Thyagaraja Kriti - Saamaja Vara Gamana - Raga Hindolam

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

sAmaja vara gamana-hindOLaM

In the kRti ‘ sAmaja vara gamana’ – rAga hindOLaM, SrI tyAgarAja sings praises of the Lord kRshNa.

P sAmaja vara gamana sAdhu hRt-
sAras(A)bja pAla kAl(A)tIta vikhyAta

A ¹sAma nigamaja sudhA maya gAna vicakshaNa
guNa SIla day(A)lavAla mAM pAlaya (sAmaja)

C ²vEda SirO mAtRja sapta svara
nAd(A)cala³ dIpa svIkRta
yAdava kula muraLI vAdana
vinOda ⁴mOhana kara tyAgarAja vandanIya (sAmaja)

Gist
O Lord whose stately gait is like that of an elephant! O Protector of the Lotus of heart of pious people! (Or O Sun that blossoms the Lotus in the lake called heart of pious people)! O Lord who is beyond Time! O Celebrated One!
O Lord who is adept in the nectarine music - born of sAma vEda! O Lord who is virtuous by nature! O Ocean of mercy!
O Splendrous lamp on the mountain called the nAda consisting of the seven svaras born of nAdOMkAra! O Lord who incarnated in the race of yadu! O Player of flute! O sportive enchanter! O Lord worshipped by this tyAgarAja!
Please protect me.

Word-by-word Meaning

P O Lord whose stately (vara) (literally blessed) gait (gamana) is like that of an elephant (sAmaja)!
O Protector (pAla) of the Lotus – born of water (abja) of lake (sArasa) (sArasAbja) - of heart (hRt) of pious people (sAdhu) (Or O Sun that blossoms the Lotus in the lake called heart of pious people)!
O Lord who is beyond (atIta) Time (kAla) (kAlAtIta)! O Celebrated (vikhyAta) One!

A O Lord who is adept (vicakshaNa) in the nectarine (sudhA maya) music (gAna) - born of sAma vEda (nigamaja)!
O Lord who is virtuous by nature (guNa SIla)! O Ocean (AlavAla) of mercy (dayA) (dayAlavAla)! Please protect (pAlaya) me (mAM);
O Lord whose stately gait is like that of an elephant! O Protector of the Lotus of the heart of pious people! O Lord who is beyond Time ! O Celebrated One!

C O Splendrous lamp (dIpa) on the mountain (acala) called the nAda consisting of the seven (sapta) svaras born of nAdOMkAra – mother (mAtRja) of head (SirO) of vEdas!
O Lord who incarnated (svIkRta) (literally appropriate) in the race (kula) of yadu (yAdava)! O Player (vAdana) of flute (muraLI)! O sportive (vinOda) enchanter (mOhana kara)! O Lord worshipped (vandanIya) by this tyAgarAja!
O Lord whose stately gait is like an elephant! O Protector of the Lotus of the heart of pious people! O Lord who is beyond Time ! O Celebrated Lord!

Notes –
Variations –
⁴ – mOhana kara –mOhanAkAra.
References –
¹ – sAma nigamaja - SrI tyAgarAja says that music (gAna) was born from sAma vEda. According to ‘karnAtaka sangIta SAstra’ by SrI AS Panchapakesa Iyer, while Rk and yajur vEdas contain only three svara, sAma vEda contains all the sapta svara.
“Poetry is the essence of Speech; Music is the essence of Poetry; The Udgita of Sama Veda embodied by the Pranava is the essence of Music; Thus,
this Omkaara (Pranava Nada) is the utmost, the most valuble , the final essence
of all essences.” For more information on sAma vEda and its connection to music, please visit the site –
http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/bhakti/archives/oct95/0085.html

