Raga Theory and Classification
This domain asks what turns a set of notes into a raga: aaroh, avaroh, pakad, vadi–samvadi, jati, thaat and the time of day (prahar). The paper tests identification - given an aaroh–avaroh, name the thaat and jati - and definition, such as distinguishing vadi from samvadi.
Defining lakshans
A raga needs at least five swars, a fixed aaroh and avaroh, a vadi (king note), a samvadi (queen note), anuvadi and vivadi notes, and a pakad - the short catch-phrase that identifies it. Aaroh or avaroh may be vakra (zig-zag) rather than straight.
The ten thaats
Bhatkhande classified Hindustani ragas under ten parent scales: Bilaval (all shuddha), Khamaj (komal Ni), Kafi (komal Ga, Ni), Asavari (komal Ga, Dha, Ni), Bhairavi (komal Re, Ga, Dha, Ni), Bhairav (komal Re, Dha), Kalyan (tivra Ma), Marwa (komal Re, tivra Ma), Poorvi (komal Re, Dha, tivra Ma) and Todi (komal Re, Ga, Dha, tivra Ma).
Jati
Count the notes in aaroh and in avaroh separately: audav (5), shadav (6), sampoorn (7). A raga may be audav in aaroh and sampoorn in avaroh, written audav–sampoorn.
Worked example
Identify the thaat and jati of Bhairav. Reason: its aaroh uses seven notes in straight order (S r G M P d N S), so jati is sampoorn–sampoorn; the altered notes are komal Re and komal Dha, and Bhairav is the only thaat with exactly those two komal notes. Answer: Bhairav thaat, sampoorn–sampoorn.
Traps
- Naming a thaat from the raga's vadi instead of its scale.
- Assuming every sampoorn raga belongs to Bilaval.
- Ignoring vakra movement when writing an aaroh.