God has bestowed music upon us a gift together with its main fold blessings like a true friend, it enhances our happiness and curtails our sorrows. It pleases and soothes both the rich & the poor, men & women & casts & creeds without distinctions. Our Indian saints such as SURDAS, KABIR , NARSIMH MEHTA, MIRABAI, TUJARAM - to mention but a few have immortalized music by composing their never-to-be forgotten prayer melodies. The sage NARADA has always been described as accompanied with his VEENA which helped him achieve communion with the supreme being. Music has also been associated with our Gods & Goddesses and also the Hindu trinity, the creator, the presence and the destroyer.
"BRAHMAND" the creator's music hum, pervades the universe. The very mention of SHREE KRISHNA'S flute fills the heart of VAISHNAVAS as with rupture. God Shankar with his "DAMARU" has been fumed . "NATRAJ " the king of dancers. SARASWATI the goddess of learning, is never pictured without her VEENA the symbol of music. Great men of vision who have realized that fundamental varieties of life, have already proclaimed on many occasion, that the musical laws govern the entire world and living objects. Musicians are always gifted beings. They are born great with genius and flair about themselves. They do not become great by mere practice. No particular age can be assigned nor any particular theory ascribed to the provenance of music. All theories paint to the conclusion that music is pre-existed language. Before man found language to give utterance to his feelings there must have been what are called the basic emotions of human mind, sorrow and joy of human elation and disappointment. The direct relation of music is not to ideas but emotions. Man is governed by laws of hedonic selection.
Psychologically also every impression must be followed by expression. Without this mind will find no rest. If uneasiness shaped upon uneasiness, everyday and every minute the tension would become too great and ultimately snap; in other words man would go insane unless of course an outlet is found for their impressions. Therefore, there must have been some vehicle to convey the fundamental emotions of mind. This we might call the embryo of music.
According to Dr. Burn in his "History of music" supported the fundamental emotions he expressed that emotions are more or less common to all nationals and tribes.
For example the sound of "Oh" is used to express surprise all over the world whether among the highly civilized or utterly barbarism. Music is the religion of every human being. Music cleanses the understanding inspires it and left it into a realms which it would not reach if it were left to itself. "There is a music in all things if men had ears". If we study the voices of animals in different moods we will not fail to discover the seven principal notes of our music in them. During the sexual selection the voices of animals have been found to evolve into music . Animals possessing no personal charms or magnetism have to dependent entirely on the melody of their voice to attract the female. Though these animals are by nature gifted with enchanting voice they yet employ all their skill and all their powers of enchantment to make the melody of their voice more sweeter, more pleasanter ,more tempting blended into a harmony like the gaudy hues of the rainbow. Every time they invent some new notes, some new track some new trap, such exuberance of notes & sounds . Which have been pounded out by kind nature ever . Since the dawn of life have by gradual evolution- possibly on sexual basis- been, re cultured & re- used by human ingenunity into vocal & instrumental music.
It is presumed that genesis of Hindu music goes back to Vedas. The Vedas are not only the earliest documents which throw light on history of India, but also give an insight into the development of Hindu music and culture. As such there is no theory expounded in the Vedas but the hymns, the rhythm in which these were chanted, the tones in which these were chanted, the tones in which these were recited are of very great importance to the student of subject, for it is these which gradually developed into the regular "SWARAS" of the Hindu music.
The Aryans, the authors of the Vedas, were the worshippers of nature. They eulogized the elements by chanting Hymns, which later on acquired the nomenclature of "Mantras". These Mantras are panegyric adoration address to various gods of Hindu pantheon.
There are several Vedas but "SAMA Veda" is of utmost importance and value to the student of Hindu music is comprising a number of HYMAS chanted by sages in their "SAMGAN" or evening prayers.
The true VEDIC God RUDRA, who after the amalgamation of the VEDIC culture with the Dravidian took the name and form of Shiva has not only played an important role in the development of music but has contributed much to the molding of Hindu culture, religion. The core of the Hindu mind the firmament of Hindu culture is the "OM" the innermost nationality of India. Thus lord Shiva creates a halo around the origin of our music. He is the supposed creators of the threefold art his mystic, dance symbolizing the rhythmic motion of the universe.
India is not a country but a continent divided into several communions . Each, having its own language, custom, tunes with characteristics of its own, as by the nationality of an individual be fixed with this difference that the latter requires a well trained ear to distinguish the tunes, for tunes differ not only from community to community but also from one social custom or function to another . As the nuptial tunes are not the same as the HOLI festival tunes. In course of time these tunes were collected and classified by SHASTRAKARS into RAGA and RAGINI. Thus the SWARAS fixed in the days of yore have been handed down to us and this particular custom of using notes according to the difference of passion or Raga peculiar to Hindu music is technically called "RAGA & RAGINI.
The 'Rasa' or passion is the realization or experience of emotion is a super natural state of mind. Anything that can throw the mind into an ecstatic state is 'Rasa'. The greatest culmination of music lies in the moment which creates the bewitchment of the mind and the generation of Rasa.
Music is the essence of the universe the synthesis of soul, the very breath of God. It is the "OM" of our religion, the food for the appetite of the soul. It cannot be hidebound into any particular age or community or country. It has born & devolved with mankind. Music not only reveals the story of the infancy of the human race but also the dawn & growth of civilization. It provides the missing link between the past and the present.
Death is music, Birth is music and between the Alpha & Omega is the table land of life interwoven in the rhythmical 'SHRUTIS' and melodious notes.
Before I conclude, I wish to express that the basis of our Indian music is devotion and love. Perhaps there is no other sense so perfect, so artistic as the conception of Birth and death- creation & destruction-evolution and revolution. This perhaps was the basis of our classical conception, which our forefathers tried to give shape in the form of the three cardinal deities of our religion, BRAHMA the creator, VISHNU the preserver, MAHADEVA the destroyer the complete sense of evolution and revolution.
Genesis Of Hindu Music