Sri Raaga pancharathnam : Part 7- The Greatness of Sri Ragam & Naama KusumAnjali

[Guest guest]

Dear Jaanaki RaamaNa BhakthAs ,

 

In this posting , I will cover the greatness of Sri Raagam

chosen by Saint ThyagarAjA and the compositions of his

in this Raagam before writing about the Krithi , " EntharO

mahAnubhAvulu " itself .

 

Sri Raagam

**************

 

This is a Janya Raagam of Karahara Priya ( Hari Hara PriyA ) ,

the 22nd MeLakarthA Raagam . Prior to Saint ThyagarAjA's time ,

composers did not use Karahara PriyA much . Just as Sri Dikshithar

made the MeLa Raagam MaayA Maalava Goulai and its janya

raagams famous through use in his krithis , Our Sadhguru Swami

used Karahara PriyA MeLa Raagam for composing many of his krithis

and also used many of its janya Raagams to salute this Raaga devathai .

Hari NaarAyaNan has given room for Haran in His body and therefore this

raagam gets the special attention of Sriman Rama NaarAyaNan .

 

Sri Raagam is one of the most auspicious janya Raagams

of Karahara priyA MeLa Raagam . For the sake of completeness ,

I will compile the other Janya Raagaas of Karahara PriyA ,

which have been used by our Sadhguru and his

cohorts to offer their salutations to the Lord and His consort :

 

AbhOgi , Kannadagowla , KalAnidhi , Kaanada , Kaapi ,

Kumudapriya , JayanthasEnA , Jaya NaarAyaNi ,

DarbhAr , DevaghAndhAri , DevamanOhari , DevAmruthavarshiNi ,

NaadhavarangiNi , PushpalathikA , Pala Manjari ,

BrindhAvana SaarangA , Manjari , MaNiranghu ,

MadhyamAvathi , ManOhari , MaadhavamanOhari ,

MaaLavasri , MukhAri , RudrapriyA , SRI , Sri Ranjanai ,

Suddha DanyAsi , SvarabhUshaNi , SaaLagabhairavi ,

Saindhavi , Hari NaarAyaNi , HusEni and many others .

 

The SRI Raagam with its auspicious association with

MahA Lakshmi stands out among them with its Special

Rishabham . In this Raagam , Rishabham and NishAdham

serve as ChAyA Svarams as well . The experts have

charactrized the place of Rishabham in Sri Raagam

in the context of the other Rishabhams assoicated with

the other four Raagams -- Naatai , Gowlai , Aarabhi and

VaraaLi -- selected by the Saint for the four other Gana Raaga

Pancharathna Krithis this way :

 

" Sri Raagam raises Rishabham again from the shadow of the

powerful GhAndhAram , where it rested in the case of VarALi .

The Rishabham of Sri Raagam ascends to its natural position

and is present in its simplest , purest form , an unvaried tone

freed from the curves and the implied directionality , which it

carries in Naatai , GowLai , Aarabhi and VarALi .... This total

purity is the melodic correlate of the silence of Nirvikalpa

SamAdhi and the Aanandham that is associated with that

anubhavam " .

 

The unique Rishabha Svaram of Sri Raagam is capable of

conferring sarva ManagaLams in every direction it is heard.

Its tonal auspiciousness is equivalent to the MangaLams

that are conferred by the glances of Maha Lakshmi in

any direction they fall ( YasyAm YasyAm disi ViharathE

dEvi dhrishtistvadheeyA , tasyAm tasyAm ahamahimikAm

tanvathE sampadhOghA : ) .

 

THE SRI RAAGA KRITHIS OF SAINT THYAGARAJA

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Saint ThyagarAjA composed three Krithis in Sri Raagam :

 

1. Naama KusumamulachE pUjimchE --

2. YukthamugjAthu Nannu RakshimthsayunTEthi--

3. YentharO MahAnubhAvulu ---

 

Before we focus on the Saahithya Vaakhyams of

" YentharO MahAnubhAvulu " , it is appropriate to

appreciate the devotion-soaked mind set of our

Sadhguru as revealed in the " Naama KusumamulE--"

krithi .

