Thyagaraja Kriti - Nada Sudha Rasam - Raga Arabhi

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

nAda sudhA rasam-Arabhi

In the kRti ‘nAda sudhA rasambilanu’ – rAga Arabhi (tALa rUpakaM), SrI tyAgarAja ecstatically sings that SrI rAma is the embodiment of the nectarine juice of nAda.

pallavi
nAda sudhA rasamb(i)lanu
nar(A)kRti(y)AyE manasA

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anupallavi
¹vEda purAN(A)gama
SAstr(A)dulak(A)dhAramau (nAda)

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caraNam
svaramul(A)runn(o)kaTi ²ghaNTalu
vara ³rAgamu kOdaNDamu
⁴dura naya dESyamu ⁵tri guNamu
nirata gati SaramurA
sarasa ⁶sangati ⁷sandarbhamu gala giramulurA
dhara bhajana bhAgyamurA
tyAgarAju sEvincu (nAda)

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Gist

O My Mind!

• The nectarine juice called nAda, worshipped by this tyAgarAja, which is the prop of vEdas, epics, Agamas and SAstras etc., has assumed a human form here (as SrI rAma).


• Seven svaras are the bells (of the bow kOdaNDa);


• sacred rAga is the bow kOdaNDa;


• dura, naya, and dESya are the three strands of the bow string;


• gati - steady pace (tempo) - is (are) the arrow(s);


• sangati - sweet thematic variations - are the words (spoken by the Lord) appropriate to the occasion;


• chanting the names of the Lord is a fortune.

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Word-by-word Meaning

pallavi
nAda sudhA rasamb(i)lanu
nara-AkRti-AyE manasA

O My Mind (manasA)! The nectarine (sudhA) juice (rasambu) called nAda has assumed (AyE) (literally become) a human (nara) form (AkRti) (narAkRtiyAyE) here (ilanu) (rasambilanu) (literally Earth) (as SrI rAma).

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anupallavi
vEda purANa-Agama
SAstra-Adulaku-AdhAramau (nAda)

O My Mind! The nectarine juice called nAda which is the prop (AdhAramau) of vEdas, epics (purANa), Agamas and SAstras etc. (Adulaku) (SastrAdulakAdhAramau), has assumed a human form here (as SrI rAma).

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caraNam
svaramulu-Arunnu-okaTi ghaNTalu
vara rAgamu kOdaNDamu
dura naya dESyamu tri guNamu
nirata gati SaramurA
sarasa sangati sandarbhamu gala giramulurA
dhara bhajana bhAgyamurA
tyAgarAju sEvincu (nAda)

Seven (Arunnu okaTi) (literally six plus one) svaras (svaramulu) (svaramulArunnokaTi) are the bells (of the bow kOdaNDa);
sacred (vara) rAga (rAgamu) is the bow kOdaNDa (kOdaNDamu);
dura naya and dESya (dESyamu) are the three (tri) strands of the bow string (guNamu);
steady (nirata) pace (tempo) (gati) is (are) the arrow(s) (Saramu) (SaramurA);
sweet (sarasa) thematic variations (sangati) are the words (giramulu) (spoken by the Lord) (giramulurA) appropriate to the occasion (sandarbhamu gala);
chanting the names (bhajana) of the Lord (dhara) (literally one who wields – kOdaNDa) is a fortune (bhAgyamurA);
O My Mind! The nectarine juice called nAda worshipped (sEvincu) by this tyAgarAja (tyAgarAju), has assumed a human form here (as SrI rAma).

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Notes –
References –
¹ – vEda purAna Agama SAstrAdulaku AdhAramau nAda – Refer to a Discussion on ‘sphOTa’ - sound and words.

² – ghaNTalu – Please refer to SrI tyAgarAj’s kRti ‘svara rAga sudhA rasa’ wherein SrI tyAgarAja mentions of ‘mUlAdhAra’ as the cakra from where ‘nAda’ emanates. He also mentions therein about ‘sapta svara gRhamulu’ (body locations of seven svaras).

