[INDOLOGY] tuning paste

[naresh keerthi]

Dear Prof Tieken,

Here are some references to the *mārjana /anulēpana* of the Mr̥daṅga and
other kindred drums.

1. A gāhā from the Sattasaī speaks of the coating of rice that makes the
timbre of the drum sweet. It appears that the Sanskrit verse  को न याति
etc. is a later (pale) paraphrase of this one.

*aülīṇo domuhao tā mahuro bhoaṇaṃ muhe jāva* / HSS_253ab
*murao vva khalo jiṇṇammi bhoaṇe virasam ārasaï */ HSS_253cd

2. In Cilappatikāram book 28, in the description of the Cākyār's dance, is
a drum that is smeared with mud (*maṇ kaṇai muḻavum*). You have probably
seen the passages in Bharata and Śārṅgadēva describing the smearing of mud.

3. A line from Bāṇabhaṭṭa's Kādambarī that speaks of how the coating makes
the sound of the drum sonorous - especially when it is freshly applied -

kad pb1.133 *atha nāticirād evānulepanārdra-mṛdaṅga-dhvani-dhīreṇa
nirvivara-vijṛmbhita-pratināda-gambhīreṇa, śabaraśaratāḍitānāṃ keśariṇāṃ
ninādena, [....] vanāntaravyāpinā dhvānena sarvataḥ pracalitam iva tad
araṇyam abhavat* /

4.  In the contemporary Indian drums  *pakhāvaj *and  *mṛdaṅga*, one can
see two kinds of coating - one is a (more or less permanent) black circle
of clay, starch and iron filings that is fixed in the centre of the
membrane - this is usually done by a professional technician.  It is
pertinent that this tuning paste is also called *cōṟu* (*cōṟṟu*). The other
is a (temporary) circle of  cooked rice or semolina paste applied on top of
the black spot by the drummer before they perform on the *mṛdaṅgam*. In the
case of the Pakhāvaj drum, a dough of wheat flour is applied.

5. It may be worthwhile to look at what the commentaries have to say on the
passage '*māyūrī madayati mārjanā manāṁsi*' of the Mālavikāgnimitra.

Best wishes,
Naresh Keerthi
Department of Sanskrit Studies
Ashoka University
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