Thyagaraja Kriti - Paramatmudu - Raga Vagadhisvari

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

paramAtmuDu-vAgadhISvari

In the kRti ‘paramAtmuDu veligE muccaTa’ – rAga vAgadhISvari (tALa Adi), SrI tyAgarAja presents a wonderful description of paramAtma.

pallavi
¹paramAtmuDu ²veligE muccaTa
bAga ³telusukOrE

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anupallavi
⁴hari(y)aTa haruD(a)Ta surul(a)Ta narul(a)Ta
akhil(A)NDa kOTul(a)Ta ⁵andarilO (parama)

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caraNam
gagan(A)nila tEjO-jala bhU-mayamagu
mRga khaga naga taru kOTulalO
⁶saguNamulO viguNamulO satatamu
sAdhu tyAgarAj(A)di ASritulalO (parama)

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Gist

• Know unerringly the grandeur with which the Supreme Lord is effulgent!
  
  
• Know unerringly the grandeur with which the Supreme Lord is effulgent as vishNu, as Siva, as celestials, as men, and as entire millions of universes – in (and as) all these.
  
  
• Know unerringly the grandeur with which the Supreme Lord is ever effulgent –
  
  • in millions of (animate and inanimate) - animals, birds, mountains and trees - made up of (five elements) - the space, air, fire, water and earth;
    
  • with (three) qualities as well as bereft of or beyond qualities;
    
  • (OR in good qualities as well as bad qualities);
    
  • (OR with form as well as without form); and
    
  • in this pious tyAgarAja and others who have sought refuge in Him.

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Word-by-word Meaning

pallavi
paramAtmuDu veligE muccaTa
bAga telusukOrE

Know (telusukOrE) unerringly (bAga) (literally well) the grandeur (muccaTa) with which the Supreme Lord (paramAtmuDu) is effulgent (veligE)!

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anupallavi
hari-aTa haruDu-aTa surulu-aTa narulu-aTa
akhila-aNDa kOTulu-aTa andarilO (parama)

Know unerringly the grandeur with which the Supreme Lord is effulgent - as (aTa) (literally said to be) vishNu (hari) (hariyaTa), as (aTa) Siva (haruDu) (haruDaTa), as (aTa) celestials (surulu) (surulaTa), as (aTa) men (narulu) (narulaTa), and as (aTa) entire (akhila) millions of (kOTula) (kOTulaTa) universes (aNDa) (akhilANDa) – in (and as) all these (andaru) (andarilO).

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caraNam
gagana-anila tEjO-jala bhU-mayamagu
mRga khaga naga taru kOTulalO
saguNamulO viguNamulO satatamu
sAdhu tyAgarAja-Adi ASritulalO (parama)

Know unerringly the grandeur with which the Supreme Lord is ever (satatamu) effulgent -
in millions (kOTulalO) of (animate and inanimate) - animals (mRga), birds (khaga), mountains (naga) and trees (taru) - made up of (mayamagu) (five elements) - the space (gagana), air (anila) (gaganAnila), fire (tEjas), water (jala) (tEjO-jala) and earth (bhU) (bhU-mayamagu);
with (three) qualities (sa-guNamulO) as well as bereft of or beyond qualities (vi-guNamulO); (OR in good qualities (saguNamulO) as well as bad qualities (viguNamulO)); (OR with form (saguNamulO) as well as without form (viguNamulO)); and
in this pious (sAdhu) tyAgarAja (tyAgarAju) and others (Adi) (tyAgarAjAdi) who have sought refuge (ASritulu) (ASritulalO) in Him.

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Notes –
Variations -
² – veligE – velugu.

⁶ – saguNamulO viguNamulO – saguNamulalO viguNamulalO.

References -
⁵ – andarilO – in and as all - as perishable (kshara) and imperishable (kUTastha – akshara). In this regard the following verses of SrImad bhagavad gItA, Chapter 15 are relevant –

dvAvimau purushau lOkE ksharas-cAkshara Eva ca
ksharaH sarvANi bhUtAni kUTasthO(a)kshara ucyatE
uttamaH purushastvanyaH paramAtmEty-udahRtaH
yO lOka-tryam-AviSya bibharty-avyaya ISvaraH 16, 17

“There are two purushas in the world – the Perishable and the Imperishable. All beings are the Perishable, and the kUTastha is called the Imperishable.

