O Lord SrI rAma! O Sun who dispels the darkness enveloping the most eminent devotees!
It’s Bliss and Bliss! It’s Bliss Supreme! It’s Bliss Eternal! It’s Bliss for ever! It’s Bliss Supreme!
1. I have become blessed! I have been swimming in the Ocean of Bliss; I have, for ever, earned the name that I am Your’s.
2. From early days, I prayed only to You; I abandoned the company of evil people; I considered that my honour is Your responsibility.
3. I feared sins; I calmed down all the afflictions of the mind; placing Your holy feet in my bosom I worshipped You.
4. I abandoned desire for women; uttering repeatedly that ‘the nectar of Your name is the true livelihood of this kali yuga’, all my worries have gone away.
5. If one asks as to what happened to the comforts of this World, (I shall respond that) they vanished like the wealth dreamt of; by extolling You and meditating on You, I understood Your grand Illusion.
6. I was enamoured beholding Your beauty; I was caught in the hands of inseparable supreme Love towards You; I saluted You dedicating to You my whole life.
7. Would it be possible even for brahmA or indra or Lord Siva to describe all that one has thought of? No, words will fail.
8. Did You think of looking at me as an alien? otherwise, are You still hesitating to declare that 'I am blessed'?
9. I have desisted from the qualities of passion; I have vowed in my mind to chant Your names; I considered that all these to be the merits earned by tyAgarAja.
Word Division - Word-by-word meaning
pallavi
Anandamu-Anandamu-Ayenu
brahmAnanda nitya-Ananda
sadA-Ananda parama-(Ananda)
It’s (Ayenu) Bliss (Anandamu) and Bliss (Anandamu) (AnandamAnandamAyenu)! It’s Bliss Supreme (brahmAnandamu)! It’s Bliss (Ananda)
Eternal (nitya) (nityAnanda)! It’s Bliss (Ananda) for ever (sadA) (sadAnanda)! It’s Bliss (Ananda) Supreme (parama) (paramAnanda)!
caraNam
caraNam 1
SrI rAma nE dhanyuDu-aitini Ananda
nIradhilOna-Idanu-aitini rAma
sAreku nI vADu-ani pEru kaluganu-aitini (Ananda)
O Lord SrI rAma! I (nE) have become (aitini) blessed (dhanyuDu) (dhanyuDaitini)! I have been swimming (Idanaitini) in the Ocean (nIradhilOna) (nIradhilOnIdanitini) of Bliss (Ananda);
O Lord rAma! I have, for ever (sAreku), earned (kaluganaitini) the name (pEru) that (ani) I am Your’s (nIvAdu) (nIvADani);
caraNam 2
A nATi modalu ninnE vEDiti dushTa
mAnavula celimi vIDiti nA
mAnamE nIdu bhAramu-anucunu talaciti (Ananda)
From (modalu) early (A) (literally those) days (nATi), I prayed (vEDiti) only to You (ninnE);
I abandoned (vIDiti) the company (celimi) of evil (dushTa) people (mAnavula);
I (nE) considered (talaciti) (literally thought) that (anucu) my (nA) honour (mAnamu) (mAnamE) is Your (nIdu) responsibility (bhAramu) (literally burden) (bhAramanucu);
caraNam 3
pApamulaku bhayamu-anditi hRt-
tApamulu-ella calla jEsiti rAma
nI pAdamu-uramunanu-unci pUjincanu-aiti (Ananda)
I feared (bhayamu anditi) sins (pApamulaku);
I calmed down (calla jEsiti) (literally cooled) all (ella) the afflictions (tApamulu) (tApamulella) of the mind (hRt) (literally heart);
O Lord rAma! placing (unci) Your (nI) holy feet (pAdamu) in my bosom (uramunanu) (pAdamuramunanunci) I worshipped (pUjincanaiti) You;
caraNam 4
kaliki-Asalu rOsinAramu-I
kalini bratuku nAma saramu-iTlu
paliki paliki tolagi pOye vicAramu (Ananda)
I abandoned (rOsinAramu) desire (Asalu) for women (kaliki) (kalikiyAsalu);
uttering repeatedly (paliki paliki) that (iTlu) ‘the nectar (sAramu) (sAramuyiTlu) of Your name (nAma) is the true livelihood (bratuku) of this (I) (rOsinAramuyI) kali yuga (kalini)’, all my worries (vicAramu) have gone away (tolagi pOye);
caraNam 5
ilalO sukhamulu-Emi-Ayenu-aNTE
