Word Division - Word-by-word meaning
pallavi
rAma sItA rAma rAma rAma sItA rAma rAma
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam
caraNam 1
tappulu-enna pOtE mAku goppatanamu rAdu mA-
appa daya cEsi kaNDla kappukoni pAlimpavE (rAma)
If You count (or consider) (enna pOtE) our faults (tappulu) (tappulenna), we (mAku) (literally to us) will not achieve greatness (goppatanamu rAdu) (literally greatness shall not accrue);
O Our (mA) Lord (appa) (mAyappa)! kindly (daya cEsi) protect (pAlimpavE) me overlooking my faults - closing (kappokoni) Your eyes (kaNDla);
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 2
dApu lEka nEnu nIdu prApu kOrukoNTi kAni
rEpu mApu-anucu dOva jUpaka rAvayya brOva (rAma)
There being no (lEka) shelter (dApu), I (nEnu) sought (kOrukoNTi) Your (nIdu) support (prApu); therefore (kAni) (literally however),
O Lord (ayya), please come (rammu) (rAvayya) to protect (brOva) without turning me away (dOva jUpaka) (literally show exit) by (anucu) dilly-dallying (rEpu mApu) (mApanucu) (literally morning and evening);
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 3
nIla varNa pApamulaku-Alayamu-aitini nAdu
jAli tIrci bhayamu nIku-Ela-ani-AdukOvE (rAma)
O Dark-blue (nIla) hued (varNa)! I became (aitini) the abode (Alayamu) of sins (pApamulaku) (pApamulakAlayamaitini);
relieving (tIrci) my distress (jAli), please treat me kindly (AdukOvE) by assuring that (ani) ‘why (Ela) should You (nIku) be afraid (bhayamu) (nIkElayaniyAdukOvE)’;
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 4
vAlAyamuga kRpA-AlavAla rakshincu kanaka
cEla-indarilO nAdu ceyi lAgu-iyya samayamu (rAma)
Please protect (rakshincu) me certainly (vAlAyamuga), O Ocean (AlavAla) of Mercy (kRpA) (kRpAlavAla)!
O Lord who wears golden (kanaka) garments (cEla)! it is time (samayamu) for You to lift me up (nAdu ceyi lAgu iyya) (literally pull my hand) (lAgiyya) in the midst of these people (indarilO) (cElayindarilO);
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 5
itarula-andu manasu pOdu vetalu nIku teliya rAdu
gatiyu mummATiki lEdu kshitini-evvarini vEDa pOdu (rAma)
My mind (manasu) would not settle (pOdu) (literally not go) on (andu) (literally in) other Gods (itarula) (itarulandu); but, my grief (vetalu) would not be (rAdu) known (teliya) to You (nIku); and,
there is definitely (mummATiki) (literally thrice) no (lEdu) (other) refuge (gatiyu) (literally destination); whom (evvarini) shall I entreat (vEDa pOdu) in this World (kshitini) (kshtinevvarini)?
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 6
rAma rAma nitya Satru bhIma bhIma nuta gata
kAma kAma vairi nuta nAma nA madini rAvE (rAma)
O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Eternal (nitya) Lord! O Terror (bhIma) of enemies (Satru)! O Lord praised (nuta) by formidable persons (bhIma)!
O Lord from whom desires (kAma) have fled (gata)! O Lord whose name (nAma) is praised (nuta) by Lord Siva – enemy (vairi) of cupid (kAma)! please come (rAvE) to my (nA) mind (madini);
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 7
dEva dEva-arcita sarva jIva jIvana mahAnu-
bhAva bhAvaja rUpa SrI-pa-ava pAvana rAghava (rAma)
O Lord (dEva)! O Lord worshipped (arcita) by celestials (dEva) (dEvArcita)! O Life-support (jIvana) of all (sarva) living beings (jIva)! O Most Eminent One (mahAnubhAva)!
