Thyagaraja Kriti - Ela Teliya Lero - Raga Darbaaru

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

Ela teliya lErO-darbAru

In the kRti ‘Ela teliya lErO’ – rAga darbAru, SrI tyAgarAja sings praises of the Lord.

P ¹Ela teliya lErO ²pUrva karmam-
(E)lAguna jEsirO rAmayya

A bAla SaS(A)nka ³kal(A)lankRta nuta
nIla varNa suguN(A)laya nI mahimal(Ela)

C1 bAla tanamuna SUla dharuni
viSAla dhanuvunu lIlagA bhU-
pAlakulu kana kEla viraci
kuSAlugA SrIn(E)lina ninn(Ela)

C2 nAlug(o)ka padi vEla kancu
rathAla sura ripu mUla balamula
lIlagAn⁴(o)ka kOlan(E)si
kAla yama puri pAlu jEsina ninn(Ela)

C3 rAja SEkharuni(y)I jagatilO
⁵rAjasambuna pUja sEyu
rAjul(a)nu gaja rAjulaku mRga
rAja tyAgarAja nuta ninn(Ela)

Gist
O Lord rAma! O Lord praised by Lord Siva! O (Dark) blue hued! O Abode of virtues! O Lion to those king elephants called kings – who in this World, endowed with passion, worship Lord Siva! O Lord praised by this tyAgarAja!

Why did they not understand You and Your greatness? How did they perform earlier actions (that they could not understand You)?
In Your youth itself, as the kings watched, You broke the huge bow of Lord Siva sportingly, by Your hands, and happily became the consort of sItA.
You sportingly dispatched fourteen thousand (warriors in) bronze chariots and the core strengths of rAvaNa, to the abode of the Lord of Death by shooting just a single arrow.

Word-by-Word Meaning

P O Lord (ayya) rAma! Why (Ela) did they not (lErO) understand (teliya) You? How (ElAguna) did they perform (jEsirO) earlier (pUrva) (or in their earlier births) actions (karmamu) (karmamElAguna) (that they could not understand You)?

A O Lord praised (nuta) by Lord Siva – one who is adorned (alankRta) with the digit (kalA) (kalAlankRta) of the young (bAla) moon – the hare (SaSa) marked (anka) (SaSAnka)!
O (Dark) blue (nIla) hued (varNa)! O Abode (Alaya) of virtues (suguNa) (suguNAlaya)!
O Lord rAma! Why did they not understand Your (nI) greatness (mahimalu) (mahimalEla)? How did they perform earlier (or in their earlier births) actions (that they could not understand You)?

C1 O Lord rAma! Why did they not understand You (ninnu) (ninnEla) who, in His youth (bAla tanamuna) itself (literally young age),
as the kings – Lords (pAlakulu) of the Earth (bhU) – watched (kana),
by breaking (viraci) sportingly (lIlagA) by His hands (kEla) the huge (viSAla) (literally large) bow (dhanuvunu) of Lord Siva – one who wields (dharuni) of trident (SUla),
happily (kuSAlugA) became the consort (Elina) (literally govern) of sItA (SrI) (SrIni) (literally lakshmi) (SrInElina)?
How did they perform earlier (or in their earlier births) actions (that they could not understand You)?

C2 O Lord rAma! Why did they not understand You (ninnu) (ninnEla), who sportingly (lIlagAnu) dispatched (pAlu jEsina) to the abode (puri) of the Lord of Death – the controller (yama) of time (kAla) –
the fourteen – four (nAlugu) and a(oka) ten (padi) - thousand (vEla) (warriors in) bronze (kancu) chariots (rathAla) and the core (mUla) strengths (balamula) of rAvaNa – the enemy (ripu) of celestials (sura),
by shooting (Esi) just a single (oka) (lIlagAnoka) arrow (kOlanu) (kOlanEsi)?
How did they perform earlier (or in their earlier births) actions (that they could not understand You)?

