Special Features |
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BHAVAYAMI RAGHURAMAM - A MUSICAL FEATURE ON THE OCCASION OF RAMA NAVAMI |
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The greatness of Rama's name is attested in the sacred Vedas, Sastras and
Puranas. If it could transform an illiterate hunter into a great Saint-poet (Valmiki),
what wonders will it not work on us? It is the 'Taraka Nama that destroys
the cycle of birth and death. Many great composers have sung the glory of this nama,
comparing it to a boat that carries us across the ocean of samsara. The numerous
compositions in praise of Rama by Tyagaraja, composed spontaneously in the ecstasy his bhakti-bhava
(devotion), are well-known. In addition, we have hundreds of songs on Rama by
Purandaradasa, Bhadrachala Ramadas, Annamacharya, Muthuswami Dikshitar, Swati Tirunal,
Ramanathapuram Srinivasa Iyengar, Mysore Vasudevachar, Papanasam Sivan and others.
Nama Sankeertana (singing in praise of the Lord) is considered the easiest way to salvation. Take for example the kriti Rama Rama Rama Rama Rama enniro by Purandaradasa. When we learn, practice, sing or teach such songs, we unknowingly utter the Rama nama hundreds of times. Ramanatha (the Lord of Rama, Siva) himself preached the greatness of this nama to his consort Parvati, as follows: Sri Raama Raama Raameti rame raame manorame |Sahasranaama tat tulyam Raamanaama Varaanane || Here, the utterance of Rama nama just once is said to be equal to reciting the entire Vishnu Sahasranama (the thousand names of Vishnu). In this fast moving world, even if we have no time to sit and do japa (meditation) or tapa (penance), just singing or uttering the word 'Rama' during the course of our daily routine is sure to give us immense moral strength and peace of mind. In the popular Balaji Pancharatnam cassette series, M S Subbulakshmi has rendered the simple but beautiful Rama-namavali, which encompasses the entire Ramayana. |
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MUTHUSWAMI DIKSHITAR'S COMPOSITIONS ON RAMA |
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Muthuswami Dikshitar, the great Vaggeyakara, has composed twenty songs on Rama. Out of these, eight form a set of Vibhakti (case ending) kritis, with no particular reference to any Kshetra. These are however, not as widely known as his Vibhakti kritis on Guruguha, Abhayambika and Tyagaraja. Perhaps the only exception is the composition in the second Vibhakti, Ramachandram Bhavayami (Vasanta, Roopaka tala). The seventh and eighth Vibhakti kritis, in ragas Jyoti and Ramakali respectively, are very rare compositions. Six of his Note swaras in Sankarabharanam are also in praise of Rama. The popular composition, Mamava Pattabhirama (Manirangu, Misra Chapu tala), is considered a Mangala kriti, meant to be sung at the end of Puja. The remaining five compositions can be identified with specific kshetra-s or pilgrimage centres. Given below is the list of these twenty compositions. You will find the lyrics for these in our Composition Bank Dikshitars Srirama Vibhakti kritis
Note Swaras in raga Sankarabharanam
Kshetra kritis on Rama
Mangala kriti
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In our next update - Sadasiva Brahmendra's kritis on Lord Rama |
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By Sarasa Rangaswamy |
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