Music Theory

Ancient Roots of Indian Classical Music and Dance


9 min read

The Origins of Indian Musical Thought

Bharatiya music traces its lineage back to the dawn of Indian civilization. Across centuries, dance styles, musical imagery, and performance traditions have occupied a central place in society. The Vedas, India's most ancient scriptures, describe three interconnected arts: dance, music, and musical instruments. During the Vedic period, scholars recognize two song categories: village songs and forest songs. These compositions followed a descending melodic arc — from higher to lower pitch. Unlike today's seven-note system, Vedic chanting employed only three tones. Over time, four, five, six, and finally seven vowels emerged. The seven ancient vowels were called Krushta, First, Second, Third, Fourth, Mantra, and Atisvara.

Music holds a prominent place in the Ramayana as well. King Ravana of Lanka appears as both a composer and singer. His kingdom included a dedicated theater for musical performances. The epic offers a vivid depiction of Ravana's music room, complete with instruments and dancers. The portrayal of Lava and Kusha singing in Rama's court reveals that music was systematically cultivated during that era.

The Mahabharata abounds with musical references. It appears that Bharatiya music developed substantially by the time of this epic. In one famous episode, Arjuna, disguised as the eunuch Brihannala, teaches music to Princess Uttara — suggesting that structured guru-to-student music instruction was already established. Krishna's flute playing, dancing, and instrumental accompaniment on the battlefield attest to the special status music held. The Mahabharata also mentions the Gandharvas, a community that practiced music professionally; two notable Gandharva kings were Vishwavasu and Chitraratha. Music was then called Gandharva Vidya, and the corresponding text became known as the Gandharva Veda. Thus, music has commanded a distinguished place in Indian society for millennia.

Foundational Texts of Indian Music

A survey of ancient musical treatises reveals the depth and scope of Bharatiya music. Many texts survived the destruction of university libraries during invasions — particularly by Muslim rulers — and were later documented to form the corpus of music history. The essential foundational works include the following:

  1. Gandharva Vidya: Attributed to the god Brahma, this text is also considered a subsidiary Veda of the Sama Veda. It addresses phonology, consonants, words, and rhythms.
  2. Narada Shiksha: Composed by the sage Narada in the seventh century BCE. It notes that Vedic songs were ascending, while folk songs followed a descending pattern. The text describes seven vowels, three grams, twenty-one syllables, and one tone per vowel circle.
  3. Natyashastra: Written by the playwright Bharata in the sixth century BCE. Primarily focused on drama, acting, and staging, it devotes three chapters (26, 29, and 30) to music. It defines music, describes four instrument categories, explains harp playing technique, and catalogs five hundred instrument types with their performance rules.
  4. Chilappatikaram: A Tamil-language text from the sixth century BCE. Though the author is unknown, it provides insight into South Indian music and describes various types of harps.
  5. Dattilam: A concise but important work written by the musician Dattila in the fourth century CE.
  6. Abhinaya Darpanam: A valuable treatise on drama, acting, and dance authored by Acharya Nandikeshvara in the fourth century.
  7. Brihaddeshi: A seminal text of Bharatiya classical music written by Matanga Muni in the fifth century. It marks the first appearance of the term "raga" in Indian literature. Before raga, regional folk melodies called "Desi" songs existed. Matanga Muni — or his predecessors — likely transformed these folk songs into classical ragas by adding "ten characteristics." The title Brihaddeshi reflects the extensive discussion of these numerous regional ragas.
  8. Sangeet Ratnakar: Composed by Pandit Sharangadeva in the thirteenth century. This foundational work diverges significantly from ancient practice, so many scholars consider it the bridge between older and medieval music. The musician Kallinatha later wrote a commentary called Kalanidhi to clarify its difficult passages.
  9. Chaturdanda Prakashika: A definitive text on Carnatic music written by Pandit Venkatamukhi in the sixteenth century.
  10. Sangeet Sudhakar: Authored by Haripaladeva, a Chalukya king of Devagiri in the Deccan, in the thirteenth century. This book constitutes the first documented discussion of the differences between North Indian and South Indian music.

Later important works include Raga Tarangini by Pandit Lochan (fourteenth century), Srihastamuktavali by poet Subhankar, Mankutuhal by Gwalior's King Mansingh (fifteenth century), Ragalakshanam by Tulsidas Bhonsle (sixteenth century), Swaramela Kalanidhi by Ramamatya, dance treatise by Pundarik Vitthala, Raga Manjari, Ragamala, Sadraaka Chandrodaya, Sangeet Parijat by Pandit Ahobala, and Sangeet Sara compiled by Jaipur's Raja Pratap Singh (eighteenth century). The modernization of Bharatiya classical music owes much to Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande and Vishnu Digambar Paluskar.

