Indian Antiquary Vol 41

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 258

254
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF ANCIENT HINDU MUSIC.
BY RAO SAHIB PRABHAKAR R. BHANDARKAR, B.A., L.M.&S.; INDORE. (Continued from p. 195.)
The 'gramas,"
In the Bh. only two gramas are mentioned, viz., the shadja and the madhyama 55 The gandharagrama came into existence and fell into disuse before Sârigadeva, who says that it is described by Narada (a writer on music) and that it prevails in heaven and not on this earth,58 This grâma is mentioned in the Panchatantra in the well-known verse war gö¶ceðaflaft: This work was translated into Pahlavi in the reign of the Persian king Chosra Nashirvan (A. D. 531-579). If the verse belonged to the original work and was not introduced at the time of a later recasting, the gandharagrama must be considered as having received recognition before the sixth century A. D. It may also be pointed out that the above. verse quoted from the Panchatantra occurs in the Náradi-Siksha I. ii. 4, which, though it be not the original work of Narada mentioned by Sârigadeva, is evidently based upon it.
Though the Bh. does not define a grama, it plainly indicates that the seven notes in particular relations constitute a grama. The octave being divided into 22 equal intervals, called rutis, the relations of the different notes in the two gramas is as follows:
Shaḍjagrama -80 ri ga ma pa
dha ni
43 33
Madhyamagrama -80
[NOVEMBER, 1912.
Or more accurately, ma
Sá 23 4á ri ga ма pa dha ni 3; 28 43 3s 43 23 dha ni 8a
pa 33 43 23 46
33
43
For, as the type of the shadjagráma begins with sa, so the type of the madhyamagrama begins with ma. This is evident both from the order in which the different notes in the two gramas are mentioned, 57 and also from the 'first' marchhand in each. The Samgita-parijáta also says that ma is the note produced by the open string in the madhyamagrama, 58 though the evidence of this work in matters not personally known to the author is usually of but little value and ought not to be accepted in the absence of corroboration from other sources.
BO
Shadjagrama-80 ri ga
The following are the values of the notes in cents in the two gramas: ma pa dha ni 491 709 873 982 1200 dha ni sa ri ga ma 164 382 491 709 873 982 1200
Cents 0 164 273 Madhyamagrama - ma
pa
Cents
0
Before we proceed to discuss these scales further, it is absolutely necessary to know which of these notes was taken as the keynote. All molern writers on ancient Hindu music have committed the error of supposing the shidja to have been the keynote of the scale, being misled by the present day
ri
23
ga 23
43
[a]
4,
[]
[ma]
65 Bh. p. 423. Sloka 110, is likely to make the reader think that in this one place at least the gandharagrama is referred to; but the word gandhare in that verse is a misreading, as is shown by a comparison with other mannsoripts. G, read■ कारवीचैव कर्तव्या साधारण समाग्रयाः, whioh is evidently a mistake for कारवीच कर्तव्या साधारणसमाश्रया A. roads कर्मारवीच कर्तव्या साधारितवशाश्रया !
65 B. R. p 43, loka 5.
57 Bh. p. 301, Slokas 23-29. It may be noted, however, that these slokas occur only in the Ms. G., and not in A., which, as a rule, is more reliable, nor in the Deccan College Mss.
S. P. p. 9, loka 101.