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Home , Doha (poetry), Keshavdas, Ram Charan (guru), Raskhan, Raslila, Satasai

PAPER 5

DANCE, POETS AND POETRY, RELIGIOUS PHILOSOPHY AND

MODULE 24 - AND REETIKAL POETRY

It is said that when danced his divine dance on the hood of the defeated serpent Kaliya, various mnemonic sounds emanated from Krishna's feet like Ta, Thai, Tat, etc. which formed the building blocks of Kathak. Krishna is also known as "Natwar"; hence these sounds came to be known as Natwari. What is more, the Kathak dance mnemonics are intertwined into the text of the poetry of the ashtachhap kavis. That these poets were deeply entrenched in the allied arts of music and dance is suggested by the fact that employed as many as 36 different Ragas and Raginis and one of

Surdas’ padas mentions “ karat ughatata sangeet pada / नत्ृ म कयत उघटत संगीत ऩद”.

The great glory of this age of poetry, which incidentally coincided with the Elizabethan age of English literature, is Tulsidas. He and Surdas between them are held to have exhausted the possibilities of the poetic art. There was a time when the common man could not understand the as it was in . It was Tulsidas who simplified it, by translating it into the language of the common people, and made the divine epic accessible to all. Tulsidas is considered to be one of the greatest of the of . He is considered to be one of the most famous

1 representatives of the Bhakti school of . His literary work was most impressive. He was a Sanskrit scholar, but he is known for his works in Awadhi (A dialect of ). He was particularly known for his "Tulsi-Krita Ramayan / तुरसी-कृ त याभामण ", this is also known as "Ramacharitamanasa / याभचरयतभानस". The popular legend has it that he was helped in this process by none other than , who not only advised him to write it, but to do so in Chitrakoot. It is also believed in popular lore that Hanuman himself came to his aid each time Tulasidas faltered because he wanted the tale of his master to be known even in this age, and so he supported its retelling in the language of the people. In 1976, the Kathak

Kendra presented a ballet called “Katha Raghunath Ki / कथा यघुनाथ की”, choreographed by Pt. , that was based on excerpts from the “Ramacharitamanas” and other writings of Tulsidas.

The song “Thumak Chalat Ramchandra / ठु भक चरत याभचंद्र” is one of the best known poems of Tulsidas. The Kathak queen Sitara was well known for her rendering of the song, that she continued even when she was in her eighties, and it was believed by many that none could do it better than her. Devi’s style of unabashed dancing gelled well with the thumak oriented dance of little Ramachandra. It remains as one of the most popular songs in the repertoire for young children. But there was more to Tulsidas than a close association with the Ramayan. In all, he composed twenty two major literary works in his lifetime. He is also well known for his “ / हनुभान चारीसा”. Even the Hanuman Chalisa has become a subject for enactment by Kathak dancers as was choreographed on the students of the Shobhaniya Kala Kendra, drawing inspiration from Chandigarh

2 based Jaipur Gharana dancer, Shobha Koser. Even “Gaiye ganpati jag vandan / गाइए गणऩतत जग वंदन” is a Tulsidas composition. Many dancers like the Benaras gharan duo, Nalini and Kamalini use it as the refrain that they then enrich with the elaborate Ganesh Parans that are the highlight of the Benares and Jaipur gharanas. Tulsidas wrote in a very poetic, lucid and expressive style while remaining scholarly; with subtle and enriching ‘bhava’ infusing the ‘padas’. Devotion and Reverence are the over-riding rasas permeating his writings. Pune based Kathak dancer Sonali Chakraverti did an entire performance called “Discovering Tulsidas through Kathak” that took you though the highlights of the story- starting with the Ganesh Vandana and concluding with “

Sukhdai / याभ चयण सुखदाइ” in Bhairavi. Pune based senior Kathak dancer, Roshan Datye used tulsidas’s composition known as the

Ardhanari Natesshwar Pad / अधधनायी नटेश्वय ऩद in her work based on the condition of the environment, to show that traditionally we had a far more sensitive and respectful view of the environment, linking it to the gods and their aspirations and powers. The words of the pada are “Dekho dekho banyo, aaj umakant, maano dekhan aaye reet .” Tulsidas died in about 1623 in Asighat in .

It may be noted that the period of middle Hindi, begins with the reign of the emperor Akbar (1556-1605) and it is not improbable that his sympathy with his Hindu subjects, and the peace which his organization of the empire secured had an important effect on the great development of Hindi poetry which now set in. Akbar's court was itself a centre of poetical composition, and Sanskrit works were translated into Persian. The court musician Tansen is still renowned, and many verses composed by him in the emperor's name survive to this day. Akbar's favourite minister and companion, Raja Birbal, was

3 a musician and a poet, and held the title of Kabi-Ray, or poet laureate. His verses and witty sayings are still popular in northern India. Other nobles of the court were also poets, among them the Khan-khanan, Abdur-Rahim, whose dohas and kavitts are still esteemed, and Faizi, brother of the annalist Abul-Fazl.

