Thyagaraja Kriti - Sobhillu Sapta Svara - Raga Jaganmohini

Transliteration–Telugu
Transliteration as per Modified Harvard-Kyoto (HK) Convention
(including Telugu letters – Short e, Short o) -

a A i I u U
R RR lR lRR
e E ai o O au M (H or :)

(e – short E – Long o – short O – Long)

k kh g gh n/G
c ch j jh n/J (jn – as in jnAna)
T Th D Dh N
t th d dh n
p ph b bh m
y r l L v
S sh s h

SObhillu sapta svara-jaganmOhini

In the kRti ‘SObhillu sapta svara’ – rAga jaganmOhini (tALa rUpakaM), SrI tyAgarAja describes the greatness of music (sangItam).

pallavi
SObhillu ¹sapta svara
²sundarula bhajimpavE manasA

---

anupallavi
³nAbhi hRt kaNTha rasana
nAs(A)dula(y)andu (SObhillu)

---

caraNam
dhara Rk sAm(A)dulalO
vara ⁴gAyatrI hRdayamua
sura bhU-sura mAnasamuna
Subha tyAgarAjuni(y)eDa (SObhillu)

---

Gist

O My mind!

• Worship the radiant sapta svara divinities.
  
  
• Worship the sapta svara divinities radiant at navel, heart, throat, tongue and nose etc.
  
  
• Worship the sapta svara divinities radiant -
  
  • in the vEdas which are support (for the creation);
    
  • in the heart of sacred gAyatrI (mantra) (as OM - nAdOMkAra);
    
  • in the minds of celestials and brAhmaNas; and
    
  • in the person of this fortunate tyAgarAja.

---

Word-by-word Meaning

pallavi
SObhillu sapta svara
sundarula bhajimpavE manasA

O My mind (manasA)! Worship (bhajimpavE) the radiant (SObhillu) sapta svara divinities (sundarlua) (literally beautiful ones).

---

anupallavi
nAbhi hRt kaNTha rasana
nAsa-Adula-andu (SObhillu)

O my Mind! Worship the sapta svara divinities radiant at (andu) navel (nAbhi), heart (hRt), throat (kaNTha), tongue (rasana) and nose (nAsa) etc. (Adula) (nAsAdulayandu).

---

caraNam
dhara Rk sAma-AdulalO
vara gAyatrI hRdayamua
sura bhU-sura mAnasamuna
Subha tyAgarAjuni-eDa (SObhillu)

O My mind! Worship the sapta svara divinities radiant -
in the vEdas – Rg vEda (Rk), sAma vEda etc. (AdulalO) (sAmAdulalO) which are the support (for the creation) (dhara);
in the heart (hRdayamuna) of sacred (vara) gAyatrI (mantra) (as OM - nAdOMkAra);
in the minds (mAnasamuna) of celestials (sura) and brAhmaNas (bhU-sura); and
in the person (eDa) of this fortunate (Subha) (literally auspicious) tyAgarAja (tyAgarAjuni) (tyAgarAjuniyeDa).

---

Notes –
References -
¹ – sapta svara - shadjaM, RshabhaM, gAndhAraM, madhyamaM, pancamaM, daivataM, nishAdaM.

Comments -
² – sundarula bhajimpavE – ‘worship these sapta svara divinities’ - nAdOpAsana.

³ - nAbhi, hRt, kanTha, rasana and nAsa - SrI tyAgarAja has only mentioned the abodes from where (or path through which) sapta svara are vocalised. Further, he also mentions ‘Adula’ meaning etc. It not clear whether this means ‘mUlAdhAra’.

SrI tyAgarAja specifically mentions the place of origin of sapta svara as ‘mUlAdhAra’ (mUlAdhAraja) in kRti ‘svara rAga sudhA’ – rAga SankarAbharaNaM. In the same kRti, SrI tyAgarAja mentions about the abodes of sapta svara – ‘sapta svara gRhamulu’; it is not clear whether the seven cakras (of kuNDalini yOga) are meant to represent the sapta svaras ; if that be so the correspondence would be – mUlAdhAra – sa; svAdhishThAna – ri; maNipUra - ga; anAhata - ma; viSuddhi - pa; AjnA - da; sahasrAra – ni. Further, it is not clear how they are to be related to mUlAdhAra, nAbhi, hRt, kanTha, rasana and nAsa mentioned in this kRti.

In lalitA sahasranAmaM, mother is called ‘parA’, ‘paSyanti’, ‘madhyamA’, ‘vaikharI rUpA’.

“parA – The transcendent Word - above other lower stages of speech known as paSyanti (inaudible stage), vaikharI (uttered audible speech) and madhyamA (intermediate stage between paSyanti and vaikharI)”. (Translation by Swami Tapasyananda)

Discourse of Kanchi Paramacharya Chandrasekharendra Saraswati (Page 30) on ‘parA’, ‘paSyanti’, ‘madhyamA’, ‘vaikharI.

Article on 'sapta svaras' and their relation to the seven cakras.

