Pramathi Samvathsara Sri Rama Navami series : Part I, Saint Thyagaraja's Dhivya Naama and Uthsava SampradhAya Krithis

[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs :

 

Saint ThyagarAjA's " dhaasya-Vaatsalya Bhakthi

Bhaava VisEsham " has been cited as the inspiring source

of his sacred krithis ; these krithis are considered as

" the puNya theertham associated with the RaamAbhishEkam "

that he performed during every moment of his earthly life.

 

He was a garbha-BhaagavathA and is considered as the amsam

of Sage VaalmikI , who blessed us with the magnificent

IthihAsam , Srimath RaamAyaNam .No wonder that Saint

ThyagaraajA became a Raama chaithanyA and performed

Aaraadhanam with dhivya Naama kusumams for

Sri Raamachandran with such ardour .

 

The Exemplary Life led by Saint ThyagarAjA

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He led a simple life and had parama vairAgyam .

He spurned wealth and asked his mind " Nidhi chAla

sukamA? Raamuni sannidhi sEva sukamA ? " and answered

decisivly that the nithya , niravadhya kaimkaryam to

Sri Raaman was the preferred sukham for him . In his

Yamunaa-KalyANi krithi , " NaarAyaNa Hari , NaarAyaNa Hari ",

he confessed to Sriman Raama NaarAyaNan :

 

"NarAyaNa Hari ! nasvaramaina dhanAsvamulanu nE

vishvasincha bhUjEsavara Hari Hari , kOtisulagani

saaDilEni palku BhODi nOsagi mummADiki vEDanu ,

aasa pishAchAvEshamu galugu dhanEsula gaachEDu dEsamu

nElanu "

 

(Meaning): " Oh Jaanaki RamaNA ! I consider perishable

(material) wealth in the form of money , cattle as worthless.

I shall certainly not approach rich men and beg them

for wealth through krithis praising them .I shall not

go near places frequented by greedy men , who are

possessed by the devils of desire and attachment to

material things ".

 

With parama vairAghyam , Saint ThyagarAjA stayed away

from royal courts and felt uncomfortable about the status

of VidvAns , who eked a livelihood from musical services

to the wealthy ones. He reminds us in this context of

Swamy Desikan's memorable decalaration in his VairAghya

Panchakam :

 

" vayam vaachA mahIsvarAn thruNamapi na YaachAmahE "

 

(meaning): We shall never ever beg even for a blade

of grass from the kings (wealthy ones)". He concluded like

Swamy Desikan that the great wealth , Sriman NaaraayaNan

that gladdens the hearts of BhaagavathAs is the eternal,

ever-lasting wealth . Swamy Desikan's words are:

 

" Dhananjaya Vivardhanam dhanam udhUDa Govardhanam

susaadhanam aBhAdhanam sumanasAm samArAdhanam "

 

Like Swamy Desikan , Saint ThyagarAjA conducted

unchivrutthi every day and lived on the alms that

the citizens of ThiruvaayARu gave him. He presented

it to Sri RaamachandrA , performed AarAdhanam for Him

and partook of the naivEdhyam and spent his day and night

singing about the glories of his Raama NaarAyaNan .

 

The origin of the Dhivya NaamA Krithis

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

 

During his unchivrutthi around the streets of this river town,

the Saint used to sing with ThamburA in one hand and

chapLa kattais on the other hand the dhivya naamAs of

his AarAdhana moorthy , Sri Raamachandran . Out poured

moving krithis that were composed on the spot with

great Bhakthi . These krithis are known as dhivya naama

krithis and had many small charaNams and have great

bhakthi bhAvam .

 

The Raagams used in the Dhivya Naama krithis

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

Rakthi Raagams , Ghana Raagams,upAnga-BhAshAnga raagams ,

sampUrNa, varja-vakra and chAyalaka raagams

took their turns to be adorned in his free-flowing

Saahithyams and to take their immortal place as dhivya-

Naama Krithis emanating from the bard. The musical genius

of Saint ThyagarAjA blending perfectly with his great

Bhakthi gave us a body of dhivya naama krithis that

have very few parallels in Bhakthi literature .

