The AsaavEri Kruthi of Saint ThyAgarAja: " LEkanaa ninnu juDDukOnnAru ? "

[Guest guest]

SrI:

 

Sri ThyAgarAja Swamigal has composed number of moving Krithis

in AsaavEri Raagam :

 

1) Lekanaa ninnu

2) DasaraTa Nandana

3) Janakajaa samEta

4) NammakanE Mosa pODu

5) Ye Paniki

6) Maam palavElasitaa

7) Raa Raamaa IndithAkaa

8) Samayumu Telisi

9) SarivEdalina

 

Most of them are set in Adi TaaLam . Two are set in Roopaka

TaaLam and one in Misra Chaapu ( Samayamu Telisi).

 

Sri Dikshithar's Navagraha Kruthi , " Chandram Bhaja Maanasa "

is a famous one in AsaavEri Raagam known for its KaaruNya

and Bhakthi rasam .

 

AsAvEri is a Janya Raagam of the 8th MeLam , Hanuma ThOdi

with Chatusri Rishabham as the BhAshAnga Swara . The GhAndhAram

is sung with Gamakam .

 

Let us enjoy one of the AsvaEri krithis of this great Raama BhakthA today .

 

Today's Krithi :

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

Pallavi : Lekanaa ninnu juDDukOnnAru ?

 

Anupallavi : SrIkara ! KaruNAsAgara ! nirupama

chinmayaa ! Sritha chinthAmaNi ! neeyEDa

 

CharaNam 1: SoundharyamulalO sukhamu Seethammaku ,

Soumithriki ganalu jaaDala sukhamu

 

CharaNam 2 : Sundara mukhamuna sukhamu Bharathuniki ,

Suj~nAna roopamuna sukham Ripugnuniki

 

CharaNam 3: CharaNa yugamanandhu sukhamAnjanEyuniki

varaguNa ThyagarAja varadhAnandhamu (

lEkanaa)

 

Commentary and Introduction :

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

One day , Sri ThyAgarAja SwamigaL was ready to perform

his daily aarAdhanam for the Lord at his house in Thirumanjana Veethi of

ThiruvayyARu . He saw the Raama ParivAram around the throne of

Lord Raamachandra . He was very happy to see there the Bhaktha-

BhAgavatha GhOshti enjoying the Soundharyam , Soulabhyam ,

Swamithvam and Jn~Anam of Lord Raamachandra .

 

ThyAgarAja SwamigaL began to speculate on what was it

that served as the magnet for each of those dearest to his Lord

that so intensively attracted them . One by one , this great Raama BhkthA

figured out the distinct reasons for each of them ( SeethA DEvi ,

LakshmaNa , Bharatha , Shathrugna and AnjenEya ) to be so captivated

by the KalyANa guNAs of Sri Raamabhadra and shared his reasonings

in a delightful AsAvEri Raaga Krithi .

 

The Meaning of the Saahithyam ( as per Sri C.Ramanujachari)

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

" Otherwise , Will they always be hovering about You with one heart

(yEka hrudhayamulai) and deriving everlasting bliss ( nithyAnandhamu ) ?

Oh bestower of prosperity ( SrIkara) ! Ocean of Mercy ( KaruNA Saagara) !

Incomparable embodiment of knowledge ( nirupama chinmayaa ) !

the wish-yielding gem to the devotees ( sritha ChinthAmaNi ) !

 

In Your beautiful form , SitA PirAtti derived Her happiness ( SoundaryamualO

Sukhamu Seethammaku ) . In Your commands conveyed through

the movement of Your eyes ( Soumithriki ganalu jaaDalu sukhamu) ,

LakshmaNa derived pleasure . In Your charming face , Bharata found

joy ( Sundara mukhamuna sukhamu Bharathuniki ) . In Your personality

beaming with knowledge , Satrugna derived bliss ( Su-jnA~na roopamuna

sukhamu Ripugnaniki ) . In Your holy feet , AnjanEya found his happiness

( CharaNa yugamanandhu sukhamaanjanEyayuniki ) " . Oh delight of

Thyagaraja and the grantor of boons for him ! Why would otherwise

Your ParivAram be hovering around You with one heart and deriving

such manifest bliss ?

 

Additional Observations

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

The athyantha Raama Bhakthi of Saint ThyagarAja is revealed

by the choice of NaamAs by which he addresses his dear Lord

in the anupallavi sectin :

 

" SrIkara , KaruNAsAgara , Nirupama chinmaya , Sritha ChinthAmaNi ! "

 

A . Srikaran : Our Lord is SrIkaran , the bestower of every kind of prosperity .

He is SrIkaran because He is Sridharan , Sriya: Pathi .

 

He blesses one with any one of the four kinds of PurushArTams : Dharma ,

arTa , Kaama and Moksham . What he can give is hinted by the VedAs :

 

1. Courageous sons and grandsons (brave progeny ) -- Rg Vedam : VIII. 102.8

 

2. Abundance of food : Aa vaajiroopa nO gamath ( May He come to us

with abundance of food)--- Rg Vedam : VIII.102.9

 

3. Strength to win over enemies --Saama vedam : UttharArchikam 516.

Both Internal and External enemies are implied here .

