NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL OF PARIS AND TWO FABULOUS TALES

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

While visiting Paris, three monuments you should not miss to see are the Eiffel Tower, the Sacre Coeur Basilica [meaning Sacred Heart (of Jesus) Basilica] situated on a hillock and overseeing the city, and the Cathedral of Notre Dame [Our Lady (Mary, mother of Jesus)]. The Cathedral, built over a long period stretching from 1163 to 1345, is right in the middle of the city, adjoining the Seine river, and is an imposing monument in the Gothic architectural style, with two towers rising to 226 feet and a spire rising to 300 feet.

 (Notre Dame cathedral by night -photo from Net)

During my two years’ stay in Paris in mid 1970s, I have been to see the awesome Cathedral a few times. I found the door always closed and could never make an entry into it even once for reasons I cannot recollect now but I suppose it was undergoing some sort of renovation work. But I remember I used to sit on one of those benches placed around its expansive front-yard. I used to gaze at the monument and try to absorb its immensity and beauty. The gargoyles and statues were captivating to see. During foreign trips in Europe, I would make it a point to visit cathedrals in order to listen to wonderful organ music played in non-pareil ambience and to marvel at the sights of the lovely tinted glass work and of the statuary. Sadly I could never enter the portals of Notre Dame.

In historic terms, the Notre Dame of Paris has been witness to several significant events. The coronation ceremony of Napoleon and Josephine took place there in 1804. Many other royal crowning and royal weddings too have taken place within its precincts over the centuries. However, there are two fabulous tales concerning Notre Dame which none would not want to know: (1) The story of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”, a book of fiction written by the great French novelist and writer Victor Hugo (of the “Les Miserables” fame too) and (2) The real life story of teacher-pupil love between Abelard and Heloise.

THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME

(the movie poster - from Net)

The most beautiful of the reigning heroines of those days Gina Lollobrigida played the role of the beautiful gypsy girl in the movie of 1956 called “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” in which Anthony Quinn played the role of the hunchback. I have seen this lovely movie a few times for want of reading the book itself! The movie  is even available on Youtube in 12 parts.

Victor Hugo was commissioned by his publisher to write a novel relating to Notre Dame Cathedral in a few months but Hugo took nearly two years and the book was out in 1831. Why was Notre Dame chosen for the novel? Well, Hugo was very familiar with the history and  architecture of the Cathedral and was always fascinated by it.

A very brief outline of the story of the novel could be given here. In actual fact the central character of the novel is the beautiful young woman “Esmeralda”, a gypsy, rather than the hunchback named “Quasimodo”  who worked in the cathedral and whose main job was to ring the huge bell located in the tower. The beautiful and kind Esmeralda captures the hearts of many men including Frollo, the priest in charge of the cathedral; the hunchback and the ugly Quasimodo who worked for Frollo; Captain Phoebus of the King’s Archers and Gringoire, a struggling poet.

Frollo asks Quasimodo to capture Esmeralda for satisfying his own lust. But Captain Phoebus captures Quasimodo during the kidnapping process. As a result Quasimodo is flogged and pilloried in the public place. He was dying of thirst and Esmeralda gives him water and saves his life, reason enough for the hunchback to fall in love with her.

Frollo becomes jealous of Captain Phoebus as he was about to have physical relation with Esmeralda and attempted to kill him. However, Esmeralda got the charge for the attempted murder of Phoebus and she was to be publicly hanged. Before the hanging, Quasimodo abducts her and takes her into the cathedral where she could not be acted upon under the “law of sanctuary”. The King however removes her immunity. And there is tragedy in different ways to Frollo, Quasimodo and Esmeralda which need not be detailed here.

No reading of the book can give you the impression that you would get by seeing the movie. The actions inside of the cathedral as well as the insides of the cathedral that are shown are fascinating with the high stairs, the huge bell, the statues, the tinted glasses etc. I wonder whether they created a set in the Pinewood studios (UK) or at Hollywood. Esmeralda and Quasimodo are top indelible names from world literature.

