C HAP T E R V I I ,

RAGAMALlKA
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1\IIIOllg tile various lIIusical forms in tile melodic

system of music, the Ragamalika compositions are the

longest ones and they are sung in concerts because they

are highly enjoyable. They possess a high

entertainment value and belong to the sphere of pure

music wherein the dhatu takes a predominent position.

These are highly enjoyable and lovely concert pieces

because their angas are set in the choicest of rakti

ragas one after another which gives a colourful picture
of ragas in quick succession and the effect of this

change is highly enjoyable. Towards the close of a

music concert, the Ragama1ika gets a hearty welcome.

The earlier name of Ragamalika was Ragakadambaka

and was described by writers since the time of

Mattanga. It was a popular Desi Mahaprabandha in which

the different sections and padas are set in different

ragas and talas respectively. Sarabhalila, Tribhangi,

Sri Vilasa, Sri Ranga may be mentioned as examples of

Ragakadambaka. From the fact that the above prabandhas

using a variety of raga and tala were signified as

Ragakadambakas it is clear that the definition of

Ragakadambaka included and implied the

Ragatalakadambaka also. Sarngadevas refers to

Nandyavarta and Svastika varieties of Ragakadambakas.

Of these, the former is in eight metres, eight talas

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and rngas. 'rills agnln Is an example of rngatalalllnlika.

Svastika is a variety which employs four metres and a

new raga for each pada, or half verse or metre.

Abjagarbha is a Ragatalamalika in 16 vrttas, talas and

ragas. Amredita employs 64 ragas and talas. It is

believed that Gopal Nayaka was proficient in handling

ragakadambaka of the bhramara type.

The Raga malika need not necessarilly be traced to

the particular composition known as Raga Kadambaka of

the medieval literature. Of course, specific mention
is made of Raga Kadambaka along with one other
composition Talarnava. After referring to different

Prabandhas which admit of only one variety such as

'Medinee Jathi Prabandha, Anandini Jathi Prabandha'

Venkatamakhi enumerates some Prabandhas like Haya

Leela, Gaja Leela.

Now to turn back to the question whether the Raga

Kadambaka is the parallel to the modern Raga Malika.

The description of Sriranga and Umatilaka Prabandhas as

offered by Venkatamakhi, would prove that the

prabandhas mentioned above have also stood not only for

Ragamalika but also for Ragatalamalikas. Sriranga

Prabandha has four sections each section being set to a

different Raga and a different Tala. The first half of
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~very section constitutes the Udgraha and the second

one Dhruva. At the conclusion of every Khandika)

Padaprayoga must be there. Though Abhoga is absent in

the fourth section towards the end there must be the

explicit mention of the author, the person on whom the

prabandha is sung and the specific name of the

Prabandha through the medium of Pada. This is an
Aniryuktha Prabandha. Umatilka prabandha has only
three sections, each section set to a different raga
and a different tala. At the conclusion of every
section Biruda must figure. The rest of the Lakshanas

are the same ·as those prescribed for Sriranga

Prabandha.

Commenting on this muscial form called Raga

Kadambaka, Kallinatha describes a variety of

Ragakadamba called Swastika made up of four metres and

four talas with a new raga for each foot or half verse.
The next class called 'Nandyavarta' had eight metres,

eight talas and an appropriate number of ragas. The

next class called' Brahmara' was made up of 32 metres,
32 talas and an appropriate number of ragas.
Kallinatha calls this a Maha prabandha. These 32 talas
comprised 32 independent compositions. (Prabandhas)

with all the six essential angas.

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The Ragamalika may be said to be hetrogenous. It

may be compared ,to a garland of flowers of different

colours. It is a set composition like a Varna or a

Kriti.

Ragamalikas with sections sung in different ragas

came to have the ragamudra in the subsequent stages.

This introduction of raga mudra in art musical

composition emphasises the significance of the raga

factor in melodic music. Further the idea of raga

mudra in a Ragamalika has its fundamental value also.

The raga mudra prescribes the particular raga for the

relevant section and any change in it may not be

contemplated under the circumstances. This concept of

Ragamalika has invaded other musical forms of Kalpita

sangita like Gita, Jatiswara Sabdam, Tana Varna, Pada

Varna, Kiratana and Darus. Even Pallavis are set in a

Ragamalika type. The Ragamalika Pallavi

"Sankarabharana Azhai Todi vadi Kalyani Darbarukku w was

sung and popularised in concerts by the late Ariyakudi

Rmunuja Iyyengar and it has come to stay. A chain of

Kalpana svaras in different ragas are also sung to a

pallavi. We also find that towards the close of a

concert, alapanas of minor ragas of Desya type are

rendered in a chain which is an attraction to the

listeners. It is also usual that towards the close of

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a concert, slokas in Sanskrit and Telugu and viruttams

in Tamil are sung in a Ragamalika style.

Lakshana of a Ragamalika

Pallavi, Anupallavi and multiple Charanas of

uniform length are the constituent angas of a

Ragamalika. Mostly they are set in Rupaka tala and a

few in Adi tala. They are not attempted in complicated

talas because the attention to the talas will disturb

the melodic beauty of the ragas. Each section is in a

different raga and the names of ragas are so cleverly

interwoven in the sahii:.ya so that the meaning is not

disturbed. The sahitya with the names of ragas. are

sometimes dissected to suit the structure of the talas.

The length of the sahitya is four avartas to a Pada of

Rupaka tala and one full avarta in Adi tala. But the

beauty is that each pada is replete with raga bhava.

The name of the raga is easily identifiable and

recognisable. There is an appropriate chittasvara

passage in the respective raga before the pallavi is

sung. There is a complementary svara passage rendered

in the raga of pallavi. The connecting link like

complementary passage rendered at the end of each

section helps the return to the pallavi in a pleasing

manner. At the conclusion there is a half or full

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avarta svara passage sung in the reverse order of the

ragas which richly beautifies the composition. Usually

the svara passage has a sahitya.