C3 O Lion – king (rAja) of animals (mRga) – to those king (rAjulaku) elephants (gaja) called (anu) kings (rAjulu) (rAjulanu) – who in this (I) World (jagatilO),
endowed with passion (rAjasambuna), worship (pUja sEyu) Lord Siva – one who wears the (digit) of the moon (rAja) on the head (SEkhara) (SEkharuniyI)! O Lord praised (nuta) by this tyAgarAja!
O Lord rAma! why did they not understand You (ninnu) (ninnEla)? what kind of actions did they perform earlier (or in their earlier births) (that they could not understand You)?
(To those kings, who become arrogant by obtaining boons worshipping Lord Siva, you are like a lion to the elephants.)

Notes –
Variations –

References –
³ – kalA – a digit is equivalent to 1/16th portion of anything, especially, moon.

Comments -
¹ - Ela teliya lErO – 'why did they not understand' – In the kRti 'ramA ramaNa bhAramA' – rAga vasanta bhairavi, SrI tyAgarAja states – 'marmamerigi nammukona lEraNTi dharmAdi mOksha varamulosangi bhakta varula kAcina kIrti viNTi' - I heard about your fame, of protecting the great devotees, by conferring on them that kind of boons (which are otherwise attainable only as a result of the objects of human pursuit - purushArtha) of righteous conduct etc (dharma, artha, kAma) and also emancipation; people in the Earth would not believe such acts (excepting by) knowing the secrets (of Your true nature).

Even SrI rAma denies existence of any such special powers with him – please refer to SrImad-vAlmIki rAmAyaNa, yuddha kANDa, Chapter 117 - 'sItA's fire ordeal' –

AtmAnaM mAnushaM manyE rAmaM daSarathAtmajam
sO(a)haM yaSca yataScAhaM bhagavAMstad bravItu mE 11

"I account myself a human being, Rama (by name), sprung from the loins of (Emperor) Dasartha. And (yet) let the glorious lord (Brahma) tell me that which I as such (really) am and whence I have come."

² – pUrva karmamElAguna jEsirO – 'how did they perform earlier actions' – rAvaNa and other demons could not recognise SrI rAma to be the Lord incarnate. In this connection, the statement of maNDOdari lamenting about the death of rAvaNa wherein she pities her husband for not recognising SrI rAma to be the Lord vishNu incarnate, is relevant. Please refer to SrImad vAlmIki rAmayaNa, yuddha kANDa, Chapter 111.

Read in conjunction with caraNa 3 'rAjasambuna pUjalu sEyu', it is clear that SrI tyAgarAja implies what is stated in SrImad- bhagavad-gIta, Chapter 3 (please also refer to note below) –

yajnArthAtkarmaNO(a)nyatra lOkO(a)yaM karma bandhanaH
tadarthaM karma kauntEya mukta sangaH samAcara 9

“The world is bound by actions other than those performed for the sake of yajna; do thou, therefore, O son of kuntI, perform action for yajna alone, devoid of attachment.” (Translation by Swami Swarupananda)

⁴ – oka kOlanEsi – The killing of fourteen thousand demons in a matter of hour and a half is praised by dEvas – SrImad vAlmIki rAmayaNa – AraNyakANDa – Chapter 30 refers.

Ibid yudddha kANDa – Chapter 93 (verses 27, 31-33) describes the exploits of SrI rAma – “The aforesaid ogres for their part beheld thousands of rAma on the battle field, while at other times they saw only one rAma – a scion of kAkustha. (27) In the eighth part of a day (one hour and a half) an army of ogres capable of changing their form at will, consisting of a myriad chariots possessing the swiftness of the wind, also eighteen thousand fleet-footed elephants, fourteen thousand horses with their riders, and a full two lakhs of ogres fighting on foot, was exterminated by SrI rAma single-handed with his arrows resembling tongues of fires. (31-33)”
However, the statement of SrI tyAgarAja about ‘fourteen thousand bronze chariots’ is not readily traceable.

⁵ – rAjasambuna pUja sEyu rAjulu – This would, generally, refer to all those demons who sought boons from Lord Siva for their personal aggrandisement – hence rAjasa. However, here this would specifically refer to rAvaNa.


