JAYA  JAYADEVA  HARE! - Part III
(A look at the Gita Govindam)
Dr. P. P. Narayanaswami

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dashAvatara shlOkam

The shlOkam that immediately follows the very first aSTapadi is the most popular one, and it salutes the Lord on ten incarnations:

vEdAnuddharatE jagannivahatE bhUgOlamudbibhratE

daityaM dArayatE baliM chalayatE kSatrakSayaM kurvatE |

paulastyaM jayatE halaM kalayatE kAruNyamAtanvatE

mLEccAnmUrccayatE dashAk.rtik.rtE k.rSNAya tubhyam namaH ||

Meaning:  Salutations to Lord K.rSNa, the one who assumed the ten forms, lifting up the vEdas, supporting the universe, raising up the globe, tearing the demon (HiraNyakashipu) to pieces, outwitting the King Bali, destroying the kSatriyas, conquering Paulastya (RAvaNa), bearing the plough (BalarAma), extending compassion, and deranging the barbarians.

Two concluding shlOkams

yadgAndhgarvakalAsu kaushalamanudhyAnaM ca yadvaiSNavaM

yacch.r”ngAravivEkatatvamapi yatkAvyESu lIlAyitam |

tatsarvaM jayadEvapaNDitakavEH k.rSNaikatAnAtmanaH

sAnandAH parishOhayantu sudhiyaH shrIgItagOvindataH |||

Meaning: The skill in the arts of gAndharvas, concentrated meditation, vaiSNavam, playful creations in poems, which are literary works on the truth of the discrimination in erotic, --- may the wise people joyfully understand all these according to shrI gIta gOvindam of the poet and scholar JayadEva, whose soul is solely directed towards Lord k.RSNa.

shrIbhOjadEvaprabhavasya rAmAdEviisutashrIjayadEvakasya |

parAsharAdipriyavargakaNThE shrIgItagOvindakavitvamastu ||

Meaning:  May the poetic skill of shrI gItagOvindam of shrI JayadEva, son of rAmAdEvi and bhOjadEva, be in the throats of friends, parAshara, and others.

The metric structure of the shlOkams

The shlOkams employ a variety of  poetical v.rttams (metres) of the Sanskrit language , the most notable being shArdUlavikrIDitam.  Specifically, the author has used the following metres: (the numbers in brackets indicate the number of shlOkams in which the particular metre is used, among the collection of 72 shlOkams that appear in  one particular publication).

shArdUlavikrIDitam (26), hariNi (10), vasantatilakam (9), shikhariNi (5) (the metre of the popular Saundarya Lahari), anuSTubh (4),  mAlini (3), puShpitAgra (3) , vamshasta (3) , drutaviLambitam (2) , upEndravajra (2), prithvI (1), upajAti (1) , and Arya (3).

In five shlOkams, JayadEva cleverly  incorporates the v.rtta mudra (name of the metre)  for the metres shArdUlavikRIDitam, puSpitAgra, p.rthvI, shikhariNi, and upEndravajra , using the art of shlESam  (double meaning):

kandarpOpi yamAyatE viracayan shArdUlavikRIDitam (sargam 4)

ciravirahENa vilOkya puSpitAgrAm (sargam 4, last verse)

ahO vibudhayauvataM vahasi tanvI p.rthvIgatA (sargam 10)

prasUtiscUtAnaM sakhi shikhariNIyaM sukhayati (sargam 2)

upEndravajrAdapi  dAruNOsi  (sargam 4)

Some of the shOkams are sweet tongue-twisters, indulging in a variety of word play, alliterations, and lengthy construction.  Here is a typical illustration from sargam 1.

unmIlanmadhugandhalubdhamadhupavyAdhUta cUtA"kura-

krIDatkOkilakAkalIkalakaairudgIrNakarNajvarAH

nIyantE pathikaiH kathaMkathAmapi dhyAnAvadhAnakSaNa-

prAptaprAnasamAsamagamarasOllAsairasI vAsarAH ||  (sargam 1) 

The  Structure of the gItams (aSTapadis)

The style of the gItams

There are 24 gItams, spread over the 12 sargams.  Sargams 1 and 7 have four gItams each, sargam 11 has three, sargams 2, 5, and 12 have two each, and the rest have just one each.  This particular musical form is referred to by various names, gItam, aSTapadi, padAvali, etc.  Even though the phrase aSTapadi technically means “having 8 pada” (feet), some  of the gItams do not have 8 padas. Except gItams 1, 2 and 10, all have 8 padas (couplets); the first has 11, the second 9, and tenth has only five padas! Gitams 2, 5 and 22 have lines that are fairly short, whereas  gItams 9, 12, 14, 16 and 21 have very lengthy lines.

