life journey......................

It must have been around 1993-95. I used to go to Swami Bodhi Tirtha at the Edappally Gurukulam to learn Sanskrit, along with my friends Rajeev, Rajesh, and Umesh. Once, Swami said, 'Guru Nitya Chaitanya Yati' is coming. Manu, you should come with your violin.' I was thrilled. I was finally going to meet the Guru I had only read about in books! As I waited, a black Ambassador car arrived, and the Guru and his disciples got out. He was a bulky looking grandfather figure, holding a pillow. After a short rest, Swami Bodhi introduced me to him. 'This is Manu. He plays the violin very well,' he said. Then Guru asked me to play. I played 'Bandu Reethi Kolu,' a Thyagaraja kriti in the Hamsanadam raga. Guru listened to it with his eyes closed, lost in meditation. I felt his meditative state transfer into my music. After I finished playing, he spoke about the spiritual aspects of music. It opened up a new dimension in music for me. That evening, there was a discourse...

Read in: English | മലയാളം | தமிழ் | ಕನ್ನಡ | తెలుగు | हिंदी How to depict a raga from lines? I had an experience with Guru Nithya Chaithanya Yathi. Once he drew a diagramatic pattern with a single line without lifting his hand from the paper and then he asked me to translate that picture on my violin. I was stunned for a moment. Never before that have I thought of such an idea. But if Guru says, I just do it. I have nothing to think about it. I simply started. To my wonder, a beautiful raga emerged. Guru was listening with his eyes closed. I felt like a kid walking holding it's father's index finger. The lines took me through hills and valleys. That was an incredible journey..............