of Mannaargudi, Venkata Kavi moved to Oothukkadu village (referred to as "Dhenushvasapuram" in Sanskrit), near Kumbhakonam. One of his nephews, Kattu Krishna Iyer was a musician in the royal court of the Thanjavur Maraatha King Prataapa Simha Bhonsale in the later part of the 18th century. Venkata Kavi composed hundreds of songs in praise of the Kaalinga Nartana Krishna of Oottukkadu, also referred to as "Then Gokulam" (literally, "Southern Gokulam") and several other shrines over the course of his life. According to family sources, Venkata Kavi was passionate about music but could not find a Guru of his choice in that area, which prompted his mother to suggest that he appeal to the God Krishnaa himself, in the Kaalinga Narthana Temple in Oothukkaadu. He is believed to have received initiation from the Lord himself, as asserted in one of his Tamil compositions, Guru paadaaravindam komalamu - in the raga Abhogi, he declares: "I have never studied the scriptures or yoga nor pretended to have done so. I received the fortune of knowledge in the benevolent glance of my guru." Musicianship The greatest evidence of his musical pedigree is his compositions. There are several references to good musical approach, practices and even technical terms of ornamentation like and . Venkata Kavi believed that music had to be blended with spirituality (bhakti) in order to shine. His philosophy, ("Devotion though music is the sole path to salvation") is also resonated by Tyagaraja (1767-1847) . Consult this Wiki glossary for some of the Carnatic music terms. Raagas vision Venkata Kavi had a vast knowledge of music and musical nuances. He used a wide variety of raagas ranging from the well known such as Todi, Kalyani, Kharaharapriya, Sahana, through minor ones like Kannadagowla, Jayantashri, Maalavi, Umaabharanam and a few that are seldom used today such as Balahamsa and Rasamanjari. In some instances, his works are the first or only ones to be available in a given raaga such as Sri Shivanayike in Lalitagandharvam and Paadasevanam in Deeparam. His approach to even common raagas like Sahaana, Pharas, Naadanaamakriya, and Aarabhi are distinctive and refreshing. His vision of the raaga and melody as a whole is considerable and can be seen in the number of different styles in which he composed various krtis in the same raaga. For instance, his krtis in Madhyamavathi – Shankari Sri Raajaraajeshwari, Sundara nandakumaaraa and Aadaadu ashangaadu vaa Kannaa - bring