Bandish Overview
Bandish Text
English / Roman
aada naada brahma naada anahata oMkaara praNava
jaako jogee dhyaana karata paavata sat chidaanaMda |
hari mukhateM aahata nikasyo madhura muralee naada
yaate akhila charaachara paayo parama sukha aananda ||
udaatta aru anudaatta svarita liye teena bheda
jaameM paThata veda maMtra maarga reeta aahata naada ||
taahisoM sapta soora deshee reetamoM pramaaNa
prakaTa naama roopa soM kharaja rikhaba gaaMdhaara
madhyama paMchama dhaivata nikhaada shuchi viktRta bheda ||
Devnagri
आद नाद ब्रह्म नाद अनहत ओंकार प्रणव
जाको जोगी ध्यान करत पावत सत् चिदानंद ।
हरि मुखतें आहत निकस्यो मधुर मुरली नाद
याते अखिल चराचर पायो परम सुख आनन्द ॥
उदात्त अरु अनुदात्त स्वरित लिये तीन भेद
जामें पठत वेद मंत्र मार्ग रीत आहत नाद ॥
ताहिसों सप्त सूर देशी रीतमों प्रमाण
प्रकट नाम रूप सों खरज रिखब गांधार
मध्यम पंचम धैवत निखाद शुचि विकृत भेद ॥
Meaning
This bandish beautifully explains the concept of Naad (cosmic sound) as the origin of all creation and music. It describes how the primordial sound, known as Aadi Naad, Brahma Naad, Anahata Naad, and Omkar, is meditated upon by yogis, who through this practice attain the state of Sat-Chit-Ananda (ultimate truth, consciousness, and bliss). It further expresses that from the divine flute of Lord Krishna emerges the sweet sound that brings joy to all living and non-living beings in the universe. The bandish then connects this divine sound to structured knowledge, explaining that the three Vedic accents, udatta, anudatta, and svarita, form the basis of mantra chanting and the disciplined tradition of sound. From this same Naad arise the seven swaras, which manifest as Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, and Ni, along with their pure and altered forms. Overall, the composition conveys that all music, knowledge, and existence itself originate from this eternal divine vibration, and what we understand as music is simply a manifestation of that universal sound.