Bhairavi kahi manmani
Lyrics, meaning and notation.
About this composition
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Raga | Bhairavi |
| Form | Lakshan geet |
| Tala | Teental · 16 beats |
| Tempo | Drut |
Complete lyrics, transliteration and meanings
| Section | Original script | Transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sthayi | भैरवी कही मनमानी | Bhairavi kahi manmaani | Bhairavi is described as pleasing to the heart. |
| Sthayi | कोमल सब सुर कर गुनी गावत | Komal sab sur kar guni gaavat | Skilled musicians sing it using the flattened variable notes. |
| Sthayi | प्रथम प्रहर की रानी हो | Pratham prahar ki raani ho | It is called the queen of the first watch of the day. |
| Antara | मध्यम वादी सुर समवादी | Madhyam vaadi sur samvaadi | Ma is the vadi; the line then speaks of the samvadi note without explicitly naming Sa in this wording. |
| Antara | भक्ति रस की खानी | Bhakti ras ki khaani | It is a storehouse of devotional feeling. |
| Antara | सब कोई गावत सबको रिझावत | Sab koi gaavat sabko rijhaavat | Everyone sings it, and it delights its listeners. |
| Antara | भैरवी शास्त्र प्रमानी हो | Bhairavi shaastr pramaani ho | Bhairavi is presented as supported by musical treatises. |
Word notes
“All notes komal” refers to Re, Ga, Dha and Ni, not Sa or Pa. Ma stays shuddha and is the vadi. Manmaani conveys praise here. The devotional and time descriptions do not exhaust Bhairavi repertoire.
“Komal sab sur” concerns the notes that can take komal forms; Sa and Pa remain unchanged.
Complete beat-aligned score
Teental has claps at 1, 5 and 13 and a wave at 9. Every row below retains sixteen beat positions. The separate syllable row shows where the words fit; it is not an additional melodic row.
How to read this notation
Sa is the chosen reference pitch. Note signs used in this score:
M = shuddha Ma; g = komal Ga; r = komal Re; S = Sa; d = komal Dha; n = komal Ni; P = Pa.
↑ marks the upper octave and ↓ the lower octave; an unmarked note is in the middle octave.
Each separate beat position is one matra. Joined notes fall within that beat. — continues the previous sound; · is an unsung position. Padding before an entry or after a close does not add another cycle.
Within a grouped column, spaces separate beats; letters joined without spaces share a beat. The column heading states the beat numbers.
¦ marks a phrase separation, not an octave change or extra beat.
Within-beat durations are exact only where specified. Learn the execution of glides, graces and inflection by listening.
| Section / layer | 1 2 3 4 · sam | 5 6 7 8 · clap | 9 10 11 12 · wave | 13 14 15 16 · clap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sthayi pickup | · · · · |
· · M — |
gM gg — r |
S — d↓ n↓ |
| Syllables | · · · · |
· · bhai — |
ra-a vi-i — ka |
hi — ma na |
| Sthayi cycle 1 | Sg rr S — |
— —¦ · · |
· n↓ —n↓ n↓ |
n↓S n↓n d↓ n↓ |
| Syllables | maa-a a-a ni — |
— —¦ · · |
· ko —ma la |
sa-a ba-a su ra |
| Sthayi cycle 2 | S g r n↓ |
S — S S¦ |
—S S d d |
P P Pd S↑n |
| Syllables | ka ra gu ni |
gaa — va ta¦ |
—pra tha ma pra |
ha ra ki-i i-i |
| Sthayi close | d P — Mg |
M —¦ gM gg |
r S — r |
S — · · |
| Syllables | raa aa — ni-i |
ho —¦ bhai-i i-i |
ra vi — ka |
hi — · · |
| Antara pickup | · · · · |
· · · · |
· d d d |
d M d n |
| Syllables | · · · · |
· · · · |
· ma dhya ma |
vaa a di i |
| Antara cycle 1 | S↑ S↑ S↑ S↑ |
S↑ — S↑ —¦ |
· n n — |
S↑ S↑ S↑ —¦ |
| Syllables | su ra sa ma |
vaa — di —¦ |
· bhak ti — |
ra sa ki — |
| Antara cycle 2 | S↑g↑ r↑S↑ r↑ —S↑ |
nS↑ —n d P¦ |
—S S d d |
P — P P |
| Syllables | kha-a a-a a —a |
a-a —a ni i¦ |
—sa ba ko i |
gaa — va ta |
| Antara cycle 3 | —P d n S↑ |
P nd d P |
—S S d d |
P — P P |
| Syllables | —sa ba ko ri |
jhaa a-a va ta |
—sa ba ko i |
gaa — va ta |
| Antara cycle 4 | P d n S↑ |
P nd d P¦ |
· g —d d |
P — d S↑n |
| Syllables | sa ba ko ri |
jhaa a-a va ta¦ |
· bhai —ra vi |
shaas — tra pra-a |
| Antara close | d P Mg — |
P —M¦ Md PM |
gM gg — r |
S — · · |
| Syllables | maa aa ni-i — |
ho —o¦ bhai-i i-i |
ra-a vi-i — ka |
hi — · · |
Pickups, sam and section joins
The sthayi pickup begins at beat 7; “maa” completing Manmaani reaches sam. The antara pickup begins at beat 10; “su” of sur reaches sam. Both closing rows include the Bhairavi-kahi refrain and end at beat 14. For a final cadence, stop at the end of the refrain. To return to the first sthayi cycle, sing ma-na on beats 15–16, then maa-a on sam.
Learning sequence
Speak the raga-description text before singing it. Locate the difference between the beat-7 and beat-10 entrances. Learn the repeated-note and two-note cells without stretching the cycle. The long antara repeats sab koi and sabko phrases; follow all four written cycles rather than reducing it to one text line. Finish by comparing its ending with the shorter sthayi ending.
Common pitfalls
The slash marks a phrase ending, not a subdivision. Adjacent notes inside one cell share a beat. Keep lower Dha and Ni in the sthayi pickup and upper komal Ga in the antara. Do not add shuddha Re or Ga.