Jain community to drive research on Raagopanishad’s healing power through educational collaborations | File Photo
Mumbai: The Jain community is planning to collaborate with educational institutions to research on the health benefits of Raagopanishad, the latest compilation of ancient ragas into a book and music album. The Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya has also requested to include Raagopanishad into its syllabus.
On Saturday, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis will inaugurate Raagopanishad, compiled by revered Jain monk Tirthbhadrasuriji Maharaja and his 10 disciples. The inauguration event, which is expected to attract around 10,000 people, will also host a grand music concert of these ancient ragas with singers like Ashwini Bhide Deshpande, Aanand Bhate, Jayatirth Mevundi, Manjusha Patil and the album’s director and composer Dr. Bharat Balvalli.
The Jain community and the makers of Raagopanishad had announced, at a press conference held on Thursday, that they will focus on collaborating with educational institutions to push for academic and clinical research about the positive effects of the music album on different ailments. Balvalli said that the Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya has also shown interest in teaching Raagopanishad to its students by adding it to the curriculum.
“The music we listen to today, is adulterated whereas the music in ancient times was created to worship god and it was pure music. Raagopanishad is the collection of pure music which has the power to heal. We have already seen its positive effects on people’s health but we need more research in this areas. We need people to study ragasangeet, which is the communication of frequencies,” added Balvalli.
Nitin Vora, secretary of Shree Mumbai Jain Sangh Sangathan, which is one of the organising partners of the inauguration event, said, “The journey of Raagopanishad started around seven years ago when Tirthbhadrasuriji Maharaja’s disciple Tirthruchivijayji Maharaja thought that ragas should be used to end the mental, physical and ideological struggles of people. The aagams of Jainism also describe that ragas can heal these struggles. Raagopanishad will have such a positive impact on people’s health that even people who listen to it online can heal.”
The 1,000-page ‘Raagopnishad’ will boast 38 raagmalas with over 50 diverse ragas, 958 verses woven into more than 90 enchanting ragas, description of 150 ancient musical instruments, some dating back to almost 2,500 years and 126 ancient ragas revived from hand-written manuscripts. The book available in both Hindi and English will also feature 90 ‘raga chitras’, which are 900-year-old raga paintings.
The music album consists of 81 verses meticulously composed in their original form from the treasure trove of 958 verses. The album is being presented as an acoustic medicine which is claimed to heal ailing patients from serious illnesses. It has also claimed 99% positive results in a practical scientific research that has been done with 80 compositions on different diseases.
