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If you are into south Indian music, then you might be aware of the common name confusions. I mean the raga names – Tyagaraja’s Manohari versus Muttuswamy Dikshita’s Manohari, for example. Melodically very different, but share the same name. On the other hand, Tyagaraja’s dArini telusukonTi (Shuddha Saveri) and Muttuswami Dikshita’s Sriguruguha tArayASu mAm (dEvakriya) have the same melodic structure. And as if to make matters worse, Tyagaraja has another dEvakriya, and Muttuswami dikShita a different Shuddha sAvEri (EkAmrEsha nAyike)!
Most of this happened because many manuscripts that contained Tyagaraja’s composition did not have raga names in them, or had them in some encoded form. When these were copied, and re-copied in the years after Tyagaraja, the scribes who copied these manuscripts assigned raga names very likely based a book they had access to. This resulted in many names unheard till then being assigned to some of these compositions, some compositions were even assigned to two different ragas (rasALi/vanAvaLi, dundhubhi/divyamaNi, Srutiranjani/Kantamani, dEvAmrtavarShini/nAda chintAmaNi etc). Tyagaraja’s school dominated the music scene of the later 19th and 20th centuries, these variations in names stay put.
This reference book these scribes referred to was most probably the ‘Sangraha Chudamani’ – written by one Govindacharaya. Although he got some of the facts wrong, and went against traditional music terminology, the usage of such terms has stayed on even till now as part of the musical vocabulary of Karnataka sangeetha.
So when I found out from the Guruguha blog that the text of Sangraha Chudamani is online on DLI’s website, I went ahead and read some parts of the text. Reading from the DLI site was not a very user friendly experience. Since the book is in public domain anyway, I thought it would be a good idea to post a .pdf version of the book for those who might be interested. Thanks Sunil for creating the PDF files!
Here are links to the first four parts of the book on Scribd (There are 16 PDF files). While the introduction is in English,the main body of the book is in Samskrta. Links for the remaining parts are available on the right hand side under the “From the same publisher’ menu, when you are browsing any of the following pages :
Happy reading!
-neelanjana
I really had high hopes with this documentary film, when I came to know that it would be broadcast on PBS. For one, this was a BBC production. The second was that it is a fairly recent production – and a lot of water has flown through the Ganga, Sindhu and Kaveri since the first time they came across the ruins at Mohenjodaro and Harappa.
Although Michael Wood has put in a lot of effort to present ‘The Story of India’, and the documentary is beautifully filmed, it leaves much to be desired. I am sure it is quite hard to encapsulate the six thousand years of Indian history in a six hour documentary. But Michael Wood has not tried to consider and mention alternative views; there are gross omissions, and serious factual errors, some of which I list below. (These are not in any specific order):
1. The film does not even mention about the alternatives to Aryan Invasion Theory (Well, it does mildly call it the Aryan Migration Theory) – Same old wine in a new bottle. It does not say that AMT is one of the different possibilities, and talks as though it is a proven fact and set in stone.
2. The film tells about the discovery of a large number of Indus civilization sites on the bed of Ghaggar, it falls short of saying Ghaggar is nothing but the dried up Saraswati river.
3. It does not mention anything about the role of Saraswati river in the vedas – I guess if he did, Michael had to contradict himself, because most of the sites on Ghaggar had ceased to exist by 1800 BC, but the AIT/AMT assigns a time of 1500 BC for Rg Veda.
4. The film mentions that most of the Indus cities were vacated because of dwindling water resources. So what Michel has employed is selective blindness; take newer research whenever it suits and just drop those that seem inconvenient.
5. Vast tracts of history, both in time and space have been neglected – For example there is no mention of kingdoms such as Chalukya, Rashtrakoota, and Pallava dynasties, that have left treasures such as Ajanta, Ellora, Badami and Kanchipuram.
6. Wood says that Chola kings(10th century) started recording deeds on stone, and copper plates. But copper plates inscriptions are found all the way from gangas (5th century) and through the reign of Chalukyas and Rashtrakootas ( upto 11 centuries) in other parts of India. And as for as stone inscriptions are concerned, there a plenty of them all the way from Kadamba, Pallava and Chalukya times (starting in 5th century).