The sahitya of a Ragamalika composition is

devotional but some are of love theme. In some others,

the sahitya relates to the science of music.

Ragas figuring in Ragamalikas should bear certain

relationship to one another. One raga succeeds another

according to Rasa bhava to avoid abruptness. The

complementary passage helps if such abruptness is

created. Ragas which rouse similar or related rasas

figure in Ragamalikas and they are called Mitra ragas.

Closely allied ragas like Darbar and Nayaki are avoided

to come one after another. So also, such janya ragas

derived from the same mela like Varali and Vijayasri

are also avoided. Ragas like Athana and Nadanamakriya

producing opposite rasa bhavas are not to occur.

The Tarangini Daru of Narayana Thirtha lJaya Jaya

Gokula Pala 1 and the Ramanataka Daru of

Arunachalakavirayar I Enakunnirupadam1 set in a

Ragamalika do not contain the Raga mudra. The original

ragas of the above were in Kurinji and Sourashtra and

there are neither Ragamudras nor Chittasvaras. The

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minimum number of ragas is at least four and the

maximum number varies as 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 27, 48, 72

and 108.

Well known and auspicious raga$ are suitable for

the opening raga of a Ragamalika like Sankarabharana in
'Pannagadrisa', Bhairavi in 'Jaya Jaya Gokula pala',
Kalyani in 'Nitya Kalyani', Sri Raga in 'Sri

Viswanatham'.

Along with the Ragamudra,some Ragamalikas contain

the prabhanda mudra, the vaggeyakara mudra and the Raja

mudra. 'Sri Viswanatham Bhajeham' is a typical

ragamalika having all the above mudras.

Ponnayya and Vadivel of the Tanjore quartette,

Muthuswamy Dikshitar, Subbarama Dikshitar,

Seetharamayyar, Tarangampadi Panchanadayyar, Patanam

Subramanya Iyer, Swati Tirunal, Chennakrishna Dasa,

Ramaswamy Dikshitar and Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer have

composed brilliant Ragamalikas

Varieties of Ragamalika:-

Ragamalikas are of different types. There are

simple Ragamalikas and also those of a very complicated

pattern. It is hardly possible to come across the so

called purna Lakshana Ragamalika having the different
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section in different Ragas, with the Raga mudras

incorporated, with a Chittaswara, a Makutaswara a

string of Viloma chittaswara in the ragas to be sung in

the reverse order and Sahitya for all the above.

Perhaps the one such typical example is

'Pannagadrisa'opening with Sankarabharana, a similar

set-up of the famous Ragamalika 'Pannagendrashayana' of
Swati Tirunal with the text or Sahitya in Telugu.

Still if one wants to retain such a classification it

would be redesigned 'Bahvamsa Ragamalika', 'Kwachidamsa

Ragamalika' meaning to have major lakhanas and fewer

lakshanas respectively. However, Ragamalikas

constitute Musical Panorama of quick moving scenes

rather aural in perception. Muthuswami Dikshitar has

composed four Ragamalikas, all of them in the

Sanskrit language. One among Dikshitar's four

ragamalikas belongs to the class of his compositions on

Vaishnavite deities. This is his Dasavatara ragamalika

'Madhav Mam Patu' on Vishnu's ten incarnations. Out

of the ten ragas employed in this ragamalika, the first

five are the Ghana ragas Nata, Gaula, Sri, Arabhi and
Varali; the sixth is Kedaram, and the last four are

the mangala ragas Vasantha, Suruti, Saurashtram and

Madhyamavathi. Among his Saivite group of ragamalikas,

two are on Devi and the last one is on Siva. The first
 226
among these 'Simhasanastite' on Goddess Lalithamba is

also set to the same four mangala ragas used at the end

of the Dasavatara ragamalikaSaurashtram, Vasantha,

Suruti and Madhyamavati. The next ragamalika in praise
of Goddess Kamalamba of Tiruvarur beginning with the

word Purnachandrabimbavadane' is set to 6 janya ragas

of Sankarabharanam, Purnachandrika, Narayani,

Sarasvatimanohari, Suddhavasantham, Hamsadhvani and

Nagadhvani. All the three above mentioned ragamalika
are set to Rupala Tala. Only Dikshitar's Chaturdasa
Ragamalika on Siva's incarnation as Visvanatha is set
to Adi tala.

Reverting to a detailed consideration of

Dikshitar's Chaturdasaragamalika, one cannot miss the

unique symmetry pervading the entire structure of this

ragamalika. The Pallavi is set to two ragas; the

anupallavi to double this number of ragas or four

ragas; and the charanam to double the number of ragas

of the Anupallavi or eight ragas-making fourteen ragas

in all.

The two ragas in the Pallavi are Sri and Arabhi;

the four ragas in the Anupallavi in order are Gauri,

Nata, Gaula and Mohanam; and the eight ragas of the

Charanam, sequentially, are Sarna, Lalitha, Bhairavam,

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Saranga, Sankarabaranam, Kambodhi, Devakriya and

Bhupalam. It can thus be seen that out of the six

ragas in the Pallavi and Anupallavi, four are the
ghana ragas with the exception of Varali which does not

find a place even in the Charanam. In fact, the only

Prathimadhyama raga among the group of fourteen is

Saranga which is the fourth raga in the charanam. It

is a point of interest that out of the 14 ragas that go
to make up this ragamalika, as many as six viz. Sri,
Gauri, Nata, Sarna, ~hairavam and Saranga, are the same
as employed by King Shahaji in his Chaturdasaragamalika

beginning with the words ISatata Gaurivara ' •

For the same of convenience in analysing the

structure of this composition it may be construed as

made up of two parts - the first part comprising the

Pallavi and Anupallavi set to six ragas ending in

Mohanam and the second part comprising the Charanam set

to eight ragas ending in Bhupalam.

