Aarabhi, Affectionate and Always Adorable

This has been a pattern for me, much like a habit. Somewhere I suddenly hear the name of some Raga I’ll find some way to listen to it for some time. Today it happened to be Aarabhi. It was amazing. This has been up there among my favorites for such a long time. But sometimes, you get into a very unique frame of mind to appreciate a particular piece being sung, a distinctive sangathi or a flowing horde of swaras, or even a peculiar pace that a learned artist can intertwine into his rendition, can all send you to such a fine bliss.

Aarabhi, the name of the raga may take you immediately to the famous Pancharatna kriti ‘Saadinchane’ by Saint Thyagaraja. Maharaja SwathiTirunal’s ‘Paahiparvatha’ may also come into mind. Thyagaraja’s ‘Naadasudharasam Bilanu’ is another splendid composition. But the one composition I would always prefer whenever hearing this raga is Maharaja’s ‘Narasimha Mamava Bhagavan’. In the middle of a concert where your heartbeat gets accustomed to Adi or Roopakam or even Misrachappu rhythms, suddenly when this Khandachappu comes, that itself gives an inimitable ram and gradually you get into its one-two-one-two ride. Then, the composition is a real gem.

The Pallavi is just like standing on the seashore. It is like the waves coming to you with a graceful rise, and then slowly subduing and wetting your feet. The gandharam being used very close to madhyamam, that at some instances you feel like hearing Ma Ma Ri instead of Ma Ga Ri. Then in the second line of Anupallavi, the great king of music blends the name of the raga saying “Aarabhasa nihatha aa Suradinabandho”. The way these lines end with the ‘O’ makes this Anupallavi so special. Then there is a fine stream of Chittaswarams that is again simply marvelous. It is like a delicate design on a fabric, Ri Pa Ma Ga Ri Sa Ni Dha Ri Sa. Then the Charanam starting on madhyamam completes the splendor of Aarabhi. Throughout the kriti, the master-composer keeps the end-rhyme and that merged in the cadence of Khandachappu adds to the beauty of it. When Charanam reaches ‘Bharitha kriparasa’, any one lending his ears to it will enjoy that emotion of their inside being filled with that rasa.

I used to prefer Suddhasaveri over Aarabhi normally, for the sanctity I have felt with the former. But whenever your mind needs a soothing touch of karunarasam, I would ‘prescribe’ Aarabhi. It is like your mother running her hands affectionately through your hair. It is like being cuddled by a soggy breeze while you are walking through the endless golden-green fields. Just set aside all your busy schedules for five minutes and lay on a couch with Aarabhi being played, a record, be it vocal or instrumental. Forget about everything else and listen to it. Those are instances where music becomes as lovable as a mother’s caress, as pretty, as diverse but still unifying all the finer feelings as Mother Nature.

A Truly Auspicious Raga

“Which is your favourite Raga?” has been a regular question I face whenever I tell someone that I am an ardent lover of Carnatic music. I feel that question does not deserve an answer. The raga one prefers most depends on a lot of factors: time, place, state of mind, atmosphere and a lot of things. But there is one Raga that I will never say no to. That is Sreeraga, one of the most pleasant janyaragas of 22^nd Melakartha raga Kharaharapriya. Auspicious occasions call for this raga. That may be the reason why Thyagaraja Swamikal chose this raga for his final Pancharatna kriti ‘Endaro Mahanubhavulu’. Also Mutthuswami Dikshithar composed his Navavarana Mangalam in this raga itself. When the question I mentioned at the start was posed to the late celebrated musician and Nightingale of Carnatic music, M.S. Subbalakshmi and to our President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, who himself is a great music lover, their answer was “Sreeraga”.

Sreeraga having its arohana and avarohana as S-R-M-P-N-S and S-N-P-M-R-G-R-S (S-N-P-D-N-P-M-R-G-R-S is also adopted in many texts)*, is having Ri and Ni as its Jeevaswaras. It is always referred to as a Mangala Raga; on singing this raga will bring solemnity, prosperity and good fortune. It is a raga for all times but is more suited to be sung in the evening. Apart from the compositions mentioned above, ‘Sami Ninne Kori varnam’, ‘Sree Mooladhara’ and Sree Varalakshmi’ (both by Dikshithar), Bhagyadalakshmi (Purandaradasar) and Bhavayami Nandakumaram (Swati Thirunal) are the other major ones in this raga. Irayimman Thampi’s ‘Karuna Cheyvan Enthu Thamasam’ is another very popular piece in this raga.

‘Endaro Mahanubhavulu’ is believed to be recited by Thyagaraja Swamikal at the court of the powerful Tanjore king, and demonstrated his power of belief and audacity by saying, “In this gathering whoever is great in front of God, I salute them”. Behind this great composition, there is another story. The exceptional Kerala musician Shatkala Govinda Marar sang before Thyagaraja. Inspired by his brilliant music Thyagaraja composed ‘Endaro Mahanubhavulu’ as his obeisance to all the great maestros before his time. This Pancharatna kriti is the most admired one among the five. The raga itself is more often than not associated with this composition. But Sree raga is not just that.

The one composition in this raga that I consider the best is the Navavarana Mangalam ‘Sree Kamalambike’, which shows the true genius of Dikshithar. All shades of the raga are perfectly blended in this marvellous opus. The set of compositions popularly known as Kamalamba Navavarana consists of eleven kritis composed by the illustrious composer, in praise of Goddess Kamalamba of the epic temple at Tiruvarur. The series concludes with this propitious kriti set to Khanta Eka Thala. The kriti is deep in meaning and content, and bring out the deeper insights into the Sreevidya Upasana. Dikshithar has packed numerous tantric details in this song. This is in the vocative case, where the basic sentence unit is Sree Kamalambike Shive Lalithe Maam Pahi (Oh Kamalambike, gracious and auspicious one, protect me). The start itself from the jeevaswara Ni being sung as a delayed note, with an authentic undulation, as Sree, embodies the whole ambience of the composition. The line ‘Rajayogasukhi’ (who enjoys the bliss of Raja Yoga) in the Samashti charanam brings out the true blend of ‘Bhakthi’ and ‘Veera’ rasas. The Madhyamakala Sahithya starting from Shakambari Shatodari Chandrakaladhari (who is dressed in lush vegetation, as she is the earth goddess, whose waist is slim and tender, and who wears the crescent moon) takes us to utmost points of delight. In the last line, Sreekari Sukhakari (who bestows auspiciousness, and who brings happiness), the unique Ananda bhava of the raga can be realised. In no other composition in this raga, it can be seen. (You can listen to me on an attempt to bring out the beauty of the composition by downloading it from the link: http://rapidshare.de/files/30180704/Sree_Kamalambike.mp3.html)

Sree raga and the composition ‘Sree Kamalambike’ remains to be one of my all time favourites. The classes in which I learnt this kriti from my guru Thamarakkad Govindan Namboothiri remains to be one of my most cherished memories. Whenever, I feel my mind need some solace, or when I am in some divine state and my bosom in some unknown state of bliss, I tend to sing this piece of music. That is exactly the reason why I have chosen this to share with all of you.