An article on 'Sapta svaras and their relation to the seven cakras' (download).

³ – rAgamu kOdaNDamu – A mention in SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNa about rAvaNa's musical talents that he can ‘play upon the lute of his terrific bow with the sticks of his arrows’. (However, where this statement occurs in SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNa, is not known.)

In the kRti ‘kOTi nadulu dhanushkOTi’ SrI tyAgarAja mentions about kuNDalini yOga. According to kuNDalini yOga, the vertebral column is called mErudaNDa. Please also refer to kRti of SrI tyAgarAja ‘ISa pAhi mAM’ where Lord Siva is described as holding bow of mEru – mEru daNDa – vertebral column (hEmAcala cApa).

⁴ – dura – As per Monier’s Sanskrit Dictionary, it means ‘one who opens or unlocks’, ‘giver’, ‘granter’; the telugu word ‘duramu’ means ‘battle’, ‘war’. – these do not convey any meaning in the present context. However, Shri Koteeswara Iyer, in his kRti ‘ghana naya dESika gAna rasika SikhAmaNi nIyE kandA’ mentions ‘ghana’ in place of ‘dura’. Probably both mean same.

For definition of terms ‘ghana’, ‘naya’, ‘dESya’, ‘gati’ and ‘sangati’ - Defintions of Musical Terms-1; Defintions of Musical Terms-2

⁵ – tri-guNamu – the word ‘guNa’ means ‘string’, ‘strand’, ‘bow string’ and also ‘qualities – sattva, rajas and tamas’. The following verse from SrImad bhagavat gIta, Chapter 14 is relevant –

sattvaM rajas-tama iti guNAH prakRti-sambhavAH
nibadhnanti mahA-bAhO dEhE dEhinam-avyayaM 5

“sattva, rajas and tamas – these guNas, O mighty-armed, born of prakRti, bind fast in the body the indestructible embodied one.” (Translation by Swami Swarupananda)

⁶ - sangati – “Tyagaraja's outstanding contribution to the advancement of the kriti format was the introduction of the sangati (lit. coming together) - a set of variations on a theme, gradually unfolding the melodic potential of the musical phrase. Largely set in the madhyamakala (middle tempo), Tyagaraja's kritis were more appropriate for the modern concert paddhati. As vidwan G. N. Balasubramaniam observed during his presidential address at the 32nd conference of the Music Academy in 1958, nearly 60% of Tyagaraja's kritis are composed in this kala and this speed ‘seems to be the best for both the lay and the learned listeners’." Source - sangati and tyAgarAja

⁷ – sandarbhamu gala giramulurA – Please refer to kRti ‘Emani mATADitivO’ rAga tODi wherein SrI tyAgarAja describes how SrI rAma spoke to different people in different styles and kept them attracted to Him.

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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. नाद सुधा रस(म्बि)लनु
न(रा)कृति(या)ये मनसा

अ. वेद पुरा(णा)गम
शा(स्त्रा)दुल(का)धारमौ (नाद)

च. स्वरमु(ला)रु(न्नॊ)कटि घण्टलु
वर रागमु कोदण्डमु
दुर नय देश्यमु त्रि गुणमु
निरत गति शरमुरा
सरस संगति सन्दर्भमु गल गिरमुलुरा
धर भजन भाग्यमुरा
त्यागराजु सेविञ्चु (नाद)

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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. நாத3 ஸுதா4 ரஸம்(பி3)லனு
ந(ரா)க்ரு2தி(யா)யே மனஸா

அ. வேத3 புரா(ணா)க3ம
ஸா1ஸ்த்(ரா)து3ல(கா)தா4ரமௌ (நாத3)

ச. ஸ்வரமு(லா)ருன்(னொ)கடி க4ண்டலு
வர ராக3மு கோத3ண்ட3மு
து3ர நய தே3ஸ்1யமு த்ரி கு3ணமு
நிரத க3தி ஸ1ரமுரா
ஸரஸ ஸங்க3தி ஸந்த3ர்ப4மு க3ல கி3ரமுலுரா
த4ர ப4ஜன பா4க்3யமுரா
த்யாக3ராஜு ஸேவிஞ்சு (நாத3)

நாதமெனும் அமுதச்சாறு இங்கு
மனித உருவானதே, மனமே!