7. Among preachers, Buddha makes is presence felt, but for whatever reason, the likes of Mahaveera, or Sankara are not even mentioned. Then no hope for the likes of Basvanna, or Purandara dasa. Sigh!
8. Michael Wood says Indian’s did not know where the city of Ayodhya was till the 4th century! This I find hard to believe, but I do not have a firm argument as yet.
9. This one takes the cake – Michael Wood interview’s the current Maratha prince of Tanjavoor, (or call him descendent of the Maratha kings, if you like), and tells us that he comes from the family of Rajaraja Chola!
10. The biggest blunder is the series does not even mention the kindgom of Vijaya Nagara – Arguably the best city in 16th century as per European traveler’s records!
Well, I can go on – But I thought it would be OK I will stop at number 10 – until I remembered the next one. which I should really mention!
11. Wood speaks to a woman at Belagola, and based on her story, say that the statue of Bahubali at Sravana beLagoLa (Gommata) was built by none other than Chandragupta Maurya in the 3rd century BC! Chavundaraya must be crying, wherever he is.
So much for authenticity, and research.
-neelanjana
It was almost noon by the time Saraswati finished her daily pooje. She observed she was singing aloud when she was doing mangalaarati to the deities. If her husband was home, she would only mumble the song to herself. In reality, she was quite a good singer, but lacked the confidence to sing in front of him because he was indeed very well versed in music. That was the cause for the hesitation to sing before him. He might say a thing or two about her sangatis. Or he might even bring the tamboori, and show how to sing those sangatis to sound better. That’s why the walls of their ancestral home heard Saraswatis singing voice only when Srinivasa was away. She often wondered if he could dedicate himself to music if not for the family business. Saraswathi just thought how nice it would have been to listen to his singing all day. It was several months since he had touched his tamboori. His singing was so overpowering and made her emotional that she would feel that Lord Krishna’s brindavana was right here at Kshemapura. The only other person she new who had a comparable voice was that of Vaikuntha Dasa of her hometown.
Saraswati felt very strange at thinking Belooru as her hometown even after being married for almost twenty years and living in Kshemapura! It reminded her that she had not visited her parents for couple of years. She was indeed worried when there was a talk of her marriage, and when she knew the suitor was from the hilly rainy country. Her hometown was a real beauty. Such a peaceful and tranquil town with the three hundred year old Chennakeshava temple as the anchor for all activities in the town! What to do? Once a girl gets married, she has to think her husband’s home as her own. She was indeed very happy when she arrived in Kshemapura first time. So green! But when the rains arrived she was terror struck at the force of the torrential rains that would not budge for four or five months! But now she preferred the rainy season since she saw more of her husband at home doing his music practice. As she went into the kitchen, Saraswati started counting how many more months till Ashadha arrived.
****
Srinivasa looked at the pendant Nagachari gave. Yes, it was looking good. May be few less emeralds would have made it look even better. He started to write the pattern for the necklace to match this pendant. Then noticing that Nagachari was still waiting, Srinivasa reminded him that the work should be finished soon because it had to get to the Palace before the festivals. As Srinivasa was completing his sketch, he thought of the hours he was spending at his store these days. Hebana was almost eighteen. It was time for him to take more responsibility in the business, Srinivasa thought. May be then he would have some time to pursue his first love, music.
Srinivasa’s father had trained him to be a jeweler right from the days he was a young lad. But among Srinivasa’s children, only little Madhvapati shows interest in coming to the store. Madhwa often watched has father designing the jewels, and also attempted to some of his own. The older two boys were not coming to the store even once in a bluemoon! May be it was time to make sure they come somewhat regularly, or else it might spell problems! But as Srinivasa recollected that he never came to the store regularly as a young boy, he thought all was not lost with Hebana and Abhinava yet.
In fact, Srinivasa’s father was quite lenient. He even had told his wife not to distract Srinivasa with household errands if he was practicing music, or studying all those books related with music and poetry. But Srinivasa still remembered what he had told one day : “Seenappa, I have seen the plight of musicians who depend on the kings and landlords. Thankfully, you have a business to carry on. Practice music as much as you want, but do not leave our family business. Keep your music to please yourself” Srinivasa had indeed followed his advice to the word. With riches that allow him to lend money to kings and chieftains, why should he leave the gold and gem business and stand at the doorsteps of the king? ‘Now, I am the king of my business or my music’, Srinivasa thought but when he remembered that it was amost three weeks since he touched his tamboori, it was not so pleasing. As he was sensing the unpleasantness of this, Madhwapati came in from the inner room to show a pattern he had sketched for an ear ring, and helped Srinivasa’s mind to dwell on something else.