O Lord of the form (rUpa) of cupid (bhAvaja)! O Consort (pa) of lakshmI (SrI)! please protect (ava) (pAva) me, O Holy Lord (pAvana)! O Lord rAghava!
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 8
mAya mAyeDa vaddurA-adhyEya dhyEya vishayAla-Ela
rOyarO-eppuDu dEva rAya rAyA-I dEhamu (rAma)
Please do not (vaddurA) subject me (mAyeDa) (literally towards me) to Your Grand illusion (mAya); O Supreme Lord who is imponderable (adhyEya) (vaddurAdhyEya)! O Lord who is object of meditation or fit to be meditated on (dhyEya)!
Alas! why (Ela) would the people never (eppuDu) be disgusted (rOyarO) (rOyarOyeppuDu) with sense objects (vishayAla) (vishayAlEla)? O Lord (rAya) of celestials (dEva)! is this (I) body (dEhamu) made of stone (rAyA) (rAyAyI) (to withstand the effects of sense indulgence)?
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
caraNam 9
rAja rAja vandita virAja rAja harE dina
rAja rAja nayana tyAgarAja rAja daSaratha (rAma)
O Lord saluted (vandita) by Emperors (rAja rAja)! O Lord (rAja) of garuDa (virAja)! O Lord hari (harE)!
O Lord who has Sun - Lord (rAja) of day (dina) – and moon (rAja) as eyes (nayana)! O Lord (rAja) of this tyAgarAja! O daSaratha rAma!
O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord rAma! O Lord sItA rAma! O Lord rAma!
Notes
Variations - (Pathanthara)
1 - rAma sItA rAma rAma rAma sItA rAma rAma – rAma sItA rAma rAma rAma sItA rAma rAma rAma sItA rAma rAma rAma sItA rAma rAma (given twice in some books).
4 – SrI-pAva pAvana – SrIpApa pAvana : 'SrI-pAva pAvana' could be split as 'SrI-pa+ava+pAvana'. 'SrIpApa pAvana' does not seem to make sense.
5 – vaddurAdhyEya dhyEya – vaddurA dhEya dhEya : 'vaddurAdhyEya dhyEya' could be split as 'vaddurA+adhyEya+dhyEya'. The meaning of ‘dhEya dhEya’ is not clear.
6 – rAyayI dEhamu – rAma I dEhamu : ‘rAma I dEhamu’ by itself does not convey any meaning. However, instead of 'rAyayI dEhamu' it should be 'rAyAyI dEhamu'. It has accordingly been adopted.
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References
5 – dhyEya – Object of Meditation or fit to be meditated upon. In this regard, the following verse from SrImad-bhAgavataM, Book 10, Chapter 38 refers -
mamAdyAmangalaM nashTaM phalavAMScaiva mE bhavaH |
yan-namasyE bhagavatO yOgi-dhyEyAnghri-pankajam || 6 ||
(akrUra thought) “All my evil has been destroyed today; nay, my birth too has become fruitful in that I shall bow to the lotus feet of the almighty Lord, that are fit to be meditated upon by yOgis.”
5 – adhyEya – Not an object of meditation. lalitA sahasranAmam (254) refers – ‘dhyAna-dhyAtR-dhyEya rUpA’ – who is meditation, the person meditating and the object meditated upon. (Translation by Swami Tapasyananda) The para dEvi being all rolled into one - ‘meditation’, ‘person meditating’ and ‘object meditated upon’, She, in reality, is not an object of meditation (adhyEya). Please refer to kRti ‘vAcAmagOcaramE’ – rAga kaikavaSi.
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Comments
2 – mummATiki – surely – certainly. When a word is repeated thrice, it is taken as certainty.
3 – bhIma nuta – kAma vairi nuta nAma – ‘bhIma’ may be translated as ‘Siva’ also. But as ‘Siva’ is again appearing in the same caraNa (kAma vairi), ‘bhIma’ has been translated as ‘formidable people’. In a book, this has been translated as ‘praised by bhIma’ (pANDava).
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