By this time the worship of Krishna as the lover of (Radha- Vallabh) had been systematized, with its chief habitation at , near . It was here that Vallabhacharya had lived and where lived his son Vitthalnath who succeeded him in the Pushti marg, in 1530.it is believed that Swami Haridas went to Vithalnath to seek permission for the enactment of the . Swami Haridas himself wrote poetry that seemed to be describing Kathak-“Adbhut gati upajat, ati nrittat, doyu mandal kunwar kishori, sakal sugandh ang bhari bhori piya nrittat muskan mukh mori, pari rambhan ras rori / अतु गतत उऩजत , अतत नत्ृ तत , दोमु भण्डर कु वय ककशोयी , सकर सुगंध अंग बयी बोयी पऩमा न्रुत्तत भुस्कान भुख भोयी, ऩयी य륍बण यस योयी.” Despite popular perception, the Raslila is not just the enactment of the , but an enactment of all the lilas- ‘Janamlila’, ‘Kamsabadh ’ ‘Udhavalila’ and others, culminating in the ‘Rasalila’. For many years now, presents a Maharaslila at the Birla Mandir in on the occasion of Sharad purnima. Uma Sharmas’ interest in the Rasalila grew when she began visiting and met the renowned Rasadharai Ladlisharan ji and Nandan ji. Inspired by them she made a study of the poetry that is employed by them and the nritta pieces. These she incorporates in her dance separately. From collections of beautiful poetry found in the Raslila tradition and the writings of other Braj poets, she has created special thematic presentations like “Shree Radhe”. She also presents the art of the Rasadahris as part of the larger Maharaslila.

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Scholar Trigunayat wrote her doctoral thesis for Bhatkhande sangeet vidyalaya on “Vrajbhasha ke krishan bhakti sahitya mein kathak nritya ki taakniki shabdavali ka vivechan / व्रजबाषा के किष्ण बक्तत साहहत्म भᴂ कथक नत्ृ म कक तकतनकी श녍दावरी का पववेचन ”. The character of “Hindi” literature, during this period, grew and flourished through its own original forces. Founded by a popular and religious impulse comparable to that which, nearly 1,600 years before, had produced the doctrine and vernacular literature of Jainism and Buddhism, and cultivated largely by non- authors, it was the legitimate descendant in spirit, as Hindi is in speech, of Prakrit literature. Entirely in verse, it adopted and elaborated Prakrit metrical forms, and carried them to a high pitch of perfection. It employed a variety of languages, including an indefinable mixture of languages that was called ‘Sadhukadi / साधुकड़ी’, reflecting the bowl of the mendicant that contained whatever he was offered in the day, all mixed up. It was a period of giving and taking, not just of new ideas, but lingual impulses, musical genres and dance forms. Most of the poetry that was used for dance was ‘saguna / सगुण’ poetry, and though and Nanak were popular, their poetry was not used then for dance. Subsequently, the inclusive nature of kathak is such that in the twentieth century, even

‘nirgun bhakti / तनगुणध बक्तत’ poetry found use in Kathak. based Ashim Bandhu Bhattacharya has used the poetry of Nanak as an invocation or abhinaya piece. Several dancers do use nirgun poets for the invocation, and to set the mood, with the grandeur of abstract movements. Anurekha Ghosh, based in the United Kingdom, and disciple first of Pratap Pawar and then Nahid Siddiqui is one of them. In their choreography called “Colours of

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Fire”, Anirudh and Vidhi Lal used the following by Kabir to suggest the red colour-“Laali mere laal kee, jit dekhun tit laal laali dekhan mein gayee, mein bhee ho gayi laal / रारी भेये रार कक, क्जत देख ं ततत रार , रारी देखन भै गमी , भै बी हो गमी रार ”. Rajendra Gangani’s disciple, Bharati Dang, trained in Kathak of the Jaipur Gharana and folk dance has created a ballet called “Kabir” for her Subha Dance Company, using both classical Kathak and folk dance elements. Kathak dancer Dr. Vidhi Nagar also created a ballet production- “Kabir- the Weaver” using the poetry of Kabir. For the kabir festival in 2015, dancer, Sanjukta Wagh, explored the poetry of

Kabir through Kathak in her piece “Bheetar Bahar/बीतय फहाय” as did Krishna’s disciple Rajendra Chaturvedi, who along with his troupe performed the finale of the Kabir Festival in in 2011.

