GURU
Reproduced from post on face book from Wednesday 5 APR 2023
CONTEXT
I am a bit heart-leaning: I can't count to two before finding a moment to dip into my heart for a reason to love the counting. I have resolved it for practical purposes by using restrain while writing in English, and resorting to poetry in Tamil where even unnecessary adjectives and adverbs were stripped to the bone, lest they interfere with what pours out of my heart.
I am also hopelessly devoted to humans and their very many deities, finding a common denominator in Siva, a personification of pure unadulterated அன்பு, a thing of heart that doesn't let the clinical-heart take a pounding. When my சென்டி scale shoots off the scale, my clinical-heart goes to sleep, the reason why I indulge Siva a bit more than he deserves whenever adversities in life give the clinical-heart a pounding. Given the complexities of some of the issues that kept me awake in the past twelve-thirteen years, you can imagine, Siva was, like getting permanent residency in my heart.
There are two main Siva idols in the Sri Venkateswara Temple at Helensburg. The Chandramouleeswarar at the Siva shrine and the Dakshinamoorthy as a relief on the wall facing the Tripurasundari shrine. The Dakshinamoorthy has been very dear to me. Dhakshinamoorthy is the original GURU swaroopam, a personification of GURU, a person who doesn't instruct (tutor), a person who doesn't teach(acharya), but inspires resolution and hence learning with in you by their sheer presence, reiterating the learning comes from within each of us as the Guru watches on. Needless to add, the Dakshinamoorthy at Helensburg had inspired many a resolution over the years, the fact he was a stone statue made no difference in his ability to deliver true to his role, for he wouldn't have done anything different had been a person. (like my husband , and I wouldn't have it another way anyway:)).
As I have written/posted elsewhere, I am humanist, meaning, I believe divinity is limited by the capacity of the given human at a given point in time- and from time to time, my deities will tease me by pushing my heart(the real one) to its brim to exercise their supremacy over my limit, like a stretch goal in your performance reviews to sort out attitudes as opposed to skills.
And I had another such moment recently; hence the post.
POST
The Sri Vnekateswara Temple at Helensburg is celebrating Maha Kumbabishegam, a consecration following significant works, repairs, enhancements, new additions and so on.. not unlike a relaunch of an old classic. As you can imagine the work has been going on for over an year, transparently as devotees continue to use the temple throughout the works. So did we.
On one such visits, after the deeparadanai of Chandramouleeswarar, Tripurasundari and Subramanyar, myself and my husband pradakshinamed the shrines as we made our way to the navagraha, with the intent to pause briefly , as we always did, at the relief housing Dakshinamoorthy. And the relief was empty. My heart(the real one) was stunned, sending the clinical one to shudder. I didn't know I loved my Guru so much, I had to loose him before such realisation. I didn't know what to do, or whom to ask, a million thoughts of desperation flooded my being of the things that are mine, that were deliberately taken away from me(because, you can't derive solution design patterns from inadvertent events which are by definition, inadvertent and not by deliberate design). Finding my voice and vision to spot one of the priests, I asked what happened to Dakshinamoorthy. He answered that as part of the work leading upto the Kumbabishegam, they have removed the idol to change the base with granite as they are with the navagraham. Finding my feet to get to my husband who was half way through the pradakshinam of the navagraham, trying to channel whatever my stunned heart rejected, processing it through what changing the base meant and how it would look. Last Saturday while at the temple, we had saw the beautiful granite bases for Dakshinamoorthy and the navagraham, the Dakshinamoorthy, so it seemed to me, has descended from the walls to the ground. I couldn't, ofcourse help teasing him, it was a bad choice, 'cos, previously I looked up to him for inspiration, and now when I see him in his new position, i stand a whole head above him !!!