Details regarding ‘anAhata nAda’ may be found in the e-book ‘kuNDalini yOga’ by Swami Sivananda.

As sapta svara belong to the category of 'ahata nAda' (caused sound), it is only at vaikharI stage that audibility is possible.

⁴ – gAyatrI hRdayamuna – This refers to nAdOMkAra which is the nature of the parabrahman (sadASiva mayamagu nAdOMkAra) – kRti ‘rAga sudhA rasa’. In the kRti ‘mOkshamu galadA’, SrI tyAgarAja states –

prANAnala saMyOgamu valla
praNava nAdamu sapta svaramulai paraga

“Due to fusion of vital force with fire (energy), the sound of OM has elaborated into sapta svara.”

---

Devanagari

ऎ,कॆ,चॆ.. - e,ke,ce..(short);
ए,के,चे.. - E,kE,cE..(long);
ऐ,कै,चै.. - ai,kai,cai..;
ऒ,कॊ,चॊ.. - o,ko,co..(short);
ओ,को,चो.. - O,kO,cO..(long);
औ,कौ,चौ.. -au,kau,cau..;

प. शोभिल्लु सप्त स्वर
सुन्दरुल भजिम्पवे मनसा

अ. नाभि हृत्कण्ठ रसन
ना(सा)दुल(य)न्दु (शो)

च. धर ऋक् सा(मा)दुललो
वर गायत्री हृदयमुन
सुर भू-सुर मानसमुन
शुभ त्यागराजुनि(यॆ)ड (शो)

---

Tamil

க,ச,ட,த,ப - 2-ख छ ठ थ फ; 3-ग ड द ब; 4-घ झ ढ ध भ
(ச3 - ஜ)
ஸ1 श - शिव - சிவன்
ரு2 ऋ - कृप - கிருபை

ப. ஸோ1பி4ல்லு ஸப்த ஸ்வர
ஸுந்த3ருல ப4ஜிம்பவே மனஸா

அ. நாபி4 ஹ்ரு2த்கண்ட2 ரஸன
நா(ஸா)து3ல(ய)ந்து3 (ஸோ1)

ச. த4ர ரு2க் ஸா(மா)து3லலோ
வர கா3யத்ரீ ஹ்ரு2த3யமுன
ஸுர பூ4-ஸுர மானஸமுன
ஸு1ப4 த்யாக3ராஜுனி(யெ)ட3 (ஸோ1)

திகழும் ஏழு சுரங்களெனும்
சுந்தரர்களை வழிபடுவாய், மனமே!

கொப்பூழ், இதயம், தொண்டை, நாக்கு,
மூக்கு ஆகியவற்றினில்
திகழும் ஏழு சுரங்களெனும்
சுந்தரர்களை வழிபடுவாய், மனமே!

ஆதாரமான, ருக், சாம ஆகிய மறைகளிலும்,
புனித காயத்திரி (மந்திரத்தின்) இதயத்திலும்,
வானோர், மற்றும் அந்தணர் உள்ளங்களிலும்,
மங்களம் நிறை இத்தியாகராசனிடமும்
திகழும் ஏழு சுரங்களெனும்
சுந்தரர்களை வழிபடுவாய், மனமே!

ஆதாரமான - படைப்புக்கு ஆதாரமான
ருக் - ருக்3-வேதம்

---

Telugu

ప. శోభిల్లు సప్త స్వర
సుందరుల భజింపవే మనసా

అ. నాభి హృత్కంఠ రసన
నాసాదులయందు (శో)

చ. ధర ఋక్ సామాదులలో
వర గాయత్రీ హృదయమున
సుర భూ-సుర మానసమున
శుభ త్యాగరాజునియెడ (శో)

---

Kannada

ಪ. ಶೋಭಿಲ್ಲು ಸಪ್ತ ಸ್ವರ
ಸುಂದರುಲ ಭಜಿಂಪವೇ ಮನಸಾ

ಅ. ನಾಭಿ ಹೃತ್ಕಂಠ ರಸನ
ನಾಸಾದುಲಯಂದು (ಶೋ)

ಚ. ಧರ ಋಕ್ ಸಾಮಾದುಲಲೋ
ವರ ಗಾಯತ್ರೀ ಹೃದಯಮುನ
ಸುರ ಭೂ-ಸುರ ಮಾನಸಮುನ
ಶುಭ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜುನಿಯೆಡ (ಶೋ)

---

Malayalam

പ. ശോഭില്ലു സപ്ത സ്വര
സുന്ദരുല ഭജിമ്പവേ മനസാ

അ. നാഭി ഹൃത്കണ്ഠ രസന
നാസാദുലയന്ദു (ശോ)

ച. ധര ഋക്‍ സാമാദുലലോ
വര ഗായത്രീ ഹൃദയമുന
സുര ഭൂ-സുര മാനസമുന
ശുഭ ത്യാഗരാജുനിയെഡ (ശോ)

---

Updated on 12 Dec 2010