nI aruLAyO - tamizh svarajati in bhairavi ragam

श्रीविद्यां शिववामभागनिलयां ह्रीम्कारामंत्रोज्ज्वालाम्
श्रीचक्राङ्कितबिन्दुमध्यवसतीम श्रीमत्सभानायकीम् /
श्रीमत्षण्मुखविघ्नराजजननीम् श्रीमज्जगन्मोहिनीम्
मीनाक्षीम् प्रणतोस्मि सन्ततमहम् कारुण्यवारान्निधिम् //
I (aham) always (santatam) pay my obeisances (praNatosmi) to that ocean of mercy (kAruNyavArAnnidhi), Mother mInAkSi, who is zrividya, and is seated to the left (vAmabhAganilayA) of ziva; Who is effulgent (ujjvalAm)in the form of the hrImkARa mantra; Who is located at the centre most point (bindu) of the zricakra; Who is the queen (nAyakI)of the zrimatsabhA, (which I presume to be the universe), Who is the mother (jananI) of Lord murugA and gaNEza and Who is the delight of the whole universe.

(mInAkSI paJcaratnam -Adi zaGkara)

Note: This post was written by me in 2009 (you can see a comment from then). I suppose I rescinded it at some point for reasons not known to me; but publishing it again now.

It has been a long time since I wrote anything. Anyways, hi everyone. I have been traveling a lot during the last few months and there was this one month when I was busy with exams and moving back to Mumbai (I am a graduate now!). I started with a temple tour in the last week of February. Vijayaneesh, a dear friend accompanied me. We must have covered around 40 temples in a week, without hiring taxis, etc. (Buses in TN rock!!!) After that I went to Shringeri-Shakatapuram for my cousin's Upanayanam and also my kutcheri at the Sharadamba Temple. Finally, in the last week of March I went home for about 10 days. Chittappa gave two memorable kutcheris at Thane and Santa Cruz. The following weekend I performed at Chembur Fine Arts. Everything went off well. I will post very soon on my temple tour.

Coming back to the svarajati, it was composed by zri Ponniah Pillai. This may not be the same Ponniah who has composed "mAyAtIta"(mAyA mALava gowLa) or "nI sari sATi" (kalyANi). This should be his grandson who lived in the 20th century. I will upate about this composer as soon as I get more information. (pl . help!!)

A svarajati is called so, because in such a composition, the swara and jati are interchangeable. The rhythm is subtle and generally slow, the musical content is enormous and the laya patterns often interesting. Most svarajatis are masterpieces in terms of the lyrics and bhAva. This is one among this class.

The lyrics of this svarajati are as follows:

pallavi:

nI aruLAyO! tAyE ! nIlAyatAkSiyE !

caranams:

1. nI dAnE nigarillAda mAtA! anAdiyE ! nILum! tamizh- isaiyE!

2: pAda paduma sEvai tandumE emaiyaruL paripuramsEr caraNiyE
nidamunayE satamenuvOrk karuLuga visAlakshIyE vinaiththavirAyO?

3: pAriDamighap- pApa karumam pAparaniDap-pAlam arum tAyE
carAcalamadanil karAvenum ulaga durAshaiyil uzhala viDAdu aruLuvAi
mAri tAnE enAk-kOrinOrArumE nAriyE nalamuravE

4: nArAyaNi tirumaghaLuDanE bhAratiyumE padam adu tozhudiDa
sadA inimaiyAna isai uLamadAgu nasai perugi ODa isai aruLuvAi
pAshamadE shUzha viDAmE aruLAi IshvariyE unad-aDaikkalamE
ena nI varavE paripUraNa bhairavi nAn nALum unait-tudittananE

பல்லவி
நீ அருளாயோ தாயே! நீலாயதாக்ஷியே!
சரணங்கள்
1.நீதா3னே நிகரில்லாத3 மாதா!அனாதி3யே!நீளும் தமிழிசையே!

2..பாத3பது3ம ஸேவை தந்து3மே எமையருள் பரிபுரம்சேர் ச'ரணியே!
நித3முனையே ச'தமெனுவோர்க் கருளுக3 விசாலாக்ஷியேவினைதவிராயோ?

