Thyagaraja Kriti - Sri Kaanta Niyeda - Raga Bhavapriya

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

SrI kAnta nIyeDa-bhavapriya

In the kRti ‘SrI kAnta nIyeDa’ – rAga bhavapriya (tALa Adi), SrI tyAgarAja asks Lord to protect His devotees by showing them the right path.

pallavi
SrI kAnta nI(y)eDa ¹bal(A)tibala
²celanga ³lEdA vAdA

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anupallavi
⁴pAk(A)ri nuta nIvAri
bal(A)blamunu teliyaga lEdA (SrI)

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caraNam
⁵kAka daityun(E)ka ⁶Saramunan(E)ya
kanjaj(A)stramai paraga lEdA
⁷SrI kara dvijulai dArin(e)ruga lEni
cinta nIku tOcad(E)mi tyAgarAja nuta (SrI)

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Gist

• O Beloved of lakshmI!
  
• O Lord praised by indra!
  
• O Lord who causes of Prosperity! O Lord praised by this tyAgarAja!
  
  
  • Aren’t the two mantras – bala and atibala - shining with You?
    
  • Is there any dispute?
    
    
  • Don’t You know the strength and weaknesses of Your people?
    
    
  • When You discharged a blade of grass against crow demon, didn’t it blaze forth as brahmAstra?
    
    
  • Why worry about people, though being brAhmaNas, not knowing the (right) path, wouldn’t occur to You?

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Word-by-word Meaning

pallavi
SrI kAnta nIyeDa bala-atibala
celanga lEdA vAdA

O Beloved (kAnta) of lakshmI (SrI)! Aren’t (lEdA) the two mantras – bala and atibala (balAtibala) shining (celanga) with You (nIyeDa)? Is there any dispute (vAdA)?

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anupallavi
pAka-ari nuta nIvAri
bala-ablamunu teliyaga lEdA (SrI)

O Lord praised (nuta) by indra – enemy (ari) of demon pAka (pAkAri)! Don’t You know (teliyaga lEdA) the strength (bala) and weaknesses (abalamu) (balAbalamu) of Your (nI) people (vAri) (nIvAri)?
O Beloved of lakshmI! Aren’t the two mantras – bala and atibala shining with You? Is there any dispute?

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caraNam
kAka daityunu-Eka Saramunanu-Eya
kanjaja-astramai paraga lEdA
SrI kara dvijulai dArini-eruga lEni
cinta nIku tOcadu-Emi tyAgarAja nuta (SrI)

When You discharged (Eya) (literally throw) a (Eka) blade of grass (Saramunanu) (SaramunanEya) against crow (kAka) demon (daityunu) (daityunEka),
didn’t (lEdA) it blaze forth (paraga) as brahmAstra – missile (astramai) of brahmA – born of Lotus (kanjaja) (kanjajAstramai)?
O Lord who causes (kara) of Prosperity (SrI)! Why (Emi) worry (cinta) about people, though being brAhmaNas (dvijulai), not (lEni) knowing (eruga) the (right) path (dArini) (dArineruga), wouldn’t occur (tOcadu) (tOcadEmi) to You (nIku)?
O Lord praised (nuta) by this tyAgarAja! O Beloved of lakshmI! Aren’t the two mantras – bala and atibala shining with You? Is there any dispute?

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Notes –
Variations –
² – celanga – celangaga - celaganga.

³ – lEdA – lEdEmi.

⁷ – SrI kara dvijulai – SrI karAdvijulai : ‘SrI karAdvijulai’ will be split as ‘SrI+kara+advijulai’. If this is correct, then it will be translated as ‘acting contrary to brAhmaN-hood (advijulai)’. Overall, there seems to be no change in the meaning.

References –
¹ - bala and atibala – sage viSvAmitra initiated SrI rAma and lakshmaNa in these two mantras, by chanting which one can overcome hunger, thirst and sleep. For the mantra please refer to SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNa, bAla kANDa, Chapter 22

⁴ - pAkAri – The episode relates to amRta mantana (churning of the milk-ocean for nectar). After the nectar was given to dEvas only, a fight broke out between dEvas and asuras. In the battle indra killed the asura pAka. (SrImad bhAgavatam – Book 8 : 10).

⁵ - kAka daitya – This refers to crow demon (kAkAsura) against whom SrI rAma aimed a brahmAstra for harassing Mother sItA – (SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNa – sundara kANDa – Chapter 38).

