Music hath no boundaries: Part II

These days my articles are more or less profile sketches of women who have contributed significantly to their family and society and in the process greatly enriched their own lives.

Dr. Bharathi finds herself on our pages this week. She is a die-hard exponent of music therapy. Dr. Bharathi is based at Pondicherry in South India. Her music therapy cassettes are a great hit; nearly 35,000 copies of her latest album have been lapped up by Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals at one go. The doctor , of course, looks upon it as a great humanitarian service.

Music therapy is not new to India. The ancient Vedas, specifically the "Gandharva Veda" talk of music as a corollary of Ayruvedic medicine and naturopathic treatment. Music has the power to induce appetite, regularize the blood flow and energize the muscles.

Much research has gone into the advantages of music therapy as a holistic healing treatment. There was Omkar Nath Thakur who put the great dictator (and insomniac) Mussolini into a peaceful sleep. There is the music maestro, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan who prescribes specific ragas for specific moods- Ananda Bhairavi for high blood pressure, Sankara Bharanam for mental depression .

And then there is Dr.Bharathi who wields the Veena instrument instead of the stethoscope. Yes, Dr. Bharathi is an accomplished physician. But for her music is the ultimate panacea for all human ills. She urges all doctors to give up isolatory practices and work hand in hand with music artistes to soothe the body and the mind alike.

"Just music alone is not enough, " urges Dr.Bharathi "music should be combined with a scientific temper and at the same time, a spiritual outlook". She points out the auditory nerves have their seat in the brain and moreover, nerve vibrations, heartbeat, even the respiratory cycle follows a certain rhythmic pattern.

Dr.Bharathi offers her music therapy as a free service through the Aurobindo Society. Her music cassettes ( right now released through the music giant, HMV) are oriented towards different facets of the human personality. "JAAN" is for high blood pressure and cholesterol problems, CHANCE for peace and more like AARAAM, SHANTHI and AANAND. They serve different purposes like lessening anger, anxiety and uncontrollable lust.

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