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Music is more than just notes on instruments and voices heard across microphones. It is a way of release. Music can speak directly to the soul and put you on cloud 9 without even trying too hard. There is a legend that the great King Akbar's musician Tansen once sang the raaga Deepak and lit a lamp. People have been heard of who brought rain down on the scorched and barren earth using music.
This is a story about music- Indian classical music to be precise and the raaga Todi to be exact.
Back when tigers used to smoke, there was a guru and his pupil. From a very young age this pupil had been learning with his guru. He first learnt the basics- the sargam and then moved on to raagas. This art form demanded a lot from a person. Long hours of practice were a must and often, people in this trade used to play till their fingers bled. People had been known to miss meals and practice, such was the dedication to their art. But then again, all art demands a certain amount of tenacity and why should one of the oldest art forms be any different?
On the day our story begins, the guru asked his pupil to render the raaga Todi. The pupil begins the first part called the alap. The guru doesn't speak. He listens. By the time the pupil has reached the end of the final part, the guru has a strange look on his face. He then instructs his pupil to do exactly what he says.
“You must go home, take a bath and put on a clean dhoti. Then, keep a round vessel filled with water in the centre of the room and take up the tanpura. Start playing Todi, exactly like you played it here. However, once you start playing, do not stop till the raaga is complete.”
The pupil nods once and returns to his home. He places the tanpura in the corner of the room where it stands and then takes a bath. He puts on a clean dhoti and takes a round vessel. He fills this vessel with water and places it in the centre of the room. The water is absolutely still. He then takes the tanpura from the corner.
The pupil sits on the floor in front of the vessel and starts the alap of the raaga. After a few minutes of playing, he notices that the water in the vessel is moving. Unable to believe his eyes, he almost stops playing. He remembers his guru's last instruction however and goes on playing.
As he plays, the water starts to move in rhythm to the music. It is almost as if someone is dancing to the tune of the raaga. Unable to understand what is happening and yet too scared to stop playing, the pupil silently prays. After a long time, the raaga comes to an end. He then notices that the water slowly stops moving and becomes absolutely still again.
The next morning, the pupil goes back to his guru. HIs guru asks,
“Did you do as I instructed?”
“Yes I did!”, said the pupil and he recounts the entire incident that happened.
Then, his guru smiles and asks, “Did you understand what was happening?”
“No, guruji I did not. I was scared but you had said to not stop playing until the raaga was complete, so I did what you said. But, I do not understand what happened.”
“Yesterday, your audience was God himself”, said the guru. “He came down from the heavens and danced to your music. You can never play Todi ever again.”
Music has power, as this story proves. Sometimes, miracles can be wrought from playing an instrument. Music is joy, it is sorrow, it is peace and it is turmoil. But music is also transcendental. It is just a pulse capable of wonders!
The Bilge Master