Comments
² – vEda SirO – SrI tyAgarAja says that sapta svara were born from vEda Siras (vEda SirO). The following are some of the other statements of SrI tyAgarAja on the subject.
In the kRti ‘O rAma rAma sarvOnnata’, - ‘vEda Siras’ has been used (vEda Siramulella nIvE daivamani) which tends to mean ‘upanishads’.
In the kRti ‘sogasugA mRdanga’, ‘nigama Siras’ has been used (nigama SirOrthamu galgina nija vAkkulatO) which also seems to mean ‘upanishads’.
According to an article found in a web site upanishads are considered to be the ‘head of vEdA’ –
http://www.hinduonnet.com/2000/11/07/stories/13070179.htm

In regard to sapta-svara, the following are some other statements -
In the kRti ‘vidulaku mrokkeda’, ‘Sankara kRta sAma nigama’ means ‘sAma vEda created by Lord Siva’; and also ‘nAdAtmaka sapta svara’ to mean ‘the sapta svara are the core of nAda’.
In the kRti ‘nAda tanumaniSaM’, it is stated that ‘nAda is the essence of sAma vEda – the highest of all vEdas’ (nigamOttama sAma vEda sAraM).
In the kRti ‘rAga sudha rasa’, it is stated that nAdOMkAra is of the nature of sadASiva - ‘sadASiva mayamagu nAdOMkAra svara vidulu’.
In the kRti ‘mOkshamu galadA’, it is stated that – the sapta svara comes out of praNava nAda – same as nAdOMkAra – (prANAnala samyOgamu valla praNava nAdamu sapta svaramulai paraga).
In the kRti ‘SObhillu sapta svara’, it is stated ‘Rk sAmAdulalO vara gAyatrI hRdayamuna’ - ‘sapta svara is resplendent in the Rk, sAma and other vEdas and in the heart of gAyatrI’.

‘vEda Siras’ or ‘nigama Siras’ means ‘upanishad’; therefore, ‘mother of vEda Siras’ (vEda SirO mAtR) – would mean gAyatrI - mother of Vedas -
http://blogs.ibibo.com/vinuquitsmoking/Gayatri-Mantra---Understood

According to SrI tyAgarAja sapta-svara were ‘born of mother of vEda Siras’ (vEda SirO mAtRja). As everywhere SrI tyAgarAja states that sapta-svara were born of praNava or nAdOMkAra, ‘mother of vEda Siras’ would mean ‘praNava’ or ‘nAdOMkAra’ and not gAyatrI, because ‘gAyatrI’ itself is the elaboration of ‘praNava’. Therefore, ‘vEda Siras’ may mean ‘gAyatrI’ and not ‘upanishads’.
Alternatively, praNava (OMkAra) and gAyatrI should be considered as synonyms.
SrI tyAgarAja is a nAdOpAsaka. Therefore, anyone who is not a nAdOpAsaka would not be able to comprehend the truth behind the statements of SrI tyAgarAja only through intellectual gymnastics. Therefore, I leave it to the readers to reach their own conclusions.
³ – acala dIpa – In tamizh it is called ‘kunRin mEliTTa viLakku’ குன்றின் மேலிட்ட விளக்கு.


Devanagari Version

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. सामज वर गमन साधु
हृत्सार(सा)ब्ज पाल का(ला)तीत विख्यात

अ. साम निगमज सुधा मय गान विचक्षण
गुण शील द(या)लवाल मां पालय (सा)

च. वेद शिरो मातृज सप्त-स्वर
ना(दा)चल दीप स्वीकृत
यादव कुल मुरळी वादन विनोद
मोहन कर त्यागराज वन्दनीय (सा)


Tamil Version with Meaning

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. ஸாமஜ வர க3மன ஸாது4 ஹ்ரு2த்-
ஸார(ஸா)ப்3ஜ பால கா(லா)தீத விக்2யாத

அ. ஸாம நிக3மஜ ஸுதா4 மய கா3ன விசக்ஷண
கு3ண ஸீ1ல த3(யா)லவால மாம் பாலய (ஸா)

ச. வேத3 ஸி1ரோ மாத்ரு2ஜ ஸப்த-ஸ்வர
நா(தா3)சல தீ3ப ஸ்வீக்ரு2த
யாத3வ குல முரளீ வாத3ன வினோத3
மோஹன கர த்யாக3ராஜ வந்த3னீய (ஸா)

களிற்றின் சிறந்த நடையோனே! நல்லோரிதயக்
கமலத்தைப் பேணுவோனே! காலத்திற்கப்பாற்பட்டோனே!
புகழுடைத்தோனே!