 

SAAHITHYA VAAKHYAMS OF " NAAMA KUSUMAMULE--"

*************************************************************

 

Pallavi : Naama kusumamulachE pUjinchE

nara janamamE janmamu --manasA

 

Anupallavi : Sriman Maanasa kanaka peeTamuna

chElaka jEsikOni varasivarAma

 

CharaNam : Naadhasvaramanu vara navarathnapu

Vaidhikapai sakala leelA vinOdhuni

paramAthmuni , Sri Raamuni paadhamulani

ThyagarAja hrudh bhUshaNuni ( Naama Kusuma --)

 

In a Rithigowlai krithi ( Raagarathna MaalikachE --) ,

Saint ThyagarAjA reminded us that Sri RamachandrA

is shining with the garland of songs set in hundreds of

gems of RaagAs by him to gain his salvation . He invited us to

join with him and sing His glories and attain all blessings

from Him ( BhAga sEvichi sakala BhagyamOnnadhudhAmu rArE ) .

 

In this Sri Raaga Krithi , he decribes the ArchanA that we should

perform to the Lord seated on the gem-bedecked seat of

susvarAs with the flowers of His thousand names . He invites us

to perform maanaseeka ArAdhanam and worship Him with the

flowers of His holy names such as RaamA , SivA ( Auspiciousness ) .

The Raama chaithanyA points out that the life of a human being

is truly blessed , when he or she installs the Lord on the golden

throne of the mind and worships Him with His sacred Naama--

KusumAs . He asks us and his mind as well to place the reveller

in the sport of Universe ( BhOga Murthy ) , the ornament of

ThyagarAjA's heart on the navarathna simhAsanam made up

of SvarAs born out of NadhOpAsanA and cover His holy feet

upto HIs ankles with the fragrant flowers of His nAmAs .

 

Why this emphasis on Naamas and Naama KusumAs ?

Sri VishNu sahasra nAmam explains to us that the names of

the Lord are elaboration of His kalyANa guNAs ( Yaani nAmAni

GouNAni ) . The Lord of infinite KalyANa guNas has infinite ,

sacred names corresponding to them . Bhagavatham points

out therefore , each name of the Lord is a tribute to His fame ,

valor and auspicious attribute ( NaamAnyananthasya

YasOankithAni ) . The worship with the flowers of His naamAs

gives us infinite bliss ( samaraNE Sukham -- Janaranjani krithi ) .

The glories of this type of worship with flowers of His names

purify every one from the great scholar to an unlettered person

( Paamara Panditha pAvanakara NaamadhEya -- Maahuri krithi

of Sri Dikshithar , Maamava Raghuvara ) .

 

The Upanishads and VedAs inform us about the blessings of

Naama kusumArchanA in the emotion-driven yugam of kali :

 

1 . bhagavatha Adhipurushasya NaarayaNasya naamOccharaNa --

mathrENa nirdhUtha Kalirbhavathi --Kali SantharONOpanishad

 

( At the very moment , when we recite the name of the primordial

BhagavAn , Sriman NaarAyaNan , the dhOshams of Kali gets

shaken off ) .

 

2. Rg Vedam 2.1.13 : tvAm jihvAm suchascchakrirE kavE

( O poet of penetrating Vision ! the pious people have made

YOU their tongue ) .

 

3. VishNu purANam 6.2.17 :

" Meditation( DhyAnam ) in Krutha YugA , sacrifices ( Yaj~nams)

in TrEthA yugam , Worship in DvApara Yugam -- what these give ,

one attains their equivalent fruits in Kali Yugam by merely

performing

Naama KusumArchanai " .

 

VishNu purANam goes onto say that One can get liberation from one's

accumulated sins by performing Naama KusumArchanA even as

one walks , stands , lies down , drinks , eats or bends down .

..

