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Meaning of "nannu brova" Song

Nannu = me; brova = to protect, rescue; niiku = (for) you; inta = this much, so much;(niiku+inta = niikinta); tamasamaa = delay, slow to respond; naapai = upon me, mine; neramemi = what infraction (mistake) have I done? What is my error, crime? Baluku = paluku, tell me; O manasa = O mind. 

Chinna natane = in childhood itself, in youth itself; chelimi = (your) friendship, association with you; kalga = get established, get rooted; kori = desiring; chintimpa leda = did I not think, did I not ponder? 

Nija = own, Sri Rama’s; dasa = servant, an individual who submits totally to Rama (Narayana); varulaku (vaaraluku) = to those excellent people, to those rare exceptional persons; tammulato = with brothers, together with brothers; nivu = you; baguga = in a nice way, pleasingly, appropriately; puttaga leda = were you not born? Gaja-raja rakshaka = the protector of Elephant King (see Srimad-Bhagavatam); tanayulanu = sons; kani pencha = gave birth and brought them up; leda = not, didn’t you? Tyagaraja-nuta = praised by Tyagaraja. 

The song opens with a direct question to Sri Rama thus: “How come You are so lazy in responding to my requests? How come? Rama, why are you so lethargic to come to my rescue?”

I remember an incident with my cousin brother many years back. It succinctly brings out the ‘state of lethargy’. He just graduated from high school and was still idling at home. He loved languages particularly Telugu and Sanskrit. Even after the summer holidays he still used to lazily hang around the house getting up late in the mornings (> 10 a.m.). One morning our grandmother got totally fed up with my cousin’s irresponsible behavior. Early morning at 7 a.m. she got a stiff coconut (leaf spline) broom and gave my brother good thrashing. He was still in deep sleep with stretched out body on the cot in the garden. On top of that she poured a bucketful of ice-cold water on the lazy future scholar (pundit). She sternly asked, “What do you want to do? You need a job to live. Tell me seriously.” Shivering my cousin replied tentatively thus: “I want to be a Telugu pundit and get a job as first grade teacher.” 

Grandmother by then had mellowed and pushed him to go and pursue the education at a free Sanskrit college near Godavari River. That push changed everything for my cousin. It made his life and he had a productive career in teaching. So, for the ordinary humans lethargy need to be broken – broken deliberately through effort. 

Now, here why is He not listening to the requests? We do not know and we cannot fathom. If the great composer has difficulty in understanding, who are we to decipher this puzzle? Apparently Tyagaraja got into devotion and bhakti at a very tender age. The second stanza really puts the Lord into the accusatory witness box (witness stand) for questioning: For people like Dasaratha (and Devaki, etc.), you took the pains of coming to the earth with your brothers. Ex: Rama, Lakshmana, Bharata, and Satrughna. In Dwapara Yuga, you descended on the earth with Balarama again. O the savior of Gajendra! As a single parent you even raised and brought up the sons (Lava and Kusa) according to the established norms. Further at the appropriate time you also put them on the throne too. Compared to all such complex tasks, isn’t it easy to just speak with me? O mind, tell me what is my crime? Where did I go wrong? The song leaves us with a sad sense and puts us into a meditation of Sri Rama and His inscrutable ways. Copyright 2021 by the author

Lyrics of "nannu brova" Song

ఆభోగి రాగము - దేశది తాళము

 

నన్ను బ్రోవ నీ కింత తామసమా ?

నాపై నేరమేమి బల్కుమా ?

 

చిన్ననాడె నీ చెలిమి గలుగ కోరి -

(చిన్న నాటినే చెలిమి కోరి కోరి) 

చింతింప లేదా ? శ్రీరామ !

నిజదాస వరులకు(గు) తమ్ములతో

నీవు బాగుగ బు(పు)ట్టగ లేదా ?

గజరాజరక్షక ! తనయులను -

కనిపెంచ లేదా ? త్యాగరాజనుత !