****
It was the usual time when Abhinava would sit for his music practice. Father was very strict when it with music. Whether he taught any new lesson or not, the kids had to do their practice like a ritual. They had to practice all the varases daily in three speedszZ! Of the three brothers, Abhinava had the best voice. Although Srinivasa never explicitely said anything, Abhinava knew that he was always giving some extra attention to his lessons.
Abhinava suddenly remembered the comment Venkatesha, his friend from across the street had made sometime ago. “Ha! Your dad seems to have a lesson plan no other music teacher in this world has! I wonder how you would manage to sing with a teacher like him !” – he had remarked in front of all his friends when they were playing. Abhinava was felt angry, as well as humiliated.
Next day he had gathered courage to ask his father: “Appa, Is it true that you are teaching us in some new way that no other music teacher follows? Other kids make fun of me for that”
Abhinava remembered that Srinivasa did not even blink at this remark, let alone get angry. He had told calmly: “Yes. No other teacher teaches with the system I am teaching you and your brothers. You know what? I made these excercises myself so that it helps in making you musically aware much faster than you other wise would be. Why shoud you worry? I am sure that this system works well, and that is why I teach this way. Stop worrying, and sing Sri Gananaatha”
Saraswati was sure that Abhinava’s mind was wandering somewhere else. She softly patted his back, and asked him if he forgot what to sing next. Abhinava came back from his thoughts and started to sing the prabhandha in devagaandhara raga that his father had taught a few weeks earlier.
****
(to be continued)
As I was reading a subhAshita toady, I was stuck by the resemblance between that verse and a vacana of Akka Mahadevi, a Kannada poet-saint from 12th century.
Here is the subhAshita I am referring to:
छिन्नोपि चंदनतरुः न जहाति गंधं
वृद्धोपि वापणपतिः न जहाति लाभं ।
यंत्रार्पितो मधुरतां न जहाति चेक्षुः
क्षीणोपि न त्यजति शीलगुणान् कुलीनः ॥
ಛಿನ್ನೋಪಿ ಚಂದನತರುಃ ನ ಜಹಾತಿ ಗಂಧಂ
ವೃದ್ಧೋಪಿ ವಾಪಣಪತಿಃ ನ ಜಹಾತಿ ಲಾಭಂ |
ಯಂತ್ರಾರ್ಪಿತೋ ಮಧುರತಾಂ ನ ಜಹಾತಿ ಚೇಕ್ಷುಃ
ಕ್ಷೀಣೋಪಿ ನ ತ್ಯಜತಿ ಶೀಲಗುಣಾನ್ ಕುಲೀನಃ ||
The Subhashita tells that how noble men (or women) do not drift away from their good nature even when they are facing bad times. I just could not stop using two lines from AkkamahAdEvi’s vachana “chandanava kaDidu koredu tEdoDe” (ಚಂದನವ ಕಡಿದು ಕೊರೆದು ತೇದೊಡೆ) to bring this subhAshita into KannaDa, for they make such a perfect match!
ಚಂದನವ ಕಡಿದು ಕೊರೆದು ತೇದೊಡೆ
ನೊಂದೆನೆಂದು ಕಂಪ ಬಿಟ್ಟಿತ್ತೇ?
ಕುಂದಿದಾ ದೇಹದ ಮುದಿವ್ಯಾಪಾರಿಯೂ
ಹಿಂದಾಗಬಿಟ್ಟಾನೆ ಗಳಿಕೆಯನ್ನು?
ಸಂದು ಸಂದು ಕಡಿದ ಕಬ್ಬನು
ತಂದು ಗಾಣದಲಿಕ್ಕಿ ಅರೆದೊಡೆ
ನೊಂದೆನೆಂದದು ತಾ ಸವಿಯ ಬಿಟ್ಟೀತೇ?
