Thamizh songs in Carnatic Music--3 KAlaip piDittEn gaNapati----காலைப் பிடித்தேன் கணபதி

Thamizh songs in Carnatic Music--3

KAlaip piDittEn gaNapati----காலைப் பிடித்தேன் கணபதி  

        

Composer: MahAkavi SubramaNya BhArati rAgam: mOhanam tALam: Adi

                         

Background: PuduchEry (a state adjoining ThamizhnADu) was under French control for a long time. There is a prevalent lore that the French governor at the time, Francois Marten (1674-93), tried to ban GaNapati worship there but when some of the weavers decided to move elsewhere the governor abandoned his efforts since trade would have been severely affected without their goods and labor.

Bharathi wrote 40 songs on GaNapati under the banner, “VinAyakar nAnmaNi mAlai” (விநாயகர் நான்மணி மாலை). All these songs (in 4 different categories of poetry) were written when he was in PuduchEry (fleeing British Indian territory to avoid capture on a charge of sedition for writing nationalistic songs and articles). The famous ancient GaNapati temple in PuduchEry (which is very popular among devotees) is called “maNakkuLa vinAyakar”(மணக்குள விநாயகர்) temple.  All his songs on Lord GaNapati were inspired by the deity maNakkuLa VinAyakar.

Let us examine two separate ( one building on the other) songs here.

rAgam: mOhanam (மோஹனம்)  tALam: Adi

காலைப் பிடித்தேன் கணபதி நின்பதங் கண்ணிலொற்றி

நூலைப் பலபல வாகச் சமைத்து நொடிப்பொழு(தும்)                      

வேலைத் தவறு நிகழாது நல்ல வினைகள்செய்துன் 

கோலை மனமெனு நாட்டி னிறுத்தல் குறியெனக்கே

எனக்கு வேண்டும் வரங்களை இசைப்பேன் கேளாய் கணபதி, மனத்திற் சலன மில்லாமல், மதியில் இருளே தோன்றாமல், நினைக்கும் பொழுது நின்மவுன நிலைவந் திடநீ செயல்வேண்டும், கனக்குஞ் செல்வம் நூறு வயது இவையும் தரநீ கடவாயே. Now the lyrics in Roman script. kAlaip piDittEn gaNapati ninpada#n kaNNiloTRi                            nUlaip palapala vAgac camaittu noDippozhu(dum)                              vElait tavaRu nigazhAdu nalla vinaigaLseydun                                                                          kOlai manamenu nATTi niRuttal kuRiyenakkE enakku vENDum vara#ngaLai isaippEn kELAy gaNapati, manattiR salana millAmal, madiyil iruLE tOnRAmal, ninaikkum pozhudu ninmavuna nilaivan tiDanI seyalvENDum, ganakkunch celvam nURu vayadu ivaiyum taranI kaDavAyE. Meaning: Oh lord GaNapati, I hold your feet and apply them on to my eyes. My mission is that I should compose several works without any interruption or errors. I want to retain your rule in my mind all the time (so that there is no wavering in my mind). I shall ask the boons I want and you pay attention.  I should not have any turmoil in my mind and there should be no darkness therein either. When I desire, you should provide your own composure and peaceful state to me. You shall also give me fabulous wealth and a long life. Commentary:  Bharathi does not mince words. He means what he says. He treats the gods with love and passion but simultaneously as his friends. He takes liberties with them and instead of being subservient when asking for boons he more or less dictates, “thou shall …”. That is why he is such a unique poet. On the face of it his request may appear selfish (requesting longevity of life and wealth) but his purpose was more altruistic in the larger interest of humanity at large. In this song Bharathi more or less dictates (கடவாயே) rather than requests (அருள்வாயே). That shows his intimacy to rather than distance from the deity. Besides, instead of stating (கேட்பேன்) the requests he says he will sing (இசைப்பேன்). Mental turmoil is difficult to control. So he places that request first. Darkness may surround even a steady mind. The mind has to resolve that to lead in the right path. That is his second request. To manage the issues one needs composure. He wants such composure that the lord himself possesses.  The 4th and 5th boons are material aspirations which come last in the order of preference.

Listen to Rajkumar Bharathi sing “KAlaippiDittEn gaNapati” in mOhana rAgam. Download from https://www.mediafire.com/?yh765o2wz1jhcbt  

       

Listen to a short rendition of the second verse here 
  
Listen to the song "gaNapati tALai" sung by Rajkumar Bharathi here:http://www.mediafire.com/download/okp07q6oq7aqks0/02-gaNapathi_thALai-nAta-Adhi-subrahmaNya_bhArathi.mp3

     

Composer’s Bio:

Subramanya Bharathi (1882-1921) was born in eTTayapuram in Tamil Nadu and lost his parents early in his life. He married when he was 16. He moved to vAraNAsi and got most of his education there. He came back to eTTayapuram at the invitation of the local king, got restless doing nothing, and taught for a while in Madurai Sethupathi High School. He then got interested in the freedom movement, met several freedom fighters, and was very active in promoting the independence movement. He was mainly fighting the British with his pen. Subramanya Bharathi (SB) was well-versed in several Indian languages in addition to Thamizh and English. He edited a satirical weekly and a monthly English newsmagazine The British were afraid of his writings and tried to imprison him. He fled to Pondicherry (at that time a French territory) and published his revolutionary newspapers and magazines from there. He also learnt vEdAs, and music

While SB got the support of several leaders, he was leading the life of a pauper at home. He translated Bhagavat GIta in Thamizh and rewrote mahAbhAratam in Thamizh as ”pAnchAli sabhatam”. All along he wrote a lot of poetry of all cadres—devotional, nationalistic, amorous, and wisdom-oriented--- covering a variety of subjects. He occupied an editor’s post in the leading Thamizh newspaper of the day, Swadesamitran and was held in high esteem by the publisher. It is an irony of fate that a temple elephant, whom he used to feed regularly, attacked him one day from which he got very sick and eventually died. Even while dying he was defying death. It is said, “Those whom the gods love die young”. Bharathi was a typical representative of that genre. His small mortal frame left the earth but his giant immortal self still strides around in all glory. He was rightly accorded the title of “National poet” for his national integration songs and “MahAkavi” (great poet) for his poetic excellence.