(Smt. Vasantha Ramanujam (aka Naada Vasantha) Naada Vasantha Rendition did an excellent rendition of this kirtana. She brought out to the fore the complete anguish and deep frustration felt by the great composer. Originally I heard this devotional song in a CD. On the Internet the song is available at JioSaavn site and other places. She is well known for Purandaradasa songs. I will post the meaning in a future article. In the passing I may make an innocent remark: I did not come across any Annamayya composition where the celebrated composer makes a complaint about Lord Venkatesa. Tyagaraja seems different in that respect - he brings out all colorful shades of emotions. The latter has a big chest of complaints against Sri Rama. Similarly Ramadasu also felt deep anguish due to the prison sentence. Still they all teach us a lot about bhakti.)

aabhOgi raagamu - daeSadi taaLamu

nannu brOva nee kiMta taamasamaa ?

naapai naeramaemi balkumaa ?

chinnanaaDe nee chelimi galuga kOri -

(chinna naaTinae chelimi kOri kOri) 

chiMtiMpa laedaa ? Sreeraama !

nijadaasa varulagu tammulatO

neevu baaguga bu(pu)TTaga laedaa ?

gajaraajarakshaka ! tanayulanu -

kanipeMcha laedaa ? tyaagaraajanuta !

Annamayya Kirtana "Hari rasama"

హరి రసమా విహారి సతు -

సరసోయం మమ శ్రమ సంహారి

దయాని భృత తనుధారి సం

శయాతిశయ సంచారి

కయాప్యజిత వికారి

క్రియా విముఖ కృపాణ ధారి

సదా మిధ్యా జ్ఞాని 

సదు (సతు) మదాలి మతాభిమాని 

తదాశ్రిత సంధాని 

తదు తదా తదా చింతా శయనాని  

పరామృత సంపాది

స్థిరానంద స్వేవి 

వరాలాప  వివాది శ్రీ 

తిరువేంకటగిరి దివ్య వినోది

hari rasamaa vihaari satu - sarasOyaM mama Srama saMhaari dayaani bhRta tanudhaari saM SayaatiSaya saMchaari kayaapyajita vikaari kriyaa vimukha kRpaaNa dhaari sadaa midhyaa j~naani sadu (satu) madaali mataabhimaani tadaaSrita saMdhaani tadu tadaa tadaa chiMtaa Sayanaani paraamRta saMpaadi sthiraanaMda svaevi varaalaapa vivaadi Sree tiruvaeMkaTagiri divya vinOdi

(I heard it in a cassette, sung by Dr. Balamuralikrishna. If there are any errors, I will edit it later adding the video/audio link. Even without knowing its meaning fully one gets a respite from restlessness just by singing the Sanskrit devotional song) Copyright 2021 by the author

Lyrics of "pata paduma" Song

పాట పాడుమా కృష్ణా

పలుకు తేనెలొలుకునటుల

మాటలాడు మా ముకుంద మనసు తీరగా

శృతి లయాలు అన్ని చేసి (చేర్చి) 

యతులు నిన్ను మదిని తలచే ఏ ఏ 

సదమల హృదయా నిన్ను

సన్నుతించు వర నామము  || పాట ||

సామవేద సారము సంగీతము

సాహిత్యమెగా ఆ ఆ 

దానికింత (కంత)  మధుగానము పాట కూర్చి

పాడుమా

paaTa paaDumaa kRshNaa

paluku tEnelolukunaTula

maaTalaaDumaa mukunda manasu tiiragaa

SRti layaalu anni cEsi

yatulu ninnu madini talacE E E 

sadamala hRdayaa ninnu

sannutincu vara naamamu  || paaTa ||

saamavEda saarame sangiitamu

saahityamegaa aa aa 

daanikinta madhugaanamu paaTa kuurchi

paaDumaa

(This is a classic song composed by Sri Sanyasi Raju, father of the famed Telugu music director Sri Saluri Rajeswara Rao. The beauty of this simple melodious composition is this - in just two stanzas the composer has encapsulated the essence of Lord Krishna. His sweet music and His superb attractive power to all devotees. 

