 11, 27, 31 (3).

The textus constitutio is based on four collative sources

viz. Sa. Va 32. Mu-26, M-66. The first two lines of the

first stanz: of the work are separated by Mu-66 as pallavi

and the latter two lines presumedly as anupallavi. Rāga-tāla

ascriptions are not admited into the constituted text for

unknown reason, and are always treated as adsciipts from

the apparatus criticus. The rāga and tāla positions are

indicated in the text by one or more asterisks; in between

two such conseiutive asteirsk notation, the stanzas are

piesumably sung to the same rāga and tāla. Presumbly, the

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

89

sūti-verses are not sung to a rāga. The rāgas employed are:

nāṭi, śuddha gaula, nādanāmakriyā, saurāṣṭra, vasanta-

bhairavi, bhairavi, mecabauli, toḍi, pāḍi, mukhāri,

kāmbodhi, kedāragaula, pantuvarāli, gaulipantū, śuddha-

varāli, āhari and bhūpāli. Of these seventeen rāgas,

vasantabhairavi and pantuvarāli appear in Karnataka music

much later than Vādirāja; the others were in vogue during

his life. But it cannot be determined whether these latter

were originally set by the composer or by later perfomers.

All the sulādi tālas except maṭhya and eka but including ādi

are used. There is a single instance (2.43) where

the tvarita aṭṭa tāla is used ; no rāga is mentioned in the

source (Mu 66). No pattern is discernible in the distribution

of rāgas and tālas : Some are consecutive (e.g. 1, 8, 9; 2.

1, 2; 2.18,19 ; 2.27, 28 etc.) and some are quite distant (e.g.

1. 103-116; 2. 2-15 ; 3. 4-23 ; 3. 30-49 ; 3. 52-71 ;

2. 71-94 etc.)

VIII (b) SUVVĀLIS

Suvvi; suvvali, suvvāle, suvvāli are the alternative

names of a folksong sung by women while pounding or

grinding corn and on auspicous occasions such as marriage,

it is performed solo or in duet on the former occasion and in

chorus on the latter. It derives its name from the words

suvvi, suvvi-suvvale sung at the end of each line or stanza

of the song. It is widely prevalent in rural Karnataka,

Andhra and Tamilnadu. It is usually a narrative or benedic-

ction, composed in couplets or in the tripadi metre.

Someśvara states that the tripadi was used in pounding

corn, in themes of vipralambha śṛṅgāra (of separated

lovers) etc.122

122 Someśvara, Sarvajña-, op. cit. 4. 16. 549, p. 81

90

Music of Madhva Monks

Three suvvālis of Vādirāja are available. The first is called ‘Avatāra-traya Madhva Suvvāli.’123 As the name indicates, the song describes the exploits of Madhvacārya in his three incarnations as Hanuma, Bhīma and Madhvacārya in 230 couplets ( in the syllabic pattern l s ), devoting stanzas 1-2 to invocation, 3-12 to daśāvatāra, 14-70 to the incarnation of Hanuma, 73-155 to that of Bhīma, 159-228 to that of Madhvacārya and 229 to the fruits of reciting the work. The incarnations are linked by stanzas 71-72 and 157-158 respectively. Each avatāra section ends with a suvvī-refrain stanza (72,155,230.) No rāga or tāla is ascribed to the song because suvvī or suvvāle is a wellknown folk music tune. The edition seems to be based on two collative sources viz. Lī 2, Mu 86. The work carries the composer’s signature in the stanza 229 (i.e. the final stanza ; stanza 230 con’ains the suvvī refrain).

The second is called ‘Jaga-birudina suvvāli’ and is so named by Vādirāja (stanza 35, 37).124 Its theme is the description of the glories of Hari and refutation of advaita philcsophy. It has a pallavī of an introductory tripadi, followed by 35 tripadis, and 3 of phalastuti. Every second line ends with the word ‘suvvī’. The song conforms fully to the traditional pattern of tripadi singing in which the second line is repeated in the third line which carries an additional short suffix and this continues into the fourth line and completes the music and sense of the stanza. The tripadi is also called ‘onake vadu’ because it is sung while

123 Vādirāja, Avatāratraya Madhva-suvvali, in Śrī Vādirājara Dīrgha Kṛtigalụ, (ed.) idhem. pp. 97-153

124 idhem. no. 143, Śrī Vādirājara kṛtigalụ, (ed.) idhem. pp. 319-328

Vādīrāja : Long Musical Forms

91

pounding corn with a stamp (onake) and also ańkamālā if it extols the heroic deeds of a patron in battle.125

The jagabirudina suvvāli commences with a refrain pallavi (p), invocation (1, 2) and follows with the exploits of Kṛṣṇa (3-10), exhortation to a life of devotion and virtue (11-15), refutation of advaita (16-29), description of Vaikuṇṭha (30-34), benediction (35) and phalastuti (35-37)

The edițion of this composition is based on three collative sources viz. M.53-a, Mu-27 and Be-41. It cairies, inp robably, the ascription of todi rāga and ādi tāla.

The third suvvāli is called tattvasuvvāli.126 It is structured identically with the second ; it commences with an introductory tripadi serving as pallavi, and proceeds to describe the following: invocation (1, 2) daśāvatāra (3), refutation of advaita and enunciation of dvaita (4-12), yogic meditation on dieties presiding over various parts of the body (12-32), three incarnations of Madhvacārya (33-35).

The edition of this composition is based on two collative sources viz. Pām. 4, Mu. 27. Vijayaraghavan has supplied āmandabhairavi rāga and fast-tempo āditāla. In suvvāli has a distinctive well-known tune and rhythm of its own, these (conjectural) ascriptions appear to be superfluous.

VIII (c) LAKSMĪ ŚOBHĀNE

Vadiraja claims divine revelaticn of dogma through

125 Pundarika Viṭṭhala, Nartana-niṇaya, 3. 2. 194-196; see also Sathyanarayana, R., Puṇḍarikamālā, pp. 463. 464

126 Vadiraja, op. cit. no. ibid, pp. 329-336

92

Music of Mādhva Monks

dreams at least on three occasions : Lakṣmiśobhāne (stanza

109), svapnapada (q.v. saṭpadi 1) and a song (6).

As the title of the song indicates, Lakṣmiśobhāne is a

folksong variety known as śobhāne or sobāne. It is recited

by women in a wedding as benediction to the bride and the

groom. The song under discussion narrates the wedding of

Lakṣmi with Nārāyaṇa and is traditionally performed by

women in weddings of Mādhva adherents. It also has a

distinctive, wellknown tune and ihythṃ. It is composed,

as the suvvāli, in quartettes and is rendered in the same

manner described under suvvāli.

The Lakṣmiśobhāne has a pallavi of śobhāne followed by

112 stanzas in quertette structured as lsls.127 The pallavi is

presumably repeated after each stanza. After invocation (2)

the song proceeds with the theme as follows : arising of

Lakṣmi from the churning of the milk ocean (3), her bridal

preparation and ornamentation (4-14), rejection of all other

condidates aṡ the bridegroom (15-25), her conviction that

Hari is the best, the faultless (26-49), her synonymisation

of Hari with Kṛṣṇa and therefore Kṛṣṇa is the highest and

best of all gods (50-65), wedding of Lakṣmi with Hari

(66-70), worship of Hari by Samudrarāja (Lakṣmi's foster

father), by the sages, celebration with music and dance

(71-75), calling of Kṛṣṇa to the wedding dais by sumaṅgalis

(76-91), Kṛṣṇa and Lakṣmi adorn the dais (91), divinities

like Gaṅgā, Yamunā etc. perform the ārati and sing bene-

dictory dhavala (ṡ2-93), different divinities present them-

selves and offer tributes (94-96), a feast is served to bride and

groom (97), Kṛṣṇa assumes the incarnation of Mohin

127. idhem. Lakṣmi-śoblāne, no. 4, Śrī Vādirājara

Dīrgha Kṛtigalu, pp. 155-182; idhem, Lakṣmī-i

śobhana-hāḍu, pub. Guru Rao, Pavañje, & sons,

Uḍupi, 19th impression, 1969

Vādirāja : Musician and Composer

(98-99), and serves nectar to the guests(100); the concluding wedding rituals are conducted (101), guests are given gifts (102-104), Samudrarāja builds a mansion for the newlyweds on the ocean (106), benediction (107); phalastuti (108-111), promise of bliss to the bride and groom and longevity of saumangalya (i.e., longevity of husband) if the song is performed in a wedding (112). The composer has signed this song both in his own name (Vādirāja) and the nom de plume viz. hayavadana (107-112).

The song has been edited on the basis of ten collative sources viz, La-12, 20, 30; M-53a, Mu-26, 43, 45, 64, 65 and Na. Pantuvarāli rāga is ascribed to it. This rāga is described in musical treatises composed some two generations after Vādirāja ; therefore it is possible that this rāga may have just crept into musical practice durring the last days of Vādirāja. The greater possiblity is that this rāga is preserved in Mss sources in a transmission of performance tradition; so also the ascription of dhruvādi tāla. For, śobhāne is a wellknown, distinctive folktune and has a characteristic rhythmic flow. The formal ascription of rāga and tāla to this song indicates that it came to be accepted into the fold of ‘classical’ music in the mid 17th or early 18th cent.

The Lakṣmī śobhāne contains a few references to music: Vādirāja mentions the musical instruments tāla, maddale, tammate, bherī, paṭaha, śaṅkha, ḍoḷu, maurī and ḍuṇḍubhī; Nārada and Tuṃburu as celestial expert exponents of music (71-72); dance by celestial nymphs (90). He refers to two musical forms, ‘ovī and dhavala, both of which were sampṛadāya songs of gieat antiquity and are performed by women during celebrations of wedding, heroic deeds etc. (74-75). I have discussed these songs elsewhere.128

128. Sathyanarayana, R., Puṇaḍrikamālā, pp.490-497

Music of Madhva Monks

94

VIII (d) SVAPNAPADA

Svapnapada means dream song and purports to be Hari's commandments revealed to Vadirāja in a dream. It is a metrical work, composed in bhīmini sappadi metre 129 This metrical structure is employed by other vaisnava composers in Kannada also e.g. Purandaradāsa, Kanakadāsa, Jagannātha dasa etc.

The contents of svapnapada may be summarised thus : introductory announcement (1), Hari fulfils the desires of worshippers and punishes others (2), He subordinates to devotees (3-6), His ten in carnations (7-8), importance of reciting His name, pilgrimage etc., (10-12), Jiva-parmātma relationship (13-19), refutation of advaita (19, 20), Hari-sarvottamātva (21-23), His auspicious qualities (26-37, 40-41), assurance of granting liberation to sincere worshippers (42), excellence of Mādhva religion (43), phalastuti (44), Hari's revelation to Vādirāja in dream (45).

The edition of this song is based on six collative sources viz. Ta-23, M-53a, Va-31, 33, Mu-26, 45. The song is divided into 9 groups of 5 śapadis each to which rāga is ascribed as follows : pantuvarāli (1-5), kāmbodi (6-10), mukhāri (11-15), Kalyāṇi (16-20), todi (21-25), madhyamā-vati (26-30), kedāragauḷa (31-35) bhairavi (36-40) ard aḥa.ri (41-45)130. Thus it has been transmitted as a rāgamalikā. Since it is a metrical composition, no tāla is ascribed to it.

129 Vadirāja, Svapnapada, no. ES. 11, Sri Vadirajara Krtigaḷu, I p. 591-605

130 idhem. op. cit. pub. Guru Rao, 'Pavan̄je., & Sons, Udupi, 4th impression, 1958, pp. 1-9

Vādi rāja : Musician and Composer

95

VIII (e) GAJENDRA MOKSA

Gajendramokṣa means grant of mokṣa (liberation) to the elephant king (gajendra) by Hari. It is based on a story from Bhāgavata purāṇa131 in which the (mythical) Pāṇdya king Indradyumṇa was deeply immersed in meditation on Viṣṇu once and did not therefore heed the presence of Agastya muni; Irate at this negligence, the muni cursed the king to reincarnate as an elephant. He relents at the supplication of the king and modifies the curse that the king would be restored to his original self when the elephant's incarnation is terminated by Viṣṇu with His sudarśana cakra. Accordingly, the king takes birth as an elephant, goes to drink water in a lake, is caught by a crocodile and prays to Viṣṇu with abandon and undivided devotion. Viṣṇu arrives and kills the crocodile with sudarśana cakra. When the cakra touches the elephant, its incarnation is terminated and Indradyumṇa is restored to his original self.

Gajendramokṣa is composed by Vādirāja in 50 quartette stanzas without pallavi or anupallavi;132 that is, the song is a continuous narrative; here Indradyumṇa is made king of Guṇḍa deśa instead of the Pāṇdya kingdom. The words nārāyaṇa-kṛṣṇa are repeated at the end of each stanza or each couplet-half. No rāga or tāla is ascribed to the song because it is a udayarāga i.e. song recited in a distinctive folk tune by womenfolk early in the morning while performing household chores. The tune often corresponds to the rāga bhūpāli of Karnataka music. Vādirāja's

131 Śukamuni, op.cit. 8.4

132 Vādirāja, Gajendramokṣa, pub. Guru Rao, Pāvañje-, & Sons, Uḍupi, 1968, pp. 1-10.

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Music of Madhva Monks

signature (hayavadana) occurs in the final stanza of the song (50).

VIII (f) GUNDAKRIYA

Another long song of Vādirāja is the guṇdakriya. The reason for this name can how be only conjectured, for Vādirāja himself has not called it guṇdakriya; this name seems to be applied to the song by tradition which seems to be at least a hundred years old if not more. Two conjectures may be offered in explanation of this name; the first is musical : guṇdakriya is the name of the rāga in which it is set. This used to be a popular rāga in the days of Vādirāja, a janpa under Mālavagauda which was again, the most important or popular mela and had the largest number of rāgas grouped under it, accounting for nearly one third of all the rāgas prevalent in the 16th cent.

It may be recalled here that Puṇḍaradāsa is credited to have erected this mela as the pedagogical standard exactly in this period. Of all the derivatives of mālava-gauda, guṇdakriya may have a held in special fascination because of its legendary association with Hanumān (who is a very important diety in dvaita theolōgy as Mukhyaprāṇa) who is said to have melted rocks by singing this rāga. Since the composition under discussion has for its main theme religious dogma of dvaita, the choice of this rāga would be deemed doubly appropriate.

The second canjecture is lexical. Gunda means a pit (fall) and crushing. The composition endeavours to warn

133 e.g. Puṇḍarika Vipṭhala, Sadrāga-candrodaya, 2, 2. 7-75

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

97

the devotee of the pitfalls or traps which other religious or

metaphysical systems place in the path of the earnest seeker

and to crush them. So the name may be regarded as appro-

priate. These conjectures are however, balanced by some

counterpoints. Firstly, the Uḍupi edition of the work134

assigns the rāga vasantabhairavi and tāla jhampe to the

song, just after the title ‘Guṇḍakriya’. No other composition

called guṇḍakriya in the entire range of dāsa sāhitya has

come to my notice so that these conjectures may neither be

confirmed nor rejected.

The guṇḍakriya is a song of 40 stanzas. Of the two

collative sources viz. Va-12 and Mu-26, used for constituting

the text, Va-12 gives the first two lines of the first stanza as

Pallavi ; so, according to this source the song is not

continuous but interrupted with a refrain repeated after each

stanza, while according to the other it is continuous

unsegmented. The Uḍupi edition assigns jhampa tāla at the

beginning, again for 8th stanza and aṭṭa tāla for the 9th

and subsequent stanzas. No rāga is assigned for the

composition in the IKS (Mysore) edition. Each stanza has

10 lines, rhyming on the second syllable. The stanzas

reveal a general structural pattern lslslslll. A special

feature of this song is that every stanza carries the

composer’s signature in the penultimate or antepenultimate

line.

As mentioned earlier, this composition is devoted to the

refutation of rival religous or metaphysical systems and to

expound its own dogma and theology. Its contents may be

summarised as follows : Hari protects His devotees

refutation of cārvāka system (2,3), refutation of jainism

134. Vādirāja, Guṇḍakriya, pub. Guru Rao, Pāvañje-,

& Sons, Uḍupi, first impression, 1928, p.1

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Music of Mādhva Monks

(4), refutation of buddhism (5-8), auspicious qualities of

Hari and His supremacy (9, 11-13, 20, 21, 23-37), refutation

of advaita (14-19, 22), supplication to Hari (39, 40).

VIII (g) KORAVANJI AS A SOUTH INDIAN OPERA

Nārada-Koravañji is among the firsts achieved by

Vādirāja in musico-literary composition; for this is the

earliest vernacular folk dance-drama in South India and

probably in India to be composed and included within the

perimeter of classical music and dance. The name of this

composition means that the sage Nārada functioned as the

koravañji or fortune- telling gypsy with Rukmiṇī who was

yearning to wed Kṛṣṇa.

The name koravañji refers to a tribe in which men are

variously called korava, koraba, korabu, korama, etc. and

the women as kuruvañji, koravañji, koravi, koratti,

kotavañji etc. They are a wandering gypsy tribe whose

profession is weaving and selling mats and baskets and

fortune-telling. They derive their name probably from

kuruve (kannaḍa, basket) i.e. a professional name. The

kōramas and koravañjis are known in Karnataka from at

least 1200 A.C. The women are usually pictured as carrying

a child on the arm, a basket on the head, wearing a dirty

round of cloth and with head of matted (uncombed) hair

Their dance is known as koravañji nāṭya,

koravañji kaṭṭale etc. in Karnataka. Kannada poets such

as Karṇapārya (1140),136 Bandhuvarma (c. 1200),137

Mahābala (1254),138 Maṅgarasa (1508),139 Sālva (c.1550),140

136. Karṇapārya, Nemipurāṇa, 8.52

137. Bandhuvarma, Harivaṃśabhyudaya, 9.60 pr.

138. Mahābala, Neminātha purāṇa, 8

139. Maṅgarasa III, Nemijineśa-saṅgati, 21.52

140 Sālva, Bhārata, 19.21

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

99

Ratnakaravarni (1557)141 etc. refer to the koravanji or her dance. Koravanji natya appears to to have been an organised body of dance in Karnataka since Govindavaidva mentions 'koravanji kattale142 in which the theme was composed in four languages viz. kannada, telugu, tamil *(tigula ?) and prakrta. The word 'kattale means order or scheme of dance.143 'There used to be variety of folkdance, widely prevalent in Andhra in the 16th cent. called desi kattada (-na)144 This is called kattari nrtta also.145 Ramakrishna kavi equates kattana = kattada = kattara as synonymous, well known in Karnataka, Andhra and Tamilnadu as a form of jati (? jati) nrtta.146 This is obviously a vernacular word, and of kannada origin; since da is replaced by la to accommodate phonetic transformation, it is reasonable to conjecture that this is a reference to the kattale mentioned above.

Perhaps the earliest reference to the koravanji is found in tamil; Silappadikaram mentions the 'kurava (korava) and kuravaikuttu (koravanji dance) several times.147 Here kuravas (and kuravis) are a pastoral, hilly

141 Ratnakaravarni, Bharatesavaibhava, 12. 91; 14. 51

142 Govindavaidya, Kanthiravanarasarajavijaya, cit. Durga, S.A.K., The Opera in South India, p. 47

143 idem. op.cit. 7.107, 8.66, 21.116; Bihubali, Nagakumaracaritam, 22. 102

144 Pundarika Vittthala, Nartanarinirnaya, 4.856

145 Damodara, Catura, Sangitadarpanam, 7 255-259; Sourindra Mohun Tagore, Sangitasara sangraha, 6, p. 269

146 Ramakrishna kavi, M., op. cit. p. 102

147 Ilango Adigal, Silappadikaram, (e.d) Swami­natha Iyer, U.V., pp. 26-28, 57, 60, 79, 80, 88, 99, 141, 158, 159, 191, 235, 410, 413, 450, 454, 460, 461, 464, 503, 516, 541, 544, 584, 588

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Music of Madhva Monks

tribe who dance and sing; the kuravaikūttu (the dance of kuravis) is distinguished from vari by the fact that the dancers join their hands, clap etc. Śilappadikāram decribes two occasions on which this dance was performed : kuravaikūttu is a pastoral dance in honor of Kṛṣṇa. When Kovalan was executed by order of the Pāṇḍyan king, ill omens appeared in Madurai. To ward off the evils so portended, Mādari and her daughter Aiyai arranged and performed this dance in presence of Kannaki. Secondly, when, in anguish at the death of her husband, Kannaki curses,Madurai is in conflagration,she stands under the shade of the veṅgai tree on the Neduvel kunram, a celestial car (ratha) comes and takes her away to Heaven. This is celebrated by the kuravis with a kuravaikūttu, which is described in an entire (24th) chapter of the Śilappadikāram, entitled ‘kunrak-kuravai’.

