Invocation : "Maitreem Bhajata" | Chiragh | The South Asian Symphony Foundation | Surmukhi Raman

Viswa Subbaraman | Conductor

Words by Sri Chandrashekharendra Saraswati (1894-1994), music by Vasant Desai (1912-1975), arranged by Edwin Rajkumar (b. 1964) The programme begins with this prayer in Sanskrit made famous by M.S. Subbalakshmi’s rendition at the United Nations in 1966. The words are a clarion call to let friendship resound among all the peoples of the world; to renounce war, aggression and competition; and to honour Mother Earth. The ethical responsibilities of “Daamyata Datta Dayadhvam” (restraint, generosity and compassion), taken from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, were cited by T.S. Eliot in his poem “The Wasteland” where the thunder announces these three, holding out the promise of rain.

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