kala kanna bhAgya candamu-Ayenu ninnu
kolici dhyAninci telusukoNTi nI mAyanu (Ananda)
If one asks (aNTE) as to what happened (EmAyenu) to the comforts (sukhamulu) (sukhamulEmAyenu) of this World (ilalO), (I shall respond that) they vanished like (candamu Ayenu) (candamAyenu) the wealth (bhAgya) dreamt of (kala kanna);
by extolling (kolici) You (ninnu) and meditating (dhyAninci) on You, I understood (telusukoNTi) Your (nI) grand Illusion (mAyanu);
caraNam 6
nI-andamunu kani sokkitini-
eDa bAyani prEma cEta jikkiti nA
prAyamulu-ella nI pAlu cEsi mrokkiti (Ananda)
I was enamoured (sokkitini) beholding (kani) Your (nI) beauty (andamunu) (nIyandamunu);
I was caught (jikkiti) in the hands of (cEta) inseparable (eDa bAyani) (sokkitineDa) supreme Love (prEma) towards You;
I saluted (mrokkiti) You dedicating to You (nIpAlu cEsi) my (nA) whole (ella) life (prAyamulu) (prAyamulella);
caraNam 7
naluvaku-ainanu-indruku-ainanu candra
kalanu dharincu vAniki-ainanu rAma
talacinadi-ella ceppa taramA nOTiki rAdu (Ananda)
O Lord rAma! Would it be possible (taramA) even (ainanu) for brahmA – four headed (naluvaku) - or indra (indruku) (naluvakainanindrukainanu) or Lord Siva – One (vAniki) (vAnikainanu) who wears (dharincu) the digit (kalanu) of the moon (candra) - to describe (ceppa) (literally tell) all that (ella) one has thought of (talacinadi) (talacinidella)?
No, words will fail (nOTiki rAdu);
caraNam 8
anyamugA jUDa tOcenA ganuka
dhanya-aham-ani palka yOcanA
mUrdhanyulu-aina bhakta-anudhvAnta virOcana (Ananda)
Did You think (tOcenA) of looking (jUDa) at me as an alien (anyamugA)? otherwise (ganuka),
are You still hesitating (yOcanA) to declare (palka) (literally tell) that (ani) 'I (aham) am blessed (dhanya)' (dhanyOhamani)?
O Sun (virOcana) who dispels the darkness (anudhvAnta) enveloping the most eminent (mUrdhanyulaina) devotees (bhakta) (bhaktAnudhvAnta)!
caraNam 9
rAjasa guNamunu mAniti rAma
nI japamunu madi pUniti tyAgarAju
cEsina puNya rASi-ani-enciti (Ananda)
O Lord rAma! I have desisted (mAniti) from the quality (guNamunu) of passion (rAjasa);
I have vowed (pUniti) in my mind (madi) to chant (japamunu) Your (nI) names;
I considered (enciti) that (ani) all these to be the merits (puNya rASi) (literally multitude of merits) (rASiyaniyenciti) earned (cEsina) (literally done) by tyAgarAja (tyAgarAju);
Notes
Variations - (Pathanthara)
In some books, anupallavi ‘Anandam(A)nandam(A)nandam-(A)nandam(A)yenu” is given; there is no anupallavi in other books.
1 – bhAramanucunu talaciti – bhAramanucu nE telisiti : bhAramanuch talaciti – is appropriate.
2 – pUjincanaitini –dhyAnincaga : dhyAnincaga – is not appropriate.
3 – tolagi pOye – tOlagi bAya : tolagi pOye – seems to be appropriate.
4 - indrukainanu – indukainanu – harikainanu : indrukainanu – is appropriate.
5 – dharincu vAnikainanu – dharincu vArikainanu
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References
Comments
6 – mUrdhanyulaina bhakta – this may be translated as 'most eminent devotees' or 'devotees who became most eminent'. From the preceding words 'anudhvAnta', the latter version seems to be more appropriate because unless the veil of darkness is first lifted, one cannot become 'most eminent devotee'. However, it may also argued that even in the most eminent devotees, there is a trace of darkness which is to be ultimately lifted by the grace of Lord. There is story of nArada – the most eminent of devotees – becoming conceited that he has won over mAyA; in order to quell that pride Lord makes him into a woman and undergo suffering; For complete story, please refer to Devi Bhagavatam 6th Book – Chapters 28 and 29 Top