ನೊಂದರೂ ಕುಂದಿದರೂ ಶೀಲಗುಣಗಳನು
ಒಂದೇ ಮನದಿ ಕಾಯುವರು ಅಗ್ಗಳರು!
(ಮಹಾದೇವಿಯಕ್ಕನ ಎರಡು ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಸಾಲ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಂಡಿರುವೆ – ಅಂತ ಸೊಗಸಾದ ಸಾಲುಗಳನ್ನು ಬಿಡಲು ಮನಸಾಗಲಿಲ್ಲ – ಆ ವಚನ ಚಂದನವ ಕಡಿದು ಕೊರೆದು ತೇದೊಡೆ ಎಂದೇ ಆರಂಭವಾಗುತ್ತೆ 
)
-ನೀಲಾಂಜನ
The 129th sookta (hymn) from the 10th manDala of Rg vEda is called the nAsadIya sUkta (नासदीय सूक्तम्). The recurrent use of the word नासत्, नासीत् (meaning, ‘it wasn’t there’ ) has given the the name – nAsadIya sUktam.
Here is the text of this sookta in original:
This sookta has also been termed as the “Hymn of Creation” because it talks about the wonders of this creation, and wonders whether there is a creator behind it.
The 10th manDala of Rig Veda has been accepted as one of the latest parts of this book. But since this manDala describes the Saraswati river, it definitely dates at least to 1800 BC. Satellite imagery has shown that Saraswati river had all but dried up by that time. So, given that this sooka was written almost four thousand years ago, I can’t but admire the wonderful minds behind this poetic creation!
For those who were DD fans – This sookta (more specifically, it’s translation in Hindi) made the catchy signature tune for a fairly popular TV series titled “The Discovery of India: भारत् – एक् खोज्” in the 1980’s.
I had posted my translation of this sookta on my kannaDa blog almost an year ago. I am re-posting it again here.
ನಾಸದೀಯ ಸೂಕ್ತ
-ಅಥವ -
ಇಲ್ಲದುದರ ಮೇಲೆರಡು ಮಾತು
ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಇದ್ದದ್ದು, ಇಲ್ಲ ಇಲ್ಲದದು
ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಗಾಳಿ ಬಲು ದೂರದಾಗಸ
ಸುತ್ತಿತ್ತು ಏನದು? ಯಾರದನು ಕಾಯ್ದವರು?
ಇತ್ತೇನು ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಆಳದ ಕರಿನೀರು?
ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಸಾವು, ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಬದುಕು
ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಹಗಲು ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಇರುಳು
ಉಸಿರಿಲ್ಲದೇ ಉಸಿರೆಳೆವ ಭಾವ
ಅದನೊಂದ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ ಏನೂ
ಕರಿ ಕತ್ತಲ ಕಟ್ಟಿಟ್ಟ ಹಿರಿಗತ್ತಲು
ಎಲ್ಲವನು ಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ಅರಿಯದಾ ನೀರು
ಶೂನ್ಯವೇ ಮುಚ್ಚಿ ತೆರೆದಿಟ್ಟ ಮನಸು
ಅದನು ಹೊರತರುವ ಆ ಮಹಾತಪಸು
ಹುಟ್ಟಿತ್ತು ಅದು, ಹರಡಿತ್ತು ಎಲ್ಲೆಲ್ಲು
ಮನದ ಮೂಲೆಯಲಿ ಮೊಳೆತಂಥ ಪ್ರೀತಿ
ಎದೆಯ ಬಯಲೊಳಗೆ ಆಡಗಿದ್ದ ರೀತಿ
ಅರಿತರೇ ಇಲ್ಲದಕು ಇದ್ದುದಕು ನಂಟು?
ಇಲ್ಲದಕು ಇದ್ದುದಕು ನಡುವೊಂದು ಸೂತ್ರ
ಅದರ ಮೇಲೇನಿತ್ತು ಇತ್ತದದರ ಕೆಳಗೇನು?
ಆ ಬೀಜದ ಭರದ ಮಹಿಮೆಯ ತರವೇನು?
ಏನದರ ಶಕ್ತಿ? ಏನದರ ಹುಮ್ಮಸ್ಸು?