Though I must have heard this song many times either on AIR radio or private functions, after coming here I lost touch with it for many years. Then suddenly I found the TLCA website and there I came across an Internet site solely devoted to old Telugu songs. There I happened to hear a live program by Sri S. Rajeswara Rao and this song. It is a cliche to say, "old is gold". But where will you encounter such musical geniuses? Now we don't hear good analog sound, distinct instrumental sounds, and an amalgam of spontaneous live performance. This may be a caustic criticism but most if not all the modern music heavily depends on endless cut/paste editing, synthetic computer generated sounds, and faulty diction. Luckily we sat through many first rate live performances with world class artists. This song makes my heart long for great original compositions. It is a treat to hear the fine vocals. I pay my gratitude to the son and father duo.) Copyright 2021 by the author

Essential Math Skills - I

Essential Math Skills

In the modern world one ought to know a bit of language, arts, science, and most importantly some basic math. Language skills are needed for communication with the people in the street, vendors, neighbors, and (alluring) hospital nurses. Arts appear to be a useless subject in the modern technical world but without arts we cannot enjoy a fictional book or song; good aesthetic wholesome art acts like a soothing balm when the soul is in distress. Science may seem to be a hard subject but we all need a bit of scientific knowledge; otherwise we would be fooled by all the TV commentators or taken for a ride by all the misleading information floating around on social media. This is particularly dangerous in this age of Covid and other pandemics.  

Now why we need math? Sure, at the local Farmers Market the sellers are fully conversant with the money changes and numbers. Normally I do not see anyone using a calculator or abacus in the local Farmers market or flea markets here in the US. That used to be the norm in the Indian villages when I did the weekly shopping during high school days. Not anymore now there. I see frequently in cities like Hyderabad the street vegetal vendors resort to calculators for the routine simple miscellaneous additions and subtractions. If a checkout clerk at the supermarket (with power OFF) or the retail street vendor cannot work with numbers – that ought to speak volumes about the fall in school standards and fluency with numbers. The recent remote learning (via Zoom video, etc.), however great it may be for the (educational IT) technology companies it will not ease the pain of learning particularly in STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) areas. Now only the reality is sinking in and its effects will linger for years to come.

Say we look at a number like 15, what do we mean or what do we understand when we say ‘fifteen’?

15 = 10 + 5

15 = 1 x 10¹ + 5 x 10⁰

10 = (10¹) + (0x10⁰)

(10^x) is read as ten to the power of x. The reader needs a bit of patience here. The concept of “power” or “index” will be come clear as we plough along further. For now, suffice to understand ten cubed (or ten to the power of 3) means

(10³) = 10 x 10 x 10 = 1,000 (thousand).

When we write the number 10 actually we mean 10 represents “one in 10’s place and zero in unit’s place”. We implicitly are using a system with 10 (ten) as the base. Of course, the selection of 10 as the base is arbitrary – but it is quite convenient for our computations and day-to-day transactions. And let’s pay our respects and gratitude to those persons who brought this very convenient decimal number system.  For the base we could’ve chosen 2, 16 (hexa-decimal), or some other large number. In the computers, software programming, and even in some semiconductor chips (not potato chips!) we use the hexa-decimal or 2 as the base or sometimes even both. 

A historical note: We do not know how the ancient Hindu number system got started with the “base of 10”. Maybe, humans got started counting with their hand fingers (digits). Looks like the Mayans used a base of 20 (ten fingers and ten toes).