One of Akbar’s navratans or nine gems was Abdur Rahim Khan – e - Khana, famous for his dohaas or two line couplets. Abdul Rahim Khan –e - Khana, was Prince Salim’s tutor, but did not support his rebellion against Akbar. After Akbar;s death, he was stripped from his positions in court and expelled from his kingdom. As Rahim was of spiritual bent of mind he lived out his life with dignity. His well known doha is “Bada hua toh kya hua, jaise ped khajoor, panchi ko chaya nahi, phal lage aati dur….. / फड़ा हुआ तो तमा हुआ, जैसे ऩेड़ खज य, ऩंछी को छामा नहीं , पर रागे अतत दय ....”. Another one is Rahiman dhaga prem ka, mat todo chhitkay, toote se phir na jurre, jurre ghat padi jaaye / यहहभन धागा प्रेभ ,का भत तोड़ो तछटकेम, ट टे से कपय ना जुड़े, जुड़ े घट ऩड़ी जामे .” These dohas are too short to dance to, but for a long time there has been a tradition in Kathak of using a doha to start a composition, or insert it at a critical point. This

6 was something that was part of the way the kathavachaks and the tawaifs also handled their art.

Bhakti poetry covered a wide range of styles, and, at its best, expressed a rich variety of human feelings. Above all it is genuinely popular. To this day this poetry is carried about everywhere by wandering minstrels, and have found their way to the hearts of the people. A period of artifice and reflection followed, when many works were composed dealing with the rules of poetry and the analysis and the appropriate language of sentiment. Especially famous is Keshavdas a Brahman of , who flourished in the reigns of Akbar and Jahangir, in the state of . Keshavdas hailed from a family that had been recognized for its literary contributions in Sanskrit, but he wrote in . This was unusual for a poet who was in the court setting. But Keshavdas was not alone in leaving behind Sanskrit as is evident from the success of the Bhakti poets, who produced the new vernacular devotional works that abandoned Sanskrit, which had been the traditional language of religion and of the . Yet their songs were sung communally rather than in isolation. A large part of the success of Keshavdas can be attributed to the paradox that he used the Sanskrit tradition in his vernacular poetry. The rise to significance of Keshavdas was also influenced by the politics of the time. The Mughal Empire held sway in the area, with Orchha being a tributary state. The tributary rulers asserted their remaining power through cultural channels, and Keshavdas continued to be associated with Orchha's court. His best known works are the three anthologies of poems –“Rasikpriya / यससकपप्रमा” (1591), “Ramchandrika / याभचक्रद्रका” (1600) and “Kavipriya / कपवपप्रमा” (1601). The Rasikapriya classifies heroes and heroines in different stages of maturity or experience and describes their varying reactions to

7 similar situations. Most of the attention is given to the reactions of heroines, who are cleverly analyzed in circumstances caused by Krishna every time, as a very aggressive lover, and often a philanderer. The episodes involve not only the hero and heroine (Krishna and Radha) but her female companions, or sakhis, as well. They serve as confidantes and messengers for the lovers. Keshavdas describes 360 circumstances of love. He composed the work to entertain his patron, the Raja of Orchha. Kavipriya is on the laws of poetry and the Ramchandrika is an abridged translation of the Ramayana in 30 sections. Rasikpriya has been danced by Kathak dancer Neera Batra in a beautifully conceived programme. Keshav Das’ poetry was the pioneering work of the Reetikal of , when the erotic element became predominant. This era is called Riti (meaning 'procedure') because it was the age when poetic figures and theory were developed to the fullest, and poetry was a carefully crafted and a mannered activity. But this emphasis on poetry theory greatly reduced the emotional aspects of poetry—the main characteristic of the —and the actual content of the poetry became less important. Although most Reeti works were outwardly related to Krishna Bhakti, their emphasis had changed from total devotion to the Supreme Being to the Shrinagrik or erotic aspects of Krishna's life—his Leela, his pranks with the , and the description of the physical beauty of both Radha and Krishna became prominent. Most of the Reeti kaal poetry was written to please the ruler, and divided the intensity of the bhakti. Another important Reetikal poet was Matiram who’s “Rasraj” was written to please the rulers of the Kangra court. The unique aspect of the Reeti kaal poetry is the fact that though it was not as popular as the bhakti poetry, it spawned entire albums of miniature paintings based on the work that saw radha and Krishna as lovers rather than

8 as being divine beings. Both “Rasikpriya” and “Rasraj / यसयाज” were illustrated in paintings.

The Reeti kaal poetry had a precursor in the poetry of / th th पव饍माऩतत. Vidyapati wrote in the 14 and 15 centuries and was known as the Cuckoo of Maithili / भैथथरी. The fundamental difference is that Vidyapati wrote poetry for himself and not in response to state sponsorship. In his writings, Vidyapati carried forward the line of sensual Vaishnav love poetry like Jayadev’s 12th century “Geet Govind”. This tradition which uses the language of physical love to describe spiritual love, Vidyapatis; poetry has been explored in Kathak dance by Uma Sharma, Shovana Narayan, Rashmi Vajpeyi and Shikha Khare. Shikha Khare composed her work on Vidyapati’s poetry in 2013, on the occasion of a performance for the Maithili- Bhojpuri Academy in Delhi.