Durga gives valuable information on the koravañji form, which is now a popular, folk dance-drama,148 and lists as many as fifty koravañji plays.149 She traces kuram to the ancient play vari and equates kuram with the people, their land, with their profession of fortune-telling and with their nātaka of singing and dancing. She derives kuram from kuratti song (song of the kurava woman) which is defined in the Panniruppaṭṭiyal. Kuram is the musico-dance form in which kuratti plays the dominating role; on the other hand, in kuluva nātaka the kuruva (= kulava) or male gypsy dominates. The kuratti and kurava are also called siṅgi and siṅga respectively. Composers of koravañji nātaka combined the kuram and kuluva nātaka somewhat loosely. Kursam means a tribe of kuravas, palmistry practised by their women and their song, kurattippaṭṭu.150

148 Durga, S.A K., op.cit. pp. 44-47, 54, 56, 74-82, 87

149 ibid. pp. 117,118

150 Winslow, T., A Tamil-English Dictionary, p. 340

Vadirāja : Long Musical Forms

101

Durga adopts this derivation. It is equally plausible to derive it from the word kuruva which means a hill since they are a hilly tribe.151

The koravanji plays follow a sterotyped theme : The hero (the presiding diety of the place or the king) comes in a procession. The heroin sees the procession with her friends and falls in love with the hero; her yearning for him becomes so intense that she sends a friend as a messenger (dūti) to the hero urging him to come to her. At this point, a gypsy woman-the koravanji-appears on the scene, proclaiming her prowess in reading the palm to divine the past, present and future and singing the beauties of her hilly homeland. The heroine calls her in and shows her palm. The kuratti divines the heroine's mind accurately and predicts that the heroine's secret desire to unite with the hero will be fulfilled. The heroine is delighted with this and gives the kuratti rich presents. The play continues in a loosely attached second part, the kulavan nataka; here the kuravan and his friend kulavan appear in scene in which they are catching birds. The kuravan (singa) remembers his wife kuratti (singi) praises her qualities, and sends kulavan to fetch her. (Occassionally, the kuratti appears on the scene by herself, by coincidence or design.) Kuratti is now bedecked with the jewels gifted by the heroine. He seeks an explanation. The kuratti explains her divination about the heroine. The kurava and the kuratti are happy and retire.

The koravanji play usually commences with the appearance of a sūtradhāra (kattiyakkaran). The play used to be performed all night on special occasions in temples. Characters appear first on the stage behind a cloth held by two persons, similar to such appearances in yakṣagāna; pure dance (nrtta) and thematic dance (nṛtya) have an equal

151 Kannaḍa Sāhitya Pariṣattina Kannaḍa-Kannaḍa Nighaṇtu, Vol. 2, p. 2217

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Music of Madhva Monks

share in the koravañji plays. The more important literary forms employed in a koravañji play are

āsiriyappā, veñbā, taravura, koccakam, kalitturai lāvaṇi,

āsiriya vṛtta and kali vṛtta; cindu, kanni and various forms

of daru (eg. praveśa-, sthala-, varṇana-, samvāda-,

manmatha-, candra-, kokila-, paṅgi-, kura-, nirai-, naṭya-

and kīrtana-), which are sung in rakti rāgas by a singer

to his own accompaniment of hand cymbals (tāla); the

tālas used are usually miśra cāpu, rūpaka (triśra) and

khaṇḍa cāpu and ādi. The koravañji is written in tamil,

telugu, kannaḍa, malayāḷam, marāṭhi-and with even

passages in english ! The themes may be hindu, muslim

or christian. The earliest koravañji nāṭaka is Tirukuṭṭaḷa

koravañji written by Tirikooṭa Rasappa kavirāya in

1720 A.C.

In the malayāḷam language, the koravañji play is

called korattiyaṭṭam. Lakṣmī and Pārvatī appear on the

stage and perform abhinaya (with gestures but no foot-

work) to an antiphonal theme in which a dialogue on the

merits of Viṣṇu and demerits of Śiva and vice versa

is performed to singing which is accompanied by the

rhythm of hand cymbals.152

Śrīrāma Appa Rao studies the koravañji plays in a

scholarly, historical perspective: Rāmabhadra rāju (1500-

1580. 153 mentions koravañji for the first time in telugu

literature. Ceṅgalvarāya equates the yerukala with

koravat (siṅga) and korati (siṅgi) in his Yerukala katha;

koravañji refers to both the tribal person and to the play.

References to both the koravañji women and

koravañji play are found in a variety of telugu

152 Durga, S.A.K., op. cit. pp. 44-47

153 Ms. no. 486, vol. 10 : Andhra-viśvakalā-pariṣat, (it.

Srirama Appa Rao, Poṅaṅgi-, Telugu-nāṭaka-

vikāsamu, p. 184

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

103

literary sources.154 Prabhākara Śastri opines that the

term koravañji is a compound of kurava+añji; añji means

a (folk) dance like cindu, gantu, gonḍali etc. It originated

as a simple folkdance but gradually accumulated themes

of the respective regional sthalamahātmya, myths of Viṣṇu

and Śiva and was transformed into a musico-dance play.

He further holds that the tamil yakṣagāna has evolved from

the koravañji.155 Saṅgameśam broadly classifies the telugu-

kannaḍa koravañji plays into three groups on the basis of

their literary theme : a) koravañji yakṣagānas such as

Garuḍācala Mihatmya, coḍigānikalāpa delineate the love

between the korava (siṅga) koravi (siṅgi) themselves.

They enact the roles of Ceṅculakṣmi and Narasimha or

Pārvati and Śiva respectively and their mutual divine love.

The Kīrtavilāsa of Śahaji Mahārāja of Tanjore is patterned

on this theme. b) The hero is disguised as a korava,

meets the heroine, examines her palm and predicts that

154 e.g. extr. Śrī-Sūryarāyāndhra-nighaṇṭuvu, vol.2,

p. 438 :

Kadiṛṛipati-nāyaka, Śuka-saptati, 1.17.97

Gaṇavarapu Veṅkaṭakavi, Prabandharāja-Veṅka-

ṭeśvara-vijaya-vilāsamu, 1.160

Paidiṃerṛi Veṅkaṭapati, Candrāṅgada-caritramu,

2.90

Dharaṇi-dhavala-Rāmayamātya, Daśāvatāra-cari-

tramu, 7. 1. 288

Kanuparti Abbayāmatya, Kavirāja-manorañjanamu,

3. 88

Ceṅgālva-kavi, Rajagopāla-vilāsamu, 1.22 (ṣiṣa-padya),

p. 9

extr : Srirama Appa Rao, Poṅaṅgi-, op. cit. pp. 156,

184, 185

Rāmabhadra, Rāmabhadrabhyudayamu, 2.131

Kakutstha-vijayamu, 3.86

she will unite with the swain of her choice; Rāmulavāri eruka, Sītakaiyāna in telugu and Arjuna koravañji, Kṛṣṇa koravañji etc in kannaḍa belong to this class. c) the koravañji (= yeruka) woman, is introduced into the theme

with little or no relevance to the main theme, she reads the palm of the heroine and predicts her union with the hero; the korava (= yerukarāja) is now introduced through humorous descriptions; an argument between him and koravañji ensues and is resolved to their mutual happiness

and they exit. The rest of the story is perfunctorily treated.155 Some koravañji plays such as Prabodhacandrodaya also have a theme of spiritual enlightenment. In early telugu literature, descriptions of only the koravañji dance and koravañji roles are found, then the koravañji entered

the stage in yakṣagāna and viṭhinaṭaka (street plays); the siṅgi-siṅga theme was magnified into a play. Koravañji as a distinct litera.y-or art-form emerged in the 19th century in telugu.156

VIII (h) NĀRADA KORAVANJI OF VĀDIRĀJA

Vādiraja's Nārada koravañji may be studied against the foregoing background. It has inspirid latter haridāasa composers such as Mahipatirāya, Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa and Hejavanakaṭṭe Giriyamma to bring forth similar compositions. It is the forerunner of other kannaḍa koravañji plays : kandarpa koravañji of Brahmanāñka (c.1800), koravañji kathe (c. 1700), Kṛṣṇa koravañji and

155 Prabhākara Sāstri, Vegūri-, Sugrīva-vijaya-yakṣa-gānamu, introduction, pp. 4-6

156 Saṅgamesham, Mutnuri-, Kannaḍa-yakṣagānamulu, Bhārati, Feb. 1956, p. 68.

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

105

Saṅgamesham states that koravañji nāṭaka is not found in kannaḍa before the 17th cent.157 Srirama Appa Rao concurs with this view.158 But the Nāṭaka koravañji belies this belief because it was composed in about the mid-16th cent.

It is not simply a song or dance set to a literary theme performed by a single koravañjī as it did in its early phase but has a well defined dramatic element and clearcut dramatis personae. It has several features which are common to later koravañjī plays and therefore may be regarded as the archetype or exemplar for this literary musico-dance.

The contents of this koravañjī nāṭaka may be briefly summarised thus. The passage number (as given in the impressi typis159) are shown in brackets; invocation (1);

Rukmiṇī, princess of Kuṇḍinapura is in love with Kṛṣṇa and is determined to marry him; Nārada assumes, the disguise of a koravañjī and comes to Kuṇḍinapura to please Rukmiṇī with his prediction (2); Koravañjī is described(3-11); she is called in by Rukmiṇī for a reading of her palm (11 pr-12 pr);

koravañjī comes singing śrīāga and dancing; she is described (13-15 pr-1). Koravañjī asks Rukmiṇī to show her pam (15 pr-2.3). She praises Rukmiṇī for her beauty 15pr), describes her own travels and prowess (16-21).

Rukmiṇī asks the koravañjī to read her palm and make verifiable predictions (22). Koravañjī asks her to hold in her own mind her innermost daseire while showing the palm (23-24). The koravañjī invokes her patron dieties (24 pr) and proceeds to predict that Kṛṣṇa will be her husband and mentions her achievements in support of her predictions (25-33). Rukmiṇī admits her love for Kṛṣṇa. Koravañjī praises the qualities and glory of Kṛṣṇa as bridegroom and

157 ibid. loc. it.

158 Srirama Appa Rao, Popāṅgi-, op. cit. pp. 156-157

159 Vādirāja, Nārada koravañjī, in Śrī Vādirājara Kṛtigaḷu, pp. 462-471

promises that he will come to her soon to take her away (37-46); she reiterates Krsna's early arrival and assuages

Rukmini's doubts and fears, and draws her attention to Krsna who is speeding to Kundinapura in his chariot (46-51);

Krsna arrives and carries Rukmini away in his chariot (51-52). The glory of Krsna is sung to celebrate his arrival (52-54);

koravanji states that her prediction is verified and demands gifts (55-57); she is richly rewarded (57 pr).

benediction (58).

This koravanji nataka has certain novel features: The koravanji is the mythical semiceleatial vaisnava saint Narada

in disguise. He already knows that Rukmini's love for Krsna is reciprocated by him. The heroine Rukmini does not

see the hero during a procession of the latter as is common with later koravanji plays; nor does she send a duti to

confess her love for Krsna and to plead with the hero to come to unite with her; this has been already accomplished

before the play commences in terms of a letter she has written to Krsna sent through a brahmana emissary (36 pr).

The hero's rescue of the heroine by abduction is also novel; but the composer is committed to these differences because

of the restrictive influence of his exemplar viz the Bhagavata purana, in both outline and details. The only major

innovation is the role of Narada as koravanji, presumably assumed by the former at the instance of Krsna himself.

In other respects however, the Narada koravanji presents features which correspond to those of later

koravanji plays in Karnataka and elsewhere. The koravanji is dressed in a saree, carries a basket on her head and

carries the singa (fetish? child?) on her back. She wears earrings, banges, ankle bells and a waist band; she

describes her travels and predictive achievements. She enters the stage dancing. She is incidental to the main

theme viz. the love of Rukmini and Krsna but dominates the play while only a small fraction of the play deals

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

107

perfunctorily-the coming of Kṛṣṇa and his elopement with Rukmiṇi at the end. The koravañji is conversant in kannaḍa and telugu; there is no indication of her belonging to a hill tribe. A peculiarity is that she appears at the very begining and stays till the very end of the play. There are narrative passages throughout the play in both prose and verse which are presumably recited by a sūtradhāra; in fact, the whole Nārada ko.avañji is a narrative with interspersed dialogues. Therefore, the sūtiadhāra or narrator stays from the beginning to the end, even before the appearance of the koravañji. The story does not record the return of koravañji back to being Nārada.

The main character of the play is referred to as koravi twice (19, 35) and as koravañji eleven times (2, 4, 10, 11 pr, 12 pr, 13, 15 pr, 21 pr, 36 pr, 45 pr, 57 pr). The composer's signature (hayavadana) occurs in the opening and concluding passages.

The edition is based on a unique exemplar which is not specified by the editor. No rāga or tāla is mentioned; it is probable that several rāgas and several tālas were used to confer musical variety to effectively portray the mood and rhythm of the words. It is also probable that Vādiṛāja had a model (from a predecessor composer or from folklore) after which he ha fashioned the Nārada koravañji-which is the first available play of its kind. He may have used folk tunes and rhythms obtaining in the model to anthenticate it.

On structual analysis, the 58 (numbered passages) may be resolved into the following : 2 line stanzas -28 (8-10, 13, 16-18, 20-27, 29, 36, 38-40, 44-49, 51, 53), 3 line stanzas-7 (30, 35, 37, 50, 52, 54, 56), 4 line stanzas-17 (1-6, 11, 12, 28, 31, 32, 34, 41, 43, 55, 57, 58), 5 line stanzas-6 (7, 15, 19, 33, 42, 55), prose passages-18 (not numbered; occuring after stanza numbers 11, 12a, b, 14, 15a, b, c,d, 21, 22, 24, 36, 41, 43, 45, 51, 54, 57). Of these, 11 passages aie in telugu : stanza numbers 20-22, 38-40 (2 line stanzas), 41 (3 line

108

Music of Madhva Monks

stanza; prose passages after nos. 43, 51, 54. It is interesting to note that the koravanji performs them in blocks (20-21) (22), (38-41 p1), but not as separate units, but continuous with kannada passages. The stanzas rhyme, with few exceptions viz. 7, 19, 25, 27, 30, 32, 33, 34, 41, 43, 54, on the second syllable. Some of these exceptions may be resolved into smaller, rhyming units. The syllabic quantity is variable in the stanzas, but approximately equal in many stanzas. The prose passages are replete with alliteration and enphony and are composed in the style of curnika and dandaka.

The Narada koravanji is a short (for a koravanji nataka) beautiful composition and deserves to be revived on the contemporary bharatanattya stage.

A few more compositions affiliated to the koravanji may be mentioned in passing. The first is a kani-song. Kani-garti, kanigati is synonymous with koravanji and means a women who divines the future with the reading of a palm, face etc. The male analogue is called kanigara. Kani is of Kanakadasa160 in which he, as a kanigara teaches the rejection of superstitious faith in sundry dieties, and unswerving faith in the one and only God. This is only a song with a structure 2045 with no dramatic element, theme or dramatic persona: The second is a koravanji pada of Mahipatidasa.161 A koravanji seeks to predict to Satya-bhama (!) who is pregnant that she will beget Lord Krsna as her son and takes the opportunity to describe the glories a nd ten incarnations of Visnu as also yogic techniques of

160 Keshavadisa, Beluru-, Sri Haridasa-sahitya, pp. 227-228

161 Mahipatidasa, koravanji-pada, Sri Mahipatidasara-krtigalu, ed. Varadaraja Rao, G. ES 4, pp. 461-470

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

109

selfrealisation. It follows the conventional pattern of koravanji theme. It refers to a koravanji. (5, 10, 57, 63) and koravati (1). It has dialogus between Satyabhāmā is here inconsistent, unless the term is intended (implausibly) to refer to a woman in general. It is more likely addressed to Devaki (Kṛṣna's mother). It has no prose passages, nor passages of other languages than kannaḍa. The whole composition is one single song : 10.4.64, unlike the Nārada koravanji in which no separate song-units are composed.

A one-line refrain in the form of pallavi shows that this was intended to be sung rather than enacted as a play. Syllabic distribution in stanza-lines falls broadly into three anges : the longest stanzas are nos. 36, 37, 59, 60, 61, 62 (22-25 syllables), longer stanzas are nos. 19, 20, 21, 30,31,32, 33, 35, (12-20 syllables) ; the rest are of normal in length (11-16 syllables). The koravanji described here bears close resemblance to the one described by Vādirāja in her appearance and words. As is common with songs of Mahipatirāya, this is strongly oriented to metaphysical and spiritual dimension. A more detailed discussion of this aspect of the song lies outside the scope of the present study.

Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa is mentioned162 as having composed a Nārada koravanji ( under print). This will also be briefly described presently.163

162 Indubai, T.K. (ed.) Śrī Prasannadāsara Bhāgavata,

Introduction, p. xiv

163 a. Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa, Nārada koravanji, ed.

Patil, A.T., Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsaru Mattu

Avara Kṛtigaḷu, pt. 9, Viśeṣa Kṛtigaḷu, pp. 94 ff .

b. idhem, op. cit. ed. Indubai, T.K., Haridāsa-

sahityamāle, No. 12, Institute for Kannada

Studies, University of Mysore (under print)

110

Music of Madhva Monks

Two koravañji songs of Helavanakaṭṭe Giriyamma are available: Brahma koravañji and Kṛṣṇa koravañji. Of these, the first is complete and the second is now available only in a fragment. Brahma koravañji164 is constituted from three collative sources : O-13, Kha, Mu-91.165 The first offers the longest version, consisting of 71 stanzas and 11 vacana (prose) passages. Mu-91 contains the shortest version with a total of 45 stanzas,inclusive of prose passages. Kha offers 56 stanzas, again including prose passages. The last two enumerate all the passages seriatim while O-13 attempts serial enumeration at the begining only, excluding vacanas. Kha offers an additional vacana at the end of section 9 (vide infra). The textus vulgate appears to be that of O-13, which divides it into 22 sections, each a self-contained unit of dialogue between the koravañji and Devakī, and separated from its predecessor by the ascription of a tīla or of a tāla and rāga, which are found only in this source. Each section consists of a small number of stanzas. Of the 71 stanzas, 4 are couplets (15. 1, 2, 3; 20. 2), 9 are triplets (8. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ; 16.2 ; 22. 1, 2, 3), 3 are quintets (4. 1, 2, 3), one is a sextette (19.2) and the remaining 54 are quatrains. Since the vacanas are also divisible into stanza-feet rhyming uniformly on the second syllable as the stanzas do, they are also treated as stanzas (hence their inclusive enumearation by Kha and Mu-91), but inferably without being set to tāla Of the 11 vacanas, one has only one line (10), one has two lines (3), one has three lines (2), 7 have four lines (1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) and one has

164 Giriyamma, Helavanakaṭṭe-, Brahma koravañji, ed. Indubai, T.K. Helavanakatṭe Giriyamma Haḍugaluṇ, pp.153-173

165 O-13 : Ms. no. 1642, Kannada Adhyayana Kendra, Bangalore University, Bangalore

Kha : Ms. in Kannada Adhyayana kendra,Bangalore University, Bangalore

Mu-91 : Brahma koravañji, ed. Mugali, R.S., in 'Sādhane', vol. 9, no. 1

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

111

five lines (11). On the other hand, Vādirāja has composed

these, called gadyas, without rhyming ; these are thus

incapable of being resolved into stanza-lines.

O-13 structures . the Brahma koravañji musically as

follows in terms of stanza content and rāga / tāla.

section no. no. of stanzas rāga/tāla

1 5 nāṭi/jhampa

2 3 — trivuḍe

3 3 — vilambita eka

4 3 — eka

v — —

5 5 bhairāvi/pañcaghāta

v — —

6 3 — eka

v — —

7 3 — vilambita eka

v — —

8 5 — eka

v — —

9 3 — aṣṭa (aṭṭa)

10 3 kāmbodhi/aṣṭa

v — —

11 3 — eka

v — —

12 5 eka

v — —

13 3 kedāragaula/trivuḍe

14 3 — aṣṭa

15 3 — trivuḍe

v — —

16 3 — aṣṭa

17 3 — vilambita aṣṭa

18 1 — eka

112

Music of Mādhva Mònks

v —

19 — eka

20 — jhampā

21 — eka

v —

22 — nil

Kha ascribes the rāga punnāṭa at the beginning of the song but no tāla The composition is segmented but without the refrain of pallavi or anupallavi. The word content is continuous, but is conveniently divisible into segments, consisting of narration or the whole passage of each party in a dialogue ; this is marked by a change in the rhythm structure or in the melody-rhythm structure as indicated above. This is an ingenious and adequate mu i:al technique in a dramatic theme. Each segment has, with two exceptions (no. 19 which inserts a sextet between two quatrains and no. 20 which inserts a couplette between two quatrains) the same single kind of stanza type, probably intended to sustain the same single affective environment. Vādirāja employs a musical technique at variance with this. It is not clear fiom Kha whether the song was performed to one or more tālas, or if performed to tāla at all. If not, changes in verbal and affective flow would depend on general changes in rhythm structure somewhat loosely executed, because the stanzas or the vacanas are not prosodially structured but contain only approximately comparable syllabic quantities as will be shown presently.

