Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Thyagaraja Kriti - Kali Narulaku - Raga Kuntala Varaali

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

kali narulaku-kuntaLavarALi

In the kRti ‘kali narulaku’ – rAga kuntaLavarALi, SrI tyAgarAja states that people of kali do not understand the greatness of tAraka nAma – 'rAma'.

P kali narulaku mahimalu
telipi(y)Emi phalam(a)na lEdA

A ilanu velayu vara 1vRshabh(A)dulak-
2(a)Tukula ruci teliyu 3candamugA nI (kali)

C dAra sutulakai dhanamulakai Uru
pErulakai bahu pedda tanamukai
sAreku bhakta vEsamu konu vAriki
tAraka nAma SrI tyAgarAj(A)rcita (kali)

Gist
O Lord worshipped by this tyAgarAja!

Didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling the people of this kali yuga about the potency (of Your name')?

Like the taste of parched rice being known to great bulls etc., found in this World, didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling the people of this kali yuga about the potency of Your name'?

Didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling about the potency of (Your) name' ('rAma') which carries one across the Ocean of Worldly Existence, to the people of this kali yuga who, for the sake of wife, children, wealth, name and fame, and great power, always don the garb of a devotee?

Word-by-word Meaning

P O Lord! Didn’t (lEdA) I say (ana) 'what (Emi) is the benefit (phalamu) (phalamana) (literally fruit) of telling (telipi) (telipiyEmi) the people (narulaku) of this kali yuga about the potency (mahimalu) (of Your name')?

A O Lord! Like (candamugA) the taste (ruci) of parched rice (aTukula) being known (teliyu) to great (vara) bulls (vRshabha) etc (Adulaku) (vRshabhAdulakaTukula) found (velayu) (literally shining) in this World (ilanu),
didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling the people of this kali yuga about the potency of Your (nI) name'?

C O Lord worshipped (arcita) by this tyAgarAja (tyAgarAjArcita)!
Didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling about the potency of (Your) name' (nAma) ('rAma') which carries one across (tAraka) the Ocean of Worldly Existence, to the people (vAriki) of this kali yuga who –
for the sake of wife (dAra), children (sutulakai), wealth (dhanamulakai), name and fame (Uru pErulakai), and great (bahu) power (pedda tanamukai),
always (sAreku) don (konu) (literally have) the garb (vEsamu) of a devotee (bhakta)?

Notes –
Variations –
1 – vRshabhAdula – vRsha rAjula.

3 – candamugA nI – candamu gAni. If 'candamugA nI' is correct, then 'nI' could be connected to pallavi as 'nI mahimalu'; alternatively, it could be split as 'candamu gAni' +'I' and connected to pallavi as 'I kali narulaku'. However, if 'candamu gAni' – (short ending vowel) is correct, then 'gAni' can be connected to pallavi.

However, in keeping with caraNam, wherein 'tAraka nAma' is connected to pallavi as 'tAraka nAma mahimalu', in the anupallavi also, 'candamugA nI' has been accepted by joining 'nI' with pallavi as 'nI mahimalu'.

References –

Comments -
2 – aTukula ruci – taste of parched rice - In this regard, the following verses of SrImad-bhAgavataM, Book 10, Chapter 81 (episode of sudAmA) is relevant –

kRshNa said to sudAmA –
nanv-Etad-upanItaM mE parama-prINanaM sakhE
tarpayanty-anga mAM viSvam-EtE pRthuka-taNDulAH 9

“Here You have brought Me something which I like most. These grains of beaten rice will satisfy not only Me, but the whole world.”


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. कलि नरुलकु महिमलु
तॆलिपि(ये)मि फल(म)न लेदा

अ. इलनु वॆलयु वर वृषभादुल(क)टुकुल
रुचि तॆलियु चन्दमुगा नी (कलि)

च. दार सुतुलकै धनमुलकै ऊरु
पेरुलकै बहु पॆद्द तनमुकै
सारॆकु भक्त वेसमु कॊनु वारिकि
तारक नाम श्री त्यागरा(जा)र्चित (कलि)

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. கலி நருலகு மஹிமலு
தெலிபி(யே)மி ப2ல(ம)ன லேதா3

அ. இலனு வெலயு வர வ்ரு2ஷபா4து3ல(க)டுகுல
ருசி தெலியு சந்த3முகா3 நீ (கலி)

ச. தா3ர ஸுதுலகை த4னமுலகை ஊரு
பேருலகை ப3ஹு பெத்3த3 தனமுகை
ஸாரெகு ப4க்த வேஸமு கொனு வாரிகி
தாரக நாம ஸ்ரீ த்யாக3ரா(ஜா)ர்சித (கலி)

கலி மனிதருக்கு (உனது) வல்லமைகளைத்
தெரிவிப்பதனா லென்ன பயனெனவில்லையா?

