Chakravaham

The scales of Raga Chakravaham are as follows :

Aarohanam (Ascending) : S R1 G3 M1 P D2 N2 S’
Avarohanam (Descending) : S’ N2 D2 P M1 G3 R1 S

This raga is 16th on the Melakarta scale. It is equivalent to Ahir Bhairav  in Hindustani music, though it sounds distinctly different because the gamakas are different. There is a short video by Prince Rama Varma which makes this distinction easy to understand.  The raga is called Toyavegavahini by the Dikshithar school. The mood of the raga is devotion and compassion and it is best sung in the evening and night. Well known compositions are Etulo Brotuvo and Sugunamule by Tyagaraja, Gajananayutham by Muthuswamy Diskhithar, and Kanakankoti Vendum by Koteeswara Iyer.

Tamil speakers may be interested in watching this episode of Isai Payanam by Charulata Mani.

Note : The 12 notes in the octave are named as below. Please note that C is used as Sa for the sake of simplicity as the scale is relative in Carnatic Music. Also note that the scales paint only a superficial picture of the raga as the gamakas(ornamentations) are a very important part of a raga.