‘Pann and raga go hand in hand’

We may give it any name, but at the end of it all, it is only Tamil Music

Sudharani Ragupathy

Through the 30 days of Margazhi, you hear the sublime verses of pasuram in temples, homes and sabhas. Kidambi Narayanan’s lec-dem — ‘Pannum Padalum,’ — held at Ethiraja Kalyana Mandapam, Alwarpet, captured the spirit of the season. He took listeners through the pages of Tamil literature as he delved into Azhwars’ paasurams and Nayanmars’ thevarams. The spiritual and musical significance of these classics were well-explained by him with M. Shrikanth (violin) and Srivatsan (vocal) ably supporting him in the exercise. Talking about pann , Narayanan drew a visual with words of how one can experience it in almost everything — the dawn, veena strings, tunes of the pungi, bells of cows or elephants.

Lyrebird, known for its stunning vocal abilities, mimicking human voices and musical instruments was chosen as an example. He also touched upon the effects of music on babies and plants.

“Our ancestors understood the moods of life and linked

pann (ragas) to them based on emotions.” Quoting the verses of Ilango Adigal, from Silapadhikaram, he said,

pann denotes ‘formation’ and that music emerged from eight places (in eight positions) of the human body. He highlighted several references to

pann in the pre-Sangam and Sangam literature, right from Tholkappiyam.

The audience was given a glimpse of the five panns — kurinji, mullai, marudham, neidhal and paalai — and how they capture the characteristics of the landscapes they represent. On types of

pann , he said, “R.V. Poduval, Director of Archealogy, Travancore, in his book has mentioned that Yappilakkanam , an ancient literature, talks about 1,191 different types of panns while Arivanaar, author of Pancha Marabhu records that there are 103 types.”

He referred to Naalaayira Divyaprabandham (4,000 hymns) rendered by Azhwars and the panns . Azhwars and Nayanmars used pann to express their bhakti. Of the 4,000 pasurams by Azhwars, pann and ragas were available for Nammazhwar’s Thiruvoimozhi and Thirumangai azhwar’s periya thirumozhi. He narrated at this juncture an interesting story of how Nammazhwar, unable to bear the separation of Lord Narayana, imagined himself as the paraankusa nayaki, (the Lord’s love) and expressed through pann, the longing to meet him and the disappointment for the Lord not showing up. Panns

He further elaborated the usage of

pann in Thiruppavai by quoting some of the verses from Andal Nachiyar’s hymns – Paarkadalul Paiya thuindra Paramanadi Paadi…

Ongi Ulagalandha Uthaman Paer Paadi...

Vaayinal Paadi Manathinal Sindhikka…

Mugilvannan Paer Paadi…

pann

When asked about the link between pann and music, veteran dancer Sudharani Raghupathy said “ Pann do not stop with music; they go beyond it but do not necessarily form a part of dance. It was used in Yazhisai and Grantham mozhi, but is said to have lost its importance after the advent of Sanskrit.”

“I came to know about pann when I referred to a few Tamil works while presenting the ‘Navasandhi Kavuthuvam’, which is in praise of Ashtadikbalakars. I also learnt that pann represent harmony and melody and could be compared to Greek music. I have heard of Thakkesi pann , mentioned in Vayu Stuti, which speaks of the equivalent raga, Khambodi and Varuna Stuti, which has been actually rendered in Nadanamkriya and is now sung in Varali.”

Vocalist Dr. Ganesh , who also presents namasankirtanam, said most of his concerts include Tamil works such as Thirumurai and Thevaram as a warm up to the rendition of kritis. This, he explained, was one way of taking the works of Appar, Sundarar and Manickavachagar to the rasikas. As with Narayanan, Ganesh too felt that the hymns in the pann format are delivered in a particular raga, which is set to express a specific emotion. “Researchers have identified certain ragas that are equivalent to these panns . This helps us strike a chord with rasikas.”

To popularise these ancient works, Ganesh is getting trained under K.R. Easwaran, an odhuvar , who is also well-versed in the vedas and panmurai. According to Ganesh, more than kutcheris, namasankirtanams have a wider scope. For, artists can deviate from the structured format ( pann ) to render verses in any raga in the latter. “The Thirunerisai Pann was set to Abhogi , but I can deliver it in any raga to make it more appealing.”

“Thevaram, Thiruvachagam and Thiruppugazh need to be popularised by rendering them in ragas, instead of choosing a p ann . It is quite unfortunate that we need to rely on odhuvars to render the verses,” said Ganesh.