It Was Here That Muthuswami Dikshitar Received A Divine Veena From Devi Saraswati: Ilaiyaraja At Kashi Tamil Sangamam

Speaking at the Kashi Tamil Sangamam that was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi today, legendary music composer Ilaiyaraja gave unique examples of Kashi's Tamil connection from the lives of Mahakavi Subramania Bharathiyar (famous Tamil poet and freedom fighter) and Muthuswami Dikshitar, a great exponent of Carnatic music, among others.

Ilaiyaraja said that Bharathiyar studied from the age of 9 to 11 in Kashi and the time spent here makes its way into his poetry.

In the famine-stricken and resource-strapped days of the British Raj, Bharathiyar wrote in one of his poems that a lot of the water of the Ganga was going into the sea and it could be better utilized by linking it to the drought prone areas in central India.

Observing the differences in cropping pattern of the Tamil land and Kashi, Bharathiyar wrote that it would be wonderful if wheat from the Ganga plains could be exchanged with betel leaves from the Cauvery basin.

Impressed by the highly intellectual debates among the pandits of Kashi, he felt that there was a need for an instrument through which people all over India could watch or listen to these debates and enrich themselves.

Regarding Muthuswami Dikshitar, Ilaiyaraja said that it was in Kashi where Dikshitar received a divine veena from Goddess Saraswati, when he got up from a dip in the Ganga.

He also spoke about the close similarity between the 1,330 short couplets in Thirukkural, a text composed by the celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher Thiruvalluvar and the Dohas composed by Kabir.

Towards the end of his speech, he thanked Prime Minister Modi, saying he had 'no words to express his happiness and was unable to fathom as to how Modi came up with the idea of conducting a Tamil sangamam at Kashi.

The 'Kashi Tamil Sangamam', is a month-long programme celebrating the links between Tamil Nadu and Kashi. It will feature a month-long exhibition of handlooms, handicrafts, books, documentaries, cuisine, art forms, and history, all organised and put up in Varanasi.

The programme is being organised by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with other ministries like culture, textiles, railways, tourism, food processing, information and broadcasting, and the Uttar Pradesh government.

IIT Madras and the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) are the two implementing agencies for the programme.

Also Read: PM Modi inaugurates month-long 'Kashi Tamil Sangamam' in Varanasi