There is a constant “refrain” passage in each aSTapadi, that is to be repeated at the termination of each couplet.  The title of this article, “jaya jayadEva harE” is  the refraining segment in the second aSTapadi.

All the gItams, without exception, contain a last caraNam - called JayadEva bhaNitam --- the poet's signature like the vAggEyakAra mudra).  Examples are:

shrIjayadEvakavEridamuditamudAram (aSTapadi 1)

shrIjayadEvabhaNitamidamuditam (aSTapadi 3)

haricaraNasharaNajayadEvakavibhAratI (aStapadi 13)

bhaNati jayadEvakavirAjE ( aSTapadi 21 ) 

The lyrical beauty of the gItams

The language of the gItams is simple and elegant, conveying lofty ideas According to JayadEva, they are “madhura kOmala kAnta padAvali”. The gItams indulge in anuprAsa (alliteration) throughout. Each couplet universally features antAnuprAsa (end syllable rhyme), serving to indicate an end of the metrical cycle.

For example, in aSTapadi 3, all lines end in the "E" sound like-:

samIrE, kuTIRE, vasantE, duranTE, vilApE, kalApE, tamAlE, jAlE, vikAsE, vilASE, cUtE, pUtE

Another feature is the usage of very lengthy compound words knitted together from extremely short and simple words. In gItam 3, we see each line is just one long word; this feature is again repeated later in gItam 5 and 22. See for example:

lalitalava"ngalatAparishIlanakOmalamalayasamIrE

madhukaranikarakarambitakOkilakUjitaku~njakuTIrE ( aSTapadi 3)

maNimayamakaramanOharakuNDalamaNDitagaNdamudAram

pItavasanamanugatamunimanujasurAsuravaraparivaram  (aStapadi 5)

vadanakamalaparishIlanamilitamihirasamakuNDalashObham

smitaruciruciramullasitAdharapallavak.rtaratilObham (aStapadi 22)

The rAgas of the aSTapadis

Just as in the case of rAgams mentioned in the “rAgAdhyAya” chapter of “sa"ngIta ratnAkaram”', the rAgams set by  JayadEva for the aSTapadis and his recommendations somehow became out of usage, and perhaps lost for ever. The recommendations to follow the  rAgams and tALams, which were set by the music scholars for these twenty four aSTtapadis about three hundred years ago, are in usage now. Some ancient editions of the work mention the following rAga scheme for the 24 aSTapadis.

But hardly anyone sings the gItams in these prescribed rAgams. Nowadays, in each region, the aStapadis are sung in a variety of rAgams.  In South India, the rAgams followed are those set by (late) Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer in his  writing: "gIta gOvindam” with musical notations (TrippuNittura Sanskrit College, 1962).  The tamil edition, by the south Indian bhajana exponent Pudukkottai Gopalakrshna Bhagavatar prescribes the following rAgams sequentially for the 24 gItams:

mALava/saurASTram, bhairavi, vasanta, pantuvarALi, todI, kAMbhOji, bhUpalaM, saurASTram/kAnaDa, dEshAKSi/bilahari, Anandabhairavi, kEdAragauLa, sha”nkarAbharaNam, Ahiri/nIlAmbari, sAra”nga, sAvEri,  punnAgavarALi, Arabhi, yadukulakAmbhOji, mukhAri, kalyANi, ghaNTa, madhyamAvati, saurASTram/nAdanAmakriya, ma”ngaLakaishika.

The tALa structure/metric units in aStapadis

Some ancient texts of gIta gOvindam specify some tALa structure, but it is not currently followed.

