O Lord raghu nAtha! O Lotus Eyed Lord who is Peerless and who is beyond all qualities! O Bestower of boons to this tyAgarAja!
1. Sage vAlmIki and others have earlier said that You are endowed with gentleness; have those word become false?
2. Looking at the ascetics living in the country-side (without protection), You felt pity and bestowed them freedom from fear.
3. You look at true devotees with compassion, by clearing the curls of hair falling on Your beautiful forehead.
4. Please show me the elegance of coming back to rule own country, after making Your enemies grieve.
5. Please show those hands with which You embraced bharata, after seeing him and taking pity on him.
6. When the women of the town were enamoured beholding the lustre of Your charming face, You treated them as Your mothers.
7. Please protect me; please do not forget me (OR) please protect me without forgetting.
Word Division - Word-by-word meaning
pallavi
nAtha brOvavE raghu nAtha brOvavE
O Lord (nAtha)! Please protect (brOvavE) me. O Lord raghu nAtha! Please protect (brOvavE) me.
caraNam
caraNam 1
sa-lalituDu-ani munu palikina
vAlmIkula vAkkulu kallalu-AyenA raghu (nAtha)
Have those words (vAkkulu) of sage vAlmIki and others (vAlmIkula), who earlier (munu) said (palikina) that (ani) You are endowed with gentleness (sa-lalituDu) (sa-lalituDani), become (AyenA) false (kallalu) (kallalAyenA)?
O Lord raghu nAtha! please protect me.
caraNam 2
bayalu gala muni cayamunu jUci
hRdayamu karagaga-abhayamu-osagina raghu (nAtha)
O Lord raghu nAtha who, feeling pity (hRdayamu karagaga) (literally as heart melted) looking (jUci) at the ascetics (muni cayamunu) living (gala) (literally found) in the country-side (bayalu) (without protection),
bestowed (osagina) them freedom from fear (abhayamu) (karagaganabhayamosagina)!
please protect me.
caraNam 3
varamagu nuduTi mungurulanu tolaginci
karuNanu nija bhakta varulanu jUcu raghu (nAtha)
O Lord raghu nAtha who looks (jUcu) at blessed (varulanu) true (nija) devotees (bhakta) with compassion (karuNanu),
by clearing (tolaginci) (literally removing) the curls of hair (mungurulanu) falling on the beautiful (varamagu) forehead (nuduTi)!
please protect me.
caraNam 4
agaNita ripulaku vagalu-onarinci sva-
nagaramunu-Ela vaccu sogasu jUpu raghu (nAtha)
O Lord raghu nAtha! Please show (jUpu) me the elegance (sogasu) of coming back (vaccu) (literally come) to rule (Ela) own (sva) country (nagaramunu) (svanagaramunEla) (literally town),
after making innumerable (agaNita) enemies (ripulaku) grieve (vagalu onarinci) (vagalonarinci);
please protect me.
caraNam 5
bharatuni kani madi karagucu vAni
uramana jErcina karamunu jUpu raghu (nAtha)
O Lord raghu nAtha! Please show (jUpu) those hands (karamunu) with which You embraced (uramuna jErcina) bharata (bharatuni),
after seeing (kani) him (vAni) and taking pity (madi karagucu) (literally mind melting) on him;
please protect me.
caraNam 6
kala kalamanu mukha kaLa kani pura
bhAmalu valacaga tana tallula vale jUcu raghu (nAtha)
O Lord raghu nAtha who, when the women (bhAmalu) of the town (pura) were enamoured (valacaga) beholding (kani) the lustre (kaLa) of Your charming (kala kalamanu) face (mukha), considers (jUcu) (literally looks at) them as (vale) Your (tana) mothers (tallula)!
Please protect me.
caraNam 7
nirupama nirguNa sarasija lOcana
maravaka tyAgarAja varada SrI raghu (nAtha)
O Lotus (sarasija) Eyed (lOcana) Lord who is Peerless (nirupama) and who is beyond all qualities (nirguNa)!
Please do not forget (maravaka) me, O Bestower of boons (varada) to this tyAgarAja! O Lord raghu nAtha! Please protect me.
(OR) O Lord raghu nAtha - bestower of boons (varada) to this tyAgarAja! Please protect me without forgetting (maravaka).
Notes
Variations - (Pathanthara)
caraNas 5 and 6 are interchanged in some books.
1 – bayalu – bhayamunu : bayalu - is appropriate.
2 – cayamunu –cayamula.
4 – varamagu –varamulu : varamagu - is appropriate.
6 – valacaga –valacaganu.
7 – tallula –sutula. ‘talli’ means ‘mother’ and ‘suta’ means ‘daughter’. As these two words are quite distinct, this is considered as an interpolation. The original kRti would contain either the word ‘talli’ or ‘suta’. The other word has been deliberately brought into circulation.
8 – maravaka –maruvaka.
9 – varada –vara nuta.
10 – SrI raghu(nAtha) –SrI rAma raghu(nAtha).
References
3 – abhayamosagina – Please refer to vAlmIiki rAmAyaNa, AraNya kANDa, Chapter 6.
Comments
5 – jUpu – this word may be translated as ‘one who shows’ or ‘show’. However, in the present context, 'show' seems to be appropriate. Top