December 2021

DECEMBER 2021 | Vol. 2 | Issue 4

CULTURAL VIBES OF INDIA

STORYTELLERS OF MURIA TRIBE Adivasi Melodies from Bastar

ISSUE SPOTLIGHT MRS. SUDHA MURTY In conversation with a beloved author & social activist

LORES OF SARUS A bird that enthralled India.

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Discover your Indian'ness' through the silence that reading offers.

A question of Culture What is this thing we call our Culture?

From The

Editor's Desk

Is it a doctrine written anywhere? No. Is it a universally understood set of behaviours? No. Is it something unchanging around or within us? No. Yet, each of us seems to have a very clear notion of what is and what is not our culture. Depending on whom you ask, our culture's definition may fall anywhere between the extremes of rigid beliefs underpinned by faith or religion to a laissez-faire, newest fashion trend on the block.

Time and tide bring up important questions that each of us may have in our heart of hearts. Is our culture static? Or is it evolving? Is it deteriorating? What has been the influence the world has had on our culture? How should we preserve it? What should we protect and take forward?

Tarang would love to hear your thoughts on this - of course, in a civil and measured way. After all, we are the Argumentative Indian, not the Aggressive Indian. What does culture mean to you? Drop us your response here, and we will share select reactions in our next edition.

Whatever our understanding or misconceptions, there is an undeniable beauty in our culture that is worth unravelling. And this edition of Tarang presents shades of its colours for you to explore further. Read an in-depth interview with Mrs. Sudha Murty, a Sikh Boy's love for langar, the significance of Sarus birds, our ancient time-keeping methods and their intricacies, an engineer's perspective on Natya Shastra, Sanskrit's potential for liberal education, and much more. Definitions aside, maybe what makes our culture great is its openness to evolve into something more beautiful?

Here's what you said...

In our last edition, our editorial team asked for your opinion to this question:

As a culture that proclaims "do your duty and don't worry about the fruits," should artists not expect material success? Or is the new India too busy for them?

Have an opinion? You can share it here and we will do our best to feature it in our next edition.

Indian arts are not just for enjoyment but are a means of mediation. Listening to classical Indian music has the same impact as meditating. Those who meditate seriously don't bother about material success. Similarly serious pursuants of Classical Indian arts should not ask this question on material success. If you want material success pursue light music and film music. Classical music is food of the soul and hence cannot and should not be gauged by material success. What matters to real students of classical music is are they able to take the listeners to highest meditative state or not. Once you realize this, it brings in a different perspective - Anonymous

In this edition...

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SAVOURING THE LANGAR A Sikh Boy's love for langar and how he would sneak it out of the Gurudwara.

NĀṬYA ŚHĀSTRA: AN ENGINEER'S PERSPECTIVE What makes a performance memorable and successful?

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THE SINGING STORYTELLERS OF MURIA TRIBE Endangered melodies of Adivasi people who call Bastar home.

Issue MRS. SUDHA MURTY A beloved author, social worker and chairperson of Infosys Foundation, exemplifying the inexplicable beauty of India through her work and intent.

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SANSKRIT AND LIBERAL EDUCATION Tracing the glory days of Sanskrit and its ability to foster liberal education.

THE BLISS OF BANSURI An ode to the bamboo pipe that has captivated many a mind and soul

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TIME KEEPING IN ANCIENT INDIA A rich history of the land where man entwined with the interplay of sun and moon.

LORES OF SARUS

THE ODYSSEY OF INDIAN MUSIC- III

Overview of 2,000 years of Indian Music third and final article in the series.

A bird that enthralled India, leaving its mark even in Valmiki Ramayana.

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Contributors Abhinav Seetharaman Harvard Kennedy School '23.

Global citizen; lifelong language and policy enthusiast.

Dr. TLN Swamy

instagram.com/abhinavseetharaman

drtlnswamy@gmail.com

Goda Devi Addanki

Ishan Singhal Ph.D Student in Cognitive Science. Football enthusiast.

Amateur philosopher.

A dancer and dreamer, rasika at heart and engineer by profession.

Doctor by profession.

Flutist by passion with a zeal for penning and painting.

godaaddanki@gmail.com

ishansinghal@hotmail.com

Ramya Mudumba Ph.D Student in Cognitive Science. Carnatic music student. Trekker. Poet.

Satyameet Singh Amateur Carnatic Violinist. Loves responsible capitalism, good lyrics and cricket.

MBA in Sustainability.

http://cloudsofthedusk. wordpress.com

instagram.com/ bringbackinnocence/

Varun Suchday A travel writer keen to document indigenous cultures, ethnic minorities, off-the-map places, nomadic tribes, refugees and endemic wildlife.

Venu Dorairaj Coffee, Cricket and Carnatic for the good life. #OffTheGrid

instagram.com/thirdworl dstoryteller/

Check page 19 to see how you can contribute to our next edition.

Growing up as a Sikh boy in Delhi, my mother would lure me into going to the Gurdwara on weekdays for the ghee-laden Kada Prashad (wheat halwa) and on Sundays and special days for the all you can eat buffet reverentially and rightly known as the langar. My father would coax and cajole my mother to bring him some daal (lentils) and sabzi (cooked vegetables) from the langar as he did not want to leave the house.

My mother would do anything she could to convince my dad that he should come, how it would be embarrassing for her to ask for a 'take out' from the langar and how it defeats the whole point of a langar which is to bring the community together to share a meal made with devotion. My father, a smooth and big talker, would almost always find a new way to convince her that he could not leave home and could really do with a well-made meal.

I remember many such ten-minute interactions, which I would see amusingly until I left with my mother for our locality's Gurdwara a 15-minute walk to the land of lipsmacking food.

Little would I know that en route my mom would be plotting a way to not cut a sorry face in front of her social circle. Her smart mind would have me, a poor innocent hungry child of 10-11 years, be the face of mission roti sabzi with raita (yogurt) as optional.

Savouring the langar By: Satyameet Singh

After reaching the Gurudwara, we would pray by bowing in front of the Sikh holy book (Guru Granth Sahib) and then quickly move to the kitchen where the scent of Daal, Aloo Gobhi (potato and cauliflower dish) and Phulke (roti) would hit home like nothing else did. I wonder what was is it about the communal kitchen that brought such joy - was it the sewa (an act of service) or the preparation of food in large quantities in big vessels to feed hundreds or the excitement of getting to have the implausible yet very true free lunch in the world.

My job in that kitchen was two-fold, first was to move knives, potatoes and onions, from one aunty to another aunty (this was the mid 90's, and I don't remember many men in the kitchen) and second was to observe the motions of the kitchen where prepared food would be put in steel buckets, all ready to be taken out and served into the plates of hungry humans whom one could hear inhabiting the Gurudwara halls.

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Gurudwara's Granthi Ji (caretaker) would walk into the kitchen, taking stock of the situation and nudging the half-interested volunteers to either step on it or to step out and enjoy the meal. While some volunteers would take offence, others would work their hands faster.

The unfazed pillar volunteers and cooks would look at each other, smile and keep flipping the phulke and stirring the daal.

In the midst of this, my mother would often be torn. She wanted to stay in the kitchen, belt out the food and chat with her friends, but she was also on the clock, as she had to get home and help her kids get ready for school on Monday.

I remember days when she would forget the worries in the world, take her sweet time in the kitchen and be the 'star' volunteer and on other days, rush out to find a spot in the hall, where she would sit on the ground with everyone else to receive the meal.

When she would leave the kitchen, her plan would kick into high gear. She would ask me to wash my hands and then assign me a steel bucket filled with daal or sabzi.

As the designated pro bono server, I would start walking between the two rows of seated humans and, facing one row, ask everyone devotedly, 'Daal, Waheguru Ji,' 'Daal, Waheguru Ji.'

It was such a strange but rather enchanting and compelling call. Servers would be saying 'Parshada (Roti), Waheguru Ji,' 'Daal, Waheguru Ji,' 'Kheer, Waheguru Ji' and walk across the halls. Stomachs would start to fill in and hungry eyes would begin to turn into satisfied eyes and sometimes sleepy ones.

No one would be turned away, and no one had to pay - no questions asked, ever. You are a Watchman, please come take a seat and eat, you are a Beggar, please come take a seat and eat, you are a Hindu, please come take a seat and eat, you are a Muslim, please come take a seat and eat, you have the biggest Kothi (bungalow) in the locality, please come take that floor seat and eat. No questions asked, no answers given.