Many songs of Giiiyamma have been transmitted in both hindusthani music and karnataka music ; they are/were performed to rāgas and tālas of both as revealed in their textual sources. This is natural because she hailed from north Kaiṇataka where hindusthani music flourishes, but became equally popular in south Karnataka where karnataka music flourishes; this is true of every haridāsa. However, the Brahma koravañji appears to have been sung

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

113

only in rāgas and tālas of karnataka music. This so because

0 13 is from Bangalore and the copy probably prepared in

the Old Mysore area.

Only four rāgas viz. naṭi, bhairavi, kāmbodi and

kedāragaula are given in the Ms. for 71 stanzas and 11

vacanas. These are inserted haphazard in the work with

no regard to change in verbal or dramatic theme: e.g.

bhai avi-pañcaghata are more logical after rather than before

S.1, where Devaki begins to speak, but the shifting of

pañcaghāta tala would not be justified because the entire

section 5 is a single structural unit. The two others-kāmbodi-

aṣṭa (aṭṭa) and kedāragaula-trivụde are slightly better placed

because they indicate a definite phase change in narration

It is not improbable that these are erroneous scribal

insertions. It may be recalled that Kha ascribes a single

rāga viz. punniṭa for the entire song, which conforms to

similar practice (at least in textual tradition) in the long

songs of haridāsas.

The tālas given for this song are jhampā, trivuḍe ( =

this ajaṭi tripaṭa)vilambi (+ta)eka, eka, pañcaghāta, aṣṭa

= aṭṭa) and vilambi (+ta) aṣṭa. These are more or less

appropriate for the corresponding syllabic structures. The

technique of juxtaposing two different tempi of the

same tala (sections: 6, 7, 8; 16, 17) to handle widely

different syllabic contents of stanza lines is note-

worthy, though the aplication of the same tala in adjacent

segments (nos. 8, 9, 18, 19) containing different lengths

of stanza feet is questionable. The epithet vilambi and the

names trivuḍe, aṣṭa and pañcaghāta suggest a folk usage,

especially of yakaṣagāna. The normal speed in tāla

movement in yakaṣagāna corresponds to the middle tempo

(madhyalaya) of karnataka music. Therefore it is necessary

to indicate a slower tempo with the term 'vilambi (+ta)'.

The use, and naming, of tālas in terms of tempi found in

hindustani music or yakṣagāna has no correspondance in karnataka music. Since eka-vilambi eka and aṣṭa-vilambi aṣṭa have different rhythm patterns, their use in adjacent sections is both appropriate and justified. Pañcaghāta (phonetically deteriorated into pañcāgati in yakṣagāna) is khaṇḍajāti mathya tāla rendered with five (pañca) beats (ghāta). This is described by me elsewhere.168 The jāgas nāṭi, bhairaṅvi, kāmbhōdi and kedāragaula are also discussed in detail elsewhere.167

It has been mentioned above that the stanzas of Brahma kōravañji are composed in couplet, triplet, quatrain, quintet and sextette. These may be examined for structural patterns in terms of syllabic quantity. Among the couplets, three reveal a pattern of l, l+1,2 where l is the length of the shorter line (15. 1, 2,3) and one (20. 2) has l, l+2. The triplets have these patterns : l-1,2, l-2 to 4 (l=16) in 8.1,2,3,4.5); l, l-1, l-1 (l=16) in 16.2; 22.1,2,3,

In the quintets (4. 1, 2, 3), lines 2, 4, 5 are approximately equal while 1 and 3 are approximately equal but slightly longer. In the only available sextette (19.2) syllabi: distri-bution is 16–17 in lines 1, 2, 4 and 13–14 in line: 3, 5, 6, thus containing roughly couplet structure of l's.... Quatrains occur in the largest number in this song. These may be broadly grouped into these in which the syllabic quantity in the stanza line is small, middle and large. Many quatrains are composed such that the lines are roughly equal within a tole.ance of ± 2 e.g. 3,3 (l= 14 to 18), 5. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10,

2,3 (average=14), 14,1,2 (average=12,13), 21. 1,2 (average =

166 Sathyanarayana, R., Sulādis and Ugābhōgas of Karnataka Music, p. 36

167 idhem. Karnāṭaka-sangīta-vāhini, pp. 77, 91.92, 106-109, 117-118 respectively

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

115

(22 ± 1). In some quatrains, the last line is longer by 20-25 p.c. e.g. 1. 1, 2,3,4,5 (av. = 15±1), 2.1,2,3 (av = 20±2), 10.1,

Many other quatrains may be decomposed into lsls: e.g. 6. 1, 2, 3 (l=13, 14; s = 9, 10); 12.1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (l = 12, 13

s = 7, 8); 13. 1, 2, 3 (l = 13 to 16 ; s =6 to 9); 17.1,2,3 (l = 12

to l4 s=8,9). There are some lsll patterns e.g. 3.2, ssll e.g.

7.1,1,3. Some quatrains reveal a progressive tapering of

syllabic quantity towards the last line e.g.. 1. 1, 2, 3 (19 to

13, 21 to 13 or 14). Finally, there are stanzas in which the

lines 1, 3 are somewhat longer than the lines 2,4 but

cannot be accommodated under the 'lsls' pattern e.g. 7, 1, 2,

3 (2-4=13,14; 1-3 = + 2, 3); 9. 1, 2, 3 (2-4 = 12, 13; 13

= + 2,3); 16.1 (2-4 = 14,13; 1-3 = 15); 19. 1, 3 (2-4=15,

14; 1-3 = 17, 16); 20.3 (1.3 = 15; 2-4 = 13, 14). There is

a quatrain which may be roughly classified as 'lsll'. Some

stanzas have syllabic quantities which seem to be ambiguous

in pattern e.g. 14.3, 16.3, 18.1.

Finally, the word content of the Brahma koravanji

may be described : composer's laudation of Venkatesvara

(istadaiva) from foot to head (1.1, 2, 3, 4, 5); Devaki is

suffering imprisonment by Kamsa; Brahma becomes a

koravanji to give her hope and courage that Narayana would

be incarnated in her to de troy Kamsa (2.1); koravanji is

described (2.2, 3; 3.1, 2, 8). She comes to the town of

Madhura and is beckoned by Devaki (3. 2, 3); koravanji

describes her own prowess in divination (4. 1, 2, 3; V-1,

5, 1); Devaki prepares for divination and describes her woes

(5.2, 3, 4, 5). Koravanji invokes her favourite gods (V-2,

promises that Devaki would beget the eighth issue as a son

who would destroy Kamsa and liberate her and reassures

her (6, 1, 2, 3, V-3) and assures her of the veracity of her

predictions (7. 1, 2, 3, V-4). She predicts the birth of

Krsna and describes him (8. 1, 2, 3, 4); Vasudeva's exchang-

ing the infant with Durga; Durga's rebuttal of Kamsa and

116

Music of Ma'dhva Monks

escape (V-5, 9, 1, 2), Kamsa's anxiety and his deputing

several rākṣasas to kill the child; Krṣna's destroying

them (10. 1, 2, 3). Child Krṣna's pranks and adventures

(V-6, 11; 1, 2, 3; V. 7. 12. 1 to 5), Kamsa sends Akrūra to

bring Krṣṇa for the bow-festival (V-8, 13.1) Krṣṇa's

journey Madhura; and confers fulfilment to devotees on

the way (14. 1, 2, 3), Koravañji again reassures Devaki

that Krṣṇa would destroy Kamsa, coronate Ugrasena, release

Devaki and Vasudeva, destrays, Kaurava's protect Pāndavas

(15. 1, 2, 3; V.9); Devaki reiterates her sorrow and

difference (16. 1, 2, 3), koravañji assures again of the

correctness of her divination (17. 1, 2, 3), Devaki

grieves over her imprisonment (18.1). Koravañji expresses

her self.onf.dence and describes he self punning on

Brahmā (19. 1, 2, 3) and pleads for gifts; praises Devaki

and bids fa.ewell (20, 1, 2, 3; 21.1). Devaki promises

precious gifts to koravañji if her precications come true

(21.2). Kcravañji voucsafes her predictions (V-11) and

leaves (22. 1, 2, 3).

As started above Krṣṇa Koravañji, Giriyamma's second

composiition of this type is only fragmentary.168 It is

constituted from two sources, bo:h being impressi typis.

viz, Mu 73 and Mu-76.169 It consists of three passages, of

10, 7 and 6 lines iespectively, such that they fo.m couplets,

rhyming on the second syl'able and is roughly patterned

in Is series, the first line in the second passage could be

168 Giriyamma, Heḷavanakaṭṭe-, Krṣṇa koravañji, ed.

Indubai, T.K., op.cit. pp. 175-176.

169 Mu-73 : impressi typis, Heḷavanakaṭṭe Giriyamma

Haḍugalu, ed. Kāvyapremi, Samaja Pustakalaya,

Dharwad, 1977

Mu-76 : impressi typis, Sarojini Mahishi, Karnata-

kada Kavayitriyaru, Dharwad, 1965

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

117

split into two rhyming smaller lines. The last two lines of

the third passage are approximately twice as long as lines 2

to 4. Neither source ascribes rāga or tāla to the song. The

first passage is invocation, the second describes the

koravañji and the third the proclamation of her powers

The last two lines suggest that her divination is addressed to

a woman. It is possible that this may be a koravañji song

on Rukmiṇi pariṇaya.

The Nāṭa koravañji of Praśanna Veṅkaṭadāsa is

constituted from five collative sources : Be 41,

Mu-50, Gō- 13, 17 and 23.170 It narrates the story

of how the sage Nārada took the guise of koravañji

to bring hope and courage to Rukmiṇi-who was pining

for Kṛṣṇa-through her divination and expertise in palmistry.

The koravañji is vividly described both by the composer

and through her own words. This corresponds closely to

the picture painted by Vādirāja and other haridāsas. The

song commences with laudation, followed by invocation.

The entire prabandha has 34 songs of which 24 are set

in the kṛti format while the remaining ten are prose

passages which are divided into two classes called vacana171

and cūrṇika172. It is clear that the e carried different

connotations and functions because they are used

consecutively (nos. 25, 26) and given as variants only once

(no. 11) in the collative sources. Va ana means recited

prose ; cūrṇika is a variety of the ancient musical form

called gadya described in early treatises on Indian music.

170 Be-41 : D. R. Bendre's collection of MSS. Dharwad

Mu-50 : impressi typis, Patil's edn. (vide footnote

163 a)

Gō- 13, 17, 23 : MSS. in the collection of

Haridāsaratnam Gopāladāsa, Bangalore.

171 nos. 9, 11, 13, 23, 26, 31

172 nos. 11, 15, 17, 19, 25.

118

Music of Mādhva Monks

It is an aprosodial text prescribed to be set to the tanquil emotion (śānta), vaidarbhī rīti and sattvati vṛtti.173 Cuṣpika is now preserved only in the Mysore School of bharatanāṭya as an introductory item. It consists of a prose passage which is replete with euphony and alliteration.174

The passages called cuṣpika in this Nārada koravaṅji do not seem to confom to these descriptions. The 4th and 23rd songs have passages in tamil.175 Except for nos. 13 and 21 they have neither rhyme nor alliteration. One song (21) is devoted to divining (kaṇi)

An interesting feature of the song is the ascription of rāgas to prose passages. Another interesting feature is that there is no anupallavi in any kṛti or pada. There are a few which contain neither pallavi nor anupallavi but simply a sequence of stanzas. This is a song form frequently employed by most haridāsa composers. Again, the kṛti structures contain only couplets or quatrains.

The musical data in the song may be summarised thus : (variants are given in brackets). Song structures are notated in terms of four numbeṛs, the first of which gives the number of lines in the pallavi, the second the number of lines in the anupallavi, the third, the number of lines in the caraña and the fourth, the numer of caranas. The sequence here is : serial number of composition, rāga (rāga in variant readings), tāla (tāla in variant readings), song structure.

173 Śārṅgadeva, op. cit. 4.185-196, pp. 270-274 ; for details vide Sathyanarayana, R., Puṇḍarīkamālā, pp. 427-432

174 Sathyanarayana, R., Bharatanāṭya : A Critical Study, pp. 224, 229-232

175 Vādirāja, Nārada koravaṅji, loc. cit. nos. 20-22, 29-32, 38-41, 41 pr., 51 pr., 54 pr., pp. 465-743

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

1 naṭi

jhampa

2043

2 sauraṣṭra

tripuṭa (bilandi)

0047

3 s̐i

jhampa (tripuṭa)

0043

4 madhyamāvatī

ādi (triśra gati)

4043

5 śankarābharaṇa

aṭṭa

2023

(mohana)

(tiśragati)

6 madhumādhvī

eka

0043

(madhyamāvatī)

(tiśragati)

7 regupti

jhampa

0043

8 bhairavī

ādi

2047

(ghaṇṭārava)

9 kannaḍa kīmodhī

vacana

4 lines

10 kedāragaula

aṭṭa

4045

11 toḍi

vacana (cūṅika)

6 lines

12 regupti

aṭṭa (tripuṭa, ādi)

4043

13 kāmbodhi

vacana

4 lines*

14 sāveri

jhampa

0041

15 sauraṣṭra

cūṅika

20 lines*

16 mohana

ādi

0043

(śankarābharaṇa)

17 śankarābharaṇa

cūṅika

20 lines

18 mecabāuli

aṭṭa

0027

(rudrābharaṇa)

19 kalyāṇi

cūṅika

26 lines

20 sāraṅga

ādi

0023

21 bilahari (bilāvarā)

ādi

4047

22 bhairavī

bilandi

0043

23 mohana (āhari)

vacana

8 lines

• rhyme on second syllable

120

Music of Madhva Monks

24 nārāyaṇa gauḷa

aṭṭa

0046

25 crakala kāmbodhi

cūṇika

39 lines

26 deśī (mukhāri,deśī)

va ana

7 lines

27 bauḷi (mukhāri,deśi)

ādi

0043

28 suraṭi

jhampā

0043

29 mukhāri

ādi (aṭṭa)

2023

30 kannaḍa kāmbodhi

(māṇḍa,mecabauḷi)

jhampā

(aṭṭa)

2031

2042

31 kāpi

vacana

8 lines*

32 nīdanāmakriyā

(rāmakriyā)

jhampā

(ādi)

1043

33 nāgagīndhāri

(dhanāśri)

ādi

0043

34 dhavalāra

ādi

0042

Rāga variants (in 21, 30, 33) indicate the influence of hindustani music, and thus suggest a late origin of the manuscripts. Dhavala (-āra) in the final song is the name of a popular folktune in Karnataka, used in benediction there is a namesake song, described in textual tradition in Indian music from early times.176 The two seem to be unrelated.

As mentioned earlier, the koravañji theme commenced its career as folksong. It is preserved in kannaḍa in the form of koravañji-or kani songs. Such form is used by some viraśaiva vacana-composers as a vehicle for religious or spiritual themes in a mystic style. Ja. Caa. Ni. brings to light three such songs.177 Of the 26 authors he lists in his

• rhyme on second syllable

176 Śārṅgadeva, Op. cit.4, 298-303 ; for details vide Sathyanārāyaṇa, R., Puṇḍarīkamūlā, pp. 490-494

177 Ja. Cha. Ni, koravañji Sāhitya, pra. 2, Śrīśaila Niḍimāmiḍi Pustaka bhaṇḍāra, Bangalore, 1964

Vadirája : Long Musical Forms

121

Koravañji Sāhitya (page facing modal-nudi on p.2), three

have composed koravañji songs : Cannamallikārjuna (pp.5-

13, telugu kambodhi rāga`, Guru-śantaramana (pp. 14-17,

śuddhakāmboji rāga), Guru-śānta (pp. 42-43, deśī rāga);

the work also contains other folkforms such as nāt̨ya gīta

(pp. 21, 60`, kolu hāḍu (p. 22), antiphony (p. 52), beḍagu or

(metaphysical conundrums (pp. 49, 72, 103, 113), canda-

māmi (p-102), līvaṇi (p. 64) and lullaby (p. 130). Ea:ch of

the koravañjis is set only in rāga but not in tāla. The fi:st(in

telugu kambodhi, which originated as a folktune in Andhra)

has a song and prose passages ; the song has a pallavi

followed oy 8 stanzas. Since no tāla is ascribed uniformly

for all thiee koravañji songs here, it is clear that the song

has a rhythmical- but not tāla- format. Prose passages are

inserted ofter each stanza to explain and expand what is

said in the stanza ; the narrative is in the form of question

and answer in the prose passages. The second is a kani

song, set to śuddha kām̉bodi (a rāga which was archetypal

to kāmboji but which gradually was eroded into a tune),

but to no tāla. This is also similarly pattiened, consisting

of a pallavi and five stanzas interspersed with prose passages

in a question-an wer format, in exegesis and expansion.

The third, set in the rāga deśī (which means folk-or

borrowing from hindustani music) has only a pallavi and

three stanzas but no prose passages. The literary style is

realistic and all three songs are a study in double entendre

It has been said above that the koravañji has been

experimented with as a yakṣagīna also. One such

interesting instance is Brahma koravañji. This is inserted

as a play within a play in the Kṛṣna Cārite yakṣagāna by

Pārtisubba.178 Kṛṣna Crite extends over a total of125passages

178 Parti Subba, Yakṣagīnagalụ, ed. Krishna Bhatta,

Kukkila., Kannada Adhyayana sams the, University

of M ysore, Mysore, 1975, pp. 446-512

122

Music of Madhva Monks

including songs, ṣaṭpadidvipadi, kandapadya, sārdūla-, vikriḍita, mattebhavikriḍita, etc. Of these, Brahma koravañji has 22 passages ; these consist of a vārdhaka ṣaṭpadi (25), a prose passage (26 pr), a saṅgatya (35), 2 dvipadis (28, 42), 5 kandas (30, 34, 36, 39, 44), songs without pallavi or anupallavi (26, 27, 29, 31, 32, 33, 38, 40, 41, 43, 45, 46), one song with a pallavi : 682 (37)

The entire yakṣagāna features some 29 songs in the format of kṛtis (2-1244, 9-2033, 18-2043, 19-1243, 37-2082, 48-1053, 52-2042, 54-2084, - with a structure lllssll-, 56-2043, 60-12.10.2, 61-2042, 64-2043, 70-3043, 74-3043, 82-2052, 84-1241, 90-2042, 91-2023, 97-2025, 99-2023, 101-3052, 104-2045, 105-2072, 109-2023, 110-2252, 113-2443, 114-2042, 116-2043, 117-4024).179 Thus the songs in this (and other) yakṣagānas are of two kinds : those segmented through a recurring pallavi and those in which the narrative is continuous without the intervention of a recurring musico-literary theme. In the first variety, the narrative is not continuous ; both music and words of every stanza are conditioned to end in a passage which naturally leads to the pallavi. Both varieties are used by Vādiāja in his brahma.gīta. Both varieties are set to both rāga and tāla.

The Brahma-koravañji (25-46) of Parti Subba is so named because Brahma becomes a koravañji. After Kama kills the first six children of Vaṣudeva and Devaki and impisons them, Brahma decides to bring solace, comfort and joy to Devaki by foretelling her, the guise of a koravañji, that Vṣṇu would be incarnated as her son (25, 26, 26 pr); she is described in her conventional appearance and form (27-30). She comes to Madhura, tell to Devaki her fortune (30). The two are engaged in a dialogue; Devaki gives koravañji pre-

179 ibid. pp. 491-509

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

123

sents and sh.ws her palm (31-34). Koravañji invokes Gaṇapati and a.ks Devaki to explain her problem and Devaki does so (35-37). Koravañji predicts the birth of Viṣṇu as Kṛṣṇa and his expl.its, and promises a bright, happy futu:e (38-39). Devaki expre.ses apprehen:ion of Kamsa's determination to kill the forthcoming child also and receiv:s koravañji's reassurance and advice that she must solace herself be ause none is exempt-including even such great pecple of tne past as Sitā, Damayanti' Candrāvatī (Candra matī) from suffering; She assures that Devaki the birth of Kṛṣṇa will soon end all her sufferings and sorow; she asks-as is customary with their kind- for some food for her child and some oil for her hair, (receives them) and departs. The similarity of this with that of Mahipatidāsa's Brahma-koravañji may be noted.

Though the koravañji form is of folk origin and its princi-pal dramatic persona viz. the koravañji is a tribal womaro it is ambient and has somewhat diffused into the peri-meter of classicism also as borne out by the following circumstances : it is treated by composers of cla sical music such as Vādirāja, Prañanna Veṅkatadīca, Saptarṣi and and Sefoji; it frequently borrows from the idioms and structures of karnataka music and bharatanātya; it was frequently composed for perform nce in temples and royal courts; its literary theme pertains to divine or semi divine beings rather than to folk; its literay style is more compatible with the classical than colloquial; it was sometime: composed in sam krta also. However, it has also retained its folk or semifolk flavour, among other things, in the following : costumery and make up; certain literary and performance conventions; all the dramatic personae e.g. kuratti, kurava, his friend, sūtradha:a, kaṭṭiyakāran etc are of folk origin except the heroine (and the hero, who seldom appears on the stage); folk structures such as

124

Music of Mādhva Monks

the kalitturai are employed; the wondering profa sion of

the koravañji is brought out in her mention/de cription of

many near and di tant lands and peoples; she uses other

dravidian languages.