 

4. He grants the ultimate Sukham of Moksham , the freedom from

the cycles of births and deaths. He is SaraNAgatha Vathsalan .

 

B. KarunNAsaagaran : He is a shoreless Ocean of Mercy . His wish

( icchA ) is always to remove the dukkham of His devotees . He will rush

from Sri Vaikuntam in a trice to remove the dukkham of the GajEndhran ,

who was losing in the struggle with the crocodile at the lotus pond .

 

C. Nirupama Chinmayan : He is the possessor of limitless Jn~Anam .

He is ChidhAnandha Moorthy . He instructed Brahma on the four Vedams

and their meanings and how to use the VedAs to engage in the VyApAram of

Creation of the entities of the Universe. He is HayagrIvan , Jn~Anandhamayan .

He is the base for all VidhyAs and Nivrutthi dharmams .

 

D. Sritha ChinthAmaNi : He is like the ChinthaaMaNi gem that can grant

all wishes of those that have sought its protection : " Vaari Vazhangum VaLLal ".

For KuchEla , Sabari , PrahlAdha , Droupathi and those who sought His rakshaNam ,

he blessed them with the boons that they sought .

 

CharaNa Vaakyams: SithA Devi's bliss

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

SithA PirAtti is overtaken by the Unparalleled soundharyam

of Her Lord . She describes Her status of being totally under the spell of

the asAdhAraNa soundharyam of the Lord this way :

 

Indhiraneelamum otthu iruNDa kunchiyum

chandira vadhanamum thAzntha kaikaLum

Sundara MaNivarait-thOLUmE alamunthi

Yenn uyirai ammuRuval uNDathE ----Kamba RaamAyaNam : Baala KaaNDam

 

The beautiful blue color of His body reminding the lustre of Indhra Neela gem ,

the dark black tresses , the blemishless Full Moon-like Face , the long arms reaching

down to His knees , the rounded and strong shoulders resembling a mighty

mountain and the enchanting smile on the lips make me lose my senses .

So says SithA PirAtti .

 

LakshmaNan's aanandham

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

" LakshmaNO Lakshmi Sampanna: " is the astute summing up of LakshmaNan .

The Lakshmi referred to is the Kaimkarya Lakshmi . LakshmaNan is the one ,

who remonstrated against Raama , when latter expressed disinterst in

LakshmaNa accompanying Him to the forest . At that time , LakshmaNan

overcame his brother's reluctance with the moving plea:

"aham sarvam karishyAmi jAgrataH svapatatt ca te " . Oh Raama !

KaruNA Saagara ! SrIkara ! Sritha chinthAmaNi ! I will perform every

kaimkaryam for You , whether You are awake or asleep. Through the facial

gestures alone , LakshmaNa was able to read the mind set of his brother and

engaged in those kaimkaryams that Lord Ramachandra wishd . That made

hima krutArTan and gave him bliss.

 

Bharata's Joy :

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

" Sundara Mukamunu sukamu " . The Bhakthi that Bharata had for his brother Raama

was exemplary . He is the PraTmOdhAharaNan for Raama Bhakthi : " BharathAya Param

namOasthu tasmai praTamOdhAharaNAya BhakthibhAjAm " says Swamy Desikan

in his Sri RanganAtha PadhukA Sahsaram . Bharathan was the first among those

who possessed Raama Bhakthi (BhakthibhAjAm PraTamOdhAharaNan ) . Any thing

associated with Raama evoked Parama Bhakthi in Bharata . His reverence for

the PaadhukAs as the representative of Lord Raamachandra and ruling AyOdhya

in the name of the Paadhukais is a claasical example of BharathA's bliss , while

his brother had to be away in the forest for 14 years .

 

Shathrugna"s bliss:

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

Shathrugna has been saluted as a MahA Jn~Ani : " ShathrugnO nithya Shathrugna:"

( One who is eternally vigilant against the temptations of his senses ) . His Bhakthi

for a Bhaagavatha like Bharatha instead of BhagavAn (Raama) has been compared to

the Bhakthi of Madhura Kavi AzhwAr , who dedicated himself to Swamy NammAzhwAr

and placed Bhagavaan as not so important . Shatrugna's Bhaagavatha Seshathvam

is legendary . While his brother Bharathan stayed at Nandigram ( outside AyOdhyA ) ,

Shatrugna looked after the day to day operations of the kingdom to spare Bharatha

from distractions that would affect his meditations on Raama and PaadhukA

aarAdhanam . After the coronation , Shathrugna's ( this Jn~Ani's) bliss was

the overpowering Jn~Anam of Lord Raamachandran .

 

HanumAn's Bliss:

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

Paadha Sevanam of the Lord was HanumAn's aanandham . Meditation on

the CharaNa yugaLam ( sacred pair of feet ) of the Lord is the Aanandham of

HanumAn. That is why He hovers around the Lord as a Chiranjeevi .

 

Thus ThyAgarAja SwamigaL figured out the specific bliss derived by

Sri Raama ParivAram and linked himself to that Raama Bhaktha ghOshti .

 

Sri Raamachandra ParabrahmaNE Nama:

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan