A four-day Rashtriya Sangeet Utsav was organised at Nada Mantapa, a palatial super structure dedicated to the cause of music at Sri Ganapati Sachchidananda Ashram, Mysore (Karnataka) from 19th to 22nd February, 2009. The event was jointly organised by Sanskar Bharati and Kannada & Cultural Department, Government of Karnataka.
The nadaswaram unfurled the Utsav. The traditional lights were lighted to mark the inauguration. The chanting of Samaveda at that time gave a divine touch. The rendering of Vande Mataram, which followed it, demonstrated the power of sangeet in kindling the nationalist fervour in the hearts and minds of the people.
Padma Bhushan Dr M Balamuralikrishnan, doyen of Karnataka music inaugurated the Utsav in the divine presence of Shri Ganapati Sachchidananda Swami, Jagadguru Shri Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami, Suttur Math, Mysore and Shri Datta Vijayananda Swami of Datta Peetham. Shri Mohan Bhagwat, Sarkaryavah, RSS, and Shri Yogendraji, Sanrakshak, Sanskar Bharati graced the occasion. Shri Kumble Sunder Rao, president, Sanskar Bharati, presided over the function. Mahamaho-padhyaya Shri R Satyanarayana, Smt Varsha Tai Talvelkar, national vice president, Sanskar Bharati, Smt Alka Risbud, convenor, music faculty of Sanskar Bharati, Shri CH Vijaya Shankar, Member of Parliament from Mysore, were on the dais.
In his inaugural address, Dr Balamurali Krishna declared that his aim in life is to establish Bharatiya Sangeet and take it to higher pinnacles of glory. He opined that music is part of life and it is an experience to be felt.
Shri Mohan Bhagwat, in his address, said that the very purpose of the existence of RSS is to take the nation to pinnacle of glory?parama vaibhav?through character building. To further this cause every opportunity will be utilised. The specialty of our culture is that it unifies and is all inclusive. Adhyatma, Yoga, bhojan and sangeeta are the hallmark of Bharat. Bharatiya sangeet is an Indian identity in the entire world. We don'tjust treat sangeet as a means of entertainment. Sangeet has magnetic property which elicits satyam, shivam and sundaram in man and elevates him to the level of Narayana. Shradha begots bhakti. Bhakti begots love. Shradha and bhakti together iron outs differences and establishes the concept of oneness.
Jagadguru Shri Shivaratri Deshikendra Swami of Sutur Math, Mysore, in his address said that music is the sustaining ground of Indian culture. Music plays on the heart'sstrings and brings out the best in man. Musicians are our cultural ambassadors to the entire world. They have opened new vistas and carved out a place for the Indian music in the hearts of the foreigners and enhanced the image of India all across the globe. They are truly an Indian answer to the globalisation, he said. He lauded the efforts of Sanskar Bharati in organising the Utsav in all its grandeur.
Shri Ganapati Sachidananda Swami of Shri Avadhoot Datta Peetham, Mysore, blessed the Utsav and wished that it achieves the purpose for which it was organised. He said that sharira, the body is nada pradhan and nada is Shiva swaroop. Life cannot exist with out nada. So, it is the responsibility of the entire society to strive to preserve, propagate and promote sangeet, which alone has the capacity to unite the world and get rid of maladies that have inflicted the entire mankind. He showered blessings on Sanskar Bharati and wished will grows in leaps and bound.
Shri Yogendraji, Sanrakshak, Sanskar Bharati released a souvenir?Nada Bharati. Shri Jagannath Shenoy, Chairman, reception committee and a renowned industrialist, welcomed the gathering. Kanthanath Vaishampayana, general secretary, Sanskar Bharati, made an introductory address. Shri SA Ramadas, MLA and Parliamentary Secretary to Chief Minister of Karnataka and working president, reception committee, proposed a vote of thanks.
Around 500 delegates from all over India took part in the Utsav. Fifty-one senior sangeet gurus were felicitated. Renowned vidwans guided the deliberations and took part in conversation programmes which unfurled the different facets of Bharatiya sangeet and showed its vishwaroopa. Twenty concerts both in Carnatic and Hindustani were held. A sangeeta yajna by Shri RK Padmanabha and Ghosti Gyana of Panchratna Kirthiana marked the conclusion of the curtains the highly memorable and purposeful Utsav.
(FOC)