WORLD FAMOUS LOVE AFFAIR BETWEEN ABELARD AND HELOISE

The teacher Abelard and the student Heloise were real life passionate French lovers as famous as Romeo and Juliet of the English fictitious play. They lived in the 12^th Century France. Notre Dame cathedral did not exist then and yet there is a reason why I brought in this story here which I shall explain in due course.

Peter Abelard (1079-1142) earned great fame even early in life as a remarkable teacher, a significant philosopher and a fine theologian. Students from all over Europe came to Paris to hear his lectures. Abelard on a couple of occasions eclipsed his own master, William of Champeaux, in philosophical disputations.  Notre Dame was a church before the cathedral came in there, and Abelard even obtained a post in the church.

Heloise (1101-1161) was a beautiful young lady who came to stay with uncle Fulbert, a Canon of Notre Dame church, Paris. She was 22 years younger to Abelard and was a student with extraordinary merit. And Abelard became her personal teacher and not only that, he stayed in her uncle’s house. Abelard and his student Heloise fell in deep and passionate love. Abelard even wrote about how he managed to seduce her and in due course her uncle Fulbert managed to find out that the two were in illicit relationship. Fulbert separated the two and yet they met in secrecy.

Heloise became pregnant and she was sent away to Brittany (in France) where she gave birth to a son. Different kinds of stories exist with regard to whether and how Abelard married Heloise. And different versions of story relating to how Abelard was attacked and was castrated also exist. Abelard became a monk, and far away Heloise became a nun. They wrote letters to each other for nearly twenty years touching on love, philosophy, theology etc.  The letters have been published for the benefit of the public. Abelard also wrote a kind of autobiography titled “Historia Calamitatum”, talking about his calamities as a philosopher before becoming a monk and his calamities after he became a monk. Several of Abelard’s theological propositions and interpretations were attacked by several monks who became his enemies.

Today, the common tomb of both Abelard and Heloise is to be found in the well-known Paris cemetery called Pere- Lachaise. Yet there again there is a controversy about whether their real remains were interred there. Abelard and Heloise were two extraordinarily gifted and brilliant persons and it was the sign of the times that their passionate love was  disapproved and their lives converted  into tragedies.


(Abelard and Heloise - in a painting - from the Net)
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YEHI WO JAGAH HAI IN MY VOICE

Original singer: Asha Bhosle
Here is my rendition/version.
Vs gopal
26 Nov 2012

This lovely and melodious number was from the movie YE RAAT PHIR NA AAYEGI (1966). Music was by O.P.Nayyar and lyrics were by S.H.Behari . The on-screen actors were Sharmila Tagore and Biswajeet.

LYRICS (lyricsmasti.com)

Yehi Vo Jagah Hai, Yehi Vo Fizaaein
Yahin Par Kabhi Ap Hamse Mile The
Inheh Ham Bhala Kis Tarah Bhul Jayein
Yahin Par Kabhi Ap Hamse Mile The
Yehi Vo Jagah Hai ….

(1) Yahin Par Mera Hath,Mein Hath Lekar
Kabhi Na Bichhadane Ka, Vada Kiya Tha
Sada Ke Liye Ho Gae Ham Tumhare
Gale Se Laga Kar Hamein Ye Kaha Tha
Kabhi Kam Na Hongi Hamari Vafaen
Yahin Par Kabhi Ap Hamse Mile The
Yahi Vo Jagah Hai ….

(2) Yahin Par Vafa Ka, Naya Rang Bhar Ke
Banai Thi Chahat Ki, Tasavir Tumne
Yahin Ki Baharon Se, Phulon Ko Chun Kar
Sanvaari Thi Ulfat Ki, Taqadir Tumane
Vo Dil Apako Yad Kaise Dilayein
Yahin Par Kabhi Ap Hamse Mile The
Yahi Vo Jagah Hai 

THE BEAUTIFUL COURTESAN AMRAPALI IN BUDDHA’S LIFE

THE BEAUTIFUL COURTESAN AMRAPALI IN BUDDHA’S LIFE

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

If there was an Anarkali in Jehangir’s life, there was an Amrapali in Buddha’s life in a very different way altogether. These two famous female names are separated by more than 2000 years. Both women were very beautiful. Both were named after fruits, the first after pomegranate (anar) and the second after mango (amba).

