A musical advent

Since ancient times, the four months corresponding with the full moon in Ashad (roughly mid-June to mid-July) to Kartik (mid-October to mid-November) have been celebrated as Chaturmaas (holy four months). The festivities start with Ashadi Ekadashi and include Rudra Abhishek Puja and Rig Veda chanting, the jhoolas (a folk genre dedicated to celebrate swings in mango orchards of the Gangetic plains in the month of Shravan), Teej, Nag Panchmi, Rishi Panchami, Janmashtami, Krishna-Chhati, Radha Ashtami, Radha-Chhati, Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri, Dassehra, Diwali, Govardhan Puja, Annakoot, Tulsi Vivah and culminating with Kartik Ekadashi.

While the music of this land – Hindustani classical, Carnatic, semi-classical, devotional, light, folk and film – has drawn richly from the rainy season, most compositions tend to evoke the Shravan (often referred by its colloquial moniker Savan) and not the first monsoon month of Ashad. "North India's sway over India's cultural scene is the first logical reason that comes to mind," says Bangalorean musicologist Dhananjay Kumar. "Largely the south-west monsoon hits Kerala by the end of June. For this region the rainy season begins with Ashad (called Aadi maasam in Tamil). By the time the rain reach the Ganga-Yamuna region, it is already the second half of July."

And yet, let's not forget that one of the most celebrated 4th CE Sanskrit poet-playwrights Kalidasa has celebrated Ashad so beautifully in his iconic, elegiac poem Meghdootam (a yaksha's message to his lover sent via a cloud).

Hindustani vocalist Jayanthi Sundaram-Nayak points out that while Ashad might not find prominence in the songs sung by Hindustani classical vocalists, devotional, semi-classical and folk genres are replete with references to the first rainy month. "Whether it is the folk songs of Nepal or the Banjaras of Rajasathan and the tribals of Chhatisgarh (when the arrival of the monsoon heralds the return of migrant menfolk)," she says, adding that Ashad also marks the season when thousands of the devotees of the Lord Vithoba of Pandharpur walk to the shrine for darshan. "This has created a rich repertoire of bhakti compositions, several of which evoke the month."

Across the border in Karnataka, folk songs on Ashad take on a women-centric feel. "The spate of festivals that mark the chaturmaas see most married women being invited to spend time in their maternal homes where they are made to feel special as daughters of the house," says folk singer Pratibha Kulkarni, humming, "Ashadh masa bandit ouva, anna baralila kariyaak (Ashad is here, O mother! My brother hasn't come to fetch me)." She points out how our ancestors wisely made this tradition of separating married couples during this time. "Any conception in this period would mean child birth in the hottest season, which is not good for either the mother or the child," she smiles.

Further south beyond the Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu, Ashad is observed as inauspicious for weddings, buying a new house or starting a new business. "But it is also a special month, especially for women," says Matunga resident Kala Ramnathan. "On the first day, married women change the yellow thread in their mangalsutra or thali. This is a month of the Mother Goddess so there are several compositions dedicated to her evoking Aadi which are specially sung on Fridays."

Ramnathan says this month also marks Aadi Pooram, which celebrates the birth of saint-poetess Aandal. "Her 30-verse composition Thiruppavai (in praise of Lord Ranganatha at Srirangam), is sung across Tamil homes through the month."

So, Savan and Bhado move on.. Ashadh was there first!

Monsoon Festivities

The festivities include Ashadi Ekadashi, Rudra Abhishek Puja and Rig Veda chanting, the jhoolas, Teej, Nag Panchmi, Rishi Panchami, Janmashtami, Krishna-Chhati, Radha Ashtami, Radha-Chhati, Ganesh Chaturthi, Navratri, Dassehra, Diwali, Govardhan Puja, Annakoot, Tulsi Vivah and culminate with Kartik Ekadashi