Before concluding this brief study of koravañji form,

two exampls from Tanjore may be noticed: Mohini vilāsa-

natakam and Devendra kuravañji.

Mohinīvilāsa koravañji is the woik of Saptarṣi,180 court

court poet of Śahaji II who ruled at Tanjore from 1684 to

1710 A.C. This title clealy recognises the hybrid growth

of the koravañji from dance (natya) and drama (natya).

The coloph n reads however, ‘Mohinīvila a kiratik -ca itam

samāptam’. The tems k ravañji and kirātikā are used

synonym usly in tamil and sam krta respectively. The

work des ribes the love of Kamalāvati for Śahaji, and the

koravañji's divination of the fulfilment of the former's

yearning for union with the hero. The composition has

fifty song units; of these 33 a e composed in samskrta

(1–6, 9–13,17, 22, 25–37, 41, 42, 44–46, 49. 50), 13 in tamil

(7, 17, 19–21, 23, 24, 37, 39, 40, 43 47, 48), and 2 in telugu

(15, 16). Thematically, the song units may be dist ibuted

as follows: nāndi (obediction) consisting of a praise each

Sa asvati, Viniyaka, Subrahmanya and Tyāgari ja (1–4) ;

todaya (declamation) (5); sūtradhāra's summary of the

play (6); entry of Kamalāvati with her companions; the

latter sing of the heroine's love for the hero (7–11); heroine

confesses her love and pining for the hero (12), the kirāti

enters, proclaims her powers of divination; heroine seeks

to be reassured about the koravañji's abilities and the latter

replies to her satisfaction (Kamalāvati-25, 27, 34, 36, 38;

180 Saptarśi, Mohinivilā a Kuravanśhei, ed. Srinivasan

N., Tanjore Sara vati Mahal Series No. 205

Tanjore Maharaja Serfoji's Sarasvati Mahal

Library, Thanjavur, 1985

Vādi-raja : Long Musical Forms

125

koravanji 26, 28, 33, 35, 37, 42); ko avañji seeks gifts

(39-41); buffoon's entry and antics (43-45); korava's companion comes (46); singa and singi sing in antiphony (saruval

sindhu) and retire (47-50).

An unusual and interesting feature of the work is the

composition of not only tamil verses but samskṛta verses

also in tamil prosodial structures; while mixing words of

both languages in the same metrical structrre is common

enough in verse or prose in tamil Vaiṣṇavite literature,

this work offers these metrical compositions seperately in

each language. Thus there are 17 aruvir stanzas (1-4, 7, 9

14, 21, 23, 27, 29, 34, 36, 38, 39, 46, 49), one is in agaval-pā

(6), one in venbā (41), two in maṭu-vritta (42, 43) and one

in vṛtta (48). Besides these metrical structure which were

probably musically recited, there are othermusicalstructures,

such as daru, pada, padya and (kaṭṭalāk-)kalittuṇai. The

daruṣ number 18. These include aṡtādayam i.e. invocatory

prologue (5), a samvāda (antiphonal) daru, called saruval

sindhu (47) and maṅgala (benedictory) daru. The.e are six

kaṭṭalāk-kalittuṇai's (13, 15, 17, 19, 26,30).These are unifomly

quatrains with 16 syllables, per foet, and a.e well known

tamil metrical species with many sub-va.ieties.

The Mohinivilāsa kuravañji has two pada: (14, 45) and one

padya (18). The first pada has a two-line refrain, but no

pallavi, which is repeated after ea.h of its th.ee segments;

each segment opens with two line; with second and third

syllables form a rhyming unit, followed by caesura.The othe

(no. 45; a 2-short-line pallavi, 2-line anupallavi and three 5

line-caraṇas each caraṇa has the syllabic structure of;

14+2, 14+2, 14, 10, 10 syllables in which the last two

lines are composed of two parts of 5 syllables each. Thus

the two padas do not reveal any structural similarity. It

is not clear why they are similarly named, nor how they

differ from padya or dāru. Analogous classification or

differentiation in other works has not come to my notice.

Music of Mādhva Monks

126

The padya (no. 18) opens with a one-line pallavi and continues with a one-line anupallavi and three

2-line caranas, each line divisible into two approximately equal segments both of which rhyme on the second

syllable; so the pallavi, anupallavi and caranas could also be regarded, on the criterion of rhyming, as consisting of

2, 2 and 4 lines respectively. This is common enough in the kŗti form. A kŗti is also called (haridāsa) 'pada', but

the name 'padyaṃ' for this composition is intriguing.

'Daru' does not seem to signify a uniform musical structure in the Mohinivilāsa koravañji. This name is

applied to 2-line songs (8, 22); however, it is not possible to read these lines in the latter (22) as a 2-line pallavi segment

or a 1-line pallavi segment and 1-line anupallavi segment as belonging to the daru which occurs immediately next (but

not separately numbered) with the structure 0044,

because of thematic change.181 Next, there are

darus with no pallavi or anupallavi but only a few

quatrains as caranas, in which the lines possess an approximately equal syllabic quantity e.g. 0043 (10) 0023 (16),

0028 (28), 0048 (31), 0024 (35).182 Three darus (5, 14, 22)

occur which do not have a separate pallavi segment, but the first line of the first stanza is used as refrain. In one

daru (12), an extraneous word viz. Tyagarāja is used as

refrain for each of the five couplets. The other darus have

a clear-cut kŗti format, in which the song is divided into

pallavi, anupallavi and caranas (20 : 1144; 24 2221;

37 ; 1223 ; 40 : 2223). Three darus have no anupallavi

(25, 33, 44) ; among these, the pallavi is indicated as

dhru(+va) in the first two. In the samvāda daru, (47), the

first line is a separate segment but not a refrain, and runs

on to the next couplet as a passage sung by the siṅga

181 In the initial 2 lines, Sumukhi, maid in attendance

goes to fetch the koravañji. The latter enters and

performs in the next four quatrains, invocatory

music and dance. Thus there is no thematic cohesion as in the kŗti.

182 for numerical notation, vide footnote no. 118

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

127

(korava). In the remaining 12 couplets the first line is sung by the singa ; it is taken up in the last word i.e. in atita g:aha by singi, such that it runs into the second line, in antiphony. Finally, one daru is given as elipadam (16).

This has the structure 0 2 3 in which the last word of the first line in each couplet runs on to the second line.

Elipada, also called yala pada, is a well known metrical structure in folk songs in kannada, tamil and telugu. It is treated as a classical metre by kannada prosodists ; it consists of a couplet with a total of seven ganas, divisible into groups of 2, 2, 3, in which six are visnu ganas while only the sixth is brahma gana.183 It is also derived from the tripadi metre by omitting the third foot of the latter.184

In music however, it is an honoured, ancient prabandha consisting of 3 feet, which may be differently organised in respect of the language of the words or prosody. In the forme., there are 5 varieties viz. karpati, lati, gaudi, andhri and drāviḍi in which the words are of kannaḍa, lāṭa, gauḍa, telugu and tamil languages ; these are appropriately called desiili. In the latter, organisation pro eeds in te ms of gana, va na or matra, giving ise to ganailā, vanaili and matraila. Each of b oth has many subvarieties, totalling some 356.185 It suffices to note here that the elāpadam found in the Mohinivilāsa koravañji does not seem to correspond to the des ciptions or examples found in the po tical or musicological streams of elā.

Three departures from convention may be noticed in this koravañji: i. application of tamil metrical patterns to

183 Nāgavarma, Chando'mb udhi, 5.13

184 Jayakīrti, Chando'nuśāsanam, 7.14

185 Śārṅgadeva, op. cit. 4.33-132. Detailed discussion of the elā is found in Sathyanarayana, R., Elā : Ondu Śastriya Vivecane (under print).

Music of Mādhva Monks

128

samskrta verses ii. kuravan is intrcduced dircctly, with

minimum mediation of his companion, a if he we:e already

looking for the kc:avanji iii. cmpiete absen.ce of

rāga-tāla ascription in the entire text.

Devendra kutavanji was composed by Se.foji II, ruler

of Tanjore (1798-1833 A.C.); in the fiist qua:te: of the 19th

cent.186 It is wiitten in marāṭhi. in a tefired literary

style called king’s ma:āṭhi. The theme is geographical and

the pretense to a poeti-, diamati: or romantic theme is but

thinly veiled. The efore the autho atheti:es many conven-

tions of the koravañji play such as the initial scene in which

the heroine and he: hermaids in attendan:e sing of the

oine’s amour for the hero,invocation to Vighneśva:a by the

maids in attendanse to ward off obstacles to the su:ces:

of the play, entry of the clown. heroine’s ent:eaty with clouds,

winds, bi:ds and the mcon to ca:ry her message of love

and yeaning fo: the hero etc.

In the Devendra ku.avanji however, the kuravanji is

the p:in:ipal d:amati:s pe:sona; the play opens with her

entree:, singing the beautie:s of Ama:apuii and proclaiming

her p:ofessi:n and prowexs. Ind:āni gets her called in and

seeks to kno:w where she came from, and the places she

has seen and piactised her profession in. This is the cue

for the ko:avanji (and the autho:) to give a detailed account

of the solar system, of the earth, its cun tinents, provinces,

rivers, m:untains etc. etc., which covers thi:e of the four

acts of the play. The conventional theme of the play is

cursorily and hu:iedly treated in the final s:ene, wherein

Indrāni, now convinced of the gypsy’s abilities, seeks to

186 :erfo:ji II, Devend:ni kuravañji, Tanjore Sa:asvati

Mahal Se:ies No. 18, ed. Thyaga:aja Jatavallabhar.

T:L., TMSSM Libia:y, Tanjore, 1950

Vadirja : Long Musical Forms

129

know her fortune. The koravani reads her palm and

assures her that she would soon meet her lover. She

receives rich gifts in return, departs, meets her husband

singa on the way and both go home happily.

This dance drama consists of 143 song units, covered in

four opuscs devoted to the geographical descriptions of

Europe, Asia, Africa and America respectively, but

omitting the Australian continent. These units break up

into 94 darus, 48 metrical structures (consisting of 29 vrttas

and 19 āryās) and a single prose passage (occurring on p. 7)

Of the vrttas, called ślokas in the work, there are 14

sárdūla-vikrīdita (pp. 12, 13, 15-18, 24, 28, 30, 39, 50),

4 sragdharā (pp. 12, 15, 36), 3 bhujanga-prayāta (p. 18),

2 vasanta-tilaka (pp. 15,24), 2 mālinī (pp. 58, 59), 1 śalini

(p. 54), 1 svāgatā (p. 8). 1 śikharinī (p. 58); three (pp.18,30)

are indeterminate because their structures are too diffuse.

The śloka names are not given in the work;the āryās though

so named (pp. 5, 15, 24, 37, 39, 40, 43 45, 51-53, 55),

donot reveal structural uniformity in syllabic or moraic

arrangement.

Darus are the most prolific song units in this koravanji.

With the numerical notation already employed above,187 and

adding a hyphenated number at the end to indicate the

number of such song units available in the play (i.e. pacn-r)

these may be broadly grouped into the following : i. only

stanzas without pallavi or anupallavi (i.e. 00cn-1); these

occur in the largest number among the darus- 78 out of

94. They are quantitatively distributed thus : 0023-1,

0041-25, 0042-28, 0043-21, 0044-2, 0061-1, ii. pallavi-

187 foot no. 118 ; hyphenated mumber at the end of

each structural variety gives the number of such

song units.

130

Music of Mādhva Monks

anupallavi but no caranas (i.e. pocn-r) ; their distribution is: 1041-2, (p. 60), 2041-1 (p. 58). iv: pallavi-anupallavi-caranas (i.e. pacn-r). Only one of each variety is available (i.e. r = 1). In the order of increasing values of 'p', 'a', 'c' and 'n', they occur thus : 1112 (p. 61), 1123 (p. 2), 1124 (p. 2), 1125 (p. 3), 1142 (p. 8), 1244 (p. 4), 2241 (p. 11), 2242 (p. 5), 2243 (p.1); only 2243 occurs twice (pp. 6, 10).

The pallavi and anupallavi segments in these songs are indicated appropriately by their initial syllables 'pa' and 'a' respectively in these songs. It may be further noted that the stanzas are all quatrains in type (i) except in a unique instance (p.9) ; their incidence is the largest in the other three types. There is a unique case of a single-line stanza (p. 61); couplet stanzas occur only three times (pp. 2,3). No triplet stanzas are employed in the whole koravanji. All four daru types are met with collectively in the bhāgavata-mela plays of Mejjattur Venkaṭarāma sāstri, the kuchipudi plays, yakṣagāna prasangas in kannada, telugu and tamil' Sivakamasundari-parinaya of Tulaja, Prabhāda-bhakti-vijaya and Nauka-caritam of Tyāgarāja etc.

The ślokas and āryās are not set to rāga and tāla ; they were probably recited, as the single prose passage was, to two or three tones. On the other hand, the work ascribes a rāga and a tāla to each of the darus; these rāgas and tālas were quite popular at the time and place of composition- and performance- of the Devendra kuravanji. It may be recalled that in Meinivilaiśa-kcravanji which was composed about a hundred years earlier, no such rāga t.la ascription is found for any song. Serfoji has set the 94 darus in the following rāgas: aṭhāna 2, 62,189 asāveri 14, ānandabhairavi 5, ārabhi 23, āhari 38, t sani 25, kakubha 53, kannaḍa 11, kamāch 46, kalyāṇi 1,

188 These numbers refer to pages in the Devendra kuravanji

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

131

karnāṭaka-devagāndhāri 47, kāpi 51. kāmbodi 1, kurvañji = kurañji 36, kedāra 9, kedāragaula 3, gummkāmbodi 49, gopikavasanta 33, gauri 2, gaulipantu 58, ghanṭā 11, jañjuṭi 41, 56, jūjivanti 41, todi 62, darbār 18, deśa (-śi)-toḍi 43, dhanasri 5, dhanyāsi 14, 16, navaroju 32, nigachvani 40, nāgavarali 61, 67, nāṭa-kurañji 50, naṭi 31, nādan makīyā 42, nāyaki 60, nārāyana-gauḷa 28, nīlām-bari 34, pantuvarāli 48, punnāga-varāli 34, pūrṇacandrika 42, rū.vakalyāṇi 44, phaiāja 7, 63, bilahari 35, brindāvana-maṅgalaka śrī 44, maṇiāṅga 7, madhyamāvati 54, 62, miñji 19, 62. milavasí 33. mokhri 47, mohana 8, 25, mohana-kalyāṇi 23, yeśakala-kāmbodi 4, yamunā-kalyāṇi 21, 57, rāmakali 46, rītigaula 43, lalitā 27, varāli 37, vasanta 22, vasanta-bhairavi 40, vibhāsa 50, velāvali 55, śaṅkarībharana 13, 55, sāhana 52, śuddha-sāveri 37, śyāma-kalyana 7, 59, śrī 9, sāma 56, sāraṅga 26, 58 sāḷaga-bhaiavi 39, sāveri 6, 16, suraṭa-maḷlāri 61, suraṭi 19, saindhavi 31, saurāṣṭra 52, hamir 49. It is thus found that of all the rāgas employed only 13 viz. ātāna, jañjūṭi, dhanyāsi, nāgavaṛi, pharāja, madhyamāvati, mañji, mohana, yamunā-kalyāṇi, śrīkāṁbaṇa, śāma-kalyāṇa, sāraṅga, sāveri are favoured with a repeated use while every other daru is set to a different rāga. The use of so many rāgas in a single play, intended for being enacted at a single session is indeed a musical achievement both for composer and performers.

The darus of this kuravañji are set to ādi, miśra (chāpu), tiśra, aṭṭa, maṅhya and jhaṁpā talas and to a variety of tiśra called tiśra duṁda presumably a fast tempo version of the tiśra. This order is also the one of their frequency viz. 36, 26, 14, 1,2, 4, 1, 1. Miśra and tiśra probably correspond to fast tempo tiśra tripuṭa and khaṇḍa chāpu; aṭṭa, maṅhya and jhaṁpā presumbly are of the khaṇḍa, caturaśra and miśra jāti varieties, but performed in fast tempo only in

132

Music of Mādhva Monks

terms of the beats, as is appropriate to their application to

songs in which the word content rather than music is more

important.

It is hoped that the foregoing study of the koravanji

form would show how Vadiraja laid its foundations and

has imbued it with nucleal potential which developed into

its several dimensions through out South India.

Two other koravanji plays from Tanjore may be men-

tioned en passant. Rajamohana kuravanji in telugu and

Kuravanji119 in marathi. Their study lies beyond the

scope of the present work.

VIII (i) BHIRAMARAGITA

The Krsna-bhakti movement reached its summit in the

16th cent. in India. Vallabhā, his son Vitthala and their

eight disciples spearheaded this movement in the north

while Chaitanya led this movement in Bengal and Mirabai

in Rajastan and Madhura. In Karnataka this was already

inaugurated by Sripadaraja in the 15th cent. This rose to its

peak with Vyasaraya and his disciples, notably Vadiraja

and Purandaradasa.

Krsna-bhakti found expression in the ninefold devotion

(navavidha bhakti); of these modes, vatsalyabhava (love of

mother for her child) and madhura bhava (erotic love)

are probably the most favoured by vaisnava composers.

The Bhagavata purana formed of course, the source for

material and inspiration. It is thus that the bhiramaragita

took its birth in this period. Such poetic and devotional

expression of love for Krsna had already permeated peva-

sively before; while Jayadeva's Gitagovinda remained outside

the sphere of the Bhagavata purana for source material in

the 12th cent., those that emerged in the 15th 16th cent.

depicted the madhura bhava in the form of vipra-lambha-

srngara of the gopis for Krsna, more or less in the frame of

189 Rajamohana kuravanji No. 543 and kuravanji No.

66, Descriptive catalogue of Telugu MSS in the

TMSSM Library, Tanjore, cit scetna, S. Tanjore As-

A Seat of Music, p. 631.

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

133

Bhāgavata purāna itself. In a brief passage of just 16 verses,190 this purāna narrates the story : Akrūra comes to Gokula and takes away Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma to Mathurā so that they would participate in the bow-festival (which opportunity Kṛṣṇa seizes to kill the evil demons Caṇūra, Mustika and his own uncle Kamsa). The gopis plead with Kṛṣṇa not to subject them to the pangs of separation, Kṛṣṇa reossures them with a promise of early return, After his exploits in Mathurā, he sends his friend Uddhava to Gokula to comfort the desolated gopis with news of himself and of his early return. At the sight of Uddhava the dam of the pangs of love of gopis bursts; they make a wandering bee an occasion to vent their fear that Kṛṣṇa may be tarrying at Mathurā because of the attraction of its lovely and erotically sophisticated damsels (and Kṛṣṇa is like the bee which enjoys the nectar of a flower and then feits to another), their fear that Kṛṣṇa may be staying away from them because he may have taken offense at the (as they thought) harmless jocular remarks, which can, in any case be justified, and can be interpreted mean also his glory and greatness. Uddhava reassures them of Kṛṣṇa's unchanged love for them and of his impending early return.

This theme was enthusiastically adopted by the saint singers in both the north and the south into bhramara gita (song of the bee) weaving a symbolism of the individual soul (symbolised by the gopi) separated from the universal soul (Kṛṣṇa) into the transactional world (symbolised by Gokula) and yearning to reunite with it. Thus more than a dozen bhramara gitas are available in hindi alone,191

190 vide footnote 5

191 Sarala Shuki, Hindi-sahityaki Bhramaragita-paramparā, cit. Varadaraja Rao, G., op. cit. introduction, p. lvi

the most notable of which are those of Sūrdās and Nanddās,

written in the 16th cent. In kannaḍa there are at least two

bhramara gitas viz. of Śrīpaḍarāya and Vādirāja. There are

some songs of Vyāsarāya and of Purandaradāsa which

together undoubtedly constitute a bhramaragita complex.

This is true of Śrīpaḍarāya also; for, besides the vṛttanāma

(no. 39) which is called rāgā-pārijāta and bhramaragita

in the MSS. there are at least six other songs viz. 7, 16,

43, 51, 52 and UE 13 which have a close thematic unity

with it. But these have no formal and structural unity;

one receives the impression that Śrīpaḍarāya, Vyāsarāya and

Purandaradāsa composed different songs on various

subthemes occuring in the Bhāgavata story, as separate

entities. Only Śrīpaḍarāya seems to have given the name

bhramaragita, but not Vyāsarāya or Purandaradāsa. On

the other hand, Vādirāja has composed it as a single opus

with thematic, structural and formal coherence among its

constituent elements. He has also named the whole as

bhramaragita.

