Sangitaratnakara

work by Śārṅgadeva

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July 13, 2026

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The Sangitaratnakara, meaning "Ocean of Music and Dance," is a significant 13th-century text on Indian music composed by Sharngadeva. This work provides a detailed account of Indian music before the full impact of Muslim influence, as it was written in the Deccan region shortly before its conquest.1

The treatise covers ancient musical traditions, including the system of marga (traditional music), jatis, and grama-ragas. Sharngadeva mentions a total of 264 ragas, which are melodic frameworks that form the basis of Indian classical music. While the text uses a notation system to illustrate ragas, modern scholars face challenges in reconstructing them precisely due to difficulties in determining the exact intervals used. The Sangitaratnakara is considered a landmark in Indian music history for its comprehensive documentation of pre-Islamic musical practices.1

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South Asian arts
Further development of the grama-ragas
The mammoth 13th-century text Sangitaratnakara (“Ocean of Music and Dance”), composed by the theorist Sharngadeva, is often said to be one of the most important landmarks in Indian music history. It was composed in the Deccan (south-central India) shortly before the conquest of this region by the Muslim invaders…
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The mammoth 13th-century text Sangitaratnakara (“Ocean of Music and Dance”), composed by the theorist Sharngadeva, is often said to be one of the most important landmarks in Indian music history. It was composed in the Deccan (south-central India) shortly before the conquest of this region by the Muslim invaders…
Read More