Buddha’s life was long (80 years) and his encounters with women were few. His mother Maya died seven days after his birth, and he was brought up by Maya’s sister Prajapati Gotami. As a young prince named Siddharth, he was inattentive to all the allurement in the form of attractive females of the Court. He was married at 16 to his cousin Yasodhara and had a son named Rahul before he left his family and home in Kapilavastu at the age of 29 in pursuit of the Truth.

It took six years of undiminished ardour and inexplicable arduousness before Siddharth Gautama attained enlightenment at the age of 35. And then he preached as he wandered continuously until his death at the age of 80 in Kusinagara. As he wandered and as he preached, his disciples swelled in number and they formed the “sangha” (order). Before we come to the story of Amrapali, we have some grounds to cover.

NATURE OF WANDERINGS:

Buddha and his monks covered a good portion of the Gangetic plains moving on foot from place to place. They would stay at a place normally for three days for carrying out their preaching to the lay public and then move on to another place. Kings and merchants provided them with gardens and special residential facilities at many places. The gardens were “gifted” not personally to Buddha but to the “Sangha” for their activities. The villagers assembled in the gardens to listen to the discourses of Buddha. Food for Buddha and the members of the Sangha was provided by the King or prince or merchants or by the populace. Magadha, Kosala, Vaishali, Vajji etc were the kingdoms and regions that the wandering Buddha covered relentlessly.

Jetavana (Jeta garden) was perhaps the best known amongst the beautiful gardens provided to Buddha’s entourage and it was close to Sravasthi, capital of the Kosala kingdom. (I visited Sravasthi on 2/2/1963, nearly 50 years ago! Please see the Note at the bottom). There is a fascinating story of how a very rich merchant named Anaathapindika (meaning “feeder of orphans”) managed to buy that enchanting garden from the reluctant owner prince named Jeta! The rich merchant Anaathapindika, whose real name was Sudatta, was the “chief lay disciple of Buddha”, and he held an elaborate and grand ceremony for presenting the Jeta garden to the Sangha.

Perhaps the second-most important monastic resort of Buddha was the “bamboo grove” in Rajgriha, capital of Magadha, provided by king Bimbisara. Buddha’s monks used to get divided into groups and march in different directions so that they could cover as many villages as possible. Buddha had to compete with, so to say, five other similar spiritual preachers with their own band of disciples that broke off from ritualistic and Vedic Hinduism! The wanderings covered eight months in a year and for the remaining four months covering the monsoon season, all monks of the order joined up with the Buddha in order to stay put in one place. The monsoon time of four months was a difficult time to move around and yet intense meditation and discourses continued with the Order during these months.

BUDDHA ALLOWING FORMATION OF THE ORDER OF NUNS:

When the enlightened Buddha initially visited his father , King Suddhodana and foster mother Prajapati Gotami , it so happened that Gotami pleaded with her son to allow her and other Sakya women to become nuns. Buddha did not want women to become nuns. He replied to her:  "Strive for perfection in your homes, clothed in the white robes which women wear, and aspire not to the yellow robes and hard life of the monks. Lead pure and virtuous lives, so shall you find peace and happiness."

But a few years later, when Buddha was nearly 40, he suddenly received a message that his father was seriously ill and dying. Buddha rushed to Kapilavastu to see his father . He was 97 and died in a few days. After the cremation Buddha went back on to his preaching mission.

As king Suddhodana was gone, Prajapati Gotami and many other Sakya women including Buddha’s wife Yasodhara decided to make one more attempt at becoming nuns. They shaved their head, put on yellow clothes and went all the way to Magadha to see Buddha. Buddha again did not accede to their request. His cousin Ananda who was his chief disciple happened to notice the dejected Prajapati Gotami crying outside the door. Ananda pleaded her cause before Buddha but without avail. Exasperated, Ananda asked Buddha whether women were not meant to achieve nirvana. Buddha relented, admitting that women could also achieve nirvana and were entitled to become nuns. It is said that Prajapti was thus the first woman to become a Bhikkuni (nun). However Buddha laid many more restrictions on the nuns than on the monks and treated the former category as slightly inferior.