So, to cut short, we must understand when we put down numbers like 32, 678, or 10,425 or even 318,678 what each number in the ones, tens’, hundreds’ or thousandth place means. If we understand the basics well and if we develop precision in our thinking – then simple math becomes very easy. No big deal, if we’ve to add two large numbers or multiply some odd set of numbers. No need to get scared unnecessarily. The numbers won’t swallow us! And with more knowledge we get skills to verify subtraction and division and any other operation (multiplication X, division ÷, or square root). That means, even without a calculator we can and must be able to check and cross check our own computations. And that (such hand calculations) will build confidence and soon we become self-reliant. I think Jiddu Krishnamurti once commented about fear and mental issues like this: “We must face the fear head on. Suppose the car has a problem. Let us just open the engine and put it back. We learn in breaking things too. Then the fear of the engine trouble and other unfamiliar auto issues (like leaking master cylinder in brake lines) slowly get resolved. We get confidence and try to learn things. Same way we may know about fear too.” You get such ideas while reading books like The Grapes of Wrath or Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Similarly the math phobia is also a man (person) made problem. Some students have a wrong opinion about math teachers; they quickly jump to conclusion saying, “He is not a good teacher.” And then the student stops learning math altogether. The student drops the subject from her curriculum. Sadly movies like 'Vajram' (K. Viswanath and Nagarjuna) do not help either. They give a wrong picture of math and math teachers. One day the same student may find the value (necessity) of interest calculations, budgeting, mortgage, and car payments – but it will be too late. 

As a sidebar (note) I may comment on the history of zero. In the classic book by Hogben, the author suggests perhaps the Indian (Hindu) accountants might have just used a dot to indicate  “nothing”. Interestingly we find the name (word) “sunya” (సున్న, శూన్య) in Vishnu sahasra-nama. For tracing the sahasra-nama’s chronological roots we have to refer to samhita or Maha-bharata. Either way its origins in the Indian subcontinent could be very antiquated. One may quibble the actual dates but serious historians should also look into this angle for ascertaining the origin of zero. Only people like Sri Paramacharya (Kanchi) or Tilak would pore over classical texts and Sanskrit treatises to ascertain the dates of such important matters. They were sincere, honest, and scholarly explorers. (to be Continued) Copyright 2021 by the author

Beckoning the Snow (Nature Poem)

Beckoning the Snow

 

A dreary day

So I thought, on my way to the park

I always liked to stroll through the woods

Next to the Limestone Creek

There in the fall I would see the

Colorful reflections of the sugar maples

And sweet gum flaming foliage

There in the waters I could see the red roots

Yes even the roots are dark red

 

But today I am late

Now the trees are totally nude

Now these benevolent trees

With luxurious crowns have no castes,

No names, they all coalesced into

One single community: a cluster of gray

Tall standing meditating monks

Except the evergreens

The entire park looked forlorn

There are no children on the swings

Nor any adults in the ballpark

And of course, the irksome pesky mosquitoes

Are absent too

Suddenly the sun shone briefly

Again it all turned cloudy

But the soil under my feet

Whispered a different tale

The earth has been longing

For the arrival of winter snow –

“Now I have discorded all my jewels

And dresses, don’t remind me about

The long tresses of willows

The luxurious silky golden crowns of honey locusts

And the soft pastel colors of sumac tops

Oh, the last colored dress or was it some

Intricate motif designed by the Benarasi silk weavers

I had the most gorgeous sari draped over me

With the cool clear eyes of blue lake looking at

The heavens

I have worked hard over the summer

To provide all my children and grand children

Now I want only your tight heavy embrace

Cover me totally and take me into your cool hands

I am weary with overwork and now I want to lie

Idly, with my own internal thoughts and feelings

Now I have to rejuvenate myself – for my own hidden roots

Lakes and streams

I have to keep all my little children

The rabbits, chipmunks, bears, and beavers

All snug, warm, and dry

Now everyone listen carefully

Be quiet, the lights are out

Rest and sleep happily

You need to conserve energies and food

For the long drawn winter

The fury winds from the North

Will be here any moment

Hide, hurry up, and put on

Insulation, all of you

 

Dear darling, come soon, with glowing symmetrical

Soft snowflakes

When you come, be careful and gentle

There will be a tender dianthus

A late blooming mum

The still green common mullein

And the fresh fronds of spotted fern

Be gentle to them

Also you’ll find glossy smooth mossy patches

On the lime stones and mounds

Do not be rough and tread carelessly

On those bare breasts of mine” Copyright 2021 by the author