ಯಾರದನು ಅರಿತವರು? ಯಾರದನು ಹೇಳುವರು?
ಜನಿಸಿದ್ದು ಎಂದು? ಸೃಷ್ಟಿಕರ್ತನು ಯಾರು?
ಕಾವ ದೇವರು ಕೂಡ ತರುವಾಯ ಜನಿಸಿರಲು
ನಿಜವಾದ ಚರಿತೆಯನು ಪೇಳುವವರಾರು?
ಜಗವನ್ನು ಇದನು ಹುಟ್ಟಿಸಿದರಾರು ?
ಹುಟ್ಟಿಸಿದನೊ ಇಲ್ಲವೋ? ತಿಳಿದವರು ಯಾರು?
ಆಗಸದಿ ಮೇಲೆ ನಿಂತು ನೋಡುವನವನು
ಹೇಳಬಲ್ಲನೆ ಇದನು? ಅರಿತಿಹನೆ ಅವನು?
-neelanjana
ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ನಡತೆಯ ಮೇಲಿನ ಕೆಲವು ಸುಭಾಷಿತಗಳು. ಭಾವಾನುವಾದ ನನ್ನದು.
ಕೊಡದಿರು ಕುಲಕ್ಕೆ ಬೆಲೆ
ನಡತೆಗೆ ನೀಡು ಮಹತ್ತು!
ಎಡೆಬಿಡದೆ ಬೆಳೆದೀತು ಕಳೆ
ಹೊಲವದು ಸೊಗಸಿದ್ದಷ್ಟೂ!
ಸಂಸ್ಸ್ಕೃತ ಮೂಲ:
ಕಿಂ ಕುಲೇನೋಪದಿಷ್ಟೇನ ಶೀಲಮೇವಾತ್ರ ಕಾರಣಂ
ಭವಂತಿ ಸುತರಾಂ ಸ್ಫೀತಾಃ ಸುಕ್ಷೇತ್ರೇ ಕಂಟಕೀದ್ರುಮಾಃ
ಹೆರವರಿಗುಪದೇಶ ನೀಡುವುದರಲಿ
ಕುಶಲರು ಪ್ರತಿಯೊಬ್ಬರೂ
ಈ ನಡತೆಯ ತಡೆಸು ನಿಂತವರು
ಇರಬಹುದು ಸಾವಿರಕೊಬ್ಬರು!
ಸಂಸ್ಸ್ಕೃತ ಮೂಲ:
ಪರೋಪದೇಶಕುಶಲಾಃ ದೃಶ್ಯಂತೇ ಬಹವೋಜನಾಃ
ಸ್ವಭಾವಮತಿವರ್ತಂತಃ ಸಹಸ್ರೇಷು ಚ ದುರ್ಲಭಾಃ
ಬೆಟ್ಟದಾ ಕಾಡಿನಲಿ
ನೀರು ನಿಡಿ ಇಲ್ಲದೆಲೆ
ನಿಟ್ಟುಪವಾಸ ಸತ್ತರೂ ಲೇಸು
ಹಾವಿಗೆ ಮನೆಯಾದ
ಹಾಳು ಬಾವಿಯಲಿ
ಬೀಳುವುದೂ ಒಳಿತು
ಆಳದ ನೀರಿನ ಸುಳಿಯಲಿ
ಮುಳುಗುವುದೂ ಪದುಳವು
ಮನೆತನದ ಗರುವವನು
ನಡತೆಯನು ಕಳೆವುದಕಿಂತ!
ಸಂಸ್ಸ್ಕೃತ ಮೂಲ:
ವರಂ ವಿಂಧ್ಯಾಟವ್ಯಾಂ ಅನಶ್ನತೃಷ್ಣಾರ್ತಸ್ಯ ಮರಣಂ
ವರಂ ಸರ್ಪಾಕೀರ್ಣೇ ತೃಣವಿಹಿತಕೂಪೇ ನಿಪತನಂ
ವರಂ ಗರ್ತಾವರ್ತೇ ಗಹನಜಲಮಧ್ಯೇ ವಿಲಯನಂ
ನ ಶೀಲಾದ್ವಿಭ್ರಂಶೋ ಭವತು ಕುಲಜಸ್ಯ ಶ್ರುತವತಃ
-ನೀಲಾಂಜನ
If you have not lived in a concrete jungle all your life, you would have definitely heard different bird calls. Who is not captivated by the the koel singing in it’s sweet voice, perched on the branches of a mango tree in spring time?
