Thursday, May 29, 2008

Thyagaraja Kriti - Sita Vara - Raga Deva Gandhari

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

sItA vara-dEvagAndhAri

In the kRti ‘sItA vara sangIta’ – rAga dEvagAndhAri (tALa Adi), SrI tyAgarAja asserts that knowledge of music is a gift of God.

pallavi
sItA vara sangIta jnAnamu
dhAta 1vrAyavalerA


anupallavi
gIt(A)d(y)akhil(O)panishat-sAra 2bhUta
jIvan-muktuD(a)guTaku (sItA)


caraNam
3AkASa SarIramu brahmam(a)nE
4AtmA rAmuni tA 5sari jUcucu
lOk(A)dulu cinmayam(a)nu susvara
lOluDau tyAgarAja sannuta (sItA)


Gist

O Consort of sItA – well praised by tyAgarAja!

  • The knowledge of music should have been ordained by brahmA.
  • In order to become living-free - the state which is the essence of (teachings of) all upanishads, bhagavad-gItA etc. - knowledge of music should have been ordained by brahmA.

    • tyAgarAja revels in the melodious sapta svara;
    • he, apprehending the Indwelling Lord rAma as the Supreme Lord having space as His body, says that the ‘Universe is of the nature of pure consciousness’.



Word-by-word Meaning

pallavi
sItA vara sangIta jnAnamu
dhAta vrAyavalerA

O Consort (vara) of sItA! The knowledge (jnAnamu) of music (sangIta) should have been ordained (vrAyavalerA) (literally write) by brahmA (dhAta).


anupallavi
gItA-Adi-akhila-upanishat-sAra bhUta
jIvan-muktuDu-aguTaku (sItA)

In order to become (aguTaku) living-free (bhUta jIvan-muktuDu) (muktuDaguTaku) - the state which is the essence (sAra) of (teachings of) all (akhila) upanishad(s), bhagavad-gItA (gItAdyakhilOpanishat-sAra) etc. (Adi) -
O Consort of sItA! the knowledge of music should have been ordained by brahmA.


caraNam
AkASa SarIramu brahmamu-anE
AtmA rAmuni tA 5sari jUcucu
lOkAdulu cinmayamu-anu susvara
lOluDau tyAgarAja sannuta (sItA)

O Lord well praised (sannuta) by this tyAgarAja, revelling (lOluDau) in the melodious sapta svara (su-svara), who (tA) -
apprehending (sari jUcucu) (literally comparing) the Indwelling (AtmA) Lord rAma (rAmuni) as (anE) the Supreme Lord (brahmamu) (brahmamanE) having space (AkASa) as His body (SarIramu),
says that (anu) the Universe (lOkAdulu) is of the nature of pure consciousness (cinmayamu) (cinmayamanu)!
O Consort of sItA! the knowledge of music should have been ordained by brahmA.


Notes –
Variations
1 – vrAyavalerA – vrAyavalerA rAma.

References
2 – bhUta jIvan-mukta – Please refer to the following verse of SrImad-bhagavad-gIta, Chapter 15, to know what ‘jIva bhUta’ means –

mamaivAMSO jIvalOkE jIvabhUtaH sanAtanaH
manaHshashThAnIndriyANi prakRtisthAni karshati 7

An eternal portion of Myself having become a living soul in the world of life, draws (to itself) the (five) senses with mind for the sixth, abiding in prAkRti.” (Translation by Swami Swarupananda)

Please refer to kRti ‘mOkshamu galadA’ – According to SrI tyAgarAja, those who have the knowledge of music (combined with devotion) are jIvan-mukta, and, therefore, can attain mOksha; conversely, those who do not have the knowledge of music - not being jIvan mukta – cannot attain mOksha.

SrI tyAgarAja is concerned only with the nAdOpAsana or nAda yOga – attainment of mOksha through the route of sangIta. The other methods, for attainment of (jIvan) mukti – karma, jnAna, bhakti yOga (and rAja yOga which is a combination of all these) – are not discussed by SrI tyAgarAja.

Please refer to jIvanmuktAnanda lahari by SrI Adi Sankara.

Comments -
1 - vrAyavalEra – In a new born baby one can observe jagged lines of skin along the cranial sutures (skull joints). These lines are called ‘tala vrAta’ in telugu and ‘talaiyezhuttu’ in tamizh – means what is written on the head and are popularly believed to be the lines of destiny or fate. It is believed that brahmA writes the destiny of each individual in the form of said lines. The skin folds in fore-head are also considered as fate lines.

3 – AkASa SarIramu brahmamu – lOkAdulu cinmayamu – Space is the body of Supreme Lord – Universe is pure consciousness – Please also refer to other statements of SrI tyAgarAja –
  • nAdOMkAra is the nature of the parabrahman (sadASiva mayamagu nAdOMkAra) – kRti ‘rAga sudhA rasa’;
  • nAda is the body of Lord Sankara (nAda tanumaniSaM SankaraM) – kRti ‘nAda tanumaniSaM’.
  • praNava nAda got differentiated as sapta-svara by the fusion of prANa and energy (prANa anala saMyOgamu-valla praNava nAdamu sapta svaramulai paraga) – kRti ‘mOkshamu galadA’.


The views of SrI tyAgarAja, as I understand, are –

Music enables one to become jIvan-mukta which is –
  • apprehending (aparOksha jnAna) the Indwelling Lord to be none other than the Supreme Lord having space as His body, and
  • realising that the Universe (body of Supreme Lord) is of the nature of pure consciousness viz., pure nAda.


