Ravanahatha
Encyclopedia
The ravanahatha is a bowed fiddle popular in Western India. It is believed to have originated among the Hela
civilisation of Sri Lanka in the time of King Ravana. The bowl is made of cut coconut shell, the mouth of which is covered with goat hide. A dandi, made of bamboo
, is attached to this shell. The principal strings are two: one of steel and the other of a set of horsehair. The long bow has jingle bells.
Throughout the medieval history of India, kings were patrons of music; this helped in increased popularity of ravanhatta among royal families. In Rajasthan
and Gujarat, it was the first musical instrument to be learned by princes. The Sangit tradition of Rajasthan further helped in popularizing ravanhatta among ladies as well.
According to legend, Ravana was an ardent devotee of the Hindu
god Shiva
, and served him using the soulful music emanating from the ravanahatha. In the Hindu Ramayana
epic, after the war between Rama
and Ravana, Hanuman
picked up a ravanahatha and returned to North India. In India, the ravanahatha is still played in Rajasthan
. From India, the ravanahatha travelled westwards to the Middle East and Europe, where in the 9th century, it came to be called the ravanastrom.
Hela
Hela can stand for:* Hela, an ancient name for Sri Lanka* Hela , a name for the Sinhala people of Sri Lanka* Hela a Hindu caste found in North India* HeLa cells derived from Henrietta Lacks...
civilisation of Sri Lanka in the time of King Ravana. The bowl is made of cut coconut shell, the mouth of which is covered with goat hide. A dandi, made of bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
, is attached to this shell. The principal strings are two: one of steel and the other of a set of horsehair. The long bow has jingle bells.
Throughout the medieval history of India, kings were patrons of music; this helped in increased popularity of ravanhatta among royal families. In Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
and Gujarat, it was the first musical instrument to be learned by princes. The Sangit tradition of Rajasthan further helped in popularizing ravanhatta among ladies as well.
According to legend, Ravana was an ardent devotee of the Hindu
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
god Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
, and served him using the soulful music emanating from the ravanahatha. In the Hindu Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
epic, after the war between Rama
Rama
Rama or full name Ramachandra is considered to be the seventh avatar of Vishnu in Hinduism, and a king of Ayodhya in ancient Indian...
and Ravana, Hanuman
Hanuman
Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
picked up a ravanahatha and returned to North India. In India, the ravanahatha is still played in Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
. From India, the ravanahatha travelled westwards to the Middle East and Europe, where in the 9th century, it came to be called the ravanastrom.