KoelOne well known samskrita shlOka says thus:
काकः कृष्णः पिकः कृष्णः को भेदो पिककाकयोः
वसन्तकाले सम्प्राप्ते काकः काकः पिकः पिकः
The crows is black, the koel is black.
Pray, tell me the difference ?
Come spring time, you’ll see
Who’s the crow and who’s the Koel!
ಕಾಗೆಯು ಕಪ್ಪು ಕೋಗಿಲೆ ಕಪ್ಪು
ಎಲ್ಲಿದೆ ಏನಿದೆ ವ್ಯತ್ಯಾಸ ?
ವಸಂತಕಾಲವು ಬಂದಿರೆ ತಾನು
ಆಗುವುದದು ಖಂಡಿತ ಭಾಸ !
Sometime back I had written about samasyA pooraNam in Samskrita, and in Kannada. A few days ago, I got a couplet from a visitor to my Kannada blog. I found it very interesting. I had not read or heard about this before. I am not sure if is a good samasya-pooraNam example, but it could very well be one.
The couplet has only two consonents in it - r and t. I guess it is very hard to write poetry like this in other language. At least for people like me
Here it goes the shlOka:
तारतारतरैरेतैः उत्तरोत्तरतोरुतैः ।
रतार्त तित्तिरी रौति तीरेतीरे तरौतरौ ॥
To make it comprehendable, I have to split the compound words as below:
तार तारतरैः एतैः उत्तरोत्तरतः ऋतैः ।
रतार्त तित्तिरी रौति तीरेतीरे तरौतरौ ॥
tAra tArataraiH EtaiH uttarOttarataH RutaiH |
ratArta tittirI rauti tIrE tIrE tarau tarau ||
Here is my attempted translation into Kannada:
ತಾರತಾರಕ್ಕೆ ಏರುವ ದನಿಯಲಿ
ರತಿರಾಗದಲಿ ಜೊತೆಬಯಸುವ ತಿತ್ತಿರಿ
ರೋದಿಸಿತದು ಕೆರೆಕೊಳಗಳ ತೀರ
ತೀರದಲಿ ಮರಗಿಡಗಳ ನಡುವಲಿ
I don’t have to reiterate that I have not kept the special feature of the original!
The couplet is describs the plight of a female partrige bird that is looking for a mate among the trees on the shores of lakes and ponds, calling in sounds that go to higher and higher pitch with each of it’s calls.
I have never seen a Partridge (tittirI, ತಿತ್ತಿರಿ) anytime in wild – But here you can see one here, thanks to google search The closest I have come across a partridge is in the Christmas song - A partrige in a pear tree!
When I am talking about birds, I should definitely tell about the cAtaka bird. This bird is supposed to drink only the rainwater that is falling from the clouds, and not drink any other water. So, no wonder that it calls out for rain. The cAtaka bird ( A form of cuckoo, Cuculus Melanoleucus as per some sources on the web; Some other sources equated it to the Pied Cuckoo and the bibeeha bird, neither of which is identical to Cuculus Melanoleucus) has become a well known poetic image in Samskrita.
Bhartrhari writes thus:
रे रे चातक सावधानमनसा मित्र क्षणं श्रूयताम्
अम्भोदाः बहवो हि सन्ति गगने सर्वेपि नैतादृशाः
केचित् वृष्टिभिरार्द्रयंति धरणीम् गर्जंति केचिद् वृथा
यं यं पश्यसि तस्य तस्य पुरतो मा ब्रूहि दीनं वचः
Oh, CAtaka bird, give me a patient hearing, just for a minute
There are plenty of clouds in the sky; but none so alike
Some drench the earth with copious rain; others thunder in vain
So don’t be an indigent and supplicate in front of everyone!
Although he is addressing a bird, it is very clear who he is takling to!
