Tyagaraja Kriti

Meaning - Gist

O Lord SrI rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord who is full of virtues!
O Lord rAmayya!
O Lord rAma – nourisher of this tyAgarAja!

After holding Your hand publicly, what match is it if You look at me just with side glances?
Who would understand that comfort derived, if You look at me straight?
Why any other Gods for me to instruct that ‘this is wise’?
My fear, of Your not holding my hand, is like that of unmarried maiden.
To whom else befits, so well, such a royal look (as that of Yours)?

Word Division - Word-by-word meaning

pallavi
rAma rAma rAmacandra SrI
rAma rAma guNa sAndra

O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of (sAndra) virtues (guNa)!

caraNam
caraNam 1
ghallu ghallu nI karamu paTTi krI
kannula kaNTE-Emi-unnadi taramu (rAma)

After holding (paTTi) Your (nI) hand (karamu) publicly (ghallu ghallu) (literally to jingling sound), what (Emi) match (taramu) is it (unnadi) if You look at me (kaNTE) (kaNTEmunnadi) just with side (krI) glances (kannula)?
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of virtues.

caraNam 2
nA jUpu nI jUpu sarigA jEsitE jEyunu-
A sukhamu evariki-eruka (rAma)

Who (evariki) would understand (eruka) (evarikiyeruka) that (A) comfort (sukhamu) derived (jEyunu) (jEyunA), if You look at me straight – make (jEsitE) straight (sarigA) my (nA) sight (jUpu) and Your (nI) sight?
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of virtues.

caraNam 3
idi buddhi-anucu Anati-iyya vErE
vElpulu-ETiki tanaku rAmayya (rAma)

O Lord rAmayya! Why (ETiki) any other (vErE) Gods (vElpulu) (vElpulETiki) for me (tanaku) to instruct (Anati iyya) (Anatiyaa) that (anucu) ‘this (idi) is wise (buddhi) (buddhiyanucu)’?
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of virtues.

caraNam 4
ceTTa paTTani nA bhIti rAma
boTTu kaTTani kanyaka rIti (rAma)

O Lord rAma! My (nA) fear (bhIti), of Your not holding (peTTani) my hand (ceTTa), is like (rIti) that of unmarried – not tied (kaTTani) with mangaLa sUtra (boTTu) - maiden (kanyaka).
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of virtues.

caraNam 5
evariki tagunE bAga rA
jUpu vale rAma tyAgarAja paripAla (rAma)

O Lord rAma – nourisher (paripAla) of this tyAgarAja! To whom (evariki) else befits (tagunE) so well (bAga) such (vale) a royal (rA) look (jUpu) (as that of Yours)?
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O rAmacandra! O Lord SrI rama! O Lord rAma who is full of virtues.

Notes

Variations - (Pathanthara)

References
² - boTTu – mangaLa sUtra - tAli – tamizh
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Comments
¹ – krI kannula kaNTEmunnadi taramu – this has been translated in one of the books as ‘I do not need anything other than your kaTAksha – krI kannulu’. However the wordings ‘Emunnadi taramu’ makes it clear, that SrI tyAgarAja is not at all satisfied with kaTAksha – krI kannulu. This kRti is in the nAyikA bhAva. He desires an eye-to-eye look. This is amplified in second caraNa ‘look at me straight’ (nA jUpu nI jUpu sari jEsitE).

² - boTTu kaTTani kanyaka - A girl, having loved a person, if there is uncertainty about marriage with her lover, the girl would naturally be afraid of her fate.
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rAma rAma rAmacandra - rAga ghaNTA