In the first part comprising the six ragas

starting from Sri and ending in Mohanam (Sri, Arabhi,

Gauri, Nata, Gaula and Mohanam), the sahitya is 2

avartas each in the first four ragas (Sri, Arabhi,

Gauri and Nata) and the last raga (Mohanam) but only 1-
1/2 avartas in the ~ase of the fifth raga (Gaula). In
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the case of the first four ragas (Sri, Arabhi, Gauri

and Nata) part of the sahitya of the second avarta is

set in madhyamakala while in the case of the last two

ragas (Gaula and Mohanam) the entire sahitya is in the

madhyamakala. The svara-sahityam, which is absent in
the first raga (Sri) has been designed in the laghu for
the second, third and fourth ragas (Arabhi, Gauri and

Nata) and it then alternates between drutam and laghu

being set in drutam for the fifth raga (Gaula) and

laghu for the sixth raga (Mohanam). Thereafter half

avart e sahitya in the same six ragas in the reverse

order (Vilomakrama) are included ending in the initial

raga Sri.

Similarly in the second part comprising the eight

ragas starting from Sarna and ending in Bhupalam (Sarna,

Lalitha, Bhairavam, Saranga, Sankarabharanam, Kambodhi,

Devakriya and Bhupalam), the sahitya is two avartas

each in the first four ragas (Sarna, Lalitha, Bhairavam

and Saranga) and in the last raga (Bhupalam) but only 1

1/2 avartas in the case of the fifth, sixth and seventh
ragas (Sankarabharanam, Kambodhi and Devakriya). In
the case of the first four ragas (Sarna, Lalitha,

Bhairavam and Saranga), part of the sahitya in the

second avarta is set in madhyamakala while in the case

of the last four ragas (Sankarabharanam, Kambodhi,

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Devakriya and Bhupalam), the entire sahitya is in

madhyamakala. The Svarasahityam has been designed in

the laghu in the first four ragas (Sarna, Lalitha,

Bhairavam and Saranga) and it then alternates between

drutam and laghu, being set in drutam for the fifth and
seventh ragas (Sankarabharanam and Devakriya) and in
laghu for the sixth and eighth ragas (Kambodhi and

Bhupalam). Thereafter half avarta sahitya in the same

ragas in the reverse order (Viloma krama) are included

ending in the first raga of this section, Sarna. From

here the vilomakrama sahitya of 'the first part (Pallavi

and anupallavi) is continued verbatim culminating in

the initial Sri Raga. This completes the full cycle or
circle from the initial Sri Raga to the final Bhupalam

(anuloma krama) and then to the initial Sri Raga. The

use of the cyclic or circular sahitya (in anuloma and

viloma krama) for this composition is thus a master

stroke of Dikshitar's genius. This also eminently

befits the concept of the Chaturdasabhuvana ragamalika

being worn as a garland by Lord Visvanatha, which, as

we shall presently see, is the gist of the initial
section set to Sri Raga, becuase a garland has to be of

circular shape.

Let us now proceed to consider the salient points

of the sahityas set to the different ragas as well as

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the aptness of these ragas to convey the particular

sentiments.

Sri Raga

Appropriately enough Dikshitar has commenced his

Chaturdasaragamalika in the auspicious Sri Raga. It

•
is worthy of note that Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer has

emulated Dikshitar by using the same as the initial

raga for his well known Melaragamalika
'Pranatharthihara Prabho Murare' in the 72 Melakartha
ragas following the nomenclature of Govindacharya,

author of Sangrahachudamani, divided in 12 chakras of

6 ragas each.

Here Visvanatha, the manifestation of Lord Siva is

described as wearing in the form of a garland the

ragamalika formed out of the 14 worlds. Though the

deity on·whom this ragamalika has been composed is the

Visvanatha of the temple at Kuzhikkarai near Tiruvarur,

internal evidence in the composition suggests that

Dikshitar had before his mind's eye the presiding deity

enshrined at Varanasi while composing this piece. This

is nothing strange in view of the fact that as is well

known he had spent a considerable part of his early

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life at Varanasi and used to visit Kasi Visvesvara

temple every day.

Arabhi Raga

Here Dikshitar describes Lord Visvanatha as the

remover of the travails of Samsara from his devotees

who have surrendered themselves absolutely to Him and

the dispeller of their misery caused by the three

distressing states of Adhyathmikam, Adi Daivikam and

Adi Bhowdikam. Arabhi being the raga best suited for
Vira rasa, Dikshitar has aptly chosen this raga for
portraying the sentiment of the removal of fear and

misery.

Gauri Raga

A very significant epithet here is 'Sri

Vishalakshi Gaurisham'. Visvanatha's consort in the

Kuzhikkarai shrine is not Visalakshi but only Annapurna
on whom Dikshitar has composed the well-known

Punnagavarali piece 'Ehi annapurne'. This is

irrefutable evidence to indicate that Dikshitar

entertained happy reminescences of his earlier stay at

Varanasi and frequent darshan of Kasi Visvanath~ while

composing this ragamalika.
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Another noteworthy term in this section of the

sahitya is 'Satchidanadamaya Gaurisam'. Gauri's

consort Siva is both with a form (rupa) and without

form (as linga). Sakthi is of the very nature of Siva,

the absolute consciousness. Satchidanada denotes the

eternal bliss resulting from the union of Sakthi and

Siva. There are six'successive levels of experience

which led to this ultimate ennobling state. These

levels of experience of bliss are called Nijananda,

Nirananda, Paramananda, Brahmananda, Mahananda and

Chidananda. The two highest powers, viz. Chit Sakthi

and Ananda Sakthi are manifest both at the Transcendant

and Empirical levels. Knowledge and action constitute

the essential nature of Satchidananda and the world is

the real manifestation of it.

The phrase 'Sakalanishkala rupa' is also very apt.

Sakala Siva is Siva in union with Sakthi and Ni~hkala

Siva is Siva in His Transcendental State.

In Sanskrit, Gauri stands for a white woman and

Dikshitar has appropriately employed this raga in a
section of this composition on Goddess Gauri's consort.