But (there is) another, the Supreme purusha, called the Highest Self, the Immutable Lord, who pervading the three worlds, sustains them.” (Translation by Swami Swarupananda)

Comments -
¹ – paramAtmuDu – Normally ‘paramAtman’ is indicated by ‘It’ – neuter gender. However, here SrI tyAgarAja uses ‘masculine gender’. Therefore, it has been translated as ‘He’.

³ – telusukOrE – this kRti is addressed to his (tyAgarAja’s) mind.

⁴ – hariyaTa haruDaTa – as vishNu and as Siva – refers to Trinity and not to ISvara (patanjali yOga sUtra – 1.24) whom SrI tyAgarAja refers as ‘paramAtmuDu’. For SrI tyAgarAja, ‘rAma’ is paramAtma – refers to kRti ‘evarani nirNayinciri’.

⁶ – saguNamulO viguNamulO – this can be taken as ‘with form’ – (saguNa) and ‘without form’ – (nirguNa) also.

⁶ – viguNa – Generally ‘viguNa’ is indicative of negative qualities. But, sometimes, the prefix ‘vi’ is used like ‘nir’. Therefore, this may be taken either as ‘without qualities’ or ‘bad qualities’. However, considering the previous word ‘saguNa’ – ‘with guNa’, ‘viguNa’ has been translated as ‘bereft of guNas’. In this regard the following verse of SrImad bhAgavataM, Book 3, Chapter 24, where ‘viguNa’ has been taken to mean ‘devoid of three guNas’ is relevant –

manO brahmaNi yunjAnO yat-tat-sad-asataH paraM
guNAvabhAsE viguNa Eka-bhaktyAnubhAvitE 43

“He fixed his mind on brahman (the infinite), who is beyond both cause and effect, who, though devoid of the three guNas (modes of prAkRti), yet brings them to light, and who had been realised through exclusive devotion.”

⁶ – viguNa – Even if translated as ‘bad qualities’, it can still apply to the Supreme Lord as the witness in whose absence there can neither be qualities nor experience. The following verses from SrImad-bhagavad-gItA are relevant -

nAdattE kasyacit pApaM na caiva sukRtaM vibhuH
ajnAnEnAvRtaM jnAnaM tEna muhyanti jantavaH 5.15
dyUtaM chalayatAm-asmi tEjas-tEjasvinAm-ahaM
jayO(a)smi vyavasAyO(a)smi sattvaM sattvavatAm-ahaM 10. 36

“The Omni-present takes note of the merit or demerit of none. Knowledge is enveloped in ignorance, hence do beings get deluded.”

“I am the gambling of the fraudulent, I am the power of the powerful; I am the victory, I am effort, I am sattva of the sAttvika.” (Translation by Swami Swarupananda)

General - The kRti is set to a very melodious rAga so appropriately chosen by SrI tyAgarAja to express the mood; it seems to flow so beautifully and naturally. If the musicians who render this kRti contemplate on the meaning even very briefly, it will transport both the renderer and the listener to ecstasy. If one proof is required to justify the statement that the kRtis of SrI tyAgarAja are equivalent to upanishads, this kRti satisfies it.

