Thamizh isai: பித்தா பிறை சூடீ----PiththA piRai sUDi

பித்தா பிறை சூடீ----PiththA piRai sUDi

Composer: SundaramUrthy nAyanAr

paN: indaLam பண்: இந்தளம்

tirumuRai 7.1 (tiruveNNai nallUr shrine)

The Carnatic rAgam “hindOLam” and the HindustAni rAgam MAlkauns, were known in ancient times in Thamizh isai as a paN (பண்) or tune called indaLam (இந்தளம்). It was a designated melody for the land classified as marutam (வயல்) which is mostly cultivable farmland surrounded by ponds, and streams. Likewise the other landscapes such as mountains, forests, seashores, and deserts also had designated tunes characteristic of the landscape in question.

The so-called paN-isai (பண் இசை) has been in vogue for almost 2000 years. The sangam literature in the beginning of first millennium CE mentions the features of paN isai. One of the five epic poetries in Thamizh, Silappadikaram, gives extensive details of music and dance and the specific features. There is a total of 103 paNs known and 24 of them were handled in tEvAram songs. They all have been equated with modern Carnatic music rAgams. Please refer to the references given at the end. To give some examples: paN takkEsi -à. KAmbOji, paN naTTapADai -à nATTai, paN kuRinji -à HarikAkambOji, paN kausikam---à Bhairavi, paN pazhampanchuram -à SankarAbharaNam, paN mEgarAgakuRinji -à nIlAmbari.

PaN isai also has what are known as swarams, kural, tuttam, kaikkiLai, uzhai, iLi, viLari, and tAram corresponding to the swarams in Carnatic music sa, ri, ga, ma, pa, da, ni, respectively. Let us look at the tEvAram songs of SundaramUrthy nAyanAr in the paN indaLam (rAgam: hindOLam) below. We select 3 songs out of the first patigam (decad) on the tiruveNNainallUr shrine. In all Sundarar sang a total of 1011 songs on various Shiva shrines in Thamizh country. You can get all the song lyrics in Thamizh script here

Source for the lyrics: http://www.thevaaram.org/thirumurai_1/onepage.php?thiru=7&Song_idField=7001

http://shaivam.org/siddhanta/thiru07u_1.htm#dt7001

Song #1 (7.1.1)

பித்தா பிறை சூடீ பெருமானே அருளாளா
எத்தான் மறவாதே நினைக்கின்றேன் மனத்து உன்னை
வைத்தாய் பெண்ணைத் தென்பால் வெண்ணெய்நல்லூர் அருள் துறையுள்
அத்தா உனக்கு ஆளாய் இனி அல்லேன் எனல் ஆமே.

pittA piRai sUDI perumAnE aruLALA
ettAn maRavAdE ninaikkinREn manattu unnai
vaittAy peNNait tenpAl veNNeynallUr aruL tuRaiyuL
attA unakku ALAy ini allEn enal AmE.

Meaning: Oh lord, who has the pride of being called a lunatic (by me), you wear the crescent moon on your head. You dwell in the sanctum called “aruL tuRai” in the village tiruveNNainallUr, on the southern banks of the river PeNNai. You have occupied my mind forever. So I shall never forget you. I became your slave long ago. It is not befitting for me now to argue that I am not your slave.

Song #7 (7.1.7) ஊனாய்உயி ரானாய்உட லானாய்உல கானாய்
வானாய்நில னானாய்கட லானாய்மலை யானாய்
தேனார்பெண்ணைத் தென்பால்வெண்ணெய் நல்லூரருட் டுறையுள்
ஆனாய்உனக் காளாய்இனி அல்லேன்என லாமே.

UnAyuyi rAnAyuDa lAnAyula kAnAy vAnAynila nAnAykaDa lAnAymalai yAnAy tEnArpeNNait tenpAlveNNey nallUraruT TuRaiyuL AnAyunak kALAyini allEnena lAmE.

Meaning: Oh lord who dwells in the sanctum “aruL tuRai” on the southern banks of the river PeNNai, you pervade in the body and life of all beings, the sky, land, seas, and mountains. I became your slave long ago and it is not right to argue otherwise now.

Song #10 (7.1.10)

காரூர்புன லெய்திக்கரை கல்லித்திரைக் கையால்
பாரூர்புக ழெய்தித்திகழ் பன்மாமணி யுந்திச்
சீரூர்பெண்ணைத் தென்பால்வெண்ணெய் நல்லூரருட் டுறையுள்
ஆரூரன்எம் பெருமாற்காள் அல்லேன்என லாமே.

kArUrpuna leydikkarai kallittiraik kaiyAl
pArUrpuga zheydittigazh panmAmaNi yundic
sIrUrbeNNait tenpAlveNNey nallUraruT TuRaiyuL

ArUranem perumARkAL allEnena lAmE.

Meaning: The water that falls from the clouds pelts the earth and spreads all over the land to gain the reputation of being the source of fertility. I became a slave to you lord, who dwells in the sanctum “aruL tuRai” on the southern banks of the river PeNNai. It is not right that I now argue that I am not your slave.

Composer’s Bio: Sundarar was born in the town called tirunAvalUr to SaDaiyanAr and isaignAniyAr in the community of devotees of lord Shiva. His given name was nambiyArUrAn. He got the name Sundarar as a result of his being extremely handsome. When, as a child, he was playing in the street the local king of the tirumunaippADi country (middle Thamizh country) saw him and requested his parents that he be brought up in his palace. Sundarar learnt all arts under the king’s guardianship.

When he got to marriageable age (15 years old), his biological parents arranged to get him married to a girl who was the daughter of a devotee of lord shiva. On the wedding day an old man showed up and stopped the wedding claiming that Sundarar was his slave and he should come with him. He produced a palm leaf document as evidence. Sundarar ridiculed the old man as a lunatic and refused to go with the old man. However, the old man prevailed and took him to the temple in the next town. After Sundarar went into the temple sanctum following the old man, the old man disappeared. Then Sundarar realized that it was lord Shiva who came in the guise of the old man in order to guide him along. He then sang his very first song in praise of the lord, “pittA piRai sUDi…” (as a mark of calling the old man a lunatic. Pittan means lunatic in Thamizh). To read the full story subsequent to the old man episode please visit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarar http://www.skandagurunatha.org/deities/siva/nayanars/63.asp

References for paN isai: http://www.tamilisaisangam.in/araichigal.html

http://www.thevaaram.org/thirumurai_1/ani/pannisai.html

Some audio/video clips

Listen to M S Subbulakshmi here (sings songs 1 and 7)

A female vocalist sings here (sings songs 1 and 10)

A rendition by a male vocalist here (all the 10 songs in the patigam)

Another here (all the 10 songs in the patigam)

Listen to Manipallavam Sarangan here (first song only)