Bhagavan , Bhaktha, and Bhagavatham
I am posting some nectar of Bhakthi by some extraordinary bhaktas
[ devotees]. I drowned in it and as a believer in the saying, “ Yam petra inbam peruga ivvaiyagam” [ Let the World experience the joy I experienced], I invite the readers to drown in nectar too.
This is not comprehensive, I am just sharing a few nuggets I like .
Oothukadu Venkata Subbaiyer
Those readers who would like information about this saint -composer may check these links.
http://www.geocities.com/oothukkadu/
http://www.rramakrishnan.com/Articles/Music/Ooththukadu.pdf
I first “ met” Oothukaadu Kavi through the majestic voice of Carnatic musician Maharajapuram Santhanam.
There are compositions from the Madhura bhava Bhakthi [Lord as a lover] angle . This one is from the Vatsalya Bhava Bhakthi [ Lord as a beloved child]angle .
Othukkadu “Yashoda” Venkata Kavi says:
Ootthukaadu Kavi’sTamil verse is in bold and below that is my translation [ a poor one as I did not see Krishna’s dance as he saw] .
Adathu asangathu vaa –nee
Adathu vaa kanna
Un adalil erezhu bhuvanamum asaindhu asaindathudhey
Enave, nee adathu asangathu vaa
Dance not Krishna!
Your dance makes
All the fourteen worlds dance,
Hence, dance not Krishna!
Krishna, as a self respecting young child , cannot walk as adults do. He has to dance along and as he does, he kicks a fortunate tree or plant on the way.
It was a divine dance all right. And we are trying to watch it through the Kavi’s eyes.
Un aadalai kaana Thillai
Ambalatiraivanum
Than adalai vittu enge gokulam vandhaar
Adalinal siru yadhavane
Oru mamayil iragani madhavane
The Lord of Thillai Ambalam [ Chidambaram] ,
Has stopped his dancing and
Has come here to Gokulam
To see your dance!
Hence , Oh little cowherd,
Oh Madhava who wears a peacock feather !
Dance not!
Siru Yadhavan [ little cowherd] is how he refers to the child. The easy familiarity he has with the Lord is evident. He is said to have stood in the temple in the little village of Oothukaadu and experienced the bliss of Krishna.
Chinnanchiru padhangal silambolithidume
Adhai sevi maduththa piravi manankalithidume
Pinniya sadai satre vahai kalandhidume
Mayil peeliasaidhasaindhu nilaikalainthidume.
The anklets in the little feet jingles
The one who hears that, is filled with joy
The braided hair gets tousled
The peacock feather moves and moves
And is not in its place.
[The mother has, with some difficulty, managed to hold the brat still
while she braided his hair. She is rightly concerned about the state of his braid.
Also concerned about her own state. The child looks absolutely adorable with his tousled braid and she may forgive him for anything!].
Panniru kai iraivan erum mayil ondru
Than pasunthogai virithadi parisalithidume
Kuzhal padi varum azhaga-unai
Kana varum adiyar evarayinum
Kanaka maniyasaiyum unadhu thirunatanam
Kann pattu ponal manam pun pattu pogum-enave
Adadhu asangadhu vaa
The peacock of the twelve armed lord*
Gifts a dance number
Spreading its colourful feathers
Oh, the beautiful one with the flute!
[ *Refers to Lord Kartikeya]
When people see you dancing
With gold beads and all
Evil eyes may be cast on you
This heart would be hurt, hence
Dance not, Oh, Krishna.
Mother speaks all right.
Kann pattu ponal [if evil eyes are cast],Manam pun pattu pogum [ the heart would be hurt] is a simple and effective rhyming sentence , also one which gives away the mother in him.
In another composition, [ Parvai ondre podhume] he says Krishna’s one [ secretive] glance is enough and even Sanga nidhi and Padma nidhi [ wealth] of the celestial Kubera wont equal that one glance.
The way the child looks, when another mother of his, a Gopi, goes to complain to his mother Yashoda of yet another butterly transgression of his!
The poor lady is rewarded with a KaLLa Parvai of his [the sort of look thieves of that kind are capable of when caught butter handed].
He stands behind his mother like a good child. He then begs her with his eyes “ Don’t tell Mom !”
After all, he stole much more than butter. Butter stealing was just a cover for his covert mission of bringing in to his loving fold, generations and generations of people.
The Gopi too wasn’t there to complain but she needed an excuse to go see the child once again.