Vādirāja states that he would expand with his own

commentary the Bhāgavata mahāpurāṇa and (its part) the

bhramaragita (3, p. 121) and compose it in sulādi tālas, in

the form of a novel (abhinava) play (nāṭaka caitra) and

exhorts his audiences to listen (kēli) (3* - 121); the

bhramaragita is replete with all nine rasas; he would direct

performance as a dance-drama (nāṭyavan-āḍisuve) in the

immediate, august presence (sammukha) of Lord Govinda-

presumably of Uḍupi (1, 122). Thus the bhramara gita

was intended to be an audiovisual experience involving

words, music and dance. It may be performed as an

oratorio, opera or ballet. If his statement that he directed

its (first) performance before Lord Govinda (not his

upāsya mūrti viz. Hayavadana) is taken literally, this must

have occured at Uḍupi; if so, it must have taken place when

he had ascended the paṛyāya piṭha. He did so five times

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

135

(the only yati to have done so in the history of the Udupi Kṛṣṇa maṭha) viz. 1532-33, 1548-49, 1564-65, 1580-81, 1596-97. He did so the last time at Svādi and abdicated its performance at Udupi to his disciple and successor, Vedāvedya. Vyāsarāya and the Vijanagara emperor Acyutarāya were present during the first paryāya. The bhramara gīta was probably performed then. In this composition he employs both signatures ; his āśrama-nāma Vādirāja (2, 4 - 121; 3 - 125) and his nom-de-plume Hayavadana (3-122, 4-125, 8-129, 9-127, 11-131, 3,4-132, 8,10-134, 11 136, 10-138, 5-139, 5-142, 3-143, 34, 35, 36-150, 7-152, 7-154) If this may be construed as indicating his early phase as composer, when he had as yet not settled down to a stable signature, it supports the date assigned to the first performance of the composition.

Vādirāja states that his bhramara gīta is a novel-or new-form (abhinava-nāṭaka-caritra). This claim is fully justified; for this is the very first available composition of its kind in any South Indian language. Other music-dance plays followed in its wake in South India soon : Siṅgarārya's Mitravindā-Govinda, Cikadevarāya's (Tirumalārya's?) Cikadevarāya-Saptapadi, Gītago pāla, Bhāgavata-melas of Melaṭūr in Andhra, Pallaki-sevā-prabandha of Śihaji etc. in Tanjore, Tyāgarāja's Naukā-caritra and Prahlāda-bhakti-vijaya etc.

The literary contents of bhramara gīta may be now briefly summarised : invocation to Gaṇapati (1-121),192

192 Two editions of Vādirāja's Bhramaragīta are available in print : i. Udupi edition (Śrīman-madhva siddhānta Granthalaya, Pāvañje Guru Rao and sons, Udupi, 1922). This is now out of print and is not readily available. ii. Mysore edition (ed. Nagaratna T. N., Institute for Kannada Studies, University of Mysore, Mysore 1987. This is avail-

136

Music of Madhva Monks

preface in samskṛta verse : vasantatika metre, a variety of śakvari (1*-121), introduction : authorship, name and nature of composition (2*.3*-121), production of play (1-122) : gopis of Madhurā come on stage(2-122),they suppli-

cate to Kṛṣna and sing his glories (1,2,3-122); they lament the long absence of Kṛṣna and seek news of him (*1-123);

in Madhurā, Kṛṣna has completed his mission vanquishing the wrestlers, killing Kamsa, coronating Ugrasena; he wants to comfort the gopis with news of his wellbeing (2*-123), he sends for his friend Uddhava and commissions

him with going to Gokula and conveying to the gopis his message of love and reassurance.Uddhava agrees and goes to Gokula(3*-123,1*,2,3*-124);the gopis seek to knowthe purpose

of his visit and pour out their unbearable pangs of separation (1*, pr. 1,2,3-125); a gopi espies a flitting bee (1*,2*-125); she perceives in it a likeness to Kṛṣna : both

are flitters and frauds(kitava),and are therefore friends of the same ilk. She sings to the bee at length (hence the song is called bhramara gita), pleading with the bee to bring back Kṛṣna. The song assumes many hues of moods

such as prayer, supplication, surrender, ire, irony, humour metaphysical exegesis, criticism, jealousy, disire etc. etc. She fears that he may have, amidst the pleasures of the

able in a critically edited text, and is used here for documentation. However, the latter does not employ

a uniform scheme of numbering the passages in the song. Prose passages are left unnumbered.

Two or more stanzas on the same page are given the same number. Therefore the following scheme

is adopted in the present discussion : the first or second repetition of such number is suffixed with 'r', the first number/s inside brackets indicates

the passage under study; the number following the hyphen gives the page.

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

137

company of the attractive, city girls of Madhurā, forgotten them, the poor, pastoral, rustic maidens. They have said many things of him in frustration, jealousy, anger; they are now afraid that these words may have offended Kṛṣṇa and kept him away. The song hastens to cover up, pleading that these words were said in jest or should be interpreted as highest metaphysical symbolism and glorious praise.

She laments the poignant suffering of all the gopis at their separation from Kṛṣṇa and fervently pleads for his immediate return (pp. 125-145). Uddhava knows that this address to the bee is meant for his ears and that he is to convey this message of gopis to Kṛṣṇa. He returns to Madhurā and pleads the cause of gopis(p.153).Now there is news in states called vibhrama vilāsa, bibboka, moṭṭāyita and kilikiñcita (pp.145-152) They are overjoyed when Kṛṣṇa decides to dwell in their hearts (pp, 153-154).

The bhramaragīta is an allegory. The gopi is the individual soul-jīva-- separated from and yearning for Kṛṣṇa who is the universal soul (brahman). The bee symbolises the proclivity for and involvement of the individual in the sensory world. The composition has drawn freely upon Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata and Bhāgavata and conforms to the orthodoxy and dogma of dvaita religion.

An analysis of bhramaragīta for form, structure and music may now be attempted. For this purpose text-division scheme adopted in the Mysore edition will be followed. In this edition the text is divided into portions or passages each of which is preceded by an asterisk mark. Each such segment of the composition is separately assigned a rāga and/or tāla or is formally different. Its status as a distinct entity is sometimes indicated by the presence of the composer's signature which occurs at the end of the segment. This edition divides the text into 40(or 41 including the colophon) such segments.

138

Music of Mādhva Monks

Vadiraja has employed three musico-literay forms in composing the bhramara gita : prose passages, stanzas in

kṛti format, stanzas (one or more) constituting a continuous narrative without recurring musico-literary motifs. Formal,

structual and music information available from the apparatus criticus of the bhramarāgīta is tabulated below.

Vadiraja : Long Musical Forms

Table 1.139

1. Page

2. No

3. Form

4. Structure

5. Rāga

6. Tāla

7. Signature

8. Remarks

121

1

pr ? st?

4.1

naṭi

—

—

Invocation

1*

śloka

4.1

—

—

V 3

preface

2*

st

4.1

—

—

H 1

—

3*

st

4.1

—

—

V 3

—

Notation used in this table is as follows:

col. 1 pagination of edn of Nagarātna, T.N., Institute for Kannada Studies, University of Mysore, Mysore.

col. 2 serial number of the passage in the text ; these are not consecutively numbered in this edition, but the numbers are supplied by the present writer ; such serial numbers marked with * in this column indicates that it is no tnumbered on the respective page of the Mysore edition.

col. 3 pr-prose, kr-kṛti, st-stanza only (without pallavi)

col. 4 digit sequences : pr-no. of lines, kr-no. of lines in pallavi, in anupallavi, in caraña and no. of caraṇas respectively

col. 7 H-Hayavadana, V-Vādirāja ; first number-no. of caraña ; second number-line in this caraña in which the signature occurs

140

122 3 st 4.1+2.1 nāṭi — — —

4 kr 3043 pantuvarāli ādi — — —

123 5* pr 7 śankarābharana — — —

6* pr 8 ghanṭārava — — —

124 7* pr 10 mukhāri — — —

8* st 4.1 — ādi — —

125 9* pr 5 — — —

10 kr 2023 bhairavi/bhai— aṭṭa V 3.2 —

11* st 21 ravi-mukhāri jhampā — —

12* st 21 — ādi — —

126 13 st 49 sauraśtra jhampā H 8-1, 9.3 [8-1,2ma thya

9.3, 4 ādi]

127 14 st 47 kambodhi jhampā — —

21 — H 1 —

128 15 st 4.10 kedāragaula jhampā — —

131 16 st 21 — ādi H 1 —

17 st 42 vasantabhairavi ādi H 3-3 —

18 st 41 — ādi — —

Music of Mādhva Monks

diraja : Long Musical Forms

132 19 st 43 madhyamāvati jhampā — —

20 st 41 ādi H 3 —

133 21 st [47 nādanāmakriya jhampā — —

22 st 42 — — — —

23 st 4.11 pāḍi jhampā H 3

136 24 st 49 kalyāṇi jhampā — —

138 25 st 41 aṭṭa H 4

26 kr 4045 toḍi ādi H 5-1

140 27 st [43 bilahari/kedāra jhampā — —

28 st 21] — — H 2

29 st 44 pantuvarāḷi jhampā — —

141 30 st [44 — jhampā — —

142 31 st 21] — ādi H-5-2

32 st 45 nādanāmakriya ādi — —

143 33 st 43 — aṭṭa H 3-3

144 34 kr 2025 saurāṣṭra ādi — —

35 st [4.35 mecabauli rūpaka

142

150 36 st 21] — adi saurāṣṭra/mārava- jhampā dhanyāsi — H 2

37 st [44

151 38 kr 2047 mocabauli/megha- ādi rañjani H 7-1

153 39* pr 14 — H 8

40 kr 2047 ahiri — H 7-2

154 41 pr 3 śrī — H 1 V 3

Music of Madhva Monks

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

143

Thus the bhramaragīta has 7 prose passages consisting

of varying number of lines, one sam̐kṛta śloka (in vasanta

tilaka metre), 6 songs in the kṛti format and the rest in

stanzas. Irrespective of the form, the lines uniformly

rhyme on the second syllable and sometimes internally, and

occasionally show alliteration and euphony. The kṛtis

reveal a structure in which the anupallavi is uniformly

absent, even though Vādirāja employs it widely in his other

kṛtis. The yatis and dāsakūṭa composers of the mādhva

faith have favoured stanzas structuer with 2 or 4 lines

composed as 3 or 5 caranas. These are represented in the

kṛtis in the bhramaragīta. It is the kṛti structure without

anupallavi but with couplet caranas which later energed as the

divyanāma kirtanas of Tyāgarāja etc. The placement of the

stanza-structures without refrain does not appear to inhere

any pattern. There one 2-line and 4-line stanzas inserted

individually after prose passages; couplets are added at the

end of a group of 4-line stanzas to provide formal and

rhythmic variety. A single stanza is inserted between two

prose passages ; kṛti is followed by stanza series without a

break;stanza series aie arranged cc nsecutively; e.g.49-47-21-4;

10-21,42-41-43-41-47-42-21-4.11-49-41 etc. (First number indi-

cates no. of lines;second number shows no. of stanzas). They

form different components of the composition, not by

formall or structural differences but by change in rāga, tāla

or word theme. There is one component of stanzas which is

exceptionally long viz. 4.35+2.1 set to a single rāga viz

mecabauli and single tāla viz. ṭupaka which would prove

musically monotonous and this would diminish the interest

in, or attentivenss to the word content.

Many compositions-kṛtis or others-are available in

karnataka music, composed by the saint singers of

Karnataka, Andhra and Tamilnadu which have a very large

number of caranas, with or without a pallavi recurrence.

These defeat, by and large, the composer's purpose ; in

such songs the words are more important to the composer

and music is used only as a vehicle. The song is reduced to

only a chanting or tuneful reading at the hands of people to

whom also the words are more important; the musicians

would athetise all caranas except the one which contains

the composer's signature. Most such long compositions

were probably not intended for the concert platform. But

the bhramaragita was intended to be-and probably was-

staged. It would have suffered monotony unless the

different stanzas or sets of stanzas were arranged in different

music for different voices etc. The bhramaragita has only a

few roles; sūtadhāra, Krṣṇa, Uddhava and the gopis.

Vādirāja must have commanded the participation of a

number or male and female vocalists, an instrumental

orchestra and few expert danseuses if he produced and

directed the bhramaragita as a music-dance play, which

unlike the Nāradakoravañji is a presentation in classical

music and dance. This arguesfor Vādirāja an intimate

knowledge and experience in at least music if not in

dance also.

The Mysore edition of the bhramaragita has lost some

important features which the Uḍupi edition has. Firstly,

the Uḍupi edition includes verses from the Bhāgavata purāṇa

which serve as the original source material (and textual

authority) for Vādirāja. These ślokas offer interesting

variant readings for those available in the extant impressl

typi of the purāṇa. Since Vādirāja occasionally incorporates

such extracts from original sources in the body of his songs,

it is not improbable that these verses formed part of the

original text. Secondly rāgas and tālas are ascribed to

various parts of the bhramaragīta. The ślokas are omitted

altogether in the Mysore edition, and the rāga-tāla

ascriptions are relegated to footnotes. Since the bhramara

gita is a professedly musical (and dance) work, the musical

aspect of the composition deserves serious consideration,

meriting at least as much effort in reconstruction and

Vādirāja : Long Musical Forms

145

restoration from both textual and traditional sources as literary textual criticism.

Rāga-tāla ascriptions in the available apparatus criticus show the use of the following 21 rāgas : nāṭi, pantuvarālī, śañkarābharaṇa, ghaṇṭārava, mukhāri, bhairavi, saurāṣṭra, kāmbodhi, kedāragaula, vasantabhairavi, madhyamāvati, nādanāmakriya, pāḍi, kalyāṇi, toḍi, bilahari, mecabauli, mīrva dhanyāsi, megharanjani, āhiri and śrī. Some of these are repeated : nāṭi (1), pantuvarālī (1), saurāṣṭra (2), kedāragaula (1), nādanāmakriya (1), mecabauli (1).

The only rāgas in the foregoing which appeared in karnataka music later than Vādirāja are pantuvarālī, kalyāṇi, bilahari and mīrva. The last occurs as a variant reading Even though the rāga kalyāṇa was known in the 16th cent.194 kalyāṇi emerged in its modern form only from about 1650 A.C.195 Pantuvaralī is discussed above. Bilahari in its modern form occurs for the first time in about 1730 A.C.196 The occurence of rāga-tāla ascription shows that the composition was in musical vogue; the occurence of their variants shows that its practice was widely spread over space and time.

The collative sources for bhramaragīta in the Mysore edition are four viz. Mu-9, Mu-85, Na and Sa. The first two are impressi typi; of these, the second is said to be the Udupi edition, which is not, as indicated above, fully used. Both ascribe the same rāga and tāla(sl. nos. 1, 3, 7, 12, 13, 14, 17, 26, 36, 37, 38, in Table 1) and are separated only in rare instances (sl. nos. 28, 31). Therefore, they have a common ancestor or the one is derived from the other.

194 e.g. Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭhala ; Saṛāga-candrodaya, 2.2.69-71 ; Rāgamālā, 178, Rāgamañjarī, 2.47-49, Nartana-nirnaya, 3.1.200

195 e.g. Veṅkaṭamakhin, op. cit.4. 85, 171-174; 5. 107

196 Sathyanarayana, R., Viṇālakṣaṇa-vimarśe, pp. 159-162

Tālas ascribed in the bhramaragīta are ādi, mathyā

rūpaka, jhampā, tripuṭa and aṭṭa. The most favoured are

ādi and jhampā. An interesting feature of the composition

is that the same song is set to two tālas, the second being

applied to the last stanza. There are several instances in

which the second tāla is employed terminally to generate an

impression of difference corresponding to the dhatu

element known as ābhoga (8, 11, 12, 16, 18, 20, 25, 28,

30, 31, 33, 35, 38). ‘t may be noted that these tāla

insertions are supplied by the same collative source viz. Sa

(except in sl. nos. 12, 28, 30, 36). Only rāga is supplied

in four instances (sl. nos. 1, 5, 6, 7). These are prose

passages, and donot conform in form or structure to the

musicological descriptions of gadya prabandha ; nor are

they mutually comparable in number of lines and syllabic or

moraic quantily per line.

There are some 18 instances carrying both rāga and

tāla viz. sl. nos. 3, 4, 10, 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 23, 24,

26, 27, 31, 32, 34, 37, 38 ; most of these are from the

collative source ‘Sa‘. It also assigns kalyāni (24) and

pantuvarāli whi:ch are anterior to Vādi:āja by about 50 years;

bilahari is ascribed by both impressi typii and Na.

Therefore ‘Sa‘ may be inferred to be derived from a line of

transmission whose origin is nearer to Vādirāja than the

others. The rāgas used in the bhramaragīta are discribed

by me elsewhere 197 in a historical perspective and need not

be described here again.

VIII (j) OTHER SONGS

Nagal:athna has edited thirty more songs of Vādirāja in

Śri Vādirājara Dīrgha Kṛtigaḷu from unique exemplars (UE).

197 idhem. op. cit. passim ; idhem. Kaṛṇāṭaka-

saṅgīta-vāhini, pp. 66-120, ¶198-219, 233-253

inter alia

Vādirāja : Other Songs

147

Of these, 24 are in kŗti format and 5 are sulādis. Among

the krtis two are long having 49 (1) and 29 (7) stanzas

respectively ; one is a suvvāli (10), one is a lullaby (jo-jō

song, 12), one is a daśāvatāra song (13), one is a mangala

(benediction, 19) and two are ārati songs (3, 20). One

song has the composer's signature (hoyavadana) in the

penultimate (3rd) line of each stanza (14)one song ends with

‘nārāyaṇa’ at the end of each caraṇa; one is a ugābhoga in

the rāga todi (15). The following table summarises the

structure and (syllabic) quantitative pattern of caraṇas in

these songs with the usual notation (vide foot no. 42; col. 2;

n-no. of caraṇas), col. 3 ; ≈ = approximately equal)

TABLE 2

1 UE 2 Structure 3 Pattern 1 UE 2 Structure 3 Pattern

No. pacn No pacn

1 222.47 lsls ≈ 14 2243 —

2 2243 lslI 15 4 ≈ ugābhoga

3 1227 ls 16 sulādi incomplete

4 2045 lsls 17 1243 —

5 1125 ≈ 18 1043 lslI

6 1123 — 19 1047 —

7 204.29 lsls ≈ 20 202.13 —

8 1049 lsls 23 2243 —

9 2243 pa : ls 25 2235 —

10 404.15 lsls 26 3049 —

11 3045 — 28 004.10 no pallavi or

12 2249 — 30 2063 —

13 224.11 lsls

Of the 5 sulādis, one is rāga-tāla-mālikā. The others

may be characterised as follows with the usual notation

(vide footnote nos. 72, 48)

21. rāga mukhāri (hari-sorvottama-sulādi)-dmdrjtaey

148

Music of Mādhva Monks

22. rāga āhiri-dmdrjtajey (amdrijtaej)v

23. rāga nadanāmakriya-imdijtaej (Amdrijtaej) v

24. rāga guṇdakriya-imdrjitaey (ī-ragana marthiya

drjjitaey) v

No. 27. is called saptarāga (śuddhagauḷa !) suladi because

it is set to seven rāgas, one per carana. It is not known

whether this sulādi was composed as rāgamālikā by Vadiraja

or was so transformed by later performers. Its tāla

structure is dmrjtaej ; rāga ascriptions are : d-mukhāri,

m-śuddha varāli, r-kambodhi, j-bhairavi, t-kedāragaula, a-

mecabauli, c-gaulipantu, y =saurāṣṭra. This could

represent a line of transmission originating near Vādirāja's

time because the rāgas are coeval with the composer. The

first two sulādis have an identical tāla pattern, the third is

different only in replacing 'y' with 'j'. The fourth is

unusual in commencing with a tala other than 'd' and

featuring a consecutive repetition of 'j' ; all four feature

the repetition of a tāla : 'd' in 21, 22, 24 ; 'j' in 24. No 27

has a regularly ordered sequence of the sulādi tālas with

no repetition.

IX VIJAYĪNDRA TĪRTHA

Like Vadiraja and Purandaradasa Vijayindra Tīrtha, nee Viṣṇu Tīrtha was also a disciple of Vyāsarāya who gifted him to Surendra Tīrtha of the Kavindra Ti:tha-branch at Kumbhakoṇam to succeed him. This mutt is renowned in the name of Rāghavendra Tīrtha (q.v.) who succeeded to the same piṭha later. Vijayindra Tīrtha was born in 1517 A.C. He died in 1595 A.C. According to another school of thought, his death occurred in 1614 A.C.

Vijayindra is acclaimed as proficient in all the 64 kalās (arts). Thus he is extolled as catuhṣaṣṭikalā vidyā pū na, 199 catuhṣaṣṭikalavidye juṣe199, sphuṭavidita caṭuhṣaṣṭividya viśeṣaḥ,200 Śrī Vijayindrayatiśvaraḥ catuhṣaṣ-tikalipūrṇo201 etc. Nārāyaṇa praises him as being honoured by Ramarāya of Vijayanagar with ratnābhiṣeka, grant of several villages etc. for his versatile scholarship.202 An epigraph of the time also extols him similarly.203 It is probable that as a disciple of Vyāsarāya Vijayindra was proficient in music also, though no evidence of this is available in the form of musical compositions or otherwise. Gururajacharya's narration of incidents to support

198 Śrī Vijayindra Stotra, extr. Gururajacharya, Raja-S., Ajayya Vijayindiaru, p. 146, foot note

199 Nārāyaṇa, Raghavendra-vijayam, ed. Lakshmi-narayana Upadhyaya, P.P., I.9, p.4

200 Śrī Gururāja-stavanam, extr. Gururajacharya, Raja-S., op. cit. loc. cit.

