The Art of Indian
Music
Its Origins, Its
Development, Its Architectonics and
Its Intimate Relation to
Transcendental Realisation
 Music and the Other Arts
Not merely the
magical spell it wields, the widest universality it claims, the subtleties
that characterise its melodious manifestations, but several other unique
features, all its own, distinguish, dignify and exalt the art of music
over and above all other arts. Painting, Sculpture, Literature and all
other avenues of human emotional expression have the advantages of form of
some kind, of being able to appeal to the human mind through the eye, a
more satisfactory sense than the ear, and a comparative stability of
existence of duration. The forms can be seen, kept steady for constant
inspection and even corrected over and over again, if need be. But Music
has no facility of this sort, and originating as it does, as invisible
sound, lingering in the air for but the barest fraction of a moment, it
disappears into ether, leaving not a tangible trace behind for
verification even, let alone for correction. In its effects and influence
on the human mind, however, it is more universal than others: even the
grossest forms of the other arts can be neither enjoyed nor appreciated by
anyone who has not had some preparation or training in these respective
arts and their functioning principles. But Music is for all; from
inanimate objects to consciousness-transfigured Yogi, every bit of
creation is subject to its irresistible sway, in some measure or the
other, to a smaller or greater extent; and if there is any agency under
the sun which can make Man, with all his conflicts of feelings and
passions and with sorrow, disease and death dogging him at every step,
forget all of them for at least a blissful moment of unalloyed pleasure,
it is music and music alone. That this form of art happens to be also a
delectable medium for getting in tune with the Infinite is one of the
favours bestowed on Mankind by a merciful Providence.
The Indian Music: Its Differentia
Apart from its aesthetic and artistic value, this
wonderful art of music had always held for the Indian mind, a clarion call
to spiritual development, and had been widely cultivated and had attained
a high level of perfection in India, at least some three thousand years
ago. It was in fact one of the unmistakable indications to us of the high
state of civilisation which the people of the land had reached even in
those early times. What distinguished Indian Music, however, from its
prototypes in other climes was its outlook and tendency: it was never
regarded in India as a mere lay art, as a mere system of pleasing the
sensuous part of man. It was always held to be but an extension and
outward symbolisation of the Omnipresent Pranava Sound - OM - and utilised
only for purposes of God attainment - a feature it has retained to the
present day, as will be evident from the fact that, up to the end of the
last century, the subject of musical compositions has rarely been anything
but God and His glories.
Music: Carnatic and Hindustani
The elaborate system of musical practice and expression
developed along these lines was originally one and the same throughout the
vast land and had a supreme unity of nature and purpose. From the early
centuries of the Christian era, however, the northern part of the
peninsula came to be coloured by the impact of Arabic, Persian and Moghul
civilisations. As a result, it began to show increasingly certain natural
and inevitable modifications in practice and came gradually, in course of
time, to be labelled the northern or Hindustani Music. The South, which
was protected from such onsets by its geographical position, escaped from
coming under the sway of these influences; and the original system
accordingly was preserved there in a purer condition and is flourishing
even today under the appellation, Carnatic Music. But it is well-known
that both these systems are of the same origin and substance, though, of
course, considerable variations have manifested themselves owing to
growing differences in the styles of expression.
The Birth and Development of Musical Theory
Even as it is the
case with other arts, the art of Indian Music too was for a long time
confined to its practical and operative or expressive aspect. As soon as
practice reached a certain height of development and gathered growth and
variety, theoretical expositions of the subject began to appear. These
were, of course, something in the nature of a necessity, if the practical
secrets of the art, garnered by centuries of experience, were to be
preserved from oblivion and corruption. These treatises on Music were
accordingly a record of the practices up to their respective dates and
functioned naturally as a grammar of rules on that basis for subsequent
guidance. Narada, Bharata, Sarangadeva, Purandaradasa, Venkatamaki and a
host of others, form a galaxy of musician-grammarians who earned immortal
names for themselves by leaving to posterity rich treasure-troves of
musical knowledge. In the treatises left by them, we have clear and
accurate expositions of the principles governing musical practice - the
differentia and genius of the various Ragas and Melas, the nature and
operation of the distinctive Gamakas and other important points calculated
to give a practitioner a firm and comprehensive grasp of his chosen field.
These, therefore, served both as a record of the achievements up to their
time in the theory and practice of Indian Music, as well as a stimulant to
further research and progress.
The Keystone of Musical Architectonics
But, then, the
growth of any form of art is never appreciably dependent on the rules and
grammars on the subject but is more the result of uninterrupted and rich
tradition in the practice of the art. The art of music is no exception to
the rule. Speaking generally, we find that what kept Carnatic Music on
such a high level of excellence is not the grammatical rules and
regulations laid down from time to time but the careful preservation and
fostering of the rich heritage of practice by generation after generation
through the Gurukula system of musical education.