To end this post, here is my translation of this subhAshita in kannaDa:
ಎಲೇ ಚಾತಕ, ಸಾವಧಾನ ಮನದಿ ಕೇಳು ಒಂದೆರಡು ಕ್ಷಣ
ಬಾನಲಿಹವು ಹಲವು ಮುಗಿಲು; ಆದರೊಂದೊಂದೂ ವಿಭಿನ್ನ.
ಮಳೆಯ ಸುರಿಸಿದರೆ ಕೆಲವು, ಬರಿದೆ ಗುಡುಗುವುವು ಕೆಲವು
ಅದಕೆ ನೀ ಕಂಡ ಕಂಡಲ್ಲೆಲ್ಲ ತೋರದಿರು ದೈನ್ಯವನ್ನ
-neelanjana
Samskrita is a language where pun (shlEsha) is used very extensively, in poetry.
Look the following couplet.
करोति स्वमुखेनैव बहुधान्य्स्य खंडनम् ।
नमः पतनशीलाय मुसलाय खलाय च ॥
Here is my (attemped) translation in English and in Kannada:
I bow to you thee
Oh falling pounder, and malicious men;
For you crush others
even as you are being hit on your face!
ಸರಿ! ನಮಿಪೆನು ನಿಮ್ಮಿಬ್ಬರಿಗೆ
ದುರುಳರಿಗೆ ಮೇಣ್ ಇಡಿವೊನಕೆಗೆ!
ಮೋರೆಗೆ ಬಿದ್ದರೂ ಭಾರೀ ಪೆಟ್ಟು
ಪರರನೊಡೆಯದೆ ನೀವ್ ಬಿಡಿರಿ!
(ಮೇಣ್= ಮತ್ತು ; ಇಡಿ = ಕುಟ್ಟು)
I could not bring in the pun exactly as in the original. 
Word to word, the original means the following:
karOti svamukhEnaiva bahudhAnyasya khanDanam
From its face, it pounds and breaks different types of grain (in case of the grain pounder)
and
From his mouth, he always condemns others (in case of a wicked man)
So, the key words in this line have different meanings:
mukha: face, mouth
bahu dhAnyasya : plenty of grain
bahudhA anyasya: always other’s
khanDanam : to break, to condemn
namaH patanashIlAya musalAya khalAya cha
The poet, thus ironically concludes, “I respect you, oh falling pounder, and wicked man!”
-neelanjana
Yes. Years roll by. Who can stop the wheel of time from rolling?
Rig Veda says:
dvAdaSAram nahi taj jarAya varvAti chakram paridhyAm Rtasya (1-164-11)
A translation of this line (by Griffith):
“Formed with twelve spokes, by length of time, unweakened, rolls round the heaven this wheel of during Order”
How nicely put! In this unending revolutions made by the wheel of time, time is the only element that doesn’t age!
For us, mortals, one year concludes, and another begins. And we get one year older.
But, it is just another moment, not different from any other, for the constantly moving Wheel of Time.
I wish the visitors a very happy new year-2008!
One of my favourite a samskrita shlOkas goes like this:
आकाशात् पतितम् तोयम् यथा गच्छति सागरम् ।
सर्वदेव नमस्कारः केशवम् प्रति गच्छति ॥
ಆಕಾಶಾತ್ ಪತಿತಂ ತೋಯಂ ಯಥಾ ಗಚ್ಛತಿ ಸಾಗರಮ್ |
ಸರ್ವದೇವ ನಮಸ್ಕಾರಃ ಕೇಶವಂ ಪ್ರತಿ ಗಚ್ಛತಿ ||
AkAshAt patitam tOyam yathA gachchati sAgaram |
sarva dEva namaskArah kESavam prati gachchati ||
Just like all the water falling from the sky reaches the ocean,
Whichever God you wish to pray, it reaches him, the Almighty.
All roads lead to VaikunTha. Or if you care, All roads lead to Kailasa. Or let me be less sectarian by simply saying “All roads lead to Heaven”. Since it is December, and I want to phrase that differently. “All roads lead to Mylapore”. Yes. Mylapore. The Heaven. Musical Heaven.
You got it. If it is December, then it must be Madras. And if it is Madras, it must be Mylapore. Every December, this is the Kashi of Karnataka Sangeetha every Rasika wants to be at. If you are a classical music fan, then visit you must.