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While everyone would get a warm soulful meal served, I would never forget that my father was looking forward (eagerly) to having this meal too. My mother, a regular at the Gurudwara, knew the Granthi Ji and other regulars. So, she knew that she had to keep her goodwill high to pull this stunt off where the langar could be taken home.

It is for this reason that I, a 10-11-year-old child, would be handed the food bucket to do sewa with devotion and implicitly be permitted by strict gazing eyes, to put that Daal which I served people in plates, to now be put into a plastic bag that my mother carried. In fact, in her purse, she often had three clean plastic bags for the Gurudwara.

So when I would reach her, she would request for the Daal to be put on her plate and then in that plastic bag. I still remember the butterflies in my stomach when she asked me to 'add a little more.' Seeing this, many would frown and others would straight up ask her 'why.'

My mother would come up with excuses on how someone at home was unwell or how an out-of-town guest was coming home that evening, and they would really like to have this food. Other times, she would share the truth about her husband's request. Almost always, people would understand and then nod, giving their approval, and this would be my sign to put the daal in the bag. Soon, the other bags that my mother carried would also be filled with sabzi and parshada (roti).

My butterflies would finally settle, and as I would continue to walk the hall saying 'Daal, Waheguru Ji,' a smile would soon emerge because I knew that besides sourcing a meal for my father, the kitchen was around the corner. It was now my turn to sit down and have someone else serve me food.

Three Pillars of Sikhism Founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak gave these pillars for sikhs to abide by: 1.Vand Chhako: share what you have with others and consume it together - be it wealth, riches or food.

2. Naam Japo: remember and meditate on the name/s of God to dissolve one's ego into the ultimate reality of oneness with god.

3. Kirat Karo: earn an honest and dedicated living by exercising one's God-given skills to benefit and improve the individual, their family, and society at large.

The smile would grow bigger on Sundays when I knew that the kitchen was dishing out kheer. I wonder what my dad's favourite dish was...

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Nāṭya Śhāstra: A 21st CENTURY ENGINEER'S PERSPECTIVE

By Goda Devi Addanki

NATYA SHASTRA Written in the 2nd century BC, Natya Shastra is the oldest written text on dramaturgy written in the world. Yet, the concepts discussed in it are relevant even today! Dramatics was the primary art form that ensembled acting, music, dance & poetry. "Kavyeshu naatakam ramyam". It is considered the best form of literature. It was only later that dance & music have evolved as independent art forms performed separately.

Consider movies. They have all the aspects of dramas performed centuries ago. When we watch a movie, what elements influence our experience? It's usually the culmination of many factors like the story, direction, acting, music, dance, etc. Natyasastra essentially dealt with this-how does an extensive collection of these elements bring about the highest experience of Rasa - the aesthetic, emotional state of the audience.

This humongous text with 6,000 slokas, contrary to being boring, is soaked with thought-provoking and poetic concepts that

The Indian Theatrical Group Bombay in the 1870s.

Source: Old Indian Photos have beautiful relevance in our day-to-day life! Concepts that we couldn't imagine being in a dance and drama book, such as philosophy, spirituality, psychology, and culture, are seen in many layers. No wonder Natya Shastra is called the "Panchama Veda."

One of the most interesting topics covered in Natya Shastra is its discussion on Rasa.

"The etymology of the word Rasa has many interesting meanings in our Vedas - juice, essence, taste, and flavor."

In Natya Shastra, Rasa means the essence of the performance experienced by the audience. There are a total of nine Rasas, famously known as the Navarasas.

PARALLELS WITH MODERN COMMUNICATION THEORY

Navarasa. Original image here

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When we watch a movie, it can evoke various responses in us. It could be entertaining in general, but some movies bring out deeper emotions in us; they move us, they make us think. The outcome could vary based on many factors.

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But is there a way to tell what makes a performance successful, even ideal? Natya Shastra discusses it in detail through Sadharinikarana. It is a model of communication which describes the sequential steps in the performance to bring out 'Rasaswada.'

state when both of them are in perfect sync.

The audience completely understands everything the dancer is communicating; they appreciate the art to the fullest resulting in Rasaswada!

While reading about it, I found unbelievable correlations with modern communication theory in Engineering. For the curious engineers out there, I added communication terminology associated with the dance terminology: Information to be transferred - Sandeṣa Channel - Sarani Sender (Dancer) - Sahrudaya Presaja Receiver (Audience) - saḥṛdaya prabhākar Encoding of the message - Abhivyanjana Feedback mechanism - Pratikriya The stable state of the feedback system nididhyāsana Decoding of the received message rasāswāda Dosha - noise

The chain of events for an ideal performance is described in this way. Dancer (sender) encodes his/her emotions and ideas through gestures and expressions. The audience receives the information through the channel of their sense organs. They respond to the dancer through their expressions of understanding and interest. This is duplex communication between the dancer and the audience. As the audience's understanding of the dance increases, there comes a stable

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Original image here This is probably one of the reasons why we appreciate live performances! The personal connection with the performer might bring the best of experience.

But the protocol doesn't just end here. In western philosophy of communication, convincing/ explaining others is considered as the goal of communication. But according to Indian philosophy of communication, it isn’t just limited to message transfer but has much more essence to it.

SADHARANIKARANA I always wondered why people would want to watch movies with a sad theme. It seemed inexplicable to me why people spend money to experience sadness through a movie when we try our best to avoid it in real life. Sadharanikarana sheds light on this.

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To better understand sadharinikarana, we should first understand what is expected from art. According to Natya shastra, for any art form, entertainment is an effect but not the primary motivation. The goal is to let the audience experience a transcendent state of emotion and eventually experience their inner self or consciousness through it. Let's see how this is achieved.

When the artist and audience establish perfect sync in communication and can accurately decipher the artist's ideas, the audience will start resonating with the artist.

In an effective performance, soon, everyone in the audience resonates together and in union lives the same experience. "Bharat Muni describes sadharanikaran as that point in the climax of a drama when the audience becomes one with the actor who lives an experience through his/her acting on stage and starts simultaneously reliving the same experience" (source).

"Why do people spend money to experience sadness through a movie when we try our best to avoid it in real life?" experiences Rasa collectively letting away feelings of self or ego to ultimately experience Brahman. This process is Sadharinikarana.

Due to Sadharinikarana, any emotion, when experienced in its fullest congregated form, gives an experience of pure joy! The beauty of sadharinikarana is, it makes even the Rasa of 'bhayanaka' a pleasure. We would have experienced it to a certain level. We can now see why many of us like to go to performances or movies with friends, i.e., the joy of watching live and together is exponential!

BEYOND ARTS...

This is the final stage of the rasa experience.

The joy of aesthetic experience in the audience is not an individualized feeling but culminates with everyone witnessing the performance in one state, irrespective of their personality, and takes them to a universalized emotion, a trans-personal state of feeling. In this state, the audience

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In the current world, where technologies invented decades back are becoming outdated, imagine a book written 2000 years ago used even today! This is fascinating because its concepts lay out a strong foundation for performing arts; it allowed for an established framework for all art forms.

Every Indian classical dance, music, literature, poetry, sculpture imbibes its concepts. This is also because the concepts dealt with are universal, which are not only applicable to a specific art form but to many aspects of life. It teaches the way of life and instills the spiritual dimension into the arts.

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The Singing Storytellers of the muria tribe

By Varun Suchday

Somewhere, the center, south, and the east meet to give rise to a spectacular fusion of customs, cultures, colours, and sounds.

I quit my job back in 2015 and started travelling the world. During my year-long trip to South America, I interacted with numerous elders of different indigenous tribes. I was awe-struck by their profound knowledge of nature, wildlife, constellations, weather, and agriculture, among other elements. But, I noticed that this timeless knowledge stands at a precipice. Time and the novel virus are approaching the guardians of this knowledge. The present and future generations are showing little interest.

Hence, I decided to travel to understand and preserve dying cultural aspects. This has taken me to 32 countries and 22 Indian states. Last October, it took me to Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

Bastar is the tribal heartland of Chhattisgarh. It is home to diverse tribes with awe-inspiring customs and profound cultures. I was fortunate to find Shakeel Rizvi Ji, a person with immense tribal knowledge.

We travelled over dirt roads and potholes to reach Umargaon, the village of the Muria tribe. Gurumais are the bastions of the Muria tribe. Gurumais are the singing storytellers of the Muria tribe. They share ancient wisdom, timeless knowledge, folktales, and legends through songs. They travel from village to village singing songs and spreading knowledge. They also add stories and knowledge to their repertoire from the villages they visit.