201 Vijayindra stutiḥ, extr. idhem, op. cit. loc. cit.

202 Nārāyaṇa, op. cit. 2, 21, 22

203 Epigraphia Indica, 12, p. 345

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Music of Mādhva Monks

Vijayindra's expertise in music viz. triumph over Gānamār-tanda and over (an unnamed) expert singer of karnataka music is unauthenticated and suffers from anachronism.204

Vijayindra tīrtha has composed a few songs in kannada under the signature Vijayindrāma. Only three of these appear to be available in print and others, a dozen of which are known to be elsewhere are not accessible to me at the moment of writing this. Thus, I have to be content with noticing only these ‘yogivara-Vyāsarāyaremba’ in rāga ānandabhairavi, tāla aṭi,205 the sulādi ‘yākela manave’ in an anonymous rāga206 and ‘parabomma-hariyuta’ in rāga nāṭi.207 The first is a laudation to his guru vyāsarāya.

It has the structure 1143. The pallavi and anupallavi rhyme together on the second syllable. Each stanza rhymes on the second syllable; this is in conformity with the literary format of the kṛti; both rāga and tāla are plausible and reasonably appropriate. Vyāsarāja is compared to a rain-bearing cloud which indicates the celestial abode of Lord viṣṇu's feet, obscures the miyyi (advaita) mata etc. The simile is laboured but detailed. Pallavi and anupallavi are of equal length (15 syllables) and the first two stanzas are patterned in the ‘lsls’ structure while the last is approximately lsll.

The available material is too scanty to merit generalisation.

204 Gururajacharya, Raja, S., op.cit. pp. 216-225

205 Vijayindra Tīrtha, ‘yogiśvara-vyāsarāyaremba’ etc. extr. Vedavyasachar, H. K., Karnāṭakada Haridāsaru, p. 267

206 idhem. ‘yākela manave’ sulādi no. 13 ed. Hanumāntha Rao, Gorakala, Horidasara-pada-sulādi-gaḷu, p. 71, Śrī Varadendra Haridāsa-sāhitya-maṇḍala, Lingasugura, 1957

207 idhem. ‘parabomma hariyu tā’ suladi no. 14, op. cit. p. 73

Vijayīndra Tīrtha

151

The second and third are sulādis. The first of these has the sequence dmrjtaAj. Each stanza rhymes on the second syllable and the penultimate line uniformlycarriesthe signature 'vijayīndra rāma', This is true of the other sulādi also, while the above mentioned krti carries the signature 'vijayīndra' in the last line of the last stanza. The syllabic content of the stanzas has a general correspondence with the span of the respective tāla cycle within wide limits of tolerance.

The stanza set to jhampa tāla in this sulādi is cited as an independent 'pada' of Vijayīndra tīrtha elsewhere208 but without the final line. This is a common enough occurrence in the songs of the haridāsas because of their extensive and widespread usage. Except the Dharwad edition of Purandaradāsa's songs, and the critical editions of the songs of some important haridāsas brought out by the Institute for Kannada Studies in Mysore, textual criticism is still a keen desideratum in this field, in which uncritical enthusiasm and religious fervour are often substitutes for objective and systematic scholarship. The same may be said of the vacanas of the śivaśaraṇas of Karnataka.

The third song is a sulādi bearing the tāla sequence dmrjtaAj. It is similar to the other sulādi in rhyming, syllabic quantification, signature etc. Vijayīndra tīrtha's contribution to the haridāsa literature and music, if the above material is typical, does not seem to be substantial.

208 Ramachandra Rao, S. K., ed. op. cit. vol. 2, introduction, p. 36

X RĀGHAVENDRA TĪRTHA

Rāghavendra tīrtha is the renowned ‘rāyaru’ of Mançale (Mantrālaya). He was born as Veñkata Bhaṭṭa in 1601 A.C. of Timmaṇṇa Bhaṭṭa and Gopikāmbā, succeeded Sudhindra tīrtha, disciple and successor of Vijayindra in 1623 A.C. and entered the Br̥ndāvana in 1671 A.C. in Mançale.

Nārāyaṇa, Rāghavendra tīrtha's biographer describes the musical proficiency of the latter's ancestors. Thus, Kṛṣṇa, his maternal greatgrandfather was a teacher of Kṛṣṇa(devarāya, presumbly of Vijayanagar) in vīṇā and was presented by the latter with a thick garland of pearls and other insigma of honour (birudāli)209. He is thus a contemporary of Lakṣmī-nārāyaṇa, author of Saṅgīta-sūryo

daya, who makes a similar claim on Kṛṣṇadevarāya, and of Rāmimītya, Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭhala, Nijaguṇa Śivayogi etc. Kṛṣṇa begot a son Kanakācala; his son was Timmaṇṇa who is described as acquiring proficiency as a boy in many śāstras including singing and vīṇā playing, and as living in Vijanagara. He is said to have vanquished opponents in a śāstra disputation in the royal court and in consequence to have received an honorific day-torch (hagaludivaṭige).210 one of these forefathers appears to be a music composer, nor to have been influenced by Vyāsarāya or his disciples.

Rāghavendra tīrtha was thus a contemporary of Govinda Dikṣita, prime minister of Tanjore and author of Saṅgitasudhā and of his son Yajñanārāyaṇa Dikṣita, and his another son Veṅkaṭamakhin, author of Caturdaṇḍī-prakāśikā. Indeed, Nārāyaṇa describes a meeting between Rāghavendra tīrtha and Yajñanārāyaṇa Dikṣita at Tanjore and records the pleasure of the former

209 Nārāyaṇa, op.cit. 3. 6, 7, pp. 36, 37

210 ibid. 3. 8-13, pp. 37, 38

Rāghavendra tīrtha

at the scholarship of the latter.211 Krishnaswamy Ayyangar212 and probably following him, Keshavadāsa213 have misinterpreted the above mentioned verses as yajña-nārāyana Dīkṣita being vanquished by Veṅkatabhaṭṭa (who later became the piṭhādhipati under the name Rāghavendra tīrtha) in a disputation on the term kākatāliya (coincidence) and consequently as having received taptamudrā (religious branding) from the latter.

Keshavadāsa, in the fervour of and enthusiasm of his dogmatic faith, goes as far as to say that Yajñanārāyaṇa Dīkṣita became a chief disciple of Rāghavendra tīrtha! His faith and fervour are commendable but his lack of concern for historical truth is deplorable.

Only one song, attributed to Rāghavendra tīrtha has been transmitted to us and is so sung. It commences with the words ‘indu enage govinda’ and is set in the rāga bhairavi and tāla miśra chāpu. It has the structure 2243, and carries the signature ‘Veṅugopāla’ in the last line of the last carana. It describes poignantly the travails of the soul in its solourn and enjoins the Lord to forgive the ignorance, omissions and commissions of the jīva and to steer him to the other shore of the ocean of worldliness. The text is not available in a critical edition.

X (a) RĀGHAVENDRA TĪRTHA : VĪNĀMELA

One other musical matter relating to Rāghavendra tīrtha needs to be discussed here. This is in regard to the vīṇā which the popular pictorial representations of Rāghavendra

211 ibid. 6.16, 17, p. 86

212 Krishnaswamy Ayyangar, K., Sources of Vijanagar History, p. 253

213 Keshavadāsa, Beluru-, Karnāṭaka Bhaktavijaya, p. 318

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Music of Mādhva Monks

tīrtha are made to carry. Such representations are resent or contemporary in origin, and the vīṇi is probably an apocryphal addition, conjecturally made in the expectation that he would have continued the musical tradition derived doubly from his great-grandfather, and father on one side and from Vyāsaraya and Vijayindra (?) from another. There is no evidence of Rāghavendia tīrtha's proficiency in the vīṇā. Even if credence is accerded to the above conjecture or expectation, the vīṇā pictured in the hands of the saint is ludicrously anachronistic ; it should be pictured to correspond to the vīṇā which may be reconstructed from authentic sources, if there is any concern for historical accuracy. Therefore, an attempt is made in the following to present such historical reconstruction of the vīṇī which was in vogue during Rāghavandra tīrtha's times. In defence of this apparent lengthy digression, I advance two reasons : the vaiṣṇiva saint singers themselves refer to forms of the vīṇi such as dāḍi, kinnari, vīṇā etc ; an exegesis of this term though description would the within the scope of the present study ; more importantly, the period in which the yatitāya, Vijayindrā and Rāghavendra tī rtha flourished in their musical activity was critical to the eme.gense of Karnātaka mu sic in its present form ; the melodic aspect of our music was defined and determined through revolutionary changes in the keyboard of the vīṇā.

The development of our music is synonymous with the development of the trilogy of svaramela, vīṇamela and rāgamela, each progressively leading to the next. Therefore, the melodic aspect of the music which these composers practised can be reconstructed only with a knowledge of svaramela, which was precisely incorporated into the vīṇimela.

The anachronism in regard to the vīṇā shown in the hands of the popular pictorial representations of Rāghavendra tīrtha lies in the fact that its keyboard emerged as late as about 1730 A.C. in a form called

Rāghavendra tīrtha

155

Tulajendravirā, described by Tulaja in his Sangītasā-

mpta.214 It culminated into its present form and posture

comparatively recently.215

The concept of keyboard instruments is ancient in India,

but the first systematic exposition is found in Śrīnadeva. He

describes for example, that the bhatī kinnarī had a length

of 50 (indian) inches with a bridge at 2½ in. from one end.

Frets made of the ribs or toe-bone of an eagle, bronze or

steel were fixed on the key-board with a mixture of beeswax

and burnt cotton. They were ⅛ in. in length. Dī tances

between bridge (meru) and fret for between succesive frets

were measured between the midpoints. There were seven

fries per registei; thus fourteen altogether and one more

for tāraśadja. The seven frets generated the seven notes

particular to the desired rāga. Thus reckoning from the

meru, the frets were placed at e n cutive distances of 4 ⅙

2 1/3, 11/6. 2 3/4, 1 5/6, 1 1/12, 1 7/12, 1 1/2, 1 1/3, 1 1/4,

1 1/4, 5/6, and 5/6 in respectively. This is the archetype

of ekarāgamela vīṇā which evolved in the following two

hundred years. Since the length of the free string is not

mentioned in theoretical texts, the intervals produced

by these string lengths cannot calculated 216 It is interesting

to note that Bhīma corroborateś in 1369 A.C. the existence

of ekarāga mela vīṇī in Karnātaka ; he mentions that a

separate vīṇā i.e. keyboard was prepared for each of the 32

(battiśa) rāga;217

The theoretical sources from which the vīṇā-keyboard

of the times of yatiṛaya, Vijayindra Tīrtha and Rāghavendra

Tīrtha may be reconstruted are : Rāmāmāthya : Svaramela-

214 Tulaja, op. cit. Introduction (by Raghavan V.), pp.

xx, xxi

215 Sathyanarayana, R., Viṇālakṣaṇa-vimarśe, pp. 285-

287

216 Śārṅgadeva, op. cit. 6: 279–306, pp. 288–292

217 Bhīma kavi, Basava-purāṇam, 11.6, p. 257

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Music of Mādhva Monks

kalānidhi (1550 A.C.),218 Puṇḍarika Viṭṭhala : Sadrāga

candrodaya (1550-1600),219 Śrikanṭha, Raśakaumudi

(C. 1580)220, Somanātha : Rāgavibodha (1609).221 Govinda

Dīkṣita (Sañgīta sudhā (nidhi) (1620),222 Veṅkaṭamakhi :

Caturdaṇḍī prakāśikā (c. 1650).223 Of these, Rāmāmātya,

Puṇḍarika Viṭṭhala and Śrikanṭha hailed from karnataka

corresponding to the period of Vyāsarāya, Vādirāja, Vijayi-

dā and Purandaradāsa; Govinda Dīkṣita and Veṅkaṭa

makhin were kannadigas who lived and wrote their works

in Tanjore during the life of Rāghavendrā tīrtha, who

probably knew them personally. Therefore these sources

may be regarded as giving a true picture of the state ġof the

viṇā/keyboɑrd in their respective times. They will be used

eclectically in the following pages.

Viṇā keyboard in the 15th-17th cent. was of two kinds

viz. śuddha mela (Ś) and madhya mela (M) each of which

had two varieties, ekarāga mela (E) and sai̇varāga mela (also

called akhilarāga mela, A). Besides these there were

Acyutarājendrā mela (Rāmāmātya), Raghunāthendrā mela

(Govinda Dīkṣita), Veṅkatādhvari mela (Veṅkaṭamakhin)

etc. These were varieties of keyboards which could be fitted

onto any kind of Viṇā such as rudra, kinnari, Vīpañcī or

villaka which prevailed in these times; the keyboards diffe-

red from each other in accordatura, range, p.eferential or

alternative use of intervals on a given string etc.

Saṁvarāga mela (A) had frets fixed for all (chromatic)

intervals of the octave in three registers, obviating the

218 Rāmāmātya, op. cit. 3. 12-78, pp. 15-20

219 Puṇḍarika Viṭṭhala, Sadrāga-candrodaya, 2.1-43 in

Sathyanarayana, R., ed. tr. comm. Puṇḍarika-mālā,

pp. 88-92

220 Śrikanṭha, Rasakaumudī. 2.1-55, pp. 15-18

221 Somanātha, Rāgavibodha, 2.1-53, pp. 53-78

222 Govinda Dīkṣita, op.cit. 2, 420-444, pp. 153-155

Veṅkaṭamakhin, op. cit. 1.6-179, pp. 149-160

Rāghavendra tirtha

157

need for moving the keys to svara positions appropriate to

the desired rāga. This was called vajra thāṭa in hindustani

music in the 17th cent. In E however, fiets were fixed for

all (chromatic) intervals in the mandra register only but in

the madhya and tāra registers only those keys were placed

which were appropriate to the desired rāga ; these keys

were moved to other appropriate positions when

performing other rāgas. The sarasvati vīṇā of karnataka

music and sitar of hindustani music are examples of A and E

respectively. In SE keys were movable to any or all

positions of desired svaras in the madhya and tāra registers

and beyond, whereas in ME only keys for dha and ni could

be moved, while others were fixed in the madhya register ;

however, all the keys were movable in the tāra register.

This is the view of Somanātha.

X (b) VĪṆĀMELA : NOTATION

The following notation is used in describing the

intervals occurring in the above vīṇi melas :

ṣadja-s,

śuddha riṣabha-r1 antara gāndhāra-g2 pratimadhyama-m2

pañcaśruti riṣabha śuddha madhyama m1 śuddha dhaivata-d1

= śuddha gāndhāra-g1 sādhāraṇa gāndhāra-g3 pañcaśruti dhaivata

= śuddha niṣāda-n1 kaiśiki niṣāda-n2

kākali niṣāda-n3

These are the svaras which are admitted by all the above

authorities as manifesting on śruti numbers 4,7, 9, 10, 12, 13,

16, 17, 20, 22, 1 and 3 in the scheme of 22 śrutis. Among

these antaragāndhāra, pratimadhyama and kākali niṣāda

refer to their modern usage and parlance. These gāndhāra,

madhyama and pañcama have been transacted by the above

authorities with the prefixes mṛdu, laghu, cyuta or pāta.

Rāmāmatya has referred to the antaragāndhāra as cyuta

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Music of Mādhva Monks

madhyama gāndhāra and to the kākali niṣāda as cyutaṣadja-niṣāda, and to the prati-madhyama as pratinidhi madhyama.

The svāras originally named antaragāndhāra and kākali niṣida by the above and earlier authorities manifested on

the 11th and 2nd śrutis respectively. They were musically and acoustically complex intervals and were prescribed in

theory to be only minimally employed. Therefore Rāmāmātya and other authorities mentioned above, reflect

the musical practice of their times (e.g. Vyāsarāya, Vādirāja, Vijayindra, Purandaradāsa etc.), did not provide separate

frets for these notes on the vīṇā keyboard, but delegated the functions of these notes to the ones which manifested at

the 12th and 3rd śrutis respectively. Register in which a note occurs is notated thus :

anumandra-two dots,below; mandra-one dot,below; madhya-dot; tāra-one dot, above mandra-ne dot, below

atitāra-two dots, above

X (c) ŚUDDHA MELA

Śuddhamela is considered by convention in Indian musical theory the base from which all other melas are

derived. Therefore it will be described here first It has four strings on the keyboard. Reckoning the (brass) string

farthest from the performer as the first, these free strings are tuned to s-p-s-m respectively. Six frets are placed

across the entire width of the keyboard to generate six notes which are contiguously consecutive. Then the six

frets generate the following notes on the four strings.

Raghavendra tirtha

159

TABLE 3

s p s m

1 r1 d1 r1 m2

2 g1 n1 g1 p

3 g2 n2 g2 d1

4 g3 n3 g3 n1

5 m1 s m1 n2

6 m2 r1 m2 n3

It is clear that each line (represented by a fret) in the above fingerboard, involves adjacent consonance of s-p, p-s (i e. s-m) and s-m. The consonances g1-p (second fiet) and m1 n3 (fifth fret) may be noted : they involove s-m, (subdominant) relation. This consonance is admitted by all the above authoities (except Somanātha) because they have an intval of eight śrutis as piescribed by Bharata and other ancient writers. Their acceptance reveals a tacit attitude that prescribed interval is more impotant than svaia nomenclature. But the ancient authorities had stated consonance between specifi: pairs of notes in each grāma by definition lather than by the unifolm application of the same single criterion. Thus consonance was restricted by them to s-m, s-p, r1-d1, g1-n1 in the ṣadjagrāma and to s-n1, r1-p, l1-d1, g1-n1 in madhyamagrāma. No other note-pairs could be regarded as consonant. This was consistent with both theory and practice of music of their times. But madhyamagrāma lost its significance and usefulness in bcth theory and practice in the 15th-16th cent. and merged into ṣadjagrāma. The above authorities were quick to acknowledge this change and to substitute new parameters to accommcdatè contempolaiy growths and trends in music. However, Somanātha alone continues to honour such specific-pair definition of consonance and therefore proposes an alternateive finger-board ariangement.

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Music of Madhva Monks

According to him the consonances of g1-p (2nd fret), g2-d1 (3rd fret),g3-n1(4thfret)and m1-n2(5th fret)should be rejected because they do not conform to śāstra. Therefore the 3.d fret corresponding to the portion of the 4th string is omitted ; short frets for d1 and n1 a.e placed only for the 4th string at the 4th and 5th frets respectively ; a separate 7th fret should be placed for n2 on the 4th string. Such hair-splitng finesse could not be accommodated in contemporary musical practice. Therefore the subsequent discussion will omit Somnātha's considerations.

X (d) SVAYAMBHU PRINCIPLE

The vīṇā keyboard has been derived in three ways : consonances implicit in the svayambhū (lit. self-generating) notes. (The fourth and fifth degrees of the scale are self generated from a given tonic on a string, and are therefore so named viz. the major third:5 : 4 ie. the fifth harmonic is also a svayambhū note and came to be used as one of the bases for tuning comparatively recently in karnataka music.) Secondly, the notes lying within the consonantal region: s-p, s-m, p-s require string lengths which bear a simple numerical ratio to the lengths generating these consonant intervals. The first is enunciated and adopted by Rāmāmātya, Puṇḍarīka Viṭṭhala, Śrīkaṇṭha and Somanātha. Its results are adapted by Govinda Dīkṣita, Venkaṭamakhin and Tulaja. The second method is enunciated and adopted by Hṛdayanārāyaṇa in the 17th cent. and Ahobala in the 18th cent. The latter is probably indebted to the former in this. A third method of a progression of consonantal trilogy viz. s-g3-m1-p was evolved in the 18th-19th cent. in which every note of the keyboard was fixed by such triangulation. Its indications are seen in Parameśvara's Viṇālakṣaṇa and Nārada-Bharata of the namesake (apocryphal, recent) authors.

Raghavendra tirtha

161

Rāmāmātya derives the śuddhamela keyboard employing

only the s-m1 and s-p consonances using a well known

method viz. proceed form the known to the unknown. The

scale so derived is the pythagorean natural diatonic scale.

The four strings of the śuddha mela generate, at meru

(bridge) the four svayambhū notes s-p-s-m, which are natu-

rally generated without effort, well known and do not

require any special knowledge or effort from the experi-

menter. The note ‘p’ obtained on the second string recurs

as its octave on the 4th string. A fret is placed in the posi-

tion where p is generated. This is the second of the six

frets which must be located on this keyboard. On this fret

then, the first three strings sound the notes gr-nr-gr respecti-

vely. Thus two notes gr and nr are generated in this first

operation.

