Thamizh Songs in Carnatic Music—28-- KAlait tUkki----காலைத் தூக்கி

Thamizh Songs in Carnatic Music—28

KAlait  tUkki----காலைத்  தூக்கி 

                        Composer: MArimuttA PiLLai  (மாரிமுத்தாபிள்ளை)                                                               

  rAgam: Yadukula KAmbhOji (யதுகுல காம்போதி)   tALam: Adi (ஆதி)

28 harikAmbhOji janyam
ArOhaNam: S R2 M1 P D2 S
avarOhaNam: S N2 D2 P M1 G3 R2 S

பல்லவி

காலைத் தூக்கி நின்று ஆடும் தெய்வமே என்னைக்                                                                        

கை தூக்கியாள் தெய்வமே                                                                

அனுபல்லவி

வேலைத்  தூக்கும் பிள்ளை தனைப்  பெற்ற தெய்வமே                                

மின்னும் புகழ்சேர் தில்லை பொன்னம்பலத்தில் ஒரு                    (காலை)

சரணம்1

செங்கையில் மான் தூக்கி சிவந்த மழுவும் தூக்கி                                                        

அங்கத்தில் ஒரு பெண்ணை அனுதினமும் தூக்கி
கங்கையைத் திங்களை தரித்த சடைமேல் தூக்கி                                                              

இங்கும் அங்குமாய்த் தேடி இருவர் கண்டறியாத                          (காலை)

சரணம்2

நந்தி மத்தளம் தூக்க நாரதர் யாழ் தூக்க

தோம் தோம் என்றயன் தாளம் சுருதியோடு தூக்க

சிந்தை மகிழ்ந்து வானோர் சென்னி மேல் கரம் தூக்க

முந்தும் வலியுடைய முயலகன் உன்னைத் தூக்க                      (காலை)

Lyrics in Roman script

pallavi

kAlait tUkki ninRu ADum deyvamE ennaik                                                              

kai tUkkiyAL deyvamE                                               (kAlai)

anupallavi

vElait  tUkkum piLLai tanaip  peTra deyvamE                                                     

minnum pugazhsEr tillai ponnambalattil oru                 (kAlai)

caraNam1

sengaiyil mAn tUkki sivanda mazhuvum tUkki                                                       

angattil oru peNNai anudinamum tUkki

gangaiyait tingaLai kaditta saDaimEl tUkki                                                               ingum angumAit tEDi iruvar kaNDariyAda                    (kAlai)

CaraNam2

nandi mattaLam tUkka nAradar yAzh tUkka                                                             

tOm tOm enRayan tALam surutiyODu tUkka                                                               sindai magizhndu vAnOr senni mel karam tUkka                                                      mundum valiyuDaiya muyalagan unnait tUkka         (kAlai)

Meaning:

Pallavi: Oh lord who raises one leg and dances, please offer your hand, and lift me (help me) up with your grace.

Anupallavi: You begot a son who carries a spear.  You lift one leg and dance in the famous and glorious golden hall of the town of tillai (Cidambaram).

CaraNam1: You hold a deer in one hand, and a red axe in another. You share your body with a woman (PArvati/umA) always. On your matted locks you carry the (river) GangA and the crescent moon. Two (Vishnu and Brahma) who looked for your head and feet could not find them.

CaraNam2: The bull (nandi) beats the drum. NAradar plays the yAzh (lyre). Brahma (ayan) keeps the beat (tOm tOm) and the sruti (delicate sound). All the celestials are happy and lift their hands over their heads in veneration. The demon muyalagan lifts you from under your (right) foot.

Commentary: The composer showers his praise here by pointing out all the glorious aspects of the dance using the simple word “tUkki” (which means “lift”) to indicate the glorious deeds of lord Shiva---warding off the weapons (axe, deer, flame etc.,) hurled at him by the dArukA vanam (where he wandered as a mendicant) sages, as well as offering the left side of his body to his consort PArvati (angattil oru peNNai tUkki). The episode of Vishnu and Brahma trying to find the feet and head, respectively, of lord Shiva is mentioned in a veiled manner (iruvar kaNDaRiyAda). Likewise the participants in the orchestra for the dance are said to glorify the dance by saying “tUkka” repeatedly to indicate whether playing the drum, the lyre, or keeping the time beat. Finally the sages of dArukA vanam hurled a demon (muyalagan) at lord shiva in an attempt to dispense with him. But the lord captured the demon and stomped on him. That is mentioned cryptically and satirically as “muyalagan unnait tUkka”---as though the demon is lifting the lord from below. Nice composition with a flourish in the style of writing.

Some audio/video links:

Listen to M S Subbulakshmi here

Listen/view Sanjay Subrahmanyan’s performance here

For an extended version click here

Sudha Ragunathan sings here  (click on the player shown below the lyrics)

Also here

Listen to BhUshaNi KalyANarAman here https://www.mediafire.com/?rx4t85fss6frbr4

Nityasri sings here

Composer’s Bio:

MArimuttA PiLLai (1712-1787) was born in ThillaiviDangan near Cidambaram, also known as tillai. tillai was named after a forest of trees of that species, known by the botanical name Excoecaria agallocha, which grows wild in the marshy tidal shores.

SEkkizhzAr, the medieval Thamizh poet wrote his classic work Periya Puranam in Cidambaram. He sang the glory of tillai thus:

ஆதியாய் நடுவும் ஆகி அளவிலா அளவும் ஆகி 

சோதியாய் உணர்வும் ஆகி  தோன்றிய பொருளும் ஆகி 

பேதியா ஏகமாகிப் பெண்ணுமாய் ஆணும் ஆகி 

போதியா  நிற்கும் தில்லைப்  பொதுநடம் போற்றி போற்றி 

            AdiyAi naDuvum Aki aLavilA aLavum Akic

            cOdiyAi uNarvum Akit tOnRiya poruLum Aki

            bEdiyA EkamAkip peNNumAi ANum Aki

            bOdiyA niRkum tillaip podunaTam pOTRi pOTRi

SEkkizhAr talks about Lord Shiva who manifests as the beginning, the immeasurable, the effulgence, the meaning of the inscrutable, the division as well as  the union of the male and the female, and the universal knowledge that is represented by the cosmic dance---all represented by the cosmic dance performed only at tillai.

MMP, who is inseparable from tillai, was born in a devout shaivaite family. He was a great Thamizh composer well-known for writing prabhandham (a musical composition).  His very first composition was the famous “puliyUr veNbA” in praise of the city of Cidambaram.  Only 25 of his songs on Lord Nataraja are now available. Many of the themes of his songs are connected with Lord Shiva and more particularly Nataraja of Cidambaram.

MMP,   Arunacala Kavi, and Muttut tANDavar are hailed as members of the Thamizh trinity (Thamizh mUvar) in recognition of their contributions to Thamizh music.

Not very many compositions of MMP have survived the test of time. Some of his compositions that are sung in music concerts are: ennEramum oru kAlait (tODi), orukAl sivacidambaram (Arabhi), and Edukkittanai mODi tAn (suraTi).