AMRAPALI: 

Any account of Amrapali, the famous dancer and courtesan, does not usually provide the above background which I thought fit to incorporate since she also ends up as a bhikkuni.

Amrapali was born of unknown parentage and as a baby she was found at the foot of a mango tree in a garden in Vaishali. Vaishali was the large and prosperous Capital city of the Lichhavi republic –one of world’s first republics - which was part of the Vajjian Confederacy. Amrapali was also known as Ambapali and amba means mango which explains how she was discovered and named.

Amrapali grew into a young woman of extraordinary beauty and charm. Her company was sought by many young nobles and rich men, and under these circumstances she was formally given the status of “nagarvadhu” which nearly meant “city courtesan”. This was said to be an ancient practice which was meant to prevent rivalries and jealousies if a very beautiful woman became wife to one man!

Having heard of the beauty of Amrapali, King Bimbisara of the adjoining Magadha kingdom attacked Vaishali. During this war, he had a liaison with Amrapali incognito, and later a son was born to them who was named Vimal Kaundinya (Pali: Vimal Kondanna). Amrapali discovered Bimbisara’s identity, made him stop the war and asked him to leave Vaishali which he did. The story goes that when Vimal grew up, he became a monk.

King Bimbisara’s son was Ajatashatru and between them there was no love lost. Ajatashatru imprisoned his father and took over the reins. His mother Queen Vaidehi secretly fed the King and when Ajatashatru discovered this, he was about to kill his mother when he was prevented from doing so by the advice of a Minister and  a Physician. King Ajatashatru of Magadha also invaded Vaishali and it happened that when he was injured he was treated by Amrapali who fell in love with him. But Vaishalians came to know about it and they had her imprisoned. Ajatashatru was so infatuated with her that in the process of securing her freedom he ravaged the city, and angered by this, Amrapali finally rejected him.

And then comes the story of the Buddha on one of his usual visits to Vaishali along with his disciples. Amrapali was keen to have the privilege of serving food to Buddha. She managed to meet him and express her wish to him. Buddha accepted the invitation although this was not liked by many others. Buddha and his retinue stayed in the famous mango grove belonging to Amrapali. Thereafter, totally captivated by Buddha’s mission, Amrapali gifted to the sangha the mango grove which she possessed. She became Buddha’s disciple, one of the bhikkunis.

There is also a story sometimes told about a very young and handsome monk whom Amrapali wanted to host and feed. She chanced to see him passing by and she was drawn to him irresistibly. The monsoon was to start soon and so she offered him accommodation and food for four months. The young monk accepted the offer subject to clearance from his Master, the Buddha. When he narrated the events to Buddha, the Buddha saw no objection to it. Many other monks were jealous and expressed their skepticism to the Master to the effect that the young monk could fall a victim to carnal pleasure. The Buddha however discounted this. And it so happened that the young monk remained steadfast in his ways and it was Amrapali who got converted to a spiritual bent of mind. This story is stated to predate Buddha’s visit to her.
There are always some variations in the different stories recounted about Amrapali. The original sources are ascribed to some Pali texts and one of them is Ambapalika Sutta.

The life of Buddha has several extraordinary and paranormal aspects. The story goes that his parents were childless for 20 years and he was conceived in his mother’s womb as a result of a dream by her in which a white elephant secured entry into her womb. There are several miracles happening and several heavenly bodies descending to earth, as his life is narrated. However, it is well established by history that such a great man indeed was born in India nearly 2600 years ago. And the story of Amrapali has also been integral to Gautama’s story and the former is absolutely enchanting and incredible.

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Notes:
1)      My short diary note for 2/2/1963 reads:
“Later in the afternoon, drove from Balrampur to Sravasti, a sacred Buddhist place, 11 miles away. Visited the well-maintained Chinese temple and the ill-kept Burmese pagoda. The serpentine course of the placid Rapti (river) was a grand site from near the Angulimal temple”.
2)      The name Gautama/Gotama/Gotami etc signifies descent from Gotama rishi.