The note nr so obtained on the second fret recurs at an

octave on the 4th string. Where it thus heard, a fret is fixed.

This is the fourth in the series of six frets required to be

placed. On this newly placed 4th fret, the first three

strings give the notes g3-n3-g3 respectively. Thus two more

notes viz. g3-n3 are obtained by this second operation

The note n3 thus generated on the 4th string on the 4th fret

recurs at an octave on the 4th string; a fret is placed where

this note is heard. This becomes the 6th fret in the series.

The other three strings sound m2-r1-m2 respectively. So,

by this third operation, two other notes, m2 and r1 are

determined on the keyboard. These three operations, it

may be noted are carried out in the ascending order. The

notes obtained so for are s, r1, g1, g3, m1, m2, p, n1 and n3.

Now three more operations are carried out in the

descending order. The notes s, n1 and p which sound on

the meru recur at an octave; if a fret (5th) is placed at this

position, n2 is generated on the 4th string. This is the

4th operation. The note n2 so generated recurs again in a

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Music of Mādhva Monks

lower octave on the 2nd string. A fret is placed at this

position. This is the 3rd fret in the series and 5th opera-

tion. From the other strings two newnotes viz. g2 and d1 are

obtained. Lastly, d1 got on the 3id string is found to recur

on the first string at the lower octave; a fret-this frst

fret and the final in the series is fixed here. As a result, of

this sixth and last operation, the remaining note r1 is got

on the first and third strings. So, four notes, n2, g2, d1 and

r1 are determined from these three operations in descent.

Altogether, all twelve semitones of the scale or realised on

the keyboard. If s (tonic) assumed to have a fiequency of

240 c.p.s., the scale obtained in this method may be shown

as in Table 4

TABLE 4

note ratio frequency cents name in western music

s 1 240 0 fundamental

r1 2187/2048 255.28905 114 pythagorean apotome

g1 9/8 270 204 major tone, 9th harmonic

g2 32/27 288.44 251 37th harmonic

g3 81/64 303.75 408 pythagorean major third

m1 4/3 320 498 pythagorean (just) fourth

m2 729/512 341.71875 612 pythagorean tritone

p 3/2 360 702 pythagorean (just) fifth

d1 128/81 379.259 792 pythagorean minor sixth

n1 27/16 405 906 pythagorean major sixth

n2 16/9 426.66 996 minor seventh

n3 243/128 455.265 1110 pythagorean major

seventh

s = 2 480 1200 octave

X (e) KEY DISTRIBUTION

Veńkaṭamakhin is silent on the method of deriving the

Rāghavendra tīrtha

163

the vīnā keyboard; he tacitly assumes without acknowledge-

ment, Rāmāmātya's method described above; there are

indications of such assumption when he quantifies the

śrutis. His svara nomenclature is as follows (the first is

theoretical name; the second is the name given in musical

practice of his times; the third, a notation which he

proposes) :

r1 : śuddha riṣabha/gaula riṣabha/ra

r2 : pañcaśruti riṣabha/śrāga riṣabha/ri

r3 : ṣaṭśruti riṣabha/nata riṣabha/ru

g1 : śuddha gāndhāra/mukhāri gandhāra/ga

g2 : sādhārana gāndhāra/bhairavi gāndhāra/gi

g3 : antara gāndhāra/gaulagāndhāra/gu

m1 : śuddha madhyama/ma

m2 : pratimadhyama/vāḷi madhyama/mi

p : pañcama/pa

d1 : śuddha dhaivata/gaula dhaivata/dha

d2 : pañcaśruti dhaivata śrāga dhaivata/dhi

d3 : ṣaṭśruti dhaivata/dhu

n1 : śuddha niṣāda/mukhāri niṣāda/na

n2 : kaiśiki niṣāda/bhairavi niṣāda/ni

n3 : kakali niṣāda/gaulan niṣāda/nu

Veṅkaṭamakhin describes clearly the method of deriving

the key positions on the keysards of śuddha mela, madhya-

mela, Rāghunāthendra-mela and Veṅkaṭādhvarimela vīnās.

These details are not available in the other sources. Since

this coincides exactly with the period of Rāghavendra tīrtha,

this method of key distribution may be discussed here

briefly.

Thus the śuddha mela ekarāga vīnā has the same key

board a: in Table 1. The next three notes also have simi-

lar long frets. These generate p, d1, n, 'in the first string,

g1, g2, g3 in the second, p, d1, n in the third s, r1, g, in the

last string. Only the fourth string is provided with further

164

Music of Mādhva Monks

frets. These are fixed on a platform specially made to accomodate keys corresponding to the notes m, p, d, n and ṣ in such vikṛti except p and s)as are required in the desired rāga. All these five are short frets provided only for the fourth string. Thus this key board as 9 long and 5 short frets.

The śuddhamela sarvāraga melā vīṇā also has the selfsame 9 long frets. After these, five short frets are fixed only for the fourth string to generate the notes g₁, g₂, g₃, m₁ and m₂ of the madhya register. Next comes a long fret for p covering all four strings; this is followed by four short frets provided only for the fourth string, generating d₁, n₁, n₂, n₃ of the middle register; as before, these short frets are fixed to a (narrow) platform specially fixed for the purpose under the fourth string. In this manner, this key board has 10 frets and 9 short frets.

X (f) MADHYAMEḶA VĪṆĀ

The keyboard of this vīṇā also had four strings which sounded (in the full length) the notes p-ṣ-p-ṣ reckoning the string forthest from the performer is the first and the nearest to him as the fourth. There are seven long frets fixed underneath them, resulting in the keyboard-(meru) : p-ṣ-p-ṣ 1. d₁ ṛ₁,d₁, ṛ₁ 2. ṇ₁, g₁, p₁, g₁ 3. n₂ g₂ ṇ₂

g₂ 4. n₃ g₃ n₃ g₃ 5. ṣ m₁ ṣ m₁ 6. ṛ₁ m₂ ṛ₁ m₂ 7. g₁ p g₁ p

After this two short frets are provided for d and n (in the vikṛti forms which are appropriate to the desired rāga) on a special platform only for the fourth string followed by a long fret for all four strings (giving p-ṣ-p-ṣ respectively) followed again by three short frets provided as before for the fourth string only to generate ṛ-g-m in vikṛti forms which are appropriate to the desired rāga. Then follows a

Rāghavendra tīrtha

165

single long fret (generating p·ṣ·p·ṣ respectively). The long

frets are immovable while the short oneṡ may be moved to

any desired position. This keyboard has ten long frets and

7 short frets. The location of the keys is achieved in the

same way aṡ in the śuddham·la vinā.

The keyboard of the madhyamela sarvarāga vinā also has

the same seven long keys as in the ekarāga vinā of the same

mela. Then four short frets are fixed on a special platform

underneath the fourth string only for the notes d1, n1, n2

and n3. Then followṡ a long fret which generates the notes

p·ṣ·p·ṣ on the four strings respectively. After this, six short

frets are provided on a special platfoım for only the fourth

string for the notes r1, g1, g2, g3, m1, and mṡ. Next comes

a long fret generating g1·p·g1·p respeċtively on the four

strings. This is followed by two short frets for the noteṡ

d1 and ṅ3 on the fourth string Because the space available

is quite small, the fret for ṅ3 functions for n2 also (being so

shifted to that position) when needed. Some performers used

to insert a separate short fret for n2. Finally, there is a long

fret sounding p·ṣ·p·ṣ on the four strings respectively.

Thus this keyboard had 10 long and 12 short (or 13 includ-

ing one for n2) frets.

X (g) COMPARISON

The differences between the śuddhamelaand madhyamela

keyboards may be now noted. The madhyamela vinā has a

range less than itsśuddhamelaanaloguebyonlyhalfofaregister

but has more keys. The highest note attainable in both

is ṣ. In the ekarāga vinā of both, all twelve chromatic

intervals of the octave are established in the first (lowest)

register to serve as exemplars for short frets which are

placed for the appropriate forms of the notes (r·g-m-d-n)

166

Music of Mādhva Monks

taken by the desired rāga in the higher registers. But p and s always have long frets. Sometimes the fret for n2 was optionally left out and the fret for n3 had to double for n2 also in madhyamela sarvarāga viṇā. In short, music was performed in a range of 16 notes viz. d-n in mandra,and seven each in madhya and tāra registers. If the keyboard was provided with a fret for s, one fret for d or n in madhya register was omitted. This method was called sāraṇi mārga. If both d and n frets were employed, the range consisted of 17 notes ; in vocal music they were d-n in anumandra, seven each of mandra and madhya and s in tāra register. Here also, either d or n of the anumandra register could be omitted by conventional sanction. The four pillars of music (caturdaṇḍi) viz. gita, ālāpa, thāya and prabandha were systematised and established in the above range in both vocal and instrumental music by Tāṇappacārya, Veṅkaṭamakhin's illustrious guru.

Besides the four upper strings. Each keyboard also carried three strings to the right. They were collectively called śruti strings, and were tuned to ś-p-s. They were individually named ṭipi, (tantri ?), and jhallikā.

X (h) PAKKASĀRANI

In order to obviate exclusive movement of melody in the middle and high registers and to provide for its flow into the low register, a technique called pakkasāraṇi was developed in the 17th cent. i.e. during Raghavendra tirtha's life and is described by Veṅkaṭamakhin. It derives its name from a performance technique in which a note is preferentially played on given string (sāraṇi) rather than on its (precedent) adjacent (pakka) string alternativly. The pakkasāraṇi and sāraṇi were alternative approaches to the question of tonal range which was admitted into contemporary musical practice, both vocal and instrumental. The

Raghavendratirtha

167

former was evolved to extend the range into the mandra

region also. This is retained in the technique of violin

playing even today in which p, d, etc. are often performed

on the first and third strings (from the left) rather than on

the second and fourth (last) strings even though these free

strings are tuned to p.

Thus in both śuddhameḷa and madhyameḷa, sāraṇi

method limits performance to the use of s-r-g-m only on the

first string, pakka-sārāṇi allows the use of p or d also.

Similarly, the use of frets for p-d-n only is admitted in the

technique on the second string while pakkasārāṇi allows

the use of (one or more of) s-r-g also. Again, sāraṇi

technique permits the use of s-r-g only on the third string in

the śuddhaṃeḷa while m, etc may also be performed on it

in the pakkasārāṇi. Thus, 17 intervals are used in all : two

(d, n) in anumandra, seven each in maṇḍra and madhya

and one (s) in tāra register. Veṅkaṭamakhin makes out

this range and distribution for Tamilnadu only (where

Raghavendra tirtha lived a major portion of his life) for he

clearly states that the musicians of Karnataka, Andhra and

Turuka (Arcot and probably Bijapur etc.) provinces used

(four more notes) r-g etc. also in the tāra register, thus

making 21 intervals in all.

X (i) OTHER KEYBOARDS

It is clear from the foregoing that 15th-17th cent. was

a period of experimentation and exploration in Indian

music. This is echoed in the trilogy of melatraya also.

Viṇa keyboard of this period was characterised by varietiey

in opinion and custom, in number of strings, their

accordatura, the number of keys, which among them

should be long and which short, the determination of the

lowest and highest notes in tonal range, in theory and

practice, the allorance or disallowance of particular notes

on a given string etc.

168

Music of Mādhva Monks

Thus, a key for ś was used by some in the śuddha

mela ekarāga vin̐i and not by cthers, thu: resulting in a

total of 22 or 23 keys ; a range cove ed originally by

14 or 15 keys on this keyboard was extended by seven mo e

keys covering an additional iegister. In the śuddhamela

sarvarāga vin̐i there were 32 or 33 fiets (omitting or

in cluding one for ś) instead of 19, and sometimes, only 29

or 30. In both keyboar ds the caturdan̐d̐i i.e. the 'enterity of

the corpus of musical practice, was peiformed only on the

fourth string, while the other three were retained only for

the derivation or determination cf the intervals The lat er

served as sources of comparison and fixation for their

analogues on the fourth string.

The svaramela also underwent a transition in this

period. The antara gāndhāra and kākali niṣ da, relics of

the grāma age were now transfermed into, and sta ilised as

mṛdu (or laghu) madhyama and mṛdu (or laghu) ṣaḍja at

the next, higher fespective śrutis. Two notes, riṣabha

and dhaivata of four śrutis each were experimentally

inserted between the (theoretically and empirically well-

established) triśruti riṣabha-pañcaśruti ṣaḍabha and triśruti

dhaivata-pañcaśruti dhaivata pairs at the 8th and 21st

śrutis respectively to accommodate two new inteivals which

were emerging from the practice in śrīnāga etc. These

were cnly metastable ; subsequent practice resolvet them

into the respective pañcaśruti intervals. Mṛdu (or tuiśruti)

pañcama was diminished by one śruti and was reorganised

in the scale as dviśruti or prati(nidhi) madhyama at the

15th śruti. These notes notes were still metastable and

were in need of resolution into stability. Therefore, they

were not fixed in the scale with definite keys, but were

btained by deflection of the string at the just precedent

fret. In other words, catuḥśruti riṣabha was obtained at

t.is.uti riṣabha, anta.a gāndhāra at ṣaḍharana gāndhāra,

pratimadhyama at śuddha madhyama, catuḥśruti dhaivata at

Rāghavendra tīrtha

169

triśruti dhaivata and kākaliniṣāda at kaiśiki niṣāda by deflection of string. Kaiśiki niṣāda sometimes had and sometimes not, a separate fret. In the latter instance, it was obtained by deflection at śuddha niṣāda. Because of congestion in space, some musicians preferred to have only one key for d or n and obtained the other by gamaka (string deflection).

The madhyamela ekarāga keyboard on the other hand had 4 keys less i.e. 18 or 17 depending on whether there was or was not a key for ṣ. The keys on the sarvarāga keyboard of the same mela were 24 (without ṣ) or 25 (with ṣ) i.e. 7 less than in the corresponding śuddhamela keyboard. Some omitted ṣ; some included it while yet others extended the range up to p̣.

Veṅkaṭamakhin himself describes as many as 18 different keyboards but retains only 12 on the ground that the others had no aesthetic appeal. These 12 were as follows : śuddhamela, madhyamela and Raghunāthamela had each two varieties viz. ekarāga and sarvarāga. There was another variety of śuddhamela keyboard which omitted the first three strings (because they largely served the purpose of determination, standardisation, fixation and comparison of the keys which were functionally employed in the performance of music); this was known as ekatantri. Veṅkaṭamakhin himself had designed two dvitantri vīṇās. Each had a brass string and a steel string. The brass string was tuned to ṣ; the steel string was tuned in one to m₁ and and in the other to p̣. After this must be placed keys appropriate to eka rāga or sarvarāga keyboard as the case may be, in all three registers. Therefore, the fingerboard of the ekatantri and dvitantri vīṇās was longer than in the conventional four stringed keyboard. Since each of the śuddhamela, madhyamela, Raghunāthamela, ekatantri and two varieties of the dvitantri vīṇās had two varieties of

170

Music of Mādhva Monks

keyboards viz. ekarāga and sarvarāga, the total came to

21 keyboards.

The śuddhamela had an accordatura, as mentioned

above of s-p-ṣ-m. If the fourth string was tuned to ‘p’

instead and was played as if it was turned to ‘p’ instead and

was played as if it was turned ‘ṣ’, it was called Raghunātha

mela vinā. Veṅkaṭamakhin states this was designed by his

father Govinda Dikṣita and dedicated to his king Raghunātha

Nāyaka. But it is found that a similar vinā was already

designed by Rāmāmātya some 70-80 years earlier and

dedicated to his king Acyutarājendra. Somanātha mentions

(1609) the existence of such a vinā during his times. per-

haps Govinda Dikṣita inaugurates technique of regarding

the final pañcama-string as sounding ṣadja. Such techinique

is still in vogue in karnataka music in the name of

‘madhyama śruti’ in the performance of rāgas such as

jhaṅjuṣṭi, ‘puṇṇāgavarāli etc.

If the string sounding ‘p’ in the śuddhamela madhya-

mela and Raghunāthamela vinā is turned to ‘m1’, three

new keyboards with the accordaturae s-m-ṣ-m1 (śuddha

mela), m1-ṣ-m1-ṣ (madhyamela) and s-m1-ṣ-m1 (Raghunātha

mela, madhyama śruti). These again have two varieties

each viz, ekarāga add sarvarāga. These six are rejected

by Veṅkata makhin as possessing no aesthetic potential.

However, Somanātha compiles the variety m1-ṣ-m1-ṣ from

another school of performers.

10 (j) HRDAYANĀRĀYANA

An alternative method of determing musical intervals

through string-lengths has been mentioned above, besides

the svayambhū-svara method. This is first described by

Hrdayanārāyaṇa in his Hrdayaprakāśa (c. 1660). This was

Rāghavendra tīrtha

171

in Gāḍhi in Madhya Pradesh. This yields slightly different intervals occasionally, and will be briefly discussed here because it happened during Rāghavendra tīrtha's life time and came to be integrated into the modern practice. This method is also discribed by Ahobala in his Saṅgita-pārijāta (c. 1720), in a passage which has a literal correspondence with the former.

In this method, the speaking (or full, free) length of the string is taken as unity; the various intervals are expressed as fractions of this. As a first step, the lengths required to generate the svayambhū notes m1 and p are derived. The othsr intervals are obtained as simple fractions of the iengths bounded by the pairs s-m, s-p, p-ś. Thus ś is generated by the full free length (1), ś by 1/2, m, by 1/4, p by 1/3, Then g2 is geneated at 1/2 sp, r2 at 1/3 sp. The note d2 is obtained at 1/2 pś, d1 at 1/3 pś, and n2 at 2/3 pś. R1 is obtained at 2/3 śr g3 at 1/2 sd2, n3 at 2/3 d2ś and m2 at 2/3 g3 ś.

The feature of this method is approximation of the actual, precise string lengths required to generate the various notes to yield simple ratios, except for the svayambhū notes which already bear simple numerical ratios. In evitably, the intervals obtained in this method differ slightly from those derived in the pythagorean method involving cyclic ascent by just fifths or cyclic descent by just fourths. These are compared in string lengths in Table 5.

172

Music of Madhva Monks

TABLE 5

Note

s r1 g1 g2 g3 m1 m2 p d1 n1 n2 n3 s

Rāmāmātya 36.0 33.75 32.0 30.375 28.44 27.0 25.284 24.0 22.782 21.3 20.25 19.0 18.0

Hṛdaya nārāyaṇa 36.0 33.33 32.0 30.0 28.5 27.0 25.0 24.0 22.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 18.0

The inteıvals derived in the latter method (Hṛdayanārāyaṇa) are detailed in Table 6.

TABLE 6

interval ratio frequency cents correspondence in Western music

s 1 240 0 fundamental

r1 27 : 25 259.2 134 great limma

g1 9 : 8 270 204 major tone

g2 6 : 5 288 316 just minor third

g3 24 : 19 303.15789 404 mean of equal major third and pythagorean third

m1 4 : 3 320 498 pythagorean (just) fourth

Rāghavendra tīrtha

m2

36 : 25

345.6

632

acute diminished fifth

p

3 : 2

360

702

pythagorean (just) fifth

d1

18 : 11

392.72727

853

fourth of neutral third

(355 cents)

n1

12 : 7

411.42857

933

septimal or super major sixth

n2

9 : 5

432

1018

acute minor seventh

n3

36 : 19

454.73684

1106

mean of equal major seventh

and pythagorean seventh octave

s

2 : 1

480

1200

It is thus seen that s, g2, m1, p are identical; n3 is approximately equal, being very slightly sharper while g3 is slightly flatter in the second method.

174

Music of Mādhva Monks

X (k) RUDRA VĪNĀ

Of the several kinds of vīṇā which were in vogue in

India in the 15th-17th cent. the rudra vīṇā was highly

favoured; its description is available in Somanātha and

Śrikanṭha. A cording to Somanātha its daṇḍa consists of a

hollow tube of uniform bore, 46 (indian) inches long, 6 in.

in circumference, made of faultless wood †(bamboo,

khadīra or acacia catechu, red sandal) or bronze.

(Śrikanṭha prescribes a length of 40 in. and admits

a longer daṇḍa from an alternative school). At the

6th inch from one end a hole is made horizontally for an

immovable peg to which the strings are anchored. The

peg has a thick head and tapers along the length. At a

similar distance from the other end another hole is made

to hold a movable peg (6 in. long) with which the strings

may tightened or loosened. One inch from the immovable

peg is placed a meru 2 in. high and 4 in. wide. A gourd is

fixed below the meru to the underside of the daṇḍa. Another

gourd is fixed 28 in. distant from it. (According to

Ś ikanṭha the second is fixed to the underside of the

daṇḍa in between the third and fourth fret, the movable

peg is situated 4 in. from the end.) The bridge (kakubha) is

of wood, 2 in. high and 4 in. square with a smooth upper

surface to which are fixed with lac four smooth, curved

thin plates (patrikā) each a little higher than the precedent,

commencing from the side of the performer. Four strings

are stretched from the fixed peg to the movable peg over

the bridge and meru. Two parallel wooden strips 11 in.

long are fixed on the upper side of the daṇḍa (paṭṭikā) along

its length to serve as base for the frets. The frets are made

of the rib or clawbone of an eagle, steel or bronze. They

are fixed to the paṭṭikā with a mixture of burnt cloth, brick

powder, and beeswax and have the same length as the

width between the paṭṭikā. Very thin bamboo fibers are

inserted between paṭṭikā and string to serve as jīva i.e.

exciter (to render the tone rich).