⁶ - Saramu – means ‘grass’ and ‘shaft’ – rAmAyaNa, ibid chapter refers –

sa darbha-saMstarAd gRhya brahmaNO(a)strENa yOjayat
sa dIpta iva kAlAgnir-jajvAlAbhimukhO dvijaM 29

“Taking a blade of grass (darbha – kuSa grass) from his mat, he charged it with the potency of the mystic missile presided over by brahmA. It burst into flames like the blazing fire of universal destruction before the bird.” (In the website, this is given as SlOka 30)

Comments -
⁷ – dvija – this word means both brAhmaNa and a bird. As given in the above quote (SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNa), the word used to indicate ‘kAkAsura’ is ‘dvija’; therefore, SrI tyAgarAja puns on the word, to ridicule SrI rAma for his inaction against erring brAhmaNas.

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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. श्री कान्त नी(यॆ)ड ब(ला)तिबल
चॆलंग लेदा वादा

अ. पा(का)रि नुत नीवारि
ब(ला)बलमुनु तॆलियग लेदा (श्री)

च. काक दैत्यु(ने)क शरमुन(ने)य
कञ्ज(जा)स्त्रमै परग लेदा
श्री कर द्विजुलै दारि(नॆ)रुग लेनि
चिन्त नीकु तोच(दे)मि त्यागराज नुत (श्री)

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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. ஸ்ரீ காந்த நீ(யெ)ட3 ப3(லா)திப3ல
செலங்க3 லேதா3 வாதா3

அ. பா(கா)ரி நுத நீவாரி
ப3(லா)ப3லமுனு தெலியக3 லேதா3 (ஸ்ரீ)

ச. காக தை3த்யு(னே)க ஸ1ரமுன(னே)ய
கஞ்ஜ(ஜா)ஸ்த்ரமை பரக3 லேதா3
ஸ்ரீ கர த்3விஜுலை தா3ரி(னெ)ருக3 லேனி
சிந்த நீகு தோச(தே3)மி த்யாக3ராஜ நுத (ஸ்ரீ)

மா மணாளா! உன்னிடம் 'பலை அதிபலை'
எனும் மந்திரங்கள் திகழவில்லையா? வாதா?

இந்திரனால் போற்றப் பெற்றோனே! உன்னவர்களின்
ஆற்றலும், ஆற்றல்கேடும் (உனக்குத்) தெரியவில்லையா?
மா மணாளா! உன்னிடம் 'பலை அதிபலை'
எனும் மந்திரங்கள் திகழவில்லையா? வாதா?

காக்கையரக்கனை நோக்கி ஓர் புல்லினை எறிய (அது)
பிரமாத்திரமாகி ஒளிரவில்லையா?
சீரருள்வோனே! அந்தணராகியும், நெறி யறியாத
கவலை, உனக்குத் தோன்றாததேன்? தியாராகராசன் போற்றும்
மா மணாளா! உன்னிடம் 'பலை அதிபலை'
எனும் மந்திரங்கள் திகழவில்லையா? வாதா?

புல் - தெர்ப்பை
நெறி - அந்தணரின் நெறி

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Telugu

ప. శ్రీ కాంత నీయెడ బలాతిబల
చెలంగ లేదా వాదా

అ. పాకారి నుత నీవారి
బలాబలమును తెలియగ లేదా (శ్రీ)

చ. కాక దైత్యునేక శరముననేయ
కంజజాస్త్రమై పరగ లేదా
శ్రీ కర ద్విజులై దారినెరుగ లేని
చింత నీకు తోచదేమి త్యాగరాజ నుత (శ్రీ)

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Kannada

ಪ. ಶ್ರೀ ಕಾಂತ ನೀಯೆಡ ಬಲಾತಿಬಲ
ಚೆಲಂಗ ಲೇದಾ ವಾದಾ

ಅ. ಪಾಕಾರಿ ನುತ ನೀವಾರಿ
ಬಲಾಬಲಮುನು ತೆಲಿಯಗ ಲೇದಾ (ಶ್ರೀ)

ಚ. ಕಾಕ ದೈತ್ಯುನೇಕ ಶರಮುನನೇಯ
ಕಂಜಜಾಸ್ತ್ರಮೈ ಪರಗ ಲೇದಾ
ಶ್ರೀ ಕರ ದ್ವಿಜುಲೈ ದಾರಿನೆರುಗ ಲೇನಿ
ಚಿಂತ ನೀಕು ತೋಚದೇಮಿ ತ್ಯಾಗರಾಜ ನುತ (ಶ್ರೀ)

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Malayalam
പ. ശ്രീ കാന്ത നീയെഡ ബലാതിബല
ചെലങ്ഗ ലേദാ വാദാ

അ. പാകാരി നുത നീവാരി
ബലാബലമുനു തെലിയഗ ലേദാ (ശ്രീ)

ച. കാക ദൈത്യുനേക ശരമുനനേയ
കഞ്ജജാസ്ത്രമൈ പരഗ ലേദാ
ശ്രീ കര ദ്വിജുലൈ ദാരിനെരുഗ ലേനി
ചിന്ത നീകു തോചദേമി ത്യാഗരാജ നുത (ശ്രീ)

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Updated on 26 Mar 2010