புவியில் விளங்கும் உயர் எருது ஆகியவற்றிற்கு, அவலின்
சுவை தெரிதல் போலும்,
இக்கலி மனிதருக்கு உனது வல்லமைகளைத்
தெரிவிப்பதனா லென்ன பயனெனவில்லையா?

மனைவி, மக்களுக்காக, செல்வத்திற்காக, ஊர்,
பெயருக்காக, மிக்கு பெரியதனத்திற்காக,
எவ்வமயமும் தொண்டர் வேடம் பூணுவோருக்கு,
தியாகராசனால் போற்றப் பெற்றோனே!
தாரக நாமத்தின் வல்லமைகளைத்
தெரிவிப்பதனா லென்ன பயனெனவில்லையா?

அவலின் சுவை தெரிதல் போலும் - அவலின் சுவை தெரியாதென
பெரியதனம் - அதிகாரம்
தாரக நாமம் - 'இராமா' எனும் நாமம் - பிறவிக் கடலைக் கடத்துவிக்க

Telugu

ప. కలి నరులకు మహిమలు
తెలిపియేమి ఫలమన లేదా

అ. ఇలను వెలయు వర వృషభాదులకటుకుల
రుచి తెలియు చందముగా నీ (కలి)

చ. దార సుతులకై ధనములకై ఊరు
పేరులకై బహు పెద్ద తనముకై
సారెకు భక్త వేసము కొను వారికి
తారక నామ శ్రీ త్యాగరాజార్చిత (కలి)

Kannada

ಪ. ಕಲಿ ನರುಲಕು ಮಹಿಮಲು
ತೆಲಿಪಿಯೇಮಿ ಫಲಮನ ಲೇದಾ

ಅ. ಇಲನು ವೆಲಯು ವರ ವೃಷಭಾದುಲಕಟುಕುಲ
ರುಚಿ ತೆಲಿಯು ಚಂದಮುಗಾ ನೀ (ಕಲಿ)

ಚ. ದಾರ ಸುತುಲಕೈ ಧನಮುಲಕೈ ಊರು
ಪೇರುಲಕೈ ಬಹು ಪೆದ್ದ ತನಮುಕೈ
ಸಾರೆಕು ಭಕ್ತ ವೇಸಮು ಕೊನು ವಾರಿಕಿ
ತಾರಕ ನಾಮ ಶ್ರೀ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜಾರ್ಚಿತ (ಕಲಿ)

Malayalam

പ. കലി നരുലകു മഹിമലു
തെലിപിയേമി ഫലമന ലേദാ

അ. ഇലനു വെലയു വര വൃഷഭാദുലകടുകുല
രുചി തെലിയു ചന്ദമുഗാ നീ (കലി)

ച. ദാര സുതുലകൈ ധനമുലകൈ ഊരു
പേരുലകൈ ബഹു പെദ്ദ തനമുകൈ
സാരെകു ഭക്ത വേസമു കൊനു വാരികി
താരക നാമ ശ്രീ ത്യാഗരാജാര്ചിത (കലി)

Updated on 28 Apr 2009

2 comments:

Govindaswamy said...

Dear Sri Govindan
P –“ Didn’t I say 'what is the benefit of telling the people of this kali yuga about the potency (of Your name')?”
When did tyAgaraja make such a statement, . Does it mean that he gave up propagating the potency of Rama’s name? In Tamizh meaning you have not made it clear as to who made this statement.
கலி மனிதருக்கு (உனது) வல்லமைகளைத் தெரிவிப்பதனா லென்ன பயனெனவில்லையா?
AP- vara vRshabh(A)- You have taken ‘vara’ as an adjective qualifying ‘vRshabha’. Can ‘ilanu nelayu vara !’ be taken as addressing rAma?
‘candamugA nI’- Can ‘candamugA ?’ be taken as a rhetoric question, meaning ‘Is it not like bulls knowing the taste of parched rice’.

Regards
Govindaswamy

V Govindan said...

Dear Sri Govindaswamy,

The context of this kRti is not known. SrI tyAgarAja has sung many such songs for which the context is not readily discernible. Therefore, we have to take it as such. This kRti is in the form of of a complaint to the Lord that it is very difficult - bordering impossibility - to change the behaviour of ordinary humans.

In regard to 'vara', it is not possible to take it as an adjective of SrI rAma because, there is no such reference nearby.

In regard to 'candamugA nI', I have given detailed reasons in my comments (variations) about this. This can be taken as rhetoric.

Regards,
V Govindan