GHANA RAGA
The 72 melakarta scheme of classification of raga-s is a well known & widely used system. But, there have been many other schemes of classification. One such is the ghana, naya (or rakti) and desiya scheme.
The terms, especially ghana & rakti, have survived & are still in use, though they do not seem to have any univocal connotation. That these concepts were in common use is evident from references to them in treatises. Thyagaraja refers to them in his kriti, Nadasudharasambilanu in Arabhi : vara ragamu kodandamu, dhura-naya-deshyamu trigunamu- ragas are his (Sri Rama's) bow, while the styles dhura (ghana), naya, desiyamu are his arrows.
Ghana raga is a phrase in common use today. We speak of Kalyani, Todi, Sankarabaranam etc. as ghana raga-s; but we also speak of the ghana raga panchakam, the five ghana raga-s --Natta, Gowla, Arabhi, Varali & Srirgam. It is these that traditionally were classified as ghana raga-s. Later, Kedaragowla, Rittigowla, Narayanagowla, Saranganatta & Bouli came to be known as the dvitiya ghana panchakam or the second set of five ghana raga-s.
What then is a ghana raga? What is the criterion for grouping these raga-s together as ghana raga-s? Although texts like the Ragalakshanamu of Shahaji Maharaj mention the classification, none elaborate on it.
The Sangeetha Sampradaya Pradarshini of Subbarama Dikshitar describes these raga-s as particularly suitable for rendering tanam on the veena & also the human voice from the nabhisthanam ( the Naval region). Think of Natta or Gowla one would agree. One is not sure about Varali, though. But why only these? Today, almost any raga is taken for rendition in raga, tanam, pallavi.
Dr.N.Ramanathan threw some interesting light on the issue. Ragas are constituted by swara-s. But raga-s demand particular employment of notes, in terms of the combination of the notes as also of the tempo of different notes within each combination. To thake the instance of Yadukula Kambhoji, the phrase dha, sa, ni, dha has to be rendered in such a way that the one does not dwell on the nishada as much as on the other notes. This belongs to the raga's essence. With such raga-s swara singing or tanam singing is a little tricky, which is not to say nobody sings swara or ought to sing swara-s in these raga-s. Raga-s which do not involve such phrases with notes requiring to be delivered in varying tempo are best suited for tanam & swara singing. The ghana raga-s as listed fulfil this requirement admirably. Except perhaps Varali.
But skepticism is not quelled. Why only these raga-s? Would not Mohanam fit the bill for instance? Such are the difficulties of this cheme of classification that there are not many defenders of the concept of ghana raga or for that matter, rakti raga etc.
But schemes such as this have a significance beyond the mere historical & the academic. The ghana, naya & desiya classification tries to capture something beyond the mere notes that are employed in the raga-s. This the 72 melakarta scheme does not do. There is a mathematical purity about this system, but for that very reason, it cannot capture the subtler musical aspects of raga-s while classifying them. It is noteworthy in this context the melakartha scheme in some of its earlier forms was not a mathematical system of mere combinations of notes. The melakartha was itself a raga & not a mere scale & was not necessarily sampoorna in the modern sense. The janya raga-s grouped under them would bear an affinity not only of swara-s but also of melody.
