muraja drum

[arul kumaresan]

Dr. Bharat Gupt wrote
>I do not know if the scholars you have named have written on the
>subject. My work has been mainly, rather entirely, based on the
>Sanskrit texts of the Natysastra. and the Valmikiya Ramayana and
>later musicological texts .
>[...]
>The date of NS is a big controversy.IT is a text that has grown over
>centuries but which lines/ portions are later  additions, is not
>possible to point out. The medieval texts describe the size and
>making of muraja. Muraj may have had a South Indian  origin  and
>could have been incorporated in the NS list of drums.


    muraja is an important drum attested early on. It is not
   restricted to South India alone. The incorporation of tamil
   muracam as sanskrit muraja from ancient times adds strength
   to the theory that once Dravidian was spoken widely in North India.
   Telugu has morayu as equivalent to ta. muracam.

   Another example from the music terms: Take muralI, muralIdhara,
   muralikrishna, etc.,  Compare with Tamil words, muralvu = soft
   sound, muralutal = to make sound, to sing, muraLi/murali =flute,
   pipe. Aapastamba zrautasuutra mentions Tamil lutes (Witzel,
   8-feb-96). Does any professional scholar work on Indian
   musicology/dramaturgy with good training in Tamil and Sanskrit
   texts?

  Regards,
  Arul


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