3)      The correct Sanskrit form of the Pali name “Pajapati Gotami” is “Prajavati Gautami”. I have used “Prajapati Gotami” which is also used by some.
4)      “Amrapali” was a movie of 1966 starring Vyjayanthimala and Sunil Dutt.

SUN WORSHIPPERS OF BIHAR AND A STAMPEDE TRAGEDY

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

(written on 19th Nov 2012)

Nearly 20 persons have sadly lost their lives this evening in a stampede on the banks of the Ganga river near Patna when they were doing Chhath (छठ) puja. Chhath literally means sixth, and the puja falls on the sixth day in the shukla paksha of the Karthik month. The object of worship is the sun. Mostly this is practiced by Biharis and the practice has spread over to many places in North India.

It may look curious that we still have sun worshippers and regular, traditional puja for the sun. Sun was a very important Vedic deity which came to be somewhat eclipsed by the post-Vedic and Puranic deities such as Shiva, Vishnu, Ganesh etc. The early Vedic people had occupied the territory between Afghanistan and Western Uttar Pradesh, and in course of time they moved east and occupied the Gangetic plains. And early kingdoms wielding enormous power were located in Bihar, and to recall a few they were Magadha, Mithila, Anga and Vajji. The Mauryas were Magadhans and ruled over an extensive empire. And Buddha belonged to that region, closer to Nepal. So, perhaps we can see some explanation as to how sun-worship during the Chhath Puja has been a long tradition over several centuries particularly in Bihar.

Chhath is a Prakrit word, as spoken by the common people who found it difficult to pronounce the Sanskrit equivalent Shasthi. The puja is also known as Surya Shasthi. In actual fact the rituals are spread out over four days, starting on the chaturthi and ending on the seventh day. The Puja to the Sun is for thanks-giving and for seeking continuous favours and blessing. The thanking is for sustaining life on earth and for granting wishes. The supplication is for future well-being and prosperity, not just for one-self but for all including family members and friends. And the sun is looked upon to give longevity and cure diseases, most importantly leprosy. This nature-worship would seem to have more meaning and significance than the worship of Puranic deities!

The rituals of the four day festival are rigorous. It consists of prayers, fasting, abstinence from drinking water (vratta), bathing in sacred river and standing in the river waters for hours, and offering of araghya and Prasad to the rising and the setting sun.

The festival may seem Bihar-centric historically but is celebrated also in UP, MP, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Delhi, Chandigarh etc. The worshippers gather on the river banks for this purpose.

There is a Mahabharata legend that when the Pandavas were in exile, once suddenly 88,000 wandering hermits came to their place and Draupadi was in a fix as to how she could cook a meal for this large contingent. She prayed to Dhaumya Rishi for help. The Rishi solved her problem considering her merits obtained by sun-worship. Draupadi’s sun-worship is said to be also the reason for the Pandavas eventually gaining their kingdom.

It is said that women outnumber men in taking part in this festival. This is the only puja for which no priest is ever called. Bihar has any number of old, small sun temples along with surajkhund (ponds).

MAJOR SUN TEMPLES IN INDIA

There are nearly eight ancient and magnificent sun temples in India. I would like to selectively pick three of them which are the most fascinating and show you how they look like:

(1)    Sun temple, Konark, Orissa (below).
It is a marvelous structure built by King Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty in the 13^th century. I have visited this.
 

(2)    Sun temple, Modhera, Gujarat (below).
It was built in 1026 AD by King Bhimdev of Solanki Dynasty. (I have not visited this)



(3)    Martand temple near Anantnag, Kashmir (below, in ruins). (I have not visited this)
It is said that the foundation for this was laid around 350-500 AD. The temple was finished in the 8^th Century by a King of the Karkota Dynasty. Today only the imposing ruins remain. I feel that it deserves to be rebuilt with the pieces lying around. It required one full year for the Muslim fanatic Sikandar Butshikan to destroy this temple in the 15^th Century.