3..பாரிடமிக3ப் பாபகருமம் பாபரனிடப் பாலமரும் தாயே!
சராசரமத3னில் கராவெனும் உலக3 துராசையில் உழல விடாதுஅருளுவாய்
மாரிதானே எனாக் கோரினாராருமே நாரியே! நலமுறவே

4.நாராயணி திருமகளுடனே பா4ரதியுமே பத3மது3 தொழுதி3ட3
ஸதா3 இனிமையான இசை உளமதா3கு நசை' பெருகி3 ஓட3 இசை'அருளுவாய்
பாச'மதே3 சூழ விடா3மே அருள்வாய் ஈச்'வரியே உனத3டை3க்கலமே!
என நீ வரவே பரிபூரண பை4ரவி நான் நாளும் உனைத் துதித்தனனே!

And here is a rendition by myself from 2009 (Hope it is not too painful. It's certainly not how I would sing now in 2019!) :

Phew! That is a bit of tamizh! It took me ages to understand and decipher the meaning of each word. Here is a rendition of it by myself. I learnt this from Hema Akka, who is a disciple of Chittappa and stays at Mumbai. (Can't thank her enough for sharing this with me!)

This svarajati is actually comparable to amba kAmAkSi in terms of the quality of bhairavi and intensity of the lyrics. The pallavi starts with a beautiful svarAkSaram at nI.
"nI aruLAyO tAyE", says Ponniah, meaning, "Oh Mother (tAyE) . Oh nIlAyatAkSi (One with great blue eyes), grace (aruLAyO) me!"

caraNam 1

In the first caraNam, zri Ponniah extols ambAL as
" nI dAnE nigar illAda mAta" : You (nI) are the mother (mAtA) with no parallel (nighar illAda) "

"anAdI" : without a beginning : an+Adi. This should bring to mind the phrase "anAdi nidhanam viSnum....." from viSNu sahasranAmam

"nILum" : Long, expansive.

"tamizhisaiyE": One who is in the form of tamizh music.

The adjective nILum can be used for tamizh, which is an expansive language or for isai, which is a veritable ocean. Hence, nILum tamizhisaiyE could mean "One who is the form of tamizh music which is infinitely expansive" or "One who is of the form the infinitely expansive tamizh language and music"

The svarAkSrams in the first line of this caraNam blend smoothly with the mood of the song.

ambAL is described as one without a parallel. Great devotees have always described their iSTa dEvatAs as one with no second because they have seen the Ultimate in their respective deity. That is the objective of the advaita philosophy. saguNatvam gradually develops into nirguNatvam. That is when the sAdhaka has realised the truth. At this point, let us pray for all of us to reach that state!

In the vivEka cUDAmaNi, zrI Adi zaGkara describes the brahman to have no beginning or end, one without second, pure conciousness, without any blemish, quiet and beyond all actions (verse 237). This has been expressed beautifully in this caraNam (isn't ambAL a form of saguNa brahman??)
ambAL is called as "saGgIta rasikA" in many works like the zyAmaLA daNDakam. Here, Ponniah Pillai has extolled ambAL to be the form of tamizh music itself. A reference to verse 66 of Soundarya Lahari (vipaJcyA gAyantI) should be of relevance here.) Adi zaGkara explains the beauty of ambAL's sweet voice that puts even kalaivANi to shame!

caraNam 2

In this caraNam, zrI Ponniah beseeches the Goddess for Her karuNA kaTAkSam:

Oh visAlAkshI, one with wide eyes! Your feet (caraNiyE) grant mOkSa i.e communion (sEr) with the Ultimate (paripUram) ! Kindly shower your grace (aruL) on me (emai), by making me serve (sEvai tandumE) your Lotus Feet (pAda paduma).

and entreats Her as follows: " Grant graciously (aruLuga) to those who always (nitam) utter (enuvOr) perpetually (satam) your name(unaiyE ) (actually, this should translate as: Those who always consider you as the Ultimate). Would you not put an end (thavirAyO) to my troubles (vinai) ?

ambAL who is the ultimate truth is permanent and free from changes i.e. nirvikalpa and avyaya. She is eternal i.e nityA.

caraNam 3:

This is the most beautiful of the caraNams, with beautiful swarAkSarams and lyrics:

ambAL is described as: (ah! enna kalpanai!)

pAparaniDap-pAlamarum tAyE: The Mother (tAyE) ,Who is seated (amarum) on the left (pAl) of paramESvara (paran) who has a snake around his neck ( pArppu)!

