Tyagaraja Kriti

Meaning - Gist

O Mother of entire worlds!
O dEvi SrI dharma saMvardhani!
O Consort of Lord Siva – auspicious Lord of holy tiruvaiyAru! O Redeemer of the fallen!
O Sister of the vishNu! O Most Merciful! O Bestower of auspicious fruits!
O Embodiment of Auspiciousness! O Consort of Lord Siva – wearer of digit of moon on the head like a jewel! O Mother rAja rAjESvari - prop of the three Worlds! O Lotus Eyed! O Mother abiding in the hearts of supreme devotees like tyAgarAja and others! O Mother gauri! O Mother who is beyond all! O Queen of the Universe who governs this Universe without any apparent motive!

You should protect me.
You should protect me ever by granting me Your divine vision.

Having searched in this World, I could not find anywhere an Ocean of mercy like You.
You have been apprehended in my thought; will I forget You now?
Please protect me in the midst of others, without taking into account mistakes committed by me so far, by granting desires necessary for me now.

Don’t be partial towards me.
Though I considered that You exist in everything - gold, stone and kAma, how long the troubles of the illusory Ocean of Worldly Existence?
Why this unconcern in granting me unceasing devotion to Your Feet?
It is not justice not to banish Your illusions;

It is strange that people are not aware of Your prowess.
I trusted You totally.

You should protect me willingly.

Word Division - Word-by-word meaning

pallavi
nIvu brOva valenu-amma nanu
nikhila lOka jananI

O Mother (jananI) of entire (nikhila) worlds (lOka)! O Mother (amma)! You (nIvu) should protect (brOva valenu) (valenamma) me (nanu).

anupallavi
dEvi SrI dharma saMvardhani divya
darSanamu-osagi santatamu (nIvu)

O dEvi SrI dharma saMvardhani (name of Mother at tiruvaiyAru)! You should protect me ever (santatamu) by granting (osagi) me Your divine (divya) vision (darSanamu) (darSanamosagi).

caraNam
caraNam 1
nI vale karuNA sAgari I jagAna
nE vetaki kanugona kAna-ekkaDa kAna
pAvanamagu SrImat panca nadi-ISvaruni rANi nA
bhAvamulO dorukukoNTivi-ika maracedanA
I varakunu jEsina nEramulanu
nIvu-encaka nalugurilO tanaku-ika
kAvalasina kOrikalu-osagi
kAvumu patita pAvani dharma saMvardhani (nIvu)

Having searched (vetaki) in this (I) World (jagAna), I (nE) could not find (kanugona kAna) anywhere (ekkaDa kAna) (kAnekkaDa) an Ocean (sAgari) of mercy (karuNA) like (vale) You (nI);
O Consort (rANi) of Lord Siva – auspicious (SrImat) Lord (ISvaruni) of holy (pAvanamagu) tiruvaiyAru - five (panca) rivers (nadi) (nadISvaruni)! You have been apprehended (dorukukoNTivi) in my (nA) thought (bhAvamulO); will I forget (maracedanA) You now (ika) (dorukukoNTivika)?
O Redeemer (pAvani) of the fallen (patita)! You (nIvu) please protect (kAvumu) me in the midst of others (nalugurilO), without taking into account (encaka) (nIvencaka) mistakes (nEramulanu) committed (jEsina) by me so far (I varakunu), by granting (osagi) desires (kOrikalu) (kOrikalosagi) necessary (kAvalasina) for me (tanaku) now (ika) (tanakika);
O Mother dharma saMvardhani! O Mother of entire worlds! O Mother! You should protect me.

caraNam 2
nAyeDa vancana sEyaka pasiDi SilA kanja
sAyakuni-anniTa nIvu-ani-enciti gAka
mAyapu bhava sAgara bAdhalu-endAka eDa-
bAyani nI pada bhaktini-osanga parAkA
kAyaja janakuni sOdari nI-okka
mAyalanu tolaga jEyaka-uNDuTa
nyAyamu kAdu dayA-pari Subha phala
dAyakiyau dharma saMvardhani (nIvu)