 

Typical raagaas used by the Saint in composiiton of these

dhivya naam krithis are: Aananda Bhairavi, Kaapi, BhouLi,

SaavEri, Bhairavi, AsAvEri, Thodi, MadhyamAvathi ,

PunnagavarAli , GowLipanthu and NaadhanAmakriya,

ReethigowLai and some times even MukhAri and rare

raagams like KalakaNTi.

 

Typical Features of a Dhivya Naama Krithi

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

These dhivya Naama krithis have many , short charaNams

that permitted singing with manOdharam , while moving

from house to house receiving bikshai. Usually , these

krithis do not have any anupallavi.The message will be

like an upadesam .

 

An Example of a Dhivya Naama krithi in GhouLipanthu raagam

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

 

Pallavi: Raama Raama KrishNa yanarE raathiri-

pahalumaa Sitha

 

( Oh People You will all do well by chanting

the holy names of my SitA Raaman and KrishNaa

day and night)

 

CharaNam 1: ithara maarga soukyamulaku

athani hrudhayamE Saakshiyu (Raama Raama--)

 

( Your heart will be the witness (ssakshi) to

the fact that there are no other ways to

get happiness and deliverance . " Naanya:

panthA ayanAya vidhyathE " is the message of

Purusha Sooktham ).

 

CharaNam 2: kAnipanulu kOri kOri

karaguchuNDu maanavulu ( Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 3: kuthisathapu maaDalaku

uddhuga pOrElEDu janalu (Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 4: sarvasAsthramulanu jdhiva

aasa dhaasulayinavAru (Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 5: yedhuDi paccha jUDalEka

hithavu mADalADu Janulu (Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 6: challani vaakulu Baliki

svAntha manalamainavAru (Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 7: palukanErcchi yaDukaBhOthE

teliviki haaniyainavAru (Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 8: JaathiheenulainavAru

JaaNalainaaradhE Saakshi(Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 9: paamu pandhi Gaja pisAcha

paathakAgrEsarulE Saakshi ( Raama Raama)

 

CharaNam 10:ThyagarAju dhelusukOnna

taaraka mihapara sAdhakamu( Raama Raama)

 

The beauty of the architecture of the dhivya Naama

Krithi and the symmetry of the individual CharaNams

set in Aathi Taalam is exquisite.There is not an extra

word in each of the CharaNa Vaakhyams. The refrain is

a sweet lilting "Raama Raama KrishNa yanarE ".The meanings

and the references are deep .

 

General Meaning of charaNams 2-10 :

 

Oh people , You who chase after desires and

activities forbidden by ShAsthrAs and revel

in them ! You will do well by cbanting

the Lord's name day and night !

 

Oh People , Who wallow profoundly in demeaning

talks and who have become helpless slaves to Your

desires , even if you have gone thru all shAsthrAs!

You will have salvation by reciting the Lord's

names day and night.

 

Oh People! who are filled with asooyai (jealousy)

because your neighbor is prosperous and yet are

pretending to mean well by saying kind words in

front of them ! You can get relief from all these

miseries, if you chant the names of my SithA Raaman

and KrishNan .

 

Oh people, who talk sweetly , while having poison

in your hearts ! You will overcome these harmful

dispositons , if you chant my Lord's names .

 

Oh People, who have been formally educated

to use your speech effectively ! When the time comes to

demonstrate your intelligence , you are unable to

manage your speech and give the right ansewers .

 

The unassailable fact that low birth is no hindrance

to salvation by chanting the Lord's names has been

proven by many.They are the witnesses to the redemptive

power of the Lord's names and naama sankIrthanam ,

which leads up to total self-surrender at the lotus

feet of our dhivya Dampathis.

 

Prominent among this assembly of heinous sinners

are the serpent (Ajakaran), Pig ( MookAsuran), Elephant

(MatthakAsuran),the demon /PisAsu( DhunthumAran).

Their sins melted away ,when they chanted Hari's names.

 

This path of redemption has been learnt by ThyagarAjA

as the means to achieve moksham .Raama Naamam is the Taaraka

manthram known to Thyagarajan as Iha Para Saadhanam .

You will do well by reciting the Lord's many names.

 

We will cover the introduction to the Uthsava SampradhAya

krithis in the next posting and come back to selected

examples of dhivya naama and uthsava sampradhAya Krithis

in subsequent postings.

 

AdiyEn, Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan

ThiruviNNagar BrahmOthsava Hanumantha Vaahanam day

Panguni Kettai ( March 27, 2000 )