He says: " Oh Mother (ambA)! Oh pArvatI (nAriyE)! You are the one who , on seeing the galore (migha) of sinful deeds (pApa karumam) in the world (pAriDam), and the world (ulaga) suffering (karAvenum) while being entangled unsteadily ( uzhala) in the evils (durAshaiyil) of the carAcaram, i.e the realms of the animate and inanimate things which are intoxicated by lust (mada), showers grace (aruLuvai mAri) ceaselessly (viDAdu) by fighting against them Yourself (tAnEp pOri) "

This is veritably what the Lord says in the bhagavad gItA :

"paritrANAya sAdhUnAm vinAshAya ca duSkRtAm
dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yugE yugE" (chapter 4, verse 8)

When there is excessive adharmA in the world, the Lord Himself will take birth amidst us to fight it!

caraNam 4:

Oh nArAyaNi! You are worshipped (tozu) by mahAlakSmI (tirumagaL) and sarasvati (bhArati). You will always grant (us) with delightful music (inimaiyAna isai) , affectionate heart (uLamadAgu nasai) , and harmony with everyone (perugiyODa isai). Kindly grace (us) (aruLAi) by not letting (viDAmE) (us) get bound (sUzha) by passions (pAsam), oh Goddess (IshvariyE)! You are my refuge (aDaikkalam) ! With all modesty (nANAlum) , I pray (tudittu) to You, Oh Goddess Bhairavi; please deign to come (varavE) !

On a light note, the first line of this caraNam reminds me of the argument between the three Goddesses in the movie sarasvati sabadam!
The prayer in the following lines is so moving. We badly need good music (this svarajati is one definite example), harmony and peace these days.
The mettu of the last line is mind blowing. It gives such a lingering climax to this mammoth composition!

May the Goddess shower us with music of supreme quality and free us from our bondages by blessing us with the knowledge of the Ultimate!

Kindly bring any errors to my notice. I guess many interpretations of most of the words here may be possible. Kindly suggest if you can interpret anything differently. I am no tamizh expert, as my nearest kin would love to vouch for ; I decided to try to translate this svarajati in order to, perhaps, "initiate" some thought process over this brilliant composition.

zri kRSNArpaNamastu!

P.S.: Fonts on this page are disturbing because of reasons I am not able to decipher. Will try to find out soon.

jananI ninnuvinA - rItigauLa

माता मरकत श्यामा मातङ्गी मधुशालिनी

कुर्यात् कटाक्षं कल्याणी कदम्बवनवासिनी /

जय मातङ्गतनये जय नीलोत्पलद्युते

जय सङ्गीतरसिके जय लीलाशुकाप्रिये //

( Oh Mother (mAta) ! Who is dark complexioned like the marakata jewel! Who is mAtaGgI, the daughter of the sage mAtaGga, Who is sweet as honey (madhuzAlini) , Who is auspicious (kalyANi), Who is the resident (vAsini) of the kadambA forest (vana), kindly protect us! (katAkSham kuryAt)

Victory to the MotherWho is the daughter of sage mAtaGga, Who is lustrous like the blue lily (nIlOtpaladyutE), Who is a connoissuer (rasikA) of music (saGgIta) and Who loves (priyA) the charming (lIlA) parrot (zuka)

(kAlidAsA: zyAmaLA danDakam)

I thought of taking up this kriti in order to highlight the mahimai of Subbaraya Shastri's finesse in composing fantastic kritis. His compositions are filled with bhakti and bhAva. The tempo of his kritis is generally slow, barring a few madhayama kAla kritis. A worthy son to a great father indeed! Here are the lyrics (Only the commonly sung caraNam has been included)

pallavi

jananI ninnuvinA (trilOka)
dikkevarammA? jagamulOna gAna (trilOka)

anupallavi

manasija mAnasa sammOdini!
vinavE nA manavini vini nannu brOvumu
(cittai swaram)

svaram sAhityam

niravadhika- sukha- dAyaki ! anucu vini ninnu cAla goliciti
niratamuga tanayuni moralu vini nI valanE brOcuTaku evarika dharalO
vinumA idi ghanamA taruNamidi krpa salupa durusuga
sarasIruha - lOcani ! suvAsini ! tAmasamu sEyakane brOvumu
(jananI)

caraNam 3:

vanajAyata - nEtri! kumAra - janani! kAmitadAtri !
ghana - pApa - latAlavitri ! sanakAdi - munulella - sannuta pAtri !

