Department of Music

Jaffna is an important place for the preservation of Tamil culture in Sri Lanka. It is located in the northern part of Sri Lanka, very close to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent. Historians are of the opinion that Tamil Nadu, once the southernmost state of India, and Jaffna, the northernmost part of Sri Lanka, were once the same mainland, which came to be known as Kumarikandam.(Prof. Pathmanathan:1978: Pg: ixx), and that the two lands were separated by water by later oceans. At the same time, according to literary records, Jaffna is a place where the poet Kavi veeraragavan,(Vaiyaapuri iyar: 1980 : Pg : 12) who lost his sight, was given a gift of Jaffna by the emperor who ruled Sri Lanka at that time.
In any case, Jaffna is considered to be the land of the Tamils who have been preserving and preserving the Tamil culture from time to time.
Music is an inseparable part of the culture of a community. Music serves as a mirror of culture. Music is the creation of music in which one's innermost being is expressed as emotions. When these vocal cords are structured into an order, they transform into a traditional musical form.
It is in this way that this article is drawn to look at the music and dance traditions of Jaffna culture.

The early Siva community identify the Singing is the easiest way to pray to God and reaching his salvation. From the earliest times in the Saiva tradition, the Nayanmars and Alvars who descended from Karaikkalammaiyar, followed this way and dissolved with the power of God not only this, with the help of history of Saiva we can understand, these Nayanmars and Alvars were not only practice this style of praying in their own life, as well as they insist the community to follow this method of their religious life also. In the Saiva tradition, those who greet the Lord with music are known by the special name of 'Oduvars'. This Oduvar tradition, which originated from Karaikkalammaiyar in the history of Sivasim, has continued in Hindu temples in Sri Lanka up to now. As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, history has maintained a close relationship with Tamil Nadu for a long time in culture, religion, customs and many other social contexts. It would not be an exaggeration to say that eve...

Each ethnic group living in a world of cultural design shapes their musical traditions according to their own heritage values. Music occupies a prominent place in the cultural fabric of every community. The Tamil speaking community in Sri Lanka is an organized society intertwined with art. The religious beliefs and worships of this community formed the artistic foundation. From this, many arts such as music, dance, koothu, drama, painting and sculpture began to appear and grow. As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, Batticaloa, Trincomalee and Jaffna are the areas where the Tamil people live, but Jaffna, the northern part of Sri Lanka, is mostly populated by Tamils. Due to its geographical proximity to South India and the interaction between the two countries, the cultural heritage of South India was likely to spread to Jaffna and later to many parts of Sri Lanka.

fact that these cultural elements have to be accepted by the social existence of those cultural elements. In this sense, music is inextricably linked to every society as a cultural element. The sounds became prominent as a medium for exchanging ideas in primitive cultures. The development of thoughts and science have transformed these sounds into they live.

In the music industry, song styles have evolved and enriched the music industry from time to time. The forms of the songs have changed regarding the place of music have been similar trends in the Tamil music tradition in the background. After the Sangam period songs, Tamil forms such as Venpah and Kalithurai developed into Patikas, Viruthas, Namasankirtanams, Dootu, Oonchal, Ulaa, and Anthadi uruppadis such as Keerthanas, Varnas and Padams. In this context, Keerthanas inevitably take precedence in Keerthanas of the keerthanas.

It is a fact of history that songs have appeared in Tamil art culture from time to time and have enriched the arts. Language and art are generally interdependent within the cultural elements of a community. In this way, it is possible to know through the histories that the genres of songs have changed without any change in the cultural changes that have taken place in the history of music and dance in Tamil Nadu from time to time. This article is intended as a historical overview of the genre of Padam, an item that is considered important in the Carnatic music and Bharatanatyam tradition. This article will annualize about what we mean by term, the source, content, usage of this term and other aspects in Padam.