What of the simple cowherd woman? If the child’s maternal uncle, the man who wanted to kill the child, had seen him at that time, he too would have succumbed to the charm and forgotten his dark mission that very moment .
Subramania Bharathi
He needs no introduction to people from Tamilnadu .
But, to have a quick look -through on this fiercely nationalistic Mahakavi’s profile please follow these links.
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/acropolis/6551/bharathi.htm
Here is an article I had posted in Sulekha blogs sometime ago.
http://narensomu.sulekha.com/blog/post/2007/04/bharathi-s-life-a-brief-overview.htm
He has composed many verses on Kannan [Krishna] from every Bhakthi bhava possible, including one in which he says, Krishna himself was his servant!
He had immense knowledge of classical music and has not only penned the verses but also composed music for them.
My favourite is this piece from Kannan en Sevakan.[ Krishna, my servant]
Engiruntho vanthaan
Idaisaadhi naan enraan
Ingivanai yaan perave
Enna thavam seidhu vitten
Don’t know where he came from
“Iam a cowherd!” said he.
What penances I must have done
To get him!
We are not surprised though that God could be worshipped in this bhava as well..
The Lord would do this kind of service and much more for love.
He did chores for some of his bhaktas, he took notes when some of them wrote what would benefit the World.
As Shiva, took care of a new mother and baby when the formers mother was stuck in floods.
As Rama, carried food to saint composer Thyagaraja with his “catering service crew” consisting of wife, younger brother and loving devotee,
As Panduranga, waited patiently outside a devotee’s home, as the latter was too busy to open the door.
As Krishna, ran up and down to bring peace between cousins, donated cloth to a woman in distress, did chauffeur work for a beloved cousin, http://narensomu.sulekha.com/blog/post/2007/04/bharathi-s-life-a-brief-overview.htmthe list is endless.
In Bharathi’s famed Panchali Sabatham , through the words of Panhali/Draupadi, the Mahakavi garlands Krishna with his many verses.
From the Madhura bhava, the “ Nayika” Kavi laments
“ Naalu Vaidhyarum
Ini nambutharkillaiyendrar
Paalaththu Josiyanum
Graham paduthum enru vittan!
All the Doctors
Have given up
The astrologer near that bridge
Foresees planets that would trouble.
[ Naalu vaidhyar, meaning four kinds of doctors , I am told, refers to doctors of different schools. “ English”, Siddha, Ayurveda and Homeopathy may be?]
But who can cure this kind of madness/sickness? Only he can. And he seems hard hearted.
Ennamuraithu vidil-thangame thangam
Pinnar, edhenilum seivomadi thangame thangam.
If he lets me know
What’s in his mind
Then…we’ll think of
Something to do!
The Nayika [ Lady lead] in Bharathi is no weak lady. She sounds like she would take some stern action here. A fitting match for Krishna.
She says further on“ Thootri nagar murasu satruvom” meaning she’ll let the whole world know about the times Krishna the thief spent with her by the river.
Manickavasakar says in one of his verses [while in his nayaki bhava] that he’d tell everyone that the Lord was responsible for her madness and threatens the Lord to take some corrective action or else!
The tone makes us smile but the intensity of feelings touches us deeply.
The object of this kind of devotion must surely love this drama.
Poet Kannadasan
He is a well-known movie lyricist and he too doesn’t need any introduction among Tamil speakers.
Born Muthaiah , in a family of religious Vaisyas [ the Nagarathaar/Chetiyar ] community] , he called himself Kannadasan [ a servant of Krishna] and is known by that name.
He spent a little time as the star orator of the then Dravidar Kazhagam party [ the forerunner of DMK] , as like many young men of his generation he had been attracted to the “rationalistic” , rebellious ideas the party stood for.
When he found out the concerned didn’t have honest or genuine intentions, he left them and at some point, must have come in to contact with Krishna.
His good fortune and, ours too.
Lets listen to Krishna’s humble servant.
Kannan vandhaan –ange Kannan vandhaan
Ezhai kanneerai kandathum
Kannan vandhaan
[movie: Ramu Year :]]]]
Krishna came
Krishna came
When he saw the
Poor one’s tears
Krishna came there.
Thedi ninra Kangalile Kannan vandhaan
Deepa onru kaiyil endhi Kannan vanthaan
Kettavarku kettapadi Kannan vandhaan
Kelviyile Badhilaga Kannan Vanthaan
Dharmam ennum theril eri Kannan vanthaan
Thalaatha thuyar theerka Kannan vanthaan
Krishna came , as the eyes sought him
Krishna came, with a lamp in hand
Krishna came, as the seekers sought him
Krishna came, as the answer within the question
Krishna came, riding the chariot of righteousness
Krishna came, to cure unbearable misery
He must have written hundreds of songs for Tamil movies and many of them shine with his supreme devotion as well as a philosophical attitude that the Gita must have imparted in him.
