The Lord Sri Raama as Kubera

As we waited on our very learned friend in music R.Sachi to extol the virtues of the next concert from "Parvathi", we found ourselves engrossed in a few serious issues concerning our own would be 'Identities'; and they came simultaneously from three very different sources.

The first, on the seriousness of 'Identity' was brought home by a very powerful representative of the Hindu community here in the USA, who has made this his home over several decades. He is a man who has been given to some tremendous world wide charities, who is a very distinguished scholar in his own right, and who takes away ones breath in a most dynamic manner when he is on the podium relating to this very intriguing subject. In two very rapid successions this year, he has penned two extraordinary books "BREAKING INDIA" and "BEING DIFFERENT" and is currently riding on the crest of some very thought provoking meets both in India and in the USA.

He is also currently involved in some very serious discussions with the senior members of India's government, bringing home issues facing India's integrity, its security and above all a 'lost' IDENTITY, far from the pale of issues that India's media can either comprehend or discuss with their public, other than the feeding of salacious material for some immediate end.

With just this introduction we leave you to your own devices to discover him for yourself, either through Google/Bing, through YouTube, Facebook or through a publishing entity such as the Huffington Post.

For those in India, who wish for a face to face meeting, here is your opportunity! (Click)

"Life in the 70s!"
Cherished patron and very popular Karnataka Chief Minister
Devaraja Urs, and F. K. Irani builder of Ideal Jawa
preside at an event in "Parvathi".
Seen also is Gowri Kuppuswamy rendering the invocation.

Our other absorption, came from some of those innocuous but precious moments relating to a life, spent with the very respected octogenarian Sri. K. Srikantiah.

Of particular note and leading inevitably towards contemplation, were those words wherein he spoke of 'mystical forces at work' in his life

"... you know, all these years, any time I became involved in this 'Karya', I would be besieged with hundreds of responsibilities and problems... sometimes these problems would become huge obstacles, all created by all sorts of people and their agencies. It seemed so petty and incomprehensible and here I was providing the Lord's music free to all of them!... I felt, many a time, of giving all this up,...but there was always that one thought with Lord Raama! that held it all together... some inexplicable force would always make all these problems go away...the solutions were all beyond me...and in the end, each occasion would be a success leaving everyone feeling happy ..."

The ever smiling legend of Bollywood - Dilip Kumar- during a visit
in the early 70s!

A final urge to examining our own identity came in the light of reading the Ramayana, in its very first section where Valmiki asks the sage Narada:

"Who can possibly be full of virtues in this present world?"

Narada thrusts upon him the description of a Sri Raama.

One of the descriptions he provides is in comparing Raama with Kubera.

While reading this, we were made conscious of the very ignoble way in which we ourselves think of the word Kubera. When we have occasion to use the name, we often use it as a term, in comparing someone as 'Avan Kuberan' or 'Avanu Kubera', and we allude to it singularly as someone who is possessed of wealth.

So, where is the virtue in this?

Narada, however, in emphasizing Raama with Kubera, has a message for all us. Raama the Prince is a 'prince of the heart', to be emulated by us as a model of bountiful-ness; a 'Kubera' in the distribution of his own wealth towards the welfare of people around him.

In a very refined way (and these books of human heritage are indeed so beautiful) we are pointed to the very gross ways in which we color our very own minds!

It all comes from the theater that we subscribe to!

Remembering 'Gana Saraswathi' Dr.M.L. Vasanthakumari in “Parvathi”

Dr. M.L. Vasanthakumari acknowledging felicitations
as Vidwan Doreswamy Iyengar shows appreciation and Mr. K. Shrikantiah muses!

We will get to 'Gana Saraswathi' Dr. MLV’s concert, all in good time.

Before that, we have a certain remembrance and a certain thanks to render on this Saraswathi Puja Day 2010.

We believe, that the common usage of the word 'ambiance' probably occurred somewhere in the early 70's when technology started to assume a greater impact. As sound quality through instruments became enhanced, as every human indulgence began to be hailed as a sign of creativity, as architects and interior decorators began to render furniture and plants with plastic, as shimmering effects of cascading waterfalls in hotel foyers became a vogue and as nightlife extended and discos came alive through the extravaganza of electric bulbs, the word ‘ambiance’ became synonymous with human activities only with the ego.