4 – AtmArAmuni – The word ‘AtmArAma’ means ‘rejoicing in one’s Self or in Supreme Spirit’. However, SrI tyAgarAja seems to have given it a form ie., ‘AtmA rAma’ – Indwelling Lord rAma – because of the declension ‘rAmuni’.

5 – sari jUcucu – ‘sari jUDu’ means ‘to compare’. Here, in conjunction with ‘brahmamanE AtmA rAmuni tA sari jUcucu’ points to ‘apprehension (realisation) of meaning of the mahA vAkyas – ‘tat-tvam-asi’ or ‘ahaM brahmAsmi’ or ‘brahmaivAhaM’ or ‘sOhaM’ or ‘haMsassOhaM’.

This kRti contains high philosophical statements based on actual experience of SrI tyAgarAja. I have translated the kRti according to my little understanding. As any amount of intellectual gymnastics would not be equal to one experience, viewers may please forgive me if there are errors.



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. सीता वर संगीत ज्ञानमु
धात व्रायवलॆरा

अ. गी(ता)(द्य)खि(लो)पनिष(त्सा)र भूत
जीवन्मुक्तु(ड)गुटकु (सी)

च. आकाश शरीरमु ब्रह्म(म)ने
आत्मा रामुनि ता सरि जूचुचु
लो(का)दुलु चिन्मय(म)नु सुस्वर
लोलुडौ त्यागराज सन्नुत (सी)


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. ஸீதா வர ஸங்கீ3த ஞானமு
தா4த வ்ராயவலெரா

அ. கீ3(தா)(த்3ய)கி2(லோ)பனிஷத்-ஸார பூ4த
ஜீவன்முக்து(ட3)கு3டகு (ஸீ)

ச. ஆகாஸ1 ஸ1ரீரமு ப்3ரஹ்ம(ம)னே
ஆத்மா ராமுனி தா ஸரி ஜூசுசு
லோ(கா)து3லு சின்மய(ம)னு ஸுஸ்வர
லோலுடௌ3 த்யாக3ராஜ ஸன்னுத (ஸீ)

சீதை மணாளா! இசையறிவு
தாதை எழுதவேண்டுமய்யா

கீதை முதலாக அனைத்து உபநிடத சாரமாகிய பூத
சீவன் முத்தனாகுதற்கு
சீதை மணாளா! இசையறிவு
தாதை எழுதவேண்டுமய்யா

(வெட்ட) வெளி மெய் பிரமமெனும்
ஆன்மா ராமனை தான் சரிகண்டுகொண்டு,
உலகங்கள் சின்மயமெனும், இனிய சுரங்களில்
திளைக்கும், தியாகராசனால் சிறக்கப் போற்றப் பெற்ற
சீதை மணாளா! இசையறிவு
தாதை எழுதவேண்டுமய்யா

தாதை - பிரமன்
பூத சீவன் முத்தன் - உடலுடன் இருக்கையில் முத்தி பெறுதல்
வெட்ட வெளி மெய் - வெட்டவெளியே உடலாக
ஆன்மா ராமன் - உள்ளுறை இறைவன்
சரிகண்டு - நேரிடையாகக் கண்டு
சின்மயம் - ஞானமயம் அல்லது பிரஞ்ஞை (உணர்வு) மயம்
இனிய சுரங்கள் - இசையின் ஏழு சுரங்கள்


Telugu

ప. సీతా వర సంగీత జ్ఞానము
ధాత వ్రాయవలెరా

అ. గీతాద్యఖిలోపనిషత్సార భూత
జీవన్ముక్తుడగుటకు (సీ)

చ. ఆకాశ శరీరము బ్రహ్మమనే
ఆత్మా రాముని తా సరి జూచుచు
లోకాదులు చిన్మయమను సుస్వర
లోలుడౌ త్యాగరాజ సన్నుత (సీ)


Kannada

ಪ. ಸೀತಾ ವರ ಸಂಗೀತ ಜ್ಞಾನಮು
ಧಾತ ವ್ರಾಯವಲೆರಾ

ಅ. ಗೀತಾದ್ಯಖಿಲೋಪನಿಷತ್ಸಾರ ಭೂತ
ಜೀವನ್ಮುಕ್ತುಡಗುಟಕು (ಸೀ)

ಚ. ಆಕಾಶ ಶರೀರಮು ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಮನೇ
ಆತ್ಮಾ ರಾಮುನಿ ತಾ ಸರಿ ಜೂಚುಚು
ಲೋಕಾದುಲು ಚಿನ್ಮಯಮನು ಸುಸ್ವರ
ಲೋಲುಡೌ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ಸನ್ನುತ (ಸೀ)


Malayalam

പ. സീതാ വര സങ്ഗീത ജ്ഞാനമു
ധാത വ്രായവലെരാ

അ. ഗീതാദ്യഖിലോപനിഷത്സാര ഭൂത
ജീവന്മുക്തുഡഗുടകു (സീ)

ച. ആകാശ ശരീരമു ബ്രഹ്മമനേ
ആത്മാ രാമുനി താ സരി ജൂചുചു
ലോകാദുലു ചിന്മയമനു സുസ്വര
ലോലുഡൌ ത്യാഗരാജ സന്നുത (സീ)


Updated on 22 Dec 2009

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