(all pics from Net)
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JUDGING BALASAHEB THACKERAY

JUDGING BALASAHEB THACKERAY

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

(18 Nov 2012)

Yesterday morning I took a taxi – I did not drive my car due to parking problems – and rushed to a Dadar book shop to buy two copies of “Fatkaare” ( pages.260; Rs.250) a book of Balasaheb Thackeray’s wonderful cartoons from 1955 to 1985, which was released a month ago, a veritable treasure trove for me. Only one copy was left there and I had to spend a lot of time with the taxi ploughing through thick traffic jams before I got another copy from another shop and returned home. Dadar bazaars would seem to have the highest shoppers’ density and traffic density at any time!

After lunch I went to attend a Kathak-workshop at Nehru Centre, ten minutes’ drive from home. Sunayana Hazarilal of the Benaras Kathak gharana was holding the fort with her brilliant students and Hema Malini was also lending her presence for a good measure. And when I reached home at 4-30 PM after the workshop did I get the news that Balasaheb was no more by 3-30 PM. Last night I posted a blog on Kathak.

I have since been glued to the TV, watching the scenes and listening to the homages and discussions. The mighty crowd of 2 million in Mumbai today is the best single barometer to testify to the man’s popularity and personality. How many from this crowd were non Shiva Sainiks, I have no idea. But the crowd was basically Marathi-manoos. In many ways Balasaheb was the pride of Maharashtra and that gave a deep sense of pride to Maharashtrians too.

I usually sit on the front seat of the taxi and was chatting with the taxi-driver yesterday as I was making the Dadar trip and back. He was from UP, and indeed the bulk of the Mumbai taxi-drivers are from UP. He held Balasaheb in high esteem and said that the sainiks had never troubled the taxi drivers unlike the Constables. Shiv Sena has had problems with immigres from Bihar and not UP! It is said that the UP-wallahs have taken over taxi driving because they are very hard-working and would even put in 12 hours a day  unlike the local Maharashtrian drivers who are said to be aalsi (lazy) and spend the earnings in drinks! This could have a slight exaggeration. Why did not Balasaheb turn the local (Maharashtrain) inhabitants hardworking? I have no clue. What did he do to lessen the drinking habits of the Maharashtrian workers? I have no clue.

Balasaheb was essentially an urban product unlike YB Chavan, Sharad Pawar and other Maharashtrian leaders who hailed from rural backgrounds. The Mumbai city which he understood best was his closest hunting ground, and of course, thanks to his immense organizing power, and that was one of his greatest strengths, his Sena could spread its tentacles all over Maharashtra and to even other parts of India. The Sainiks took over the Mumbai Municipal Corporation long years ago. I am not sure of the exact contribution that the city has received from Balasaheb and his men in its development in the last two decades. The city looks modern with skyscrapers, and traffic movement is not too bad due to construction of fly-overs. The island city has the luxury of getting 24 hour electricity. Yet, there are any number of slums here with visible poverty.  Lakhs sleep on pavements and lakhs are homeless. The suburban trains are so overcrowded, the travelers crowd like animals.  All talks over the years about making Mumbai a Singapore or Shanghai have meant nothing. Why could not Balasaheb manage to get huge central funds for Mumbai’s development and maintenance although the city contributes one third in direct taxes and indirect taxes to the national exchequer? How much of real efforts did he make in this matter? The Congress at the Centre indeed showed no respect for him. Even  Maharashtra’s ruling Congress has miserably failed here.

The Shiv Sena began its existence in 1966 with the avowed object of protecting the interests of Maharashtrians. Southerners were unwanted in Mumbai. But in course of time, people from the North began to arrive in larger numbers. If Maharashtrians were hard-working, say like the Sikhs, which offices and factories would not have wanted them? An average Gujarati shop-keeper always scores over a Maharashtrian shop-keeper by miles, through better public relationship and harder efforts. A Narendra Modi in Maharashtra could not have succeeded even by half as in Gujarat! But stopping the outsiders was only small cards for Balasaheb. His trump card came out later when he stood for Hindutva. This was inevitable since the Sena stood in opposition to Congress which had the power in the State. And Congress had been playing vote-bank politics. The underworld of Mumbai essentially into drugs, arms,  hawala, cinema, gold-smuggling etc has had large Muslim players, and the credit for this is given to the Congress. The Muslims of Mumbai did not like Sena.