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. एल तॆलिय लेरो पूर्व कर्म-
(मे)लागुन जेसिरो रामय्य

अ. बाल श(शां)क क(ला)लंकृत नुत
नील वर्ण सुगु(णा)लय नी महिम(लेल)

च1. बाल तनमुन शूल धरुनि
विशाल धनुवुनु लीलगा भू-
पालकुलु कन केल विरचि
कुशालुगा श्री(ने)लिन नि(न्नेल)

च2. नालु(गॊ)क पदि वेल कञ्चु
रथाल सुर रिपु मूल बलमुल
लीलगा(नॊ)क कोल(ने)सि
काल यम पुरि पालु जेसिन नि(न्नेल)

च3. राज शेखरुनि(यी) जगतिलो
राजसम्बुन पूज सेयु
राजु(ल)नु गज राजुलकु मृग
राज त्यागराज नुत नि(न्नेल)


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. ஏல தெலிய லேரோ பூர்வ கர்ம-
(மே)லாகு3ன ஜேஸிரோ ராமய்ய

அ. பா3ல ஸ1(ஸா1)ங்க க(லா)லங்க்ரு2த நுத
நீல வர்ண ஸுகு3(ணா)லய நீ மஹிம(லேல)

ச1. பா3ல தனமுன ஸூ1ல த4ருனி
விஸா1ல த4னுவுனு லீலகா3 பூ4-
பாலகுலு கன கேல விரசி
குஸா1லுகா3 ஸ்ரீ(னே)லின நி(ன்னேல)

ச2. நாலு(கொ3)க பதி3 வேல கஞ்சு
ரதா2ல ஸுர ரிபு மூல ப3லமுல
லீலகா3(னொ)க கோல(னே)ஸி
கால யம புரி பாலு ஜேஸின நி(ன்னேல)

ச3. ராஜ ஸே1க2ருனி(யீ) ஜக3திலோ
ராஜஸம்பு3ன பூஜ ஸேயு
ராஜு(ல)னு க3ஜ ராஜுலகு ம்ரு2க3
ராஜ த்யாக3ராஜ நுத நி(ன்னேல)

ஏனறிந்திலரோ? முன் வினைகள்
எவ்விதம் செய்தனரோ, இராமய்யா?

இளந்திங்கட் பிறை சூடியோனால் போற்றப்பெற்றோனே!
நீல வண்ணா! பண்புகளினுறைவிடமே! உனது மகிமைகளை
ஏனறிந்திலரோ? முன் வினைகள்
எவ்விதம் செய்தனரோ, இராமய்யா?

1. இளமையில், சூலமேந்தியின்
பெருத்த வில்லினை, விளையாட்டாக, புவி
யாள்வோர் காண, கைகளால் முறித்து,
களிப்புடன் திருமகளையாண்ட உன்னை
ஏனறிந்திலரோ? முன் வினைகள்
எவ்விதம் செய்தனரோ, இராமய்யா?

2. நான்குடனோர் பதினாயிரம் கஞ்சியத்
தேர்களையும், சுரர் பகைவனின் மூல பலத்தினையும்,
விளையாட்டாக, ஓரம்பெய்து,
காலவியமனின் புரமடையச் செய்தவுன்னை
ஏனறிந்திலரோ? முன் வினைகள்
எவ்விதம் செய்தனரோ, இராமய்யா?

3. திங்களணிவோனை, இப்புவியில்,
இராசதத்தினால் வழிபடும்
அரசர்களெனும் கரியரசர்களுக்கு, மிருக ராசனே!
தியாகராசனால் போற்றப்பெற்றோனே! உன்னை
ஏனறிந்திலரோ? முன் வினைகள்
எவ்விதம் செய்தனரோ, இராமய்யா?

