What is Thāla, Thāla Anga & Jaathi in Carnatic music?

While Laya refers to the timing aspect of music, Carnatic music requires a tangible and structured framework to measure and organise this perceived time. That framework is called Thaala. 

What is Thāla? 

Thāla is a framework used to measure and organise time in Carnatic music through a sequence of gestures, primarily hand gestures. In other words, it provides a tangible way to experience and keep track of Laya.

Shadangā (6 Angās)

The word Shadangā comes from two Sanskrit words: Shat, meaning six, and Anga, meaning part. Thus, Shadangā refers to the six parts of Thāla. As we already mentioned, Thaala is made up of gestures. There are six primary hand gestures:

1. Anudhrutha 
2. Dhrutha
3. Laghu
4. Guru
5. Plutha
6. Kākapādha

Anudhrutha – One Ghaatha (beat), performed by striking the palm facing downward on the lap or the other hand.

• Dhrutha – One Ghaatha (beat) followed by one Visarga (break or silent beat), performed by striking the palm facing downward and then turning it upward.
• Laghu – One Ghaatha followed by counting of fingers. 
• Guru – Eight counts shown using a closed fist, moving it from one’s left to right. 
• Plutha – Four counts to the left, four counts in front, and four counts to the right.
• Kākapādha – Four counts to the left, four counts in front, four counts to the right, and four counts above the head or just higher in general. 

Every Thāla is formed by arranging these Angās in a particular sequence.

Notice the values of these Angās:

• Anudhrutha – 1
• Dhrutha – 2
• Guru – 8
• Plutha – 12
• Kākapādha – 16

But what about Laghu? Its definition says one beat followed by counting of fingers. But how many fingers should we count? We don’t know yet. 

Laghu is a variable. The value of Laghu depends on another factor. 

That connects to the next concept called Jaathi. Jaathi is the factor that determines the value of Laghu. Learn more here – The 5 Jaathis and 7 Thaalas.