The preparation for the maha kumbabishegam has filled me with many a fond memory of the original kumbabishegam of the Siva temple complex, including the recollection of Srimathi Meena Baska, the wife of the current president inspiring me (not unlike a Guru) by spontaneously taking out her jewellery to fill the pit to sthabidam the navagraha idols, a gesture I didn't have the knowledge in temple sasthram to understand, but didn't need to to slip out my kanganam(an ornate gold bangle) and place it in the pit designated to establish Guru, the idol of planet jupitar. It inspired me to write a margam exploring the idea of Guru.
GURU
a margam in Tamil based on my true-life experiences
Padam
Sindu bairavi (set roughly along the notes of the verse "koti namaskaram unakk adu mayile, oru kodi namaskaram unak adu mayile; padi onnai potruginren, adu mayile, adi padi unnai potruginren adu mayile, adi padi padi potruginren adu mayile - a verse from the ragamaligai, adu mayile nitham adu mayile, a song my aunt Jayalakshmi Balasubramanyam taught me as a little girl)
(included above is a skeleton music score - kindly note its is more for indicative purposes of the state of mind I used for composing the poetry, with no technical knowledge in carnatic music.)
எங்கும் உன்னை கண்டிலனே என் ஐயனே
எங்கும் உன்னை கண்டிலேனே
யாருனை பெயர்த்தனரோ சொல்வீர்
யாருனை பெயர்த்தனரோ சொல்வீர்
யாரிடம் கேட்டிடுவேன் என் ஐயனே
யாரிடம் கேட்டிடுவேன்
I can not find you anywhere, my Iyane, I can not find you anywhere.
Who debased you, please tell me, who debased you, whom can I ask my Iyane!
affectionately,
Sumathy Ramesh
Wednesday 5 APR 2023
ALARIPPU
(set roughly along the notes of the phrase "thatheem thatheem thatheem” - in a verse from the ragamaligai, adu mayile nitham adu mayile, a song my aunt Jayalakshmi Balasubramanyam taught me as a little girl)
(included above is a skeleton music score - kindly note its is more for indicative purposes of the state of mind I used for composing the poetry, with no technical knowledge in carnatic music.)
ததீம் ததீம் தத்தீம் தத்தீம்
ததீம் ததீம் தத்தீம் |
தத்தீம் தத்தீம் தத்தீம் தத்தீம் |
தத்தீம் தத்தீம் தத்தீம்
meaning:
ததீம் - the rhythmic syllable, தத்தீம் broken up as தத் + தீம் தத், in sanskrit meaning "that", and தீம் in english meaning "theame" - for the purposes of abinayam, தத்தீம் to express the msg "that is the theame". GURU being the margam, the alarrippu is teasing the audiance to find the meaning/purpose by drawing on their own understanding and seamless integration of multiple perspectives, manifest in multiple languages, each deriving from its own unique and distinct culture in to a coherent experience. The dancer can tease the audience by drawing them into expressing the meaning that is the theame at any prayogam of தத்தீம், and rendering just a rythmic expression of தத்தீம் - not unlike, how Dakshinamoorthy, or any personal deity from any religion for that matter, draws you in and flips you , for you to realise, you have to pay more attention, work hard to learn to pick up the cues of the gestures, learn the artistes bani, to align yourself in unison with with every prayogam of தத்தீம் for complete enjoyment.
Sincerely,
Sumathy
Shabdam- nadanamakriya
(set roughly along the notes of the verse "devathi devan enru” - in the ragamaligai, adu mayile nitham adu mayile, a song my aunt Jayalakshmi Balasubramanyam taught me as a little girl)
ஓயாது கணை தொடுத்து களைத்தேன் ஐயா
ஓயாது கணை தொடுத்து களைத்தேன் ஐயா எந்தன்
வாயார கணை தொடுப்போர் எங்குள்ளரோ
தாயாய் கணை தொடுத்து துவண்ட தோட்களை
சேயாய் எண்ணி துவள்வோர் எங்குள்ளரோ
தந்தான த ன …..