Don’t be partial (vancana sEyaka) towards me (nAyeDa). Though (gAka) I considered (enciti) that (ani) You (nIvu) (nIvaniyenciti) exist in everything (anniTa) - gold (pasiDi), stone (SilA) (literally stone) and desire - kAma – Lotus (kanja) Arrowed (sAyakuni) (sAyakunanniTa),
how long (endAka) the troubles (bAdhalu) (bAdhaluyendAka) of the illusory (mAyapu) Ocean (sAgara) of Worldly Existence (bhava)?
Why this unconcern (parAkA) in granting (osanga) me unceasing (eDa-bAyani) devotion (bhaktini) (bhaktinosanga) to Your (nI) Feet (pada)?
O Sister (sOdari) of the vishNu – Father (janakuni) of cupid (kAyaja)! It is not justice (nyAyamu kAdu) not to banish (tolaga jEyaka uNDuTa) (jEyakayuNDuTa) Your (nIyokka) illusions (mAyalanu);
O Most Merciful (dayA-pari)! O Mother dharma saMvardhani who bestows (dAyakiyau) auspicious (Subha) fruits (phala)!
O Mother of entire worlds! O Mother! You should protect me.

caraNam 3
raja SikhA maNi sati-aina Subha-AkAri amba
rAja rAja-ISvari tri-jagad-AdhAri
sarOja nayani nI mahimalanu teliya lErE
tyAgarAja-Adi parama bhAgavata hRdaya-AgArE
I jagatini gauri parAt-pari
avyAjamunanu paripAlana jEyu
O jagad-ISvari nera nammiti ninu
rAjigA dharma saMvardhani (nIvu)

O Embodiment (AkAri) of Auspiciousness (Subha) (SubhAkAri) who is the Consort (satiyaina) of Lord Siva – wearer of digit of moon (rAja) on the head (SikhA) like a jewel (maNi)! O Mother (amba) rAja rAjESvari (one of the names of Mother) who is the prop (AdhAri) of the three Worlds (tri-jagat) (tri-jagad-AdhAri) (Heaven, Earth and Nether World)!
O Lotus (sarOja) Eyed (nayani)! It is strange that people are not aware (teliya lErE) of Your (nI) prowess (mahimalanu);
O Mother abiding (AgArE) in the hearts (hRdaya) (hRdayAgArE) of supreme (parama) devotees (bhagavata) like tyAgarAja and others (Adi) (tyAgarAjAdi)!
O Mother gauri! O Mother who is beyond all (parAt-pari)! O Queen (ISvari) of the Universe (jagat) (jagad-ISvari) who governs (paripAlana jEyu) this (I) Universe (jagatini) without any apparent motive (avyAjamunanu)!
O Mother dharma saMvardhani! I trusted (nammiti) You (ninu) totally (nera); O Mother of entire worlds! O Mother! You should protect me willingly (rAjigA).

Notes

Variations - (Pathanthara)

References

Comments
¹ – kAvalasina kOrikalu – This may be translated as 'whatever is required by me' or 'whatever is necessary for me'. In the former case, the devotee places the demands on the Mother; in the latter case, the devotee leaves it to the discretion of the Mother to confer such necessities as may be necessary to perform worship of the Mother without hindrance. Please refer to kRti 'vaddanE vAru lEru' wherein SrI tyAgarAja states 'kOrikalilalO divilO koncemaina lEni nA manasu' (... my mind has no demands at all either in this World or the next...) and kRti 'kanna talli nIvu' wherein SrI tyAgarAja states 'anudinamonarincu sat-kriyala nIkani palkina tyAgarAja rakshaki' (O Protector of tyAgarAja who surrendered all the pious tasks performed daily to be for Your sake...)
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² – kanja sAyaka – ‘kanja’ means 'water born' – Lotus. Lotus is one of the five flower arrows of kAma.

² - pasiDi SilA kanja sAyaka – gold, stone, kAma. From the context, it is clear that SrI tyAgarAja refers to ‘three distractions of the Worldly Existence’ - ‘wealth, land and women’. These are called IshaNa traya (wife, children and wealth – as per Telugu Dictionary) – Tamil ‘mUvAsai’ – (land, gold and woman). Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa calls these ‘kAmini - kAncan’ (women and gold).

³ - avyAjamunanu – there is no apparent motive for the panca kRtya - five activities of Supreme Lord – projection (sRshTi), sustenance (sthiti) dissolution (laya), concealment (tirOdAna), beatitude (anugraha); Therefore the Mother is called ‘panca kRtya parAyaNa’ and ‘avyAja karuNA mUrti’ in the ‘lalitA sahasra nAma’.
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nIvu brOva valenamma - rAga sAvEri