Subbaraya Shastri proved to be a worthy son to his father, zri Shyama Shastri. The greatness of this composer lies in the fact that he was a disciple of not only his father but also learnt from zri Tyagarja Swami and Muthuswami DikSitar. The vidvat of all the three stalwarts is reflected in his compositions. His compositions are generally rarely sung as they are few in number and also, according to me, it takes some effort and time to master his kritis. Now to the kriti.

With utmost supplication to the mother Goddess kAmAkSi zri Subbaraya Shastri questions Her: " Oh mother ( janani) of the three worlds (trilOka) ! Who (evarE) else in this world (jagamulOna) can be my refuge (dikku) other than you (ninnu vinA) ? "

The emotions in this line are well brought out by the rAga bhAva , that is so enticing in the mandra sthAyi. The mandra sthAyi beginning, along with the soothing sAhitya makes the kriti really pleasant and weighty. Like I said in an earlier post, a composition by the Shastri family gets attached to the rAga. janani is one such. This is surely because of ambAL's karuNai and kRpai.

After the soft mandra sthAyi , Subbaraya Shastri goes on to plead in the tARa sthAyi , beginning with an abstract swarAksharam at "ma":

He calls ambAL : "manasija - mAnasa - sammodini", i.e. " One whose mind (mAnasa) is delighted (sammOdini) by the God of love (manasija)" and appeals to her: "Please listen (vinavE) to my (nA) troubles (manavini) and kindly protect (brOvumu) me (nannu) "

As is the case with the Sastri kritis, the swara sAhityam is touching and this one is specificifically moving:

" Having heard (vini ) that (anucunu) that you are the bestower (dAyaki) of unceasing (niravadhika) happiness (sukha), I beseeched (goliciti) you (ninnu) so much (cAla)! Who else (evarika) is there in this world (dharalO) to protect (brOcutaku) like you (nI valanE) , after hearing (vini) the appeals (moralu ) of this child (tanayuni) endlessly (niratamuga) ? "

Subbaraya Shastri's surrender to the Mother is so evident her. He kind of chides Her that She has not protected him from the tentacles of the worldly miseries. However he is very prompt to acknowledge ambAL as the only one in this world Who can listen to his troubles and free him from his worries.

Subbaraya Shastri continues further in this beautiful svara sAhityam: "Now (idi) please listen, Oh Mother (vinumA), is this (idi) ghanama (tiresome) ? Now is the opportune moment (taruNam idi) to quickly (durusuga) Please protect me (brovumu) without (sEyaka) delay (tAmasamu) , oh Mother, Who has eyes (lOcanI) like the lotus (sarasIruha) and Who is fragrant (suvAsini) !

The caraNam begins like the pallavi in the mandara sthAyi and beautifully unfolds into the higher octaves. The mark of this kriti is the svara sAhityam!

Sri Shastri describes ambAL as " vanajAyata- nEtrI i.e. the one with large (Ayata) eyes (nEtri) like the blue lotus flower (vanaja: vanaja means born in the forest, it also refers to a wild lotus flower found in the forest lakes) " and as "kumAra janani (mother of kumara: subrahmanya svAmi) " , kAmitadAtri : One who gives (dAtrI) whatever is desired (kAmita) "

After this the kriti reaches a climax like the anupallavi, but the transition is so gradual and grand (do I have to even attempt to write about the elegance of the M-N-S part of rItigauLa??) that one gets easily lost in its subtlety!

ambAL is now referred to as : "ghana pApa latA lavitrI", i.e One who is like a scythe (lavitrI) to the creepers ( latA) of evil (ghana) sins (pApa) (in short, the One Who destroys all sins) (Someone, please verify this!!!) and "sanakAdi munulella sannuta pAtri" : One who is worthy (pAtrI) of the panegyric (sannuta) of sanakA and all (ella) other (Adi) sages (munulu).

The "tri" antya prAsa in the caraNam is really captivating and utmost bhakti is required to present this kriti impeccably. SSI, MS and KVN recordings are available abundantly, but my favourite rendition is by my own GurunAthar, (which can be found here. ) and by Brindamma, of course (available here). Brindamma's rendition actually gives you goosebumps!

