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Read Part II
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.
rAgams |
aStapadis |
mAlava (gauDa) |
1, 6, 13 |
gurjari |
2, 5, 7, 11, 15 and 18 |
vasanta |
3, 14, 20 |
rAmakari |
4, 24 |
karNATa |
8 |
dEshAkSi (dEshAkhya) |
9, 16 |
dEshi varADi |
10, 19 |
guNaka (nATA) |
12 |
bhairavi |
17 |
varADi |
21, 22 |
vibhas |
23 |
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.
tALam |
aSTapadis |
rUpaka |
1, 10, 12, 16 and 21 |
nissAra |
2 |
yati |
3, 4, 5, 7, 13, 14, 17,
18, 20, 22, 24 |
Eka |
6, 8, 9, 11, 15, 23 |
aSTa tAla
|
19 |
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:
lalitala |
va”nga la |
tApari |
shIlana |
KOmaLa |
malayasa |
Mire |
1111 |
211 |
211 |
211 |
211 |
1111 |
22 |
madhukaa |
nikaraka |
raMbhita |
kOkila |
KUjita |
ku”njaku |
tirE |
1111 |
1111 |
211 |
211 |
211 |
211 |
22 |
(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.
viharati |
haririha |
sarasava |
santE |
1111 |
1111 |
1111 |
12 |
n.rtyati |
yuvatija |
nEnasa |
mamsakhi |
121 |
1111 |
211 |
121 |
virahija |
Nasya du |
rantE |
|
1111 |
121 |
12 |
|
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 17th
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 |