Ayarpadi maligaiyil
Thai madiyil kanrinai pol
Maya Kannan thoongukindran
Thalelo
A lullaby he has written for the album Krishna Ganam above.
In the palace of Gokulam
In his mother’s lap
Sleeps Krishna
The Mayavi
Kannanavan thoongi vital
Kasiniye thoongi vidumannaiyare thiyilezhuppa vareero
Avan ponnazhagai parpatharkkum
Bodhai muththam oeruvathrkum
Kanniyare Gopiyare Vareero!
If Krishna sleeps
The whole world would,too!
Oh Mothers, wont you come to wake him?
To see his resplendence
To get his intoxicating kisses
Wont you all come, oh young Gopis?
The Nayika in him has penned several songs for Tamil movies .
Unnum podhum, urangum bodhum
Ennam muzhudhum Kannan thane
While eating
And while sleeping
The thoughts are full of Krishna.
[ This too, seems like a serious case that cannot be helped by any medical intervention!This strange disease can only be cured by the one who caused it .]
He has also, like Oothukkadu Kavi, written Nayika verses with Lord Kartikeya as the Nayaka.
But just like the Kavi , he seems to have a special affinity to the dark and enchanting form of Krishna.
A loving heart doesn’t differentiate between one form and another.
To them, they are all from the same source.
We are blessed, as we get to hear the soulful verses that sprung out of great minds, sung by musicians who sing to connect the ordinary with the divine.
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written by narensomu, 2011-10-17 18:30:04
Thank you very much for your efforts and explanation. Sri Nandinathan, thank you very much too.Your comment made me appreciate the dance of bliss of Sri Sambandha.
Yes, the abhaya Hasta or holding of butter ball would be the factor that would clearly state that the dancer is Krishna.
As to the dance of Sri Sambanda , it seems highly likely that this may have happened just after he received the divine milk as Sri Partha suggests.
The dance of bliss indeed that must have continued on throughout his short but eventful life before he merged with the divine light at Thirumanancheri.
I'd remove this image and add dancing Krishna here, after saving this beautiful image on my PC.
Warm regards
ns
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written by partha, 2011-10-16 22:58:12
Do look at the image and also read the description in this note on a bronze child Krishna.
http://artofpast.com/gallery/dancing-krishna/
You will note that Balakrishna bronzes did serve as a model for Chola sculptures of Child Sambandar.
The basic difference is in the right palm. While the palm is extended opened horizontally forward and carries a ball of navaneeta traditionally in the Krishna bronzes, it is closed with the index finger alone out pointing heavenward in the child Sambandar bronzes.
If you search for child sambandar bronzes, and dancing Krishna bronzes, you will find this difference confirmed in a majority of cases
The depiction could be that the child when found by the parent was dancing in joy and showing wherefrom the Universal Mother came to feed him when he was left to his own resources and cried.
That would make your image Sambandar, modelled on a Krishna and therefore easily mistakeable as Krishna by the source from which you took it.
Both had much to teach us mere human beings!
Warm regards. Partha
Dear Sri Nandinathan,
Thank you for pointing the identity through which we could all learn the subtle difference. The author of the blog must have relied on the description given in her source, and can hardly be faulted, when the difference is so subtle.
Warm regards. Partha
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written by narensomu, 2011-10-16 18:27:33
Then I found an image at this link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Child_Saint_Sambandar_(915580465).jpg
This image seems to be in the Freer gallery of arts, Washington DC.
While this looks very similar to the one posted in the article, I find that the left foot is either missing /not clear in the picture at wikipedia and the necklaces around the neck isn't in three strands as the one posted in this article.There seem to be other subtle diffrences like the height of the jata etc.
But for that they look the same-the mudras , etc.
There seems to be one bronze in Peraiyur temple that looks less similar than this- it is supported on its right foot.
I am not able to come to a conclusion and if you could throw some light on this, it would be nice.
Thank you for inspiring me to check the images on the net-I 'd thought the child saint was always shown with thaalam in his hand.
Other Medhavis , if they have any info. on this ,may please comment too.
Regards
ns
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written by Nandinathan, 2011-10-15 08:05:06
The dancing persona in the murti shown here is not Balakrishna, but actually Thirugnanasambandar (Sambandar) - a Saiva Nayamnar.