May the ambAL, the Mother of the three worlds protect everyone!

zrI kriSNArpaNamastu!

zri mAtrbhUtam : kannada rAgam

रत्नैः कल्पितमासनं हिमजलैः -स्नानं च दिव्याम्बरं

नानारत्नविभूषितम् म्रृगमदा -मोदाङ्कितम् च्न्दनम् /

जातीचम्पकबिल्वपत्ररचितं पुष्पं च धूपं तथा

दीपं देव दयानिधे पशुपते ह्र्त्कल्पितं गृह्यताम् //

( Oh Lord (dEva), the one who is the ocean (nidhi) of mercy (dayA) , oh pazupati! kindly accept (grhyatAm) these offerings of mine imagined (kalpita) in my mind (hRt) : an imaginary (kalpita) throne (Asana) bedecked with jewels (ratnai:) , a bath (snAnam) in the waters of the Himalayas (himajalai:) and a divine (divya) robe (ambara) adorned (vibhUSita) with different (nAnA) gems (ratna) , sandalwood (candanam) that is marked (aGkita) by the fragrance (mOda) of musk (mRgamada) , jAti and campaka flowers laced with (racita) bilva leaves (bilva patra), incense (dhUpa) and lamp (dIpa).

(Adi zankara: ziva - mAnasa- pUjA)

I will now be writing about a grand composition by a grand composer zri Muthuswami Dikshitar. The lyrics are as below:

pallavi:

zrI mAtRbhUtam triziragiri-nAtham
hRdi cintayE sugandhi kuntalAmbA samEtam

anupallavi:

sOmasakham nata- zuka-sanakam naLa-
kAmAdi - vijaya - kamanIyAGgam
sOmam zirOdhRta - sUryagaGgam
kOmaLakaradhRta kuraGgam gurugAntaraGgaliGgam

caraNam:

vAsavAdi - dEva - vandita - caraNam
vaizya- jAti - strI- vESa- dharaNam
vAsudEva - mahitam - bhavataraNam
vAsanAdi- rahitAnta: karaNam darahAsa- tripurAdi-haraNam
vAsukI-pramukhAbharaNam
bhAsamAna- na- vAvaraNam dAsajanasantOSa:karaNam su-
vAsita - navajavanti - puSpa - vikAsapriya - hRdayayam -sadayam
mAsavarSha- pakSOtsava- vibhavam sadAzivam paramazivam

This rAga is one of my favourites. Its S M G M D N S ArohaNam makes it really special. Things can go really out of hand if one cannot give the proper gamakams at the right places. The best rendition that I have heard is that of Brindamma and then Ramnad Krishnan(who I believe has learnt it from Brindamma). Their pAthAntara differs a lot from the version given in the sangIta sampradAya pradarzini and the version popularised by Semmangudi Mama. The pallavi is entirely different. However their soft, gamaka laden rendition fills with the heart with a serenity that one can associate much with the rAgabhAva that dikSitar might have intended to bring out of this mammoth composition.

This kriti is on zrI mAtRbhUtEzvara, the pesiding deity of the Rock Fort Temple at Trichy. It is best that we know the legends associated with this deity as they are really interesting and throw light on most part of the sAhitya of this kriti. The Rock Fort temple complex houses three deities:

1. two pillaiyArs ( manikka vinAyakar at the foot of the hill and Ucci pillaiyAr at the top i.e ucci of the hill),
   
2. zri mAtRbhUtEzvara
3. sugandhi kuntalAmba
   

Hence this hill is called "tri- shikhiram" or "triziragiri" and that is how perhaps tirucchirApaLLi got its name too. The Rock Fort hill is considered as a piece of the Meru mountain itself. Legend has it that AdishEsha and vAyu were indulged in a spat when the former challenged the wind God to dislodge him, as He coiled around the Mount Meru. The dispute continued for days vAyu couldn't budge the giant, divine snake and conceded defeat. During this process, a small tip of the mountain broke and fell off at Trichy. This small piece is what is the famous Rock Fort Hill.