சாம வேதத்துதித்த அமிழ்த மயமான இசை வல்லுநனே!
நற்பண்புகளோனே! கருணைக் கடலே! என்னைக் காப்பாய்;
களிற்றின் சிறந்த நடையோனே! நல்லோரிதயக்
கமலத்தைப் பேணுவோனே! காலத்திற்கப்பாற்பட்டோனே!
புகழுடைத்தோனே!

மறைமுடியின் அன்னை ஈன்ற ஏழ் பதமெனும்
நாதக்குன்றின் (மேலிட்ட) விளக்கே! யாதவ குலத்
தோன்றலே! குழலிசைப்போனே! விளையாடலாக
சொக்கவைப்போனே! தியாகராசனால் வந்திக்கப்பெற்றோனே!
களிற்றின் சிறந்த நடையோனே! நல்லோரிதயக்
கமலத்தைப் பேணுவோனே! காலத்திற்கப்பாற்பட்டோனே!
புகழுடைத்தோனே!

மறைமுடி - உபநிடதம் அல்லது காயத்திரி
மறைமுடியின் அன்னை - நாதோங்காரம்
ஏழ் பதம் - இசையின் ஏழு சுரங்கள்
சொக்கவைப்போன் - ஆய்ச்சியரையும் உலகோரையும்


Telugu Version

ప. సామజ వర గమన సాధు
హృత్సారసాబ్జ పాల కాలాతీత విఖ్యాత

అ. సామ నిగమజ సుధా మయ గాన విచక్షణ
గుణ శీల దయాలవాల మాం పాలయ (సా)

చ. వేద శిరో మాతృజ సప్త-స్వర
నాదాచల దీప స్వీకృత
యాదవ కుల మురళీ వాదన వినోద
మోహన కర త్యాగరాజ వందనీయ (సా)


Kannada Version

ಪ. ಸಾಮಜ ವರ ಗಮನ ಸಾಧು
ಹೃತ್ಸಾರಸಾಬ್ಜ ಪಾಲ ಕಾಲಾತೀತ ವಿಖ್ಯಾತ

ಅ. ಸಾಮ ನಿಗಮಜ ಸುಧಾ ಮಯ ಗಾನ ವಿಚಕ್ಷಣ
ಗುಣ ಶೀಲ ದಯಾಲವಾಲ ಮಾಂ ಪಾಲಯ (ಸಾ)

ಚ. ವೇದ ಶಿರೋ ಮಾತೃಜ ಸಪ್ತ-ಸ್ವರ
ನಾದಾಚಲ ದೀಪ ಸ್ವೀಕೃತ
ಯಾದವ ಕುಲ ಮುರಳೀ ವಾದನ ವಿನೋದ
ಮೋಹನ ಕರ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ವಂದನೀಯ (ಸಾ)


Malayalam Version

പ. സാമജ വര ഗമന സാധു
ഹൃത്സാരസാബ്ജ പാല കാലാതീത വിഖ്യാത

അ. സാമ നിഗമജ സുധാ മയ ഗാന വിചക്ഷണ
ഗുണ ശീല ദയാലവാല മാം പാലയ (സാ)

ച. വേദ ശിരോ മാതൃജ സപ്ത-സ്വര
നാദാചല ദീപ സ്വീകൃത
യാദവ കുല മുരളീ വാദന വിനോദ
മോഹന കര ത്യാഗരാജ വന്ദനീയ (സാ)

Updated on 01 Nov 2008