Rāghvendıa tīrtha

175

X (1) MODERN VĪNĀ KEYBOARD

There is prevalent an erroneous belief that the modern vīṇā keyboard in karnataka music was inaugurated by

Govinda Dīkṣita; he does not describe any keyboard other than śuddhamela, madhyamela and Raghunātha mela.

As mentioned above, it is Tulaja who inaugurated the vīṇā in its modern form. The musical intervals which are now

in collective usage in karnataka music are summarised in Table 7.

176

Music of Madhva Monks

interval

ratio

frequency

cents

interval

ratio

frequency

cents

s

1

240

0

m2 (iii)

729 : 512

341.71875

612

r2 (i)

256:243

252.84

90

(iv)

36:25

345.6

632

(ii)

16:15

256

112

P

3:2

360

702

(iii)

2187:2048

256.28906

114

d1 (i)

128:81

379.259

792

(iv)

27:25

259

134

(ii)

8:5

384

814

g3 (i)

10:9

266.66

182

g3 (iii)

18:11

392.7272

853

(ii)

9:8

270

204

n1 (i)

5:3

400

884

g2 (i)

32:27

284.44

251

(ii)

27:16

405

906

(ii)

6:5

288

316

(iii)

12:7

411.42857

933

g3 (i)

5:4

300

386

n2 (i)

16:9

422.66

996

(ii)

24:19

303.15789

404

(ii)

9:5

432

1018

(iii)

81:64

303.75

408

n3 (i)

15:8

450

1088

m1

4:3

320

498

(ii)

36:19

454.73684

1106

m2(i)

45:32

337.5

590

(iii)

243:128

455.265

1110

(ii)

64:35

341.33

610

s

2:1

480

1200

TABLE 7

Rāghavendra tīrtha

177

These notes should not be regarded as occurring in the exact frequency or cent values given in Table 7. In fact, in the whole range of karnataka music there are very few musical notes except s and p which may be characterised with a single pitch value. Nevertheless, when svaras occur in different melodic situations, affective contexts, with a special or characteristic appeal, as a shade or as an illusory note, even though they are in a dynamic flux, it would be necessary or convenient for purposes of characterisation or measurement to assume a midpoint or average of the moving note. It is such value; which are given in Table 7.

The interesting fact is that the intervals in Table 5 comprehend those derived from both methods viz svayambhū notes and string lengths, even though the values and the criteria of derivation are different. It is further interesting that some intervals in this table are found in neither but are derived from yet another method viz. the consonance of s-g₃ (386 cents) and g₃-s (814 cents) besides those of s-m₁ (498 cents) and s-p (702 cents). Thus g₃ is also accepted as a svayambhū note in karnataka music since the 19th cent. Hence the keyboard is derived by a progression of triangular consonance : s-g₃, s-m₁, s-p, a method obliquely suggested by a 19th cent. manuscript work apocryphally entitled Nārada-Bharata and claiming a namesake joint authorship.

The modern intervals occurring in Table 5 may be computed with s-g₃ and s-p consonances thus :

r₁ (16:15; 256:243)- descend one p and one g₃ from ś

g₁ (10:9; 266.66:240)-descend 2 p from ś and ascend one g₃

g₂ (6:5; 288:240)- ascend one p from fundamental and descend one g₃

m₂ (45:32;337.5:240)-ascend 2p and one g₃ from fundamental; this yields the 45th harmonic, which is reduced to the original octave.

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Music of Mādhva Monks

m3 (64:15; 341.33:240)-descend 2p and the none g3 from ś

d1 (8:5; 384:240)-descend one g3 from ś

n1 (5:3;400:240)-descend one p from ś and then ascend one g3

n3 (243:128; 455,255:240) ascend 5 p from fundamental and reduce to original octave.

Finally, the functional relevance of the two streams of intervallic derivation in Indian music as integrated into the present musical practice (see Table 5) may be examined in terms of the triangular consonances mentioned above.

The results are summarised in Table 8.

Rāghavendra tīrtha

TABLE 8

note s-p s-m1 s-g3 note s-p s-m1 s-g3 note s-p s-m1 s-g3

r1-i d1-i — m1-i m1 s n2-i n1-i n1-i g3-i g1-i —

ii d1-ii m2-ii m1-i m2-i — — — ii g3-ii g1-ii —

iii — m2-iii — ii — — — n2-i m2-i g1-i g1-i

iv — m2-iv — iii — — — iv — n2-ii g2-ii g1-ii

g1-i n1-i — m2-i iv — — n2-ii ii n3-i n3-i m2-i g3-i —

ii n1-ii p m2-i n3-ii ii — g3 ii —

g2-i n2-i d1-i p p g1-ii iii m2-iii g3-iii —

ii n2;ii d1-ii p

g3-i n3-i n1-i — d1-i g2-i r1-i s

ii n3-ii — r1-ii s

iii n3-iii n1-ii — iii — —

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Music of Mādhva Monks

Of these relationships, s-mT is the most abundant (20/28), s-p is abundant (18/28), s-g3 relatively few (12/28).

Four intervals viz. m2-ii, iii, dT-iii, n3-iii do not have any consonances. Five intervals have no dominants (s-p) at all

viz. rT-iii, iv ; m2-i, iv ; m2-ii. Five of them have no subdominants (s-mT); rT-i, gT-i, g3-ii ; m2-ii, iv. Among

these consonance-poor intervals, rT-iii and m2-iii are contributed by Rāmmātya, while Hṛdyanārāyaṇa has

given rT-iv, g3-ii, m2-iv, dT-ii, nT-iii. The others are of recent origin, but possess consonance with other intervals

not shown in Table 5 but used, though infrequently in our present music. Intervals 135:128, 128:81, 128:95, 27:20,

25:18 are some illustrations of this. Such intervals as are naturally deficient in consonance are adapted through minor

approximations and included in the viṇā keyboard.

In enunciating an octave of 22 śrutis, Bharata and his followers had restricted consonance to specific note pairs

which are at an interval of 8 or 12 śrutis. By 15th-17th cent. the rule of consonance was generalised to include all

note-pairs which are separated by these śruti-distances. This endowed the scale with greater balance and aesthetic

potential. If this rule is followed it becomes difficult to accommodate and organise intervals with no consonances

at all or even without s-p and s-mT consonances, in the scale. Even if at first intervals are included because of

their simple numerical ratio, or are exactly derivable through a mathematical scheme, they can be retained in

musical practice through some degree of ratiocination and rationalisation viz. i complete absence of consonance ii

consonance defect (i.e. the degree of departure from exact consonance) is beyond aural perception, iii occurrence as a

shade of a given note during a melodic flux iv when a note which could be, but is not, a consonant can be tempered

enough to serve as an ad hoc consonant. When such intervals lose empirical transactability, they 'go to heaven'.

to borrow an expression from the ancient masters. When they do, the viṇā keyboard moults and becomes efferves-

cently young again.

XI REFERENCES TO MUSIC AND DANCE

References to music and dance made by the above vaiṣṇava saint singers may be mentioned in conclusion of this presentation. Such references made by Śrīpadarāya have been already discussed above.

Vyāsarāya mentions Tumburu (pp. 26, 100), Nārada and the siddhas (p. 100) as (mythical) ancient exponents of music Tumburu and Nārada have been discussed as ancient authorities in music by me elsewhere.224 He mentions the tambūri as drone accompaniment, (pp. 245). He describes the power of music; the deer listens immobile to the sound of the bell and is thus captured by the hunter (p. 30).225 Vādirāja also makes a similar reference in a song in his bhra maragīta.226 Kṛṣṇa's music can melt even rocks (pp. 94, 97) cattle forgot grazing (p 99), the river Yamunā slowed down in order hear to Kṛṣṇa's flute the longer(pp. 97, 99), the trees were horipilated with an abundance of buds (p. 97). Kṛṣṇa danced on the Govardhana hill such that there was a different foot work for each tāla, there was a different hand movement for each rasa, there was a different glance for each bhāva (p. 84). This occasion was celebrated with music and dance both in the heaven and on the earth : song by kinnaras in the heaven and cowherds on earth; dance by celestial nymphs and cowherds, Nārada's vīṇā cowherd's kinnarī, celestial dundubhi and cowherd's muraja, dance by Rambhā and other apsaras, tāṇḍava by cowherds (p. 84).

224 Sathyanarayana, R., Vīṇālakṣaṇa-vimarśe, pp. 296-299; 306-308

225 idhem. Niḥśańka-hṛdaya, comm. Śārńgadeva, op. cit. p. 21

226 Vādirāja, Bhramaragīta, ed. Guru Rao, Pāvanje-inter alia, (pp. 14,15)

182

Music of Mādhva Monks

Vyāsarāya's view of music may be summarised thus :

music which is devoid of love and does not sing the glories

of God is not music at all (p. 40). Music and dance are for

worship and service to God (p. 52); music means harikanthā

(pp. 34, 38, 60).

Some songs of Vādirāja may be adapted for dance (e.g.

48, UE, 85). He also refers to ancient (mythical) celestial

and semicelestial exponents such as Nārada, Rambhā,

Ūrvaśi and Menakā (30), kinnaras and gandharvas (UE 58)

as performing both song (gīta) and dance (nṛtya) (30). He

holds that music originated from Kṛṣṇa on earth listening

to whose music the trees horripilated, all animals became

still, birds and animals were lost in themselves, and the

gods were delighted (70). There is an interesting reference

to an aṣṭaka song (eight-stanza song) which is probably the

Kṛṣṇāṣṭaka composed by Madhva cārya (UE 20). He men-

tions several musical instruments : dundubhi (dundume?),

vālaga (a version of nāgasvarā (30), tāla (cymbals), śaṅkha

(conch), tammaṭe (tom-tom), tambūrī which are together

called melu(mela-)pañcaka the renowned group five

honorific musical instıuments (30, 69). Mela pañcaka here

means quintitte ensemble i.e. a group of five musical instru-

ments. He also mentions pañcamahāvādya, honorific

insignia used in processions and pageantry of God or kings

(74)227. Sarvavādya, simultaneous performance of all musical

instruments, mainly percussive in temples is also mentio-

ned.(UE 20). This includes: bherimauḷi(?) mauḷi (! mauri)

vādya (a form of nāgasvara), mauḷimauḷi (?) and cakravādya'

in a song which does not enjoy the benefit of collative

support. This passage is further interesting because these

instruments are said to be performed in tāratamya

(heirarchical order).

227 For various groups of pañca-mahā-vādya mentioned

in inscriptions, vide Chidananda Murthy, M.'

Karnāṭakada Śāsanagaḷalli Sāmskrti Adhyayanaka,

pp. 335-337

References to Music and Dance

183

Vādirāja makes an interesting musical mention : Hanu-

manta is said therein to have delighted God Hayavadana through rāgas. The passage reads : rāgagaḷa meḷaisi

hayavadana nolisi’. The word ‘meḷaisi’ may mean ‘classified'

(rāgas) or blended (his singing of rāgas) with (other instru-

ments). The first implies that he is a musicological

authority, the second, a great performer. Hanumān or

Āñjaneya is associated in legend, myth and textual

tradition in musicology in India with both. This is discus-

sed by me elsewhere.228 Hanumān is a very important

diety occupying a high position (3rd tier in ascending

heirarchy) in the heirarchical order (tāratamya) of dvaita

theology229 and is known Mukhyaprāṇa. Madhvācārya i

believed to be an incarnation in the series : Vāyu-Mukhya

prāṇa-Hanuman-Bhīma-Madhvārya. There is thus an

attempt here to integrate a music legend into the corpus

of dvaita dogma.

228 Sathyanarayana, R., op. cit. pp. 299-303

229 Ramachandra Rao, S. K., op. cit. vol. 2, pp. 43-46

VĀRTTANĀMA (ADDENDUM)

Some additional information on vṛttanāma, gathered since writing the above1 is now presented here.

Jagannāthadāsa's vṛttanāma discussed above2 is now available in a critical edition.3 Its text is constituted from

six collative sources viz. Bhā 4, Tā 4, Tā 13, Li 1, Gō 2 and Mu 27.4 Is commences with a two-line pallavi and has

nine units of śloka-pada. The ślokas conform only approximately to the mālinī vṛtta. Such approximation in

this and other metrical structures (in kannaḍa, marāṭhī, tamil etc.) used in musical composition is applicable only in

their Written form and disappears in oral presentations by appropriate adjustments. The vṛtta-lines in this compo-

sition also reveal more or less uniformly a caesura after the eighth and fifteenth syllable and internal rhyming at the

beginning in the two segments so formed.

1 vide supra, pp. 9-18, 63-70

2 ibid, pp. 12, 66, 67

3 Jagannātha dāsa, ‘pāriso pañdhara-puri-rāya’, No. 78,

Śri Jagannātha dāsara Kṛtigaḷu, ed. Nagaratna, T.N.

pp. 161-163

4 Bhā 4: MS. in the collection of Sri Bhagoji, P.K.

Tā 4 MS. in the collection of Sri Hanumantha Rao.

Tāḷūr-, Bellary

Tā 13: MS. in the collection of Sri Hanumantha Rao,

Tāḷūr-, Bellary

Li 1: MS. in the collection of Smt. Lilavathi,

Surahkal

Gō 2: MS. in the collection of Haridasaratnam

Sri Gopaldasa, Bangalore

Mu 27: impressi typis, Jagannāthadasara Kṛtigaḷu, ed.

Guru Rao, Pāvanje-, Sriman Madhvasiddhan-

ta-granthālaya, Udupi, 1926

Vṛttanāmā (Addendum)

185

Four of the six collative sources ascribe the rāga pharaju and tāla chāpu to the song. Interestingly; one exemplar, viz. Tā 4 prescribes the rāga sañkarābharana after the first pada, but no tāla. If the latter is not a scribal error or transmissional lacuna, this would appear as a tiend to a rāgamālikā (and less plausibly rāga-tāla-mālikā) composition. Indeed, it is surprising that the composers or performers of vṛttanāmā in the past did not conceive of it as a rāgamālikā because a garland of rāgas offers an appropriate, and excellent facility for the affective and aesthetic flux which the word content inheres.

Heḷavanakaṭṭe Giriyamma has composed a vṛttanāma which is popularly known as 'pārijāta'.5 The critical edition of this text is based on two exemplars viz. Be 41 and Na 23.6 It consists of 9 units of śloka-pada. Its unique feature is the absence of pallavi. The sources also lack ascription of rāga and tala; this may be attributed to the fact that the composition being of a relatively unknown, unostentatious woman, it did not gain entry within the perimeter of 'classical' music. The term śloka appears to have been applied in a loose or elastic sense in this song to mean a passage which is not set to tāla but is not a prose. The syllabic content varies from 12 to 15 per line within a śloka and does not conform to any metrical pattern. The syllabic content in padas varies from 23 to 26 per line, thus being roughly double the shortest śloka line. Both śloka and pada uniformly rhyme on the second syllable (except

5 Giriyamma, Heḷavanakaṭṭe-, Pārijāta, No. 11, Heḷavanakaṭṭe Giriyammanma Haḍugaḷu, ed. Indubai, T. K. pp. 17-21

6 Be. 41; MS. in the collection of (the late) Dr. D.R. Bendre, Dharwad

Na 23:MS. in the collection of Sri Narahardasa Surahkal

186

Music of Mādhva Monks

the third line in the first pada); the śloka lines also rhyme on

the last syllable (except the last line in śloka 5, the vai iant

for which offered by Bē 41 is a better reading and obviates

the ex eption). The line length in the padas suggests a

middle or fast tempo in contrast to the slow tempo which is

appropriate for the ślokas here.

As indicated by the title, this vrttanāma narrates the

story of the flower of the wish-gianting celestial tree,

pārijāta. It is the second7 of such trees which arose

when the milk ocean was churned the milk ocean.8 Kṛṣṇa

stole it from paradise and planted it in the gaiden9

of his consort Rukmiṇī Satyabhāmā, another consort of

Kṛṣṇa becomes jealous and Kṛṣṇa conciliates her.

In Giriyamma’s vrttanāma, the sage Nārada brings the

pārijāta flower from paradise when Kṛṣṇa is in court with

Rukmiṇī (śl. 1); Kṛṣṇa presents it to Rukmiṇī ; Satyabhamā

hears of this, and is offended (pd. 1). She bewails

Kṛṣṇa's love for Rukmiṇī and hypocricy towards heiself

(śl. 2, 3, pd. 2); but she suffers pangs of separation

(pd. 3, 5, śl. 4) and condemns Nāiada's mischief. She is

jealous of Rukmiṇī (śl. 5) and expresses her anger by word

and deed (pd. 5). Kṛṣṇa repents for neglecting Satyābhāmā

(śl. 6) and is diffident of facing her (pd. 6), seeks to meet

her (śl. 7, pd. 7); he has b:ought for her also the pārijata

flower (śl. 8); she asks him angrily to return to Rukmiṇī

(pd. 8. śl. 9); Kṛṣṇa conciliates and consoles her; he is

restored to her love (pd.9) Like the vrttanāmas of Śipāda-

rāya and Purandaradāsa, this is also an antiphony between

7 mandāra, pārijāta, santāna, kalpa and haricandana

8 Vyāsa, Mahābhārata, Ādi-parvan, 5.18 ; Śuka,

Bhāgavata purāṇam, 8.8,6

9 Vyāsa, op. cit. Sabha-parvan, 5.57. 40, 41, Śuka,

op. cit. 10.59 ; Harivamśa, 2.64

Vṛttanāma (Addendum)

187

Satyabhāmā and Kṛṣṇa in short but effective phrases (units 7, 8, 9).

Finally, a vṛttanāma of Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa may be noticed.10 Its theme is the same as the foregoing and is called Satyabhāma-vilāsa also and pārijāta prabandha. The author, whose signature occurs in padya no. 44, has called it pārijāta in a padya but also ‘satyabhāmā-vilāsa-padya-pada’ in the colophon. Its text is constituted from two collative sources viz. Bē 41 and Na 11.11 Neither source prescribes a lāga or tāla, despite the fact that the author indicates in the colophon that he intended it as musical composition. It consists of 45 pieces. Of these, there are 12 units each consisting of two ślokas followed by two padyas ; the finale consists of three padyas (49, 50, 51) in succession which are colophonic. The ślokas are set in śardūla-vikrīḍita metre while the padyas are structured in lsls. Both śloka and padya lines rhyme on their respective second syllable.

10. Prasanna Veṅkaṭadāsa, Pārijāta prabandha, no. 202, Śri Prasanna Veṅkaṭa dāsara Kṛtigalu, Haridāsa Sāhityamāle No. 10, ed. Indubai, T.K., Institute for Kannada Studies, University of Mysore, Mysore (under print)

11. Bē 41: MS. in the collection of (the late) Dr. D.R. Bendre, Dharwad

Na 11: MS. in the collection of Sri Narahardasa, Suratkal

MAHAMAHOPADHYAYA

RASHTRABHOOSHANA

Dr. R. SATHYANARAYANA

R. Sathyanarayana is an internationally renowned authority on Indian Music and

Dance and has published about 12,000 pages on these subjects He has received

national and international awards, recognitions, honorific titles and degrees. He

is broadbased in several Physical Science, Humanistic and indological disciplines

and knows several languages. He has served as President, Director, Moderator

etc , in numerous national and international seminars, conferences and workshop

on music and dance and has read by invitation, papers on Ayurveda, Astrology

Yoga, Tantra, Clinical Psychology, Acoustics at Indian and International Congresses

etc., He has frequently and widely Travelled abroad on Cultural missions. His

life and work are described in many world Biographies, Professional Directories

Who’s - Who-s.

Music of the Madhva Monks of Karnataka is a new kind of work in Indiar

Musicology. It describes Musical and musicological contributions of five colossa

pontrifts of Madhva faith : Sripadaraya, Vysaraya, Vadiraja, Vijayindra Tirtha anc

Raghavendra Tirtha. This is the first time that these composers and the musica

environment which influenced them and was in turn influenced by them are

studied systamatically. It brings to light many little known or unknown facts.

The work examines critically all available songs of these composers in a historical

perspective for characterstics, trends, evolution and structure. It also subjects

both internal and critical evidence available to a critical examination. The

materials studied here are among the foundation on which Karnataka music was

built and shaped.

‘MUSIC of the Madhva Monks of Karnataka is an influential work and will

probably serve as a model for further research work in the field.

H. G. RAMACHANDRA RAO

GENERAL SECRETARY

GNANAJYOTHI KALA MANDIR

EDITOR GNANA SUDHA

SRI SRIPADARAJA

SRI VYASARAJA

SRI VADIRAJA

SRI RAGHAVENDRA