The Lord mAtRbhUtEzvarar , who is popularly called as tAyumAnavar ( தாயுமானவர் ) is called so because the Lord descended to the world of mortals to help his staunch devotee during her times of pain and misery, in the disguise of a mother (mAtR, தாய்) . It is said that Ratnavati, a pious woman belonging to the vaizya caste ( the merchant caste) was an unswerving devotee of the Lord of the triziragiri. Despite the fact that she lived on the other side of the river kAvEri, she would visit her Lord even during her days of pregnancy. On the day of her delivery, she was unable to visit the temple and hoped fervently for her mother to be present. However, due to heavy floods that day, her mother who lived on the other side of the river, could not visit her. So Ratnavati prayed to Lord Shiva and got prepared to go through the ordeal all by herself. Her labour pains began to intensify when miraculously her mother came and served as her midwife and disappeared. It was then that she realised that her Lord had deigned to come to His ardent devotee and help her during her time of distress. So the Lord of the trziragiri is called "tAyumAnavar" or " mAtRbhUtEzvarar".

ambAL is called sugandhi kuntalAmba, which means: " the Mother who is fragrant (sugandhi) like an intoxicating perfume (kuntala) "

tAyumAnavar is supposed to like javanti flowers as mentioned in the caraNam. The legend is that "originally the entrance to the temple was facing east but the Lord in anger turned to the west. What made Him angry is another story. Saramamunivar was a great devotee who grew javanti flowers to worship the lord. One day he found a guard of King Parantaka Chola's palace taking away the flowers. The munivar complained to the king. The king, on enquiry, found that the flowers were being given to his queen. He took no action to stop the theft of the flowers. A distraught sage complained to the Lord. He turned away to the West in anger. At that precise moment a rain of sand started falling on Uraiyur where the king's palace was located. The people prayed to Vekkali Amman, who pacified the Lord and saved Uraiyur. "
(taken from here . )

I had the bhAgyam of visiting this temple last year and believe me, it is heaven!

Now to the kriti. The entire kriti is the accusative case. So the theme is like this : I think of (" cintaye") ..................."

In the pallavi dIkSitar prays to the Lord thus: " I think (cintayE) about zri mAtRbhUta, who is the Lord of triziragiri and who is united with (samEta) sugandhi kuntalAmbA. "

The pallavi rendition of Brindamma's school is really unique and exquisite. The gamaka at "tR" (of the word zri mAtRbhUtam) and the subtlety with which she slides to "bhU" always give me the goosebumps. The "samEtam" part is all the more divine

In the anupallavi , dIkSitar describes the Lord in the following manner:

(I think of (cintayE) :)
sOmasakham : One who is the friend (sakha) of the moon (sOma)

nata- zuka-sanakam: One who is praised (nata) by the sages zuka and sanaka

naLa-kAmAdi - vijaya - kamanIyAGgam : One who has a body (aGga) that surpasses (vijaya) that of naLa and cupid i.e manmata (kAma) in beauty ( kamanIya)

sOmam: One who is with Uma (sa+Uma)

zirOdhRta - sUryagaGgam: One who holds ( dhRta) the river Ganga and the arka flower (sUrya) on His head (zira) (zirOdhRta).

kOmaLakaradhRta kuraGgam: One who holds( dhRta) a deer (kuraGgam) in His soft (komala) hand (kara).

guruguhAntaraGgaliGgam : One who manisfests as a zivaliGga in the heart (antaraGga) of guruguha i.e. Lord Muruga.

Just pause for a minute and look at the beauty of every word! The lilting rhythm of the kriti, which I believe is an inherent characteristic of any composition in misra chApu tAla, and the beautifully rhyming sAhitya , along with the lofty shades of kannada that are revealed here, transport you a realm of immaculate classicism and Ananda. To top everything, the rAga mudra has been included so subtlely (sanakam-naLa) that makes one wonder if dikSitar was indeed a mortal!

The caraNam contains the legend mentioned before. I have arranged the lyrics of the caraNam a little wierdly to highlight the wonderful alliterations.

vAsavAdi - dEva - vandita - caraNam : One whose feet (caraNam) are worshipped (vandita) by Indra (vAsava) and other (Adi) Gods (dEva)

vaizya- jAti - strI- vESa- dharaNam : One who donned (dharaNa) the garb (vESa) of a woman (strI) of the vaizya caste (vaizya jAti)

vAsudEva - mahitam : One who is honoured (mahita) by vAsudeva

bhavataraNam : One who helps to cross over (taraNa) (the ocean) of worldly existence (bhava)

vAsanAdi- rahitAnta: karaNam: One whose heart (anta: karaNam) is devoid (rahita) of desires (vAsana), etc (Adi)

darahAsa- tripurAdi-haraNam : One who destroyed (haraNa), tripura (the three cities) with a smile on the face (dara hAsa) (for more details on this, please click here.)