The Definition of Music in India

The practice of music is one of India's oldest disciplines, yet the term "sangeet" (music) may have entered usage only around the tenth century. The first clear definition appears in Pandit Sharangadeva's thirteenth-century Sangeet Ratnakar. Before that, the art was known as Gandharva Vidya. Sharangadeva defines it thus:

Gitang, badyang tatha nrityang tryang Sangeeta muchyate

"Song, instrumental playing, and dance — these three together are called Sangeeta." According to Sharangadeva, dance falls under the umbrella of music, and music under song, because one cannot play an instrument without intoning a melody, nor dance without music. These three arts have been interwoven in Indian culture since antiquity.

The Evolution of Song in India

The Vedic period featured two principal song traditions: Gandharva songs (which Kallinatha referred to as Margi music) and folk songs. Both streams eventually evolved into contemporary classical music, along with folk and lighter genres. Gandharva songs gradually developed into ethnic songs, raga-based compositions, essay-like pieces, metaphors, dhrupada, and the present-day khyal. The folk songs of the Vedic period ripened into folk songs, country songs, and contemporary light music. An ancient verse explains:

Dese dese jananam Yadaraucya hridaya ranjakam Ganang Cha Badanang Nrityang Tad desijabhidhayate

"Songs, instrument playing, and dances that delight people in each region are called 'Desi' — country or folk music."

Musical Instruments in India

From ancient times, Bharatiya musicians classified instruments into four categories — a system still in use:

  • Avanaddha: Instruments covered with skin and played by percussion. Examples include dhol, khol, daba, nagara, tabla, damaru, modern congo, bongos, and drumset. Ancient examples include Shiva's damaru, dundubhi, and mridanga.
  • Tantra (stringed instruments): Played via strings. Examples include veena, sitar, sarod, behela, esraj, sarangi, alongside modern guitars, harps, and mandolins. String instruments are subdivided into tata (played by striking the strings, like veena and sitar) and bitata (played by friction, like behela, esraj, and sarangi). The veena is among India's oldest instruments, with over a hundred varieties based on size and string number; currently, only South Indian music preserves the classical veena tradition. The Ramayana records that Hanuman saw an instrument resembling a violin in Ravana's music chamber.
  • Sushira (wind instruments): Played by blowing air. These include conch, bamboo flute, shehnai, pepa, and modern clarinets, saxophones, piano, and harmonium.
  • Ghana (solid instruments): Made of metal or other solid materials — various cymbals (taal), ankle bells (nupura), and water-tuned instruments like jalataranga.

Bharata's Natyashastra documents five hundred distinct instrument types. Such an extensive array was used in the song and dance program assembled to alleviate the grief of Siddhartha (the Buddha-to-be) upon viewing the suffering of the world — testimony to the immense popularity of music in ancient India.

The Dance Tradition in India

The Vedas contain references to dance. Vedic yajnas included descriptions of mandala (circular) dancing, during which hymns were sung and veena and mridanga were played. Participation in the Mahabrata and Madhvadang segments of the Yajna was mandatory.

According to music history, the originator of dance is Mahadeva Shiva. The Nataraja idol depicts Shiva's tandava dance; this deity presides over all Indian dancers. The four-handed iconography conveys deep meaning: the demon Apasmara (ignorance) is crushed underfoot; the damaru in the right upper hand symbolizes creation; the fire in the left upper hand symbolizes destruction; the lowered right-hand gesture represents protection (abhaya mudra); and the left-hand lowered hand gesture holds a flame, symbols of constant creation and destruction amid the presence of the redeemer — exactly reflecting the role of redemption.

The figure is honored in the verse:

Angikam bhuvanam yasya Vachikam sarvavanmayam Aharyyam chandrataradi Vande tam satvikam shivam.

Shiva's masculine tandava movement contrasts with Parvati's graceful lasya style. The devadasi tradition — dance as a temple offering — began in the third century. Adolescent girls entered temples, receiving rigorous education in dance from a young age, embedded in a devoted, disciplined lifestyle. The state funded their maintenance. However, when foreign invasions weakened kingdoms and emptied treasuries, wealthy patrons assumed responsibility. The devadasis' status often deteriorated. In Assam, the equivalent was known as Natir Natcha. This tradition only ended India-wide practice relatively recently — by 1992 CE, temple dancer Kokila Prabha, the last devadasi of Puri's Jagannath Temple, was gone. Devadasi dance laid the foundation for India's classical dance styles.

Eight Classical Dance Styles

Indian dance divides into folk and classical branches. As with songs and instruments, folk dances vary from region to region, passed down through tradition. These folk dances later crystallized into codified classical forms. Currently India recognizes eight classical dance styles:

  1. Kathakali (Kerala): First performed publicly in 1857. It grew from the religious folk dance of the Chakya caste. Always performed in pairs or groups, it divides into Rama-centric and Krishna-centric categories.
  2. Mohini Attam (Kerala): Rest on two different Kerala folk forms. A women-only style, it was originally named Dasi Attam, and renamed by royal decree of the Travancore king.
  3. Kuchipudi: Originates from Kuchchelpuram village in Andhra Pradesh. The Golconda Nawab, Abdul Hasan, granted the artists ownership of the village after being impressed by a performance of the Parijat dance. Father Swami Siddhendra Yogi is the key historical leader – initially Shiva-focused only later transferring its existing Krishna-influenced patterns.
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