And yet no Balasaheb Thackeray has been able to stop or reduce the influx of Bangla refugees into Mumbai. The Congress power in Mantralaya flows from rural votes and yet it alone polices the city, and this policing has been very weak as per the Sena. It is a miracle of sorts that one man, namely Balasaheb, could weather through all the adversities over 47 years of political life without losing hope or hold over the people. He did join hands with the BJP thanks to the common hindutva factor and the common anti-Congress factor, and yet barring a few years the State has been ruled by Congress and lately with NCP as coalition partners.

Does man (leader) make history or does history make man (leader)? Balasaheb surely made history. He had to start from  scratch unlike Sonia who got her billion dollars and the Congress Party on a platter. Balasaheb’s multi-faceted personality and very hard work combined with firm beliefs took him to Himalayan heights as a charismatic leader. May his soul rest in peace.


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IDENTITY OF KATHAK SHOULD NOT BE MISUNDERSTOOD

IDENTITY OF KATHAK SHOULD NOT BE MISUNDERSTOOD

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

Even if you take an average educated person, it would not be difficult for him to enumerate the classical dance forms of India which are Bharata Natyam, Kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi, Manipuri, Kathakali and Mohini Attam. These dance forms are now popular all over India although their evolution happened in different geographic regions. In urban centres especially, a large number of young girls take to learning of classical singing/dancing while pursuing their academics. Acculturation is a vigorously followed phenomenon particularly of the middle classes.

But often we see people momentarily confusing Kathak with Kathakali. And often we find people with the notion that Kathak derives from Muslim (Moghul) culture whereas the fact is that Kathak is very much of a Hindu art-form that existed even before the Christian era. Movies like Anarkali, Mughal-e-Azam, Umrao Jan etc have sometimes created a perception that Kathak is a part of Muslim culture.

Katha means story and kathak is a story teller in the form of an entertainer who would sing and dance. In ancient Mithila, before the Common Era, Kathak was popularly practiced. Kathak finds mention in Mahabharata. Grammarian Panini has referred to Kathak. This art form developed in North India and over centuries had its growth and efflorescence there. The themes were religious, often connected to Krishna and Radha. The dances were performed in temples. Elaborate footwork and movements were combined with expressive abhinayas (bodily and facial expressions). I believe that mudras are more special to Bharata Natyam than to Kathak. In olden times it was performed solo but today we witness multiple performers doing an intricate choreography.

But the Moghuls who ruled from the 16^th century did make a difference. Simply put, they took away the Kathak dancers from temples and put them in their royal courts. I do not think that the Sultans and the Sultanates that ruled for nearly 300 years before the Moghuls touched the Kathak artists even with a barge pole. The Moghuls were somewhat sophisticated. They used Persian as the Court language. They patronized painting, music and dancing. Persian influences came into the Kathak dance form. The chakkars (spins) were introduced by taking after the whirling dervishes. The legs-posture became straight unlike in the Bharat Natyam in which bent-knees is usual.

If I ask you to take one famous name of a Kathak dancer, you would perhaps say “Birju Maharaj”. Birju Maharaj’s father was Acchan Maharaj who together with (Acchan’s) brothers Lacchan Maharaj and Shambu Maharaj formed a very famous Kathak trio. This trio constituted the sons of Kalkadin Maharaj who along with brother Bindadin Maharaj were famous Lucknowi Kathak masters. The duo’s father was Thakur Prasad Maharaj who was none other than the famous guru to Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the ruler of Awadh, who was a very well-trained Kathak dancer. It would be difficult for us to envisage dancer kings! Well, once Morarji Desai planned to induct Rukmini Devi Arundale as dancer President of India!