I sat in front of Gurumai Lakshmi Devi. The rain was falling heavily on the thatched roof. She rubbed her forehead, trying to recall songs she remembered vividly before her surgery. Suddenly she remembered one - A song of Lord Ram and Sita travelling through the jungles of Bastar during exile.

In the song, Sita speaks of the discomforts of the jungle and her longing for the royal life. In response, Ram says, “Here, sit in the shade of this Kadam tree; I will prepare some mediyapetch for you.”

Kadam [Burflower] trees play an essential role in the jungle ecology of Bastar. Different parts of the tree cure various ailments such as diabetes, pain, inflammation, and skin diseases. Mediyapetch is a drink prepared using local nutrientrich grain. Tribals drink mediyapetch in the morning before heading into the jungle for foraging. It gives them strength throughout the day for hunting and foraging.

Lakshmi Devi sang another song about a young girl refusing to marry because she wants to stay with her family. Halfway through the song, she broke into laughter may be reminiscing her youth. I requested her to share other songs. She turned towards the rain then towards the blue mud walls before melancholically saying, “I don’t remember. Before surgery, I remembered many songs.”

Petch - local grain

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From a very young age, Muria girls are informally trained by Gurumais and grandmothers in the art of storytelling.

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I asked Gurumai Lakshmi Devi, “Did you train your daughters or granddaughters?”

“No, they are not interested,” she replied solemnly.

“How many Gurumais are there?” I asked.

She eyed the raindrops crashing into the mud, “Very few.”

This video captures Lakshmi Devi's songs.

Gurumais incorporated precious knowledge in folk stories and legends, an ingenious way of educating the masses. The knowledge encompasses multiple facets of nature.

Some songs shed light on animal movements and their meanings, while others encourage the youth to not hunt for juvenile animals to ensure balance. Some songs introduce folks to wild mushrooms, greens, and tubers. Songs about medicinal herbs are oral treasures of the Murias. A few rare songs educate the youth about the intricate balance of the jungle, animals, plants, and weather. This ensures sustainable hunting and foraging. These endangered songs offer rare insights into a fast disappearing world.

Muria People are adivasi's (Schedule Tribe) who live in the north-central part of Bastar district.

traditional education provided by the tribe is facing pressures due to the government's push for formal education and people finding employment in cities, critiquing the lack of employability generated by traditional knowledge.

Good to know facts about muria tribe

Integral to the muria culture is a gotul. gotul is a tribal mixed-Sex youth dormitory where adolescents and young adults are sent for traditional education, indulging in pre-marital sexual activities and lessons on cleanliness, discipline, and hard work.

The Muria traditionally worship their folk religion, worshipping village and clan deities.

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Send us your article excerpt / idea for consideration for our next edition at

editor.tarang@gmail.com Ideas should reach us by January 21

Issue

A prolific author, teacher, social worker, philanthropist, Padma Shri awardee and a person par excellence.

Mrs. Sudha Murty

Our way of living, the way we behave, the way we understand - that is what culture is.

What would you define as Indian culture?

Is it possible to put it into words?

I consider our way of living, the way we behave, the way we understand - that’s what culture is.

But it is not just as simple as that. In a mathematical way, it is a function of your history, your language, to some extent your food, and your behaviour. In India, when you travel 150 km from one point A to point B, your language changes, your food habits change your dressing sense changes. So, India is not a country but a continent. In a continent, you have different cultures and all cultures together make up one, like Europe. Similarly, India has Karnataka Culture, Maharashtrian Culture, Tamilian culture, Kerala culture, Rajasthani culture and the list goes on. Each state has its own culture, and it is a function of so many variables.

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Are we losing touch with our culture in a more interconnected and economy-obsessed world? Or is it a natural evolution?

It is a natural evolution. If you understand history, you will understand what happens. When Alexander the Great came to India, he brought along many Greek and Roman Generals in his army. They came and settled in today’s Pakistan and India’s Punjab. Initially, they kept to themselves within the Greek colony in Takshashila. But over time, they experienced and liked our culture, way of living, and philosophy. Over a period of time, they cannot remain isolated and they mixed with local people.

There is clear evidence of such influence Menander and Demetrius are believed to have taken up Indian culture and religion. You can also see two distinct things - in the Punjab / Pakistan region, you can see Haemophilia disease which was prevalent in Greece.

Likewise, you can observe

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the complexion and build of some of the people in India, they don’t look like the average Indian.

They are tall, fair - extraordinarily fair - because they are a mix of these two races.

So, when people immigrate to other countries, a generation may suffer or enjoy it. They may suffer because they are away from home. And enjoy because it is their Karma Bhoomi and spend a lot more time in their work, though they are disconnected from their country in some sense. When they come back, they are not able to reconnect. That dilemma is there for one generation but for subsequent generations, there is no dilemma. I am sure this was true for the Greeks and Romans soldiers in India. Keeping that in mind when you look at Culture, over a period of time, culture goes on diluting and evolving into a new culture.

What was my mother’s pure Karnataka culture has changed for me because I travel more, see more, read more and mix more. So, for me it is not a deep deep down Karnataka culture totally it may be 70:30. For my children who are living abroad, it maybe even 60% western and 40% Indian. It is a natural evolution and it is not something that can be stopped.

A big part of our culture is our values. In this modern world, are we teaching children more knowledge and facts than understanding and compassion? How can we inculcate these values in them?

Values & culture are different. Values are a set of ideas which have been calibrated over a period of time. Society has tested and accepted them.

For e.g., when you read an encyclopedia on

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Values like hard work, sincerity, compassion have been time tested and are essential for a happy and stable society. cooking - 2000 year old books are also available the concept, the preparation of rice has not changed.

Similarly, if you look at life at large, values like Hard Work, Sincerity, and Compassion have been time-tested for over 2000 years. If society has to progress, if society has to be happy & stable, then some values have to remain throughout.

Otherwise, society, families, and individuals will collapse. You should tell the truth - because truth makes life better. You should work hard because that is the only thing through which one can progress in life. Being honest is the best policy.

These don’t get diluted whether it is 1000 years back or today, or 500 years later. That you should be honest, you should be compassionate towards people lesser than you, you should go on helping people with kind words, you should be hardworking, truthful and live simply - All these time-tested values will not change as long as mankind is there.

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But some things will change. Dress code changes. My Grandmother used to wear a 9yard saree. My mother used to wear a 5-yard saree, I wear Salwar Kameez. My daughter wears pants and a t-shirt. That depends on fashion, place where they live. Language may change - My grandkids speak 90% of the time in English. Some variables keep changing with time but some values remain constant.

What should we do as parents? We should impart these values which are time tested to our children - not because you are an Indian but because your life will be difficult. Because if

In your book you mention how your Grandmother touches your feet. Are we losing that level of respect and importance for Gurus in this modern day?

Well in a way, this is yes and no. Because if you are a worthy Guru, people will always respect you. Now we get Gurus who do not have the knowledge and whose conduct is not desirable then you don’t touch their feet. If someone is really good to you, you feel the honour for them automatically - whether you touch their feet or not.

As parents, we tell there are 3-4 people we should honour - one who gives you knowledge, one who is older than you, God when you go to a temple.

society has to exist, you should have good values. Other things do not matter they can eat Indian food or western food - because they have a choice.

Why should we always think that our life was the best? Not necessary. We had our innings, our life. They will have their innings - accept the change and allow them to run their own marathon with good values.

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Because in the old tradition, touching feet has a lot more meaning.

Suppose I acquire a lot of Punya - as in doing good work - it is believed if someone touches my feet, part of that Punya goes to that person. If 100 people touch their feet, that person loses 100 units of Punya. So, some people used to say don’t touch my feet as they don’t want to share. Some people feel it is a good gesture. I told my children if you feel that a person is worthy and you are learning something from them, then please touch their feet even though they may belong to a different caste, race, religion, creed, age, gender it

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Highlights Gallery Courage is ...

... belief is

Values can be ...

doesn’t matter. “GunA sthanam na chalingam na cha vayah” - Meaning, good character is the highest, the rest - gender, age - are all below it.

You should have sufficient dreams and realize them, then you are a visionary.

Can you share a contradiction in values that took you long to resolve and any advice for young adults on how they can approach a contradiction?