vAsukI-pramukhAbharaNam : One who has vAsuki as the principle(pramukha) adornment (AbharaNam)

bhAsamAna- navAvaraNam: One who has nine (nava) garments (AvaraNam) (which are lustrous) like (samAna) the stars (bhA).

dAsajanasantOSa:karaNam : One who makes (karaNa) the devotees (dAsajana) happy (santOSa)

suvAsita - navajavanti - puSpa - vikAsapriya - hRdayayam : One who has a heart (hRdaya) which loves to (priya) expand (vikAsa) with fragrant (suvAsita) flowers (puSpa) like the new (nava) javanti. (i.e He becomes kinder when propitiated with javanti flowers)

sadayam : One who has mercy (daya)

mAsavarSa- pakSOtsava- vibhavam : One whose greatness (vibhava) is celebrated during monthly (mAsa), varSa ( yearly) and fortnightly (pakSa) festivals (utsava).

sadAzivam : One who is always (sadA) auspicious (ziva)

paramazivam : One who is the most (parama) auspicious (ziva).

Words cannot describe dikSitar's skills at composing. So I am not going to make any vain attempt! I guess that one must himself listen to this kriti and derive the happiness. Do listen to Brindamma's rendition of this kriti. This can be downloaded from here

May the Lord bestow peace and prosperity on us!

zri kriSNArpaNamastu!

sarasIruhAsanapriyE - nAttai

सुवक्षोजकुम्भाम् सुधापूर्णकुम्भाम्

प्रसादावलम्बाम् प्रपुण्यावलम्बाम् //

सदास्येन्दुबिम्बाम् सदानोष्टबिम्बाम्

भजे शारदाम्बाम् अजस्रं मदम्बाम् //

I sing praise (bhajE) of Mother zAradA, Who has beautiful (su) pot (kumbha) like breasts (vakSOja) , Who has breast-pots (kumbhA) which are full of (pUrNa) nectar(sudhA), Who is the support (avalambA) of benevolence (prasAda), Who is the support (avalambA) of blissful deeds (prapuNya), Whose image (or face) (bimba) is like a servile (sadAsya) moon (indu) , Whose image (or face) is always (sadA) cool (na uSTa: nOSTa) ,Who is perpetual (ajasra) , and is my (mat) Mother (ambA)

(zAradA bhujangam : Adi zankarA)

Happy Pongal and Makara Sankranti!

I thought I'l postpone gurulEka for later for the sake of Akshay, a dear old friend who gave me good company and support during his days at VNIT( He is a year senior to me) . He asked to post this composition, so here it is.

This composition is a very popular one in nAttai. But first something about the composer: Sri Puliyur Duraiswami Iyer. The following has been taken from karnatik.com:

"Also known as Panchanatha Iyer or Manattattaai Duraiswami Aiyar, the father of Maha Vaidyanatha Iyer, he himself was a renowned musician. He lived in Vaiyacheri, a small village in Tanjore district, with his wife Arundati. Duraiswami was proficient in Tamil, Telugu and Sanskrit. Once while he was singing Thyagaraja's "Chakkani Raja" (Kharaharapriya), Sri Thyagaraja, who was passing by, blessed him saying that his two sons would become very famous in music. Duraiwami had four sons - Sambamurthy, Ramaswami, Vaidyanathan and Sivaraman (or Appaswami). They belonged to Koundinya Gothram and Brahacharanam sect. Duraiswami found that Ramaswami and Vaidyanathan evinced keen interest in music and trained them in singing. Among his well-known compositions are sarasiruhAsana priyE, and the dasaragamalika varnam Intha Gopa.''

Here are the lyrics:

pallavi

sarasIruhAsanapriyE amba
sadA - vINAgAnapriyE sadAnandahrdayE mayi - sadayE

anupallavi:

zaraNAgatam mAmava! manjuLa - caraNakisalayE
sammOdita - kavijana - hrdayE sarOja nilayE maNi valayE

caranam:

sarasIruhAkSiyugaLE amba
zaraNagata - dIna- vatsalE amba
zaradindu - sundara - vadanE vimalE
sarasvatI satidEzikanuta - gunazAlE
satatam - vidyAlOlE sadA - suzIlE
sAmbujakumbhastana - yugaLE dhavalE
sakala - sAmrAjyaprada - karadhrta - pustakajAlE

(Pl note that "z" refers to the letter "श " : and "S" refers to "ष" .Kindly go through the transliteration scheme given at the end.)