PrAyschitthAn asEshANi tapa: karmAthmakAni vai I

yAni thEshAm asEshANAm KrishNAnusmaraNam param II

 

( the expiation of all expiations is the thought of the Lord

with the uttering of His names )

 

HarE: nAmaiva nAmaiva mama jeevanam I

Kalou nAsthyEva nAsthyEva nAsthyEva gathiranyathA II

 

( In Kali yugam , NaamA of the Lord alone is the means ;

there is no other path ) .

 

maa RuchO maaYajusthAtha maa Saama pata kimchana I

GOvindhEthi HarErnAma ghEyam gAyasva nithyasa: I

 

NaarAyaNEthi sabdhOsi vAgasthi vasavardhini I

tathApi narakE ghorE pathanthee yethadh adhbhutham II

 

( You need not recite Rig vEdic Rks , Yajus , or Saamans .

Sing the Lord's names and offer Naama KusumArchanai .

There are the Lord's names , there is the tongue under

one's control , still humans descend into narakams ( hell ) .

What a strange happening ? )

 

Naama SiddhAntham propounded by Saint ThyagarAjA

is the NaamAmurutha SUryOdhayam for one's dark night

of SamsAric Sufferings . This is the NaamAmrutha RasAyanam

that chases away one's samsAric illness . That is why ,

Saint ThyagarAjA celebrated the Lord's names as " VedasAramu

NaamadhEyamunu " in his MukhAri Krithi , TalachinantanE .

That is why , Sri Dikshithar celebrated Raama Naamam

as " Naama keerthana Taarakam in his VasanthA krithi ,

Sri Raamachandhram BhAvayAmi . As upAyA and upEyA ,

the naamAs of the Lord and the manaseeka archanA of

the Lord with those powerful names have no equal .

The fragrant memory of the names of the Lord is the sure

means for one's salvation .

 

In the Sri Raaga Krithi extolling the sacredness of the Names

of the Lord , the Garbha BhaagavathA , Saint ThyagarAjA

reminds us of the power of Naama KusumArchanai to

gain moksham . He taught us here UpEya Naama vivEkam .

The power of Such a naama kusumaarchanA done by BhagavathAs

is described by Saint ThyagarAjA in his SahAnA krithi ,

Vandanamu RaghunandanA :

 

" The Lord's Naama Japam and Archanaa with those

names bring prosperity here on His earth , and lead one

to the right path leading to the abode of Divinity ( Sri Vaikuntam ) " .

 

Sri ThyagarAja Swamy , who performed 96 crores of ArchanAs

at the Lord's feet with Naama Kusumams followed the vidhi

( injunctions ) set by Tatthva samgraha RaamAyaNam's

Sundara KhAndham , which prescribes directions for the adoration

of Raama naamA ( Raama Manthra Purascharanam and KriyA yOgam ) .

It unambigously states that Raama ManthrA itself is to be used

as the flowers for the Manaseeka pUjA in the pushpArchanA .

 

Such is the power of Naama kusumArchanA of the Lord

performed by true BhagavathAs . That is why , Saint ThyagarAjA

celebrated Bhagavatha Nishtai as an unfailing method of Prapatthi

in his Sri Raaga Krithi , " YentharO MahAnubhAvulu "

 

I conclude this posting with the smaraNam of the Sacred feet

of the Raghu Raaman standing on the top of the seven hills ,

which are covered upto His ankles with the Naama KusumAs

from the archanai of the BhagavathAs , dEvAs and Nithya sUris :

 

aanUpurArpitha sujAtha sugandhi pushpa--

sourabhya sourabhakarou samasannivEsou I

soumyou sadhAnubhavanE api navAnubhAvyou

SRI VENKATESA SARANOU SARANM PRAPADHYE II

 

( I surrender at the feet of the Lord of seven hills and

seek those feet as my shelter. Those sacred feet add fragrance

to the scent of the sweet-perfumed flowers offered upto His

ankles. These feet are symmetrically placed and are beautiful

to experience with their coverage of forever fragrant flowers

( Naama kusumAs ) . They are enjoyable anew in

an aparyApthAmurutham sense and gives us the anubhavam

of never-ending aanandham ) .

 

Sri SadhguravE Nama:

Sri Jaanaki RamaNa ParabrahmaNE Nama:

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan