pallavi
1viDemu sEyavE nannu
2viDa(n)ADakavE
anupallavi
puDami tanaya cEti manci
3maDupul(a)nucu talaci talaci (viDemu)
caraNam
rAja mAnyuDau saumitri ratna tamma paDiga paTTi
tEjarilla nilicinADu dEva dEva
jAji kAyalu Elakulu jApatri 4vakkal(A)kulu
rAja rAja vara tyAgarAju prEmatOn(o)sangE (viDemu)
pallavi
viDemu sEyavE nannu viDa(n)ADakavE
Please have (sEyavE) (literally do) tAmbUlam – betel leaves (viDemu); do not (ADakavE) desert (viDa) (viDanADakavE) me (nannu).
anupallavi
puDami tanaya cEti manci
maDupul(a)nucu talaci talaci (viDemu)
Considering (talaci talaci) (literally thinking again and again) these to be (anucu) the nice (manci) (literally good) rolls (maDupulu) (maDupulanucu) prepared by the very hand (cEti) of sItA – the daughter (tanaya) of the Earth (puDami),
please have tAmbUlam; do not desert me.
caraNam
rAja mAnyuDau saumitri ratna tamma paDiga paTTi
tEjarilla nilicinADu dEva dEva
jAji kAyalu Elakulu jApatri vakkal(A)kulu
rAja rAja vara tyAgarAju prEmatOn(o)sangE (viDemu)
O Lord (dEva) of celestials (dEva)! lakshmaNa – son of sumitrA (saumitri), respected (mAnyuDau) by the kings (rAja) - is shiningly (tEjarilla) standing (nilicinADu) holding (paTTi) (in his hands) the gem-studded (ratna) spittoon (tamma paDiga);
O Emperor (rAja rAja) par excellence (vara)! please have tAmbUlam,
consisting of nutmeg (jAji kAyalu), cardomoms (Elakulu), mace (jApatri), (pieces of) arecanut (vakkalu) and betel leaves (Akulu) (vakkalAkulu),
offered (osangE) by this tyAgarAja (tyAgarAju) with love (prEmatOnu) (prEmatOnosangE);
do not desert me.
Notes
Variations - (Pathanthara)
References
Comments
1 – viDemu – betel leaves applied with lime, bits of betel nuts (arecanut) and spices like nutmeg, mace, clover, cardomom etc are taken after food which is also known as ‘tAmbUlam’.
2 – viDanADakavE – do not desert - It is customary that guests are served tAmbUlam at the end of feast; SrI tyAgarAja states that 'now that I have offered You tAmbUlam', like a guest, do not leave (desert) (viDanADaku) me because You are not a guest here.
3 – maDupulu - betel leaves applied with lime are individually rolled and offered by the wife to her husband.
4 – vakkalAkulu – This may be translated as 'betel leaves' or 'betel nut and betel leaves'. Customarily, betel leaves alone are never offered – or even sold by shops in Tamil Nadu even now – without betel nuts; when we ask for 'betel leaves' only, a few bits of grated betel nuts are bundled along. Similarly, lime (used in betel leaves) is also not offered separately.
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"The betel leaf is known by the name 'vetrilai' in Tamil, literally an 'empty leaf'. Paramacharya once asked the people sitting around him the reason for calling it an 'empty leaf'. When none could give the answer, he said that the usually edible plants don't just stop with leaf; they proceed to blossom, and bear fruits or vegetables. Even in the case of spinach or lettuce, we have to cook them before we can take them. Only in the case of the betel leaf, we take it raw, and this plant just stops with its leaves, hence the name 'vetrilai' or 'empty leaf'." - Vetrilai - Paramacharya
General – For some interesting articles on the betel leaves and how they are offered in South-East Asian countries, please visit the sites - Betel Leaves-1 and Betel Leaves-2
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