Chennai, Chennapattinam, Mylapore, Mayilai.. Hey- What’s in a name? A Rose is a Rose is a Rose – Call it by any name. Did you say a Koovam is a Koovam is a Koovam? Alright. The musical fragrance of Madras during December can even compensate the stench of a thousand Koovam rivers!
It was much more than a decade a ago, but still feels like yesterday. Running from Sabha to Sabha. Taking the Pallavan Bus service. Walking. Biking. Riding my Luna. Mylapore Fine Arts to Music Academy to Alwarpet to Adayar Ananthapadmanabhaswami Kovil to Vani Mahal in Tirumalai Pillai Road to the Tirupati Temple in Thiagaraja Nagar. Mylapore was the center of this universe. I went to every place I could afford to go. Time? It was ample, for I was still a student, and could cut classes at will 
I was fortunate enough to spend two winters in Madras. Er…- To be politically correct, I think I should call it Chennai now
I just can’t forget the day I set foot in Madras. It was on my birthday in late July. Mid- monsoon in my opinion. It was raining in all over south Karnataka. Overcast skys and puddles of water everywhere on the streets. Having lived at 3000 ft above sea level most of my life till then, I had no clue how miserable I would be at this place that was to be home for next two years. It was not for nothing my hometown was called the ‘Poor man’s Ooty’. The moment I got down on the platform at Chennai Central, I thought I was doomed to come to this burning furnace. To add insult to injury, there was the all -pervasive smell of Koovam (which I became aware of in my next hour or so!) Just to think of my next two years in this place was far from a pleasant experience.
I did recover from the initial shock. Getting busy with coursework. New friends. Listening to Chennai Vaanuli Nilaiyam. Madras radio had lot to offer. A lot of classical music. Much better than good old Akashavani BengaLooru Bhadravati mattu Maisooru. Also there was a new task of learning Tamizh. In no time, not only did I start speaking, but also started reading. Contrary to what I thought, learning reading and writing was not at all difficult. No. I didn’t use the “Learn Tamizh in 30 Days” primer. What were all those hoardings doing there on either side of Mount Road… Sorry Anna Salai? Almost every board was written Tamizh and English (except most Pallavan buses). And Kodambakkam churns out a few movies every week. I did know names of many stars - Kamala Hasan, Rajanikanth, Prabhu etc. Also, the menu at restaurants was not new at all – Idli, Masala Dosa, Rava Dosa, Chutny, Sambar..;-) Those menu cards came in handy too! To make a long story short, in no time I was into pattern matching known names and words. Knowing facts such as Tamizh does have only one non-nasal consonant per row of consonants in Kannada really helped. And few weeks later, my brother got the shock of his life and almost fell of his chair when I started reading credits from a movie we were watching in a theater in Teynampet.
In a few months I discovered Madras had a lot of quality music to offer. Till I went to Madras I hardly knew about ‘the season’. Yea, it is called the Music Season. Every year between in December-January, Madras hosts a lot of concerts in a number of venues. In fact there are so many that you have to be the ’sarvAntaryAmi’ if you want to attend all the conerts you wish to. Even the extremely sultry Madras weather turns somewhat pleasant to welcome this musical treat. If you have time, and inclination, you can attend concerts to your hearts content. This was where I became so passionate about listening to unheard compositions. Ragas that were unknown to me then. Each one, a treat.
The morning lec-dems at the Academy and Mylapore Fine Arts were a bonus. Not too much crowd there. I remember one program of Vijaya Shiva, where I sat next to a gentleman who arrived in a Luna (or it might have been TVS-50).Vijaya Shiva had sung a wonderful Shuddha Vasanta that day. A year or so later he became the rising star Sanjay Subramanian. He wasn’t so well known at that point of time I think.
I was in Madras for less than two years. And then it was the time to move on. After that I have not even had a single chance to visit the city during the season. But the memories still linger. May be one day, I will go there. Spend the whole month free of everyday worries. Just listening to the divine music. It won’t happen this year. It most likely won’t happen next year. For all I know, it may not happen for another ten years. May not be until kids grow up. May not be until I am into my retirement.
But I am willing to wait for my wish to come true. If wishes were horses, they can take you to heaven some day! To heaven. Musical Heaven. Mylapore.
-neelanjana
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