A Comparative Study of Some of the Leading Music Systems of the 15th, 16th, 17th & 18th Centuries c6.s2: Vikrita Swaras

A Comparative Study of Some of the Leading Music Systems of the 15th, 16th, 17th & 18th Centuries c6.s2

Language: English

Vikrita Swaras

c6.s2.1

c6.s2.2

N. B.—The positions of these swaras will explain themselves better when we examine their places on the vina frets.

c6.s2.3

The Vina of Pundarika was almost the same as our modern Vina, the wires and frets on both being placed and tuned alike. In the following verses, Pundarika describes the way he tuned the wires of his vina and placed his frets under them :—

c6.s2.4

लक्ष्यप्रवीणेन विनिर्मितायां ।
सुवीणिकायामुपरि प्रदेयाः ॥
तंत्र्यश्चतस्रोऽथ स एव पार्श्वे ।
ऽधो दक्षिणे तिस्र इमा निवेश्याः ॥
पुरोदितानामुपरिस्थितानां ।
वामप्रदेशाश्रितपूर्वतंत्र्याम् ॥
षड्जं विदध्यादथ मंद्रसंज्ञं ।
द्वितीयतंत्र्यामणुमंद्रं च ॥
तृतीयतंत्र्यामपि मंद्रषड्जं ।
चतुर्थतंत्र्यामथ मंद्रमध्यम् ॥
त्रितंत्रिकाणामधराश्रितानां ।

c6.s2.5

माया तु मध्यस्थितपङ्कजेन ॥ तंत्री समानश्च निरोपितव्या । द्वितीयाका मद्रपदेन तद्वत् ॥ तृतीयाका मद्रकयङ्कजेन । निगद्यमुः श्रुतिनामधेयाः ॥

c6.s2.6

This is exactly how our modern musicians tune the wires of their vina. Some of our players put anumandra 'ga' on the first wire in the place of the ancient anumandra 'sa'. The three side wires were then called srutis. We now call them "chikars". Their tuning is immaterial for our purpose here.

c6.s2.7

सारिनिवेशनम् । (The placing the frets) आधानुमद्राद्व्यपङ्कजंतव्या । शुद्धा यथा स्यादुपमस्तथाया ॥ सारी निवेशयेत तथा द्वितीया । तथ्या तया शुद्धमिदंहेतोः ॥ सारी तृतीयापि तथैव तंत्या । धीयेत साधारणगस्य तिप्ये ॥ सारी चतुर्थी लघुमध्यमस्य । मिर्थ तया तंत्रिकया तथैव ॥ तथ्या तयी पंचमारिका च । निधीयते शुद्धमधाधनाय ॥ सारी निवेश्या च तथैव षष्ठा । तथ्या तथैव लघुपाव्हयाय ॥

c6.s2.8

The purport of these verses can be best followed with the help of the following vina chart.

c6.s2.9

c6.s2.10

Here a question will naturally be asked — Where are the frets for antara 'ga' and kakali 'ni' which two notes are also recognised by Pundarika among his vikritas? In fact without them, there would be only five vikritas and not seven. The author anticipates the question and answers it thus —