Facebook Twitter Instagram
    India Art Review
    • Dance
    • Music
    • Art
    • Heritage
    • Theatre
    • Books
    • Films
    • Team
    Facebook Twitter Instagram
    India Art Review
    Home»Books»A Blockbuster on Muthuswami Dikshitar
    Books

    A Blockbuster on Muthuswami Dikshitar

    G S PaulBy G S PaulMarch 20, 2021
    Share
    WhatsApp Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Telegram

    Dr V Raghavan’s book, on Muthuswami Dikshitar, youngest of the famed Carnatic trinity, is a comprehensive description of the composer’s musical journey as well as life history. 

    Dr V Raghavan has been a prolific writer whose erudition in music and Sanskrit is non-pareil. His book titled ‘Sri Muttusvami Diksitar, A journey through his life and music’ carries the reader on a musical pilgrimage with Dikshitar to the numerous places and temples on which the legendary musician made his monumental compositions. And as one progresses into the book, one feels the presence of Dr Raghavan as the guide of this tour. The narration is so exhaustive that the description of the journey is replete with anecdotes that make the reading more captivating. Further, they follow a chronological order as well.

    Dr. V Raghavan

    A major part of the first chapter is devoted to introducing Ramaswami Dikshitar, Dikshitar’s father. The author endears him to the readers with the opening sentence that mentions the composition Vatapi Ganapatim “with which most concerts of Carnatic music open”. This is to drive home the point that the raga of the composition Hamsadwani was the creation of Ramaswami Dikshitar. What follows is a biographical sketch of Ramaswami including his musical ingenuity. Among his creations, his magnum opus – Ashtothata sata –raga – tala – malika – a composition in 108 ragas and talas finds mention. After paying visits to many places, he finally settled at Tiruvarur, the location of the famous Thyagaraja Temple. It speaks for his dexterity in both musical and spiritual domains that even today the order and details of music and musical instruments during the varied rituals of the day and even during the festivals and processions in the temple were arranged by Ramaswami Dikshitar. 

    Western music and nottuswaras

    The birth of Muthuswami Dikshitar was a sequel to his parents’ observing austerities before Muthukumara Swami at Govindapuram in Thanjavur district. Hence the relevance of the prefix Muthuswami in his name. They were also blessed with his siblings Chinnaswami, daughter Balamba and Baluswami.

    An itinerant musician that Muthuswami was, all the places and temples he visited and the deities in each find a detailed description in the book. The stay at Manali was significant as it brought Muthuswami in contact with the British band.

    Baluswami’s exploits in violin took place here. Muthuswami’s 37 nottuswaras also were born here. Also, it was from here that a Yogin Chidambaranatha took Muthuswami for a pilgrimage to Varanasi. The author relates a miracle that finally compelled him to receive the mudra Guru Guha during his short stay at Tiruttani. The family continued its journey visiting Kanchi, Tiruvannamalai and Chidambaram and finally returning to Tiruvarur. Ramaswami’s death occurred there in 1817.

    A major portion of Muthuswami’s compositions was born here including the Navaarana and the Navagraha kritis. The inspiration was the Thyagaraja temple and Goddess Kamalamba. As each one is mentioned, the reader gets more and more excited as they are all familiar ones. Interestingly, the list of the neighbouring places, the temples and deities there and the compositions on them is pretty long. The places included Kivalur, Sikkil, Nagapattinam. Mannargudi, Mayuram, Kumbakonam and Tanjavur. It was here that he came into contact with the other two of the Trinity viz. Thyagaraja and Syama Sastri. Another historic meeting was with the Thanjavur brothers who accepted him as their guru. Among them, Ponnayya tried to use the Mela raga names with Kadapayadi prefixes, a list of which, though incomplete, is given. Each of them is connected to a deity as well. Dr Raghavan leaves it to future researchers to complete the list. 

    Compositions on deities

    His journey to Ettayapuram and the historic heavy downpour when he sang the composition Anandamrithakarshani at Sattur, stay at Ettayapuram etc. find a graphic description which the reader is sure to regale himself with. Deities in Kerala temples too fall within this ambit – Ayyappa Swamy, Anantha sayanam and Guruvayurappan. 

    A song that refers to Kerala has a mention of Rakta-Ganapathi and Dr Raghavan says that he could identify its location as Thiruvananthapuram later. Dr Raghavan himself epitomizes the way he has treated Dikshitar, “The best way to give an account of the kritis by Dikshitar is to deal with them around the kshetras visited by him”.

    The author has pointed out that Raga was Dikshitar’s métier, compared to Thyagaraja known for his compositions pregnant with bhava, and the beauty of rhythm prominently experienced in those of Syama Sastri. The 50-page chapter concludes with a summary of the aesthetics of Dikshitar compositions. Raghavan asserts that Dikshitar music was derived from the technique of Vina. A bevvy of compositions is given to corroborate this view.

    The next chapters are devoted to the Dikshitar family tree, a list of the Ettayaputram Maharajas – the patrons of the Dikshitar family – a short piece on Chinnaswami and Baluswami, Subbarama Dikshitar and his famous work of Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini, voluminous description of Dikshitar’s sishya-parampara. While the list of selective discography of Dikshitar kritis runs to several pages, the corpus of Navagraha kritis is given with notations. What follows next is the index of the songs of Dikshitar which is comprehensive and also those of Subbarama Dikshitar.

    Three separate chapters on Muthuswami Dikshitar towards the end of the book appears only as a summary of the previous chapters on his life and works, except the third one which throws light on some other facts too. The concluding chapter on Nottuswara Sahithyas is comprehensive and highly didactic. 

