Thamizh Songs in Carnatic Music—10-- கருணாலய நிதியே---karuNAlaya nidhiyE

 Thamizh Songs in Carnatic Music—10

கருணாலய நிதியே---karuNAlaya nidhiyE

rAgam: HindOLam(ஹிந்தோளம்)   tALam:Adi (ஆதி)

Composer:MAyuram VEdanayakam PiLLai

    மாயூரம் வேதநாயகம் பிள்ளை

20 naTabhairavi janyam
ArOhaNam: S G2 M1 D1 N2 S
avarOhaNam: S N2 D1 M1 G2 S  

General Comments: The composer, while being a Thamizh Christian and Thamizh scholar, was well-versed in colloquial Thamizh which at his time was heavily sprinkled with Sanskrit words in the literary and musical circles. Accordingly his kritis are replete with Sanskritized Thamizh words. One can make general sense out of them even if one is not familiar with the meaning of the words per se. As was his intent, the composer wrote his devotional poems addressed to a generic god without naming the religious denomination. The composer wrote his thoughts as expressions of poetry. Several musicians set them to carnatic tunes having seen the beauty of the thought expressed in them. The lyrics are given first in Thamizh and then Roman scripts (in red font) below each segment. The meaning for each segment is also given following the Roman script.

பல்லவி (Pallavi)

கருணாலய நிதியே – தினமும் உன் 
சரணாம்புயம் கதியே                       கருணா)

KaruNAlaya nidhiyE—dhinamum un caraNAmbujam gatiyE

Meaning: You are the treasure house of compassion. I seek your lotus feet everyday

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அநுபல்லவி (anupallavi)

சர்வ வேத  விநோத காரணா 
பரமசாதக  பவ நிவாரணா                (கருணா)

Sarva vEda vinOda kAraNA paramasAdaka bhava nivAraNA

Meaning: You are the origin of all scriptures and you prevent our incessant birth and death cycles.

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சரணங்கள்  (CaraNams)

நிதம் வெளுக்க வெளுக்க வெண் தூசு  நிமிஷந் தோறும்  நிறையுமே மாசு 
அதுபோல் என்தன்  அகமுறும் ஆசு  அகலவே உன் அருள் ஒளி வீச 
அகிலகோடி  விசால  கற்பித  சகலஜீவதயாள அற்புத                  கருணா

Nidam veLukka veLukka veNtUsu nimishandOrum niRaiyumE mAsu

adupOl enthan agamuRum Asu agalave un aruL oLi vEsa

akila kOTi viSala kaRpita sakalajIvadayALa aRputa

Meaning: In spite of washing everyday dirt gets into fabrics all the time. Like that my mind also gets contaminated with blemishes. I need the light of your grace to get rid of them.

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இங்கென் செய்கைகள் யாவும் நிகிர்ஷ்டம்  எனக்குப் புண்ணியம் என்றும் அநிஷ்டம் 
பங்கம் தீர்க்கில் உனக்குண்டோ கஷ்டம்  பரமனேயருளாயோ உத்கிரிஷ்டம் 
பாரமாகவே பண்ணும் பாதகம்  தீரவே நீசெய்வை சாதகம்                         (கருணா

ingen seygaikaL yAvum nikirshTam enakkup puNNiyam enRum anishTam

pangam tIrkkil unakkuNDO utkirishTam paramanEyaruLAyO utkirishTam

bAramAgavE paNNum pAdakam tIravE nI seyvay sAdakam

Meaning: All my action is useless. I cannot earn any merit through my effort. Is it hard for you to get rid of my sin? Oh lord, be kind to me. Although I commit sins you should help me eliminate them.

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அமல பாஸ்கர கோடி ஸ்வரூபா  அனந்த  சச்சிதானந்த பிரதாபா 
நிமலவேத  வேதாந்த நிரூபா நிர்விகற்ப  நிரஞ்சன தீபா 
நீதபூரண நிலயமஞ்சித  வேதநாயகன்   இதயரஞ்சித                             கருணா

amala bAhskara kOTi swarUpA anantha sachidAnanda pratApA

nimalavEda vEdanta nirUPA  nirvkaRapa niranjana dIpA

nItapUraNa nilayamanchita vEdnAyakan idayaranjita 

Meaning: You have the radiance of million suns. You are the personification of truth and happiness  and you are the blemishless form of the vEdAs. You are free from all defects. You are dear to my (VEdanayakan’s) heart.
             

Composer’s Bio:                                                                                      

Mayuram Vedanayakam Pillai (1826-1889) was born to Savarimuthu Pillai and ArOgya Mariammal as a Thamizh Christian in a village called Kolaththur (Tiruchirapalli district). He was a precocious child while growing up and joined the court system after completing his education. He learnt several languages including Thamizh, English, French, Latin, and Sanskrit.  He became a district munsiff of Mayuram in 1860 and served there for 13 years. The name Mayuram got affiliated with him forever.

Besides his professional duties, MVP wrote 16 books, among which a highly acclaimed book of verses called “Neethi Nool” espousing ethical conduct, and the first Thamizh novel “Pratapa Mudaliar Charitram” figure prominently.  He was proficient in music and he played the Veena.  He was a poet, par excellence, referred to as the Oliver Goldsmith of the East. The eminent Thamizh music composer Gopalakrishna Bharathi was quite enamored of MVP’s songs. MVP counted the all-time great Thamizh vidwan Meenakshisundaram Pillai, and Ramalinga Vallalar among his friends.

MVP was a secular universalist but his poems expressed divinity in a religious mode which was not restrictive. He used the words, “ayyan”, “samayam” and other religious words without confining to a particular god of a particular religion. One can call him a secular religionist or an eclectic Unitarian.  In every poem MVP conveyed a special philosophical message. He rejected atheism and believed in the existence of a creator of the universe. He used Sanskrit words liberally in his Thamizh poems which added some luster and also a touch of realism. His adherence to the grammar structure of “etugai” and “mOnai” in his poems is phenomenal.

Other songs of MVP that are thought-provoking and melodious are: cittam eppadiyO (nAdanAmakkriyA), manamE nI (kuntalavarALi), ennai azhiya (dharbAr), paramE aDiyAr, and tiruttaNi vAzhum (kAmbhoji), UrukkellAm (kalyANi), and uyyum varai (sankarAbharaNam).

Audio links are given below:

Listen to GNB here

Listen to Unnikrishnan here
Listen to Sanjay Subrahmanyan here  (song #5 in the list)
Sanjay Subrahmanyan here   (without AlApanai)

Reference: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/fr/2002/11/01/stories/2002110101570600.htm