But a special factor
that worked in the same direction and contributed to the same result
deserves mention here. It is a fact admitted on all hands that the special
feature and glory of Carnatic Music is its Raga system and that for
rendering a Raga with verse and truth of expression wide "hearing",
constant practice, considerable experience, rich imagination, and flair
for artistic effects are the sine qua non. This is only to say that the
Raga is the keystone of musical architectonics and that on the
preservation of its purity depends the well-being of the whole melodic
system. The invention of a device for mapping out the all-important Ragas
and the handling of the device with brilliant efficiency is the special
factor adverted to above. The reference, of course, is to the musical form
of composition known as the Kirtan or Kriti. It is impossible to imagine a
more suitable or satisfactory method for fixing the contour and trends of
a Raga, and making a blueprint of it, so to say, leaving at the same time
plenty of scope for imaginative handling of the same. What better medium
can be conceived of, for preserving the outlines of the special
ambulations of each particular Raga than a composite picture of it, which
the Kriti is? Even today, you will find eminent professors engaged in the
ticklish task of laying down the grammar of Raga, sedulously investigating
all the Kritis in that Raga as sung by various authoritative exponents in
the past and clinching the issues only after such exhaustive comparisons.
It must also be a matter of common experience that beginners in music who
want to distinguish and recognise Ragas like Ananda Bhairavi, Yadukula
Kamboji, Nilambari, etc., are always advised by knowledgeable persons to
take one or two Kritis in those Ragas as infallible patterns to guide them
to the spirit of the Ragas. This, again, is also why great pioneers who
design a new Raga (for the first time) invariably take the precaution of
composing one or more Kirtans in that Raga, laying thereby down, as it
were the four corners of the new Raga for the guidance of others.
The Sheet Anchor of Carnatic Music
This Kriti form of
composition, so reliable an indicator of Raga tendencies and the sheet
anchor of Carnatic music, has been handled by numberless composers from
the time of its invention by Thalappakkam Chinnayya in the fifteenth
century A.D. Many of them have been outstanding geniuses and left behind
them a rich legacy of soul-stirring Kirtans. But it is sad to have to
record also that the greater portion of this has been allowed to be lost.
Lacking the means of permanent recording and easy duplication, few of them
used to keep any systematic records or copies of their composition pieces.
A few notes jotted down now and then by a composer, excerpts made from the
originals by admiring pupils - these form the extent of the records that
have come down to us! The result was that, when a particular singer who
had sole custody of some Kirtans shuffled off his mortal coil, those
Kirtans promptly joined him where he was: they were lost to posterity once
for all! The magnitude of the loss sustained in this way and by accidents,
is simply staggering.
A Sacred Duty for Musical Organisations
A few instances will
serve to give us an idea of the above referred to fact. Tradition has it
that Purandara Dasa, entitled to be called, so far as an individual can be
so called, the Founder of the Carnatic Music because of his abundant and
meritorious services to it, composed as many as 500,000 Kritis; today the
most diligent search would probably fail to unearth more than 560!
Kshetragna, it is believed, left over 4,000 of his inimitable Padas. We
can call ourselves lucky if we can lay our hands on even 200 (and even
these are on the eve of permanent disappearance)! There is evidence to
show that Tyagaraja who lived barely a hundred years ago, composed no less
than 23,000 Kritis (it will be noticed with interest that this number is
the same as the total number of verses in Valmiki Ramayana); 700-800 is
the utmost we could boast of being able to recover! It is the sacred duty
of all Nada-Yogis to preserve the Kritis that the unique good fortune of
the present generation and the Lord's Supreme Grace have preserved so far;
and further to enrich music by adding soul-elevating compositions in
praise of the Lord and vividly portraying the evanescent nature of the
tantalising pleasure of this world and the eternal nature of the Bliss of
communion with the Lord. Thus would they render a double service:
spiritually elevating the people, and preserving the grandeur of our
music.
Music and Spiritual Experience
Now, let us consider
the spiritual Power of Music. Music melts the hardest heart, softens the
brutal nature of man, heals many people of many maladies. Wherefrom has
music derived this mighty power? From the Supreme Music of Brahman, the
Sacred Pranava. Listen to the vibration of the Tambura or the Veena: do
you hear the majestic Pranava-Nada? All the musical notes are blended
beautifully into this Pranava; all the musical notes spring from this
Pranava; music is intended to reverberate this Pranava-Nada in your heart.
For OM, or the Pranava is your real name, your real Swarupa. Therefore,
you love to hear music which is but the most melodious intonation of your
own essential name. When the mind thus gets attracted and unified with
one's essential nature, the great Power of God stored up there wells up
within and heals body and mind. The Bhakta enters into Bhava-Samadhi by
singing devotional music. He comes face to face with the greater
storehouse of Knowledge and Wisdom, Ananda or Supreme Bliss. Therefore, he
emerges from this Samadhi as a Jnani and radiates Peace, Bliss and Wisdom
all around.
- Swami Omkarananda
|