Navagraha Compostions of Muddusvāmi Dikṣita and Tañjāvūr K Poṉṉayyā Piḷḷai

Tañjāvūr Kaṉṉusāmi Poṉṉayyā Piḷḷai, a descendant of the Tañjāvūr Quartet, belongs to the Dīkṣita śiṣya parampara. He has composed ‘navagraha pāḍalgaḷ’, in praise of the nine astrological planets, inspired by Muddusvāmi Dīkṣita’s navagraha kīrtana-s. The nine compositions are in the same rāga-s as Dikṣita’s navagraha kīrtana-s, while some compositions are set to different tāḷa-s. He has imbibed certain elements of the Dīkṣita tradition in his compositions and there are some features that differentiate his compositions from Dīkṣita. The suraṭi composition cevvāyeṉum and aṅgārakamāśrayāmi are taken up for study, and are analysed based on sāhitya, structure, melody and rhythmic aspects.