Another titanic of the Reeti kaal poetry was Bihari (1595–1664). When Raja Jai Singh heard of the poet Bihari at the Mughal court, he invited him to Amber. There he asked him to present a couplet each day for which he was awarded a gold coin. Eventually 700 such couplets were written by Bihar that were collated into an anthology. The Satasai (Satsai) or Bihari Satsai (Seven Hundred Verses of Bihari) is a famous work of the early 17th century, in Braj bhasha, that contains dohas or couplets, neetis or morals and Shingara or love. It is regarded as an important work of the Reeti Kaal and is also celebrated in miniature paintings, where the Kangra portfolio is probably the best known. In the Satsai he used alamkaras from the sanskrit poetic traditions, elements of Prakrit poetry, features of the Bengal school of and also certain aspects of Persian poetry, which had already begun to leave a deep mark on the courtly scenario. The fact that these poems were poetically rich, reflected

9 the envisioning of Radha and Krishna, and referred repeatedly to the idea of vision or seeing, suggests the logic of employing them in dance. Among the dancers who explore poetry in depth is Shovana Narayan. In 1980 she created a work based on the Flute- "Ney: " on the occasion of the Bansuri Festival, Kamani, organised by the Raag Rang society of Naina Devi. In that Shovana wove in poems of Bihari as a representation of Vaishnavism parallels to the Sufi poetry of Rumi. Hence ney, which Rumi described as the eternal sound of the flute that we hear long after the flute has stopped playing. The historical period of Bihari was a time of increased contact between the two main religious communities of and Muslims. This along with the fact that Biharis writings were supported by one of the foremost Hindu nobles of the Mughal court, resulted in Biharis writings being outwardly a Hindu work, the Satsai embodies much that is Mughal in spirit. Another poet from the Reetikaal period was Padmakar, or Padmakar Bhatt as his full name was. Padmakar, born in 1753, belonged to a family of scholars, poets and litterateurs, for which reason his family was called 'Kavishwar / कपवश्वय'. They were patronized by the courts of Panna, Gwalior, Bundi, Udaipur, and Jaipur. His work marks the continuation of raas and rhetoric. He was a scholar of ritishastra

/ यीतीशास्र, and an excellent writer who wrote on the topics of bravery, love and devotion, and produced work as per the demands of his patrons. He had an exceptional command over Hindi language. His expressions were mostly lively, natural, realistic and sweet, in fact appropriate to the context. As a typical writer of the period, Padmakar mostly wrote about the Krishna's life emphasizing more on the Shringaric aspects, his leelas, his relation with the Gopis and the physical description of the beauty of Radha. His dohas or couplets were predominantly about Bhakti and Shringaar which means love towards Lord Krishna and Radha. His works contain references to

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British rule which he considered ominous and hoped would be reversed. He passed away in the year 1833. Some of the famous works of Padmakar are “Jagadwinod / जगदपवनोद”, “Padmabharan / ऩबयण”, “Prabodh Pachasa / प्रफोध ऩचासा ”, “Himmatbahadur Virudawali / हह륍भतफहादयु पव셁दावरी“ Vaar Pachisi / वाय ऩथचसी” and “Ganga-Lahari / गंगा-रहयी”. Padmakar was one of those poets that the contemporary generation of dancers of the Raigarh gharana explored in the spirit of regional jingoism. Dr. Vijaya Sharma, an exponent of the Raigarh gharana, and discipkle of Pts. Kartik Ram and Ramlal, dances the poetry of Padmakar often, as does Moghe from Jabalpur, a disciple of Pt. Kartik Ram and Ramlal of the Raigarh gharana. Rashmi Vajpeyi, a very senior disciple of Pt. Birju Maharaj is also a dancer who has used the poetry of Padmakar, as has Jaipur Gharana’s Prerana Shrimali. Prerana has pursued her exploration of poetry an art that she is very fond of, by working on the poetry of Meera Bai's, specially in the context of the social milieu that governs the ethos of the people of . Keshavdas’ and Padmakar's poetry has also been studied and worked on by her. Prerana’s treatment of Padmakar’s poem is unforgettable, as she depicted Radha with the palm of the dand and Krishna with the back of the same hand suggesting the change in character by the change in the colour.

Very often dancers use a varied selection of poems from these Bhakti and Reeti kaal poets to show a spectrum of images and moods around the worship, love and bhakti of Krishna. For instance, Aurangabad based Kathak dancer Parwati Dutta, disciple of Pt. Birju Maharaj, often performs a suite of Padas of Padmakar, Raskhan, Tulsidas. These allow for abhinaya to rarer and infrequently seen compositions.

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