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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. परमात्मुडु वॆलिगे मुच्चट
बाग तॆलुसुकोरे

अ. हरि(य)ट हरु(ड)ट सुरु(ल)ट नरु(ल)ट
अखि(ला)ण्ड कोटु(ल)ट अन्दरिलो (प)

च. गग(ना)निल तेजो-जल भू-मयमगु
मृग खग नग तरु कोटुललो
स-गुणमुलो वि-गुणमुलो सततमु
साधु त्यागरा(जा)दि आश्रितुललो (प)

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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. பரமாத்முடு3 வெலிகே3 முச்சட
பா3க3 தெலுஸுகோரே

அ. ஹரி(ய)ட ஹரு(ட3)ட ஸுரு(ல)ட நரு(ல)ட
அகி2(லா)ண்ட3 கோடு(ல)ட அந்த3ரிலோ (ப)

ச. க3க3(னா)னில தேஜோ-ஜல பூ4-மயமகு3
ம்ரு2க3 க2க3 நக3 தரு கோடுலலோ
ஸ-கு3ணமுலோ வி-கு3ணமுலோ ஸததமு
ஸாது4 த்யாக3ரா(ஜா)தி3 ஆஸ்1ரிதுலலோ (ப)

பரமான்மா ஒளிரும் சிறப்பினை
நன்கு தெரிந்துகொள்வாய்

அரியாம், அரனாம், வானோராம், மனிதராம்,
அனைத்தண்ட கோடிகளாம் - யாவற்றிலும்
பரமான்மா ஒளிரும் சிறப்பினை
நன்கு தெரிந்துகொள்வாய்

விண், காற்று, நெருப்பு, நீர், புவி - (ஐம்பூதங்கள்) மயமான
மிருகம், பறவை, மலை, மரம் கோடிகளிலும்,
குணங்களிலும், குணங்களற்றும், எவ்வமயமும்,
சாது தியாகராசன் ஆகிய (அவனை) புகலடைந்தோரிலும்
பரமான்மா ஒளிரும் சிறப்பினை
நன்கு தெரிந்துகொள்வாய்

யாவற்றிலும் - வெளித்தோற்றமாகவும், உள்ளியக்கமாகவும்
குணங்களில் - சத்துவம் முதலான முக்குணங்கள்
குணங்களற்று - நிர்குணமாக
குணங்களிலும், குணங்களற்றும் - 'உருவமாகவும்', 'அருவமாகவும்' என்றோ அல்லது 'நற்குணங்களிலும்', 'தீய குணங்களிலும்' என்றோ கொள்ளலாம்

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Telugu

ప. పరమాత్ముడు వెలిగే ముచ్చట
బాగ తెలుసుకోరే

అ. హరియట హరుడట సురులట నరులట
అఖిలాండ కోటులట అందరిలో (ప)

చ. గగనానిల తేజో-జల భూ-మయమగు
మృగ ఖగ నగ తరు కోటులలో
స-గుణములో వి-గుణములో సతతము
సాధు త్యాగరాజాది ఆశ్రితులలో (ప)

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Kannada

ಪ. ಪರಮಾತ್ಮುಡು ವೆಲಿಗೇ ಮುಚ್ಚಟ
ಬಾಗ ತೆಲುಸುಕೋರೇ

ಅ. ಹರಿಯಟ ಹರುಡಟ ಸುರುಲಟ ನರುಲಟ
ಅಖಿಲಾಂಡ ಕೋಟುಲಟ ಅಂದರಿಲೋ (ಪ)

ಚ. ಗಗನಾನಿಲ ತೇಜೋ-ಜಲ ಭೂ-ಮಯಮಗು
ಮೃಗ ಖಗ ನಗ ತರು ಕೋಟುಲಲೋ
ಸ-ಗುಣಮುಲೋ ವಿ-ಗುಣಮುಲೋ ಸತತಮು
ಸಾಧು ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜಾದಿ ಆಶ್ರಿತುಲಲೋ (ಪ)

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Malayalam

പ. പരമാത്മുഡു വെലിഗേ മുച്ചട
ബാഗ തെലുസുകോരേ

അ. ഹരിയട ഹരുഡട സുരുലട നരുലട
അഖിലാണ്ഡ കോടുലട അന്ദരിലോ (പ)

ച. ഗഗനാനില തേജോ-ജല ഭൂ-മയമഗു
മൃഗ ഖഗ നഗ തരു കോടുലലോ
സ-ഗുണമുലോ വി-ഗുണമുലോ സതതമു
സാധു ത്യാഗരാജാദി ആശ്രിതുലലോ (പ)

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Updated on 12 Feb 2010