Lord Siva whose white form has been expatiated upon in

the subsequent Gauia section of the same composition.
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Gaula Raga

The term Gaula itself means white and the gist of

the sahitya in this raga is that Siva's body is of

white hue and this whiteness is heightened by His

smearing over His body sacred ash of extreme whiteness
surpassing the whiteness of even milk, Jasmine flower,

moon and camphor. It is noteworthy that all the

materials mentioned are characterised by their

whiteness. And the aptness of using Gaula raga here is

self-evident.

The names of Siva's five faces are also regarded

as representations of five different stages of Saivism

which originated in the immemorial past each in a
different Kalpa (creation). According to the Puranas,
the five names Sadyojatha etc. are indicative of the

different incarnations of Lord Siva. It is further

stated that Sadyojatha, the first of the five

incarnations, appeared in the 29 Kalpa known as sveta

(white). Following deep meditation by Brahma (the Lord
of cre tion) Lord Siva appeared before him in the form
of a small child with matted hair on his head. The
child was white in colour and the nails of his fingers
and toes as well as his palms and soles were red. As
the child appeared before (or rather conceived by
Brahma) in the form of a new born child., the name
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Sadyojatha was given to Him by Brahma himself. This

Sady~jatha form of the Lord, because of its white

colour, was also known as Svethamuni.

It is worthy of note that both the Gaula and Gauri

segaments of the sahit¥a refer to Siva's rupa aspect.

Mohana Raga

As against this the Mohana raga segment of the

sahitya describes the Linga form of Lord Siva.

In the proto-Indian religion, Siva was worshipped

both in the anthropomorphic form as well as the

symbolic form of the phallus or linga. According to

the Padmapurna, both Sival~nga worship and Siva image

worship existed at the time of the Ramayana. The

remote antiquity of the worship of Siva in his Symbolic

linga form is found recorded in the Linga and Vayu
Puranas. According to the Skanda Purana, while the

upper portion of the linga represents the Akasa, the

lower portion represents the earth. Jnana Samhitha

refers to two different forms of linga the huge
(macroscopic ) form which pervades the Universe and the
atomic (microscopic) form which resides in the heart

of the devotee. After extensive research on the ruins

 235

of the Mohonjedaro and Harappa civilizations, scholars

have arrived at the conclusion that some of these

remains are undoubtedly the Sivalinga of those days and
that most probably they were worshipped by the people
of those times. Phallus worship as an integral part of

the Saivite cult is also frequently mentioned in the

epics. That the linga in the context of Siva

invariably signified the generative organ is emphasized

by the legends in the Mahabharatha. The concept of the

linga originated out of an attempt to express the
inexpressible to make Siva perceptiable in the emblem

of His membrum virile (lingam sakshath mahesvaram).

According to another interpretation the Sivalinga is

the closest possible approximation to the cosmic

purusha with its hemispherical top consisting of

thousands of heads (sahasrasirsham), each of the size

of a point.

The epithet 'Vishnu Virinchi Rudramayam' indicates

that the linga is the embodiment of the Hindu Trinity

or Thirumurthi - the manifestation of the one God made

up of Brahma, Vishnu and Siva who symbolize creation,

preservation and dissolution to the rhythm of the

eternal cycles. The term 'Pancheekritha

Panchamahabhutha prapanchadi Mohanakaralingam' means
that the linga be~itches the Universe made up of five

I
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elements - earth, fire, wind, water and emther. The

repeated use of the syllable Pancha dentoing five is

significant in view of the fact that five is Siva's

favourite number. Not only has He five faces but His

favourite Panchakshara mantra Na-mah-si-va-ya is made
up of five letters. Further Siva's dances are also
five in number (i) Kalika (ii) Gauri (iii) Samhara

(iv) Tripura and (v) Urdhva. It is a masterstroke of

Diskhitar's genius that he has chosen for this section

of the ragamalika (which incidentally is th~ last

segment of the Anupallavi) the raga Mohanam which is a

pentatonic scale comprising only 5 svaras. As if to

maintain the symmetry he has also used two other

pentatonic ragas - Devakriya and Bhupalam - for the

last two segments of the Charan am as well.

Sarna Raga

The gist of the entire portion of the sahitya set

to Sarna raga is confined to Lord Siva being worshipped

and propitiated through the chanting of Sarna Gana. The
term 'Prakrityadi Saptarupa Samagana' refers to the
seven modes of singing Sarna Gana starting from Prakriti

viz. (i) Prakriti (ii) Aranyaka (iii) Uha (vi) Uhya

(v) Valakilay (vi_) Sauparna and (vii) Saurya. This
confirms that not only was Dikshitar an erudite scholar
 237

in the esotertic aspects of Hindu religion and

philosophy but also possesed an intimate knowledge of

the diverse aspects of Vedas as well.

The use of the epithet Sadasiva to denote the

·deity who is pleased as a result of listening to Sarna
Gana is significant. Vishnudharamottara Purana records
some o"f the five names of Siva with their
--
/
characteristics. According to this work, His eastern

face is regarded as the primary one and is known as

Mahadevamukha which contains His three eyes-sun, moon

and fire. His southern face has a fierce shape and is

called Bhairava. The western face of the Lord with a

pleasing appearace is called nandivaktra while the

northern face with motherness is known as Umavaktra.

The fifth face of the Lord is called Sadasiva or ever

benignant and is regarded as very sacred.

Bhairavam 'Raga

As noted above in the previous section, according

to the Vishnudharmottara Purana, Bhairava denotes
Siva's fierce aspect. He personifies the forces of

destruction and disintegration. He delights in

destruction for its own sake, haunting burning grounds

and places of death. He destroys the Gods themselves

and wears their skulls as his necklet. All terrors of

 238

a fierce consuming wrath constitute his normal mental

condition and on the slightest provocation it breaks

forth and overwhelms His enemies. Hence the attribute
Bhairava is given to the deity. Dikshitar has very
appropriately chosen Bhairavam raga to refer to this
aspect of Lord Siva.

The genesis of the epithet 'Kapaladharam' is to be

traced to the anecdote recorded in the Skandapuranam.

