Pydala was reputed to know approximately how many ragas?

• A. 4,000
• B. 400
• C. 400,000
• D. 40,000

Answer: (D)

Ragas in Indian classical music are flexible melodic frameworks rather than fixed lists. The same set of notes can be treated with different scales, moods, ornamentations, and microtonal nuances, and across regions and periods new ragas emerge from variations of existing ones. Pydala is said to know around 40,000 ragas, a figure used to convey extraordinary breadth of repertoire and memory. This number signals vast mastery, far beyond a handful of commonly performed ragas, while remaining a symbolic way to express the almost limitless variety within the raga system. The smaller numbers would understate the scope, while an unbelievably large figure would strain plausibility, so 40,000 best captures the intended sense of immense breadth.