Ascetics making music, illustrating the musical mode Kedar Raga
Arki, Himachal Pradesh
Late 17th century
The musical mode Kedar is visualised as two yogis or ascetics making music within a small pavilion. Seated on a leopard skin, a traditional seat of yogis who have mastered the temptations of the sensual world, the vina player improvises a raga, gazing with concentration at his companion who beats the tala or rhythmic cycle with cymbals.
© University of Oxford - Ashmolean Museum
Whether it is hindustani raga "kedar" or carnatic ragam "kedaram" ... both different and here it is kedara. .. I think hindustani
Har har mahadev
http://youtu.be/t51MKWIwSgM Rhiannon, Bhajan in Raga Kedar by Pt Jasraj and Pt Hariprasad Chairasia
Thank you @Swati Reddy. You star! I have seen this picture many times in the Indian Collection at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. They have a great collection. Would love to show you round some day.
Would love to come and see it with you too :-)!
Thanks for posting this great painting. Wondering if it was a common art style in this period to present yogis in dark skin color?
Al of u plz listen to Pandit Bhimsen Joshis raga suddha kedar in youtube.its heavenly.
Raag Kedaar - in matt taal - Composition of Bhagat Kabeer. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytCcJt11Wg4
U can all also listen to hamir kalyani ragam.. carnatic system.. equivalent of raga kedar in hindustani
very beautiful evening raga
One sits on the leopard skin. The other does not . Also one of the yogis eyes command and the other eyes follows the command ( a gazing expression intently trying to get the next cues ) May be it is the father/son or guru shisya. Because of the guy looks more elder and the other much younger. Also one of them is decorated on the arms and wrist and head with a string of pearls while others do not . Theyounger one sits on bare ground definitely showing the place of a younger yogi when compared to the older which i am no assuming is a master ascetic
This portrait shows the guru sishya tradition of the music - Hermit on the tiger skin is the guru and the other one is his sishya (disciple). Veena seems to be Rudhra Veena, which is a rare type in the Veena class, and there are no much exponents in present. Rudhra veena has a hard tone which makes it to sound masculine, contradicting to the idea that this veena is the divine form of Parvathy or Shakthi made by Lord Shiva itself... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudra_veena http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz0DE7ywyiU