Lucknowi gharana, famous for the generations of the “Maharaj family”, constitutes one of the three major Kathak gharanas of India, the other two being the Jaipur gharana and the Benaras gharana. The Moghul elements are evident in the Lucknowi gharana. The dances were tailored to thumris, dadra, kajri, tappa etc whereas the old ritual temple dances were performed to bhajans and spiritual compositions. The Moghul and Nawabi influence often made the dancers to be courtesans at the service of men of the royal realm. They were fabulously compensated by gold, jewellery, presents etc.

The Benaras gharana has remained very spiritual and hinduised, committed to devotional themes and uses sanskrit. They use special dance bols in addition to the tabla/pakhwaj bols. The Sufi-looking chakkars are kept to the minimum.

The Jaipur gharana got patronized by the Kachwaha kings. This is marked by very vigorous, complex and powerful  footwork . And pakhwaj based compositions are fairly predominant.

During the British rule, there was a general decline in the over-all classical dance situation for want of patronage in their administered areas, and so Kathak also suffered a decline. Besides, the British looked upon it as nautch that was dirty and meant for seduction. The revival of classical dances in the 20^th century saw the appearance of Kathak on popular public platforms.

(Japanese artiste performing a Kathak dance -from Net)

As you attend a Kathak program, the instruments you observe generally are tabla and harmonium. The dancers’ costumes and adorning jewellery are much simpler than in Bharata Natyam. The ghungroos (anklets) would look like they weigh a ton and consist of tiny bells.

And I personally believe that a good dance performance should mean you have seen a good-looking dancer, as essentially it is a visual medium!

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MY CARTOON ILLUSTRATIONS FOR ARTICLES IN THE ECONOMIC TIMES

MY CARTOON ILLUSTRATIONS FOR ARTICLES IN THE ECONOMIC TIMES

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

Thanks to obtaining a Diploma in Cartooning from Raye Burns School of Cartooning, USA, by a correspondence course, it was just a natural progression for me that I enthusiastically took up occasional cartooning during week-ends as a hobby. I did publish cartoons in my College Magazine (of Madras Christian College) but my earliest cartoons for which I got paid appeared in Shankar's Weekly in 1966. As a bureaucrat working in I.A.S., political cartoons were out of bounds for me. Hence, I had to indulge in general cartoons on various facets and aspects of life.

During my cartoonistic journey, as a hobby, over more than four decades I basically drew cartoons based on my own thought process. I usually used to politely decline requests to me for illustrating books or articles as that involved much more work like reading the material. However, almost like an exception, I did draw cartoonistic illustrations for THE ECONOMIC TIMES, MUMBAI for a while. The concerned Editor would send me the articles (on economics, finance, management etc) which I had to read carefully and then come out with illustrations.

I am posting below some of my illustrations that appeared in THE ECONOMIC TIMES.

(1) Title of the article: Not available (13 Nov 1986)


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(2) Title of the article: "The Right Communication Strategy" (26 Jul 1986)


" The TV you bought from me is like my daughter marrying you! Do let me know its condition from time to time!"
(This illustrates how the Japanese are great at customer service and care.)
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 (3) Title of the article: "Give Them a Pat On The Back" (2 Aug 1986)


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(4) Title of the article: "BHEL Suggestion Model" (14 Aug 1986)


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(5) Title of the article: "Customs Duty on Short-landed Goods" (28 Aug 1986)


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(6) Title of the article: "Stress Reduction Must have a Limit" (21 Aug 1986)


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(7) Title of the article: "Maintenance - A Neglected Area" (4 Sep 1986)


"You play a very important role as a maintenance man. I can't give you leave to go for your wedding".
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PROBLEMS IN MATRIMONEY - SOME CARTOONS BY ME

PROBLEMS IN MATRIMONEY - SOME CARTOONS BY ME

V.S.Gopalakrishnan

While rummaging through some old files I came across these cartoons done by me nearly 25 years ago. Matrimony in our society is deeply intermingled with money! The deadly mixture has given me ideas for the following cartoons by me. Some of them were published in the journal FEMINA (June 8-22, 1988).

 

 

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