Three devout KrishNa Bhakthaas : Sri JayadEvA , Sri naarAyaNa TheerthA and Sri KshEthrayyA .

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri KrishNa BhakthAs :

 

Sri Haresh BalasubramaNian of Singapore and

the creator of the excellent Sri Krishna Home pages

(http://shrikrishna.homepage.com) requested me

to write on few more Sri krishna BhakthAs , who

have performed NaadhOpaasanA . I am happy to do so.

 

The BhakthAs coming to my mind are Sri Jaya DevA ,

Sri NaarAyana Theerthaa and KshEtrayyaa .There is a

general belief that Sri Jaya DevA reincarnated as

NaarAyaNa Theerthaa first and then as KshEthrayyaa

to celebrate the theme of a NaayikA's love for

Lord KrishNA . Let me start with Sri JayadEvA .

 

Sri KrishNArpanam asthu

 

V.Sadagopan

 

SRI JAYADEVA : THE WANDERING MINISTREL

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

 

Sri JayadEvA of the Ashtapadhi fame , who inserted

the refrain " JAYA JAYADEVA HARE " in his immortal poem,

Gita Govindam , described himself as the wandering king

of bards. He asserted his special love for Sri Krishna

with the above refrain that he placed at the end of each

of his song .

 

He was a native of Orissa-Bengal region and lived during

the latter half of the twelfth century .This was soon after

AchArya RaamAnujA's dhig vijayam to Puri JagannAth . AchArya

RaamAnujA had grown the community of Sri VaishNavAs in and

around Orissa, Bengal and Assam during that visit .

 

Sanskrit scholarship and VaishNavism were dominant in those

times among the community of Brahmins there .The ruling king

of the sEnA dynasty of Jaya DevA's time was LakshmaNa sEnA

known as a parama VaishNavA . AchArya RaamAnujA had converted

the king of Puri earlier into Sri Vaishnavam and had introduced

Sri ViashnavA rituals in the JagannAth temple of Puri .Sri

JayadEvA came during his wanderings as an ascetic-poet to

Puri and came under the influence of the Sri JagannAth worship

and married the lovely temple dancer , PadmAvathi .Gita Govindam

was born there and took roots there as the only song to be sung

in front of the Elder Lord (BalarAmA ) and the Younger Lord

( Jagannaath) from their evening meal time to their bed time.

That practise is followed even today spanning a period of

seven centuries.

 

In JayadEvA's time , the eleven RaagAs used

for singing the Gita Govindam slOkams were : Maalavai,

Gurjari ,VasantA , Raamakari ,KarnAtA ,DesAkhyA ,

DesavarAdi,Naata ,Bhairavi, VirAdi and VibhAsa .

Some of these eleven RaagAs are not in vogue now. Some

modern day musicians sing the First song on

the mood of Joyful KrishNA celebrated as DasAvathAran

in MeLa Raagams , KanakAngi, RathnAngi , GhAna Moorthy ,

Vanaspathi , Maanavathi , DhAna Roopi et al .

 

The song of JayadevA has touched every corner of India

during these centuries and great mystic saints like

Chaithanya prabhu , Bhaktha MeerA Bhai and

a host of others have been profoundly influenced by

this illustrious , dramatic lyrical poem with eight

stanzas (ashtapadhi)in each of the individual songs .

The lilting words and the enchanting rhythmical beat

are embellished further by "the repetitious sound patterns

of alliteration , assonance, consonance and end rhyme ".

The sensous imagery of the songs of Gita Govindam are of

a divine kind and create madhura BhAvam and sabdhAlankAram

echoing the particular mood , time and season .Eleven aptly

chosen raagAs are used by jayadEva kavi to express the

intimate power of divine love and the samslEsaha -

VislEsha anubhavams of the visEsha Naayikai (RaadhA) for

her Naayakan ( Jagadhisan , Lord KrishNA ).The Bhakthi rasam

experienced by us in hearing these songs of Gita Govindam

is an anubhavam without parallel .KrishNA's special love

for RadhA ,not highlighted by Bhaagavatha PurANam , is the

theme of Gita Govindam and is an allegory of the relationship

between the ParamAthman and the JeevAthman. As we hear

these songs in front of Lord JagannAth at Poori

or in front of Sri GuruvAyUrappan at KeraLA , tears

well up in our eyes .The anubhavam of ParAnkusa ,

ParakAla and Venkata Naayakis come to our minds.

 

There are twelve parts to Gita Govindam

and the moods of the Lord inlove play are

aptly indicated by the titles of the sargams :

 

1. The Joyful KrishNA (SaamOdha DhaamOdhara:)

2. The Careles KrishNA (aklEsa Kesava:)

3. The Bewildered KrishNA (Mugdha Madhusoodhana:)

4. The Tender KrishNA (Snighdha Madhusoodhana:)

5. The Lotus-Eyed KrishNA longing for Love

(SaakAnksha PuNdarIkAksha:)

6. The Indolent KrishNA ( Kunta Vaikunta:)

7. The Cunning KrishNA ( Naagara NaarAyaNa:)

8. The Abashed KrishNA ( Vilakshya LakshmI Pathi:)

9. The Languishing KrishNA ( Mandha Mukundha:)

10.The Four Quickening Arms ( Chathura Chathurbhuja:)

11.The Blissful KrishNA ( Saanandha DhAmOdhara:)

12.The Ecstatic KrishNA ( SuprItha PeethAmbhara:)

 

Each of these slOkams are lyrical master pieces .

Inview of the need to be brief , I will content

myself with limited translations of specific slOkams:

 

" Listen to the perfect invocation of poet JayadEvA

Joyously evoking the essence of existence !

You take the tenfold cosmic form , KrishNA .

Triumph , Hari , Lord of the World !--Sargam 1.15

 

Sri JayadEva kavEritdhamudhitham udhAram

SruNu Sughadham Subhadham Bhava saaram

Kesava dhrutha dasavidha Roopa

Jaya Jaya JagadhIsa HarE !-- Sargam 1.15

 

For upholding the World (VedhAnuddharathE)

For Supporting the earth (JagannivahathE)

For raising the World ( BhUgOLamudhbhibrathE)

For tearing the demon asunder ( Dhaithyam DhArayathE)

For Cheating bali ( Bhalim ChalayathE)

For destroying the warrior Class (Kshathra Kshayam KurvathE)

For Conquering ravaNA (Poulasthyam jayathE)

For Wielding the Plow (Halam KalayathE)

For spreading Compassion (KaaruNyam AathanvathE)

For routing the barbarians (MlEcchAn MoorchayathE)

Homage to You , KrishNA ,(KrishNAya Thubhyam Nama:)

In Your ten incarnate Forms!" ( DasAkruthi KruthE)--Sargam 1.16

 

Sri KrishNAya Thubhayam namO Nama:

 

Daasan, Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan