Musical musings - II

Which is greater - the lyrics or the tune??? pAttukku mettA mettukku pAttA? (Are lyrics for the tune or is the tune for the poetry)

Naturally, many people, barring a few exceptions, get attracted to the tune. The lyrics and their meaning come later. That is why music transcends languages. The tune appeals to the emotions, to which lyrics just seem to give a definite structure. The tune directly touches the heart - lyrics are a matter of the intellect, to which generally, the appeal goes a little later.

With that generic observation at the back of our minds, should we then say that we can modify the lyrics the way it suits us? Would it matter if we said mArayum instead of marayum? It does. Although the sense of tune easily appeals, what gives meaning to a song is the lyrics. Why are they important? There goes a story of Kumbhakarana who wanted to get a boon from Lord Brahma after severe tapas. He wanted nirdEvatvam (that is a state without any dEvas or deities), instead, by the play of Goddess Saraswati, he uttered nidrAvatvam (a state of only sleep). As a result, he slept for 6 months.

The simple side-effect of understanding the lyrics is that it will make us remember the song, otherwise, we might be left only with the tune and say ta-na-na-na, when we have forgotten a particular piece in the anupallavi or charanam.

There is a reason why each akshara in the tune is placed at a particular beat. It makes sense for the tALA - the kAla pramAna. It makes sense to sing it at that beat and not changing it. However traditional it may seem, the pAthAntharam should not be compromised.

So, yes, music is a wave of emotion. However, music is complete only if it appeals at all levels - emotional, intellectual, spiritual. One might say that - sangeetha gnAnamu bhaktivinA? Of what use is the knowledge of music without bhakti? That bhakti should give one the gnAna of understanding the import of the lyrics in the way the composer has envisioned it and experience the spiritual that he/she has brought about in it. Jnana mosaga rAdA? Lord will you not grant me wisdom and understanding?