Following the churning of the ocean of milk, Lord Siva
received universal acclaim as the supreme deity

Nilakantha through devouring the deadly poison that

emanated thereform. Thereupon Brahma and Vishunu

returned to a corner of the Meru mountain where each

one of them boasted that He alone was the supreme

deity. The Vedas, however, contradicated them to Lord
Siva but Brahma and Vishnu persisted in their

arronganace. Taking the form of a dazzling Jyothi,

Siva went to the Meru mountain to confront them.

Vishnu acquiesced in Siva's supremacy, bowed to Him and

quietly went away to the ocean of milk. On the other

hand, Brahma did not give up his ego and scolded Siva
with his fifth face. Transforming himself into
Bhairava with sacred ash smeared allover the body,

with just his finger nail Siva chopped off Brahma's

fifth face. When Brahma prostrated before Siva and

begged for clemency, the latter stated that He would
 239

keep the skull as the sacred receptacle for his

bhiksha. This is the background of the epithet

Kapaladharam.

The term Puraharam refers to Siva's getting rid of

the three powerful Asuras collectively known as

Tripurasuras. There once lived a demon called

Tarakasura. He had three sons by name Taraksha,

Vidyunmalini and Kamalaksha who were together known as

Tripurasuras. They performed penance and sought from

Brahma the boon that they should not meet their death

at the hands of any living being. Brahma did not agree

to this. They then cunningly asked him for three

cities for themselves to rule with the following

conditions. These cities should not be destroyable by

any weapon or curse. After the lapse of thousand years

these three cities should meige into one big city

which could he destroyed by a 'person only with a single

arrow. Brahma agreed and Maya designed and built these

cities., The first city was made of gold, the second of

silver and the third of iron. They were capable of

moving about like planes. Taraksha took the golden

city to Devaloka and oppressed the Devas. Kamalaksha

moved about in the silver city in the sky. In the iron

city Vidyunmalini moved about on earth. The Devas

approached Brahma and appealed to him to put an end to

 240

their misery caused by the Tripurasuras. Brahma

advised them to pray to Lord Siva. The Devas did so

and Paramesvara agreed to destroy the Tripurasuras if

they made over to Him all their prowess. Visvakarma

built for Him a chariot with the earth as the body, the

Sun and the Moon as the wheels, the four Vedas as the

four horses, the sky as the flag, Sarasvathi and Ganga

as the two ambara clothes and Brahma himself as the

charioteer. Seated on this chariot and with the

Udayagiri and Meru mountains as the bow and Vishnu as

the arrow, Lord Siva killed Tripurasuras.

The term Trisuladharam has relevance to the

Darukavina anecdote dealt with in the next 'Saranga

raga' segment.

Saranga Raga

Th~ epithes chitsabhesvaram possesses great

significance. The name Chidambaram is derived through a

combination of niruktha (a type of etymological

interpretation) and Sanskritization from the Tamil name

Chitrambalam. The main temple at Chidambaram contains

the Siva idol Nataraja i.e. His dancing aspect. The

invisible akasa (either) linga is behind this idol

separated by a veil and this is the real secret of

Chidambaram' (Chidambara rahasyam). Chit is invisible

 241

and it is probably on this account that akasa or ether

linga is believed to be installed in the Chitsabha

situated in the innermost recesses of the temple. The

aksasa (or ether) linga is one of the five Panchabhutha

lingas, one for each element - the other four being the
Prithvi (earth) linga at Kanjeevaram, the Vayu (wind)
linga at Kalahasti, the Ap (water) linga at

Jambukesvaram and the Tejas (fire) linga at

Tiruvanamalai.

The phrase of Darukavana Thapodhana Kalpita

Sarangadharam refers to Lord Siva's escapades in the

Darukavana. In a forest known by name Darukavan there

lived many Rishis who were inimically disposed towards

Lord Siva. Siva wished to teach them a lesson. He

took Vishnu into confidence and they both evolved a

pl~n. Lord Siva took the form of a naked mendicant,

while Vishnu took the form of Mohini - a woman of

dazzling beauty. They both went to Darukavana. Seeing

Mohini's beauty, all the Rishis became infatuated with

her. In turn their wives became attracted towards the

dazzling brilliance of Lord Siva in the guise of a

naked beggar. Enraged at the behaviour 'of their wives

the Rishis began performing black magic (Abhichara

prayoga) against Lord Siva. In response to this black

magic there came the ferocious tiger, serpent, deer

 242

allU L.l'isuJ.a. Sivu Lure uJ.: tlle tiger's skin and used i t

as garment while he wore the other objects including

the deer and trisula as ornaments. Thius is the

significance of the term 'Sarangadharam' - wearer of

the deer.

Devakriya Raga

The phrase 'Srishtisthithi vilayathirobhananu

graha karnakriya kelanam' is noteworthy. Siva's
playful activity or dance represents the panchakriyas

or His five activities: (i) srishti (creation): (ii)

sthithi (preservation): (iii) samhara (destruction),

(iv) tirobhava (veiling or illusion): and (v) anugraha

(grace) . Creation arises from the drum; protection
proceeds from the hand of hope; from fire proceeds
destruction: the foot held aloft gives release: and the

fourth hand pointing to the lifted foot, the refuge of

the, soul. This dance of Siva is meant to keep up the

life of the cosmos and help seekers of liberation in

achieving it. It is significant that in referring to
Siva's five activities, Dikshitar has aptly chosen
Devakriya, an Oudava raga.

Bhupala Raga

The gist of this segment of sahitya is that the

deity is the protector of the king (landlord) by name

Vaidyalingam residing at a place to the north west of

 243
Tiruvarur (Kuzhikkarai). The use of Bhupala raga to

refer to the protection of the king by the deity is

highly apt because the term Bhupala itself means king.

The term "Gartha theera', which also stands for the

banks of the Ganges, has been ingeniously introduced by

Dikshitar. This confirms that though it is a fact that

Dikshitar has composed this ragamalika on the presiding

deity of Kuzhikkarai, he had ever before his mind's eye

visions of Kasi Visvanatha of the shrine on the banks

of the Ganges at Varanasi.