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written by narensomu, 2011-08-31 01:24:21
Thank you for the kind words and more thanks for the sthala puranam.That is a better sweet. I wasn’t aware of this . Surely narthana Gopala must have enjoyed your wife’s rendition of these songs.
I had heard Venkata Subbaiyer was considered to be mad by more worldly people around him but it seems fitting to read he was Narada Rishi in a human form.
His Tamil sounds very close to what we speak today-sometimes very colloquial and hence closer to heart.
I have listened to just 15 of these songs –can’t decide on a favorite though-to refer one more-“ Yaar enna sonnaalum anjadhe nenjame” [ No matter what anyone may say-don’t fear oh [my] heart, sing the compassion of our Lord, if possible dance with proper steps!”] and adding that us human life is precious and hence one shouldn’t waste time in pursuits other than reaching God.
The three extraordinary men are very different outwardly speakin-one, a saint composer, another a nationalist" Kshatriya" type poet/Vedanthi, another a movie lyricist who had seen money. pleasure ,adulation and also back-stabbing all in equal measures at a young age-Krishna is the thread that binds them all.
Karigar
Thank you. Can’t take credit for the image –would have posted the article on Janmashtami day –been meaning to since two years:-)-this year looked for a suitable ISKCON /Raja Ravivarma image to add –couldn’t do so somehow and this dancing Krishna ended up here.
Warm regards
ns
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written by karigar, 2011-08-28 01:43:40
Great page from Narensomu, and a brilliant resource for teaching of how the avatara's presence manifests itself over the yugas.. The story of sri Krishna wanting to be "frozen" when the kavi stopped is a great one to tell our kids, as a typical (more than just symbolic) deeply realized way in which much of our major temples have come into existence at particular times & places.
The Vedic sense of "revelation" as always available to humanity is at work in a beautiful & aesthetic way.
Thanks again for the words & the efforts to add the pictures to tell the ful story.
And Partha thanks for the sthala purana research frm the temple purohit ji.
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written by partha, 2011-08-28 00:43:52
What a beautiful comeback to Medha blogspaces and what an appropriate fare for Sri Krishna's birthday week!
Thank you for the delectable Tirukkannamudu. You have in fact made a paayasakadambam by drawing on three kavibhaktas from different ages and genres, united however in their yearning for Kanna's Love.
The geocities link did not open, but I did not mind. Apart from your Thenaruvi (honeyfall), you had provided a fantastic link to the biography of one of the greatest bhaktisahityakartas in Tamil, Sri Venkatasubba Iyer of Oothukkadu. Sri Ramakrishnan's scholarly article is indeed very descriptive and explains the greatness of Venkatakavi.
Do read the following wiki account of the Oothukkadu village, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oothukadu.
With some members of our family, I had occasion to visit the shrine mentioned in the wiki account early this month and to have a darshan of the absolutely beautiful panchaloha image of Sri Kaliyamardana Krishna described in the Wiki article. The Bhattacharya gave a more detailed sthalapurana account which included the belief that Sri Venkatakavi was an incarnation of Sri Narada. It is also believed that when he was sitting at a particular spot near the bali peetha of Sri Vedanarayana and singing his "alai paayuthe Kanna" kirtana, Krishna had appeared in the pond behind the shrine in the kaliya mardana form. He was actually dancing on Kaliya's head reenacting the Dwaparayuga episode! He had asked Venkatakavi to keep singing, telling him that he will freeze into an archa form whenever the Kavi asked him to stop dancing. In the course of his ecstatic song with many charanams not all of which are remembered today, the Kavi forgot the message and suddenly felt that the divine child was being lashed too many times by the serpent's tail. He told him to stop the dance and the Lord restricted himself promptly to the 21/2 foot panchaloha icon, it appears.
No one knew what had happened to the image till it was discovered in the almost dried up pond behind the temple recently. The temple has indeed shot up in fame afterwards. The place is slowly being renovated and the pond too being repaired. Devotees are advised either to meditate or sing a Venkatakavi Kirtana sitting near the bali peetham. My wife enjoyed the experience of singing there.
The visit was a thrilling experience for all of us.
Warm regards. Partha.
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http://commons.wikimedia.org/w...Delhi.jpg
Not sure how authentic the description that the prev. image we had here is that of dancing Krishna as.
May be due to all the similarities and the absence of typical Krishna -like hand mudras it is considered to be Krishna by some.
Thank you
ns