As the reader might surely know, this is a composition on Sri sarasvati, the Goddess of learning.

The composer first describes Goddess Sarasvati as " sarasIruhAsanapriyE", the one who is enamoured (priyA) of sitting (Asana) on the lotus (sarasIruha). Next he calls her : "sadAvINAgAnapriyE" , the one who is always (sadA) in love (priyA) with the music (gAna) of the vINA. "sadAnandahrdayE" means one whose heart (hrdayA) is always (sadA) blissful (Ananda). "mayisadayE" refers to the one who is merciful towards me.

This is perhaps the only composition of Puliyoor Doraiswamy Aiyyar that is sung on the concert stage. And he is no mean composer! This one composition is enough to prove his expertise and command over the sanskrit language and the musical technicalities.

In the anupallavi, Sri Doraiswamy says:

Protect (ava) me ( mAm), who has sought (Agata) refuge (zaraNa) (zaraNAgatam) in you. Then he calls zAradAmbAL by the following epithets:

manjuLa caraNa kisalayE: The one with feet which are lovely (manjuLa) like a tender foliage (kisala) i.e one with adorable and tender feet.

sammodita kavijana hrdayE: one whose heart (hrdaya) delighted (samodita) by poets (kavijana)

saroja - nilayE : one who resides (nilaya) on a lotus (saroja)

maNi - valayE : one who wears a with bracelet (valaya) of gems (maNi)


In the caraNam too, the composer describes zAradA devi with many names:

sarasIruhAkSIyugaLE : one who has a pair (yugaLa) of eyes (akSha) like a lotus (sarasIruha)

zaraNAgata - dIna - vatsalE : one who is affectionate (vatsala) towards the poor (or needy) (dIna) who seek (Agata) her zaraNa ( refuge) .

zaradindu - sundara - vadanE : one whose face (vadana) is as beautiful (sundara) as the autumnal (zarad) moon (indu) (or the moon during the winter season)

vimalE: one who is pure

satidEzikanuta - gunazAle : (not so sure what this means, any suggestions???) dEzika means "illustrious preceptor" , and isn't mahezvara the parama guru? sati could refer to ambAL. So I guess Sri Doraiswami means: one who is praised (nuta) by durgA (sati) and dezika ( ziva) and who is virtuous (guNazAlE).

satatam - vidyAlOlE : one who is a constant (satatam) enjoyer (lOla) of knowledge (vidyA)
sadA - suzIlE : one who is always (sadA) of virtuous conduct (suzilA)

sAmbujakumbhastana - yugaLE : one whose pair (yugaLa) of breasts (stana) are round (sAmbuja: sa+ ambuja, ambuja means 'moon' as well as 'lotus' ,'sa' could convey 'like' so i am interpretting this word as 'round like the moon'; any suggestions??) like the pitcher (kumbha)

dhavaLE: one who is fair

sakala - sAmrAjyaprada- karadhrta - pustakajAlE : one who bestows (prada) the entire (sakala) empire (sAmrAjya) (or imperial wealth) and who holds (dhrta) a collectection (jAla) of books (pustaka) in Her hands (kara).

I am actually surprised I never bothered to check the meanings of so many words out here. The words are not so easy as they sound. I had to check and recheck before posting! Thanks to Akshay for having prompted me to write about this composition.

The best part about this composition is its rhythm. The perfect madhyama kAlam is just about right to sing this in the beginning of the kutcheri. It surely sets the pace and mood for the concert. It is so full of lyrics that it feels like you are singing the actual svarAs. That is the mark of great composers. They never sacrifice sahityabhAva for rAgabhAva or vice versa. A friend of mine at college asked me whether I compose. I couldn't say anything to him at that time but looking at this beautiful composition, I feel that even if I can string two words like this together, my life's cause would be served!

May the Goddess Sarasvati shower her grace on all of us!

Sri KriSNArpaNamastu!

(The transliteration scheme that I have used: (The Harvard Kyoto scheme)

a A i I u U R RR lR lRR e E ai o O au M H
k kh g gh G c ch j jh J
T Th D Dh N t th d dh n
p ph b bh m y r l v z S s h

O: elongated o
E: elongated e )

P.S. I often use 'E' instead of 'e' in words like priye, valaye, etc
because the 'e' has to be elongated. In sanskrit words, I mostly make use of 'E';
eg: gaNEza