There was no quarter given to express any supplication to a higher power.

The Eagles swoop down on "Parvathi"

Actress Hema Malini and Indian Cabinet Minister S.M. Krishna
with Mysore's Who's Who in 1972

To the denizens of Mysore city, however, and particularly to members in 'Parvathi', 'ambiance' meant a whole lot more. A desire to be neat and orderly with cleanliness being hailed next to godliness seemed to come naturally, and along with that came respect of Nature in the holistic order followed by respect to Gods main propitiates, the musicians, the poets, the priests and the 'Harikatha' story tellers.

It was not uncommon to see the long lengths of "Parvathi's" concrete driveways being washed thoroughly, the ‘Rangoli’ being laid out in big and colorful welcomes , every natural plant laid out in pots befitting its size and displayed neatly alongside driveways and curbs, every tree (fruit bearing, flower bearing or otherwise) having its correct share of manure or natural vitamins with of course an appropriate share of water; orchard pomegranates and other varied fruit protected with a cloth cover till they ripened with just an adequate amount left open for nature’s hungry squirrels to feed upon, including ( as long as the matriarch was alive) enough milk every morning in front of the 'Dattatreya' tree for the local serpent to turn away from its carnivorous ways into one of becoming a vegetarian protector.


Behind every act, however, lay the strict watchfulness of Parvathi’s chief members; first, that of the grand-sire Shri K. Puttu Rao till 1959 and then for a long time when the baton went into the hands of the son K. Srikantiah. Even, if one shifted their attention to the other brother K.K. Murthy’s residence in Malleswaram, Bangalore, one would not be remiss in noticing the same penchant for the very same things.

In fact the gardens would impress Sri. Lalgudi Jayaraman so much that when he stayed overnight on his visits to Parvathi for concerts, he would get up early in the morning and walk bare-foot on the front lawn for 30-40 minutes, looking at the lawn and believing that it was good for both his eye sight and the stabilization of his body-heat.

As you go over these few slides of Parvathi , as you witness the stone slabs where N. Ramani may have been lost in his own reverie under the Champaka tree, or as Semmangudi might have shared the finer points of his music with Mr. K. Srikantiah , or as you go over the slide of the corner room with its grilled windows from where Shri. K. Puttu Rao (during his later years) would bellow to one and all of how “all respect for elders had died” (he had witnessed Mysore Vasudevachar struggling with the silvered iron front gates and nobody had come to the help of such a revered soul!), we want you to turn your attention to the final picture (slide and below), the one with the two faces.

These faces belong to the brothers Sri Madiah and Sri Basaviah, who came to Parvathi when very young and stayed on for a long time to render those beautiful creations with cues from Sri. Srikantiah. Needless to say, theirs was a labor of love as the gardens started to be singled out for trophies and praise from the horticultural society. In some ways, the vibrations and all around goodwill from “Parvathi” too, helped. In later years, the brothers came to be fixed on decent appointments at Mysore's famed National Institute of Engineering (famed alma mater of Sri. Narayana Murthy of Infosys and India’s spinning wizard EAS Prasanna), As is the dream of every parent for their children to always do better than them, Sri Madiah's elder son got admitted in the same engineering institution and from where he passed out with distinction. He continued on to his post-graduation and currently serves in an enviable position in a multinational company.

Our continued best wishes to all of them, wherever they might be today.

THE CONCERT
M.L.Vasanthakumari ---- VocalPrabhavati ----- Co singer
Subrahmanyam ----Violin
Tanjavur Krishnamurthy Rao --- Mridangam
On September 17,1964 during the Gowri-Ganesh Festival in "Parvathi"

[1. Ragasudharasa-(Andolika); 2. Ragam Tanam Pallavi in Karaharapriya 3. Sloka and 'Jogi mat jaa'(Sindubhairavi) 4. Sundara Mooruti-( Janjooti) 5. Krishna nee begane baaro-(Yaman Kalyani) 6.Paarkadal alai mele-(Ragamalika) 7. Jnanavu Krutayugadalli-(Ragamalika) 8. Pavamana ]

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