Thus far the salient features of the anuloma krama

sahitya have been dealt with. The viloma krama sahitya

too contains some significant aspects.

Kambodhi Raga

The term 'anala ravi sasi nayanam' indicates that

Siva is three-eyed, His eyes being fire, sun and moon.

In the discussion on the Sarna raga segment of the

sahitya, while describing the characteristics of Siva's

five faces according to the Vishnudharmottara Purana,

it has already been mentioned that his eastern face or

Mahadevamukha has fire, sun and moon as His three eyes.

Saranga Raga

Through the phrase Paramahamsanandanartanam,

Dikshitar refers to the Ajapa dance of Lord Tyagaraja

 244

of Tiruvarur. Here the term Hamsa has great

significance. Hamsa (gander) is an important symbol as

it strikingly exhibits in its mode of life the two-fold

nature of all beings. It swims in water but is not

bound to it. It is at home both in the water realm

below as much as in air. It is the wanderer between

the upper celestial and the lower earthy spheres.

The microcosmic gander (Hamsa), the divine self in

the body of the Universe, manifests itself through a
song. The melody of inhaling and exhaling, which the

Indian Yogis hear though Pranayama (control of breath)

is regarded as the manifestation of the 'inner gander'.

The inhalation is to make the sound 'ham' and

exhaltion, 'sa'. Thus by constantly humming its. own
name Ham-sa, Ham-sa, the inner presence reveals itself
to the Yogi initiate. The song of the inner gander has
a final secret to disclose while singing 'Ham-sa'.
'Ham-sa', for it sings at the same· time 'Sa-ham'
meaning 'He is 'I'. Here I stands for the individual.

I am nothing but He, the Atman - Highest being of

unlimited consciousness and existence. The meaning is,

I am He who is divine'. In Hindu mythology the word

gander is associated with Brahma as his vahana. The
gander is the aniwal mask of the creative principle
 245

which is embodied in Brahma. Hamsa, which is the

symbol of the fully evolved spirit, is really a

contraction of the formula aham sah - 'I am He' a

restatement of the Upanishadic precept 'Aham Brahmasmi'

and 'Tatvamasi'.

Gaula Raga

The phrase 'vishayapanchaka rahitam' is

significant. Vishayapanchaka means the sensations
provided by the five sense organs - (i) taste (tongue);
, (ii) smell (nose) ; (iii) 'touch (skin) ; (iv) sight

(eye); and (v) sound (ear). Here Dikshitar describes

Siva as beyond or bereft of these sensations.

Apart from innumerable references to various

manifestations of Lord Siva from the angle of Hindu

mythology and religious tenets, the sahitya of this

ragamalika is replete with different kinds of prasa and
prasa yati.

It also abounds in mudras of diverse kinds. The

ragamudra has been introduced for all the 14 ragas. In

the first section set to Sri raga, Prabandha mudra

occurs in the phrase Chaturdasa Bhuvana Rupa

ragamalika. One finds Devata mudra in the phrase

Gourisam (Gauri); Paryaya mudra in the phrase

Vaidyalinga Bhupala palanam (Bhupalam).

 246

Almost every section of the sahitya is full of

svarakshara beauties. Examples are given below.

I. Suddha Swarakshara

1. Gauri 1. Sakala Nishkala

2. Sacchidananda
2. Mohanam 3. Mohana Karalingam

4. Panchikruta

3. Sarna 5. Sadasivam Samagana

4. Bhairavam 6 Chidakasa Bhairavam

5. Sankarabha- 7. Sadasrayami

bharanam

6. Kambhodi 8. Manikyamaya

9. Dharmarthadi

7. Devakriya 10. Vadanya devakriya

8. Bhupalam 11. Vaidyalinga Bhupala

12. Sripuranirruti bhaga gartha

9. Saranga 13. Paramahamsa

10. Lalitha 14. Parama manolayajayam

II Suchita Swarakshara

1. Sri Raga 1. Sri Viswanatham

2. Arabhi 2. Sritajana Samsara

3. Lalitha . 3. Sanmarttam lalitha

 247

From the foregoing elucidation it is clear that

Dikshitar's Chaturdasa ragamalika contains diverse

facets of extraordinary ingenuity and workmanship. It

bears eloquent testimony not only to his profound

insight into various aspects or our Vedas, Puranas and

epics but also his capabilities as an inspired music

composer. Besides being Dikshitar's longest

composition it is also a highly ennobling piece and

ranks as one of the most beautiful and enlightened
compositions in the entire gamut of Carnatic music.

72 Mela Ragamalika of Maha Vaidyanath Iyer

The 72 mela Ragamalika is one of the longest among

musical composition. It takes two hours to performs

this piece. It is also believed that Maha Vaidyanatha

Iyer took eight days to compose this piece.

Originally there was only the Mathu or Sahitya for

this ragamalika in praise of Mortal by one poet Lavani

Venkata Rao in the court of Sakharam Saheb. The sahitya

was replaced by Maha Vaidyanath Iyer in Sanskrit in the

praise of Lord 'Pranatartihara' of Tiruvaiyar.

This ragamalika consists of regular section of

Pallavi, Anupallavi, Charana. The pallavi and

anupallavi are in Sriraga and the charana in the 72
melas, adopting the Kanakangi - Ratnangi nomenclature.
 248

l\t the conclusion of tile anupnllnvl there is the

bristling solkettuswara, after singing which the

pallavi is taken up and sung and the first part

concluded. In the 'Harana' each mela rather vag a has
two normal type avartas of sahitya followed by the

avarta of chittaswara in the said raga, after singing

which that section is conluded. Then a half avarta

swara is there is the self-same Raga, while the second

half avarta is in the succeeding raga. After singing

every two chakras the pallavi raga is again taken and

sung, perhaps to counteract the vivadi effect by the

most auspicious Sriraga.

