2017-03-10 Fri

Rudra-Veena is said to be a creation of Lord Shiva which was inspired by the form of his consort, Goddess Parvati. It is the king of instruments because it is said to be the first string instrument to be designed and all the string instruments which came later are designed according to it.

In the early period, it was played along with Veda mantra Pathan (Vedic recital) and also during the Yaga Yagna(Vedic rituals) performed by the rishis. Rudra-Veena was considered equivalent to ‘Shank’ and its sounds accompanied the worship rituals. This was considered to be sacred and was only performed by few selected men.

Its grammar and principle are based on Dhrupad style of music. Dhrupad evolved through the chanting of ‘Sama Veda’. This instrument of temples when came to Mughal court changed its lyric, tempo and style of performing. It was used to perform the ‘Varnanas’ of deities but later it started describing ‘Prakriti Varnana’, ‘Shringar Ras’ and praise of Emperors.

Its popularity rose after 8th to 16th century, it is also considered as a golden period for Rudra-Veena. Due to this many artists were produced like Swami Haridas, Miya Tansen, Baiju Bawara, etc. Rudra-Veena cannot be bought because its making is unique, its length should be 11 times the hand span of the player and its tuning can be complete only after being placed on the body of the artist. It's playing connects with the rhythm of the artist’s breathe and it is played traditionally in ‘Vajrasan’.

Rudra-Veen was only played by men before but today females also perform on it. This instrument is divine is every form which connects a listener to the cosmos. To respect this unique instrument, India Post has issued a commemorative stamp in 1998.

Just as Rudra-Veena is connected with Lord Shiva, Basuri is connected with Lord Vishnu’s most beloved avatar “Krishna”. To know more about this wind musical instrument click here.