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श्रव्यं दृष्यम् # 10

o raṇga śāyi
ఓ రంగ శాయి

Back after a long time, I just noticed that I haven’t updated in a while. So here’s my first post for this year.

Kambhoji or Kambodhi, appears to be a very majestic raga, a creature like an elephant with it’s slow controlled gait, ever swaying ears and swinging trunk. An RTP or even slow paced elaborate alapana in Kambhoji would linger on for hour in my head for hours. And so would the various kritis in this raga like Dikshitar’s śrī subrahmaṇyāya namaste namaste, kāśī viśveśvara ehi; Thyagaraja’s evari māṭa or o raṇga śāyi.

Coming to the latter kriti, recently I got to taste some of that excellent Kambhoji. The artiste was Dr.Padma Sugavanam and the occasion being the sacred day of Vaikuntha Ekadashi.

The alapana itself brought back memories of my first visit to the hallowed Sri Rangam, considered to be the Lord’s abode -Vaikuntham on earth with its sprawling prākārās, numerous shrines and sub-shrines.

Coming to the kriti o raṇga śāyi, a very popular kriti in Kambhoji, is often associated with an anecdote. It is said that the saint bard visited Sri Rangam during one of the brahmotsavas and couldn’t even have a glimpse of the Lord, who was being taken in procession, amidst the crowds. It is then he is said to have sung this song feeling utterly helpless. The priests noticed that the processional deity wouldn’t budge. They understood that the Lord was waiting to grant darshan to some devotee in the vast crowds. Thyagaraja was then found and taken near close to the deity. Only after granting darshan did he procession continue. The bard was later taken with due honours to the temple.

Thyagaraja aptly uses the word Bhuloka Vaikuntham in the charana of the kriti. He goes on to sing:

భూ-లోక వైకుంఠమిదియని
నీ లోన నీవేయుప్పొంగి
శ్రీ లోలుడైయుంటే మా
చింత తీరేదెన్నడో

(bhū-loka vaikuṃṭhamidiyani
nī lona nīveyuppoṃgi
śrī loluḍaiyuṃṭe mā
ciṃta tīredennaḍo)

‘Considering this place to be vaikuNTha on the Earth, exulting all by Yourself, if You remain enamoured with lakshmI, pray tell me when our worries would be relieved?’

These are the lines which inspired me. And here’s the rough sketched which I put down as I listened to the kriti.

Listen to the excellent alapana:

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/wp7ysq9wahcwg6r/Kambhoji%20alapana.mp3
Dr.Padma rendered out a neraval at the charana with kalpana swaras enriching the aural experience. A befitting tani followed, bringing the main piece to an end.

Listen to the neraval here:

https://dl.dropbox.com/s/n4z5k2ahoy686t0/Bhuloka.mp3

With the Kambhoji still lingering in my head, this time I decided to paint this sketch. It did take some time to complete it. You can see the differences between the initial sketch and the completed painting.

The reason for the difference lies in the kriti itself. In the last line of the charana, the saint sings:

ముత్యాల సరులయురమును కాన
వచ్చితి త్యాగరాజ హృద్భూషణ

(mutyāla sarulayuramunu kāna
vacciti tyāgarāja hṛdbhūṣaṇa)

meaning: ‘ I have come to behold Your divine form and Your chest with pearl necklaces shining therein, O Lord who is the adornment of the heart of this tyAgarAja!‘

So, I depicted the bard as seated below on a downward facing lotus. (The heart as a inverted lotus is a popular simile from the Narayana suktam.)

Thyagaraja sings that he wishes to see the pearl necklaces adorned by the Lord, and interestingly pearls aren’t used for decorating deities. May be it was a norm back in those times.

Mantra Manasataramgini

It is quite possible that Tyagaraja witnessed a procession similar to this.

Manasataramgini Twitter

For the lyrics of this kriti: http://thyagaraja-vaibhavam.blogspot.in/2007/12/thyagaraja-kriti-o-ranga-saayee-raga.html

Bhairava Manasataramgini

Some interesting facts about the history of Kambhoji can be read here: http://guruguha.org/wp/?p=351