In a class of his own
LAKSHMI DEVNATH
|
T.S.Parthasarathy, who impressed everyone with his knowledge, razor sharp memory, undaunted spirit and generosity, was a guru beyond compare.
|
T.S. Parthasarathy.
"Make use of me while I'm around. When I go, all this knowledge will go with me."
Extraordinarily generous with his stupendous knowledge of fine arts and Indian literature - T.S.Parthasarathy or TSP mama as he was affectionately referred to by all who knew him, exemplified the popular dictum of the Upanishads — "Give, give at any cost and without any reservations... " This polymath and rare scholar fell into a class of his own. His knowledge impressed; his razor sharp memory amazed; his undaunted spirit that doggedly staved off depression was uplifting and his generosity at dispensing what he knew, inspirational. He was, indeed a guru as the definition goes — one who dispels ignorance.
Questions on music and dance could be posed to him with ease without fear of being labelled an ignoramus or an ambitious upstart. In fact, things moved with greater ease for the researcher when he/she got TSP mama involved. With great zest and gusto, mama would plunge himself into not only sourcing out the relevant books from his brimming library but even go that extra mile to point out the relevant page in which the information was available. All of this he pursued with great clarity till death silently crept in on the morning of October 13, 2006, to take him away — barely a month after he stepped with great vigour into his 94th year.
It was a motley lot that sought his help — Western scholars like William Jackson, Amy Catlin, Nijenhuis, besides a horde of our own scholars, musicians, musicologists, dancers and information-thirsty aspirants. For sure, it would be near impossible to find a scholar, researcher or a student of music and dance who has not knocked at TSP Mama's doors looking for clarifications in their respective subjects or for material from his vast library of rare books. In fact, one was not even expected to request in person. A telephone call would have mama on the job.
Could he be called a Karna? Knowing TSP mama, he would have unfussingly shrugged it off — honours and titles were not his aims. Art for art's sake, knowledge for knowledge's sake — he lived these dictums.
His was a very clinical, scientific and historical approach to music and dance. Uncharacteristically for a man of his age and times, he invariably frowned on the miraculous incidents that sweep the stories of the lives of Carnatic music composers.
A true connoisseur
A long stint in the railways took care of his livelihood but like a true connoisseur, he used every one of the opportunities that came his way to increase his knowledge of fine arts. Thus a posting at Assam, opened in his vision an opportunity to learn not just Assamese but research into Manipuri.
A sojourn at Bezawada had him mastering Telugu as also delving deep into Kuchipudi. Not many know that he has translated almost 13 of Tagore's plays from Bengali to Tamil. But his passion was the life and works of Tyagaraja. His book of Tyagaraja kritis with meanings and interesting footnotes remains till date the most sought after in its genre.
An ankle fracture confined mama to his wheelchair about five years back but that was where the setback stopped.
Every morning, without fail, he would wheel himself to his desk. Sitting there with a straight-as-a-ramrod spine, he would answer telephone calls, take care of the vendors and the couriers; and with remarkably steady fingers type out on his old Remington, articles commissioned by music and dance journals. "I have an insatiable passion for the arts," he declared in the last month of his life. The present tense used did not stem by default. Enthusiastically he added, "I have decided to revise my study of Abraham Panditar's magnum opus."
And on another day, he called to ask, "Can you help me procure a particular book on Vedanta Desika? I would like to possess it!" As far as mama was concerned, his advancing age was but a number for the records. But Death as always, had the final say.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Friday Review
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