Most of the time, parents bring up their children with the notion that education is the most important thing; that is the only goal in life and if you fail, your life is doomed. This is a contradiction. According to me, life gives place for everybody. If someone doesn’t go to IIT, is he not worth living? If someone fails in the exam is he not worth living? Surely education gives one certain advantages. If you are well educated, that means you are probably well read, met more people, some more intelligent than yourself and you will say look, I am not the greatest. Whereas if you are not well educated and not well exposed, then you may think you are the

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greatest. It is not only good education but good exposure that is important in life.

The real lesson we should teach children is courage. Courage is a great virtue. It is more important than mathematics, physics, electronics, or computer science. We don’t teach our children the courage to face reality and not to live in an imaginary world, and to accept when things go against you. We never teach these things. Instead, we say if you do like this, God will punish you. On no day, God will punish you because God is kind and omnipresent. He will do the kindest act to you.

But we put that fear in our children.

So you have to teach children courage and not get perturbed even in the worst scenario. You should teach them to face reality rather than dreaming about something. Dreams are good.

You should have sufficient dreams and realize them, then you are a visionary. A visionary knows how to realize the dream. A worker will not know. A dreamer will never understand. So you have to make your children understand reality, accept reality and always tell them to please think in a positive way even if you fail - I lost a battle but I will win the war. Because life is full of battles, day-to-day battles, academic battles, financial battles, disease battles. The best way to combat a battle is to come with different weapons so that we can fight well.

One important weapon is courage.

Do you think there are some Indian values we as a society done well in preserving and promoting?

Depends upon which society you are talking about. Because in India each state is different. It is hard to tell as a nation as our behavior from

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state to state is vastly different. In general, India was ruled - always oppressed for the last 2000 years. Culturally we are not colonizers. We have not crossed the Indian border except Raja Raghu in Ikshwaku Vamsha which is a part of Kalidasa’s poem. By and large, India was defined between the Himalayas, the Purva Samudra, the Paschima Samudra, and Kanyakumari. The other sides are the rivers Bramhaputra and Sindhu. India was the land between the two rivers and a Mountain and a maha Sagara. We, by nature, have never gone to any other country and colonized like the western countries. Our merchants used to go from India to different places for trade. They went to Java dweepa, today’s Java, Bali, Indonesia, Cambodia - all that area. When they went they always took our cultural events like Ramayana, Books or something. Over a period of time, the local people were so much interested in Indian culture and they themselves started playing Indianized plays. That is why in Indonesia, Bali, Sumatra, Java, Cambodia, you can see Ramayana in different forms. Not because we conquered them physically as Britishers did to India. It was a culture that went through merchants.

If you travel to Burma, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, you can see the influence of India in so many ways. So, ours is not an invasive culture. Ours is a peaceful culture where we enjoy peace more than fight. So, when we look at our culture which has been oppressed for 1200 years, we became like islands. So, each state wanted to preserve their own things because they were so scared they will be subjected to many difficult changes. Hence we took our culture - our Puranas, music, dance and preserved it, otherwise, our identity would be lost. So in a narrow-minded way, we preserved it.

So we brought in rules like someone can’t learn, someone can’t trade because it was meant for only some people, we can't cross the sea

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Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam presenting the Padma Shri to Dr Sudha Murty

because we are always worried that it will be diluted because of mixing with the ruling people who were not Indians. They were scared and they lost their confidence.

When India became better and richer and more advantageous economically then people started getting Atma Nirbharta; the confidence back.

When you get confidence, then you mix with others. So we were holding the culture as Darohar, like our capital, or it is the only thing we own. Or it is something like a house or land which we don’t want to share. That is the reason we became diffident. If we were confident, we would not have done that. To be confident in a country like India which was oppressed for many centuries, it will not take one day, it will not take one year, it takes many years and in 75 years of Indian Independence, I am a lot more confident than my grandfather. My son is a lot more confident than I am. The more exposure they get, the better their decision-making would be and we don’t have to worry about culture. It will blossom like a flower.

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How can we build that confidence?

Over a period of time. There is no sample solution or formula. For e.g when the press writes any good thing about me, I don’t read.

When they write something bad about me, I don’t read that either. Because I always believe I know myself better than anyone else. Who is your best friend? “Atmaiva hi atmano bandhu atmaiva ripu atmanaha” Krishna says. Who is your best friend in life? - you yourself. Who is your worst enemy you yourself. If you believe in yourself, then why worry about somebody making any comment on me? You can make any comment about me because you have not understood me. Because I know what I am doing. So when you understand that it is your life and you lead it, as long as morally, ethically it is right, then you should not worry about others. So when you develop that belief over a period of time, not immediately, you will become confident.

आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन:

Who is your best friend in life? - you, yourself.

Who is your worst enemy you, yourself.

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Who were your inspirations when you were growing up or later in life?

I was brought up by my Grandparents. My Grandfather was a school teacher, a Sanskrit, history and mathematics teacher. I was brought up in a village where there was no electricity.

Only means of entertainment was always reading. My constant reading was with my grandparents. My grandfather taught me Upanishads. Many things which I did not understand at that time which later in my life I did. I think I am the combination of modern education and deep Sanatana Dharma or Sanskrita Veda taught by my Grandparents.

That is the reason I can see West and East with the equal sense.

We understand you are a voracious reader and a movie buff too. Can you tell us more?

I come from a village where once a year, during summer, we used to get Tent Movies.

From the beginning, when I used to go to a movie or read a book, I used to ask a lot of questions. And in a village setup, there is nobody to answer. For e.g - I always asked many questions about Ramayana and Mahabharata and elders could not answer for a young girl of 8 years.

So they used to say, you should not ask questions, you should read. Then I realized, these people do not know the answer that one day I should find out my own answers. That encouraged me to read a lot. And now I can understand what is what. Reading gave me an insight that you can discover yourself.

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Seeing a movie was always a visual representation of a story. That helped me with storytelling. I am very fond of Hindustani music. I come from the Khirana Gharana belt famous for Bhimsen Joshi, Mallikarjun Mansoor, Gangubhai Hangal, Madhav Gudi. I never learnt music in a class. In winter, we used to have early dinner and go to music sessions when I was a kid. The artist would finish at 4 am in the morning. And whenever he used to finish, I used to feel Viraha (parting)- that the musician is parting from his listeners, a kind of pain. And later in my life, I realized it was nothing but Raag Bhairavi. It is a viraha raag. And then I started looking at the Bol, the Bol also should be Viraha. Any Bhairavi with a Viraha bol is always beautiful like 'Kaise Jaun Jamuna ke Teer'. I learnt so many ragas by the feeling it generated.

Anything with Megha Malhar Raag - my ears will be very sharp to hear - because Garajat Barasata Aa More Sawore - the Bol is regarding the rainy season and the Dhun is also with Megh and so you feel that there is Rain inside your mind and that is the beauty of the Hindustani Classical. There is no structure and it is everexpanding and depends on the singer’s strength.

He can put the feelings in his music which recreates the anubhava in the listener. That is what I learnt from movies - the initiation of the ragas is the initiation of the bhavanas or initiation of the feelings.

Is it more fun to write for adults or for children? Any amusing encounters with your fans?

Children section I have an advantage and a disadvantage. The advantage is that I can create a lot of fantasy. A flying carpet, a flying princess, a princess inside the mango or a banana-tree

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princess etc. I can show a lot more creativity in the children's section. But I have a disadvantage that I should always mind my language and it should always end on a positive note. Because children are optimistic, we shouldn't make them negative. And one should be very careful with what one writes because if you tell a story to a child, it will be etched in their mind. I became a child in my mind and I enjoyed it.

Through generations, societal expectations on women have changed. Yet we still find women in a quandary / conflict between what they want to do and what family/society wants. What are your observations?

When In 1968, I decided to do engineering which was unheard of those days. There was not a single girl in the university doing engineering. My father, a doctor, told me that I will be a very good doctor. My mother, a teacher, said I was good at Maths so I should become a mathematics professor and after marriage, I could look after the house and the

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children. My grandfather, a history teacher, told me to forget about engineering and instead do a Ph.D. in history. My grandmother said there would be no Brahmin boy who will marry me because I would be a lady engineer. My Aunts told me if you go to engineering college then I will fall in love with a boy from another community and they wouldn't come for my marriage.

Everybody gave their opinion. But I told, I was only 17 years old, I was not doing anything ethically or morally wrong. I wanted to study applied science since it was useful to society. I told them I was responsible for my behavior and my future. I promised that I will be straight & focused on work and that I will not bring a bad name to them. I put out all my cards and my parents were quite open-minded, they accepted in the end. I was clear about what I wanted.

