Muthuswami Dikshitar Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis

Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis

The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis are some of the most noted pieces of Carnatic classical music. The writer of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis or composer of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis were Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar. The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis are the best songs of Muthuswami Dikshitar. Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar was born in 1776 and died in 1836. The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis actually reveal the musical brilliance of Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar, and at the same time, help us take a notice of the Advaitic School of Hindu Philosophy as well as the Tantric rituals. These Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis of the Indian classical Carnatic music can be compared to the major symphonies of the European classical music.

Goddess Kamalamba of Tiruvarur

Muthuswami Dikshitar Writer of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis

The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis are meant to invoke, hail and praise the Goddess Kamalamba. Goddess Kamalamba is the presiding deity of Tiruvarur in the Tanjore district located in Tamilnadu. The significance of the Goddess Kamalamba is the Divine Mother as the caring protector of the universe or the Supreme Being. The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis lyrics are full of the mystical symbolism of the Advaita Vedantic School. The six chakras of the human body, from the Muladhara to the Sahasrara are also referred and linked to these Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis.

List of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis

There are 11 Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis altogether. A list of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis with their respective ragas and Talas is given below:

Kamalambike - Todi - Rupakam

Kamalamba Samrakshathu - Anandabhairavi - Misra Chapu

Kamalambaam Bhajare - Kalyani - Adi

Sri Kamalambikayam - Shankarabharanam - Rupakam

Kamalambikayai - Kambhoji - (Khanda) Ata

Sri Kamalamba param - Bhairavi - Misra Jampa

Kamalambikayaastava - Punnagavarali - Rupakam

Sri Kamalambikayam - Sahana - Tisra Triputa

Sri Kamalambike - Ghanta - Adi

Sri Kamalamba Jayati - Ahiri - Rupakam

Sri Kamalambike - Sri - Kanda Ekam

Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis Ragas and Talas

The Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis Ragas or the Ragas used in Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis are both traditional and innovative at the same time. Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis by Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar consists of some very popular ragas or melodic progressions such as Todi, Kalyani, Kambhoji, Sankarabharanam, Sahana, Anandabhairavi and Bhairavi. Side by side, there are some less popular ones in the Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis including Punnagavarali, Ghanta and Ahiri.

Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar has employed a number of Talas or counts. Nevertheless, the most prominent and recurring Tala of Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis is Rupakam (3 beats) which was probably his favourite. Ata Talam (14 beats) and Mishra Jampa or Jhaamptal (10 beats) have been craftily used with Kambhoji and Bhairavi ragas, which only shows the musical excellence of the Kamalamba Navavarana Kritis. The invocatory Krithi, also known as the Dhyana kriti of Muthuswami Dikshitar, is composed in Todi (vocative case), Anandabhairavi (nominative case), Kalyani (accusative case), Sankarabharanam (instrumental), Kambhoji (dative), Bhairavi (ablative) and so forth.

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