Music and Immortality(Simplified Summary for the Students)

Music and Immortality(Simplified summary for the students)

Mian Tansen was India’s greatest musician. His tomb was built under the shaded branches of a tamarind tree six hundred years ago. According to the popular belief, anyone can increase his music skills by eating just one leaf of that tree.

Tansen was born to his parents after they had got the blessings from the great sufi saint and musician Hazrat Mohammad Ghaus. Tansen’s father Mukund MIshra was a wealthy poet and musician. He named his son as Tansen, the master of ‘taan’, or musical notes because he hoped that his .

But Tansen showed no interest in music and studies as well as he grew up. Instead, he preferred spending his time in the forest chasing animals and imitating their sounds.

One day, a group of travelers was passing through the forest. He was sitting on a tree chirping like the sparrows.

Suddenly he saw a group of travelers passing through the forest. As they came nearer, he took a long breath and produced a loud roar. The passengers thought that a lion was there at some nearby place, so they ran away by dropping their luggage there. But, when they heard a boy laughing at them, they understood that they had been fooled by him.

An old man in that group of travelers gestured to Tansen to come down from the tree. But the boy feared punishment from them, so refused to do so.

The old man convinced him telling that he was not angry with him and he just wanted to talk to him about his great talent.

Tansen descended (came down) from the tree feeling a little bit cautious about what might happen to him.

That old man was Guru Haridas, a renowned saint and music teacher.

Tansen took him to his house where his parents recognized the great musician and felt honoured at his visit.

Guru Haridas told Mukund Mishra about Tansen’s great talent and that he had a great range of voice, which was a great gift of God to him. He also told Tansen’s father that he wanted to take him to his ashram to make his shishya (disciple).

After that Tansen started learning the traditions of Indian classical music at Guru Haridas’s Ashram in Vrindavan. He started from the basic ‘sargam’ and also learnt the essence of each raga and how to sing it so as to create the right mood at the appropriate time of the day.

Guru Haridas also taught him the technique of how to make his voice emanate (to come from) the pit of his belly. He also taught him how to twist the notes in his throat to produce the right ‘sur’(note) at the right pitch (the depth of voice).

One day, having perfected in difficult raga, Tansen sang in in front of his Guru. He expected appreciation as he finished the raga, but he saw sadness and disappointment in his Guru’s eyes. Feeling hurt, he picked up his ‘taanpura’ and was prepared to go.

Then Tansen said, ‘Forgive me son, I have failed you.’

‘I thought I have been teaching you music but it appears that I have taught you notes.’

Tansen replied that he just sang the raga accurately (correctly) and did no mistake.

Guru Haridas agreed and said that it was true that he had sung the raga correctly, but he had failed to evoke (to bring a feeling or an image in mind) the spirit of the raga.

Then Tansen realized his mistake and hung his head in shame. He also said that he was at fault because he could not understand the difference between the expression and merely singing the notes. He requested his Guru to repeat the lesson again and also promised to him that he would listen to it carefully.

Guru Haridas told him that unless the music came from his soul, it was not music. It was just a combination of notes. The soul is true alchemist that changes simple notes into music. Each note should be allowed to draw its pure expression from the soul.

 From that day, Tansen followed his Guru’s advice and his notes became a living, breathing element.

After that, nature responded to his singing. When he sang ‘Raga Todi’ to evoke the animal spirits, squirrels, deer, and rabbits came running into the ashram. When he sang ‘Megh Malhar’, clouds began to form in the sky.

Tansen got training in music for ten years from his Guru. When he was about twenty, his father died and soon after that, his mother also passed away. Just before his death, his father had told him to go and see ‘Pir Baba’ Mohammad Ghaus in Gwalior.

The old Pir was very happy to meet the boy and to know that he had already got training from great Guru Haridas. He told Tansen that his training in the ashram was over and it was time for him to begin his training in the real world. He also advised him to get his Guru’s permission before doing that.

After taking leave from Guru Haridas, Tansen started living with Mohammad Ghaus. He spent next three years perfecting his skills under Ghaus’ guidance. During this period, he was sent to Gwalior’s court and also to hear other musicians there.