Because I pass this life only once. If I can do anything right now, I should do it. Except in marriage where I wanted everybody’s opinion because I have not seen life as much as they have seen. But with all their inputs, you still have to make your decision.

With every generation, what women fight for is changing. What is your insight on today's generation, given you have met so many women?

Fights are always there but different fights. I will give you a small story. There was once a young prince and he wanted to know the answer to the question “What a woman wants?”. He thought women like jewelry, flowers etc. - but none of them were the correct answer. In the end the prince met an old lady who said she would tell the answer but on the condition that the prince would marry her. The prince agreed. She said, the answer is every woman wants to lead her life by her own decision and her choice. Not her Father’s choice, Mother’s choice, Husband’s choice or Children’s choice. Now the young

prince has to marry the old woman as he gave her his promise. After their marriage, in the evening the prince saw a beautiful lady in the house. He asks her who she was and she says she was the old woman. He asks her how she became so beautiful. She says she has the capacity and asks the prince whether she should become beautiful in the morning or at night.

When I was a teacher, I used to ask this to my students. All boys used to say night while all girls used to say morning. What is the real answer?

The real answer is that it was her choice - it was left to her whether she wanted to be beautiful in the morning or night. She said she wanted to become beautiful all the time.

That is what every woman wants - to lead her life the way she wants. In my mother’s time, the fight was to go to college. My time was to go to Engineering college. My daughter’s was going abroad. My granddaughter will be something else. The fights are there and it depends on the society at that time. And it depends upon how much your parents and you are open with each other. Better to be open. If I make a mistake, I will be open with my parents. After all, I am a human being. But better to tell them and ask to kindly forgive. There is nothing wrong with that.

That is what every woman wants -

to lead her life the way she wants.

Among all that you have achieved at Infosys Foundation, as an author, as a teacher, a parent and a philanthropist, what do you believe has been your greatest success or greatest contribution or impact?

I don’t consider success, achievements, and such. None of them really matter to me. For me, it is a duty which I have enjoyed. But I used to always ask myself this question. I come from a middle-class family, married to a lower middleclass person and like a jackpot I got this money and Infosys Foundation - why and for what reason was I born? What are the duties of a person - is it to have a 60X40 site, go to Singapore, save money for a big wedding for children - is that the aim in life? What is the reason a person is born? And why this kind of money was given to me in my middle age which I don’t require that much. It took 20 years to realize when I met many destitute women. If you have time please read the book “Three Thousand Stitches”. That day I got the answer. I helped 3000 sex workers to lead a normal life.

And there I stood in front of them and got the answer. I was born for this tough work, for changing lives of 3000 sex workers. I don’t call it an achievement but that gave me so much happiness and content in my life. I don’t expect anything in life because I know why I was born and what work I do and where it goes.

What is the best way to bring out Indian History to the present generation?

We make ritualistic work and then you say it is tradition. No, there is a reason behind that tradition. When you put a little story behind our festivals, it becomes tradition. Tradition is much above rituals. Tradition is accessible to all caste creed gender and age. Tradition is like good

habits. Getting up in the morning and doing good practices are tradition. So, tradition with a logical reason always stays. Illogical reason tradition will always disappear.

What's the best way to present our history to today's critical minds given how tumultuous it has been and how difficult it is to segregate fact from fiction?

Read more. If possible, visit these places. Be it Haldighat where Maharana Pratap's horse Chetak jumped or Raigad where Shivaji was coronated or Brihadeeswara temple built 1000 years ago by Raja Raja Chola without today’s technology or the Cave Temples of Badami. India is a land of so many historical sites which we don’t see. For us seeing Taj Mahal, Red Fort or Jaipur palace is tourism. But tourism should connect us to our forefathers' land, our Indian culture. For example the Ganapathi from Badami, was taken by the Pallava’s and installed in a shrine in Tamil Nadu.

And hence the composition of Vatapi Ganapathi Baje refers to Vatapi the old name of Badami.

None of us bother with those things but if you really go after the facts and be proud then you will be able to understand what our country has done and what we have to do and for that you have to read a lot.

Let the music flow...

Founded in 2016, Hyderabad Tyagaraja Aradhana Music Festival (HTAMF) returns this January for the seventh year.

The five-day festival brings together more than 400 musicians from across India to celebrate the great compositions of St. Tyagarja and pay tribute to his melodious legacy.

Follow our Facebook page here for program updates.

Subbu says A guy sits down in a movie theatre and notices that the man in front of him has brought his dog and it's sitting in the seat next to him. He thinks it's unusual, but he likes dogs so he decides that as long as it's not a distraction he won't mention it.

The movie starts and pretty soon there's a funny part. The dog makes some low woofing sounds that seem like laughter. In a little while, there's a sad part and the dog appears to be weeping. This continues throughout the film and the man sitting behind the dog is astounded.

When the lights come up he taps the dog's owner on the shoulder and tells him, "I gotta say, and I know it sounds weird, but it seemed like your dog really enjoyed this movie."

The dog owner looks at the dog and nods. "I know, it really is weird," he says, "because he absolutely hated the book." Source Unknown

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Source: Wikipedia, Facebook

Sanskrit and Liberalism A Deeper Connection?

A language so precise and grammatically perfect, Sanskrit has had significant global influence. With rich troves of literature, the language carries a large group of works on spirituality, poetry, metaphysics, drama, mythology, and philosophy. It has a soul-sustaining power with the capacity to illuminate, spiritualize, and educate. Yet hidden underneath these truths lies a unique, esoteric reality: Sanskrit played a crucial role in a comprehensive liberal education.

By Abhinav Seetharaman

According to the Association of American Colleges, liberal education is an approach to learning that empowers individuals and prepares them to deal with complexity, diversity, and change. It aims to produce free human beings who can use their minds and think independently. Today, having a liberal education and background in the humanities – facilitated by having fluency in English and knowledge of Western classical languages such as Latin and Ancient Greek – is increasingly valued in the job market, with employers citing creativity, curiosity, and empathy as the three skills that humanities graduates immediately bring to the table.

To see the close relationship between Sanskrit and liberal education, one need not look further than 700 B.C. at Takshashilā University, located in modern-day Pakistan. Regarded by many scholars as one of, if not the, oldest universities globally, Takshashilā became an important center for international learning, with Sanskrit serving as one of the primary languages of communication and teaching. Subjects taught ranged from Vedic and Buddhist studies to science, mathematics, medicine, politics, warfare, philosophy, and astronomy.

Takshashilā produced severable notable alumni, many of whom were regarded as the greatest thinkers in Indian history. Chānakya, who authored the Arthashāstra (a masterpiece deemed by Max Weber as one of the most outstanding political statecraft books written) and served as principal minister of the Mauryan Empire, was a product of Takshashilā. Charaka, one of the main contributors to Ayurveda and the author of the famous Charaka Samhitā, was a product of Takshashilā. Most considered Panini to be the greatest Sanskrit grammarian and one who codified the language through the Ashtādhyāyi, was a product of Takshashilā. Noam Chomsky—the widely-accepted father of modern linguistics— said in a 2001 Kolkata speech that “the first generative grammar in the modern sense was Panini’s grammar,” thereby attributing the great grammarian as having Panini, Source: Wikipedia, Original here. played an integral role in unifying lingual diversities.

In addition, Kālidāsa, the fourth and fifth-century poet often considered the greatest Sanskrit playwright, had an undeniable influence on some of the eminent poets, artists, and thinkers of the 19th century, including Rabindranath Tagore, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Camille Claudel, and Sir William Osler.

Sanskrit is a common core amongst the achievements mentioned above: a language that stimulated holistic development in not only science and math but also the humanities. Numerous global leaders of the past with knowledge of Sanskrit — or another ancient language — went on to develop some of the world’s greatest achievements. If such monumental works of eras past were rooted in Sanskrit, then why is it not widespread today? Does this stem from narrow-minded perspectives that being a global citizen requires us to be proficient in just English? If so, it is important to have constructive

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conversations with those who hold myopic views towards Sanskrit and its beauty to help shed more light on its profound abilities to support a liberal education.

In Sanskrit, there is an adage, “स्वगृहे पूज्यते मूर्खः स्वग्रामे पूज्यते प्रभुः। स्वदेशे पूज्यते राजा विद्वान्सर्वत्र पूज्यते॥” (svagṛhe pūjyate mūrkhaḥ svagrāme pūjyate prabhuḥ । svadeśe pūjyate rājā vidvān sarvatra pūjyate ॥). English translation: “A fool is worshipped in his home. A chief is worshipped in his village. A king is worshipped in his kingdom. A knowledgeable person is worshipped everywhere.” With such a language that has symbolized our heritage, can we be oblivious in recognizing its inherent value? Surely evidence suggests that Sanskrit can play a similar, if not a better role to that of English today if we truly understand it.