    Published by Dr V Raghavan Centre for Performing Arts (Regd)

    First Edition: January 2021

    Price Rs. 500/-

    Anandamrithakarshani Dr V Raghavan Ettayaputram Maharajas featured Muthuswami Dikshitar Navaarana Navagraha kritis Nottuswara Sangita Sampradaya Pradarshini Subbarama Dikshitar
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Telegram WhatsApp
    Previous ArticleZindagi in Short: A Rare Recipe for Life
    Next Article Western Compositions and Nottuswaras
    GS Paul
    G S Paul

      GS Paul is an eminent art columnist and critic. He has been writing for national dailies such as The Hindu for more than three decades. Currently, he is the Editorial Advisor of India Art Review.

      Related Posts

      Whispers of Rain and Redemption: A Journey Through “What Else Is Rain?”

      March 13, 2025
      Stephen King

      King of the Macabre

      February 23, 2025
      Books

      Serendipity or Not Just Another Sucker

      January 15, 2025

      Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

      Author In Focus VK Karthika

      Pathaan

      Pathaan: A Triumph of Love Over Hate

      V K KarthikaMarch 31, 2023

      Pathaan breaks the typical stereotype of Islamic Terrorism.

      Avatar

      Eastern Ethos Lifts up Cameron’s Avatar Sequel

      V K KarthikaJanuary 31, 2023

      Eastern ethos and laws of the nature are set to get a new tech-driven meaning as Cameron is planning two more sequels.

      Yazh

      Reviving Yazh, the Indian Harp

      V K KarthikaNovember 28, 2022

      Without Tharun, Yazh, an ancient instrument would not have taken birth in modern times

      Tholppavakoothu

      Girl Power up in Puppetry

      V K KarthikaSeptember 30, 2022

      Rajitha Ramachandra Pulavar and her team gave a new meaning to Tholppavakkooth and the body politics went in for a change in 2021

      Nanjiyamma tribal singer of Attappady

      Why the National Award for Tribal Singer Nanjiyamma Matters

      V K KarthikaAugust 27, 2022

      India witnessed a debate on the ‘purity of music’ when tribal singer Nanjiyamma won the National Award.

      EVENTS

      Sooryakanthi festival

      Sooryakanthi Dance Festival From Nov 28- Dec 1

      India Art ReviewNovember 25, 2024

      Memorial Awards and Dance Performances in Chennai

      India Art ReviewNovember 25, 2024

      Tribute to Yamini Krishnamurthy

      India Art ReviewAugust 13, 2024

      Kuchipudi Drama

      India Art ReviewMay 24, 2024

      Have You Read These?

      Youth

      The Fountain of Youth

      Vineeth AbrahamMay 16, 2023

      What will happen when a bookworm set out to clean his library? One of the…

      The Elephant Whisperers

      Poetics of Fostering the Animal: The Elephant Whisperers

      Babu Rajan P PMay 1, 2023

      With the decline of natural habitats, human-elephant conflict has seen a surge, often leaving the majestic creatures as unwitting participants. “The Elephant Whisperers” documentary pays homage to the conservation endeavors aimed at preserving these habitats and raising awareness among communities about the perils of anthropocentrism.

      1899 and the Virtual Studio: Futuristic Filmmaking

      IAR DeskMarch 12, 2023

      1899, the new web series from the creators of German masterpiece Dark, will be filmed entirely in a virtual studio. Here’s all you wanted to know about ‘Volume’ and why it matters to futuristic filmmaking.

      Yazh

      Reviving Yazh, the Indian Harp

      V K KarthikaNovember 28, 2022

      Without Tharun, Yazh, an ancient instrument would not have taken birth in modern times

      A ‘Lyrical Dance’ Tribute to Edassery’s Poem

      G S PaulNovember 8, 2022

      Choreographic ingenuity of Vinitha Nedungadi created alluring visuals of the sublime poetic imagination of Edassery in Anthithiri.

      vijayakumar menon

      Vijayakumar Menon Taught Kerala How to Appreciate Art

      Renu RamanathNovember 3, 2022

      The only wealth Menon amassed during his solitary journey was that of art. When Vijayakumar…

      About
      About

      India Art Review is a dedicated digital journal of art and culture, based in Chennai and with representatives in Kerala, Delhi, the UAE, Canada and the US.

      We're social, connect with us:

      Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn Telegram
      People in Art
      Prince George: Music for all Moods

      Prince George: Music for all Moods

      May 29, 2021
      PhotoMuse: A Museum on Photography and the Art of Living

      PhotoMuse: A Museum on Photography and the Art of Living

      August 19, 2021
      Kanak Rele

      Avant-garde Danseuse Guru Dr Kanak Rele Turns 84

      June 11, 2021
      Valiya Kunjunni Raja: The Less-Hailed Architect of Kalamandalam

      Valiya Kunjunni Raja: The Less-Hailed Architect of Kalamandalam

      November 19, 2020
      Must Reads
      Mangad Natesan

      Remembering Carnatic Musician Mangad Natesan

      May 3, 2024
      P K G Nambiar

      PKG Nambiar(1930-2023): The Man who Redefined the Role of Vidooshaka

      May 10, 2023
      Kanak Rele

      Dr. Kanak Rele (1937-2023): A Revolutionary in Dance 

      February 22, 2023
      Pandit Shivkumar Sharma

      Adieu, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma

      May 10, 2022
      Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube RSS
      • Home
      • About
      Copyright © 2022. India Art Review

      Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.