Sri Vaidyanatha Iyer has shown his shrewd sense of

practical intelligence in presenting the vivadi

combination. The two swaras which are vivadis to one

another have been set apart from one another. Seldom

do they occur contiguously or consecutively except very

rarely which rather cannot be avoided. This absolutely

scrupulous observance has thuss made this Ragamalika a

practically sound entity. It is in every sense a

lakshna prabandha.

Sri Ramana Padmanayana: Shodashasa Ragamalika of

Tiruvattiyur Tyagayyar-Adi.

The 16 ragas used in this Ragamalika are Nata,

-------.
Gaula, Arabhi, Varali, Sri, Ritigaula, Narayanagaula,
 249

Sriranjani, Kedara, Begada, Athana, Vasanta,

Anandabhairavi, Sahana, Yadukulakambhoji, Suruti.

The composition is not demarkated into different

sections like pallavi, anupallavl and charana. Each

raga is of the length of two avartas. There is no

other noteworthy feature in this Ragamalika.

Ragatalamalika - Desi suladi of Annamacharya

This is one Suladi in Telugu. It is designated as

I?esi Suladi. The word Suda is itself Desya meaning

geeta. Though in Kannada it is suluhadi, suggesting an

easy path for not only attaining Moksha but also the

required proficiency in music.

This is the only Suladi of Annamacharya brought to

light so far. It is set in the Suladi Saptha talas in

order. Suladi are generally Talamalikas. But this is

a ragatalamalika. The ragas employed are:

1. Malavigoula Dhruvatala

2. Ramakriya Mathyatala

3. Varali Rupaka

4. Bhouli Jampa

5. Padi Triput i or Trivida

6. Nata Ata

7. Sriraga Ekatali
 250

The ragas and talas have specifically been

mentioned in the copper plates. The original music has

irrecoverably been lost. A humble attempt has been

made to se"t this desi suladi to music by the scholars.

Sivamohana Sakthi - Adi-Ramaswami Dikshitar

The ragas figuring in this ragamalika are:

Mohanam, Bhairavi, Sankarabharanam, Sarna, Gowri,

Athana, Kannada, Maruva, Bilavu, Omkari, Husseni, Padi,

Sahana, Saranga, Kedara, Nayaki, Ghanta, Yamuna,
Malahari, Vasantha, Karnata, Sourashtra, Todi, Arabhi,

Lalita, Varali, Ahiri, Punnagavarali, Balahamsa,

Madyamavati, Bhairavi, Anandabhairavi, Puri, Manirangu,

Eesamanohare, Brindavansaranga, Ritigowla,

Purnachandrika, Devakriya, Natanarayani, Megharangi,

Hamveer (42) in all.

It is worthy of note to find the Raga Hameer

Kalyani being also known as Hamveera. The

incorporation of the raga names is Hamveera. The

incorporation of ~he raga names is something marvellous

finding natural blend with the sahitya.

Manasa Veriterulu of Ramaswami Dikshitar in Rupakam has

the ragas Saveri, Ahiri, Sankarabharanam, Mukhari,

Husseni, Bilahari, Begada, Kedara, Kalyani, Todi,

Gowri, Nata, Mohana, Sahana (14) and has Chittaswara in

each raga.
 251
Garavamu - Subbarama Dikshitar - Rupakam - (Navaratna

malika)

Garavamu is a fine piece of Ragamalika in 9 ragas,

viz Kalyani, Saveri, Todi, Atana, Nilambari, Manirangu,

Kambodi, Mukhari and Mohanam. At the end of every

section there "is a chittaswara for four avartas of

swara with sahitya. After singing the terminal raga a

string of viloma sahityas in the ragas are to be sung

in ~he reverse order and the pallavi is ~ung and the

composition concluded. Another noteworthy feature of

this ragamalika consists of the fact that after singing

the chittaswara in the different ragas the particular

portion of the concerned raga having the raga mudra is

taken and sung and this section is concluded.

Ragatalama1ika

This was composed by Ramaswami Dikshitar in honour

of Venkatakrishna Mudaliar alias Chinnaiah Mudaliar.

It is worthy of note to bear in mind that this

monumental composition has been set in 62 ragas

(Prasidha Rakthi ragas and rare Ragas) inclusive of

Prathama Ghana Panchaka. Besides the Suladi Sapta

Talas, some 55 talas of the classical 108 talas have

been employed.
 252
Ee Kanakambari Subb~rama Dikshitar Adi tala

(Raganaga Ragamalika)

This ragamalika indexes the later Kanakambari

nomenclature for the 72 melas. Subbarama Dikshitar has

effected a few changes in the nomenclature for some
melas. Eg.

1. Dhwani Bhinnashadjam for Dhunibhinnashadja

2. Vayu Vasanthabhairavi for Vati Vasanthabhairavi

3. Tapovagavahini for Toya Vegavahini

4. Matikalyani for Santa Kalyani

It consists of Pallavi, anupallavi and many

charanas. The first 6 raganga ragas are employed in

the pallavi and anupallavi and the rest in charana. In

the section every raga is followed by Chittaswara but

with no sahitya, after singing which a part of the

sahitya of the concerned raga is taken and sung and the

section completed. At the end of every chakra the

section in the first raga is reverted to.

Maharaja Swati Tirunal is the author of several

popular Ragamalikas which include Swarajati, Varna,

Kirtana, Pada and Sloka.

Pancharaga swarajati

The Swarajati beginning with the word

Sarasabhavadhruta in Kalyani and well known as the

 253
Pancharaga swarajati as it has five ragas Kalyani,
Begada, Athana, Suruti and Todi, is ,a product of Sri

Swati Tirunal. This is composed in Trisra-Triputa tala

and the first section has twelve 'avartas' of which the

first four contains the 'pallavi' and the rest have

eight avarthas each. Originally no sahitya was

avialable for this composition but subsequently the

sahitya has been made available rather it may be later
interpolation also. Without sahitya the composition

would have remained Jatiswaram. Though the Mudra

sarasijanabha is found in the first section no Raga

Mudra is found any where. The last section is todi

commences with the words 'Swati-nripakrita' which is

the birth star of the royal composer.