This is not to say that one cannot have a liberal education without a background in Sanskrit or any other ancient language. However, to those who say Sanskrit is a dead language, to those who say Sanskrit is a dying language, and to those who say Sanskrit is a nonviable language, perhaps it is time to reconsider. A growing number of Prominent ancient texts in universities in India and worldwide already have either Sanskrit, Wikipedia. Original here. robust or expanding Sanskrit departments, and Organizations like Samskrita Bharati USA have well-established Sanskrit learning programs for youth and adults alike.

Consider this: in the 2001 Census of India, 14,135 people registered Sanskrit as their mother tongue. This number grew to 24,821 according to the 2011 figures, representing a growth rate of over 70 percent. It is essential to keep in mind that these numbers only represent native Sanskrit speakers; they do not take into account those for whom Sanskrit is a second language or even the thousands more outside India who have studied Sanskrit. Additionally, the Government of India spent Rs. 643.84 crore (USD 85.82 million), from 2017 to 2020, representing a substantial increase in spending proportions compared to previous years. Such data clearly shows that the language is undergoing a revival, as more and more people seem to realize its accompanying merits.

It may now be time for us to embrace Sanskrit once more; to rediscover not just our heritage but also to unlock the next level of learning and liberal education.

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The

Bliss of the Bansuri

By Venu Dorairaj

To not have been intoxicated by the Bansuri is to have not experienced the true beauty of our classical music.

As a young boy of an impressionable age, I remember once walking quite a distance following a bansuri seller, enamoured by the peppy and quick tunes he conjured up using what I thought was just an ordinary pipe. I am sure a number of us have seen him walk past our front doors, over a cool weekend afternoon, unhurried, holding several bansuris in his bag, filling the air with the sharp and shrill notes of a popular song and almost always followed by a bevy of seemingly hypnotized children.

Though the stories of Lord Krishna, and his exploits with the bansuri, were well known, this was my first exposure to the sound of the Bansuri and its intoxicating power. Over the years, I have grown increasingly fascinated by the humble bamboo ‘pipe,’ especially in the hands of masterly artists who seem to be able to breathe into it a music that is at once magical, elevating and superlative.

Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia and Pandit Rakesh Chaurasia

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Music is in the Air If emotions make us human, it is music - and mainly classical music - that puts us in touch with the purest of those emotions. And to navigate through the gamut of emotions and feelings, be it the deepest of sadness and melancholy or the most ecstatic of happiness and joy, one needs no better friend than the Bansuri. From experiencing the soft, tender chill of a misty morning in the valley to capturing the melody of the drops of rain falling on barren earth - of the changing seasons and many moods - all can be discerned in the beauty of the enchanting notes it exudes.

First among equals, one could say, considering the many beautiful and soulful instruments that have collectively created and nurtured this divine classical music of ours. Yet, there is something special about the Bansuri that makes it unique. What is it that sets it apart? Its pleasing tone, the woodiness of its sound, the gentle hiss as the note fades away, the calmness of the lower swaras, the exhilaration of the higher octaves, and notably the oneness of the breath with the music - like a transformation of the artist’s energy and life force into some divine manifestation.

The magic is created right there as the air flows from the artists’ lungs through the holes, dodging and bending to their masterful control and escaping playfully into music that narrates the most intricately woven stories laden with emotions.

The Masters of Bansuri For several years, my drive to work and back home was made easy by a prized collection of Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia’s most extraordinary renditions. Somehow, played in an infinite loop, his music could blow away all the myriad worries that occupied me needlessly. The Bansuri swept aside the morning blues, especially the rigid Monday morning ones, and made each workday feel as fresh and expectant as a Friday, it was heralding the serenity of the weekend. Whether it was his Alaap in Raag Yaman Kalyani or Raag Malkauns, the sweetness melted out all thoughts, and I felt transported out of the chaos of the traffic, and the daily grind, to a journey across the silent expanse of the outer universe. One need only close one's eyes, as long as one is not at the wheels, and surrender oneself to that delightful and enchanting music and allow it to do the rest of its work.

A few years back, I had the fortune of attending a live concert by Pandit Ronu Majumdar to a packed audience. The hour that followed was, perhaps, as spiritually cleansing as one could

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ever experience - more than even what one might find in the most secluded spaces in the Himalayas. The perfect blend of the smoothness of the Bansuri with the rhythm and beats of the Tabla stirred a feeling of harmony and oneness with everything. Even the choicest of words one can parade from the best vocabulary cannot describe this feeling. The voice, vigour and vibrance of the Bansuri continued long after Pandit Majumdar had left the auditorium. Something deep and innermost had been penetrated by the reverberations of the music that evening.

Generations of artists have perfected, preserved and passed on this pathway to the sublime and ethereal for many of us to experience and enjoy. The bansuri of Pt. Rakesh Chaurasia, Pt. Pravin Godkhindi and all other contemporaries speak from the same beautiful and gentle language. Yet, with a freshness that keeps its appeal and makes us connoisseurs yearn for more divinity.

The Lightness of the Soul

Pandit Ronu Majumdar's Bansuri at Darbar

At a deeper level still, the Bansuri is meditative and mystical. Just a single note, played well and with the delicate control of a master, can resonate and reverberate one’s inner sanctum. Depending on what the craftsman wants it to be, it can be a healing balm or a ball of energy. It creates tranquillity, a lightness, by dissolving all that exists outside of the music and melody; It tugs at the very strings of the heart, reaches for the soul and sets it free. Is there anything else that can have such an impact? Prose or poetry needs the critical faculty of an attentive mind to process, understand and then help one feel the intensity of what was being communicated.

On the other hand, Music, and the Bansuri, in particular, communicate straight with the nerve center of who we truly are. So whatever it is that one may be feeling - low or high, tired or stressed, confused or concerned - there is always the pleasant and blissful sound of a bamboo Bansuri to tether our Soul to the supreme cosmic beauty.

Pandit Rakesh Chaurasia at South Asian Arts UK

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indiscope The essence of India

Tarang asked drawing artists and painters to send their best artwork that captures Indian Arts, Culture or Heritage.

Here are the winning entries across the Young Artists and above 13 years category.

12 years and below

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Ardhanarishvara Water paints were used to draw this less common version where the male features are expressed on the left side and female features on the right side of the face.

Artwork By

Rayasam V. Sribhavya

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02

Ganesh Painting

Artwork By

Ranhitha S. Ankem A few other submissions that we loved.

I wanted to present the beautiful culture of India with a pop of colours.

My piece shows a form of dance representing the Indian culture in the past and will describe it for generations to come…

Bharatanatyam.

It shows the unique aspects of India, beautifully.

Artwork By

Eshitha Achanta

Artwork By

Vismitha Achanta

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13 years and above

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Symbol of grace and beauty Peacock was chosen as the national bird of India in 1963. It was part of Indian custom and culture. It is present across the country so much so that even ordinary people are familiar with the bird. I feel proud to inculcate our nation's pride in my artwork.

Artwork By

Geethika Bandlamudi

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02

Village Couple

A man and women in Indian Modern Art. Modern Indian art typically shows the influence of Western styles but is often inspired by Indian themes and images.

Artwork By

Praneetha Durbhakula

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Durga in her splendor.

Ode to the beyond This is a fusion between the modern and traditional world of art.

The classic sketch of the temple sits on top of a simple abstract painting with muted colours and shades found commonly in much of India's traditional wear and clothing.

Sahana Narayanan

Artwork By

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Radha Gottupulla

Artwork By

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TIME-KEEPING IN ANCIENT INDIA: A quick-deep take

By Ramya Mudumba

Image Source

TWO BIRTHDAYS & NEWYEARS..

30 DIFFERENT CALENDARS!

In India, it is not a strange fact that everyone has two birthdays and two new years- one according to the Gregorian calendar that we use every day and one according to the regional Indian calendar. In fact, my grandmother never celebrated her birthday according to the former. This always fascinated me. As a kid, it was just a reason to celebrate my birthday again but now as an adult, it intrigues me how did our ancients keep time? As it turns out, this is a country where measurement of time has such mindblowing history and makes one stand in awe not just at the precisions (up to 29.63 microseconds, a truti) that were almost impossible without modern instruments but also at the colourful stories and metaphors it offers. This is a country where we had nakshatra-darshaks (or star-gazers) who were expert astronomers in pursuit of knowledge.