The south Indian editions employ the standard karNATik tALams like  Adi, rUpakam, tripuTa, jhampa, cApu, and so forth. The metres  of the gItams have striking resemblance to the metres employed in medevial poetry in the vernacular language, known as “apabhramsha”.  Most of these can be identified with Jain apabhramsha poetry. The most prominent metre in gIta gOIvindam songs repeat a pattern of couples structured into lines of seven (or fewer) four-beat measures exemplified by the following:

(here “1” represents  a laghu (soft syllable) , and “2” is a guru (heavy syllable))

This four beat subdivision seem to suggest a tALa designation. Most of the gItams (4, 5, 6, 8, 11, 17, 20, 22, 23) are arranged in groups of 4 beats of the above type; Gitams 9, 12, 14, and 18 have four units of 4 beats; gItam 16 has 3 four beats followed by the pattern 21; gItam 15 has six four beats and a pattern 12; The first gItam has couplets in unequal lines of 16 ans 20 beats, identified as kIrtidhavaLa chandas in the work, Sa”ngItarAja by Kumbha... Similarly, the last gItam (24) has unequal lines identified as ma”ngaLa chandas in the same work.

The refrains usually contain one or two rhyming lines of uneven length.   The refrain lines that appear in each gItam follow the same pattern of beat combinations present in the gItam lines, but the only difference is in the length, and occasionally on beats of the end syllables.  Here is an example of the refrain lines in the third aSTapadi.

However, the pattern exhibited by the refrain lines is vastly different in gItams 9, 10, 14, 15 and 18.

abhinaya for gIta gOvindam

it is obvious that these aSTapadis are composed with the intention of employing them as dance pieces for n.rtta in the presence of the Lord. JayadEva clearly states that he sang these songs to the accompaniment of n.rtya by his wife PadmAvati  (padmAvatI caraNa cAraNa cakravartI).  The abhinaya poses for these gItams have been prescribed in due course by tradition, and preserved till today.  The abhinaya for every single word of the aSTapadis are to be  found in two old manuscripts, preserved at the Sarasvati Mahal Libraray at Ta~njore (TanjAvUr).  However, in both manuscripts, the text abruptly breaks at the end of 17^th aStapadi.  There is clear evidence that these manuscripts have come from the North.  The gestures mentioned in these works are simple, highly expressive and graceful, and follow the techniques laid down by Bharata in the “nAtya shAstra”.  These include the 26 asamyuta hasta (single handed mudra), 13 samyuta hasta (mudras using both hands), 4 hasta karaNas (winding movements),  and 13 movements of the head.  Their definitions are found in Chapters 8 to 10 of the nAtya shAstra, and are also explained in “abhinaya darpaNam” of nandikEshvara.  The material has been published in  1950 (reprinted in 1963) under the title “gIta Govinda with abhinaya”. Ta~njore Sarasvati Mahal series No. 6, Edited by K. VAsudeva sAstri.

Commentaries of gIta gOvindam

A great number of commentaries by prominent scholars are available for this important composition.  The following is a partial list of some important  commentaries of gIta gOvindam.

“Rasa ma~njari”  by  Sha”nkara mishra

“Rasikapriya “ by KuMbhakarNa, a King of Mewar

“TippaNika”  by MAnAka

“SarvA”ngasundari” by NArAyaNadAsa

“Shrutira~njani vyAkhyA” by LakSmIdhara

“RasakadaMbakallOlini” by Bhagavad dAsa

“BalabOdhini” by CaitanyadAsa

Audio recordings

In the popular five-LP set, “BalAji pa~ncaratnam” of the 1970s,  the doyenne of karNATik music, M. S. Subbulakshmi has sung the dashAvatAra  aSTapadi  as a rAgamAlika.  Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna usually renders an aSTapadi song in all his concerts, and has given audio recordings of a few of them from time to time.  Bombay Sisters have a twin cassette (Keertana label, Astapadi I and II, CA 527/528), where they sing all 24 aSTapadis.  But, as the case of most recordings, they just sing only the first couplet and the last one (JayadEva bhaNitam part).  Again, this is the norm in all south Indian concerts.  Also, Vani Jayaram has rendered a few aSTapadis in an audio cassette (V J Bani 4BMC4).  Under the title, “rAdhEshyAm: Songs of JayadEva’s gIta gOvindam”, singers, Ramesh Narayan and R. Shyama have rendered a few aSTapadis  in Hindusthani style (S&S Audio, Trivandrum).  Swami Haridass Giriji has given a 2CD set under Amrita Music label). A multimedia CD ROM/DVD ROM on gIta gOvindam, conceived by Dr, Kapila Vatsyayan, and produced by IGNAC is also available.

Reference

Miller, Barbara Stoler,” Love Songs of the Dark Lord “, (Jayadeva’s Gitagovindam), Columbia University Press, New York (1977)

CONCLUDED

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