இளந்திங்கட் பிறை சூடி, சூலமேந்தி, திங்களணிவோன் - சிவன்
திருமகள் - இங்கு சீதையைக் குறிக்கும்
நான்குடனோர் பதினாயிரம் - பதினான்காயிரம்
கஞ்சியம் - வெண்கலம்
கஞ்சியத் தேர்கள் - கரன் (சூர்ப்பநகையின் சோதரன்) சேனை
சுரர் பகைவன் - இராவணன்
மூல பலம் - அடிப்பெலமாயிருக்கும் சேனை
காலவியமன் - நமன்
இராசதம் - முக்குணங்களிலொன்று
மிருகராசன் - சிங்கம்


Telugu Version

ప. ఏల తెలియ లేరో పూర్వ కర్మ-
మేలాగున జేసిరో రామయ్య

అ. బాల శశాంక కలాలంకృత నుత
నీల వర్ణ సుగుణాలయ నీ మహిమ(లేల)

చ1. బాల తనమున శూల ధరుని
విశాల ధనువును లీలగా భూ-
పాలకులు కన కేల విరచి
కుశాలుగా శ్రీనేలిన ని(న్నేల)

చ2. నాలుగొక పది వేల కంచు
రథాల సుర రిపు మూల బలముల
లీలగానొక కోలనేసి
కాల యమ పురి పాలు జేసిన ని(న్నేల)

చ3. రాజ శేఖరునియీ జగతిలో
రాజసంబున పూజ సేయు
రాజులను గజ రాజులకు మృగ
రాజ త్యాగరాజ నుత ని(న్నేల)


Kannada Version

ಪ. ಏಲ ತೆಲಿಯ ಲೇರೋ ಪೂರ್ವ ಕರ್ಮ-
ಮೇಲಾಗುನ ಜೇಸಿರೋ ರಾಮಯ್ಯ

ಅ. ಬಾಲ ಶಶಾಂಕ ಕಲಾಲಂಕೃತ ನುತ
ನೀಲ ವರ್ಣ ಸುಗುಣಾಲಯ ನೀ ಮಹಿಮ(ಲೇಲ)

ಚ1. ಬಾಲ ತನಮುನ ಶೂಲ ಧರುನಿ
ವಿಶಾಲ ಧನುವುನು ಲೀಲಗಾ ಭೂ-
ಪಾಲಕುಲು ಕನ ಕೇಲ ವಿರಚಿ
ಕುಶಾಲುಗಾ ಶ್ರೀನೇಲಿನ ನಿ(ನ್ನೇಲ)

ಚ2. ನಾಲುಗೊಕ ಪದಿ ವೇಲ ಕಂಚು
ರಥಾಲ ಸುರ ರಿಪು ಮೂಲ ಬಲಮುಲ
ಲೀಲಗಾನೊಕ ಕೋಲನೇಸಿ
ಕಾಲ ಯಮ ಪುರಿ ಪಾಲು ಜೇಸಿನ ನಿ(ನ್ನೇಲ)

ಚ3. ರಾಜ ಶೇಖರುನಿಯೀ ಜಗತಿಲೋ
ರಾಜಸಂಬುನ ಪೂಜ ಸೇಯು
ರಾಜುಲನು ಗಜ ರಾಜುಲಕು ಮೃಗ
ರಾಜ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ನುತ ನಿ(ನ್ನೇಲ)


Malayalam Version

പ. ഏല തെലിയ ലേരോ പൂര്വ കര്മ-
മേലാഗുന ജേസിരോ രാമയ്യ

അ. ബാല ശശാങ്ക കലാലങ്കൃത നുത
നീല വര്ണ സുഗുണാലയ നീ മഹിമ(ലേല)

ച1. ബാല തനമുന ശൂല ധരുനി
വിശാല ധനുവുനു ലീലഗാ ഭൂ-
പാലകുലു കന കേല വിരചി
കുശാലുഗാ ശ്രീനേലിന നി(ന്നേല)

ച2. നാലുഗൊക പദി വേല കഞ്ചു
രഥാല സുര രിപു മൂല ബലമുല
ലീലഗാനൊക കോലനേസി
കാല യമ പുരി പാലു ജേസിന നി(ന്നേല)

ച3. രാജ ശേഖരുനിയീ ജഗതിലോ
രാജസമ്ബുന പൂജ സേയു
രാജുലനു ഗജ രാജുലകു മൃഗ
രാജ ത്യാഗരാജ നുത നി(ന്നേല)

Updated on 12 Jan 2009