For the modern generation, it is so unambiguous what a day and a year mean.

A day is the earth’s rotation around itself and a year, the earth’s revolution around the sun.

But if you see the history of time-keeping in India, there were multiple ways to measure a day (solar or siderial), a month (synodic, sidereal, anomalistic, draconic, etc.), a year(solar, lunar). There is no unique calendar followed in India. A committee appointed in 1952 recognized more than thirty varieties of calendars in India (wiki link). These calendars are not just derived from one but are quite different from each other in terms of their measurements of day, month and year. They are still in use in different parts of the country for setting muhurtam for important events, festivals, and rituals.

INTERPLAY OF SUN & THE MOON Gregorian calendar is an arithmetic calendar, that is, a year of around 365 days is arbitrarily divided into 30 or 31 day months with not much importance laid on the lunar cycles. But most Indian calendars are astronomical ones that is each year, each month-end is marked retaining the integrity of the moon’s cycle. Indians predominantly used a solar or a lunisolar calendar. A lunisolar calendar has a solar year but lunar months. Let’s introduce two words heresauramāna (meaning calculations made according to the sun’s cycle) and chandramāna (calculations made according to the moon’s cycle). A solar year (a year according to sauramāna) is sidereal and it is the time taken for the sun to cross all the 12

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rasi’s or constellations (as appearing from the earth) within the 360deg celestial sphere.

The sun doesn’t literally cross here. It means that the sun is against the backdrop of a particular constellation. As the sun crosses into each rasi, we call the event a sankrānti.

So, the interesting fact is that there is not one (the famous Makara Sankranthi) but twelve sankrāntis in a year names after its particular rasi. A sauramāna (solar) month is just named after the rasi but a month according to chandramāna (or a lunar month) is named after the nakshatra (or star) that is outstanding in the night sky. Eg: The solar month Meena māsa would be called the lunar month Chaitra māsa. So, lunar months are moon’s movement into each nakshatra metaphorically.

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LUNI-SOLAR CALENDAR But how do we mark each month’s start and end? Yes, by the phases of the moon, of course! Even within this, there are two systems called the amānta and purnimānta systems. A month ends with New Moon according to the former but with a Full Moon according to the latter. This is one of the reasons the new year (beginning of Chaitra māsa) across some regions in India differs by almost a fortnight. Now, the magic happens in reconciling the solar and lunar cycles because the sauramāna and chandramāna months or years do not have a one-to-one mapping. A lunar year is around 354 days long whereas a solar year is around 365 days, which makes an average lunar month to be around 29.5 day long and solar month 30.4 days. Adjustments are usually done in calendars to keep the seasons synchronised. Now the adjustment done here is not just an arithmetic one (as in case of a leap year in Gregorian calendar) but has an actual astronomical significance.

The delay between the two cycles accumulates

to a point where the moon starts its new cycle before the sun moves into a new rasi which results in having two lunar months start within the same solar month. This results in what is called the ‘adhika’ māsa. In contrast to a leap year where only no. of days in February are changed, an ‘adhika’ māsa can occur in any of the months and has a real counterpart astronomically. “The intercalary months occur at an interval of 2 years 11 months, or 2 years 10 months, or 2 years 4 months. The average interval is 2.7 years.”

There are many such sophisticated facts about Indian calendars. Some have more emphasis on the solar cycle, some on the lunar, some w.r.t stars (nakshatramana) etc. Not only are the cycles of the sun and moon important but also the cyclic events based on other planets including Jupiter and Saturn. The names of the years follow a 60-year cycle based on Jupiter called the Brihaspati-chakra. It's fascinating how these measurements were made centuries ago and the sophisticated thinking behind the creation of not just one but multiple calendar systems in the same land. It once again inspires us to see the true face of diversity in India.

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References:(1) (2) (3)

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By Dr. TLN Swamy

Read the first Article in this series here.

Read the Second Article In this series here.

The music of India having rooted in the chantings of the sages and hummings of the folklore of ancient India, stemmed into existence by the primeval musical scholars like Sarangadeva, started to solidify and shine around through its devoted proponents like Jayadeva, dichotomised by the Persian punch of the Khusro likes, furthered and flourished by branching and twigging with the nurturing of medieval messiahs like Purandara and Tansen, flowered into a full blossoming tree by the showering of the latter-day lyrical devotees such as Annamaacharya, Ramdasa likes of Carnatic style and Kabir, Mira likes of the Hindustani style, fructified with the nourishing by the neoteric saviors like the Trinity of Carnatic music and numerous Hindustani musical Gharanas, those dulcet fruits we the favoured are savouring ever since.

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Melakartha Ragakartha Venkatamakhi Venkatamakhi, the majestic Kannada Vainika (Veena player) from the 17th century, also a minister in the court of Nayaka kings of Tanjavur was the first to start counting the many melodious ways in which the musical tree can unfurl its colourful hues and introduced the “Melakartha system” of Ragas, explicated in his musical treatise “Chaturdandi Prakashika.”

The Trinity of Carnatic music Tanjavur continued to contribute immensely to Indian music, especially in the form of the “Trinity of Carnatic music,” namely Shyama Shastri, Tyagaraja and Muthuswamy Dikshithar. What a serendipitous coincidence that they all hailed from the same Tiruvarur of Tanjavur district being born just a few years apart; in fact, all three were born within a span of thirteen years in the middle of the eighteenth century.

Aadimurthi Shyamashastri The oldest among the Trinity, Shyama Shastri, was born into a Telugu brahmin family who migrated from Cumbum taluk of the erstwhile Andhra. He composed many kritis and swarajathis in Telugu and Tamil, hailed for their literary finesse. He was marvelled for his melodious singing abilities with a mellifluous voice.

The Satsangeetha Sadguru “Saint Tyagaraja” Tyagaraja (1767-1847) was five years younger than Shyama Shastri and outlived his contemporaries. He was also born into a Telugu brahmin family who migrated to Tiruvarur from Kakarla of Cumbum taluk in Andhra.

Tyagaraja began his musical training at a very early age under Guru Sonti Venkataramanaiah. He proved to be a child prodigy in music and composed kritis incorporating complex musical phrases with consummate ease, perplexing even the seasoned pundits.

Hearing of his talent, the King of Tanjavur sent an invitation to perform and serve at the Royal court. But Tyagaraja rejected the offer as a true devotee bound by his principle of not submitting himself to anyone other than the almighty and justified his claim through his Kriti “Nidhi Chala Sukhama, Ramuni sannidhi seva sukhama.” Tyagaraja asks his mind to consider which is better – wealth or service to Lord Rama?

Legend has it that one hermit taught him a mantra invoking Narada. Upon chanting the mantra Tyagaraja had a dharshan of Narada who blessed him with a musical bible "Swararnavam," which contained every bit of music knowledge.

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Tyagaraja used to sit before his deity of Lord Rama and sing while his disciples notated them on palm leaves. His contribution to the treasure of Carnatic music is said to be of 24,000 songs in Telugu, of which only about 700 could be recovered.

Tyagaraja led a very simple life of mendicancy dedicated fully to singing the glory of his Ishta-daivam Rama and took vows of sannyasa during his last days, leaving his legacy behind through his sishya parampara who propagated his kritis across the music world.

Each year in January, Tyagaraja Aradhana music festival” is customarily celebrated in Tiruvaiyur where he attained ‘moksha,’ as also in many other places across the world.

The ‘Vathapi Ganapathi’ Dikshitar Muthuswami Dikshitar, the youngest of the Trinity, was born eight years after Tyagaraja in the same Thiruvarur to a Tamil musician called Ramaswamy Dikshitar, who trained his son into a fine musician and an accomplished Veena player. Later Muthuswami moved to the town of Manali near Madras where hi­­s visit to the Fort Saint George introduced him to western orchestral music and violin, whose influence can be seen in his “Note Swara Sahityam.”

From there, he was taken to Benaras by an ascetic Chidambara Nath Yogi, where he received further training in music, thus getting exposed to Hindustani music, which would influence his later compositions. Later he returned to the South, back to Tiruvarur and composed prodigiously and predominantly in Sanskrit, covering all of the 72 melakarta ragas. The most famous of all his kritis “Vatapi Ganapathim Bhaje” in Hamsadhwani Raag stands tall as a fine example of his musical genius and probably is the most rendered Kriti of all time.