The present vers~on of the sahitya of the above

swarajati was got from the late Sri R. Vaidyanadayyar

of Krishnan Koil in South Travcore who had learnt it

from one Mahadeva Bhagavatar who in his turn is

reported to have learnt it from the famous musician

Coimbatore Raghava Ayyar. This Raghava Ayyar really

belonged to Munchirai in South Travancore and was the

disciple of Parameswara Bhagavatar who adorned Swati

Tirunal's court.

This sahitya is in Sanskrit and it is in praise of

Lord Sri Padmanabha. It fits in with the dhatu

 254

beautifully well and bristles with swara nkstlara

embellishment. Its ideas and style very much resemble

Swati Tirunal's own and but for the expressed statement

of the author at the close of the text that with his

head bent down in reverence, he is giving a sahitya to

the dhatu conceived by Swati Tirunal Maharaja, one

would easily mistake it to be His Highness himself.

The author who prefers to remain unknown could be

Raghava . Ayyar himself or his guru Parameswara

Bhagavatar who is the author of some musical

compositions in Sanskrit.

Two slightly variant versions of this Swarajati

are also seen. The one referred to alone has some

noteworthy features in the absence of Panchama in Todi

and Gandhara in Suruti.

Varna Sumasayaka

No varna of the type of valachi of Patnam

Subramanya Ayyar has been composed by Swati Tirunal.

But it is noteworthy that the beautiful varna

Sumasayaka in Kapi raga, Rupaka tala, has in its last

ettugada swara, a Ragamalika with two avartas each in

Kalyani, Khamas, Vasanta and Mohanam, the latter part

of the last avarta being in Kapi. There is a very

similar varna in the same Rupaka in Bhairavi beginning

with Neerajakshudu in praise of Kulasekhara Bhoopala

 255

i.e., Swati Tirunal by Vadivelu. In its last ettugada

swaram we find a ragamalika passage in Kalyani,

Kambhoji, Kapi and Mohana. This varna has sahitya for
the chittaswara but not for ettugada swara. In the

Ragamalika after Mohana there is a part of an avarta in

Bhairavi. Here one is naturally reminded of a

swarajati of Ponnaiah Pillai in Chakravaka raga, Adi

tala beginning with the words Sadaya yila talajalanura.
A similar ragamalika swara passage concludes the song.

Dasavatara Ragamalika

In the ragamalika proper, we have the Kirtana

'Kamalajasya' and the pada 'Pannagendra sayana' by

Swati Tirunal. The first is called Dasavatara

Ragamalika, since it deals with the ten avataras of

Vishnu. It has, therefore, 10 sections.and they are in

the Ragas Mohanam, Bilahari, Dhanyasi, Saranga,

Madhyamavati, Athana, Natakuranji, Durbar,

Anandabhairavi and Saurashtra. It is worthy of note

that the song begins with Mohana in keeping with the

quiet heroism of the Mathsyavatara and ends in

Saurashtra in mangala raga of conclusion. The other

ragas are also sweetly chosen. The choice of Saranga

for the terrific Narasimha is quite in keeping with the

tradition in Kathakali music in which the Raga is used

for depicting veera and roudra rasa. The tala is Adi

 256

and each section has four avartas. Two for sahitya and

two for swara. The second avarta of swara is in

Madhyamakala and the latter half is in Mohana and runs

through different sections. The. last section has four
avartas more since it has swara, half avata each in
Madhyamakala. All the other ragas are also in the
reverse order. The absence of Panchama in Natakuranji

is particularly noteworthy.

The Ragamalika 'Pannagendra sayana' is popular

than 'Kamalajasyahrudaya'. Based on its contents it

must be classed as representing the diverse feeling

during the e~ght yamas of the night in the ragas which

are most suitable for the particular feeling. Thus it

starts with Sankarabhranam, the raga generally sung at

day break 'and in Bhoopala which is sung at early

morning hours. Between these two Ragas we have

Kambhoji, Neelambari, Bhairavi, Todi, Suruti and

Nadanamakriya. It is composed in 'the Rupaka tala and

each section has sixteen avartas, eight for sahitya and

eight for swara of which the last four are in the

Madhyamakala. The last two avartas, the first eight of

which are for swara in Bhoopala in the Chouka kala

eight are for all the ragas in the composition in the

reverse order, that is from Bhoopala to sankarabharanam

at one avarta for e~ch raga and in the Madhyamakala,

and the last two the contents sankarabharanam swara.
 257

By the appropriateness of the ragas and the excellence

of the bhavas, this raamalika stands out not only as

one of the best of Swati Tirunal's compositions but as

one of the best in

carnatic music itself.

Saudathi Mohanangi is a ragamalika set in 15 ragas

and is also known as Pakshraga malika. A significant

feature is that it contains the prabandha mudra and

also a viloma krama chittaswara and a svarasahitya.

Aparupa Chatustaya Ragamalika is an excellent

composition set in four ragas, pratapachintamani,

Abogi, Vijayasri and Purnachandrika.

Saanamdam is a ragamalika by Swati Tirunal set in

four aspicious ragas namely Kamala manohari,

Hamsadwani, Revagupti and Sudhatarangini.

Many compositions composed originally in a single

raga have been converted into rajamalika later on.

Bhavayami Raghuramam is a Ramayana pada composed

by swati Tirnual in Saveri raga dealing with the story

of Ramayana. It has been converted into a Ragamalika

starting with Saveri. The Pallavi, Anupallavi and

.multiple Charanas are set in different ragas. Each

stanza in concluded with a brief chittaswaram in chowka

 258

and madyama kala respectively and finishes with a

. .
makuta in Saveri raga leading to the pallavi.

The famous pada 'Enakkum iru padam' was originally

composed by Arunachala Kavi in Sourashtra but it is now

presented as a ragamalika in rakti raga.