One day, Tansen saw a beautiful woman in the king’s court. His mind was distracted from his practice. He became absentminded while practicing at home also. In the middle of a ‘taan’, his fingers would pause on the strings of the ‘taanpura’ and his voice would falter (waver).

Mohammad Ghaus made enquiries for that and found that Tansen had fallen in love with a woman, named Hussaini, the king’s lady-in-waiting. Mohammad met the king and with his permission, arranged Tansen’s marriage with him.

From that day, a new element entered Tansen’s music, the element of love, mortal love soaring to the height of heavenly love.

Soon the world also came to know about Tansen. The King of Rewa, Raja Ramchandra, a partron of music also came to know about him. On his invitation, Tansen, along with his family, went to the court of the King of Rewa. As his talent flourished more, he became the king’s chief musician.

One day, Akbar also happened to listen to Tansen at Rewa and he was mesmerized (enthralled, captivated) by Tansen’s voice. After the music was over, he kept sitting with his closed eyes revelling (enjoying) the perfection of his music.

After that Ramachandra had to send Tansen to Akbar’s court as a gift. At his court in Agra, Emperor Akbar gave him warm welcome. The following morning, he received a message from the Emperor, requesting him to perform at a celebration that evening. Tansen knew that it would be a test of all his years of training. He decided to sing his newly composed ‘Raga Durbari Kanada’.

The royal durbar was crowded that evening. As Tansen arrived, the Emperor Akbar led him to the ‘asan’ (seat), the doors of the courtroom were closed lights were made dim and the voices of the people were silenced. Soon the ‘taan’ began to pour out of Tansen’s mouth. It was like a divine waterfall. The listeners felt that they were not on the earth, rather they had entered some heavenly place. There was a long silence as he finished singing. Then the applause (appreciation by clapping) began. It grew and grew. People stood up and cheered, some with tears into their eyes. Tansen showed humility by bowing his head. The emperor was also standing and cheering in appreciation. From then, he was made one of the ‘navratnas’ of his court.

In this way, with the spread of his fame and being the favourite of the Mughal Emperor, the other musicians started feeling jealous of him. They would challenge him to sing more difficult ragas and he defeated them in every contest. One day they proposed to the Emperor that Tansen should be told to sing Deepak Raga. This raga if sung by a true master invokes fire. It can not only invoke fire but also can burn the singer.

Tansen accepted the challenge although the Emperor told him to reconsider his decision because he did not want to lose him. He told the Emperor Akbar that he could be saved if anyone could sing ‘Raag Megh’ when he was singing Rag Deepak.

With the permission of the Emperor, a girl named Rupa was brought to Agra and she was trained by Tansen to sing the ‘Rag Megha’.

On the sixteenth day, the court was prepared for the big event. Large unlit lamps were placed around Tansen’s ‘aasan’. A big bowl of cold water was put on the table and a pile of dry wood was stacked in the courtyard.

Hussaini sat worried in the women’s enclosure. Rupa also kept praying to Goddess Sarswati to grant her power to sing the ‘raag Megh’.

Finally with Akbar’s signal, Tansen began his ‘alaap’.  Gradually the people sitting there began to feel unnatural warmth. When Tansen changed into the ‘jod’ (the body of the song), the heat became almost unbearable and everyone began to sweat. As he reached the climax of the first ‘taan’, the dry wood in the court got flames. One by one, the unlit lamps became lit with flames. The water in the bowl also started boiling. Although the men in the court were face unbearable heat, yet they were hypnotized by the great singing. Now the heat started consuming Tansen from inside. Rupa was ordered to sing Megha, but her lips were made paralysed by the power of Tansen’s music.

But, when she heard Hussaini wailing bitterly, her trance was broken and she was able to sing Raag Megha. Her singing had no effect on Tansen’s body which had begun to sag, and finally he collapsed on the floor.

A cry of despair broke out from everyone’s throat.

Finally Rupa’s voice picked up power and she was successful in invoking elements in the sky. The clouds gathered and rain poured down from the sky. The courtier took Tansen outside under th cooling rain. As Rupa stopped, Tansen opened his eyes. Really, Mian Tansen immortalized his music.