Vishnudwayam - The Duo of Hindustani music Like the Trinity of Carnatic music, the “Vishnu duo of Hindustani music” - Vishnu Digambar Paluskar and Vishnu Narayana Bhatkhande were the 19th-century pioneers. They set up initiatives to streamline the Hindustani music practices. Before their contribution, Hindustani music was scattered across various gharanas and out of reach for many aspirants to learn music.

Gharanas initially concentrated in Delhi had gradually taken wing and spread across North India and enjoyed the patronage of wealthy kings in whose courts many Hindu and Muslim musicians sang. Most Gharanas demanded their students stay within the Gharana or in its vicinity and learn music from the Ustad or Guru through an oral tradition. While this led to each Gharana developing its distinct style and contributing immensely to the beauty and innovation of Indian classical music, some common problems arose in the form of knowledge being passed over secretively and often selectively to the Guru's son or star student.

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The Vishnu duo organized music conferences and concerts outside the court halls of the kings and wrote books on music, including developing a standard notation system to make musical knowledge more accessible to seekers and practitioners of music education.

Vishnu Digambar Paluskar, despite losing his vision at a young age, emerged as a talented musician and, in 1901, opened a music school called “Gandharva Mahavidyalaya” in Lahore. He helped foster a movement of music learning away from the closed Gharana system and distributed musical knowledge through his books.

Source: Wikipedia, Original here.

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, a contemporary to Vishnu Digambar, researched extensively by visiting many musical Gharanas collecting and comparing compositions and came up with a monumental treatise called “Hindustani Sangeeta Paddhati,” which suggested categorisation of ragas based on their notes into various “Thaats.”

Source: Wikipedia, Original here.

The Modern Maestros

These pioneers paved the way for the future generations of many modern musicians to pursue music more professionally and popularize it through their performances worldwide. Though many contemporary musicians have mastered and made their mark in India few have taken Indian music to the international stage. Notable flag bearers amongst such international masters are Sitar Pandit Ravishanker, Gayani MS Subbalakshmi, Venu Mahalingam, Veena Eemani Shankara Shastri, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, Gayaka Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna, Shehnai Bismillakhan, Bansuri Hariprasad Chaurasia, Tabla Zakir Hussain, to name a few. At the same time, international music beans spilled into Indian music in the form of a few modern musical trends and western instruments like violins and guitars.

An adroit odyssey to eternity Thus the age-old multimillennial tradition of Indian music made its mega-voyage through various coercive eras, donning their conspicuous colours without ever severing its concealed core culture. Despite having to pass through major crossing roads like the Persian music of the Islamic world and the Western music of the Christian world, its journey continued straight ahead without getting diverted off the course.

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The saga of the ragas is a melodic medley of piety with divinity and beauty with serenity; adroitly pedalling its odyssey towards the destiny of eternity…

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LORES OF SARUS: A BIRD THAT ENTHRALLED INDIA

By Ishan Singhal Source: Paul Bransom in An Argosy of Fables, 1921

SALUTATIONS TO LIFE-FORMS A common theme across value systems in India, whether it be in Buddhism, Hinduism or Jainism, has been the recognition of a lifeforce that is greater than individual species.

This is through similar ideas of ahimsa, reincarnation and karma. All lifeforms (animals, birds, plants) are treated equal to human life forms. Gods, deities and tirthankaras in all Indian traditions have been regularly depicted with vahanas that symbolize and portray their traits. Such depictions not only allow for illustrating characteristics of an individual but also bring out the nature and temperament of nonhuman lifeforms. A great example of this is perhaps Garuda. Known by different names in different subcultures, the bird Garuda has universally symbolized nobility, duty, dharma and military prowess.

more have all prominently featured in ageold stories and paintings alike. Let’s look at symbolisms from a majestic bird that is etched into our culture. This is a bird whose iconography was extremely instrumental to its story and perhaps underappreciated in today’s time.

THE MAGNIFICIENT SARUS I talk here of Sarus cranes. This bird in itself is magnificent, being the tallest flying bird in the world, growing up to nearly 180 cm in height (yes, that is as tall as me!). Sarus cranes are best known for loud trumpeting calls and elaborate dances often performed with their life-long mates. Over the ages, Sarus cranes have become synonymous with ideas of marital fidelity, unconditional love and togetherness. It might surprise you to know that the oldest reference to the Sarus comes from the first verse of Ramayana.

SARUS IN RAMAYANA In many cultures even in other countries of Asia, the watchful Garuda symbolizes the one who governs and brings about order.

Bird iconography in Indian culture is recurrent and ancient. Doves, mynahs, parrots, peacocks, owls, crows and so many

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A keen reader may already pick up on the fact that the first verse of Ramayana is also perhaps the genesis of the Sanskrit slokas.

The story goes as follows. The sage Valmiki is walking along the banks of the river Tamasa (in present-day Prayagraj). Here he comes across two cranes completely

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mā niṣāda pratiṣṭhāṁ tvamagamaḥ śāśvatīḥ samāḥ yat krauñcamithunādekam avadhīḥ kāmamohitam Loose translation: “Oh hunter, may you repent for life and suffer, find no rest or fame, for you have killed one of the unsuspecting, devoted and loving krauñcha couple.” engrossed, singing and dancing around each other. Valmiki himself gets drawn in admiration of these birds. Unbeknownst to Valmiki and the birds, a hunter suddenly shoots an arrow killing a bird. Valmiki overcome with sorrow by the mourning shrieks of the Sarus’s partner, curses the hunter. This curse is uttered as a verse by Valmiki and forms the basis of the metered verse-form telling of the Ramayana henceforth.

Of many interpretations since, one of them points to this story as foreshadowing the themes of Ramayana itself. The tragedy of being taken away from one’s partner is foretold in the very first verse. Valmiki’s first sloka captures the lamentation of witnessing the suffering and separation of true love. The weaving of Ramayana’s story begins with insurmountable pain and loss of unconditional love. Ever since, Sarus cranes have been revered across the world as symbols of love and are depicted on Indian embroidery, handicrafts, paintings, carvings and even modern postal stamps. In fact, in some parts of India, a newly wed couple are asked to visit and witness a Sarus pair in song, as an exemplar of the commitment and love they promise each other. While for others, like the Gondi people of Telangana, Sarus is a sacred bird that is worshipped.

BUDDHA'S BIRDS The legendary folklore of the Sarus crane also finds its place in Buddha’s life. Before attaining enlightenment, the young prince Siddhartha

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once came across an injured Sarus crane (shot at by his cousin Devdatta). Siddhartha, himself then only a young boy, nursed the injured bird back to health, arguing later for releasing the bird in the jungles of Lumbini (Nepal). Devdatta contested that it belonged to him since he had shot the bird with arrow.

Siddhartha and Devdatta’s argument escalated all the way to the King’s court.

Here is where he convinced the royal court that hunters could not claim ownership over lifeforms and that the Sarus belonged to the jungles and not to Devdatta. Today, there are conservation sites for these cranes in Nepal where they are fondly called Buddha’s birds.

INDIAN THOUGHT Situating life on equal footing, no matter its form, is a common principle in all of Indian religious and philosophical thought. The many characteristics and personalities of the Sarus crane developed in art forms and stories is a great testament to it. The lores of these cranes is a reminder of how rich and temperamental life is around us. For millenniums the Sarus crane has stood as a symbol of eternal love, devotion and companionship that their stories have been pervasive across all of India and its cultural ethos.

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Who moved my cheese?

While you were busy reading this edition of Tarang, a lot has happened around the world. The stock markets have gone tizzy, rich have gotten richer, social media and netizens have gone nuts about more 'breaking' news, the pandemic has spread further and further, our 'leaders' haven't been able to agree on what's immediate and urgent, and collectively as a species we have marched ahead as though there is no tomorrow.

Somethings have remained the same though - the Sun has risen again, the countless stars continue to twinkle merrily and this earth, our beautiful home, continues to slowly go about her walk around the golden orb.

Surely there will be a tomorrow. And with your support and love, there will also be a fresh edition of Tarang for everyone to savour. Who needs cheese anyway?

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About Us Founded in 2005 by Guru Violin Vasu and friends, the mission of Sanskriti Foundation is to promote Indian art, culture, and values by conducting trainings, workshops and an annual Tyagaraja Aradhana music festival. Foundation members benefit from meeting like minded people, attending cultural seminars and attending bi-monthly concerts.

If you would like to learn more and become a member, you can reach us here: http://www.sanskritifoundation.in.

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