வேத, புராண, ஆகம,
சாத்திரங்களுக்கு ஆதாரமான
நாதமெனும் அமுதச்சாறு இங்கு
மனித உருவானதே, மனமே!

சுரங்கள் ஆறோடொன்று, மணிகளாக,
உயர் ராகம், கோதண்டமாக,
துரம், நயம், தேசியம், (நாணின்) முப்பிரிகளாக,
நிலையான கதி, அம்புகளாக,
இனிய சங்கதி, தருணத்திற்கேற்றச் சொற்களடா,
வில்லேந்துவோனின் பஜனையே பேறாகுமடா;
தியாகராசன் சேவிக்கும்
நாதமெனும் அமுதச்சாறு இங்கு
மனித உருவானதே, மனமே!

மனித உரு - இராமனாக
சுரங்கள் ஆறோடொன்று - ஏழு சுரங்கள்
மணிகள் - வில்லினில் கட்டப்பட்டவை
கோதண்டம் - இராமனின் வில்
துரம், நயம், தேசியம், கதி, சங்கதி - இவை இசைக்கலையின் சிறப்புச் சொற்களாகும் (technical terms). இவற்றின் விளக்கங்களை internet-ல் நோக்கவும்.
நாண் - வில்லின் நாண்
வில்லேந்துவோன் - இராமன்

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Telugu

ప. నాద సుధా రసంబిలను
నరాకృతియాయే మనసా

అ. వేద పురాణాగమ
శాస్త్రాదులకాధారమౌ (నాద)

చ. స్వరములారున్నొకటి ఘంటలు
వర రాగము కోదండము
దుర నయ దేశ్యము త్రి గుణము
నిరత గతి శరమురా
సరస సంగతి సందర్భము గల గిరములురా
ధర భజన భాగ్యమురా
త్యాగరాజు సేవించు (నాద)

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Kannada

ಪ. ನಾದ ಸುಧಾ ರಸಂಬಿಲನು
ನರಾಕೃತಿಯಾಯೇ ಮನಸಾ

ಅ. ವೇದ ಪುರಾಣಾಗಮ
ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರಾದುಲಕಾಧಾರಮೌ (ನಾದ)

ಚ. ಸ್ವರಮುಲಾರುನ್ನೊಕಟಿ ಘಂಟಲು
ವರ ರಾಗಮು ಕೋದಂಡಮು
ದುರ ನಯ ದೇಶ್ಯಮು ತ್ರಿ ಗುಣಮು
ನಿರತ ಗತಿ ಶರಮುರಾ
ಸರಸ ಸಂಗತಿ ಸಂದರ್ಭಮು ಗಲ ಗಿರಮುಲುರಾ
ಧರ ಭಜನ ಭಾಗ್ಯಮುರಾ
ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜು ಸೇವಿಂಚು (ನಾದ)

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Malayalam

പ. നാദ സുധാ രസമ്ബിലനു
നരാകൃതിയായേ മനസാ

അ. വേദ പുരാണാഗമ
ശാസ്ത്രാദുലകാധാരമൌ (നാദ)

ച. സ്വരമുലാരുന്നൊകടി ഘണ്ടലു
വര രാഗമു കോദണ്ഡമു
ദുര നയ ദേശ്യമു ത്രി ഗുണമു
നിരത ഗതി ശരമുരാ
സരസ സങ്ഗതി സന്ദര്ഭമു ഗല ഗിരമുലുരാ
ധര ഭജന ഭാഗ്യമുരാ
ത്യാഗരാജു സേവിഞ്ചു (നാദ)

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Updated on 17 Oct 2009